#not only the actual fights but also! sparring! practicing with each other!

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

Wait im sorry if like youve talked about this before but what is everyones roles in the fantasy au 👁️👁️ or jobs?

i've just Thought Aloud in bits and pieces but hey. i feel like talking today so i'll put it all in one place with Updated Thinkings

(i like to imagine that they all kinda Quit their initial jobs/lives to go adventuring with each other, either by choice or... not. except Howdy, who's a multitasking king). the Neighborhood party earns their wages by completing jobs/quests, though some of them have minor supplemental ways of adding to the coin collection

Wally, of course, didn't really have much of a Before. he didn't intend on becoming a warlock/wizard - that choice was kinda made for him by the circumstances of his existence. but Wally had to pretend to be a wizard for his own safety, and wizards have a sort of societal expectation to be Helpful and Magical and Wise and Existing For Public Service. so while Wally would have rather just been a painter, he's obligated to be a wizard - that's technically his role/job. within the Neighborhood party, he's a bit of a distance fighter/support! he doesn't really do the whole up-close / physical aspect of battle, though he technically knows how. He casts spells from afar, which tend to be widely benign. artsy little cantrips and inconveniences to make it harder for the enemy to fight. he's also a bit of a bloodhound - illusions don't trick him, he can "see" most magic, and he's really good at getting around unnoticed. if they're stuck somewhere, Wally can probably get them out

Barnaby's "job" before going adventuring with Wally - it started out as just the two of them! - was just working on the farm with Ms. Beagle, where he had been his entire life. Sure he'd sometimes do public performances/acts in town, which would earn him extra coin, but that was more of a paying hobby than anything (a paying hobby he will Continue) in the Neighborhood, he's... uh. their cheerleader? that's not entirely inaccurate! he's not big on combat or effort i'd reckon, so he prefers to just keep morale high. offer background music, funny commentary, jokes to lighten the mood, mediate tensions, etc. if necessary, he makes good backup - he has his illusions of course, and he Does pack a mighty punch if need be! he's also very helpful when retreating - he can grab the smaller party members and run

Wormie is the group mascot <3

Sally was a bit lost before joining the party - i like to think that she was constantly on the move as part of a traveling theater troupe, but she wasn't the star or director. she was just part of the group, uninspired and with a full well of untapped potential. one day she up and left (dramatically) to find her own inspiration/muse & path to stardom, which ended up being several years of wandering until she happened across the budding Neighborhood and went "this! this will be the source of my stories!" as for her role, she's a bit of an everyman. front lines fighter, entertainer, mediator, etc. she views herself as the party "leader", or rather, their Manager. she keeps the party entertained with stories, and bolsters their reputation in the same manner. in a battle she's a bit of a powerhouse - her light magic is useful both in combat and entertainment! she keeps a "book" of the Neighborhood's exploits (she swears it will be edited/published someday) holy shit she's moominpappa, and in their Extended downtime she writes and throws plays inspired by their adventures at their home base (town).

Eddie was still, originally, a mailman. or i suppose in a fantasy setting - a courier! until one day he saw a group of people being attacked by some bandits, managed to fight them off, and immediately got roped into helping rescue the folks' entire town from the bigger group of bandits. then they told others about Eddie's help, they wanted his help too, one thing after another and now he's got a full set of armor, a sword, a shield, and his whole thing is saving people. huh? how did that happen? he was delivering letters a month ago! if i had to give him a title... i'd say he's a Protector! he seems like the type! he always has his fellow adventurer's backs - i bet he has his hands full trying to cover everyone at once. outside of combat, he's still very helpful and does whatever is asked of him / needed. collecting firewood! pitching tents! stirring soup! getting Frank to remove a centipede from camp! in downtime he probably takes small bodyguarding gigs. he also is a minor healer - he took some sorta oath for some sorta god (or virtue) that he can't remember, but he has minor healing/cleansing powers. he's also good at sniffing out evil & dark magic! some would joke that he's the party's guard dog

Frank was raised in a monastery that believes in "using your body to fight for the greater good". this was not his job when they became old enough to actually Act on his training! nah they ran away in his mid teens because they wanted to fight things on his own terms. also they want to study bugs more than anything, which he does! for a long time! then they meet a certain princess, befriends her, and helps her run away. he only joins the Neighborhood because Julie wants to, and it's a good way to travel - read: study more arthropods - and earn coin. fighting is a bonus aspect Frank's role is... front line fighter, bookkeeper, and the Guy Who Knows Things! what monster are they dealing with? what are its strengths/weaknesses? Frank probably knows! can they afford a room or two at an Inn? Frank knows (no, they cannot)! who's throwing themself into direct mortal danger with gusto? it's Frank! no but really, Frank is like their resident nerd who can beat pretty much all of them in hand-to-hand. in downtime he probably has a garden purposefully full of plants that can be left alone for long periods of time... maybe they sell half the things grown for extra coin!

Julie, of course, was a princess! that was her whole job! it was incredibly boring and restricting, so she ran away with the help of a funny nerd. after that her whole life was just "avoid getting recognized while figuring out how to live in a world without the comforts/ease of castle life". i'd think she much prefers her new one! as a role, Julie joins Barn and Sally in the "entertainment category". while they entertain with humor/stories respectively, Julie goes straight for games and activities to fill the lull between action. keep the blood pumping, spirits high, and bonds Solid! camp games, road games, locked-in-a-dungeon games! in combat, she's on the front lines with her oversized sword. i think another fitting role would be "navigator" - she can ask plants for directions! technically Julie is a secret powerhouse. her flora magic is insanely powerful, though she prefers not to use it for several reasons

Poppy, i like to think, did indeed have a bakery. it was well-loved in her community, her staff were wonderful people, and it all burned down in a night due to raiders. luckily for Poppy and her town, Eddie was nearby and got on the case to get rid of their problem - maybe Poppy felt obligated to help in some shape or form, and Eddie wound up inspiring her to learn healing magic. She moved into the town that would become the not-yet-existing Neighborhood's HQ to try and restart her business, but it just wasn't the same, and she had gotten a taste of what it would be like to directly save/heal people Poppy is the party's cook, healer, and ultimate voice of caution! the most she'll do in battle is sprint into danger to drag an injured person to safety for healing - she doesn't have a combative bone in her body i'd guess! does she enjoy being in the Neighborhood? eh... it's stressful and terrifying, but she couldn't live with herself if she let them all brave the wild without an adequate healer OR an adequate cook. i like to think that she saw the state they were traveling in and went "oh no"

Howdy, of course, has his tavern! it's a popular hub for travelers, townsfolk, pretty much anyone and everyone. of course it helps that it's the only tavern in town! the only reason Barnaby managed to convince Howdy to join the Neighborhood on one of their jobs is because Howdy realized that he can widen his net & sell to new people On The Go. finally, a use for that magic backpack collecting dust in his room! Howdy got a taste for adventuring and joins the Neighborhood every once in a while, usually only for shorter jobs - he doesn't want to be away from his tavern for too long his roles are support, professional haggler, sarcastic commentary. he doesn't have a crumb of magic in him, but he's clever! he's learned how to make his own support items - including his fancy revolvers with magical crayonsbullets. Howdy rarely fights, choosing to watch over his pack, dole out items when needed, and listen to Barnaby's running commentary. when it is necessary that he join in on combat, he can usually clear the playing field in a matter of moments. he's skilled with both the revolvers and using his own items - he's a one man four armed army!

Home's job is "keep Wally upright and powered". they prefer to be an observer in all situations, even after their existence becomes common knowledge to the Neighborhood. the most Home will do is nudge Wally in the right direction or alert him to something important. Home's literally just hanging out behind Wally's eyes w/ a bucket of popcorn. unless something happens to his beloved little puppet, in which case Home becomes the biggest baddest bitch around and sends everyone else to the bench

tl;dr: Wally: support fighter, magic geiger counter, escape artist Barnaby: entertainer, backup Wormie: mascot Sally: storyteller, fighter, Manager Eddie: protector, minor healer, "paladin" Frank: bookkeeper, fighter, scholar Julie: activities director, navigator, fighter Poppy: cook, healer, overthinker Howdy: tavernkeeper, inventor, support Home: just keeping an eye out

#THERE'S A TL;DR AT THE END BTW #YOU DONT HAFTA READ ALL THAT #honestly thinking about them fighting is so funny #bc like... out of the 9 of them technically only 5 actually fight #Unless frank needs to sit one out to research #then its 4! #so you've got four guys fighting for their fucking lives while everyone else is just vibing off to the side #honestly half of the appeal of fantasy aus is the Fun Combat Aspect #not only the actual fights but also! sparring! practicing with each other! #its about frank teaching wally how to throw a punch & wally immediately decking him right in the face! Accidentally! #its also about the Camping. and the Healing. and the Trusting Each Other With Your Lives. #found family it up babeyyyyyyy #rambles from the bog #wh fantasy au #just realized that ~In Canon~ if anything the neighbors are Forced Family #they dont have a choice! they're in it together whether they like it or not! #and i say 'if anything' bc ehhhh i dont really think they count... are they more like coworkers? but yk #this is an au post i cant be speculating on The Delightful Source here

[l0v3tast3]

do you think we could get the 141 bois with a military!reader who had a guard/attack dog with them, and went out on missions with reader, and the dog got KIA’d, and reader is taking it harshly, because they grew attached to said dog?

My dog recently passed away and I kinda just.. need some 141 bois.

🥃-

✎ i'm so sorry to hear that honey :( losing an animal is a horrible pain and i hope you're doing okay!!

✎ tags : gender neutral!reader, angst but i tried to keep it vague, otherwise pretty much just platonic fluff, not proofread

♡ to put it mildly, the 141 guys thought you were a bit weird when you first joined, along with your dog. you spent more time with the animal than you did with humans, training, doting, just generally being in the same space.

♡ eventually the team came to understand your bond together, and who doesn't love dogs? while it was always yours, it also kind of became the team's dog.

♡ so when price had to haul you over his shoulder while you screamed at him to let you go, to let you back in that ruined building, they all felt it. they felt it the entire way back to base, the absence of the waging tail and you cooing at it on the entire helicopter ride back.

♡ you try to pretend like you're doing okay for a couple of days afterward. brief smiles that didn't fit right on your sunken face, exchanging polite greetings that sounded so dull. they walk on eggshells, always unsure of what to say to help you.

♡ they wait for you to break, and when you finally do, they send kyle in first. they figure he has the best shot of conveying their empathy to you (he's just as awkward as the rest of them, he just volunteered himself to try to help you first because they were all just staring at each other when soap brought it up).

♡ he brings you a case of bottles of your favorite drink and snacks, dropping them on your desk before sitting next to you on your bed. he asks you faintly if you want to talk about it.

♡ he lets you get it out, lets you cry and rant and whatever you need in that moment while he sits with you. when your tears finally run dry and the weight in your chest doesn't feel as empty, kyle gives you a hug and rubs your back for a few moments.

♡ the other three men are waiting when he comes out, and kyle shrugs and says he thinks he helped. soap snorted and asked him "what's that mean?" and kyle explains briefly what happened.

♡ they manage to coax you out of your room the next day. ghost and price were somewhere else on the base, and kyle had taken over soap's attempt at cooking eggs (i sincerely believe soap can only cook well enough to keep himself alive while kyle is actually pretty good). they sit you down and make you eat. soap takes the credit for the eggs even though you obviously saw kyle finishing them, and it makes you laugh a bit.

♡ they drag you to sparring practice, despite your many, many protests. you find that that's where ghost and price have been. they put you up against ghost first, and you're convinced that they're trying to make you more depressed now.

♡ as soon as he's coming at you, you're in "soldier mode" again and just focus on trying not to land on your ass too hard when he throws you down. usually you're a good sport and always shake hands after the rounds, but frustration was bubbling up quick today with every time you got pinned. you found yourself putting more and more into it, until you were actually fighting, clawing, biting, doing whatever you could. ghost let you and he took it easily. it was exactly what he would have needed if he were in your position; he still didn't just let you win, though.

♡ soap doesn't really know how to help you in a big way, so he just makes sure the little things are taken care of. he helps you clean your weapons and makes sure kyle buys the right drinks for you when he sends him out even though kyle knows what to get. he sticks around you but doesn't make it seem like you're on suicide watch or anything, just that you don't have to be alone for too long. he makes sure you eat, and you always answer "yes" because you don't even want him to offer to cook for you.

♡ it takes a couple of months before you're almost back to your normal self. there's always something missing, and you still reach down to your side on instinct, but the pit in your stomach stops opening quite as wide. you learn how to remember the happy memories again.

♡ when you're ready and if you feel like it, price is the one that takes you to start looking for a new furry friend. you know everything there is to know about dogs, and he knows you know it all, but you still get lectured about what to look for and what to avoid and not to get too close in case they try to bite. basically, he just becomes your father.

♡ "not that one, 's lookin' at me funny," he'll say once you start looking at them. "that one won't even make it through the heli ride!" basically, he thinks none of the dogs here are good enough for you, even though they're all wonderful in their own ways. he almost walks away when you kneel down and start giving scratches to a pomeranian that hadn't stopped yipping since you'd walked in.

♡ while they may all be emotionally-stunted men, they know what loss is like. they'll be there for you in the ways that matter.

