Flufftober 2023

Flufftober 2023

Day 22: Dancing in the rain/ snow/ falling leaves [x Raju]

Wandering in the woods was quite relaxing, Raju floating by your side. Neither of you were doing anything specific, though Raju did have a few pouches for various mushrooms and wild herbs. He just couldn't pass up the chance to gather extra.

The way the fall leaves fell around you had Raju distracted. Just how pretty the reds, yellows, oranges, and even crunchy brown leaves looked swilling around you in the light breeze had him mesmerized.

This wasn't a normal feeling for him.

Tilting your head, unaware of how many leaves were falling down your hair. Unaware of how cute you looked.

"Is something wrong Raju?"

He jolted a little, "No, no. You just have leaves in your hair."

"Hm?" You started combing your fingers through your hair, "Where?"

Raju tried stopping you, not realizing that you were expecting him to remove them. He just wanted you to keep the leaves in your hair.

"Did I get them all out?" You asked, "How many--"

"Uh, no. You just look..." Raju didn't want to admit it but... "You look really adorable with them settled in there."

The silence as you and Raju blushed at each other was a little tense, especially with Raju not looking at you. He already admitted the nice, sweet, romantic thing... why was going on with the walk so difficult?

You glanced around the area, spotting a slightly open area, "Wanna dance?"

Raju's head popped up, still confused but now over the offer to dance. He wasn't sure how or why you'd dance in the forest but... His bony hand slid into yours, for once letting you lead him around. Though he was pleasantly surprised that you weren't doing any kind of formal huma dances.

But he couldn't stop himself...

Using his Windweaver to scoop leaves up and swill them around the two of you; Raju felt his heart speeding up. You just looked stunning to him, leaves falling all around, catching in your hair as you smiled. He couldn't help himself, gently spinning you around and letting go for a moment.

Just to enjoy the sight of you, as if you were trapped in a fall-themed snow globe. Either his heart had stopped beating, or he was far too lovestruck to notice how deep he was falling for you... every time he spent time with you...

Whumptober 2023

Day 17: "You don't get it!--" [x Leo]

Stakeouts were never fun, but this was ridiculous. Leo had to try and keep you from storming into the headquarters until Klaus and Steven could arrive. It wasn't like he didn't want to let you tear through everything top to bottom and make this whole job easier...

But Libra needed the notes you wanted to burn.

"Let go Leo." You struggled against him, "You have to let me do this... before it's too late."

"[Name], you know why I can't. C'mon, just a little while longer and Steven will take care of this."

"You don't get it!" You backed up, trying to find a way around the smaller man, "You don't know what they did to me!"

Leo sighed, "Yes, I do know what they did to you. I've seen it through your eyes [Name]. But we have to let Steven handle this."

"Why?" Brute forcing your way through was about the only option Leo was giving you and you didn't want to hurt him, "No one else had to deal with this pain, no one else knows what I went through! I should be the one taking these f&^kers down! Not Steven!"

"Please, calm down." Leo caught your arms again, "It won't help you at all. Please, don't become the monster they tried to make you. That isn't you [Name]. It never will be. Please, just relax."

You turned your head away, hot and bitter tears falling onto Leo's shoulder, "I just want them to feel the same terror and pain I felt. I need them to know the agony they put me through."

"They will." Leo tilted your chin back to him, "But you don't need to get your hands dirty to do it. Please, let Steven take care of this and let me help you forget when we get home... okay?"

All you could muster was a little nodding. You felt like a child being scolded for nothing. But deep down, you knew Leo was right. That it would take a lot of effort for you to handle things. Steven would be much more capable of making them fear their very existence... assuming Klaus didn't just look at them the right way. Even you had to shiver when he seemed slightly disappointed and angry.

Flufftober 2023

Day 20: Being a little jealous of a pet/ stray animal [x Daniel]

"Oh!" You gasped, tugging Daniel's arm, "Puppy!"

"That's a full grown dog." He sighed, "No puppy."

"Puppy." You asserted, "And there's no collar--"

"No Pie, you don't know where that thing has been."

Daniel was left following you as you coaxed the dog to you. Sighing deeply as you patted the pitiful creature while wanting to tug you away, to remind you that its a stray animal that might have rabies or fleas or something you definitely don't want.

"C'mon Pie." He insisted, "We got things to do yet. We can't take the dog."

"Puppy." You repeated, "And why not? It doesn't have an owner."

"That you know of."

"No collar."

"Neighborhood that doesn't have collars."

"But look how thin he is."

"He got out and someone is looking for him."

"But friendly."

"All the more reason he belongs to someone else."

"But puppy."

Daniel sighed, holding the bridge of his nose, "That's not an argument Pie."

