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strangeshoepatrolbandit · 1 year

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Brotherly Love Pt.3 J.T

Jason Todd x Al-Ghul/Wayne reader(platonic). Gender Neutral.

Brotherly Love Masterlist<-- Right here

Summary: Jason picks you up from school after Alfred and Bruce are busy.

Warnings: insecurity, scars, mentions Scarecrow, briefly mentions killing.

~☆~

Bruce had enrolled you and Damian into some higher-up Gotham Schooling, Damian had made nothing but threats to Bruce when the day came and ignored you throughout everything.

On the first few days, you and Damian were swarmed with people trying to befriend you, more like befriend Bruce Wayne's children, other than actually wanting to be YOUR friend. The two of you had done nothing but push them away and avoid their questions, however, Damian and yourself had found yourselves into respective friend groups.

Damian looked miserable throughout most of the school days, sitting at his desk bored out of his mind, however if you looked closely at him you would be able to see the fond look in his eyes when looking at his friends.

You yourself had been adopted into a group of two other people, the first one of them that you had met was Reign, he had been grouped with you in science, he was shy and smart. He had offered you to sit with him and a friend at lunch so you could continue your work. You accepted, and there you met the other piece of your group, Penelope.

She was the opposite of Reign, outgoing, you had noticed this when she smiled and shook your hand erratically, whereas Reign's hand was sweaty and barely touched your own.

The three of you had bonded that day, not once did they mention your father, just tried to get to know you personally. Reign kept inviting you to sit with him and Penelope, where over the days you developed a friendship with them, which eventually led to you having their numbers on your phone that Bruce gave you for "emergencies", and hanging out at their houses.

It was nice to finally have people that you could be loved by, people who actually like you.

Over time the school gave you and Damian pamphlets for after-school activities, Penelope begged you to join her in the Theater club, and Reign even tried talking you into photography. Bruce pushed you and Damian to engage in at least one activity, even if it was just for a week, and ultimately you joined Penelope.

~☆~

Bruce had informed you this morning that you would be getting picked up from school by one of your bothers, Bruce himself would be busy in a meeting and Alfred would be meeting up with an old friend.

Damian would be heading home at a normal time, whereas you were staying behind to help on set for an upcoming play.

~☆~

You walked down the halls with Penelope by your side, her blonde hair bounced as she skipped, her voice echoed off of the walls as she spoke, her upbeat voice filled you with serenity as she told you about things going on in the world. The two of you exited the front doors of the school, pausing at the stairs for a second to bask in the little bit of sun that Gotham rarely brung.

"Is that your brother?" Penelope quizzed as she marveled at him, her eyes shining as she stared at him.

You turned to look across the street, where one of your father's cars sat. Jason rested against it, his ankles were crossed, and he was staring down at the phone that rested in his hand.

As if he had some sixth sense he looked up after sensing eyes on himself, a smile broke out on his face as he pushed himself off of the car, with the raise of an arm he waved.

"Wellll I better get going." Penelope smiled, dragging out the L in her words.

"Yeah." You whispered still staring at Jason.

"Bye!" She beamed, leaning over to engulf you in a hug before running off to find her way home.

Your feet moved on their own as they led you across the street towards Jason, his smile widening the closer you got.

"Hey." Jason greeted as he slapped a hand onto your back.

You let out a tight smile as you acknowledged him, before getting into the passenger seat of the car. Jason sat himself down in the driver's seat, and glanced over at you one last time before driving away.

...

You and Jason sat in silence until he reached for the radio, and an upbeat techno song came on. Your eyebrows knit together as Jason smiled and danced to the music, his sixth sense kicked in again as he glanced at you, now singing the words to the song on the radio.

"This is Lady Gaga." Jason yelled over the music, laughing to himself when you shot him another judgemental look.

"You hungry?" He asked, eyes darting from the road to look at you once again.

"Yes." You sighed, subconsciously smiling to yourself as the thought of food came up.

Jason's eyes lingered on your face as he seen a smile spread on it, his own face mirrored your own in that very moment.

~☆~

Jason turned the car off after he pulled into Batburger, he ushered you out of the car and held the door open as you walked in. Jason asked for your order and told you to find a place to sit whilst he got your food.

You sat down at a table next to the front door and stared at Jason's back, watching as he talked to the cashier.

Even in times like this your mind still found ways to taunt you, making you think of all of your faults. You thought about Damian, how you wished he would apologize to you, at least acknowledge you.

You noticed Damians friends would give you snarky looks when you passed them in the halls, did Damian say stuff about you, or did he even know? The thought of your beloved twin brother saying things behind your back left a pit in your stomach, you've watched people die but the thought of Damian hating you left you with feelings of dread.

Jason slamming a tray onto the table brought you out of your thoughts, he smiled down at you as he placed your food in front of you. He himself finally sat in the chair across from you after placing his food down as well, he watched as you unwrapped your food before doing the same to his own.

As Jason ate his food you noticed a plastic bag, one that you knew didn't hold food. Now curious you picked it up, noting down that there was something hard inside. Your fingers worked at the plastic bag, attempting to open it. Once it was finally opened you took out the object inside, it was a figurine, it had a brown leather jacket and a Red Head.

"Is this you?" You whisper yelled to Jason, watching as a big smile overtook his face before nodding his head and taking another bite of his burger.

~☆~

After you and Jason got done eating you climbed back into the car and started your journey to the Manor. This time no music played as the two of you sat in a uncomfortable silence, you turned your head to eye Jason, watching his body as it breathed and how his eyes stared at the road.

As you looked at Jason you were tempted to ask where his scars came from, of course you know what he does, you yourself have a few from the work you did back at your home. Bruce and Dick even have a plethora of scars along their bodies, just like Tim who has a long noticeable scar along his forearm.

Jason broke the silence with a question. "So how's school?"

"Good." You lied, it would be much better with Damian.

"Any friends?" He asked hoping for an answer even though he had seen Penelope hug you as she left.

"Yeah, Reign and Penelope." You confessed, signing as you thought about the two of them.

"That's good." He hummed, liking the thought of you having friends.

"There's this girl in my theater class as well." You whispered, Jason perked up and let out a teasing "ohhh".

You let out a laugh before shaking your head "Not like that." You stated, staring out of the window next to you with a smile on your face.

The car fell back into silence as you and Jason collectively dropped the topic of school, your brain racked through topics that you thought would keep Jason talking, before landing on one.

"So what happened with Scarecrow?" You questioned, remembering about the case he, your other brothers, and your father worked on the last time you saw Jason.

"He just tweaked his fear gas." Jason sighed, thinking about how his weekend with the madman had gone.

You let out a hum to signify that you understood.

"Plus, I guess you'd also want to kill something if you thought it was after you." Jason humored, laughing to himself before abruptly shutting up and knitting his eyebrows.

The third silence of the evening filtered back into the car, wrapping its hands around your throat as it did so. This time Jason was trying to grasp onto a topic that would fill in the empty spaces around the two of you.

Jason's mouth moved faster than his brain as the one question he wanted to ask you briefly came to mind.

"Whats wrong?" He asked, like he could see through you and into your thoughts.

The question caught you off guard as it came from him, and your eyes widened as you stared at the side of his face. Your brain came rushing with answers to give him, should you lie and say you're fine, or should you finally tell someone about how you feel?

...

"I don't know, I just feel like I'm not" you paused looking for the right word "good?"

Jason's face portrayed Suprise as you finally answered him, he stayed quiet trying to find the right words to say himself. Jason turned the car off as the two of you finally pulled into Wayne Manor, before the man next to you could even get out something to say you hurriedly reached for the door handle next to you and opened the door.

"Thank you for picking me up, and thank you for the food." You quickly told him, before shutting the door behind you and running into the Manor.

Jason pulled the car into the garage of the Manor, his brain thinking over what you said, he sees so much of himself in you it truly hurts him. Even if you just came into his life, you are his dear little sibling and he loves you, your pain brings him anguish.

~☆~

Bear with me guys. I'm not gonna lie when I got the idea for this series I was just gonna make it a short story about Damian and the reader's relationship deteriorating.

I hope this is a good filler to keep you guys happy!<3

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mssonepiece · 4 months

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You said you wanted one..

Satoru Gojo x Reader

Content~Fluff

From this poll.

You and Satoru have decided to take the next step in your relationship by moving in together. You've been dating for five years now, and after bringing it up so often you decided to shoot the bullet and ask Satoru if he really wanted to find a place to grow and start a family of your own. You were nervous asking him such a question at first but he agreed that you'd been dating so long that you might as well live together. Adding that it would be much easier to sleep in the same bed when you aren't having to travel to each others houses every night. It's been a serene few weeks breaking into the new house and creating new habits. Picking a house that suited both of your requirements was very stressful on you and finally being able to relax knowing all the furniture was in place, was everything that you needed with this move. With everything being in order, you and Satoru were able to spend days at home resting on the couch or in bed. The move has brought you together much closer than you've ever been. It felt like you didn't need anything else from life in this moment. However, Satoru walking past a pet store on his way from work couldn't help himself from getting pulled into the shop. He took his time browsing around all the fish, birds, dogs, and eventually cats that were in the back of the store. There's a range of colors to pick from of small kittens, they have to be at least 3 months old. Instantly Satoru knew that he had to bring one of these kittens home to you. He remembers how you mentioned loving animals and wanting a few of your own one day, which is only temping him to buy one more. A yellowish-orange kitten with a cream colored patch covering half of its face stretches up the glass as far at it can reach, catching Satoru attention. He can't help but let out an audible 'aw' at its actions, smiling brightly at the thoughts in his head. He takes a minute to watch all the kittens play before walking up to the staff to show them which cat he will be taking home.

You got home from working at your office job about an hour ago, deciding to unpack a few of the remaining boxes lying around the house to tidy up a bit. It’s an attempt at trying to keep yourself busy while waiting for Satoru to get home from a "hard" day of teaching, though after a while you notice it seems to be taking a little longer today than normal. It’s not long before you get tired of emptying boxes and opts for putting on a tv show to past the time instead. Half an hour later the click of the front doors lock and the footsteps of Satoru's boots pulls away your attention from the show you put on. "I'm home," He shouts in a sing-song tone. "and I got something for us!" Closing the door behind him and taking his time to take his shoes off. You lunge off the couch and walk through the living room/kitchen to where the main entrance of your newly shared home is.

"Hi baby. Whatchu get?" You try getting on your tippy-toes to look around his frontside. He was attempting to hide something in his jacket but wasn’t doing a very good job as he was revealing the surprise to anyone in front of him. Satoru giggles, doing his best to not just show the cute kitten he's got on his detour to his lover. "Hey!" dragging out the 'y' when he still doesn’t show you what he's hiding. "Show me already Satoru!" You grab onto his sleeve, starting a small tug of war with him and his arm. Finally you pull him to face your direction with all your might, all he says is a quick 'tada' before presenting the small orange kitten to you in his large hands. "Oh my god.." Your jaw drops for a moment. Before you can register what's going on you're grabbing the kitten out of Satoru's hands.

"Be careful!" He jokes.

"I know. Oh my god Toru. I can't believe this! I've literally been wanting an orange cat for so long!" The smile on your face is more than worth it to Satoru.

"The worker said that this was one of their favorite cats in the store and she's such a little cuddle bug." Satoru laughs at the employees words, enjoying the view of the new responsibility. "She was climbing all over me on the walk home. She's a cutie, just like you sweetie."

"Aww. Really? That's so cute!" Your smiling so hard its starting to hurt but your certain your already in love with this kitten Satoru got. "I love her!" Cuddling the kitten up to your face you feel her purring lightly. Satoru feels a rush of heat flow through him as he watches his girlfriend with the small animal. His smile is also starting to hurt his face but he doesn’t care.

"What should we name it?" Satoru grabs your waist and pulls you into him. He has the perfect view of his girl and his kitty.

"It! Satoru!" You pet the kitten comfortingly as if it understood Satoru's comment. He rolls his eyes, giggling at the face you make and taking the chance to pull you closer. "We should name her.. hmm" You look down at the kitten to see if it'll ignite any ideas in your brain. "How about-"

"How about we name it Suguru?" Satoru chuckles.

"Shut up. We aren't naming her Suguru." You roll your eyes which only making Satoru laugh larger. "We need to pick a cute name, not our dead best friends babe." He juts out his bottom lip. He looks so cute that it makes you laugh. Your laugh always makes Satoru's heart do cartwheels, it makes him feel lightheaded knowing that he's the one making you laugh or smile. He drops his head to your shoulder, nuzzling his face into your neck. The kitten puts its small paws on his face, causing another cute laugh from you. "Aww, you look so cute together." He smiles at your comment, bringing one hand up from your waist to pet the kitten. "Let's name her Honey. Because her furs the color of honey, and she's super sweet." There's no response, you only feel Satoru nod and his hair tickling you from in your neck. You're sure you haven't dropped the smile from your face since Satoru walked through the door. Who would have guess he would have gotten you the kitten you've been wanting to get yourself for years. You always put it off due to work, worried that you wouldn't be home enough to actually take care of a kitten. Now with Satoru around it will be much easier to raise an animal. His warm breath against your neck and collar bones is relaxing, and the view of him petting and admiring your new kitten is causing butterflies in your stomach. You let out a satisfied hum as it seems life could never be better than it is now. Finally moving in with your long-term boyfriend, having a beautiful home, a stable job, and now a new pet to top it off. It truly feels like you are starting a family with Satoru after all these years..

Would y'all be interested in a part 2?

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ahgasegotarmy116 · 5 months

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Seven Days to Fall Again | Wednesday | Jeon Jungkook

Inspired by the MV "Seven" by Jung Kook ft. Latto (obvi lol) Summary: Starting out fresh. Jungkook comes over to help you but he wants to be given a chance to show you his side. Pairing: Reader x Jungkook (almost exes to lovers lol) Word Count: 2.6k~ Warnings: A little bit of explicit language but that's pretty much it lol a/n: I wasn't sure how I was going to go about this one because he's Wednesday and oml this is my favorite look/scene but I hopefully did alright lol let me know what you think <3 Start from the beginning

Waking up just like I did yesterday I reach over to check for him on the other side of the bed again and groan in frustration. Most days he would be up and out of the house before I even woke up when we were still together so I don't know why I keep checking.

This was what I wanted though. I wanted peace and serenity, not watching and waiting in the silence for Jungkook to come home, just for him to barely acknowledge me. I wanted to live life on my own terms, so why am I still looking over my shoulder, expecting him to be there.

I get out of bed and look around to make sure I have all of our dirty clothes so I can get ready to go to the laundry room downstairs. Seeing as I haven't given him a chance to come and collect everything yet I should just wash his laundry along with mine, it's the least I could do.

I walk around my room one last time to see if I could find something like a rouge sock thrown somewhere but before I'm able to even look under the bed I hear a knock on the door.

Walking up to it and looking through the peep hole I see yet again to my displeasure Jungkook looking bright eyed and bushy tailed on the other side. "What is it this time?" I ask through the door, hoping I could find an excuse to send him away without having to face him this time.

"Today's Wednesday right?" he says, stating the obvious. "Yes. Your point?" I ask waiting for him to continue. "I thought I would help you do the laundry. Or do it myself if you would prefer, since some of my clothes are still mixed in with yours" he says, trailing off a bit at the end. "I got it. I'll call you when they're ready" I say and walk away, hoping that'll make him leave.

"Can I at least carry the basket for you?" he offers a bit louder, making sure I can still hear him. I wait a second or two to weigh the pros and cons of this to figure out if letting him help would be to my benefit.

Pro, I wouldn't have to go to the laundry room alone or carry the heavy basket downstairs. Con, Jungkook would be there. Pro, if that creepy guy is there like he always is then hopefully Jungkook's presence would be enough to keep him away. Con, Jungkook would assume that I need him there.

Before I'm able to come up with another sequence he knocks on the door softly again. "Noona please let me help you" he pleads quietly. He sounds so broken that my body moves on it's own before my brain can catch up and I end up opening the door and see his eyes light up immediately before I can even try to stop myself.

"Just carry the basket there and then you can leave" I say holding my hand up to stop any words he had planned to say to me. "Yes Noona" he says softly and trails after me to the bedroom, picking it up and walking towards the door again.

"Do you have everything you need?" he asks once we're about to head out, hoping to be helpful. "I'm pretty sure I do" I say looking through the bag that I always have set aside with all of the products I'll need. "Did you grab the fabric softener?" he asks, sporting a slight pout knowing that I've sometimes forgotten it.

Huff in annoyance seeing that I have done just as he had thought, knowing me well enough to still remind me like he used to. "I'll go get it!" he says, placing the basket down next to me and running into the bathroom to grab it. I roll my eyes and lean up against the door, waiting until he runs back up to me with a bright smile.

"Got it!" he says placing it into the basket for him to carry instead of giving it to me. "Let's go" I say in a monotone voice, trying to sound as unamused as I can so I can keep myself from smiling at him. I'm still in love with him as much as I hate to admit it but they say if you really love someone then you should let them go.

This boy on the other hand refuses to 'let go' since he sticks to me like glue, following my every move no matter what I say.

"Jungkook stop" I say while going up to one of the washers, putting some of the dark clothes in. "What?" he asks, feigning innocence. "I told you to leave after you carried the basket down for me". He makes no moves in response to what I've said as he is still perched up on top of one of the dryers. Legs dangling down, looking comfortable as ever he shamelessly checks me out and does so even once I've turned around to face him.

"So?" he asks clearing his throat after he's noticed how long the pause in our conversation had been, finally noticing that he's expected to respond. "So why are you still here?" I ask grabbing the empty basket and going back to continue separating the rest of our clothes.

"I said I wanted to help" he says while jumping down from the dryer and following after me. "And I told you that I didn't need your help" I say focusing on the task at hand. "Well either way I'm gonna stay" he says and starts to help, making me throw down the shirt I was holding.

"I told you that you had to leave after you carried this down here and you agreed" I say starting to get impatient with him. "I changed my mind when I saw that old man hanging out outside. Has he ever bothered you before?" he asks quietly, trying to avoid confrontation before knowing all the facts.

"Yes he has but that doesn't concern you anymore" I say walking around the table, trying to end the conversation but he continues to follow me nonetheless.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asks, getting upset that I let myself go through that on my own. "Because you were never around to tell" I say, starting to raise my voice. "Baby please" he say trying to calm me down while unknowingly doing the opposite. "You do not get to call me that" I say sternly backing away from him. "I'm sorry, can we just talk about this?" he asks taking a step closer.

"I told you I don't want to talk to you. We're done!" I state and grab some more clothes to throw in another washer. He still watches my every move and waits for me this time instead to come back towards him. He walks up to me and opens his mouth to say something once I get closer but I have to cut him off since I can feel my determination to tell him 'no' faltering. As much as I would like to say 'yes' to him, we're just not compatible.

"I really don't have time for this Jungkook so can you please just leave?" I plead, this time going at it with a different approach. "You keep on saying that we've talked about why we should break up but you never really gave me a chance to tell you what I thought and why we shouldn't break up" he explains, showing me some sense of maturity that I had forgotten he had.

"Just please let me fix things, I want to fix us. I promise I can change" he begs, flipping a switch in my brain. There we go, there's that sad excuse for an apology and a horrible way to start off this sort of conversation.

"You know you've said that before right? When we had this same sort of talk about our relationship six months ago. You told me 'oh I'll stop bringing work home' and 'oh I'll make sure not to come home late'. See where that's landed us again? Our lives are not progressing or changing for the better. We're just going round and round until we get to this point again where I can't deal with it anymore. No, I'm done" I say and walk away from the table to get away from him.

"Noona please I jus-" "Stop following me!" I say while shoving him away, catching him somewhat off guard. He stumbles back a bit and ends up stepping on the hose to one of the washers, ripping it out of the wall and making water spill out all over the floor. "Shit!" he says and quickly looks around for any sort of tap he could use to stop the flow.

I roll my eyes at him and walk up to the exact one he's looking for and turn the water off on my own. He looks over at me with a somewhat guilty expression, "I'll go um, tell the landlord what happened" he says scratching the back of his head awkwardly and makes his way over to the office with his tail in between his legs.

I decide to just head back up to my apartment and come back to switch over the clothes later so I can get dressed and hopefully gain some more distance between Jungkook and I. If he doesn't find me in the laundry room then he would just leave right?

My theory is proven wrong though when I hear yet again another knock at the door soon after I've gotten ready for the day.

"What?" I ask opening the door, not even bothering to check to see who it is. I look down at his clothes, seeing that both his white shirt and grey zip up are soaked through. I gulp when I see how the shirt clings to him and shows a hint of what he's hiding underneath but I quickly flick my gaze back up to his.

"Do you think I could come in and change and well, maybe take a shower too?" he asks brushing some of his equally wet hair out of his face.

"What happened to you?" I question, surprised as to how he could've gotten that wet. "I tried to help the landlord fix the washer but when he tried to turn the water back on it started pouring out all over again and because I was crouched down in front of it, it just..." he explains, dropping off at the end and motions at his wet clothing.

