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shintorikhazumi · 3 years

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Romero and Julie (Act I: Truths and Lies)

A/N: Thought of it while I was looking up K-on’s romeo and juliet episode and accidentally typed “Romero”.

...I know i have so many wips, but this will most likely be a 2-shot or a 3. It’s not going to drag on that long. I think... I believe...

... I think...

...5 chaps at most?

Also, this story is as sloppily written as that search prompt, so I apologize. (I keep writing romeo as romero for some reason.) I don’t know how to write anymore, it seems. Also, I didn’t reread this for checks. Sorry again. I just... yeeted this out as soon as the last word was in place. Anyway,

Enjoy?

~Shintori Khazumi

Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-cross'd lovers take their life;

Whose misadventur'd piteous overthrows

Doth with their death bury their parents' strife.

The fearful passage of their death-mark'd love,

And the continuance of their parents' rage,

Which but their children's end naught could remove,

Is now the two hours' traffic of our stage;

The which, if you with patient ears attend,

What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to me-

“I can’t believe the utter bullshit I’ve just read.”

“Lady Claudine!” Mahiru gasped, unable to believe the words she’d just heard coming from the noble lady sat across her.

“Oh, come now, Mahiru. You can’t tell me you actually like this piece of work?” Claudine sighed, shutting the book and placing it on the table. She stared at the cover a few minutes more before pushing it away from her in disgust.

“Hmm? I don’t get it. It is a piece? And it is a work?” Mahiru’s escort cocked her head to the side in confusion, giving Claudine a look that requested clarification.

“Dame Karen.” Claudine sighed, resting her elbows on the table and propping her head up in her hands. She ignored Mahiru’s wide eyes at her ill-mannered display and went on with her exchange with the female knight. “I’m saying it’s a terrible piece of work. Terribly inaccurate.”

“Ohhhhh. I get it.” Karen nodded, eyes wide, expression enlightened before it settled into a smile. “I think so too.”

“Right?!” Claudine thought her voice was a bit too enthusiastic there. Clearing her throat, she calmly reiterated. “Right? I actually had high expectations for this as many of the noble ladies I’ve come across recently have been flaunting their copies of the script. They even dubbed it as the ‘New Romance Bible of High Society’.” Claudine rolled her eyes. She would have made a gagging motion, but she was certain Mahiru would cry blood at that.

“Besides, I can’t believe they’d try to make a reference to my family name for such a piece, and even claim to have modeled the heroine after me when clearly, she is nothing like me.” Claudine continued to criticize. “Therefore, I have fair reason to dislike such a novel.”

“It’s not all that bad, is it?” Mahiru tried. “I managed to read up to half of it, and I believe it was alright.”

Claudine stared at her blankly. “I decided to give Junna the benefit of the doubt here, as she has been my long-time tutor and friend. I believe in her recommendations.” Claudine pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. “So, I’ve read the book cover to cover.”

“Oh?”

“It was the worst decision I’ve ever made.” Claudine lamented. “Nana should have stopped her from picking up such a horrific title. I can’t believe she actually liked it enough to recommend it to me.”

“Maybe she thought it would be a nice read since it was about you?” Karen offered her opinion.

“Who would want to read about themselves in such a sad excuse of a tale?” Claudine played with her tea, swirling it in the cup. “Maybe if it was written more tastefully... Anyway, I can’t stand the book so maybe I’ll just give it away or use it for fire.”

“Madame Junna will feel sad to hear that, you know?” Mahiru sighed, taking a bite of her cake. “She might even cry.”

“No, she won’t.” Claudine chuckled with a wave of her hand, but then Junna’s face flashed a brief moment in her mind, and it made her pause in thought. “...right?” She wasn’t so sure all of a sudden.

“Lady Claudine... she sulked for three days when she’d heard you laughed during one of the most tragic plays of our generation.” Mahiru deadpanned.

Claudine’s brows furrowed, unable to recall the events that Mahiru was referencing.

“Que?”

“Remember? We went to Brighton theatre the other day?”

“...”

“Brighton?”

“Karen! You were with us too, you know!”

“Ah-”

Mahiru looked to Claudine excitedly. It seemed as though she’d finally remembered.

“That comedy skit Junna recommended?”

“Again, it was tragedy!”

“The one where the main character got shot after being stupid enough to not take a shield after he was advised to? The ‘A sword is mightier than a pen, but the sword is my...’ my...” Claudine thought hard, struggling to find the right words in her memory. “Something or other.” She gave up.

“Kuro-chan!”

Claudine grinned at the nickname, pleased that she was able to rile Mahiru up another day.

“Okay, okay. Enough teasing, I know.” She laughed, patting her friend on the head and gaining a blooming blush in return. “You were just too lovely, I couldn’t help myself.” She flashed a charming smile that made Mahiru burn even hotter, and made Karen pout.

“This is why you’re so... and nobles keep... hrmmrrgghh...” She grumbled. “And yet you complain about being crowded and you....”

“What was that, Dame Karen?” Claudine chuckled, eyeing her friend with an amused look.

“Oh, nothing really, Duchess Claudine.” Karen fired back.

“Hey now, don’t go spreading lies, my dear knight.” Claudine frowned.

“I speak no lies, milady. Everyone knows that you are the one who has been handling estate affairs as of late.” Karen spoke seriously all of a sudden, irking Claudine secretly.

She didn’t want to think of those things right now.

Before Claudine’s mood sunk further, Karen- with a quick flip of a switch- had returned to pouting. “And I’m not your dear knight.”

Oh, Karen could be so perceptive, sometimes. Claudine gladly accepted the bail.

“I know.” Claudine smiled, half-grateful, half-teasing. “You are Mahiru’s, right?” Claudine wiggled her brows suggestively. Karen flushed hot red, and Claudine thoroughly drank in her new target’s vexation in enjoyment.

“Kuro-chan!!”

Claudine admired the twin tomatoes in front of her. Life had been a drag lately, but time with her friends always seemed to offset all of those.

“Oh right. And Hikari’s too.”

Claudine broke into hysterics at the display of flailing arms and incoherent half-yells of denial at the mention of her knight’s name. She swore she could physically see the steam coming off of the pair in front of her. Was it from anger, embarrassment, or both? Probably both, Claudine supposed.

“Kuro-chan, you are seriously so mean.” Karen whined, fanning her face uselessly as the heat showed no signs of subsiding.

Claudine wiped a tear from her eyes. She’d laughed so much her sides were beginning to hurt.

“I’m terrible, aren’t I?” She smiled.

“That you are, Milady.” A stoic voice suddenly inserted itself into their conversation.

Claudine found herself jolting in her seat at its proximity from behind her. Whipping her head around, she sighed in relief at the sight of her escort.

“Hikari! At least alert us sooner if you’ve arrived!” Claudine complained. Her heart beat strongly against the palm she’d rested against her chest in an attempt to calm herself.

“I have arrived, Milady.”

“No, like I said. Say that sooner!” Claudine huffed, settling back into her seat, leaning her head on her palm once more. Claudine spared a glance at Karen and Mahiru who were looking rather bashful, eyes averted from the newest arrival.

She covered her mouth with her hand to hide the growing smile on her face as her knight stared at the pair across them. Claudine patiently awaited the usual awkward interaction between her friends that she knew would play out soon. She counted the seconds off in her head, knowing exactly when the first move would be made.

3... 2... 1-

Like clockwork, Hikari faced Mahiru and Karen head-on, straightened her posture, and bent into a deep bow of greeting. “Lady Tsuyuzaki.”

“Dame Kagura. It’s a pleasure to see you once more” Mahiru responded calmly.

However, Claudine caught the way Mahiru’s brow twitched. Her displeasure was skillfully hidden behind that gentle smile she’s known for forever, but Claudine would like to believe she’s adept enough at deciphering the true meaning behind Mahiru’s masks called grace.

She internally shook her head, hoping Mahiru could soon find the freedom to be free from the expectations laid on the lady known as ‘High Society’s Saintess’, and be able to express emotions outside of simple joy, kindness, or sympathy.

Turning to the other knight, Claudine waited for what Karen’s reaction for today would be. She had a variety for different days. Sometimes it was openly voicing her disappointment, and other times it was a response just as curt and detached as Hikari’s.

“Dame Ai-”

“Karen!” The owner of the name interrupted. “Just Karen. Karen is fine... H-Hikari...”

Oh? Today was a little more bold, Claudine noted. Usually Karen would only politely request the other knight to refer to her by her given name, even if it bore her title. This was a fresh attempt. Now, how would her dear knight react?

“Dame Karen.” Hikari stated blankly, completely unfazed by the hiccup in her usual greeting routine.

Claudine lightly slapped Hikari’s arm-earning her a confused yelp- before throwing Karen and Mahiru a consoling smile; one that told them there was always a next time to attempt to woo her clueless knight.

She watched Karen’s shoulders drop in a sigh, and Mahiru cover her relenting smile with her fan. She should talk to Hikari about this sometime again. For now, however...

