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belphies-cuhm-sluht · 3 years

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Can i request the Brothers with mc who is shy and likes to hide behind them when there scared.

Brothers With A Shy GN!MC (Headcanons)

Lucifer

He wanted to start taking you with him to his meetings with Lord Diavolo. You were important to him, just as Lord Diavolo was, and he liked having the two most important people in his life in the same room. Plus, having you there would help make him feel a little less stressed and way less overwhelmed by the way that Lord Diavolo acted.

Walking to the castle was one thing, his fingers slid between your own and holding your hand tightly. He could have just zapped the two of you to the castle, but he really enjoyed the calm, quiet walks he had with you. When the two of you got to the castle, he didn’t even realize at first that you were slowly inching your way further and further behind his back. Barbatos wasn’t exactly scary, he just gave off this… vibe… it was hard to put your finger on.

Once Lord Diavolo came out though, that’s when he noticed that his arm was now completely bent behind his back, as were you, and you were holding his hand so tightly, if you were any stronger you’d probably cut off the circulation in his fingers.

He held up his finger to Lord Diavolo, silently asking for a second so that he could talk to you in private, pulling you to the side and out of earshot of everyone else in the room. His smile was soft and warm as he listened to you, nodding slowly and thinking of ways that he could make this easier for you.

“If you’d like to go back to the house, I absolutely understand, dear. I wouldn’t mind keeping you on my lap though, if that would make you feel better. Whatever makes you comfortable, I’ll do it for you.”

Mammon

You were unsure whether he was capable of being shy. It would probably be strange for someone like him to feel that way. He was a model, he was in magazines, he had photoshoots lined up for the next year and a half. You never questioned whether he felt that way because he never gave you a reason to. He was outgoing, boisterous, and easily excitable.

His modeling gigs were a big thing for him, something that he wanted you to be a part of as well. Not in front of the camera obviously, well, unless you wanted to be in the pictures with him. The main reason he didn’t want you to be in the magazines with him though is because he didn’t want any other demons looking at you. Not that he’d ever have to worry about that.

He walked into the warehouse with you, the lights were bright and everything was… so much… It was a lot to take in. You didn’t know how he could possibly handle that at all, so much attention, it seemed scary. Showing you around wasn’t bad, but then he started introducing you to people and you couldn’t handle that. You slowly moved to stand behind Mammon, holding onto his shirt and trying to hide your face in his back. He turned around to look at you, kind of confused with the way you were acting. Your voice was low and timid as you explained and his eyes went soft as he started dragging you towards the exit.

“I didn’t know yer that shy, babe. I wouldn’ta pulled ya out here if I did. We’re goin’ back home, I didn’t need those pics anyway. Come on.”

Leviathan

If there was anyone as shy as you were, it was Levi. The guy hated leaving the house and being in public settings as much as you did, but when it came up that he was meeting with a couple of the demons that he played online with and he wanted you to come you almost choked on your water.

Of all the brothers, you never once expected that he’d be the one who wanted you to go out and be around people that you didn’t know at all, like, not even one little bit. You had heard him talk to these people so many times, but you didn’t know one thing about them, and now you were supposed to sit at a restaurant with like, five of them and stay the entire time? You were already slightly panicking just at the thought of it.

You were practically shaking as the both of you walked up to the restaurant, scooching further and further behind Levi until you couldn’t be seen by anyone in front of him, and hopefully by none of his friends either. He took a second to look around the restaurant, spotting his friends who all waved in his direction, and then he looked beside himself only to see that you weren’t there. Mini panic attack, but once he sees you behind him he lets out a sigh of relief, shoving his hands in his pockets while looking back and forth between you and the table full of his online friends.

He didn’t waste a minute, shaking his head to his friends before walking back out of the restaurant with you next to him instead of behind him.

“I didn’t want to be there either. We’ll order Akudonalds… marathon an anime, alright? Just the two of us. We’re never doing something like that again.”

Satan

Interacting with people was such a hassle, and he felt like he lost half of his IQ points whenever he had to even be around any other than you and certain brothers that he can actually tolerate. That’s why when Lucifer told him about some silly formal event at Lord Diavolos castle, he did everything, literally everything to try to get out of it.

Much to both of your disappointments, there was nothing either of you could do to not go. To Satan it sounded lame, and to you, it sounded absolutely awful. Having to get dressed up and be around a bunch of people, a bunch of demons who probably didn’t like you in the first place because you were a human. Nope, it sounded like a nightmare and you’d very much like to take a sick day and just not go.

The both of you walked into the castle, arm in arm. The main foyer was already packed with demons dressed in their finest, and even if they weren’t looking at you, it sure as hell felt like they were. It was hard to move behind Satan's back with the way your arms were connected, but that didn’t stop you from unhooking your arm and moving behind him anyway. You didn’t want to be looked at by anyone but him, and now he was definitely looking at you.

Explaining to him was easy, and while he obviously cared about how you felt right now, it was also a great excuse to get out of there.

“I promise, when we get back to the house, we’ll sit by the fire in the library, and I’ll read to you all the books you want me to. But first…thank you for this wonderful reason to not have to be here. Let’s go.”

Asmodeus

The two of you were polar opposites in the social department, and while most people would think that would be a problem, it was actually really nice. You balanced each other out, and he was always mindful of how you felt in social settings.

Taking walks with him wasn’t something that you could do often considering he was a high profile demon, basically celebrity status. On the very rare occasion that you could walk together down the streets of the Devildom, he and you took full advantage of it. You knew that you didn’t have a lot of time to enjoy it though, there would always be the one fan who would cause a scene, and then a mob of other demons would start running in your direction and he’d quickly have to get you home. It wasn’t all that bad, but it did become irritating and having that many people come at you at once was always a nightmare.

This walk was no different, and as soon as you saw the first demon, heard the first squeal, you shifted yourself to stand behind him, squeezing your eyes shut and waiting for it all to end. You felt his hand reach back to grab your own, comforting you as he dealt with the fans that had circled you.

He turned to you as soon as they were dispersed, smiling sweetly at you as he brushed his thumb across your cheek.

“Perhaps next time we’ll take a stroll through the garden instead. How does that sound, my love? Just the two of us, under the stars… I’ll pick your outfit and everything! We’ll both look beautiful!”

Beelzebub

Being the center of attention wasn’t a big deal to him, it neither made him happy or upset him. His ability to focus on something that was most important to him and completely ignore the world around him was a gift, one that you wished that you could obtain.

His favorite places were either being with you and Belphie, or being at the gym, and he came up with the sweetest idea that instead of having his two favorite things at two different times, why not just bring his favorite people to his favorite place?! To him it was the best idea he’s ever had, but to you it was the craziest thing you’ve ever heard. The gym? With a bunch of other demons? Demons who might look at you? Absolutely not. You were still adjusting to being with Beel in the same room as Belphie when it was movie night… and you knew the guy!

Of course, you loved Beel, so you weren’t going to turn down his offer, especially since he seemed so happy about it. It wouldn’t hurt to test the waters a little bit, try to get used to things. No harm in trying… right? Wrong. As soon as you got in, everyone in the place came up to Beel, asking him about weights and spotting and a bunch of other gym things that you couldn’t even focus on because the only thing you could hear more clearly than their words was your heart pounding in your chest.

He could see you move behind him out of the corner of his eye and he felt bad… he felt really bad. He didn’t even question you until he got you out of the gym and back to the house.

“I’m sorry, honey… I’ll have a rest day, and I’ll spend it here with you. We can have snacks and movies, or we can just… snuggle…? Would you like that?”

Belphegor

This man hated being out in public probably more than you did. Not because he was particularly shy, he just hated people that weren’t you or Beel. It was a logical reason, one that you understood, and you didn’t blame him for it. You’d much rather stay in the attic with him all day than have to actually face anyone.

His brothers had different plans for the both of you, and by his brothers, it was just Mammon who wanted to spend time with his little brother. You were all for staying home while Mams took Belphie out, but he refused to let you stay home. If he had to leave the house, so did you. Neither of you were happy about it, but Mammon seemed so excited, and Belphie found out that he didn’t have to pay for anything, so it might actually be worth it… might. He’s not banking on it.

Apparently there was a fair going through the Devildom and Mammon thought that it would be something that Belphie would like… all the noise and lights and… He actually thought it was something that Belphie would enjoy. It’s the thought that counts though, and Mammon really wanted to spend time with Belphie so you couldn’t hate the guy for trying by good god the place was packed. It was awful, and it was loud, and there were people everywhere. It was a nightmare on steroids, the only thing worse would be having to make a public speech in front of all these people.

You didn’t just hide behind Belphie’s back, you got behind him and wrapped your arms as tightly around him as you possibly could, not wanting to get swept away in the sea of people. What better way than to become a statue in the middle of the walk way? He chuckled softly, patting your hands as he called out to Mammon to tell him he was going home before turning around and walking leaving the fairgrounds.

“Don’t change. Never change… and go with me everywhere my brothers force me to go… okay? I really like having you around.”

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arcadejohn127-9 · 3 years

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Heyyy, I hope you’re doing ok! I love ur blog and I know we’re strangers who will possibly never meet but Recently, the little things have pushed me over the edge and close to an anxiety attack I presume but I’ve been using knitting and crochet to cope. It sounds weird Ik, but may u do the brothers and Undateables with an MC who does that and MC just ends up making so much stuff in one day that she gives it away to them. I’m so sorry if it’s weird, pls feel free to choose whether to do it or not but this blog has made me a little happier than before, thank you for reading and being here!

I actually use to do knitting, never finished anything and lost interest but it was really calming and fun. Couldn't keep my attention for long as it was very repetitive and got boring quickly but I always just genuinely enjoyed it despite that?

Stress knitting seems like the most wholesome way to handle anxiety and stress, it helps you focus on something else, you're being productive and having fun aswell as being safe! Though do be careful with the needles

And thank you for being here and supporting me, I'm glad I could make you feel even a little bit happier, a small amount of happiness is better than none! So thank you for making my night with how kind you are! Your habit and anxiety relief isn't weird at all, I don't see how it could be weird tbh

Sorry this took so long, I feel stupid now but I got really stumped on some of them on what to make but now I'm laughing at myself due to how obvious they were

Lucifer:

You made him mug holders and now it's all he uses

"It's very useful, I'll take extra care of it - no need to worry."

He can handle the heat but he must use what you've made

You even made a massive sweater and socks for Cerberus

How you got his dogs measurements is beyond him but it was the most prominent things he uses from your biggest pile

But he was no fool, he knew you

He knew your habits and how you've grown more anxious

He isn't always the most available person with his emotions and with his schedule

But he was always willing to listen to your issues

Mammon:

You made him a money pouch - how could he not be happy??!!

He loves jingling it to hear all his latest 'finds'

What was even better you made him a sweater he got to wear for his modeling job and show off to Everyone

That article was an interesting find

"CHECK IT! everyone loved your sweater! I say we can make a bussiness with this."

But when you come handing him a large bag full of your latest projects he can't help but raise a brow

He's greedy, he loves being showered in gifts

But he knew you, he took note on your emotional

He got pouty but he hugged your shoulders

Reminding you that you can always come to him and he'll make you feel better

Levithan:

You made him knitted wrist support, for his long gaming sessions

He wears them pretty much everyday at this point

Not only are they comfortable and helpful

But you made them! Specifically for him! For him to use! YOU MADE IT!

Has bragged to his gaming friends about it one too many times

"My player 2 is obviously better than yours, does yours knit cute things for you? I thought so."

Also you made him a crotchet plush of his favourite animal crossing chatacter, he prefers the Devildom version of the game but he's a sucker for bright cute things

Anything he could he'd either put in on his desk or on his figure cupboards

But when you come in with a massive pile, strained smile he felt himself panic

You both have anxiety, you were comrades in it! So of course he knew how knitting was part of your coping mechanism

He felt annoyed and worried on why you weren't coming to him but quickly calmed himself down, when he saw he patted your head

Explaining you can always come to him because you're in this together

He definitely stole a line or two from his latest favourite media

Satan:

Crotchet chair cat paw socks was his favourite out of the pile

"They're little paws..... I need these for all my furniture!"

His second favourite is the baggy sweater you knitted for him

He's going to cherish these gifts until he dies

Which could be never

Though even in death he'd be keeping what you've made him

Worried about the massive increase as he knows it's coping for your anxiety

He's read books about anxiety so he has a fair amount of knowledge on it

Insists you can always come to him when you're worried

Asmodeus:

He adored everything you made!

The sweater had little holes in them? He doesn't care and even smirks at the holes

"wanting to expose my beautiful skin~? I don't blame you."

Made a scarf? He'll wear that instead of his usual black one

Just knitted squares or unwearable things? Proudly shows off your work

Is concerned you've been so ridden with anxiety

He wants to help as much as he can, he has teas and bath scents for these kind of things

Just say the word and he'll bring all of it out

Beezlebub:

A crotchet layered burger he can take apart because it's velcro-ed together??!

It's like a real burger!

He tries not to bite or chew on it but it has happened before

Would feel awful if he accidentally ripped it

"I love it, are you going to make more?"

Didn't expect for you to actually make more

As time went on he learned that it helps you calm down from anxiety

So he especially didn't expect you to come in with a massive bag full of your latest creation's

He immediately got worried

You wanted to show them off to distract your mind but he just grabbed your head

Gently moving it so you looked at him

He told you he wants to help and he'll be there for you, no matter what and no matter when

Belphegor:

You made him w blanket - you know how young children are normally seen with baby blankets? Just always carrying them around

Yeah that's him

"You can't make me take it off Lucifer-! This is MY gift from (Y/N) and I'm going to make sure everyone sees it!"

Always showing off the blanket you made him by carrying it around or having it wrapped around him

He loves it! He also loves the pillow covers you made! It helps spice up his pillow collection

But you can't hide your anxiety from him, he goes out of his way to give people it

And soon he found out how kitting was a coping mechanism

He felt a little special you were making him things because it calmed you down but also worried about your mental health

The concern RISED when you were in the attic, placing and organising the big pile you had

He hugged you and flopped onto the bed

Telling you that he'll look after you and you can tell him what's wrong, stress naps are always welcomed with him

UNDATEABLES↓

Diavolo:

Didn't expect to find such a huge pile of new stuff in his room

He saw mug holders and mits

Horn warmers

And his favourite- a shawl with tassels, he immediately wrapped it around him and refused to take it off

He's going to wear this everywhere no matter his outfit

"Barbatos can be strict but I'll wear this no matter what, if I even see a spec of dirty on it I'll make sure to get it cleaned with delicate care."

But then it hit him, you become more active with your hobby when you become anxious

He immediately got to you, asking you if you're okay

He's ready to charge your whole class schedule if he has to

Barbatos:

You crocheted desserts and he never felt so much warmth and love in his heart

Almost collapsed from sweetness when he found a knitted pair of gloves in the big pile of your creation's

Appreciates the gifts alot

"these are marvelous, I look forward to see what else you make."

Brings you calming teas as a thank you, understanding your anxiety must be high

Offers a shoulder to cry on and happy to take time out of his schedule to listen to your worries

He asks you to teach him so he can make things like you

He wants to repay you for all the things you've given him

Solomon:

Has a whole room dedicated to everything you've ever made and given him

Whenever he has guests he likes to take them to check out your creations

"Come and admire my collection, My apprentice made these, aren't they neat?"

The potion sacks you've made are extremely useful

Aswell as the coldrain mat

Can sense your anxious energy in the newest creation's and gets concerned

He'll invite you over to talk about what's wrong

Let's you to take your time incase you're comfortable to talk

Simeon:

His favourite amongst the massive pile was a cute crotchet octopus

It was nicely stuffed and felt so nice to rest his head on

Others that peaked his fancy were the long wrist warmers you made, the way you made it made it look like lace

Aswell as a shawl and the very well made bag to store his books in

"You're so thoughtful, I'll treasure them all."

But he noticed just how worked up you've been and knew your anxious habits

Sat you down for tea to ask what how you're feeling and if could help

Also offers to be a guardian angel and make sure you don't get so anxious

If he can he'll wear an entire outfit made out of your knitting

Luke:

Is in awe how much you gave him

Almost died with Happiest when you knitted him a new hat

The crotchet wings you made just made him bounce with joy

He loves everything!!!

"I'm going to wear everything you've made and carry the little crochet puppy with me everywhere! I promise I'll take good care of him!"

Though will always check in on you

Once he's learned you do it more or only when you're really anxious he'll want to do everything he can to help

Has looked up guides on how to help people with their anxiety and panic attacks

He's going to be your guardian angel!

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gaycrouton · 3 years

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the aftermath of linda bowman

msr angst | kitsunegari | 1.7k | ao3

mulder goes into shock while trying to deal with the trauma of seeing “scully” shoot herself and the subsequent realization he almost killed her. touching her and reassuring himself she’s alive is his only comfort, and she’s not going to stop him.

Scully had taken all of one step into the warehouse and she already knew she'd been too late. She could blame the red lights she'd been stopped at on the way over here, but she knew it was her own fault for not believing him sooner.

His screams for Linda Bowman filled her ears, and she felt her blood run cold.

No, no, no, no, no. The mantra in her head repeated with every footfall as she ran in the direction of his voice. Then, Mulder joined in with one drawn out, anguished scream "No!"

She rounded the corner just in time to see him run to Linda Bowman's feet, collapsing to the ground in front of her as he moved his arms in an unnatural way, as if he was holding onto-

Oh my god.

Scully caught Linda Bowman's gaze and the woman had the audacity to smile at her. She slowed her pace, not wanting to alarm Mulder into anything rash, but he heard her approaching nonetheless. While she'd expected him to be obviously under Bowman's control, she was still taken aback by the pure, unadulterated hatred in his eyes.

"I'm going to kill you," he stated with so much conviction she was surprised he hadn't done it already.

Her suspicions were confirmed from that alone, to him she looked like Bowman, and he'd just thought something awful had happened to her. She wasn't sure what, but she knew that's what had made Mulder so angry.

"Don't listen to her, Mulder," Scully said firmly. She'd never contemplated before if she had any inflections in her voice that were distinct to her, anything that might convey it was her behind the mirage.

"What?" he seethed, his eyes wild like an animal backed into a corner.

"It's me, you were right about her," she replied calmly. "Linda Bowman is pushing you."

"What the hell are you talking about?" he all but spat.

She swallowed thickly, not wanting to make any mistakes. She'd been on the receiving end of Mulder's anger before, but never his hatred. It made her sick. Was this the way he felt when she held a gun to his head at her mother's house? When she'd hurled insecurities and vitriol at him under the false guise of deception?

Behind him she could hear Bowman slowly repeating. "Linda Bowman is in front of you. She killed Scully. You'll never see her again."

Killed . While she knew harm had been caused in some capacity, knowing Mulder thought she was dead and this was his reaction made her want to cry. Scully had seen Mulder mad on many occasions, but this was different. He was a man with nothing left to lose, and she felt her heart ache at the realization that losing her was all it took. In his world, he'd just barely gotten her back from the cancer scare only for her to die on the dingy floor of a warehouse.

"She's lying to you," Bowman stated confidently.

Scully wanted to tell her to shut the hell up, but she knew better than to take her eyes off Mulder in this moment. He'd likely kill her if she did, and she knew in her soul that once he realized what he'd done, he'd be quick to join her - Modell's game of Russian Roulette reaching a sick completion two years later.

"I'm Scully," she lamented, her voice wavering despite her best efforts. "Linda's right behind you. She's telling you I'm her."

She saw a flash of something in Mulder's eyes, but then he glanced back down at Linda's feet, his breath hitching in his chest before turning back to her. "You killed her!" he seethed with wet eyes.

"Mulder, I'm Scully. I'm not dead. She wants you to shoot me. She knows you'll never forgive yourself," Scully implored. She couldn't let that happen.

"Shut up!" he screamed, using a desperate tone she'd never heard from him before.

She flinched as tears started welling in her eyes. "Listen to me!" she screamed back. Scull was visibly trembling and she wondered if it looked like Linda Bowman was shaking and crying in front of him. "Your mother is Teena! Your sister is Samantha!"

"Shut up!" he screamed again. Scully could tell in his mind he was trying not to listen to her to avoid being influenced by Bowman, completely unaware that he already was.

"I warned you," she pleaded, hoping using something from a private conversation would help establish trust. "Don't play her game."

Mulder was breathing heavily as he digested her words, but before he could say anything else, Linda Bowman moved from behind Mulder and Scully took her shot. He jumped, but put his gun up in stunned surprise, looking at the floor rather than anything else. She saw his head pivot to the same spot he'd been checking back to as he stared down in shellshock.

