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jaegeraether · 6 months

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Sunsets and footballers (Part 23)

Lucy Bronze x Reader (22)

Masterlist (other parts here)

“You can’t wear that.” Lucy said from behind her.

She spun around, surprised. “Is it… does it look bad?”

Lucy moved up behind her, turning her back around to face the mirror again, her arms coming around her and her chin finding her shoulder. “You look so stunning, that I won’t be able to keep my eyes off you.” She admitted huskily into her ear. “Also, it just so happens that there will be a lot of single, attractive female footballers and I don't want any of them gawking at you or trying their luck.”

YFN laughed, her hand reached to find the back of Lucy’s head. “You know, if I were in a room filled with all of the people in the world, those I knew, and those I didn’t, the first person I’d look for would be you, Luce.”

Lucy liked that. Her grin appeared and she kissed her cheek, hard. And then softer with butterfly kisses down to her neck until it tickled.

“Ai lovebirds! You decent?” Katie yelled before she flung the door open anyways with a grin on her face and a bottle of whisky in her hand.

“Katie!” YFN yelled excitedly and jumped on her. Katie laughed and hugged her tightly.

“Hey chick, how’re you?!”

“I’ve been a little better..” She admitted as she found her feet and gestured to her little bandage above her eye. Her black eye was now just a tinge of light yellow, easily covered by makeup.

“Chick!” Caitlin had her arms out behind Katie and YFN fell into those also. “Missed you.” Caitlin said into her ear. YFN didn’t realise how much she missed the Australian accent.

“I missed you guys too.”

“You only saw each other a week ago.” Lucy grumbled, her jealously a little obvious.

“You should know, Bronze, a week’s trainin’ is like a month’s trainin’,” Katie laughed as they clapped hands.

YFN caught Lucy’s eye and she knew they were thinking the exact same thing. 13 days.

Caitlin stepped around YFN to greet Lucy as Jordan appeared, looking sexy for their night. YFN gave her an intentional up and down look and then winked at her. Jordan grinned proudly. They’d wanted Jordan to look her best because… why not? YFN’s intentions were primarily to build her confidence, though she assumed Jordan’s were more along the lines of a “fuck you” to Leah, wanting her to see what she gave up. Either way, she supported it. They moved to the living room and YFN turned to Katie.

“What are we in for tonight?” She asked nervously. Lucy moved to her side, a hand slipping around to hold her hip. Lucy was obviously already feeling the goodbye, and so needy Lucy was here for the night, it seemed. Luckily it was her favourite. She leaned into her.

“SORRY! Sorry!” Beth yelled as she came through the door. “We were on the phone.”

“Beth was on the phone.” Viv corrected, looking less than impressed. Her usual expression. The little tinge of Scottish when she spoke English was adorable.

They both made their rounds of hellos and hugs, settling into their circle. “What did we miss?”

“Katie was just about to tell us how mad tonight is going to be.” Jordan explained, looking at Katie expectantly.

Katie held up the bottle of whiskey. “That’s what this is for, girls! Just to take the edge off!”

“Katie-”

“Nah, chick.” Katie said to Jordan. “I think you’ll all be needin’ just a sip of this first. Nothin’ too crazy, we’re all in trainin’ after all.”

They each took a shot, some more reluctantly than others, and then Katie put the bottle into the fridge. A ‘housewarming gift’ she said.

She clapped her hands and rubbed them together as if she were going to give a speech. “Okay so… I’m not sure.”

“What do you mean?!”

“Well, we all made some phone calls and I think it’s just gotten way out of hand. Last time I had count, we were up to about seventy-eight..”

“Seventy-eight?!”

“Yeah well, Lumos has really been puttin’ in the work in the background. They’ve gotten the girls all excited and there’s talk they’re convincing investors to bring in funding for more cameras at games, better equipment for us, better sponsorships. Whoever is runnin’ this really knows people. They’re pushing’ for games to move to larger stadiums, more merch to be sold and so much more.” She looked at YFN. “I don’t know how much you know, but everyone’s really excited.”

“I don’t know any of that..” She admitted, worried.

“Oh that’s fine, the girls know that's in the future. What we all care about now is having a publicity company that we can trust, so I dare say you’ll have ya work cut out for ya!”

YFN looked up at Lucy, eyes wide. “What if I don’t know their names? I haven’t memorised everyone yet..”

“No one expects you to have, and I’ll be right there to tell you.”

“That’s bad form if I don’t know.. I should know everything about them from their names to their nationalities, their clubs, their likes and dislikes and play styles..”

“That’s what tonight is for, remember? You have a plan.” Lucy soothed.

“What’s the plan?” Beth asked.

YFN took a breath. “I think the difference with the women’s game to the men’s game is that people really connect with the female players off the field. It’s so different to the men in that way. There’s more emotion, more honestly, more encouragement of players and people in general. People are more invested in the relationships, the friendships, and all of that. So many reporters attack questions from a male perspective, and I don’t want that. Tonight is all about me creating an understanding of players and what they want and what they need from us as a company, because we have that to offer. And not only that, everyone is different. Some people don’t mind talking openly about their relationships or their sexuality or their mental health. Other players don’t want to do that at all. So I did originally plan on talking to every person who came and get to know them individually and what they are and aren’t comfortable talking about.”

The girls looked impressed and she could feel Lucy’s grip tightening proudly beside her.

“That sounds amazing..” Caitlin grinned, excited.

YFN nodded at her shoulder bag. “I was quite literally going to take notes and everything. But seventy-eight people…”

“Last time I checked..” Katie reminded. YFN cringed.

“All of us here will have some ties to the people who are coming, so we’ll do the rounds and make sure everyone knows that you’ll get around to every one.” Jordan suggested at her side and squeezed her hand.

“And I’ll give a bit of a speech so the girls know. Besides that, most of the girls are just excited to get everyone together. We’ve never had anythin’ like this before.”

“If all goes well with Lumos, I was planning to make an event for all of the female footballers every year..” YFN admitted.

They all seemed excited by this. Finally, someone to invest money and interest into women’s football.

“Oh well, it’s going to be a long night.”

YFN was nervously squeezing Lucy’s hand as they walked into the restaurant. To be quite honest, it was more of an extremely large pub than a restaurant, but it was a brilliant English atmosphere. High ceilings, multiple bars, multiple areas. They entered the half of the pub they’d booked and YFN’s mouth dropped open. Even Lucy hesitated. They were early… slightly… but there were still over a hundred female footballers already there, with more arriving. Katie looked at their little group with a cheeky, guilty smile on her face.

“I’m going to talk to the group.” Katie said and wandered over, naturally taking charge.

“We’ll go find us some seats.” Beth offered and dragged Viv off.

Jordan’s eyes wandered the crowd in just as much shock as YFN, and she twitched as she wandered over Leah, though did well to pretend she hadn’t seen her staring at her.

“I think I’m going to go speak to the manager about the seating situation….” Lucy said as she assessed the room. She looked down at YFN. “Will you be okay for a few minutes?”

YFN nodded. It was overwhelming, but she had Jordan, and it’s not like they were all going to attack her at once or anything. Lucy leaned down and kissed her, YFN smiling into it knowing that the primary reason was because lots of the footballers were already staring over at them, and especially at her. The representative for Lumos. Lucy’s lips parted from hers and she kissed her bandage. She ducked down to Jordan on the way past. “You look great Jords, let her know what she’s missing.”

Jordan grinned at her; their history obvious in the grin they shared.

“Shall we?” Jordan asked, extending her arm.

YFN sighed and took it. “I don’t think I’m ready but fuck it. Let’s go.”

YFN was pretty certain that there was someone from every single WSL and Championship club present. After she and Caitlin did some looking around, they agreed that she wasn’t wrong. Katie had done as she’d said and given a speech about how YFN would get around to everybody one by one. None of them seemed impatient, most just excited at that and the fact that everyone was together. She noticed so many reunions, even Lucy catching up with people she hadn’t seen in while. That warmed her heart.

Before she started making the rounds, she spoke to a few of the girls she’d come with about who was who. She wanted to be sure of everyone’s names and clubs at the very least. To ease herself into it, she started with Caitlin so she could get a good rhythm going. Caitlin was the perfect first person, she was patient and funny and genuinely interested and helpful. From there, Caitlin came around with her to introduce all of the other Australian’s she could find, the proud Matilda’s, and YFN realised that all of the aussies had a similar sense of humour that she immediately fell into. She soon became comfortable chatting to players and found herself needing to look for Lucy less, not needing that support. Though, she always found herself looking for her anyways, her neediness always craving her. Most of the time Lucy was already looking at her, the expression on her face ranging from pride to flirting. From the Australian’s of Alanna Kennedy, Mary Fowler, Mackenzie Arnold, Steph Catley, Kyra, Clare Wheeler and more, she was introduced to the people in their respective WSL clubs like the girls at Man City: Chloe Kelly, Khiara Keating, Jill Roord, and so many more. She was overwhelmed but in the best possible way, and she quickly found the most efficient way to take notes as she was usually in a conversation with a few people at once.

She wanted to know what they were comfortable speaking about, and what they weren’t. What they wanted to see improved in the game and industry. What they expected from Lumos as a group. Any dreams, ambitions beyond the sport. What things they do and don’t like being asked, and even when they think they should and shouldn’t be interviewed etc.

YFN was honest with them all about her plans for Lumos. She repeated herself many times during the night, but was proud to say it each time. She wanted them to be comfortable, to not have to rely solely on their media training, to have a say in what gets cut from an interview, and what stays, and to be able to see the finished products before they were sent out into the world. She wanted to encourage sponsorships for individual players and much more.

The Irish girls were hilarious, their accents always carrying across the room. Katie introduced her to all of her players, both experienced and the younger ones who seemed a little surprised that YFN wanted to talk to them. They didn’t usually get much media attention until they were more known, but that was another thing YFN wanted to change, and she told them so.

Lucy managed to steal her away for a break during the chaos and they stood outside in almost silence, recharging their social batteries. It was a lot. But also, they just wanted an excuse to spend some time together.

As they came back inside, Lucy was by her side then, introducing her to all of the England players she hadn’t met yet, as well as others she knew. And Lucy knew a lot of people. She’d been around for a while. YFN loved meeting everyone Lucy introduced her to, and especially the people she’d grown up with like Lucy Staniforth who was currently at Aston Villa with Jordan. Those three were so natural and relaxed when they were all together, having known each other so well. Lucy Staniforth had mentioned that Lucy was such a weird kid and told some stories that Lucy groaned at. She was sure Lucy would have had stories also, but she was too polite to share any too bad.

Eventually came the point in the night where YFN needed to speak to Leah. She was the last of the England squad and seemably waiting patiently as she made her rounds.

“YFN, you’ve already met Leah.” Lucy introduced and pulled out a chair next to her for YFN. She sat down and Lucy kissed the top of her head. “I have a few people I need to talk to, love.”

YFN nodded and thanked her, turning to Leah. She hadn’t been alone, in fact she had spoken to a lot of people during the night as most of the Arsenal squad were in attendance, and most of the Lionesses. She’d noticed a few times as Leah had tried to get closer to Jordan in group conversations where Arsenal players had been excited to see her, but Jordan had managed to slip away before she got too close. It was impressive, actually.

“Leah, how have you been?” She asked.

“Yeah, I’ve been great.” She gestured to the bandage and eye. “That’s looking much better.”

YFN gave a chuckle. “I’m just glad it didn’t fracture anything.”

“Have you heard anything from them?” Leah genuinely seemed interested. She liked Leah. She felt comfortable around her after their chats in the hospital.

“I haven’t heard anything from them since. Lucy thinks her lawyers scared them away.”

“Did she sue?”

She shook her head. “Not enough evidence.”

“Restraining order?”

She shook her head again. “Not until I’m on a work visa…. Oh that reminds me… sorry…” She took out her phone for the first time that night and sure enough, an email from Martin. Her Visa was approved. She grinned and screenshotted it, sending it to Lucy.

“It’s my Visa.. it’s just been approved,” she explained to Leah, unable to wipe the smile from her face. She found Lucy who pulled out her phone and looked at the image, her face lifting and that stunning grin lit up the room.

“Congratulations,” Leah said. “That amazing. Now it seems you have a lot of work to do..” She looked around the room, also impressed by how many people there were.

“I like to be busy. And to be honest, I don’t have too many questions for you yet, because we spoke so much at the hospital.” She admitted.

Leah was surprised and looked a little disappointed. “Oh.. right.”

“I still have a few though.. firstly I wanted to give the little spiel I’ve given everyone tonight… Our goal is to spread awareness and increase the popularity and coverage of women’s football. We’re going to tailor our questions and interviews to whenever the player decides, and whatever they feel comfortable discussing. When we do have interviews to post, we’ll make sure that everything is sent to the player and/or their manager individually so they can approve it and have their own say in what is cut and what is not. I want players to have control over their brand and image, because it won’t be positive for anyone if it's the other way around. We plan to cover the WSL and Champions Leagues, though as you can imagine, there will be some hiccups while we get into the flow of things.”

“That sounds… unbelievable to be honest. In the best possible way. Right now, we’re all forced to do little videos and interviews for social media at times that we don’t approve and most of the time we have no idea what we’re walking into so it’s just awkward and unnatural. That’s why everybody gets the same media trained answers from us.”

YFN nodded. She understood this. “Exactly, so we plan on changing that. For example…” She looked at Beth and Viv. “Those two lovebirds have said they’d want to do an interview in their home. They want to be around their dog and want to just be comfortable. I respect that.” She pointed over the the little Japanese woman next to Mackenzie Arnold. “And there? Riko Ueki. She wants to show around her hometown in Japan and the youth team she played at because she wants more funding for them. She’s also obsessed with manga and wants to show off her collection. She said that a West Ham fan brought her a comic once and it was her most exciting day as a footballer. Also, I suggested we do interviews in Japanese and English so viewers are not just limited to English speaking countries.” She turned back to Leah. “It’s a global sport, and we need to start showing it as such.”

Leah nodded slowly. “This is going to be brilliant.” She paused. “Let me… know if you need anything, okay? I know a few people and I can definitely get on board and help steer you in the right direction.”

“You have no idea how much I appreciate that.”

Leah smiled and then her eyes flickered over YFN’s shoulder. She knew exactly where she was looking.

“She won’t speak to me.”

Leah was being open and honest again. Something very unlike her, but apparently something she now shared with YFN. “I know.”

Leah’s eyes flickered back to her. “Did you tell her..?”

She nodded. “Tonight actually. It’s still pretty fresh.”

“Ah.” Leah seemed to understand now. “Well can you-”

“I’m not going to speak to her for you.” She said softly, as gentle as she could. “She needs time. She’s upset. Confused. Conflicted. She needs time to process.”

“Did I… did I lose her?” Leah was looking back over to Jordan.

YFN moved so she was in her line of sight. “I can’t speak for Dory. She’s her own person, but I know her well enough to know she will speak to you again in time. She knows you two were great friends once. Relationship or not, there’s still that love there.”

“I uh.. I was going to ask her to be my date to a charity event I have next weekend.” She said, looking at YFN as if she were asking if she should.

“I don’t think she’s going to be ready for that, Leah..” She said, again a softly as possible. She could see the pain in her eyes. The longing. The emotion. Again, Leah was not an emotional person. She was the Captain of the Lionesses. Strong and well-spoken.

“Do you have someone else to go with you?”

She scoffed. “No, I’m the only one available because of my knee. Aston Villa aren’t playing though so I hoped…”

YFN felt bad. She could tell Leah needed company. “Would you… like me to come?”

Leah’s eyes shot up from the ground, her eyebrows pulled together. “You’d want to come?”

“Sure, I’ve been to a few charity events before so I know what to expect. Plus I can probably do some networking..”

Thinking a bit more about it, it was perfect for her to do some Lumos networking.

Leah stayed silent and YFN bit her lip, thinking she’d been too forward. “Oh, sorry, I was just trying to offer a solution-”

“No… no.. I’m sorry. I’d love that, if you’re up for it. We’ll need to match outfits though.”

“That’s fine, I need an excuse to buy a dress, and my face should be a lot better by then.” She laughed, and then worry set in a little. Would Jordan be mad? Would Lucy be jealous? Why did she have to be so empathetic?

The rest of the night was a blur full of talking and stories and snacking on whatever was closest to her at the time as she made her rounds. Lucy made sure to find her often and make sure she had food and water. By the end of the night, she’d managed to get around to one hundred and sixty-two players, and her notes were incredibly extensive. There had been most of the WSL and Champions League in attendance. She was impressed with herself, and knew she’d be tired when she got home. Lots of group photos were posted to social media and YFN managed to post a few herself, taking one with the entire group so she could send it to Joe. Joe responding immediately, ecstatic at the turnout.

As they left, YFN made sure to thank Jordan, Katie and Caitlin, and especially Lucy for organising the night. It had been spectacular, though Katie did admit she was a little grumpy that they couldn't all drink and party as they were mid-way through their season.

“That’s my girl,” Lucy cooed. “You’re taking it so well, little one.”

YFN whimpered into the pillow, her hands gripping the sheets in desperation. Lucy’s strap was bigger and stretching her beyond what she’d ever experienced as she thrusted in and out of her with pace. She took it as well as she could, unable to control the sounds she made. She hoped Jordan couldn’t hear, though her best guess was that she’d passed out hours ago.

Lucy’s pace increased, the sound of wet slapping and Lucy’s breaths resonating around the room.

“God, you’re such a good girl. You like this?”

YFN nodded into the pillow, scared that if she spoke, she’d cry out. She did anyways, her moaning barely smothered by the pillows. She used her knees to brace and push herself backwards into Lucy, better hardening her thrusts and taking it deeper. Lucy’s hands moved from her nipples to her hips, pushing down and driving into her with obsession. Fucking railing her. She needed her. More. YFN accepted every single pound she took with a grateful moan, or a cry of Lucy’s name.

“L…Luce. Fuck. UGH, FUCK. Argh.. p…please… don’t stop. Fuck me.”

It was an addiction that only Lucy could fill. She needed her.

Her cries sent a shiver down Lucy’s spine and her words from earlier resonating with her. ‘I want that unconditional fucking hopeless romantic, Heath Ledger love. And when it comes to sex… my body craves someone that I can put my absolute trust in. Someone who I can give all of my control, my thoughts, my opinions to. Someone who will literally hold me down and fuck me for both of our benefits. I don’t want a choice.’

Her jaw shook in lust and she grabbed her head, pushing it further into the pillow. “Stop talking.”

YFN whimpered her horniness and she tried to do as she was told, but it was just too good. She was close, her fifth of the night. Pretty good for two people so tired.

“Please… don’t stop.” She whimpered into the pillow and Lucy pushed her head down harder, her hand tightening on her hip as she began to fucking rail her harder. “Shut. The fuck up.”

YFN shivered, her body so, so close. Lucy getting controlling was only getting her closer. God, she wanted her to keep talking. To say nasty things to her. She couldn’t believe how much she wanted that, and so she didn’t do as she was told. “Y…yes! ARGH!”

Lucy stopped, her breathing erratic and YFN let out an unhappy sob as she tried to push herself back and fuck herself on the strap. Lucy reached around to her neck and pulled her off the bed so her back was up and pressed against Lucy. She could feel the heat coming off her, the sweat, the lust. Lucy’s mouth found her ear.

“You really think you have a choice here, little one.” She started to reply but Lucy spoke over her. “That wasn’t a question. Now, I need you to be a good girl, and shut the fuck up. Shut the fuck up and lay there and take this fucking drilling you deserve.” She bit the cartilage of her ear. “And do it quietly.”

YFN was enjoying this, wanting even more. “I t…thought you wanted me to be loud..”

“No, I challenged you to be quiet. And I changed my mind, anyways. I don’t want anyone to hear you. You’re MINE.”

Lucy pushed her back onto the bed and pulled the strap out, excited juices dripping with it.

YFN complained until Lucy was climbing onto her back, pulling something over her head. She wasn’t sure what it was, but it filled her mouth and Lucy tied it tight at the back of her head. Satisfied, she leaned down to her ear.

“You’re going to be thinking about this for the next 13 days, until I’m inside you again. You’re going to touch yourself, but it’s not going to be the same, because you need me. You crave me. You love me. So be a good girl and keep quiet while I fuck the disobedience out of you.”

Before she could even comprehend, Lucy was tugging her back into position and thrusting herself inside. YFN was caught unaware, her whole body jerking and clenching around the large cock. Lucy was relentless. Yes, she would be thinking about it for the next 13 days.

#lucy bronze #jordan nobbs #lucy bronze x reader #woso #engwnt #lionesses #lucy bronze imagine #womens football #woso community #woso fanfics #woso imagine #woso x reader #woso soccer #leah williamson #katie mccabe #caitlin foord #beth mead #vivianne miedema

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genshinluvr · 1 year

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At Arm's Length

Pairings: Various Genshin Men x Isekai'd!Reader

Summary: After being forced into a marriage with the twenty-five men— technically, you agreed to it, so you weren't really forced into it, you couldn't help but yearn for a genuine connection with the men. You end up expressing your feelings about your marriage with your twenty-five husbands to Lumine, who is also your sister in law.