“So? What goes on back at the manor?” Claudine took a sip of her tea that had now gone cold after she’d ignored it a while. With a minute flick of her finger, it grew warm in her hands and she smiled, hoping her friends hadn’t noticed.

She heard her knight groan from behind her. Quite a rare happening, to be frank. Hikari was usually very careful with her actions and reactions, so Claudine braced herself for some unpleasant news.

“Master Cyrille has finally arrived.” She reported dutifully.

Claudine somehow heard the frosty bite in her tone. It was understandable. Cyrille was her elder brother of four years, and the heir apparent to their household.

-Or that was how it was supposed to be.

He and Hikari never really got along after- ehem- certain incidents had taken place a few years ago. Those incidents also happened to be part of the reason why his successorship was being reconsidered at present.

“How did Pa- Father react?” Claudine caught herself before her small childish habit would be revealed.

Hikari scratched her cheek, another nervous habit of hers that Claudine had learned about after years of being together. “They had the usual debate. Right as he arrived.”

That was expected. Claudine knew something like that would happen. So why was Hikari so bothered.

“The young master came onto the premises yelling right away from the gate about being the rightful heir or something along those lines.”

This too was within Claudine’s foresight.

“I can’t believe he’s making a fuss on foreign land. We’re not here to start a war, we’re here as representatives of a peace treaty.” Claudine shook her head in disappointment.

Her family, the Capulets, had hailed from the Western empire and had been residing for a few months on Eastern lands. After hundreds of years of warring with the east, they had experienced the first fifty years of a truce. Finally, the two empires had decided to build friendly relations to completely cease all the needless battles between them. After fifty years of an ambiguous standstill, the emperors had finally decided to send forth representatives to celebrate the golden year of peace between them and cement the alliance of the nations.

As the grand ducal household located at the border of the empires, their family had naturally been selected. This was also the West’s acclaimed ‘reward for service in battle’ to their family who had always fought to protect the precious border.

Yes, all that struggle in history, and her brother might just be the one to render it all useless in one fell swoop.

Not that it would have been the first time.

“Anything else, Hikari?” Claudine could feel her headache coming on.

“They argued in the study.”

“I figured.”

Hikari still radiated nervous energy, and Claudine just had to wonder why. “What are you not telling me yet, Hikari?”

“... Master Cyrille kept pressing that he was the rightful hair to the Dukedom... then Your Grace was angered and said that... that...”

“Hikari?”

“You’re not going to like it.” The knight warned.

“Obviously not.” Claudine replied flatly. “From how you are at this moment, I’ve already figured that out.”

“The Grand Duke said he’d rather make you the heir... instead of Young Master Cyrille... so he wishes to speak with you back at the estate.”

Claudine’s eyes widened. She knew there was a possibility that this outcome would arise. She just didn’t think it was that possible. She had already voiced her stance on this in the past to her father. She was not willing to take over their family as head. She had other plans in life. Plans of freedom and of adventure; she had other desires that were probably not suited for a woman carrying royal blood.

Yet she longed for that particular life. Thus, she could not be the Duke’s successor. She’d suggested that her father give the title to their youngest sibling instead who was seven years her junior.

He might not be ready now, but he could still be groomed to be the perfect candidate in the future. She was sure Gabriel could do it, irresponsible as she may sound at that moment, pushing it all onto the child.

“Kuro-chan?”

Mahiru’s tender voice reminded Claudine that her friends were still there, quite worried that she’d suddenly froze on the spot.

“My apologies, Mahiru.” She got up, bowing deeply. “I know you’ve gone out of your way to prepare all of this for me, but-”

“Hey.” Claudine felt a warm hand on her cheek, guiding her to stand back up. Mahiru’s gaze was kind as it always was, full of tender empathy. “Go. A few tea and biscuits aren’t going to go to waste just because you’re not around.”

Claudine managed a small smile, taking Mahiru’s hand into her own two.

“You have Karen anyway.”

“Exactly.”

“Hmm? What about me?”

The two young ladies laughed at their inside joke for a few moments before embracing one another goodbye.

Karen had offered one to Claudine as well, and she gladly accepted.

After being sent off with the best of regards and well-wishing, Claudine tried to not think on her dread the entire carriage ride home.

She just knew it was going to be a messy affair.

//-//-//-//-//

“Claudine.”

“Your Grace.”

The Grand Duke heaved a sigh, gesturing for his daughter to take a seat across from him. “I take it you’ve already heard from Hikari?” At the nod of Claudine’s head, he sighed once more. “I’m really sorry about that. I am aware that you do not wish to get involved in such dealings. However, I didn’t have much else to say. I could not think of any other argument at that moment.”

Claudine could see the exhaustion built up in her father. She felt bad for being so insistent on her own wants that she’d possibly pushed him up against a wall. However, she could not deny that this was the only path she was willing to take.

Taking her father’s hands and planting a kiss on them, she reassured him. “I understand, papa.”

“Claudine...”

“I am also at fault, anyway. I know you’re being pressured by the Royal family into a succession ceremony soon, and yet... I’m adding onto your troubles.”

“I just- I don’t understand why they are so adamant on it... yet at the same time I know why.” Duke Capulet’s expression turned stern. “I suspect this is the first prince’s doing.”

“Paris?”

The duke nodded, clearly unhappy at the mention of the name. “I don’t understand why your brother went against my guidance to not associate with him. The second prince would make a far better friend, as well as future ruler.” His frown deepened. “And yet, that imbecile, Cyrille...”

Duke Capulet brought Claudine’s hands to his forehead, bowing before his daughter.

“After all that fool, Paris, had done to you...”

Claudine shuddered at the memory of her days at the academy and the forceful ‘courtship methods’ of the first prince. Had her father been a different man, she feared she would have been long-engaged to such a twisted brat who hid behind a cunning smile and the power of the crown.

He was sure never to push too far, or too dangerously, but Claudine knew he was bordering terrible, terrible deeds. She was just glad she was far away from him now.

“Claudine.”

Her father lifted his head up, eyes saddened, but commanding in a sense as they stared into Claudine’s own. Claudine immediately knew that his next words would be incredibly important, that they would be of the utmost value to her and her life, as well as their entire household’s. She just knew that their weight would be something she would have to endeavor to bear for everyone’s sake.

She knew because he rarely ever asked her of anything that she did not desire. She knew that something must have happened to allow the Grand Duke to tremble in this way, before his nineteen-year-old daughter, with a gaze that was begging her to comply.

“You have to get married.”

//-//-//-//-//

Claudine swung her sword, ridding the area of the final beast and collecting its glowing core off the puddled ground. Handing the gem-like item to Hikari for safe-keeping, she slumped against a tree, sinking to the ground that dirtied her pants with mud that had formed from the night’s rain.

“Are you hurt, milady?” Hikari inquired, already rushing forward to do a thorough body-check for any injuries on Claudine.

“Nothing of the sort. Also, I told you not to address me that way while we’re out adventuring. What if someone found us out?” Claudine ran a hand through her damp bangs, grimacing at the repulsive feel and smell of blood and grime in her hair.

“My apologies.”

Times like these, Claudine wished she hadn’t focused too much on learning combat spells back then. She should have taken the foundational classes with Nana more seriously, and looked into metamorphosis magic sooner. She wouldn’t have to worry about issues such as being discovered then.

Better to start late then never, she supposed. She could only manage to change her hair and eye color, as well as clothes for a small amount of time for now, but she was working on changing her entire appearance for extended periods soon. Then she and Hikari could go off on any journey or mission without being recognized.

“Claudine?”

The soft calling made her smile. It was rare for her knight to address her so casually, and even rarer was the tenderness she allowed to escape in her voice. Claudine placed a hand on Hikari’s head, petting it lightly.

“Yes, Hikari?”

“Do you not want to get married, Claudine?”

The question wasn’t what she had expected. She hadn’t even told Hikari about her current situation yet. She must have listened in on the conversation secretly.

“If my dad had caught you...” Claudine laughed at the realization, shaking her head.

Hikari remained silent.

Claudine scratched her cheek, looking away from the knight’s expectant gaze. “It’s not as though I don’t want to.” She admitted. “I just...”

“Just?”

“I haven’t found a person I’d like to share that kind of joy with yet.” Claudine spoke with a loneliness to her tone that they both weren’t quite familiar with. “I haven’t gotten to know anyone who makes me want to experience that kind of relationship.”

Hikari didn’t seem to understand fully, but she nodded nonetheless. “Okay.” She decided not to push further, noticing her master’s discomfort. Instead, she held out a hand to aid her up on her feet.

“Thank you, Hikari.” For the assistance and for listening, Claudine said in her heart. “Shall we head back to the guild now? Wouldn’t want Cyrille to barge into my room first thing tomorrow morning and find it empty.” Claudine half-joked.

If Claudine knew her brother, which she did, she knew he’d have searched for her at the dinner table tonight already, but her father had likely made an excuse to keep him out of her hair ‘til morning. She already knew that he would want to speak to her on matters regarding the prince, or succession, or whatever it was he did that was likely no good.

If he ever got into Claudine’s room without supervision, she was afraid he’d stumble upon things he wasn’t supposed to, and would likely use it against her.

