25 Years Of Ads Peeled Away

Sanctuary Masterlist

A/N: So this is a prequel, if you like, to The Keldabe Kiss. I fell in love with this AU so much I had to write more. There will be more chapters and they will be my Tech Tuesday contribution 🥰 big thank you to @acourtofsnakes for letting me sound off about this fic!

Prefer AO3? I got you.

Warnings: 18+ written from reader pov but the Batch give her a nickname eventually. Mentions of blood, torture, slavery, nightmares, panic attacks, abuse, death, canon violence, illness and incorrect medical terms (I’m no medic), angst, fluff, comfort, found family.

Pairing: Tech x F!Reader (Stitch)

Chapter 1: Rescue

Chapter 2: Ord Mantell

Chapter 3: Negotiation

Chapter 4: Escape

Chapter 5: The Risk

Chapter 6: First Light

Chapter 7: Purrgil

Chapter 8: Medcentre

Chapter 9: Secrets (coming soon!)

Chapter 10: Arrival

Chapter 11: Fractured

Chapter 12: Recovery

Chapter 13: Papa

Chapter 14: Maridun

Chapter 15: Butterflies

Chapter 16: Faster

Chapter 17: Revelations

This is Anakin coded, that's it, that's the post

i love the fact that Weird Barbie is weird.

And I mean this in the sense that, they show the impact the real world has had on this toy, this inanimate object that those playing with viewed as devoid of emotion, incomprehensibly inhuman.

But the alterations, the pain she’s endured has stuck with her, become a part of her. People label her by her struggles, by what she’s been through. Externally, she is different, and it doesn’t matter how she feels internally because she will forever be labeled by her struggles.

She’s embraced it and she’s accepted this piece of herself as a whole, even helping those who perceive themselves as “weird” or “malfunctioning”. She knows how it feels to be out of place, to be thought of in this negative light because you don’t adhere to how Barbie is meant to be — perfect.

She has struggled and her struggles make her wonderful, make her the person she is, that is her real beauty

Yet in the end, Weird Barbie is as much a Barbie as anyone else, as much an embodiment of perfect as one can hope to achieve.

Barbie is Barbie, and no matter her struggles, she is perfect as she is, because perfection is a state of mind. Perfection is what you make it. It is flaws, it is pain and tears. But it also love, it is light and it the happiness you feel knowing you are with flaw — but flaw is what makes you unapologetically yourself, it is what makes you Barbie.

Thank you Greta.

"Self insert characters are cringe"

Bro I'm trying to survive capitalism with maladaptive daydreaming. Leave me alone.

Problems:

I want this story to be written

I don’t want this story to be written by anyone but me

I don’t want to write this story

I have a lot of feelings about this movie

the bond between a girl and their favorite fictional man is both an unstoppable force and an immovable object

The Bartender || Octavio ‘Octane’ Silva || PART 1

Request: Surely a Octane x reader one shot? Make it angsty, maybe reader is looking at making it official with another legend and Octavio isn't having a bar of it. He wants to prove that he is the one she wants to be with make it smutty hehe

A/N: I had so much fun writing this but unfortunately ya boi loves porn with a plot so the first part is all plot and part 2 will be unadulterated smut lmaoooo

I also tried something a little different, rather than having normal Y/N prompts there’s none present, I feel like it takes me out of it sometimes so I hope its still easy to follow !

Pairing: Octane x f!reader

Warnings: Swearing, Bitta angst!

Word Count: 3.4K

Being friends with the Legends was both a blessing and a curse. The upbeat bartender had found herself a job by quite literally falling into the Paradise Lounge one particular evening, managing to charm her way through the charismatic owner and getting herself some fun and secure work.

Since then with time passing, and more Legends joining the Apex games (given her coworker was literally a Legend) she had come to see familiar faces, ones she held close to her heart. Some considered as close friends — some closer… Much like her boss, Elliott.

With having a cast of famous friends she had been briefed over and over again about etiquette and how to interact with them after hours. It was all so meticulous and boring, half the time she didn’t care for it too much and opted to ignore it mostly. After all, she was merely a bartender and wanted to just do her job.

The Lounge itself was particularly busy, with two functions happening at the same time and the usual mob of Legends that visited the bar. It had become quite stressful, despite Elliotts four decoys helping the poor woman keep up with it all.

“Dude there is something in the drinks tonight,” her exhausted voice called out over the ruckus and atmosphere, in her hands she slid over a full tip jar to Elliott with a confused look on her face. He tilted his head, almost as shocked as she was at the array of tips they had been receiving for the evening.

It wasn’t too unusual, but the tips had been directed toward the bartender entirely which was incredibly weird.

