i would love to see grayson & elliott trying to care for each other's party hangovers while also being absolutely thrashed themselves!!
thank you for the prompt, anon! ^^ cw for alcohol and allusions to alcohol abuse
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"Here. Drink this."
A glass of water was placed into Grayson's hands. He groaned and brought it up to his face, pressing the cold, wet surface against the pounding of his headache.
There was a soft snort of amusement. "Stop nuzzling that glass, Ives. You look like a fucking wreck."
"Yeah, well, I feel like a wreck." Grayson lowered the glass from his face and peered at it blearily. His stomach was swirling, and just the thought of swallowing anything caused acid to rise in his throat. "Ugh, Creator's blood, I -- I dunno if I can drink anything, Ell. I feel like I'm gonna throw up."
"If you were going to throw up, you would have already. Just take slow sips."
Grayson looked over at Elliott. He was by the sink, sipping at his own glass of water and clearing up some of the debris from the drunken snacks they’d made when they’d finally gotten home the previous night. It looked like an awful lot of activity to Grayson, who was feeling so terrible that he’d barely made it from the bed to the couch. "You drank way more than me last night. How come you're not hungover?"
"Oh, I am."
"Yeah? Then why aren't you over here dying like me?"
"Because I'm used to it." Elliott turned his head to give Grayson a dry and slightly rueful look, and for the first time, Grayson noticed that there was a sort of glazed heaviness around his eyes. It was subtle, but it was there.
“Oh.” Grayson glanced back down at his glass. “Right.”
Elliott came back over to the couch, ruffling Grayson’s hair as he passed. “Go on. Slow sips. You’ll feel better soon, trust me.”
Hi!! How about Ryder at work, trying to deal with coming down with the flu suddenly and having a whole day to manage? Thanks!! ✨
very good one, anon! thanks for the prompt!
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Ryder had noticed it when he'd gotten up that morning -- the deep ache blooming in his bones and the fatigue that dragged at his limbs as he'd washed up and gotten dressed. But it hadn't been so bad. Nothing that wouldn't pass with a little tea and time to wake up, he'd thought.
But now that he was down at his desk, he wasn't so certain. The tea was hurting his throat with each swallow. He had a blank piece of paper in front of him, ready for planning out the day's tasks, but his head pounded every time he tried to organize his thoughts.
That's okay, he decided, pushing the paper aside. There was some mindless filing to take care of. He could just sit and do that until this ill feeling went away. He opened the top drawer of his desk, took out a vial of tonic for headaches, and drank it. Surely that would help.
It didn't. As Ryder shuffled through papers, the headache only got worse. At some point, it grew so severe that he slumped over his desk and rested his head on his arms, thinking that maybe he could close his eyes until the worst of it had passed. The next thing he knew, he was waking up to the sound of someone calling his name.
"...Ryder? Ryder?"
Ryder raised his head, barely stifling a groan as his temples pounded. He blinked, taking in the sight of his apprentice, standing a few feet away and staring at him with big, concerned eyes.
"Oh. Grayson." Creator, his voice sounded terrible, all thick and hoarse. "I... didn't hear you come in."
"Yeah, I mean... you were passed out on your desk, so...." Grayson combed a hand through his hair nervously. "Are you feeling okay? You look... pretty awful, to be honest."
Ryder paused. He wanted to reassure Grayson, to say it was nothing. But the problem was, he did feel quite awful...
"I mean it, Ryder. You're, like, shivering." Grayson grabbed a blanket from a nearby shelf and brought it over, shaking it out so he could drape it around Ryder's shoulders. "Oh, man. You definitely have a fever. I swear I can feel the heat coming off you. You really shouldn't be at work."
Ryder sighed deeply, wincing as his throat twinged. "I... suppose you're right."
"You should go upstairs and get some sleep. We don't even have to close the Soothing Room. If anyone stops by, I can handle it. Do you need anything? Water, maybe?"
"No... thank you. I'll get some upstairs." Ryder dragged himself to his feet. "No need for back room tasks today, just look after the front. You'll remember to--?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'll dim the lights before I go for the night. I got this, Ryder. Don't worry." Grayson patted Ryder's arm as he trudged by on his way to the stairs. "Just get some rest, okay?"