As much as he didn't want to admit it, Daniel was getting a little jealous about how much affection you were giving it. That level of baby talk wasn't something he was into, but the level of attention would be nice.

Whumptober 2023

Day 14: "I can't take this" "Please" [x Zapp]

Running away from danger was never your strong suit, but that was why you'd ended up in the hospital this time... and every other time but you weren't trying to focus on that. You were focused on the phone in your hand, trying to make sense of the sporadic texting of your on-again off-again lover Zapp.

You were, on paper, fine with the arrangement. Knowing it would either lead you two to break up or become more permanent. Of course, that never made it easier when your feelings were the casualty. But it was what you were willing to do because going all in on a relationship was only going to do more damage than this arrangment.

At least that's what you kept telling yourself...

From what you understood, Zapp felt the same way and that's why he was doing all the running around he did. Except for the fact that he started hitting you up more, it was a little unnerving. Not always about sleeping together or partying or even just going to get a few drinks... but more meaningful date-adjacent activities, showing you off to others, openly bragging about you to the rest of the office.

Things that made you just a smidge uncomfortable because of how... attached it felt.

But, sitting here in a hospital bed, you had a long list of texts that were spelling out all the intuition thoughts you'd been agonizing over. Zapp was equally torn about becoming closer, but he had problems convincing himself he wanted someone else.

"For whatever reason, I just want you sexy"

Letting out a deep sigh, you barely turned when the nurse opened the door, mentioning that you had visitors. Klaus had been coming around a lot, he always did. Making sure his friends were okay was just second nature to him, what you weren't expecting was Zapp to follow closely behind.

Klaus kept his visit brief, as if he knew Zapp needed a few minutes alone. Something you were half-dreading. The one conversation you weren't sure you even wanted to have...

"So uh... You've been getting my messages, right?" Zapp felt just as awkward as you did, "All the things I've been saying are true by the way. I just... I couldn't figure out how to say it without f*&king it up... at least tryin' to tell you to your face."

"Uh, yeah." You stared down at your hands, "I, uh... just finished reading them when you walked in with Klaus."

Zapp hummed, unsure how to go about this. You were teetering on the edge of whether or not you wanted things to go further.

"Yeah..." Zapp sat next to your bed, "I uh, this... Listen, I wanna just be us. I know that's not what we said at first but... I can't ignore this anymore. No one else feels right anymore."

"Zapp, I... I don't think I can take this." You still couldn't look at him, "I mean, there's no telling what'll happen. One of us might get..."

"[Name], please." Your head swiveled, Zapp rarely used people's names, always opting for some nickname or other, "If I were gonna get bored of you, it woulda happened by now. And you woulda left long before now if you were bored too. That's the one thing I know about you."

"Zapp..."

"So, maybe quit tryin' to make excuses to stay bump buddies and accept that I wanna be a thing." He reached for your hand, "If that's cool with you. I don't wanna be less than a couple. Even that's still a poly thing or whatever. I wanna know I got you, 'kay?"

"O-okay. I just..." You looked down at your hands, how he was squeezing yours gently, "I just don't know how to come to terms with this... after... "

"Hey, that jack*ss lost you, not the other way around." Zapp was starting to sound like himself again, "And if I see his mug again, he'll definitely regret letting you go. Not that I'll let him get close enough to say so, but revenge is my specialty."

"And here I thought it was extreme, excessive violence." You snickered a little.

"Very funny sexy." Zapp scoffed, "I can specialize in two things ya know."

Flufftober 2023

Day 19 Extra: Tender slow kiss [x Leo]

Requested by Anonymous (Soft Anon)

How and why Leo was currently here with you was beyond him. This whole party seemed a little too much, a little over the top for a simple Halloween party. Not helping the matter was how elegant the party was, a masquerade probably wasn't the most subtle type of party. Despite Leo having been told that this was supposed to be very lowkey.

This would, sadly not, be the last time the poor boy listened to Zapp about a party.

All the people at the party had you clinging to Leo more than normal, not that he minded in the slightest. It was just a little embarrassing for you given how it felt like a child. There wasn't enough shaking into reality to get out of this mindset, especially given the awkward way you two were standing on the side of the room.

"Maybe we shouldn't have tried coming to this." Leo's attempt at a joke fell flat in its awkward sarcasm, "Just standing on the side seems a little shady, don't cha think?"

"Yeah, a little." You mumbled back, "But how are we gonna sneak out of here?"

Leo groaned softly, "I... I wasn't being serious. It was supposed to be a joke."

"Oh."