I stand there for another second or two and drink him in. Not having seen a sight like this from him in a while it brings up old memories of nights we spent together and I ju- "So...can I come in?" he asks, cutting off my train of thought with a little lilt in his voice from clearly noticing what I was doing.

"I- um- yeah do whatever you need to do" I say opening the door wide for him and he walks in, stopping right next to me to take his shoes off. He slips a bit when he steps out of one of them and I on instinct pull him towards me to keep him from falling leaving his hands planted on the wall above my head and his body looming over me.

"Noona" he says in a deep voice causing a jolt of electricity to run through my body. "Huh?" I let out while looking up at him, not being able to formulate any words with this sort of proximity held between us.

"Are you gonna let go?" he asks and I look to see the iron grip I have on his jacket on a spot that is right in front of his peck and I can now notice the rising and falling of his chest against my hand. "Oh" I say surprised at what I had done and let go of him quickly and duck out from under his arm, creating some space between us and going to the kitchen to make breakfast.

"Have you eaten yet?" I ask busing myself with getting some ingredients together. "No" he answers and follows right behind me. "Go take a shower or whatever and I'll have some food waiting for you when you get out" I say and start cutting up some fruit.

I look up for a second since I haven't heard a sound after I had said that and see him just leaning up against the doorway gazing at me longingly. "What are you doing?" I ask raising a brow at him. "Just admiring you" he says with a soft smile. "Jeon Jungkook you better take those wet clothes off and go take a shower or I'll throw you out right now" I say pointing the knife at him.