Maybe Grayson with some fever induced nightmares? I hope that's not too harsh ❤️🩹 –thatstoomuchsoup
awww not at all, I love it! thank you soup!
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“...wake up, Ives, come on. Grayson? Wake up. Grayson?”
The sound of his own name pierced the veil of Grayson’s dreams. He jerked awake, gasping and thrashing, but even waking up wasn’t enough to save him. Grasping tendrils had ensnared his arms and legs, and he could feel blood soaked into his hair.
“Hey, hey...” Hands founds his shoulders, pressing him back into the softness of the bed. He realized that the things pulling at his limbs were blankets and that he was soaked in sweat, not blood. The hands gripped his shoulders more tightly, holding him steady. “It’s alright. You’re okay.”
Grayson sucked down a ragged breath. Shocks of pain burned at the edges of his body. He felt too hot, or maybe too cold. “E... Elliott?”
“Yes, it’s me.” Elliott’s hand felt wonderfully cool as it pressed against Grayson’s forehead. “Shit. The fever’s come back. You’re burning up.”
Grayson shivered and groaned. “I... I had a... a bad dream...”
“Obviously. You practically kicked me off the bed. Here...” The mattress creaked as Elliott shifted away. There was the sound of swishing water, and then a damp cloth was laid over Grayson’s forehead. “That should help.”
“Mmm...” The coolness slowly trickled into Grayson’s skin, quelling the fire of his fever as it went. “S’better...”
“Good. Go back to sleep.” The bedsprings creaked again, and Grayson felt Elliott's arms gently pull him into an embrace. “No more nightmares, okay? Just rest.”
For the three words if you're still doing them: vacations, music, shyness? ;3;
Anon, my apologies if you’re not someone who follows my writing, but your words reminded me so much of one of my OCs that I’m going to base this prompt around them!
For those who aren’t familiar with my characters -- I have an OC named Si who is a song-mage (that is, they can cast magic by singing), but they come to live at a school for digestive-mages (i.e. mages who cast magic by eating food.)
Every now and then, they take trips back to the song-mage school in their hometown of Tideway. These trips are technically work-related, but are more like vacations for Si, since they get to see their family and old friends and indulge in a lot of things that they miss -- such as good music, beach afternoons, and fresh seafood!
Of course, having been at a di-mage school for so long, the first time Si goes back to Tideway, they’re going to realize that they’ve gotten a little too used to indulgence thanks to their time among the di-mages. The first time they go out to eat with their old friends, they might wind up overdoing it on fresh seafood, eating in a haze of thoughtless happiness until suddenly they feel their tummy twinging and pulsing from how stuffed it’s gotten.
Back at OSM, this wouldn’t be a problem. The school is full of tonics that ease digestion, soft places to relax with a full belly, and of course, Ryder with his soothing rubs. But here -- among friends who know Si as a song-mage who used to eat like a bird -- they would actually be a little uncharacteristically embarrassed! They might even try to hide how overfull they are, hunching over a bit so the swell of their belly doesn’t show and trying to talk over any telltale rumbles.
Luckily, their desire for some TLC would eventually outweigh their shyness. After a little good-natured teasing, Si’s friends would shepherd them home, making sure they’re all settled with some tea and maybe an antacid before leaving them to sleep it off.
[Gentle tummy touch] "Woah, what the hell is going on in there?"
“Beats me,” Grayson groaned, squirming slightly as Kara’s thumb rubbed a gentle circle over the tender swell under his ribs. “Ugh, careful....”
Kara winced as another unhappy gurgle curled through her friend’s insides. “Sounds like everything you ate for that spell is just having it out in your poor tummy,” she said sympathetically. “Come on, Ives, let’s get you lying down.”
Request: Person A is sleeping and Person B wakes up with a sore stomach and can't stop burping. This wakes up A who gives B cuddles and belly rubs, causing them to burp until they feel better and the two fall asleep together. Thank you :)
Generic A+B Placeholder Version: Here
Confused? Read this!
- - -
Over the sound of water running from the tap, a fretful voice reached Ryder’s ears: “Are you sure you’re okay?”