Note: Short-ish fic for this week since it's been a hectic week for me ;v; Not really sure how I feel about this fic since I do feel burned out from not only school but from writing fanfics as well 😵‍💫 It's a new quarter for me, and I'm just trying to keep up with school, my readings, and writings. I don't think this would count as angst, but just to be safe, I won't be tagging people that don't want to be tagged in angst or hurt/comfort. Next week's fic might be either Tagic Outcomes or Caught in the Crossfire since it's been a while since I've typed something for those two fics. I don't post anywhere else but on Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and on AO3 (Aaliah_exo).

Warnings: Would marriage count as a warning?

Word Count: 7k

This strange relationship you have with twenty-five men— it’s fake. There are no feelings attached, no physical touch or intimacy. No strings attached, as your world would call it. Usually, relationships that have no strings attached to them would be friends with benefits. You hate the friends-with-benefits title. It sounds depressing to you because it’s a “friendship” between two people where they do everything a typical relationship would have, only there are no romantic feelings involved.

You have been in that situation before, but it ended fast because you wanted to be more than that, and the person left because you broke the number one rule. Not to catch any feelings, and that is what you did. Oh, what a fool you are. How could you, a hopeless romantic, be in that kind of situation? You didn’t expect to be in an arranged marriage situation with twenty-five men from an open-world game you’ve been obsessed with for quite some time.

A stack of paper is slammed on the table in front of you, pulling you out of your thoughts. You look up at the older woman, who looks like she does not want to show up to work today.

“Please sign your first and last name here, and your… husbands will sign their names after,” the lady instructs, sliding a large stack of paper toward you.

You look at the stack of papers with wide eyes. These are marriage certificates, and you have to sign twenty-five pieces of paper. You turn to look at the twenty-five men standing two feet behind you. Pierro nods as if he’s signaling for you to go ahead and sign the papers. The majority of the men look uninterested, almost bored.

You swallow the lump in your throat and turn to look at the papers laid out in front of you. Marriage certificate, huh? You will be legally binded to the twenty-five men for who knows how long— perhaps until they all get bored of you and leave you one day without any notice. Just the thought of being abandoned so suddenly makes your heart clench. How did you end up in a situation like this?

The woman sitting at the front desk clears her throat, raising her eyebrows at you. “Are you going to sign the papers or not?” She asks with an attitude.

Your face heats up with embarrassment while you mutter an apology before grabbing the pen lying beside the stack of papers. You begin to sign your name on the marriage certificates. A marriage certificate is a contract, and contracts can’t be broken unless necessary. Well, at least that’s what you assume. You don’t have much knowledge when it comes to contracts, but a certain former Archon may know a thing or two about contracts.

After signing all twenty-five marriage certificates, you step to the side and let each man sign their name on the paper. Each paper is a marriage certificate between you and one man. While you’re technically married to twenty-five men at once, the marriage certificate and the government of the men’s respective regions (if they have one) state that you’re married to one man. Though, you have no idea how that’s going to work out since most of these men live in the same region as the other.

“There. It’s been done,” Xiao says, grabbing your attention.

You watch each man hand their pens over to the lady behind the desk. She takes the pen and begins to put the marriage certificates in a white envelope with gold borders. You walk to the woman, who begins to hand you each envelope.

You’re not sure how this works or how it’ll work. You weren’t prepared for marriage, nor did you plan on getting married so soon. The stack of envelopes in your arms starts becoming heavy the more the woman stacks one envelope over the other. While the envelope is thick and glossy, holding the stacks in your arms feels like lead. The woman puts one last envelope on the stack and nods.

“You’re all dismissed,” she says.

You and the men walk out of the building without saying a word to each other. I mean, what’s there to say after something like this? These men found you unconscious outside of Dragonspine. When you came to consciousness, you were met with various weapons pointing at your face. It took you a while to reassure them that you’re not a threat— how can you be a threat when you don’t have a vision or any weapons on your person?

Tensions are high, and silence hangs in the air. The tension is so thick you can suffocate in it. The sun is high in the sky, the birds are chirping, and the civilians are going on with their day, unaware of the situation.

You break the silence. “You guys are acting like I’m forcing all of you to marry me when I never brought up that idea. We can go back to the clerk and destroy the certificates if that makes you all happy,” you said.

“There’s no need to go back to the clerk to have the marriage certificates destroyed. What’s done is done, and you cannot break a contract once it's signed by the party involved,” Diluc says.

Archons, you hate this so much. You weren’t the one that brought the idea up to the men. It was them that suggested it for your “protection.” Ever since you revealed to them that you weren’t from their universe, they suggested that you should get married to them so that they can protect you from the Abyss and other potential harms that could come your way.

Because you know too much about what happened in their world that they’re unaware of, it was best for them to be betrothed to you to protect you and your identity. At least that’s what you were told. Quite frankly, there could be a better alternative. Still, the twenty-five men were adamant about the marriage option, and you weren’t sure why. You didn’t want to start any more issues with them, so you went along with their choice, and now here you are— married to twenty-five men.

A few months go by, and it’s been a few months since you have been “married” to the twenty-five men, and while you’re their significant other, they keep you at arm's length. Everything feels awkward between you and the men. They weren’t cold or rude to you. They didn’t mistreat you or make you feel alienated from the rest. You’re unsure if it’s because of your lack of relationship experience or if it was something else because everything felt awkward.

Since you are legally their partner for however long, the twenty-six of you need to put on a show to prove that your marriage is legitimate and not illegitimate. No matter where you all are, you have to get used to calling each other partners. They’re your husbands, and you are their spouse.

You’re going to be really honest here. It feels like you’re putting more effort into this role than these men are. It almost feels like you’re the only person that is trying to make it work despite how awkward it is. After all, it feels like an arranged marriage because these men don’t have feelings toward you— at least, that’s what you’re assuming. Since you’re not a citizen in Teyvat, you spend your time at the abode, cleaning, cooking, and watering the plants in the backyard because there’s nothing for you to do, really.

Instead of Thoma cooking food for everyone, you’re the one that does it. Of course, Thoma was opposed to it at first, but you insisted on cooking because they have jobs and duties to tend to, whereas you’re at the estate doing house duties.

You wake up around close to six in the morning to start your day. While you hated waking up early in the morning, you thought getting up before everyone else would make the men feel relieved in a way. After all, you don’t work or go to school. You could apply to Sumeru Akademiya and be a student there, but it would raise some suspicions, according to Al Haitham and Kaveh.

You’re not a fan of waking up at an early time, but ever since you and the twenty-five men have signed the marriage contract, you have been making it a habit to get up early in the morning to start your day ahead of everyone’s schedule. You’re standing in the kitchen in your pajamas, packing twenty-five lunches for each man. You made sure to cook their favorite dishes and include some snacks from the regions they’re from. It’s a lot to do, but you’re getting the hang of it.

“And we’re done!” You mutter to yourself, sighing in relief when you wrap the last lunch bag for the last man.

You yawn and stretch your arms in the air. You lined the lunch bags next to each other, labeling each bag with the men’s names on it so they wouldn’t mix up their lunch bags with someone else’s bags. That would’ve been a disaster if it did happen. You rub your eyes and walk to the stove, cracking eggs into the pan and begin to cook yourself some breakfast.

The kitchen door creaks open. You turn your head to see Thoma walking into the kitchen dressed for the day but with a bedhead. You crack a smile and look away before Thoma can see it. Thoma hums softly, walking over to where you’re standing.

“Morning, Thoma. I hope you slept well last night,” you said softly, cooking the eggs before you while Thoma dug through the refrigerator for water.

“I slept well. I hope you slept well, too, because it’s almost seven in the morning, and I don’t understand how you’re able to pack everyone's lunch before we all wake up,” Thoma murmurs, leaning against the counter beside you after grabbing a cup of water to drink.

You shrug. “It’s not as easy as I hoped it would be. That’s all I can say. Everyone has their likes and dislikes, and I have to make sure to prepare the ingredients the day prior,” you reply.

You look at the clock hanging on the wall and reach for the spatula. It’s almost time for everyone to get up for work, and Thoma is the only person that is awake. You’re not sure whether it’s because Thoma is used to getting up early ahead of every other man in the estate or if he’s used to waking up early because of his duties at the Kamisato Estate. But either way, you’re happy to have some kind of company, even if it’s short-lived.

“Thoma, it seems like you have yet to fix your bedhead,” the voice of the Kamisato heir breaks the short silence between you and the housekeeper of the Kamisato Estate.

Thoma laughs and rubs the back of his neck. “I tried to fix it, but there’s no use in getting it down when it’s stubborn,” Thoma sighs in defeat.

You continue to cook your breakfast while Thoma and Ayato hang out in the kitchen, chatting quietly near the island of the kitchen. You grab a plate and scoop the eggs, putting them on the plate while debating whether you should cook some bacon to go with your eggs for breakfast or not. The kitchen door opens once again, and more men walk into the kitchen, rubbing the sleep out of their eyes while muttering under their breaths.

You let out a silent gasp and smack yourself in the forehead, mentally cursing yourself for being forgetful. How could you make lunch for your husbands to take to work when you forget to brew them coffee and tea?! Dammit, dammit, dammit!

“Don’t hit yourself!” Scaramouche grumbles, smacking your hand away from your face with a small scowl on his face.

“Yeah! There’s nothing to beat yourself over. You made us lunch like you promised,” Gorou says, grabbing the small lunch sack from the kitchen island.

You sigh and rub your throbbing temples. “Of course, I would make you all lunch to bring to work with you all, but I forgot to brew coffee and tea for you guys,” you murmur. “Archons, how could I be so stupid and forget that?”

“You’re not stupid for forgetting to brew tea and coffee for us, [Y/N]. You were occupied with cooking lunch for twenty-five of us. There’s nothing worth beating yourself over,” Dainsleif says, walking over to the coffee pot.

“I’ll do better next time, I promise. My forgetfulness has caused everyone to be late for work,” you mutter, chewing on your bottom lip.

Childe throws his arms over your shoulders and pats your head. “Late for work? The clock just struck seven! If anything, we’re up pretty early, and we should leave the house not too long from now. Plus, some of us don’t thrive on coffee and tea,” Childe says.

“You do not need to worry about anything. You’re doing fine, and none of us are upset with you just because you forgot about coffee and tea. Plus, you cooked lunch for the twenty-five of us to bring to work. The least we can do is make our coffee and tea,” Al Haitham says, entering the kitchen with a peeved Kaveh following behind.

Kaveh stands beside you, crossing his arms over his chest with his chest puffing out. You look at Kaveh worriedly and lightly tap his arm. Kaveh continues to glare at Al Haitham before looking at you. You freeze for a moment when he looks at you with the same expression on his face. Kaveh notices your change in demeanor before relaxing.

Kaveh pats your head. “Sorry, [Y/N]! That glare wasn’t for you. It’s for that idiot over there with his stupid noise-canceling headphones,” Kaveh says, shooting a glare over at the Acting Grand Sage.

You weren’t sure if Al Haitham didn’t hear what Kaveh said because of his noise-canceling headphones or if he was intentionally ignoring Kaveh’s comment. You smile at Kaveh and pat his arm lightly before continuing what you were doing before the other men entered the kitchen. Once everyone is awake and ready for work, you pass everyone their lunch bags with their names on them.

You stand by the door of the estate and bid them goodbyes as they walk out the door. Some men pat your head on their way out, and others either give you a hug or squeeze your shoulders. Despite being married to them for a few months, this is the only kind of affection you were getting from the twenty-five men.

Just when Baizhu is about to close the estate’s door, you quickly stop him by grabbing his wrist. Baizhu stops in his tracks and turns to look at you, surprised and confused. You release Baizhu’s wrist and give him a strained smile.

“Remember to take your medication, alright? I know you work at Bubu Pharmacy, and your job is to take care of others and give your patients their medication, but please take care of yourself as well,” you whisper.

Baizhu looks at you with surprise before giving you a warm smile. Baizhu chuckles softly and pats your head, almost ruffling your hair. You laugh quietly and grab Baizhu’s hand, gently squeezing them.

Baizhu nods. “Of course, I’ll take care of myself. I promise,” Baizhu says, making a crossing motion over his chest.

Baizhu leans over you and presses a kiss on your forehead before walking out the door, leaving you at the entrance of the estate, speechless. You touch your forehead, feeling heat rush to your cheeks. You press your lips into a thin line to prevent yourself from smiling widely. You close the estate’s door and lock it.

Before you and the men got married for your safety and to keep Teyvat at peace, they promised to each other and to themselves that they would keep you at arm's length. You’re sweet and down to earth, but because some of them have dangerous professions and you’re not from their world, they wanted to keep this distance between you and them. Your husbands do not hate you, and they’ve made it very clear on multiple occasions.

“If we seem cold toward you, we do not hate you. We don’t hold any disdain toward you, nor do we hold any grudges toward you.” Cyno would say as he is sitting across from you.

You nod and dig your nail into the wrinkly skin of your right ring finger— a bad habit of yours when you were a child that dragged on to your adulthood. You usually dig your nails into the wrinkly skin of your right ring finger when you’re stressed, nervous, or bored. It doesn’t hurt at all, nor could you feel it.

Tighnari clears his throat. “Do you have any other questions?” Tighnari asks, gazing at you curiously.

You hum to yourself and tap your fingers on your thighs. “I want to know why some of you will be acting cold toward me,” you mutter, puckering your lips.

“To be fair, some of us do it unintentionally,” Albedo interjects.

You couldn’t help but agree with Albedo on that. Some men do come off as standoffish and cold even though they’re not. It’s how they are to people in general, not just you. For example, Xiao is standoffish, but that doesn’t mean he hates you or holds any grudges toward you. If anything, Xiao wanted to distance himself from you because of his karmic debt, and because you’re mortal and don’t have a vision, he doesn’t want to harm you in any way or put you in harm's way.

“Just don’t do anything reckless that could put you in danger,” Pierro comments, leaning against the wall.

You bite the inside of your cheek. You don’t think you can guarantee that— staying away from danger, you mean. It’s not like you intentionally dive headfirst into danger without warning! You’re getting married to Archons, Harbingers, an Adeptus, a Knight, and many notable figures of Teyvat. There’s bound to be danger in almost every corner now that you’re associated with these men.

The men stare at you intently while you stare off into space, gnawing on the inside of your cheek. That’s another habit of yours the men noticed almost right off the bat. When you’re deep in thought, you tend to zone out and are not aware of your surroundings. It’s almost like your head is always in the clouds. It’s almost endearing in a way, but your head being in the clouds could also be the reason for your downfall.

“What’s on your mind?” Heizou asks, leaning back in his seat while watching you closely.

You sigh and chuckle to yourself. “I don’t have much going on in my mind, to be really honest. But I do have other questions, but I don’t think any of you are going to give me a clear answer,” you said.

Kazuha sits beside you and gazes at you curiously. You clear your throat and look away, feeling heat slowly creep up your neck. He’s even prettier in person. You wonder if Kazuha knows how pretty he is because he’s breathtaking. Then again, the twenty-four other men are just as stunning as Kazuha.

“If you want, you can ask us now, and if we know the answer, we’ll tell you. If not, we’ll try to answer it when we have the answers,” Kazuha suggests, giving you a small smile.

You pursed your lips and debated whether you should ask the question. If you were to ask them the question, you worry you might receive the answer you didn’t want to hear. But if you don’t ask the question, you’ll never know what will happen or what to expect. Itto lets out a loud grunt and stands up, stretching his arms out in front of him.

Itto props his hands on his hips and gives you an encouraging smile. “Whatever question you have for us, I think some of us have the answer for it, depending on what it is!” Itto says, tilting his head to the side while gazing at you curiously.

How long will this marriage last? Is what you wanted to ask the men. How long will it last? A few weeks? A few months? A few years, maybe? How long? The time in Teyvat is vastly different from your world, you’re assuming. The days in Teyvat are much faster than the days in your world. You and the men never went out on a date to get to know one another or to form a bond with one another. Would the marriage be convincing because of the lack of bond between the twenty-six of you? Or, well, between you and each man?

“I don’t know if I want to ask the question,” you mutter shyly.

Venti giggles and trots over to you, throwing his arms around your shoulders and giving you a pat on the head. “It’s okay if you don’t want to ask the question! We won’t pry!” Venti says, releasing you from his hug before walking over to where he was standing previously.

Zhongli clears his throat. “I would like to remind you all that what we’re all getting into involves a contract. Everyone has to agree to sign this contract mutually. If one person does not agree, then the contract will be invalid,” Zhongli says, crossing his arms over his chest.

Right, you nearly forgot that marriage is a contract with the party involved. It’s not a relationship where people can break up and go their separate ways after. Marriage is a contract, and to get out of marriage is breaking a contract. It’s a long process, and people can’t walk away from it so easily.

You didn’t remember who proposed the idea of every one of them marrying you to keep you away from danger and to keep your real origins hidden from the rest of Teyvat. It’s strange to you that you have to marry notable figures to keep your identity hidden, even though that’s putting more spotlight and target on you. You don’t mind getting married to twenty-five handsome men but getting married to them so suddenly is something you didn’t expect.

“Are you listening?” Capitano asks gruffly.

You nod mindlessly. “I’m not opposed to continuing this process. I mean, it’s not like I have a choice, really,” you mutter.

“It’s for your safety. If word gets out that you’re not from our universe and you possess the knowledge of Teyvat, you will be hunted down by the Abyss,” Dottore interjects from the corner of the room.

You didn’t realize he was in the same room until now. Now that you think about it, these Harbingers are scattered around the large office inside Dawn Winery. You puckered your lips and leaned back in your seat, crossing your leg over the other.

You sigh and tilt your head back. “Is the Abyss really a threat to me right now? In case you all have forgotten, you’re all notable figures. Some of you are Harbingers and Knights—”

Diluc makes a disgusted noise.

“Some of you are Adeptis and Archons—”

Scaramouche rolls his eyes and pretends to gag. You stare at Diluc and Scaramouche blankly while the two avoid your eyes. You huff and stand up, propping your hands on your hips. You look at the other men in the room, who gazes at you cluelessly.

Kaeya smiles at you and waves. “Ignore Diluc. He was once a Knight as well, but now he holds a grudge against us,” Kaeya says nonchalantly.

Diluc rolls his eyes in response and glares at Kaeya from the corner of his eyes. You scratch your head, wondering how in the world this marriage is going to work out of some of these men hold grudges against certain groups of people, especially when the others are part of that group.

“So, what do you say? Do you agree to marry all twenty-five of us for your protection? This is also no strings attached, so you can do whatever you want without us controlling you. That applies to us as well.” Pantalone says, holding his hand out toward you.

You sigh for the trillionth time, staring at Pantalone’s hand. No strings attached? How would a marriage work if it’s no strings attached? There are many strings attached to marriages! That only applies if it’s a friends-with-benefits situation, but marriage? Does that even apply to marriages? This got you scratching your head because what?

“I’m not sure what you mean by no strings attached,” you mutter, furrowing your eyebrows. “But yes, I will marry you. All of you. Although I did not think this is how the marriage proposal is going to turn out….” you trailed off, grabbing Pantalone’s hand and shaking his hand.

Childe smirks, cocking an eyebrow at you. “Oh? Did you perhaps want us to dress fancy and make it special?” Childe asks.

“Yes.” you deadpan. “Honestly, if I was dating all of you and this is how you all propose to me, it would’ve been an automatic no,” you add.

“Huh!? Then what should we do to get you to say yes other than making it special?” Itto asks, giving you a look of disbelief.

You hum thoughtfully, tapping on your chin after releasing Pantalone’s hand. “Well, last time I checked, an engagement ring is involved. If we’re going to make this ‘real,’ there needs to be a ring, or else people won’t believe it,” you explain.

“Oh? Do you want us to get you an engagement ring?” Pierro asks, looking at you with an amused look on his face.

You feel your face heat up, and you look away with a “hmph!” The marriage is real, but at the same time, it’s not. Yes, a marriage certificate and license will be signed and given to the twenty-six of you, but this marriage is a loveless marriage. At least, that’s what you assume it’ll be. If you have to marry the twenty-five of them for your safety, you might as well make it convincing, right? Then again, you don’t want them to spend a lot of Mora over a ring.

“Yes, I do. I mean, unless people in Teyvat do it differently,” you mutter, stroking your chin. You shake your head and wave your hand. “You know what? Forget it. It’s not even a real marriage, so why should I want a ring to be involved?” You sigh.

Aether looks at you quizzically. “What do you mean? It is a real marriage,” Aether says.

“Not when the marriage is rushed, and none of you have feelings for me,” you mutter under your breath.

“Either way, the wedding is real because a contract is involved. If it were fake, the marriage license and certificate wouldn’t be signed, and it would’ve been more of a role play,” Tighnari interjects, shrugging his shoulders.

Well, Tighnari’s not wrong about that. Still, the marriage isn’t genuine between you and the twenty-five men. You shouldn’t be complaining when they’re doing it for your safety, but what Pantalone said really bothers you. A marriage that has no strings attached. How would that even work? You get attached easily!

“[Y/N].”

How would the men react if you told them you wanted the marriage to be real? By that, you mean you wanted them to love you as much as you love them. Is it too early to tell them you love them despite knowing them for only a short amount of time during your stay in Teyvat? I mean, you technically knew them longer than they know you because—

“[Y/N]!”

You feel something smack you in the face. You blink and rub the tip of your nose, looking at the item that fell onto your lap. A bread roll. You clear your throat and grab the bread, glancing up at Lumine, who sighs and props her head up on the table with her arm.

You put the bread roll on the plate, giving Lumine an apologetic smile. “Sorry, Lumine. I didn’t mean to get lost in my thoughts,” you said. “What were you saying?”