“Uh-oh, Elliott seems a little jealous you’ve taken all the attention.” Anita smirked, bringing her drink up to her lips. The comment made the bartender shoo her off bashfully, following up with a wink and sliding over the mercenary another drink when Elliott had his back turned away.

“What can I say, I’m just better than him in every single way.” The bartender's smug smile reaffirmed her joking comment. She loved nothing more than stirring up the man, only because he reacted so well to her jabs and endearing insults.

Kairi held up her beer bottle in a toast and bowed her head, “I’ll fuckin’ drink to that.”

With that, the night continued on as per usual as people came and went, the functions slowly siphoned people and closing time was upon them. ‘Closing time’ — which usually meant the bar was shut off to the public for an unknown amount of hours while the remaining legends and bartender stayed in to drink themselves into a stupor.

The bartender found herself seated comfortably on one of the couches in the lounge area, her back flush up against the arm and her legs were draped over Elliotts lap. His hand was softly stroking the underside of her legs, almost in a trance as the group of people talked amongst themselves.

She would be lying if she said that the attention wasn’t nice, in fact over the past couple of weeks she had come attuned to the little gestures Elliott started doing and considered that maybe they were meant to come off as more than what a friend would do. It was nice, considering how her heart ached after the birthday she had, it was best to move on and keep herself distracted.

It wasn’t just her who noticed these things, it was some others who had picked up on it as well. Often asking amongst themselves if the two were a couple or not.

“Hey,” her soft voice caught his attention, she brought over her hand to run through his hair as she did so, “what’s on your mind El?”

Truth be told the man had no clue what thoughts travelled through his mind, he rather enjoyed the company his bartender accomplice provided as well as the additional retorts she had stacked away to keep up with him. Sure she was attractive, had the wit and charm to keep him on his toes but he wasn’t even sure if he was willing to pursue it.

Noticing the man had struggled to even find an answer, she got off him and moved closer, placing a hand on his, “do you wanna talk someplace else?” Regardless of any feelings, she cared about him and had grown to care for the rest as time went on.

Some of the others had paused conversations to momentarily look at the two, Ajay had been deep in conversation with Octavio about a lot of things; the two of them had known each other so long now, but their conversation stopped as - like the others - stopped to watch Elliott and their friend interact.

“That looks serious O, yuh better make yuh move now or else Witt will take off wit’ her.” Ajay’s voice was hushed, the last thing she wanted was to arouse suspicion amongst the others and knowing how much of a chatty bunch the Legends could be — she didn’t want to humiliate Octavio like that. Lord knows he deserved it half the time, but not now and not over this.

He ran his hands through his hair, soft green tips poking through the gaps of his fingers. The memories planted in his mind so kindly resurfacing as he was forced to remember one particular night not all that long ago.

Several Weeks Ago*

It was a typical night for the lounge, although the usual bartender had the night off for her birthday. Spending this special occasion surrounded by the majority of the legends she drank to her heart's content and danced on as many tables as she could. Granted she fell off more tables than she could stay on one.

The last table she felt herself falling off of, she at least had someone down below to catch her. His turquoise coloured hair was the first thing she caught sight of and then it was the crooked grin spread across his lips.

“You should watch where your dancin’ chica! I won’t be able to catch you all the time!” He had shouted over the loud music. Her arms had fallen around his neck as he carried her to the safety of a lounge booth.

“Maybe I like it when you hold me,” her words were slurred ever so slightly, matching the goofy look on her face and the glazed look in her eyes. Nevermind she was drunk as ever, the words made him feel giddy, his palms beginning to sweat and his heart hammering.

He placed her down on the couch, her stubborn grip unmoving despite his best efforts. He chuckled to himself, feeling the weightlessness of the alcohol consumed, “if you don’t want to sit here, where would you like to go?”

She rested her head on his shoulder, breathing in his scent which smelt mostly of pinewood with a vanilla fragrance and a hint of his own natural musk. She hummed to herself in a dazed thought, enjoying the warmth of the man that held her with little to no effort.

“How about we get you some fresh air chica?” He began heading upstairs to the rooftop balcony, knowing that if he had walked her out the front door like that it would raise some questions he wasn’t up to answering.

“I like this colour on you,” she mused, running her fingers through his hair.

The compliment alone lit a fire burning inside of Octavio, he never felt more alive than when he was with her. Something about her was just so exciting and intoxicating altogether. That feeling was just about mutual for her as well, finding the moments spent with Octavio were ones she always remembered.

He was grateful the night air chilled the heat he began omitting, seating his companion where she could overlook Solace City as the night drew on. He admired her features, the way the ambient neon lights bounced off her skin in a heavenly glow. She had an uncanny ability to light up a room with her smile alone, and her laugh was something he wished he could wake up to every morning.