He laughed gently through a mouthful of toothpaste. “I’m just fine, Si. I’ve already told you I am.”
“It’s just—well, with how much you ate, I don’t know how you could possibly be comfortable!”
Ryder leaned over to spit into the sink, and admittedly felt a grumbly twinge as his heavy stomach protested the movement. He put one hand on it, cupping the other under the water to rinse his mouth.
“I’m staying with you tonight,” added Si insistently.
“I had assumed that,” said Ryder, amused. “Last I saw, you were already in my bed.”
He came out of the bathroom to see that Si was indeed burrowed under the covers. Their soft brown eyes peered over the edge of the blanket, wide with concern.
“Maybe you should take a tonic,” they said. “I know you said you’re feeling fine, but your tummy has been making the most awful sounds. My goodness, I can hear it from over here!”
Ryder smoothed his hands over his grumbling belly. It felt firm and rounded out under his pajama shirt, and just touching it made him huff a little. But he dismissed Si’s concerns lightly. “Oh, it does that all the time. This is nothing I can’t handle, Si, it’s nothing unusual. I fill myself up like this every few weeks. It’s practice. I’ve got to keep my capacity up. It’s like you singing scales.”
“Me singing scales doesn’t make my tummy gurgle all night long.” Si made a face, and then let out a resigned breath. “Oh, whatever. Let me hug you a little? I promise I’ll stop fretting.”
“You are just too much sometimes.” Ryder’s voice was stern, but he knew Si would hear the undertone of affection in it. He climbed into bed, chuckling as they curled around him like a grasping vine. He smoothed a hand over their hair before twisting around to switch off the lamp.
- - -
It took Ryder awhile to fall asleep. He hated to admit it, but his stomach was bothering him a little. Every time he felt himself start to slip away, a sudden cramp of discomfort would jolt him back awake. Si was sleeping peacefully, and had been for awhile, by the time he finally managed to drift off.
It was still dark when he woke again. He had the sense that he’d been sleeping fitfully. The blankets around him were twisted and rumpled. Si was curled up over on their side of the bed, evidently driven away by all the tossing and turning.
A sharp pain in his stomach made Ryder bite his lip. He tried to roll onto his side and was rewarded with an even sharper stab of pain and a low gurgle. Pressure surged in his chest, and a soft burp pressed its way up.
Something wasn’t agreeing with him, clearly. He felt extraordinarily bloated, even worse than he’d been earlier, his stomach so swollen and rounded that any movement made his sides feel like they might split. Another unhappy gurgle curled through his insides, coalesced into a bubble of air, and squeezed up his throat before he could stifle it.
The sound was horribly loud in the quiet room. On the other side of the bed, Si stirred and murmured something unintelligible.
Ryder didn’t trust himself to move. He closed his eyes against the swelling feeling inside him, trying to hold it down. He really didn’t want to wake them.
Too late, evidently.
“Hey….” Si’s voice was thick with sleep. “Everything all right?”
“Um.” Ryder let out a soft breath. Saying he was fine would be a lie, but this certainly wasn’t something Si needed to trouble themselves over.
“You feeling okay?” Si squirmed closer. The movement jostled Ryder’s stomach, and he let out a short groan followed by another strained belch.
“Ooh, are you burpy?” One of Si’s hands, searching in the dark, found Ryder’s cheek and stroked over it softly. “I told you you’d done a number on yourself. Your poor tummy.”
“It’s… just a little upset….” Ryder murmured. He couldn’t quite bite back a gasp as Si’s fingers found his tender sides. The touch sent another aching gurgle through his insides, and he grunted with discomfort.
“Oh my goodness. What is going on in there?” Si nestled their cheek against Ryder’s chest and rubbed gently over the grumbling swell of his belly. Ryder felt something working its way up and turned his head away so he could belch again. A little flurry of softer burps followed, and he struggled to catch his breath.
“Si,” he murmured, “go back to—urp—sleep. It’s nothing, just a little—urp—a little stomach trouble… I’ll be fine.”
“Yeah, sure, keep talking…” Si’s voice held a teasing curl of affection. They pressed gently on Ryder’s side, giggling as he burped again. “You’ve done a number on yourself and you know it. Just listen to you!”
