#I didn’t cover everyone because I simply don’t have many ideas

[slasherbvnnie]

Until We Found You | Part IV

Welcome back! This time we have the second ghostface smut. Part V will be out later tonight, but no smut! Just some pure angst and fluff. As always, heed the tags

Modern Day College Scream AU, Obsessed AFAB!Reader, Eventual Poly!Ghostface x reader, Eventual NSFW, All characters 18+, P in V, Fingering, Oral female!receiving, Overall smut

Part I Part II Part III  Part V Part VI Part VII Part VIII Part IX

 Word Count: 2673

You had a good five seconds on campus before someone finally noticed. Before you even made eye contact with her for the first time that day, Tatum let out the biggest gasp she had ever made and grabbed your shoulder. “And who did you spend your night with,” she asked as you immediately blushed, covering up your hickey with your palm. “None of your business, tate,” you said as Stu laughed and put his arm around Tatum’s waist. “Maybe Randy finally got his shot, I mean with how scared you must be about the killer, maybe he offered some protection for you,” Stu joked as Billy laughed.

 “Don’t get the dork all worked up, Stu, you might put one too many ideas in that perverted brain of his,” Billy said as Randy rolled his eyes. “I can confirm it was not me, sadly, one of us actually has a job instead of living off student loan refunds,” Randy said as the group put their attention back on you. “Well, whoever mauled you better show up at the mall after class today. I wanna see who gave you that, you know, to vet them or whatever,” Tatum said as Sidney nodded. “Yeah, and then we’ll get on their case for mauling you,” she added, making you laugh.

Your day was mostly spent around nervously tiptoeing around the girls questioning you on who you spent the night with. You had talked to other people on campus that didn’t include your little friend group but had never shown interest in them, so they questioned you on any and every one they knew to see who it was. “Okay, what about the guy who almost hit you with that football last week, Kyle? Kit? Kaleb.” Tatum recalled, “Kevin, and no,” you answered simply as Sidney took a stab at it. “Nah, it has to be Oliver,” she suggested, making you pause and show a gross look. “One of my biggest bullies in high school? No thanks,” you shrugged as Billy turned his gaze to you, Stu looking back at you through the rearview mirror. 

“Bully?” Billy questioned as you nodded. Throughout most of school you had been bullied, not really by one group in particular but there were enough to only leave you with Casey as one of your only friends until senior year. It stopped when college came around, no one cared enough to bully someone they spent one hour a day with. “Yeah, he always bullied me, ever since second grade. At first everyone thought he liked me because they thought being mean to someone was how you showed a crush but after this one time he faked asking me out in high school just to stand me up, it came kinda clear he hated me,” you explained with a little bitter laugh, going silent when you noticed the awkwardness.

 Billy’s face was stone cold, but you could tell in his eyes that he was angered. “It’s fine, I’m over it now, but yeah, definitely not someone I would let sleep with me,” you said as you looked away, not noticing the glance that Stu and Billy shared. “Is he still a dick to you?” Stu asked as you laughed, “I guess? I dunno, I find it more funny that he’s still got a grudge against me for some reason, but at least he doesn’t try to pull my hair anymore,” you said jokingly.

“How about we go in there?” Tatum suggested as you and Sidney both shared a laugh, “what? You have a mystery date and you might want a cute outfit for Billy sometime,” Tate said as you and Sidney looked to each other before looking at the boys. “How about you two run off for a bit instead of being giant pervs, we’ll meet up again at the food court,” you suggested as Billy and Stu were quick to agree. Their rapid head shakes made you all rile up with laughter, smiling and heading into the store together. 

“Sooo, what’s your mystery dates favorite color?” Tate asked as you smiled, “I don’t know actually, that’s a good question,” you hummed as you looked at the different choices of lingerie that lined the store. “I think they like any color really,” you said as you spotted a red laced set, it was a bralette styled top that had strips running down the side to connect to the underwear. Sidney noticed where your eyes lingered and laughed, “they’re kinky, huh?” She joked as you laughed and nodded, “really,” you agreed. You picked through the outfit to find your size, wondering if ghostface would like it, you guessed they probably would enjoy the blood red color of it.Later that night you were in your bathroom, glad that your parents had left to have dinner at your grandparents, which they did very hesitantly given the incident a few days ago. When you reassured that with all your friends only a few blocks away and access to cars, as well as the marvelous creation of phones to dial 911, they let you be.

You found yourself looking in the mirror as you checked yourself out for the 100th time in the lingerie you had bought. You blushed and wondered if your masked killer would enjoy the outfit, running your hand slowly across the lace fabric. You heard a noise from outside, quickly throwing on a tshirt- one you didnt care about if ruined again- and pj shorts before heading out into your bedroom.

You peeked over your window to see nothing, frowning to yourself before sighing and taking a seat on your bed. But when you were met with the back of the costumed body looking over your vanity you let out a small scream, making them turn to you. “Jesus christ you scared me!” You yelled at them before relaxing, “no window climbing this time?” You asked as they shook their head, continuing to look around the room. You noticed their little glances around the room, curious as to why they were studying it. They turned towards you once more, walking over to you and looking you over. They were less aggressive than last time, using two fingers to tilt your head up to them. Their fingers were warm, which caught you off guard, just yesterday they were cold to the touch.

“There’s two of you?” You questioned, their demeanor changing quickly as they grabbed your chin. “I-I don’t know who you are, i swear. It’s just- y-your touch…” you spoke quickly, trailing off as their grip loosened. “The last one was cold, kinda felt like a corpse,” you said jokingly, “and you’re warm…plus you keep looking around like you haven’t been here before.” You said to them, their touch going back to just gently holding your chin up. They moved away from you, going back to your vanity and grabbing a small black bag, bringing it over to you. You blinked in surprise, looking up to them before they gestured to open it. You reached into the bag, pulling out a piece of paper that was torn, giggling at the words that were printed onto it. ‘Sorry about the last guy :(‘

“See? I would have figured it was two of you anyways,” you said as they shook their head. You smiled, reaching back into the bag and looking at your two new Carrie shirts. One was in the style as your previous one, the other a different one but still in the correct size. “I didn’t think I would actually be treated to a new shirt,” you admitted, hearing a chuckle from them. You didn’t say it out loud, but your heart was filled with joy knowing these two masked killers, regardless of not knowing them, were being so kind and caring towards you. You swooned, noticing how different the two seemed. The other one scared you a little, not really knowing their true intentions, but this one seemed so much more gentle and sweet with you. “I um, I also had a little surprise for you,” you said, noticing how they perked up at your words.

A blush rose to your cheeks as you looked up to them, adjusting yourself before sitting up on your knees. “but you’ll have to take my clothes off first to see it, mr. ghostface.” you whispered out, which made them grab you by the waist and lay you down on the bed. They didn’t take out the knife, instead their hands darted to the hem of your shirt and lifted it up to reveal the red lingerie underneath. A small groan left them as they quickly worked on taking off your shorts, making you giggle at the rush in their actions. You let out a little whimper as they groped you, aware now of how unintentionally strong their grip was. They squeezed your breast that was covered in the lace, their other hand roaming up and down your side. The lack of their touch made you whine out, pouting up at them before they moved to grab the final thing from the bag. A new blindfold, one dedicated just for you. They were quick to tie it, making sure you didn’t see through it by waving in front of you.

All you heard was a little thump of the mask and them struggling to take their gloves off before you heard the rest of their clothing thump to the ground. Before you could even take in a breath you felt their hand already cupping your core, their lips attacking the part of your breasts that were left uncovered from the lingerie. They roamed around before their lips were now on your neck, creating a new hickey right above the old one. You moaned softly, a shaky hand reaching to grab their arm.You could feel their muscles contract and tighten at the touch but when you made no movement to touch elsewhere, they quickly calmed down and continued their lust filled attack on you. They teased you over the lace panties you wore, their smirk growing as you let out little huffs and moans. The bed lifted, their frame no longer causing it to dip and your hand was left holding nothing, a small pout made its way to your agitated frown as their touch left you. After a moment you gasped, feeling their hands spreading your legs apart as they placed gentle kisses onto your inner thighs.

It was the first time you felt the blade, but they didn’t trail it across your skin like the other, instead they used it to make you exposed to them. Another whine left you, “you owe me a new outfit again, this was brand new,” you whined, they responded with a nip to your inner thigh, not doing anything else before diving into you.Your back arched on impact, their tongue on your clit as they spread you open with their thumbs. “fuck,” you moaned out, your thighs closing around their head to lock them in place in pure instinct. They were skilled at this, eventually finding the perfect pace that had you shaking and squirming. Every time you tried to shimmy up and get away from the pleasure, their large hands wrapped around your thighs from behind and pulled you back down onto their face. You weren’t even aware of how many minutes had passed before your thighs were shaking, only being held up by their grip. “Wait, fuck, you’re-“ the breath was knocked out of your lungs as they entered their middle finger into you, their pace matching that of their tongue as they thrusted it in and out of you.

 A loud moan left your lips as you came, whines and whimpers erupting from your chest as their ministrations didn’t stop. “Please, please, ‘s too much,” you pleaded, clawing at your bedsheets as they just hooked their arm around your thigh and pulled you down back onto their face once more. It was practically like a scene from the Exorcist as you came again, your back arching off of the bed as you nearly let out a scream from all the pleasure. This time they slowly pulled away after you came down from your high, lapping at you one last time before pulling away and hovering over you. Your chest heaved as you did your best to catch your breath, smiling softly at the gentle kiss they placed onto you. You felt them snake their hand into yours, making you giggle as they wrapped their fingers in the spaces between your own. A smile curled onto their lips when they heard your laugh, growing even wider when you let out a moan as their free hand went back to your entrance. They still held your hand as they pulled back a little, your legs spreading more as you felt them running their tip along your slit.

 At every swipe to your clit you let out a moan, gasping when they entered you. Within a second their lips were attacking your neck again, earning whines and moans from every bite, lick, and thrust that they tortured your body with. The pleasure was dizzying, you had never really gone so many rounds with someone before, the recovery time was practically nothing with how fast your climax was building up again. They were more gentle, their free hand roaming over the bralette you still had on, teasing your nipples over the fabric as they littered your skin in love bites. You were already regretting Tatum’s and Sidney’s teases about them tomorrow but for now, you accepted your fate.

Their pace was quick but managed to hit all your sweet spots, their hand that held yours was gripping you so tightly their knuckles turned white, which only brought you closer to the edge. Their free hand found its way to your clit again, rubbing it in time with their thrusts to completely overwhelm you. Your orgasm washed over you hard, the seconds felt like they lasted a lifetime as you did your best to come down from your high, but their continued sloppy thrusts didn’t help one bit. A loud whine left you as they came, biting into your neck to cover up their moan. They pulled out slowly, letting go of your hand and kissing you once again. Unlike the other ghostface, they laid down in the bed with you, pulling you against their chest. You accepted the invitation, resting against their chest and listening to their heartbeat as you recovered from your orgasm. 

“Next time…do- uh,” you spoke softly, a bit shy to get your thoughts out into words. You felt their fingertips tracing your jaw, relaxing as their thumb ran over your lips. “Do you think the both of you could come by next time? You- uh, you don’t have to but…” you trailed off as they kissed you, feeling their head move in a nod. You smiled, heart fluttering with excitement knowing both of them would be alone with you. “And don’t forget the new lingerie set, please,” you requested with a little laugh. It was an hour later, ghostface gone and you freshly showered and dressed in your pajamas again. 

Your phone rang, seeing Sidney’s caller id and answering quickly. “Hey, have you seen any of the police cars pass by?” She asked as you looked out your window, “no, how come?” You asked as Sidney sighed. “Oliver, the neighbors said they heard screaming and shit breaking and when police got there they said he was dead,” she said as you frowned. “Do they know if it was the killer?” You asked, “yeah, neighbors said they saw him running off. They tried going after them but they couldn’t catch up.” She told you, you sighing and shaking your head. “That’s so creepy…” you said, thinking back to the conversation you all were having earlier that day. You couldn’t help but wonder if ghostface was stalking you, if they already knew you and your past. 

#poly!ghostface #poly!ghostface x reader #billy loomis #stu macher #scream au #poly!ghostface x female reader #billy loomis x reader #stu macher x reader #scream x reader #scream 1996 #scream #scream1996 #billy x stu x reader #billy loomis smut #stu macher smut #poly!ghostface smut #smut #fluff #angst

[yandere-writer-momo]

I had this idea in my head but I just couldn’t type it into a story. Chances are it be well near 15k word or more. So enjoy this super depressing head canon/ short story creation!!

Yandere Baki Shorts: One More Time

Biscuit Oliva x Afab Reader x Regretful Yandere Reverse Harem (Baki, Jack, Hanayama, and Katsumi)

TW: Angst and mentions of emotional neglect

(Your name) is Tokugawa’s granddaughter so everyone tolerated her excessive kindness since they did not want to upset Tokugawa. Though it was no secret he was indifferent to her and often ignored her in favor of the fighters of his tournament. She gave a lot of her nuturing love because she wanted nothing more in the world than to be loved in return. Sadly these men were emotionally constipated so they did not understand her affection and unknowingly took her for granted… she had an inkling that they did not like her but she still tried to cheer them up and encourage them to keep pushing through… despite no one doing the same for her (not even her grandfather)

Hanayama ignored her whenever she made an attempt to speak to him, Katsumi was always ‘too busy’ to spend time with her, Baki complained about Kozue all the time to her and would cut her off every time she spoke, and Jack was just mean. Jack was the most vocal of his distaste for her…

- Jack was the one who pushed her off the deep end. She visited him since he wasn’t at the Baki and Yujiro fight to check on him. And she offers him words of encouragement and support but he shut her down by saying, “Of course I’d get sympathy from someone as pathetic as you. Can’t you get the hint that no one wants you around? Why don’t you just do everyone a favor and disappear.”

She felt her entire world fall apart around her but she just asked Jack if she can just sit beside him for five more minutes and then she’ll never appear again. That she will disappear from his and everyone’s life if he just let her sit beside him for a few minutes. Jack relented so she rested her head on his large arm. He was disgusted by her touch but if it meant she’d leave him alone, then he would do it. Jack had no idea she simply wished for comfort since he himself had never experienced comfort (despite her constant attempts to comfort him since she felt he was the most traumatized).

After the promised five minutes passed, she rushed out of his apartment in tears. She ended up leaving her jacket behind since Jack had cried on it (she used it to cover his face since he didn’t want her to see him cry). He sighed in relief and gets back to watching the fight he believes should have been him

(Your name) was there for everyone in her free time. She was there for Hanayama when his mother died, she was the mediator between Baki and Kozue when they argued, she sat beside Katsumi while he was in the hospital, and she was at the hospital with Jack and even pitched in for some of his hospital bills since he sustained so many injuries… she was a very nurturing light but they didn’t appreciate her. No one cared about her.

None of them ever celebrated her birthday with her and they didn’t visit her in the hospital when she was sick. They didn’t know her favorite food or color. They didn’t know her favorite restaurant or her nervous ticks. They hardly responded to her texts if at all… (your name) was so lonely it wasn’t even funny.

So she decided to go to the family’s rumored well for a wish. An old wishing well from an old scroll she found hidden within a secret wall of the Tokugawa estate. It was written by one of the first relatives who wished for the Tokugawa family to become wealthy. Btu there was a price to pay… but it’s blurred out. Regardless of the unknown danger, (your name) travels up the mountain alone with the old map in hand… to make a wish.

Rather than wish for something selfish, she wishes for her friends- no the people she cared about, to have all their desires come true, but in exchange, she offered the spirit in the well her life. She’s never been touched, she’s still pure. (Your name) could be of value, right? But the spirit pitied her so they had her disappear from the Japan for five years... they wanted her tormentors to suffer the heart ache she had for the rest of their lives

The baki men all have their dreams come true… Shinshinkai dojo became world renowned for the best karate, Hanayama was successful as the leader to his family, Baki became the strongest creature in the world, and Jack defeated his father … but they were without her love and affection for five years… they missed her. They don’t feel like they deserved the success because she wasn’t there to cheer them all on. It all felt empty without the unwavering support of the bubbly (your name). They went insane in their search for her but she disappeared without a trace…

Baki often found himself glance at the stands after a fight in hopes he’d hear (your name)‘s voice cheer for him and sing his praises. That she would run over to him to check his wounds and treat him to dinner. He swore he would thank her this time and he’d give her some compliments himself. He had seen some pictures of her and had forgotten how pretty she was…

Katsumi would often unconsciously reach for a bento box on the bench he usually sat on at the dojo. He missed (your name)’s cheery smile as she handed him a home cooked meal. He swore he would make time for her if she asked to hang out with him. Katsumi would take her to every restaurant and fun date spot she wanted to try if she came back through the Shinshinkai’s doors. Katsumi would spend his time researching date spots in hopes of her sudden return. He wanted to make up for all the broken promises he’s made to her over the years…

Hanayama often found himself glance at the door in hopes she would come in and ask to walk through his rose garden with him. He made sure to add an extra chair in his office so she could sit beside him and talk to him as he worked. Hanayama swore he would listen to her her this time.

Jack is the most distraught. He was the last to ever see her and he still had her jacket… he felt so guilty. He hadn’t moved out his dinky apartment in hopes she would walk through his door again and ask to sit beside him. That she would want to share a meal with him and rest her head on his arm. Jack would do anything for her to come back… she was the only one who wasn’t afraid of him. Jack would give her the effort she deserved if she came back to him

Her memories of her so called ‘friends’ are wiped. She can no longer remember any of them or much about her life at the Tokugawa estate. The spirit sent her off to America where she comes to be under the care of a lonely Biscuit Oliva who had lost Maria. He’s instantly taken with her and he helps her since she seems so lost… he was lost too. And they found each other.

She spent five years by Biscuit’s side, where he spoiled her rotten. She was granted her true wish of being loved the way she deserved. Her true wish was granted and the Baki men paid the price.

Biscuit and her have a beautiful relationship. He talks with her and he listens to her. He remembered every small detail she shared about herself, even ones she did not verbally share. He’s so considerate of her and he helps her build self esteem. Biscuit constantly made time for her and always put his best efforts into making her happy. And Biscuit never stopped giving her compliments about her appearance or of a task she completed that she felt was minuscule. Biscuit claimed everything she did was perfect to him and he’d never change a thing about her. She often found herself crying here and there for no reason… like there was a part of her that finally started to heal

Five years later and Baki went to see Biscuit to challenge him for a fight out of boredom. Baki is shocked to hear such a familiar laugh and he runs into Biscuit’s room to find (your name) and Biscuit enjoying a meal together. She looked so beautiful in her designer dress… like a princess from a fairytale… but she had always been a princess now that Baki thought about it

Baki immediately collapsed in front of her and hugged her knees while he sobbed. He told her how much he and the others have missed her. How they were so sorry for the way they treated her, that she could come home… but she had no idea who he was… she didn’t know him. She didn’t remember him and it sent Baki spiraling. Baki is insistent that she’ll remember if she returned to Japan but she declined his offer. She told him that despite not knowing him, she was happy that his dreams came true

Baki refused to leave the Arizona prison until she returned back with him. She said she would so long as Biscuit can come with her. Baki is so thrilled… but the other men are much worse than Baki. So much worse.

When she arrived at the Tokugawa estate, Katsumi is the first to run to her and pull her into a hug. He’s bawling his eyes out as he hed her body as close to his body as he could. He babbled about his accomplishments and how he wished she was there to see them… that she belonged by his side. She just awkwardly pushed him away and apologized to him because she had no idea who he was. Katsumi went silent in disbelief and at first had thought it was a joke… but Baki frowned at him.

Baki explained to the other martial artists that (your name) completely lost her memories. They don’t believe him at first. Especially Katsumi who kept bringing up memories he had of her being at every tournament and by his side in the hospital. He convinced himself she was in love with him. (Delulu isn’t the solulu)

Hanyama just stared at her while she held Biscuit’s hand for comfort. He’s consumed with jealousy (on the inside) when he saw the way she looked at Biscuit… she used to look at him like that.