Her conversation with her father resurfaced in her mind. His words on finding a suitable partner, a suitor, and the reasons behind it were invasive, consuming her every thought.

Cyrille was trying to set her up with Prince Paris for some reason. He was willing to pull all stops to do so. It seemed that he had went ahead and made a proposal to the royal family under the authority of ‘Heir-apparent’ to the Capulet Dukedom. He’d sworn that once he was made Duke, she’d be married off into the imperial household as a way to strengthen the standing and influence of the emperor.

Whatever he had been promised to make him act so selfishly and vilely, Claudine didn’t even want to know.

As of now, he held no real power over her father. Neither did the first prince, in reality. Deep down, however, both Claudine and the Grand Duke knew there was more to this arrangement than two boys and their greedy egos being fed. He feared for the future.

With all they had already gotten away with in the past, Duke Capulet was suspecting that someone else held the strings to the puppets dancing to a tune. They had yet to know what gears were turning in a suspected grand scheme, but it must not come to pass. This was what their family feared the most, and why Claudine must not get involved with Paris.

In order to have a valid reason to reject such a candidate, she needed a better one. That was the part she had to play.

There was just one small problem-

“You there!”

A voice echoed through the shadow and mist of the forest, horse hooves stomping rapidly against the wet ground. Quickly, Claudine brandished her sword, pointing it in the direction from whence it came. “Hikari! Get behind me!” She commanded, left hand twitching in anticipation.

“Now see here, Milady. I’m the protector suppo-”

“Don’t move! Stay where you are and drop your weapons.” The voice commanded, a silhouette beginning to form in the distance.

“Like hell we’ll listen.” Claudine grumbled, sword still at the ready with a glow that traveled from its hilt to its blade.

“I’m warning you!” The voice echoed once more. “State your name and your business here. And don’t even think of trying to fight or escape.”

Claudine fixed her glare on the figure coming into the light of the clearing they were at, magic barely finishing its work of turning her hair black as Hikari’s shifted into a shorter cut. It was the best she could do at such short notice. Hopefully the night would be kind enough to be their mask and they wouldn’t be recognized afterwards should they escape successfully.

“Again, I order you to state your names and your business here, strangers. Are you not aware that these grounds belong to the imperial family?” The powerful stomping halted right in front of the women, a sharp huff from the steed sending them reeling back in disgust.

Finally, underneath the gaze of the moon, a figure cast in stardust light appeared before them, hooded cloak hiding the identity of the horseman.

“Who are you.”

Claudine continued to glower at the newcomer, unrelenting as she kept her lips tightly shut. Who was this person? Why had they suddenly been approached? This place was supposedly a mission ground for adventurers and hunters hoping to earn their keep by clearing out the ghouls and demons that infested this uninhabited land.

“Who. Are. You-”

“I could ask you the same thing.” Claudine spoke levelly through grit teeth, ready to slash at any given time should the newcomer move in a threatening pattern. “We’re only here on quest. Adventurers if you will.”

The cloaked man dismounted and walked up to Claudine, staring a few inches down at her. “Is that so?”

Claudine hated that he was even trying to intimidate her. Placing a firm hand on his chest, she pushed him away somewhat gently, not really wanting to potentially aggravate the already-tense situation. “Yes. That is so.” She confirmed, scowling. “For us at least. But what about you?”

Claudine eyed the man, watching for any suspicious movements. He returned the gaze, looking her up and down, searching her expression for signs of dishonesty. He seemed to have found nothing as his aura of hostility calmed drastically, and he sighed.

“I’m an imperial guard, patrolling.” As he said that, a sword was raised, still sheathed. Claudine was shown the imperial seal on the scabbard and she relaxed somewhat as the guard backed off with a small bow. “As I’ve mentioned before, these grounds are under the jurisdiction of the imperial household.”

“Apologies, sir. However, we were unaware of this fact as this place has been a known hotspot for adventurers for many years- or so we’ve heard.” Claudine explained, now sheathing her own sword.

“I understand.” The guard nodded. “I also apologize. While your statement held truth in the past, as of recent, this forest has been deemed more unsafe than it used to be. It’s not just magical beasts or ghouls that lurk these shadows now. Reports of spies, terrorists, and bandits trying to enter the capital via a newly discovered route through the woods have been reported, so we are at high alert.”

Claudine hummed, taking in their current situation. “I see.” Claudine nodded, agreeing to his words. She had expected these kinds of threats to arise as the peace treaty ceremony approached and more nobles from both empires flocked to the main city. It was an opportune moment to spark disaster, and even a civil war.

Good on the west to take quick measures.

“As such, I must ask for your identities to ensure the safety of all.”

Not so good for Claudine.

“I, er-”

“As you are adventurers- and I, of course, believe in your words, I would just like to see your identifications and know your names. It’s a quick process then I can let you go. That is... if you have nothing to be suspected of.”

Truthfully, she shouldn’t be as nervous as she suddenly was at the moment. However, there were a few issues with that request. For one, no one but Hikari, the Grand Duke, and the Head Guild Master of the Eastern Empire knew of her being an adventurer. She had been registered under special circumstances that had been agreed upon, and her issued permit in order to accept quests in the west was also an unorthodox arrangement, and very much a secret one.

When she’d first arrived at the guild hall, she was given an identification badge that also served as her permit like the rest of the adventurers. However, this did not contain her name at all. Instead, it only contained her registration code and where she had come from.

As a law-abiding citizen for the most part, she hadn’t ever needed to do much besides flashing the shiny trinket from a distance at other guards in passing.

This time, however, was different. She was certain that it would be scrutinized and most definitely questioned.

“You sure are taking an awful lot of time to simply identify yourself.” The stranger’s tone of voice was still calm, but his aura had shifted noticeably. “Is anything the matter?”

“No, not at all.” Claudine responded, proud that she’d managed to keep her voice steady. Reaching into her polo, she pulled out the chain that held her badge, presenting it to the imperial guard, praying that he wouldn’t check it as thoroughly as she’d feared.

“Um, excuse me. Why isn’t your name imprinted on it?”

‘Damn it.’

“Allow me to come clean.” Claudine spoke, instantly regretting her choice of words. It made her sound like she actually was someone to be wary of. She should conjure some believable alibi at least.

“Milady-” Hikari stepped forward, but was blocked with that same imperial-branded sword from earlier.

“It’s alright.” Claudine reassured before her knight could retaliate. One wrong move and they could actually be in jeopardy. Not only them, but the entire event of a peace treaty could lay to waste if they were not careful and would get found out.

“Go on.” Was the command.

“I’m actually...” Claudine licked her suddenly dry lips, thinking of how to say it. “I’m a daughter of a noble, and I’m operating under... rather private conditions.”

Okay, she hadn’t meant to be that truthful. If at all.

“How can I believe such a tall claim?” The cloaked man stepped closer to Claudine, now incredibly suspicious. “To which family do you belong?

Claudine had no time to secure a valid name, speaking the first that came to mind. “Sa-Saijou.” Another truth that would surely deepen her dug grave.

“Saijou? As in the Marquess Saijou?” She could almost shrink under that examining gaze. “I’ve never heard of or seen you before though.”

“I- I’m not his child, no. I’m a niece and I’ve been staying with relatives in the west. It was an arrangement made when I was very young, and I have only since been allowed to return here.”

‘Damn me and my inability to lie.’

“I’m sorry, as much as I’d like to believe you, I’ll have to take you with me for some questioning.”

No, no, no. This was not good. Claudine couldn’t risk more people prying into her identity. Also, she could feel the strain of her magic that was about to undo itself. She couldn’t keep up appearances- quite literally- for much longer.

“If you would come quietly.”

They had to bail.

“I’m sorry, but we-”

Suddenly, an arrow flew right by her head, barely grazing her cheek as sounds of multiple hooves and wolf-like growls filled the forest.

“Tsk.”

“Milady!”

“Stand back, you two.” The guard moved in front of them, sword drawn and aimed towards the origin of the arrow and sounds. Quickly, those same sounds began to shift and spread, as if circling them.

Claudine and Hikari quickly drew out their own swords, as the former launched a quick area check spell discreetly.

‘Twenty? No, thirty. Thirty men on horseback... at least ten hunting wolves.’

As Claudine weighed their situation, a harsh gust of wind came hurtling towards them, the hood on the imperial guards cloak coming off, revealing long brunette locks tied up in a ponytail.

The sight of such smooth strands on which the moon’s beams bounced off so gently almost made Claudine forget the gravity of their situation, eyes bewitched- captured- by stunning violet gems that she couldn’t believe she’d failed to take notice of before.

“It seems they have a mage in their midst.” The knight, now fully facing Claudine, addressed them. “I’m sorry to ask this of you after having suspected you; and while I still doubt your credibility, I would like to shamelessly enlist your assistance as of the moment.”

There was something in his gaze, in his entire beautiful expression, that compelled Claudine to know more, to say yes, to help him.

“Truly, you are quite shameless.” She grinned, head held high. “I would have done so without you asking.”