#call of duty #modern warfare 2 #cod mwii #drabble #headcanons #simon ghost riley #simon riley x reader #john soap mactavish #john mactavish x reader #ghost x reader #soap x reader #kyle gaz garrick #kyle garrick x reader #gaz x reader #john price #john price x reader #fanfiction #— lilly writes! ♡

[elumish]

Some Things To Consider When Writing Weapons Training

Your character will hurt. Even if they don't get hit, it can be exhausting training, especially if they're just starting. It can be a weird set of muscles to use, and things like their shoulders will hurt if they do what a lot of people do and tense up while holding the weapon.

They will drop the weapon. There are a lot of reasons why people drop weapons--because the weapon is awkward to hold or the person isn't used to holding them, because it gets hit out of the person's hand, because their own hand gets hit, etc--but it happens.

People get hit by accident all the time--including the person holding the weapon. When I've done jō practice, I consider it a success if I don't hit myself with it while I'm practicing. And even when doing controlled sparring or paired katas, people still end up hitting each other, especially on places like the hand.

Practice weapons still hurt. Depending on what you're doing, they're usually made of either wood or rubber rather than metal, but just because they're not metal, it doesn't mean they don't hurt. Bruises are really standard, especially if you're practicing something like knife fighting where you're doing a lot of hand-to-hand blocking.

The goal of training is not to hurt your opponent. People who (intentionally or through carelessness) hurt their sparring partners are bad at training and will probably be kicked out of it or at least get a very strong talking to. Good training will also teach them how to train without getting hurt and strongly discourage doing things in a dangerous way.

What they wear will differ widely depending on the discipline. HEMA and fencing tend to have a fair amount of protective gear (helmet, etc.), as does kendo, while disciplines like aikidō, iaidō, and jūjutsu are more likely to have people wearing a gi or hakama. This will impact how they feel about hitting opponents--it's always riskier to hit someone in a place with no protective gear.

Some weapons' training is primarily defensive, and some is primarily offensive, and some is both. Some training (knife defense, gun defense) is primarily about disarming someone with one of those weapons, where the actual use of the weapon is just as a training tool. In those cases, the specifics of the attack are usually emphasized less than the specifics of the defense. HEMA and fencing are much more offense-focused, with the goal being more about landing a hit. In forms like that (or in a similar fictional form), you'll see the mentality that the best defense is a good offense, as opposed to the mentality that the best defense is a good defense (or the best defense is running away).

Knowing one form of weapons training is (often) helpful in learning another. Even while they differ a fair amount, different weapons styles can often use similar patterns in terms of strikes, blocks, and steps. Part of this is that there are only so many useful places to hit a person and only so many ways to step. There are other things that are fairly universal as well, like awareness of your blade and your opponent's blade, awareness of your body, and awareness of relative distance.

#weapons #martial arts #training

[kissofthemis]

hi! I saw the one where the boys were being flirted/harrased and the MC saved them, can I request the nxx boys with an MC that can fight and knows self defense?

🌹 NXX when MC can fight & knows self-defense 🌹

❤️ Artem ❤️

Artem is the least surprised to find out about MC's self-defense skills. After all, he had the advantage of reading that fun fact on their resume.

However, knowing something in the abstract and experiencing it in person are... two vastly different things.

The first time he sees MC use their self-defense is on an NXX mission. Some thug throws a punch and MC deflects it with ease, then manages to grab him and kick him where the sun don't shine.

Artem is extremely impressed. He knows MC is capable and bright, but this is a pleasant surprise to see a more physically inclined skillset of theirs.

He doesn't make weird comments or get nosy. He does, however, start inviting MC over to watch a lot of martial arts movies....

💛 Luke 💛

While Artem was the least surprised, Luke is probably the most surprised.

To say that Luke is "angry" is not quite accurate, but rather he's... disappointed?

In hindsight, he should have figured MC would take some self-defense classes before going to university. Once he left school early, who was going to protect them?

Luke struggles because protecting you is such a major component of his identity and has been ever since childhood.

He sometimes has difficulty seeing MC as an adult and not as the teenager he left behind.

Ultimately he feels better about MC's capabilities once he asks for a demonstration.

He actually ends up asking to spar with them frequently, so both of them can stay sharp and continue making each other better!

💜 Marius 💜

Marius is ecstatic to learn that MC can hold their own and defend themselves in a fight. He's almost too excited.

On the one hand, he's relieved because he feels safer knowing he can't be with them 24/7. Marius knows that being too close to someone with his fortune and status can be dangerous, and MC already turned down his offer to have a constant bodyguard.

On the other hand... he keeps asking them to demonstrate. Over and over. He's practically begging to see new techniques all the time.

MC doesn't think much of his curiosity until they try a move on him. Then they realize exactly what Marius wanted.

Marius von Hagen, why are you like this?

They end up training together as well, because Marius wants some moves that rely on wit and agility instead of strength. He's very tall, but he's not a muscle man, and he can never predict when someone might try to attack him.

💚 Vyn 💚

Vyn also isn't too surprised, as he read the documents that Artem sent over before vetting MC for the NXX.

But just like Artem, Vyn finds that seeing MC firsthand is quite different from reading about their capabilities on paper.

He's impressed by the grace with which MC moves, even when striking or blocking forcefully.

After all, Vyn comes from a background where he probably only saw physical fighting as a show of power or to beat others into submission, only to gain an upper hand or as blackmail.

To see MC use their skills to protect and defend? It's a beautiful thing for Vyn.

But Vyn also takes nothing at face value, and so he gets a tad nosy.

He can't help but ask what inspired MC to learn self-defense, at what age, strengths, weaknesses, etc.

#tears of themis #artem wing #luke pearce #marius von hagen #vyn richter #tot #gn!mc #tears of themis x mc #headcanon #thanks for the ask!

[hapalopus]

Why you should read Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan, aka the best vampire series of all time:

The freak show is like home. You will feel at home among the freaks. You will fall in love with the snake people and selkies and superhumans that live in the freak show and you will loathe the fact that you don't live with them

Surprisingly serious storyline considering its a book series for 10 year olds. Very efficient at killing off main characters, very good at handling death, very good at showcasing the grief of the survivors

The vampires live in a society modeled on warrior cultures, including, but not limited to, vikings, maasai, and samurais. They live to be strong warriors, and would rather die an honorable death than live in shame - which is cool, I guess, but the way the author portrays it is hilarious, because they literally just spend their eternal life sparring with each other and practicing the sexy sexy art of wrestling

Father/son found family that will tug at your heart strings

Well-handled plot twists all throughout the series. Twists that may completely surprise you at times, but make perfect sense on a reread

The author has a habit of suddenly introducing time travel at the end of his book series, but he never does it to actually solve any problems, or as a deus ex machina, he only does it because he seemingly has an obsession with time travel and wants to include it for no good reason. And it's used in very original ways and somehow it just works. And this series is no exception.

Did I mention all the stupid sexy vampires who fight shirtless for no reason other than "honor!!!1"

Autistic icon Vancha March

Nonbinary icon Harkat Mulds

Also this:

#cirque du freak #darren shan #i think main characters are killed off in like half of the books?? 2 5 6 9 10 11 12... that's actually more than half huh

[as-per-jury]

Humans in Space: Suggestive Sparring (2)

Fighting can relieve or sexual tension between the right people. Humans are known to be especially sexual and aggressive - likely for a reason.

( @faeriereader )

--

Human-Erin seemed to avoid me for all of our shift. Anytime I saw her, I felt an uncomfortable tension somewhere in my cardiorespiratory system - so, perhaps it was actually me avoiding her. It wasn’t until I left to retire to my quarters that Human-Erin addressed me by forcing herself between me and my door - finding her face level with my lower chest.

“Human-Erin, I’m afraid you are in my path.”

“I know. I just wanna apologise for interrupting and startling you during your workout.” Workout is Human for exercise.

“All is forgiven, Human-Erin. You did not frighten me.” This was true. She did not scare me. My response was pure reflex as a predator species - it is rare my people are ambushed.

“I... didn’t?”

“Correct.”

“Why’s that?”

“You are small. Your skin is soft and easy to penetrate. Your teeth do little damage to your predators and prove to be a poor defense. You have no claws, wings, or tails. Your extremities are mostly bone and your bones break under little pressure - or so the manual says. I suspect that needs to be updated.”

“Oh alright.”

“You are not shocked, are you?”

“Only a bit. Every one of your kind on this ship treats the rest of the Human crew like some sort of gremlin.”

“Pardon?”

“Small, vicious creatures.”

“Much like your cats?”

“Yup. Anywho, I was also gonna ask if you would like to properly spar.”

“I just explained to you that you are not a threat.”

“And I would like to become a threat.”

“You will never be big enough to be a threat.”

“I don’t have to be big to be a threat.”

“Are you extending a challenge?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright.”

--

Human-Erin had changed into her sparring gear. Human sparring gear never ceases to confuse me - when practicing close-up combat, they prefer to expose as much skin as possible. The manual has not settled on an exact reason for this. I believe they do it to move faster and to manipulate their opponent into thinking their skin is dangerous. I have read that their skin contains oils that harm many Floraens and races like them. It does not harm my kind, so I could not understand why she only wore a “bra” and “running shorts” [I never witnessed the article run]. I discarded my gear and left my chest exposed as their males do, leaving on my uniform pants. She frowned at me as we began to circle each other - a common ritual in both of our people’s competitive fighting styles. 

“Is something wrong, Human-Erin?”

“You took off your gear?”

“I wanted to make it closer to fair for you. You have even less chance to be a threat to me when I wear protection. In all honesty, I do not need to wear it with you.”

“Is this you trying to psych me out?”

“To what?”

“Nevermind. Just don’t take it easy on me, understand?”

“Why not?”

“Just. Don’t.” Her hands opened and closed, seeming to mimic claws with her fingers.

Respecting her wishes, I started at her, my tail low and still, going in to grab her and pin her. She dodged my passive attack and dealt a blow to my core with a closed hand while simultaneously grabbing my left arm with an open one and hooking her left leg around my left, pulling my leg to her and pushing my arm down. I didn’t go down, but, rather, coiled my tail and leaned back on it, kicking at her with my free leg, careful not to scratch her with my claws. She was thrown back, hitting the ground. I was going to ask if she conceded. 

HUMAN COMBAT RULE #???:

Humans rarely concede willingly. They will not stay down unless held down by force. They have no claws, but will scratch regardless. They rarely break skin and, lesser still, scale, but they have oils and bacteria on and under what they call “nails”. Do not engage in combat with a Human with untrimmed nails.

I quickly leapt to hold her down but she rolled away and I hit the mat before I could rotate. In a matter of moments, she was sitting on my back - apparently aware of my tail - and taking hold of my arms, contorting me against my will. I had not seen this tactic used before and I was in shock for seconds before I snaked my tail around her waist and pushed her off of me. I didn’t release her of my tail until after I rolled over and applied only some of my bodyweight to her legs and arms - face to face once again. Her face was not this dark when she tried to trip me. She bared her teeth at me - I knew she did not mean well - grunting as she fought against my hold.

I dropped my head so that I may speak directly into her ear. Humans do this to be private or intimidating [it is called whispering]. I intended to be both. “Do you concede?”

I felt her turn her head to whisper back, I assumed. I assumed incorrectly. Instead of her voice in my ear, I was met with what must have been her teeth trying desperately to break past my scales. My head dropped to her shoulder as I let out a short cry of pain - one of my scales was torn from me. I was once again in shock. That wasn’t supposed to happen. And she wasn’t supposed to be able to flip me onto my back.

Her eyes met mine. She wore a grin and my blood on her mouth. I wanted to say she broke the rules, but we never put any in place outside of not taking it easy on her.

“Am I a threat now?”

“What?”

“Did I frighten you this time?”

Absolutely. I would be rude to withhold the truth from her and I was too stunned to keep fighting.

“Pty, did I frighten you this time?” Her hands started to burn me again and her skin darkened. My ears rose. This wasn’t quite fear anymore. My tail loosely circled around her waist again. “Or do you want to keep fighting?”

“Get off me, I have first patrol after breakfast.”

“Concede, then.”

I slipped my wrist from her hand and pressed my open palm to her chest, about to shove her off but pausing. Her free hand rested on my chest now. Her heartbeat was going as fast as earlier but she already caught her breath. She stared into my eyes and swallowed without eating. Her mouth opened to say something, then closed having said nothing. She made me uneasy. Her palms got hotter.

“It’s okay. I know you concede.”

She pushed off and my tail fell from her as she stood up. I remained on my back as she left the gym. I only bowed my head when she thanked me for humouring her - whatever that means. My neck was still bleeding but I could only feel the burns on my wrists and upper chest. She was right. I did concede.

#humans and aliens #humans are deathworlders #humans are aliens #humans are weird #humans are space orcs #humans are space oddities #humans are insane

[bradshawsbaby]

Si Vis Amari Ama

III. A Gladiator’s Oath

SERIES MASTERLIST

Pairings: Rooster (Roman Name: Gallus) x Female Reader (Roman Name: Sabina), featuring Hangman (Roman Name: Carnifex) x Phoenix

Summary: A girl whose freedom was stolen to pay her father’s debts. A gladiator enslaved for the entertainment of Rome. A love they never thought possible.

Author’s Note: We finally get to meet the rest of the gladiators! As previously mentioned, all of the TGM characters have been given Latinized names to fit with the time period of the story. Check out A Roman Guide to the Daggers (which is also pinned on the series masterlist) as a cheat sheet if you ever get confused!