He holds both of his hands up and backs away, giving me a crooked smile and chuckles as he makes his way down the hall. "Yes Noona" he says and the next sound I hear is the door to the bathroom closing behind him.

~~~~~~

After Jungkook comes out of the shower he sits down to eat and looks up at me confused. "You're not gonna eat?" he questions taking a bite of the toast I gave him and taking a sip of orange juice. "I ate while you were in the shower" I say as I start to clean up and put the dishes in the dishwasher.

"Leave that there I can take care of it later" he tells me instead of offering. "You really just don't know when to quit do you?" I say and continue to scrub the cutting board so I can take some of my physical frustration out on something. "What do you mean?" he questions with a tilt of his head looking almost clueless which is even more infuriating.

"Just because I let you take a shower and made you breakfast does not mean that you get to tell me what to do. This is one of the reasons why I wanted to break up because the way you speak to me, although it might sound like something small to you, makes me feel like you're belittling me" I explain after having taken a second to gather my thoughts.

"I was just trying to help" he says looking down at his plate and not bothering to take another bite. "I know, believe me I do, but the way you say things can sound so commanding and I hate it. I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself so please just stop" I finish and dry my hands off after finishing up the dishes.

"You can just put your dishes in the sink when you're done and lock the door on your way out. I've gotta go study" I say walking back into my bedroom and closing the door behind me. I hear him leave soon after that but I can't bother to get up and check to make sure he's actually gone.

This somehow was more painful than it was when I broke up with him. It was like we were back to how we used to be, doing the laundry, taking a shower, making breakfast, the mundane things in life. But the whole thing was tainted by the present and the choices we had made in the past led us to where we are today and I just want it all to stop.

I can't live like this anymore. I won't.

Tuesday / Thursday

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forsssnaken · 5 months

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Aziraphale's Literary Discovery

Important note: I am no longer writing stuff like this. It was a nice way for me to be happy while in a rather precarious mental state, but I no longer enjoy it all the same way I once did. I'm keeping it up as it was a gift, and there are still people who may enjoy it, but I am unhappy with my writing how it was in this fic, and I don't enjoy writing this stuff anymore. I still write good omens fanfics now, if you want to give me a chance there.

THIS. IS. A. TICKLING. FIC. COMPLETELY. SFW.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS @practickles!!! I am your squealing santa this year :)) I hope this is everything you hoped for and more!! (and now i can follow you without being worried that i'll blow my cover lol)

@squealing-santa

screw canon(/j), they are happy together and have tickles.

switch!aziraphale, switch!crowley.

cw: light mentions of alcohol/sobering up magically, cursing (because it's Crowley), using a miracle to pin someone that could be read as invisible bondage.

Aziraphale turned a page in his book, but wasn't really reading anymore. This had been happening more and more often: he would stop reading just to think about the demon who was currently asleep on his couch.

Aziraphale and Crowley had finished off some good wine last night, and instead of sobering up, Crowley had decided to sleep it off on the bookshop's couch. The angel had sobered up, reading all through the night with the occasional glance to the demon's sleeping form.

Honestly, Aziraphale prefers Crowley awake. He loves the demon's antics and being able to spend time together (although the serenity and calmness radiating off the demon's lanky form was delightful). He didn't technically need to breathe, but he did -- soft deep breaths that were almost soft snores.

Aziraphale quickly snapped himself out of the trance he had been in, staring at his friend(?), and glancing back at the book. It was a sweet romcom, one that left Aziraphale feeling giddy and with butterflies in his stomach. The couple in his book were playful, and in the current scene, were poking each other and giggling. This was a fascinating idea that humans called "tickling", which led to supposedly uncontrollable laughter and seemed like a sweet bonding exercise.

Something clicked in his mind and he looked back at Crowley asleep on the couch, limbs splayed out haphazardly. His tight-fitting shirt had risen a little, leaving a sliver of the pale skin of his lower stomach on display. Aziraphale gasped excitedly, looking back at his book where the tickle fight was happening. Supposedly, even small touches could lead to ticklish sensations!

He stood up, beginning to creep over to the sleeping figure, before realizing that Crowley could sleep through almost anything and walking over normally. The angel stared at him with wide eyes, glancing back and forth between his calm face and the sliver of exposed stomach. He tentatively reached out a finger, poking Crowley's abdomen.

There was a faint reaction, a small breath hitching in between small snores and Crowley squirmed a bit. Was Crowley ticklish?! How silly! How human! What a delightful discovery! He giddily clapped, then began tracing the sliver of exposed skin. Crowley huffed, squirmed, and scrunched up his nose a bit, before rolling over and crossing his arms over his stomach.

Aziraphale was ecstatic at his findings, and couldn't wait to enact something rather devious (by his standards)!

A few days later, he woke a grumpy Crowley up from his nap (and if Crowley became less grumpy when he noticed that he was covered in a cozy blanket, the angel didn't need to know). Aziraphale had a mission: go on a date -- a Friend Date (he told himself, at least) -- and bring up tickling to him! The angel had an innate need to tickle Crowley now, see his presumably adorable reactions, and have the physical contact that the angel began to crave.

"Come on, Crowley!" Aziraphale grinned, pulling the demon into a seated position by his hand.

Crowley grumbled, "For what?"

Crowley seemed entirely uninterested, but in truth, he loved spending time with Aziraphale and would do anything if Aziraphale truly wanted to spend time with him.

"A picnic!" Aziraphale gestured to a wicker basket stocked full of goodies.

Crowley rolled his eyes (but was truly content with this plan), put his shoes on, and drove them to a gorgeous woodsy park. When they had found their own spot, Aziraphale spread out a blanket on the grass, sat down, and began unpacking some small sandwiches and poured them both a glass of wine.

"Not so much now, my dear boy," He handed Crowley the wine, "I'd like you awake for a little while. It's dreadfully boring being all alone and reading by myself!"

He got nothing but a grunt in return, but everything was perfect, so Aziraphale continued on with his ramblings.

In between bites of his sandwiches, he told Crowley all about the books he had been reading, but especially about the lovely rom-com he had just read.

"They had such a lovely relationship! Human love just excites me so much! They do so many sweet things together, not unlike us!"

"Ngk-" Crowley choked slightly on his wine and turned a bit pink, but Aziraphale didn't seem to notice.

"They certainly touched a lot more than we do, though, Crowley!" The angel pouted.

Crowley shrugged, "We're not having sex."

"Crowley!" Aziraphale's mouth gaped as he gasped, smacking the demon softly on his leg, "Don't say that! They touched plenty without sexual implications!"

Crowley sipped his wine, not needing to respond.

"They cuddled, and kissed, and even- well," Aziraphale cut himself off, suddenly a bit embarrassed.

This now intrigued Crowley, who sat up a bit, and looked at Aziraphale, scooting closer so they were side by side.

He teased Aziraphale, "Oh? Was it sexual then? You realized I was right and you were wrong?"

Aziraphale huffed indignantly, "No! I'm just not sure if you even know what it is!"

Oh, Crowley was so up for a challenge. "I'm sure I would! I know much more about humans than you do."

Aziraphale leaned closer, grinning and placing a hand on the blanket behind Crowley, so they were almost touching. "Oh really?"

Crowley smirked and nodded, taking his sunglasses off and stowing them safely in the picnic basket, so he could look at Aziraphale in the eyes to show him how serious he was.

"Yes, they were tickling each other!" Aziraphale grinned, hoping that Crowley wouldn't know about tickling, so he could teach him.

"Oh, that? How would I not know about that?" Crowley didn't let anything slip, so Aziraphale thought it might be possible that he just didn't know.

"Yes, I think that's quite intimate," Aziraphale reached out and placed a hand on Crowley's knee, "it seems sweet to me!"

Crowley grumbled, avoiding eye contact awkwardly. "What, is this your way of asking me to tickle you?"

Aziraphale stammered, protesting quickly, "Why would I want that?!"

Now it was Crowley's turn to look offended, "There's nothing wrong with wanting that!"

Aziraphale was now slightly grumpy; this wasn't how it was supposed to go!

Crowley had that devilish (albeit attractive) grin across his face, placing a hand on Aziraphale's side.

"This wasn't how this was supposed to goHO-" Aziraphale smacked a hand over his mouth, eyes wide.

Crowley, that evil, evil demon, had squeezed Aziraphale's side! What a terrible thing for his corperal form to feel! Aziraphale, in all his planning, could not have anticipated this!

A small smirk crept across Crowley's face as he put the other hand on Aziraphale's clothed side and squeezed a few times in a row.

Aziraphale's hands flew down from his mouth to his sides, weakly pushing at Crowley's hands as he laughed heartily. His smile was beautiful. It was, well, angelic.

Crowley was right. Aziraphale thought this was quite nice. He hadn't laughed this hard in a while, and seeing Crowley's enjoyment of his reactions was amazing!

Crowley smiled widely, skittering his nimble fingers along Aziraphale's gorgeous plush stomach, before refocusing his attention on Aziraphale's thighs. Aziraphale's magnificently scrumptious thighs, currently busy with Aziraphale's frantically kicking feet. Crowley stopped, giving Aziraphale a small break, before placing his hands on those delightful thighs.

Aziraphale was not worried in the slightest; he had never heard of someone's thighs being ticklish, just the usual suspects like the upper body, feet, neck, and hips. But thighs? That seemed silly... until Crowley started squeezing them.

Aziraphale barked out a laugh, falling gently on his back as he was unable to hold himself sitting up. He made noises that were so embarrassing: he even squealed! Crowley was unwavering in his ticklish squeezing, grinning broadly. Aziraphale was laughing harder than he ever had, his head shaking back and forth as he laughed frantically, beginning to push at Crowley's hands again. This was Crowley's cue to slow down, and he moved his hands back up to the angel's stomach to gently trace shapes as Aziraphale recovered.

"Y- you're evil!" Aziraphale gasped, still giggling.

"I'm a demon, that's kind of the whole point," Crowley deadpanned, although unable to wipe the smile off his face.

Aziraphale caught his breath, then grabbed Crowley's hands. Crowley's eyes widened slightly, but he tried to play it off, scoffing.

Aziraphale sat up quickly, pushing Crowley onto his back and pinning him there with shocking strength. Crowley looked at him confused and began squirming awkwardly. Aziraphale had fully sat on his hips, pinning his arms above his head as he leaned over the demon, their faces quite close together.

"What? How did you-" Crowley stammered, baffled by Aziraphale's strength, "What are you doing?"

Aziraphale grinned, excited to give Crowley all the exposition of his plan. "When I was reading that book, I tried tickling you, when you were asleep. I poked you, and you reacted! I have to try it again!"

Crowley blushed a bit, before retorting, "Angel, anyone would react to being poked. I'm not ticklish, I'm a demon. Being ticklish is all- cute and innocent. I'm neither of those things."

"I beg to differ," Aziraphale grinned, slipping his warm hand under Crowley's tight shirt, beginning to trace circles on Crowley's stomach.

Crowley's brain short circuted. Not only was the angel on top of him, but he was touching Crowley more intimately than they'd ever touched. And Crowley did feel something -- was that being ticklish?

Crowley squirmed, averting his eyes from Aziraphale's as he clamped his mouth shut.

Aziraphale, ever so oblivious, was slightly upset that it didn't really effect Crowley like it did when he was asleep. Maybe he was controlling his reactions? Maybe he truly was right and wasn't ticklish!

Aziraphale huffed, "You really reacted the other day, I promise!"

Crowley was trying his best to not react, his serpentine eyes flicking towards Aziraphale's well-manicured hand, still tracing under his shirt.

"Ngk- just give it a rest, angel!" Crowley sputtered, feeling giggles (Yes, giggles! Demons aren't supposed to giggle!) bubbling up in his chest.

Aziraphale was starting to feel a bit hopeless; he thought it would have been incredibly endearing if Crowley was ticklish. The demon barely smiled (not counting his mischievous smirks), and Aziraphale would love to hear him laugh, truly laugh, for the first time in years. Aziraphale pouted and decided to give it one last go.

He poked Crowley in the side.

Crowley gasped, jumped, and made awkward eye contact with the angel on top of him.

Aziraphale, on the other hand, was ecstatic! A giddy smile broke across his face.

"No, angel, no. I was just startled-" Crowley said quickly, squirming.

"Oh my dear Crowley, my dear silly demon..." Aziraphale grinned.

"No angel I-" Crowley couldn't focus on being called Aziraphale's, due to the imminent danger of him being tickled.

Much to his dismay, Aziraphale began ruthlessly skittering his fingers over Crowley's stomach and sides. Damn his fashionable outfits! The shirt he was wearing was incredibly thin and did nothing to protect him from the angel's attack.

Crowley tried to keep his mouth shut and hide his reactions, but his attempts were futile. He burst out into loud laughter and squirmed as much as he could (which wasn't much). It made sense why tickling was used as a torture method in the past; he would have given up any secret that Aziraphale could ask for in this moment! Although, there was something nice about it: the intimacy, the giddy feeling, and Aziraphale's touch gave him a rush of happiness.

"Why are you laughing, my dear boy? Thought of something devious? Scheming?" Aziraphale laughed along with Crowley -- for such a supposedly evil being, he sure had a contagious laugh -- and scribbled his fingers even faster. "Or are you just... ticklish?"

And if Crowley's cheeks turned an even deeper shade of pink, he hoped Aziraphale didn't notice.

"You're- teasing- me!" He sputtered indignantly, through bright, happy laughter.

Aziraphale paused, pretending to look offended, "No I'm not! I'm simply asking questions to figure out why you're laughing so much!"

In the midst of talking, he wasn't paying attention to what his hands were doing. His hands moved down to the hem of Crowley's shirt, causing the demon to jump, eyes wide.

Aziraphale's eyebrow raised quickly, "Oh?"

Crowley shook his head, stammering "No," and tugging on his hands.

As both of them knew, although the angel's corporeal form was strong, Crowley could easily have gotten his arms free by non-human means. Maybe he just didn't want to.

The most devilish grin to ever cross an angels face suddenly appeared on Aziraphale's. He let go of Crowley's arms, but not before preforming a miracle that kept his arms trapped in place, taut above his head.

Crowley's snake-like eyes grew wider as he tugged frantically on his arms, beginning to giggle nervously. His whole 'bad boy' persona was completely gone now, and he was quite enjoying this (though he'd never admit such a silly thing).

"Oh Crowley," Aziraphale teased, wiggling his fingers at the squirming demon, "are you prepared for your demise?"

That shut Crowley up.

Until Aziraphale did something truly evil. Something so evil that even the higher-ups in Hell couldn't dream of. He repeatedly squeezed Crowley's hips.

Crowley made the most embarrassing noise possible -- he squealed.

"AAAAZiraphale!!!" He laughed, wiggling as much as possible, "YOU BASSSSTARD!!"

Curse that stupid hissing. Usually he was able to disguise it, whenever Aziraphale caught him off guard with accidental(?) flirting or made a silly joke that a big bad demon like himself shouldn't laugh at. Speaking of laughing, Crowley was laughing more than he ever had in his life.

And it felt amazing. Having his angel so close to him in such an intimate way, literally on top of him. He was able to let his guard down.

The angel gasped, "What did you just call me, my dear boy?!"

Aziraphale skittered his fingers around Crowley's stomach and sides, relishing in the rare and genuine laughter.

Luckily, although neither of them could be sure if it was intentional or not, Aziraphale's miracle that pinned Crowley's hand was slowly faltering. Crowley didn't realize (he was laughing too hard to think about much) until his arms subconsciously snapped down to grab at Aziraphale's hands.

Aziraphale paused his attack, concerned about his friend(?). Crowley looked at him, as his leftover giggles became slightly more devious.

Crowley latched his clawed hands onto Aziraphale's clothed sides and rapidly squeezed, disrupting the power that Aziraphale had held over him, and toppling them both over onto their sides, facing each other.

Aziraphale tickled Crowley back, angelic giggles pouring out of his mouth.

"You- you're such a demon!" He exclaimed through loud laughter.

Crowley nodded, squirming closer to Aziraphale as they tickled each other.

They were practically cuddling as their fingers slowed to tracing each other's abdomens, softly giggling.

Aziraphale stared into Crowley's gorgeous auburn eyes and was struck with a sense of overwhelming love.

Crowley's smile was wider than it should have been from leftover giggles as he watched the angel and his smile and gorgeous face. As if God Herself had heard his thoughts, sunlight struck the angel's face in a certain way where he looked like he was glowing (although he may have been radiating an otherworldly glow from overwhelming happiness).

They stayed there for a while, in each others arms, staring lovingly into each other's eyes.

If you made it this far, thank you. Reblogs help writers and artists on tumblr a lot, so consider reblogging if you enjoyed <3. If you'd like, send me an ask if you want to talk about anything (related or unrelated to this fic), as it motivates me to write more.

#god is an ineffable husbands shipper fr #ss2k23 #squealing santa #squealing santa 2k23 #ticklish!aziraphale #switch!aziraphale #lee!aziraphale #ler!aziraphale #ticklish!crowley #switch!crowley #lee!crowley #ler!crowley #good omens tickling #good omens tickle fic

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fanta2y · 3 months

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Inherently Worthy Pt.Three

FINALLY ITS DONE HOLY SHIT.

I dont know how I feel about it, I think i like it? but i mainly hope you guys like it.

cw: talk of self-worth issues, some description of blood and gore.

word count: 2.4k

part four

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Your recovery had been smooth sailing. Being told by a very stern and scary Shoko that you weren’t allowed on any missions, especially solo ones, for at least a month. And then after that, you could only go on missions with low-grade curses.

You were embarrassed to say the least, being stripped of your strength so easily. Forced to lay in bed all day, do minimal training so not to push yourself. You felt so weak, so coddled. It made you want the Earth to swallow you whole and never spit you out.

The missions you were scheduled for were a little bit insulting to say the least, low class curses that could easily be exercised by first years were the only thing Sukuna allowed you to do. And it was always him that escorted you, he declined any and all solo missions just to be sure his schedule was cleared for you.

It made the guilt increase tenfold, it ate away at you. Every night before bed you stared at the ceiling, sleep eluding you as you wondered and wondered.

Everytime you closed your eyes you were met with the image of Sukuna crying, not eating, sitting by your bedside as you rested blissfully unaware of the pain you were causing. Just because you were too weak, too cocky, to exercise a stupid curse.

The resentment, the annoyance, he must feel. Having to practically babysit you day in and day out. It irritated you that it was always him, there were plenty of other sorcerers who could accompany you. You were sure that he would much rather be off doing his own solo missions, earning the money you know he needs to take care of himself and his younger brother.

Many nights you simply couldn’t sleep, you would find yourself pacing your room as the thoughts consumed you. You wanted to free him of you, since all you were doing was weighing him down.

No matter how much you enjoyed his constant company and warmth, he would help you and guide you. Making sure you weren’t pushing yourself too hard and that your recovery was going smoothly.

In any other circumstance, you might even think that he felt the same way. With the way he hovered over you, had cooked for you, even carried you home that one time on a mission where you twisted your ankle. No matter how many times you assured him you could walk just fine on your own, he insisted on carrying you all the way back. Not even thinking of letting you go until you were seated on the edge of your bed.

It made your cheeks flush whenever you thought to hard about it, you were sure you saw a warm small smile on his lips as he took your shoes off. Gently rubbing the bruising skin on your ankle.

But it was probably just a trick of the light. Had to of been. Too tired and your mind too muddled to properly process what was right in front of you.

It was after that night that you had made the executive decision to avoid him.

Every time you saw him in the halls, you would quickly move past him or simply turn the other way. You began training alone again, opting to do it within the hours when you knew he wouldn’t be awake or around. You were determined to show him that you were fine and that he was able to get back to his own life guilt-free. He didn’t need to pity you any longer.

You currently found yourself sitting outside, just finished up an easy training session with some of the other second years. You could tell they were still going a bit easy on you, and it was probably for the best. Not that it didn’t still bruise your healing ego.

Eyes closed, face leaned up towards the sun high in the sky. Soaking up the rays with an easy smile on your face. You stayed like this for a while, listening to the trees swaying in the wind, the birds chirping peacefully above you. It all felt serene, you could almost let your worries fly away for a moment.

Until a shadow moved over your face, you peeked one eye open and saw the last face you wanted to see.

Ryo.

At seeing it was him, you shut your eyes again. Humming noncommittally to his presence, hoping that if you didn’t entertain him that he would get bored and leave you alone. You didn’t really want to get up from this spot.

“What have you been up too?” He asks, a certain strain to his voice that you wouldn’t let yourself think to much about.

If you truly wanted him to be free of you, than you had to detach yourself as well. No matter how much effort it took you to swallow down the question of what was wrong. No matter how much you wanted to simply tug him down next to you like you would have done before.

But this was better, this was what he deserved.

He deserved someone better than you.

You willed yourself not to wince outwardly at your own thoughts, “Training, resting, you know the usual.” You replied, hoping to sound bored.

He sighed, and you could hear his eyebrows pinching together from where you sat. Didn’t even have to open your eyes to vividly imagine the look on his face, the emotions in his eyes.

Everyone else thought he was a tough cookie to crack, a hard person to read. But you never understood that, his emotions always showed on his face. And if not there, then you just had to look in his eyes. And in those pools of red, you would find them swirling around in the colors and flecks of gold.

You were always able to tell what he was feeling, how he was doing. You figured no one else looked hard enough to see him like you did.

The shadow moved from your face, the sun pouring down on your skin once again. You had released a deep sigh at his departure, but then you felt his presence shift next to you.

He had sat down, leaning on the very same tree you were. Your shoulders brushed together, and It had been almost a week since you guys had said more than 3 words to each other. Let alone been this close.

You almost recoiled at the shock that ran down your arm, the goosebumps that erupted along your skin.

You felt pathetic.

“Are yo-..”

“Im fine.”

This time you did recoil, you cut him off with harsh words. The irritation you felt at your own patheticness spilled out onto him. Yet again pushing your issues and making them his.

You wanted to scream.

“What is your problem?” He asked, the anger he felt bubbling in his own stomach showing. Sukuna was always a blunt person, never had a problem telling people off when they made him angry. He always had the fire power to back up what he was saying, so he never saw a problem with it.

“I dont have one.” You kept your eyes shut, hoping to force down the annoyance you felt. God, does he not take a hint? You were trying so hard to just push him away and he was making it the most difficult task on planet earth.

He scoffed, “Clearly.” If your eyes were open, you would be rolling them. You and Sukuna had always got into little spats before, your kind nature and his lack there of tended to butt heads more times than not. But you both had never been mean to eachother, not intentionally. You knew Sukuna was blunt, but never harsh. Not unless it was true.

“What do you want from me, Sukuna?” Your voice was cold, and his last name felt foreign on your lips.

You felt him freeze next to you, clearly not expecting your words. Before you could even regret what you had said. He left without another word. You heard his stomping feet, betraying his anger, as he became further and further away from you.

The hot tears pricked at your eyes, guilt and regret pooling through you. You couldn’t even make up your mind, him hating you made things so much easier. He didn’t have to hide behind pity and obligation to take care of you.

Then why did it hurt so much?

Why could you feel your heart shattering into sharp edges, cutting through your lungs and up your throat. Making each shaky breath feel like nails scrapping down your insides. You could almost convince yourself that you tasted blood as it pooled in your mouth, but you knew it wasn’t there. It should’ve been. Maybe it would be a proper punishment for all your failures.

–

You are sitting on your desk, papers strewn about as you attempt to finish the work that Gojo had assigned. Some stupid essay on techniques or whatever. You knew he didn’t actually grade them, and you were pretty sure you were the only one that did them. But the perfectionist in you that preened at the praise couldn’t stop yourself from pouring in hours of your time.

Typing away idly at the computer, flipping through books and articles. You heard a harsh knock on your door before you could even really respond, the door was forced open.

Your head whips back to catch view of your intruder, and at the sight of bubblegum pink hair, you felt your heart sink into the depths. You attempted to school your reaction, return your pristine poker face that you had been attempting to prefect in his presence.

The door slammed shut behind him, and despite your best efforts you felt your body flinch. Tensing muscles curling in tight on yourself, you looked up at him with the best glare you could muster.

~His eyes softened at the display, he intentionally softened his movements. Quelling his anger if it mean’t you wouldn’t be scared of him.~

“You’ve been avoiding me.”

At that statement, your eyes flittered from his face to the hands in your lap. You tried to get yourself together and put on the show you’ve been performing for weeks at this point.

“I haven’t.” You kept your words short, knowing that if you talked for long enough you would just spill all of your secrets. Everything you had shoved deep into a box, only letting the emotions that had formed and shifted into thick tar that coated your mind, only letting it show in the darkest of nights. That was for your eyes only.

In the moment of your unfocus, you didn’t realize how close he had gotten. Quickly swirling your chair around to face him, a yelp of surprise leaving your lips. His arms caging you into the chair you were sitting in, his face mere inches from yours.

You could feel his breath billowing over your face, his fingers curled around your chin. Forcing your eyes to meet his, wide with shock as the pink dusted your cheeks. The proximity of your bodies getting to your head. His eyes were calculating, searching. He was searching your face for something, you couldn’t tell if he found it or not.