The smile she was rewarded with sent her heart into a frenzy. It wasn’t a handsome grin, no. Claudine took note that under the moonlit night, this man oozed a dignified beauty that was quickly distracting her from her mission at hand.

“You have my gratitude.”

Claudine nodded, willing herself to not stare for longer than necessary as she and Hikari took stance.

With their backs to each other, they stood in wait, counting down the seconds to their adversaries’ arrival. Claudine sighed ruefully as she felt her transformation spell fade, this instance confirmed as she glanced over at a now long-haired Hikari. She could just feel questioning eyes burning their gaze into her golden hair.

She was not looking forward to having to explain this too.

“What.” She spat, meeting the stare of her temporary ally, hoping no questions would come right now.

“Oh nothing. Just wanted to tell you something.”

“And that is?”

As she said that, gruff looking men arrived in the clearing, their disgusting smirks clearly indicated that they were looking down on the small group they’d surrounded.

Claudine was beginning to feel irritated. She hated being underestimated.

She barely caught the grin thrown her way as the guard launched himself at the group. She did, however, receive every single insulting word of challenge.

“Don’t hold me back now, Little Miss.”

Oh it was on,

“Insufferable asshole.”

//-//-//-//-//

Claudine did not frequent pubs. They weren’t her type of hangout spots. And while she wasn’t one for leisure cafe dates or tea parties with the other noble ladies, she did love the peace of libraries and the refreshing mountain creeks.

Needless to say, this place intimidated her more than any imperial guard could hope to.

“Not a good drinker?”

It wasn’t that. It really wasn’t.

If anything, both Claudine and Hikari were strong drinkers. Just not... public drinkers, she supposed.

“No.” Claudine sighed, taking a seat across the pretty man- damn, he was beautiful. Claudine would have almost mistaken him for a woman. He was tall, but not much taller than Claudine, and his voice wasn’t all too deep, so maybe she wasn’t wrong. Maybe.

“Then what has you so down, milady?” His tone of voice was playful, and Claudine knew she was being teased. He probably still didn’t believe in her whole ‘secret-noble-adventurer’ story.

“I’m just tired.”

“Hoh? Already? From that little excursion?”

Claudine growled, pounding the table with her fist. “Well, if someone would have just stayed out of my way while we were fighting earlier then-”

“Now, now. Don’t go blaming someone else for these kind of things, Young Miss. How are you ever going to survive as an adventurer if you blame others for your mistakes? Being able to take responsibility for one’s self is one of the most important traits in the field.”

Claudine clicked her tongue. She knew she was purposely being toyed with. “Shut up.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that, Miss.”

“And why the hell not?” Claudine’s glare went ignored as the man waved over a server to place an order.

Turning to her with that same smug smile that was equal parts gorgeous and incredibly annoying, the guard spoke. “Because I want to get to know you better.”

Claudine scoffed, rolling her eyes.

“Starting with your names.” He clasped his hands together, resting his chin atop them. “I at least believe you are of some noble descent. If the silence of your companion, and her respect towards any of your earlier actions and decisions hold any significant hint to that.”

“Glad you’re at least that sharp.” Claudine huffed, putting up a mask to hide her inner thoughts that were struggling to come up with some alias for both her and Hikari.

“So. Names.”

Anything. Anything.

“J-Julie!”

Curse that damn book and the sudden memory of it!

Claudine inwardly cried as she gave away that piece of false information, even screwing up the actual name she was supposed to use.

“Julie... Saijou.” The brunette looked at her skeptically, but nodded. Somehow accepting it for now. “And your companion is?”

“She’s-”

“Kagura Hikari.”

“Hikari?!” Claudine whipped her head about in shock. So much for discretion! Just what was this girl thinking?!

“I’m sorry, Milady. But I think it is in our best interests to be as honest as possible.” Hikari bowed apologetically to Claudine before turning to her fellow knight, face blank and giving nothing away. “I am uncertain if you’ve heard of such details, but the Saijou’s have long since had ties with the Capulet family of the Western empire.”

Claudine covered her face with her hands, now groaning into her palms. She could only hope this wouldn’t ruin her already fragile freedom and put their positions at risk.

“They are the relatives milady has mentioned before. Her aunt married into the family, you see.”

Ah, so that was how Hikari was going to play it.

Well, maybe it wasn’t a bad excuse. Claudine believed the knight was considering any future encounters with the imperial guard since they would be attending palace events soon.

She spared the guard a glance, and was surprised to see that he actually looked to be convinced of those words. Not that they were much of a lie in the first place.

“I see! I understand. My apologies then.”

Claudine held back her sigh of relief, not wanting to give even the slightest thing away anymore.

“Yes, that’s it.” She said, trying to add onto their story. “And about the identification badge... well... you wouldn’t really expect any noble children, much less ladies, join an adventurer guild and all that.”

“I suppose so.” The guard chuckled.

Soon, their drinks had arrived, and Claudine found herself staring into the golden liquid the man across from her was downing to keep her eyes of his too pretty face, a question nagging on her mind.

“And you?”

“Hmm?” Placing his glass down, he gave her a curious, yet smug smile. “What about me?”

Somehow, Claudine wanted to wipe it off his stupid face.

“We gave you our names and background. It’s only common courtesy to introduce yourself properly in return, is it not?”

His growing grin was really pissing her off.

“Right, of course. Excuse me for my rudeness since earlier.”

“No kidding.” Claudine complained, waiting rather impatiently for his information. Not that she’d ever remember it, much less use the knowledge for any future plans. No. Not at all.

Not even for that.

“Hmm, well you could call me Romero.”

Romero.

Really, now. Romero?

Again, that damn book was really trying to force its way into Claudine’s thoughts. She internally cringed at the association.

“Romero. Of course that’s your name.” She rolled her eyes, not believing it for even one second. “You certainly look like a ‘Romero’.” She stated sarcastically. ‘Romero’ here looked as eastern as eastern gets.

“You wound me, Lady Julie. Can’t a man adapt a name of different culture simply because it suits him this much?”

“I didn’t say anything against it.” Claudine waved, taking a sip from her drink. It was cold, a little bitter. She liked it.

“Your expression says all there needs to be said.”

Claudine smirked, leaning across the table. “Oh? I’m glad it does then. Sir Romero.”

The man’s eyes glinted in amusement as he leaned forward as well. Claudine huffed. So this is how they were going to play it.

“So, Lady Julie. I said I’d like to get to know you.”

Claudine nodded. “Know all you want, then.”

“You say that so easily, but are you sure?” Really, this man unnerved her like no one else. His gaze was piercing, yet dull. It was clear, but betrayed no thoughts nor intentions of his.

Claudine nodded again, but a little less confident now.

“Then, if I may be so bold as to ask,” Romero began. “What business do you have here in the capital? Besides the whole peace treaty, I suppose. If I recall correctly, it is not a requirement for all nobles to attend, and I know the property of both the Saijou’s and Capulet’s are a ways away from here.”

Claudine swallowed a lump in her throat, wondering what she should say. “Isn’t it the greatest honor for any noble to be able to claim that they stood as personal witness to the changing of times?”

What a generic answer.

Bless Junna’s etiquette lessons that were coming to fruition.

“Ehh, how boring~”

Somewhat.

“Be that as it may, it’s the truth.” Claudine raised her glass back up to her lips, taking in more of that golden liquid.

“Is that so? Just that? Nothing else?” Romero pressed.

“That’s all I’m willing to divulge, Sir Romero.” Claudine said sternly, eyes ordering him to back down. Even for an imperial knight, wasn’t this a little too impudent?

“Fair, fair.” Romero responded, hands up in the air in surrender. “I must have overstepped my boundaries. My apologies.”

Claudine downed her drink, ignoring him for a moment.

“I’m simply curious. And to think, for the sole purpose of this event, you went out of your way to get an adventuring permit for quests from the main guild when you might only be staying a short while.” Romero continued to seek her gaze, peskily grinning in wait. “As an imperial guard, I’m just concerned, milady. It’s part of the job.”

Claudine gave him a blank look. Romero seemed unfazed.

“I just need a few more details for my report, that’s all. Something to make your story believable enough to not be sought out by other guards who aren’t as kind and considerate as me.” He winked to accentuate his statement, and Claudine threw him a disgusted look.

“If you were the least bit as considerate as you claim to be, you’d have been quiet for the last hour.”

“Harsh words, Milady. I only want to kno-”

“Milady is here to get married.” Hikari slammed her mug on the table, pinning her gaze on the troublesome man. “Now that you know, stop bothering my master.”

“Hikari!” Claudine didn’t know whether she should be touched at the intervention, or frustrated at the reveal.

“What a loyal guardian.” Romero complimented with a grin. “You’re the kind of escort the imperial palace would love to have.”

It was almost as if he were holding out bait for Hikari to take. Claudine didn’t like it.

“Excuse me, but Hikari is-”

“I belong solely to my Master. I serve no one else but her. My loyalty has been sworn. Your words are kind, but they are not right. Not for me. I’m sorry.”

“Hikari...”

Romero and Hikari’s gazes remained locked in a contest, waiting for one or the other to crack first. Claudine watched on with concern. She hoped they wouldn’t get into any serious quarrel.