Hanayama quietly shared how the last five years of his life was without her and of his feelings for her… Hanayama admitted that he couldn’t date or sleep with anyone since she haunted his dreams since her disappearance. Hanayama kept his rose garden beautiful all year round since she loved it so much. Kaoru wanted to walk through the garden with her and pluck roses with her so she could display them in the compound… Hanayama even had a bench placed in the spot she’d always kneel in the grass in… he would be better for her if she came back to him… Hanayama would marry her on the spot

Hanayama offered her a lot of power, pleasure, and luxuries if she returned to his side but she politely turned him down. (He continued to bring it up whenever Katsumi or Baki weren’t speaking… it was so awkward)

Katsumi then spoke up about the last five years without her and about the true love he held for her. Katsumi admitted he searched for her face in the stands every time he had a tournament and he’d search for her when he was training people at the dojo. He never gave up his search for her. He felt awful for not making time for her and all the broken promises he made. Katsumi vowed to make as much time for her as she wanted if she just returned to his side… Katsumi swore that he would be an amazing husband to her. That he wanted to start a family with her and build her dream house… Katsumi poured his heart out to her with a pink blush on his cheeks. He sounded like he was sharing a dream that would never be in reach (delusional mf)

Baki then shared the last five years without (your name).. Baki and Kozue finally broke up for good a few years back due to their differences. Baki didn’t have the (your name) to help him make up with Kozue or to be his voice of reason. He didn’t have the (your name) to make sure he ate or that he rested enough. He didn’t have her compliment him or congratulate him anymore… he missed her motherly affection. He missed someone being proud of him. Baki rested his head on her lap while (your name) sits beside Biscuit. He kept trying to get her to rub her fingers through his hair but she swatted his hands away

Jack remained silent the entire time. He’s trying his best to remain calm but he looked angry… and he is. He’s so upset that she had been fine this entire time and she hadn’t came back to see him… he doesn’t believe she lost her memories because she’s so scared of him. She was never scared of him before… he wants to talk to her alone. His eyes don’t leave her the entire time while he clenched his jaw

Tokugawa brought up how she was always there for all the men in the room and how everyone had missed her so much but not a single person brought up any memories where one of them had been there for her… she asked if any of them knew her birthday and none of them knew. They were ‘so close’ to her but didn’t even know her birthday…

Biscuit pitched in and shared the date and the exact time of her birthday. The older man gave her a big smile before he began to list off her favorite color, food, and her hobbies. He shared all her quirks and her interests. It touched her heart… Biscuit knew everything about her which caused her to burst into tears .

The men all try to hand her handkerchiefs but she rejected them (she accepted Biscuit’s). She can’t explain to them why she started to cry, but she tells everyone that something within her was so happy… that Biscuit made her so happy.

(Your name) sadly had no desire to get to know any of the guys again because she’s happy with Biscuit. She tells them all that she’s happy they achieved their goals and that she’s proud of them but she no longer has a desire to be a part of their lives. Memories or not, from the way they talked about her, it seemed like she was the one who put in all the effort. Not a single one of them brought up a memory in which they did something for her… and that made her sad. Perhaps it was better she didn’t remember any of them

They cannot accept her rejection. Baki and Katsumi begin to beg and bargain. While Hanayama threatened her family (Tokugawa), but Biscuit held her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. He began to try to take her away but Baki blocked the exit. He’s frantic and his eyes are crazy. He began to beg her not to disappear again. “I don’t want to live in a world where you aren’t there… I can’t do it again. Please stay.”

She tells him, “Perhaps that was the kind of world I lived in… a world where no one cared about me until I disappeared. Please live a good life and don’t forget to take care of yourself, Baki.”

Baki broke down and that’s when Jack rushed forward and grabbed her. He hurriedly brought her to the garden at the Tokugawa estate at an inhuman speed while the others all chased after him (especially Oliva)

Jack began to scream at her once they were far enough from everyone. He’s yelling on the top of his lungs while his face turned red and tears all from his cognac eyes. He finally fell apart in front of her after he tried to hold himself together for all these years.

“You do remember! Stop lying… you know who I am and that’s why you can’t look me in the face because you remember our last conversation all those years ago…”

“I swear I don’t remember-“

“You’ve never been scared of me before!” Jack screamed, the blonde ran his large hand through his short blonde locks. Jack tried to reel himself in but the emotions broke through the dam he held together for the last five years. “You’ve never looked at me like I’m a monster!”

(Your name) flinched at his sharp tone, her eyes wide in shock when Jack suddenly fell to his knees and held her hands. The blonde placed his jaw in her hands while he cried. The shouts of the others can be heard as they make their way towards the two of them. Yet it felt like it was only Jack and her left in the world in this very moment.

“I’m sorry! I-I didn’t mean to tell you to disappear!” Everyone froze in shock when they make it to the outer perimeter of the garden. Their mouths open like a fish out of water at what Jack admitted… he was the reason? He was the reason she disappeared? “I didn’t… I didn’t mean it. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

(Your name) squirmed when Jack pressed his lips to her hand in a way to apologize. She didn’t know why, but she needed to leave. She wanted to get away from him because he was scaring her. But his iron grip on her hands prevented her from escape.

“You can hit me… you can do whatever you want to me so long as you come back to me. I won’t be mean to you ever again.” Jack whispered into the palms of her hands as he guided her right hand to cup his scarred cheek. “You can sit beside me as much as you like. You can wear my jacket on your head when you need to cry and you can share meals with me. W-we can go for hikes together and you can sit on my back when I do pushups. I’ll do anything for you to be by my side and to not look at me like that.”

(Your name) can only stand there in shock as the giant man before her now appeared to be more like a lost child eager for love than a man… it broke her heart but he wasn’t her responsibility. If he was the reason why she lost her memories in the first place then he deserved her forgiveness the least.

And that’s when all the memories flooded in. The loneliness. The heart break. The broken promises. The constant rejection. She lived such a pathetic life before she was granted a second chance… these men didn’t deserve her. They never did.

“Jack?” Jack perked up at his name, his breath hitched as he clung to the sound of his name leaving her lips for the first time in years. He missed when she spoke his name. To him, she was meant to speak his name… she was his.

“Yes?”

“Do me a favor and forget about me.” Jack felt himself shatter at her words, the blonde now her her hands tightly to his face. His breathing now erratic.

“What?” Jack was in disbelief. He didn’t hear that right… this wasn’t his (your name). There was no way his sweet (your name) would tell him to forget her. She would never reject him. “I didn’t catch that.”

“Forget about me. Treat me as if I never existed.” (Your name) repeated as she tried to move her hands off his face. “You don’t need to have someone as pathetic as me beside you.”

No… no. No. No. No. No. No. She was supposed to forgive him. She was supposed to kiss his scarred cheeks while she happily accepted his apology with tears of joy in her eyes. (Your name) should know he never apologized and that he truly sought forgiveness.

(You name) snapped her hands out of his hold and turned on her heel to leave. She ignored the men who had once constantly let her down now try to gain her affection. She didn’t need these people. She didn’t need empty promises and sweet words… (your name) just needed her lover, Biscuit Oliva.

“I want to go home.” (Your name) told Biscuit with a smile. She took his large hand in her small one and gave it a squeeze.

“Of course, dear. We can do anything you want.” (Your name) rested her head on Biscuit’s arm as he lead her out of the estate. She ignored the screams of her name and the loud begging of Katsumi and Baki.

They never turned their heads for her when she begged for love and when she’d ask to spend time with them… why should she turn hers?

(Your name) finally had the love she always wanted while they had fulfilled their goals… how could they be so selfish to want more?

“(Your name)! Please stay in Japan! We can get married and I’ll take you on dates every weekend!” Baki shouted while Katsumi tried to one up him.

“I’ll take you out everyday and we can get married as soon as tomorrow!”

“I’ll give you the world if you turn around and come to me right this moment.” Hanayama piped up from behind her. “If you don’t turn around, then the Tokugawa family will be no more.”

Tokugawa began to shout out to the granddaughter he neglected for years in favor of these men who didn’t value him. “Please don’t let him do that. You love your grandpa, don’t you? You can be the heir to the Tokugawa family!”

Poor Jack remained on his knees in the garden. His brown eyes dull as he watched her leave with Biscuit without so much as a glance behind her.

For the first time in five years, Jack and the others have suffered a true defeat. All they wanted was one more time.

Just one more time and they’d make it all right… for they could not accept that they already wasted so many chances to make things right due to their own selfishness. They had lost the one love of their lives forever.

#baki x reader #baki the grappler x reader #yandere baki #yandere #female reader #yandere fic #yandere imagine #angst #biscuit oliva #oliva biscuit #baki jack hanma #yandere jack hanma #baki headcanons #baki katsumi orochi #yandere katsumi orochi #katsumi orochi x reader #yandere hanayama kaoru x reader #hanayama kaoru x reader #kaoru hanayama x reader #jack hanma x reader #yandere baki the grappler #yandere baki hanma #yandere baki x reader #baki yandere #tw.yandere #Yandere reverse harem #katsumi orochi #kaoru hanayama #jack hanma #baki kaoru hanayama

[sooniebby]

ఌ 𝐁𝐀𝐃 𝐁𝐎𝐘

꧁ 𝙊𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙭 𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧 ꧂

Teaser ➤ a mating chase just for you <3

Pt 2

Word count › 2.1k (💀)

Rating › NSFT

Warnings › none

Kinks › light dub con, a/b/o

╭┈─────── ೄྀ࿐ ˊˎ-

╰┈─➤ ＢＥＧＩＮＮＩＮＧ

Tanaka (Name) was a proud straight A student. Student class president. A student many parents dreamed their child was. But unfortunately, he was a beta.

To others, this didn’t matter but to his family—a long line of prestigious alphas… He was a disappointment. (Name) had no longer allowed that to bother him anymore.

He just focused on getting good grades and setting himself apart from others. Yes, it was originally to get attention from his family but it never happened.

(Name) knew he just had to live with it. A sigh left his lips as he stretched out, a yawn on his lips. He was on the roof top eating his lunch when his nose twitched.

Smoke.

A snarl appeared on his lips as he shot up and followed the nasty smell to it’s owner. There, a corner not too far from the door, sat a random student.

“Smoking? On school property?” (Name) asked, gaining the student’s attention. Much to his own surprise, the student didn’t look scared. Not one bit.

A smirk was on the student’s face as he stood up and walked over to (Name). He was taller and more athletic than (Name). Track, possibly.

“What? Are you going to snitch?” The student laughed, blowing a puff of smoke into (Name)’s face.

(Name) coughed at the smell and reached up to pull the cigarette from the student’s mouth, dropping it onto the floor to step on it.

He grinned at the dumbed look the student gave him. “No. Do it again and I will. People deserve two chances. Now get to class.”

With that, he was off to pick up his lunch and go back to class. But he wasn’t able to get far when a hand grabbed his wrist.

“What?!” (Name) yelled before he was rudely slammed into the fence surrounding the roof top.

Maybe (Name) was just crazy but he felt a blush creep on his face when he got a better look at the student in front of him. This student was beautiful, really. Shaggy hair that almost covered his eyes and a mole right underneath his right eye.

“A beta like you has no idea what type of trouble you could’ve been in if it was any other alpha you did this to.” He said, his eyes scanning (Name)’s face.

“Alpha, beta, omega! That’s all you guys fucking care about. Now get off!”

“It does matter. Because you’re beta you don’t notice it but it’s our identity. And someone as weak as you should be careful angering an alpha.”

(Name) rolled his eyes. “Alright, sure. Now get off.”

“Watanabe Riki.”

“Eh?”

“My name.”

“Oh well, I didn’t ask. Tanaka (Name).”

Riki simply huffed before pulling away, a small smirk on his lips. (Name) fixed his clothing, making sure his glasses were sitting straight on his nose.

“You look like a cat,” Riki muttered before walking away.

(Name) was honestly confused. Who just says that and walks away…? Oh well, he hoped to never come across the little shit again.

ꕥ

Life doesn’t go the way he wants, obviously. Because here he was, staring down at a student that was said to be still in the gym. They were in the storage closet, biting at a jacket.

Even as a beta, (Name) knew when an alpha was going into rut. And right in front of him was Watanabe Riki, furiously biting at his own jacket.

It had been maybe a month or so since he last saw him.

He had asked around if anyone knew him but most omegas whined at how good he smelled or how beautiful he was. Other alphas said that he was either cool or a little shit. Betas didn’t care about him.

Most betas kept to themselves really. Since betas were so rare compared to everyone else it made sense. (Name) didn’t have much friends though. Only one omega girl, Kimura Nana.

A teacher had told him to make sure the gym was empty before locking it. (Name) made sure to stay farther back from Riki, not wanting to be noticed by him yet.

He needed a teacher. But what would the teacher do? The only teachers left were two betas. If he made any sudden sounds, would Riki get scared and run away?

A grunt stopped his thinking as he turned back to face Riki only to jump when he was much closer than before. (Name) was terrified. Yeah, previously he didn’t care about that stuff but Riki scared him.

Ever since his weird little speech about not upsetting the wrong alpha, he got a bit scared.

Riki wasn’t even wrong. Alphas were way stronger than omegas or betas. It certainly wasn’t fair but he had to take that up with biology.

“Watanabe….You need to call your parents.” (Name) muttered, holding a hand out to make sure he wouldn’t come closer.

Riki was silent as he glanced around before sniffing the air. His pupils dilated as he turned his attention back on (Name).

“(Name)…” first name basis already?! “Why’d you hide it?” Riki question, a childlike grin on his face.

“Hide what…? What are you talking about?”

(Name) was frozen in his spot as Riki stepped closer. He gasped in shock as Riki pulled down at his collar, giving access to his neck. Riki leaned down and sniffed, a small sound of purring being heard.

He’s heard his mother and father purr once, not towards him. No one has ever purred about anything he’s done for them. (Name) couldn’t help his sudden interest in Riki’s odd behavior.

“That you’re an omega.”

“Hah?! You’re going crazy, Watanabe! Give me your phone so I can call your parents!” (Name) raised a hand to push him away only to not even make him flinch.

Riki smiled dumbly at him. Yeah, this rut was taking over his brain. (Name) flinched at the touch of his hair as Riki moved it away for more access to his neck.

(Name) had been growing out his hair. It was mainly as a fuck you to his mother since she believed he needed to at least be masculine if he fucked up being an alpha.

It had only really reached being a mullet at this point but a few stands had reached his shoulders.

“I think we’re made for each other, Omega.”

“I’m not—”

“Run.”

(Name) blinked. “Huh?”

Riki stood up to his full height, easily towering over (Name) with his 6 feet and 2 inches. (Name) in comparison was just around 5’8. Betas usually didn’t grow taller than average anyway.

“Run, Omega. Unless you just want to give yourself up now.”

(Name) wasn’t exactly thinking when he immediately began to run. Riki wasn’t just talking out of his ass. He was talking about a mating chase.

And (Name) running was basically confirmation that he wanted to be mated. People rarely did this type of mating anymore, most being too lazy.

It was really only a way to get the couple extra horny for their first mating. (Name) wasn’t a runner, especially compared to an alpha who possibly played track.

The sun was already set as he tried to find any teachers to help. But they were all gone. What the fuck!?! He panicked before realizing he could hide in the student council classroom.

Bad part was that it was on the third floor. Using any remaining strength he had, he ran up the stairs to the third floor. (Name) was tired.

God, he put all the energy into studying that he forgot to train his endurance. He was right outside the door, panting as he fished out the key to open it.

It was right after he opened it, he was shoved inside and the door slammed close. Riki was right there, standing in front of the door.

(Name) groaned. He didn’t have any energy to fight him off. “Watanabe. Your rut is making you stupid.”

Riki didn’t answer, walking over to (Name). (Name) struggled on what to do. He couldn’t think straight. Something was wrong with him.

His pants felt wet…

Suddenly, he was pushed on top of the table in the center of the room. (Name) grunted out in pain as Riki muttered something.

“You got me worked up, Omega.” Riki grinned, reaching down to pull off (Name)’s trousers. It fell to the floor, pooling at his feet with his boxers.

(Name) gasped at the feeling of Riki’s mouth on his ass. Oh, he was really dripping slick. But that didn’t make any sense.

Was he a late bloomer?

He couldn’t think straight with Riki hungrily eating his slick. The feeling of his tongue really disgusted him in his mind but his body was into it.

Whimpers left his mouth as he tried to pull away but was held close by Riki.

“I’ll fuck you properly in your nest, okay?” Riki said.

“Nest…?” (Name) whined, confused on what the fuck he was talking about. He was mainly surprised that Riki could actually think clearly right now.

Was he not fully in rut yet?

“I just had to make sure I wasn’t smelling something else,” Riki muttered, pulling up (Name)’s pants.

“I’m so confused…” (Name) pouted, finally being able to move around to face Riki.

“You’re an omega. That’s all. I found out when we first met.” Riki said, reaching over to pull off (Name)’s shirt.

“What?? How? I’m a beta!”

Riki hummed, “you used to be. But I always knew there was more to you.”

“Huh?”

“We went to the same middle school. But I don’t think you remember me. Since idiot alphas like me aren’t important,” Riki snarled, a look of anger in his eyes.

Oh.

Oh… (Name) was a bit of a little shit in middle school. He was no bully but he certainly hadn’t learned to not say everything out loud about people he didn’t like.

Due to his obvious mommy and daddy issues, he started to take out any anger on all alphas. He had stopped in high school—having grown up but of course, he couldn’t change what he did in the past.

“So did you fake your rut or something?”

“No. It’s coming in a few hours. I’m sure if you knew or pay attention to alphas, you’d know that if I really was in full blown rut that I wouldn’t have done a mating chase.”

Riki lightly nipped at his neck, earning a gasp. “I would’ve fucked you right then and there.”

(Name) blushed. He could feel more slick dripping out of his asshole. Oh he’d have to get used to that.

“I originally just wanted to scare you but I think this is better,” Riki chuckled before grasping at (Name)’s hair, pulling his head back.

(Name) gasped in shock as he felt sharp teeth on his neck. His scent gland. Riki was biting it. A sudden rush of pleasure passed through him as he arched his back in a scream.

He was getting claimed to some random guy.

How would his parents think? How would this affect him in the future?!

“Awe, you came,” Riki said after he pulled away, blood staining his lips. His hand rubbed at the tent in (Name)’s pants that were wet from cum.

(Name) twitched at the feeling before pulling at Riki’s shirt and pulling him in for a kiss. It was really the sudden claim, is what (Name) would tell himself later.

But a claim doesn’t really do that. Sure it’ll make him feel closer to Riki but it’d never force him to be affectionate towards him. Riki also seemed confused about this sudden kiss.

(Name) pulled away, a dazed look in his eyes as he leaned down to his neck and bit his scent gland. Riki grabbed at (Name)’s waist but couldn’t push him away.

He really only planned to screw (Name) over but not allow him to claim him back. But now they were both screwed in being claimed to each other.

(Name) pulled away, only a little bit of blood on his lips as he smiled at Riki. Yeah, he was definitely not thinking straight right now.

Riki would ignore the happy purring his chest as he picked up (Name) to take home. He was lucky his parents weren’t home tonight.

He knew no sane person would ever claim anyone they hated. But he did hate (Name) for bullying him in middle school.

He wanted revenge. It was literally the only reason why he followed him to this dumb fancy school.

But he only did something this year, their third year.

No way, did he actually want (Name)…?

No.

No….

Riki shook his head. He needed to see a therapist, quickly.

╭┈─────── ೄྀ࿐ ˊˎ-

╰┈─➤ ＥＮＤ

Riki’s debut!! Obsessive idiot x mean idiot, is basically the trope for reader and Riki lol

Their love is much more insane than my other characters lowkey but they do fall in love. Well reader does cuz Riki is already obsessed

Next fic will be about meeting the parents

But my next original character content will be for Keita’s meet cute! Thanks for reading!

Requests are open for Riki too, if you got any ideas you wanna see me write

#bottom male reader

[pinkerthings]

the importance of mike and will simply getting each other (pt 2):

part one here !