“You have.” His voice was softer, lower. It sent shivers down your spine to hear it so close, you were stunned into silence. Trying not to choke on your own saliva.

“Suku-”

“Not my name.”

You were attempting to force down the blush that was crawling up your neck, turning the tips of your ears a shade of pink. A sigh bubbling past your lips, fighting with yourself on your next move. You had always called him Ryo, ever since he gave you his first name. The nickname had rolled off the tongue, and when you first said it you weren’t met with a fist in your face. So you considered that a win all on its own.

Ever since this whole “distance” thing, you had opted to call him Sukuna. This first time you did it, in the training field. He stormed away, clearly upset at the distance he didn’t understand. His anger confused you, but you figured that if you wanted this to work then trying to figure him out wasn’t your job anymore.

His last name leaving your mouth had always left a lingering bad taste, it felt wrong in every sense of the word. And you could tell that every time it graced his ears coming from your lips, his scowl deepened and he rarely gave you a response. Not that you were speaking to him directly much these days anyway.

“Ryo.” You whispered, eyes wanting to look anywhere but his. Darting around the walls behind him, even focusing on a piece of dishelved hair. Your fingers itched to put it back in place, to run your fingers through the surprisingly soft locks.

He hummed at his name, a small smile gracing his features.

“What’s been going?” His voice still that soft timbre that made your bones feel like jelly beneath your skin. His eyes filled with so much care, so much worry.

You felt the low voice in the back of your mind, the one you had been entertaining more and more these past few weeks, “It’s pity.” It says, its voice like tendrils curling around your mind.

“He could never love someone like you.” It reminded you, like it had every moment since that fateful day. Since that wretched curse sunk its filthy claws into you. It almost felt like it had left a piece of it with you, taking refuge in your mind. Plaguing you with thoughts of your own uselessness.

But you knew that the voice had always been there, always reminding you to go that extra mile in training. To do that extra set, to take on that extra mission. To ask Gojo for private training sessions every weekend, leaving you with no rest.

It had just gotten louder, and you had started listening again.

You attempted to push him away, trying to pull the seat out of his strong grip. But of course, you were too weak. He was stronger than you, always had been always will be.

It was the pitiful show of strength. Him speaking to you soft and sweet, which in any other circumstances would have made you spill. It almost had.

This time, it filled you with frustration and anger. You wanted to bite and claw and tear, you wanted to feel your nails sink into flesh and feel the warm blood pool through your fingers. Even just to prove that you could, that you were strong enough.

But instead, all that anger, all those boiling and bubbling emotions poured into one statement.

“Stop pretending like you care."

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tag lists: @moonmalice (if anyone else wants to be added then just comment!)

authors note: OMGGG THINGS ARE GETTING TENSEEE. I wanted to characterize this Sukuna as also being a bit confused about his feelings for you, but after that moment by the tree, he figures it out. which is what prompts him to come find you in your dorm ;) but yeah, i hope you guys enjoyyyy, im thinking of doing like 2 MAYBE 3 more parts depending on how it writes. yeah thank you for readinggg!! much love <333

#sukuna ryomen #ryomen sukuna #sukuna x reader #ryomen sukuna x reader #jujustu kaisen #jjk #jujustu kaisen x reader #x reader #jjk x reader #angst #sukuna angst #sukuna fanfiction #sukuna ryomen fanfiction #jujustu kaisen fanfiction #multipart fanfiction #thank you for readinggg #hope you enjoy <3

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laceswan · 1 year

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The Green-Eyed Prince

The Smiling Princess pt. 2

Finnick Odair x fem!dancer!OC

What if the equivalent of a Disney Princess was thrown into the Hunger Games? Sylke is optimistic and has an affinity for all that is gentle and sweet. What happens when she is placed in an arena and forced to kill or be killed?

fluff, angst, strangers to lovers, canon typical violence (death, blood, mentions of torture and gore), aprox. 7.8k words

Part three is out!

The morning was a blur. All that Sylke remembered was the cold, the steel. There was a firm grip on her arm or her shoulder, guiding her through the capitol throughout, from the apartment to a plane to somewhere she couldn’t quite identify. Everything about that day was cold and clinical, metallic. She would look over to Cesare every now and then, and each time saw a small smirk, like all of this was standard procedure for him. He wasn’t nervous. Neither was she, not very much anyway. There would always be some level of anxiety in this situation, but it was overpowered in the calm of knowing that she knew exactly what was to come, a luxury that no other tribute had. She knew he would find her, she knew he would be fast, she knew that her final moments would be with him, and she was satisfied with such an ending. It wouldn’t be perfect, for nothing ever truly is, but it would be enough.

She was with her stylist somewhere underground. Just as every other room that day, this one was cold, this time pale in its clinical tile walls and steel racks. The uniform she was given was light, smooth, like the nylon she would wear to rehearsals. It was by far the simplest ensemble presented to her in a while. She had enjoyed the lavish and ornate satins and tulles of capitol fashion. At least I got to enjoy it for so long She thought to herself as she was brought to a circular plinth. Soon, she was encased in glass and moved upward.

Sunlight was harsh and with so few clouds in the sky, it would no doubt be like that for a bit. She brought her gaze down from the sky to see that all of the tributes were arranged on their plinths in a circle, around what she took to be the cornucopia that Victoria and Finnick had mentioned. Her eyes lingered little on the arranged supply, sitting neatly arranged on the sand, instead looking around to the other tributes. Cesare was seemingly directly across from her, nowhere to be seen and thus on the other side of the golden horn. Finnick was nearby, with only two others in between them. He met her gaze as she look at him, giving a small reassuring nod, to which she replied with a little smile, something to tell him that he would be alright. The beach that seemed to go on too long before reaching water, the tree line not too far back, seabirds gliding on the wind, all of it so serene. For a moment, she was able to forget all context and simply enjoy it. But her calm was interrupted with the sound of the countdown ending. She knew exactly what to do. She ran to the trees, over sunbaked sand that seemed far too hot to have been heated by only the sun. Sand quickly shifted to soil, cool and soft when she made it to the trees. Dappled light surrounded her as she tuned out the sounds of violence behind her. The pace of her steps slowed, her head tilted to look up, she tried to take it all and find that calm from before. The sounds of clashing metal, the screams, it was too much. That serenity was gone, overpowered by the noise from the beach. It was too loud here, too hard to find any calm. She could hear blood roaring in her ears, thrumming a pulse through her head. There was no way she could have anticipated this feeling, something akin to a rush, but more horrified. The only thing that could be done was run, and thus she ran. Further into the jungle, past dozens of beautiful things that on any other day she would linger to appreciate. Her body was screaming to escape, there was no time for anything else. All shades of green blurred past as she stepped through, snapping branches and undoubtedly leaving tracks in the soft ground. None of it mattered. Time didn’t feel real, neither did the game, all that she understood as she moved was the air that pushed against her skin.

And then suddenly it was gentle. Everything stopped, nothing was flashing by, all was close to still. That was for but a moment, before she felt the cold. It was shocking to say the least, but it brought her back to the present. With eyes tightly shut, she pulled herself out from the shallow stagnant water and wiped her face with hands that were now dampened with a fair bit of sediment and water. Looking back she could see the fallen tree she had stumbled over. Her uniform was soaked, her hair too. She sat down to catch her breath. A wave of something like calm finally came as she wrung out her hair. She closed her eyes, feeling the water run under her hands. She was all alone here. Far from safe, but at least for now tranquil. She could feel the sun on her face, warming the body she only then realised was shivering. Perhaps she sat there for seconds, perhaps hours. When she opened her eyes she was able to take it in. Some form of greenery clung to every surface, like a human had never dared even look to this place. She couldn’t see any animals but they could certainly be heard. Birdsongs came from every direction, some distant and some eerily close. Every now and then the brush would rustle, something was moving, but she felt no need to investigate. They could show themselves if they wanted to. As she sat, a dryness in her throat presented itself. The heat of the sun and the effort of running had no doubt dehydrated her, but the water she had fallen in was dirty and stagnant, certainly not drinkable. But looking around, she wondered if she might find something nearby with some juice to drink. With that, she decided to wait here for Finnick. She didn’t know how long her would take to find her, so she resolved to make herself useful in the meantime. Just because she was going to die didn’t mean she couldn’t help him. She began scouting the area for plants she recognised. She first scoured things close to the ground, either shrubs or fallen things that could indicate something above. After some scanning she found a growing sapling by the edge of the clearing that had green bulbs hanging from its branches, ripe and ready to be harvested. She’d only eaten guava once or twice, but she remembered enjoying it. And regardless, she wouldn’t be the one eating it, and she doubted anyone would care about something so trivial as taste in the arena. After picking a couple of them, she continued to look around. The search was interrupted when she heard a rustle nearby, one too loud to be made by an animal. The sound repeated, followed by a yell. Whoever it was was getting closer. With the guavas clutched close to her chest she dashed to the nearest tree for cover. Perhaps she didn’t need to do so, but instinct kicked in before she remembered the resolution she had made so long ago. The tree was small, as trees go, low enough to the ground that she was covered by its foliage. Through dappled gaps between leaves, she had a perfect view of one large tree and a rather imperfect view of the clearing. The sounds were getting closer, though they had yet to arrive in the open, treeless sunlight. Startling her a little too much was the repetitive drumming of a sapsucker on the trunk of the tree within her line of sight. Her eyes could see it in her periphery, though she tried to keep her focus on the clearing. Nothing came. From the corner of her eye she saw the bird move up, and the hole it left behind. Red liquid oozed from the new wound in the bark, as though it was bleeding.

Every living thing in this world, it has a soul.

Someone had said that to her when she was young, and it had stayed in her mind. Unfortunately, her attention was ripped away from the bleeding tree when the rustling got loud, she could see the shrubs being hacked away by a machete someone was wielding. She stared with wide eyes as they emerged, though she didn’t dare look at their face. For what if it wasn’t Finnick? What if someone else had found her, was going to kill her, slowly, painfully? She could see the machete, grilled tightly in one hand, with a collection of things in the other, all stained to some degree with blood. A couple of knives, each with varying lengths, and a fishing net. The sight of the net gave her the confidence to look up. Perhaps it was him.

There he was.

His tan skin seemed to shimmer in the sunlight, or perhaps it was the layer of sweat that coated his face. Right there, those were the eyes she knew so well. Those beautiful sea-green eyes, warm and yet cold, ones that she had seen looking back at her with such affection, ones that shone even in the dullest of light. She made her way out of the flora, joining him in the sunlight.

“Sylke!”

In a fraction of a second, his arms were around her, warm and comforting. Silence had become a staple in their interactions, and here it was amplified. He held her tight, tighter than ever before, afraid she would slip away like mist after morning. It began to dawn on her that she likely would never feel this again. She guavas she was holding fell to the ground as she brought her arms to wrap around him as well. Her breath grew shaky as the certainty of her death truly set in. Up until this moment it had provided her with security, with calm, but now, as it was only moments away, she grew terrified. Her whole body began to shake, the grip on his torso became tight and desperate, tears leaked from her eyes.

“Sylke…”

She couldn’t bring herself to speak let alone move. His embrace was loosening. This was it. He pushed her away, only to look at her face, but it was a push enough. The tears fell in earnest now, a hand was on her face to cover her quivering lips, though it did a feeble job.

“Sylke, talk to me, did something happen?”

She continued to cry, lost for words. A hand that was not her own came to her cheek, wiping away the tears. Looking into his eyes, those ever comforting eyes, she was able to draw a steadier breath. Her eyes closed as she collected herself, she would only have to hold it together for a few moments longer. She looked back into his eyes, her voice steady and calm again.

“Do it.”

There was a silence once more, but only for a moment. A long moment.

“What?”

“Do it.”

Her voice was shaky, it was hard to hold it together for so long. Why was he taking so long?

“Do what?”

He was clearly confused, though she couldn’t imagine why. She took the spear from his hold and pointed it’s head to her chest, holding the handle out towards him.

“Better with you than anyone else.”

He looked into her eyes, and then to the handle of the spear. His hand wrapped around it and he took a breath. She closed her eyes.

Nothing.

There was nothing, no pain, she felt nothing. She could still hear the birds, singing away in the distance. She opened her eyes, curious to see what awaited her. He was still there. Those sea-green eyes were gazing at her, full of melancholy. Everything was still there. She looked down to her chest and saw no spear. There was nothing.

“What?”

It was now her turn to be confused.

“Did you think I was going to kill you?”

“Why didn’t you?”

“I-“

He couldn’t come up with an answer, not one that made sense anyway. Her logic was sound, by all means, he should have killed her.

“I don’t know. I don’t want you to go.”

The thoughts in his head began to make more sense as he spoke. He didn’t want to part with her, and certainly not like this. There was something in him that burned to see her smile, to keep her alive, to protect her.

“Finnick-“

“I know it’s selfish. I get that, but I just can’t. I can’t watch you go, not yet. I want to be around you, please let me be around you for a little bit longer.”

By the end of his words he was standing closer, everything he had been holding dropped to the ground, and with her hands in his instead, pleading eyes that she could never refuse. Her head dropped to his shoulder, nuzzling into him and whispering her agreement. After all, she too wanted to stay around him. But there was no ignoring that she would need to die eventually. Just not yet.

The rest of the day was spent with no human contact aside from the two of them. Sylke used the red sap, dragon’s blood, to plug his wounds.

“It’s sticky and thicker than blood, if we let it dry over the wounds then the bleeding will stop.”

“It looks like blood. That’s nice, it’ll still look wounded. They’ll underestimate me.”

“I hadn’t thought about that.”

Finnick hadn't gathered much from the Cornucopia, just some kinves and a spear, by the time he found Sylke he was also in dire need of water and ravenously hungry. The guavas she had gathered were thankfully enough energy that he could help her find a good water source. They found a nice, wide stream of running water. There was a small clearing on the riverbank where they decided to settle. Finnick fished in the stream and Sylke gathered nearby plants. Just before sunset, when the two of them were washing their food and attempting to start a fire, a package slowly descended from the sky on a grey parachute. Their first gift, not even a day in. Upon opening, they found a loaf of bread, still warm and dusted with flour. Black olives were sticking out of the hard crust like rocks, a sign that both Finnick and Sylke understood immediately. This gift was meant for me. She took the loaf in her hands and tore it in half, giving the bigger half to Finnick. They ate well that night, with fish from the stream and a starchy root with violet flecks in the flesh cooked over the fire they did eventually start, and guavas for desert.

"You know, tomorrow I can show you how to weave baskets so we don't have to eat off the ground."

"You know how to do that?"

"Yeah. Mags taught me."

He reached over to the reeds that grew from the riverbed and plucked a few.

"These are pretty similar to the dune grass we use back home."

Most days were spent similarly: hunting and gathering food. It took up so much time, more time than Sylke had ever before spent thinking about food. It had never been much of a challenge to find food, having grown up rather well-off in a wealthy district. Edible plants weren't exactly sparse, but it still took most if not all of the day to gather enough for two hungry young teenagers. Finnick had given her a knife to better cut stalks and leaves, but also to defend herself.

"Don't go far from the stream. Please. And if you run into trouble just call for me, okay?"

Sylke didn't fully intend on doing that. In her mind she should have already been dead, running into trouble would only right the timeline. So she just nodded and smiled at him, basking in the kindness in his heart.

"Okay."

As she foraged she came upon all sorts of plants, not just food, but medicine, anti-septic and vomit-inducing and all sorts of things. She gathered them, naturally, and as she was cutting stems, her eye caught sight of a familiar blossom somewhat in the distance. She knew it immediately, a deadly tree to be handled with care and only in the most dire of situations, with the most beautiful flowers hanging from its branches. It dawned upon her that without her, Finnick could be hurt by these things, by this tree, that he wasn't familiar with, not like she was. He surely wouldn't eat anything he didn't know, but even touching some things, like this tree, could have consequences. And suddenly his actions made more sense. There was reason behind keeping her alive. Any uncertainty or confusion within her settled as she reached this epiphany, and she continued to gather.

The two of them spoke little of the games and of death after the first day, but both were intensely aware of the premise. They knew she would have to die at some point, and Finnick made sure that it would be as late as possible. He mentioned once, whispered to himself when he thought she was sleeping:

“I’m gonna protect you. I’ll do whatever it takes, I promise.”

Sylke didn't know what to do after she heard him speak those words, and so she elected to ignore them, pretend like she was asleep and that it simply didn't happen. They trekked through the jungle, Sylke had made it so that they would never actively seek out people. Finnick couldn’t argue, he didn’t want to kill if he didn’t have to. People seemed to like the pragmatic pacifist approach, as all of the gifts they received were food, supplies, or medicine aside from one. Both Sylke and Finnick had many sponsors, something neither of them expected to such a degree.

“You know, Cesare called you the capitol’s prince. I think he was right.”

Finnick’s eyes were still glued to the shining golden trident in his hands.

“Why’s that?”

“They love you. They sent you all this after all.”

He looked up at her, with the bag on her shoulder full of gifts.

“Then they must love you too. Princess.”

She giggled. Her smile was somewhat rare now that the game had been going for a bit, but it was still just as bright. It had a way of raising Finnick's spirits even more than holding the trident.

The trident was mostly used for fishing, and once for other, miscellaneous bloodshed. Sylke was washing and sorting her gathered plants by the river, and Finnick had just returned from a sadly unsuccessful attempt at hunting in the jungle. It seemed his proficiency with fishing didn't translate as well to land. In his hands he held an unused net woven from vines and the golden trident, entirely devoid of blood. He could see her in the distance, she looked so peaceful. There were birds singing a very repetitive tune, and she chose to sing with it, harmonising with the otherwise simple bird song. The sun lit her in such an ethereal way, and sitting by the river, a melody streaming from her mouth, she really did look like a princess. As he admired her, his attention was taken by rustling in the brush. He saw the poorly concealed outlines of two people, holding weapons with clear and bloody intention. They were further from the clearing than he was, and yet they didn’t see him, too focused on the easy prey by the river. Finnick acted quickly, setting up his net at the portion of the tree line behind Sylke, so they were bound to walk into it. She was a ways away from the edge of the clearing, but there was no way they would risk getting in her line of sight. By some trick of luck, he was able to remain hidden, hoping that she wouldn’t notice and blow his cover. As he saw them come nearer, he finished the final touches, rigging it to all be connected to a vine that would function as a pulley on a strong-looking tree. Perched like a monkey in the tree, he waited for them to step on his camouflaged net. As they got closer, their conversation came into earshot.

“You think she’s alone?”

“I think so. But if she isn’t it can’t hurt, might as well kill them too.”

That was when things clicked for him. People in this arena were bloodthirsty, death meant little to them if it wasn’t their own. They looked rough, a little injured, and yet they continued to hunt. They would kill until someone stopped them. Finnick wondered what would happen after he caught them. Would he leave them there to starve? He couldn’t let them out, they would continue to hunt. An image flashed in his head, one of Sylke bleeding out by the river, leaves still wet in her hands. They weren’t going to stop until they killed her, would they? She was an easy kill and nothing else. His grip on the vine tightened, footsteps came closer.

“Look, there she is.”

One of them smiled, pointing to the girl in the clearing. They took out their weapons.

“This’ll be fun”

One more step forward and they were done. The evil grins on their faces were so casual, their movements too. That was perhaps what Finnick hated most, the ease with which they spoke of killing such an angel. A careless step or two forward, and he held onto the vine, using his body weight as he jumped down to pull them up. They yelled, frantically moving to get out. Finnick wrapped the vine around a branch to secure it in place. For a moment he was still, trident held loosely in his hand, unsure of what to do. One of the tributes quickly began gnawing on the vine, and in little time snapped it before moving on to the next. Both of them had eyes still fixed on Sylke. They weren’t going to stop. Impulse coursed through his body, the image of her lifeless body bright in his mind. He could hear the canon, it was too much. He couldn’t let that happen, not if he could help it. His breathing was heavy, his eyes were closed. When they finally opened, when he finally let go of the trident, it didn’t fall. His chest rose and fell faster than hurricane winds, with more intensity too. The canon boomed, thrumming through the ground and vibrating in his skull. He finally looked up when he heard gurgling. The poor sod was choking on his own blood. Finnick couldn’t focus on that though. With the most indifferent and blank look on his face, he ripped the trident from both the bodies he had punctured, splattering a bit of blood on himself in the process. He left them hanging from the tree and walked into the clearing. When Sylke saw him she greeted him with a smile and asked if he caught anything. He said nothing. There was a fear in her eyes, it had been established by the boom of the cannons, and it only grew as she watched him. He knelt by the river and washed the blood from his face and hands, silent all throughout. What exactly was going through his head, not even he was sure of. It was whirring, full of something, but moving too fast to discern. It was something about safety, something about protecting her, about Machiavellian pragmatism and such.

She watched as his hands moved methodically to scrub off the blood. Something about him was different, and judging by the blood and lack of food, she took it to mean he watched someone die. And then her eyes found the bloody trident, and the full story was revealed. Disregarding any and all morals, her utmost priority was him. As he shook water from his hands and wiped them on his suit, she stood and walked over. In a single and fluid movement, she wrapped her arms around him. He was on his knees, but his back was straight and he looked forward into the middle distance with no trace of emotion. His hands came to gently touch hers. They were cold, almost barren and raw. He continued to stare blankly ahead, saying nothing. There was an unspoken agreement between them, no one needed explain themselves. They said little if anything that night.

He couldn’t seem to fall asleep that night. They didn’t move from the clearing, lying on the ground when that ominous anthem played. Pictures of the fallen tributes lit up the night sky. Finnick’s eyes lost their beautiful colour in the bright and overpowering light of the projection. He recognised them immediately. A boy from eight and another from ten, that was who he killed. After that, he found it even harder to rest. The sky darkened again, and he found some comfort in that, but not much. Sylke looked to him with pity, wishing that she could just make it all go away. His head found itself cradled in her lap. He knew he should sleep, he was trying, but it was hard. Still, he tried.

“Promise if you see something you’ll wake me up.”

“Okay.”

The sound of her voice, which he heard little of that day, somehow brought his spirits up a little, a reminder that she was still here. It allowed him to at least act like things were alright.

“No promise me, actually promise.”

Even in the dim light of night she could see the amused grin on his face, the beautiful eyes that were bright like stars when he laughed. It made her want to laugh too.

“Go to sleep!”

“Only if you promise~”

“Okay, okay. I promise.”

“Thank you,” he said while closing his eyes.

He still couldn’t sleep. There weren’t many sounds that night. Birds were unusually quiet, water was unusually calm. He needed some sort of noise, otherwise it was too eerie, too calm to be true.

“Could you sing for me?”

“Of course.”

She ran through the list of songs in her head, before deciding on a lullaby she knew, though from where she did not know.

“There’s a place where all is calm”

Her voice was quiet, breathy, intimate as though her words were meant only for him. And in truth they were.

”Where the sea goes on and on”

This song wasn’t meant to be heard by anyone else. If things were perfect they would be truly alone in this moment.

“Nothing ever goes wrong”

Of course that couldn’t be the case, the whole of Panem was likely looking at them. But if she closed her eyes, felt the weight of his body against hers and the feeling of his hair in in her hands, it was like it was only them. The rest of the world faded away and she lost herself in the melody.

“In the land of seim-hin-seom”

“People there are kind”

“And sweetest of all I find”

“Are the birds that sing, their melodies ring”

“Seim-hin-seom with her endless spring”

“The water is sweet in seim-hin-seom”

“The hills are green in seim-hin-seom”

“And fairies dance in seim-hin-seom”

“My home is there in seim-hin-seom”

In her memories, she would sway while humming the next part. It had no words, just a tune to hum. Finnick was still, his breathing steady, but a part of her knew that he was still awake. His body was still just a little tense, he hadn’t fully let his guard down, and she couldn’t blame him. As she moved ever so slightly side to side and hummed the melody, she noticed his breathing slow even more, his body almost melted with how relaxed he was. That was how she knew he had fallen asleep. She bent her head down to place a kiss on his temple before continuing her song. After all, a sudden stop in the music might wake him.

“You and I, together, we’ll go”

“In no time at all I know”

“We’ll be dancing along”

“We’ll dance until dawn”