To her fortune, Romero finally broke. Broke into a fit of laughter, tears of amusement spilling that he quickly wiped away.

Claudine allowed herself to sigh in relief as she finally relaxed in her seat for the first time that night.

Romero finally calmed enough to begin talking again, much to Claudine’s chagrin. “Married. I see. Married, huh?”

Claudine narrowed her eyes at the amused man, scowl deep. “And what of it? Do you think I’m too unfit for such a maiden’s dream?” If he said yes, Claudine might just be tempted to chop a ball off or too. Tempting beauty of this man be damned. He should try to see if he could snag any lady after tonight.

“No, no. Nothing of that sword, Milady.” He smiled, settling down and emptying the remaining contents of his cup. “Just... Who is the lucky fellow to have caught such a strong-hearted beauty such as yourself?”

Claudine actually blushed at his words this time. Though she did curse her heart for being swayed so easily like that, and by this insufferable man, no less.

“There is... no man... or anyone at all.” She managed to say through grit teeth, slightly embarrassed at that truth that she had about zero suitors coming for her.

She was surprised to see that Romero looked genuinely surprised. It wasn’t some faux, mocking expression. He seemed sincerely shocked at the reveal that Claudine was as single as the lonesome sun in the daytime.

“No one?”

“Not one.”

“For someone as charming as you?” He blinked those big, violet eyes, honest and innocent-looking for once.

“Flattery will get you nowhere, good sir.” Claudine chuckled, actually finding Romero more endearing than annoying at that moment. A shocker for herself.

“I just can’t believe that no one would approach you or ask you. You.” He gestured towards her. “You’re appearance is definitely a win, but more-so is your personality.” He openly praised Claudine. “You are a lovely being. I’m not saying this shallowly. I truly mean every word, Milady.”

Claudine felt her heart warm a little at that.

True, she’s heard those words before from close friends and family. Said in a particular way that she just knew was honest. However, they knew her. They knew Claudine and how she really was. As for the other noble men and women she’d met, they had always seemed to presume things about her based on rumor and first impressions, never attempting to truly know Claudine enough to say compliments that Claudine could think to consider as truthful.

Empty laud, frivolous words, backstabbing comments.

A beautiful face, they said. A cunning mind. A brash personality, an unladylike disposition.

Claudine never claimed they were false, but they weren’t exactly accurate.

Just like that dumb book.

Why did Claudine feel so moved all of a sudden. It wasn’t as though Romero had said much more than others, now that she thought about it. She’d probably have already heard those utterances before. So why?

Was it his tone? The way he looked straight into her eyes with an unguarded sincerity?

Before Claudine could find the answers to her internal queries, the door to the pub burst open, a group of men tossing over tables, and harassing the nearest bar patrons, in search of something or someone.

Romero got up from the table, as did Hikari and Claudine, hands already on their swords, ready to swing.

Claudine’s eyes met with one of the men in front, and something seemed to click in the air.

A finger was raised and pointed right at her.

“Them.”

And they charged.

“Hikari!”

“Yes, Milady.”

The knight moved swiftly, positioning herself in front of Claudine to ward off those who targeted her master, buying Claudine time as she tried to infuse as much magic as she could into her sword and limbs. She didn’t have enough mana for an entire body enhancement as she’d used a fair amount up during the earlier hunts, disguise, and fights. She knew she had barely enough to spare. Just enough to hopefully end this.

She prayed it was enough.

Romero seemed busy as well, sword clashing against spear and blades, shields and armor.

He should be fine. Claudine couldn’t spare him much worry if she had to worry about herself first.

Other patrons had also joined in the fray, but it was clear that there was a difference in the power the intruders held.

With her amplifications complete, Claudine readied herself, and in one motion, swooped past a flurry of enemies, knocking them to the ground before a new wave could approach her.

Were these also among those that Romero had mentioned? Terrorists who had actually managed to enter the city? This wasn’t good. They needed to subdue them before more damage could be done.

Where were the other imperial guards anyway? Why was Romero even patrolling alone with such a dangerous agenda at hand?

She didn’t have time to entertain any of those questions, she decided. Claudine knew she had to focus on what was happening right now. Those could be saved for later.

Focus.

Foc-

“Julie.” Romero called.

Claudine almost forgot that that was her name at the moment, barely managing to send him a confirming nod. “I’m a little busy, but what is it?” She responded, knocking someone over on the head.

“I just thought of something.”

Was it a plan on how to defeat all these men for efficiently? An easier way to protect all the innocent people from these terrorists? If so, Claudine was all ears. “Speak.”

“What about me? What about us?”

‘Huh?’

Claudine managed to throw him an incredulous look as Hikari kicked an attacker away just in time before he could touch Claudine.

“What about you- or us?” She asked, restraining another man with a single binding spell before taking away his consciousness.

“What if you...” Romero dodged a slash, countering with his own. Another masked man made a grab for him, but he easily turned the situation around, ending up on top of him, standing atop a few other bodies.

“I?”

“What if you married me?”

Claudine managed to smash a man’s skull against the wall just as she stared dumbfounded at the imperial knight who looked amazingly serious, and undeterred by all that was occurring around him.

Really?

“...Are we really having this conversation here? Right now?” Claudine questioned, movements fluid as she added to the pile of bodies behind her that were slowly being tied up and secured by a few free bar patrons.

“Yes? Why?” Romero replied nonchalantly, repelling a blow with his sword.

Claudine could not believe the audacity of this man. “Couldn’t it, oh I don’t know, wait until things have settled down?!”

“Couldn’t what wait?” Romero said clueless, stepping back from the force of one particular strike, approaching Claudine’s space.

“This talk!” She answered back, vexed.

“I’ll have you know I’m a hundred percent serious on this proposal. Despite its untimeliness.”

“And I can’t be serious thinking about it because there are so many things I have to consider. One of those being why I must reject your ‘serious proposal’.” Claudine growled as someone managed to hit her leg hard enough to cause her to go off balance.

Romero had caught her just in time, righting her and going back to his own fight. Claudine felt a little annoyed that he had so easily switched gears and was able to handle both his enemy and ally.

“Why ever not? It’s not like anyone else has made an offer?” Romero sounded disappointed.

Claudine really couldn’t explain it right now. Not in this situation, and certainly not as other people listened in.

“Because.”

“Because?”

“Just because!” Claudine yelled, sending one man up into the ceiling in uncontrolled temper.

“I need a concrete reason, milady. Else I’m unwilling to step down from this.” Romero laughed, continuing on with his battle as he and Claudine fought back-to-back.

“And I’m telling you we can talk about it later.”

“Just trying to tell you that I’m a very good candidate, Lady Julie.”

“No thank you, Sir Romero.” Claudine rolled her eyes, tossing another enemy away to the side.

“And that is because?”

Claudine noticed a quick shift out of the corner of her eye. The refraction of light off a blade gave her all the information she needed to calculate a countermeasure. With her feet firmly planted, she twisted her torso, channeling enough energy to deliver a speedy lethal blow into the attacker’s ribcage-

...and apparently also Romero’s who had decided to jump in front of her in a chivalrous attempt at saving her.

A wrong decision, clearly.

Both he and their foe dropped to the ground, on the obvious brink of consciousness.

Claudine’s mind flew into panicked disarray as she quickly knelt over her comrade, trying to think of how to help him.

“Romero! I’m sorry!!! But you’re an idiot!” She began to spout words out so quickly. “You should know that I’m a trained fighter. And why did you do that! You clearly saw what I was doing! This is why you shouldn’t interfere with my battles! Also what was with that sudden proposal in the middle of it all huh?! Are you trying to get us killed?!”

“Milady-” Hikari was at her side, trying to calm her as the fighting had finally subsided. Claudine’s vision however, was unexpectedly tunneled, worry apparent on her face as she desperately tried to aid the fallen knight.

“There’s a time and place for everything, Romero!” Claudine continued to scold, hands already taking on a healing glow. “You ought to be more mindful. And you claim you’re an imperial knight?!”

“Master Clau-”

“I fear for the empire if all the knights are like you. What, did you think you were saving me by placing yourself in front of me?”

“Stupid Romero. Now you’ve gotten hurt. You weren’t focusing at all, were you? And all for a silly proposal?!”

“Milady, I think he’s losing consciousness-”

“And you wouldn’t even let me explain why I clearly have to reject your proposal! I have very specific conditions, mind you. So don’t go mocking me once you hear them.

“Milady!”

“You see, I can’t accept your proposal because...” Claudine finally took a deep breath, a pause for once.

Hikari tried to tell her that Romero had long since been knocked out, but Claudine couldn’t seem to hear her. At this point, she’d realized it would be better to give up and allow Claudine to settle down on her own.

Hikari only hoped her Master wouldn’t break down at the realization and the embarrassing memories to come.

“-I like women.”

“...”

Hikari sighed, finally seeing the truth sink in for Claudine as her eyes widened and her hands trembled in an emotion that was no longer just concern.

“... he heard nothing, did he?”