"Mulder?" she called out, her voice sounding weak and scared - exactly how she felt.

He turned to her and she saw dazed recognition. There was still plenty of disbelief, but she felt confident enough to walk towards him, placing a comforting hand on his arm when she was next to him.

Scully wanted to comfort him immediately, but she needed to make sure Linda was incapable of putting on any other smoke and mirrors. She bent down to check a pulse and stared in disgust as Linda rasped, "You think you can hold me?" Looking at Mulder, Scully stood up and watched as his mouth moved and made no sound - he just stared blankly at the ground.

"Yes, we'd like an ambulance to 214 Chanel Avenue," she stated into the phone, watching out of her periphery as Mulder stumbled slightly away from the scene. She walked behind him, knowing Linda wasn't going anywhere and wanting to make sure he didn't fall. "We have a suspect down with a gunshot wound and an agent going into shock," she replied as she watched Mulder start to tremble.

As soon as she knew they were on the way, she put her phone in her pocket and gently whispered, "Mulder?"

Mulder turned around and locked eyes on her with an intensity that gave her chills. In an uncharacteristic move, he stepped forward and grabbed her with a desperation that tore a gasp from her lips. Within an instant his hands were in Scully's hair, threading his fingers through the strands to feel for a non-existent bullet wound. She hadn't brushed her hair since that morning and that was before putting hairspray in it, so his fingers would catch every now and then on a snare and he'd pause to avoid hurting her.

"You're okay, you're okay," he kept whispering over and over. It wasn't a question or a statement - it was a prayer. His fingers were trembling against her scalp and she was even more certain he was in shock.

"Mulder-" she started, only to be interrupted by him wrapping his arms around her and clutching her body to his, as if maybe she would dissolve into him and he could keep her safe forever. He kept trying to kiss her temples, her forehead, anything he could reach really, but his puckered mouth kept giving way to open mouthed sobs pressed against her skin. She felt her brow furrow as she wrapped her arms around his middle, letting him coddle her in an attempt to comfort himself. It was working for both of them.

"I-I'm so sor-ry, Scully," he panted. His inability to catch his breath made her worry he was having a panic attack and was going to make him hyperventilate.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Mulder," she stated firmly, rubbing her hands up and down his back.

He pulled away slightly so he could cup her cheeks with his palms. "I scared you," he rasped, holding her face in his hands like she would fall apart without him. How true the reverse seemed to be. "Y-you were scared."

"I-no, no, Mulder I knew you'd never hurt me," she replied shakily, trying to get her own adrenaline under control as she put her hands on his forearms.

His face contorted into a mask of pain again as he shook his head. "I wanted to. Bowman didn't even need to tell me to, I wanted to kill-" he gasped, too overwhelmed to speak. "I wanted to kill you," he whispered in anguish as tear tracks cut his cheeks.

"You wanted to kill her, not me," she corrected, moving her arms to hold his forearms lightly.

"I saw you shoot yourself," he sobbed. "You begged me to make her stop and I-I couldn't."

Scully's heart broke for him. Seeing the fake crime scene at his apartment where it was made to look like he'd shot himself was painful enough, she couldn't imagine seeing it played out in front of her. "Oh, Mulder," she whispered, a tear falling off of her eyelashes and onto his hand.

"I'll never get that image out of my head."

She wasn't sure what to do, so she took one of his hands and guided it to her chest, trying to ignore how the warmth of his palm felt against the tops of her breasts. "Do you feel that? I'm alive. I'm okay."

Scully felt his fingers flex slightly, pressing into her skin. "Your heart's racing," he said. A huff of exasperation almost escapes her lips that he managed to find another way to worry about her, but his voice sounds clearer than it just had. He was starting to move into the present with her instead of replaying the last five minutes, and that was exactly where she needed him to be.

She placed her hand over his shirt and felt a similar thrumming within his own chest. "So is yours," she replied, not taking her other hand off of his so he'd keep it there on her chest. "We're okay, Mulder."

Another tear slid down his cheek as his eyes just roamed her face. It was as if he thought looking away for a second would break the illusion, and he'd turn to find her laying lifeless on the floor again. The hand that wasn't over her heart moved and wiped away her tears, spending a moment to caress the skin of her cheek before moving somewhere else - the nape of her neck, her hair, her hip, anywhere he could.

Mulder was touching her so intimately it made her blush, made her worry what the officers coming would think when they saw the way he was clinging onto her, but shucking him off was the last thing she'd consider doing.

They needed this.

#x files fanfic #mulder #scully #msr #angst #kitsunegari

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magnoliabloomfield · 3 years

Text

Possession 14

This one is so long!! The next one will be the finale. This one has a trigger warning for crude remarks of a sexual nature to incite anger and violence, but it's nothing above a PG13 rating. And we finally get some hot cinnamon fluff, as spicy as I go lol

~~~~

Nothing in the short span of Nikola’s memorable life was harder than trying to keep a platonic distance between her and Gally. All that went through her head was that determined look on his face and the words ‘I’m yours’ passing his lips. She knew what he meant really amounted to ‘I’m your friend’, but ‘I’m yours’ just sounded so good.

Even though Alby had been helpful when Shawn had pulled his stunt, Nikola started to feel some negativity toward him, somehow blaming only him for the rule about belonging. Who had the right to dictate who one could and couldn’t belong to? She was also plenty mad at Shawn too for a lot more.

There was one day where she was thoroughly distracted though, her thoughts were far away from Alby and Shawn, and even Gally was pushed back ever so slightly. One of the goats had given birth but didn’t survive it. Nikola was caring for the orphaned kid and received much needed help and support from the dog cleverly named Bark. Honestly, boys had no imagination.

Winston had said that taking care of the kid was more trouble than it was worth, that he could put a quick and painless end to it, and Nikola was horrified.

“If you take that attitude with poor baby animals you’ll soon be taking it with human beings,” she had told him. “And the last thing we need inside the glade is people acting like the ones who sent us here.”

That had shut him up right quick, in fact, he got quite contemplative about his role as a slicer after that. He must have told others about it because soon some of the other boys were coming to check on the goat or offering to watch it while she tended to other things she needed to do. It was a positive turn on things in the glade and her position in their little world. Maybe she had gained some respect, maybe she had become more than an object in some of their minds and achieved real human status.

Either way, it lulled her into a place of comfort where she never would have guessed what was about to happen.

As she sat in the grass watching Bark be the little goat’s cheerleader as it took wobbly steps around the meadow, a shadow loomed over her. She looked up, hoping to see Gally, but she already had a bad feeling in her gut.

Shawn stood over her, hands stuffed in his pockets and looking out over the meadow as well. She didn’t say anything to him, just stared and waited a moment for him to say something. When he remained silent she turned back to what she was doing even though turning her back on him made her feel nervous. Still, she tried not to show fear.

“You don’t like me very much,” he finally stated.

“Have you given me a reason to like you?” she responded, not looking at him still.

“But you didn’t even like me before I did… that,” he pointed out, meaning the stunt he pulled trying to get her and Gally in trouble.

“That’s true,” she didn’t even lie. “And it turns out my gut was right.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t because you already liked someone else? Liked them more than you should?”

Nikola felt a confrontational spirit overtake her body and she whirled around to look at him, to let fly some angry words, but he had turned and started walking off before she could get one of them off her tongue. Somehow he wasn’t worth chasing down, but what he said bothered her long after he was gone.

~~~~

Gally was in the deadheads, collecting wood again. Nikola had been so enamored with caring for the kid and so many boys had gotten on board with being a bit more empathetic that Gally thought he would build something where any other pregnant animals could safely and comfortably give birth and care for their little ones.

Really though, Winston had told him and some of the others what she had said to him and Gally took it to heart as many of the others had as well. They did not want to have anything in common with the people who sent them there. And the only proper role model was bright, hopeful, empathetic Nikola.

As Gally’s thoughts wandered around the subject of her he wandered farther into the deadheads, not noticing how he was getting farther from the other builders out there with him.

He was imagining a house he would build by the ocean, a white house made of good wood with a proper door and windows and roof. He’d build it for Nikola and she deserved the best. Of course, in his imagination they lived in it together. They would stroll along the beach, hand in hand, with no one to cause them problems, and when they were done they’d return to their safe, warm house. There would be no glade, no maze, no wicked. Just them and peace.

“Oh Gally, Gally, Gally,” someone sighed, breaking him out of his daydreams.

He looked over and noticed Shawn with two other baggers and his guts tied themselves in knots. He was there to cause trouble again. This time Alby and Newt weren’t around, they were secluded, which probably meant they were going to attempt to beat the shuck out of him he guessed.

With a sigh of his own Gally tossed aside the wood he had collected and brushed the dirt off his hands. He was almost glad to have an opportunity to cause Shawn physical pain. He stared the other boy down in silence just waiting for a reason.

Shawn wasn’t much of a fan of Gally and Nikola’s tendency to hold their tongues, a talent he himself did not possess. Shawn glanced down with a slight chuckle, shaking his head at the ridiculous situation.

“I don’t get it,” Shawn said to Gally with fake sincerity. “Maybe you can explain it to me, help me understand. How did you get Nikola to like you so much?”

Gally crossed his arms and didn’t respond to the obviously rhetorical question.

“I mean, you’re one of the ugliest shanks here,” Shawn said, unable to hold back his malicious grin while his friends chuckled behind him.

Gally wouldn’t be provoked by simple insults.

“No one here really likes you. You’re a bossy, demanding, control freak who can’t take a joke and thinks he’s smarter than everyone else,” Shawn went on eyeing Gally up for his reaction to that. The fair and freckled builder had not turned even the slightest shade of red, which made Shawn switch up his tactic. “Nikola is nothing like you. She likes to put on her mask and seem tough, but, ooh… she is soft. Isn’t she?”

Shawn had stepped up to Gally and spoke softer, laying it on thick. “Is she soft Gally? Do you even know? I bet she is under all those clothes, soft enough to sink your teeth into,” Shawn smiled when a crimson shade started blooming behind Gally’s unmoved expression. He was getting on the right track now. “I want to take a bite so bad, you know? I bet she tastes so good, even down to her p-“

Gally’s hands shot out and grabbed the front of his shirt, almost yanking him off his feet. Shawn wanted Gally to land the first blow and he was close, but no cigar.

“Is there a point to all this?” Gally asked, shoving Shawn away from him.

“I’m just making conversation on our common interest,” Shawn said holding his hands up. “You know what I mean, right? You’ve thought about it, don’t try to tell me you haven’t.”

Shawn and his goons laughed but Gally didn’t react. He suddenly felt bad that he’d in fact had thoughts about Nikola that were less than platonic, but not nearly as skeevy as what Shaw was getting at.

“But there’s something serious I want to ask you, big guy, did you really get in there? Because I’m just wondering how loose things are going to be when I get to her-“

And thats when Gally’s fist connected with his skull. Shawn was knocked to the ground with unpredicted force, but Gally was instantly over him trying to haul him back up by the front of his shirt as the other boys came to Shawn’s defense. They tried to separate them, the whole idea was to get Gally put in the pit or banished for harming another glader, then the biggest obstacle between Shawn and Nikola would be gone.

Gally was so angry he could hardly be restrained even as he was outnumbered. He managed to get Shawn back up on his feet, hands still gripping his shirt even as the other boys tried to gain control over his arms. He couldn’t get another punch in this way so he did what he could and smashed Shawn’s nose with his forehead.

Shawn flew back with a cry of pain as he held his nose, launched out of Gally’s grip. He could barely keep his watering eyes open but he managed to throw a punch and land it on Gally’s face as the others held him back as best they could.

“I thought he was just supposed to hit you?” One of the boys questioned.

“Shuck that,” Shawn growled as blood and tears streamed down his face. “He’s getting what he deserves.”

With his brute strength alone, Gally made quite an impressive stand for as long as he could, but three against one were never favorable odds. No one was walking away from the encounter without injury, but Gally was taking the brunt of it as it went on. He didn’t care, he’d rather be their target than Nikola. He’d take as many punches as he had to for her.

“Gally!”

‘Oh. Oh God no,’ Gally thought as his guts plummeted even as he was kicked in the ribs. He hoped it was brain damage and not that Nikola was actually there.

Shawn looked behind him, moving enough to expose Nikola standing there in the deadheads with a look of horror on her face.

‘Run!’ Gally begged her in his mind as he spat blood from his mouth and fought to catch his breath.

Shawn sprinted for her and she turned to run, half a cry for help passing her lips before Shawn clamped his hand over her mouth and wrapped his other arm tightly around her. She kicked, thrashed and struggled so hard it made Gally proud of her as he tried to summon all his strength to get up and defend her. He knocked the legs out of under one boy and tried to get to his own feet. The other boy tackled him back down to the ground and soon enough the first one assisted in weighing him down.

She really was giving Shawn a run for his money and almost slipped out of his grip when she bucked and then went dead weight. He managed to grab her pony tail and wrap it around his hand so she couldn’t pull free. His other hand had slipped from her mouth for a moment and she did her best to scream again but Shawn’s hand slapped across her mouth again as he kept her low to the ground by her hair.

“Shut up, you stupid- Ah!” Shawn was the one screaming now, a long, loud, sustained cry of pain that alerted the glade as well as anything Nikola could have produced herself.

Gally tried to see what was going on and could only gather that his hand was still near her mouth. He couldn’t take her being in danger, he had to do something, he had to get to her, he promised he’d protect her. Pure adrenaline, fear, and something else coursed through his system and he forced himself to ignore the pain. He pushed himself up with a yell of exertion and managed to elbow one boy in the jaw hard. Gally rolled over on the other boy and elbowed him hard in the side before he tried getting up as quickly as possible. It was hard, too hard and would take too long so he tried to army crawl away and hopefully he’d work his feet back under himself as he went.

But help had finally arrived. There were so many boys around Shawn and Nikola now, all clamoring over the sustained sound of Shawn’s wounded wails. Some other boys broke away and grabbed up the ones that had held Gally down. Alby, Clint, and Jeff were towing Shawn away already and then Nikola was pushing her way through Newt and Minho who were trying to see if she was ok. She sprinted over to where Gally had finally gotten up on his hands and knees and fell to her own in front of him.

“Gally! Oh my god,” her voice shook as much as her hands as they gently took him by the shoulders. “Is anything broken?”

He managed to push himself up onto his knees and sit back on his heels. He finally got a good look at her and saw a bruise already forming next to her eye and blood around her mouth.

“Are you ok?” He asked her, looking at the blood with concern, reaching up and touching her chin.

“I’m fine,” she shook her head, impatient to find out if he was ok. “It’s Shawn’s, I bit him.”

“You bit him?” Gally repeated sounding amused as a smile tugged his split lip painfully.

“I’ve never seen him smile after getting his ass kicked,” Newt said with concern as he knelt beside Nikola in front of Gally.

“I’ve never seen him get his ass kicked,” Minho mumbled as he stood behind them.

“We should get him to the infirmary,” Newt said which Nikola whole heartedly agreed with.

“But Shawn is in there now getting put back together, probably gonna be a while since you practically degloved his finger,” Minho pointed out.

“You did?” Gally panted, impressed.

“No, and that’s not important right now,” she said agitatedly. “Can we help Gally, please?”

“I’m alright, I’m alright,” Gally waved them off as he tried to sit more comfortably.

“Uh, no. You’re not,” Nikola said as she gently placed her hand over his bruised and bloodied one.

“No broken legs, no broken arms,” Gally said before using his free hand to feel his abdomen. “And no broken ribs. I’ll be ok.”

“Gally,” Nikola started to complain, her eyes sadly staring deep into his. It made him feel better.

“What happened?” Newt asked him.

Gally sighed and tried to roll his eyes but it only made him feel dizzy. “Shawn came out here to get me alone and beat me up. As you can see.”

“He just came out here and started throwing punches?” Minho piped up.

“No,” Gally admitted as he looked down and brushed his thumb gently over Nikola’s fingers still resting on his hand. “He made me hit him first.”

“He made you,” Minho repeated incredulously.

“Yes, he did,” Gally said firmly as he looked up at Minho before glancing quickly but meaningfully at Nikola.

“What?” she asked softly. Of course she noticed, she hadn’t taken her eyes off him for a second, but now she slowly pulled her hand back. “It was because of me?”

“No, Nikola, it’s not your fault,” Gally tried to tell her, reaching out for her again.

“But it’s because of me,” she said more firmly as she got more upset.

“No,” Gally said even as her eyes got shiny and she got to her feet. “Nikola, wait.”

She took a few steps backwards and her hands covered her mouth before she turned a hurried off.

Gally gave an exasperated groan as he tried to get up on his feet to go after her.

“Hold on,” Newt said, halting him.

“No, I can’t let her think this is her fault,” Gally fought him weakly.

“I think she’ll live if you let her cry in peace for a moment, she’s processing what Shawn just did to her too,” Newt said.

“She shouldn’t be alone,” Gally argued with that too and Newt saw an unfamiliar emotion in his eyes, a concern bordering on desperate.

“I’ll keep an eye on her,” Minho said before sprinting off after her.

“He hurt her, he put his hands on her,” Gally said as dark anger covered up the raw and tender emotion that was there before, his eyes even took a glassy sheen that pooled but would not spill over his lower lashes.