“In the land of seim-hin-seom”

As tired as she was, she couldn’t sleep. They needed someone to watch. So she kept herself awake with music. Singing to herself with every song she knew, most of them love songs, while trying not to dwell on all the sorrow that surrounded her.

The days were monotonous, blending together to the point that the nightly anthem and booming cannons were the only markers of passing time. Sylke couldn't help but count. It shocked her but it was the truth: they were down to the final eight. She suggested they go to the beach for better fishing and a change of scenery. Finnick agreed because he figured the risk of trouble was lower now that there were fewer tributes in the arena. They followed the stream until soil turned to sand and space between trees expanded. It was a cove, with high and dangerous looking rocks to one side, and the familiar jungle on the other as well as behind. There was a group of tributes left, the careers. Finnick couldn’t help but wonder if he would have joined them had he not been so taken with Sylke. These thoughts came to him as he swam through the water, eyes closed for most of it and feeling the water crashing against his skin. He decided to briefly open his eyes, and saw a world of blue dappled light. The water was so clear, he could see far into the distance. It seemed that where the water met the rocks there was an opening underwater, one he was willing to bet led to a cave. In a moment of stillness, he pivoted upright and opened his eyes to see her sitting by their things and occasionally looking up to check on him with a smile, on the shore. She looked so happy, finding little shells and playing with crabs that ran in and out of their little holes in the sand. He would give anything to have this peace forever. How cruel the world could be. He waded back to the shore, and by the tree line, he saw for a moment the flash of steel in the sunlight. Suspicion crept in, but he chose not to make it known yet. Instead, he whispered to Sylke to be quiet, and tried to listen. Whispers could be heard from the tree line.

“Once he steps away, we can get her.”

“And why do you think he’ll do that again?”

“It’s not like she can fish. He’ll go into the water and she’ll stay on the shore. That’s when we strike.”

That was all Finnick needed to hear. A small amount of fury built up within him, not quite enough to make his blood boil, but close. It made sense, this late in the game with such an easy target still around, but it enraged him nonetheless. All of their supplies were in a bag, which he hastily picked up before holding his hand out to Sylke.

“Come with me.”

“Where are we going?”

“Nowhere, I just wanna take you into the water. C’mon, let’s go!”

He walked backwards to lead her into the water, glancing back to the shaded jungle. They hadn’t left yet. Thankfully, they were out of earshot.

“Can you swim?”

“Sort of? I’m not racing you if that’s where you’re headed.”

Most times he would laugh, say something about how no one could beat him in a swim race. But this time he didn’t.

“We’ll have to move quickly. I think we’re far enough out that if we go underwater they won’t know where we are.”

“Who won’t know?”

“There’s some people I’ve by the trees, three or four.”

“Okay.”

Sylke looked around, scanning the area for a place to hide.

“Let’s get out of open water first, and then find a more long term place to hide from there. How about the rocks over there?”

She pointed to a collection a jagged rocks at the foot of the cliff side, a bit dangerous, but safer than open water with a group of tributes itching to hunt. Finnick nodded, and they swam over to the edge of the cove. Once safe among the rocks, they peered over to see the tributes emerging from the jungle upon their disappearance. It was Cesare and the tributes from two. The career pack. The girl from four had been with them earlier in the game, but her canon fired a day before. Sylke got fragmented glimpses of them in between waves that crashed into the cliff and then bounced back at her. The water wasn’t very calm here, not like it was out in the centre of the cove. She saw them moving about the beach, checking for any supplies left behind and scanning the water for signs of other people. Sylke kept her head down.

“They’re going to find us sooner or later, what’s the plan?”

Finnick was staring off into the distance, seemingly at where the cliff smoothed out a bit and met the water more calmly further out.

“There might be a cave over there. Stay here and stay down, I’m gonna check it out.”

Just as he took a breath and prepared to swim, she grabbed his arm.

“Wait.”

She pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek.

“Be safe. Come back to me soon, okay?”

“Always.”

With not a moment to spare, he dove into the water moved quickly away. Sylke remained, peering occasionally at the career pack on the beach. They had yet to see her, but they likely would soon. Hopefully he would be back by then. Perhaps this was the way she was going to go. She could hardly protect herself against someone like Cesare, and if Finnick wasn’t there to protect her like he had the past few days…

In her mind she could see herself, painting the water red, lying lifeless atop the very rock she presently used as cover. How peaceful it looked, like sleeping. She could only hope that it would be quick and calm like falling asleep. And even if it wasn’t, even if her pain was drawn out and torturous, it would be over eventually anyway. She wouldn’t be around to care anymore. But Finnick would. What would he do, seeing her bleeding out on the rocks? Would he cry? Perhaps he would drive his trident into her head, just to make it a little faster. Perhaps he would smile upon hearing the canon fire, knowing his chances just got better. No. He wouldn’t do that, not for her. In fact not for anyone. The sound of canons haunted him, she could tell, no matter how much he insisted it didn’t. It kept him awake at night, the sounds of canons firing away in his mind. They haunted her too, but not in the same way. It wasn’t the canons that plagued her mind, it was the screams. Sometimes they could be heard. That day in the clearing they sounded so close. She hated those moments, wishing she could muster the strength to run and save them, take care of them, nurse them back to health. But they were too far away, Finnick needed help too, and they would be dead once she got there. Perhaps that was why Sylke insisted they stay away from everyone. She couldn’t bear to be closer to the screams.

Finnick’s swimming form came closer under the waves, and in little time his head came up, turning quickly from side to side like a dog shaking water from its pelt. He wiped his face before opening his eyes.

“They didn’t see you?”

“Nope. What did you find?”

“There’s a cave, it looks safe. We’ll have to go deeper underwater for a bit though, before coming up on the other side.”

She nodded, preparing herself to swim. They pushed off the rocks and stayed along the cliff side towards the cave mouth. Finnick was fast, even with the added drag of their bag of supplies, and Sylke struggled to keep up with him. As the gap between them widened, she began to panic. Her movements grew more frantic, scooping water and kicking with more fervor than ever before. She could see the mouth of the cave, blurry under the surface. Finnick stopped before going in, treading water to wait for her.

“Take a deep breath and hold it okay? It won’t be long.”

They both drew large breaths and moved with closed eyes under the water. As they continued, Sylke found it in herself to open her eyes. It stung, but only a little, and not sharply. The tunnel was dark, though she could see light at the end, and Finnick’s silhouette in front of her. Her lungs were screaming, but she continued. The light was so close, she could see the surface. He had already made it, he was wading out, she could do it too. But it got harder, each movement of her arms and legs brought her shorter distances, her body was losing energy. How funny it would be if this was to be her end. Her eyes closed, finally relaxing, along with the rest of her body that gave in as well. It was impossible to tell if her lungs were filling with water. All that she truly knew was that it was peaceful here. The water was finally calm, pushing against her body with a certain gentle touch, like it’s only purpose was for her to be comfortable. All she could hear was the whirring deadened sounds of waves. How calming. Her body could finally rest.

The kind and gentle water that surrounded her shifted. It was dragging against her skin, she was being pulled away from it, something else was secured around her midsection. Cold, that’s what surrounded her now. It wasn’t gentle anymore, it was sharp, cold, so cold. Something pounded on her chest, something heavy and fast and certainly not within her control. The cloudy noise of water faded away, and she could hear a voice, faint but growing louder.

“Come on, come on, Sylke please-“

Muscles she didn’t know she had convulsed, pushing water she didn’t realise was there out from her throat. She could breathe again. Only then did she truly understand the luxury that is to breathe. How wonderful it is, for wind to move freely in and out of your body. She had little time and less energy to contemplate this ant further, for almost immediately after her gasp for air, she was secured in a warm and strong embrace. There, she was able to regain her bearings and actually understand what had happened.

“Y-you saved me,”

He held her a little tighter, nodding his head a bit as well.

“Why?”

“What?”

"Why, Finnick? It was perfect! It's the final few, sure to end in a day or two, you've no use for me anymore. Why didn't you just let me die, why-"

"No use to me? Sylke is that what you..."

"Isn't it? That's why, on the first day, why you didn't..."

He pulled her desperately close, like he was trying to fuse their skin. With his head next to hers, cheek to cheek, he spoke softly. This wasn't for the cameras, this was just for them.

"Angel, you couldn't be more wrong."

She whispered response, quieter than even him.

"Then why?"

“I told you. I can’t let you die. I don’t know why and I don’t care. Nothing, not even the goddamn ocean, is gonna lay a finger on you while I’m around. I’m not going to see you get hurt if I can help it. I can't lose you.”

"Still?"

He pulled away slightly, still holding her close, but looking now able to look in her eyes. He whispered reassurance meant only for her.

"Always.”

Her brows furrowed as she turned her head to look up at him. Tears were forming in her eyes, though they did not fall just yetl. Light was dim, his face was shrouded in partial shadow, but his eyes, as always, she could see perfectly. In his eyes she saw everything she longed not to. She saw pity, compassion, some kind of anger, and above all, love. There was so much love in his eyes, so much care for the one who beheld his gaze. But she was determined not to let their conversation from that first day replay. She mustered strength to hoist herself up somewhat out of his arms, not letting go, but no longer leaning on him.

“You know full well that’s not feasible.”

His head dropped and a grin came to his face, along with a small, sarcastic laugh.

“I know. I’m trying not to think about it.”

“You’re going to have to though-“

“I know that too.”

He exhaled, strong and breathy. In a moment, he raised his head again to look at her, with endless love in those sea green eyes again.

“Would it be so bad if you survived?”

“Yes. Cause it would mean that you would have to die. Finnick, I can’t have that either.”

He laughed again.

“Well it seems we’re at an impasse.”

She laughed too. Incredible- she thought- that ever human ability to laugh when all is hopeless. To find joy where there really should be none.

“I guess so.”

Both of them were exhausted, too much to argue endlessly and likely come nowhere close to convincing the other person. So instead, Finnick shifted the conversation, checking on her breathing and making sure that she was alright. Once that was done, they began setting up camp. Two cannons sounded as they did so. The cave was, as one would expect, entirely stone. It seemed to be a crevice between two much larger rock formations, like the narrowest of cannons. Light came though a sliver in the distance, much to high up to climb, through which water also came, falling in a cataract before flowing into the ocean. Everything around them was either stone or water, none of it particularly colourful, and yet somehow, all together, there was something ethereally beautiful about this place.

When night came, the cave was completely dark. There was nothing with which they could construct a fire, so they decided simply to sleep. For the first time, they were safe enough that one of them didn’t need to keep watch. There was no way that someone would be stupid enough to swim into the cave in the pitch black night. And so, they could finally fall asleep together. Finnick wrapped his arms around her as they laid down on the cold stone. It wasn’t at all comfortable, but neither of them seemed to notice, focused only on the comfort of each other’s warmth. Sleep came quickly that night.

They were woken by the boom of three canons. As much as she despises it, Sylke had created a habit of counting the canons. So far, twenty-one in total. Only one other person was left.

“How many is that now?”

Finnick wasn't counting. She didn’t want to worry him, and for some reason, a part of her decided to lie.

“Don’t know.”

It seemed midday, with so much light pouring in through the top of the cave. The day was spent mostly in the cave, trying to rest and recuperate. As the grumbling of their bellies got louder, it became clear that this cave was not a good place to be, too isolated from food and housing no way of making a fire. They swam out again, this time holding their breath for an extended duration first. Sylke had enough energy to get her to the surface on the other side, and after a moment of treading water, was able to make it to shore. They sat on the warm sand, with closed eyes and heavy breathing. Finnick’s stomach grumbled again.

“I can go into the jungle and get us some fruit or something.”

“Okay. I’ll stay here and fish. Take the bag too, just in case. If something happens, you’ll need it more than I do.”

Sylke nodded and gave him a kiss before heading into the jungle. Affection between them has become rather casual in the past few days. It most certainly would not have happened had they met elsewhere, but it seemed that the arena heightened all emotions. Any other situation and they likely would have acted simply like awkward teenagers, but adrenaline and the looming spectre of death had a way of dissuading that.

It was so quiet today. There was only one other person left roaming about, and with that came a certain safety. As she examined the greenery around her, there was a tranquil security that found her, a reassurance that she was safe. But of course, there was no guarantee. There was an anxiety that still lingered in her mind. As she picked guavas from a small tree, she heard a tumbling in the distance. Curiosity overtook her, and she almost blindly walked toward the origin of the sound, hoping to find an animal she might be able to help. Instead she saw a man, unmoving on the ground. Even in the state he was in, his identity was undeniable. She rushed over to Cesare without hesitation, searching his body for whatever it was that was draining his energy. She found a massive welt on his ankle, red and angry with two puncture wounds at the top of the swelling mass. She acted quickly, pulling leaves and bark she saved along with a bottle of water from the bag. In her hand she smashed a couple of flame-coloured flowers and hastily mixed it with water to create a crude paste. She rubbed that on the welt, hoping it might incite a reaction. It was to reduce swelling, but more than that, she hoped it would prove he was still conscious enough to sense her touch. He jerked, but made no sound. His breathing was shallow, his pulse was weak, and she had no idea what to do. How could she help him? There was no way she could get the venom out, it had clearly already spread. She couldn’t really treat it without knowing what spider bit him. She dug frantically through the bag, desperate for anything that could help. She opened every little metal tin, all of them empty or containing nothing useful. If only they hadn’t used up all of their medicine, if only she had moved a little faster, if only she had taught him how to deal with spider bites when they were still training. She could feel his pulse weakening, hear his breathing slow.

Please, please, not like this. I can save him, I can help him, please…

And when the canon sounded, she understood. She finally understood why he was so silent that day in the clearing, why his eyes looked so blank. To feel the life drain from someone right in front of you, it brings a certain numbness, one that can’t truly be spoken or put into words. But it wasn’t quite the same. She took step after step, transcending the ground beneath her feet, not feeling anything, not even the breeze that brushed her face. Innumerable voice screamed various things in her mind.

She couldn’t really tell what there were saying, so loud that it blended together into a whirring that drowned out everything else in the world. She continued to pick fruit and gather food, but her eyes were blank, her mind was elsewhere. That is, until she came to a certain tree. It was fairly small, the flowers low enough to touch. As she stared at the hanging blossoms, the voices in her head consolidated.

Cesare was gone. He was the last one, it was just her and Finnick. One of them had to die. She laughed to herself, a hollow and nihilistic laugh, impressed that she managed to get this far. It wasn’t even a question her mind, it was going to be her. How perfect that she was standing by this tree, perhaps the most potent poison she knew. They flowers were a beautiful violet with white bleeding at the edges, like handkerchiefs pinched in the centre and dipped in ink. They were so elegant, so perfect. In any other circumstance she would stand back, but now she reached her hand out. The petals were soft, as though crafted from the finest of satin and lace. The voices spoke as one, putting together a plan. With gentle hands, she plucked a small bunch of flowers to form a bouquet, making sure not to touch the bag after handling the flowers. With them in hand, she began trekking back to the beach, slowly strolling through the jungle with unparalleled security. Every now and then, she would pull a flower from the bouquet and place it in her mouth. They tasted like any other flower, mostly bland, but there was a subtle sweetness to them, a comforting and floral sort of sweetness that she quite enjoyed. The stroll was perfect. Birds were singing, all was calm, there was no danger in this space anymore. Finally, she was safe, and so was he. She stopped to admire all sorts of things, flowers, animals, dappled sunlight that hit the forest floor in a perfect sort of way, all was mesmerisingly beautiful. By the time she made it to the beach, there was one flower left. Her vision was beginning to blur, she was no longer enjoying the world around her, she could hardly perceive it. With the little energy she had left, she stood on the sand and called out to him.

“Finnick!”

He turned around, walking over to her rather casually until he came closer and saw her state, at which point he rushed to her side. Her eyes were tired, her stance was far from steady, and in a matter of seconds, her legs gave way. He caught her, lying down where the soil met the sand with her in his arms.

“What happened, are you hurt?”

As she spoke, he could see a violet tint on her tongue. Her voice was breathy, tired, but she spoke with a slightly delirious smile.

“I’m alright. We’re the only ones left you know.”

His face shifted. There was a possibility, an inkling, that whispered horror in his ear, one that he hoped beyond hope that it wasn’t true.

“D-did you get hurt? What’s going on?”

She held up the flower in her hand.

“I found a tree, full of these. Finnick, they were so pretty. They’re sweet too. I ate some, but I wanted you to see one. Aren’t they pretty?”

He laughed, his heart warmed by her childlike delirium, but something about it felt wrong.

“Very pretty. Can I try?”

“No!”

She shoved it into her mouth, chewing and swallowing with haste.

“No, don’t do that. They’re poison Finnick, don’t eat it.”

His eyes widened.

“You ate poison? W-why? Sylke, angel, why would you do that?”

She looked up, her gaze strong and true and full of affection. She gazed into his eyes, those beautiful green eyes, and everything felt right in the world. This was how it would end, and looking into those eyes, knowing they wouldn’t go still, she smiled.

“I love you. You’ve got such pretty eyes, you know that?”

A wave of fatigue washed over her and she closed her eyes, relaxing into his embrace.

“So pretty.”

Her body was unbearably still. Finnick stared with wide eyes, waiting for her chest to rise or her mouth to move, but it didn’t. There was nothing in his arms that moved, even he was still as death. As everything around him began to fade and reality set in, a voice, one singular voice, boomed over it all.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you, the victor of the 65th annual hunger games.”

(A/N: yes I did write a song for this, I picture it as a simple children's lullaby, sometimes with a flute or harp accompaniment.)

Taglist: @zulpix-blog

175 notes · View notes

enihk-writes · 3 months

Text

[at the end of a burnt wick]

pairing: tang bo x afab!she/her!reader

NOT exactly an x reader because i didn't want tang bo and reader's relationship to be romantic, tried to make them platonic / co-workers like ah-duo and the emperor from the apothecary diaries + implied tangchung because all roads lead to old men yaoi

summary: anthology of a married pair

content warning: archaic wedding practices mentioned (i.e. having to consummate a marriage against the will of both parties) // stillbirth and child loss (disconnect with traditional expectations of parenthood)

word count: 6.66k

author's note: my roman empire lately is about how i used to audition to nijisanji and only niji at least 3-4 times (didn't even pass the first stage lol) before i got really fixated with rotbb.... maybe one day i will try my hand at vtubing and streaming again... for now it's fanfiction time ragggghhh!!!!! fictional men 4ever!!!!

[PLEASE PROCEED WITH CAUTION! I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY TRIGGERS CAUSED BEYOND THIS LINE]

═══════════════

FIRST MEETING

the first time the young tang bo met her, was when he was a little over fifteen.

she was also just as young as he — a wee lass that had yet to lose the childlike roundness of her cheeks, round eyes that seemed to sparkle in wonderment at all the grandeur around her. tang bo didn't understand what was so special about the surroundings, he'd grown up here all his life and had already seen most of anything money could buy. this girl was weird.

he didn't find out until much later that this was the first time she had ever left the four walls of her room, much less her own home.

he thinks that it was no wonder she had looked so amazed with everything she saw back then. he can't imagine a life where he had to live constrained to one place, going through the same routine everyday would have bored him to death.

he wasn't looking forward to future conversations with that girl — he was certain she would be utterly dull and boring.

═══════════════

ENGAGEMENT

tang bo was furious that the elders had went and signed off the engagement contract without even asking for his approval. he had been meeting with countless hopefuls for a few years by now, and he'd been able to fend them all off by acting in ways that had all these well-bred ladies huffing and puffing in indignation. crying to their fathers that they would rather die than marry a man like he.

so who was it that agreed to this!

tang bo mutters under his breath, teeth gritted, fists clenched. he had to see with his own two eyes the woman who was stupid or desperate enough to let herself be wed to the likes of him.

elder!

the young man throws open the doors to the main hall, not caring one bit about the guests sitting inside. the elders and the patriarch in question frowned at his behaviour, biting their tongues from chastising him in front of strangers.

his gaze lands on a familiar face, a little older and a lot less naive, but familiar nonetheless. he didn't know that a person's demeanour could change so drastically in a few years.

tang bo's hands fall to his sides, he shuffles towards the end of the table, plopping down on the empty spot across his soon-to-be betrothed. he eyes her figure, chewing on the inside of his mouth, trying to come up with something to insult her with.

tang bo—

the patriarch didn't even get the chance to finish his sentence when the young man scoffs at the girl's face, the corner of his mouth pulling up into a sneer.

really? her?

tang bo glances over at the heads of his family, finger pointing rudely in the girl's face. they all sigh, knowing what was about to come from the impudent boy. they could only hope this girl wouldn't take his jabs to heart.

hey you.

he juts his chin at her.

all my other candidates looked prettier than you. hey, did you even bother to put in any effort when coming to meet me?

she ignored him, sipping on her tea serenely. the girl's guardians shift in their seats nervously. ah, this young master has yet to face their mistress' infamous anger.

tang bo clicks his tongue.

oi, did you even — hey!

he didn't expect her to splash the remainder of her drink onto him. the warm liquid splatters across his face and drips down his now damp hair, even the front of his robes were now soiled from the tea.

he looks over to the elders of his family in surprise, hoping that they'd stand up for him but none met his eye. he felt betrayed when he catches some of them trying to hide the twitch of their mouths suppressing their laughs.

they all thought that it was about time someone put this boy in his place, talented and intelligent as he may be.

needless to say, the rest of the meeting went on smoothly. and it ended with the confirmation of the two's engagement. much to tang bo's despair and the girl's indifference.

═══════════════

FIRST 'DATE'

he really tried his best to drag his feet that day. the elders had arranged for an evening dinner in the newly established inn downtown with his bride-to-be and tang bo really did not want to go. he was kicking up a fuss with his clothes, this one was too dull, that one is too bright, it's too rough, it's too short... and so on. but when he finally ran out of excuses and the attendants tiredly managed to dress him appropriately — the sun was beginning to set.

tang bo perks up. perhaps he didn't have to go out with her after all!

he steps out of his room, surprised to see that there was no one in the courtyard. he shouldn't have felt a jolt of worry then, but he did, and he wondered if something was wrong.

where is she?

he asks to no one in particular, heading to her room three doors down from his, footfalls heavy on the lacquered wooden planks of the corridor. he hears panicked voices muffled behind the doors and throws the doors to her room open.

she sat in the middle of the room in nothing but her undergarments, surrounded by the tang estate's maids and piles of unworn clothes. she had her back facing him, and all he could see were the maids hurriedly hiding away the containers of makeup all shying away from his scrutinising gaze.

out.

the maids didn't have to be told twice. they all scurried out of her room like mice, tails between their legs and faces pursed in anxiety at being caught in the middle of something they probably shouldn't be doing. tang bo sighed heavily. to think the woman he was to marry was getting bullied, by mere maids too? he felt ashamed on her behalf. he didn't like people who were fine with others taking advantage and stepping all over them. he hated that they didn't have a backbone to stand up for themselves.

kicking off his shoes, he entered her room — nose scrunched up instinctively at the suffocating dust in the air. he looked around to see all the windows shut tightly, there were no gaps for even a sliver of light to shine inside.

how has this girl been living so far, for her to be fine with this treatment?

tang bo coughed, stumbling over to open the windows, lightheaded from the lack of breathable air. he waves his hands to chase the dust outside, coughing even harder when the little particles get all up in his face.

he hears her giggle. much to his growing annoyance, what was so funny anyway.

he sits in front of her, letting the pile of unworn clothes cushion him from the hard floor. under the orange glow of the setting sun, he sees her for the first time today, all dolled up in the most garish makeup that would have certainly humiliated her, and had he not barged in she would have had to go around in public like that.

you look uglier today.

she chuckled and hummed in response, she looks around in search of something. grabbing a rag from under the clothes, she proceeded to wipe off her painted face, only to have tang bo take it out of her hands with a soft, let me.

he holds her chin between his fingers, rubbing off the white powder that contrasted starkly against her skin, making her look sickly. he rubs off the crudely drawn-out eyebrows and the thick rouge that sat on her lips. he can't help but notice the way her lashes fluttered as she tried to keep her eyes closed. maybe his fiancee was a little cute.

with her face now bare, the girl lets out the breath she had been holding. but tang bo wasn't done yet.

where are you facing. turn back here.