She was in for a long day tomorrow.

“Milady...”

A/N: Uh. I think I did my best atm. Yey. If you’re wondering why Claudine has eastern friends, and supposedly they go way back, as well as why her knight is also from the east, well... see you next ep! Or I think next next chap? Ma- er, Romero needs a turn.

Also, before ppl complain to me about genderbending or making this mlw, I’m not one to mis-tag something. Just saying.

I apologize for OOC-ness

Also I’m just... really tired. I wanted to amuse myself by writing something silly or like... unusual-ish. Idk.

Meh.

~Shintori Khazumi

#mayakuro #shoujo kageki revue starlight #starira #revue starlight #my dumbassery arises once more #romeo and juliet but not really #fanfic #tendou maya #saijou claudine #kagura hikari #mahiru tsuyuzaki #aijo karen #au

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smileyjaeminies · 4 years

Text

The boy who had too many thoughts for his own good.

Synopsis: The endless race for your heart had ended, with Lee Donghyuck the proud victor. Only, he had no idea. And you weren’t sure if you had enough courage to tell him.

Word Count: 3,9 k

Genre: slow burn, angst, fluff

Warnings: attempted assault, cursing, underage drinking

Member: 00z, ft. Yangyang, Mark, Jungwoo

A/N: And… It’s a wrap! After three months, the struggle is over and the series is complete! I’ll have you know, the climax was written on the day I announced the series. I hope it is a worthy ending for the story. Enjoy~

~Series Masterlist~

With competition season officially over and done with, finals were fast approaching. All your concentration was fixed on studying and making up for lost time. Thankfully, everyone was just as busy and there was an unspoken agreement not to push anyone too much.

You were all on edge, but especially you and Renjun. For you, your parents were pretty strict, so failing was not an option. For Renjun well… He was a genius. He wanted to do well in every single subject and a huge weight was placed on his shoulders to outdo himself every time. He struggled, he pushed himself to his limits, but… It worked.

You tried with all your might to get him to relax, to allow himself to breathe a little. But as soon as exams began, Renjun shut down. You even asked Elena to talk to him, as she had become quite a weakness of his, but he wouldn’t budge.

The boys did their best to assure you that Renjun was fine, but you still worried. Your club meetings turned to study sessions as you all failed to find the time or energy for anything else.

And Hyuck continued to stare. Since you’d figured out that you probably had feelings for the boy, you were hyper aware for each and every move he made. Your eyes would move unconsciously over to him at all times, only to find him staring intensely at you. You would look for any emotion in his eyes, any idea for what he was thinking, but you would always fail to find anything.

His demeanor didn’t change in the slightest. He would continue to tease you, make snarky remarks and comments on everything you said, but you’d only find yourself blushing and laughing his words off. You weren’t pissed, you barely responded, only blushed and shook your head.

You placed down your pencil and closed your eyes.

“This is no time for crushes. You only have one final exam tomorrow and you’re done! Just keep it together for a few more hours will you?” you told yourself.

But your mind wouldn’t listen. It brought back the feeling of Donghyuck’s arms around your frame, pictures of him laughing in the sunlight, eyes almost closed and hands grabbing his belly. You saw the beautiful way his eyelashes curled up, almost touching his brows…

And your daydream was over. The noisy buzzing of your phone next to you commanded your attention. Jeno’s name lit up the screen, and you answered right away.

“Hi” you breathed out.

“Hey Y/N! How is Calculus going?” he asked.

“Horribly. Thank you for the distraction, I really needed a break” you answered in half truths.

“Well, the guys and I have a proposal to make, but I’m not sure if you’d be interested.” Jeno stated timidly.

“Let’s hear it” you said, getting comfortable in your desk chair.

“See, Hyuck and I got an invite for this party… Basically, a friend of a friend is hosting a party for the end of the school year tomorrow night. He said bring as many people as you’d like so that isn’t a problem” Jeno explained.

“Oh. Are all of you guys going?” you asked.

“Yeah. Jun was tough to break but Hyuck always knows how to push his buttons” he answered.

“Of course he does. Let me talk to my parents and Elena… I’m going to get back to you as soon as I can.” You said.

With a few quick words after that, you were left to stare back at your bedroom wall. A party. Funny, it had been a while since you were invited to one. Most of the time, you and your friends would simply go out for burgers or something.

It wouldn’t hurt to get out a little… Right?

---------------------------------------------------------

The exam that morning was nothing much. You were able to answer all the questions within the given time, but you were anxious about a couple answers, fearing you had rushed them and ended up with wrong results.

The school was emptying out, students rushing to get away and celebrate their newfound freedom. You stalled, sticking around for a bit longer. You emptied your locker, carrying all your things in your backpack. You saw the notice wall on your way out and moved to stand before it. Your eyes quickly found the plain white paper that announced the ‘Don’t Need Your Love Club’, the names scribbled below it in black ink now all too familiar to you.

1. Huang Renjun

2. Lee Jeno

3. Liu Yangyang

4. Na Jaemin

5. Lee Donghyuck

And on slot number six was your name, written in one of Elena’s colorful pencils. The memories from that day were crystal clear. You recalled your anger and confusion and you remembered very well how your heart still fluttered whenever Kyle would look at you. Now you felt only disgust.

Your heart fluttered for another boy entirely and maybe that wasn’t so bad.

“Well, time to get out of here” you thought to yourself, walking out.

With one last look, you parted with your school for the rest of the summer.

-----------------------------------------------------

After some begging from you and a cute phone call from Nana to your Mom, your parents finally gave you permission to go to the party, albeit half-heartedly.

Elena opted out, saying she was too tired from the whole exam period and she’d prefer to stay in for a couple of days to recharge. Cat refused to go anywhere near alcohol of any kind, no matter how hard Yangyang tried to convince her. That left only you and the boys.

Without Elena’s magic hands, you tried to do your best to look presentable. Brown eye-shadow covered your eyelids, your look being complete with the best eyeliner you could manage and a bold red lip. You left your hair down, only placing some loose curls in it. Your dress was nothing extra, a simple black dress with a lace detail on the back.

You were placing a few items in your hand bag when you heard Jeno honking from down stairs. You bed a quick good bye to your parents and walked out of the house to meet your friends.

“Wow” Jaemin said from the passenger’s seat.

“What?” you asked.

“You look so pretty” Renjun said, squished in the backseat with Yangyang and Donghyuck.

You chuckled lightly, thanking him for the compliment.

“Ehm, guys, where am I supposed to sit?” you asked

The boys looked between themselves, urging each other to speak up.

“Guys?” you tried again.

“Look I thought I’d drive the boys and just come back for you but Yangyang started this eco-friendly rant and I felt bad so… Can’t you just sit on Renjun’s lap or something? It’s only a ten minute drive or so” Jeno said.

“I can’t sit on Jun! He’s tiny, I’m gonna crash him!” you protested.

“She can sit on my lap then, for fuck’s sake! Just get on with it, we’re going to be late.” Donghyuck offered.

You immediately got flustered, your cheeks flushing red. You weren’t going to refuse his offer, but Jaemin spoke up.

“I can get in the back if you want” he said.

You shook your head slightly, making your way around the car. Donghyuck opened the car door for you and you got in. The position was not comfortable for sure. Your legs were tied with Yangayng’s and your head almost hit the top of the car every time Jeno made a turn.

Donghyuck had one hand around your waist and another one on your thigh to support you. Your own hands were wrapped around his neck to support some of your own weight. Your body was on fire, electricity pulsing through you where he was touching you or your skin was in contact with his. Your heart beat had assumed a rapid pace and you were almost certain everyone in the car could hear it.

You half-registered Nana taking recommendations for the playlist as designated DJ. The boys were talking amongst themselves but you could barely hear their voices. Your every thought circled around Hyuck, his hands around you and yours around him.

You were looking down, nodding here and there to pretend to be listening when your head shot up. His hand on your thigh was moving, slowly massaging the area. You turned to look at him, getting a gorgeous view of his side profile as he was talking to Renjun.

But he had forgotten that two could play at this game. Your own hand started moving, circling a strand of hair from the back of his neck. He slowly turned to look at you, raising an eyebrow. You returned the look, giving him a mere shrug of your shoulder before turning to talk to Jaemin.

Before long, Jeno announced your arrival. You all filed out of the car one by one. You took a second to pull down your dress that had risen up during the drive and turned to your friends. Donghyuck was already gone. You tried to mask your disappointment with a smile as you and the rest of the boys made your way inside the house.

Loud EDM music was blasting through the dimly lit house. The boys looked like they knew their way around, maneuvering through the house and greeting people here and there. You and Yangyang were introduced to the host, Jungwoo, while red cups were placed on your hands. You noted that Jeno refused his and were glad to see him be safe.

You talked with Jungwoo for a while, getting to know each other. You also met Mark, apparently a close friend of Hyuck’s.

“Sorry, Donghyuck doesn’t really open up to me” you told him, suppressing your hurt with a laugh.

“That’s funny.” Mark said.

“What is?” you asked.

And just as Mark was about to answer, Donghyuck made his appearance.