“I know he did,” Newt assured him. “And he’s going to pay for it.”

~~~~

Eventually they moved Shawn out of the medhut even though he still needed attention, and Newt helped Gally there for his turn. He kept an eye out for Nikola all the way there and only gave in to his pathetic despair once the medhut door shut behind him. He lay with a heavy groan on the cot, gravity pulling a tear from the corner of his eye. He covered his eyes with one arm, even though it hurt to rest it over his bruised face, so neither medjack could see it.

“You put up a good fight,” Jeff said after checking him over. “Nothing too terrible here… hang tight for minute, ok?”

Gally just sighed as he heard the door close behind him, the chatter of the glade murmuring through the walls around him. He just thought about Nikola and the look on her face, how she screamed his name and tried to help him. He wanted to feel angry, angry at Shawn for laying a finger on her, wanted to shove him through the maze doors that very night, but all he felt was a sadness, deep and aching. He wanted to see Nikola and make sure she was ok.

The door opened and closed again with an extra thud and footsteps approached him. He didn’t move a muscle or give it a thought until he felt her hand on his again. He pulled his arm down and ignored the scream of his muscles and bruises as he pulled himself to a sitting position, swinging his legs over the side of cot.

“Nikola,” he breathed, all other speaking ability leaving his head as he looked at her sitting in front of him.

“Hey,” she said giving him an uncertain half smile. “The medjacks are short staffed today, so I’ll take care of you, if you don’t mind.”

“Of course I don’t,” he said, the very idea that he would mind was ridiculous.

Still he didn’t really know what to say to her as she started cleaning and bandaging his wounds starting with his hands. Her face was turned down as she focused on them and he watched her, feeling her gentle and caring touch on his large, rough hands. She was being more thorough and precise than Clint or Jeff had ever been.

After finishing his hands in silence she looked up at him for the first time since she came in, her eyes darting between each bruise and cut. Suddenly her chin was wobbling and the corners of her mouth turned down. In a matter of moments she was crying and he had no idea what to do. Her hands gently touched his face as she kept looking at his injuries.

“Look what they did to you,” she said quietly through the tears she was trying to hold back, leaning in closer to him. “I never wanted anyone to get hurt, but especially not you,” she said as the tears forced their way out, and then her arms gently wound themselves around his shoulders and tried to pull her closer to him.

It was too big of a stretch so she just moved herself right onto his lap, burying her face in his shoulder and crying. The pain left as his body became aware only of hers pressed against him. He rested his chin on her shoulder in return and carefully held her, feeling her there under his fingertips like a dream come to life.

She lifted her head, her sobs dying down and slowing altogether as she stayed there with her cheek against his. He dared not move, he wasn’t ready for the dream to end. She pulled back slowly, her cheek brushing his and then her nose as she turned her face. She was moving slowly, keeping her face close to his. Her nose brushed against his and he felt like his heart had caught flame and was whistling off like a firecracker. And when those soft, pink lips brushed over his, pressing a brief and gentle kiss there the firecracker exploded.

She pulled back to look at him, her red and puffy eyes taking him in. “You let me do that,” she observed, biting her lip to hold in a smile. “If you minded-“

“I would have said so,” he replied watching her look at him with as much tender adoration as he felt for her.

She smiled before she leaned in, carefully bringing her lips to his split and bruised mouth and he kissed her back this time, he didn’t care how much his lip hurt, it didn’t matter, it was nothing. She was everything. He brought a hand to her face as he felt one of hers on the back of his neck while the other slipped over his shoulder and down his chest. It slipped back up till both of her hands were cradling his neck as he kissed her again. They pulled away an inch or so and looked into each other’s eyes, his hand resting on her shoulder. He never wanted to let her go.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a while,” she admitted, bringing a bashful blush to his face. “But I didn’t know if you felt the same, or if you’d just settle for me since I’m the only girl around.”

He swallowed and tilted her chin back up to look at him. “You’re the best thing that will ever happen to me.”

That must have been the right answer because it brought on more tears and another kiss.

“Ok, let’s finish getting you taken care of,” Nikola sighed contentedly as she brushed his nose with hers once more, something she seemed to like doing, and reached for the first aid supplies from her spot on his lap.

“A little late for this question, but should we be worried about someone coming in here?” he asked, gently holding her around the waist.

“I locked the door,” she whispered in his ear as she leaned in to reach for something else.

He looked up at her in wonder as she took care of everything that ailed him, kissing each bandage and bruise, her little fingers tracing his features as she went along. He leaned in to each touch as he held her comfortingly on his lap, until he was treated. She hugged him, her hands rubbing his back soothingly until he couldn’t keep his eyes open any longer.

Masterlist

@frequentlychangingfandoms @quackquackbi @poulterjonas @crazysheeplyca @pre-google @gladerscake @neilox @thesuitkovian @carp3d1em @cottoncandy-dreamxd @emilyhadenbaker

#Possession gally fic #gally #tmr #maze runner #tmr gally #maze runner gally #gally imagine #gally fanfic #thirsting over gally's thick ankles #Will Poulter Protection Squad #will poulter

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darkstarnight02 · 3 years

Text

Why the Akuma Class Doesn’t Trusts Lila Rossi

Nino

This dude is a loyal friend

Like, he’s also a loyal boyfriend, so it’s hard when his girlfriend is siding with Lila

But he’s the one who’s like

“Dudes, we’ve known Mari for years there’s no way she would do the stuff this new girl we’ve known for five minutes says she did.”

He and Kim and Mari were besties since preschool, I think we all know that.

Adrien

I hate it when people say he tries to defend her with the high road crap

When he sees her hurting people, especially Marinette

Because lets be honest, he cares about her alot

He’s less forgiven

Like do y’all remember the “BeCaUsE We’Re FrIeNdS, aReN’t We?”

So he’s not going to try and make her life miserable

But he is going to try to get her to stop

Chloé

Let’s be honest, she never liked Lila in the first place.

So Imma give y’all bonus “how she figured out everyone’s identities”

So once she became friends with Marinette

Cause they formed a “we hate Lie-la” alliance

(tho since Mari’s still friends with the others its kinda awkward)

Chloe’s pretty smart.

Like, she totally could have figured it out before they became friends

But she would never have believed back then that Mari-trash was Ladybug, her idol (and lesbian awakening, lesbihonest)

But now that she’s friends with her, it’s way too obvious

And she definitely already knew about Adrien because these guys are besties

And, dudes, she never had a crush on him, she was just an overprotective best friend

And a very touchy one

To her, it’s all pretty obvious.

She thinks that its just whatever magic thats blinding everyone of the obvious, its immune to (like low-key Rachel Dare here)

But Sabine, Tom, and Jagged probably know to because they’re all Kings and Queens.

So Chloe figures everyone out pretty quickly.

Sabrina

She trust Chloe more than anyone.

But I’m not just gonna use that because its kinda boring.

Tho Chloe is her bi crush so that definitely helps secure loyalties

Its only when Marinette becomes MDC that she realizes

and yes, Sabrina probably knows because Chloe and she also recognizes the designs from some stuff she has in her own closet.

So anyway, she realizes Mari is MDC and she’s some famous designer and Lila is not

And Mari also knows Jagged and Clara and a whole bunch of other famous people

And she never brags about it but there’s proof that she knows them

while Lila always brags about it but she’s never been mentioned and no one knows her.

Alya

I hate it when people say she totally sides with Lila.

This girl knows that her bestie never lies(or at least thinks)

and some things with Lila don’t add up.

Like she doesn’t check directly if what Lila says is true

But she’ll be doing research for something else and see’s that it contradicts something that Lila said.

So she’ll do more research and try to figure more stuff out

And she’s like holy f*ck nothing Lila says is true.

Or, alternatively, for those of you who have watched season 4

She immediately realizes Lila’s a liar right after Marinette tells her she’s Ladybug.

Marinette

No explanation needed.

Mylène

Mylene notices when Lila insults one of her classmates one day.

Even if its subtle, or just piping on the edge of her blaming Marinette for something, she notices it.

And a good person wouldn’t say something like that,

Like Chloe, they all expect something like that from

No one every really liked Chloe in the first place

And Mari never says anything rude

Sure, she gets angry at Chloe and Lila sometimes, and she tries to prove what they say is wrong, but she never directly attacks someone.

I don’t know who Lila was being a bitch to this time, but it cost her a follower.

Alix

This girl is probably one of the most Gen Z kids in the Akuma Class, which is pretty sad because they’re all supposed to be Gen Z.

She can smell bullcrap from a mile away

Not to mention the little hints older Bunnyx drops whenever she visits.

With the mix of her being the future miraculous holder of time and being the daughter of a historian, she’s very aware of history and timelines and cause and effects and chain reactions

So when Marinette starts ‘acting up’ she tries to find when her personality switched over

And even if she seems more like a background character, this aro/ace queen always seems to know your secrets.

So even before she knew Lila was a phony, she knew that Mari was MDC and that Jagged Stone was Juleka and Luka’s dad

So she definitely figured some stuff out that way

Honestly, next to Chloe, Alix was probably one of the first people to figgure out Mari’s identity.

She’s a detective to rival batman

Ivan

I think Lila would make some sort of rift between him and Mylene.

He loves her so much and it would be so hard

And mari and her friends would help him out

and he would see the truth

They wouldn’t like break up or anything

But he can just tell immediately when someone’s being a bad person.

Kim

Probably something similar to Nino

But I think it’d be a bit more like he’s totally a die-hard fan of some of Marinette’s connections or some of Marinette’s work itself

And when he puts the pieces together its like everything makes sense in the world.

He really feels super stupid afterwards.

Ondine probably slaps him for not trusting his childhood best friend before some bitchy new girl.

Max

This is the smartest dude in class

He made a f*cking robot with emotions you can’t tell me he doesn’t figure Lila out.

A part of me believes that in the first episode with Lila when they were all waiting on her hand and foot they were probably aware that she was kind of delusional, but were giving into it the way you give into the tales of a six year old.

Like ‘yeah, okay sweetie. Sure’.

I mean, at least that’s why Max went along with the napkin thing, because there’s no other excuse for that whole incident.

Nathaniel

I don’t totally know how he figured her out, but I love the idea of her saying that she can introduce him to the creator of the Ladybug Comics.

They actually sit next to each other in class, so he definitely is more aware of her weird behavior than others.

And since he’s an artist he’s very observant, always noticing things like her facial expressions and what seems more exaggerated than real.

And we all know how kwami-damned done Nathaniel is with the class, so he probably knew all along.

Not to mention that since the rest of the school is less submissive to Lila’s lies, Marc probably pointed it out to him at some point.

There’s also the idea that since Nathaniel is pretty much never mentioned anymore, the class forgets about him and he ends up having to spend some time with Marinette and the other outcasts

In which he realizes that they are actually good people.

Honestly, Nathaniel probably knew all along but he’s just not a drama queen about it so Lila never bothered him.

Rose

Girls besties with Prince Ali, one of the key components of Lila’s lies

She definitely does not want to believe that someone is capable of so much evil, and she definitely gets Akumatized when she figures it out

She goes through a lot of denial but is eventually convinced.

Juleka

Her dad is Jagged Stone, also another key component of Lila’s lies.

After becoming Tigris Pourpre, the holder of the tiger miraculous (that’s canon in the future), she gets a little bit more invested in cat culture

And omfg I just realized that both of our models are kittens and I just wanna DIE because that’s so cute.

And honestly now that I’m thinking about it if she was a celebrity she would totally take after Jagged and have an emotional support tiger like Princess Jasmine.

ANYWAY, I’m kinda getting off topic here.

So she asks Jagged about his cat, and he’s like

“wtf I’ve never had a cat why would I have a cat I have FANG my CROCODILE”

And she’s like but your cat...

And he’s like “Jules, darling, I wrote a song about how I replaced my family with a guitar and I have three instagrams for Fang, why would I have a feline animal?”

And she’s just like

....

And honestly she probably already knew some sh*t was up before that

Because Luka obviously, despite only having met Lila, like, once, probably, dislikes Lila severely

And also Juleka is more of an observer than a do-er so she probably saw that some stuff was up.

#Lila Rossi #Lila Rosi's Lies #Akuma Class #couffaine twins #Kim and Mari and Nino are Childhood Besties #I hate bashing just shut up everyone except Lila and Hawkmoth is awesom

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ejzah · 3 years

Text

I made this comment last night after the episode aired: Who wants to bet that the outfits Deeks was modeling involved increasingly less material as the night progressed? Much to Deeks’ chagrin and Kensi and Kirkin’s delight.

A/N: I definitely ran with this idea, @chicgeekgirl89. I hope you enjoy.

***

Quid Pro Quo

“This is completely ridiculous,” Deeks muttered for the hundredth time. He glanced over at Kensi who was happily sipping at her champagne-completely tipsy at this point and apparently past the point of caring what Anatoli Kirkin did with him-and what looked like a thin cookie of some kind.

“Oh come now, Marty,” Kirkin said in a cajoling voice, popping up from behind the camera. “You know I love it when you pout and act all grumpy, but this is not what envisioned for this photo shoot.”

“Yeah, Marty, don’t be all pouty,” Kensi chimed in, snorting to herself. Glancing over his shoulder, he glared at her and she made a concerted, but in the end futile, effort not to laugh.

Honestly, he would probably be laughing too if one of the other guys were forced to wear something that resembled the imaginings of someone on LSD. Of course, no one else on the team had a crazy Russian ex-criminal who was obsessed with them and likely to make strange requests as a form of payment. He was just that lucky.

His current outfit was black with orange stripes, making him resemble something like a strange wasp. At least there weren’t any animals attached to it this time.

“Chin up.” Kirkin directed him with a little waving gesture which Deeks followed with a reluctant sigh. “Perfect! Time for the next outfit.”

That left four more by Deeks’ count. Without a word, he accepted the latest garment bag from Kirkin and headed for the changing rooms. He supposed he was lucky Kirkin had allowed him that small privacy.

He came back out a couple minutes later, in black pants and a light blue dress shirt paired with a black tie and shoes that probably cost more than Deeks’ whole wardrobe put together. It was the least offensive thing he’d worn all night.

“Not bad,” Kensi commented when he walked back into the photography room and took up the pose Kirkin kept asking for. “Not bad at all.” Her eyes slid down to butt and he frowned at her.

“I agree, but there’s just a little something missing,” Kirkin said with a little sigh. He looked Deeks up and down too and then clapped his hands together. He started to reach towards Deeks and then glanced in Kensi’s direction and drew back. “Martin, could you roll your sleeves up? Just above the elbows.”

Shaking his head, Deeks rolled each sleeve up a few times while Kirkin watched eagerly.

“It’s almost the same as the first case when we met.” Lowering his voice, Kirkin added, “You remember, when we were both naked in the Russian baths.” This time he did touch Deeks; it was little more than a brush of his knuckles against Deeks’ forearm, but it was enough to make him shudder uncomfortably.

“Hey, keep your hands to yourself,” Kensi ordered, a note of warning in her voice. She suddenly sounded competent sober and dangerous. Kirkin obviously heard it too because he immediately dropped his hand, and moved behind the safety of the camera again.

“I apologize. I was...overcome,” he said, his expression a little guilty.

The next half hour passed in a blur. Kirkin brought in several more props for Deeks to pose with. Then two more costume changes. Deeks noticed that the clothes were getting increasingly smaller and tighter.

Currently, he was wearing a pair of exceedingly white pants and a shiny blue shirt that was straight out of “Saturday Night Fever”. The shirt gaped open, revealing the majority of his chest and stomach.

“The 70’s had its perks,” Kensi commented, moving her chair to get a better view.

“No more champagne for you,” Deeks told her firmly.

“You look absolutely wonderful! Those pants fit you like a glove and your chest...” Kirkin made a wistful sound. “You have never looked better.”

“Can we get on with this?”

“Of course. Now for this one, I’d like you to put your left arm in the air and the other on your hip.”

“I’m not doing disco poses, Kirkin.” Crossing his arms over his chest, Deeks tried to look as serious as he could while wearing pants that left very little to the imagination. They felt tighter than anything he’d worn in his exotic dancing days.

“Maaarty, you promised...” Kirkin gave him a pointed look while throwing adopting the post he apparently wanted Deeks to mimic.

“I promised to do a photo shoot, not a feature for Play Girl magazine,” Deeks said,

“I’d buy that issue.” Off to the side, Kensi regraded him with a lascivious look in her eye.

“Me too,” Kirkin added, so quietly Deeks wasn’t sure he’d heard him.

“Oh my god! Fine, I’ll do it.” He tossed his head back with a groan and planted a hand on one hip. “Anything to get this over with. But-“ he pointed between Kensi and Kirkin, two people he never thought would be joining ranks against him- “no one else will ever hear about this or see these photos.”

“Of course.” Kensi nodded along with Kirkin, pressing her lips together either in apparent delight or to hold back laughter again. Kirkin snapped a few more pictures, moving more quickly than he had before. Maybe he realized that Deeks was reaching the end of his patience.

“And now for the last outfit,” Kirkin announced, letting out a sad little sigh. “I have enjoyed this evening together.”

“Yeah it’s been great,” Deeks drawled sarcastically.

“I’ll be back in just a few moments.” He touched Deeks arm as he left the room, but this time Kensi didn’t seem to notice.

“This is so much worse than I imagined.” He plopped down in a chair beside Kensi, pushing on the bridge of his nose to alleviate the inevitable head ache he felt coming.

“I don’t think it’s that bad,” Kensi said, tilting her head as she eyed him again. She reached over and trailed her fingers down his chest, pausing on his abs.

“Unbelievable,” he muttered, shaking his head at her. “I brought you along to protect me.”

“I am still perfectly capable of protecting you.” She gave him a lazy smile and winked. “And enjoying the view.”

Before Deeks could comment on that, Kirkin returned with a surprisingly small bag this time.

“I was saving this for a very special occasion,” he said with a smile that made Deeks highly suspicious. Kensi leaned forward to get a better look as Kirkin reached in and removed the item of clothing.

It was small and checkered. God, what was with the guy and checkers?”

“Are those...?”

“Hot pants!” Kensi finished, laughing on clear delight. “Oh my god, they’re checkered hot pants.”

“I designed them myself.”

Deeks just stared for a minute, completely horrified. Apparently Kirkin thought it was admiration. His obsession with checkers was disturbing, but at least there weren’t any stuffed animals involved. Probably because there wasn’t room.

“You are delusional if you think I’m putting those on, Kirkin,” Deeks said, laughing at he absurdity of it. “I will wear your ludicrous idea of a coat, I’ll even hold your creepy stuffed animals, but I will not wear hot pants for you.”

“What about our deal?” Kirkin asked, giving the shorts a little shake. “You didn’t make any stipulations.”

“And that was a grave error on my part. I blame it on the overwhelming fumes of hairspray clouding my head.”

“Your hard work deserves to be recognized.” He turned to Kensi when Deeks remained stone-faced. “Kensi, tell him those muscles, deserve to be on display.”

“Yeah, I’m not quite that drunk.”

“Imagine how these-” he gave the pants another shake- “will emphasize those beautiful muscles, tan, and his tight bottom.”

“Alright, we’re out of here,” Deeks decided, grabbing Kensi’s hand and tugging her along after him.

“Marty, please don’t go,” Kirkin called frantically. “The pictures don’t even need to be published. They’ll go straight to my private collection! Martin?!”

“I am so glad I came along,” Kensi said, giggling to herself. “This goes in my top 10 favorite days.”

“You are a terrible body guard.” He tried to maintain a serious expression, but he couldn’t in the face of Kensi’s amusement.

“Oh please, Kirkin would never do anything to hurt you.” She patted his arm and added, “He adores you too much.”

“Fantastic,” he muttered.

“You know,” Kensi said a few minutes later as they drove home. “We totally should have snagged those shorts.”

“You really want to see me in checkered hot pants?”

“I’m curious.” She shrugged. “And as Kirkin said, you have a very nice butt.”

***

A/N: The reference to drawnings/paintings comes from some of my other stories where I’ve had Kirkin give Deeks a series of highly inappropriate gifts.

#ncis la fanfiction #marty deeks #daniela ruah #densi #Kirkin returns #russia russia russia #completely ridiculous #everyone loves Deeks’ muscles #ejzah fanfiction

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misssophiachase · 4 years

Photo

For @klarolinefallbingo - “I am thankful for...”

Thankful (terms and conditions apply)

There’s no love lost between famous models Klaus Mikaelson and Caroline Forbes publicly but when they decide on a mutually beneficial arrangement and subsequently spend Thanksgiving together to sell their fake relationship will things between them move past all the pretence?

Mariott Hotel Downtown, Syracuse, NY - Thursday AM

“Reports have surfaced over night that models Caroline Forbes and Klaus Mikaelson were spotted together in Upstate New York.”

The sound was blaring from the television. Half asleep still, Klaus groaned placing the nearest pillow over his head hoping he could try and block it out.

“We know Caroline grew up in Syracuse but, given it’s Thanksgiving, all signs point to a new, celebrity couple alert.”

“He wishes,” she muttered, shaking the bed for extra effect. Klaus was suddenly aware of her close presence, wondering how she came to be there.

“How are you suddenly in my bed? You know if you wanted me that badly all you needed to do was ask, love.”

“Calm down, Romeo,” she drawled. “You got the room with the TV and I was bored.”

“Is this the part where I admit I don’t watch much television? Especially the ridiculous, gossipy kind.” Klaus admitted, discarding the useless pillow and finally opening his eyes. The invading sunlight was streaming in through the blinds but it didn’t stop his gaze from lingering on his bed mate.

Caroline Forbes was gorgeous in front of a camera, that much he knew, but fresh-faced, first thing in the morning dressed in tartan flannel she was absolutely stunning.

“How do you think I feel? My family is going to see this,” she hissed, throwing the pillow back so it hit him squarely on the jaw.

“Ouch, Forbes.”

“That did not hurt you big baby.” She poked her tongue out at him for extra effect. It was clearly juvenile but Klaus would be lying if he thought it wasn’t kind of adorable.

“I thought this was the whole point of playing pretend? You want people to think we’re together because you can’t keep your hands off me.”

That wasn’t the case obviously, they’d both decided it was the best way to keep the press off their backs and constantly speculating about their love lives. Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time but now it was probably too late to change course.