I’ve covered the significance of Mileven simply not understanding each other, & now it’s time to talk about their counterpart !

(specifying that nothing in these posts is new or groundbreaking, I’m just covering multiple topics and gathering info in one place !)

season 1:

Episode one begins with the party playing a d&d campaign:

When Mike goes upstairs to talk to his mom, Will discovers he’d rolled a seven, meaning the monster got him in the game. Dustin and Lucas say “Did Mike see it?” to which Will shakes his head no. “Then it doesn’t count!” Lucas replies as they scramble to leave the house.

Dustin and Lucas leave and Mike stands next to Will in the garage. After a moment of quiet, Will tells Mike,

“It was a seven. The roll. It was a seven. The demogorgon, it got me.”

To which Mike responds with:

nothing.

This scene is the first scene we get with Mine and Will alone in the whole show. This scene sets up the entirety of their relationship, telling the audience right off the bat,

“Hey! These two boys are best friends, and they don’t lie to each other!”

First impressions are always important in media, and next we get El and Mike’s first scenes together.

Remember, Mike only found El because he was out with Dustin and Lucas looking for Will.

Now, Mike is sweet to El that first night and next day. But keep in mind that the only reason El spent that first night in Mike’s basement was because Mike didn’t want to get in trouble by his mom, because he had been out looking for Will, something he wasn’t supposed to be doing.

Dustin says, “I think we should tell your mom,” and Lucas agrees. Mike responds with, “Who’s crazy now?”

Lucas: “How is that crazy?”

Mike: “Because we weren’t supposed to be out tonight, remember?”

Mike makes the plan to have El sleep there for the night, then go around to the front door in the morning so Karen will know what to do with her. Mike wants her to leave in the morning so they can go back to looking for Will.

Remember, the only reason she stayed the night was so the boys didn’t get in trouble for looking for Will.

Mike keeps Eleven around 1. because “bad men” are after her, and Mike does care for her and her safety, and 2. Mike has a feeling Will is alive and El knows how to find him.

They don’t have many interactions in season 1 due to Will being in the upside down, but they reunite at the end of the season and everything is (seemingly) back to normal.

season 2:

Everyone knows season two is byler’s season ! El is living with Hopper, unbeknownst to the boys, and Mike and Will are as close as ever.

Episode 1: The party goes to Palace Arcade and plays Dig Dug. In the midst of this, Will gets a weird feeling and suddenly sees the upside down.

He walks outside slowly and sees the Mind Flayer, followed by one person and one person only: his best friend.

(can’t ss netflix but mike comes out and asks will if he’s okay)

Mike is the only one out of the other three to notice Will is gone and follow him out. He puts his arm around Will and walks him back inside to play Dig Dug.

Later on in episode one, Joyce picks Will up early from school for his appointment with Dr. Owens,

and the camera zooms into Mike and Mike only, saying,

All three boys notice something is off, but Mike is the first to say something about it.

This whole season is meant to showcase the special friendship Mike and Will have. They know each other the best and even the rest of the party knows that.

Episode 2: This episode is an important one. Max joins the party while trick-or-treating and Mike is not on board with the idea.

(sorry for the terrible grimy photos im taking these pics from another screen)

I've noticed when the party split off into groups, it's almost always Mike & Will, Dustin & Lucas, or Lucas & Max. Mike and Will are glued to each other's hip most of the time.

(these photos are so bad im cryin im sorry)

Mike is upset that Will allowed for Max to join them while trick-or-treating, and when Mike hurries ahead of Will, Will almost seems disappointed in himself for disappointing Mike, staring after him like Mike caught him committing atrocities and he feels guilty. lmao poor will, he just wants to make mike happy !

A moment later we have bullies push Will to the ground, resulting in him seeing the upside down & Mind Flayer again, calling for Mike and running to safety.

When Mike finally reaches Will, he exclaims, "Will! I couldn't find you, are you hurt?" indicating that the moment Mike turned around and didn't see Will behind him, he sensed something was off and went looking for him, just like at Palace Arcade.

While the others chase down the stairs, either cussing or verbally confused, Mike is the only one at Will's side asking him if he's okay.

He helps Will up and puts an arm around him again, just like at palace Arcade, and takes him ho--- oh, you thought I was gonna say home? To Will's house? Nope! Mike says he's going to take Will home, and takes him to the Wheeler's basement.

Ladies and gentlemen, how could I make a byler post without including the infamous crazy together scene !?

We have Mike and Will sitting on the couch in the Wheeler's basement, and Will is telling him all about these "visions" he's been having.

He begins describing,

but stops, not knowing how to finish his sentence. But no worries, Mike finishes it for him!

Will then begs Mike to keep it a secret.

Why won't the others understand? Did the other party member not already see a demogorgon? Do they not already know what the upside down is? Will just wants to have something special--a secret only he and Mike know. He knows the others would understand, but doesn't think they'd be of any help. Unlike Mike, whom he trusts completely.

anyways that's all the photos i can fit here so I will cover the rest of s2, 3, & 4 in my next post. byeeee!!!

part 3 here !

#stranger things #byler #mike wheeler #will byers #stranger things 5 #finn wolfhard #st5 #mike and will #noah schnapp

[loserlvrss]

꒰ 𝐂𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐘 𝐋𝐎𝐔 𝐖𝐇𝐎 ꒱ 손영재

summary : you broke with eric a long time ago, and you thought you were over him until you saw him with another girl

genre : angst, eric x afab!reader, non-idol!au, bestfreind!chanhee, for plot purposes everyone mentioned is around the same ages of 23-25 tws : language, mentions of sex, depressive episode author notes : no happy endings with me ♡ word count : 2.3k

“chanhee, i didn’t even want to come.”

“well, neither did i, y/n, but kevin said he’d send his attack-snake out on me. and i don’t want to find out what that even means.”

“huh,” you said, shoulders motioning with your voice, “kinky.”

"of course you'd think that," your best friend of a couple years (but felt like a million, in a good way) started, rolling his sharp eyes, "you haven't fucked in —"

"alright!" you stopped him, taking the creese of his elbow, "i get it, i'm lonely. damn, what about you though, king? when was your last relationship? because if i'm remembering correctly, it ended before eri —"

"y/n!" running up to the pair of you was the host, a bright and inviting smile plastering his face. although, you weren't sure why you kept walking around like a knife was lodged between your shoulder blades still. "i'm so glad you could make it!" because the moment you saw a familiar stranger, a brunette clinging to his strong arm with a green cocktail between her manicured fingers, your heart suddenly was on the floor.

you don't know why the scene of the liquid covering her perfectly blown-out hair flashed through your head. or why you could imagine the little christmas tree decoration in it scratching the top of her mouth until it stung when she would talk. you could hear her musically-tuned laugh ring through the air at a joke you couldn't imagine was that funny.

"what the hell am i, chopped liver?" chanhee joked, oblivious to what you spaced out on, "you only wanted me to come because you knew i'd bring along my emotional support fish."

it seemed you were always on a one-way street you just couldn't turn off of, because no matter how many potholes you hit, you keep driving; and if your tires popped, you weren't sure the car would stop.

you shouldn't be allowed to be appalled by the sight of your ex having moved on, simply because you broke it off when he wanted to make it work. you dropped his heart when he let you hold it. and when he should've played his cards close to his chest, he let you join his team just to fold. you were making the ship sink, so how could you have the audacity to be mad when he jumped from it while you went down?

he loved you, but at the time you weren't sure what you wanted. sure, you blamed it on being 19, but it was because you were scared to commit to someone so committed to you. you didn't want to be, selfishly, tied down to one person — and now that you've purged it from you system, you, selfishly, wanted the same commitment he had given you 5 years ago.

now you stood in the foyer, two different faces from those kids, attached to another man, thinking about if he looked over, would he get the wrong idea? would it make him as jealous as you felt?

you've loved, had loss and even forgot it. but faced with the void you could never fill was more debilitating than you cared to admit. you wanted to be two ‘i miss you's’ that just needed a push, but evidently only one of you felt that way, as the other was happily coupled up during cuffing season. but then again, you had no right after half a decade to think like that.

you just had to be brave and pretend like it doesn't bother you. you can do that. you can do a lot... right?

chanhee rammed into your side, his desperate attempt to get you back down on earth, instead of inside your never-not-on brain. "did you even hear what kevin just said?" he asked, and you looked to said man, "he said the bands getting back together." your bestfriend made a joke, which did cause you to loosen up and laugh. you thought that as long as he was there, you'd inevitably be okay.

"well not exactly, a couple people couldn't make it — which is fine, but most of our old friend group is here." kevin explained, lacing your free arm with his so you were sandwiched between the two of them. "it seems like you and chanhee were the only ones who really hung out like we all used to."

you reminisced the old times for a second. you remembered when your name was connected with eric's, when you hung out like old times with them and him. you remembered the stupid parties kevin's frat would throw freshman year, that eric would drag you to, just for you and him to have a great time. you remembered when you'd have quiet study sessions with jacob and younghoon in the school's library, or juhaknyeon and sunwoo's soccer games. it made you feel a little messy, because after you and him broke up, it's like you broke up with them all. you habitually stopped hanging out, only being dragged by chanhee who was attached to you since first introduction.

you actually owe your level-headedness all to him. he's the person who convinced you that you didn't need to have a run-of-the-mill to finally find something good. he's also unfortunately the reason you remember eric like it was yesterday, even if you don't front like it. you knew you had someone so devoted to you, yet you let him go and now you had the audacity to feel bad about it.

"well, is sunwoo coming?" you asked, which earned a nod from kevin, "and what about younghoon and juyeon?"

"juyeon got a girlfriend!" chanhee exclaimed excitedly, his voice lowering when sangyeon's attention was caught on the three of you, "like last month."

the oldest of your friend's face lit up, "y/n!" he said, making you force a smile though you were cringing; because just a couple feet away was the love of your adolescence, with the presumable love of his.

standing next to him was hyunjae, "how've you been, oh my gosh, it's been like years hasn't it?" you voiced, bringing him in for a hug, which he reciprocated before you moved to sangyeon to repeat the process. it had been years since you've last spoken to them other than a happy birthday or congratulations once in a blue moon — you honestly wouldn't be surprised if their numbers had changed and you'd been texting a random person.

"good, good," hyunjae replied, sipping a bright red cocktail, "i actually just finished my business degree, thinking of either opening my own or investing in some else's."

"and I just got engaged, though she wasn't able to make it here tonight — ceo stuff — she's getting ready to go international after fully getting elected as the heir."

you couldn't help but compare, sure you had your teaching license, but it wasn't as impressive as either one of them.

they were making it hard to believe that the world was spinning too fast, and that you weren't stuck watching the same film over and over again.

chanhee began talking in your place, forcing you down into the barstool between them all. kevin went over to younghoon and juyeon who had just made their way through the door: a synthetic blonde attached juyeon's arm.

"what's her name?" you blurted, the three boys looking down at you, "she's pretty."

hyunjae was nonchalant, pretending he didn't know exactly what you actually meant. however, sangyeon replied awkwardly, "w-who? kim minyeon? or jang nari?"

"juyeon's girlfriend, n-not eric's."

"o-oh! that's minyeon."

nari. the feminine name meaning lily; new beginnings and rebirth. just fucking perfect, wasn't it? pretty, perfect and delicate, just like the flower.

you sighed and excused yourself, disguising it as having to use the bathroom. in honesty, you weren't sure how much more torcher you could take, and it's barely been twenty minutes. you thought you'd be fine, as long as chanhee stayed by your side, but the longer you watched the pair through your peripherals, the more you just ached.

you cared more than you'd like to have admitted. and the worst part is you had no one to blame — to be mad at — because everyone had rightfully assumed you both were over it.

like you were supposed to be.

it was pathetic, the way you stared yourself down in the mirror. you found yourself resembling someone you've never met, or maybe someone you had just forgotten in all the growing pains. nevertheless, you found yourself disgusted by the fact that you were disgracing your mother's eyes, father's nose, and sister's cheekbones with the self-pity. there was nothing more selfish than crashing someone else's party with one of your own.

so you choked the tears back, the lump in your throat making it hard to breathe. you took a powder from the purse slung over your shoulder and fixed your creasing makeup. you reapplied a red lipstick, fixing your hair and outfit. you thought that if you couldn't have him, maybe you could make it wish he had you instead — god, you were letting the delusions look too good under the fluorescent light.

however, you stooped lower than throwing a pity party. you exited the bathroom with part of your dignity still intact, but the moment you sat against the plush-cushioned bench against the wall your phone was illuminated with pictures of the pretty brunette.

you couldn't get yourself to stop once you typed her name out. it's like you were boarding the gossip train all the way back in high school.

you scrolled like you were obsessed, brain blanking out everything around you. you saw her go through a cherry red hair phase sometime in 2022. you found out that her and eric had taken a vacation to hawaii back in 2021, multiple bikini pictures and perfectly sculpted bodies clinging together like models being the tell. you scrolled farther back, dead-set on finding the first picture she ever posted of him… that must've been close to when they met.

why do you even care? you know he was too caught up following you around like a puppy to even believe that he would entertain someone other than you. so, why were you obsessed? maybe you needed a reason to be mad at him. maybe you needed an excuse to shift the blame.

maybe it's everything you needed that he could live without —

"i didn't meet her that far back, y/n. we were still dating then."

your eyes shut, finger hitting the power button. you took a moment, hoping that it was just your cruel subconscious playing tricks with reality. "didn't think you'd cared that much," he took a seat on the complete opposite end of the bench, "it's been five years... and honestly i didn't think you cared back then either."

you were too embarrassed to say anything. and frankly, you didn't know what to reply with. i'm sorry? i did care about you, but just not enough? nothing seemed to suffice.

"i met nari at work. she treats me —"

your vision was blurring over, but you couldn't find the courage to get up and walk away. you were just so damn pathetic, weren't you? you just thought that everything in this world belonged to you, peaking your freshman year of college in comparison to the people who still innocently call you a friend.

"better?"

"different, y/n. she's different than you."

you sighed, "that doesn't make it bet — i mean, it doesn't matter, eric. i'm sorry, i was just curious after not seeing you for so long." your eyes opened, but the scene was blurred over, almost like it was torrentially pouring while driving late at night. there were questions flashing behind your eyelids every time you tried to blink the tears away. you thought that you couldn't stoop lower, but for the past couple minutes you've done nothing but prove it wrong. "i'm so-sorry, i'm just gonna go."

you got to your feet, but his voice made you stop dead in your tracks.

"w-why does it bother you so much?"

you honestly felt like your heart was re-shattering, joining the dust on the floor at your feet. you thought the question would join the heaps of pathetic things you've said and done tonight.

you turned around, phone clenched between your fist. eric was still sat, dark hair styled so nicely you almost thought that it wasn't him — but her — outfit a matching shade to the dress you saw hugging her figure gracefully.

"do you honestly think i didn't care about you?" you asked, to which he raised his head at an alarming pace, "it's true, i know i fucked it up, eric, okay? i know what i did to you and i'm sorry. i-i'm sorry i waited so long to tell you that." clearing the air didn't feel like closure at all. the tears in his eyes didn't feel like hatred at all. and maybe he didn't mean it. maybe he only told himself that because you did break his heart so bad, still holding pieces he's afraid he'll never get back. "you can think whatever you want, hate me even, but please don't think for a second i didn't love you back then. i was naive and made a mistake, but it's too late to take it back. believe me, i've thought about it. but i always fucking cared about you, okay?"

you found it oddly satisfying, though knowing in the back of your head that he would curse you for saying these things while he's happily coupled up, you didn't regret it.

"i'll forever be sorry, so don't hold it over my head."

"i believed you didn't care about me... back when we were nineteen." he replied after a long pause, "but i haven't believe that for a long time. y/n, i've forgiven you."

reblogs, likes and comments are greatly appreciated! thank u!

#kpop #kpop requests #kpop writing #kpop imagines #kpop oneshots #kpopidol #kpop bg #romance #the boyz #tbz #chanhee #eric sohn #son youngjae #tbs imagine #tbz x reader #the boyz x reader #the boyz imagines #the boyz scenarios #tbz eric #sohn youngjae #angst with a happy ending #drabble #one shot #angst #tbz angst #sfw fanfic #sad ending

[ghostofskywalker]

Lovesick Fools

Poe Dameron/Fem!Reader

Fictober Day 28 of 31

Words: 1,393

Summary: After deciding that she's had enough of Poe not admitting his feelings for you, Rey recruits BB-8 to help get the two of you to see what’s obvious to everyone else.

Poe Dameron Masterlist

“And then I set the entire building on fire,” Rey spoke nonchalantly as she stared intently at Poe, who was fiddling with some of the controls on his X-Wing and passively nodding every time she spoke. She was convinced that he hadn’t heard a word she had said for the past five minutes. If this were any other time, there wouldn’t be much harm and she’d simply talk to him when his brain was back on the ground, but she was in the middle of explaining a mission that the General had asked them to complete, and it was a pretty important assignment.

“Good for you,” he responded absentmindedly, proving her theory correct.

Shaking her head, Rey knew that there was one surefire way to get her friend’s attention, so she decided to pull out the big guns. “Y/N was telling me-”

She didn’t even get a chance to finish her sentence before Poe had begun to listen again. “What about Y/N?”

“Nothing, but you weren’t listening to a thing I was saying before, so I had to get your attention somehow. At this point I genuinely can’t believe that you are denying the fact that you’re in love with her, it’s so obvious.”

Poe rolled his eyes, an indignant expression crossing his face. He always wore this look when you were the topic of discussion, and no matter how much he tried to deny his feelings, Rey always knew that he was full of banthashit. “How many times do I have to tell you that I don’t have feelings for her? This is getting a bit ridiculous honestly.”

“You can keep saying it, but it won’t just magically make the statement true,” Rey said, shaking her head at him. “Now, are you going to listen to me about your next mission, or do I need to call the General down here to give the briefing herself, because she won’t be happy about it.”

“I was listening!” She just sighed in response to her friend’s defensive tone, not bothering to argue as she started to repeat the details of the mission.

After she left Poe to get ready for his mission, Rey couldn’t stop thinking about how ridiculous he was. It was clear to anyone with eyes that he was in love with you, so why couldn’t he admit those feelings? Maybe he thought that if he admitted how he felt to someone else, they would try to get the two of you together before he was ready?

But the joke is on him, Rey thought as she walked through the halls of the base. Because I’m going to try and get them together without him admitting his feelings.

BB-8 came rolling past her, no doubt heading to Poe before they left for their mission, and Rey was struck with an idea. She made a mental note to find BB-8 and talk to him once Poe had returned from this assignment, because if she wanted to really get you and Poe together, she was going to need some help.

***

You didn’t even need to check your schedule to see who your next patient would be, because BB-8’s cheerful beeps suddenly filled the room. Out of all the droids you helped service on the base, BB-8 was by far your favorite, and it almost didn’t have anything to do with your massive crush on his owner, Poe.

“Hey buddy!’ you said, laughing as the droid spun in circles around your legs. “Here for a checkup?”

BB-8 beeped in affirmation, and he allowed you to pick him up and place him on your worktable. This was a relatively routine thing for you to do, so you weren’t too worried about anything being wrong with his systems. Unlike most of the other droids on the base, who didn’t really have too many people watching out for them, if something was unusual about BB-8, Poe usually brought him in to see you.

Speaking of Poe, you were removing the piece of durasteel that covered BB-8’s control panel when you heard his voice. “Hey Y/N, have you seen…”

Clearly he was asking about BB-8, judging by the way his voice trailed off as he took a look at his droid sitting on your worktable. Upon seeing his owner, BB-8 beeped cheerfully, and you laughed. “He’s right here, don’t you worry.”

“Is everything okay with him?”

“Yep, just a routine maintenance appointment,” you said. “And so far, it doesn’t look like anything is wrong.”

But you very quickly realized that you had spoken too soon, because a shrill whistle filled the room, obviously coming from BB-8 himself.

“What the kriff is that?” Poe asked, eyes widening as he placed his hands over his ears.