Word Count: 8.2k

Warnings: Slavery in the ancient world, mentions of physical abuse, gladiatorial training/combat, discussion of minor injuries, brief language, tension/pining, alternating point of view.

“Gallus, duck!”

The echoes of harsh grunts and heavy breathing filled the air, the unrelenting thwacks of wood on wood reverberating across the open grounds of the training arena as bruised and battered men sparred with their practice swords.

You couldn’t help but glance up at the sound of his name, your eyes drifting past the other dueling gladiators until they landed on the familiar figure at the center of the main ring. He was in the middle of a heated bout with one of Dominus’ other prized champions, the two of them glaring at each other with an intensity that spoke of a rivalry that ran deeper than just friendly competition.

The advice Gallus had been given had evidently been sound, as the other man was swinging at him with his heavy shield, aiming straight for his head. You could feel your heart in your throat for a moment, but Gallus quickly parried with his sword and jumped backwards out of the reach of his opponent.

“He almost had you. You’ve got to be quicker than that,” the dark-haired man shouted, the one who was standing at the head of the training grounds, feet planted firmly on the ground and muscular arms folded tightly across his chest. He was older, probably around the same age as Titus, and from what you had gathered, he was in charge of training and conditioning the gladiators at the ludus.

Gallus only glared in response, his mouth turning down in irritation as he lunged at his fellow gladiator, the two of them engaging in the brutal power struggle once more.

At the sound of Phoenix clearing her throat beside you, you spun back around to the task before you, feeling warmth rise to your cheeks.

“Enjoying the show?” she teased, smirking knowingly as she wrung out the tunic in her hands with a forceful twist. “There are many in Rome who would envy you, you know. Getting to see all this, up close and personal. And for free, too,” she added with a laugh, blowing a loose strand of dark hair out of her eyes.

Your cheeks were positively burning now as you dropped your gaze to the basin in front of you and reached for another piece of dirty laundry to scrub clean. “Oh, no, I was just—well—I’ve never actually seen a gladiator fight before. I was just a little curious,” you admitted sheepishly, carefully running the bar of salt that was burning your palm over the filthy tunic you’d just lifted from the pile of dirty linens that you and Phoenix had collected earlier.

Phoenix’s hands stilled as she sat up straighter and looked at you with wide eyes, clearly shocked. You weren’t sure you had ever seen Phoenix surprised before in all these months you’d known her.

“Aren’t you Roman by birth?” she questioned, arching a dark brow curiously.

“Yes,” you murmured in response, feeling almost embarrassed of your heritage. Your people—if you could even still call them that—were the ones who had stolen your friend from her homeland and sold her into a life of slavery.

“And you’ve never seen a gladiator match before?” she demanded, as if she simply couldn’t believe something so outlandish could be true.

You sighed, brushing a bead of sweat off your forehead with the back of your hand. “Well I was only a child when I—my parents never took me—and neither did any of my masters. I’ve never even stepped foot inside the Colosseum,” you confessed, scrubbing at the laundry until you felt your fingertips would bleed.

“Hm,” Phoenix murmured thoughtfully, shaking her head before getting back to work herself.

“Have you? Ever been to the Colosseum, I mean?” you asked curiously. Though the two of you were around the same age, you felt that Phoenix had a sort of worldliness that you didn’t possess. You trusted her to explain things to you that you’d never experienced yourself, or didn’t understand.

She nodded, sitting back on her heels as she bent over her work. She draped the tunic she’d been wringing out over the edge of her basin as she pressed a fist into her lower back, deftly massaging the ache that throbbed there. “A few times. My last dominus would take his wife and daughters to the games sometimes, so I’d accompany them. And I’ve been there a couple times with Domina,” she added, doing her best to refrain from rolling her eyes at the mention of your mistress. “But we never stay long. She always complains of the heat.”

“I’ve only ever seen it from the outside. Are the games as grand as everyone makes them out to be?” you wondered, sitting back on your heels as well and taking a moment’s respite.

“They can be,” Phoenix nodded, tossing her long braid over her shoulder. “It depends on who’s hosting the games, and how much they’re willing to invest. Those who want to worm their way into Caesar’s good graces usually pay for at least a week’s worth of games, sometimes with exotic animals and chariot races. The crowds go wild. You’ve never seen a place so packed with people in all your life.”

You shuddered slightly, your skin crawling at the mere thought of it. Maybe you wouldn’t like the Colosseum so much after all.

Just as you were about to ask Phoenix to tell you more about the games, however, you heard a familiar voice from behind you.

“Hey, you two, back to work!”

Titus’ jovial face suddenly came into view, the old medicus circling around the two of you until he was planted in front of your wash basins, grinning down at you.

“All we do is work, old man. Our fingers might just fall off soon, and then where would that leave you?” Phoenix joked, lifting yet another wet garment to wring out.

“Hopelessly lost, that’s where,” Titus winked. “They’ve got you on laundry duty, eh? Tough break, my girls. I’ve never met men who stink so badly in my entire life,” he said, wrinkling his nose as he gazed across the training grounds at the pairs upon pairs of fighters.

“We’ve dealt with worse,” Phoenix said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders as she glanced over at you.

“Ah, I see,” Titus nodded, eyes twinkling as his focus shifted towards your face. “Is that right, Sabina?”

You looked up and met his kind eyes, those eyes that seemed to look within and know you in a way you didn’t understand. You smiled, though it didn’t quite reach your eyes. “It’s no trouble,” you answered him, picking up the bar of salt once more.

“You didn’t answer my question,” Titus responded, though there was no judgment or condemnation in his tone. He simply continued to look at you for a moment, a curious tilt to his head, before his smile returned in full force. “But I won’t pry, especially considering how kind you’ve been to help me around here.”

In the past couple weeks since you’d assisted Titus in caring for Gallus, you’d been tasked with more duties around the ludus. You had a feeling it had something to do with a private conversation the medicus had had with Dominus. In addition to your chores around the villa, you were now also responsible for tasks such as cleaning the gladiators’ cells while they were out training, delivering meals to the men, and tending to any injuries—and there were many of them. Occasionally, on days like today when the laundry wasn’t being sent out to the fuller, you and Phoenix were responsible for that as well.

Domina had not been happy when your master had first brought up your new assignment.

“I need her here in the house with me. That Greek slut assists Titus enough as it is. Take one of the other girls if he needs someone else. That fat cow from the kitchens. Oh, what’s her name? Flavia! He can have her,” Aurelia had pouted, tossing her dark blonde locks over her shoulder.

“He asked for Sabina, and Sabina is who he shall have,” Dominus countered evenly, taking a long sip of his wine. He didn’t even look up from his cup as he spoke to his wife.

You stood before your masters with your head lowered and your hands clasped in front of you, trembling slightly. You wished more than anything that they would just dismiss you.

“But I told you—”

“Enough, Aurelia!” Atticus suddenly barked, slamming his hand down on the low dining table.

You and your mistress both jumped.

“There are plenty of slaves in this household who can braid your hair and paint your face,” your master snapped, waving away the slave who approached to refill his cup. “But there are very few who Titus trusts with the care of my gladiators, and so if he says this girl is needed, then she is needed. And that is where she shall go.” Atticus stood suddenly and towered over his wife, who lifted her head to look up at him. “Do not forget who is the head of this household,” he ground out through gritted teeth before turning on his heel and stalking out of the room.

Aurelia sat silently on her dining couch for a moment, stunned into a rare state of speechlessness. Dominus rarely spoke to her so harshly, and he rarely refused to give in to her demands, so it was clear she was reeling.

But only for a moment.

When she turned her head to look at you, her dark eyes narrowed sharply. Rising gracefully, as was her way, she adjusted her stola, her bracelets clinking along her slender wrists.

“Look at me,” she demanded coldly, grabbing roughly at your chin until you obeyed and lifted your eyes.

“I don’t know what game you think you’re playing here, but I see right through you. Don’t think I don’t,” she whispered, her voice edged with something dangerous.

“Domina, I’m not—”

Her slap hit you like a clap of thunder, the sound of it bouncing around the room until it rang in your ears. You resisted the urge to step back and cup your face, knowing it would only make her angrier, although you couldn’t stop the tears that sprung to your eyes unbidden.

“I did not ask you to speak!” Aurelia snapped, adjusting her rings as though irritated you had disturbed them. “If my husband commands you to go work in the ludus, then there isn’t much I can do about that. But know this,” she muttered, stepping closer to you and grabbing your wrist so tightly that you almost cried out in pain. “If the day comes when you grow swollen with the bastard of a savage, I will throw you out of this household faster than you can cry for mercy. So I’d keep those legs closed if I were you.”

You did your best to swallow back your tears as you gazed up into the cold eyes of your domina, the pain in your wrist shooting up to your elbow as she twisted cruelly.

She smiled. “Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, Domina,” you nodded meekly, nearly gasping in relief when she finally released you.

“Get out of my sight,” Aurelia dismissed you with a careless flick of her hand, tossing herself back onto her dining couch and calling out to the other slaves to fetch her something to eat.

“She’s a miserable bitch,” Phoenix muttered later, after you had told her what happened. The two of you were sitting alone at the end of the table in the corner of the kitchen, Phoenix carefully examining your bruised wrist.

“Phoenix,” you whispered frantically, gazing over both shoulders. “You shouldn’t say such a thing.”

Your friend waved her hand in the air, a look of defiance flashing across her face. “Oh, what worse can they do to me? And besides, she is.”

“I don’t understand why she’s so upset,” you sighed, tears pricking your eyes once more as you thought of her violent treatment earlier. “And what she said—I have no intention of—”

“Of course you don’t,” Phoenix said in a soothing voice, resting her hands over yours and squeezing gently. “Ignore her. She’s just projecting her own fears onto you.”

You cocked your head in confusion, looking at your friend. “What do you mean?”

Phoenix looked back at you, startled, and then started laughing. “Oh, my sweet friend,” she murmured, lifting your hand and kissing it in a sisterly fashion. “You truly are too good for this awful world. Are you telling me you’ve been in this household for nearly three months and you really don’t know?”

“Know what?” you blinked, beyond perplexed at this point.

Sighing softly, it was now Phoenix’s turn to glance over her shoulders. Satisfied that no one was around to eavesdrop, she leaned in closer. “Aurelia has quite the taste for those savages she supposedly loathes so much,” she whispered, lifting her eyebrows pointedly.

It took a moment for the pieces to connect in your mind, but then your eyes widened. “You mean Domina is—”

Phoenix nodded, covering your mouth with her hand. “She might consider them barbarians, but she certainly can’t get enough of them in her bed. I can only imagine how terrified she is that one of them is finally going to get her with child.”

You blanched at that, your jaw falling open in shock once Phoenix released you. “D-does Dominus know?”

“He’s not a stupid man,” Phoenix shrugged. “Everybody else knows, so why wouldn’t he? But he turns a blind eye. You know how he is. He pretty much lets her have whatever she wants,” she muttered. “Except,” she emphasized, “his Pugiones.”

Pugiones, you had come to learn, was the nickname Atticus used for his champion gladiators—of which Gallus was the foremost. You weren’t sure why, but it suddenly made you feel less sick to think that your mistress hadn’t gotten her claws into him.

“So she hasn’t—?”

Phoenix shook her head. “As far as I know, she only sleeps with the newer recruits, the ones Atticus doesn’t care as much about. He puts all his money and attention into his stars. They’re the only ones that are off limits.”

“How many gladiators does he own?” you asked, realizing you didn’t even know.

She thought about that for a minute. “It’s hard to keep track. We lose some, and then we get some more. But I think at last count, we were up to thirty.”

Your eyes widened at that. You hadn’t realized it was so many. Besides Gallus, you’d really only ever seen a couple others, and only from a distance.

“You’ll get to know them when you start helping me and Titus,” Phoenix said, as if she had read your mind. She hesitated a moment, then added, “Just don’t get too attached. There are many who don’t come back.”

It had only been two weeks, and your friend’s warning had already proven to be true. As you began assisting with the medical care of the men, you spent much of your time among the newer recruits, the men Dominus had only recently acquired, who lacked the skills and training necessary to fight without badly injuring themselves. When they left for their bouts in local arenas or the Colosseum, many of them did not return. But Dominus always refilled the ranks with more, determined to build an elite army of gladiators.

You didn’t see much of the Pugiones. As seasoned as they were, they didn’t injure themselves quite as often, and Titus and Phoenix usually managed any issues that they had. There had been a few instances where you’d felt their eyes on you, but you always kept your gaze averted and avoided them at all costs. You didn’t want any problems with Domina.

Today, however, as you watched them all fight, you realized that you didn’t know much about them at all. You didn’t even know most of their names. Phoenix had said it was often better that way, but it seemed that you should at least know the Pugiones. After all, they were the champions. They always returned.

After speaking to you and Phoenix for a few more moments, Titus turned and began walking around the perimeter of the training arena, watching a few of the men in particular with those careful eyes of his.

That’s when you turned to look at Phoenix, dropping the tunic you’d been scrubbing into the basin. “Would you mind telling me a little bit about them?” you asked, nodding your head in the direction of the stars of the ludus. “I feel like I should know something, especially if they’re the most popular gladiators in Rome,” you added, a small smile tugging at the corners of your lips.

Phoenix smirked, standing up slowly and stretching her arms over her head. “Oh, alright. I’ve known those idiots for quite a while, so I suppose I can tell you a little bit about them,” she grinned, taking your hand and pulling you up beside her. “Come, let’s act like we’re going to hang some of these linens up to dry,” she said, handing you an armful of damp clothing.