Ryder sighed. “I guess I—urp—may have…”
“You know you did.” A soft laugh, low in Si’s throat, swelled into a rich hum, and Ryder closed his eyes.
In the quiet of the room, their voice moved with slow, sure confidence through a repeating song, riding the crests of long notes that fluttered to a close as softly and sweetly as the brush of an eyelash. Ryder recognized this song—it was a spell to numb pain—and he felt a flicker of fondness for Si, mustering the energy to cast in the middle of the night like this, solely for his benefit. He relaxed, helpless in the warm hold of their magic and their love, as they sang to him and rubbed broad, gentle circles over his belly.
By the time Si’s voice faded to silence, Ryder’s insides felt quiet and he was nearly asleep again. He grunted drowsily as Si gave his stomach a gentle pat.
“Your tummy doesn’t feel so tight anymore,” they said.
“No, it doesn’t.” Ryder pressed his chin down against the soft strands of their hair and wrapped an arm over their back, tugging them tighter against his chest.
They made a sound of delight and snuggled in close. “I’m settling your tummy and you’re initiating cuddles? What kind of backwards world is this?”
“Hmm.” Ryder smiled into the dark. “Maybe you’re dreaming.”
Si giggled. “A good dream then. I like it. Well—except for the part where you were in pain. I didn’t like that at all.” They poked Ryder’s side gently. “I hope you’ll be more careful about what you eat right before bed.”
“I probably won’t.” Ryder chuckled at their indignant snort. “I’m a di-mage, Si, this is just part of it.”
“Huh! Well, you’d better thank your lucky stars you got a sweet little song-mage like me to look after you.”
“I do,” Ryder said, feeling a little spark of warmth as they pressed their soft cheek even tighter against his neck. “I really, really do.”
Request: Can I make a request for an A and B story with A stuffing themself with a lot of something really heavy and they get into that really dazed and sleepy state while B tries to figure out how to handle it?
Generic A+B Placeholder Version: Here
Confused? Read this!
- - -
“Urghhhhhh….”
Ryder, who was doing his customary after-dinner washing of that morning’s coffee mug, glanced over his shoulder to where Si had collapsed onto his couch. “Was that a good groan or a bad groan?”
All he got in response was another low sound. Hmm. He dried his hands on the appropriate tea towel and went to investigate.
Si was sunken back into cushions, eyes half-closed, one hand rubbing slowly over their belly. They shifted slightly as Ryder approached, letting out another little moan that slowly formed itself into words: “Ryder… you cannot even imagine… how full I feel right now.”
Ryder smiled crookedly. “Oh, I think I might be able to imagine it.”
“No. No, you cannot imagine how it feels to have what I’m confident was an entire bushel of potatoes packed into a stomach that’s usually satisfied with a cup of fish soup and a few vegetable scraps.”
That made Ryder laugh. He joined his poor stuffed friend on the couch, taking care not to jostle them. “As much as I hate to point it out, you very well could have eaten fewer than three servings of potato casserole.”
“Could I have?” Si moaned dramatically. “I don’t know. It’s all a blur. I’m having a…. a starch-fueled out-of-body experience. Don’t even know if I’m real.”
“Is that so?”
“I know this can’t be real, at least.” Si patted their belly, which was swollen out into a firm round curve, small but still very noticeable on their narrow frame. “Oooh, look at it, look how big it is… Is that really part of my body?”
“Hard to tell for sure,” said Ryder teasingly. He reached over and placed a hand against Si’s swollen belly, which felt plenty real to him. “You may simply be hiding a giant potato under your shirt.”
“I—urp—oh dear—” Si covered their mouth belatedly as Ryder’s gentle touch pressed out a bit of air. “I could believe that my stomach is one massive potato at the moment. Nghh.” They squirmed as Ryder began to rub wide, soothing circles. “Oooh, keep doing that! Feels so good....”
Ryder obligingly continued with the rubbing, smiling fondly as Si melted into his touch. Soft, contented noises escaped them as Ryder pressed his fingers into their stretched-out sides and circled his thumb gently over the tight fullness in their upper belly. They seemed to be nearly falling asleep when suddenly their eyes flew back open. “Do you—do you di-mages eat like this all the time?”