he ordered pointedly, and she couldn't help but to go back into her prior position. lips and eyes squeezed shut, much like a puppy getting told off for misbehaving.

picking up a brush out of the many lying haphazardly over the vanity, tang bo dipped it's tip into the little porcelain jar left ajar. it was lipstick in a shade deep red, the type that would have looked lovely especially on her.

he holds the girl's now bare face in one hand, the brush in the other, outlining the shape of her lips with the new rouge. the feathery touch of the brush tip was ticklish, moreso with how tang bo had been holding it in an uncharacteristically gentle way as though he were a potter painting intricate patterns on a cup before he sent it off to the burning fires in a kiln.

he pinched the brush, smudging the tint against his fingers and drawing faint circles at the outer corner of her eyes.

tang bo leans back to admire his handiwork. he couldn't help but feel proud of the results. not only was he good at martial arts and medicine, he had an amazing eye for aesthetics too? where would anyone find a better husband then he?

the girl opens her eyes cautiously, her gaze meeting his. he looked pleased, boastful even.

hmph. you look more presentable now.

he hands her a mirror, and as she looks at her reflection against the shiny bronze surface, she had to agree. her fiance had done a good job with her face. maybe he wasn't all that awful.

thank you, young master tang.

the girl smiled, her eyes crinkling upwards in a smile. tang bo scoffs and looks out the window, hiding his embarrassment at her sincere words. thinking back now, this was the first he'd heard her speak, wasn't it? maybe he should pay more attention once in a while.

heh. of course you should be thanking me.

the sky and grown dark. lucky him, he didn't have to go out to that dinner with her after all.

═══════════════

THE FIRST REAL DATE

tang bo felt a little irked that she had been walking behind him even when he had slowed down to match her pace. it's almost like she had been deliberately hanging back.

you.

he grabs her wrist and pulls her towards him. she stumbled over her feet and falls over with a startled squeak.

you're my fiancee. so stand proud and walk beside me.

he declares with a hand on his hip, the grip on her wrist with his other not once loosening. he walks again, just as slow as he had been earlier, feeling a little happy that the girl no longer lagged behind.

he'd started to warm up to her, no longer seeing her as the stranger living in his house, one day to become his wife. she was more akin to a little sister he'd have to babysit.

no, actually she was more like an apprehensive kitten left on his doorstep that he'd grown to like taking care of.

buying her sweets and spoiling her with accessories she might not even have a chance to wear just because he thought she'd look cute in them has been one of his favourite hobbies these days.

why was he so anxious about getting engaged before? ever since she became his fiancee, he didn't have to go out and meet with any more annoying noble ladies clamouring over each other trying to win over his affection. the best part was that she kept to herself, and minded her own business unless it was time to visit the elders and the patriarch for afternoon tea — which he didn't mind since having her as his own personal walking event reminder has really saved him from getting scolded even more by the old farts.

ah! look! they're selling meat skewers over there! come on, let's go get some! i'm sure you'd like those too.

tang bo giggles and drags the girl over to another street vendor. ah, lucky him. he's hit the jackpot with the whole engagement game — a tolerable and cute wife-to-be, could a boy ask for anything more? guanyin-ma really was looking over him after all.

═══════════════

FORTUNE TELLER

after two seasons of living under the same roof, the heads of the tang clan decide that it was time for the two to meet with the fortune teller. set up an auspicious date through the tung shing, and be wed on the right phase of the moon and the best placement of the stars in the sky.

the young master is lucky to have found someone this compatible. it is hard for children born in his year to find a suitable partner. they say snakes rarely get along with the other zodiacs.

says the old eccentric woman who proclaimed herself to be the best fortune teller in sichuan and the one who had been checking the birthdates of all the potential brides that had been introduced to tang bo thus far. the boy felt the urge to get up and fight that hack, respecting his elders be damned, so she was the one sending him all those insufferable girls his way.

he feels a hand grab at his arm. fingers digging into his flesh enough to keep him seated. he looks over at the girl sitting next to him, expression unchanging, her body angled to lean a little closer to his.

his hand reached over discreetly to peel her fingers off him, bringing her hand down to hold his under the table, fingers intertwined. she seemed to relax a little, tense shoulders falling ever gently, her jaw growing slightly more slack.

to the untrained eye, the girl's expressions were the same. but to him, he's watched her long enough, even if it wasn't every day, to spot the subtle changes whenever she expressed herself. tang bo pats himself on the back for being such an attentive fiance.

his attention shifted from the conversation between the fortune teller and the elders to the girl's hand. they were soft and smooth, as expected of a lady of noble birth. his on the other hand were calloused from training, the tips of his fingers were starting to turn darker from the constant exposure to poisons. shit, he might have to start wearing gloves.

the girl hadn't been paying attention to the conversation going on either, spacing out until the elders called on the two. stifling their startled gasp, the two youngins stared at their elders, a confused expression painted on their faces, not one bit guilty for ignoring everything that was being said.

ah, it's good they are getting along well.

the fortune teller chuckled with a knowing glint in her eye trying to suggest something, but both tang bo and the girl didn't seem to catch her drift, the old woman's point flying over their heads.

the elders soon turn back to their discussion, talking about the best days that would suit the two.

look here, since they are both born as snakes, their auspicious numbers are two, eight and nine. i'd suggest we hold the wedding...

tang bo nudges at the girl.

hey.

she looks up at him. he leaned down next to her ear, wanting to ask her about her birthday, too embarrassed to ask about it outright in front of the elders. he didn't want to seem like an incompetent fiance to his future bride.

she hides a growing grin. it was nice of him to start paying attention to her. little steps, little steps. she wriggles her hand out of his grasp and writes down the date with her finger on the surface of his palm.

good thing their hands were under the table, or people would know about the cause of the redness dusting the back of his ears.

the meeting dragged on until late in the evening. it ended with the agreement that they were to be wed on the eighth day of the eighth month on the eighth year of the emperor's reign.

truly the most auspicious day for a union.

═══════════════

A BRIDE-TO-BE'S DRESSING ROOM

the long-awaited day came by later than expected. the previous emperor passed before he even got close to the eighth year of his reign. not wanting to change the numbers of the date, the elders decided to push the event back until the current emperor had reached his eighth year.

by then, the two had grown into a man and a woman, a lot older than the common age to be wed. but it was no matter. who would dare speak up against the tang clan's young master and his wife-to-be?

the day, hell, even the night before had been hectic. tang bo slipped past his attendants to take a peak at what was going on in her room. traditions be damned, who cares about the groom not seeing his bride until they were at the altar? that was so outdated!

what are you doing here?

she had been left alone to rest from the non-stop preparations since before dawn. tang bo walks in, careful not to make too much noise as he slides the door shut behind him.

why? can't i visit my wife?

i am not your wife.

yet~

his teasing voice moved behind her. he picked up the brush to comb out the knots that were all tangled up — the maids had put on extensions to lengthen her hair. she hadn't been able to grow them to the expected length, much to the annoyance of the maids. they hadn't been nice when attaching the accessories, she could still feel the burning sensation on her scalp.

there was no need to kick up a fuss at this point. especially in front of tang bo. this guy would have kicked out all the attendants who had been treating her poorly, but that felt like too easy of a punishment. she wanted to deal with them herself when the time comes, sorry for that, young master tang.

the leather gloves he wore were cold, and the feeling of his fingertips scratching against her scalp was soothing, enough to draw out a quiet purr from the woman. much to her shocked embarassment.

oh?

she leans away from him.

...please ignore that.

but how could he?

my wife... how can you be so cute~!

i need you to shut up right now.

═══════════════

WORLD'S MOST BORING CEREMONY

if it was any consolation, the two had agreed that this whole affair was a pain in their ass.

wife, do you know when this will end?

what makes you think i have the answer to that?

tang bo thinks his bride was lucky to have that red veil over her face. if she wanted to shut her eyes and sleep, none of the guests nor elders would be any wiser. poor old him. they should have made a veil for the goom too, which smartass decided otherwise anyway? if he ever met that person, tang bo promised he would pummel the other to the ground.

wife.

she hums in acknowledgement, bowing her head at a guest who had come up to the front to pay their blessings to the pair.

wife.

tang bo called out again, his tone getting a little impatient. wincing when he felt her pinch the skin between his thumb and index finger. he tried to smile at the strangers passing them by, feeling drained and completely spent from the day's activities. it didn't help that the noisy chatter of everyone around them was making him feel worse.

wife, you should tell the elders that you're tired and want to rest for the night... i'm sure they'd listen to you.

why me? you go!

huh? me? nuh-uh, you go!

the back and forth lasted for a bit until they both agreed to ask the elders together. after all, having a partner-in-crime to take the fall together with you was way better than facing backlash alone.

perhaps the atmosphere of a wedding had put the elders in a carefree mood, perhaps it was the result of a dozen empty wine bottles. they think it might be both, but no matter, they received permission to get out of there.

the best news either had ever heard today.

scurring away quickly, the newlyweds giggle amongst each other like kids up to no good even as they were well into their twenties. the guests and elders cooed in amusement, talking about how nice it must be to be young and in love.

though that second part was so far from the truth, when the two talk about it again in their later years, it had grown into a funny story they liked to reminisce about over a midnight drink.

═══════════════

THE FIRST NIGHT

tang bo glanced over at his wife, carrying the same grimace as she did. it was hard not to cringe at the overtly crude decorations in their now shared room.

right. that was how it was in these parts. they were now husband and wife so the elders are probably expecting the results of the two carrying out their marital duties within the next year.

i don't want to do that...

me neither...

now sitting across each other on the floor, they discuss how to trick the maids who would certainly check the bedding the next morning. if nothing happened tonight then they would be under more scrutiny. but who's to say that there won't be any surveillance after? ugh! this was all so annoying!

tang bo watched as the woman before him let out a big sigh, dropping her head into her hands. he felt sorry for his wife, it must be hard living as the new daughter-in-law of his family.

should we get this done and over with?

he suggested finally, after exhausting all their options. his wife makes a face at that, but she can't argue.

awkwardly he hands over a vial, an all-purpose antidote of sorts, in case she gets accidentally poisoned while coming into contact with him. the head had passed it to him sometime during the ceremony earlier, tang bo had been hoping he didn't have to use it, at least he held himself back from throwing the whole vial at the wall when it was given.

he didn't say it at first, but he could hear the eyes and ears surrounding them grow careless every few moments, revealing their presence by accident with an unintentional movement or sound. how uncouth of them to be watching the two newlyweds like this. it seemed she'd also noticed their presence, with how she'd glance out the windows whenever a small rustle was heard.

i'm so sorry.

he murmured an apology as he kissed her cheek — he didn't have to look to know she had a faint look of disdain, directed to no one in particular yet still stung through his heart.

it's not your fault.

so she says. but it might as well be. to him at least.

the consummation wasn't a pleasant process. neither could look at the other in the eye. the knowledge that people were standing outside the room to listen in on the completion of their marriage made this whole ordeal so much worse.

wife...i...

tang bo feels his hips stutter, his face burns in shame as his hoarse voice tries to speak.

her hands reach out to brush his hair out of his face, fingertips lightly smooth out the crease of his furrowed brows. she'd resigned herself long ago, knowing this whole process was inevitable from the time she reached adolescence. to think her own husband did not...

she felt a slight twinge of pity. the young master tang was a lot more sheltered than she had thought.

when it was all over, they scrambled to get away from the other, each sitting at the furthest end of the bed — letting what had conspired sink in. how many more times would this have to happen in the future?

she was the first to collect herself. getting up, she shuffles over to tang bo, her hand reaching out for his.

my husband, we should go and clean up.

he nodded, taking her hand in his wordlessly as she led him to the tub hidden behind the partition. after dipping the dry towels in the now warm water to wipe their bodies clean, slipping into clean nightgowns and peeling off the soiled bedspreads to throw them aside, they finally crawl under the covers, yawning tiredly.

sleep came over easily, surprisingly enough.

═══════════════

DIAGNOSIS

the questions that hung around in the air at this time of the year were all about babies, children, the next generation. everyone wanted to know which of the wedded members would be expecting soon.

most eyes were turned on tang bo and his wife.

unfortunately.

their marriage had happened over five years ago, almost ten, and all this time their other relatives who had gotten married later than they were popping out one offspring after another — yet none were to be seen for the young lord and his lady. the elders often lamented on the silence of their side of the estate.

rumour has it that their relationship was on the rocks, with how neither shared a room nor did they spend a night together like all the tang spouses — save for the occasional times they'd go to visit the other's quarters every two to three months. to scratch an itch as one might say. after all, they were still young and quite healthy, so such urges were still common occurrences. might as well do it with someone familiar rather than do that with a stranger.

the relationship between tang bo and his wife was actually far more amicable than anyone could have guessed. it was hard to describe the solace they'd found in each other's unspoken commanderie within the household. they'd been living together long enough to know virtually everything about each other, yet there was always a line drawn between them to keep the distance.

today, she wasn't here for any of their usual arrangements. tang bo had came back to find his wife nursing a cup of tea in one hand, resting it on top of a propped-up leg. she had set out a game of weiqi on the table, next to a steaming teapot and array of snacks.

looks like someone's got news.

his teasing voice called out to the woman, settling down on the seat across her. he hums in thought, contemplating his move as she places down her white bead on the board.

your uncle came over to see why we weren't having kids yesterday. he's given me the results this morning, right after you left.

the woman holds out the folded paper, a little crumpled from being kept between the layers of her robes. tang bo takes it, opening it to read what his so-called uncle had diagnosed his wife with. talk about elder butting into a youngster's business for no good reason.

this...

he says that i'm barren.

she looks down with a small smile,and it looked a little bitter. of course, how could she not be? after all that had happened those few years back?

to say that she's unable to carry a child after all she had gone through back then was such a cruel prank from the heavens. he knows his wife wanted to be a mother more than anything, to give that little baby all her love in the world or along those sentiments — as did he. so if that's not going to happen... then, what now?

they were silent as they moved their beads across the game board. contemplating their next moves and what to say to the other.

there's crab stick snacks here, you should try some.

as always, she breaks the silence first. grabbing a few sticks of the salty treat to nibble on before handing the container over to her husband. tang bo reached for the food mindlessly, thinking about how nice it'd be to have these with some sweet wine.

ah, but his wife wasn't much of a drinker so that's a bummer.

═══════════════

ONLY CHILD

he should have heard the cries of the baby.

it was quiet inside, and out where he was waiting too. the nurses and maids walked out of the room with buckets of soiled, bloody rags with their heads down and mouths drawn into a thin line — something was wrong, something had gone terribly wrong.

tang bo felt his feet move, walking towards the bedroom where the doors were still shut tightly. he weaved past the attendants trying to hold him back, all telling their young master to go back and wait.

wait? why did he have to wait when he didn't know what was happening to his wife right then? she needed him. and she needed him right now.

the midwife slides the door open just as he was about to open it himself. they both take a step back in surprise.

young master... the lady is alive and well. she is waiting inside.

the older woman bowed and scurried away from the scene to join the others in the courtyard outside.

his wife lay on her back on top of fresh bedsheets and a clean nightgown. she had a sickly pallor, lips were chapped dry with red marks of blood from where the skin ripped open. hair that was riddled with sweat stuck onto the sides of her face, the untied tresses splayed over the top of the bed. her eyes were unfocused and blank, staring straight up at the wall, mind elsewhere. her cheeks were still stained with the remnants of her tears, the evidence of what transpired within these four walls.

wife...

tang bo called out cautiously. she didn't respond, barely even moved an inch to acknowledge his presence.

next to her on the bed was a small swaddle, the stillness of what was supposed to be alive unnerved him. the child's dull skin, probably in some shade of grey, eyes that were never to open, oh.

he sits by her bedside, back facing her. he too, did not know what to say to her at that moment. he was the last person that could have possibly comforted her. well, it was his child too but they were both not lovers so this was an offspring born out of necessity rather than a genuine want. and at this point in his life, tang bo wasn't actually too thrilled about the prospect of fatherhood. not that he would resent that kid, it's just he might not have loved them like he should.

his wife, she's mentioned her anticipation of motherhood but once in a while, he'd catch glimpses of the unreadable expression she had when no one was looking — all while she rubs her growing belly. it made him think that perhaps she wasn't always telling the truth.

once there was a patient who had came to the tang estate to treat the growing tumors in his intestines and since he was a rather important guest, most of the members of the main family, the two of them included, had dropped by to greet him and wish him well for recovery. tang bo could never forget the intensity of her absent gaze at the patient's stomach, her balled fist tightening over her shawl ever so slightly.

perhaps it's good that she's dead.

tang bo feels his eyebrows rise up in shock.

you're not too keen on fathering a child either, are you?

he shakes his head.

well, that makes the two of us. the heavens must be looking out for her, keeping her away from parents like us who can't give her the love she needs.

his wife sighed deeply. her tired face falling to the side to look at him, a lopsided smile making its way onto her lips as if to ease the heavy tension of her words away. she might be right. perhaps, it was better this way. tang bo closes her eyes with his palm, patting her to sleep the way one would with a feverish child.

their daughter would later be the two's first and only child.

═══════════════

SWORDSMAN

the woman wondered how one-sided her husband's relationship with his friend was. the man was a rather expressionless fellow — his sentences were short, curt and straight to the point. her husband didn't seem to mind, with now he was almost always all over that man. ah well, she's just happy tang bo has an actual friend.

rather than worry that he was drunk off his rocker out on the streets past midnight doing who-knows-what in who-knows-where, at least now he's causing trouble with someone she could easily track. apperently, the man was a troublemaker in his own home too.

the first time she met the older sect brother of her husband's friend, they shared a look of silent understanding. ah, so you too have an oversized child to deal with.

watching tang bo come home staggering on his feet together with the man, leaning on the other for support used to riddle her with worry but now she just ushers them both into a spare room prepped with the necessary herbs to concoct a hangover remedy and hope for the best. her husband was a capable man, he would never let himself falter and die in a ditch.

in hindsight, she might have been too confident in his abilities.

the swordsman was the best thing to have happened to her husband. and it was not an exaggeration by any means. not when he looked at his happiest for the first time since she'd known him. even if they were both past their fifties and sixties.

how nice. she thinks to herself whenever she spots them together. to find your other half, your kindred spirit in this word before you died... it must be nice.

she can't find it in her to be bitter. really.

═══════════════

FIRST CHIPPING

if he were to look at what society deemed as a bastard husband, then that requisite would have had his face plastered as a prime example. the type of husband that any aspiring groom should not ever become.

though for those who were in the know, mainly his wife and himself, there was more to their marriage than what everyone saw. it didn't take long for either of them to recognise that this union had been a discreet way for them to hide away from what kids like them were supposed to act like in this rigid society.

they've stuck by each other as the only people who would have understood each other the best. so now that tang bo was finally finding the happiness he should have sought after all this time, he was always feeling the guilt of leaving her behind on her own in that house that had always been too big for just the two of them.

she has yet to utter a word of displeasure to him. that's how she was — the quiet one who kept to herself, letting things happen until the worst had passed over. it was one of the little things he detested about his wife.

he can't bring himself to really hate her. there was a time when he had opened up his heart and confided in her about some things he's been scared to come to terms with. the type of realisation one has from a very early age and has buried deep within themselves to fit into society and the expectations people had of him.

his wife had held onto his hand wordlessly, squeezing it ever so often to assure his nerves. he's never been this vulnerable before. he never thought things like this could be so frightening.

she had something to say too. but not right now. this was his moment, she's not so tactless to take it away. she can't stop thinking that if they'd been more honest earlier, then perhaps they wouldn't have hurt the other unknowingly all these years.

the walls they'd built between them were starting to come down a little — who would have thought they'd find out something new after decades of marriage.

═══════════════

COMING TO TERMS

she couldn't really understand why her husband was loudly crying into her shoulder. her good robes were getting wet from his tears and snot. how did this almost seventy-year-old man have no shred of shame — in front of the attendants no less?

she had given him her blessings earlier today, and he was now free to pursue the swordsman so why was he not going off to sweep his beloved off his feet and ride off into the sunset or whatever those romance novels say?

wife, you know you aren't obligated to be bound to me any more right? if you wish, you are also free to love someone else...

tang bo managed to say between sobs.

...thank you for your consideration.

she hesitated. what did he mean by her being free to love someone else? she can't think of a time when she'd ever felt that kind of emotion, at least not the one that every person around her was chasing after, even back when she was in her youth.

there was always a disconnect whenever the other wives she'd corresponded with ranted and raved about their husband's infidelities or little annoyances. they were always on the verge of hysteria, driven to that point out of love for their husbands they said. and she'd think about how foolish it was.

thank goodness her relationship with tang bo had not been built on a foundation that flimsy. rather, it was one based on mutual respect. which was far better—

ah but. he must have felt trapped in this marriage. not everyone in the world was like her. not everyone had been born with the inability to be like everyone else and it was unfair how they all just instinctively know what romance and lovers-love is. so to have held him back in this loveless situation for this long was a cruel thing.

the good wife, the understanding wife, the kindhearted wife. it's all that she's been the majority of her life. she doesn't know what else there was to her now that she's let-go of these titles. she's free to do what she wants. but what does a caged bird set free know?

she had packed lightly, the clothes on her back were lighter and less showy, the stark opposite of what she used to wear as the daughter-in-law of the tang family. there was not much hesitation as she donned the weimao — it's white veil falling past her knees. she looked at the darkened courtyard of their estate.

she's received enough goodwill in this lifetime. she prayed at the ancestral shrine one last time, asking them to look after everyone now that she's going off.

═══════════════

MORNING AFTER

tang bo awoke to the frantic bustle of the maids outside his room. turns out his wife had gone missing overnight without anyone noticing. he walked out of his room, wandering around the family estate until he reached the main halls where it was quieter. no one was allowed in here outside of events except for the elders and the main family.

he picks up the tattered note that had fluttered to his feet — eyes widening as he takes in the words written on it.

tch, that woman could still pull some tricks at her old age huh. he didn't think she'd still know how to surprise him. the paper was burned away on a candle flame. he wonders if he'd see his wandering wife on his travels with his taoist-hyung. would they all share a drink at the teahouse when they do? oh he hoped so. there's not much things to look forward to at this age, so at least give him some stories and a meal.

ah. he should let his taoist-hyung know about this too. before it slipped out of that old head of his.

#enihkwrites #rotbb #rotmhs #return of the mount hua sect #return of mount hua #return of the blossoming blade #dang bo #tang bo #return of the blossoming blade x reader #return of the mount hua sect x reader #dang bo x reader #tang bo x reader #gonna be real with you idk why i even wrote this #idk how i even had the idea to write this #it's more like a “tb was definitely married so how would that rls go with him and his potential wife”#*shakes the fic* pspspspspsps come get your fix loves

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ijwrsmff · 1 year

Note

Yae Miko and Ei love triangle that turns into a poly-relationship?

Here you goooooo very very late getting requests done but I’m trying my best XD

Word Count: 1,449

Finally…finally you had some peace and quiet. You sat in the grass, on a tall hill of Inazuma. You’d saved the day many times by now, and after a lot of hard work helping the citizens of Inazuma, you were able to relax. You weren’t doing much, just laying down looking up at the sky.