“We were just talking about you!” Mark said, watching as Donghyuck emptied the contents of his cup.

He raised the now empty cup to both you and Mark, nodding a little and moving towards the kitchen.

“Shit, I have to talk to him. Will you be alright?” Mark asked you.

“Sure I will! You go ahead!” You told him.

He gave you an apologetic smile as he went after Donghyuck. You watched them leave and then skimmed around the room to find someone to talk to.

“Hey, Y/N! Come sit with me!” Jaemin beckoned you over to the couch in the center of the room.

You sat down next to him, making yourself comfortable in his side as you tried to follow the conversation. You were talking to some senior girls you had never met, but you quite liked them both. The night continued as you played some games like truth or dare and Jenga, slowly emptying the contents of your cup, only for another one to be placed in your hand.

Donghyuck would move in and out of the room, Mark hot on his heels each time. His mind seemed preoccupied, not looking at anyone as he made his way outside and then back in the kitchen. Mark came back at some point, moving straight to Jungwoo and whispering something in his ear, clearly pissed off.

You allowed him to calm down before approaching him again. At the moment, you were on your feet, leaning back on the wall and talking to him. You masked your concern and tried your best not to ask about Hyuck. You were listening to another one of his stories about his clumsy hands when your laughter was cut short. In the doorway, you saw Kyle walking in and one of the girls you were previously talking with, happily getting on her feet to greet him.

You stood frozen, seeing him gather her in his arms and kissing her. You felt sick, your stomach a burning mess as he greeted everyone in the room and his gaze fell on you. His façade faltered for a second when your eyes met, confusion and anger evident on his face. He composed himself quickly, nodding at you and Jeno, who had moved to stand next to you.

Your gaze turned to Jaemin opposite you. He was sitting on the couch, looking from Kyle to you. He started to get up, eyes burning, but you furiously shook your head at him. Jeno was eyeing him weird, but Kyle acted like none of you were there, furiously making out with the girl in the corner of the room.

“That was awkward.” Mark noted.

“Are you okay? Do you want to go home?” Jeno asked you, brushing Mark off.

“No, I- No. I refuse to give him the satisfaction. I’m just going to get some air.” You said.

Jeno moved to come with you, but you gave him a look to tell him that you wanted to be alone. He stood back, nodding and turning to explain to Mark what had happened.

The air outside was hot, not offering you the refreshment you wanted. Your eyes were looking ahead, but your thoughts were running. You didn’t have the chance to unravel your train of thought when you heard someone make their way outside.

“There you are.” Kyle said making you jump.

“Here I am. What do you want?” you asked, getting to your feet.

“What I’ve been wanting all these months. What you took from me by running into that idiot.” He said pushing you on the front of the house.

“You’re mine. Still mine.” He said, as he pushed your bodies closer and closer together.

You started to think that maybe isolating yourself wasn’t such a good idea. You tried with all your might to push him off of you.

“What are you doing? Your girlfriend is in there. She could walk out any minute” you tried to reason with him.

“Ha! As if she could be my girlfriend.” He said. “No, I’m just playing around with her. Now stop moving.” He warned you.

He had you cornered, lips ghosting over your neck, arms going up and down your back, then finding their way to grab your ass. You tried once more to push him away.

“Kyle don’t” you say again.

“She said don’t dude” Donghyuck’s voice sounds from the door way.

“What do you have to do with it? Mind your own fucking business.” Kyle tells him, pushing you behind him.

“Let me go, let me go to Donghyuck.” You tell him.

Kyle turns to you, raising one arm to hit you. Donghyuck is quick, holding back his hand and pushing him away.

“You don’t have a conscience, do you? What kind of man are you that hits women? Get out of here.” Donghyuck says, pushing him off the porch.

Without waiting for an answer from Kyle, he grabs your hand, pulling you upstairs and into an unfamiliar room. He places you on the bed, taking a good look at your body and finally meeting your eyes.

You are breathless, you haven’t said a word since he stepped in, as all words die at your throat. And now- Now he’s meeting your eyes in this intense stare, and you forget everything else, the music wrapping around you, the crowd of people downstairs, all you remember is the way his skin glows in the moonlight coming in from the window behind him.

“Did he touch you?” he asks, his voice barely above a whisper.

You shake your head urgently. “No, you got there before it got too bad. Thank you.” You say.

“I can’t believe you’re so stupid. You see him walk in and then you just give yourself up to him? Do you still want him? Do you want him to do all those terrible things he said?” Donghyuck snaps, his voice getting louder and louder.

“What the fuck? Are you even serious? How is any of this my fault? I almost got assaulted AGAIN by the same damn guy and I’m to blame?” you answered him.

“So it was him that day? No wonder you didn’t say anything, you probably enjoyed it!” Donghyuck said.

You went back and forth for a while, screaming at each other. You betted everyone downstairs could hear you, even with the loud music surrounding the house, even Kyle down on the porch if he hadn’t left already. You didn’t care. You were hurt, each of his words digging another blow on your heart. More than that, you were tired, too tired of this constant push and pull between you and Donghyuck.

“I don’t get it. I don’t understand why you are talking to me like this.” You tell him finally.

“You don’t know?” he asks, eyes burning.

“No.” you state simply.

“No?” he asks himself, taking three huge steps and standing opposite you.

You refuse to break eye contact, waiting for him to speak, to say anything. Instead, he moves closer, connecting your lips.

Your mind had been racing for too long; it finally went still, only for it to explode with fireworks the very next minute.

He held on to you like you were his life support and after a moment of hesitation you did the same. Your hands found solace in the back of his neck while his were stuck on your waist, pulling you closer and closer. Your hands moved in his hair, the memories of being in the car miles away from you. Your body was flush against his and his mouth searched for yours as if his life depended on it.

You laid your hands lightly on his shoulders and you pushed him off, gasping for air.

“Hyuck...” you began but his mouth was on yours again for the softest of pecks.

“Say it again. Say my name again like that” he whispered, his voice raspy, almost hungry.

“Hyuck. Hyuck, Hyuck, Hyuck, Hyuck” you said and each time you were rewarded with a kiss.

Kissing him made you feel light headed and got your heart racing so much, it could give the fastest runner the race of their lives. You felt light but also grounded, dizzy but also sane.

“Stop. Donghyuck stop” you said.

He obliged, separating your lips for his but still keeping you close. He rested his forehead on top of yours, breathing heavily.

“I’ve wanted to do that for too long” he whispered.

“I still don’t understand. You…” you let your voice trail off.

“I like you Y/N. I swear to God I do. You’re all I can think of day in and day out. I was about to tell you at your competition, I wanted to tell you but… We were interrupted” Donghyuck confessed.

Your head was spinning once again. Thoughts were racing past you, Donghyuck looking at you at the competition, at the skate park, at the meetings, always keeping his distance but always being there.

“But then why-” you began, but he cut you off.

“Why was I so horrible to you? Because I’m an asshole. I’m sorry. I just… I didn’t know what to do and I chose the worst possible path I could’ve taken. At first I thought you’d go along with it, the teasing, and when you didn’t I realized I had fucked up. But I just couldn’t confess either. And then Kyle happened and I knew I’d lost my chance so I continued just to press you even more. I could see you weren’t happy and I hated it.”

“Then I saw your name at the club’s application and I was furious. That was the one place me and the guys could hang out in peace, whining about our nonexistent love lives but you’d be there now and the balance would be thrown out of the window.”

“Only it wasn’t. You fit right in with everyone and I was left out to watch. You know how many times I stared at you and Yangyang, or Renjun, or Jeno… And you had no idea. But I couldn’t even tell you because I knew you were still getting over Kyle.”

“Until that day. That day, you came running up to me full-speed and asked for help. But even then, I had to be an asshole and ruin the whole thing. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have kissed you. I shouldn’t have ranted either.” Donghyuck finished, and started to move to the door.

You reached for his hand, stopping him. He turned to face you and you searched in his eyes. You could see hurt in there, some anger even and love. You were surprised to find his eyes, softly gazing back at you, taking in your features.

“I’m not” you said.

“What?” he asked.

“I’m not sorry. I’m not sorry that I kissed you back. And I’m not sorry I heard what you had to say. But now it’s my turn.” You told him.

Still holding his hand, you lead Donghyuck to sit on the bed, while you remained standing. He followed as if in a trance, looking at you and waiting for you to talk.

“I can’t say I get it. I know it should fit the whole ‘Boys being boys’ stereotype where a boy likes a girl so he pulls her hair… But we’re not toddlers any more Hyuck. I thought you hated me. And that was the hardest part.”

“Every time I came in a room, you would shut down completely. It took months for me to finally start to see the real you. But that day, that day I came running back to you-” you stopped, taking a deep breath.

You moved to sit next to Donghyuck on the bed. He stood frozen, barely moving his head to face you. You didn’t mind, as you looked down at your fingers and explained what had happened.

“You saved me that day Hyuck. And you saved me today too.” You finished.

“Y/N…” he started, but you cut him off.

“Please don’t pity me. I’m fine.” You reassured him.

“I think I need to go” he said after a few minutes of silence.