“If only that pillow could stifle that ego,” she growled, rolling her eyes.

“Is there a reason for this unwanted wake-up call, love?”

“I told you we need to prep before lunch with my family and don’t call me that,” she muttered, pulling on the quilt so he was completely uncovered. Klaus couldn’t miss how her blue eyes lingered on his bare chest.

“I get it,” he smirked knowingly. “You’re upset I’m wearing boxers because you really wanted to see me naked.”

“Tell yourself that if it makes you feel like a man,” she drawled. “And stop changing the subject.”

“Look, I’m all for being prepared.” She gave him a look which plainly said she didn’t believe him. “But I know everything about you so it’s not necessary.”

“Oh really?” She asked, arching her left eyebrow curiously.

“Dad is Jeff, mum is Kate, dog is Lassie...”

“Yeah just like the dog in the movies,” she scoffed. “Clearly you haven’t been listening at all. I really should have known, Mikaelson.” Now, she was on her feet pacing up and down like a caged animal.

“And here I was conscientiously memorising your brother Elijah’s penchant for suits, Rebekah’s love for fruit salad as long as the melons don’t touch and Kol’s need to carry a baseball bat around with him for no apparent reason.”

He felt an unfamiliar shortness of breath, almost like her words had affected him more than expected. She remembered all those unusual things about his siblings? Klaus was up in an instant, his hands finding hers and stopping her pacing. He felt immediately warm from her touch but decided to blame it on the heating system and nothing else.

“I was joking but clearly need to read the room better,” he offered sincerely. “Trust me, love, I remember everything you’ve told me. Your dad Bill loves to tell everyone childhood stories about you no matter how embarrassing and he likes to spoil the ending of every movie you watch but for some reason that only endears him to you. Your mum, Liz, is your role model not to mention the sheriff and if I forgot that it would be a mistake given she carries a weapon. Your dog Lucy is a golden retriever who likes to chase her tail but I’m sure she could rival Lassie in the rescuing stakes. Oh, and there’s a cousin who I need to stay away from because she gets a little touchy feely after a few glasses of wine.”

What he wasn’t expecting was for her to hit him in the chest quite so forcefully. “You ass.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he teased.

“Her name is Hayley and I expect you to keep at least a few seats between you.”

“Sounds like someone is jealous.” The slight pink tinge on her cheeks was telling Klaus she was. And for some reason it made him the happiest guy in the world.

“Just checking you’re familiar with all the traditions.”

“Like eating a lot?”

“Well, of course, and we say what we’re thankful for before we eat.” Klaus had heard about that tradition but figured given he was a bit of a foreigner when it came to the festivities he didn’t have to partake.

Although he was doing well career wise, Klaus had never really experienced much family bonding from a young age. His mother had died and his estranged father was a tyrant. He loved his siblings for all their quirks but they weren’t exactly close either.

“Maybe I can take a pass on that?”

5 hours later...

“Klaus, since you’re our guest, how about you tell us what you’re thankful for first?” Liz had that sweet smile but underneath her interrogation skills clearly knew no bounds.

Klaus had done the perfect boyfriend routine up to this point, even eating those weird, candied yams, but the increasing tightness in his chest and dry mouth was a sign his act was close to derailing.

All because of one tradition.

Caroline placed her hand in his under the table, something unexpected but at the same time comforting in the best possible way.

“Mom, leave Klaus alone, I’ll go,” she insisted, squeezing his hand affectionately. “I’m thankful for...”

“No, let me,” Klaus interrupted, squeezing her hand back. Nothing felt as right as it did now. “I’m thankful for your amazing daughter. For a kid who didn’t know much about affection growing up I’m so thankful to have someone who is so kind and caring and loves me for me.”

Caroline was quiet, almost like she was trying to collect her thoughts. Had he gone too far? They were supposed to be pretending after all.

“Now he’s a keeper and if you don’t want him...” drunk cousin Hayley offered breaking the silence. Caroline clearly wanted to kill her given the look crossing her features.

“Thank you, Hayley,” she replied through gritted teeth. “But I, uh, do want him and, have another wine.”

Lucy barked at that moment, she was sitting underneath the table clearly waiting for scraps but Klaus figured she was most probably an ally.

“So, do i go next?” Hayley asked, clearly perplexed.

“No, it’s my turn,” she said hurriedly. “I’m thankful for you, Klaus. You challenge me, inspire me and remind me that every day is another adventure. I’m thankful that you love me and am so excited for our future.”

The table seemed to go quiet, even Hayley. Klaus felt like he’d probably overstepped the mark but hearing Caroline he realised maybe they were on the same page.

Given it was Thanksgiving, Klaus didn’t think it was a bad time to share their unrequited feelings. So much so that he proposed on the same day a year later and at the same table and she agreed to make him the happiest guy in the world.

The fact the tabloids cared didn’t even factor into their decision.

#klaroline fall bingo #thankful #klaroline fanfiction #klaroline #klaroline drabbles

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casualotptrash · 3 years

Text

Fixes to the Persona Series

Oh boy I hope you all are ready to talk about this for the hundredth time!

My recent tirade about the FES vs Portable discussion started to make me think about what I think could be done in the next coming installments of the series to make it either feel a bit more fresh or just as an overall improvement. Now, I know many of the things I’m about to say have been said time and time again, but...this is my post so I’m going to give my opinion on this :)

Enjoy and feel free to vent with me about your biggest gripes with the series, because I’m always ready for a salt-fest.

(This post will pretty much have any spoilers about Persona 3, 4, and 5 (including Royal) so beware if you haven’t finished those)

To clarify right off the bat, anything I don’t mention in here as something I would fix I either don’t think it is a problem or I just happened to forget it.

1. Player Gender Options

(Royal Spoilers)

Starting off with a great one, I think that an improvement to the series would be to allow an option between a male and a female MC. I don’t think this choice would affect the story in Persona 3 or 4 very much (and we’ve seen that with Persona 3), but I have imagined and seen so many fanfics about how it would actually be a really interesting twist for Persona 5. For most of the story it probably wouldn’t matter too much, but it could impact the first palace so much. The first palace/story arc is already one of the best arcs in the game, so imagine if the player could relate to Ann and Shiho on an even deeper level? To be clear, I’m not saying the player has to be sexually assaulted or something, but I imagine Kamoshida would at least treat the player more like Ann rather than just a delinquent nuisance.

Also, and this just came to mind, but picture this: in the third semester Maruki actualizes things that he thinks will make others happy. Obviously, Joker and Akechi are against this. In the game itself there are a lot of clues to point that Joker does care about Akechi, and does want to see him again, but in the end they both agree that they need to fight for the real world that they worked for, not for a fake reality. If Joker was a female, they could still go the route of doing this (especially if romancing Akechi was an option? Or they just hint at them having feelings but Akechi doesn’t want to commit because he’s a self-loathing boi who needs to work on himself first).

Alternatively...what about a badass narrative of a girl, in a powerful position as the leader of the Phantom Thieves, fighting against a man who believes he knows what’s best for her and tries to appease her by just bringing back Akechi? Kinda like a “Yeah fuck what you did, you just need Akechi/a man and he’ll make you happy” type of thing. Obviously this would all be subtle, because I do think Maruki has good intentions, but he also blames himself for all of the hard things Rumi has gone through and may internalize that as women needing a “strong man” to protect them. Of course this might seem too preachy for people, but I thought it was an interesting idea to run with and that some people could relate to the whole “Woman trying to think and do things for themselves? Nah just sit in your little fake world and be happy, thanks.”

(Sidenote, Sae would be such a good role model...after her change of heart of course. You crush it girl.)

However, I do understand that this could be a lot of extra work, especially when the game is so long and tedious. That’s why I would also be fine with the strategy of “switching off” per say. By that I mean if Persona 5 has a male MC, then Persona 6 would have a female MC, and if a 7th game was made (in 2040 or whatever) then it could go back to a male. This would eliminate the issue of having to record all the voice lines twice or any other extra work that would come with having to make both genders an option. Honestly I know this option doesn’t matter too much to people, they just want an MC who is either a self-insert or actually a character (more on that later), but I do think it would be a very nice inclusion especially for the female fans of the game. It kind of sucks that three of the most popular games in the series all have male protags, and the female protag who was introduced often gets shafted for very dumb reasons. (Oh no, you have the option to romance a kid that most people don’t even choose or like, that means she’s a p*do! :I I know this comment is normally a joke but seriously it’s not funny).

2. Setting of the game (not transfer but also maybe involve the other games?)

(Spoilers for the Arena games and Persona 5/Royal)

So there are two main points to this suggestion: where the game takes place and how it relates to the other games.

As we all know, the three latest entries in the mainline Persona series have all followed a certain trend. They are all high schoolers, who transfer to a town, and know basically no one there. This formula has been repeated for the last three games, and while they are still great games, I think this trend needs to change. Any amount of switching this up would be better than nothing in my opinion. For example, the MC could be a new college student who goes to a new place for college (if they wanted the MC to move somewhere), and there meets the party members who are a mix of people who also don’t know the area (new to the college) and those who do know the area/some people there. This would appease people who have been really wanting an MC to not be a high schooler, while also giving the feel of meeting new people and seeing a new place.

On the other hand, the next game could take place in the MC’s home town, where plot stuff happens and they connect more to the people they already knew (aka party members) to solve the plot stuff. They could be in high school or college, either I think would work, but it would appease people who don’t just want to be a transfer student each time and also have some connection to the characters prior to the game. However, this would be difficult to do given the current “flow” that the games have, that is that the MC doesn’t know anything and has to ask a million questions. It would be very strange to go up to someone you have known most of your life and ask them a basic question, which is why that style of storytelling(?) would not fit well with this and other methods would need to be used.

Now, for the second point, I understand that they don’t make strong connections to the other games because they want each game to be able to be played as a stand-alone, and not to hold people back by forcing them to play the other games to understand this. Makes sense, but usually what happens is that people play one game in the series and then try another game, if they really like the one they started with. After playing through the ones they want to, and if they like them, then there is an appreciation for the series as a whole. Of course Atlus sneaks in little references here and there, like having the P4 gang go to Iwatodai or some TV news announcements on P5 that allude to Adachi and other characters, but those cant always cut it. One of the biggest letdowns I would come to know is the fact that the Shadow Operatives are not mentioned at all, outside of those small references, in P5.

Persona 5 literally has the PT’s broadcasting all of their heists, and includes major government officials like Shido. There are also the mental shutdowns/psychotic breakdowns, which also have people confused, along with how the PT’s steal hearts in the first place. I don’t know about you all, but this seems like the perfect opportunity to get the Shadow Operatives involved. This is like...literally what they were made for? Investigating persona/shadow activity and such, and we already know that the PT’s deeds reached at least Hawaii so it would be strange for the SO’s to have not heard anything. There are headcanons that they were blocked by Shido or something, which is pretty interesting to think about/develop, but it was only thought up to make an excuse for why they aren’t there. Persona 5 introduced a lot of people to the story, so yeah some people would probably be very confused about who the SO’s are and stuff, but it could payoff in the long run for long-time fans and those who play the other games after.

Depending on the story of P6, I don’t think it would be a bad idea to start including casts from the other games into newer ones...especially when each game introduces 8-9 new characters per game, and those games usually get made into spin-offs that include the characters made in the previous games! Counting only the characters introduced in the previous games (3-5), Persona Q2 has 33 characters (11 P3, 10 P5, 10 P4, and 2 P3P, this includes the velvet room assistants for each respective game). That’s a ton! Sure, having new characters each time is part of the fun, but I believe there is definitely a way to split them up. I don’t think it would be too much of an issue to have a smaller party member group (you can only have 4 fight at a time anyway), that way there is still the enjoyment of seeing new characters, while also filling up some of those spots with preexisting ones.

3. Characterization

This kind of piggybacks off of the second point, but personally I think they need to stop with the self-insert protags. First, like I mentioned earlier, it kind of messes up the “flow” of the game since they have to pretend that the character doesn’t know anything because the player doesn’t know anything (yet). For example, how many times did the option to say “Probation?” or “Expelled?” or something like that come up as a dialogue choice in P5? Too often, in my opinion. I assume anyone over the age of 15 would probably know what those things mean, but in case anyone doesn’t they have to make it an option to say.

Adding onto this, it also seems like people start to like the characters a whole lot more when spinoffs or movies/animations come out that really expand on the character, because in those games/mediums the player is taken out of the self-insert role. I would say out of the three games, the Persona 3 protags have the most characterization in game through their dialogue. I haven’t watched the movies, but I heard it fleshes the MC out a lot more. In Persona 4...well, I see what they’re going for but I also feel like Yu has the personality of a cardboard box. The animations definitely helped out this one, as did Arena, and I’ve seen other people agree that they liked Yu a lot more after playing/watching those things.

As for Persona 5, I think they tried to give Joker some characterization (and oddly enough “Joker” has a lot more to him than Akira/Ren, but he still fell more on the side of self-insert. P5 the animation is...of questionable quality, but I think Xander did a good job in the Dub (which is the one I watched) in trying to make him feel more like a human being. I haven’t played Strikers, but I assume it goes more on the route of P5 because you’re still controlling Joker. Oddly enough, I feel like the dancing game gave him the most characterization? Call me crazy, but his dance moves and voice lines just ooze of his suave, friendly, and supportive attitude. I wish that they took whatever those voice lines embodied and just put them into the game, because I would like Joker a lot more than I already do (which, to be clear, I do still like him a lot).

Although this doesn’t have much to do with the characterization, it would also be nice if Atlus could just put the “canon name” in the game while also still having the option to choose your own name. Again, this might add a little more work but maybe if someone chose the “canon” option then their name could be spoken in voice lines, but if they don’t then the names would be left out (except for text) like usual. Honestly this is mostly up to personal preference because I like some of the “not canon” names more so I would want to use those if I could, but I also don’t like having the characters just randomly cut off in the end of sentences when they’re saying your name. Just kind of breaks immersion, which is probably why I really like Joker because at least they say “Joker” quite a bit.

(Little rant, but why do the PT’s get like two group names? At first Morgana defaults to “The Phantom Thieves of Hearts” but then when you get to choose the name of your team, that name is what shows up instead. However, everyone still calls you the “Phantom Thieves” and the gang refers to themselves as that too! I get naming the group is kind of cool, but I would have preferred if they were just called The Phantom Thieves (of Hearts) and that way their name could be spoken in dialogue too.)

4. Choices matter...please? (romance and regular dialogue)

This might be easy or difficult to implement, I’m not so sure because I’m not a game developer, but I really wish choices mattered more in this game. I feel like most of these suggestions (especially later on down the list) are just little things that could be added to the game that would really amp it up, and this is one of them.

When I talk about choices mattering, I do not mean that dialogue should be so open that there are branching paths and that your choices affect the story. What I mean is that you could choose two different options and not get the same exact answer. I get that this isn’t always the case, but when it is it feels very strange. In this same vein of things, please stop with the illusion of choice because everyone sees right through it. I didn’t really see this as much in P3, and I still need to finish P4, but it was definitely apparent with P5. I felt that so many times in the game there were two options that were just “Option A” or “Synonym for Option A” as the choices.

Along the same lines, I think it would be great if romance choices were actually acknowledged. Again, there is a little of this in P3 and P4 where some party members comment on your relation to the other party members (Ex. Junpei saying to take care of Fuuka if you date, Yukari stating that Akihiko probably wouldn’t want FeMC going on a group date if they’re dating, and Yosuke coming to assumptions about who Yu spends the summer festival with), but they are very few and far between. I also saw no evidence of this at all in P5, which was pretty disappointing. In fact, in Persona 5 Royal if you are dating Ann and go on the Christmas Date with her, she makes some comment about not wanting the others to find out about them. Like...girl, considering someone can finish Ann’s social link as early as June or so on NG+ I’m pretty sure your friend group would notice if you’ve been dating for 6 months?? I know that romance is definitely not the focus of the game, but if you’re going to include it why is it shoved into the farthest corner and never touched?

Don’t get me wrong, it is cute to see the romances in the game play out and such, but on the same hand I can see how much better it could be. In reality it kind of sucks to romance someone in the Persona games because no one acknowledges it, and you only get like 3-4 small scenes in each game to spend with them (beach in P5, festival in all, Christmas in all, valentines except for 3, White Day in P5R). Just imagine if you could take a walk in Kyoto with whoever you romanced, or were able to take your partner to the Jazz Jin in P5R and they would get like special date dialogue or something? Very very small additions, but it would go a long way in making the romances feel a bit more connected.

5. LGBT Romances

I went into this in some detail in Part 3 of my FES vs Portable debate post, so I to save your eyes from reading more I’ll just quickly say that Atlus definitely needs to add in more LGBT romance options because it’s ridiculous at this point. The fact that you can’t romance any guy (because all of the MC’s are male, this is not including the FeMC stuff because that’s not typical in the Persona series) but can have a whole harem (despite what they may do to you) is just ridiculous. They’d rather let you date a fully-fledged adult than someone of the same gender.

Also they’re cowards for scrapping the Yosuke romance and that’s that :)

6. Fixing Social Links

Link to the stand-alone post about this section.

I literally was going to include this in this post, but this section alone (which I knew was going to be the biggest) was almost as large (a few hundred words off) than everything prior to this point put together. I’ll make a separate post with just this section soon, but this criticism of mine can basically be boiled down into the fact that the main growth of a character should happen outside of their social link in order to avoid tonal whiplash in the story, and that this will fix the problem of some characters feeling “one-note” if you do not do their social links/confidants. Essentially, go back to the P3 method.

However, something that needs to be fixed for all of the games is that you shouldn’t only get social link points for saying what the person wants to hear. I get the train of thought that if you say what they want to hear they will like you more, but that’s not how real friendships work? Obviously you shouldn’t be saying something that offends them and think it will raise your points, but sometimes people just need to hear things?

I can think of three standout examples: Nozomi in P3 (Gourmet King), Mishima in P5, and Shinya in P5. Nozomi’s link is a hot mess in of itself, but it was very frustrating to at one point just be like “Hey can you chill?” when he’s trying to induct you into a scam/cult or whatever, and it reverses the social link. Like ok buddy fuck you too, I was just trying to say no and that you need to stop scamming people?? For Mishima in P5 (I’ll go more in depth on him in a later post), it’s just kind of strange that you can clearly see him starting to obsess about the PT’s but you can’t really tell him he needs to stop until the social link demands it. Even then, the only way to get points is pretty much to go “Wow Mishima, you’re the best! You’re the reason we exist! We love you!!!” and it just feels kind of wrong. Shinya’s is very much along the same line as that, except you basically have to do something even worse and encourage him to keep being a bully? Thankfully P5 doesn’t reverse confidants, but I probably would have done so with Shinya because I kept telling him he shouldn’t bully others until I realized how to get points with him. It just feels wrong to encourage such behavior until the character suddenly realizes they’ve been acting wrong. No shit, I’ve been trying to say that.

I think social links need quite the fix to them, but this is definitely one of them. Strong, real relationships are not just built upon telling the other person what they want to hear.

7. Have Characters Hang Out

This is mostly a suggestion based off of P5′s downfall in this aspect. I think that P3 and P4 did a good job at showing the characters hang out in other aspects, or hang out separately outside of the MC. P4 had a lot of good group hangouts, but not many scenes without the MC. P3 had the opposite where members kind of hung out together a bit, but also showed or mentioned them hanging out without the MC. However, P5 didn’t have much for the group hangouts and also I can’t really recall a single scene of the party members hanging out outside of the MC.

Along with all of the problems I mentioned earlier with the cardboard cut-out personalities, I feel that this contributed to P5′s group feeling a bit less cohesive. Obviously when they all hung out they acted like a real group of friends, but it’s hard to see it as legitimate when 95% of their hangouts are just meetings for the Phantom Thief stuff. The only times they hang out outside of the PT stuff is the TV station, the fireworks festival, helping Futaba + the beach trip, and the culture festival. Like I said, I can’t recall them hanging out together outside of being with the MC/PT business, although I could have missed some stray text message if one was mentioned.