You looked through every single panel you had touched previously, but nothing you had checked so far had the power to make that kind of noise, and it seemed that BB-8 was still generally conscious. “I don’t know!” you said worriedly.

You were desperately looking for a part on your table from another BB unit that you fixed recently, wondering if perhaps it could be something in another part of his body, and you heard BB-8 beep incessantly at Poe. While you could translate some of what the droids said on this base, you were in no way fluent with how every model communicated, so you didn’t quite understand what he was trying to say over the annoying whistle that still filled the room.

“No! I’m not going to do that now, it’s not the right time!” Clearly Poe could understand, and BB-8 was trying to get him to do something.

“Everything okay?” you asked. The beeping got louder, and you winced. “Clearly not.”

As you continued to check over BB-8 to see what could possibly be making this noise, you heard Poe start to speak again, but you couldn’t focus on what he was saying. BB-8 beeped back and forth with him though, so clearly he wasn’t talking to you.

The next time you looked up, Poe and his droid were full on arguing. “If you’re doing this on purpose-”

“Why would he be doing this on purpose?” you asked, re-attaching BB-8’s front panel to see if maybe there was some kind of security issue that could be fixed by putting him back together. It didn’t work.

“He wants me to ask you out,” right as Poe spoke, you saw a look of shock cross his face, as if he wasn’t supposed to say those words out loud. Before you could respond, the shrill whistling stopped, and BB-8 beeped happily before completely shutting down, leaving just you and Poe staring at each other in the now silent room.

You weren’t sure what to say, and you were honestly wondering whether or not his words were a trick of your mind after that incessant noise BB-8 was making. “What do you mean?” you asked. Maker, this was definitely not your finest moment.

“I really like you,” he said softly, and he walked over to you and gently took your hand. “And apparently my droid has decided that I need to make a move already and chose to ruin our eardrums until I admitted my feelings.”

You couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled from your lips, and you squeezed his hand a little tighter. “I really like you too.”

Suddenly your faces were getting closer to one another’s, and Poe’s gaze flickered down to your lips. “Can I kiss you?” he asked, voice but a breathless whisper.

“You better,” you responded.

Thankfully, you didn’t have to wait too long for his lips to land on yours, but your moment was interrupted by BB-8 making joyful noises from your workstation.

“Oh, you woke up for that, huh?” Poe scolded his droid after he pulled away from you, his hands still on your waist, where they had came to rest during your kiss. You couldn’t help but laugh quietly at the expression on his face. “You’re a little menace, you know that?”

You couldn’t translate exactly what BB-8 said in response, but you could tell that if BB-8 had eyes, he would be rolling them right now. You weren’t too bothered by it, and you knew you’d have to find a way to thank the little droid later, when he wasn’t interrupting you and Poe.

- the end - 

#ghostofskywalker.fictober #poe dameron #poe dameron x reader #poe dameron x you #poe dameron fanfiction #poe dameron x female reader #star wars #star wars fanfiction #star wars x reader

[bettercallstan]

In Defence of Watching and Dreaming

Quotes can be found here at the specified timestamps> https://youtu.be/mn4WmyIdsrE

People often accuse me of hating Watching and Dreaming, but today I’m going to dispel that myth by providing a genuine defence of the episode, focusing only on its positives. Watching and Dreaming is the final episode of The Owl House and is focused on concluding the story in a satisfying way. It provides a well constructed bookend to Luz’s development by showing how she’s grown via contrast to previous episodes. It also does a good job at showing that not everyone can be redeemed, actively making fun of the idea and having Belos die brutally in an excellently pathetic death scene. It also continues the show’s commentary on the chosen one archetype, having Luz receive godlike powers not because she was chosen, but because of the strength of her character. This is achieved through the introduction of Papa Titan, a well executed take on a trope that so often goes awry. The Collector is also redeemed in an incredibly believable way, and the timeskip at the end provides a deservedly happy ending whilst also showing the audience how their favourite characters have grown. As well as this the soundtrack is excellent and the animation is phenomenal – especially in the fight scenes, which are just as well shot and choreographed as the rest of the show’s action. Overall, Watching and Dreaming is a thrilling conclusion to an excellent show.

Okay. Everyone who likes Watching and Dreaming, you can leave now. The essay is over for you, unless you’re curious, that is. Because all of that is how I would attempt to defend Watching and Dreaming. Every aspect I just praised are things I genuinely believe to be strengths of the episode. With some information omitted. Okay, a lot of information omitted. The purpose of this was to establish an understanding, to make it abundantly clear that there are many aspects of the episode that are well constructed. The problem is that this defence heavily relies on the reader not thinking too hard because if they do they’ll realise how much information I omitted and how many things I mentioned were technical aspects. This is essay is The Flaws of Watching and Dreaming. I will only be covering issues within the episode itself and not any issues that stem from previous episodes, because if I were to cover all the problems of Season 3 this essay would be many times longer. The purpose of this essay is not to illustrate why I feel the way I do about the episode, but to provide an argument that challenges the general consensus. The critiques I make are not simply things I didn’t like but things I hope to prove are flaws in the writing with arguments and citations.

I suppose it makes sense to start at the beginning. Watching and Dreaming opens with what I’m going to call the Dream Sequence. This segment represents many problems that are prevalent throughout the episode, but conceptually it’s pretty interesting: our main trio have been put into a shared dream by the Collector that forces them to relive their greatest fears. Luz’s dream involves her interactions with a mind controlled Hexsquad who are being puppeteered to jab at her deepest fears. Character wise this provides nothing for the Hexsquad since they’re being mind controlled; they don’t mean any of the things they’re saying. Eda and King’s segments serve to reiterate their fears, but this is ultimately pointless as both of them have already had their arcs wrapped up and their fears aren’t relevant to the rest of the episode. The only character aspect that this sequence is relevant to is reminding the audience of Luz’s guilt complex, but the problem with this is that it’s unnecessary; it has been a main focus of the last quarter of the show. It doesn’t even do anything to advance this arc either, simply to remind the audience that it’s there.

Plot wise the only thing this scene serves is the conversation between Belos and the Collector, which could be easily retooled to have the same outcome without this sequence. It’s pointless at worst and extremely wasteful at best. There’s also the logistics of it; Luz can only escape the dream because Amity knows that the light glyph can cancel the Collector’s magic. The audience knows this – it was established in the previous episode – but Amity doesn’t, or more accurately she shouldn’t. The entire plot hinges on Amity having access to a piece of information she simply couldn’t know, and this is a common problem that plagues the episode. It’s also worth noting that this sequence takes up seven minutes of an episode that is already strapped for time. The Dream Sequence adds nothing to the episode and does nothing but waste time, so why does it exist? Well, if you watch the trailer for the episode it’s almost entirely composed of clips from this sequence; it’s trailer bait. However I think it’s most likely that it was an idea the writers had that they couldn’t bear to fully cut, which is a running problem in Season 3.

The final battle is an important aspect of any finale, so how does Watching and Dreaming’s hold up? Like many other aspects of the episode it is flawed. A good example of this is how it starts; Luz breaks into the throne room and immediately runs to Belos’ body. The first problem here is that when Belos first possessed the heart his body got completely covered in a protective coating [0:00] which has since vanished with no explanation. This is significant because Luz would have taken longer to defeat Belos if she had to first break through the coating, which might have given him enough time to stop her. The second problem is the pacing, the battle starts incredibly suddenly with very little buildup. There’s only about thirty seconds between Raine making a joke about Luz’s Titan form and Belos being nearly defeated. This would be a less sudden tonal shift if there was a fight scene in the throne room where Luz had to fight her way to the heart rather than getting to it immediately. It’s very rushed as a climax because it lacks buildup. The counter to this would be to say that the fight scene at the Draining Spell pedestal was the buildup to the final battle, but there is over two minutes between those scenes, including a quiet reunion between lovers which is very clearly a break in the action. The tone shifts very drastically in very little time, going from bombastic action to a warm reunion to climactic and suspenseful all with very little transition time.

The third problem is Belos, namely: what was he hoping to achieve? It seems reasonable to assume that due to how long the Titan has been dead for he’s not able to make it stand up and roll over, so it makes sense that he’d try and raise the arm to slam it down on the Titan’s body. On paper this follows, but in practice less so. If he wanted to slam the arm down then why did he reach all the way up into space? He didn’t need to reach nearly that high to slam it down, so it seems like he’s just being stupid to give the protagonists more time to defeat him. The final problem is also related Belos. When he first possesses the heart it is shown that he only needs a tiny pocket of good to possess it [0:19]. This creates a massive problem for his defeat as there is clearly goo left on the heart after he’s pulled off of it [0:37]. This begs the question: why did yanking him off the heart work? A counter to this is that possessing the Titan took all of Belos’ power, but this still doesn’t justify it. Before Belos possessed the Titan he was unable to keep his goo form but after doing it he was able to recreate his human form, so there’s no reason to believe his power has been diminished. If this is the explanation however, this should be telegraphed to the audience in some way. There’s a difference between the show implying something and the audience writing the story for the show by extrapolating an explanation that isn’t even there.

The episode’s B plot starts with a wonderful piece of contrivance; the Hexsquad puppets were abandoned on a floor that’s dusty enough to draw a glyph on, that’s pretty lucky for them I guess. Amity is also able to move to draw the glyph despite it being previously stated that puppets can’t move of their own volition: ‘You’re not supposed to move on your own, how did you break your spell’ [1:28]. An argument against this could be that Amity was able to move because she got she got freed from the mind control in the dream, but unfortunately her eyes are shown to turn back to their mind controlled appearance once she’s grabbed by the magic tendrils [1:34], so this defence doesn’t hold. The plotline continues by explaining that the witches can’t use their magic due to exhaustion. As much as this seems like an idea that should’ve been introduced earlier it does make sense; the problem comes from the fact that it’s a pointless plot beat. Nothing changes if the witches were able to use their magic to help them free the puppets so why waste screentime introducing a useless element?

Moving on, the end of the plotline is similarly half-baked. The Hexsquad see the Collector helping to keep the Archives together and assume he’s there to help them, which is an attempt to justify them forgiving him later. The problem here is that there is no reason for the Hexsquad to believe that the Collector is helping because he wants to save people; from their perspective it would seem more likely that he doesn’t want his toys to get destroyed. The problem here is similar to Amity somehow knowing to use the light glyph in the dream; we as the audience know that the Collector is only trying to help, but the Hexsquad don’t. They haven’t seen any of his development, they don’t know that he didn’t understand what it means to be mortal. All they know about him is that he caused them to be locked away from their families for months, took over their home, and uses people they care about as toys. Sure they know he’s a child, but that doesn’t justify them just forgiving him immediately. This is fundamentally out of character for all of them. Another issue with this plotline is that it adds very little to the episode. The Hexsquad free a lot of puppets but the Collector frees all of them at the end anyway. No character development is achieved either and it seems like it only exists because the writers knew people would be angry if the Hexsquad didn’t get any focus, so they just threw them in there despite them not really having anything to do. What makes this worse is that the storyboards tell us that Odalia was originally going to be a part of this plotline, which likely would’ve justified its existence if she was utilised to develop the characters in a meaningful way.

This was likely cut for time despite the fact that it has the potential for satisfying character moments, but the Dream Sequence was left in the episode despite having even less relevance. On the note of the Hexsquad it’s a massive issue that Hunter – who was raised and abused by Belos his entire life – doesn’t get a single line acknowledging his death. In fact he doesn’t get a single line acknowledging Belos at all, which is strange because Belos is a massive part of his character so having him not comment on his death is incredibly jarring. The entire plotline is very much a less or more situation. They could’ve done more by developing the plotline further to justify its inclusion, but equally they could’ve cut it entirely and whilst people would’ve been justifiably angry, being able to more effectively utilise that screentime would be an improvement over the shoddy middle ground we received.

A distinct problem with Watching and Dreaming is how the Collector is handled as he acts very inconsistently with how he did in For the Future. In that episode he was led to believe that King was plotting to kill him:

- ‘The Collector needs to be stopped for good, and I think I know a more permanent solution.’ [1:49]

- ‘Obviously to help King put an end to you and your little games.’ [2:01]

- ‘Luz has come to help King get rid of you for good.’ [2:08]

The line ‘I think I wanna play a new game’ [2:15] combined with his tired, resentful expression tell the audience that Belos’ lies have worked; he’s angry with King and Luz, tired of being betrayed by people he called his friends. The line clearly states that he is done being friendly, but this is walked back on at the start of Watching and Dreaming. When Belos suggests killing the witches, the Collector says ‘I want to be their friends’ [2:23]. This is in absolute opposition to his attitude at the end of the previous episode and it should be plainly obvious why. On top of that, the Collector believing that King was planning to kill him is only referenced one time: ‘King lied, Belos lied, even they lied’ [2:30]. This misunderstanding is never brought up again even after the Collector realises it was Belos all along, despite it being the event that caused him to create the dream world in the first place. Speaking of which, let’s talk about that. Putting the characters into the dream makes sense for the For the Future version of his character; he’s angry and vengeful, it tracks that he would make them relive their worst fears. But because Watching and Dreaming retcons his character, this action makes no sense. Why would he do this if he wanted to befriend them? Even from the point of view of a child that doesn’t make sense. He even says ‘King is gonna hate me for this’ [2:19] despite previously thinking King already hated him. Watching and Dreaming misunderstands the Collector’s development and regresses him back to an earlier point in his arc, causing many of his actions to make no sense.

Another issue in the episode is the Collector’s Warp Star, the flying star that Belos steals to get to the castle. It first appeared in For the Future and is also used by the Collector in the finale to fly to the Archives. He is shown to be able to summon [2:34] and de-summon [2:43] it at will but despite this keeps a spare one in his bedside table. You do have to wonder why he kept a spare if he’s able to summon it on command but at the end of the day he is a child so maybe there’s a little wiggle room when it comes to carelessness. However, the star still presents significant issues in the finale. The question that seems most prescient is how Belos knew the star would be in the bedside cabinet. I think it’s reasonable to assume he looked through the drawers whilst the Collector was setting up the dream but given how significant this is to the episode’s plot it probably should’ve had more of a setup. The more important question is how Belos even knew what the Warp Star did since he wasn’t present at any of the times it was used. It’s not an impossibility that he saw the Collector use the star offscreen but this is so significant to the plot – it’s vital to allow Belos to possess the Titan – that it deserves an explicit setup rather than relying on the audience’s headcanon.

Speaking of Belos, I think it’s time to acknowledge the elephant in the room: no matter how much people say it, he’s not just an evil bad guy who is evil for evil’s sake. He’s an irredeemable monster for sure and fully deserved to die horribly, but one thing he is not is simple. Belos is a pretty complex character, and I cannot stress this enough, complexity does not equal sympathy. The show had been building up his complex characterisation since Hunting Palismen, but it really kicks into gear in Hollow Mind. Starting there, we get the general gist of who Belos truly is; he’s a bigoted witch Hunter who wants to commit genocide because he’s so intrenched in his bigotry that he’s convinced himself that he’s saving humanity. We also get glimpses into his past where he murdered his brother Caleb for betraying the ideals they’d been raised with to be with a witch. A lot of the stuff we learn about Belos in Hollow Mind is quite vague but it works well as a setup. King’s Tide gives a deeper look into his head. He killed Caleb for betraying the ideals they both stood for, and in Belos’ mind he was putting him out of his misery because he believed that the witches had warped Caleb’s sense of reality. This is obviously absurd to any sane person, but the important thing is that this is how Belos thinks of things – even if it is illogical, it’s consistent. We can see this in how he clearly sees Caleb in Luz, stating that he wants to help her – in his own messed up way – and only trying to kill her when he believes she’s been fully corrupted by witches, just like his brother. We can see this when he states ‘I do pity you. These witches have warped your sense of reality, so perhaps it’s best if I put you out of your misery’ [0:48]. All of this happens in just one scene and it is an incredible exploration of his character and how he sees things.

Moving into Season 3, Thanks to Them doesn’t have much for Belos outside of killing Flapjack, who he sees as a symbol of Caleb’s betrayal. Now, I know For the Future is a bit of a wet fart of an episode but the scene between Belos and his hallucinations is actually pretty good. Here we see his cognitive dissonance on full display; he believes killing Caleb was because in his own words ‘I tried to save your soul, it’s your fault this all happened’ [0:57] – this can reasonably be extrapolated to apply to Luz in King’s Tide too. I think it’s safe to say that this should have been the point where the show went in depth on Belos’ backstory, but I don’t think it’s fair to blame Watching and Dreaming for another episode’s mistakes. What I can blame it for is not even alluding to his relationship with Caleb and stripping many of his complexities away. A good example would be that when he kills Luz. There’s no moment where he justifies it or even acknowledges this despite the fact that we know his twisted mind would see killing her as merciful. And say what you want about Belos, but one of his core traits is that he does not change, ever. So what applies in King’s Tide would still apply in the finale. Given that Caleb and Luz were both people he killed to ‘save their souls’ this would have been the prime time to reference his relationship with Caleb. Another example would be during the final battle, he doesn’t have anything interesting to say to Luz aside from the most generic villain dialogue ever. You’d think he’d still be shocked that she’s somehow alive, or that he would try and play mind games with her again, but no. Belos’ past is completely forgotten until the very last scene, his character is absent, replaced by a hollow shell that acts like him on the surface but is missing all the depth and complexity he once had. They decided it was best to turn him into a kaiju instead of utilising his character. Admittedly his death is pretty good – even if I’d have preferred he went out on a more serious note – but it’s built on poor foundations. One good scene can’t redeem an entire episode of wasted potential.

Even his relationship with Luz and how they both saw the Boiling Isles as a fantasy is just brushed off by saying ‘You assume Belos’ goal comes from a genuine place. That man doesn’t care about anything but his need to be the hero in his own delusion’ [1:08], and whilst is true to an extent it’s an idea that warrants more explanation than just a passing acknowledgment. However, note that I said it’s true to an extent. Take the line ‘I just need to live long enough to see this through’ [1:17] in Elsewhere and Elsewhen. This establishes that Belos believed in his goal enough to die for it, implying that becoming the Witch Hunter General and being recognised for ‘saving humanity’ was just an aspirational bonus. This is supported by the fact that he only starts outwardly obsessing about his need to be a hero in King’s Tide, after the Draining Spell has already started and he’s basically already won. Papa Titan’s comment cited earlier ignores this piece of characterisation in favour of supporting the new, simplified Belos. The counter to this would be that Papa Titan was only referring to Belos’ belief that he was doing things for the good of humanity when he said that his beliefs aren’t genuine. This would be true; Belos has simply convinced himself that he’s saving humanity, it’s part of his hero complex. However, this is a singular belief and Papa Titan specifically says beliefs, plural. Maybe it was just a small grammar mistake but given that this character is essentially god and we are supposed to take the things he says to be true, it has wide reaching implications on Belos’ character. Even forgetting all that, to say that Belos only cares about his need to be a hero is just wrong. He is a man fully committed to horrific ideals first and an egotist second. Both are important aspects of his character but neither is the sole motivator for him to do what he did. Watching and Dreaming misunderstands this and makes his ego his sole motive.

With all this established, I’m going to make what will probably be the most controversial statement in this essay: Belos is character assassinated in Watching and Dreaming. This moustache twirling kaiju man is not Belos, he’s a caricature; the character the fanbase thinks he is. The writers did quite a good job with Belos throughout the show, crafting an incredibly complex and compelling yet completely irredeemable antagonist who perfectly juxtaposed the show’s main themes. It’s a real shame they fumbled the bag so hard at the last hurdle as it really harms his character.

In conclusion, Watching and Dreaming has significant flaws. Characters consistently know information they shouldn’t, both major antagonists act incredibly out of character, the previous episode’s cliffhanger is walked back on, a huge amount of time is wasted, the plot is resolved in a nonsensical fashion and the final battle has many issues. As I stated at the beginning, the episode also has many positive aspects.

People often accuse me of hating Watching and Dreaming. I think it’s more accurate to say that I mourn Watching and Dreaming.