As the two of you walked, you passed by one gladiator who was practicing sharp thrusts with a long, pointed sword. You’d learned that when it came to simple practice bouts, the men used wooden swords. Perhaps they had become too elite, and Atticus feared arming them in his own home.

“That’s Caius,” Phoenix whispered, glancing briefly in his direction. “He grew up in Egypt. He can’t even remember where he was actually born, but he’s been a slave most of his life. See the long shield he carries? He fights as a Secutor.”

You nodded to show your understanding, trying not to stare too long. He was handsome, now that you could see him up close, with a strong jaw and a focused gaze.

Next up was a tall, lean gladiator with skin like ebony whose size belied the gracefulness of his movements. His shield was similar in shape to Caius’, but slightly smaller.

“Pollux,” Phoenix whispered. “They often call him ‘The African.’ I know you wouldn’t think it to look at him, especially now, but he’s one of the funniest people I know. He’s a Murmillo. Similar to the Secutor, but you can see his shield is a little smaller.” She stopped a moment to adjust the pile of wet tunics in her arms. “Sometimes he gets paired to fight with Felix,” she explained, nodding her head in the direction of the gladiator practicing beside him.

Your eyes landed on the shorter man, with tan skin and a head full of riotous black curls.

“Why doesn’t he fight with a sword like the others?” you asked quietly, noting the trident and net that Felix held in his hands instead of a sword and shield.

“Felix is a Retiarius,” Phoenix told you, keeping her voice low as the two of you continued to walk. “He fights with the trident and net, as you can see, and very little armor. The Retiarius is popular in the arena, but he has to be skilled to survive. Felix is the best there is of his class.”

You and Phoenix stopped short when you came closer to the main ring, where Gallus and his light haired opponent were still battling one another.

“I believe you’re already acquainted with Gallus,” Phoenix murmured with a sideways glance, chuckling under her breath.

Embarrassed, you glanced down at your feet for a moment. Your attention was drawn back upwards, however, at the sound of the men’s loud grunts.

“And who is that?” you questioned quietly, looking intently at the man that Gallus had been pitted against. From what you could see, they were almost evenly matched in skill and ability.

Something flashed briefly in Phoenix’s eyes, but she quickly scoffed and shook her head. “They call him Carnifex. He lives for the attention the crowds shower on him,” she replied, rolling her eyes. “He’s smug and arrogant and hates the fact that the crowds love Gallus just a little bit more than they love him,” she went on. You noticed that she hadn’t taken her eyes off him, even as she complained about him. “He’s a Murmillo, like Pollux. From Gaul originally. They tried to execute him there, but even the hangman could not kill him. That’s how they gave him his name.”

“And their trainer?” You glanced over at the older dark-haired man, the one who was still watching Gallus and Carnifex with the eyes of a hawk.

“Magnus,” Phoenix stated. “He’s a Rudiarius. He used to be a gladiator—one of the best, in fact. So good that he finally earned his freedom. Now Atticus pays him to train his men and make them the best of the best. He does a good job of it, too.”

The two of you stood quietly for a moment, listening to Magnus bark out orders, which Gallus seemed particularly resistant to.

“Magnus fought in the Thracian style,” Phoenix explained, glancing over at you. “It’s the same style Gallus fights in now, so he’s particularly hard on him,” she said, her voice softening slightly as she looked over at her friend.

You glanced between Phoenix and Gallus for a moment, and couldn’t explain the sudden lump that formed in your throat. Unbidden, the memory returned of Gallus demanding to know where Phoenix was when you’d gone with Titus to patch him up.

“You and Gallus—I mean, it’s none of my business, of course, but the two of you seem very close,” you stammered, suddenly feeling a bit foolish. “Are you—?”

“Me and Gallus?” Phoenix asked, throwing her head back with a laugh. “No, no, no. Nothing like that. He’s like a brother to me, nothing more,” she assured you. “He and I have known each other a long time, that’s all. We’re comfortable with each other.” She turned to look at you. “We belonged to the same household before we got sold here, so we look out for each other, you know? The same way I look out for you now,” she smiled, slinging an arm around your shoulders.

You smiled in return, feeling an odd wash of relief.

“He and Carnifex really seem to be going for each other’s throats,” you murmured, your eyes widening as you watched the two of them lunge back and forth, their half naked bodies glistening with sweat in the midmorning sun.

Phoenix sighed, nodding. “Old rivalries don’t really die,” she said under her breath.

You blinked in confusion. “But they’re from the same ludus. Surely they don’t actually fight each other?”

“Not now,” Phoenix agreed, pursing her lips. “But Carnifex didn’t always belong to this ludus. When he and Gallus were first starting out, first making names for themselves, they used to get pitted against each other all the time. I think there’s a part of them that can’t really let that go, even now.”

The both of them seemed to be tiring out now, their breathing growing more labored as their swords and shields clashed. You realized, looking at them and all the many scars that littered their bodies, that these were men who had been pushed long past the point of human endurance. They’d been forced to fight and fight and fight for so long that they didn’t even know how to stop anymore.

Suddenly, however, with a move so swift your eyes nearly missed it, Carnifex knocked the shield from Gallus’ grasp and dropped him to the ground, the larger man grunting as he landed on his scarred shoulder.

“You’re getting slow in your old age, Gallus,” Carnifex smirked, standing above him triumphantly with a smug expression on his admittedly handsome face.

From his spot on the ground, Gallus glared up at him, his dark eyes stormy and filled with barely suppressed rage. Lightning quick, his leg shot out and swiped at Carnifex’s feet, knocking him onto his back.

“And you’re getting complacent in yours,” Gallus shot back coldly, the tip of his wooden sword planted into the sand, mere centimeters from Carnifex’s face, as he pressed his knee into his chest.

“Alright, that’s enough for today, you two,” Magnus called out, lifting his hands up into the air. “That’s enough.”

Gallus and Carnifex both rose from the ground with quiet groans, neither looking at the other as they separated.

Magnus slowly approached Gallus, looking up at the larger man as he began speaking. “Gallus, that was good work out there today, but you need to—”

You watched in surprise as, without even looking at his trainer, Gallus pushed past him with a frown and stomped off to the trough to get some water. Gaze slipping back in Magnus’ direction, expecting him to scold or punish Gallus for his insolence, you were even more surprised to instead see a flash of hurt cross his face before he turned away and began talking to the other gladiators.

“What was that?” you asked Phoenix, your curiosity piqued despite yourself.

“I have no idea,” Phoenix told you, lifting her shoulders as if in surrender. “Something happened there, but no one knows what. They used to get along just fine, and then one day it was as if Gallus couldn’t even stand to be in the same room as Magnus. But he won’t talk about it, and I won’t push.”

You nodded, accepting her response and leaving it at that. If even Phoenix didn’t know what the problem was between Gallus and his trainer, then it certainly wasn’t your business.

“Ladies,” Titus called out to the two of you, approaching quickly. “Finish hanging those things to dry, and then come meet me back here. I need you to tend the Pugiones today while I deal with the other men,” he sighed, rolling his eyes skyward. “Six broken fingers, three broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder, and four teeth knocked out. These new recruits will be the death of me.”

Hurrying off, you and Phoenix made quick work of the laundry and then returned to the training grounds, where all the weapons and shields had already been carefully collected and stored away. Your dominus was nothing if not fastidious in the management of his ludus, and nothing was to be out of place.

The newer recruits, the ones that Titus said he would deal with, were gathered at the far corner of the grounds, some of them lying flat on their backs, while others sat clutching at various injuries. You could hear their moans of pain even from where you stood.

The Pugiones, however, were stoic and silent as they sat upon the low stone wall on the outer edge of the training arena, waiting for you and Phoenix to come tend to their wounds, which were decidedly much less pronounced than those of the younger men.

“None of them got hurt too badly today,” Titus explained, appearing over your shoulder and making you jump slightly. He wasn’t a small man, but he did manage to be stealthy when he needed to be. “Just your usual bumps and bruises. With two of you working, it shouldn’t take long to see to it,” he said, nodding his head once with certainty. He started to walk away, then turned back to look at you. “Oh, Sabina, I would appreciate it if you could check on Gallus’ injury, the one from a couple weeks ago. I removed his stitches just the other day, but he’s being a stubborn mule, as usual.”

The medicus didn’t even give you a chance to reply before he was off again, whistling a jaunty tune as he made his way over to the other gladiators.

“Is he sure he doesn’t need one of us to help him?” you murmured, biting down on your lower lip. You suddenly felt a strange knot developing in the pit of your stomach. “The newer men’s injuries seem so much worse. Surely only one of us needs to tend to the Pugiones.”

“Oh, would you like me to go help Titus and you stay here alone?” Phoenix asked, giggling at the horrified look on your face. “Don’t worry, I’m only teasing,” she smiled, bumping your shoulder with her own. “Titus likes to handle the new recruits on his own as much as possible. He knows how hard it can be when you come to care for someone, and then they don’t come back, so he tries to spare us that as much as possible,” she explained, her smile dimming slightly as she reached for the basket of medical supplies that Titus had left for you. “Come on, let’s go deal with this lot.”

As the two of you approached the men, who somehow seemed even larger and more handsome the closer you came, Carnifex looked up and smirked, releasing a low whistle.

“Well if it isn’t my favorite Grecian goddess, Phoenix,” he called out, a twinkle in his eyes, which you now noticed were a startling shade of green.

Phoenix smirked in return, stopping in front of the Gallic gladiator and dropping her basket at his feet. “Well if it isn’t my least favorite gladiator, Carnifex.”

Pollux, Felix, and Caius snickered at that, which earned Caius, since he was the one sitting beside Carnifex, a sharp elbow to the ribs.

“Ow,” Caius complained, rubbing at his side with a frown. “Come on, you set yourself up for that one.”

“You know Phoenix could probably drop you faster than all the rest of us, right?” Felix jumped in, laughing. You liked his laugh. It was open and easy and quickly made you forget that he was one of the fiercest fighters in the Colosseum.

“And she would, too!” Pollux added, chuckling. He glanced over at you as he said it and smiled. He had a nice smile.

It was funny. You’d been so terrified at the thought of living in a household with these men, but they were so—ordinary. They weren’t monstrous killers. They were just men.

Carnifex grumbled under his breath, his eyes quickly taking in Phoenix’s figure before he looked away.

“Aw, don’t be mad just because Gallus bested you today. He’s bested us all,” Caius grinned, earning him another shove in the ribcage.

Gallus, for his part, just sat quietly on his perch, gazing forward without looking at you or anyone else.

“I’ll have you all know that you’re making an absolutely horrible impression on our new friend here,” Phoenix scolded them, holding up a hand in your direction. “See, Sabina? I told you they were idiots, the whole lot of them.”

“Oh, so this is Sabina,” Pollux smirked knowingly, shooting a glance down the line at where Gallus sat, his spine stiff as he stared straight ahead.

“We’ve heard good things,” Felix nodded. “From Titus, of course,” he added quickly at Pollux’s subtle nudge. “And Phoenix.” He held out his hand towards you. “I’m Felix,” he introduced himself with a grin.

You found yourself smiling as well as you stepped forward and placed your hand in his, shaking it firmly.

“I’ve already told her who all of you are and all the stupid things you do, so don’t think you’ll be impressing her,” Phoenix grinned, reaching into the basket to pull out a vial of acid vinegar and some clean bandages.

“Aw, but you love us, Phoenix. Don’t pretend that you don’t,” Caius pretended to pout, winking playfully in your direction.

Phoenix merely harrumphed in response, ducking her chin to mask her smile.

“Alright, Carnifex, you’re first up,” she said, grabbing his hands and examining the knuckles. “Looks like Gallus really put you through your paces today.”

Carnifex bristled at that, his back straightening. “A cheap trick he pulled at the end. I would have had him otherwise.”

“You would have had him if you weren’t so cocky,” Phoenix shot back evenly, glaring at him.

You couldn’t help but notice the look that passed between them as they stared into each other’s eyes, some subtle challenge, some underlying current of tension. 

Maybe it wasn’t Phoenix’s relationship with Gallus you should have been asking about.

“So,” Pollux cleared his throat, cutting through the sudden strain in the air. “Sabina,” he called out to you as you began lifting Caius’ knuckles and examining the damage. “How long have you been a part of the esteemed household of Atticus Cornelius Juventus?” You didn’t fail to detect the note of sarcasm in his voice as he asked the question.

“Nearly three months now,” you replied, dabbing some acid vinegar onto the fresh cuts you saw littering Caius’ hands and forearms. “My last dominus passed away and his property was auctioned off, so I was sold here.”

“Three months? And this is the first we’re seeing of you?” Felix questioned in surprise, his dark eyebrows rising as he looked over at you.

“I work mainly in the villa, for Domina,” you explained. The tension returned to the air at the mention of Aurelia. “I had never been inside the ludus before, not until a couple weeks ago when Titus asked me to help him.” Care for Gallus, you left unsaid, but when you glanced in his direction, you found that his eyes were suddenly on you.

“Well lucky for us then,” Caius grinned down at you as you carefully wrapped his hands in white linen strips. “You really do have gentle hands.” At the sound of Gallus clearing his throat, he hastened to add, “Unlike Phoenix here. She manhandles us worse than Titus.”