In this aspect, P5 feels like a small step down from P3 and a huge step down from P4. I think some of the events in P4 are a bit unnecessarily long, but at least they go through the effort of showing that the group is also a real friend group, not just people trying to solve the murder. Strikers may be a step up from P5, but I haven’t played it yet so I can’t judge that.

Also bring back school trips to prior locations of Persona games. Imagine P5 group going to Inaba and it turns out this is the small country town that Joker came from? And they sprinkle in references to P4? *chefs kiss*.

8. Remove/Change Certain Tropes

(Spoilers for the babe hunts, stupid ass hot springs scenes, and Ryuji abuse after certain palace)

By that spoiler tag, you can probably tell that this is the category I’m most passionate about. I can deal with social links feeling a bit disconnected. I can deal with the MC being a self-insert. What I cant deal with anymore? These. Dumb. Ass. Scenes.

Let me explain (insert Sojiro voice here)

Every game has three main tropes. One, the babe hunt scenes. Two, the hot springs scenes. Three, one character being dunked on by everyone else. I’ll go through each, scream about my feelings about them, and why they need to change.

First, the babe hunt scenes. I don’t have much of a problem with this trope to be honest, I just think it could be done better in some games. I actually think the one in P3 was quite funny, because the group treated it like an “operation” which added a bit to humor. Truth be told, I was just a bit disappointed in P3P FeMC route when you didn’t have your own version of the “babe hunt” thing. I know Yukari and Mitsuru aren’t the types to go hunt for boys, but perhaps the MC could have suggested it as a fun idea. In P4, this scene happens in Okina and largely remains the same as the P3 formula, but I think it lacks just a bit of the humor that the P3 one had. Lastly, in P5 this scene happens during the beach trip but compared to the others it’s pretty...lackluster?

It shows a montage of Joker, Ryuji, and Yusuke talking to girls but no actual dialogue goes on. After talking to three or so, Yusuke disappears and this is when Joker and Ryuji meet the two “flamboyant” men again. This time, the men either chase them down or call after them (?) depending on if you’re playing Vanilla or Royal. I don’t like how they use these men in the first place, but on top of that it kind of takes the “babe hunt” out of “babe hunt” if you don’t actually...hunt for babes? Like no actual dialogue is spoken when trying to convince the girls, which was most of the fun in the other scenes. You don’t even have free reign to walk around at the beach, and the scene is formatted in a more cutscene type of way. It just makes P5′s babe hunt fall flat in many ways, and overall I finished the scene with a strong “meh.” The only good things about this was watching Makoto and Ann defend themselves and Yusuke with the lobsters.

Now for the hot springs scenes....hoo boy.

Simply put, in my opinion, these scenes suck ass in almost all of the games. P3 is the least egregious in my opinion, for a couple reasons. First is that it shows that Junpei and Ryoji were kind of trying to peep on the girls, and Akihiko and MC were just dragged into it. They have some funny dialogue, and in FES and Portable they even included the option to try and evade the girls. I found the little evade minigame to be really fun, even though every time I can’t help but fail because I want to say “It was a cat!” I find it interesting that there is the option for the men to get off scott-free, and that their dialogue after the trip is over changes slightly because of this.

On the FeMC side, I also find it fun that you have the reverse of the minigame and actually seek out the boys. My only letdown with this entire scene is if the boys are caught. I get it, it’s supposed to be funny with Mitsuru executing them and such, but as a reasonable person with a brain it seems really dumb to me that Mitsuru would just punish all of them when it’s just Ryoji and Junpei’s fault? This is nothing against Mitsuru, but her actions just seem so...exaggerated for some reason? Like Mitsuru is usually smart, and even if she is embarrassed I don’t get why she would punish innocent party members. A huge disappointment for me was that the FeMC isn’t able to stop Mitsuru from doing this either. Not even a choice to try and encourage Mitsuru or discourage her (so both options would be available). You just kinda sit there and watch, even after Akihiko say “It was a misunderstanding!” or something. For me it was especially strange because MC was dating Akihiko at that point, so why wouldn’t I try to hear him out? Just struck me as kind of dumb.

If I thought that was dumb, P4 and P5 were out to really make me roll my eyes and sigh in disappointment. Unlike P3, which has most of the scene being pretty good besides the very end where Mitsuru punishes the boys, the P4 and P5 scenes are all bad. This is not the first time anyone has said it, and won’t be the last, but they aren’t funny scenes in the slightest.

In P4, it’s actually the girl’s fault that they’re in the hot springs when the boys walk in. They stayed over their allotted time and into the time when boys are supposed to be in there. So what do they do? Get flustered, yell at them, and throw buckets at the group. Oh, and they don’t listen to the boy’s protests at all. Really.

Who thought this was a good idea?? The girls even realize after that they were in the wrong, say they should apologize, but I don’t think they ever show a scene of them apologizing after. This whole scene, like the hot springs ones in general, are just exaggerated (ie. throwing masses of buckets) to be funny, but they really fail in my opinion. It just serves to make the player kinda angry (since they’re usually on the receiving end) and make the girls look wildly unrealistic and dumb. I have never really thought that needless physical abuse is funny, so these scenes are just the bane of my existence apparently.

There actually isn’t a hot springs scene in P5, but they did add one in Strikers.

If they wanted to still do these scenes, maybe they could switch from making it “just beat up the boys” into something else. For example, the girls could try to peep, or walk in on the boys. Equality y’all, sometimes girls can do those things too (but still don’t beat them up. Just don’t beat anyone up). If none of that happens, or maybe that’s how the scene ends, the rest of the scene could just be a chill, relaxing scene between those involved. Essentially, how the scenes go before the whole “lets beat up the boys” thing comes in.

Lastly, on basically the same vein as why I don’t like the hot springs scenes, I’m starting to get real sick of the “let’s shit on this one character” trope. In Persona 3, I don’t think it’s that bad because they kind of do it with Junpei but they also give him a lot of character development, and eventually the sort of hostile shitting on him turns into just gentle teasing.

For P4 I still don’t think it is too bad, because Yosuke is kind of the one being shit on but he also does the same to the other people in the group? I suppose the only thing that really sticks out to me is how Teddie abuses Yosuke’s wallet (making him buy/pay for a lot of stuff with his hard earned cash), but I also don’t like Teddie at all in the first place so I may be biased about him. Oh well, he still shouldn’t do those things and I don’t really find it funny but to each their own.

However...this problem walks and rocks the fucking runway in Persona 5. Namely, this happens with Ryuji. The most obvious aggressor in this is Morgana, because him and Ryuji butt heads so often, but the other thieves kind of do it as well. Obviously they don’t do this all the time, but it’s extremely frustrating when they do. Morgana getting into arguments with Ryuji at the drop of a hat get old very quick, and the other thieves poking a bit of fun about how dumb Ryuji can be is also not that riveting. Despite all of that, the scene that highlights all of this is the scene after Shido’s palace collapse.

You all knew this was coming, but I couldn’t resist talking about it. The scene is so tone deaf in so many ways that it takes away all of the emotional impact that they were trying to build. Even the first time I watched this scene, in which I didn’t think they would kill off Ryuji, I could still sympathize with the group being concerned about him. Then when he shows up they...just beat him up and leave him unconscious next to a pole while they walk away? Wow.

On all subsequent playthroughs I just skip this scene, but I truly cannot understand why that was the angle they went for. Were they trying to insert some humor right after an emotional scene? That can be done in certain cases, but....why??? It’s so unbelievable it’s almost laughable. It’s not even like the bath scene where the the girls think the guys are trying to peep on them. It’s simply because he survived which I assume is what they wanted!

“Oh no you made us thought you were dead (even though he didn’t because he couldn’t control any of this), we’re going to beat you up!” Now you just make the characters look like irrational idiots.

Seriously Atlus, stop doing this. In most cases it just serves to make the player kind of frustrated, and in this case it it literally takes all of the emotional weight out of the scene and makes me think worse of the entire female cast. Please. Stop.

Well that’s the end of that. I don’t think I said anything too revolutionary, although my opinions about the social links and characterization might get me some flak. I just want the characters to be more than one personality trait... This was a really long post again, so kudos to whoever made it to this point!

Next time, on Dragon Ball Z Casual’s pointless posts: something Persona related :)

#long post #persona 3 #persona 3 portable #persona series #persona 4 #persona 5 #persona 5 royal #p3 #p3p #p4 #p5 #that's a lot of p's #ready to get shit on for my opinions #but maybe just ask me first before doing so #who's ready to play persona 6 when it comes out and be slightly disappointed #I am!#but I'll still like it because it's persona

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americanopouroverplease · 3 years

Text

Sweat It Out: Chapter One

Seokjin X Reader

Word Count; 5,604

Potential Warnings: Blatantly poor use of French terminology, genuinely bad choice in nicknames, Seokjin making terrible dad jokes at the gym, scene stealing jungkook wearing muscle shirts & generally being an adorable muscle bun.

Thank you to @ksmuttherapy & @shadowsremedy for beta reading for me!

Please Note! -- Reader in this story is plus sized! As such, certain descriptors will be used and if this detracts from the story for you then I hope you are able to find something else that rocks your frock!

If pain had a soundtrack you were certain it would be the incessantly upbeat elevator music blaring through the speakers as you grunted and suffered your way through yet another sweat soaked set of heaving sumo squats. Your thighs were spread wide for all the wrong reasons as the lycra blend of your leggings were being stretched to their absolute limit. The grimace pulling at your lips was inherently reminiscent of the principal from Matilda and you were absolutely sure that in this very moment she was prettier than you.

“Dig deep! 10 more!” The trainer was already getting on your nerves with his ridiculous abs and insanely thick biceps. He was getting paid to stand off in the corner of the room while you wheezed and wailed like a dying animal. There wasn’t a single drop of sweat on his perfect skin while you groaned, dropping your weight low only to huff with the effort of lifting your substantial bulk upward once more. “Don’t let yourself down! You’re almost done!”

“How is this legal?” The screech escaped you before you could even think to stop yourself. Of course the only response your trainer gave was a low chuckle as he crossed his arms over that absurdly large chest of his.

“It’s legal because you pay him.” One of your fellow suffering souls offered as he too continued your joint endeavor in self inflicted torture. “Look at him, he feeds off this.”

“If you have time to complain you have time to do single leg lunges!” If you weren’t so preoccupied with the burning pain consuming your hamstrings and the complete lack of stamina you’ve built up over your years of working a desk job and eating cinnamon rolls you would fire off your best shots at the trainer. Instead, you settled for fantasizing about using your thighs to crush his big gym rat skull.

“Don’t listen to him.” Your agonized counterpart called out. “It’ll only make this worse in the long run.” In between each lunge you chanced a glance away from the trainer and over to your new partner in complaint. His cheeks were full, but his lips were even more generous as he pursed and let out huge puffs of agonized breath. He didn’t seem to be out of shape at all, which made you hesitate in appreciating his finer attributes. The muscles filling out his sweat-soaked t-shirt were clearly defined, but what really took your breath away (besides all these squats and lunges) was the fact that his shoulders would obviously enter any room before the rest of him did. Was he even real? Or were you just swept up in an endorphin and exercise fueled haze of fantasy?

“3...2...1!” The trainer’s voice pulled you out of your thoughts only to force you to realize that this entire time you’d been staring at the broad shouldered giant flexing his thighs almost directly in front of you. If your face wasn’t already beet red from exercise the mortification and sheer embarrassment would do it for you. “That’s time!”

You ran your own business, you were strong and independent. You sank down to the floor, sprawled out, and shut your eyes as you pretended to catch your breath in an attempt to avoid making any potential eye contact with the currently sweaty, also currently gorgeous and far too athletic man for your own good. You were a smart woman who knew how to pick and choose her own battles.

“I regret everything.” The wheezing prattle sounded just beside you, surprising enough to be the perfect catalyst in opening your eyes. “I blame myself. I can’t stop eating, food is an addiction and there is no cure.” Shoulders was flopped on the floor right next to you in all your sticky, sweaty, stinky glory. He didn’t seem phased by your appearance in the least.

“You should regret everything, hyung. How did you eat seven lobsters anyway?” The trainer, at some point, moved to join the two of you on the floor. “I thought you were going to make yourself sick.”

“You know each other?” You were sitting up now, curiosity flaring as you shifted around and began to stretch. Truth be told, you hated every aspect of stretching, but if you didn’t the muscle ache would be that much worse tomorrow.

“We’re related.” Your trainer smiled, big bunny teeth on display as he watched you push yourself forward and reach toward your toes. “That’s a great stretch, you can also lay flat, then draw one leg up toward your chest and rock. It’s really good for your back and spine.”

“Cousins, and how do you even have the energy to move right now?” The breathtaking man was still pressed to the floor, cheeks puffed out as his chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. “Jungkook if I weren’t already dead I would kill you for this.”

“You’ll thank me when you’re old and don’t have type 2 diabetes.” Jungkook grinned, “Y/N, the lump on the floor is my cousin, Jin. I’m currently trying to save him from himself.”

“This face will still be handsome even if it has diabetes.” Jin retorted, then dragged himself up from the floor just enough to face you with a smile. “I’m worldwide handsome, but I do answer to Seokjin.” He lifted his hand, only to blow you a kiss and wink. What were you supposed to say to that?

“I see.” Was he used to people staring at him? He didn’t seem surprised or offended when you openly admired his body. He couldn’t be a model if he routinely ate as much as Jungkook implied. The only thought that sprang up from this conclusion was a lurid amount of jealousy over his apparent metabolism. “I’m Y/N. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Hyung! She didn’t even blush!” Jungkook wasn’t rolling on the floor with laughter but he was obviously amused by your lack of reaction to Jin’s flirting. He had one hand clasped on his cousin’s shoulder as he leaned exceptionally close to the man’s sweaty face.

“I only have two options now.” Jin responded with an air of solemnity. His eyes were hooded, expression far too serious for a gym floor as he shifted his weight closer to your form. “I’m going to give you my greatest joke, and if that doesn’t work I’m going to beg you to let me take you out on a date.”

“Excuse me?” You felt stunned, not only because the subject matter seemed so scattered but had this man actually just casually asked you out after seeing you at your worst? It was 7 pm on a Wednesday night just after you spent the past forty-five minutes heaving your weight back and forth in an attempt to convince your metabolism to decide it was finally okay for you to go from a generous 2X to a reasonable medium or large size pant.

“What do runners eat before a sprint?” You blinked once, twice, and then realized he actually expected you to give him an answer. When your glance shifted toward Jungkook the overgrown muscle simply shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

“If I say that I don’t know, can we move on?” You pressed gently, not wanting to be rude, but also feeling a little out of your depth. You were well aware that your body type was not considered conventionally attractive. It felt suspicious to have the seemingly undivided attention of someone who could snag any woman or man he wanted with his looks alone. No one flirted with you unless they had a fat fetish, and you always steered clear of those types.

“Nothing, they fast!” The joke was terrible, but the laughter that followed was even worse. You could only describe the sound escaping Jin’s throat as something eerily similar to windshield wipers scraping along the glass. It took a full minute of you staring at him with wide eyes for the laughter to subside.

“She didn’t laugh hyung.” Jungkook was still grinning wide, leaving the rest of Jin’s previous declaration unspoken.

“Do I need to beg, Y/N?” Instantly all signs of humor were gone; replaced by soulful eyes fixed directly upon your face. Jin shifted and knelt in front of you, his palms pressed together as he appeared to be carefully hopeful. “I will.”

“For what?” You hedged, feeling confused at best, and uncomfortable at worst. You had signed up for this exercise class in order to try and lose weight, to build up your confidence. Nowhere in the gym agreement was there a clause including fit men who seemed out of your league flirting with you and asking you out on dates you weren’t ready for. Was he serious?

“Please, Y/N, will you let me take you out for a nice dinner and delightful conversation?”

“Where and when?” As entertaining as it felt to watch a man kneel and beg for your time and attention there was no helping the wariness you felt. Prior experience was a masterful teacher and you weren’t interested in being the butt of anyone’s joke.

“I wouldn’t dream of making your decisions for you.” Jin readily replied, his cheeks full and round as he smiled widely. “I’ll let you choose, anything you want.”

“Anything?” You sounded skeptical, and didn’t bother trying to hide it as you crossed your arms beneath your breasts and stared at the man before you. He nodded, almost eagerly.

“Any restaurant you want, I promise I’ll find something I like to eat. Food is a passion of mine.” You heard Jungkook snort beside you, but chose to ignore him in favor of coming up with the most expensive restaurant you could think of.

“Fine. Take me to Le lapin blanc.” You didn’t feel nearly as calm and collected as you sounded, but he didn’t need to know that. All he needed to know was that he had to shell out serious money to prove his interest.

“Perfect, does tomorrow work for you?” Shock registered, and then disbelief. Le lapin blanc was the most expensive and exclusive restaurant in town. There was no getting into the building without a reservation, and you couldn’t just get one overnight.

“If you can get us in, sure.” You agreed, immediately convinced this was all a joke and you would be canceling your gym membership by the end of the week.

“Perfect, would you like me to pick you up at seven?” He had to play the part until the end, you supposed. With a quick nod, you assumed the conversation would be over and moved to push yourself up from the floor. “Y/N, do you happen to have your phone with you?” That question caught you off guard.

“Yes, why?”

“I’d like to give you my phone number so that I can contact you.” Jin responded affably. “How else will I find out where to pick you up?” Ah. Right. With a little bit of reluctance you fished your cell phone from your pocket and handed the device to him. He smiled once more, patiently waiting for you to unlock it before pulling up your contact list and adding himself to it.

“I’ll see you tomorrow then.” You took your phone back once he was done, then gave him a grin of your own. “I don’t split the bill, you’re paying.” Jungkook’s snort was no more elegant than the first upon hearing this and the chortle that followed actually came from Jin.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way, beautiful.”

⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂

You finished work at four the next day, which left you with entirely too much time on your hands when it came to getting ready for this date. What should you wear to an expensive restaurant that had napkins that could cost more than your net worth? You decided to go with one of your favorite thrift store finds that fit tightly beneath your breasts and flared out further down your stomach. A girl’s best friend was always a nice empire waistline...Unless it made her look pregnant.

The cap sleeves looked almost demure, which you appreciated since it was the middle of summer and you were not about to suffocate stuffed into a dress with full length sleeves or a high neckline. Makeup wasn’t minimal, but you also didn’t waste any time lining your eyes when all that would do for you was make you look like an actual trash panda once ten pm rolled around. Instead, you focused on your hair and took the time to style it and smooth out any stray ends or hairs.

The chime of your text tone echoed from your living room, drawing you away from fiddling any further with the upswept style of your hair.

Did he really send you a picture of himself with a cut out heart? What sort of man was this? When Jin asked you out the night before all you felt was suspicion. Now you were convinced he was simply missing at least sixteen of the screws required for his mental clarity to function. You neglected to respond to his text, and elected to grab your purse before locking the door to your apartment behind you.

Were you waiting for him outside? Yes. If you were fair to yourself, which you always strove to be; being early was on time and being on time was considering yourself late. You weren’t looking forward to this dinner, sitting across a table of refined food from a man who was so good looking you felt just a little bit stupid. No, you were just being punctual. Right?

Then again, Jin might not show up at all, even if he did send you that ridiculous text message assuring you that he was already on his way. Assuming that he wouldn’t, you could give it another ten minutes before you went back inside, changed into your favorite pajamas, and settled in for a nice long night of playing Stardew Valley.

Unfortunately all your bucolic hopes and 8-bit dreams were dashed as soon as you saw the cherry red convertible pulling up to your lot. Of course, by this point in your evening you shouldn’t have been surprised that the exceedingly symmetrical Disney prince look-alike also had an expensive car. If he wasn’t even phased by the idea of shelling out for ‘the aesthetic’ it made sense that he would also like to drive fast and live rich.

“Y/N!” The vehicle rolled to a stop, idling as its driver made a quick leap from the front seat just to sweep you up in long arms. You felt the ground disappear from beneath your feet and questioned reality as you gripped broad shoulders so tightly your knuckles turned white. The world spun around you slowly, not fast enough to make you dizzy but noticeable to the point that you didn’t know how you felt about being picked up in the first place.

“Jin, it’s nice to see you again.” You smiled, surprised to realize just how happy you were he did take the time to show up. If nothing else he hadn’t stood you up, and he was so very fun to look at that all you wanted to do was indulge yourself for one night. Especially if that singular night meant ritzy food that you couldn’t actually pronounce on your own.

“You mean it’s wonderful, stunning, amazing, and spectacular to see me again? That’s how I feel about seeing you.” His hands were still settled against your waist, but they were oh so gentle as he set your feet back on the ground. “I was thinking about you all day.”

“That sounds exhausting.” You teased, drawn in by the easy humor he still displayed even after your repeated attempts at dissuading him from showing any interest.

“Not at all, I find every thought of you to be invigorating.” Jin replied sweetly, his soft lips pressed flush to your rounded cheek before he led you straight toward the convertible. “It isn’t every day that I get a chance to see a woman’s thighs in action without being called a pervert.” The joke should have fallen flat, but it didn’t. You were caught off guard as you settled back into the seat and reached for the seatbelt.