#the owl house #media critique #watching and dreaming #emperor belos #the collector #essay #criticism #toh criticism

[em-prentiss]

Since I’m joining you down the H/P rabbit hole, do you ever wonder about the other FBI agents who would have known Hotch when he would have worked for Prentiss’s mom and met Emily for the first time. Maybe an agent who also worked the same job. And for whatever reason, years later their paths cross with the BAU and the find out that Hotch and Emily now work together. What do you think the rest of the BAU’s reaction would be to finding out that baby Aaron and Emily were once acquainted? Imagine if that agent had photographs of baby H & P and maybe one of them together that even they didn’t know was taken.

Hmm I actually never thought of another agent seeing young hotchniss like that, mostly because I think many agents would scatter after that position, you know? But I can imagine an old colleague of Aaron’s who used to work the same shift with him one day coming into the BAU for whatever reason, maybe asking for help, maybe just wanting to catch up. He’d see Emily and recognize her instantly—because how could you work for the ambassador and not hear of or at least cross paths with Emily?—and he’d be like oh wow what a coincidence, never thought I’d see the two of you together again and the team would be like….what are y’all talking about. It’s such a fun idea, it would be wonderful as a fic.

I definitely think if anyone from the BAU knew about them, it would’ve been Dave, whether Aaron told him about her or he somehow saw them together back in the day. Even if he didn’t, I don’t think he’d be surprised to know that they knew each other—she’s just so different with him than everyone else, you can’t help but wonder. Obviously they’d all be shocked, but I think JJ and Penelope would be delighted of course and they’d immediately dig for details—and demand (lovingly) of Emily why she hadn’t told them. Morgan would be interested to know what Hotch was like back then and Reid would be completely disinterested in the whole thing lmao, but I think this extra piece of information would make sense of what he’s seen from them (nothing concrete, but a subtle comfortableness they seem to have with each other).

I also lowkey love the idea of them being in a newspaper or something. Like in one of the ambassador’s parties Emily is at the center and you could just catch a hint of Aaron standing next to a door. Or someone would snap a picture of them as they’re sitting on the edge of a balcony, legs dangling (he’d tried to get her down from it, but it proved fruitless so in the end he just joined her), free smiles on both their faces as she maybe told him a story of the stars (I am so obsessed with young hotchniss and stargazing, don’t even get me started). I can just imagine the way the ladies would gush over them, their brows raised in disbelief at Aaron’s relaxed posture and his smile—omg I’m cutting myself off here, but WHAT IF his jacket was around her shoulders to protect her from the breeze, because even though it’s summer her short dresses barely covered much. In conclusion the ladies would lose their minds, much as I currently am right now, and the guys would be subtly interested to know who exactly their old boss was.

Also I think it would somehow be even sweeter if hotchniss wasn’t established at that time. They were simply friends—lightly teasing, a little flirtatious—but at the core of it they found each other and just bonded deeply. 

This is such a lovely idea and it sent me into outer space, thank you xx

#hotchniss #aaron hotchner #emily prentiss #criminal minds #aaron hotchner x emily prentiss #aaron x emily #young hotchniss vibes are SO immaculate #inbox

[lacrymatoryao3]

Redemption Was Just The Beginning

Chapter 9: January, 1900

[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]

To the world, Arthur Morgan is dead. As he tries to face the idea, in a lush valley in Ambarino he comes face to face with a woman from his past, and they must reckon with an era long gone. Especially when she has secrets of her own.

(Rated explicit simply because eventually there’s smut in this.)

Tag: @photo1030

3,075 Words (AO3 Link)

Arthur wasn’t sure what time it was, or much of anything for that matter, when Ana burst into his bedroom late in the night… Or was it early morning? Either way, the dawn had not yet broke and Arthur was jerked out of a deep sleep confused and disoriented.

“What, what?! What’s the matter?!” He shouted bewildered, reaching in a crazed manner for a weapon like his old instincts dictated.

Ana was hurriedly dressed, with a piece of paper with instructions scrawled hastily on still drying ink, “Owen was just here. Rosaline is in labor and I need to go over there. I don’t know how long I’ll be so I need you to take care of the house and Arthur Francisco. I wrote everything down… And please, use the stove this time when you cook anything. I already made lunch for him, it’s in the ice box.”

Arthur did hear pounding, but he had assumed it was something in his dream. He grunted rubbed his face, finally checking the clock on the end table. A quarter past 3 in the morning. Why did babies need to come when everyone was sleeping?

He saw her off, trying to shake the tiredness by standing on the cold porch until he couldn’t see her anymore. It seemed every man besides Mr. O’Hogan was doing the same thing, Mrs. Liang followed Ana not too soon after, then Mrs. Johnson in the distance. At least they all knew how babies were born. The only woman who had any real idea to help poor Abigail was Susan, and she had never had any of her own.

Arthur did sleep a bit more, sitting in the living room after getting the fire going, until the clock started to chime at 5. He practiced his usual morning routine and went into the kitchen, grabbing any cook books he could find. Ana had plenty of little recipe cards, however she had naturally wrote them in Spanish. He sat down after getting the coffee going and scanned the table of contents in each book to see if he could find something easy enough for him to make without it becoming a disaster. So many of the measurements they listed made absolutely no sense to him. What the hell was a ‘scruple’? Or a ‘dram’? He only knew a ‘gill’ as something fish had. He found one simple enough that didn’t have any of those, with the instructions understandable for someone as stupid in a kitchen as he felt like he was. Poaching eggs seemed simple enough. Making toast was easy.

He filled a small pot with water, setting it on the stove when it was hot enough for it to boil. As he waited he put a pan on the neighboring burner and dropped a spoonful of butter into it, letting it melt and cover the bottom. He cut some slices of bread and slapped them in, turning them every few minutes until they were crispy and a light brown. He put them onto a plate and into the warming shelf above the stove. The water was bubbling and steaming by then. According to the recipe he just needed to crack the eggs into the water and let them go until they set. He just watched them float in the water, the whites wrapping themselves back around the yolk like an overly complicated soft boiled egg. He strained them out with an odd looking utensil that looked like a metal spider’s web on a stick. He put them with the toast in the warming box.

Arthur went up and knocked on the door to Arthur Francisco’s room. When he went inside the boy was still snug in his bed. He almost felt bad needing to wake him, gently tapping him on the back until he opened his eyes.

“Hey.” Arthur whispered, “Time to get up and around.”

Arthur Francisco looked at him, baffled that he was the one there to rouse him, “Where’s Mama?”

“She’s with Mrs. O’Hogan. Her baby’s comin’ soon.” Arthur replied, silently thanking Ana that she already took the boy’s clothes out, “It’s just you and me today.”

Arthur had no idea what he was even supposed to do other than make sure the boy got out of bed. He was sure he knew how to take care of himself, he didn’t need to be supervised. On top of it he felt awkward just standing there as the child washed and dressed. He did note what Ana was talking about with him being like Arthur. It was in the way he fastened buttons, especially on his shirt when he left the two top buttons open as if he didn’t like the collar close around his neck. He moved his arms around to make sure his suspenders weren’t tight sitting on his shoulders. Arthur could really put a word on how it made him feel… The closest was a melancholic happiness, if that even made sense.

Even more like Arthur was he didn’t speak much in the morning. He mutely followed Arthur to the kitchen and sat down in his seat.

“Now, don’t expect anythin’ fancy like your mama can make.” Arthur said to him while taking out the poached eggs and the toast, sprinkling the eggs with some pepper. He absentmindedly poured the boy his own cup of coffee, before questioning if that was something Ana let him drink. He didn’t see any wrong in it. He was drinking coffee that young… Then again, he was smoking and drinking a few years later. None of it killed him, so one time for the kid wouldn’t hurt.

Arthur Francisco didn’t complain. His first few tastes of the drink gave him a puzzled look on his face, but he enjoyed the meal more than Arthur expected him to. Both ate in similar ways. They broke open the eggs with their forks so the yolk would bleed over the toast and dipped up the excess on the plate with the crusts.

In the stable the boy tended to his own horse, while Arthur helped the throng of other children. He got onto her on his own, he was still light enough to use only his arms to hoist him up into the saddle. Damn, Arthur wished he could still do that.

The youngest O’Hogan girl, Arthur believed she was called was Jane or something, went up to Arthur Francisco and asked if she could ride with him. He instantly and eagerly agreed. Arthur went over and helped her onto the back of Josefina, putting her legs on the same side so she didn’t wrinkle up her skirt.

Making their way through town more children joined. They sure did talk a lot, and all at once. Arthur found it to be a little too much noise for so early in the morning, it was like the girls giggling over coffee but tenfold. He tired to tune most of it out, staying focused on what was ahead and making sure the group didn’t run into each other’s horses or anyone in the street.

It was hard to believe the schoolhouse fit so many children. It looked like a two room shack at most with a covered bell tower and only one teacher standing on the porch to greet the pupils. Arthur assumed she was the other Svensson sister Ana had told him about.

He ushered and helped the children put their horses in the covered paddock in the yard. He made sure they had everything they needed, especially Arthur Francisco.

“All right.” Arthur said to him, “I’m heading off. If I’m back before the day ends I’ll come meet you. If not make sure everyone gets home safe.”

Arthur Francisco nodded, “Yes, sir. See you later.”

Arthur lit a cigarette watching everyone else go inside out of the elements. He sighed, turning Delfina to the direction of the sheriff’s office and jail.

[*]-----[*]-----[*]-----[*]-----[*]

Mrs. O’Hogan laid in her bed that was covered by old rags. She let in sharp breaths and slowly blew them out, making attempts to regulate the pain ever contraction brought to her. Ana and the rest of the women – including Bridget, the O’Hogans’ soon to be 16 year old daughter – did what they could to keep her comfortable as they waited for Dr. Anderson and the local midwife, an older woman the town mothers affectionately called Nurse Henry.

The air when a baby was expected was a heavy and bittersweet one, with so many potentials that overwhelmed the mind if thought about too deeply. There was excitement, the coming of a new life and a sore buy joyous mother. There was fear, no matter what birth was a dangerous affair for both. Ana had Arthur Francisco there, as did Mrs. Liang with her youngest son Caihong, and Mrs. O’Hogan herself had Jane and Adam and Nicolas in the same bed in the same house with no major or worrying troubles. With all the religious and superstitious trinkets from different backgrounds surrounding her, there was high hopes the good luck would continue.

They tried to keep the mood light, if only for Bridget’s sake. The young woman was more nervous about the ordeal than her mother was. Mrs. O’Hogan occasionally muttered that she hoped the doctor and nurse would make it before the baby did. Mrs. Liang and Mrs. Johnson agreed, with Mrs. Johnson remarking her second son Emmanuel nearly came out as soon as her labor started.

Dr. Anderson and Nurse Henry arrived just shy of 4 in the morning. Her jovial nature relaxed some of the anxiety, opening her little bag and getting right to work. Dr. Anderson was mostly there in case pain relief was needed or the birth would need to become a surgical one. She did offer Mrs. O’Hogan something called Ether, a way to reduce the discomfort, that Mrs. O’Hogan waved off with a comment that she went through it 5 other times without it and she doubted it would be any different the current time.

Then, 3 hours went by…

They kept Mrs. O’Hogan relaxed, letting her rest in any position that she deemed comfortable. They gave her plenty of juice to drink. Every woman in the room took turns walking around with her several times. In between each action to help things get going Nurse Henry would look underneath Mrs. O’Hogan’s shift to check how her dilation.

The sunlight broke and brightened the room by the time the baby was ready. Mrs. O’Hogan sat at the edge of the bed, leaning back so the nurse and doctor could kneel below her with blankets with Bridget behind them to see what it all entailed. Ana messaged Mrs. O’Hogan’s back as she pushed, Mrs. Johnson holding her hand, and Mrs. Liang dabbing her face with a cool damp cloth.

The shrill cry of a baby was a delight to everyone’s ears. Nurse Henry wrapped the baby quickly and took it closer to the furnace to clean them and keep them warm.

The nurse evaluated the baby, “You got yourself another healthy baby girl, ma’am!”

“Oh thanks be to God!” Mrs. O’Hogan cried in relief.

Once the afterbirth passed the women helped Mrs. O’Hogan affix a washable sanitary belt between her legs for any bleeding then removed the rags to tuck her into bed. The nurse gave her the tightly swaddled baby girl. Mrs. O’Hogan didn’t need instruction on what to do. Everyone watched, quietly taking in the small creature who latched onto her mother’s breast.

Ana didn’t want the experience to be sullied for herself. She smiled away the envy. Her reflection on being pregnant wasn’t the most positive one, but it seemed completely worth it once she held her son years ago. Growing up she was taught she would have several children, like every woman around her in Mexico did. Yet there was only one.

The baby was put into her cradle, rocked until she fell asleep. Mrs. O’Hogan took the chance to do the same. The lull was a welcome one for everybody. Once Dr. Anderson and Nurse Henry departed, the rest of the women returned to their stations in the room, collapsing and closing their own eyes.

[*]-----[*]-----[*]-----[*]-----[*]

The sheriff’s office looked like most others in every backwater town Arthur had found himself in, a wooden built and sided construction with one half heavy impenetrable stones where the cells were. He hitched Delfina to the side of it. He didn’t know what was compelling him to walk up to the door. He didn’t like nor trust the law in any capacity any more than he did. He didn’t need the money. That was the only thing that made him take the bounties before. He knew how easily, despite being considered dead, how it could be him running from these vultures again. What was it? To get the rush he once savored? To prove to some unseen judge he was a changed man?

He opened the door, interrupting whatever conversation Sheriff Strange was having with the three. bored looking deputies.

“Of course, if we ever get that goddamn rail line they’ve been promising-… Oh! Good morning Mr. Callahan.”

Arthur tipped his hat, “Sheriff.”

“Taking me up on bounties?”

Arthur nodded.

Sheriff Strange handed him a piece of paper. It wasn’t exactly what Arthur was expecting, just a scrawled note with a name, their crime, description of the person, their address, and the cost to turn them in alive.

“Now he isn’t the most high profile one we got around here, but how you handle him is how you earn my blessing.” The Sheriff explained, “Earl Harris is just your run of the mill card cheat. He’s mostly a thorn in my side, coming in every few months for the same offense. Check the saloon first. He’ll go easy unless he’s had liquor, but he’ll talk your ear off.”

The goal: find some old card shark and take him back to the jail. Probably just to spend whatever time he owes and get released to start it all over again. $2.50 wasn’t anything to sneeze at anyway. He left the Sheriff and his lethargic seeming deputies. Closing the door Arthur heard him chide them, for one of them to whine ‘Oh come on, Pa!’ in response.

He took a bundle of rope from one of Delfina’s saddle bags, attaching it to his belt just in case. He left her at the hitching post, the saloon was a convenient walk down the street. Arthur leaned against a support post, making himself look like another patron who had drunk until the morning. He nonchalantly looked into the large windows.

The card table was in the middle of the room, always within eye shot of the bar. The saloon was mostly empty except for a few stragglers from the night before, but there was a large group looking like they were playing a round of poker. He studied them. One that had his back to him seemed to fit who he was sent to search for – thin build, ill fitting denim overalls, long stringy white hair and from his vantage point what looked to be a matching beard, a tattered wide brimmed straw hat. He sort of reminded Arthur of Uncle if he had skipped several meals and was far more energetic.

Arthur pushed through the double swinging half doors and walked up to the table to his potential target, “Excuse me, partner. Are you Earl Harris?”

“Yeah! What’s it to ya?” The man replied, turning in his chair to Arthur.

“You think we could step outside? I have some business with you to speak about.”

Earl Harris excused himself to the other players. As he set the cards in his hand onto the table, a bundle of other cards slipped out of his sleeve for everyone to see. There was the evidence Arthur needed. It was so easy it was almost insulting.

One of the men against Earl Harris slammed threw his hand to the table, “You son of a bitch!”

Arthur swiftly led Harris out of the saloon as the men rose, taking off their jackets and rolling up their sleeves. The fight wouldn’t have been a fair one for them, Arthur was a head taller and twice their sizes, but the Sheriff wanted Harris alive and in all probability unbeaten.

“What’s this all about?!” Harris mumbled stumbling down the stairs at Arthur’s hand on his shoulder’s urging.

“Well, I’m afraid Mr. Harris you’re a wanted man.” Arthur explained, “You’re going to have to come with me to see Sheriff Strange and I’m hopin’ we could do this like gentlemen.”

Harris blinked and gave a mostly toothless grin to him, “Aw hell! Why didn’t ya just say so?”

The short walk felt like an eternity. The Sheriff wasn’t kidding about how incessant Earl Harris could talk. Arthur was audience to his entire life story and whatever detour he decided to focus upon before returning to the point. He had no concern about his impending incarceration. In fact, Arthur started to suspect he actually liked it.

Walking by Harris gave Delfina a hard pat on her rump, “Fine horse ya got here! Got the goddamn Gardener brand! Ya must be mighty close to that lady!”

“That’s no one’s concern but my own.” Arthur replied.

Harris didn’t take the hint, “Bout time she got herself a real man! That ol’ husband of hers weren’t much of one, if ya catch my drift!”

Arthur grabbed him buy the shoulder, his patience wearing thin, leading him into the Sheriff’s office. Harris gave a jovial greeting to them. He instructed Arthur what his preferred cell was. He gladly shoved him into it, getting as much distance from Harris as possible or he was at risk of getting Arthur’s gun handle across the head so he’d be quiet for a while.

“Told you he was conversationalist.” Sheriff Strange chuckled seeing the exhausted expression on Arthur’s face. He put the money he was owned on the desk. Arthur took it and made a gesture of thanks and goodbye.

“Tell Mrs. Gardener I said hello!” The Sheriff shouted after him, “Treat her right! She’s a fine, fine woman!”

Arthur took a deep breath to calm himself when riding away on Delfina. It made his skin crawl, not liking that any more than he did at the party.

#rdr2 #arthur morgan #red dead redemption 2 #rdr2 posting #rdr #red dead redemption #arthur morgan fanfiction #rdr2 arthur #rdr2 fandom #rdr2 fanfiction #red dead redemption 2 fanfiction #rdr2 community #red dead 2 #red dead redemption arthur #red dead redemption community #arthur morgan rdr2

[animatorweirdo]

Good morning/evening! It’s muffin anon! Yes, the username reveal you all have been wating for is here! With a bunch of angst in true muffin anon fashion!

I was thinking about a Targaryen reader and and elf having a child and this idea came to mind. (Trigger warning: long and painful labour though not described in much detail)

Imagine if reader had a labour like Rhaenyra has it in the House of the Dragon. The labour is very long and painful. The screams of reader can be heard by the everyone in the area. The elves are covering their ears for the screams are simply too painful to hear. Her dragon roaring and screaming just outside of the village. Reader’s elven maids try to help her but to no avail. Reader doesn’t let anyone come near her for the fear of being cut open like her mother. Her elf tries to comfort reader but being in a haze of pain, reader grabs the closes dagger to her and tries to stab husband, unaware of what they are doing. The husband, being an elf warrior of skill, easily dodges the attack but is heartbroken that reader would think that he would harm her. The baby is born shortly after the dagger incident. It is a dragon-like child of the House Targaryen, a still-born.

With shaking hands, reader grabs her baby and presses the tiny corpse of the soul that never even got to take their first breath against her chest. She feels a burden so heavy, crying will dissipate it. So reader simply stands there, shaking and pressing their baby against their chest. Her elf takes shakey breaths as he slowly takes reader in his arms. Reader, being in a state of shock and grief, lets her husband embrace her as the both of them mourn the loss of their child. The elven servants around them are shocked to see a child not surviving birth for they had never known it was even possible. But they cannot stay shocked for long because reader collapses from exhaustion and they need to treat her. Her husband is screaming in pain as he thinks he will lose reader as well.

Fastforward a few hours and the elven lover of reader is sitting beside her bed holding her hands. Her breath, is uneven. Her pulse, not strong enough. And she is just so pale.

“She is going to die,” they had told him. “She has been through much more pain than she can handle.”