“Mhm, and it’s what you deserve,” Phoenix smirked, finishing her work bandaging a cut on Carnifex’s arm. She pointedly avoided his gaze as she moved down the line to Felix.

“There you are,” you told Caius with a smile, glancing up at him when you were finished.

“Thank you, Sabina,” he smiled in return, flexing his hands carefully.

As you stepped back and started to move towards Pollux, Phoenix suddenly stopped you in your tracks. “Oh, I’ve got Pollux. He and Felix don’t have many injuries today. Why don’t you go check Gallus like Titus asked you to?”

You weren’t sure why it suddenly felt like everyone’s eyes were on you, but you had never wanted to run and hide more than you did in that moment. Knowing you couldn’t do that, however, you simply nodded and offered your friend a tight smile. “Okay,” you said softly.

Heart fluttering uncomfortably inside your chest, rather like the birds Dominus and Domina kept for decoration in the garden, you approached Gallus while staring down at your bare feet. Soon enough, however, the intensity of his gaze drew your eyes upward until they were meeting his dark ones. They were a dark brown, you realized, as the sun hit them. They were the most beautiful eyes you had ever seen.

“Hello,” you stuttered, your mind recalling the last time you had truly spoken to him, when he had apologized for his behavior the first time you’d met.

“Hello,” he murmured in response, his voice even deeper than you had remembered it. He sat completely still as you moved closer to him, his eyes never leaving your face even as you ducked your head to gingerly lift his hands and examine his knuckles.

Feeling uncomfortably warm under the heat of his stare, you found yourself entranced by the many scars that traced their way across the backs of his hands. Your thumb lightly brushed against his bruised knuckles, and you couldn’t tell if it was him or you who shivered in the midday heat.

Reaching for the vial with trembling hands, you carefully dabbed at his very minor injuries with the acid vinegar, admiring the way he didn’t even flinch at the sting. You were so focused on wrapping his hands with bandages that you didn’t notice the way he was now staring at your arm.

“What happened?” he asked quietly, reaching out to lightly brush his calloused fingertips against the yellowish bruise that was still marring your wrist.

Startled, you glanced down in embarrassment, your skin feeling hot where he had touched you. “Oh, nothing,” you answered quickly, mortified at the memory of where that mark had come from. “I’m just clumsy, that’s all.”

Gallus wasn’t buying your excuse, not for a second. “That isn’t a mark that comes by accident or chance,” he said, stilling your movements as he raised your wrist up with a surprisingly gentle hand and further examined the bruises—the ones that matched perfectly with the shape of your domina’s fingers. “That’s a mark left by a human hand.” There was something in his voice as he said it, something rough and angry, but you knew it wasn’t an anger directed at you.

“It’s nothing, Gallus,” you murmured sharply, his name slipping off your tongue as you pulled your arm from his grasp. You softened when you saw the way he stiffened. “Please,” you whispered, your voice cracking slightly over that one word. “Just leave it alone. I promise I’ll be more careful.”

“You’re not the one who needs to be careful,” he said in a low voice, his eyes narrowing. There was something dangerous in the way he said it, a veiled threat that wasn’t meant for you, but that made you shiver all the same. His eyes softened a fraction when he realized his words had unsettled you. “Forgive me. I’m a brute, as Titus never fails to remind me.” His fingers closed over yours for a moment as you finished bandaging his hand. “I just—I don’t wish to see you hurt.”

“Nor I, you,” you whispered, swallowing past the lump that had lodged itself in your throat once more. You cleared your throat, mindful of the fact that the others were sitting just a few feet away from you, though they seemed lost in their own conversation. “Speaking of Titus, he wished for me to check how your healing is coming along,” you told him, raising a hand towards his chest.

Gallus was silent for a moment, just looking at you, but then he slowly removed the straps attaching his armor to his body, giving you an unrestricted view of his naked chest.

Titus really was a master medicus, for the mark of his stitches was already fading fast, a clean line across Gallus’ chest that would hardly stick out amongst all the other scars marking his body.

Taking a breath, you stepped in between his legs and ran your fingers over the wound, freezing when you felt the way his body tensed under your touch. “I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” you asked in concern.

“No,” Gallus said stiffly, shaking his head. “It no longer pains me. I’m fine, really. You don’t need to check up on me.”

“Titus said you were being stubborn,” you told him with a small smile, glancing into his eyes as your hands stilled on his chest.

“Titus would know,” Gallus muttered, a tiny smile gracing his own features. “He’s one of the most stubborn men I know.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at that, and it pleased you to see Gallus’ smile grow wider. He had a lovely smile, made all the lovelier by the fact that he didn’t seem to smile often.

“So will you be around here more often then?” Gallus asked after a moment of silence, watching as you stepped back and began to pack up the remainder of the supplies. “With Phoenix and Titus, I mean.”

“Yes, I think I will,” you nodded. You weren’t sure what possessed you to say it, but you suddenly added, “So I suppose you’ll be seeing more of me.”

Gallus didn’t say anything in response to that, just continued to gaze at you with a thoughtful expression on his face.

Before you could embarrass yourself further, Magnus suddenly appeared in the middle of the training grounds, calling out to the men. “I’d like to speak to you all for a few moments,” he announced, noting that Titus seemed to be almost finished tending to the younger men.

The rest of the Pugiones rose, bidding you and Phoenix farewell, but Gallus remained where he was for a moment, his thoughtful expression turning to a frown.

“Gallus, Magnus is calling for all of you,” Phoenix told him, hefting the basket and resting it on her hip.

“He can wait for a minute,” Gallus snapped, in a tone that was evidently harsher than he intended, considering the apologetic glance he threw Phoenix’s way. Sighing, he slowly rose from the wall and glanced between the two of you. “Thank you, Sabina,” he murmured, lightly touching your arm before he turned and made his way over to where the rest of the gladiators were gathering.

“The two of you seemed cozy,” Phoenix whispered after he had walked away, nudging you with a playful wink as she helped you clean up the rest of the supplies.

“We were just talking,” you insisted, feeling heat rise to your cheeks as you avoided her gaze.

“Mhm,” Phoenix grinned, resting a hand on her hip. “But there are very few people who Gallus enjoys talking to,” she emphasized, nudging you again with a laugh.

You were saved from further interrogation by the unexpected arrival of Hrodebert, one of Atticus’ chief stewards in the household. You didn’t deal much with the stewards, but you’d come to know him quite well over the past few months because of his close friendship with Phoenix. A quiet and studious man who had been kidnapped from his homeland in Germania when he was a child, Hrodebert had developed an affinity for numbers and figures, which was why he was one of the most trusted members of Dominus’ household, so trusted, in fact, that Atticus had placed him in charge of the accounts related to the ludus.

He squinted in the sun as he approached you and Phoenix, and you felt a stab of sympathy for him. Over the years, Hrodebert had been expected to stay up all night, burning the midnight oil while poring over accounts and ledgers, and it had significantly impacted his eyesight. There were times, you knew, when Phoenix stayed up at night to help him in secret because of how badly his eyes ached.

“Hello, Hrodebert,” Phoenix greeted him, momentarily forgetting about your interaction with Gallus as she approached her old friend. “What brings you over to the ludus?”

“You and Sabina,” Hrodebert replied, his mouth twisting into an apologetic frown as he looked from Phoenix over to you. “Domina is demanding—ahem, asking—for your presence in the villa. According to her, you’ve spent enough time over here with—and I quote— these filthy savages.” He let out a long-suffering sigh. “And you’re to clean yourselves up before you enter her presence.” Grimacing, he added, “I’m sorry. Don’t shoot the messenger.”

“It’s not your fault, Hrodebert,” you told him kindly, resting a reassuring hand on his arm. “Thank you for coming to get us.”

Hrodebert smiled, nodding. “Of course. I figured it was better me than someone else.”

“You’re right,” Phoenix nodded as the three of you began walking back towards the villa. “Because another messenger I might just shoot.”

You and Hrodebert couldn’t help but laugh at Phoenix’s indignant tone.

As your two friends began walking ahead of you, chatting about some account that Hrodebert was trying to organize, you couldn’t help but glance back over your shoulder at where the gladiators were currently in the midst of some sort of debriefing with Magnus. And though you knew you shouldn’t be seeking him out, your eyes somehow landed immediately on the tall, broad-shouldered Briton who had quickly become the most challenging puzzle you’d ever encountered.

Your heart skipped several beats when you realized that his gaze was fixed on you as well. Nearly stumbling over your own two feet, you turned hastily and followed after the others.

He couldn’t explain the ache in his chest as he watched you walk away, being swallowed up by the impenetrable walls of the villa of Atticus Cornelius Juventus, but it persisted all the same.

You had consumed his thoughts these past few weeks, ever since that day when he’d opened his eyes to find you standing above him, your hands as gentle as a dove when you touched him.

It would only grow worse, this ache, now that you were working around the ludus more frequently. He didn’t know if he could stand it.

But he also couldn’t stand the thought of you staying away.

Watching you disappear inside the villa, he felt an unsettling fear snake its way up his spine and squeeze his heart—or what was left of his heart, anyway. Those bruises on your wrist. He couldn’t get the sight of them out of his mind’s eye. And he knew exactly who had put them there, even if you wouldn’t say. That miserable bitch. She took anything that was beautiful and good and crushed it for her own sick amusement.

The thought of her hurting you made him want to burn that villa to the ground.

He had to talk to Phoenix and Hrodebert, had to make sure that they protected you where he couldn’t.

Where he couldn’t? Had he deemed himself your protector now? How could he protect you when he couldn’t even protect himself?

But he would protect you. Of that, he was certain. He didn’t understand the feelings that you had awakened inside him—he didn’t want to understand them—but he knew that he would do what he had to do to keep you safe.

As he and the others began trudging their way back to their cells, exhausted after a long morning of training exercises, he was pulled out of his silent reverie by the conversation happening around him.

“She was sweet,” Felix was saying, running an exhausted hand through his dark curls. “And Phoenix likes her a lot, so clearly we can trust her.”

“Titus likes her, too, so that’s two strikes in her favor. If she can win over that grumpy old man, then there must be something special about her,” Pollux nodded in agreement, rolling his aching shoulders back.

Gallus realized they were talking about you.

“Pretty, too,” Caius added, waggling his eyebrows with a grin. “You think she has a thing for gladiators?”

“Stay away from her,” Gallus said sharply, causing all of their heads to turn in his direction.

Pollux and Felix exchanged a look, while Caius and Carnifex raised curious brows.

“Do you have a thing for the pretty new slave girl, Gallus?” Carnifex asked, a smirk playing at the corners of his mouth. “And here we thought you were celibate, considering how you never seem to—”

“Just stay away from her,” Gallus said darkly, taking a tense step in Carnifex’s direction. “She’s here to help us, not to warm your beds.”

Carnifex smirked challengingly at Gallus, but the rest of them threw their hands up in surrender.

“We’re not going to bother her, Gallus. You have our word,” Felix promised, looking at him seriously.

Pollux and Caius quickly echoed his sentiments, and even Carnifex finally relented and nodded in agreement.

There were very few people on this earth that Gallus liked, and even fewer that he trusted, but his fellow Pugiones were among them. Even Carnifex, as much as he may have disliked him most of the time. If they gave their word that they wouldn’t bother you, then he knew it was as good as a blood oath.

“We need to look out for her, the same way we look out for Phoenix,” he told them, glancing over his shoulder in the direction of the villa. “Don’t let anyone else bother her either, otherwise they’ll answer to me.”

The rest of them nodded, exchanging silent glances once more. They’d never seen Gallus, usually so aloof and cold, like this before.

“Alright, men, let’s get some rest before Magnus drags us out for some new form of torture,” Carnifex announced, stretching his arms over his head.

Letting out tired groans, they nodded and headed off to their own cells. As the champions of the ludus, they were each afforded their own space, which was more than could be said for the newer recruits.

As Gallus trudged into his cell, he pulled off his sandals and dropped down onto his bed, ignoring the fresh pitcher of wine that had been left on his table. His body ached and his joints popped as he rolled over, staring at the wall and trying to get the image of your face out of his mind.

It was no use. As he drifted off into a restless sleep, he could see nothing but the beauty of your smile, hear nothing but the melody of your laughter, feel nothing but the gentleness of your touch.

In all his years risking his life in the arena, fighting for the entertainment of those who had enslaved him, he had never felt as helpless as he did when he thought of how he could do so little to keep you safe.

You held him captive, and for the first time in his life, he found that he didn’t mind.

#bradley rooster bradshaw #rooster x reader #x reader #x female reader #top gun #top gun: maverick #miles teller #hannix #hangman x phoenix #Ancient Rome AU #si vis amari ama ⚔️

[bagel-muncher]

urgh i need. akimina HCs immediately (holding you at gunpoint)

Mods send him to the torture nexus he keeps threatening me.

But yeah sure, why not? Still pretty new to 3 in comparrison so forgive these for being ooc and the like. Also sorry for how long I took to respond to your ask I could not figure out how to word some things.

• I see Akihiko as demisexual, it takes a long time for him to even consider crushing on someone but when he falls he *falls*. I honestly have no idea how I feel about Makoto's sexuality. He's totally trans tho.

• I feel like they both had a crush on each other for a pretty long time. Both just thinking "Man, he's so cool" about the other constantly before coming to the realization they wanted to be with each other. Just casually admiring the other throughout the day and even in Tartarus, thinking nothing of it until the realization hits them like a brick.