Lumine lets out a long sigh and leans back in her seat, staring at you closely while tapping her fingers on her biceps. “I was wondering how your marriage is going with those twenty-five men. Specifically, my twin brother,” Lumine says.

“Oh!” You look at her surprised, reminding Lumine of a startled fox she came across many times while on her and her brother’s exploration around Teyvat. “It’s… uh… it’s going!” You say, giving her a strained smile.

Lumine deadpans. “Listen, [Y/N]... I invited you to lunch at a lovely restaurant in Mondstadt so we can chat and catch up!” She leans on the table and looks at you worriedly. “You stared off into space for a while, and you look very upset, maybe almost annoyed as well,” Lumine says.

You gulp and reach for your teacup, sipping your now cold tea. Have you been spacing out for that long? You didn’t even realize it until Lumine snapped you out of your thoughts. You’re not sure if you should tell Lumine what’s been bothering you. Surely she knows the state of your and the twenty-five men’s marriage, right? Plus, it’s not like Aether would be hiding the truth of his marriage with you.

Lumine chuckles, shaking her head. “You know, when Aether told me he was getting married, I was genuinely shocked. My brother? Getting married? That’s something I never thought would happen.”

“It’s a loveless marriage, though,” you whisper in defeat, slumping forward and resting your chin on the table. “My marriage with these men is loveless. There are no strings attached, which I find odd because there’s no marriage like that! I mean… unless it’s an arranged marriage that is strictly business,” you mutter, pressing your lips into a thin line.

Lumine gives you a sympathetic look, reaching for your hand across the table, and gently squeezes your hand. “Have you expressed your desire of wanting the marriage to be real instead of it being an excuse to protect you and keep you within close range?” Lumine asks, chewing on the inside of her cheek.

You shake your head glumly.

Lumine looks at you with confusion and tilts her head to the side. “Why not? I mean, marriage involves a lot of communication, right? How would the marriage work out if none of you are communicating about your wants, worries, and desires?” Lumine asks.

“Lumine, these men barely show me affection as my husbands. They talk to me, yes, but it's always awkward between us when we speak,” you say, pulling your hand away from hers before reaching for the bread roll and breaking it apart.

“Sounds like you all need a marriage counselor,” Lumine says nonchalantly, leaning back in her seat with a sigh. “I’m no love expert, but trust me, communicating your wants, needs, desires, and worries will make marriage much easier!” Lumine says.

“The last time I did that, my ex laughed in my face and left me for my ex-best friend,” you deadpan.

Lumine blinks at you and laughs nervously, grabbing her cup of water and taking a sip of it. You lightly slam your head on the wooden table, causing the cutlery to clatter from the impact. You close your eyes and turn your head to the side, staring off into space.

Even if you were to express your wants, needs, desires, and worries to your husbands, you worry that it’ll drive them away from you. Not only that, but you worry that it’ll make them snap you back into reality— the reality that your marriage with them is loveless. The purpose of the marriage is to protect you and your identity from the people of Teyvat, from the Abyss Order.

While Aether and Lumine aren’t the Abyss Prince and Princess, the Abyss Order is still as active as ever. Heck, they might be out looking for you and either kill you for knowing too much information or, worst case scenario: make you the new ruler of the Abyss. You sit up and prop your head up with your elbow on the table, sighing wistfully.

“I didn’t think I would be thrown into marriage a few weeks after my arrival to Teyvat. Now here I am, a few months later, in a loveless marriage with twenty-five men who are unobtainable due to their status,” you ramble, rubbing your face with a frustrated sigh and tugging at the roots of your hair.

Lumine smacks your hand away from your head with a scolding look. You release your hair and let your hands fall on your lap, poking the inside of your cheek with your tongue. You don’t care that you’re married to the handsome twenty-five men. You care that it’s a loveless marriage that is “no strings attached.”

You close your eyes and tilt your head back, resting it on the top rail. “A hopeless romantic like myself shouldn’t be in a loveless marriage. I try to find hope in the littlest things, only to be disappointed in the end because I have a hard time accepting that none of these men will ever love me,” you let out a shaky sigh. “There are times when I question if I’m worthy of love because of how many people left me heartbroken. Look at me. I’m in a loveless marriage with twenty-five men who keep me at arm's length. They refuse to get close to me or show me affection. I don’t know how much longer I can handle it,” you murmur.

Lumine glances over your shoulders and then back at you, reaching for her fork. It’s supposed to be a day where you and Lumine hang out with each other. You did tell your husbands that you’ll be meeting up with Lumine, and they’re okay with it. Of course, why wouldn’t they? Lumine stares at you intently, biting on the inside of her lips. Your eyebrows are furrowed, Lumine can see the dark circles under your eyes, and the frown on your face has only gotten deeper. Dear Archons, how unhappy are you? You look like you’re barely hanging on. You look defeated and exhausted.

Lumine clears her throat. “I’m sure they show they care about you somehow, correct? You’re married, and while it’s not like any other marriages, I’m sure they show a tiny bit of affection,” Lumine murmurs.

You crack your eyes open and rest your chin on the table. “Even if they did, it’s not enough that is convincing. They have tried to reassure me they don’t intend on being cold toward me, but it’s hard to tell sometimes.”

Lumine raises her eyebrows at you and taps her fingers on the table. “Do you want the marriage to be convincing, or do you want it to be genuine? No offense, but I’m confused about what you want from my brother and your other husbands,” Lumine comments.

You let out a sharp exhale and bury your face in the table. “I want it to be real. The marriage certificate and license are real, yes, but I want….” You trail off, turning your head to the side so your cheek is resting on the wooden table.

“You want….?” Lumine furrows her eyebrows.

You sit up straight and scratch your cheek. “I want them to love and care about me as much as I do for them. Since this marriage is, according to Pantalone, no strings attached, it makes me feel like I’m not meant to be loved even if I do love someone or something. If that makes sense.” You run your fingers through your hair and puff your cheeks out. “That’s all I want. But knowing them, they will never feel the same way, and I need to accept it.”

You stare at Lumine, who looks like she just saw a ghost for the first time. You look at her quizzically while she slowly lifts her hand and points behind you. You freeze and close your eyes, mentally cursing to yourself. You slowly turn in your seat and open your eyes, only to see your beloved husbands standing there with their arms over their chests, looking at you with unreadable expressions on their faces.

“We need to talk,” Diluc says.

Your shoulders slump, and you nod. You get up from your seat and bid Lumine goodbye before walking outside of Mondstadt. Lumine gives Aether a look when he walks past her alongside the other men. The way back to the estate was silent, other than muttering from other men here and there. You couldn’t help but feel embarrassed and ashamed for admitting it out loud. Even if you said it to Lumine, you didn’t expect your husbands to walk up to your table while you were rambling.

Now, you’re sitting on the couch while the men are standing in front of you. You feel like a child getting ready to be scolded by their parents for misbehaving. You feel so small, almost inferior.

“Can you explain to us what you and Lumine were talking about?” Xiao asks, raising his eyebrows at you.

You purse your lips. “Lumine and I were talking about our,” you gesture to yourself and the twenty-five men in front of you, “marriage, and I was expressing my feelings about the marriage.”

“Care to tell us more about it?” Kaeya asks, sitting across from you.

“Do I need to explain it to you all again? I have a feeling that all of you heard what I said to Lumine before I realized you all heard what I was saying,” you commented.

Gorou nods. “That is true, yes, but we want you to say it to us. We are your husbands, after all.”

Archons, this is embarrassing.

“I…” You sigh, staring off into space.

You can’t say what you said to Lumine earlier today. It’s not like you didn’t want to. It’s because you have a hard time expressing your emotions and saying what’s on your mind.

You shake your head, burying your face into the palm of your hands. “Sorry, I’m having a hard time.” You whisper.

Aether gives you a sympathetic look. “It’s okay! Take your time!” Aether reassures you, sitting beside you and rubbing your arm.

“We want to let you know that we’re not mad at you for telling Lumine how you feel about the marriage,” Heizou says, sitting on the other side of you, sandwiching you between him and Aether.

You give Aether and Heizou a strained smile before looking down at your hands on your lap.

“I don’t know how you all feel about this marriage, but lately, I feel like you all have been avoiding me. The better way for me to put it is you’re all keeping me at arm’s length, and I feel like I can’t get through the walls you’re all putting up.”

“Like Pantalone said, the marriage is no string attached,” Dottore says passively.

You stand up. “That only works for friends-with-benefits situations. We’re married. Marriage isn’t supposed to be like this unless it’s a business transaction like those arranged marriages, but this isn’t arranged. It’s sudden, and I’m an idiot for thinking I’m strong enough to be in this situation.”

“What are you trying to say exactly?” Capitano asks.

“Am I really that hard to love to the point where you all keep me at arm’s length? If I am, we could just end the marriage and go our separate ways,” you suggest.

Al Haitham shakes his head. “That’s not why we keep you at arm’s length. You’re not hard to love. We do care about you, [Y/N].”

“Then why put a wall between us? I’m doing everything I can to have you all open up to me, but it's futile.”

Kaveh kneels in front of you and grabs your hand. “We put you at arm’s length because we worry that if we end up developing feelings for you, you will return to your world suddenly. We do care about you, and it’s hard for us to act like we don’t love you. We do, and it’s not easy for either of us to keep this distance.”

“I see where you’re all coming from, but we don’t know when I’ll return to my world. I’ve been in Teyvat for, what, a few months now?” You look at the men quizzically.

“That’s the unfortunate thing. We don’t know how or when you’ll return to your world. It’s a constant guessing game, and falling in love with someone and them disappearing out of thin air without warning is terrifying.” Albedo interjects, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“And so is marrying someone and keeping them at a far distance until they disappear! It’s almost a cruel and unusual punishment.” You retort.

“Would you be okay with us starting all over again?” Kazuha asks.

You press your lips into a thin line and squint at Kazuha. What does he mean by that exactly?

“We want to form a connection with you. While we treated you with respect (and will continue to do so), we want to treat you like our spouse instead of a stranger/roommate.” Scaramouche replies.

You nod, feeling your face gradually become warm. You continue to keep your lips pressed into a thin line to prevent a big smile from forming on your face. They wanted a fresh start. A start where they treat you like a lover rather than a stranger. You’re okay with that! In fact, you like that idea more than whatever’s been happening for the past few months.

“I like that idea.” You say softly.

Cyno smiles and pats your head. “Good.”

A fresh start with your twenty-five husbands. That’s something you didn’t expect would happen, but you’re not complaining. It’s better than having them keep their distance from you.

Note: I'm thinking about giving Zhongli his own collection of one-shots, but I'm not 100% sure if I should do it. I have a lot of ideas for this man, and I want to make it happen, but I'll have to wait a bit and see how it goes before I make it happen. I might make it happen once my spring quarter is over, but who knows. I was distracted by the new Obey Me game, and I was also farming for Baizhu. That's why the update is a bit late-ish other than me tagging people in this post. To my new and/or returning readers, please keep in mind that I ONLY post on my Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and my AO3 (Aaliah_exo)! Nowhere else except Tumblr and AO3!

Taglist for my Isekai'd!Reader one-shot series and my overall taglist: @yoru-trash, @kaoyamamegami, @kwelibeeery, @deartoru, @luminarymoonlight, @ins4nebish, @bokuto-kinnie, @exhaustedcommunist, @jadedist, @chalksdreams, @thelost-in-time, @ventisweetheart, @hispasian-otaku, @samarill, @kazuhaprnt, @lunarapple, @heyimkay, @milkpeanuts476, @eliciana, @jjvr4yxc, @sovermike-21-blog, @nightlysunn, @thelovebuggs, @urlocalheizousimp, @sunlightstarr (Accounts that I was unable to tag have been removed. Those who don't want to be tagged in certain stories are not tagged in this particular post. Remember to check your settings if you're allowing people to mention you/tag you in posts or not)

Read more of my works on my Masterlist | Maybe support me by tipping me on Ko-Fi or by reblogging my fanfics! ^^ I will also be posting exclusive fanfics on Ko-Fi as well very soon! I might post all of my stories on there too, but who knows. You can also tip me on Tumblr if you'd like as a way to show support! ^^

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piratefishmama · 6 months

Text

Beware The Thorns | Part 9

Robin Buckley made it her job to know things about people in Steve Harrington’s life. That was something she’d always done. Ever since they’d been bound to chairs back to back in a basement, ever since Steve had goaded, pushed, and insulted their captors, spitting vitriol, forcing them to focus entirely on him leaving her with barely a scratch, a sore jaw from where one of them had slapped her across the face but that was it.

Steve had been hospitalised for over a week with his injuries.

And in that time, the senior Harringtons had laid waste to the entirety of the group that’d held them captive, and had forged an odd little friendship with Buckley&Buckley, a P.I husband and wife duo who were endlessly grateful for Steve’s sacrifice to ensure their daughters survival.

A friendship that continued for years after the senior Harringtons passed their empire onto their son in their passing.

She wasn’t even supposed to be there, she’d taken it upon herself to investigate something to prove that she could. To prove that she was ready to join her parents in their work. Wrong place, wrong time. But it gained her Steve, he was worth the nightmares.

Which was why she spent her Monday morning going to a coffee shop she didn’t actually enjoy on the east side of the city, drinking overpriced black ‘artisanal’ sludge, which usually she’d be an advocate for, fuck Starcucks an all that jazz, but this place?

Dumpster fire masquerading as a ‘hip new coffee joint’, ran by a douchebag in a beanie with a moustache that didn’t fit his somewhat misshapen potato sack face shape.

All to meet with one very pretty young lady, who seemed to actually enjoy the coffee the shop served.

“I need to know where he’s going to be.” A very pretty lady, who held her coffee cup to pursed, painted red lips, bright blue eyes on Robin’s face. ��And I need to know if he’s already locked down a new client, I’m assuming these are things you’ll know… as his friend.”

“Mmnnn, I mean. You’re not wrong.” She took a sip then placed her cup back down on the cork coaster provided. “I do know where he’s going to be, and I do unfortunately know his hook up schedule, but what makes you think I’m going to tell you any of it? As his friend, it’s kind of my job to keep that information on lockdown, isn’t it?”

Robin liked Chrissy. She’d always liked Chrissy, same as Robin always liked Eddie, they had similar vibes. Wearing a mask of thorns to protect the pretty petals from those who’d do them harm. She didn’t know how they knew each other, didn’t know enough about Eddie to make assumptions as to where they’d met, but Chrissy was the closest thing Eddie had to a best friend, as far as Robin knew.

Chrissy was the only friend that Robin could get to without it immediately getting back to Eddie. Eddie’s little game friends, Gareth, Jeff, and Dougie? They’d tell him the second she reached out, would sound an alarm and she’d never get anywhere near him, claiming they were ‘being good friends’, but Chrissy was smarter by far. Chrissy was just enough of a best friend, to know when Eddie happened to need something that he didn’t want to admit to needing.

Just enough of a best friend to be able to tell him he was being an idiot, and not just immediately side with him.

Like Eddie’s very own Robin.

“It is, but I’m hoping that I’m right in the fact that he’s probably been miserable since he ended things with Steve, right?” It all kind of hinged on that. On Eddie’s real feelings behind his little mask. “Steve’s pretty miserable… it’s depressing”

“So miserable he’s sent you out to track Eddie down? Or are you doing this sniffer dog bit on your own initiative?” Robin opened her mouth to reply, but Chrissy continued as if she hadn’t asked a question, asking another instead, “what makes you think he’d be miserable?”

“Which question am I answering here?”

“Mmmmm second one please.” Chrissy took another sip, so nonchalant. She had an energy about her that Robin felt strangely familiar. A countenance Robin had only ever seen in one other person.

“I know he was acting, I know there are sides to Eddie that Steve never saw, that Eddie never let Steve see—”

“Like all the sides of Steve that Eddie never saw?” Robin tensed, brow furrowing “oh unclench, Robbie, the Cunninghams and the Harringtons go back generations, pretty sure Steve and I would have wound up in some stupid arranged marriage had the Harringtons not been against it.” Robin didn’t like not knowing things, why did she not know that? How had she missed Chrissy of all the potentials to have told Eddie about Steve’s life? How did she not know that Steve ought to know Chrissy? “I never said anything to Eddie and I don’t intend to, but… why should I let Eddie be dragged into such a messy life? There’s so many fish in the sea, Robin, why should I let my best friend be dragged down by a shark?” At least now Robin knew why Chrissy’s personality, her eerie calm felt so familiar.

She was Steve in prettier packaging.

“I’m at a disadvantage here, aren’t I?”

“Oh very much so, but you’re very cute so I’m letting you off.” Robin blinked once in surprise, then did her best to quell the pleasant buzz that thrummed through her veins at the not-so-subtle compliment “Please answer my question, why should I give you what you want?”

“He… Steve… He loves him, Chrissy… Steve has done bad stuff, don’t get me wrong, he’s done awful things to people, but I’ve never seen him like he is whenever Eddie’s around. It’s like he’s drowning in the dark and Eddie’s just… a light at the end of the tunnel, an if Eddie loves him too, which I think he does… why should they be apart?”

“And now the real reason, not the Hallmark movie one?” Chrissy raised a brow in boredom.

“I… I don’t know, Chrissy. I don’t know. I don’t. I’m running on best friend fuel. Steve needs him, or at least needs closure from him, and as his best friend I’m duty bound to try and get that for him. I’m sure you don’t love Eddie’s job. Right? He wouldn’t have to do any of it if he just—”

“Gave up his freedom and all the work he’s put in to establish himself in his field for a slim chance at happiness with one of the most dangerous men in the city?” Chrissy leaned back in her chair, one leg crossing over the other as she crossed her arms over her chest, coffee cup left to rest on the coaster.

“Better the devil you know though, right? Wouldn’t you rather him be with someone you know won’t hurt him… than with someone you don’t?” Chrissy’s eyes finally left Robin’s face, dipping down to the right as she thought about it.

Eddie wouldn’t be alone for long, he’d find a new client, he’d be on someone else’s arm, and he’d continue his life unchanged with a risk of being hurt.

Or… or he could have what he wanted.

Chrissy knew what Eddie wanted. They’d spent more than enough evenings on his couch with ice cream mooning over Steve Harrington and while she’d have loved to tell him that he was trash, he was a monster in sheep’s clothing… he just wasn’t. So she’d kept quiet.

She let Eddie pine away for a life he could have if he took a chance, never telling him why he shouldn’t.

“What if this new client wouldn’t hurt him?”

“Let’s be real Chrissy he’s probably already planned on reaching out to Tommy to fill in the gap in his schedule, you and I both know what kind of trash heap Tommy Hagan is.” An easy cash grab that’d probably make Eddie feel like shit. “Do you want to risk Eddie’s happiness on a what if, or do you want to tell me where he’s going to be so Steve can be there and sweep him off his feet?”

In retrospect, Robin should have probably been suspicious when Chrissy sat up straight, when she looked at Robin as if she was assessing her, and she definitely should have been suspicious when, with a short “Alright then,” Chrissy plucked a pen from her bag and a little notepad, and jotted down an address and a time. But with a small victory in her hands, and a front row seat to Chrissy’s perfectly perky… ponytail retreating for the door with their business concluded.

She really wasn’t thinking all that hard.

#PirateWrites #BewareTheThornsFiclet #No Upside Down AU #Steddie #Escort!Eddie #Shady!Steve

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countlessimagines · 2 years

Text

M’Lady [ Eddie Munson x Reader ]

Summary: Your joke to tease the Hellfire Club ends you up into a rather serious situation.

A/N: Just wanted to write something for the new loml <3 also of course the best cliche to ever exist: fake dating!

MASTERLIST

You were spending your usual Friday night at the D&D club, watching as the boys were excited and getting into the whole story that your best friend, Eddie had conjured up for the campaign.

You never really got into the game, and to be completely honest with yourself - you rather enjoyed watching as the boys jumped around and made a fool of themselves.

Eddie had been your closest friend for a year now, inviting you to the club meetings to sit in and afterwards you two would rent a movie to watch. It started off as something innocent, but as time passed by feelings arose on both ends. However, as fate usually plays out, neither of you were confident enough to spill your guts.

It wasn’t uncomfortable or awkward with Eddie ever, despite the words that everyone would say to warn you about the supposed “freak.” The same freak that would cry at emotional romantic movies. Yeah, you tend to tune out others who would talk down your best friend.

And then there were those, specifically the boys in the club, that assumed you and Eddie were secretly dating and hiding it from everyone. Why you would hide such a thing would remain a mystery.

After a couple of hours, they finally called it a day and started packing their backpacks up. Eddie approached you and gave you a high five. He had a sheepish grin on his face, satisfied with how the night went. He was even more excited though to eat junk food and watch a movie with you.

“Enjoy the show, m’lady?” Eddie swooned and batted his eyelashes at you.

You scoffed and playfully shoved his shoulder. “Nope, I think you might need to work on the story a bit. Seems like you’re going too easy on them.”

Mike and Dustin shared glances with each other, both noticing your very obvious - but maybe not so obvious to you - flirting. Eddie was twirling his hair like a preteen girl which made Mike roll his eyes.

“Well, maybe if you joined in, I’d make it more challenging.”

“Ooo, is that a threat?”

“Well, if it’s seems so easy then maybe you should try it.” Eddie shrugged his shoulders and began to turn to his station to clean up.

“Maybe I will.”