You closed your eyes, and enjoyed the feeling of the sun’s warmth surrounding you. The slight breeze was relaxing to say the least, and you found yourself nearly falling asleep. It was serene, and it was simply…perfect. Your mind was blank, and that was just how you wanted it. No worries, no fears, just the sun and wind flowing over you. Being a savior was hard, and you were enjoying this well needed moment of calmness.

Was it getting dark already? Did you really fall asleep here? Your eyes slowly opened, and revealed Yae Miko and Ei themselves standing over you. They were dressed in yukatas, and both had a smile on their faces.

“What are you doing here?” You mumbled, sitting up for a moment before regaining your composure and stood up. You took a bit to stretch out, and looked at the two women quizzically.

Yae spoke up first, “We’re going to the festival. We wanted to go with you.” She gave her signature smirk, and placed a finger under your chin to make you look at her.

You smiled right back at her, and said “Of course I’ll go with you. Though…I had no idea that today was the festival. Aren’t I a bit underdressed?” It was then that you noticed a medium sized box that Ei was holding. You tilted your head a bit “What’s that?”

Ei rolled her eyes (as she tended to do), but the smile on her face reassured that she wasn’t upset in any way. “We figured you would be unprepared, so we took the liberty to bring you an outfit we thought you’d like.” She held out the box, and patted your head.

“Heheh…” You chuckled, “You know me so well, don’t you?” And you took the box gratefully. Opening it, you found it to be a perfect outfit. It was your favorite color, and perfect for the festival. “Guys…this looks amazing! Thank you so much!”

Yae stepped forward, “Anything for you, dear~” and then turned around, Ei following suit. They were allowing you the privacy to change, and it meant a lot to you.

You changed quickly, not wanting to keep them waiting. “You can turn around now! Lead the way.” You would be lying if you said you weren’t excited, after all…you would be going to a fantastic festival with two women that were close to your heart.

You followed them to the festival, and it was fun! Booths of traders and salesmen, with anything you could ever want. Food, trinkets, weapons…they had it all. You knew that Yoimiya would be putting on a show of the best fireworks. Ones that would leave everyone in awe, since she was an expert craftswoman.

You spent hours running around the booths, with Yae Miko and Ei buying you many things. So many things…that you all had to carry bags of goods. You weren’t worried about people stealing them from you, since you were renowned as Inazuma’s savior, Yae was the high priestess, and Ei their God.

Finding a nice spot to watch the fireworks, the three of you sat and waited. It was the new year, how could you forget? Since that was the case, you were even more excited for the show. Ei was to your left, Yae to your right, putting you comfortably in the middle. You debated holding their hands, but you didn’t wanna push it.

Yae caught you staring at her hand and smirked once more, “Oh…is our little friend wanting affection?” Without thinking twice, she reached over and held your hand. It was…comfortable. She rubbed your hand with her thumb, and interlocked your fingers. “How cute~.”

Ei looked over, and reached for your other hand. “Now, now Yae…you can’t possibly think of holding their hand without me holding it as well…” She smiled at you, and you found yourself smiling back.

These two…they were really sweet to you. Big teasing from Yae, but that made things more fun. Sometimes Ei too would tease, if Yae was also teasing. It just…worked. You did your fair share of teasing too, but didn’t want to take it too far. You knew they were both together, so it had to be purely as friends that you interacted with them.

You looked around, and the countdown had begun. Everyone was counting down till midnight, waiting eagerly for the fireworks to begin. The streets were filled with people, all looking toward the small island in which the fireworks will shoot off from.

10…

You glanced at Yae and Ei, seeing them also looking towards the island. They must be excited to see what Yoimiya had concocted for this special occasion. You looked between them, more focused on them than the fireworks. With only the lantern lights floating around, the scene was so…beautiful.

9…8…7…

Now you looked to the island, deciding to watch the fireworks with the two that you cared for so deeply. They both squeezed your hands, and it left you with an adoring smile on your face.

6…5…4…

Soon…soon it would be time for the fireworks. Not only that, but also marking a new year you plan to spend with the two women on either side of you. It might hurt sometimes, being around people you wanted to fall in love with, but not being able to do so. The last thing you’d want is to ruin their relationship…

3…2…

It was time! Just another second and the show would really begin. You grew even more excited, you were good friends with Yoimiya, you knew it would be spectacular.

…1!

As the fireworks shot off, you felt the soft touch of the women’s lips against your cheeks. Did they…really just…?

You turned a shade of crimson, and found yourself glancing between Yae and Ei. “I…uh…I mean…did you…I just…” You couldn’t form words, too happy at the act of kindness from these two.

Yae gave a little chuckle, and you hear Ei let out the smallest of laughs. Yae stated “We like you. We want to be with you, if you’ll have us.” She ran her fingers across your cheek, where she just kissed. It was a soft touch, and you felt yourself leaning into it.

“I would like that…” You looked back at the fireworks, not looking at either woman. “I don’t want to ruin what you two have though.” You gave a sad smile, and rubbed their hands.

This time it was Ei who used her finger on your chin to direct attention to her. “We have thought long and hard about this. We agreed upon it. You won’t ‘ruin’ anything. We trust you, very much so.” She gave a smile, and leaned forward to kiss your forehead. “If we didn’t think we could handle it, we wouldn’t bring it up. But you’re special to us.”

“Are you…sure?” You asked, still reluctant to accept such an offer. It seemed too good to be true, and you were a bit skeptical. How could the two prettiest women of Inazuma be interested in you? “If…if you’re sure, then…I accept.”

“That’s what I like to hear~” And Yae directed your attention towards her. “We mean it. You’re special to us. All teasing aside, we look forward to a bright future with you by our side.” She smiled warmly for a second, before returning to her natural smirk. “Unless you think you can’t handle us~, if that’s the case we’ll leave you be.” And she shrugged.

You huffed, “I can handle you both just fine.” And you leaned towards Yae, “I’m up for the challenge,” as you rubbed your hand down the side of her face as a teasing motion.

Her smirk only grew, “Perfect. We expect you to do your best.” She leaned towards you, closing the gap. Now her lips were on yours, and it filled you with joy. They were so soft…you could see yourself getting addicted to these kinds of kisses.

Before, you aimed to travel the world. However…now that you were with Yae and Ei, the thought was no longer appealing. You’d stay here, in Inazuma, happy to be with the two you held dear. No matter what Inazuma went through, you’d be there to keep the people safe. Visiting both Yae and Ei as much as you could between adventures.

Yeah…things were good. You liked them just the way they were.

#yae miko x reader #yae x reader #ei x reader #yae x reader x ei #genshin x reader #fischl genshin impact x reader #x reader #gn reader #poly relationship

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hoarding-stories · 5 months

Text

Really really loved the name cloak ceremony. It was so cinematic and helped me kinda *get* what it's really about.

Cuz I mean I knew the whole protection bit, names have power and obfuscating your real one will of course be wildly beneficial.

But I did have an "oh shit" moment where I realized the true decision behind choosing a name, and why Sky is so big.

It's a balancing game of finding yourself in an abstract, a facet of a word that fits who you are, what you hold dear, or what you want to become/exemplify, and the perception of others who won't know or see how you connect to your name but will fill in meaning based on their personality and values or assign expectations depending on history. To lose your true name to the cloak is to move into almost a bigger shell. Something that not only encompasses who you are but covers what you will become and how you are seen.

Sky is a big name, a title, because it's so big literally and metaphorically! It's always changing and always there, and there are so many ways to put meaning to it and interpret it. Sure, there are Suvi's predecessors, who both seem like major historical figures, who have their legacies and shoes to fill, but also, it's a major thing to exemplify by itself!

Continuing under the cut with the Archmagi's little speeches & Suvi's connection to her name cuz I think it kinda tells us a bit about their personalities.

Saber:

What power then, that that great firmament might rain down. Whether thunder, lightning, great powers to cover all, and with its judgment mete out what it sees fit.

Of course the Archmage named Saber has a very weaponized view of the sky, concerned with the power it (& Suvi) holds and how it is used to defend or attack. (I wonder if he sees himself, above all, as a weapon to be wielded by the Citadel)

Sand:

What cannot be seen, who's weightless weight we bear each day upon our shoulders, turns the mountains into dust. Subtly and the movement in spaces unseen. The dominion of your title.

Tbh Sand is the Archmage that interests me the most, I'd say her choosing of her name had to do with time. The invisible currents in the sky, the hidden stars during the day, the sun disappearing at night. Always shifting even when unobservable and moving ever onwards.

Sorrow:

Things eternal. That have been with us since the dawn of time. Wisdom in the watchfulness of a constant partner ever above, defined by its distance.

Sorrow is also very interesting. The sky as something always there but never interacting. A monolith of cosmic knowledge, knowing from observation but not experience. (Perhaps a sorrow of missed connection)

Serenity:

Movement. Life, in a desert beyond which no growing thing can be seen from our vantage point. We see the beginnings, wisps of vapor that will become storms, rain to fall upon forest and field. A partner in a dance to sustain the world forever.

Serenity's view is one that I'm fond of, the sky as a nurturing force, full of change and life-giving, whose effects will spread beyond what can be observed. (Legacy, perhaps, the peace in knowing that the seeds you sow continue to grow for a long time, ripples in a pool).

Silence:

The sky is not the weather or the wind, the sky holds all things, let it be known that vastness is yours. The sorrows it will bring you, that you and your road are vast and broad and lead to all places. Many who have destiny curse it. But what a burden, to be able to choose any path under the sun.

Less of what the sky itself holds or is, but instead acknowledging the freedom something so big has. Suvi can shape her and others' interpretations however she wants. There is space to spare, and the legacies of those before her haven't restricted anything at all. That there is the possibility of things going wrong, or being missed, but at least it was a choice that could be made. (Everything that can be said with silence, when it is best to talk and best to hold your tongue. The possibility in that empty space of what could come next)

Suvi:

...The version of the sky that Suvi will claim for her own is a sky that she saw when she was 6 years old. The dead of night. Stars visible. Snow gently falling. As her world got blown apart. And she remembers the explosion of magic, she's never seen anything that big, and she thought it would destroy everything, not just her but the world itself and yet the sky looked down and held it all and watched it all and persisted. That is the sky that she claims.

& when giving Ame her name:

That night, and the day we met Eursulon, contain everything in this world I seek to protect. All below one big sky.

Very inchresting & I know I'm not the best person to do a ton of meta on subject but, I was originally going to say Silence's view was similar, then Sorrow's, but neither are quite right. The sky is always there, through fear and joy, and remains a constant no matter what changes. It holds everything, stands in relief no matter what, feels it, but can weather it and remain unchanged. Suvi wants to be strong, to be able to go through and witness terrible things but remain stalwart in the face of it, protecting no matter what. To always continue. To see and have those happy times with those she loves and see them safe while still watching and waiting in just in case.

#worlds beyond number #wbn #wbn spoilers #wwwo #wwwo spoilers #the wizard the witch and the wild one #loved the insight into the citadel #i kinda want to meet the mage sly now as well #just to see what they're like #this definitely got away from me #but twas fun

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lyraeeee · 2 years

Text

in his arms.

love interest daikichi karube

theme fluff !

composition oneshot

word count 3.6k+

contents female reader , bullying , name-calling (i.e. walrus) , mentions of sexual assault (one statement implying it, no events of it actually occurring) , blood and violence (it's karube what did you expect) , smoking (once again, it's karube so yeah) , might be a bit cliche

You didn’t have the energy for this.

Today has been a whole mess. Nothing seemed to go your way from the very moment when you woke up. Sleeping through all the alarms you’ve set up and waking up hours late for your class, tripping on your own feet warranting a large gash to appear on your elbow as well as straining your ankle, getting yelled at by your teacher and forgetting to bring lunch— at this point you just want to head home and pass out for the rest of the day, not even going to bother eating dinner and just hope that tomorrow would be better than this one.

But of course, the constant rumbling of your stomach forced you to do otherwise. Although your classmate was courteous enough to share some of her lunch with you, it wasn’t enough to fulfill your hunger. This led to you going on a quick grocery run before heading home so that at least you could say that there’s one good thing that happened to you today.

You weren’t in the mood to cook something complicated at the moment, so the paper bag you’re holding is just filled with chips and instant noodles. Unhealthy, sure, but you just didn’t have the energy to care.

The darkening sky reminded you once again that it was late and you should really start heading home already. If that wasn’t enough, the street lamps were turned on and dimly lit up the dark path in front of you. More people are seen entering their houses and you soon find yourself alone with your thoughts.

You kick a pebble that was in your way and hum to try and fill the unnerving silence.

After a while of getting used to the serene atmosphere, a shrill voice startles you and you feel a small object hit you on the back of your head.

“Hey walrus!” A familiar face greets you as she sends a haughty smile your way. You don’t have to look twice to know she’s also accompanied by her friends, two of them you know to be your classmates.

“My friend over here says that you owe him money”

Nope. Not now. Not today please.

Ignoring her calls for your name, you continue limping towards the direction of your house. You ran out of energy to care for your own health, and you certainly did not have the energy to be dealing with their annoying faces right now. Surely, if you act like you didn’t hear anything, they’ll just leave you alone at some point, right?

A rough hand clamps over your shoulder and forcefully pushes you against a concrete wall. “Ignoring us are we?”

The paper bag was yanked out of your hands and you are faced with a pair of dark brown eyes.

“Didn’t know you were such a coward, ugly walrus.”

It took everything within you to stop yourself from rolling your eyes at her mocking voice. She clicked her tongue and raised one of her hands up, gesturing you to hand over your bag. Two of her friends from before stand behind her to ensure that you won’t be getting out of this one.

You hesitate.

Normally you weren’t the one to submit easily to their antics, but you know you wouldn’t be able to fight against them to the best of your capabilities right now. Running isn’t an option as well, the slight limp of your bandaged leg made sure of that. You begrudgingly removed one of your bag’s straps and Mika, not being one to have patience, slapped your hands away and forcibly took your backpack from you.

“Now, was it really that difficult?” Her figure walks away from you, busying herself with rummaging through the contents of your bag. “Miho, check her pockets if she has anything we could take.”

You blew a strand of hair out of your face and sent a glare to her retreating back.

“Don’t be afraid to feel her up while you’re at it.”

With your own widened eyes, you make eye contact with the guy and the perversity behind his smile is unquestionably obvious. Frantically searching for a way to get out of your current predicament, you failed to notice the new figure entering the fray.

“Unfortunately,” all of your attention diverts to the blonde man approaching from around the corner, “I won’t be letting you do anything of the sort tonight.”

Miho lets out a scoff and unfolds his arms. “And you? Filthy dropout. Shouldn’t you be minding your own business?”

The taller man laughs and doesn’t stop in his leisurely walk towards you.

“I’ll mind my own business,” he cracks his knuckles and sends a grin your way, “if you decide to let that girl go first.”

The other two slowly withdraw from their places but not before scowling and cursing at him. Mika giggles mockingly and drops your bag on the ground.

“And what are you going to do about it, huh? Trying to play hero now that you have nothing else better to do than mix a couple of drinks?”

Her statement irritated the man. He takes another step forward as a final warning to the trio, but Miho decides that he has enough of the new guy and charges forward to draw a sudden punch to his face; a line of blood to trickle down from his nose.

You knew they already lost with how the guy just smiled and wiped his face with the back of hand.

Next thing you know, he threw his own fists in retaliation to the two boys while Mika stumbled back, surprised that her friends were actually getting into a fight— one that wasn’t looking too good on their end.

You didn’t do anything in fear that you’d accidentally get caught up in the fight yourself so you continue watching with unblinking eyes over what’s happening right in front of you.

Miho tried to block some of the punches but the taller man was too experienced to let that happen. He managed to land a hit on his stomach but surprisingly, the man doesn’t even react and continues beating up the poor guy.

The other black-haired boy, who’s name you couldn’t recall, attempted to jump over the blonde’s back to make him struggle and stop him in the middle of his hitting. He skillfully maneuvered the smaller man though and tossed him across to Miho,who wasn't expecting the move and was forced to lay down on the ground with the weight of his friend crushing him.

“That’s enough!” The sharp voice you knew all too well screamed before running to aid her friends.

She slings one of Miho’s arms on her back before yelling at the other one, “Get the bag and let’s get out of here!”

Fearfully, the boy stands up and takes the paper bag you carried earlier and runs after his companions. It didn’t take long until all three figures disappeared off into the distance.

Your savior let out uneven breaths before leaning his back on the wall. His eyes are closed and even though he had the upper hand for the majority of the fight, it was evident that it still took a toll on him. The dried blood running down his nose and the bruise forming on his left cheek made it crystal clear.

Still standing shell-shocked over what just went down in front of you, you lean down to grab your bag and call for the man’s attention.

“I uh... are you alright?” You despised how small your voice sounded right now.

“Huh?”

Clearing your throat and approaching the guy leaning against the wall, you repeated. “Are you okay?”

A moment of silence passes by you two before you hear him chuckle.

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?”

You sigh, exasperated, and pat the inside of your pockets searching for your handkerchief. Once you found it, you also took out your water bottle from your bag and screwed the lid open, dampening the piece of fabric slightly. Limping towards where he was, you raise the cloth to his nose and wipe away the mess left by the nosebleed he had earlier.

“I wasn’t the one who was punched in the face, was I?”

He blinks at you owlishly and you pay no mind to him, preoccupying yourself with cleaning his face up even for just a little bit.

Finally satisfied with the absence of the blood stain on his face, you then tilt his face sideward to observe the other injury. Thankfully, the swelling wasn’t too bad— Miho was cocky when it comes to ‘beating up other guys’ but apparently the hit he delivered wasn’t even that powerful compared to what he often boasted about. You noted that an ice pack would be enough to numb the pain for a while.

You also took it as an opportunity to try and identify the man properly this time— although it appeared that he used to go to the same highschool as you, his handsome face was something you failed to familiarize yourself with. No matter how hard you try to jog your memory, you still can't recognize him. You instead just chalked it up to just not seeing him around the campus before.

“What’s your name?”

Startled by your voice, he clears his throat before answering your question.

“Karube.”

You send him a smile and offer your hand. He accepts the handshake while you go ahead and introduce yourself in turn.

Stepping backwards and folding the handkerchief so that the blood is hidden from view, you turn away from him and begin heading to the store. A few strides in and realizing that he wasn’t following you, you glance back towards his figure.

“Karube?”

He raises one of his eyebrows at you. “Yes?”

“Aren’t you coming with me?”

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

A short trek later and the two of you find yourself inside the frozen section of a convenience store. Mika stole your ‘dinner’ for the night and Karube still needed an ice pack for his swelling cheek— so it was basically hitting two birds with one stone in your perspective.

Your companion was skeptical at first and didn’t understand why you’re so insistent on visiting the store right now—when really, you should be heading home as you were doing earlier. He obliged nonetheless and went along with you anyway, but not before explaining first that ‘it was only to make sure that nothing bad happens to you.’

“Hey Karube?”

“Yes?”

“Which flavor do you prefer?”

He furrows his eyebrow at you— signifying he’s waiting for further context before he’ll answer your inquiry.

You slide the glass freezer door open before taking out the two ice cream cones.

“They ran out of chocolate, so you’re going to have to pick between strawberry and vanilla ice cream.”

The older man laughs and shakes his head at you. “I don’t mind honestly.”

Shrugging, you place the cold treats inside the basket and move on to the next aisle. Prior to the earlier event that occured, you lacked the energy to choose and cook a proper meal for yourself. This encounter you had with Karube for sure woke you up; but you still didn’t care enough to eat healthier even now.

The plastic bags of chips crinkled as you carried them towards where the blonde man was. He carried the metal basket for you and the two of you headed over to the cashier. After paying for the items, Karube reaches over to take the bags and you follow behind him to exit the store.

One of his long legs prop over the other as he sits on a wooden bench stationed nearby.

You sit beside him and your hand fumbles around the plastic bag to bring out the ice cream cones you bought.

“Here,” surprised by the sudden drop in temperature, he faces you while you gently press the frozen delicacy against his bruised cheek, “This will help.”

Your other hand takes his and raises it to hold the cone instead of yours. Sighing for the umpteenth time that day, you lean against the backrest of the chair. Your fingers peel off your ice cream cone’s wrapper before taking a bite out of the sweet treat.

A couple of minutes pass by and you finally tell him that he can eat his own ice cream.

“So…” He says, “What happened back there?”

“I guess I don’t have to explain much since I’m sure you already know what happened for the most part.”

He nods before you continue, “That was Mika and her group. I’m not really sure what’s their problem but basically, they’re a bunch of assholes.”

“I could definitely see why.” His statement makes a laugh bubble up from your throat and he chuckles as well.

“Do they always target you?”

“Well,” You pop the final bite of ice cream into your mouth and go ahead to open a bag of chips, “not always, no.”

Offering the bag to Karube, he declines and shakes his head.

“On most days they do though.”

The man sighs and takes something out of his pocket. A clink of metal and a spark of light later, you then eye the cigar now hanging off from his mouth.

“That's bad for your health you know.”

Karube smirks and breathes out a puff of smoke before replying.

“And so are those chips.”

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

Ever since that fateful night, you’ve been meeting that man, Karube, for almost every single day you walk home from school.

At first, he tried to convince you that it was for your own safety and he was only making sure that nothing bad happens to you like the incident from before. Of course, you wouldn’t just let him do that for you without any payment so you agree with him— but only if he lets you buy him something he wants from the grocery store in return.

He’d pick out items that were cheap and try to assure you that it is something he wants, but you weren’t that dumb to believe him that easily.

You settled with just buying him an ice cream cone instead, so in that way, you could indulge yourself with eating one as well.

Plus, you also thought that a big intimidating man like Karube looks hilariously adorable while taking a bite out of a pink strawberry ice cream cone.

A few months into your agreement with the man however, and now you've realized that something has changed.

You weren’t sure what happened exactly, but the fluttering of butterflies in your stomach and the constant heat blazing upon your face whenever you make eye contact with the man were clear signs of it.

As the bell rings to signify the end of classes and the dismissal of students from school, you take your time strolling through the corridors to reach the exit of the building.

Catching a glimpse of the tuft of blonde hair awaiting you on the school gates, you try to calm the fast race of your beating heart by taking in deep breaths.

“Hey.” Karube lets out a yawn and stretched his arms over his head. “Took you a while.”

Rolling your eyes, you slap his arm. “If it was such a bother then you shouldn’t have waited for me then.”

He laughs before wrapping an arm around your shoulder as you both head off to your usual destination.

“You know I would never do that to you.”

“Pfft. Yeah right.”

You had to control yourself throughout your journey from being too flustered, afraid that Karube would notice how weirdly you’ve been acting. It was just a friendly gesture, why is your body reacting the way it is right now? Your palms are sweating, your cheeks are hot, and you feel like throwing up. Surely, if it had this much of an affect on you, then maybe it also had at least somewhat of an affect on Karube himself?

The harsh glow of the fluorescent lights from the convenience store blinds you as your friend leads you over to the frozen section. As usual, he slides the chest open and takes out two ice cream cones, one of which is your favorite flavor and the other his own preference of strawberry.

The two of you check your items out at the cashier before exiting and ambling over towards your designated spot with the blonde man.

The setting sun that painted the sky in different hues of orange and pink provided a panoramic view.

As the night approaches, you find yourself shivering from the cold wind that brushes past between you two. It wasn’t a good idea to eat ice cream today it seems.

Humming, Karube’s voice snaps you out of your thoughts. “Too bad I didn’t wear my jacket today.”

Sending a curious glance his way, you finish the last piece of your treat before replying.

“And why is that?”

He shrugs. “You’d look cute in it”

Choking on your own spit, you have a coughing fit as his booming laughter fills the silence.

Really? Is he being serious with you now? You refuse to believe that he meant what he said.

He probably only said it to get a reaction.

Once you finally got a hold of yourself, you smacked the man’s arm while he continued chuckling.

“You suck Karube.”

“Yeah I know, I love ya too.”

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

“And remember class! Hand in your essays to me by tomorrow morning. Any time further than 10am and I won’t be accepting it any longer.”