Ryder chuckled. “More or less.”
“How… how do you survive?”
“We take lots of naps.” Ryder put an arm around Si’s shoulders and gave them a quick squeeze. “Speaking of which, perhaps it’s time to get you to bed.”
Si groaned, letting their head fall against Ryder. “Can I stay with you tonight?”
“I don’t think you’d make it much further than my room. Come on.” Ryder patted their arm. “I’ll help you.”
Getting Si on their feet was no easy task. They resisted the first few attempts to budge them, and when they finally stood up, it was with a heavy sigh and a loud groan. “Ooh, my stomach….”
“Do you want a tonic?” Ryder asked, taking their elbow to steady them.
Si made a face. “Bleh. No.”
“Better a tonic than a stomachache.”
“I’m not in pain, it’s just….” They pressed a hand over their rounded crest of their stomach, looking a little cross-eyed. “Just that my tummy feels ready to explode.”
Ryder slid an arm around their waist and splayed a supportive hand over their belly, as though he could hold in the heaviness of everything they’d eaten. “I fully believe in your ability to refrain from exploding on your way to bed.”
Si groaned and arched their back a little, pressing into Ryder’s touch. “Mmm, don’t move your hand and maybe I’ll be all right…” they mumbled, and they covered Ryder’s fingers with their own before allowing themselves be steered off to bed.
((this one wasn’t a request, just extra silliness)
Generic A+B Placeholder Version: Here
Confused? Read this!
- - -
“Someone looks awfully sleepy over there.”
Ryder blinked and sat up straighter at his desk. “Hmm? Do I?”
“I know your sleepy face when I see it.” Si grinned at him as they grabbed a chair by its back and dragged it around to sit next to him. “What have you done to yourself?”
“Done to myself?” Ryder gave them a look. “Nothing at all. I have done an awful lot of paperwork this morning, so I’ll admit to being rather fried.”
“I don’t think that’s it….” Si leaned in close and wrapped an arm around Ryder’s waist. Their fingers felt gently at his side. “Hmm, just as I suspected.”
Ryder shifted in his seat. “I haven’t–” he bit back a soft groan as Si prodded a little more forcefully “–got a clue what you’re talking about.”
“Really? What’s this?” With their other hand, Si delivered a gentle pat to the broad, firm curve lying just under Ryder’s ribs.
That earned them a glare, which they grinned back at with mischievous satisfaction.
“Let’s review the evidence,” they continued, giggling. “One sleepy Ryder, one swollen tummy, and – aha!” They reached out and snatched a cloth-lined wicker basket that had been sitting on the end of Ryder’s desk. “A basket that once held six bread rolls and now contains only crumbs.”
“Hmph. How do you know it was six?”
“Because I just ran into Kara outside your tent and she told me she’d given you half a dozen fresh-baked rolls an hour ago, and…” They made a show of glancing around the room. “I see zero rolls now.”
Ryder snorted, and then stifled another groan as Si’s hand stroked gently down the front of his bowed-out belly. “Maybe I put half of them on the kitchen counter for later.”
Si laughed aloud. “Absolutely not. The Ryder I know does not put fresh bread on the kitchen counter when he could put it in his tummy. Also–” their thumb rubbed a deep circle into the tightest part of Ryder’s belly, causing him to finally groan aloud and let out a soft belch “–this feels like about six bread rolls, I’d say.”
Ryder sighed, relaxing into Si’s touch as they pressed their palm supportively over his heavy stomach. “You are awfully rascally today, aren’t you?”
“What can I say? You bring out the worst in me.” Si planted a quick kiss on Ryder’s cheek, then laughed as his stomach grumbled softly under their hand. “Maybe you should take a nap.”
“Maybe I should.” Ryder gave Si’s hand a squeeze before shrugging their hold away. He let out a long, slow breath before standing up, and Si could’ve sworn they heard a quiet sloshing sound. “But not entirely because of my stomach, mind you. I wouldn’t nap if I weren’t so drained from all that paperwork.”
Si chuckled. “Whatever you say, bread boy. Whatever you say.”