“Maybe you guys should get a room.” Dustin groaned and slammed his book on the table. “Just admit you guys are like in love or something.”

You and Eddie both raised your eyebrows at the boy. Everyone was now looking at you guys, awaiting one of you to finally spill the details of a secret romance that didn’t even exist.

Deciding to mess with them, you draped your arms around Eddie’s shoulders and planted a kiss on his cheek.

Well, that was certain to make the boys speechless.

Hell, even Eddie was standing there with his mouth open like a fish. You closed his mouth with a push of your finger under his chin and kept it lingering there for enough seconds to make Eddie get goosebumps.

“I thought it was about time, don’t you think, honey?” You said playfully to Eddie, hoping he’d get your drift. Thankfully, he caught onto your act since you pinched his shoulder a bit.

“Well, if you say so, m’lady. We can’t hide our undying love forever.” Eddie nodded and wrapped his arm around your waist. You’d be lying if you said that didn’t give you goosebumps yourself.

“I knew it! You owe me ten dollars, Lucas!” Dustin shouted triumphantly and reached his hand across the table to Lucas who only slapped his hand away.

When all the boys finally left the room after storming you with questions, it was only Eddie and you left standing there awkwardly.

“Well…” You said, glancing up into his deep brown eyes. “That was fun but we should probably let them know it was all a joke. Don’t want them taking it too far and trying to spread it around the school.”

Eddie shook his head, “I’d have to disagree, I think I very much like being your honey.” He was teasing you now, but a part of him knew he wasn’t lying.

“Yeah, yeah. If you’re gonna tease me the least you can do is repay me.”

“And how might I do that?” Eddie shifted closer to you, anticipating what would happen next.

“Maybe come a little closer, I think I missed your lips earlier.” You were now whispering as the bridge between the two of you was smaller.

“If that’s the case then.” He said confidently and rushed to kiss you.

Your arms snaked around his neck and he grabbed you firmly in his grasp, making sure you weren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

The kiss lasted longer than expected and reaching for air was only a necessity since Eddie was quick to bring you back in, holding you close and kissing you deep.

You pulled at his long locks and felt like you were on top of the world, making out with your best friend. A few hours ago this seemed impossible, but now with Eddie’s hands roaming your back, finding ways to bring you even closer - it all seemed inevitable.

#eddie munson x reader #eddie munson #stranger things imagine #stranger things #Eddie Munson imagine #joseph quinn #MASTERLIST #mike wheeler #dustin henderson #lucas sinclair #imagine #imagines #stranger things imagines #Eddie Munson imagines

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hanafubukki · 29 days

Note

So Hana; I came across a post talking about unpopular twst opinions and was wondering if you had any.

Hello Violet 🌸💚🌷

I hope it’s okay for me to call you Violet 💚🌷

This is a rather interesting question 🤔 and I had to think on it a bit. I honestly don’t know if some of what I say is unpopular or not, so I guess I’ll express a few of my opinions that I have. ☺️🌺

I guess before I list them I should say that this is my opinion only. I don’t mean to hurt anyone by expressing them nor am I calling out anyone. Literally just my thoughts. You’re allowed to agree or disagree✨✨

Normally, I would assume I wouldn’t have to put a disclaimer such as this because everyone has their own opinions and we should all have an open mind but I’ve seen the internet lol and wowza on how some act to such things lol 🌺🙏

I hate the guest room. Personally, I’m not into that kind of mechanics in gaming. It’s not for me. The fact that we have to do it to level up friendship levels irks me. And it’s a complicated system too which is another annoying aspect. I also kind of blame the guest room function for personal stories being lowered since those have been replaced with furniture. It’s just an extra chore that I’m not really into.

Event wise: I think we have too many octa (+ ortho and ace) in them. My diasomnia bias aside, I don’t think the other characters get enough spotlight. When was the last time Ruggie was in an event? Cater? Riddle? Jack? Kalim? Rook? Deuce? I know octa make them money but still, give the others more spotlight? I don’t count the beach or Halloween event either. Because Halloween, half the cast is in it and beach event was similar. Even New years I don’t count, because eventually, we will get them all in new years outfit. The usually four character events is what I’m speaking of because that’s when you get proper screen time and development for each character. I can literally go on lolol

I don’t know why this would be unpopular but it seems it might be? But I don’t hate RSA. They have a lot of potential story telling wise and their side of things. And I know there’s biasness with NRC and we wanting them to win, but I feel there’s more to RSA than we know. Like how we shouldn’t judge villains, we shouldn’t judge the “heroes” either.

Jp schedule wise I don’t think they are too slow as many believe. I think for the working female class, which the game is aimed at, the scheduling is perfect since it was made for them after all. It gives them time for daily life and twst gaming. Doesn’t mean I don’t get impatient either lolol

On the other spectrum, EN is going too quick. With events and main story. Slow down. What are you trying to accomplish except burn out your fanbase?

I don’t want an anime. We will get one. There’s a high chance and I’ll watch it obviously. But I honestly don’t care for one. The issues that an anime will bring…is a lot.

I don’t think the gameplay is boring. As mentioned before, the game was made for the female working class. So the gameplay is to the point, and depending on the event, can be challenging. But grinding wise and all that? It’s pretty working class friendly. If I didn’t have the auto lessons and battles, I wouldn’t be playing it. It’s because of those mechanics that I am. Thats what stops me from playing many mobile games. The constant forced to play and keep track. Hence part of why I’m not into Hoyoverse games.

I don’t really care for “this place in twst = this place in IRL.” to me, it’s a game in a fantasy world. Is it interesting to see some of the influences? Yes, of course. But that’s it. I’m playing this game for the fantasy setting, the magic, the story, and the characters. I don’t really care to add, realism, I guess you could say? (I’m trying to escape reality okay? Why would I want it in my games?? 🤣🤣)

I wish we had more magic in my magic world. And I think it mainly applies for book 7 for me personally and how “wow, tech is going to beat malleus and save the day” but I kind of wish that isn’t the case. Yes, it makes for fun story telling and memes. But, for a magic based dorm, I want a magic based solution. That and the fact, I don’t care for the implication how magic is slowly being taken over by technology. Kind of hits close to home you know?? With all the AI shenanigans.

I hope two certain popular theories aren’t true and I’ll leave it there. My personally thoughts on them is, I hope it’s not that predictable and I had hoped for a different route for such characters/events.

I’ll stop there before I make a whole essay for you to read lmao 🤣🤣 I have more thoughts that I could share but this is already so long 😆

I don’t know if this was a “unpopular opinion” or more me rambling but I’ll let you decide that Violet 🙏💞☺️

What about you? What are some of your thoughts?

Would love to hear other’s opinions as well ☺️🌺

#answered #🌺Violet🌺

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welcome-to-jay · 1 month

Text

How many Ace Attorney cases would be solved immediately if they used the Divination Seance?

For those who don’t know, the Divination Seance is a mechanic introduced in the 6th main Ace Attorney game: Spirit of Justice. The way it works is that a spirit medium communes with the soul of the dead, and makes their final memories visible in the Pool of Souls. All of their senses are displayed, from what they saw to what they heard to what they smelled before they died. In game, the Divination Seance is usually used to Phoenix’s disadvantage (obviously), but what I wanted to know is what would happen if the Divination Seance was used in cases that took place not in the Kingdom of Khura’in. If the court could see what the victim saw seconds before their death, how much would that fuck over the real killer? Let’s go through the death of (almost) every single victim and find out: would this case be solved if they used the Divination Seance? This will be updated with each game every day, unless I forget.

(Thanks to my buddy Keepay for helping me out with this! He did all of the AAI 1 and 2 cases because my memory on those is pretty fuzzy.)

Things to Remember:

Divination Seance is derived from the victim’s memories, meaning if they don’t recognize a person’s voice, they won’t be able to identify it.

Divination Seance only works if the victim’s true name (and less importantly, what they look like) is known.

The victim has to actually be dead for a Seance to be possible.

Ace Attorney 1

Cindy Stone - YES

Frank had already broken into Cindy's home when she walked in, so there’s no way she wouldn’t have seen him before he bludgeoned her. A Divination Seance would clearly show this.

Mia Fey - NO

At first, this looks like the exact same situation as the Cindy Stone case. Mia and Redd White were face-to-face before she died, so he would’ve clearly shown up in the Divination Seance, right?

But then there’s that damn updated autopsy report.

Edgeworth stated that Mia lived for a few minutes after she was hit, and Divination Seances only show the last few seconds of the victim’s life. This means that the Divination Seance wouldn’t have shown the actual bludgeoning, or Redd White. As suspect as that updated autopsy report is, Edgeworth himself said that he never forged evidence, so we have to take him at his word here.

Jack Hammer - YES

Dee and Jack were face-to-face when she pushed him. I don’t think we ever learn the details of their struggle, so maybe it would still be unclear whether or not it was self defense on Vasquez’s part.

Robert Hammond - YES

Again again, Yanni and Hammond saw each other before Yanni shot Hammond in the heart. We don’t get a lot of details about what happened in the shack, but we have no reason to assume this wasn’t the case. I promise these are gonna get more interesting.

Gregory Edgeworth - MAYBE

So in this case, the Divination Seance would show that the defendants (Miles Edgeworth and Yanni Yogi in this case) are innocent, but wouldn’t show who the culprit is, so I’m gonna say at the very least, it’s partially solved. The Seance would reveal that Gregory didn’t die when Miles threw the gun, and that all three of them passed out before the second gunshot was fired. However, we know from Von Karma’s testimony that Gregory was unconscious when he was shot, so he wouldn’t have seen his killer’s face.

But! Miles said that he heard Von Karma scream right after he threw the gun, obviously that means that Gregory heard it too. The question is, would he have recognized it as Von Karma’s voice, and would it have shown up as Von Karma’s voice in the Pool of Souls? To answer that, I point you towards Inga’s Divination Seance. Here he recognizes the voice he’s talking to over the phone as one of his subordinates (after a refining from Rayfa) but even after it’s proven that Datz was the one laughing over the phone, the sound still shows up in the pool as just “Laughter.”

This is why it’s important to remember that the Divination Seance is derived from the victim’s memories. Inga recognized his subordinate's voice (but probably not his name, lol) but he didn’t know what Datz’s voice sounds like, at least not well enough to recognize it. In the same vein, Gregory would absolutely recognize Von Karma’s voice because they just spend the whole day in court together, as well as them meeting during the investigation.

Now what this really all boils down to is if Gregory would recognize Von Karma screaming in particular. Miles didn’t recognize the voice even though he also knew Von Karma, but he was also a stressed and delirious kid when he heard the scream. Gregory’s memories are probably more reliable, and he’s probably heard Von Karma shouting either during the Inherited Turnabout investigation or the trial afterward. But, as much as I wanna say this is a yes, we can’t know for sure.

Bruce Goodman - YES

After that long-winded explanation, we’re back to another easy one. Bruce and Damon were alone in the evidence room when Damon did the deed, so he would clearly show up in the vision, or at the very least, his voice would be heard.

Neil Marshall - NO

This is another Gregory situation, but unfortunately much more unclear. Neil was unconscious when he died so he wouldn’t have seen Gant but at least it would be clear that neither Ema or Darke killed him. Neil had already knocked out Darke when Ema pushed him, and it would’ve been clear that Neil didn’t die from Ema’s shove, but much later. Of course, since Neil was blacked out, the argument could be made that Darke woke up first, and simply stabbed Neil while Neil was unconscious. Even with the Divination Seance, there’s no way to prove that Gant did the deed.

#ace attorney #ace attorney spoilers #ace attorney spirit of justice #aa6 #cindy stone #mia fey #jack hammer #robert hammond #gregory edgeworth #bruce goodman #neil marshall

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sakumasmut · 8 days

Text

Enstars x Reader NSFW Month Day 10

Himeru x Bunny!Fem!Reader

late again, but I promise it’s worth it. Lily when you see this, hope you enjoy (and maybe be inspired to write a continuation wink nudge)

tags/warnings: breeding, vaginal sex, mating cycles

ao3

The coming of spring meant several things. Sunny days, floral breezes, gardens and parks full of color, and an uptick in sneezing from the unfortunate souls with pollen allergies (poor Koga was wearing a mask every time you saw him). For those with more primal instincts, the warmer weather meant it was the start of mating season. For the bunnies in Ensemble Square, it was time to either avoid contact with everyone and quarantine themselves, or get busy until all their cravings were satisfied.

You assumed heats were a necessary evolutionary trait thousands of years ago, but in the present day when your main source of stress was working an office job in a capitalist economy, your part-rabbit body throwing a hissy fit over not having a mate just made things even more stressful. The current situation you were in was a prime example of what problems the mating season could bring to the table, kneeling in front of a newer producer and comfortingly stroking their arm as they quivered in their seat.

“Stay here until the taxi arrives.” You spoke calmly to them. They were shaking and flushed red, not having expected to go into heat in the middle of work. “Once you get home, stay there until all the symptoms go away. Don’t worry about work; I’ll take care of it, m’kay?”

“Thank you, senpai.” They quietly sobbed, squeezing and rubbing their long ears to soothe themselves.

They were extremely lucky you happened to notice them hunched over in the hall and escorted them to a safe room before their vulnerable position attracted the wrong type of person. Mating season clouded people’s senses, you knew that too well. Married hybrids usually mated during March, to get it out of the way, but for single people, it was mostly just a waiting game until your body decided it craved a mate. You hadn’t gotten your heat yet, but you felt prepared to lock yourself in a room and call a taxi the moment you felt any sort of onset, to avoid ending up in the exact situation you were helping your coworker out of. For now though, you felt as fresh and (relatively) not horny as ever, and so said goodbye to the younger producer once their lift had arrived, escorting them to the car before rushing off to the meeting you were already late for.

“Sorry I’m late!” You quickly spoke as soon as you pushed the door open, the only person in the room looking up from the sound of your voice.

“Don’t worry, Himeru got your message.” The idol replied cooly, demeanor as nonchalant as ever. “The emergency situation you were dealing with, is it alright now?”

“Yes, yes, it’s all good.”

You were glad Himeru was an understanding person. It was a quality you liked about him, among other things. Maybe you were biased since you had worked with him for a few months on his solo jobs, but he always treated you kindly. You did notice he was harsher with his rowdy unit mates, but it only made you giggle more than anything, seeing him as the sort of person who gave as much respect as he received.

“If it’s not rude for Himeru to ask, what was it you were preoccupied with?”

“Ah, just some rabbit related stuff. You know how spring is for us.”

He frowned and knit his brows together as he looked you up and down.

“Producer, you aren’t feeling…ill, are you?” Himeru asked, “Himeru wouldn’t want you to be in a public place if you’re experiencing such symptoms.”

You flushed, realizing his misunderstanding. “No, ah, it’s not me! I was helping a younger rabbit who went into heat!” Being all red in the face and running into the room covered in sweat didn’t help with your case, as you could tell from his unchanging expression.

“Trust me, I would not be anywhere near here if my heat started! It usually starts pretty late in the spring, so I’m safe for a while.”

He nodded, expression relaxing at your assurances.

“It would certainly pose a large problem if it did. Though, if you ever find yourself in an unpleasant situation like that, Himeru would be glad to assist you in any way possible.”

“Huh?” You blinked at his words. What did he mean by that? Surely he meant that you could rely on him during emergencies, right?

“Now, shall we talk about your latest proposal?”

“Ah, yes!” You smacked yourself on the cheeks to rid yourself of those thoughts. “Here, I have the paperwork. Look over it and tell me what you think!”

xxx

You certainly weren’t lying when you said your heats came rather late into the season. People always complained about getting them early in March, but at least when they got them, afterwards they could go about their lives freely with no worries about getting sucker punched by their bodies. For you, spending a good two months worrying about the possibility that it’d come earlier was always a source of stress you had to push in the back of your mind, until finally it did come on a sunny May morning.

You woke up in a sweat, despite having taken a shower the previous night, and everything felt warm, way too warm. Funnily enough, you were meant to meet up with Himeru that afternoon, just as you did last month when you dealt with your coworker going into their own heat. You remembered what he had said about helping you if you ever found yourself in this situation, and thinking about the idol’s words made your horny mess of a brain wander to very obscene thoughts, which you had to smack yourself on the head to rid yourself of. No! You weren’t thinking clearly! You did struggle to understand what he meant, until you considered he likely referred to helping you with calling out of work and telling your clients you’d be unavailable. Having someone do all that for you rather than struggle with forming coherent sentences through a slog of calls sounded great right about now, and so you dialed him up once you managed to grab your phone. He picked up immediately after the first beep.

“Good morning, producer. Do you need Himeru for something?”

Just the sound of his alluring voice was making your body heat up. Stupid horny brain.

“Yeah, sorry this is sudden, but I need help with my heat.” You muttered, before realizing how it sounded without context and backtracking, “I meant—I need help with work, because I’m in heat! I need to tell my clients that I’ll have to reschedule, and you said that you could help, right?”

There was silence on the other end, and for a second you worried that maybe you had offended him somehow, before he responded with an “Understood, Himeru will inform everyone he needs to.”

You thanked him gratefully, and recited a list of people for him to message or call about your situation. That was a big weight off your shoulders, and now you could sink into bed and deal with your heat…all alone…

“Producer, can Himeru help in any other way? This time of year must be quite exhausting for your kind.”

Indecent thoughts of him came flooding back, of scenarios where Himeru could help you in ways your body needed the most…

“Perhaps you’d like him to bring you food and other supplies?”

“T-That’d be great, thanks.”

You hung up after giving him your address, and flopped yourself back onto the sheets, skin feeling sweaty and mind replaying how his voice sounded against your ear, wanting to hear it again after only a few seconds. The professional in you was already regretting saying yes to his offer, asking what kind of producer would invite an idol to their house in the middle of their heat, but the other part of you who saw him as a friend, perhaps a bit more, did really want the company. It would still be a while before he got here though, especially since he promised to do some of your work for you, and you wondered if your impatient body could even last until then.

A wave of desire washed over you, making you shudder. You tugged one of your long ears over your face, rubbing circles soothingly on the pink insides as your legs kicked your blanket off the bed. Your body was way too hot, yet no amount of ice would cool it off, only another person’s own heat enveloping your own would make it go away. You began to grind your hips against your pillow, whining into it, trying to pretend it was another person’s body—specifically a certain blue-haired idol. If you shut your eyes, maybe you could pretend he was already here in your house, comforting you with his presence.

You wondered how it would feel grinding against his thigh, imagining his yellow eyes watching you with immense interest. Yes, you could envision it so well in the blank space of your hormone filled brain. His hands would rest on your hips, holding you in place so you couldn’t climb off as you bucked against his leg. He’d see the wet mess pooling from your crotch area, dripping onto his pants, but rather than chastise he’d praise you, encouraging you to keep humping his leg until you came all over him.

You whined to yourself, the friction between your thighs and the pillow only making you feel a dull ache. You kept trying to chase an orgasm, anything to make your tensed up body feel better, but with only air for your cunt to clench around, you couldn’t bring yourself to. The buzz of the doorbell snapped you out of your daydream. How many minutes had passed? Were you so immersed in the scenario in your head that time had flown without you realizing, or was Himeru just that fast in getting to you? Your legs were shaky as you stood up, each step making your body wobble forward. You doubted you’d be able to leave the bed if you fell back onto it. You opened the door, and as expected Himeru was there, holding a plastic grocery bag.

“Good morning, producer.” His eyes scanned your form, and you did your best to stand upright without shaking. “Are you feeling alright?”

“I-I’m fine. Come on in.”

You tried to look composed as he entered, trying to keep your ears upright and hoping that he couldn’t sense the pheromones your body was releasing. If he could, he didn’t give any indication, expression as blank as ever while he placed the bag on your kitchen counter.

“Himeru admits, he doesn’t know much about your situation. But he tried to get things that could help.”

He took out some snacks and drinks, ones that you immediately recognized as your go-tos in the break area of the ES building. You smiled softly, touched that he would remember your preferred foods.

“Thank you. This means a lot.”

“It’s not a problem. Is there anything else Himeru can do for you while he’s here?”

He kept asking that same question, if he could do anything for you, and the short answer was that he could. But you were too scared to make the first move, in case he actually wasn’t interested in going further than your relationship as an idol and producer. Surely he’d cut ties with you if he didn’t mean it that way, and not seeing him again would hurt more than the rejection. Your body heated up again, as if begging you to voice your desires. You had to bite your lip to stop yourself from audibly whimpering, something Himeru noticed.

“You look quite feverish, perhaps you should go back to your bed to rest?”

“Y-Yeah, maybe I should. Let me just put these away first…”

You took a step towards the counter to take some of the food away, but immediately stumbled. You braced yourself for the impact, but Himeru’s hands moved quickly to catch you. One hand grabbed your shoulder while the other circled around your stomach, pulling you up against his chest. A moan couldn’t help but come out of you at the warmth of his touch, cutting through the sexual tension like a knife. You froze up when you realized what you did, the silence following making you almost certain he heard it.

“S-Sorry, I’m just so…” You stammered, trying to come up with excuses. “out of it.”

His hands were still on you, the mere contact making you want to collapse into his chest. You really didn’t want him to let go, you wanted to imagine his arms wrapped around you forever, so you wondered when you were going to be hit with reality and have his arms release their hold, expecting him to excuse himself and leave you to deal with your heat alone again. Except, they didn’t. They stayed on your body, and you swore he even pulled you closer.

“Meru?”