• Then the flirting begins. God. They both suck. Akihiko tries pick-up lines from a book, Makoto gets so desperate he asks *Junpei* for advice (luckily Akihiko did not understand any of the terrible pick-up lines)

• Them actually getting together was messy as hell. Both of them just barfing out their feelings and being relieved the other felt the same.

• Akihiko almost exploded the first time Makoto refered to him with just his name, no "senpai" attached. Makoto kept a pretty neutral face the first time he was called by his first name but inside he was just :D

• Makoto expresses love through gifts. It's usually small things, like making a playlist or giving Akihiko something he won at the arcade. Akihiko is more about expressinng his love through words. Even if he's not the best at conversation, he does his best to tell Makoto how much he loves him and how important he is to him.

• Very soft. They open up to each other about things they wouldn't tell anyone else. Like the two of them could just be chilling and cuddling in Akihiko's room and Makoto just suddenly brings up how much he mentions his parents, and Akihiko just nods and talks about how much he misses Miki.

• Neither are that into PDA. Maybe some handholding, but that's about it. But if Makoto see's one of Akihiko's fangirls checking him out? Oh you bet he's gonna give him a little smooch right there even if Akihiko combusts from it. Makoto's not possesive by any means, but he'll make sure they know who Akihiko's with.

• They totally spar for 'dates'. Friendly fights at the dorm (usually won by Akihiko) or battling with their Persona's during the Dark Hour (always won by Makoto). They make sure to patch each other up as soon as they're done, and be extra lovey-dovey to make up for any pain.

• 10/4 had a big impact on how both of them fight. Makoto's more reckless and puts less value on his own life so his teammates can survive, while Akihiko's more protective because he doesn't want to lose someone he loves again. Honestly the main source of arguments for them. They're both just greiving and trying to take care of the one's they love in their own ways.

• Akihiko was completely despondent for a good while after 3/5. Losing someone he loves yet again (and only a few months after losing Shinjiro) practically destroyed him for a long while. Despite this, I can't imagine his stance in the Answer changing. As much as he hates it, it was Makoto's choice to sacrifice himself, undoing it would be a massive disservice towards him. Besides, going back would put everyone in danger from Nyx again, and he knows their friends being in danger is the last thing Makoto would've wanted.

#persona 3 #persona 3 spoilers #p3 spoilers #akihiko sanada #makoto yuki #minato arisato #akimina

[starlitangels]

I struggle with making requests, but I'm going to share some fun words with you anyway!!

-Gargantuan

-Flutter

-Indomitable

-Erinaceous

I love the fun words! I'm going to give you a little gen Wolf Boys with a tiny sprinkling of Milo/Sweetheart! 💜💚

Flutter, Gargantuan, and Indomitable

—

Your mate's watching, Asher teases playfully. Do you feel the pressure of impressing them weighing down on your shoulders?

Milo huffs out of his snout, shaking his head. Not a chance, he retorts confidently. I don't need to impress my mate against you.

Ohhhhh—to be so skilled, Asher taunts, a smile in his voice. But you're not practicing against me.

Wait, what?

Shaking out pitch-black fur, David's huge wolf form emerges from the shadows. Milo hadn't even—how had he not noticed—

Downwind. David was downwind and his pelt was so dark he'd blended right into the shadows.

A pit squeezed in Milo's stomach. It had been years since he actually faced David one-on-one. They'd been... God, they'd been teenagers. David had mopped the floor with Milo. He could still remember his Ma's lecture when they both shifted back to human form bloody and bruised ringing in his ears. He didn't even have to strain to bring the memory up.

It took all of Milo's considerable self-confidence not to flatten his ears and drop his tail, yielding immediately. No, he thinks to himself, keeping it off the mental link. No. I can do this. He'll beat me, but I'll take it with dignity—and no way in hell am I makin' it easy on him.

He bares his teeth and raises his hackles in challenge. Cool and confident. Maybe even a little cocky.

David says nothing. Just braces his front paws into the dirt and bends to lunge.

Milo's ears twitch backward as he hears your whistle and clapping. "You got this, Milo!"

Your voice warms the blood in his veins, making his chest swell.

Milo copies David's pose.

They both take a moment to glance at their mates. Milo's grey eyes in his rust-colored pelt meet your gaze. You can't help but smile, trying to make it encouraging and loving at the same time. Just that gaze, no matter if it's in a wolf's face or the man's you love, makes your heart flutter.

He huffs out his nose again.

He and David nod at each other—

And leap.

They crash together in a tangle of teeth, claws, limbs, and tails. Asher's mate gasps quietly beside you, their hand reaching for your arm. You set your other hand on top of their reassuringly.

Milo and David hit the ground.

David recovers first, shoving to his feet.

Milo doesn't scramble back up onto all fours. No. He stands in one fluid movement. Directly between you and his alpha.

Compared to Milo—who is already big in wolf form—David is absolutely gargantuan. Bearing down on Milo with the confidence of a fight already won when it's only just begun.

But anyone could say what they would about Milo—he's not a quitter. You've never known him to back down from a challenge.

You can even see he's smiling. Well, the wolf-snout equivalent, anyway.

David's also "smiling."

"It's all good fun," you reassure Asher's mate as Milo lunges at David. "They've done this before."

"But I've never seen Milo against David."

You haven't either. David rarely sparred against anyone other than Asher or Tank. They were nearly his size and he tried his best to make sparring matches fair.

Not that something so silly would ever stop Milo.

You smirk. "Don't worry about Milo," you decide.

He's currently in the process of attempting to wrangle David onto the ground. Toppling an alpha his size is a nigh impossible task when it comes to weight difference alone, but Milo's densely muscled, despite his size.

Not bad, Asher says, sounding impressed, from the sidelines where he's acting as referee.

Shut up, Milo and David both gripe at the same time. Milo can hear the strain in David's thoughts as he withstands the weight of Milo's attacks dragging him toward the ground.

Havin' a hard time, big guy? Milo asks.

Not a chance, David replies.

Milo growls in satisfaction. Always the best kind of play-fight. David would never dream of going easy on Milo—and he likes it that way. Milo figures the rest of the pack can mock his size as much as they wanted, they will never be able to say his will is anything less than indomitable. He's proved that over and over, and he'll never stop.

Even as David's shoulder slams into his gut and knocks him several yards away from the power behind the swing.

Milo digs his claws into the ground to stop sliding and huffs.

Ready for the fun to begin, big guy?

I thought it had already started, David deadpans. But there's excitement hidden in that tone. Milo knows what to listen for.

Hope you're ready. He lowers his head and charges forward.

#romi sweetheart #Star does Micro Fics #Redacted ASMR #Redacted Audio #Redacted Asher #Redacted Milo #Redacted Sweetheart #Redacted David #Asher Talbot #David Shaw #Milo Greer

[goldnhourwrites]

Combined Headcanons (just for fun!)

continuation of my Heartsteel College AU headcanons post!! feel free to use this for shipping purposes or whatever, I tried to put them in some kind of order by person!

Sett and Yone had to take a physiology class together once and Sett brought a bunch of homemade cookies at the end of the term. Ever since Sett learned Yone was a permanently exhausted pre-med student he has made an effort to bring food to office hours/study groups to share with him

K'Sante and Yone took an 8AM lecture together once and bonded because they were the only two people who were ever both on time and fully awake for it

Ezreal shows Yone the coolest places to take walks on campus when Yone needs a break from work, like cool public artwork and parks he’s found nearby

Yone enjoys reading the poetry Aphelios publishes under his pseudonym, even though Aphelios doesn’t know it

Yone longs to be more involved in the music side of campus and Aphelios encourages him to pick up an instrument again. Yone goes to every orchestra, jazz band, and choir performance he can

Yone has gone to one of Kayn's band’s shows and occasionally listens while Kayn practices guitar

Alune works at the café where Yone gets his coffee most mornings

Yone and Alune also study together occasionally since Alune’s bio classes sometimes overlap with Yone’s pre-med ones, and they share notes when they take the same class

Sett and K'Sante met by always being at the gym at the weirdest times (like 6AM before a practice meet) until they each went "hey, I should learn this guy's name since I see him 3 times a week"

Once they’ve become friends, Sett and K'Sante start going to each other's home competitions and hyping each other up

Ezreal has gone to a party at Sett's fraternity where Sett practically had to carry him out at midnight for being too drunk (he didn't drink a lot, he's just a lightweight)

Sett and Aphelios didn't really "meet" before Heartsteel, but Aphelios goes to Alune's a capella performances and sometimes he sees Sett there during crossover/multi-group events

Sett and Kayn spar for fun sometimes because Kayn used to do martial arts before college, and they occasionally trade fighting techniques from different disciplines

Sett will model for Alune's fashion projects. He knows a bit about how to sew, so he'll occasionally help her with tailoring things

Ezreal and K'Sante will act for Alune if she needs someone for a video or photoshoot

K'Sante met Ezreal by asking him for help with a source for an anthropology project while Ezreal was working as a librarian, and Ezreal kept offering him more and more books to use

K'Sante and Aphelios have crossed paths in the music department while practicing after classes. K’Sante learned a bit of sign language so he could talk with Aphelios more easily

Kayn doesn't dance with a group, but he likes going to the dance shows and finds out that some of his favorite dances were K'Sante's choreography. Eventually, after Heartsteel forms, K’Sante teaches Kayn how to dance hip-hop (they both love it)

Aphelios has had to help Ezreal find his way out when he got lost in the computer science building while he was looking for a cool new study spot

In return, Ezreal has had to wake Aphelios up because it was midnight and he’d fallen asleep in the library and Ezreal needed everyone to leave so he could close

Ezreal and Kayn both joined the parliamentary debate club their freshman year and immediately hated each other's guts. They often sided against each other for the sake of getting to argue with each other and not because they actually supported the positions they were debating

Ezreal and Kayn have become partners in crime by repeatedly seeing each other in places they're not allowed to go ("You're not supposed to be in here!" "Neither are you!"). They occasionally cross paths in places neither of them should reasonably be able to get to (like the rooftops of a tall building) via Ezreal’s teleportation and Kayn’s wall-phasing and have agreed to not tell on each other

Alune and Ezreal were in a play together once. They’re both the right amount dramatic to get along with each other, and Aphelios met Ezreal when Alune was hanging out with him after a rehearsal

Kayn and Aphelios have both made things in the jewelry studio - Kayn making spiky silver earrings and rings and Aphelios making delicate necklaces

Aphelios and Kayn took a painting class together one term and saw each other in the studio often. They still occasionally see each other at figure drawing sessions

Kayn plays a bunch of video games and will always playtest Aphelios's game projects and give him feedback

Aphelios and Alune live in the same area of campus and are often seen walking home together. Alune is trying to teach Phel how to skateboard, but he’s committed to biking everywhere

Aphelios and Alune always go to each other’s performances (with permission), since they both have a bit of social anxiety and it helps to know someone is in the crowd supporting them

Alune and Kayn have been to a skate park together and Kayn is teaching Alune how to skateboard

#heartsteel #heartsteel headcanons #heartsteel yone #heartsteel sett #heartsteel k'sante #heartsteel ezreal #heartsteel aphelios #heartsteel kayn #heartsteel alune #not even gonna try to tag every ship #use these for whatever u want #i love them A Lot!!

[nobody-is-here01]

back on my bullshit, (im here to spam you Marine Luffy stuff)

Thinking about Marine Luffy’s dynamic with the 7 warlords and it's one of the funniest things ever.

Boa Hancock is going to get her own post because I have SO MUCH to say about her and Canon! Luffy along with Marine Luffy’s dynamic with her.

Anyway, personal headcanons of what I think Marine Luffy and the Warlords dynamics are.

Doflamingo: Luffy is usually the one who during Warlord meetings has to deal with Doflamingo’s bullshit. This is partially because Luffy is the only thing that really puts the fear of god back into Doflamingo. Also, Marine luffy is absolutely feral, and terrifying, and does indeed bite. I think in some twisted ways Luffy in this AU reminds Doflamingo of when he's younger. In some fucked up way of trying to cope with trauma Doflamingo tries to simulate situations that he went through as a kid to see how Luffy reacts. To see if things had been a bit better, if things had been different, if Doflamingo could have been a better person. The Dressrosa Arc still happens in this AU except a bit later. As Doflamingo’s tyrant rein finally falls he realizes that “huh maybe we never were that similar…”

(I have no idea if this AU is a Crocomom AU or not but I’ll go ahead and write up how it would go in either situations.)

Crocodile: Dynamic is definitely more cold and distant than in an AU where Crocodile is Luffy’s other parent. Luffy is seen as a threat, and Crocodile has at least 15 different drawn-up plans on how to deal with him. (none of these plans would actually work in practice.) The dynamic is pretty much just business, you leave me be I’ll leave you be.

Crocomom: Similar to the first one. Except the first time he meets Luffy and he hears that he's Garp's grandkid he's freaking the fuck out. Because holyshit, that's his alive, grownup, kid. Crocodile has no idea how to explain to Luffy that like “hey im your biological mother, now a man, hahaha…” So Crocodile simply doesn't. (The two of them do have a heart-to-heart much later alone in Impel down during the breakout.)

Moria: Honestly I don't have much to say about him. Luffy absolutely hates Hogback and Absolom though. So Luffy has a dislike for Moria and what he does. But Moria out of all the warlords not including Kuma is the easiest to deal with, so that earns him some brownie points.