Not bothering to listen to your teacher, you and the rest of your class began packing your things. With the final ring of the bell, everybody just wants to leave the school as soon as possible; heading off to do your own errands for the day.

You didn’t have any particular plans for today though, just the usual event with Karube.

Wake up early to his calls (he explained that he did it so you wouldn't be late to school), go about your morning routine, then leave for school. Classes fly by like a blur and then suddenly Karube’s arm is around your shoulder while the two of you are walking to the convenience store—the same as all other days.

That is, of course, was what you were expecting for this day as well.

As always, your best friend is there at the gates.

He looks handsome in his black leather jacket and… slicked-back hair…?

Is he trying out a new style?

Approaching the blonde, you can’t help but laugh at his new look. Albeit not out of disgust, rather, out of endearment over his appearance. It oddly suits him in a way—like a biker from the 1950’s.

“What’s so funny?” Karube’s voice cuts through your laughter.

Once you finally stopped, you dramatically wiped a tear from your eye and replied, “You look like one of those biker dudes, you know, the ones you see on the movies!”

You couldn’t help but giggle when you saw the exasperation on his face.

Sighing and shaking his head, he says, “Yeah yeah whatever… I get it, I look pretty stupid.”

“Hey I never said that!”

He closes his eyes in disapproval and looks at the other direction as if he’s saying that he doesn’t believe you. Taking his jacket off, he drapes it across your shoulders all the while not looking at your face.

“Oh, you big baby,” you grab his hand and start pulling him to walk with you, “you know I didn’t mean it like that.”

He doesn't speak again or respond. The only sound filling the silence is that of you two walking.

“I think you look cute actually.”

You feel a small squeeze from his hand which you’re holding.

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

“Karubeeeeee”

“Yeah?”

“My feet hurrrrrtsssss.”

You hear him release a small chuckle, “Annnnndd what do you want me to do about it?”

Tugging on his hand, you stop on your tracks, making him turn to face you.

“Can you…” you’re in it now. You can’t stop your heart from racing and cease the heat rising to your cheeks.

“Please carry me?”

He doesn’t know what to say. In any case, he would’ve jumped on the chance immediately to have the girl of his dreams in his arms but…

You look breathtaking standing there.

He couldn’t stop the blush from reaching his face; you looked absolutely perfect even when you’re not doing anything. Did you know that you looked good in his jacket? He would give it to you in a heartbeat if you wanted him to.

Did you know of the affect you had on him?

He lets go of your interlocked hands and crouches so that you can reach his back.

“Well, what are you waiting for?”

You give him a lopsided smile.

“Come here already.”

Slowly and awkwardly (in your opinion), you climbed on his back as he gripped firmly on your thighs.

He carried you towards home, though it seems he chose to take the scenic route as it was taking much longer than usual to reach it.

The setting of the sun painted the sky in its beautiful hues of yellow, orange, and red. People didn’t take this road most of the time as well so the scenery was all the more worthwhile. It was just the two of you and the beautiful sky.

It was quiet for a long while.

That is, until...

“Karube?”

“Hm?”

“I don’t know why but...”

You lied. You do know the reason why. Ever since that fateful day— that momentous day when he saved you, the times you spent sharing ice cream with him, this memory you will forever hold dearly of him carrying you home after telling him your feet hurt, you’ve always known.

No matter how many times you tried to deny it and force him out of your heart, the feelings always stayed.

“Yes?”

“I feel safe in your arms.”

see original request over here !

valedictory

*pops confetti* a toast for my very first request!! I had a lot of fun writing this one~ although I rarely see content of him, Karube is definitely one of my faves and it was really just a pleasure writing this oneshot featuring him. I hope you enjoyed my writing for him too, heart anon! I tried my best to follow through with your request as well took it upon myself to add in some creative liberties— so my apologies if it isn't up to par with what you were expecting. Please let me know your thoughts while reading it! Thank you again for requesting ♡♡♡

Also! A fun little easter egg I put in is the nickname given to the reader, which is "walrus." thought it would be funny since Karube was supposed to represent that character in the original Alice in Wonderland book— and although I used it here as an insult, it's honestly pretty cute once you realize the context behind it hehe!

likes, comments, and reblogs are appreciated !

#— ❝stellae❞#karube daikichi #karube #karube daikichi x reader #karube x reader #alice in borderland #aib #aib fanfic #alice in borderland x reader #aib x reader

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analogwriting · 5 months

Text

It Comes In Waves

Chapter 15: Neap Tide

Trafalgar Law x gn!reader word count: 2k first|next

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The next few days went by rather smoothly. Everyone boarded Bartolomeo's ship. You were entertained by all the captains trying to ally with Luffy and become members of some grand fleet for him. He wasn’t interested but they were insistent. The whole scene was hilarious. You teased him about it later, causing him to pout and whine more than once.

Though, being around the fan club crew was a lot for you. They were loud and obnoxious. You didn’t hate them per se, but with what happened the past few days, you were overwhelmed and exhausted. You tended to stay on the parts of the ship that held the least amount of people - mostly just to find yourself some solitude so you could properly rest up and heal. You still hadn’t exactly given yourself time to do that since Punk Hazard. You had been pushing yourself as well.

Luffy would try to escape from Barolomeo’s constant attention. He’d come find you and hang out with you for a little bit, but the green haired man always found him. He almost never had a moment of peace. It was entertaining to watch. Someone matching Luffy’s own hyper personality was truly a feat to behold. Luckily, Luffy would be able to see when it became too much for you and head off, going to find Zoro to bother instead.

Someone who also always found you was Law. Bartolomeo seemed to not like him very much, so he stuck with you. He also became easily annoyed by the loud and boisterous crew. You didn’t mind his presence. You both could sit in a comfortable silence. Neither of you really spoke of the past again, plenty of things having been said on Dressrosa. Now, you just enjoyed the company of the other.

Though, something did seem slightly off with Law since Dressrosa. You couldn’t quite put your finger on it. Something was weighing heavily on his mind and every time you tried to bring it up, he changed the subject or excused himself. It was absolutely frustrating and you eventually gave up on it. He wasn’t one to talk about his feelings or things that were bothering him, but you figured he’d eventually come to you if he wanted to say something.

You doubted he’d ever do that, unfortunately.

A few days later, you were on the deck for once. You needed some fresh air. Everything was nice and calm - as calm as it could be on a ship with a fan club. The air was warm - the breeze was light and cool. It made you think of your more serene days on your home island. Simpler and happier times.

“What is that?!” You hear Luffy shout from the figurehead. You look up, seeing something in the distance. You squinted, looking at it. Then your eyes widened. “Is that a fucking elephant?” you said in disbelief. Law, seemingly coming out of nowhere, spoke from next to you. “That is a fucking elephant.” He seemed almost amused. At your reaction or the elephant, you weren’t sure. You were too in awe at the huge fucking mammal that was in the distance.

The remaining Straw Hats, Law, and you all gather to come up with the plan. “So, how the fuck are we supposed to get up the elephant?” Your head was still reeling from the fact that Zou was an elephant. That this mammal was your destination - an island. A traveling one. The whole thing was asinine, but also intriguing.

You were all at the bottom of the elephant's legs now, next to the Thousand Sunny. Kanjuro ended up drawing a dragon? At least that’s what you think it was. A very, very crudely drawn dragon. Turns out he could turn that drawing to life for a bit. The plan was to have it carry you all the way to the top. You almost didn’t want to do it. Didn’t want to put it through the pain of carrying so many people.

You didn’t exactly have a choice in the matter, however. You could call upon the ocean to make a giant funnel and shoot you all up, but that was more for emergencies and she didn’t exactly like devil fruit users, so this was the best bet.

It was…truly a task. It took damn near all day just to reach the top and you even ended up losing Kanjuro and Kin’emon. It was a shitshow - to put it simply. Once at the time, you immediately noticed something was off. Everything seemed…destroyed? It was more like the ruins of an island than an active island. “Are we sure this is the right place?” you muttered, more or less, to yourself.

Law, once again, appeared next to you. “This is the place. I’m sure of it.” You clicked your tongue, nodding. “Okay…”

Then you hear Luffy yell something and absolutely bolted. Your eyes widened. “Luffy!” You darted off after him. You heard the others call your name and claim you shouldn’t bother, but honestly, you felt the same thrill that Luffy did right now. It had been a while since you had been able to go for a nice run and might as well be after Luffy. Since you were finally recovered for the most part, keeping up with him was easy.

“Luffy! Slow down! We should wait for the others!” As carefree as you were feeling right now, the unease of someone watching was creeping in. “We should be careful!”

Just as you said that, a couple of animals seemed to come out of the treelines and went for Luffy. You leaped into action, running at one of them at full speed and kicking him away from the other. He could handle one while you handled the other - easy.

The gorilla locked in on you now, not having noticed you before. After all, Luffy was a lot louder than you had been. You pulled a staff from your necklace. Something was telling you to not injure them if you could. That this was a misunderstanding. You braced yourself for impact as the gorilla charged you - Luffy dealing with the ox? You weren’t sure what they were as you were currently distracted with your own fight.

Suddenly, you heard yelling - shouting it was a misunderstanding and that you were friends of theirs. Your name was called, but it wasn’t Luffy. You looked over, seeing a very familiar trio. One that you hadn’t seen in a long time and you felt excitement to see them again. Only, it didn’t last long as the gorilla came at you again. You countered his attack with your staff, mostly swatting away his hands as he tried to grab at you.

Then, you heard new voices and bananas? Either way, the gorilla was now distracted, leaving you alone as he had a delicious treat. You were panting heavily, looking back. You noticed two more minks come from the treeline. A bunny and a dog? “Y/N!” You turned around just in time to be tackled by the trio. You yelped in surprise, but couldn’t help but smile. “It’s good to see you guys too.”

Shachi gasped. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you smile.” Penguin put a hand to your forehead. “Are you okay, y/n? You’re usually much more grumpy.” You blinked, looking at the both of them and you felt your face warm up. “Well, I usually happen to see you guys after I’m badly injured, so that’s probably why.” Your mind drifted back to what Sabo had said. Were you really that different? You didn’t notice…

“That’s true! This is the best shape we’ve seen you in!” Bepo chimed. You snorted, shaking your head. “Oh,” Shachi began. “We saw the alliance and if Strawhat is here does that mean the captain is too?”

“Yeah, Traffy is with us,” Luffy piped up from where he was sitting.

“Traffy? Who is that? Our captain is Trafalgar Law!” You laughed at their inability to read context clues. “Traffy is Law. Yes, he’s here with us,” you confirmed, clearing the confusion.

“Youtia should come with us so we can take you to your friends!” You blinked as the rabbit suddenly spoke. Bepo spoke up. “Will you tell the captain that we’re here? I can’t leave the forest.”

You looked to Luffy. “You go ahead, I’m going to stay back with them.” Bepo was still stuck to you like glue. It seemed he really missed you. You weren’t going to lie - you missed them too. You had some catching up to do.

Luffy looked at you then to the three around you before he nodded. “Okay! I’ll see you later!” Then he left with the minks. You turned your attention to the trio with you as they all began to talk animatedly at you at the same time. “Alright, alright. One at a time.”

At that moment, the rest of the crew came out of the treeline and you blinked. “Well, I be damned. I didn’t even notice y’all in the trees.” There had also been quite a bit of commotion anyway. You delved into conversation with the pirates, catching them up on the events of Dressrosa. They had read what the papers said but that was about it. The papers left out quite a bit, after all.

Once you caught them up, you excused yourself. You needed a moment to breathe. All the excitement had given you a headache and you needed a small walk. Bepo instructed you not to go too far in fear of another mix up. You promised you’d stay close.

You reached a clearing and sat down on a log with a small sigh. Phew, it was a lot. Crack. Knife in hand, readied yourself in a fighting stance. “Stand down, it’s just me.” You blinked as Law came into view. “You really shouldn’t sneak up on me like that. I tend to throw first - ask questions later.”

He smirked at you, looking you up and down. “As if you could hit me.” You stepped closer to him, sizing him up. You were only mere inches from one another. “Is that a challenge, Trafalgar Law?” you mused, mirroring his smirk. He shrugged, his smug grin not going away.

“CAPTAIN!” “BOSS!” You both jumped away from each other, looking to where the crew was running out of the trees and hugging their captain. You snorted, watching the scene unfold before you as they all dogpiled him. You watched with a fondness in your eyes and a warmness in your heart.

Maybe Sabo was right. You were changing. You used to hate being around people for any amount of time. Hated being touched. Now, you were finding yourself enjoying it. The small hand holds when Nami or Usopp told you gossip, Luffy’s bear hugs when he saw you or was feeling particularly clingy, Chopper curling up in your lap when he’s tired, all kinds of little touches and gestures you once hated, you were growing to love. They made you feel grounded, reminding you that you were here. You were alive. You had such survivor’s guilt for so long and you were finally moving past that. You knew your father would’ve wanted you to live life to its fullest.

You also thought about Sabo mentioning it being because of someone. You weren’t exactly sure on that one. Maybe it was just a collective. The love and affection from everyone was morphing you into being a less grumpy version of yourself. Your thoughts started drifting to a certain doctor when your thoughts were interrupted.

“Come on, y/n! Get in here!” You blinked as Penguin pulled you into the giant dogpile. You yelped, soon finding yourself laughing as everyone hugged and loved on each other. It was different, but it felt nice.

#one piece #law x reader #one piece x reader #one piece x you #trafalgar d law #trafalgar d water law #trafalgar law #trafalgar law x reader #iciw #am fics

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8turning · 8 months

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hii! i was wondering if i could request haemin or kyungmin x gn!reader (established relationship) like them being protective over reader when someone keeps asking for their number or if they have a s/o :) it’s completely fine if you’re uncomfortable with this and don’t want to write it! thank you so much anyway <3

- 🐻‍❄️

hiii 🐻‍❄️ anon!! thank you for this request :]

⌕ . . . jangshinz — two versus one !

bf ! jangshinz (separately) x gn ! reader ★ fluff. established relationship. ★ scenario ★ warnings: food mentions. use of "babe" in haemin's section. weird stranger. let me know if i missed anything!

n. trying out a different format, hopefully its interesting to read :]

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀〈 REBLOGS ARE APPRECIATED ! 〉

some things in life are best enjoyed alone - finding the time to take on small tasks or a new hobby slowly dwindle away as you grow older, making those moments just that much more important.

that, at least, used to be the belief you guided yourself with. relishing in your alone time and making the most of the few hours - or even minutes - you were able to bask in. as of recent times, you've found your time spent alone to feel much more . . . lonely.

that was your intention, though, wasn't it? to free yourself of the pressure to maintain conversation and allow yourself time to recharge your social battery before you had to repeat the same process; it's felt different recently.

in the beginning of your relationship with your boyfriend, you failed to realize why you felt the way you did. but the more and more your usual lonesome weekends turned into morning breakfasts and evening movies, you realized you began to long for more moments with him.

the times you'd typically lay back and recount your day, you found yourself calling him to talk about it. the tingles you felt on your cheeks and the way your heartbeat picked up speed hearing your lover's laugh was all the more proof that maybe some things in life are best enjoyed with the company of someone you love.

you came to that realization slowly, and truthfully, your boyfriend found it cute how often you told him that you missed him or when you would send him a picture of something that brought back a memory of you two; he always did the same.

with the confirmation that your schedules lined up just enough for you two to meet at a nearby café in the afternoon, you found yourself hoping your eventful weekday would go by quicker, but not for the reason you used to wish for such.

days turned into hours, hours into minutes, then within seconds, you heard the bell chime from the cafe's entrance. you raise your head, knowing your boyfriend was close to the location from the constant updates he texted you.

the smile he sent you always gave you a different feeling than the one you'd see while video calling, you could see clearly as the corners of his eyes crinkle with joy as he approaches the table you had acquired for you both.

the café was serene, most people choosing to spend their weekends outside gave you and your boyfriend the benefit of relaxing in quiet, indoor spaces - most of the time, you preferred such anyways.

the minimal chatter of other café-goers and the sound of different drinks being brewed was enough to make your thirst all the more present. pushing away the thought, he sits in the chair across the table, the same handsome smile on his face that he greeted you with when you first met.

"sorry for being a bit late," he apologizes, and its then when you notice the slight pant in his voice. "last schedule ran a bit later than planned."

you shake your head, reassuring him that you're just glad to have this time with him. he smiles once more, leaning an elbows against the table and resting his chin in his palm as he looks at you.

"i'm glad to be here with you, too," he replies - the gaze he held with you was full of love and admiration. "do you want me to go order us something?"

you offer him a smile. "if it's not too much trouble for you," you say, tilting your head to the side as you watch him stand.

"it's never too much trouble if its for you," he says, stretching his long arms in front of him before making his way to the front counter, your order from previous meetings already engraved into his memory.

the bell chiming at the front door could be heard throughout the quaint café - pulling out your phone, you rest your forearms on the table while scrolling through various time-consuming apps as you wait for your lover to return.

though your attention was on your phone, the sound of approaching footsteps made you raise your head - the person in front of you wasn't your boyfriend, though. rather, they were a complete stranger to you.

"no-show date?" they ask, both hands buried into their zip-up jacket's pockets as they stood to the left of the chair across from you. "strange how that always happens to the most attractive people."

shaking your head quickly, you dismiss their claims. "not a no-show," you begin, but before you can elaborate that your boyfriend was just across the shop, the stranger interrupts you once more.

"so they just leave you here all alone, then?"

the persons assumptions made your skin begin to crawl, indirectly insulting your boyfriend's priorities as if they had any idea the ins and outs of your relationship - as if they were entitled to know.

you set your phone face-down on the table, leaning on your elbows as you spoke to them. "can you leave me alone?" you ask, tone coming off more stern rather than that of an inquiry. "why are you even talking to me anyway?"

"why are you replying?" they taunt, a distasteful grin growing on their face - your annoyance was entertaining to them.

from the other end of the shop, where your boyfriend was waiting patiently for your drinks to be made, his gaze falls back to the table he left you at. almost immediately, his eyes dart from the back of your head to the random person you seemed to be conversing with.

thinking nothing of it at first - maybe you just ran into an old friend - he continues to wait, but its only until you lean forward to talk to the stranger and the stranger smiles down at you that he feels his heart sink to his stomach.

there was something odd about the interaction, your previously relaxed demeanor was now tense as you continued to speak with the person. even when the barista called out his name, his eyes remained fixed on your table.

"sir?" someone calls out to him, quickly catching his attention long enough to grab the drinks and thank the worker - his steps felt heavy as he approached the table once more.

he was no lip reader, but as he made his way closer, he could make out some words - words that made his blood run cold.

"i'm just saying, i'd never leave you alone like this," the stranger says, their hands removing themselves from their pockets to lean against the table, holding their weight up by their palms. "why don't you let me take you out?"

his feet pick up pace just enough to reach the table before you could answer the person's question. knowing you'd brush the stranger away eases his mind, but the fact that this random person - who you obviously didn't know either - had the audacity to suggest such from you made him see red. within seconds, you can see your boyfriend standing beside you and staring down the uninvited person.

your belief that some things are best enjoyed alone was shattered once you met your boyfriend, but one belief that remained strong was its additional counterpart: three is definitely a crowd.

💭 001 : JUNG HAEMIN !

haemin was never one for confrontation - you've known that since you met him, so his sudden appearance next to you and eyes pointed in the direction of the stranger was a sight you weren't used to.

feigning obliviousness as to why this person was at the table, he spoke up. "who's this, babe?"

the sudden use of the pet name made you look up at him questioningly - haemin wasn't fond of using them in public, but knowing he's using one now to establish himself as your boyfriend makes your heart skip a beat.

"i'm not sure," you answer honestly, eyes shifting back to the person leaning on the other end of the table. upon hearing this, haemin continues with whatever act he was putting on, even though his skin was crawling from thinking they had tried to court you so openly.

"is there something i can help you with?" he asks with the most polite tone he could muster - you could see right through it, not to mention they way his stance was tense. the stranger simply looks between you and haemin, eyes flicking back and forth a few times before they let out a sigh, pushing themselves off of the table.

"not anymore," they spit, shoving their hands back into their pockets before turning and walking in the opposite direction. you didn't get a chance to make sure they were out of sight before haemin returns to his place across from you, setting your drink down in front of you with a soft smile on his face.

"thank you for saving me, babe," you tease in an attempt to brighten the atmosphere - you're grateful it worked. haemin's hand shoots to cover his mouth, his smile hiding behind it as he pokes his drink with his straw.

he shakes his head, lowering his hand to grab at his drink. "i barely did anything," haemin breaks eye contact with you as he takes a sip. "they barely put up a fight - could sense the jealousy in my eyes."

your brows furrow as his eyes meet his again. "you were jealous?"

you didn't realize?

haemin can manage his emotions well. with his tall build and stoic nature, it probably was difficult for others to read his emotion, hence your confusion and the strangers quick departure.

thinking back on how he probably looked to the random person, he cringes when he imagines himself seeming more fearful rather than threatening and the stranger leaving out of pity rather than panic. haemin lets out an embarrassed groan, both hands now leaving his cup to cover his face to hide his flushed cheeks.

"why're you hiding?" you giggle, leaning forward on the table and grabbing at his wrists softly, prying them away from his face. "you don't have to be embarrassed about anything, haem," you comfort, your thumbs sliding over his knuckles gently.

he drops his head onto his forearms, a soft pink dusting high on his cheekbones as he replays the situation over again in his head.

"if it makes you feel any better, i think what you did was really sweet."

although haemin would probably never admit it to you, hearing you say those words as you play with his fingers made butterflies swell in his chest.

💭 002 : CHO KYUNGMIN !

kyungmin - before thinking of any possible consequences - finds himself brushing past the stranger, seemingly ignoring their looming stance over the table as he passes you the drink you requested.

you watch his action with a confused tilt of your head - you're sure the stranger saw it, too. kyungmin continued as normal across from you, pretending there was not a physical barrier from beside him partially impairing his view of you.

he seemed so unbothered, you almost wanted to laugh. watching as the stranger pushes up from their spot, their eyes land on to the top of kyungmin's head - he paid them no mind, keeping his attention on you.

"did i order the right one?" he asks, eyebrows raising slightly at his inquiry.

"yes, thank you," you reply, knowing he knew your order by heart - he never got it wrong; the question was meant to deter the stranger. instead, they continue to hover your table, causing kyungmin to let out a self-soothing sigh, controlling his minimal patience before finally meeting the eyes of the person.

you watch your boyfriend's eyes flick up, the stranger looming over you both was quick to catch his gaze. "is there a reason you're here?" kyungmin says bluntly - his tone takes you by surprise, his usual shy and soft exterior replaced with one of straight-forwardness.

it seems the person picks up on the suddenly dense atmosphere, quickly shaking their head negatively and muttering a small "no" in reply to your lover, hands finding their way back into their pockets before they turn to take their leave.

it was almost humorous how quickly kyungmin's demeanor changed after that - finding your eyes and immediately the crease between his brows softened and his lips curled into a smile. "they weren't super pushy were they?" he asks, his tone apologetic as he tried to read your face for any discomfort.

"they weren't awful," you reply, breaking eye contact as your thumb rubs the side of your cup - your boyfriend knew you well enough to know you weren't being 100% open. ". . . but still not great," you finish, bringing your cup to your lips to try and ease the uncomfortable feeling settling in your chest.

"i'm sorry i wasn't here sooner," he apologizes, and before you're able to tell him he has nothing to apologize for, he continues. "i'll do what i can to make sure you aren't in that position again."

the feeling in your chest is quickly replaced with one of warmth - a genuine feeling of admiration for the boy who sat across from you with a gleeful smile and a sparkle in his eyes.

"thank you, min," and while kyungmin felt you had no reason to thank him - that it was expected of him to take care of you - he knows you'd insist he's worthy of being thanked. letting the argument die in his throat before he had the chance to say it, he offers you the softest smile he's ever worn.

"anything for you."

#8turn fluff #8turn fanfic #8turn writing #8turn x reader #haemin fluff #haemin fanfic #haemin writing #haemin x reader #kyungmin fluff #kyungmin fanfic #kyungmin writing #kyungmin x reader #.mine #.haemin #.kyungmin #.anon 🐻‍❄️

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