“…Forgive Himeru for being unprofessional, but I can’t bear to leave you in this state.”

You looked up at him in surprise, only now noticing how hungry his gaze was as his eye bore directly into you. He moved the arm that was around your waist underneath your legs to scoop you up into a bridal carry. All the snacks went ignored as he brought you into your bedroom, having decided to have a taste of something else. You squealed as he dropped you onto the mattress. You would be embarrassed by how messy your bed was if your heart wasn’t beating out of your chest from the sight of Himeru leaning over you, face so close to yours you could hear his breathing. You truly felt like prey, his prey.

“If you want me to leave, tell me so now.”

His voice was husky, looking at you with a deadly serious expression that made shivers run down your spine. His presence was intoxicating, you couldn’t let him leave now. You needed him here, with you, to satisfy you. You kept your lips shut as you stared straight at him, and your arms uncrossed themselves from above your chest to rest on either side of your body.

“Stay. Please.”

His expression softened at your resolution, and he reached a hand out to stroke your long ears gently, gliding his fingers upwards along the fur. You whimpered, thighs squeezing together. Himeru noticed, and gently placed a hand on one knee to pry your legs apart. A wet spot on your crotch area gave away your arousal, and he hummed.

“Poor girl. May I take these off?”

You nodded, and he carefully pulled your pajama bottoms off, exposing your soaked pussy. He pressed a finger against one of your swollen lips, already glistening with your juices. You trembled as he brought it to his mouth, making eye contact with you as he licked it clean.

“So wet already…your body must not want to waste any time.”

He didn’t either, as his gaze momentarily left your body to focus on the buttons of his pants. Seeing the tent that had formed in the short time it took to bring you here filled you with a sense of satisfaction, eased that he was enjoying this as much as you were. Once you saw his erection pop out from his boxers, your body seemed to clench even tighter in anticipation, unable to resist the idea of having it stuffed inside you. Your instincts told you to get onto all fours, knees spread wide to present yourself to your mate, and Himeru cooed at your eagerness.

“Good girl. Such a good bunny for me.”

His words went straight to your cunt, feeling it throb even before his dick was anywhere near it. Being reduced to the bunny in heat you were, his bunny, just felt right. You weren’t a producer right now, you were a helpless rabbit that was begging to be bred. He parted your folds with two fingers, coating them with your slick and rubbing it on his length, lubing it up as you squirmed impatiently, your tail’s movements giving away your excitement.

“Tell me what you want.”

“I-I…”

Even now, when you were so close to what your body craved, your lips refused to move. He leaned in close to your ear, close enough that you felt them brush against it when he spoke.

“Do you want me to mount you?”

Fuck.

You whined, babbling affirmative noises as he chuckled at how his words left you quivering in anticipation, lifting your rear high into the air to ask him to take you already. The warm feeling of something pressing against your entrance followed. He pushed himself in slowly, much too easily with how wet you were. Every nerve in your body was focused on the feeling of his length sinking completely into your wet cunt, all the way to the hilt, before slipping back out. Even in your wildest wet dreams you never thought he would be making you feel so full, so complete.

The noises you made were all quiet, either cut short by them catching in your throat or muffled by the pillow you were burying your face into. If he were going any faster, surely the squelch between your union would make a wonderful sound, but at his current pace the only sound in the room was his breathing and your muffled whining.

Himeru’s hands kept your hips steady as he pushed in and out of you, each thrust making the butterflies in your stomach flutter. Being filled by him just felt so right. This was what you were craving, cock stuffed inside you, body weight pressed down to make sure you couldn’t escape. Yet despite how your body trembled, how your legs were spread so wide for him, Himeru was still taking it slow, trying to make sure he wasn’t pushing you too much. It was still relieving your desire, but the slow jolts of pleasure weren’t enough, you needed something more primal to satiate yourself.

“What’s wrong?” He hummed, rocking his hips back and forth, “Is Himeru’s little bunny still needy?”

“Hah~ Meru…” You whined. “Faster, please, I want to feel you deep inside me~”

Who was he to deny you when you sounded so desperate underneath him? He pulled his cock out almost entirely before sinking balls deep inside you, making sure to do it harshly enough that your toes curled when he did. A louder whine escaped you, and it found itself joined by more as he slammed himself into you over and over again. Your short tail brushed against the skin of his stomach, flicking back and forth with each thrust. He reached out to take it in his hand, and you mewled when he lifted it up.

“So you’re sensitive here.” He hummed, gently stroking the white under-fur with his thumb.

“A-Ah, w-wait, mmh~”

Your eyes nearly rolled back in your head, knees wanting to give in from his touch, but he made you keep your hips upright, your back falling to a downwards slant as your arms gave in. You cried out when the first orgasm of your heat finally came, and through it all he just kept fucking you into the mattress, his own grunts of effort filling the air as he focused on the feeling of your warm walls trying to milk his cock.

“Bunny, you’re so tight.” He grunted. “You’re going to make me finish, too.”

“Inside, do it inside!” You whined, pushing your hips back towards him. Being in heat meant you were the most fertile you could’ve ever been; if he came inside you, surely it’d end with carrying his litter. But instead of being terrified of the idea, in the haze of your heat you wanted nothing more than for him to fill you up with his kids, as many as he wanted. He seemed to hesitate, noticeably slowing down.

“I-Himeru shouldn’t do that.”

“Hah, Meru, please!” There were nearly tears in your eyes as you turned to look back at him, pleading. “Breed me, knock me up, just give me everything!”

Your voice was so desperate, your body so eager to take his seed, to become his breeding bunny…he couldn’t help himself, his movements becoming more erratic as he growled out your name. He didn’t seem like he was going to pull out anymore, that was sure.

You mewled as his cock continuously pressed against the entrance to your womb, as if trying to coax it to open a bit further for the oncoming delivery. You chanted his name, the only noise reaching your ears your pitiful “Meru”s until he finally let out a loud groan, eyes shutting tight as he came inside you. The warmth flooding into you made your body and brain equally fuzzy, leaving you unable to think as you both came down from your highs.

“Did that satisfy you, bunny?” Himeru murmured against your ear, lips brushing over them and almost kissing them. He was still inside you, and you were sure he could feel how you clenched tightly around his cock at his words, wanting to feel it grow hard again.

“My my, seems like it didn’t.” He tisked, lifting your hips up high and forcing your shaky knees to support the weight of his hips pressed flush against your ass with a half-hearted whine. “You’re making me work overtime, producer. So all I ask is that you reward Himeru appropriately.”

If the reward he wanted was to make you swell with kids, well, it was practically already fulfilled. After all, he wasn’t going to leave his bunny alone after only one load, was he?

#esxreadernsfwmonth2024 #enstars smut #ensemble stars smut #enstars x reader smut #himeru smut #nsft es!!

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creepedverse · 26 days

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hauntedhappeningsfarnbury.com/forums/13666

RedHero: Hey guys! I’ve been passing by that antique store on Dahlia Ave on my way to work recently and I keep seeing this doll in the display. I have like… soooo many questions. I swear every time I pass by I feel like she’s… aware? Of me? I probably sound crazy! I know! But every time I pass by I just get the heebie jeebies!!! I figured this forum would be the best place to ask… what do you guys think is going on? Am I just being paranoid? Lololol

GhostlyAmity: Oh that fucking doll… I’ve heard some things about her. But, even as a believer in the paranormal, I have a hard time believing them. I’ve heard everything from she’s SEVERELY possessed to she’s just creepy looking. In my opinion, it’s the latter. Some stories I’ve heard just sound completely impossible, so for your own peace of mind, just assume it’s your human instinct, uncanny valley feelings creeping you out and carry on with your day.

SomethingUNseen: Dude you should tooooootally buy that doll! What’s the worst that could happen LOLOLOL XD

-> RedHero reply to GhostlyAmity: What stories have you heard about her? Even if you don’t believe them, I’m still curious about what people have said. And do you know what kind of doll she is? Why does she look so… lifelike like that?

-> GhostlyAmity reply to RedHero: Just from word of mouth, I’ve heard she’s been the cause of multiple heart attacks for the old folks that take her in, people have claimed they see her moving and the like. But then there’s also the incident that happened a few years back… Either way, the reason you’re actually getting creeped out is because it’s a mourning doll. Back in the 1800s, parents of dead children would make dolls that resembled their passed loved ones and keep those around like they were still alive. Usually this was done for newborns/babies, but I guess whoever the doll was made of was a special case.

-> RedHero reply to GhostlyAmity: GEEZ! They can sell something like that in an antique store!?

-> GraveMisstake reply to RedHero: As long as it was donated, and like… cleaned properly… it’s fair game? Yeah it feels weird, but people donate teddy bears with ashes in them all the time so, this isn’t out of the realm of possibility lol

-> RedHero reply to GraveMisstake: I guess… So that’s why she’s so… detailed? Also do you know what the ‘incident’ was? Is that something I should know about?

-> GhostlyAmity reply to RedHero: I’ll tell you about it, but it really isn’t connected to the doll.

GhostlyAmity: Basically, a few years back three teenagers were found dead in the forest, off the waterfall if you know where that is. They had tons of alcohol in their system and it was deemed a complete accident. They probably just wanted to go swimming and were too uncoordinated to actually, ya know, swim.

-> RedHero reply to GhostlyAmity: You’re right that doesn’t sound connected at all… How do people pin that on a doll?

-> GhostlyAmity reply to RedHero: Apparently, some people in town said they saw them carrying the doll around in their drunken stupor. And then when their bodies were found, there was no trace of her.

GhostlyAmity: Actually, she hadn’t been in the store for a long time after that. I’ve just seen her in there more recently. The store owners probably didn’t want people looking for her after a rumor like that comes out. Bad for business, in my opinion. So they probably kept her in the back or something.

-> RedHero reply to GhostlyAmity: Huh… Yeah that’s weird. Anyways, thanks for the info! Curiosity was just getting the better of me today when I passed by her again! Now that I know some lore, she doesn’t seem too daunting anymore lolol!!!

#Blythe Waldrop #creepedverse au #creepedverse #crv #crv blythe #creepypasta au #creepypasta oc #zwiebel art

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potatomountain · 7 months

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*739 Jongho

*739 Masterlist

Happy birthday Jongho 🥰🥰🥰 [ yes im dropping early hehe]

Synopsis: with sex work legal, it was as readily available as texting *739, filling out the form sent, and setting a time and place with an easy charge to your credit card. Even the more hefty kinks could be fulfilled with a professionalism that was respected, and could be addicting.

Word count: 6k

Warnings below cut! taglist at the bottom

Smut warnings: strength play, degradation, praise, pet names, quickie, public, spit play, fingering, choking, manhandling, rough sex, hair pulling, spanking, impact play, cum eating, corruption, possessive/jealous sex. Rough dom Jongho. Sub reader. Masochist reader. lemme know if i missed any <3

You had a problem. A big one. And it honestly had you craving it more.

Being the good girl, the friendly one who worked hard and people pleased harder, you were truly sick of it. Nearly a full time college student, undergoing an internship at your own parents company which you were sure they weren't even aware of, all of your time went to the future they set out for you. And of course, they didn't have the decency to be there for it.

They never showed disappointment, wouldn't have cared if you tarnish your image or who you dated or married- they just weren't around. They gave praise when they did see you, doting on you for a moment, gave you an allowance that didn't even require you to actually work- but you wanted nothing more than to make them proud.

Them, your teachers, your friends. You weren't sure when but the praise got suffocating. The exact same compliments of how good you were but so little reward. You remember the first time you acted out, the party you went to, and the man you met that was the source of your problem.

A game of truth or dare had revealed that one of the party goers was a sex worker, which wasn't entirely uncommon but it had taken you by surprise. You knew him, saw him in the halls in between classes, had seen him with people you knew were top of their class and didn't doubt that he was too. So to find out that he- well, his profession had become the main topic, and when it had been your turn to ask him truth or dare, everything changed.

You had asked how it felt, sex, and if it was enjoyable to have no attachments. He offered to show you should you book him, but you didn’t need to do that- he took you in the upstairs bathroom not even an hour later.

Now you couldn't get enough of him, of what he did, and you had more than enough funds to support this addiction. Hell you might as well have him on speed dial. How many times have you booked an appointment with him? Or just asked him to charge you for a quickie during lunch or when you had a little bit of free time in between classes? How many nights had he spent over at your place by now? Enough he had a spare change of clothes there.

You hadn't known it would be possible to have him readily available to you like this. A membership he called it, a fixed weekly price, plus a discounted price for each session that week.

Someone might call this love, or assume there was something between you two, but it was nothing but business. You didn't talk to him when you passed by each other, didn't message him or ask about him or care about his personal life.

All that mattered to you was how he fucked you. It didn't matter he took your virginity, or knew intimate parts about your life that you would rant about before or maybe cry about after. It didn't matter that those moments were like a silent comfort. It didn't matter that he probably did these things with other clients, that he was just as intimate or even more so. What did matter was that he knew all the right ways to touch you and hurt you to make everything feel better- and how much you needed that.

And yet- you couldn't even go twenty four hours without calling him up and demanding he meet you in your usual spot behind the auditorium; knowing there was no foot traffic there and it was a tight fit between the building and the stone wall. You were pacing, staring down at the dirt beneath your heels and biting on your thumb nervously. You knew he just got out of class about ten minutes ago, not far from here, every second practically torture.

Your head snapped up when you heard footsteps, heart racing as you stared at the stone corner, hoping it was him. Of course no one else would venture this way, just to get to this spot, there was no reason to do so.

Relief flooded you when he turned the corner, your hand to your chest. "Finally, Jongho."

"Finally?" He mocked with a raised brow, taking a few steps towards you so he was out of sight from the alley. "You're desperate today, little one, get a bad grade?"

You huffed your cheeks out, knowing he had every right to tease you for that. It didn't help your stress that you were a perfectionist when it came to any work just like your parents, a fact he had learned when you did indeed have a meltdown about it. “N-no I just-” Your words were cut off by the hand on your throat, pushing you up against the stone wall. The effect was instantaneous, the look in his eyes pulling a whine from you.

You loved it when he looked so coldly at you, as if he was angry, as if you did something wrong; but it was the way he would manhandle you, leave bruises on your body, that had you coming back again and again. “What was that? I couldn’t hear you, speak up little one.”

Swallowing you could feel his fingers dig into the side of your neck, feet dangling off the ground as he held you up effortlessly. “W-want you.” That was the bare-boned truth, you wanted this, needed this, and it showed in your eyes when you looked up at him.

“Pathetic, my naughty little girl can’t think about anything but my cock huh? Tsk tsk, are you thinking about me in class to the point you can’t focus?” He growled out, bringing his face close as he pushed his knee up in between your legs, spreading them.

“Y-yes!”

He snarled, disappointment clear on his features as he yanked you around by the throat and a hand on your hip, now bending you over the leg he propped up on the wall. “I know you want it, you are already shaking for me. So needy.” Holding you in place by his hand on your throat, he pushed your skirt up, yanking your underwear down your thighs roughly. “You should beg for what you want, little one, like a good girl.”

“I-I’m not a good girl.” You whined out, gripping his arm to hold yourself up. A yelp escaped you when his hand came down on your bare ass, the sting something you enjoyed.

He rubbed the spot, only to bring his hand down harder, watching the jiggle of your flesh. “Then what are you?”

“B-Bad girl. F-filthy. Should be punished.”

Another spank that left you clenching around nothing and nails digging into his exposed forearm. “You’d like that though wouldn’t you? Fucked dumb, thrown around like a toy, bruised up?” He chuckled darkly, bending you over his thigh more to expose your cunt to the air. “No need to answer, I know you do. I know what my filthy little baby needs. I know I’m the only one who can give it to you.”

When his hand came down to slap your pussy, your moan was cut off by the tightening of his hand on your throat. “Look at you, already so soaked for me, and in public? Naughty naughty girl, you should be ashamed.” Another slap, leaving you squirming.

You loved how quick he would take over, how he gave you exactly what you wanted. The degradation, the shame, the punishment- all of it had your cunt throbbing and leaking for him. You would beg, but all you could do was squirm until he was gripping your ass rough enough there would be indents to still you.

“Fucking hell- so damned needy.” He sighed out, tsking as he yanked you up and had your face pinned to the wall, hands above your head in a grip. “On your toes and spread your legs, you know the drill.”

You obliged quickly, cheek scraping against the cold stone a nice reminder of just where you were. The good girl, hiding behind a school with people around, about to get fucked dumb with the sun held high and a class in 30 minutes. The bruises he would leave would no doubt be hard to cover up, and it would be obvious to onlookers just what you were doing. It excited you, the shame that would cloud you while arriving at class on time and doing your work like the diligent girl you were.

Attempting to glance back, all thoughts were rammed out of you as Jongho buried himself deep in you, stretching you out. He waited a moment so he could adjust, as you never cared, before he set a pace that was absolutely brutal.

Despite being out of sight, you knew if you were too loud the little bit of foot traffic might hear you. While it exhilarated you, you also didn’t want to be interrupted- didn’t want to stop. Still, he felt too good to keep quiet, and he knew that, that's why he dropped your hands and grabbed your jaw, sticking two fingers into your open mouth. "Hands on the wall." He growled out, hips snapping against yours brutally.

You did as commanded, holding yourself with your palms on the stone as Jongho bent you back at an angle that would almost be painful if it wasn't for the pleasure from each thrust. His fingers pressed your tongue down, drool slipping out of your mouth as the heel of his palm pressed down on your throat to muffle your voice just enough.

He pulled your head back more so that he could look down at you, grinding his teeth as he grunted. "Look at you, such a beautiful fucking mess. You love it when I ruin you huh? Ever since that first night you've gotten needier and needier and- fuck!" Both of his hands gripped tighter, letting out a growl.

You had spent enough time with him to know when he was feeling good, when he was getting close. The quickies like this he wouldn't hold back, especially with the time limit. The growls, his nails digging into your skin, his heavy pants and bruising pace.

This is what he did though, and he always managed to make a mess of you before he would cum. Just like you expected, your legs were trembling within seconds, your moans muffled as you clenched around him. What you hadn't expected was the glob of spit that Jongho dribbled into your open mouth, which oddly enough had you clenching a bit tighter.

It was dirty, disgusting, and you loved it. Moaning louder, his hand moved to your throat and he crashed his lips to yours, his hips stuttering to a halt as he unloaded himself deep into you. The messy kiss continued well after both of your bodies stopped trembling.

Your head was spinning as you lost yourself deeper into the kiss, tongues mingling and the rest of the world forgotten. When he finally pulled away you stared up at him, shivering at the raw emotion on his face, lust the only one could place while the rest was new to you.

Something was different.

Anxiety hits you like a truck despite your nerves having just been satisfied in the best way. Head still tilted back you searched for- well you didn't know what you were searching for, but a solid wall slid over his features, locking you out as he pulled away. Your legs shook as they tried to hold you up without his help, your pants the only sound other than the shifting of clothes; starting with your underwear that he pulled back up roughly, fixing your skirt. It was about as much aftercare as you would get and even that was different for a quickie- normally he would just leave you exposed and cum dripping down your thighs.

You turned to him fully, pressing your back against the cold stone wall as you watched him zip himself up and fix his shirt, not an ounce of cum on his clothes that was visible. He really was a professional.

Offering him a small smile, you hoped to ease the dark expression on his face as he eyed you quizzically. Then- "I won't be charging you for sessions any more, little one."

As if you were just pulled down into a river of cold water, your lungs froze up and your muscles went tense. Before he could elaborate, he was turning the corner, disappearing from your sight.

And… probably your life.

Sent reeling, the wheels in your brain went through every possible scenario of why he said that- what it could possibly mean - And there was only one conclusion you could think of: he was done with sessions with you. Done with you.

It shouldn't have hurt as bad as it did. Your chest shouldn't feel so tight and tears shouldn't be running down your cheeks rapidly. He was just a stress relief, it was just pure, unadulterated sex.

So why did it feel like you just got broken up with? Why did it feel as if you were rejected, unwanted, tossed aside? By the one person you had relied on. These emotions threatened to consume you, dropping you to the ground as your stress and anxiety came back full force.

You never made it to that class.

…

Twelve days. That was how long it took before you couldn't handle it anymore. True to his word, your membership to Jongho had been canceled that day, and you were never charged for that quickie. He didn't look your way at school, nor did he message you.

But to be fair, neither did you. Everything felt raw whenever you saw him, chest tight and no words could form in your mind or fly off your tongue, so you avoided him. You had been stressed about classes, in particular midterms for your general studies, the last day the two of you were together. Now- now you have the results.

It was ironic how he had teased you about having a breakdown over a test then, and now that was what you were doing. You were proud of your 4.0 GPA, stressing over anything that was less than 95% and freaking out over anything below 90- but a 70?

Full blown meltdown and you needed a fix.

Trouble was, you couldn't even muster up the courage to message Jongho and beg, despite how easily he could get you to beg for him. So instead you had gone with plan B. It wasn't as if he was the only sex worker, not the only one who could satisfy you. While he might have been the only person you ever fucked, you were sure that another could do the job.

Even if they couldn't do it as well as he.

But when you went to your profile to arrange a session, he popped up as the recommended option. You were so tempted, so very tempted, but instead you selected the second option, which was a dealer's choice, hoping it wouldn't pick Jongho.

Because what if he didn't come? What if he canceled it? What if-

You stopped your trail of thought. Not knowing how the dealer's choice, or surprise me, option worked. Maybe he would decline and it would just go to someone else. It didn't matter, you just needed the edge off.