“You must have a great poker face if you’re a pervert.” That earned you nothing more than a good natured snort as he pulled away from your apartment complex. The drive itself was short, barely taking more than ten minutes. Altogether, he tried to hold your hand no less than six times. Once the convertible finally pulled into the parking garage you managed to successfully evade his grasping fingers for no reason other than the exasperated and melodramatic wails that filtered past his full lips.

“You’re a heartless woman, Y/N! How can you say no to this face?” The door was already shut behind Jin, and before you could even begin to unbuckle your seatbelt the door to the passenger side was open while your suitor took the time to free you from his vehicle. You found yourself a mere breath away from his face and suddenly realized why every single romance novel was exactly as cheesy as it was.

“Impress me enough and I won’t say no.” You whispered, eyes wide and fixed upon the chocolate and nutmeg brown irises that threatened to overwhelm you. Temptation washed over you, begging you to let your eyes drift downward toward the plump lips curving upward into a knowing smile. Instead, you pulled away and began that short walk toward the seating area.

“Is that a challenge, butterbean?”

“What sort of nickname is that?” You asked, absolutely appalled by the concept of being a butter bean, much less any one specific person’s butter bean.

“My pet name. For you, so long as you’ll let me have it.” Jin purred, his large palm pressing gently and warmly against your lower back as he maneuvered you through the slowly gathering crowd of the early evening diners. If he noticed the shiver his touch sent down your spine he chose not to mention it.

You chose to say nothing as the waitress led you toward a table at the far end of the highest floor. The further you followed the more you questioned just how Jin was able to get this type of reservation on such short notice. The entire restaurant was usually booked out months in advance, and the most exclusive of tables were on the top two floors. By the time you realized you were going -above- the top floor and out onto the roof you felt speechless.

“Right this way, if you please.” The waitress spoke with a heavy accent, one arm out swept toward an enclosed pavilion that reminded you more of a greenhouse than anything else. Fairy lights were strung across the ceiling in a rambling sort of pattern that draped gracefully around the countless flowers filling the room. There was a walkway, but it was surrounded by flowing water with only one bridge that could lead you over the threshold.

“Jin. How?” You were too busy admiring the lush atmosphere, the live quartet playing soft music in the far corner, the sound of the fountain as it burbled and pushed the water through the avenues threaded through the walkway and flowers. The lights, the scents, everything was just this side of too much decadence and opulence. It was perfect.

“Would you believe me if I said I have a few connections?” Jin asked with raised eyebrows. Eventually a table was revealed toward the center of what appeared to be a man made island in a glittering lagoon.

“Well, tell me how to make these connections because this is the manner in which I wish to become accustomed.” You joked, eyes focused on the riot of Peruvian Lilies heaped upon one plate. It came as no surprise when Jin led you directly to the side of the table with the flowers, then proceeded to assist you in sitting down.

“It was all sheer dumb luck, my sweet and precious butter bean.” Your eyelid twitched at the terrible name, but you refused to let it ruin what was otherwise a magnificent night. This restaurant was gorgeous, and you felt like a princess transported into a new and far away realm. The only thing that could make this better would be unlimited dessert. Did Jin have enough money to get you unlimited dessert?

“Would you like to start with a Château Margaux this evening?” The waitress was, apparently, not a waitress for she had all but disappeared and in her place was a seemingly young, also seemingly condescending man who held a bottle of wine over his arm as if it were the most dazzling thing to ever display.

“I suppose that would be fine, Marcus. What else would you suggest?” Jin didn’t sound haughty, necessarily, but he did appear to be a little less concerned with the menu and more interested in staring into your eyes. A point that you promptly avoided by burying your own face in the menu full of letters and words you didn’t quite understand.

“I wouldn’t dare dream of making recommendations to you, Sir.” The bottle of Margaux bobbled, ever so slightly. Jin let out a small, almost imperceptible sigh.

“We’ll have the Pauillac, Château Mouton Rothschild.” Jin replied, his gaze still fixed upon your face as the original bottle vanished, only to be replaced nearly as quickly by the desired red.

“Is the 2005 alright, Sir?” This was met with a nod while Jin’s long fingers slowly but surely wrapped around your own. His smile was for you, though he didn’t completely ignore the man.

“Yes, that will be fine. Pre-fix menu, tonight?” A subtle negative shake of the head, and then a notepad was produced. “Butterbean, my darling, what would you like to have for dinner?”

“If you insist on calling me butterbean it might just be your balls.” You simpered sweetly, smile entirely saccharine as you squeezed his hand as hard as you could. The resulting wince was delicate, though the wink he sent your way was playful.

“It’s an absolute relief to know you aren’t a vegetarian.” His fingers flexed slightly once you released them before he picked up the menu once more.

“Well, I could always eschew meat to spite you.” This suggestion was met with the exact amount of warmth and eagerness you expected. None. The menus were flung to one side of the table as you found your hands clasped in Jin’s fingers once again.

“Butterbean, darling! My wonderful, beautiful, incandescent paragon of virtue!” Your eyes widened slowly but surely with every additional adjective piled onto his sentence. “Don’t break my heart! You’re too great a woman to do such a thing!” By the end of his plea your fingers were intertwined with his and his grasp was so firm that there was no escape.

“We’ll have my usual.” Jin didn’t bother tearing his eyes away from your face, which was almost intimidating even as the waiter cleared the menus from the table. Your erstwhile suitor took this chance to drag his chair closer to yours. Now, instead of sitting across from this broad shouldered adonis, there was barely any space between the two of you. “This is much better, don’t you agree my bean?”

“I will pay you real, actually money to stop calling me that.” You let out between grit teeth. Contrary to your own expectations this man was getting under your skin in the best possible way. He was charming, goofy in a gregarious sort of way that put you at an amused disadvantage.

“You couldn’t pay me enough. Ever.” He hadn’t let go of your hands yet, and merely leaned closer so he could press his face close to yours before performing an exaggerated imitation of a wink. You could feel the echo in your chest as your heart fluttered. Soft was beginning to become an understatement when it came to how you felt about this man. Was that even possible?

“You would force me to resort to blackmail?” Your lips turned downward, plumped into a pout as you failed to extract yourself from his warm grasp.

“I wouldn’t dare to force you into anything.” Seokjin began proudly, his voice carrying as he straightened in his seat. “I am not above letting you ask me to force you though.” Your fingers flexed then, breath catching in your throat at the implication.

“You couldn’t ask me what my favorite color is first?” You did your best to cover your response, though it was hard to tell if Jin was observant enough to catch your behavior.

“I could ask you while you’re breathless and panting beneath me.” The offer came at the exact same time as your appetizers, which caused a distinct flush to warm your cheeks as the waiter set down two plates and multiple dishes. Wine was poured while your eyes drifted firmly to the table in front of you. None of this stopped you from feeling how direct and heated your date’s gaze was as he kept one hand cradled around yours.

“That was blunt.” In all your years of living there wasn’t a single memory of any man wining, dining, and propositioning you so openly and with so much confidence. Then again, there wasn’t any point in which someone as handsome as Seokjin showed any interest in you either. History and experience was enough to tell you this wasn’t adding up.

“You’ve seen me at my worst, bean. I can hardly look any worse so I feel my odds are pretty high for success.” Your hand suddenly felt cold as he plucked his knife up from the table and began buttering some bread. “I know exactly what I want from you. The question is, do you want anything from me?”

You took your time considering this query. The table was filled with various food, most of which looked as if it wouldn’t fit into your calorie count for the day so you reached for the wine glass in front of your plate instead.

“I hardly know you, I doubt I really know what you have to offer in the first-” You paused, eyes widened as you watched your date place little bits of each appetizer on your plate before he ever put a single piece of food on his.

“Yes, my darling butter bean?” Jin’s eyes were wide, nearly sparkling as he smiled at you with all the charm and charisma of a seasoned politician. If he noticed your confusion he didn’t mention it.

“Why did you put food on my plate?” Mortification set in quickly, your hands clasped in your lap beneath the table as you internally questioned every life choice you ever made. Was it just Jin that caused you to ask stupid questions? Or was it the atmosphere?

“It gives me pleasure to do so.” His response was entirely effortless, his attention focused on piling his plate just as high as yours before commencing with a truly astounding performance. His mouth didn’t seem all that big, but somehow he managed to take bites of food that were so large you worried he was intentionally choking himself. The noises that escaped him were an uneven mixture of pornographic and cute. Perhaps you didn’t need to feel embarrassed after all.

“Okay then.” You began to let yourself relax, hoping that tonight’s meal wouldn’t set your goals back too far. Besides, cheat meals were acceptable every now and then, weren’t they?

⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂⁂

“I know it’s cliche but I had a wonderful evening.” Jin’s car was parked in the lot next to your apartment building, his shoulder pressed into the driver’s seat as he leaned further toward your space. “I’m hoping desperately that you’ll allow me to bask in your presence again.” His voice was quiet, gentle and burnished velvet as he nearly whispered.

“This might be a personal question.” You began your response, gaze directed toward your hands as your fingers grasped the seatbelt holding you in place.

“Anything, butter bean, I’ll tell you anything and everything.” His answer was immediate, decisive, and firm.

“Do you have to unhinge your jaw when you fit half a steak in your mouth all at once?” You asked your question, whispering this time so as not to break the hushed atmosphere yourself. He was being entirely too romantic for anyone’s good.

“How is that even personal?” Jin exclaimed, shattering what was once a peaceful and nearly intimate moment. The expression on his face was comical, mouth dropped open and eyes widened in shock as he sputtered. “This is worse than telling me you’re a vegetarian!”

“Oh hardly!” You soothed, grinning as you released the latch on your seatbelt before gathering your purse. “It’s a genuine question as to the mechanics of your jaw. This question is purely for scientific purposes.” You barely touched the door handle before Jin was out of the vehicle and making his way to your side of the car.

“Science, you say?” That soft tone was back, though it clearly carried an undertone of heat to it. “You know the best way to find out is through experience.” He held the door open, his free hand waiting for you to take with his palm held up.

“I’m not even wearing pants, how are you trying to get into them?” With your hand clasped in his, the two of you ambled slowly toward the entrance to your apartment building. You were surprised at how comfortable you felt in Jin’s presence, even if he did insist on calling you butter bean.

“Never underestimate the power of your beauty, Y/N.” Oh. This was unexpected. What were you supposed to say to that? Was this man even real? Obviously he was, but could you really believe what you were hearing and seeing?

Thankfully you were saved from responding by the front door of your apartment. The two of you lingered in front of the steps, the beginnings of an awkward silence beginning to build. One breath, two, and then you opened your mouth to speak.

“I had a great time too.” You mumbled, uncertain now that you were in entirely uncharted territory. You had been on dates before, but never really interested in going on another with the same person.

“Does that mean I can cook for you next time? Or should I resign myself to only being allowed to see you as we suffer the agonies of my cousin’s training programs?” Something akin to mortification settled in your chest at the idea of Seokjin seeing you sprawled out huffing and puffing with a shining, sweating face once more. You would have to switch your sessions if you wanted to maintain any sense of romance.

“Ah, I think I might actually switch my gym schedule.” You hesitated, frowning at the thought before you continued. “When’s a good time for you? For dinner, I mean.” Somehow you felt an absolute sense of shyness take over you. Coupled with the butterflies filling your chest the only explanation was an oncoming heart attack, right?

“And deny me the satisfaction of suffering with you?” Jin’s hand immediately clapped to his chest, fingers spread as he took on a truly legendary pout. This man should have been an actor. He was making it nearly impossible to deny him at this rate.

“Give me one good reason not to.” Your last ditch attempt at maintaining your distance was a good one, or so you thought while the two of you stood in the cool evening breeze. Your door was just a few steps away, your humble yet cozy apartment just beyond a few locks and stairs.

“Will this be good enough?” Jin’s face hovered barely more than a breath away from yours, chocolate eyes centered on your face as his hands traced up over your arms toward your shoulders. You’d barely opened your mouth to ask him what he meant by the time his plush lips made contact with yours.

At first, you didn’t know how to respond. The kiss itself was unexpected, then the soft sound building and releasing in his throat was even more surprising until you felt his fingers threading through the strands of your hair. After that you discovered this was not a one-sided activity. Your arms wound around his shoulders while your head slanted to one side so you could deepen the connection. It wasn’t until he pulled away that you realized both of you were out of breath.

“So, my precious butter bean, did I give you what you wanted?”

#Fanfic #Kim Seokjin #BTS #Reader X Seokjin #Jin

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miracalicethebookgirl · 4 years

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The Phony and the Famous Pt. 5

AO3

Pt 1. Pt 2. Pt 3. Pt 4.

Summary: Lila spreads lies about being famous with worldwide connections to increase her local popularity. She’s confident that Marinette will never be able to prove otherwise. What she, and even Marinette herself, don’t realize is that Marinette won’t have to do any of that to come out on top. - A story in which everything Lila lies about, Marinette turns into reality for herself, usually unknowingly (our girl is quite the lucky one, after all).

A brief explanation: The last chapter was a bit confusing as to how Mister Bug appeared. When people turned into animals, all their clothing and accessories were left behind. When Marinette turned into a hamster her earrings fell off, so Tikki took them to Chat. Adrien switched out his Miraculous since it’s still unknown if something happens by wearing both the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous (not sure if Gamer 2.0 counts). After the fight he switched back and Tikki returned the earrings to Marinette.

…

“I'm good friends with the best manga publisher in Japan, you know. I can talk to them about your comic book project if you like.”

Season 3, “Ladybug”

…

“Name?”

“Oh! Uh, Astruc, Thomas.”

The girl hummed thoughtfully as she shuffled through the festival passes on the table. “That name sounds familiar. Did you work on a recent film or something?”

“Yes, actually! I was the director of The Adventures of Lady—”

“Here it is!” the girl exclaimed, pulling out the lanyard pass from the stack and adding some pamphlets to her hand. “Keep your pass on you at all times. The first pamphlet will provide you with a general map of the Champs-Élysées. The area is split up by genre and your second pamphlet will tell you which film categories will be playing on which day. If you have any questions just ask a volunteer. Welcome to the Young Artists Film Festival!”

With that, Thomas Astruc was ushered along to allow the next person to check in.

He was a little put out that he was yet again dismissed despite his role in the production of a movie that was widely popular in France. But what could he do besides shake his head and accept it? He could brag all he wanted about it but unless he made as big a name as Steven Basielberg, people would simply continue to shrug and dismiss him.

Rather than spoil his mood with such thoughts, Thomas figured he’d keep a low profile and just enjoy the festivities. It always intrigued him to see what new edgy or comedic or introspective pieces the young minds of France could create. So he spent an hour watching several animated shorts created by students and noted interesting stylistic choices and the most popular narratives. He debated going to see one of the feature length films that were highlighted for the day when he heard someone excitedly call out his name.

“Oh my gosh, Monsieur Astruc! Monsieur Astruc!”

He turned and saw a pigtailed teenage girl wave and run up to him, followed by—he blinked owlishly—Adrien Agreste, who had another girl latched to his arm. He looked back at the girl who called to him.

“You look a bit familiar to me. Have we met before?”

The girl didn’t seem bothered by his question. “It was only briefly, but we met at the Ladybug and Chat Noir movie premiere a few months back. I was the person you gave up your seat to. I’m still so thankful that you did that for me! Aside from the akuma—no offense—and a couple other people…the premiere was actually kind of fun.”

The other two teens finally reached them. The girl on Adrien’s arm gave a small gasp.

“Oh, Marinette, you were at the Ladybug movie premiere? I heard you went as one of the waitresses. I would have been there too, but I told the movie director that I had another movie project lined up. You see, being Ladybug’s best friend, I had a big say in how the heroes in the movie were portrayed so they could be as accurate as possible.”

The other three stood silent for a moment. One in confusion and the other two in exasperation.

“Who did you say you were again?” Thomas asked, wondering if he really did forget such a person.

“Oh, silly me,” the girl tittered, “where are my manners? I’m Lila Rossi, sort of an expert in all things Ladybug. And in case you also didn’t know,” she pulled Adrien closer to herself, “this is Adrien Agreste. He voiced Chat Noir in the movie but he’s also a model for Gabriel. We actually model together.”

Adrien brought a fist to his mouth and gave a small cough.

Is he covering a smile? Thomas thought to himself. Well, he couldn’t blame the boy. This girl obviously didn’t know whose company she was in. Thomas would have also laughed if the thought didn’t make him feel so dejected.

“Um, Lila,” Adrien politely began, “let me introduce you to Thomas Astruc. Monsieur Astruc is the artistic director of The Adventures of Ladybug and Chat Noir.” He paused. “The Movie.”

As they all watched the emotions play across Lila’s face, it was the other girl, Marinette’s, turn to try and smother a giggle. She wasn’t as successful as Adrien but at the fury that passed across Lila’s face, she quickly brought the conversation elsewhere.

“Sir, I never did get to introduce myself to you, which I guess was a little rude at the time. My name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I admit, I was a little skeptical when I first watched the trailer because Ladybug and Chat Noir didn’t sound anything like the real heroes. But once I watched the movie, it was actually really good!”

Thomas laughed good-naturedly. “That’s quite alright. I knew some people would be disappointed that the movie wasn’t an account of true events. That was the point of the disclaimer ‘based on Ladybug and Chat Noir.’” He took a moment to discreetly eye Lila. “The script writers and I didn’t want to confine ourselves to real life. We took our artistic license and ran with it, if you will. Especially since we don’t know everything there is to know about the Miraculous or the identities of the main players. Can you imagine Ladybug being scared of cats? Or if Hawkmoth were actually Chat Noir’s dad?”

Marinette laughed with him at those hypotheticals. Adrien chuckled along a bit more nervously, though Thomas figured the young man was just trying to imagine Gabriel Agreste as a supervillain, considering Adrien voiced the aforementioned hero. Lila had taken on a stoic face, and he guiltily hoped she learned some humility from her embarrassment.

Then something from earlier clicked in his mind.

“Did you say your name was Marinette Dupain-Cheng?”

Marinette stopped laughing and looked at him questioningly. “Yeah, I did.”

Thomas’s eyes lit up. “So you’re the Marinette Dupain-Cheng whose designs are sought after by several celebrities and whose talents caught the attention of one of the biggest film studios in Europe?!”

Face turning red at the acknowledgement, Marinette nodded timidly. Adrien reached out and put a hand on her shoulder as he smiled proudly. “And those are only some of her accomplishments. I bet she’ll go even further in whatever she does.” His eyes twitched a little when Lila gave a small noise of derision.

Thomas agreed with the boy. Miss Dupain-Cheng may be a relatively new name running in Parisian circles, especially with the crocodile debacle and zoo fundraiser, but she was proving to be more than just a flash in the pan. If anything, she was gaining more momentum in her fame as time passed, due in part by the recently confirmed rumors of her association with Graham Films. Thomas thought hard.

The animation studio he previously worked with for the Ladybug movie was offering him a contract for a new animated film. The studio anticipated that the project wouldn’t receive as much attention as the Ladybug movie did, but Thomas acknowledged that it was a given. However, if he could attach some big names to the film, that might be even better promotion than the simple “from the producers of the hit film Ladybug!” tagline could provide. Bringing Marinette on board would be a more than stellar start.

“What is the project that you and Graham Films working on right now?” he questioned, genuinely curious. “And when is post-production? If you don’t have any other film projects lined up, I happen to be gathering a team right now for an original animated film and we would love to work with someone of your talents!”

Thomas was disappointed to see her shake her head apologetically.

“I’m sorry, Monsieur Astruc. The movie with Graham Films is a one-time thing since I’m hoping for more fashion-centered work.” Her tone then turned thoughtful. “What kind of movie is yours going to be?”

“It’ll be a new superhero movie. I’m considering integrating it into the same universe as the Ladybug and Chat Noir movie.”

Adrien’s eyes lit up. “That sounds really cool! I hope you’ll let me voice Chat Noir again if he and Ladybug make a cameo or maybe even have a sequel!”

Thomas laughed, appreciative of the boy’s eagerness. The cameo bit wasn’t a bad idea at all.

“Monsieur Astruc,” Marinette began tentatively, “would you be opposed to taking on other young talent since I won’t be able to?”

He blinked. “Unless they have an exceptional portfolio and prior experience, I don’t think it would be very likely that they’d be hired. But,” he added when he saw the girl slump, “I’m very open to bringing some interns to the team.”

Thomas noticed Adrien perk up, looking like he knew exactly what his friend was leading up to. Lila merely turned her head away, seeming to be ignoring the rest of the conversation.

“I know some people who would love that!” Marinette exclaimed. “And I can speak for their talent in both writing and drawing about superheroes.”

Intrigued, he figured it wouldn’t hurt to hear her out.

…

A week later at the studio, Thomas and his production team stood up from their chairs to shake hands with the young men who they would be taking under their wings as interns.

“I look forward to working with you two gentlemen,” he said to them. “Your ideas are great and hopefully this internship and stories of my own journey from character doodling to filmmaking can help you get your own comics off the ground.”

Marc Anciel blushed. Nathaniel Kurtzberg beamed and replied, “I can’t wait to tell Marinette about this. I can’t believe she thought of us when you originally wanted her. I heard she couldn’t accept anyway, but still!”