It had been sometime ago Octavio caught feelings, he couldn’t quite place when or where or even how… But they were there and he was always first through the door at the lounge and ever so eager to make company alongside his favourite Bartender.

“Oh! Hermosa, I almost forgot!” He exclaimed, breaking the peaceful silence as he pulled out a small hand sized package from his pocket. It was a surprise to mostly everyone when the man arrived dressed up, considering his resentment towards functions like this.

She cautiously grabbed the box, surprised he had given her anything at all. But nonetheless grateful, the brisk air had begun clearing the fog in her mind, a smile pulled at the corner of her lips, “O… you didn’t have to do that.”

“Of course I did! I wanted you to know how much you mean to me — uh us! How much you mean to us,” he stumbled, recovering rather well despite how hard it was to control his blubbering mouth. He wondered if this is what it felt like to be Elliott, constantly tripping over words all the time.

An endearing expression pulled together on her face when the box was opened. The contents inside were photographs, capturing the night they had spontaneously explored the harbour of Solace City, swimming around and causing a ruckus. Another captured the night they had stowed away the woman on the drop ship when they were headed to Psamathe.

Many memories relived for her, reminiscing on the trouble particularly her and Octavio got up to together. The two caused nothing but trouble and yet they were a pair that complimented one another to an odd degree, considering the bartender had a uniquely boring life outside of Bartending.

Behind the final picture was but a simple necklace with an intricately designed charm, beautiful as it was, she put a hand to her heart and looked at the aloof man.

“Tavi… Thank you so much.” She stood up, pulling him into a hug, she inhaled his scent in more as her arms tightened around him. Her muscles relaxed when he hugged her back with equal enthusiasm, the two merely enjoying the moment together alongside the authentic noisecape of Solace.

It was a rather long drawn out hug, one that exceeded the normal timing of anything friendly. When she pulled away, she couldn’t seem to pull completely away, resting her hands on his chest as she continued looking into his eyes. The way the outer corners would crinkle every time he laughed or smiled, even that twinkle in his eye that was ever present was something that ignited a feeling of excitement within the young woman.

Neither of the two could quite recollect the night to the most accurate detail but it was Octavio who had leaned in first. Unable to break away from the enchanting way she looked that evening, her eyes, her hair, the way she dressed… It was all too much for him to not do anything about.

Their lips brushed together, the feeling alone sent tingles through both of them as they paused in unison with hesitancy. Ultimately it was Octavio’s companion that continued the delicate moment, sealing it with the most passionate of gestures as the space between them finally closed.

He had fucked up.

He was the one that ghosted her the weeks after that, unable to live with the possibility that their friendship could’ve been ruined. He refused to go to the lounge alone, in fear that he would be confronted with a face that was heartbroken. Yet, he watched on as Elliott drew that little bit closer to her as time went on, and now watching the two interact made his stomach drop and his heart ache.

It was his fault he pushed her away and now if he didn’t make amends, he would suffer in silence for far longer.

“O, yuh can’t pull the same shit with her like you do with me, ya hear?” Ajay was always so honest and blunt, it was the only way she could get through to her childhood friend. She knew his habits better than anyone.

Over by the couch, the comfy duo had gotten up and left the group which resulted in murmurs, granted they were just heading over to the bar and storage room, so hardly out of sight from most people present.

“El, you got me worried — what’s up?” She queried now out of earshot. His behaviour was more than questionable considering he was ever the charismatic charmer and never shut up about anything.

“Y-yeah I just… I’m just… Can we talk?”

She looked around, one of her eyebrows raised, “uhh… we’re talking now.”

His arms slumped by his side as he gestured to the storage room, making her go wide eyed and groan internally for her inability to pick up the subtle lingo, “oh of course.” Her cheeks flushed bright red as the two stepped out of view of the others present.

“Is everything okay?” She brought a hand up to Elliotts face, trying hard to read his eyes. His beard prickled the pads of her fingers, he slightly leaned into her touch and exhaled a deep breath.

His mind was a whirlwind of confusing and conflicting emotions, thoughts and feelings. Ultimately he came to the conclusion in his mind after so much thought, that this had been a mistake -- it was the first time in a long time he needed to not act out on impulse. Despite the banter, the small touches and gestures shared between them, Elliott was swiftly reminded of how things could end up if this ended poorly.

“I’m-I’m sorry —“

It was just too little too late, had he been just a second quicker his companion may not have read into things all too much. Seizing the opportunity to capture his lips in hers with a kiss.

Despite his futile attempt to take the moral high ground, he couldn’t help but melt into her touch, deepening the kiss as he put his hands on her waist. She could feel her heart hammering into her chest, knowing that the move she made was risky but it was definitely rewarding.

The two were so incredibly engrossed in the moment that it was no surprise neither had heard the door open, it was a loud curse that ruined the moment. Tearing the two apart from one another as both heads snapped toward the intruder.