You needed what he got you addicted to, telling yourself it was the sex and not him. Begging whatever deity was out there that it wasn't him.

Because if it was- you would absolutely break.

Pushing aside the thoughts, you headed home. You had been so stressed that you went ahead with making the appointment right in class after you had gotten your test scores, arranging for the earliest you could. While it was still a couple hours away, at least it would be today.

No quickie, nothing public, just your home.

With your mind in chaos you spent the time making order, at least until you came across the hoodie hanging up by your front door- Jongho’s hoodie. Your mind spiraled again, remembering the first time he left it, how he had insisted you just keep it here in case he needed it.

Sometimes it felt like you were more than just- well a customer and a service provider. You debated on throwing it away, running your hand over the material; it still smelled like him.

Shaking your head, you went to check your phone when it dinged, a message from an unknown number. It solidified that you were really doing this, you were going to let someone else but Jongho fuck you- you didn’t like the nasty twist in your stomach, the hum in your veins that left you feeling as if you were vibrating with emotion.

“It’ll be okay. They’ll do fine. I don’t need Jongho. I don’t.” Slapping your cheeks, you went to freshen up despite the shower you had taken immediately after getting home. A touch up of your makeup, a little bit of lotion, and double checking the underwear and dress you had chosen just for easier access. You weren’t sure how it went normally, knowing that your first time with Jongho wasn’t more than a typical one night stand; he had gone over all the kinks and the form with you afterwards.

Would they go over the list with you? Or would the session start as soon as they arrived?

You didn’t have time to dwell on it, a loud knock on your door demanding your attention. Now must be the time then. Taking a deep breath you rushed through your apartment, stopping at the door as another round of bangs rattled it. For a moment, you wondered why they were being so harsh, weren’t these men usually discreet? Before they could bang again, you swung the door open, ready to hush them before your neighbors came out to see the commotion.

The words died on the tip of your tongue, eyes wide as saucers as you stared up at Jongho, rage obvious in his expression.

Panic swelled and bloomed from your chest, and you acted before thinking. Slamming the door at the same time you turned and ran. You didn’t hear it shut, but instead slam a few seconds later, a growl resonating behind you with thundering steps.

A scream spilled from your lips as you were yanked up into his arms and over his shoulder, his hands grabbing your ass and thigh roughly. Head spinning, you struggled against his back, pulling and yanking and squirming, crying out for him to let you go and put you down.

His response was a harsh smack to your bare thigh, earning a yelp from you as your body froze up, remembering all too well the many times he’s punished you. Despite the confusion and panic running through your veins, you were getting turned on more by the second.

But you needed answers. “Jongho! Please let me down! I’m expecting-”

“No the fuck you aren’t.” He growled the words out, finally speaking.

Stunned, you tried to push yourself up to look at him, only to be thrown rather roughly onto your living room chair, nearly knocking it back from the force. Attempting to turn again you were pushed down by a hand on the back of your neck, cheek pressed against the leather. His hand tightened, spreading your legs with his knee as you felt your dress get pushed up.

You should hate how bad you were throbbing, how soaked the situation had you, and the breathless whine of his name that left your lips- but this was how you liked it and he knew that.

“What the fuck do you think you were doing? Arranging for another man to come here and fuck you? Are you that fucking desperate? That god damn needy for a man’s cock? Mine not good enough little one?” His words were accompanied with a harsh smack to your now bare ass, your underwear torn and discarded like it was nothing. “Well if you want it that fucking much, take it.”

Fear washed through you for just a moment, uncertain. Of course you wanted him, fuck you couldn’t get enough, but you needed an answer first; your heart needed an answer.

Your body was more than ready, a moan falling from your lips as easily as the drool that did as well. His hand tightened on the back of your neck, his other working off his pants from the sounds of it. You wish you could see him, beg for him, but you were limited with this position.

Tears pricked your eyes though, heart in turmoil even if you were so ready to have him inside. “J-Jongho- pl-please-” Your voice was more desperate than you liked, the feel of his cockhead rubbing against your slick sending a shiver up your spine.

“Fuck you’re so wet already? J-just for me.” He groaned, rubbing his length over your slick a few times until you heard him spit, feeling his saliva dribble and mix with your juices. “I don’t think I’ve ruined you enough if you’re trying to let another man fuck you like this. They wouldn’t be able to do it right, would they? Come on little one, beg for your punishment, one unlike any other.”

God you couldn’t deny it any more: you were addicted to this man alone. He really did ruin you.

Because no one else could ever fuck you like him, turn you on like him, satisfy you like him. Jongho was it. “P-please punish me. I was b-bad. S-so bad. W-want to be ruined, want to be yours.”

You felt his reaction, the added pressure to the sides of your neck as he bottomed out in your cunt with a growl. This time he didn’t adjust, he went feral from the first thrust, bending you into the chair with each thrust. “That’s right- mine. Fucking all mine. This pretty fucking cunt sucking me up, this small neck I could snap at any second-” He brought his hand down to your ass, earning a scream from you “-and this beautiful fucking body. Mine.”

It felt so good, his balls smacking against your clit with each thrust, bending you at the perfect angle to hit all the right spots that he knew. Jongho knew your body, knew just how to fuck you, tame you, corrupt you… and you loved it.

He fucked you through the orgasm that hit you hard, bending over you and pulling your head back to lock lips in a messy kiss as he practically devoured your lips and screams. Mingling spit and drool and moans, his thrusts didn’t stop, instead becoming more and more erratic. He yanked your head back, twisting you at such an odd angle so that you were facing him fully. “I know my little girl can come again- so come with me. Show me how much I fucking ruin what’s mine.”

You had never seen Jongho act like this, say things like this, but it got the desired effect; you were coming hard around his cock, eyes rolling back and drool running down your cheek as he held you deathly still while his own hips stuttered to spill his seed deep in your cunt. You were putty beneath him, vibrating with the aftershocks even as his grip loosened and his head fell forward. You collapsed awkwardly in the chair, letting your hands loosen their grip on the back of the couch for the first time since he had pinned you there.

Out of all the times he had fucked you, none had felt this good- none that you could recall. Or maybe you just couldn’t think of a single damn thing aside from how blissfully fucked out you currently were.

Until he moved to pull away.

With a start you reached up and latched onto his hair, a whimper escaping you. “Don’t go-” You were scared he was going to leave, that he really wouldn’t come back. You wanted to know why he was here in the first place, why he had said what he did- why he had supposedly chased off the real person you had hired to fuck you.

His gaze softened on you as if he could read your questions on your expression. With a soft hum he placed a kiss on your forehead, grabbing your hand and pulling it away while he sat back. He visibly winced when his cock slipped out of you, glancing down at the damage before up at you. “I’m not going anywhere, little one.”

You relaxed, letting out a sigh of relief and a lazy smile. “Do I get an explanation?”

“For?” He turned you around in the seat, fixing your dress a bit before looking at the discarded and torn underwear several feet away.

“What’s going on? Why are you here Jongho? I thought you said you weren’t charging me for sessions anymore? That you were done with me?” Despite how relaxed you had been, your chest felt tight and tears brimmed your eyes at the reminder of the hurt.

His eyes went wide, then he cursed under his breath. “Is that why you didn’t message me or anything? You thought I was done with you? That I didn’t want you?”

Shame washed through you as you realized that didn’t seem to be the case, not from the incredulous look he was giving you. “I- yes that’s what I thought.”

He cursed again, leaning down in front of you and taking your hands on your lap into his. “I’m sorry, that’s not what I meant. I should have thought it through better, talked it over. I- I didn’t like doing this with you and getting paid for it. I- I didn’t want it to be a business transaction but I still wanted you. Fucking hell do I want you.”

Never before had you seen Jongho flustered, his ears red and eyes downcast. You were taken aback by how cute he was until you realized just what he was saying; then it was your turn to get flustered.

“S-so you just didn’t want me to pay for it? Y-you still wanted to do it?”

“Yes.” He finally looked up at you, and for the first time you could see a vulnerability there he never showed you before. “I know so much about you, little one, and I was getting frustrated that I couldn’t share myself with you. When you pay me for this, it’s only what you ask- I listen and do what you want, and I regretted signing you up for this. I should just kept fucking you after that first night the right way, not hired to do it.”

You were trying to wrap your head around just what he was saying, but you didn’t want to believe it. No- you couldn’t. “Are you saying that- that you wanted to be in a relationship with me? Date me?”

He nodded.

Silence fell between you both, disbelief leaving you frozen in place as he waited for a response, growing more fidgety by the second. He broke first, mumbling your name which in turn snapped you out of your haze.

“I’m so fucked. So so fucked. You’ve really ruined me for anyone else.” Yes, it wasn’t sex you were addicted to: it was him. Needy all over again, you tugged your dress over the top of your head, looking down at him eagerly. “Don’t stop please.”

A fire blazed in his eyes at your plea, letting you tug his shirt off before he acted. You were pulled down by your wrists, lips crashing against his in a desperate kiss. Despite the confession, despite how warm and sweet he had seemed a moment ago, you both knew that sweet and loving was the way you wanted it. It never had been.

Jongho stripped off the rest of his clothes while he devoured your lips, pushing you back in the chair while he stood up and kicked the clothes to the side. He ate up your moans and whimpers, bringing your arms above your head and holding them tightly by the wrists. He only needed one hand, grip strong you knew there would be bruises; his marks, proof that you were his.

You were going to wear them with pride.

He maneuvered your body around with the other hand, hooking your legs up and on the arms of the chair, leaving your core exposed and on display for him. He pulled his lips away, leaving you panting for breath while he admired your body. “Mine.”

That one word had you arching your back with a shiver, begging with a whimper. “Y-yours.”

“Fuck yes. My baby girl, my little. My cocksleeve, my toy, my baby doll- just all. Fucking. Mine.” He pinched and pulled at your nipples, one after the other, expression darkening at your reaction. He knew it hurt, knew you loved it, and he was going to keep giving it to you.

He pushed you flat back down with a hand on your stomach, watching your writhe and squirm in his grip as you chanted for more, begged to be touched- to be fucked. When he slapped your pussy, you cried out, looking up at him in a daze. Your eyes fluttered shut when he did it again, harder this time, before pushing in two thick fingers with ease.

His head fell forward, eyes now focused on your cunt. “That’s it, got to push my cum back in there, leave you nice and full. I want you so full with my cum you won’t be able to take a step without feeling it, without remembering how utterly ruined you are- that you’re my filthy fucking naughty girl.”

“Y-yes. Want it too. Want it too.” His fingers weren’t gentle, pushing up and curling into you with the intention of driving you crazy. The heel of his palm was rubbing against your clit, your legs shaking from the shocks it was sending through you. He already had your clit so sensitive from the slaps, and now his rough palm and forceful fingers were twisting an overwhelming amount of pleasure through you.

You could hardly think, panting and twisting and chasing the high you knew he was driving you too. He was encouraging it, mumbling under his breath how good you look like this. Only when he gave the command to cum did you, your climax rushing through your whole body in an intense wave of heat that had your toes curling. Your eyes rolled back, drool escaping your open mouth as you cried out of him, agreeing with his degrading pet names for you.

He fucked your cum right back into you, fingers still pumping but his heel had lifted off your clit so not to overstim you just yet- no that was a job for his cock. “That’s it, such a good girl. So perfect for me huh? You listen so well, coming on command for me.” He leaned forward, pressing a soft kiss to the corner of your mouth. “Although you are such a mess-”

You let out a noise of pleasure and content in response, body still shaking as he pulled his fingers out and instead brought them to his lips. He sucked them clean, then tapped your cheek hard to get you to look up for him. You did, opening your mouth when he nudged it with his thumb, happily accepting the glob of spit and cum he dropped in your awaiting mouth. “So dirty. The perfect mixture of you and I and you took it so well. Do we taste good?”

You could only nod, swallowing the spit and then holding your mouth out for proof, eyes begging for praise. He smiled, both sweet and condescendingly, before pressing another kiss to your forehead. “Good girl.”

With a happy mewl you smiled, only for the expression to twist into a gasp as you felt him drill his cock into you once more. He groaned, pressing his forehead against yours and taking in your already fucked out expression.

He moved your legs to hook on his shoulders, his hand moving from your wrists to the back of your neck again as he hauled you up into his arms, your knees pressed against your shoulders. “Really, I can’t tell if I ruined you or you ruined me- just look at how you let me bend you, how you let me fuck you. I could twist you like a pretzel and fuck this sweet cunt for hours on end until you’re so bruised up and aching and yet you wouldn’t care. Why would I ever want anyone else to have this?” He ranted in between thrusts, bouncing you on his cock with just the grip on your neck and his own thrusts.

His free hand moved up to your calf, holding one of your legs in place as you desperately grabbed to hold on to his arms, looking up at him through half lidded eyes. You were already too fucked out to say anything, just chanting the same few words inbetween cries and moans. The angle gave the slightest bit of friction on your over sensitive clit, causing tears to brim in your eyes and spill over, ruining your makeup.

You were a fucked out mess, twisted in his arms and fucked no differently than if you were a cocksleeve or toy. No regard for your comfort, if you were in pain, or if you were even going to come. But you liked that- and apparently he did too.

After another hard orgasm rushed through you, tears were running down your face freely, begging for him. Looking up, you barely registered the concentrated look on his face, the low grunts he gave or the way his hair was sticking to his skin with sweat. You could feel his sweat beneath your legs, feel his steady thrusts become more erratic, his breathing heavier- you knew he was going to come and you cried out for it.

The shout he let out when his orgasm hit filled you with so much heat, you were coming with him. He pumped himself into you, fucking you through both your climax’s until you both were spent and panting. He moved you in his arms, letting your legs fall to rest in the crook of his arms as he pulled you flush against him, dragging his lips across yours in a lazy kiss and continuing his show of strength as he carried you to your bedroom, then bathroom.

Setting you on the counter he finally pulled away, a smile on his face you had never seen in your presence before but that felt like an arrow to your heart. “Jongho?”

“Yes?”

Biting your lip you watched as he pulled out of you, moving around the bathroom to get a damp towel before he started cleaning you up. You were overcome with emotion, wiping away your tears with shaky hands before smiling. Jongho did know everything about you, not just how you liked to be fucked. All those intimate times were proof but- you realized you never did get to learn about him much outside of those sessions and despite that, you wanted no one else.

Cupping his cheeks you forced him to look at you, noticing bruises on your wrists already forming. “Promise me one thing- promise that, no matter who you fuck or who pays for you, that I’ll always be your favorite.”

He looked a bit taken aback, then smiled that wholesome smile that had your heart doing flips. “Little one, it’s only been you, and it always will be.”

Okay- maybe this wasn’t a problem at all.

taglist: @justhere4kpop / @warpedspirit / @candypop1611 / @spooo00oky @sanniessnails / @gugggu6gvai / @starillusion13 / @tunaasan / @lavishloving / @h-nji / @tearfulsparks78 / @minkysmilk /

#ateez #ateez fanfic #ateez x reader #ateez jongho #jongho #choi jongho #jongho smut #jongho x reader #kinktober 2023 #ateez kinktober #kinktober #ateez 739 #739 series #739

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cookiesupplier · 1 month

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Every Rose Has Its Thorns - Part Thirty-Seven

pairing: Ricky Olson x ofc x Chris 'Motionless' Cerulli

warnings/tropes: slow burn, soulmates, strangers to enemies to lovers, betrayal, angst, fluff, smut, language, online bullying, panic attacks, stalking, mental health issues.

summary: In a world where soulmates inexplicably receive a tattoo that will match that of their soulmate the moment they turn eighteen years old, being famous and covered in very visible tattoos can make finding your true soulmate a questionable fate. For everyone involved.

author’s note: Unbeta'd, readers beware as always lol.

To read from the beginning, check out the Masterlist Here!

tags: @tearfallpixie @cncohshit @jordynyingling0219 @faceless-mirror @nyxthedestroyerofworlds @wild-child-7747 @witchyweeb34 @black-damask1999 @jilliemiw86 @ilovesamkiszka @lyschko666 @lacktoesandtoddlerants @bngurngheart @collapsedglasshouses @laurpartyprogram @sunsshinesunny @malerieee @talialovesmiw @shilohrosechicken @thatchickwiththecamera @tamtam-elizabeth

Tag List is Open, please let me know if you would like to be added to it or in general.

Chris had ended up having to leave his friend a message on his machine as he was out that morning, he hated doing that as it felt so impersonal, and never wanted to give details on those things. But, it was over really, he knew that he couldn’t always be in the office. The soulmate tattoo science division was a very difficult line of research to keep funded. Most of the people in the field he’d managed to make contact with, even if just marginally over the last few years, all said the same thing. They usually either were extremely lucky with multiple grants, had side jobs, alternate research, or their research into the soul connection was the alternate study. There were some on the outside that sat the soulmate research as a hobby, but he knew they were all so very passionate about it. Sadly, none of them could dedicate all of their time to it, as it just didn’t pay the bills.

That was something Chris could understand completely. He remembered the early years in the band, working what was essentially a day job just to make ends meet. Needing it to make sure he could pay rent, buy food, have the funds for equipment, getting to and from gigs, basically everything the band could possibly need. So yes, he knew what it was like to have a passion project that was worth an absolute pittance. Unfortunately for most of the scientists he’d talked to over the years, their projects in the soulmate research, wasn’t likely to suddenly boom anything nearly as massive as the band. Not with the known track record so far. Besides, he was reminded science wasn’t just about making money though, it was about the discovery and search of knowledge.

He was in need of some of that knowledge right now, and not just him, but also Ricky, and Talia. Living like this, was driving all of them a little nuts, he could tell they were all on edge. Poor Talia, that panic attack she’d had, she had spiralled so bad just at the thought of having to face those doctors again that had treated her so badly. If Chris had his way, he’d shut that whole place down, who the hell treated people that way. What harm, what proof, had her family presented, that could have suggested that any of that was remotely necessary, even then, the doctors should have evaluated her themselves. He couldn’t personally understand how Talia could have met the criteria.

Just the same, once Chris had made the call, now it was just the waiting game, and checking the message board, cringing at the different takes of what others had of the illnesses that could be wrong with him. Oh yes, the imaginations of these people, they were coming up with everything under the sun that could be wrong with him, and somehow every single person, assumed he was dying. He supposed that happened when you were brought to that particular area of the message boards, it involved death to start with, so assuming death was involved, could be taken to heart. Chris would like to think he wasn’t dying though, he didn’t feel sick, no matter how much of a panic this was whirling around in him right now though, let's not think about that.

It was about lunchtime that he was finally able to hear back from his friend, right when he was in the middle of making himself something to eat no less, isn’t that how it always goes? When you have been absolutely dying for someone to call you back about a vital topic, you wait around forever expecting their call, but it doesn’t come. When you finally give up and get up to do something else, boom, you are right in the middle of what you are doing, and they call. So he was in the middle of making himself a sandwich when his phone started ringing, and he had to drop everything, he wasn’t going to risk missing this call, not this of all things.

“Micah, hey, man, how are you going? How’s the wife? The kids?”

While Chris had never met Micah in person, they had had some very long and in-depth philosophical conversations about the soulmate bonds between people. Even about the bond stemming between Micah and his wife and how their relationship had been affected by it. Micah had met his wife long before they knew they were soulmates, much like Talia’s friends Kyle and Jordan. Chris had enjoyed hearing about such a bond evolving differently somewhere else to, how the tattoos were different and worked differently for everywhere. It was amazing how that happened.

“They are doing well, and you, Chris, how is your work going?”

Chris never spoke openly about his work on the phone, not this number anyway, this was the office number. While there were other scientists that Chris knew on a strictly surface level, Micah he’d actually gotten to know a little more personally because the man had understood to some degree what Chris went through. He had switched to soulmate research when his brother had lost his soulmate while he was still a teenager, and the toll it had taken on him had been immense. Chris felt for those that lost so much hope at such a young age.

“It’s going well, on some downtime, which is even better. Though I’ve actually had some curious thoughts lately, one of my friends has been talking to me a lot about soulmate tattoos. I mean, we were talking about the different crazy theories and hypothetical situations out there.”

Chris knew it was a little unfair that he was telling his friend a bit of a white lie, but this wasn’t just about him, this was about Ricky and Talia too. He wasn’t going to put them in a position when they had to deal with a bunch of doctors if they didn’t want to. Ricky had said straight out yesterday, no tests, and Chris did not blame him, especially with how they were all connected, if just one of them got poked and prodded, who knows if they’d all feel it.

As expected, Chris heard a rustling of papers on the desk of the other end of the phone followed by a low chuckle, assuming that Micah was getting himself comfortable for this conversation now.

“Alright, Chris, you’ve got my attention, hit me with them.”

Bingo, he knew how to get Micah, he always liked to hear the latest theories that came about. Hearing them from people was always more interesting than trolling the message boards as Micah told him after all.

“Okay, now, I know that some of these just really got my head spinning, like there is apparently one that is about how the tattoos are actually random and work on hypnotic suggestion once they come in proximity to each other. There is another, that was taking about soulmate tattoos can sometimes change colour after a soulmate passes away, and become a whole new tattoo, which is completely ridiculous. Oh hell, then there was another one, oh, oh, get this Micah, oh you’ll get a kick out of this-”

Chris had a couple more insane ideas in his head to throw at him if need be, including tid bits of the way the soulmate bond that was affecting Talia and Ricky. The idea had been, was to see if he could see if that sparked more from Micah as he went. The fact that he seemed to be stopping his jumbled rant already, it would seem he wouldn’t need that after all.