“Marinette is always looking out for her friends,” Marc added softly.

When Thomas formally met Marinette, he recognized her for her fame and her talents. Since then, he began to realize just what a remarkable person she was. And so young too… He briefly pondered how old Ladybug and Chat Noir were. Surely not as young as his movie made them?

“People like that are hard to find but they do exist. Hold on tight to friendships like this. And remember that even though Marinette might seem amazing all on her own, being her friend means helping her out too.”

The boys seemed oddly sad (ashamed, in Nathaniel’s case?) for a moment, but Thomas only had a second to wonder about it before they smiled and nodded in agreement.

#ml fic #miraculous ladybug #marinette dupain-cheng #adrien agreste #lila rossi #thomas astruc the character #minor appearances of #nathaniel kurtzberg #marc anciel

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salty-dracon · 3 years

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Some thoughts on The Caligula Effect 2

So I joke about this game getting a second remake to my friends online and the next moment I learn THIS was announced during the Japanese Nintendo Direct. Let me spill out my thoughts to spark discussion as well as provide a record to myself if this game actually does get localized.

Everything is under the cut!

My thoughts on Overdose were that it has a fantastic world... and that’s it. Out of the game’s cast, there were maybe four characters I liked, and the rest had moments that made me lose all sympathy for them. I recall it was common for some Let’s Players to like the villains better than the protagonists, and I’d agree on that front. I actually think the anime is the best iteration of this game’s story, changing up the formula enough to provide a really solid characterization arc to everyone. But Overdose suffers from poor writing issues (killing Eiji offscreen in the best ending was one of the worst decisions they made), rough handling of certain topics, boring and monotonous dungeons, and 500 social links you’re never going to do. I’m incredibly critical of this game, and I’d never recommend it to someone without a LOT of disclaimers, but somehow I still love it.

Already this game looks CRAZY good visually. It doesn’t look like a reskinned Vita game anymore, with something a little more reminiscent of say, the Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth games. That’s not to say that the game doesn’t still implement its fantastic character art, which still show up next to the speech bubbles. (At least the models have moving jaws. That’s important.)

Here’s to really hoping this game won’t be another Caligula 1 reskin, because uh... the game is about a protagonist who realizes that the world is a virtual one created by a Vocaloid who won’t let anyone out and joins up with a group of teenagers who also want to get out despite the fact that their real world lives were horrible so that they can set things right and they call themselves the Go-Home club (and also a Vocaloid gives them weapons made out of black stuff) but the people that are stopping them are basically the servants and guardians of the Vocaloid keeping them trapped in, who also happen to be humans who can’t return to the real world because their real world lives were so horrible, and so they have to fight because the Vocaloid won’t let them out otherwise. I mean, of course it won’t be a reskin, but I’m surprised at just how much of the original story they kept.

As for things they absolutely did NOT keep, DAMN this game looks dark! I was once remarking to a friend about how Caligula’s story would appeal better to me specifically if they’d gone with a religious pressure rather than idol stan theme, and they appear to have really pulled through with that religious pressure. I just realized, while writing this, that the image I showed off above actually has an image of an angel in the stained glass window being worshiped by fans with glow sticks. Furthermore, there’s a gothic cathedral-like altar, a halo behind Regret’s head, and this whole exchange looks like it takes place in a church. While I’m not religious myself, I can talk a lot about church architecture (see: my Fire Force livetweet) and I’m interested to see how this game handles it.

Not only that, most of the character designs seem darker and very different from the original game’s. Take a look at this game’s idol goddess:

Is μ going through an emo phase? I wouldn’t blame her lol. I think she still has a fantastic design that is in equal parts dreary and beautiful, while perfectly matching the color scheme of the new game.

And what a color scheme it is! The world of Caligula 1 had a gorgeous white, black, pink, brown, and gray color scheme framing bold pops of color in the form of flowers. Caligula 2 changes things up by making black the primary color framing everything else. The pops of color are so much bolder, too, from Noto’s bright yellow sweatshirt to basically everything χ is wearing. Do these changes reflect the story’s potential darker tone too? Or are they representative of something else?

We don’t know too much about the characters, but Caligula 2 looks like it’s giving them different weapons. It looks like the protagonists wield double knives instead of double shotguns. As for the other weapons, I see shortswords, katanas, chains, pistols (much smaller than Shogo’s), canes, and Qiyana’s ohmlatl from League of Legends. Definitely a shift from the original game’s weapons. I wonder if they’ll make a comeback? That giant gun was unique to say the least.

The Obbligato (I think?) are this game’s Ostinato Musicians. Italian for “obliged”, they are the ones who defend Regret from any threats. The one shown off most in the trailer is this guy who looks like the 1010 dudes from No Straight Roads. Man, he really looks like Shadow Knife in that image up there...

Also we get a, um, clown astronaut and a crazy high school yandere. Just to name a few. Definitely not the first time I’ve beat up a clown in a video game. Pretty unique as far as villains go, though. I hope this game has its own villain route, where you learn more about them. I’d really like that.

Social links! Looks like you rank up social links the same way you do in the original game. Do you want to make this character spill out all their trauma? Are you SURE about that, despite there being no negative consequences to you, the player? Awesome. Get ready to be sad.

The battle system is, from what I’ve read, similar, but not the same, as the battle system in Overdose. I’m not going to give too many details on that. They still seem to be time-based with combo chains, but they’re pretty vague. Looks like you still get to unleash crazy special attacks against your enemies. And they in turn can unleash crazy special attacks against you.

I absolutely want to see a. better characters and b. better overall writing. In my opinion these were the two weakest points of Caligula 1. Despite the protagonists’ tragedies, some of the little things they did made me sort of hate them. I did not like how everyone in the original Go-Home Club used Kotaro (who you learn is FOURTEEN!) as a verbal punching bag despite him being one of the kindest characters in the club. As for better overall writing, I stated before that I preferred the anime’s interpretation of events, because I thought they were in a better order overall. Besides killing Eiji offscreen, I hated how they wrote μ to be such a monumentally stupid character (I often point to Persona 5 Royal on how to write a villain like her well) and their, in my opinion, poor handling of certain topics like fatphobia. And though the character episodes sort of redeem them, it’s like... not really? The way I described it to a friend was that while the moral of Caligula 1′s story may have been “We live in a society and everyone’s dealing with their own hardships, but you can’t run away from them forever and you can at least be sympathetic to those facing them”, the character interactions end up dumbing it down to “We live in a society”.

Also an anime adaptation would be really sick. The anime just had so much better writing.

As for what I’m really curious about:

1. Who is Regret and how is she related to μ and Aria? We already know she’s a Virtuadoll like them, but if I recall correctly μ and Aria had some more concreteness to their backstories. Specifically, the human characters remember them existing as vocal synthesizer programs before they became the rules of Mobius. Regret’s backstory is that she just kind of showed up one day. Does she have different origins from μ and Aria? By the same merit, who is χ and how is she related to Regret, μ, and Aria? We know that χ opposes Regret and gives the Go-Home club the power to fight back against her, kind of like what Aria did in Caligula 1, but was she a co-creator of Redo like Aria was, or was her role completely different? The fact that she isn’t a little sparkle like Aria was (as a result of losing all of her power) indicates that their roles might be a little different.

2. What relationship does Redo have to Mobius? We know Mobius was created because Aria and μ wanted a place for humans to live without the sorrows they experienced in the real world. However, eventually μ was manipulated by everyone’s negative emotions and Thorn’s actions. This caused her to prevent anyone from leaving, and also the plot of the first game. Is Redo a second, improved iteration of Mobius, or a completely new virtual space? Were the goals behind its creation the same as in the first game? Or was there another force at work? Is Regret trying to copy μ or improve on her work? Or is she doing what μ did independently? I don’t think there’s enough information to predict the answer to this, but from what I’ve seen, there are a lot of similarities between the two worlds, from the high school to the end goal. However, there are some differences in tone. Mobius was a place to escape suffering, while Redo is being marketed as a place to escape regret. Redo also has a more religious bend than the idol theme of the first game.

3. What other links do the first and second games have to each other? People have been theorizing that Marie Mizuguchi/Wicked from the first game may return as Marie Amabuki (I think) in the second due to them having the same VA. There’s obviously the shared artstyle, symbolism, Catharsis Effect, glitchy NPC faces, and general setting. I also suspect that this game takes place after the events of Caligula 1. Not much I can say about this right now, but I wonder how everything joins up. Or if it even matters that they do. I haven’t seen too much on whether or not this game is being marketed as a standalone or a sequel, or if you even need to play Caligula 1 to enjoy Caligula 2.

Conclusion: While the Caligula series isn’t one I’d recommend to everyone, for the way it handles a number of sensitive topics, I will still be checking out Caligula 2 if it comes to the West. Though very little has been revealed thus far, so far I’m interested in the religious iconography used as well as the darker tone and colors presented in the game. As well as the characters, who have more varied and interesting designs including super unique weapons. I’m a bit disappointed that the plot, as it has been revealed, is an exact copy of Caligula 1′s plot, right down to the names of the protagonists’ faction. I was hoping for a bigger evolution to the story, but considering so little has been revealed in the first place, this may be a bit of a preemptive judgement.

That’s it. I hope you enjoyed my discussion of what I’ve learned so far.

#the caligula effect #caligula

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periodicreviews · 4 years

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Last of Us Part II

I went into Last of Us Part II without many spoilers and completed it today. I’m writing out my thoughts before reading any other reviews of the game.

Technical stuff

On a technical level, the game is a logical successor to Uncharted 4. The same great sound design is key to trying to locate where enemies are and I feel like playing with headphones is key. There’s a moment where if you fail a jump, your partner will say “hey you know if you run before the jump…” and the character you control says “yeah yeah, I know.” This is a great way of guiding the character without interrupting them with a prompt.

Returning from Uncharted 4 is the ability for characters to pause mid conversation when you walk away and for them to continue when you get closer. There aren’t quite as many chances for this to be triggered without vehicles but it’s good to see.

One of my big problems with the graphics in Uncharted 4 is that the facial models felt almost unrecognizable as they made them match the actors faces way too much. Nathan Drake just felt like Nolan North, as did Elena’s model. Maybe they learned their lesson because all the faces in TLOU2 felt like the characters I remembered from TLOU1. The only exception being the young Ellie model. At times, her eyes kind of felt dead. I don’t know if that’s a result of porting it from PS3 or not.

I also felt like the default control scheme was too hard to get used to. Dodge being mapped to L1 just did not feel natural coming from a first person shooter background. I eventually remapped it to the circle button, put crouch on the left control stick click, and other changes.

The number of options with respect to controls, which are fully configurable, and visual settings, particularly for motion sickness, are something that every console game should provide.

Speaking of motion sickness, the settings never quite eliminated it for me and although it became more manageable, there was this constant physical discomfort while playing the game. I believe Neil Druckmann said something to the effect that TLOU1 is about hope and TLOU2 is about hate. In that sense, I guess I felt more immersed by hating the game itself for causing my motion sickness.

The plot

The game can be arguably be broken into two parts, Ellie’s story and Abby’s story. You play a tiny bit of Abby in the beginning of the game but then the focus is mainly on Ellie, until the two intersect at the theater confrontation. After the theater confrontation, you take control of Abby primarily, then finish things off as Ellie.

Once this midway switch happened, I figured they were going to have you play as Abby as you kill Ellie and Dina. I also wasn’t sure whether they would make you be the one to torture Joel. If you don’t know already, the game opens with Abby torturing and murdering Joel, which sets the plot in motion.

For a time, I was kind of upset that they were making me play as Abby. Your first big segment as adult Abby after you know who she is, is the slow walk through the WLF base. It feels like it drags on forever as you walk past children in classrooms, play with the dog, see all the animals, everyone eating in the cafeteria, etc.

Obviously, this is supposed to mirror the beginning of the game with Ellie as you walk through the Jackson level and see every single one of these same things. The level is supposed to get you to empathize with the people you have been murdering for 20 hours. “See? Abby’s not so bad, she wants pine scented soap at the commissary.”

But does everything need to be the same? There’s people running away from Jackson, the Seraphites, and the WLF. Characters on both sides are dealing with the internal power struggle. There just happens to be two pregnant women in Mel and Dina. It just happens to be that both Abby and Ellie are seeking revenge over the death of their father figures. Both WLF and Jackson engage in torture to get the info they need. At times all these coincidences just felt forced.

In the end, the game seems to be saying that this cycle of revenge is pointless because we’re all the same and it just causes more pain. The cycle plays out in this order in the game:

1. Joel murders Abby’s dad

2. Abby tortures and murders Joel

3. Tommy, Dina, and Ellie torture and murder Abby’s party members, in the search to find Abby

4. Abby murders Jesse, seriously injures Tommy, Dina, Ellie

5. Ellie attempts to murder Abby but eventually stops

But it bothered me the whole time that the game didn’t attempt to explain why Abby felt the need to torture Joel, when there’s no evidence that he tortured her father. Then it proceeded to make this equivalence between Abby and Ellie like they were equally guilty. Granted, Ellie tortured Nora in the hospital but that’s only after she egged her on by gloating about Joel’s screams.

Another thing that bothered me in the final pointless battle between Abby and Ellie is that they choose to portray Abby as the better person who doesn’t want to fight. Maybe it’s not necessarily a moral call, but just that she doesn’t think she can win in her current state.

Abby’s redemption

I guess my bigger complaint is about Abby’s whole redemption arc. After being rescued from the Seraphites by two kids, Lev and Yara, she returns to Owen where the two argue about Owen leaving to find the Fireflies. At the heat of the argument, they decide to have sex, despite Mel being pregnant with Owen’s baby.

That night, Abby has a bad dream where she walks through the door of the hospital where she found her dad’s body and instead finds Yara and Lev dead hanging from a tree. When asked by Yara or Lev why she came back to help, despite all the protests from Owen, she says something like she had to do something or she couldn’t live with herself.

I guess there’s some indication of regret for what she has done in the past. But it’s never made clear if this is about Joel or just her life choices in general. Later on, after rescuing them, she has the same dream but this time, she sees her dad alive instead. That temporary peace is then destroyed by the murder of Owen and she goes on a rampage to try to kill everyone associated with it.

I feel like there’s both not enough of Abby’s past in order to sell the regret and/or not enough regret in the present to sell the shift in behavior.

Trans representation

I should have done my research before assuming what I had heard was true. It turns out Abby isn’t trans at all, only Lev is (who is in fact voiced by a trans actor). I thought I remembered reading a paper in a Young Abby segment that mentioned “transitioning”. Maybe I read it too fast and it was about another character, not Abby. Thanks to the helpful commenter who corrected me.

It seems people are mad at Laura Bailey just because she voices a character and they don’t like what that fictional character did, which is absurd but unfortunately not surprising.

The game obviously takes a risk by featuring not just one trans character but two. By risk I mean both politically from a company standpoint and from a writing standpoint.

I’m writing this prior to reading any other reviews or to know what exactly the controversy is surrounding Laura Bailey, who plays Abby. I’m assuming the problem is that she is not trans and is playing a trans character. I’m unsure if the same is true for Lev or not. I understand the problem of trans actors being rejected from roles because of that identity. But I don’t think all of the blame for that should lie with Laura Bailey, rather with Naughty Dog for making the choice not to cast a trans actress. If the audition was blind and Laura was select purely based on performance, that would complicate things. But given TLOU2 is almost a movie in terms of all the motion capture that is done, I feel like that probably wasn’t the case.

As a straight man, I felt like Abby and Lev as characters were done tastefully. Their identity is never really centered around being trans, just like Ellie’s character has never been centered around her being lesbian/bisexual. The other characters in the world don’t seem to treat them any differently because they are trans. There also aren’t the usual “trap” tropes or accusations that they aren’t “real” women or men.

Things that suck

I was kind of surprised at how emotional I got during the game. There have definitely been games that have scared me (Dead Space) and games that have made me cry both out of sadness and joy (Mass Effect 3 Citadel DLC). But I don’t think a game has made me feel the same combination of anger, despair, and disgust in quite the same way.

The game starts off with a very graphic torture scene where Abby murders Joel but that didn’t really affect me. The scene was for sure shocking and I empathized with Ellie. But what really affected me was first having to control Abby as you attack Ellie and maybe even more so, watching Ellie leave Dina to continue to pursue Abby. It just hurt so much to see her give up the perfect life in pursuit of this pointless struggle.

Was it good?

But is it a good game? Did I enjoy it? Do I agree with the message it’s trying to send?

It’s hard to describe a game like TLOU2 as fun or enjoyable when it’s a horror-action-drama. There are some great scenes between Joel and Ellie, Ellie and Dina, and Ellie and Jessie. It was also nice to see characters like Lev and Yara who have grown up exclusively in this infected world.

I’m 100% on board with seeing a conflict from both sides. I just feel like they portrayed Ellie as evil, in order to make Abby more likeable, all to make both sides seem equal. On a technical level, the game is great, despite it crashing once and some other minor visual issues when the camera would clip through the level. I’d probably give it an 8/10.

#tlou2

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palettepainter · 4 years

Note

What are some of your favourite my hero academia characters and who are some of your least favourite? Both students and teachers/pro heroes

Saying right off the bat, there will most likely be a lot of fans that get annoyed by what I say: And to all those fans I say good for you for having a different opinion! I’m open to discuss if you guys wanna share your thoughts on characters in my ask blog or messages! As long as you don’t hate on my opinions

WARNING: This post may contain spoilers so just be weary

Anyway ONTO THE CHARACTERS!

Top fav hero: Fatgum!

I. Love. This. Hero.

I cannot express enough how much I adore him! I’m not really sure what it is exactly that I adore so much about his character, I don’t think it’s one thing in particular: One thing I love about Fatgum is his design, I find his design really interesting and unique, and I think it’s great we get to see a hero that isn’t a typical comic book buff fictional kind! I think that’s really cool! Also, I love his English voice actor, again I don’t know why, but I just think the voice suits him so well! And watching his animation and seeing his expressions is so pleasing! I think the reason I love his expressions so much is because of that big goofy cartoon grin he has, I just love everything about his character!

Plus I think he’s the perfect role model for Kirishima and Amajiki! I remember reblogging a post that explained more about this, but it’s implied in the anime that Kirishima struggles with some self doubt with his abilities, thinking his quirk isn’t as flashy as compared to others. And then there’s Amajiki, someone who struggles a lot with anxiety and self doubt also - Fatgum is a hero who DOES have a skinny/normal look once he uses all his fat from fighting, a body that someone would consider as fit or even sexy, yet he CHOOSE to stay in his fat form and even name himself after it - Fatgum. Fatgum isn’t put off by his shape because he accepts that’s what his power is, he doesn't try to hide it or feel ashamed by it, and having a mentor that is confident in his own abilities is the perfect match for Amajiki and Kirishima, who could both use the encouragement to become stronger and more confident in their own skills.

Other fav top heroes:

Best Jeanist -

Jeanist was a character at first that I was like ‘he’s okay’, to begin with he wasn’t a character I would get excited about if he appeared in an episode. But now - and this time you CAN blame @hazbinextgeneration for this - I love him! Similar with Fatgum I really like his design, and his outfit - which is all denim - is so stupid and silly that I can’t help but love him even more! Even his dialogue is gold! I love how Jeanist makes metaphors or sayings linking to jeans or clothing, and the things in which he teaches Bakugo during his internship are very admirable points for a hero to take into consideration. He clearly cares for being a good pro hero and role model! Even going as far as to loose a lung from fighting All for One and saving his team mates from his blast!

Gang Orca

His design was the thing that got me to fall in love with his character, even the way his clothes are designed and the colour used to match with his orca appearance is so awesome! His voice is also really cool sounding! We’ve only seen him a few times through out the anime, but I hope we get to see more of him and hopefully more of his backstory! The fact he’s also rated number three in the list of heroes that look as though they should be villains could lead to some interesting episodes or small moments in future episodes!

Kamui Woods/MT Lady:

The first pro heroes we where shown in the anime! Off the bat I loved these two! They where interesting, their designs and personalities caught my attention, and I love theri dnyamic whenever they talk! As I said I’m a sucker for opposites attract ships, and these two have become one of my favourites. They’re already a pretty popular ship, and I can see the appeal behind it! Kamui being strict and well mannered, and wanting to keep up a good hero image. And MT Lady, who comes across as playful, a little carefree at times, and using the appeal of her body to get things (such as during the sports festival when she used her looks to get her a free box of food). I find MT Lady a funny character, I laughed during the episode where her and Midnight get into a fight at the TV interview, I really hope we get to see her and Kamui interact more! If I had to choose what we see more of with these two, I’d say there backstories, mostly Kamui if I had too choose between the two