The face of Míriel Þerindë flashes before his eyes. He had been in there when they laid her to rest in the Gardens of Lorien. (Bonus point if the elf is a son of Feanor.)

He bends over the resting body of reader, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“Please,” he says, sounding even more desparate and pathetic than he is. “Please don’t die. Please don’t leave me alone.”

He knows what he wants is selfish. But he can’t help it. He has already seen many losses, he can’t lose reader as well.

Days pass and reader, against all odds, starts getting better. With each passing day she gets stronger and before long she is back to riding her dragon. With the help of her elven lover and dragon, she leads armies against Morgoth’s armies, bringing back many victories. She even reforms the dragons of Morgoth, bringing them to light and happiness. In return, the fire-drakes fight for reader, brining her the name “dragon queen”. Everyone thinks reader has moved on from her depresive state after losing her baby. But they are all wrong. She didn’t move on. She couldn’t move on. She directed all her anger and greif into the war against Morgoth presicely because she couldn’t move on. But one day, all this comes crashing down on her. She breaks down after an argument with her lover over working herself to sickness.

“Why won’t you just rest,” your lover says with despair in his voice.

“I’ll rest when I am done,” you say.

“And when will you be done,” he asks, taking a step towards you. “When you kill Morgoth?”

There was no way you could answer to that. You stay silent. The same feelinf of helplessness wash over you as the image of you still-born flashes before your eyes. You hold back tears. Now was not the time to be feeling like this. You had a war to win.

Your lover takes notice of the change in your mood.

“You know, I grieve them too,” he says, his voice soft but cracking. “You are not alone.”

You let your tears run as years of grief and weariness of war bring down your walls that you had so meticously bult. Your lover hugs you as he himself is crying.

The two of you stand in the middle of your office, crying and hugging each other as every crack in your marriage got washed away by the mutual tears.

Time pass and two heal each other, staying side by side and never letting go. After a few more wars, you had grown old and weary. So you, your elven lover and your dragons go to a remote place free of suffering. Both of you live a simple fulfilling life, maybe even adopting a child.

But in the end, you were mortal and had to die, leaving behind your dragons and your lover and going to the unknown. All alone.

HOLD UP! It doesn’t end here! Keep scrolling!

Your deeds in reforming the dragons of Morgoth and dealing him much damage, had not gone unnoticed by the Valar. So they give you a choice. You can either heed the calling beyond the circles of Arda or you can stay in the Halls of Mandos, waiting for your elf to arrive by ship for they will not accept it if he comes back throught the Halls. You accept without much thought, though the Valar remind you, your elf is an exile and Valinor is now fenced against them. You still stay, holding onto the hope your elf would be strong enough to wait until Valinor would welcome them back however long it may be.

Woah, that was a lot, don’t you think? It’s almost an entire story. After all this angst I gave you I think it is fair that I at least revealed my username. Also, can we be mutuals?

Oh, muffin. This was pure tragedy, but I like that things slowly turned out well for reader and their lover. Since reader was a Targaryen, whose family has a rich history of terrible childbirths, losing her child to something like that could have been enough to send her into madness. Hey, I have a little adding idea to the part where reader goes into the coma. What if her dragon was the one who managed to awaken them? Her dragon wanders into the scene where she is laid to rest and with their breath manages to ignite the flame of life within her again, which could have resulted in uncontrollable turmoil of rage and vengeance.

One sad thing about if reader chose immortality. It was good for their partner but their dragon wasn't immortal, so eventually she would have to bid them goodbye. I do like the idea reader and her partner decide to adopt a child instead of trying to make their own because of reader's trauma. (It just seems Targaryens are unable to have a less traumatic childbirths.)

And by the way, finally! You have your own blog. The muffin has evolved into a sprinfountain. But I think I'm gonna keep calling you muffin because that's just your nickname. And honey, I think you have been enough for us to be mutuals.

[night-eagle-flight]

Scar

Trigger warning because the reader is given rude comments but there is a happy ending so proceed with this in mind! I hope you enjoy the read!

You weren’t self conscious.

At least that’s what you thought. But ever since you got a large scar across your eye things began to change for you.

It had been on a naval mission when you got it and you remember Connor frantically hurrying to try to get you to a doctor in Boston. Connor had helped you take off your bandages when it was time and he kissed the scar you had before leaving to make you some tea.

You looked at it in the mirror and you thought it didn’t look bad.

It wasn’t until you went to New York with Connor one day when you began to hear the whispers.

“Oh what a shame.” Muttered a flower vendor to a customer, “To have such a pretty face ruined.”

“If you misbehave you’ll end up like that.” A mother told her daughter.

“That scar is simply UGLY.” Laughed a group of street workers.

Each thing you heard chipped away at your confidence and soon, you began to cover your scar with your hair.

“My love?” Connor asked one day when you were both preparing for a mission.

“Yes Connor?” You looked up, careful your hair wouldn’t move.

“Why is it that you cover your face when we go into town?”

You bit your lip. You had been doing this for a week and you had thought Connor hadn’t noticed. 

“Oh, uh...” You were grasping, “I-it’s the newest trend in the city!” You looked up forcing a smile, “Makes it easier to blend in!”

Connor wanted to ask more but an Assassin interrupted and gave a message that made you start your mission early. 

When the both of you arrived, you split up. Connor took the rooftops while you stayed on the ground. You spotted your target and gave chase. Soon Connor joined in from the rooftops and right when you were about to ram into the guy, you tripped. Connor hopped down and finished him off, then ran towards you.

“Look at her face!!” Yeld a man who began to laugh.

You froze. Your hair was messy and wouldn’t cover your scar. You panicked more when you reached for your hood but realized you had forgotten to clip it back after washing it. 

“What happened to her face?”

“Bet she tried to steal somethin’ and got punished.”

You got up and ran.

“Y/N!!!” Connor yelled out as he reached out for you.

You were quick to disappear and that’s when he felt his anger boil at the people that made the vulgar comments.

“Silence!” His voice penetrated through the laughter and everyone went silent, “You have no idea what she has gone through!” Connor glared, “If I ever hear you mock her scar again you will answer to me.”

Everyone remained silent as Connor ran towards the one place you may have gone to. When he arrived at the room that was inside the tavern, he knocked on the door.

He thought that he might have been wrong and had gone somewhere else, but then he heard your soft sobs. He marched right in and shut the door. 

“Please leave Connor. Please? I don’t want you to see me like this.” You whispered into the pillow.

Connor sat down next to your lying form and placed a hand on your back, “I cannot leave someone I love when they are feeling like this.”

You sniffled and after a few more sobs you sat up and hugged Connor from the side.

“Please tell me what is wrong my love.” Connor said, rubbing your back.

You sniffled, “I-it’s this scar, Connor. I thought I’d be fine but then everyone began to make so many comments.” You wiped your tears, “I was fine at first but then they got more and more frequent and I couldn’t take it anymore. So I hid my scar with my hair.”

Connor hummed in acknowledgement.

“You think this is silly, don’t you?” You looked away ashamed.

Connor grasped your chin lightly and turned you to look at him, “I could never judge you for your feelings. This is something that has hurt you and I wish to help.”

“You can’t take away a scar Connor.”

“This is true.” He touched the scar on his right cheek, “I should know.”

You had a small smile appear on your face as you touched his face.

“It does not matter what they say because they do not know the truth behind this scar.” Connor kissed it gently and ran small kisses from the top of your eyebrow down to your cheek, “It is reminder that I am in your debt because had you not stepped in between me and that rogue deckhand I would not be here with you.” He pulled away but stayed close to your face as he looked into your eyes, “Your scar is beautiful to me regardless of what the townsfolk say.”

You teared up.

“I love you.”

You hugged Connor, “I love you more.”

The next day you wore your hair normally and stopped to take a deep breath before opening the door. 

“I am by your side.” Connor said beside you as he grasped your hand and gave it a light squeeze before letting go.

You walked out and began to head towards the Aquila that was docked for supplies the previous day. The people muttered and shopped as Connor threw glares at people who stared at your scar. 

The way you walked with a long stride and head high made him smile. Your confidence was coming back. When you boarded with him, the sails were loosened and off you went to Davenport Manner.

“Captain! Captain! Did you hear?” Faulkner began to chat, “Apparently there’s a story a buzz in the mainland.”

“About what Mr. Faulkner?” You asked.

“There’s a story of a maiden with a scar on her eye that took on a hundred men while battling a man o’ war! They say she was a spit fire and defended her captain until she couldn’t stand! The Lady of the Sea is what I hear her being called.” Faulkner took a swig of his drink.

It then dawned on Connor... The people were indeed staring at your scar but it wasn’t from mockery but from recognition.

“That’s quite the tale Mr. Faulkner.” You said blushing.

Faulkner winked as he walked below deck.

Connor smiled, “Would the Lady of the Sea wish to learn how to steer a humble ship?”

You snorted and took the wheel with Connor behind you holding your hands as he helped you steer.

Connor loved you, scar and all. He leaned in and both of you locked lips.

“OI!!!!! YOU'RE GONNA SINK US!!!!!!!”

Connor looked up and quickly turned the wheel to avoid some oncoming rocks.

Both of you laughed.

“Young love.” Faulkner muttered as he took a swig from his bottle.

Thank you for reading!!

#connor kenway x reader #reader insert #connorkenwayxreader #assassin x reader #assassins creed x reader

[herrlindemann]

Rock Hard - October 1997, interview with Paul

There's no question: Rammstein are definitely THE winners of the hour. The first album 'Herzeleid' is about to go platinum, the singles 'Engel' and 'Du hast' from the second album romped about in the top ten for weeks, and it was foreseeable that the long-awaited album 'Sehnsucht' would also have a huge impact . So Rammstein are well on the way to becoming the most successful German metal band of the 90's - but how are the guys dealing with the new situation?

I can still remember well when I walked past the Motor Music stand at PopKomm two years ago and I was blasted with fat guitar riffs that didn't quite fit the usual program of the Hamburg label. That was a new signing called Rammstein, I was told at the time when I was curious, and somehow I had the feeling that something big was coming our way. This impression was reinforced a few months later by the great debut album 'Herzeleid', on which the band went musically new ways and lyrically wonderfully irreverent. The best counterpoint to the burgeoning PC wave. With their fantastic, effective live shows, they were able to win more and more fans for themselves from tour to tour, but nobody would have thought that they would achieve such a huge breakthrough.

Today everyone is talking about Rammstein, but guitarist Paul Landers, who is sitting across from me, still seems quite relaxed and completely unimpressed by all the fuss that is happening around him. Nevertheless, at the beginning of our conversation, the question arises as to what has changed for Rammstein since the Top 3 hit 'Engel'.

« Actually not that much, because what looks like an overnight success for many people was a very long way for us, which we took step by step. It's like meeting a child once a year and marveling at how big they've grown while the parents don't even notice the child growing because they see it every day. On the other hand, we probably haven't even realized how successful we are at the moment. My phone rang last night and I have a woman on the other end of the line who couldn’t believe that she actually spoke to Paul von Rammstein and that I’m still in the phone book as normal. I may have to change it soon. I just think we're still down to earth and that's not going to change as things get bigger. »

I'm guessing though that mass and mainstream media interest has skyrocketed following the chart success...

« Yes, but since we are six members of the band it doesn't make any difference to us because we can split everything up. And it doesn't matter whether you're talking to Der Spiegel or a school newspaper, the questions are usually the same. »

By the way, some of your older fans were not at all enthusiastic about the fact that your record company pushed the release of 'Sehnsucht' from spring to the end of August for marketing reasons...

"Wait, it wasn't the record company's decision — we're responsible for everything, whether it's covers, videos or singles. We just do what we want, but of course let the record company advise us. Things like Aerosmith, who had to re-record some songs because the company didn't like the first versions, won't happen with us. »

But you must have felt a certain form of pressure, too — for example, the desire of the fans, who simply expect certain things from you, like ambiguous lyrics or elaborate shows, because that's one of your trademarks. You could theoretically run out of ideas...

« That's why we're holding back a bit at the moment, because we don't want to have to land a helicopter on stage next year to meet the expectations of the fans. We still have plenty of ideas, but we're only implementing them gradually so that we still have something up our sleeves. »

On your last tour, did you also have the phenomenon that occurs more frequently with chart breakers, that there were people in the audience who only knew the song 'Engel' from radio and television, but were not familiar with the old material?

« Nope, not at all, because we're not a single band like Fool's Garden, who suddenly appear out of nowhere and of which you actually only know the one song. In my opinion, apart from the title track, 'Herzeleid' only contains good songs, none of which are really suitable as a single, and it's similar with the new disc. 'Engel' pushed us like a fresh battery, but that didn't destroy the whole car. »

I recently re-read the interview I had with Paul shortly after the release of 'Herzeleid', but at the time he said Rammstein had no plans to roam the clubs for months trying to break out by force. But now everything turned out differently, because Rammstein were actually damn often on the road...

"Hm, you're wrong. We've been in the business for quite a long time and accordingly make sure that we don't get crushed. We're often on the road, but our tours are usually quite short, because our life shouldn't consist exclusively of concerts. If other bands enjoy playing up to 200 gigs over the course of a year, that's up to them — we definitely take our breaks and don't let them rush us around. We're just six friends, and when friends see each other every day over a long period of time, it really gets to you. »

Something different: On a recent trip to Sweden, I noticed that your songs are sometimes already being played in clubs there, and you've also had numerous gigs in countries like Belgium, Holland and Sweden. Looks like you're slowly starting to conquer other countries too — despite the language barrier!

«Of course, because at some point we will reach our limits in Germany. We're also excited about new tasks, because actually it's pretty boring to tour as a headliner. It's much more exciting to start all over again in new territory where nobody knows us. We also asked people after the gigs if they would like it better if we sang in English, but most of them think we should stick to German lyrics. After all, music is global and the reactions are often a bit reserved at the beginning, but after a few songs the audience is dancing. We definitely want to tackle the American market in the near future. »

Not a bad idea. In any case, I could well imagine that the Americans are crazy about Rammstein's music - and with such a show you run into open doors there anyway.

Change of subject: The songs for 'Sehnsucht' were all written before the big breakthrough came in the form of 'Engel'. Accordingly, the pressure should not have been too great. Don't you pee your pants thinking about the songwriting for the third disc? After all, you then have to top an absolutely successful album...

« The pressure can't get any bigger, because the first disc was definitely a great success for us. In principle, the songwriting for the next record will be more relaxed for us because we now know that everything will be fine as long as we only listen to ourselves. We've learned that things only ever go bad for us when we let other people talk us into it or when not all band members are present at the creation. So it's our job to make sure that despite all the stuff that's pouring down on us, the band's chemistry is still right. »

Was it an advantage for you that you played many of the songs from the second album live before the studio date?

"Yes and no. The advantage was certainly that we could test the reactions of the fans to the piece. The downside is that the more times you play a song live, the sooner you get fed up with it and have to start composing new material again. »

In the photo session for 'Sehnsucht', Rammstein worked with Gottfried Helnwein, a well-known and respected photo artist who, however, has recently been the subject of negative talk because of his alleged membership in the Schientology skete. Has this collaboration had any negative effect on Rammstein?

"Unfortunately not," laughs Paul. « I wouldn't think it was so bad if we were also put a little in the Scientology corner, which maybe isn't so far-fetched after all...»

The wide grin on the guitarist's face shows that this statement is not meant too seriously, but what’s the saying? Any promotion is good promotion!

"We spoke to Helnwein again after that ominous article appeared in 'Stern'," Paul picks up the thread again, " and I can only say one thing: if the 'Stern' article about Helnwein contains as much truth as their article about Rammstein, then Helnwein is a CDU politician... In addition, the book that the story was primarily about will not appear at all because it is completely far-fetched. Some reports in 'Stern' are apparently as fictitious as stories in 'Neue Spezial'.”

Let's address two critical issues again: Recently, photographers have had to view the photos at your concerts, which gives your management the right, so to speak, and only release certain pics for publication. It's a practice that's especially familiar from big British bands, with the difference, however, that under German law their contracts aren't valid anyway and you can ignore them. However, your management could actually control the photo selection and also use the image material, e.g. from our photographers, for your own purposes free of charge. Why this harassment?

« One of the reasons for this action was - believe it or not - that we don't have any live pics of us in the archive at all, even though we played quite a lot. We also wanted to prevent a picture of Till with the burning coat from being printed in every newspaper. In any case, it's not about wanting to prevent the publication of image material, which we might not have been very good at, or anything like that. We've already considered whether we shouldn't do the same with articles about us, but this doesn't apply to the rock magazines, which thank God only print what we really say, but rather to the countless scraps of paper that sometimes pull unbelievable nonsense out of our fingers that we never uttered. The 'Stern' wrote, for example, that at Rammstein gigs only 30- to 4-year-old mustaches with checkered shirts and beer bellies are in the audience. It's quite funny, but it gets on your nerves in the long run. But actually we can live with all suspicions quite well - as long as we are not put in the right corner. »

The issue should be over by now...

"Are you kidding me? Are you serious when you say that. Of course, everyone who now knows us personally has long since understood that we have nothing to do with it, but thanks to our success, new media are constantly approaching us, and we have to start all over again with the educational work. »

What remains is your quarrel with J.B.O. — what did the boys actually do to you that you or your record company make life so difficult for the boys?

« There is actually no dispute with J.B.O. — we don't think the matter is as bad as it is currently being portrayed by all sides. »

Well, at least J.B.O. sign a cease and desist letter and re-record the track 'A Little Peace'...

« I think it was just that we weren't credited with the music, although it's clearly our samples that J.B.O. have used there. Okay, I also feel a bit guilty because I may not have paid enough attention to this topic, but with the current situation you lose track here and there. If I always ironed out management or record company mistakes, I would go insane. Someone from J.B.O. called me privately, after which I got in touch with our record company and told them to please come to an amicable agreement with the band. If you do a cover version, you just have to register it beforehand. For example, we wanted to change the 'Das Model' by Kraftwerk covers and the lyric to " She's a whore and she's good-looking ". Kraftwerk didn't agree with that, and that was the end of the matter. J.B.O. didn't ask beforehand, which isn't a bad thing, because if another band plays a song of yours, it means that your song must be really good. One day someone called us and wanted to change a line of text from the track 'Rammstein' to "Rammstein - bad breath is in the air" - as long as he reports it, we have no problem with it. I know how difficult it is to finish a record and I'm really sorry that J.B.O. had to stamp a part of their CD because of this. In the future I'll make sure that something like this doesn't happen again, but of course I can't take care of everything — after all, I also have to make music on the side...  »

#Rammstein #Paul Landers #Till Lindemann #Christoph Schneider #Flake #Oliver Riedel #Richard Kruspe #interview #translation #*scans #1997 #*

[applejuicefruit]

I have a request if you’re still taking them🥺: Rabiot gets home from a game and is just the clingiest, cutest, softest bf 🙏🏻

I’ve never received so many requests about Adrien and it makes me so happy 😭😭 thank you so much ❤️

I hope you like this ⭐️

XOXO

You were Adrien’s number one fan. It didn’t matter in which team he was playing for, you were there, cheering for him no matter what. So it got you mad when you found out you couldn’t attend his game tonight because you had a late work meeting and you wouldn’t have made it in time for the game. You would have been able only to see half of the game at home and you were so sad that you couldn’t postpone the meeting. You even thought of saying you were sick so you could go and see him playing but what if someone saw you at the stadium? You would have been in big troubles. So you attended the stupid meeting that it was taking too long for you liking and waited for it to be over so you could rush home and watch Adri’s on TV.

45 minutes later the meeting was over. You rushed out of your office and sped up driving home. You got home in time before the second half of the game began. You quickly sent a picture of you covered up in blankets to Adrien saying that you were cheering for him with all of your soul. You knew he wouldn’t have been able to see the picture until the game was over but still, you wanted him to know that you were there.

The game was over and Juve won. You saw him celebrating in the pitch with everyone else and you couldn’t help but smile. Now you were only waiting for him to come home. You thought of making some dinner for you and Adri. You were starving and you knew Adrien was probably starving too, after playing for 90 minutes straight.