Kuma: Im not sure if you caught up with the latest chapters. (specifically his backstory chapters) so I will be staying silent for now as not to spoil anything for you.

Mihawk: Mihawk is both intrigued and concerned at the beginning. Because that is Shank’s hat, and Shank’s kid. Why is Shank’s brat in the Marines?? Mihawk also like all the other warlords tends to use Luffy as some form of a coping mechanism. It's not uncommon to hear about Luffy and Mihawk getting into another physical fight. But after a while, Mihawk does realize that he has been accidentally treating Luffy as if he is Shanks. Mihawk realizes that he can't force Luffy to become his new sparring partner. Luffy is not Shanks, and he can't fill that hole either. After Marine Ford Mihawk reads the news regularly, a rare grin on his face whenever he catches sight of a straw hat.

Jinbei: That is Luffy’s emotional support parental figure your honor! The only one who is normal, safe, and sane. Also, the only one to look at Luffy and go “Are you okay?? I don't think healthy humans are supposed to act like that.” Also, the one to get Luffy to open up and heal slowly after Marineford. Also Luffy definitely knows the full truth of what happened to Fisher Tiger in this AU, so yeah that's something.

(I am so sorry, this is a really long post 💀)

Aaaahhhhhh!!! I've missed you and your bullshit bombarding my asks!

I love how with each dynamic all of them are also like, 'alright this kid is fucked up, keep an eye on him' but for different reasons

So here are some of my thoughts on what Marine Luffy’s relationship is with the warlords (love yours so much)

Crocodile : so unfortunately not a coco-mom au, like you said their relationship is strictly business, Luffy doesn't really care for the warlords as long as they don't get in his way.

Domflamingo : Luffy finds him kinda annoying so he tries to avoid any situation where he would meet him, unfortunately he can't at warlord meetings, but he's tried, probably one of the only warlords Luffy wouldn't mind punching out of the blue, dude would punch him without reason (gets away with it too)

Kuma : (no sadly not that far yet but I know a bit of his background not much though) but Luffy likes him

Moria : almost the same relationship as Domflamingo, except he just straight up avoids him, unless he has to deal with Moria then he will and he'll do it quickly

Mihawk : one of the few warlords Luffy actually respects, he admires his fighting and his character, granted it annoyed him a bit to constantly be reminded of Shanks, like you said he also like the other warlords used luffy as some form of coping, but after he realized what he did he stopped and him and Luffy kinda became like gossip buddies, like they'd hang out whenever Mihawk was in the area, but Luffy wouldn't actively seek him out, Mihawk would have to come to him if he wanted someone to talk to or spar with,

Jimbe : only warlord and person that Luffy actually likes from the warlords, yes he likes Mihawk, but Jimbe is different, Luffy has a sort of awe for Jimbe and felt very honored to know about him and his past with Fisher Tiger, Jimbe is the only one who knows that Luffy secretly wishes he was a pirate instead of a Marine, when Jimbe asked why Luffy didn't just become a pirate now Luffy replied saying that he's made so many promises to the people he protects that he doesn't want to go back, not now at least, Jimbe is also the only one who knows about Ace and Sabo and how much Luffy misses them and how proud he is of them

absolutely love your asks 🩷

Have aa good day/night

#one piece #my asks #marine luffy #monkey d luffy #seven warlords #sir crocodile #dracule mihawk #jimbei

[deathmetalunicorn1]

I had an idea for Demon Slayer x Record of Ragnarok crossover

As we know Sasaki never stopped training after he died, and for a while he trained himself against his mental image of Musashi

Well, you and I both know if he hears about any of the demon slayers and what they do with their breathing techniques he would be asking them to teach him

My idea is that he stumbles upon Yoriichii training in preparation for when Muzan arrives so he can give him even greater PTSD and Sasaski asks him to teach him

I don’t know if he would learn any breathing styles but he would learn Total Concentration Breathing at the very least and he would train against any demon slayer that shows up in Valhalla who is willing

Imagine how his fight against Poseidon would after training with Demon Slayers and the various Hashira

The only way I can think to make him even more of a threat is if he meets some of the demons (Rui, Akaza, Kokoushiou, Gyutaro and Daki specifically) who are probably surprised Sasaki is actually asking to fight them instead of immediately attacking them or running away in fear. Sasaski of course then learns all sorts of things from them as well

-Yoriichi remembered that day well, when an older samurai stumbled across him training, and a smile came to the Demon Slayer’s lips as he remembered the bright sparkle in Kojiro’s eyes.

-After his death, Kojiro never stopped training, being one of the few humans in Valhalla to grow older, to match his experience until he reached his peak.

-Yoriichi never met someone like Kojiro before, friendly, warm, almost always had a smile on his face, but also so hard-working and focused.

-It was this focus that helped Yoriichi make his decision to train Kojiro himself, training him how to use breathing styles to hone his attacks and skills even more.

-It was hard for Kojiro, the training was unlike anything he had dealt with, but he earned Yoriichi’s respect by never giving up, he kept working at it.

-Kojiro never did learn any of the breathing styles, only Total Concentration Breathing, but paired with his strength and hard work, it proved to be a boon for Kojiro’s arsenal.

-Yoriichi found it funny, when his brother arrived in Valhalla, the two spending time with each other, not fighting, when Kojiro chased Kokushibo around, begging for a fight.

-The demon was much like his younger brother, he had never met a human like Kojiro, who was actually excited to meet him, not afraid of him in the slightest, and wanted to fight him.

-Kokushibo could easily sense the strength in Kojiro’s swings and had they been fighting seriously, to the death, Kokushibo knew that both of them wouldn’t be walking away unscathed.

-Kojiro kept in touch with the brothers over the years, practicing more and more, and whenever he found a Demon Slayer who was willing to spar with him, they were always stunned that he knew Total Concentration Breathing!!

-Demons were another group that Kojiro had the pleasure of knowing, he approached several of them, not counting Kokushibo whom he had a friendly relationship with, with no fear and greeting them warming, wanting to have a sparring match with them.

-While thrown off at first, a few, like Akaza and Daki grew fond of the older samurai, Akaza because he could tell the strength he had, and Daki found him amusing to be around.

-The cheering section for Kojiro wasn’t just his past opponents, other warriors, several demons and Demon Slayers, having a momentary truce, were also there, cheering for him.

-Gyutaro had told hold his sister back after she tried to leap into the fight after Poseidon injured the samurai, “How dare he hurt my Kojiro!! Let me go big brother!!”

-Poseidon prepared to launch his final attach, after Kojiro got his sword snapped and after the pieces became two swords, ready to lunge.

-Kojiro shifted one of his legs back and inhaled deeply through his teeth as he closed his eyes. Poseidon felt the burst of energy at the last second, when Kojiro’s eyes snapped open as he charged, slicing the god into several pieces.

-Yoriichi was surprised by the strength behind his attack but felt proud as Kojiro was announced the winner, and he couldn’t help but smile softly when Kojiro grinned warmly up at him.

-There were beings on both sides, demons and demon slayers, who had to question, if they could get along to cheer on this samurai, was peace an option in Valhalla?

-A few glances went around between the two groups, silently asking each other that question.

#record of ragnarok #ror kojiro sasaki #demon slayer #demon slayer yoriichi

[princess-of-the-corner]

For no particular reason here is some important, totally canon MHA lore courtesy of Smash:

The support course makes most of the stuff for the hero course including comedy props and robotic copies of the staff.

UA occasionally lets people who want to apply there watch classes and even take part in Hero Course lessons.

Momo can perfectly copy others' behaviour if she tries, can stop her lungs at will and is a magnificent opera singer.

Competitive baseball ceased existing after the dawn of quirks but Ochako is a fan anyway.

Fighting game combos are real but only Ochako can do them because her quirk lets her replicate weird physics engine bs.

Bakugo is an expert cook and baker but is also too scary to be asked about it. He's also a pretty good life coach, a favourite of local kids and one of the better rescuers on the team (according to Aizawa)

Endeavor is the most awkward motherfucker on the planet

Mt. Lady wasn't allowed to take hero courses due to her quirk but still decided to be one with some remedial courses to inspire other people with "volatile" quirks. This was a very mixed success.

Disney doesnt exist anymore but its remnant company is still an ass about copyright.

Izuku has a shitton of stuff about Katsuki in his notebooks and made multiple copies of it to hand out/in case they explode. He's also a cat's cradle expert.

The class is generally pretty good at improvised group dances.

All Might drafted up an anime about his life back in his early career and apparently it's Bad.

Midnight has a shonen rivalry fetish.

Shoto has used Half Hot before the Sports Fest but only in love doses and exclusively to attract cats. He also likes hunting bugs a lot (with a similar tactic) and doesn't know how mosquitos work.

Mic knows Muai Tai and wants to show it off really badly.

13's outfit is apparently a uniform UA just has on hand for Reasons.

Gonna respond to these individually so:

Love that! I've actually discussed before on the same wavelength of how the Support Course would be best suited to learn alongside Hero Students so they can see practical applications! I'd like more if they worked together a bit and/or the support students got classes where they just watch the Hero Training classes and take notes.

Honestly being allowed to check out potential schools you apply to does make sense.

Girl has many talents

how do you lose competitive baseball of all things? Like don't get me wrong I have little love for baseball, but why would it go away?

Ochako is best. Just fuckin. That's hilarious.

Katsuki being good at cooking is great but also being good with children? If a hero career never works out then housewife is a great option. (but also something something 'character with abrasive personality and power that's default dangerous and destructive also being one of the best with soft things that take patience like food and children)

This one? Beautiful. He's a loser. I love him.

It seems some bullshit that she wasn't allowed to take Hero Classes like. She can make a good Hero! And while her Quirk application is somewhat niche, it's not out of the realm of being needed. Hell, between her debut scene being fighting a giant villain therefore matching him in size, and the fact that this is a world where things like giant robots can exist, she's def needed. Like yeah she- she needs to learn to be a bit better about property damage but if she'd had gone to one of the schools and had experienced Heroes coaching her, that learning curve would be fantastic.

Disney will be Disney lmao

Izuku. Honey. I love you but that's a bit stalker-y and I would not be surprised if Katsuki blasts you into oblivion for that.

The gang is just all sharing a brain cell

All Might is also a fucking loser I love him.

I 100% think that all Heroes just have something for the shonen rivalry thing because like. Just. You need a close friend you can have a rivalry with to push each other to be the best you can be and then also spar with one another and oh hey getting pinned down like this is kinda hot ain't it? Every Hero has a 'type' and it's 'someone who will be affectionate but also throw me through a wall'.

Shoto using his fire to make himself warm and attract cats is fucking hilarious like baby!!!

Also a fucking loser I love him

That's hilarious actually

[next-autopsy]

A/N: Well, hi there! Bernadette is getting a bit home sick. And the women are getting some extra combat training. Read and enjoy x

Based on the actors portrayal/hbo show and written with no disrespect to the real life veterans. Also all images found on Pinterest.

TW: I don't think there is any....

Tags: @malarkgirlypop, @panzershrike-pretz

Made of Glass

Chapter seventeen: Another Promotion

North Carolina was intense. 

After completing five jumps and becoming qualified Paratroopers in Fort Benning, the whole 506th battalion moved to Camp Mackall. There they focused on practicing defensive maneuvers with some physical combat and lectures peppered in. 

The mood had dropped significantly as Easy company experienced their commanding officer; Sobel, in action. His inability to lead them to safety became the talking point of the century, everyday Birdie heard whispered worries and doubts from her comrades.  

Bernadette’s birthday was coming up, this would be the first she had spent away from her family, her hometown. She hadn’t told anyone the exact date and she wasn’t sure if she was going to, maybe she should let this one slip passed, unnoticed, uncelebrated. 

The young southern girl focused her energy on other things, hand to hand and close quarter combat being the main target. Fighting against the men had been frustrating for her, as they did the chivalrous thing and let her win, they didn’t put their whole weight into punches aimed at her and would miss or hesitate purposefully. 

She had found it sweet the first few weeks but as time went on, Birdie realized this wasn’t helping her. Her enemy would smack her in the face, no questions and she wouldn’t know how to block or counter properly. So the Easy company men babying her was doing more harm than good. 

Bernadette had gone to her fellow women to complain and most of them had experienced the same treatment. All apart from Rossi. She had a ‘take no shit’ attitude with the men of George company and they respected her for it. She would call them out if they pulled their punches with her and then hit them twice as hard to teach them a lesson. 

Francesca fundamentally disagreed with the porcelain doll treatment the rest of the ladies received, she of course spoke up about it to her CO, not willing to stand back and allow the girls to scrap by without actually learning how to protect themselves. Her CO had brought her concern to HQ and the women were given an extra self defense class to balm to mishap. 

Each woman would have to bring a man from their company to spar with while being overseen by a small handful of instructors. 

At first, Birdie didn’t know who she should take with her. Whoever she brought would have to fight her without the princess handling, that ruled out Toye, Guarnere, Luz, Malarkey, Muck and Penkala. She knew for a fact that Bull would rather die than hit her, he had refused to partner up with her before so how could she expect him to agree to fight her now. 

Winters and Nixon were ruled out when the no officers rule came into play. Plus Nixon had just been promoted to OSS, and his replacement; Harry Welsh was also a no go. Carwood was far too polite and she felt like she would be taking aim at her mother. 