Tapping his side, Leo tried thinking up something to say. This wasn't how he wanted to spend his first real day off. Most of the time he got the late evening, maybe a few hours at a time because he'd been called in so often. But if you weren't having any fun, then there wasn't any point in staying regardless. Though Leo was a bit worried about getting home safely, his little scooter was in the shop due to his front wheel being loose... nearly broken completely off. And Leo was waiting for a quick text from Patrick telling him the scooter was fixed.

"W-w-would you like to sit outside maybe?" Leo scratched his head, "At least get away from everyone?"

"Yeah, sounds like a plan."

You followed Leo without hesitation, glad for him taking your hand as you walked. Though you wiggled your fingers between Leo's, squeezing his hand in your own. Even if it meant Leo was blushing his face off, finding a quiet spot to sit and... Leo hadn't actually thought that far ahead, he was just trying to help ease both of your minds after pulling you into such a large party.

Sitting by the fountain, you couldn't help but stare at the cloudy, misty sky. There wasn't any kind of clear space to see the stars. Sure, it was more your thing than his, but star gazing was one of your favorite activities.

However, Leo had a much more promiscuous thought pattern. At least, it was a little bold for him, especially since the two of you were still technically in public. But Leo so very badly wanted to kiss you right now.

Toying with your fingers, having dropped your hand when you two sat down, Leo debated his approach. Should he try to just lean in and do it? Should he ask first? Maybe he should be a little coy about it? What was the best thing for him to do?

Looping your fingers around Leo's nervous toying, you didn't want to push Leo. But it was a nicely calm evening, one that practically screamed romance. The problem was still being in public and risking being 'caught'.

Not being able to take the tension, Leo cupped your face with both hands suddenly. Being bold and brash as he leaned in, you were half-blindsided as Leo kissed you.

But it was so soft, despite the suddenness. None of Leo's usual clumsiness was present, just a gentle tenderness. You scooted closer, leaning into Leo's embrace. Deeply enjoying the way his arms were wrapping around you, one arm slipping up your back while the other tightened behind your back.

There was nothing else happening, just yourself and Leo. Slowly kissing each other; soft, open-mouthed kisses while the rest of the world melted away. You couldn't help but try to pull Leo closer as well, holding onto his shoulders as he was the only real thing to you.

Slowly pulling away, just for air, you couldn't help grinning at him. Leo was so flushed it wasn't funny. What didn't help in the slightest was someone whooping. Causing both of you to jump clean away from each other. Though thankfully it was far from where you two were. Somewhere outside yes, but a decent way off... just extremely loud.

Whumptober 2023

Day 12: Fighting against a soft moment [x Dog]

Dog was far too excited for tonight, the idea of finally spending the night with you had him just a little giddy. He just had to get through the day first. Not that it was much longer, just waiting for the work day to end.

But while you were setting things up, Dog practically burst into the apartment with a small handful of flowers. He just grinned while you smacked his chest, thinking your pouting was just plain adorable. You weren't trying to hurt him, but you were startled.

"C'mon Melon." Dog caught your wrist gently, "I didn't leave a mark on the door this time. I'm just excited."

"I know sweetie, but you don't need to burst in the door like the Kool-Aid Man."

He was trying not to giggle at you, instead moving to help with whatever you needed him for.

As the two of you settled on the couch, flipping through channels looking for something to watch, Dog pulled you closer to his lap. He never left anything to interpretation. That just made it easier for you snuggle up to him.

Everything was fine until the movie you'd settled on went off like a bomb, causing both of you to jump. The fighting across the screen was a little disturbing, you checked the movie title. You didn't remember this scene in this movie; you hadn't watched it in a while but this was something you should have remembered.

As you tried to settle back against Dog, he roughly shoved you away. It didn't feel like he was doing it on purpose, more like an instinct. But you had no idea what or who he was trying to fight.

"Dog, sweetie, are you okay?" You sat up from the other side of the couch, slowly reaching out, "Dog?"

He was not acting like himself. Breathing hard, hunching over, shaking hands running through his hair, Dog didn't answer you at all. It made you worry about even patting his back, not wanting to make things worse.

But he wasn't calming down just yet. You had already turned off the TV, carefully putting a hand on his back. Dog didn't react much, just breathing slowly.

"Sweetie, what can I do to help?"

He finally turned to you, breathing slowing down a little. Still shaking a little, he noticed the light bruise on your arm. That was all it took for you to be scooped up into his lap. Dog buried his face against your neck, still shaking a little as he calmed down.

"I... I just don't know what happened." He whispered, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I'll be okay sweetie, it's just a little bruise. I'm more worried about you, this isn't like you." You rubbed his back slowly, "Just tell me what you need."

The way he nuzzled in closer told you what you needed to know. You sat in his lap, comforting him as best you could.