“Are you fuckin’ for real?”

Her face fell upon seeing Octavio in the door frame, how upset he seemed to look having witnessed Elliott and his girl kissing. Regret, then panic and then anger happened upon her face, recalling the night of her birthday and the weeks proceeding it. A vivid callback to the way the speedster treated her.

“What the fuck’s your problem?” She backed away from Elliot, pointing her anger toward Octavio. How dare he? Come barging in, like he had the right to police her every move after ignoring her for weeks.

“Well I don’t know, maybe seeing your tongue halfway down Witt’s throat is my problem!” He shouted back, redirecting the same energy back onto her. A lot of emotions hit him when he opened that door, but none more than sadness. It was always such a pity that he had difficulties expressing the right emotions when it came to confrontations like this.

“Why is that a problem, you’re the prick that ignored me for weeks! You made your point crystal-fucking-clear!” She spat, her chest was heaving and her heart was hammering through the aches. If she looked him in the eyes she knew she would most likely break down into tears.

Poor Elliott looked between the two fighting parties, sure he was well equipped for the games and had dealt with his fair share of sibling fighting, but he had absolutely no idea or approach to alleviate this current situation. He was at least privy to the context of what happened a few weeks ago, he also remembered spending a great deal of time getting his bartender back to the cheerful and happy face he came to like so well.

Octavio was silent while he paced, he was aware he was the one that was to blame and he just couldn’t help but feel angry seeing anyone else with their hands on her. “You need to leave,” His tone was eerily calm, an arm outstretched as he pointed out the door, his eyes narrowed on Elliott.

She stood between them with a fierce look, “I think you need to leave, you don’t get to barge in here and act like you’re mad and upset!”

“It—it’s really fine… I’ll call you later…” Elliot knew that the best way for things to mend was for the two to talk it out — grateful that Octavio saved him from having one awkward conversation in the event things went south between the two.

He squeezed past the two, giving Octavio a polite pat on the shoulder on his way out, finally inhaling seemingly fresh air after being stuck in the tense room.

“Are you fucking serious, am I about to hear some fucking rehearsed bullshit like ‘oh you’re mine’ and ‘you can only fuck around with me’? New flash pal, we weren’t ever dating, we weren’t anything because you left me hanging.” She was pacing, fighting the urge to break down right then and there.

Her words were harsh, but nonetheless true. Octavio let out a deflated sigh, knowing if anyone was going to see through him it was most definitely her. It still angered him, the image of her and Elliott so close was scorned into his mind, “at least show some respect — Elliott, really? It’s like you’re trying to piss me off on purpose,” he folded his arms over his chest, eyes following her every move.

She scoffed, “you don’t get to be mad about that, asshole — I thought we had something… And now when I try to move past it, you pull me back into your bullshit.” Her finger was poking his chest to emphasise her point, he merely swayed subtly with every poke.

“Yeah and I thought it was pretty clear to everyone else that you’re my girl — imagine my surprise when I see Witt making his move on you, huh?”

“I’m not your anything!” She threw her hands up in the air, a pained look morphed onto her face. Emotions and thoughts clouded her mind and if she stayed too long on them, she was sure the tears would follow.

“Fine, then prove to me that I’m not the guy you want,” his movements were lightning fast, snatching her wrist at record speed and yanking her toward him. She stumbled slightly, pressed flush up against his chest and arms not holding onto particularly anything.

She wasn’t panicked, despite it all she still trusted Octavio and being this close to the man had always been comforting no matter what. But her anger at his attitude was hard to wash by, gritting her teeth and balling her fists up, “I don’t need to! you already—.”

His lips tasted like a mixture of the craft beer he had been drinking (no doubt one of Ajay’s picking) and the aftermath of the gum he had long spit out. Her anger subsided momentarily, lost in the heat of the moment while breathing in his scent and becoming putty under his touch.

“Fuck you,” She grumbled against his lips, her final act of defiance before she fully succumbed to the moment, to the feelings and listened to the butterflies in her stomach.

He deepened the kiss, guiding her until her back hit the storage shelves. Her hands cupped his neck and head desperately, as if he was going to leave her again. But for the first time in his life, Octavio wasn’t moving and he wasn’t going anywhere.

She nibbled on his bottom lip, earning herself a breathy groan from her companion. As he pressed into her, she could feel how hard he was, breaking away from the kiss and pressing meticulously placed kisses down his neck and across the nape of his neck.

As her teeth nipped a little too hard in one spot, Octavio jolted back, a chuckle escaping his lips, “you might wanna settle down Hermosa, I won't be able to control myself.”

“I’m counting on it.”

๛ 𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐎

[ Jujutsu Kaisen S2 EP13 ]