You decided to make some chicken and some vegetables along with. You were minding your own business and cooking when an hour later you heard the front door opening, sign that Adrien was back home.

“Heyyyy!!” you greeted him hugging him

“Hey babe…how are you?” he asked you kissing your forehead

“Good…the meeting was so boring…” you began explaining him your day and he listened carefully at what you were saying even if you were just rambling. He looked at you with a love face, his eyes never leaving you and his lips stuck in a smile.

“What?” you asked him half smiling when you saw his face

“Nothing…I just love you” he said wrapping his arms around your body while you were still busy cooking

“I love you too Adri…but now can you let me finish cooking?” you teased a bit

“No…” he mumbled, his head in the crook of your neck while his hands when on your hips. He loved showing you affection but it came times after games where he just wanted you to be the big spoon, he just wanted to hold you and let you do all the work. You put your hands in his soft curls gently massaging them, Adrien let out a soft moan, sign that he was loving it.

“I promise to cuddle you all night but now can you let me finish cooking, please?” you asked him watching the sad face he made, almost like a baby. You couldn’t help but laugh. Your hands were back on the pan while Adri’s hands were back on your hips. He would gently kiss your neck and whisper soft words in your ear, making you shiver. You loved the effect he had on you.

“Food is ready” you said while you put everything in different plates.

Adrien took both of your plates to the couch and let you sit on his lap.

“I have no idea how we are going to eat sat in this position” you joked but Adrien simply scoffed

“I don’t care, as long as you are with me I’m good” he said, trying to take his plate but failing miserably. You laughed at his behaviour.

Once you finished eating Adrien helped you out in the kitchen and once everything was done you let him lay on the couch, you overpowering him while his arms found your hips again.

“I’m so proud of you baby” you said, referring to the game he just won. He was tired and you could see it from the way his eyes tried to stay open but couldn’t “sleep a bit Adri…” you said caressing his face

“Just promise me you will be here when I was up” he asked you keeping you closer to his body

“I promise big baby, now go to sleep” you kissed him and he happily closed his eyes drifting off to sleep.

You fell asleep a couple of minutes later, probably in one of the most uncomfortable positions you’ve ever slept before because your couch wasn’t that comfortable but still, you were in Adrien’s arms and everything was perfect.

#adrien rabiot one shot #adrien rabiot fluff #adrien rabiot imagines #adrienrabiot #adrien rabiot imagine #adrien rabiot x reader #adrien rabiot x you #football imagine #football fan #football blurb #juventus #juve #fluff #equipe de france

[joseopher]

how do you interpret the "it only broke because i broke it" scene/conversation with tristan and callum in the atlas paradox? what are the important parts of it? i really like the scene and i feel like you'd have more thoughts about the significance of it than i got on my own

I DO HAVE MORE THOUGHTS!!!

Spoilers for The Atlas Paradox under the cut!!!

So we begin.

"It took three days after the incident with the captive witch for Tristan to come find him. Ridiculous. As if they were schoolgirls waiting three days to text back."

This implies that after their interaction (Tristan taking a hostage and Callum having some fun) it was a given that Tristan would come to find him. Callum could think this because:

a) He's arrogant and "understands" emotions well

b) Callum and Tristan know each other so well that they don't need to make a verbal agreement that Tristan will eventually find Callum

Option B is suggested by this earlier line: "The shorthand between Callum and Tristan had been long enough established that Tristan did not require clarification."

They were very close friends, they knew each other very well.

This line is also important: "'Finally,' Callum said without looking up from his book."

What says the most is that Tristan does not question what Callum means by "finally". Meaning it's very likely that they both understood this meeting was inevitable.

Another quote that caught my attention was:

"I thought, ‘You know what will be fun? I’ll just make up a nice little story that will haunt Tristan for three days and then I’ll simply tell him it was all a joke, ha ha.’ Certainly it’s not an extremely fraught situation. After all, what possible knowledge would I have of such fragile emotional tangles? None whatsoever, methinks—"

This may sound reasonable for a normal person to say. But this is Callum, he has crafted a persona that plays with people like toys. The version of himself he trying desperately to make everyone believe would indeed fuck with someone like that.

And Tristan has every right to buy into this. Tristan's paranoid, Tristan's been manipulated by Callum and Tristan has seen Callum try to make someone he cares for take her own life in front of him.

But all he says is, "Fine. Point taken."

HE👏TRUSTED👏CALLUM'S👏WORDS

Not necessarily because he believes Callum deserves his trust but because he knows that this isn't what Callum would do.

They know each other so well but also not in the ways they need.

The misunderstandings start here: "False. I do not hate Rhodes. I do not even dislike Rhodes. She simply does not matter."

Callum does not waste effort on those that do not matter to him. But in this line, he's saying that Tristan does matter to him, that he wouldn't be presenting this information to him if he didn't matter. Tristan does matter to him, despite all their betrayal, despite the resentment and hate, he is important enough to be worth Callum allowing himself to feel for, even if that feeling is dislike. (But these lines suggest he still likes Tristan: "'Tristan doesn’t have his own ideas. It’s what I like about him.' He meant to say liked, but it obviously didn’t matter.").

Tristan doesn't see this and instead fixates on Callum's next words that suggest he wants to kill Libby.

Moving on, I find this quote very memorable:

"Callum remarked, producing a very neat and well-prepared document from the inside cover of his book—which was actually How to Win Friends and Influence People, chosen for its many wonderful techniques. For example, one way to make people like you was to smile, which Callum winningly employed now."

This quote suggests that Callum still wants Tristan to like him. He's still trying to recover from Tristan considering killing him, still trying to process rejection from the one person who saw him for who he was. He longs for Tristan to like him again, to heal over that injury or just have the power to reject him back.

This is furthered by this quote:

"No, no, wildly incorrect. I don’t just want you to try, Tristan. I want you to succeed. I want you to succeed so valiantly and with such flying colors that you believe yourself to be invincible and invulnerable and, ultimately, a more evolved version of your current self. But of course you won’t do that. Which is honestly very sad for me, because I really am an optimist."

Callum rarely lies, so it's likely that he does want Tristan to succeed, he does care.

"You’re manipulating me somehow. I know you’re trying to talk me out of it.

But, of course, in Tristan's pov, anything he had with Callum was just manipulation. He does not allow himself to think that Callum still cares because of his own self-doubts. He does know Callum very well but his own disbelief that anyone would care about him + assuming everything between was manipulation which is because of his self-doubt stops him from even considering the idea that Callum desperately wants to be liked by him. He knows Callum but his own doubt and self-loathing opens room for misunderstanding.

"And yet, I am the only one in this house who’s been any help to you at all, Tristan, so you’re welcome."

Callum is practically screaming at Tristan. He's like, "See I'm helpful, no one else, I'm helping you Tristan despite everything, please for god's sake pay attention to me."

"The glare he received from Tristan was a ruthless thing of beauty."

I have nothing to say about this quote other than: GAAAAAY

"Which was thoroughly impossible. A comedy of errors to the highest degree. And this was who Tristan had chosen over Callum! This was what he had done, and in the murky plumbing of Callum’s allegedly nonexistent heart, he hoped that Tristan suffered for it."

Callum's intentions are stated here. He is jealous, but more than that, he still feels betrayed. This was the person he had ACTUALLY brought himself to care about despite his trauma (Direct quote: "Callum did not enjoy this, the destruction of a human psyche for which he had actually allowed himself to care."), Tristan would always be the most important person in his life, but from his pov, he is not Tristan's most important person, no, he's disposable to Tristan.

AGAIN THIS IS THE PERSON THAT SAW HIS FLAWS AND STILL ACCEPTED HIM (to an extent). Tristan saw him murder Parisa and still hung out with him. Everything was almost okay between them despite Callum revealing a lot of himself to Tristan.

This quote happened after Callum murdered Parisa:

"I’m not here to have a row," he [Tristan] said. "You’re right, of course. I know you’re right."

Callum looked warily unconvinced. "Is that supposed to be concession or a compliment?"

"Neither. A fact. Or rather, a white flag."

“So this is a truce?”

"Or an apology," Tristan said. "Whichever you prefer."

CALLUM HAD FOUND SOMEONE THAT SAW HIM:

"I see you" came out of Tristan’s mouth before he had decided fully what to say.

AND IN HIS POV TRISTAN REJECTED HIM FOR SOMEONE "GOOD". Tristan rejected him for someone who would never do anything unseemingly like him. That is the crux of this, that is the deepness of this hurt, that Callum can never be like this version of Libby he perceives, someone good, innocent and moral. He thought that he had someone who would accept his damage and trauma and (in his pov) he was wrong.

"This was just the world. You trusted people, you loved them, you offered them the dignity of your time and the intimacy of your thoughts and the frailty of your hope and they either accepted it and cared for it or they rejected it and destroyed it and in the end, none of it was up to you. This was just what you got. Heartbreak was inevitable. Disappointment assured."

He is back to his typical apathetic ways, as earlier in the book it is implied that this isn't the first Callum has been rejected like this, with his mother and father (potentially his sister) and others that he had watched himself fade out of significance to them:

"They loved you one day, didn’t the next. Callum had watched himself fade in significance from too many people’s lives, and yes, okay, that was not an excuse for … what was it that Tristan had disliked about him, ultimately?"

And also, I find this important:

"Honestly, Callum was doing just fine with his grief."

Callum labels what he has been experiencing for this past year as grief. Showing just how much Tristan's betrayal hurt him.

But enough about Callum, that's pick apart Tristan's most important words:

"Whether you put it there or not," Tristan said, his voice heavy with irony, “this—between us—it was real for me."

Tristan's belief that this might not be real, was what made him agree to murder Callum. Parisa describes him as being in agony with this decision until:

"A little slip of parchment from his head ignited suddenly in flames; curling edges that fell to smoldering pieces, crumbling to ash."

This is interesting because the paper/talisman that Tristan uses to discover that Callum is manipulating him is described as a "slip of paper", which is essentially the same as "parchment".

It was not Callum's "killing" of Parisa that made him decide, nor Callum's constant suggestions to kill Libby, not even that if the initiates didn't kill Callum they would likely start attacking each other, which would put Tristan's life on the line. Tristan and Callum's bond went beyond those things. Instead, it was the concept that their bond, which was so strong it made Tristan (eventually) overlook Callum murdering someone he cared for, was fake, meaning that he had no reason to continue to care for someone that doesn't give a fuck about anyone else.

So this is Tristan acknowledging that the reason he justified murdering Callum wasn't good enough. That he's realized, even if it was fake, he doesn't care. Because what they had was great enough that it didn't matter. It was real to Tristan.

"You can pretend that it didn’t matter."

This is interesting because both Callum and Tristan believe that the other is acting like what they had was nothing. For example Callum's pov:

"As if Tristan’s resolution to kill Callum was less of a betrayal purely because he’d changed his mind. As if everything that Callum had ever shared with Tristan—every intimate thought, every private confession—had been a falsehood—or if not a falsehood, then so very paltry that it could be unimagined, rescinded, undone."

It's miscommunication at its finest.

"That I was the one who wronged you. That you had no hand in how things happened. That I made a choice based on nothing, based on my own insecurities and flaws."

This is Tristan saying that the murder and betrayal, should not be ignored either. Callum should not sit all high and mighty and analyze what happened through an unfeeling, apathetic lens, then, claim that Tristan did this because of the intricate way his emotions and trauma clashed together. Callum knows why this happened, they know each other very well and ignoring all the messed up fuckery that led to Tristan's betrayal would be denying their relationship.

This is furthered by:

"But I am not such an idiot—I’m not so devoid of feeling," Tristan spat, "to not be perfectly aware that you and I had something rare and difficult and fucking significant, and in the end it only broke because I broke it."

The most important part here is that Tristan is admitting fault. He knows they could have continued their homoerotic friendship if he didn't choose to kill Callum. That, yes, Callum is also to blame but Tristan was the one who ended it. And he's sorry. Telling Callum sorry before didn't work so he's saying it in a different way. This is desperation. It's saying: I don't care if you hurt me or manipulate me. I accept that. I accept your faults. What we had is more important. Please stop pretending that it was nothing.

Now back to Callum's POV:

"He felt his victory ballooning into rage, pure rage. He felt anger with an intensity that was incandescent with bereavement. He wanted, just as he had wanted at the beginning of this godforsaken year, to murder Tristan. To take him by the throat and slice him into ribbons and serve him like a roast—and also, to meticulously and with great inconvenience inconvenience to himself weave a flower crown laden with unrequited meaning, with which to adorn Tristan’s incredibly stupid and perfectly functioning head."

CALLUM AGREES WITH WHAT TRISTAN SAYS, FURTHER PROVED BY THIS:

"Mostly, though, Callum wanted Tristan to suffer profoundly for every honest word out of his mouth."

But he doesn't understand exactly what Tristan is saying. Because yes, everything between them was important and they both had a role to play in its downfall. But Tristan still rejected Callum. Tristan's emotions tell Callum that he loves Libby. Everything that Callum is not.

To him, Tristan doesn't love Callum but Callum loves Tristan.

"—and also, to meticulously and with great inconvenience inconvenience to himself weave a flower crown laden with unrequited meaning, with which to adorn Tristan’s incredibly stupid and perfectly functioning head."

The key word is "unrequited". Callum loves Tristan with his everything. He admitted before:

"I love you. That’s why you can’t turn your back on me, even if you want to."

Of course, Callum slipped this in while he was manipulating Tristan so he could play it off as just part of him telling Tristan what he wanted to hear his father say.

However, he doesn't believe Tristan feels the same.

But that's not necessarily true. Emotions are complicated. We know there has been a tarnish on their relationship since Callum "murdered" Parisa. As described by Callum himself:

"There is bitterness now, resentment. A bit of tarnish, or rust I suppose, on what we were.”

This is furthered by Callum manipulating Tristan, because how is Tristan supposed to trust any affection from Callum after knowing that Callum was playing with his emotions? Especially since Callum said he loved Tristan while making him more miserable than he's ever been in his entire life.

So Tristan is very upset with Callum, but that doesn't mean he doesn't love him. But to Callum, it's the same sort of love Tristan holds toward his father, too bitter and wounded to really count.

Whereas Tristan's feelings toward Libby are more "pure" in a way. There's not that bitterness there, in fact, it's an obsession with her innocence as Parisa explains:

"You like her because she’s innocent, Tristan. Because she’s moral. Because she’s good. Because she represents something to you that the rest of us no longer have, because we came here. And because we made choices."

and:

"Libby Rhodes is not your goodness, Tristan,"

Libby hasn't hurt him like the others, so his love for her is pure.

To Callum, this is a rejection of him as he is not everything that is good.

Not to mention, Tristan acknowledging that what they had was real is terrifying to Callum. He refuses to open himself up to love and trust after Tristan's betrayal. He knows those emotions only weaken him. He cannot allow it to happen again.

So Callum does the only thing he knows how to do:

"Good luck," said Callum. "With everything. Hope it works out between you and Rhodes."

Tristan’s expression darkened. "Did I not just say—"

He continues his plan.

"Like Atlas Blakely, Callum was going to stick to his plan, even if it was objectively flawed and would lead to either despotism or tears."

In Callum's mind, he can't have Tristan even if he wants Tristan. He cannot trust and cannot untaint Tristan's feelings for him, so he continues with his plan, with his depression, with his persona of apathy because he is the only safe option in his mind.

So those are my thoughts!

#novacaine #tristan caine #callum nova #the atlas six #tristan x callum

[sodobabe]

13 Commandments (Dewdrop x Main Character) 18+ MINORS DNI!

A/N: Here’s the heavy shit. The title was inspired by the EP 13 Commandments. I thought it seemed feeling as this fic deals with religious trauma in the Christian religion. Again, please not hate for this fic, it is simply just me expressing emotions that I am feeling. This will be multiple parts.

Warnings: mentions of religious trauma in sexual form, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Anxiety, Depression.

The air in the compound was humid, making me sweat. It was June in Africa and the temperature was high. I put on as few clothes as I could, while still trying to dress modestly as I was on a mission trip with a church group. I had on a tank top that covered my breasts along with shorts that stopped at my knees. I left my room and made my way to the common area. Everybody else was still getting ready, everyone except my pastor. He gave me the chills. He had said and done things to me before this trip that made me question his intentions but I was a devout Christian who wanted to do God’s work so when my pastor chose me to go on this trip, I said yes. As I stood in the common area, my pastor spoke up, mentioning something about how the shirt I was wearing really made my breasts pop. This is the same man that always tried to have one on one meetings with me while I was still a minor. The same man that would rub my shoulders and touch my waist, no matter how many times I tried to separate myself from him. In my mind, this is what God wanted and who was I to disobey God. Turns out, this behavior was not God based. This was the behavior of a predator. It only took me almost a decade to completely realize it.

I stood at the door of the abbey, trying to snap myself back to reality. The flashbacks had been heavy on the cab ride up here, as the idea of doing anything pertaining to a religion, made me queasy. The only reason I took this job is because my best friend recommended it to me. She works here and said that it could be helpful. I don’t exactly know how. It’s another organized religion. From my experience, that never leads to anything helpful. I rang the doorbell to the front office, not knowing what to expect. The doors unlocked and slowly opened, revealing a stunning cathedral-like hallway with a door on each side. The letter that I received instructed me to go to the door on the right. It was a small church-like office. It immediately made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Relax, you’re fine. Nothing is going to happen. The man sitting behind the desk is not him. I tried to calm my nerves. I stepped into the office and was greeted by a brother of sin.

”Hi there! Can I help you?” He seemed cheerful.

“Umm, yeah. My name is Lily, and I am here to start my job assisting Papa and the ghouls?” I said in more of a question form. I had no idea who Papa was, let alone, the ghouls. Until Rachel told me about this job, I had no idea that ghouls were even real. According to her, they’re pretty nice creatures of hell. Hopefully that statement holds true.

”Ah yes. Papa has been expecting you. Here, come with me, I will guide you to his office and the two of you can discuss room assignments along with job duties,” he said as he stepped from behind the desk. I didn’t say anything in return. I simply smiled and followed him down the hall, to the elevators, and to the basement. The building was made of dark architecture and dimly lit lights. As I followed the nice gentleman down the hall, my eyes locked with who I am assuming was one of the ghouls. He didn’t look human, but also didn’t look like what I had envisioned a ghoul to look like. He had blonde hair that just flowed past his shoulders with horns positioned at the top of his head. His eyes were red. He wore regular clothes, gray sweatpants and a Linkin Park t-shirt. He gave me a devilish smile as we passed each other, making my heart skip a beat. I ignored the feeling in my stomach and just kept following the nice man in front of me. After what felt like an eternity of walking, we finally reached Papa’s office.

“Good morning, Papa, Lily is here. The girl you wanted to hire is here,” the man motioned for me to come into the room before he promptly stepped out.

“Lily, it is a pleasure to meet you. I hope Noah greeted you kindly. Please, have a seat and we will go over everything you could possibly need to know. If you are up for it, we may even be able to introduce you to the ghouls this afternoon,” Papa said, a smile plastered across his face.

I sat down in the relatively comfortable chair on the other side of his desk. It made me nervous. I couldn’t help but fidget, thinking the worst. The memories flooded my brain as I tried to pay attention to what he was saying to me.

“So, I see here that your best friend Rachel works here. She came to me and asked if I would consider offering you a position. She spoke nothing but high regards of you. However, she did mention that you have experienced trauma. Could you tell me more about that so I can think of better measures in which to help you cope?” He questioned.

It was all I could do not to just get up and run to the closest exit. I felt as if I was going to pass out at any given moment. Lily, remember. He’s just trying to help. I was always calming my nerves.

“I didn’t realize she had mentioned that, but yeah. I can tell you a little bit. It may take some time to get out because just the thought of it is making me uneasy,” I said, fear and desperation riddled my voice.

”That is perfectly fine, please take all the time you need, I just need to know some of the story so I can figure out if I need to schedule more meetings with you for therapy sessions,” his voice was soothing.