“Wait a second, what was that theory?”

Chris paused, as if thinking,

“The hypnotic suggestion? Don’t tell me someone is actually researching that, are you kidding-”

“No Chris- I-”

“Because I swear if my friend finds out that he could eventually hypnotise his girlfriend-”

“Chris, that’s not what I-”

Chris was just barrelling forward, he knew this was probably a bit much, but his nerves about the entire ordeal during the night had gone into overdrive. Remembering how it had felt holding Talia as she cried, had him convinced that he needed to protect her from any doctor involved. Even his friend. Ricky and him, they were connected yes, and sure, he didn’t want either of them hurt either, but seeing her curled up against Ricky’s chest sobbing, and the thought of her broken like that again? Never. This was why he was driving Micah around in circles, and maybe one day he’d tell him, maybe one day he’d forgive him.

“Chris!”

“Shit! Sorry, Crap, Micah, you scared me.. What..”

“I wasn’t meaning about the hypnotic suggestion theory. What, what was the other theory you, you and your, friend, were, talking about?”

Here we go, time for the other foot to drop.

“Oh, um, was it, the uh, colour-blind tattoo soulmate theory one? About being the reason they are all only black or white?”

Chris didn’t know if he was frustrating Micah now, but he seemed to just let out a decent puff of air for a long moment then, taking in a slow breath.

“You mean the one about the tattoo changing, after the soulmate died? Like.. something anyway, sounds really stupid, right?”

Snorting derisively into the phone, as if he would have thought this entire thing was utterly ridiculous, and honestly, if it were happening to anyone else, he would.

The silence on the other end of the phone was deafening.

When Micah started talking again, something in his voice had changed, even if it was just from him adjusting his posture at his desk, Chris didn’t know, but something had changed, and instantly it made the man wary.

“So your friend, was this his theory Chris, or yours?”

“We were just shooting the breeze and talking about random things we heard about in passing, they weren’t either of our own theories, Micah, why, what does it matter, why so serious all of a sudden man?”

It was making him very worried about the fact that Micah was getting so serious about this, especially since Ricky had said the remark about testing. Thinking about it now, sent a chill down his spine. What the hell was happening, Micah had never gotten like this before, never, he’d always been so easy going, even when their discussions had become extremely intense.

“No, no, Chris, not serious, or anything like that, I just, I’m curious. How the subject of tattoos changing like that came up exactly. Is this, something that, either of you have heard about from someone in person, or, just a random joke about in the moment.”

He was fishing, Chris knew he was fishing, and it was making him nervous. He pushed himself to laughed slightly.

“Why, is there something to worry about Micah? Don’t tell me, tattoos are changing left right and centre and the government is keeping it covered up, big conspiracy they don’t want anyone to know about?”

That Chris threw out there with a real-ass loud laugh, the thought that random tattoos could be changing and no one in the world would be talking about it would be laughable to him. The things he’d heard all over the message boards about the soulmate tattoos there was no way another person tattoo could have changed, and he wouldn’t have heard about it, no, no way. Surely not… right?

“Chris…”

“Yea?”

Trying to sound as nonchalant as humanly possible considering how completely unhinged he was feeling with the turn this conversation had taken.

“Has your tattoo changed?”

Micah knew his soulmate was dead, and Chris was kicking himself now for including that in the first place, about the tattoo changing after a soulmate passing away. Shit, maybe he wouldn’t be asking about Chris’ tattoo specifically if he hadn’t. What the fuck was he supposed to say, he had to say something, the longer he said nothing, Micah would know he was stalling.. The fact he’d paused, even for a second, he was going to know something was amiss.

Scoffing slightly after that second,

“No, stuff, the same, as always, still.. White.. Still… dead.”

Swallowing, yep, his soulmate was still very much dead, everything was exactly the way it was the last time they spoke, Micah.

As much as he’d called for answers, the cryptic way Micah was being, Chris wasn’t sure he wanted answers from him any more, something was amiss and he was nervous.

Silence met him again from the other end of the line, and just when Chris went to say something himself, Micah spoke abruptly.

“Chris, whatever you do, don’t call this number again, I’ll be in touch.”

And the line went dead.

What the hell was happening?!?

Dividers by @saradika-graphics

#motionless in white #miw #ricky olson #ricky olson fanfiction #original female character #soulmates #fanfiction #miw band #soulmate au #ricky olson fanfic #chris motionless #chris cerulli #chris cerulli fanfic #fic: every rose has its thorns

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ladykailitha · 1 year

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Star Child Part 6

Yeah...I’m going to hold out a little bit longer on who Steve’s ACTUAL security is going to be. Next chapter though. But we get to meet the indomitable Corroded Coffin manager this time.

For the next few chapters Eddie and Steve will be dealing with separate shit so the angst will be high, but have no fear Happily Ever After is the end game. I promise.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

Steve pulled into the Motel 6 parking lot to find a woman waiting for him. She was dressed in a black suit with a pale blue button down. Her long hair was pulled back in a neat pony tail. Steve knew that this was his security.

He got out the car and grabbed his bag from his trunk. He walked over to her. “Hellfire Security I assume?”

She nodded. “You’ve got good instincts. That will help. I’m Janice Montgomery.” She stuck out her hand.

Steve shook it. “The CEO, I’m impressed.”

She laughed. “I was in the area and needed to go west, so I figured we could make the trek together.”

Steve sighed in relief. That made better sense. He hated being treated differently. “Works for me.”

“I booked us two rooms and scoped out the area,” she said. “So we’ll be good tonight. Then tomorrow we’ll begin the drive out to LA.”

Steve blinked. “We’re driving?”

Janice smiled. “Your manager, Robin Buckley told me you’re afraid of flying?”

He ducked his head and blushed. He scratched his cheek. “Bad experience flying to Europe for the first time. So I avoid it when I can.”

“Fair enough,” she said. “She also said you don’t mind staying at bigger hotels, but prefer places like this?”

Steve nodded. “I’ve been told by other security teams that they’re not as secure, but...”

“But people fawning over you makes you uncomfortable?” Janice suggested.

He nodded again.

“Happens to the best of them,” she said softly. She squeezed his shoulder.

Steve sighed in relief.

“Let’s get to bed and we’ll start first thing in the morning.”

“Is seven too early?” he asked.

She raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you’re a teen idol? Because I thought there was a law that your lot didn’t get up before noon if they could get away with it.”

Steve laughed. “I wake up at 6am most days to go for a run. Or if I’m home in LA a swim. I don’t understand how people can sleep that late.”

She shook her head. “Usually partying until three or four in the morning. Which I understand you don’t do.”

He shrugged and shoved his hands into his pockets. “Under contract to not get into any trouble. So I don’t do that anymore.”

Janice raised an eyebrow at ‘anymore’ but said nothing. She would contact the label tomorrow and let them know her company would be in charge of Steve’s security. Until then. She had herself an unusual client. And she loved those.

The next day at the Corroded Coffin sound check it was a little awkward.

Jeff and Brian tuned their instruments and kept throwing glances at each other as if they were daring the other to broach the subject.

“You guys are wusses,” Gareth finally bit out. “What these morons are trying not say is that we’re sorry about last night. We shouldn’t have made fun of Steve that way.”

Jeff sighed. “Yeah, man. You were right. We don’t know if it’s just us or if he sees other bands.”

“Especially when we were talking him up the last three days,” Brian said. “We were dicks and we’re sorry.”

Eddie huffed angrily and rubbed his eye. “I know. I just wanted tonight to end as well as it had started. And it didn’t.”

Brian nodded. “Yeah, I feel that. You just keep striking out with this guy and I know you’re worried that we might have scared him away.”

Eddie threw himself back against the seat he was in and his lip twisted. “It’s not just that. I think he was trying to befriend you guys, too. Remember this is the guy that got his start in a group and now he’s solo. He travels with stage musicians. And you can’t tell me they’re always the same ones. So I think he wanted to hang with you guys too.”

The three other members of the band looked down at their shoes.

Jeff scratched the back of his neck, Gareth fiddled with his drumsticks, and Brian scuffed the floor.

“We really fucked up, didn’t we?” Brian asked after a few moments.

Eddie sighed. “I don’t know, man. I don’t know.”

They went out onto the stage for the soundcheck as their manager ran around making sure that everything was setup properly. Chrissy Cunningham was one of the best managers in the business and Corroded Coffin was happy to have her. She had been in LA meeting with their agent Dustin Henderson to make sure they didn’t accidentally cross streams over the recent tour dates.

But she had only managed to get in late last night and missed the concert but barely.

She bounced onto the stage. “Hey, guys, we might have to cancel tonight.”

All heads turned to her in shock. “The venue has changed hands since the last time we were here and I don’t like the look of the bartender or the spotter.”

“Fuck,” Gareth hissed.

“Did they at least read the rider?” Jeff asked.

“Not a Pierre or red M&M in sight,” Chrissy said dryly.

Shit. They added the fancy water and red M&Ms to make sure the venue actually read the rider. And if they weren’t there it was sure bet they didn’t read the parts on how heavy their equipment was or when the lights should go up.

Brian looked up at the rafters and grimaced. “Ew, gross.”

The other four looked up to see grease and dirt and filth clinging to the rafters.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Eddie cursed. This was bad. “Cancel it. Find a park willing to take us with such short notice. If not, full refunds.”

Chrissy nodded. She pulled out her phone and immediately began making calls.

A roadie came up to them. “Hey, guys. We need to get this stuff off the stage, now.”

All four of them looked at each other in shock. “What do you mean?” Jeff asked.

“I just heard the owner talking to one of the waitresses and he was telling her that the guy that was supposed to repair the stage upped his price by a thousand so it never happened.”

“Shit!” Gareth hissed. He shot up from his seat and all of the band helped the roadies get their equipment off the stage and back into the bus.

“What are you doing!” the owner screamed when he saw them packing up.

“This is unsafe,” the roadie who had warned them told the guy. “I’m not having my guys get hurt because you can’t be assed to keep this place up to code.”

“I’ll sue!” the owner screamed.

“You can try,” Jeff said, “but you didn’t read our rider so, you broke contract with us first.”

The man started sputtering and a couple of the bigger roadies stood guard to prevent the man from trying to stop them.

Chrissy hung up the phone and walked over to where the man was spouting obscenities at the band.

“Mr Dallas?” she asked sweetly.

He stopped screaming and looked her over. “What can I do for you, princess?”

She smiled. “I have the health department and liquor license people on the way over here to shut you down. And I have a pretty good idea that you have been dodging your taxes, too. So the IRS will be informed as well. Have a nice day.”

Mr Dallas looked at the bartender and the two of them made a dash for the backroom, but it was too late.

The liquor license people had called the cops and they were being invaded. The band and roadies gave statements and vanished into the night, giggling and heckling the owner.

Once on the bus, Chrissy smiled. “All right, we’ve got a large park nearby that is willing to house the concert. But it’s going to be a hell of a mark up and it’s going cost a lot in merch sales too.”

The band groaned.

“And I am assuming, Chrissy the fair,” Eddie said waving his hands, “that you have already started checking up on our other venues, yes?”

She batted her eyes at him. “But of course, Eddie the Banished.” She winked and got on the phone.

“Dustin,” she greeted.

They got set up at the park and Eddie didn’t like the look of it. There was too much of a chance of people getting hurt.

He bounded up to Chrissy. “Hey, babe. I hate to add you to your already growing pile of shit you have to deal with tonight, but if you can swing it, I want extra security.”

Chrissy looked out at the growing crowd with pursed lips. “I’ll see what I can do. I’ve got Dustin working the other venues so I don’t have to worry about that.”

Eddie nodded. He almost felt sorry for the other venues.

Almost.

Dustin was a tough and tenacious agent and when he got going it was hard to stop the guy. It why Eddie had been with him for so many years. He knew his band was in safe hands if Henderson was talking to the venues.

Soon it was time to rock his heart out.

“Thank you everyone for being able to come to our little impromptu jam session,” Eddie said, stepping up to the mic. “The original venue was a shit show, I wouldn’t recommend it. At all. But let’s get to what you came here for!”

He started playing, turning his head to bob to the music as Gareth came in on drums.

“I want to make you mine!” he screamed into mic. “Your body next to me, Fitted together like by design. You set me free!”

The crowd went wild. Eddie working out his anger and frustration at the way everything ended last night. The way their previous venue had shat all over everything because they were greedy bastards. The way that Chrissy had to step in and take over because without her, they probably would have played and gotten hurt.

All that rage, hurt, and anger channeled into his music and it pushed the crowd to a fevered pitch.

Finally when the note was played and the final encore performed, Eddie felt at peace. That was the real reason he did this. It was a way for him to channel his emotions constructively.

He loved it.

Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16

Tag List: @thegingerrapunzel @artiststarme @yes-im-your-mom @tiny-enthusiast @scheodingers-muppet @abstractnaturaldisaster @steddieassheg0es @nelotegreitic @anaibis @failedstarsandgoldenclouds @novelnovella @anything-thats-rock-and-roll @gleek4twd @gregre369 @whatthemeepever @cutepumpkin4 @spectrum-spectre @livelaughlexa @ohlook-afrog @linkydinky06 @goodolefashionedloverboi @moonshadows-13 @eboyawstenn @avacrebs @bejeweledbaby

#My writing #stranger things #steddie #rockstar au #song fic #ladykailtiha writes

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emmys-grimoire · 1 year

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Nightbringer - Lesson 1 Summary & Analysis

It turns out I probably won’t get to lesson 10 by the end of the weekend, so I’m getting started on my lesson 1-5 summaries.

I have school throughout the week, but I’m hoping to crank these out every other day until we finally catch up to the current lesson. I’m not used to doing ten lessons all at once! But we’ll get there, eventually.

Also expect fewer screenshots than usual after this summary. The analysis portion will also be lighter until we get to the meat of the story. Lessons 1-3 are pretty light.

Caution: spoilers ahead.

The Story

The game begins with a chatroom with an “unregistered” individual with a demon icon. When you ask who they are, they’re cryptic and don’t give you a straight answer (“Perhaps you know me, perhaps you don’t”) but they make it clear they’re *very* acquainted with you. They claim nothing remains hidden to them and they see everything (whether it’s past, present, or future) and they show you a group picture of the brothers. They ask you if you know them, and you can either confirm or deny you do. If you claim you don’t, they say something must have gone wrong but not to worry, you soon will.

They tell us they’re going “to take you someplace where you’re happy. A place that will bring you more joy than any other”.

They also claim that “time” is like a “dark, heavy mud” to them that sits in a container and swirls around like a vortex. They get all cryptic again and begin asking you questions they know you don’t have the answer to (“Will you be entering your own past?” “Or the past, present, or even future of someone you don’t know?”) before yeeting you back in time.

You wake up in the student council hall much like you do in the OG game. Also like in the OG game, Diavolo is the first to greet you, though this time he’s in his full-fledged demon form and shocked/confused at your sudden appearance. He and the brothers found you knocked out cold and they’re glad you’re finally awake. They just assume you’re a lost demon, but it’s never really elaborated on *how* you look like a demon.

Lucifer asks Diavolo what they’re going to do with you, and Diavolo tells us the facility they’re currently in is still under construction – and they found you there. He wants to know just how you got there, and asks if you’re even from the Devildom, you’re none the wiser. Then character introductions are had! Then your cell phone rings. Those are still apparently a thing.

It’s Solomon. You have a short conversation and he deduces what might have happened.

After the phone call, Diavolo continues the introductions – but you’re interrupted by none other than a near-feral Satan, who at this point is the living manifestation of wrath. We learn he’s so destructive that they had to wrap him in chains and throw him into a locker, but apparently Asmo didn’t make sure the chains were tight enough because he didn’t want to harm his tender hands, so he’s predictably ultra pissy now. You’re still given introductions, but the brothers aren’t allowed to interact with you before Satan threatens to kill everyone. Diavolo is amused more than alarmed.

Satan begins lashing out physically and everyone takes cover. Leviathan asks why he has to be stuck with Satan as a brother, and Asmodeus reveals it’s because the Demon King insisted they do. Lucifer says that they’re new to the Devildom, as because of that, they’re in no position to refuse him. You’re finally allowed to cut in and ask either when the Great Celestial War happened or if you’re in the past.

The answer you get is the same: Mammon is predictably confused about your questions and asks if you got hit in the head during the war, which just concluded. Diavolo asks your name.

Satan interrupts again. You try to use your pact to make him “stay” but it doesn’t work. The brothers are confused and wonder if you were trying to cast a spell. Satan advances and… Ruri-chan suddenly interrupts. It’s your phone again.

Leviathan is enthralled. He tells you that it’s your job to play Ruri Tunes all day every day.

Lucifer tells him to snap out of it, they’re in the middle of being attacked. Suddenly, you “feel a warm light building inside” and your “stay!” actually works this time. The others are shocked when all the brothers suddenly get grounded. Diavolo laughs at all of them. The others are less than amused, but Diavolo concludes *fate* must have brought them all together. In the OG game, Diavolo is a big believer in destiny, so it looks like they’re continuing this trend with him.

He expands on what was said before, and explains that the brothers are former angels who were cast out of the Celestial Realm following the Great Celestial War. He admits things are a bit unstable in the Devildom at the moment.

As a result he hires you as their babysitter attendant. The brothers are less than enthused, Lucifer insists they aren’t children, but whatever Diavolo says goes.

Due to the newness of their friendship, Lucifer isn’t the lapdog he is in the OG game. He complains about and questions Diavolo’s commands more.

He’s also less considerate to technically newborn Satan, but Satan is perpetually trying to murder everyone, so…

You exchange DDD info with Diavolo so you remain in contact. It may be centuries earlier than the present timeline, but cell phones and social media are forever, apparently. Asmo insists on signing you up for everything.

Belphie is getting sleepy, and you can suggest they head back to the House of Lamentation. Diavolo is perplexed at you even knowing what it is because it’s only very recently been built in the Devildom. The brothers are excited to finally have a home of their own. Apparently they were staying at the castle in the interim.

We learn the House of Lamentation still has the cursed history it did in the previous game. You learn Mammon isn’t scared of ghosts at this point. Belphie falls asleep and Lucifer decides it’s finally time to go.

Diavolo forbids you from staying at the House of Lamentation, and seems perplexed to learn you don’t have your own place. He shows you the Wanderer’s Whereabouts app, that you can use to spy on the brothers as though they were ants in an ant farm.

Before he can tell you where you’re going to stay, Solomon drops in! He introduces us as his apprentice. Diavolo is stunned and though Solomon didn’t have any close demon relationships other than Barbatos. You can imply you’re his best apprentice or someone more… intimate.

Diavolo suggests we bunk with Solomon at his place. When you’re finally alone with him, you chat about what happened. You give him the run-down, then he suggests you go home. You’re staying at Cocytus Hall this time.

When you arrive, Solomon explains what happened at length. We just blipped out of existence in the present timeline, apparently. He had to analyze the magical traces our yeeting left behind to deduce where we went, and he asked Barbatos to send him back to that point in time instead of just bringing us back, apparently.

And we can’t send ourselves back yet! Wonderful. Our pacts have weakened in our travel through spacetime and, while not entirely severed, need to be reforged in order to realize their full power again. It is the only way to go back.

Lucifer texts you and tells you to come to the Demon Lord’s Castle tomorrow. Diavolo has something to talk about.

The following morning, Asmo and Mammon arrive to escore you to the castle. Solomons busy in the kitchen fixing breakfast. The two of them are excited to try food prepared by the most famous sorcerer from the human world. Knowingly, you try to escape before it’s too late. Asmo lingers behind and swipes a muffin.

You take a detour and go shopping instead. The brothers haven’t been allowed to go exploring since they fell because they’ve been stuck in the castle up until now. Mammon brandishes Lucifer’s credit card, and Asmo foolishly believes Lucifer must have lended it to him. You can remind them that you’re wanted at the castle, but Mammon brushes you off and calls you a killjoy.

It isn’t long before we get to encounter some good ol’ fantasy racism!

Mammon is kicked out of one of the shops. Since the newly-transformed demons are newcomers and having been out and about their new home yet, they weren’t expecting such a cold reception.

Asmo decides to distract Mammon from his stewing with ice cream. Mammon admits some of the Devildom foods sound gross, but they’re growing on him. He finds something written on his popsicle stick: the word “WINNER”. It activates a gacha and he wins a hostile giant snake.

You flee, but you’re pursued. Asmo doesn’t have his charm powers yet, so you have to settle for lobbing the noxious muffin at it after calling the help hotline printed on the stick fails.

Once you finally get to the castle, you tell Diavolo what happened and he finds it hilarious. Lucifer wants to lecture, but simply confiscates the credit card. You can suggest where he should hide it. Mammon and Asmo leave, and you can finally get back to business.

Diavolo wants to establish RAD, and he wants you and Lucifer to be founding members. This is why they’ll still be in the school uniforms. Lucifer doesn’t trust you and doesn’t believe this is a good decision on Diavolo’s behalf.

What follows is the most Lucifer-esque “but thou must” dialogue choice reactions yet. If you refuse:

Okay man. I was just agreeing with you.

Afterwards, he makes it clear he doesn’t intend on being your friend.

Then the giant snake returns, and he’s forced to ask you for assistance.