Also Kamui woods, during the mission at Kamino, told MT that she did her best during the fight, and brings her closer to him. She is the ONLY hero he does this too, and that just fuelled my shipper heart

Present Mic

Cockatoo man

I LOVE his personality! I love how lively and energetic he is! And how he always seems to be gesturing with his hands while he talks, it shows off his energy! The fact we get to see a more laid back and easy going teacher in a popular school like UA is a funny set up to me! Plus I love how his quirk not only works well in fighting, but also for his job on his radio station and as an announcer to the school! Also watching his interactions with Aizawa are some of my favourite moments in the series! Again sucker for opposites attract!

Hounddog

He’s a dog - yes

Similar with how Mic is a more laid back and easy going teacher, I like how more animalistic and gruff Hounddog can be. Also the fact that Nezu hired him as a guidance counsellor is so funny to me! Nezu had to look at this giant beast of a man, who growls and snarls when angry, and wears a literal muzzle, and go ‘Ah yes! A therapy dog!’ - Does anyone else find that funny?? Also even though we’ve only seen a lil bit of him in the English dub of Episode 21 (I know he appears more during episodes in season 4) I can say I adore him even more now! His voice makes his whole character that much more loveable! Yes incase it wasn’t clear I admire the voice acting for this series-

Shoji, Tokoyami and Koda

Just some characters that I really like the look of and want to see explored more!

Now onto characters I don’t like as much

Bakugo

Now- Calm down-

Okay. So there’s a bit of debate around this angry gremlin - whether he is a good character, or just a straight up egotistical ass. And I’ll be honest - I think he’s kind of an ass. YES I know in recent episodes he’s been showing some development of becoming better, but me personally, I don’t really see it. Bakugo is obviously supposed to take up the role as Deku’s sort of rival if you will, childhood friend turned rival as Deku fights to beat Bakugo and become the number one hero. And..yeah, I can see that relationship in the show. What I DON’T see is how these two can be considered childhood friends. I’ll explain why: Bakugo is shown to bully Deku, even give him a name (Deku) that means useless. Furthermore, Bakugo then tells Deku to kill himself by jumping off the roof of the school - that’s not childhood friendship, and I fail to see why Deku would continue to chase after Bakugo, let alone even still want to be near him after all he had done.

As someone who was bullied - granted in no way as bad or severe as Deku was by Bakugo - I can’t help but feel this so called ‘friendship’ they have is toxic and unhealthy. Even if Bakugo is showing signs of being a better person, I still don’t like him. You don’t tell someone to kill themselves, telling someone to do so is just as bad as committing a murder yourself. Plus Bakugo didn’t even have a reason to bully Deku, he did it because he could, because he had power to do so.

And what to the parents of said bully do to stop this? Nothin

What does the teacher in Deku’s old school do when everyone in the class starts laughing at him? Twiddle his thumbs

Also, I think he’s overpowered. I know a lot of people think Todoroki is overpowered, but that may because he’s the son to the Endevour, who’s a very powerful hero - Bakugo’s parents aren’t heroes or in the top 10, so WHY is he so powerful?

I’m sorry, but I just..REALLY don’t see it with Bakugo

Mineta

Do I even need to say anything about this one??

I don’t like his reason or being a hero. He’s being a hero so that women will let him touch them? Excuse me? I didn’t know being a hero equalled consent.

I get it, pervy characters, they’re fun to laugh at if used correctly - but not when they’re constant. Theres a point where it’s funny, and then a point where its not. And right now with this guy, it’s defiantly an ‘ Okay we get it, you like girls and you’re all whinny you don’t have a girl can we move on?’ - I fail to see how Mineta is still on the hero course, or how Aizawa hasn’t kicked him off the course yet

Oijiro

Maybe this is just me, and this isn’t really a hate thing, but I just think Ojiro’s a bit boring. His design is simple, to me his slicked back hair looks a little weird, and he isn’t really that interesting to me, even his hero suit is kinda standard and normal looking compared to the others.

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oh-boleyn · 4 years

Text

te para tres

words: 3662, language: english. jane & kat (kind of mom/daughter relationship)

author’s note: I wanted to keep multichapters on my ao3 but I actually kind of like this fic, and so I thought to post it here too! anyway it is also in ao3

tags: jane & kat - centric, kat is homeless, jane is trying her best, canon abuse/non con, tw abuse, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Families of Choice, Light Angst, pregnant!jane, sickness

Las tazas sobre el mantel

Moving into London was quite a thing. Something Jane had waited so long to do; she could almost not remember how much she dreamed when the opportunity first presented to her.

Having been born in Wiltshire, and later moved to Somerset meant that her life usually revolved around being in wide open spaces, with a lot of green grass and sometimes even animals. Small towns where everyone knew each other. Nothing compared to a big, global city like the capital of England.

Her apartment was quite small, but still enough for her. Jane had luckily secured herself a job in a fashion magazine, as a photograph designer, which meant that all she needed for an apartment was space for herself and any clothes she might need to recycle or fit for the next session.

Something she didn’t expect was seeing a young teen living in the street below her apartment.

Obviously, she knew her social status wasn’t the one everyone had. Her father, a college professor, was wealthy enough to grant her a good education and loan her money until she can get back on her feet. Investing almost all her money into coming straight to the city after breaking up with her boyfriend with whom she shared a house back in Devon wasn’t her wisest decision. But seeing such a young girl living on the street frightened her to no end.

(…)

“Hey, would you like to eat something with me?” Jane asked after the third day.

She made sure to always leave money to the girl, who could usually be found singing or drawing near the underground station during day hours. But having a little spare time and already began to take a liking to the girl made her want to offer just a little more.

The girl did not react, just watched her wide eyed, without moving.

“I would prefer not to.” Her voice is so small it’s barely audible for Jane.

It comes as a surprise, taking into consideration that she would hear her singing loud and clear for the past days, but now her voice sounded nothing like that.

“It’s okay, I’m sorry.” The older smiles.

She put some money into the hat that sat at her feet and started walking away.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

(…)

Catherine of Aragon is a stern, tall woman.

She is the chief editor of the magazine, and the tickling of her shoes can be heard from miles away. Her way to hold herself is just as stylish and elegant that Jane doesn’t think anyone in Somerset, or Devon was ever a half of it.

She smiles and nods at Jane, and it feels like a blessing has been given.

(…)

That night, when returning to her apartment, she makes a stop at the first fast food chain she can find, buying something for herself and to the girl. Jane goes back as soon as she can after that, trying to get the food to still be hot. The girl is sitting outside an empty store, with the art supplies already saved in her backpack.

“Hi, I brought you food.” Jane says.

“That’s really kind.” The girl smiles, taking the paper bag.

“I’m Jane.” She introduces herself.

“Katherine, with a K.” The younger mimics a smile, which is not really convincing.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Same to you.”

(…)

The next day Katherine is no longer where she was the night before, but the paper bag is still there, left totally untouched. It shocks Jane, who thought that it was a good gesture to begin with. Having no time to get offended, she keeps walking until arriving at the magazine.

The camera was already on its tripod, and the models were getting changed into their outfits for the day.

“Hi Jane!” Anna of Cleves, the photographer, greeted. “What’s up with that face?”

“Nothing it’s just… I brought food for a girl living in the street, and I saw it today and it was untouched.” She explained, getting out of her coat and hanging it.

“How do you know it was left untouched?” Anna questioned. “Did you go through the garbage?”

“No!” Seymour sounds offended. “I mean maybe… It’s just I saw the bag there and I wanted to know if she ate.”

Anna chuckles. “Have you considered that maybe getting food from strangers is like… rule number one of what not to do?”

“But it’s different she can trust me.” Jane tries to clarify.

“I know that, and you know that, but she doesn’t. Maybe next time buy her something closed, that you couldn’t possibly poison.” Cleves offer. “Now, how about we use this leather jacket but with that skirt?”

(…)

“Hi Jane.” Katherine smiles at the woman when she is passing through the street.

“Hi Katherine, I bought you this, I don’t know if you like it but I love them.”

Opening her backpack, she offers a box of Cadbury cookies. Those are nowhere near nutritious, not that fast food is, but the cookies can’t be even considered a meal.

“Thank you so much.” The girl says, opening the package and shoving a cookie on her mouth.

Jane can’t contain her smile, and takes the chance to say: “No problem, the offer for lunch is still up, just for your information.”

Katherine seems suddenly frightened, but keeps the smile on her face. “I would, but I’m busy right now.”

She shows the pencil in her hand.

“It’s alright, another day.” Seymour is about to leave when she decides against it. “Do you have a phone?”

“I don’t, sorry.” The teenager answers sadly.

“It’s okay…” She searches for a paper, writing down her address. “If you ever need something, just come.”

The girl gives a puzzled look. “Thank you, I will.”

(…)

Next morning is quite chaotic, and she doesn’t make it on time to check on Katherine.

First, she can’t get up from the bed, exhaustion keeping her down even when she doesn’t know why. Then, once she does get up, a dizziness invades her, almost making her go back to bed and call in sick, except that she can’t do that, not in a new job at least.

Jane tries to make herself the time, but she can’t. That doesn’t stop her from worrying about the girl for the rest of the day.

(…)

A week goes by and Katherine never comes, but still she slowly acts a little less nervous and automatic around Jane, even accepting Starbucks food that is well closed and some water bottles. Jane is sure the girl doesn’t trust her enough yet, but things start getting slowly better.

“Morning Katherine.” Jane greets, smiling.

The girl smiles back. Her smile never gets to her eyes, instead it looks quite sad. Just polite. Jane would probably also describe it as anxious, every time she hears her own name, she straightens the spine just a bit, trying to look taller or intimidating.

“Good morning, Jane.”

“I brought some stuff; I was wondering if you like hot chocolate? It’s getting pretty cold with the winter around the corner.” She offers Katherine the trail, which contains two hot chocolates.

Something she learned was that, if she let Katherine choose her drink, she would drink it. But if there was ever the slight difference between a cup and the other, she would just gently decline, justifying that she already ate or any other excuse that Jane was sure it was a lie.

“It’s not cold yet.” Katherine says, choosing a cup. “Thank you so much.”

“It’s no trouble.”

Jane takes a sip from the other cup, and just as she finishes it, the teenager takes a sip from hers.

“I brought a muffin too. I have to go to the office, but we can split it in halves, if that’s okay.”

“It’s not necessary. You don’t have to do that.” The younger replies, but Jane just offers it anyway.

“I have to go now, have a nice morning.”

“You too.”

Jane starts walking, getting away from Katherine.

A part of her wishes she could do more, but the younger girl just won’t ask for anything. Kat didn’t even always eat the food she was offered, and Jane was afraid of just giving the girl money. She heard it all, how you should never give money to someone in the streets because they will waste it on alcohol, or drugs. But Katherine was so amicable, she wouldn’t do that. Jane was almost sure. Almost.

It was the great barrier she was afraid of. Jane could still not be sure of what to do with a girl who she met just a week and a half ago, even the desire to help stopped her to just blindly trust the teenager.

She got to the magazine, just to find Catherine Parr already buzzing on caffeine.

“Morning Seymour!”

“Good morning, what have you drank?” She watches the woman’s hand. “Or how many of those?”

“Three? Maybe four? I don’t know. Aragon wants the photos for the article today, as soon as possible.” She explains.

“I sent them yesterday.”

“I know, but… She might have decided to change the whole article and we need more photos.”

“What? You know, never mind, I’m going to text Anna.” Jane takes her phone. ”What is the new article?”

“Blue, the new black.”

“Okay.” Jane finally takes a breath. “What are we supposed to do with the coats from the last cover?”

“Uh, keep them if you want?” Catherine questions, confused. “After all we are meant to do like those photos never existed.”

“Do you really think I can keep them?” Jane asks, thinking how good those could be for Katherine.

“Yes, keep them. In case someone needs them, I take the blame, but please send her the photos.” Parr begs.

(…)

The photos resulted in a quick shoot, consisting of a navy-blue background and different blue coats, going from light pale to dark night blue. The only problem consisted in a piece they weren’t sure if it was a blue green colour or turquoise. She hoped to have made the right decision for Aragon.

Going back home was harder than the shoot itself, since she had her hands full of the coats they didn’t need anymore. It varied from bring pink, to some black ones. Some of them were heavy, winter ones while others were perfect for summer rain.

“Katherine!” She exclaimed when she saw the brown locks of her hair.

“Jane…” The teenager went to help her.

“I have all of these from work, I thought you might like them.”

The girl shifted uncomfortably, her eyes looking at the ground. Jane noticed that she bit her lip. It was a sign that she was baffled about something.

“You don’t have to take them all, but I wish you would choose one. It will give me peace of mind.” Jane says, hoping not to sound as if she is trying to manipulate Katherine in any way.

The girl inspects for a second, before grabbing a black one with pink buttons: “May I keep this one?”

Jane nods.

(…)

“Hi, Edward.” She smiles at the camera.

Facetiming past midnight with her brother had become more and more common in the last days. Jane was not used to being far from her siblings, nor the rest of the family. Still, even with her strange headaches and fatigue, life in London was something incredible. The city had so much life, and history. Even so many curious tourists helped the atmosphere. It pained her to not be with her family, but her new life was joyful nonetheless.

“Hi Janey, tell me, how is it going?”

“Quite good. I’m so tired though.”

“Tired? How many parties did you attend?” He questions, half joking.

“Funny.” She retorts. “I have just been going to work and to check up on Katherine.”

“Just work? Lame.” Edward mocks his sister. “Who is Katherine?”

“She is a girl living down the street… She, uhm, literally lives on the street.”

Ripping the band aid off quickly was the best thing she could do.

“You are checking up on a girl living in the street?” He sighs. “You are the only one who does it…”

“Don’t say it as if it’s something bad.” Jane returns.

“It’s weird.”

“It shouldn’t be.” She is quick to defend herself.

“Chill out Jane, it’s not that deep.”

“But maybe it is.” Jane can feel her how it’s getting harder to talk without starting to cry. “I don’t understand how much it is… She doesn’t even want to accept food. Yesterday I left her a coat and I’m almost sure she left it anywhere because she can’t accept anything. For goodness sake, I don’t think I have heard her say any other thing that ‘it was not necessary’ or ‘thank you’! So maybe it is that deep.”

She takes a deep breath, while Edward tries to excuse himself saying: “I’m sorry, I didn’t think it meant that much.”

“Yeah, you didn’t. Good night.”

Jane doesn’t wait for him to say something, instead just hangs up the call.

(…)

Next morning was just horrible. She feels nauseous and her brain is almost exploding, but she still gets up and prepares herself for work. Walking through the streets is harder than she can remember, and panic creeps in when there is a street with a bloody name she never saw.

“Jane?” She feels a voice calling. “Are you okay?”

Everything goes slowly blur, finishing in Jane summoned into a total darkness.

(…)

Waking up in the hospital is not something she was waiting for. Her fatigue is obvious when she wakes up, and her faded memories give her the anticipated news of what she already knew. She had fainted. Jane can barely keep her eyes open when the doctor enters the room, trying to get all the information he can.

He also informs that Katherine is outside, and she was the one who called an ambulance. Jane couldn’t possibly be more thankful for the acts of the girl, but in her dizzy state words can’t come out of her mind as she wanted them to come. Instead she keeps just answering questions.

The only moment that stands clearly in her mind is when the doctor starts talking about blood test results, words like anaemia and HCG are glimpses that she catches until the three words that sat heavy on her stomach.

“You are pregnant.”

(…)

When the older one is released, it’s raining outside. They, or rather Jane, decide to take a cab home. Once there, Katherine just simply says goodbye and leaves, walking back to the place where Jane usually found her. Jane notices the girl doesn’t have the coat she left her the other day.

“Katherine!” Jane screams. The girl turns around.

“Go to your house, it’s raining. You have to take care of yourself.”

“Come with me.” She asks. The girl opens her eyes wide.

“No, I can’t.”

“Yes, you can. It’s raining.” Jane says as if it wasn’t obvious.

“I know, I’m used to it. Go to your house.” She wraps her arms around, making a barrier between her and Jane.

“Please just come. Just one night.” The teenager clearly doesn’t want to, but Jane can’t leave her alone. “Or I will stay here.”

Jane knows inside her it is wrong. She shouldn’t be trying to manipulate the younger into doing something she doesn’t want to, but the raining and the news is too much. She feels so on edge, that if she said that bringing Katherine in was a selfless act, that would be plainly lying.

“You can’t stay here. It’s not safe.”

“I say the same to you.” Jane takes a breath. “Please.”

“I can’t go in there.”

“Let me take you out for dinner then.”

Katherine seems to think about it for a moment, before nodding. Jane takes the lead and starts walking to a diner a block away. The teenager doesn’t say a word, instead just walks as fast as she can, and lets Jane walk where she is less likely to get damp with the rain. Once they arrive, they settle for a table near a window.

“You can ask for whatever you want, take this as a thank you for helping me today.” Jane speaks calmly.

Maybe saying that can make Katherine know she earned it, and the girl will actually order something.

“It’s not necessary.”

“But I want to. I don’t know what could’ve happened to me without you.” The older smiles.

“Probably someone else could’ve helped.” Katherine smiles timidly.

“I’m not sure, people here in London don’t seem quite amicable.” Jane shrugged.

“In London? Do you come from somewhere else?”

“Yes, I lived in Devon with my ex before moving here.” Katherine opens her mouth when Jane finishes talking, but quickly shuts it. “It’s okay if you want to ask questions, if the question is if the baby is his, the answer is yes.”

The teen gives a sympathetic look, but talks: “I have always lived here, in London, except for a summer I spent in my step-grandmother’s house in Sussex.”

“That sounds nice.” Jane says, but quickly regrets it when the younger flinches.

“Do you mind if I order pasta?” Katherine questions, voice small.

“No! No problem, I think I will do the same.”

“I haven’t had pasta in a long time, I think since I was thirteen.”

“How old are you?” Jane wonders, hoping not to sound rude.

“Fifteen, I turn sixteen in two months.”

The older is lost for words, this girl is just a kid. She probably hasn’t even finished secondary school, and is living all by herself apparently. Under this new information, Jane can totally see it now. How small her contexture is, not grown up, the way she sits, her nails bitten down. There are a lot of indicators of her age, and Jane feels more uneasy than before.

“I know I look older; I’ve been told that.” Katherine breaks the silence, uncomfortable.

“No, it’s not that.” Jane snaps out of her thoughts. “I was just processing today’s information.”

Katherine nods, clearly uncomfortable, but for Jane’s luck the waiter quickly arrives with water and asks for their orders. The teenager asks for plain pasta, until Jane reassures her it’s okay to ask for more. She changes it just to add some sauce that doesn’t sound too gross, and the older happily asks for the same. They stay a moment like that, with Kat just taking in the restaurant.

If she said she remembered going to one like this, she would be lying. After her mother died, her memories are plagued by being in her house, alone with Henry Manox. The summer spent with her step-grandmother is just a vague memory of something her brain tried to forget. Then it’s all about living in the street, trying to live by with what charities offered and painting and singing to anyone who could lend her some money.

“In case you want another coat, I still have the rest in my apartment.” Jane says.

“Why are you doing this?” Katherine asks, manners forgotten. “What do you want?”

Jane purses her lips for a second and then releases them: “I don’t want anything, but I am worried about you. I don’t want to see you suffer.”

“I’m not suffering.” The teenager responds, even if she is not sure. “I don’t need your worry.”

Jane is lost for words.

“I’m sorry for being rude.” Katherine murmurs.

“Don’t be. I get it.” Jane takes a sip of her water. “I just want to do something good. I had a hard time with my ex. We didn’t break up in good terms, nowhere near it. I needed help and even if my family loves me, they weren’t there for me. I wanted to just try and help someone, and I thought you would want help.”

The younger takes a moment before talking. Jane looks vulnerable, something adults usually don’t look. A part of her wants to just believe this is a lie, and nobody is going to just help because they had a rough time. All the kindness the woman showed her is enough to prevent her from just storming out of the room.

“I don’t want help, but I appreciate it.” She concludes, before putting a smile. “What is your favourite colour?”

Jane laughs at the lightness that question brings to the conversation.

(…)

Jane takes her time, and decides to have the baby. She is not ready, and she knows it. Utter fear rises from her every time she thinks about it, but still she manages to make that decision.

Her neat calendar starts to become full of the different doctor appointments and parental classes. She tries to get her hands in any parenting book she can find. Her usual morning coffee changes for tea, and she changes her diet trying to avoid the morning sickness.

The only thing that remains without a change is worrying about Katherine, who starts taking dinner once a week with Jane, and asks her about how the pregnancy is going. The teenager is the only one aware of it, and it brings joy to the older having the chance to talk about it.

(…)

One-night Jane wakes up abruptly, a tremendous noise ringing in her ears. She realizes it’s the buzzer and moves to the intercom.

“Hello? Who is downstairs?”

“Katherine.” She says between sobs. “I’m sorry to bother you- “

Jane talks before she can finish: “I’m going to get you wait a second.”

She throws a coat and goes straight into the elevator, once she gets out the first thing she notices is Katherine with tears streaming down her face. Jane almost runs, and when she opens the door, the younger clings to her.

“I think I saw Manox.”

Jane starts drawing paths on her back, trying to get her to calm down.

“Do you want to go upstairs, sweetheart?”

Katherine finally nods.

#six the musical #six fanfiction #six the musical fanfic #six the musical fanfiction #jane seymour #Katherine Howard

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