“Okay. Here goes. I was raised in a baptist church. My family and I attended the church for years. Everything seemed okay when we first started because I was a devout Christian. As time went on, the pastor would make sexual remarks to me. When I learned to drive he would always try to get me to come to his office to be alone with him. He would always rub my shoulders and touch my waist. He was just very touchy-feely and told me that by being his, I was doing God’s work,” I managed to babble out without throwing up.

“Oh dear. Lily, I am so very sorry that happened to you. People like that deserve the worst to happen to them. Thank you for telling me. The first thing I am going to recommend is that we have weekly meetings, this will help you have an outlet to talk about whatever it is you are feeling,” he said as he started writing in his notepad.

“Now, let’s get to the details of this position. I started with the hard question because everything here on out will be easier,” he continued.

I sat there, speechless, waiting for him to flip through his notes and continue the conversation. As he was searching through his stack of papers, I turned my head and caught a glimpse through the window of the same ghoul I saw earlier. The unfamiliar sensation in my stomach was back.

”Ah, I see you’ve met Dewdrop,” Papa’s voice caught my attention back to him.

“Who?” I questioned.

“Dewdrop, he’s one of my ghouls. You looked at him as if you knew him,” Papa insinuated.

”Oh, I only saw him in the hallway on my way here. Haven’t actually spoken to him,” I said, blood rushing to my cheeks.

What was this feeling I was feeling? The only time I felt like this was when I had a crush on some boy in high school.

“You’ll properly meet him later. For now, let’s go over your room assignment. Since your main job will be working directly with the ghouls, I am going to put you in a room in the ghoul den. With that being said, the ghouls are flirtatious and sexually needy beings. If this becomes a problem for you, please do not hesitate to tell me. I won’t fire you, I will simply give you a new job,” Papa reassured me.

”That sounds great,” I replied.

”As far as what exactly you will be doing, well, you will be in charge of cooking, cleaning, helping us on tour, and essentially caring for the ghouls, as well as helping me in the office every once in a while. Do you have any questions for me at this moment?” Papa continued on.

”I don’t think so. Everything seems self-explanatory,” I said, eager to go meet this mysterious Dewdrop ghoul that I keep seeing.

“Very well, leave your bags, Noah will take them to your room. Let’s go do introductions,” he said as he stood up from behind his desk.

I followed him out of the door and down the hallway. He pointed out a door that led to his bedroom. Further down the hall, there were two doors with a sign above it that read “Ghoul Den.” Papa pushed the door open and the noise overwhelmed me. The ghouls were being loud. Papa whistled and caught all of their attention. They all scrambled to the couch, sitting down and focusing on Papa.

“My ghouls, as you all have been made aware, I hired somebody to help out around here, as well as help me. Now, this is Lily. She will be living in the den with you all, please be kind to her. It’s hard to find someone to work with the pack,” he joked.

”Hi, Lily,” the ghouls said all at once.

”Okay, so from left to right on the couch, Swiss, he’s our multi-ghoul. Rain, water ghoul. Phantom, our newest quintessence ghoul. Aether, quintessence ghoul, but he no longer tours, he works in the infirmary. Mountain, earth ghoul. And Dewdrop, fire, used to be water ghoul,” Papa gave me the rundown.

My eyes couldn’t help but focus on Dewdrop. The feeling was growing as he slowly smiled at me.

#dewdrop ghost #dewdrop ghoul #the band ghost #dewdrop angst

[slytherhys]

Strung-Out Heart IV

A/N - 5SOS5 was released two days ago and the amount of inspiration these songs have been giving me is insane. Bad Omens is so STO coded I fear for everyone who enjoys reading this fic </3 Also, I promise we're getting more Rowaelin scenes together without all the hatred, just be patient <3 ENJOY!

TW - strong language, mature themes.

Chapter I, Chapter II, Chapter III

Aelin

Elide’s was a beautiful bakery right in the centre of the city of Orynth. Aelin remembered how many times her friend had spoken to her of her dream, of how many extra hours she had worked so she could afford to buy a good place to open her own shop. She couldn’t hide the pride in her face as she opened the door to Elide’s dream and saw it prosper. She never had any doubt Elide would make it but it felt priceless, nonetheless.

It was an open space with light pouring in from two large windows, Elide’s scrawled in a large golden cursive font. The walls were tiled in white, the floor made of intricate mosaic work in tones of sage and cream. Wooden tables covered the front of the store while at the back, a matching wooden counter stretched along the wall, its glass allowing the customers to see all the exposed mouth-watering baked goods. Aelin felt her mouth water at the sight of Elide’s famous cannolis, almost groaning at the thought of tasting one for the first time in years.

Behind the register a familiar face greeted her with a hesitant expression. Aelin approached her cautiously, waving hello as Elide finished ringing her last customer.

“Welcome to Elide’s.” The brunette smiled delicately. “What can I get you?”

“A large coffee please.” She asked. “And a cannoli.” She added as an afterthought, the idea of not tasting one of Elide’s precious pastries enough to send her spiralling. Elide watched her through furrowed brows, scribbling her order on a paper. Aelin fixed her throat, making Elide look up. “Could…” Aelin took a deep breath, chuckling nervously as she looked around. “Could we talk?” She tried again. Elide tilted her head slightly, her eyes roaming Aelin’s expression before finally nodding once.

“Sit wherever you’d like.” She nodded towards the front of the shop. “I’ll meet you in five.”

Aelin almost felt her knees buckle with the relief coursing through her veins, but she managed to stay standing as she grabbed her order and made her way towards a table by the window overlooking the main street.

Missing Orynth had been such a fundamental aspect of her being these past three years it seemed weird to finally be back in the city. She knew she would eventually come back; knew there was no path in her life worth walking without coming to Orynth first. She had made a life for herself in Adarlan, but it had never been a definite one. Dorian, Manon, Yrene… They all knew that. They all understood that a part of her would never truly rest until she was back home. She didn’t want to lose them to distance and the future, but Orynth’s call had always been stronger than anything else. It had something no other place could ever offer her. It had Rowan Whitethorn.

Aelin wasn’t a fool; she knew exactly how hard it was going to be to climb Rowan’s walls all over again. She also knew there were certain ways to win him back, and foolishly kissing him while drunk on sickly sugary drinks wasn’t the way to go.

Don’t touch me like that.

Aelin had spent the greater part of her night with her head in the toilet, heaving like her soul was trying to escape her body. When she finally managed to climb into bed, she felt too weak to cry, too embarrassed to even let herself think about her own actions. She slept for a total of 4 hours before waking to the shrill sound of her alarm. She had promised Aedion she would meet him at the hospital that morning and there was no way she would’ve missed it simply because she had been too stupid to get drunk the night before.

Her thoughts were interrupted as Elide took a seat in front of her, setting her own large mug in front of her, smelling suspiciously of cinnamon and elderberries. It was such a familiar scent Aelin almost wept.

“I don’t have much time.” She said as a way of greeting, tying her dark hair in a bun. “I’m missing an employee.” She said, taking a sip of her mug as her keen eyes watched Aelin.

She nodded once, smiling softly. “That’s okay.” Aelin assured. “I just wanted to see you again.”

“Is that all you’re doing here?” She asked. “Seeing people?”

Aelin looked around, frowning. “Well, no. I’m here to see you and-”

“I mean in Orynth, Aelin.”

Aelin’s shoulder sagged. Elide had always been straight to the point, hadn’t she? “Oh.” She frowned, her eyes on the cannoli that seemed to tease her into taking a bite. Aelin ignored the urge, her stomach suddenly turning inside-out. She hadn’t eaten a single thing all morning but suddenly food seemed like the worst possible thing in the entire world – even Elide’s cannolis. “No. It’s not.” She finally said, daring a glance at Elide who watched her with gentle indifference. “At least I don’t want it to be.” She shrugged.

“And who gets to decide it if not you?” Elide asked, but Aelin refrained from answering. She had a good feeling Elide knew exactly who had that kind of power over her. With Lorcan as her fiancé – if the ring on her finger was any indication – Aelin assumed Elide had been there when she left Rowan. Elide was probably more aware of certain things that Lorcan himself so Aelin couldn’t exactly blame her for being reluctant. Even if all Aelin wanted to do was reach out and hug her and cry a bit. She wanted to shake them silly into loving her back.

“You look…different.” Elide observed. Aelin couldn’t exactly fault her on that observation. With four hours of sleep and little to no food in her stomach for the past 12 hours she couldn’t possibly look her best – mainly considering she was wearing a pair of leggings and a large sweater that probably reeked of hospital. The shower she had before heading to Aedion was probably her only saving grace at this point.

Aelin smiled at her old friend. “And you look good.” She said as sincerely as possible. Her eyes shone with pride and love. She looked fiercely alive. Aelin ignored the pang of jealousy running in her veins as she looked at what her life could’ve been if only she had stayed. Aelin ignored her inner turmoil, nodding towards the café. “Your dream came true.”

Elide looked around, pride shining in her dark brown eyes. “I bought it three years ago.” She said, her eyes setting on Aelin again.

Right. “Three?”

“A week after you left, actually. I didn’t want to tell anyone before it was official.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you.”

“It was a team effort, you know?” She leaned back against her seat, her eyes following every little detail of her bakery, as if remembering all the sweat and tears put into that place. “Lorcan helped with almost everything, wouldn’t let me pick a hammer even if my life depended on it.” She smiled softly, her gaze loving at the mere thought of Salvaterre. “Fenrys and Aedion helped set the tiles and Rowan helped me with the counter.” Her eyes finally returned to Aelin.

Aelin closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. Not for the first time since she got to Orynth she wished Dorian was there with her. He had a gentle protectiveness towards her that would’ve been more than welcome. Aelin knew she deserved every single quip coming from her friends but that didn’t make them any less brutal. “I’m sorry, El.”

Elide shook her head slightly, leaning forwards again. “What exactly do you want from us, Aelin?”

Aelin sat a bit taller, her entire body as if preparing for battle. “I’m back for good.” She nodded confidently.

“That’s not what I asked.”

“I want to have my friends back.” Aelin blurted out, her eyes suspiciously glassy. “I know I fucked up, Elide. I live with it every single day of my life.” She shook her head slightly. “I left you and I will never forgive myself for it, but I won’t let my past stand in the way of my future.”

Elide tilted her head, a frown to her pretty face. “What changed? Why now?”

“It wasn’t a set thing, Elide. I never wanted to stay in Adarlan but I… I just couldn’t just come back.”

“You did though.” Elide shrugged.

“Not really.” Aelin muttered.

“What?”

“I didn’t just come back.”

Elide let out a frustrated sigh. “What is that supposed to mean, Aelin?”

Aelin shook her head slightly, her heart racing inside her chest. “I’m not the one-”

Elide let out a bitter laugh. “So you expect me to just accept you came back – for whatever reason you refuse to tell me – and believe you’re staying? For all I know you could just leave again without-”

 “Gavriel’s sick.” Aelin flinched, the words spilling out of her as if rushing to get out.

Their table went silent, Elide’s righteous speech coming to an abrupt stop. Aelin looked up, noting Elide’s paled face paling more still. Aelin cursed herself for betraying her cousin’s confidence, but it was too late to take the words back.

“Forget I said anything.” She said, her hands shaking as she reached for her bag and started to get up. A hand stopped her, Elide’s stricken face looking up at her with a gentleness unworthy of Aelin.

“Please, sit.” She asked softly. Aelin took a deep breath, willing her heart to slow down. She kept making a mess of things and the urge to flee back to her cousin kept growing, but Aelin sat back down. “Why-” Elide started, shaking her head as if trying to find the right words. “Aedion didn’t tell us.”

“He will when he’s ready for it.” Aelin assured with a soft smile.

“Is Gavriel okay?”

She nodded, looking back outside. She wouldn’t be the one telling Aedion’s friends what was wrong with him, that was his job, and he wouldn’t take that away from him anymore than what she already had. “He’s at the hospital. Aedion has been staying with him while I take care of his house and fill for him at the gym.”

“At the hospital?” Elide furrowed her brows, her voice wavering with emotion. Aelin reached out for her hand, trying to reassure Elide as best as she could with the little information she was able to give away.

“Aedion will explain everything to you guys soon, I promise. Just… Please don’t tell anyone else.”

“Aelin-”

“Not for me. For Aedion.” Aelin clarified. “He doesn’t want anyone to worry, Elide. Please.”

Elide watched Aelin before nodding once, taking a sip from her drink before speaking again. “Is that the only reason you came back?”

Aelin looked up, surprised at the question. Wasn’t it obvious it wasn’t? She loved her cousin deeply and didn’t even think twice before packing her bags and moving back the second he needed her, but could anyone really believe that was the only reason why she was coming back? “I want to have a reason to stay.”

“You’ve always had one.” Elide said softly.

“Not anymore, I don’t.” Aelin smiled sadly. “But I’m willing to fight for it.”

Elide nodded once, her brown eyes not missing anything. She squeezed Aelin’s hand once before her eyes dropped to the cannoli, a smirk blooming in her face.

“Then we can’t ask for much else, can we?”

…

Aelin had forgotten the exact taste of joy. After living three years with her mistakes and her memories haunting her with a force she still feared, she had doubted she would ever feel happiness again, but as she made her way back to Aedion’s place after spending the afternoon at Elide’s catching up with some of her work work and chatting with Elide whenever she had a break, she felt something suspiciously close to hope blooming inside her chest. Hope that maybe she still had a chance at getting her friends back.

Despite still being a bit reluctant, Elide had started to open up a bit, talking about the past three years and how her business had grown so much in the past mainly because the men kept advertising her pastries to anyone who’d listen. Aelin tried to ignore the shadow of emotion that threatened to break through her defences at the image Elide painted. A real family who had each other’s backs.

Aelin had been a part of it once upon a time.

The apartment wasn’t empty as Aelin had initially expected – Aedion was home for the first time in days. The TV was on, but Aedion’s attention was nowhere near the screen, his eyes unseeing as he sipped his beer. She fought the urge to panic. It wasn’t normal for Aedion to be home, sure, but that didn’t have to mean something bad had happened.

“Hey.” Aelin greeted gently, sitting down next to him. Aedion looked rumpled, to say the least. He looked fresh-out of the shower, his blonde hair still damp, but there was no missing the exhaustion under his eyes, the hollow of his cheeks. Ever since Gavriel received his diagnosis, Aedion seemed to be disappearing right in front of her eyes, as if he alone could save his dad. Aelin held his hand, squeezing it once in what she knew was the most affection Aedion was willing to receive these days.

Aelin couldn’t deny her own heart was breaking. Gavriel had taken her in when her parents died, raising her as if she were his own daughter. He had loved her as fiercely as he had loved his own son, and no matter how many mistakes Aelin had made growing up, Gavriel was always there to hold her with a warm hug and a cup of her favourite hot chocolate – her uncle knew she liked a little chilli powder in her and kept a private stash for when she visited.

But this wasn’t the time for her own emotions to be all over the place. Aedion deserved a safe haven, someone who he would lean on so it was time for her to support her cousin the way she knew he would support her. The way he had supported her when her parents died. He had been a teenager then, but he had always treated Aelin with love and care.

“He kicked me out.” Aedion grunted, finishing the last of his beer before setting it down on the floor. Aelin smiled, knowing Gavriel had grown restless with Aedion’s constant fussing. “Him and that doctor-” He growled, stopping himself suddenly at Aelin raised eyebrows.

“Doctor?” She smirked.

He groaned. “Never mind.” He muttered, getting up and making his way to the fridge. Aelin followed him like an eager child.

“Do you mean Doctor Lysandra Ennar?” She teased. Gavriel’s doctor had been a constant thorn in Aedion’s side, but hardly for the reasons he claimed. The first time Lysandra walked into the room with her gorgeous looks and amazing brains Aedion had been knocked off his feet – no matter how much he denied it. Aelin hadn’t missed the blush on her cousin’s face the second the Doctor set her eyes on him. She also hadn’t missed the way he paled when she had suggested he go home and shower.

Some would consider that to be cruel but Aedion hadn’t left his father’s side for 2 days and it was becoming a problem, so Aelin was grateful for the Doctor’s remark, even if Aedion wasn’t.

“What did she do now?” Aelin asked, schooling her face to feigned innocence. Aedion rolled his eyes, opening a new bottle of beer. Aelin took it from him, taking a sip and smiling. Aedion muttered something under his breath but sat down without grabbing a new one.

“Dad had some tests to run, and he didn’t want me there so they ganged up on me.”

“Aedion-” Aelin sighed, but her cousin interrupted him.

“And then she had the nerve to kick me out!” He blurt out.

“I thought your dad-”

“No!” He rumbled and Aelin fought the urge to strangle him for constantly interrupting her. “She had me escorted simply because I wouldn’t leave.”

Aelin blinked. Then she blinked again before bursting out laughing. “She had you escorted?” She managed between giggles. It was official, she loved Lysandra Ennar.

Aedion pouted, crossing her arms – the perfect picture of a penitent child.

“I’m bringing her some of Elide’s cannolis next time I see her.” Aelin said, sighing happily.

“It’s not fucking funny, Aelin.” Aedion bit out, making Aelin flinch. “He needed me there. What if they get back his results and find something out? I needed to be there.”

Aelin set her bottle on the counter, facing Aedion completely. “He didn’t want you there, Aedion.” She said as gently as possible, watching as his shoulders dropped. “He loves you, but he needs to deal with some things on his own.” Aedion started shaking his head, denial evident in his stubborn head. “He told you to leave.” Aelin said more firmly. “You’ll be there first thing tomorrow morning, there’s absolutely nothing you could’ve done tonight, Aedion.”

“But-”

“Gavriel trusts Lysandra and you should too. She’s an amazing doctor”

Aedion sighed, leaning against the counter with a pensive expression. “She is.” He muttered, as if not fully ready to say the words any louder. “Maybe I’ll bring her some of Elide’s cannolis.”

Aelin frowned. “Hey, I was gonna do that!”

Aedion sent her a sheepish smile before frowning at her. “How do you know about Elide’s cannolis?”

“Oh.” Aelin bit her lip. “I visited her today.” She said, grabbing her beer before turning back to the couch.

“Wait,” Aedion followed. “I didn’t know you were going to start speaking to them so soon.”

“I had to start somewhere.” She shrugged.

Aedion sat next to her, turning so he could face her. “I thought somewhere was with Rowan.”

“Yeah, well…” Aelin blew out a breath. “That’s not working, is it?”

“And Elide?”

Aelin smiled. “I think it went pretty well. We talked for a bit and I’m hopeful.” Aelin didn’t add that all her hope was reserved for Elide only, since Rowan seemed to despise her as fiercely as he had once loved her.

But Aedion seemed to read all that in her expression. “Rowan will forgive you, Aelin.” She gave him a doubtful look that made Aedion’s lip quirk up slightly as he pulled her into a side-hug. “He will, I’m sure of it.” He assured her. “If you guys can’t find your way back to each other then there’s no hope for any of us.”

“Maybe we missed our chance.”

“You don’t really believe that, Aelin.” He squeezed her shoulder. “And neither does he.”

Aelin raised her head slightly, looking at her cousin. “Why do you say that?”

“When you left, Rowan used to sit by your apartment every day after he left work.” Aedion said, his voice gentle as if knowing the words alone were enough to break Aelin’s heart all over again. “Only when I told him you left did he give up.”

“I’m not sure I understand your logic.” She muttered grumpily making Aedion chuckle softly.

“He stopped waiting for you at that apartment, but he kept looking for you everywhere else Aelin. Wherever we were, whoever we were with, his eyes kept looking around, as if waiting for you to pop up again. It’s like he still couldn’t fathom you wouldn’t come back.”

“Aedion…”

“Maybe he always knew you’d come back, I’m not sure. We always avoided talking about you.”

Aelin flinched. “Ouch.”

Aedion chuckled, sitting up so he could look Aelin in the eyes. “The thing is, no matter how much you hurt him, he kept looking for you. Maybe he’s not willing to forgive you right away,” He shrugged. “But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t love you anymore.”

“I’m not sure that’s true.”

“He’s probably not sure either,” He smiled. “But that’s where you come in, isn’t it?”

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