The only real option was Johnny Martin. Or someone she wasn't as close with but still on good terms like; Talbert, More, Christenson, Grant. Maybe she should switch between the guys, take turns beating them up. Either way, Bernadette would have to convince them to say yes, she couldn't drag them by their ears to the sparring lesson, they had to be a willing volunteer. 

Birdie brought it up at dinner that night. She was seated at a table with Toye on one side and Guarnere on the other, like usual. Bill almost spat out his food when she spoke up, granted she’d abruptly announced she wanted to fight someone while there was a break of chatter and it took most of the men off guard.  

“You want to… fight someone?” Toye clarified, raising his eyebrow at the small woman. She nodded, amused by the reactions of her friends. Bill was still coughing up the food that had gone down the wrong way, he smacked at his chest to ease it down. 

“Who?” Johnny narrowed his eyes, he was ready to pull out a knife and threaten anyone who’d upset the girl. 

“Probably Lieb.” George smirked, from down the table. That actually wasn’t a bad idea, they could hash out whatever the heck was going on between them, air out the awkwardness. 

“Why? What’d he do?” Martin growled, “Birdie, what did he do?” His jaw clench and Birdie knew if she didn’t explain he would be having words with (and most likely throwing hands at) the Californian man. 

“Jesus. I don't wanna fight Liebgott….well….. No." She tilted her head and pretended to consider it, making George chuckle. Johnny still sent a glare to Lieb across the room, who had no idea what was going on and was beginning to worry for his life. 

“I have a class and I need a sparring partner.” She felt like she was a schoolgirl again, asking her parents permission. Birdie looked at Johnny, his arms were crossed over his chest as he contemplated what she was telling him. He shot Liebgott another glare just in case.  

“You got an extra class?” Toye questioned, he thought Birdie told him everything so why was he finding this out amongst a group? Joe was starting to get bitter, she should have come to him first and asked him to be her partner. 

“Yeah, all the girls do.” Her voice was nonchalant and she shrugged off Toye’s attitude. 

“Why?” Bill added, finally recovered and ready to take part in the conversation. 

“Cause y’all baby us ladies. How are we gonna learn how to fight if y’all keep pulling your punches?” The men around her 'um'ed and 'ahh'ed, it was a fair point. Toye was still butt hurt, but he supposed he understood, after all, he just wanted Birdie safe. That didn’t mean he liked this.

“What, so we're supposed to actually try and hit you?” Toye narrowed his eyes, no fucking way would he let someone else be Bernadette’s partner, not if the guy was trying to hurt her. 

“Yes!” He was exasperating her, Birdie rolled her eyes at her best friend. His protectiveness was normally welcome and even adored but now it was more of a hindrance and the woman just wanted him to shut his mouth.

“Fine. When’s our first class?” Toye had gone back to casually scooping up his food, acting as if this was just like any other normal discussion. He completely disregarded Bernadette as she dropped her jaw and uttered an irritated, “Our?” 

“You think I'm gonna let anyone else fight you, Little Bird?” He smirked at her, ruffling her hair and laughing when she huffed and smacked his hand away.

“Uh, no.” She declared, narrowing her eyes at him, “Not you.”

“I don’t see anyone else volunteering to kick your ass.” Toye joked though he secretly hoped no one chimed in at that moment.

“I’ll do it.” 

“Thank you, Johnny.” She made an ‘I told you so’ face and stuck her tongue out at Toye, who just rolled his eyes in return. 

“Tomorrow at 1000. The girls will be so excited to finally meet one of my Easy men.” The southerner got up from the table having finished her meal. She looked around and locked eyes with Carwood, he noted her readiness to leave and also got up, making his way toward her.

“Wait, the other girls will be there? I’ll go! Please pick me Birdie!” Guarnere seemed to put two and two together, the realization dawned on him and suddenly he was very eager to join the extra sparring class.

“Ew no. Don't be gross.” Birdie scrunched her face up at Bill, “Besides, I already told them you have Herpes.” She tossed a chuckle over her shoulder at the sputtering Italian man and left the dining hall with Lipton. 

Carwood walked her to her barracks and wished her a goodnight before leaving. 

Bernadette could hear the ladies' commotion from outside, it sounded like a squabble or some fresh, hot gossip had just been spilled. Birdie shook her head, mentally taking a bet with herself before she stepped inside.

Lucy was jumping on top of the corner most cot and held a book high above her head, while Blythe attempted to retrieve what Birdie assumed was her book. A diary maybe? 

Bernadette took note of Charlotte and Francesca watching and smoking from the adjacent corner, next to the butts bin and the door, and Betty sitting the furthest away from the loud women fighting over a book. Connie, who was curled up on her bed, burst into giggles watching the two best friends playfully pushing each other off the bed and wrestling for the journal. 

“Give it back!” Blythe squealed at her friend, who laughed and took post on yet another bed. 

Frankie waved Birdie over and she happily joined the two smokers, sitting away from the racket. Rossi held out her smoke which was snatched up instantly by the Mississippian. 

“You wanna fill me in?” Bernadette prompted, grinning as Blythe had now pinned Lucy to the floor.

“Not really.” Frankie deadpanned, making Charlotte roll her eyes and begin explaining how Lucy had found out about a crush Blythe was harboring and begged her to tell who had caught her eye, but the redhead refused so Lucy had stolen her diary in hopes she written down a name or description of some kind. And apparently she had. 

Birdie let out a chuckle and returned Frankie’s cigarette to her before heading over to Constance. The youngest woman had come out of her shell quite a bit since Birdie had first met her in Toccoa, they got on like a house on fire.

“You know who she’s sweet on?”

“No clue.” Connie grinned, happy to be entertained by the ruckus. 

By now, Blythe had gotten her precious diary back and the first thing she did was smack Lucy over the head with it. 

“Just tell meeeeee!” Lucy stuck her bottom lip out, hands together with interlocked fingers like she was begging her closest friend.

“No, it's a secret.” Blythe answered, tucking the book under her mattress. Lucy seemed to leave it at that and the pair were back to their usual shenanigans, chatting about the day's events and laughing about various inside jokes. Lucy settled on her bed with a comic and Blythe lay her head over the brunette's lap and read the personal letters she had received that morning.

Connie and Birdie shared their daily chit-chat on the blondes bed, the room had quietened down a fair amount, just the typical conversation and smoking. 

So when Betty spoke up, announcing her promotion to Corporal, the room hushed. None of the girls really knew what to say, Betty wasn’t exactly a conversationalist. 

“Oh, Uh… What for?” Lucy was the one to break the quiet, attempting to be polite. When Betty gaped and couldn’t form an answer, a knowing look was passed around the room. Her father had put in a word and gotten her promoted. Typical. Birdie could see the animosity forming between the women in the room and decided to try defuse it. 

“Congratulations, Betty. That's great.” She smiled at the new Corporal who was quite obviously, just trying to fit in. Out of the corner of her vision she saw Lucy rolling her eyes and mouth something unkind to Blythe, who giggled. 

Bernadette cleared her throat and threw them a pointed look, both Lucy and Blythe turned their attention to Betty and gave their congratulations. Followed by Connie and Charlotte who praised the woman. Betty let a small smile creep onto her face as the others began another discussion about their COs. 

“What about you, Betty?” 

Bernadette watched her facial expression change to one of shock, her eyebrows raised; she was being included. The room waited for her answer and when she gave it, they laughed with her instead of at her and Betty felt warm in her chest. 

Elizabeth turned to Bernadette and mouthed a silent ‘Thank you.’ She knew the girls were only talking to her so kindly because of the Easy company lady and she was beginning to appreciate the unacknowledged endeavor.

A/N: Kinda a filler chapter, more exciting things to come!

~ next-autopsy ~

Chapter eighteen

#band of brothers #easy company #hbo war #made of glass #band of brothers fanfic #fem oc #oc #george luz #joe toye #bill guarnere #johnny martin

[sketching-shark]

Finally finished some sketches of my version of Luohou, one of Sun Wukong's sons from the (noncanonical) Xiyouji sequel Journey to the South! Also featuring a short conversation between him and his sister Yuebei Xing about (im)mortality.

Him and his brother Jidu are only mentioned, and while their sister Yuebei Xing is given more attention there's still very little information about her too. Naturally, this means these three are more or less children of the Monkey King free ocs <3.

My version of Luohou, as with the rest of his siblings, had an overall happy childhood where he spent many contented hours painting and practicing calligraphy. As a young adult though he got restless and decided he wanted to have a solo adventure of the world outside of Mt. Huaguoshan to both find further inspiration for his art and to maybe even get a chance to emulate his famous and beloved father in some of his deeds of heroism and mischief. In Luohou's case he was particularly interested in getting his hands on a divine treasure to "definitively" prove his worth to others but especially to himself; though he was always more drawn to the scholarly arts than the martial arts, there had been numerous times where his pride was sorely wounded from other yaoguai not only besting him in sparring matches but telling him to his face that he only had a high position in their world because of who his father is. It was this wounded pride that ended up defining Luohou's actions for some time, even with the Monkey King's attempts to encourage his son and develop his confidence in himself. Because of course his father's going to say such things. The fear that others could see some flaw in him that his father refused to was eventually the final straw that drove Luohou out of Mt. Huaguoshan and onto the road.

Luohou thinks he finally gets a chance to prove himself when during his wanderings he gets an opportunity to steal a Heaven-made ink cake from an immortal which, as Luohou realized after watching the immortal paint and write for some time, never seemed to diminish no matter how much it was used. He does manage to snatch the ink cake, but both the immortal and a host of other beings are soon hot on his trail. They corner him. Terrified but unwilling to give up the treasure, Luohou swallows the ink cake.

The next few months of his life were spent on a bed in an isolated cave in Mt. Huaghushan, crying in pain and in shame over the trouble he brought on his family's head and vomiting up wave after wave of ink as Sun Wukong literally split himself into pieces tending to his horribly ill son and doing everything in his power to maintain the peace with a newly enraged Heaven. Eventually things settle down after Luohou agrees to a number of years of service for the immortal as an assistant in their art studio, with the condition that he had to work there until he learn how to replace the ink cake that he stole. He starts this after Sun Wukong figures out that if Luohou inhales smoke from igneous rocks (and thus triggers some of his own inherent volcanic traits that comes with the territory of being an intelligent stone monkey) that the ink cake firmly lodged in Luohou's body "dries" enough so that it doesn't really inconvenience him, and where he actually has some control over how much ink it produces.

Though they butted heads at first, the immortal Luohou stole from eventually becomes his shifu. Luohou himself, now a much wiser monkey than he once was, came to find true contentment in the art and calligraphy that he loves, though the ink treasure also means he has incorporated its possibilities into his own style of fighting. The chronic pain that came with having the divine ink cake lodged in his body seems a pretty permanent condition, but each year, especially with his family's support, makes it easier to manage.

#luohou #yuebei xing #journey to the south #shark's sketches

[naddiesflower]

Hello. I’ve always had this idea but I can’t write fanfic for the life of me. Powerpuff girl! Reader with anyone from bnha. Maybe just in general about being in UA. Ignore this if you want. Just a thought <3

sorry this is late, the wifi has been out for a month and it's not fun lolol this is pretty short cuz my brain has gone poopoo

this can also be viewed as platonic

Characters: Shoto, Bakugo, Shinsou, Denki

Shoto

Is surprised you can produce fire

He hadn’t seen it when you first met each other

But he had heard about it from his classmates 

“It’s so pretty!”

“I’ve never seen anything like it.”

And he was a bit apprehensive about what he heard

In his mind, he was like, “fire? Pretty? Idk about that one chief.”

He’s never been more wrong in his life

When he does see you use fire he’s enthralled

The color of the fire is so unique and just so you

The both of you become quick friends (more like you talk and he happily listens to you)

He learns to appreciate and actually love his fire quirk through you

Bakugou

Absolutely loves sparring with you

You don’t look it, cuz you’re actually cute incarnate

But you are an absolute unit when it comes to fighting

He knows you have superhuman stamina

But he likes testing your limits

Which only ends up with him being absolute tired

And you’ve barely broken a sweat

“C’mon Katsuki, let’s take a break, you're only tiring yourself out.”

“One more round!”

And that would repeat for a while longer

Whenever he gets frustrated about stuff he spends time with you because it helps him cool off

You’re like his happy pill

Shinsou

He’s not fond of very many people 

But it’s the exact opposite with you

Something about you just is really different 

You had just blindly trusted him from the very beginning

He was sure you heard about his quirk, about how evil it could be 

But you made no notion of questioning him and talked to him animatedly 

Despite being in different classes you made the effort to always meet with him 

And when he started to get serious about being a hero you were there every step of the way with him 

Because of your nigh invulnerability, you and Shinsou would practice honing his brainwashing quirk

Which arguably has made your bond with each other so strong   

Denki

I envision the two of you to be crackheads

When he finds out that you leave an energy trail of color when you fly

He’s absolutely amazed

“Why didn’t you tell me you could do that!”

“I can’t really control it, it just happens?”

Will plead for you to write/draw stuff with your energy trail

“Hey, can you write my name?”

You fly and when you’re finished there are lingering kanji

“Done and done.”

You can almost see the cogs turning in his head as he contemplates what he’s going to say next

“Can you do a di-”

Cue you smacking his arm

#bnha x reader #bnha x you #bnha imagines #bnha scenarios #bakugou x reader #shoto x reader #shinsou x reader #denki x reader #mha x reader #mha imagines #mha scenarios