Thoughts & Analysis

This was essentially just a re-introduction lesson, but it does set up the background of the situation up nicely. The brothers are newcomers to the Devildom and they're still having trouble adjusting to their new environment... and more importantly, their new environment is reacting to them.

The goal of the first season of Nightbringer is clear: you must reforge your pacts in order to get back to the present timeline, but thankfully it's not just a retread of the OG Season 1. I don't know why we can't just have Barbatos snap his fingers and fix everything like he's done before -- it's clear he can ferry people back and forth (though he claimed it can be imprecise) -- but I've always had a problem with Barbatos's powers and how he's supposed to fit inside the cosmology of the universe. It felt like him being a demon put too much power in the Devildom’s hands, and they had to nerf him later to make things happen even though it doesn’t really make much sense (he gets rid of the dark crevasse in S4 but it’s effects remain for... some reason?)

But now we have *another* entity that can travel through time. Spoiler alert: the demon in the prologue video is not Barbatos, and Mr. Bowlcut is not Solomon. I'll expand on that in the later lessons, but it looks like we might finally have a Big Bad on our hands.

I'm *not* terribly fond of everyone looking exactly the same as they do in the previous game -- and there's no reason for them to don uniforms for a school that still doesn't exist yet -- but whatever.

My opinion on the story has improved as it’s progressed, nitpicks aside. It’s not perfect, but the writing team is trying again.

#obey me #obey me!#obey me nightbringer #obey me! nighbringer #obey me spoilers #om nightbringer #obey me solomon #obey me mammon #obey me lucifer #obey me asmodeus #obey me leviathan #obey me diavolo #commentary #analysis #obey me nightbringer season 1

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jeannereames · 3 months

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Do you think alexander considered hephaistion his alter-ego?

"He, too, is Alexander"

Did Alexander think of Hephaistion as his alter-ego? Quite possibly—but not by that term. For one thing, “alter-ego” is Latin, and we find it first used in writing by Cicero, although it may have been (quite possibly was) in common parlance prior.

The concept did appear to exist in Greek, but the tendency to apply it to Alexander and Hephaistion owes chiefly to two attestations. The first is the recorded meeting between Alexander, Hephaistion, and Sisygambus, wherein he supposedly said, of Hephaistion, "He, too, is Alexander." The other concerns a quip attributed to Aristotle, mentioned in Diogenes Laertus that friendship is one soul in two bodies—but this not found Aristotle's surviving works, despite a longish passage on friendship in his Nikomachian Ethics.

Without being unduly cynical, we must always take exact phrasing with a grain of salt. I think there's very little we can be certain Alexander said. Same problem with Aristotle, unless you're reading his actual writings, and even some of those are dubious, such as the infamous Ath Pol, or Constitution of the Athenians. We typically distinguish these as “pseudo-Aristotle.” (So if you see “pseudo-”some-name, that means the work is attributed to that person but almost certainly not actually written by him/her.)

So, as part of my usual ‘Let me ‘splain you why you can’t trust that story/saying…,’ let’s play some dating games here.

First, Cicero is our initial attested use of “alter ego,” in a letter to his friend Atticus, that dates the phrase to somewhere between 68-44, or middle of the first century BCE. Maybe we can push it back a little earlier to the early first century, but I’d be uncomfortable pushing it further without solid evidence. Popular terms change. Anybody call a fashionable (male) person, “That cool cat…” these days—except as a bit of a joke? I didn’t think so. 😉 But “cool” itself is otherwise still in common use. So we have to be careful about when terms are popular.

Now, the story of Alexander before Sysigamgus is best known from Curtius (3.12.16-17), but Diodoros also relates it (17.37.5-6), and so does Arrian (2.12.3-8)—although with a caveat. He says it doesn’t appear in his trusted sources (Aristoboulos or Ptolemy) but he tells it anyway, apparently because he approves of the actions in it.

We don’t know where it comes from. Maybe Kleitarchos? Possibly Kallisthenes? It does not appear in either Plutarch’s bio of Alexander or his Moralia, although normally he loved these sorts of anecdotes. There’s a good reason, however, that Plutarch doesn’t tell it (see below). Justin is just too short. (It also appears in abbreviated form in a couple of later Roman sources, Valerius Maximus and Dio Chrysostom. So it was clearly popular in the rhetorician crowd.)

So, what are the words attributed to Alexander? Diodoros’ Greek is kai gar kai outos Alexandros estin: “and for also this [man] Alexander is” (6). Arrian renders it kai gar ekeinon einai Alexandron: “and for that man is Alexander” (7). Curtius puts it, albeit in Latin, nam et hic Alexander est: “for he also Alexander is” (17). Yes, I rendered those into English pretty exactly, even if it sounds a bit funny. First, it helps show how every translation is an interpretation, but also allows us to watch the parsing itself.

None of them is exactly the same, even if the meaning is the same. That’s a good reminder we don’t have his exact phrasing!

Assuming the event even happened.

Why should we doubt it? Aside from Arrian’s skepticism?

This story feels a LOT like a classic lesson in proper clemency. I’ve talked about the importance of clemency before. The bulk of this tale is meant to show a chivalrous Alexander early in his career, before he fell victim to divine aspirations and the lure of that nasty Oriental Luxury <tm>. See what a good guy he was?! Plutarch, in his take, insists not only did Alexander not rape the royal women, he wouldn’t even look at the women. That’s probably why he doesn’t tell this story, because going to their tent absolutely IS looking at them, donchaknow. It’s even funnier because it’s Plutarch who tells us Statiera died in childbirth well, well after that baby could have been Darius’s. (Consistency? What consistency? Pfff.)

My point here is that the story may very well have been fabricated to make a MORAL point of how to be an honorable victor—whether in the era of the Successors (which grew increasingly bloody and vicious), or in the later Roman period. It would also provide a perfect example for Curtius to contrast with Alexander’s later Asian debauchery.

You may be wondering, But why would they make up an entire story like that? Wouldn’t people know?

Um, to prove my point I give you…Twitter, QAnon, and whatever quote is being attributed (wrongly) to Samuel L. Jackson this week. The more often people hear something, even a lie, the more likely they are to believe it’s true. Arrian’s other stories of after-Issos events has Leonnatos going to talk to the women, not Alexander (and Hephaistion). Of course, it’s entirely possible Leonnatos went the first evening, while Alexander and Hephaistion went the next morning. It even makes a certain amount of sense that he’d visit the royal women. So, the bare-bones of the encounter may be true, but mistaken identities and all those speeches were likely put in people’s mouths later.

Incidentally, there’s a pun in the line, as alex-andros translates to “protector of men.” So Hephaistion is also a protector of men. Romans and Greeks ate up that sort of word-play.

As for the Aristotle titbit…Diogenes Laertus reports a list of “sayings” (aphorisms) attributed to various philosophers. For Aristotle, one is: “To the query, ‘What is a friend?’ his reply was, ‘A single soul dwelling in two bodies’” (5.20). I’ve seen people claim he was referencing Alexander and Hephaistion. There’s absolutely no reason to assume that except romanticism and an Alexander-centric view. In our surviving writings by Aristotle, he barely mentions Alexander.* Shock, I know. 😂 But Alexander wasn’t at the forefront of his mind.

Additionally, as I said above, we have a longish bit on friendship in the Nikomachian Ethics, where that definition doesn’t appear, although nothing he says about true friendship in it contradicts the quote, either. But “Sayings of…” were a popular form of literature in antiquity, and sometimes a clever quip got attributed to more than one person! Maybe Aristotle did say that, but it’s not in actual writings about friendship by Aristotle. Aristotle’s writings on friendship are rather more complex; he lists three types of friendship in Book VIII.

Anyway, this little in-depth study is meant to help folks see how complicated it can be, to get back to what ALEXANDER himself said, thought, or even did.

Yet one thing ALL the sources agree upon: Hephaistion was Alexander’s favorite, not just (or even primarily) as a commander, but as a person. I’ve never read any claim to the contrary, and I have (quite literally) read everything in the ancient sources that concerns Hephaistion (and most everything that concerns Alexander too).

So, while it’s impossible to say that Alexander considered Hephaistion an “alter-ego,” or ever called him “Alexander too,” you can rest assured that every ancient source agrees that Hephaistion was dearer to Alexander than anybody else, maybe even including his own mother.

—————-

* 391a2: his “On the Universe” treatise opens with a reference to “Alexander,” who I think it’s safe to assume is the king. And 1420a5, is “Rhetoric to Alexander”--except that treatise is widely understood (even in the medieval world) to be bogus: e.g., a "pseudo-Aristotle" text. Plus Alexander is mentioned in a couple fragments.

#asks #alter-ego #Alexander the Great #Hephaistion #Hephaestion #Cicero #Alexander before the family of Darius #Sisygambus #He is Alexander too #Aristotle #clemency #Classics #Alexander the Great in Roman literature #tagamemnon

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udretlnea · 3 months

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The Exciting Chronicles of The Shapeshifter & The Eccentric Gentleman

I / II (You're here) / III / IV / V

As a child, you would wait And watch from far away But you always knew that you'd be the one That work while they all play

In youth, you'd lay Awake at night and scheme Of all the things that you would change But it was just a dream

(Warriors, Imagine Dragons)

Words: 2.2k

Weeks would pass since that day. The shapeshifter, who would later be named Mercy, was trained rigorously to utilize their powers constructively; simultaneously, their abilities would grow stronger with some exercises from Numbers Four, Five, and Seven.

Mercy would quit trying to romance Number One. Reading his mind after assuming his form the second time made them realize he didn’t desire romance in general. As someone who became him, naturally Mercy would understand and respect his reasons.

After a month and a half of routine, Mercy became skilled and powerful enough to not only shapeshift into beings of unfathomable power, but also act as them too. To a normal person, they wouldn’t be able to tell the real from fake. Ordinarily, this would take at least a year, but thanks to their intervention it accelerated.

Now, Mercy found themselves sitting in a dark room in front of a screen; Number One finished setting up the projector, turned it on and manifested a pointer stick.

One pointed at an image of a red X. “So here’s the situation.”

Mercy nodded. One clicked and the image changed to a colored sketch for a hulking, green figure. It had a horned skull for a head and three eyes with yellow glowing pupils. Its ‘cloak’ was made out of grass, decorated with various flowers they couldn’t be bothered to try to name. The number next to it told them it was 9 feet tall. Compared to it, they were a measly 5 foot 5 inches.

One poked the screen at it. “I need to get an audience with them.”

Mercy vaguely felt their jaw drop. This…this creature-no, entity was surreal; it looked like it leapt out of someone’s amazing imagination and uprooted an entire garden for its cloak. No, cape…? In any case it looked fantastical. Mercy found it pleasant to look at.

(Art from this fic by the_moon_archives on ao3)

“This is Creator #AQ-120, but refer to them as Eldritch for simplicity. Eldy for short.” One retracted the pointer stick and chucked it behind him. “They’ve been at the ‘game’ for long enough that they know enough about the big picture that their knowledge is critical to my objective.”

Mercy raised their hand. “And what is the big picture?”

One grinned. “I’m glad you asked.”

The slide changed to show the words “SAGAU PHENOMENON” in bold black letters. General questions asking about it were scattered throughout. One pointed to the title. “Finding out what is causing this-this anomaly and putting a stop to it once and for all! I’m confident Eldy already knows what’s happening and I suspect something or other is preventing them from acting on it. So I thought I’d gently ask to take the reins from them.”

One summoned the pointer stick back in his hand. “The problem is Eldy is heavily guarded by cultists and priests. Especially this one lunatic: Rex Lapis. He’s not only a highly dedicated and religious god, but also the oldest and most experienced.”

The slide changed to show a tall, handsome man in white robes and a hood; despite that, two branch-like horns tipped with amber hues poked out of it. His face was immaculately sculpted with a nice jawbone and his captivating eyes with amber irises. He looked like a combination of a dragon and a human, the latter moreso.

Mercy stared into those hypnotic eyes. It was almost a crime how handsome he looked. Fortunately, One changed slides and tapped on an image of an elaborate temple. “This is where Eldy is living, or rather staying. The Temple of the Omnipotent Emperor is usually highly guarded 24/7. Only acolytes are allowed to enter, and the place is crawling with guards.”

Number One sighed. “It would be ideal if we could simply schedule a meeting face-to-face with them, but to them we’ll be perceived as complete strangers with no social standing or power. Furthermore, their guest log is practically full all the time. Scheduling anything with them is an impossibility; we’ll be put on the waitlist if we even try.

And then One smiled like a devious tactician who already thought of contingencies for their master plan. “Which is why we have to resort to more clever methods to set up a meeting. I present to you: Operation: Masked Fools. You’re the mask and I’m the fool, just to clarify.”

Mercy arched an eyebrow. “What an interesting thing to call it.”

“I know! Sometimes my naming sense is genius,” One laughed lightly. Mercy rolled their eyes with an easy smile. “It’ll be simple. We’ll be pulling a Spiderman: into the spiderverse nigh-end scene; in other words we’ll disguise ourselves as one of the acolytes, avoid unnecessary characters, acquire an audience in private, and leave before anyone notices.”

“You’re missing an awful lot of details. Like, what happens if we run into someone like Rex anyway? Or-or what if Eldy isn’t even there in the first place?” asked Mercy.

“Then we hide our presence, or act natural! And if Eldy isn’t there then we ask around, get our answer, and then teleport to them!” One said without missing a beat.

Mercy frowned. They still weren’t satisfied. “What happens if there’s like, an object that cancels my ability to shapeshift?”

“Then you hide while I find it and shut it down.”

“Well, what if Eldy calls us out while we’re disguised?”

“I…teleport us into a private room, put on my charm, and reassure them we mean no harm!”

“Right, like you have charm in the first place,” snarked Mercy.

One put a hand on his chest and spoke in mock hurt. “How dare you! I’m practically oozing with charm, thank you very much!”

“Ha! Liar! I’ve been in your mind. Would you like me to recount the first time you tried to flirt with a woman?” Mercy cheekily said.

One puffed out his cheeks. He didn’t dare say anything to dignify that statement. Mercy smirked with the energy of a cat that had found the bag of cat food all by itself.

“Let’s just move on,” One said, slightly disgruntled. The slide showed what looked like a throne room. “This is where Eldy is during the day. Normally, there’s a translator by their side to translate what Eldy says; they speak in a different language apparently, but it would be better if we were alone.”

“You’re saying…you know how to speak their language.”

“Yes. Next, we need to make sure that nobody interrupts us. To accomplish that, I’ll set up a mid-level perception filter around the room so that nobody will even think of entering. Think of it as a censor for the mind, one that reassures it that everything is ordinary,” explained One.

He tapped his forehead with the stick. “Finally, after I get the answers I need, we teleport out, get back home, and review what we learned. Okay! Briefing over.”

One clapped twice and the lights turned on; the projector turned off as well. One stretched his arms. “I suggest you get a nap and catch some sleep while you can, Mercy. We’ll be deploying early in a couple days.”

“Understood.”

///

That night, Mercy laid in bed awake. They stared up at the ceiling with a thoughtful expression. Memories of today’s briefing stuck with them like a fly caught in a tape trap. It just refused to settle down. They tossed and turned yet nothing seemed to help. Not even counting sheep.

Ugh. Fine. With a defeated groan, they got up and out of their room but not before grabbing a white and black hoodie. Mercy quietly crept down the hallway, down the stairs, and out the door. They shut it silently, then examined the nightly scene before them.

Before them was a place that was still in its early stages; when Noraa (Number Four’s name, given after earning his trust) offered to shelter them, they accepted with a promise to assist him however they could. Thus, they’d move and attach bricks, turn boulders into rubble, and generally clear the way. A dozen buildings, including a moderately sized castle, served as the homes for those who lived here.

This was the Kingdom of Delusion and while Noraa could call it home, Mercy…had a ways to go until they felt settled.

With that in mind, they started trekking along the beaten path. Hopefully all of this excess energy will just go away as I walk…

It would have to be a short walk as they didn’t want to stay up too long. A glance upwards showed the moon nearing its peak in the sky. That and the stars shining above made for a rather beautiful sight. Their chest felt light like a balloon as they let their feet guide them towards a circular clearing in the middle.

This was the site for the future town square. Although only hollow shells for buildings were here, at the very least there was a simple fountain. Mercy sat on the smoothened stone. They looked down at the water below. It was as clear as a mirror.

The shapeshifter (Mercy took to calling themselves that after hearing it countless times from them all) examined their appearance. After several days of experimenting with it, they were satisfied with their current form: A round head with a flat chin, light gray medium hair with bangs short enough that a pair of heterochromatic eyes peeked out; the right was orange and the other was blue.

They had a build that was well-built yet had the right amount of fat (plump was what Number Six described it). Thanks to their head shape they looked androgynous. Overall it felt pleasing to look at.

Mercy shivered. They rubbed their hands to try to warm themselves-

-only to have a coat get wrapped around their shoulders.

Startled, they swiftly turned around to discover a tall young man with short, jade green hair, slightly tanned skin, and light green eyes in his nightwear. He wore a neutral expression as he opened his mouth. “Couldn’t sleep?”

Mercy withdrew into the coat. “...No.”

“Mm,” was all he said. He opened his right hand and a metallic staff manifested. Noraa casually pointed the tip to his left palm and a dotted white beam fired. A cup of milk appeared in his grasp. “Warm milk?”

Mercy stared at it briefly what the f- before moving to take it. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” replied Noraa. He made himself another one and sat down right next to them.

The duo silently drank their cups of warm milk. They savored its warmth and taste as much as they could. Once finished, Noraa took both empty cups and made them disappear via staff. Mercy found themself staring at it.

It looked ordinary enough with a long jade green handle, but near the tip was where it started looking interesting. Inserted into a slot was an orange cube with a diamond gray panel that had five glowing square lights; the cube was big enough like a decently sized watermelon. There was a small barrel at the top where the beam came out of “Where’d you get that?”

The edges of Noraa’s lips pulled up. “Mm. Built it myself. I was inspired after I saw someone else’s.”

“I see. So you basically wanted a cool magic staff.”

Noraa nodded. “Don’t we all, at some point, want to pick up a stick and pretend to cast spells with it?”

“I guess. It sounds fun.”

“It is…” Noraa agreed. They both looked up at the starry sky. Neither said a word for what felt like hours. Mercy felt as calm and clear as a tranquil pond of water completely untouched, unsoiled. It was a nice moment, one they'd treasure.

They inhaled, savoring the pureness of the air when Noraa said something that caught her off guard.

“Mercy,” he licked his dry lips. “If you don’t mind me asking, what will you do after this?”

Blank. That was their mind. Nothing came up immediately so they said that. Mercy looked at Noraa who was still looking up. “Why do you ask?”

“It’s just…I thought I’d bother asking since we know this is a one-time thing. This operation will benefit us, but I realize that it doesn’t benefit you at all. I mean, at least in the long run,” he explained. He looked at them with a face that screamed ‘worry’. It was something he did often; it was how he showed he cared. Mercy teased him by calling him dad. That made him stop doing it, at least for a while.

But back to the topic at hand. “I’m content with helping One at the moment. Once I fulfilled my end of the deal, I figured I’d just go out there and find myself. Do it the tried and true way.”

Noraa tilted his head as he processed that. “Yeah…okay. Valid.”

He covered a yawn. “Well, I’m gonna tell ya this right now: If you ever feel yourself in need of a safe space whenever your journey starts to wear ya down, my door’s always open.”

Mercy blinked. “That’s…actually very sweet of you.”

“Don’t mention it.” Noraa clicked his tongue. He stood up and stretched. “Mm, on that pleasant note, I think I’m gonna hit the hay. The milk’s kicking in. Want a lift?”

“Sure.” Mercy hopped off their seat. Noraa put a hand on their shoulder. Thanks to his staff, they disappeared and reappeared inside his house. As Mercy climbed the stairs they called out one final time. “Good night, grass head.”

“Good night to you too, dingus.”

“Snake eyes.”

“Vegetable.”

“That one didn’t make sense.”

“Good night.” Noraa marched off to bed.

Mercy chuckled quietly before doing the same.

///////////

A/N: @idkfitememate

This is mostly a set-up chapter plus some filler. A part of me thought it was a good idea to give a glimpse into Mercy’s bonds with two of the people who helped them adjust to life outside the mirror; after a month and a half of hands-on training it’s only logical for one to forge such a tight-knit bond.

I hope you enjoyed that slice-of-life bit because next is the exciting part. And I have enough action sequences stockpiled to draw upon. ;)

I've been wanting to write more on SAGAU somehow. This was my plan. The SAGAU Phenomenon is an ongoing anomaly where "countless human souls are prevented from passing peacefully; they are instead reincarnated or transported into Teyvat, totally unprepared for any trials. Depending on what kind of universe they're in, they will either thrive or perish." This is an original thing I came up with.

I wanted to make Mercy have an androgynous appearance since they can literally become anyone, any gender, etc. It makes sense from a design standpoint. As the first character I’ve ever written to hold that status, it felt easier since I had sources to draw upon (looking at you Pidge Voltron & Double Trouble She-ra). For their name, I spun a wheel with four choices: Halcyon, Mercy, Mica, and Blake. No guesses as to which one won.

Reblogs, questions, comments, and critiques are welcome (don’t be shy y’all!)

#my ocs #.mine #no beta we die like men #writers on tumblr #creative writing #writer stuff #writer #sagau #genshin sagau #sagau fanfic #self aware genshin au

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