“That’s all you have to say?” you ask him.

He turns around to face you once more. He stares at you blankly, no emotions evident in his eyes, but moving too fast to read. With a simple nod, he turns for the door again.

“I wish you’d stop acting like that.” You whisper.

“Like what?” he asks, hands already on the door handle.

“Like nothing ever hurts you. Like nothing matters, like you’re the asshole you want others to believe you are.” You say.

“But I am.” He says.

You cross the room quickly, moving to stand next to him. You place one hand on his forearm and he turns at the touch.

Finally, you see him. A boy, just a boy, thoughts running behind his eyes as he looks at you. You blink away the tears filling your eyes as you find so much complexity and emotion behind his.

“No. No you’re not” you say, and in an instant his lips are on yours once again.

Unlike your first kiss, this kiss is slow and passionate. All the words left unsaid, all the longing looks are poured into the kiss as both of you cling onto the other.

Your thoughts are running around Hyuck again, the bitter taste of vodka on his mouth, the smell of sweat and alcohol and the sea hanging onto his clothes. His hands run over your back, the back of your head, your hair. You hold onto his shoulders, the back of his neck, run your own hands through his hair.

And nothing had ever felt so real. And nothing had ever felt so right.

“I hate you.” You whisper onto his lips.

Donghyuck only smiles. “I know”.

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piccolina-mina · 5 years

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Y'all The White Privilege/Victimhood on Good Girls Jumped Out!!

Season 2 Finale Spoilers below.

Good Girls is my show, and I enjoy the heck out of and always will, but I'm about to get Peak Tumblr analyzing this finale... so let's just go over this. I'm trying to process how this played out because ...

Dean was a serial cheater who cheated on his wife even when she was struggling with post-Partum depression. Beth didn't even find out the full-extent of his cheating because he only copped to his secretary AFTER Beth found out about it on her own. And that same secretary told Beth about all the other women this season because Dean never told her the truth. Plus he faked cancer to manipulate Beth and that was not addressed once all season.

Instead Dean got a soft edit where he became the rational, responsible adult and doting, dedicated father. He was the one to show Beth all the ways in which she erred with her criminal activities and putting them at risk. His infidelity was softened by adding backstory about how Beth closed herself off when she was battling post partum depression and beyond and he felt his emotional needs weren't being met and he felt inadequate because of how she treated him.

He took her kids as if to imply she was a terrible mother despite her being the primary caretaking parent to all four of their children since they were born up until she chose to take on the dealership. He took her kids away from her. But he never really suffered any consequences for how terrible he was and he ended the season in a comfortable friendship with Beth despite all the ways he wronged her as if he's the ideal, supportive husband. And he got redemption without earning it or acknowledging the extent of his shortcomings.

Boomer is the trashiest most despicable character of them all. He knew about the money laundering and had other illegal activities going on at the store. He attempted to rape Annie and did rape and emotionally abuse and manipulate Mary Pat. And Turner KNEW all of this but didn't care if it meant he could leverage Boomer to get to Beth. No charges for anything since he helped. And that's disturbing AF.

Boomer stole money from his grandmother constantly and blackmailed everyone. He was forcing Mary Pat to marry him. Then he bolted after he was presumed dead and was willing to let the girls go to prison for his murder. But despite everything he has done, the rape, the abuse, all the illegal crap he would've gotten off Scott free if not for Nana forcing him to take responsibility. He's still facing NO repercussions. What?

Mary Pat had ample time to get out of the business or turn the girls in, but she chose to blackmail them for more money instead even though it clearly isn't what Jesus would do.

She chopped up her husband's body and put him in the freezer so she could keep collecting his veteran benefits. She enlisted the girls to take Boomer out for her, but then ran Boomer over with her car, wrapped his body up in tarp and planned to dispose of him too. But when she found out he was alive and gone, she didn't tell the FBI or the girls. Instead she had them dispose of her husband's body thinking it was Boomer's.

Her part in the operation was dismissed by Turner as long as he could use her to take down Beth. So Mary Pat did all of that and got off Scott damn free. Because she was cast as victim. She was a victim long before she actually was one (regarding her abuse by Boomer). And nothing came from any of her actions. Victim or not there are still consequences, right? Apparently not.

Noah tampered with evidence and botched his own investigation based on his relationship with Annie. He jeopardized the entire case more than once. He slept with his mark and caught feelings. He openly lied and deceived both the agency and Annie and ... nothing comes from it? No consequences at all, huh? He gets to relocate to Arizona to be with his kid.

These are all characters have done varying degrees of bad to despicable things that should have resulted in some form of repercussions and yet they face none. Why?

Turner's obsessive focus on Beth in part has to do with his disgust over her pretending to be the white suburban mom and stepford wife entangled in all of this. He recognizes that she is the sort to get away with things because of who and what she is and the image she projects.

But then he also caters to this pervasive white (woman) victimhood issue that happens a lot. He never viewed Mary Pat as anything but a desperate single mom who is a victim no matter what she did, and he absolved her of her wrong doing and slapped her on the wrist just to get to Beth which counters everything he's intending to do with Beth. Hold her accountable image be damned.

Then there is Annie who is also a single mom who gets the sympathetic play to potentially turn on her own sister. She gets the doting boyfriend and companionship to make her consider it or to get information out of her. She gets the soft play. Like she doesn't have agency in her criminal plots with her sister and Ruby. Like she too is a victim of Beth's or whomever and warrants sympathy and the benefit of the doubt.

Contrast that with what Ruby gets. Ruby got harassed for months to the point of her having case to file a complaint. She got Turner putting the squeeze on her and her husband and family repeatedly and consistently.

And worse yet, Turner did this under the guise of "doing them a solid because he didn't want them to go down for this white woman" so to speak, but he still was willing to ruin them for her anyway.

Stan is the only one who got arrested and humiliated in front of his colleagues. He's the only one who went to jail. STAN whose connection to this is flimsy. The sole black man on their side of things got hauled into jail.

And then Ruby with the sick daughter who needs meds and the husband who was hauled away is treated like a demon by Beth for considering turning on her when Ruby was the only one facing any fire or harassment.

Ruby and Stan the most wholesome and logical and least problematic had their entire world upended and ruined and faced the brunt of the repercussions. Ruby and Stan were both facing charges and jail time while Beth faced nothing while they worked to build a case against her and Annie never was considered as a threat.

If Ruby didn't turn on Beth she and Stan could be sitting in prison while everyone else roamed free. Like, YIKES!

And the way Turner is both the guy who wants to take down this white woman who would likely catch a break in the system but also the means by which he does it by his abhorrent treatment of POC is disturbing.

The first season established that Rio was basically untouchable. The second season confirmed it when Rio was literally playing tennis with an attorney filling him on things and he has connections in the FBI.

So Turner never wants to go after Rio specifically because of this even though he knows Rio is Beth's boss and the bigger fish. No, he wants to take down Beth.

So that brings me to the final Rio scene that was the most disturbing of all. Turner has played fast and loose with the rules but still tried to come across as an earnest lawman wanting to do his job.

But Turner watches Beth shoot Rio multiple times because "Rio is her problem" and to save Turner.

And if it was really about doing what was right, he could have had her arrested right then and there. He heard their conversations. Knew about their connection. All of it.

But instead he sends her home. He keeps the gun with her prints on it as something else to hold over her I'm sure, but for what?

And then he kneels down, as a law enforcement person whose sole job is to protect and serve, justice and equality, fairness ... and he taunted a dying brown man instead of calling 911. We got a brown man gurgling, his life at the mercy of the law (made all the worse with it being an agent of color), and he toys with him, toys with the idea of whether or not he should call the ambulance and phone it in... assist him before he dies. He wants something out of Rio first before he can help.

Hella more Yikes. And what a brutal takedown of Rio. The potential death of a brown man at the hands of a white woman convinced she was victimized by him or the exploited potential death of a brown man by a cop. Yikes!

Then there is Beth who somehow throughout all of this walked away convinced that she was Rio's victim when she kept going back to HIM. They made their amends and made up for taking his money, and he said they were good. BETH was the one who went to him and left a string of pearls. She's the one who wanted more work and opportunities.

She was the one who wanted the keys to the kingdom. She's the one who wanted more work. She's the one who wanted a bigger role. She sought him out repeatedly.

She's the one who initiated their sexual relationship both times. She is who broke things off, but she is also who came back looking for more. She's the one who convinced herself she was his equal and his partner, but then shied away whenever he told her to prove it. She played hot and cold this whole time, and he went along with it anyway.

She claimed he never helped her when he did. He doesn't owe her anything at all but still did more than she ever gave him credit for. When she botched that situation with those druggies and thought they kidnapped her daughter, Rio did look into it. He even got her daughter's toy back for her.

Beth's biggest issue with Rio is she mistook Rio's silence for inaction.

She assumed because he wasn't giving her play by plays that he wasn't helping her, but that was the thing to, why did he need to help her?

She wanted to be Queen but didn't want the hard work. He recognized that she wanted this and he fostered it. He told her to take care of her rotten eggs. He encouraged her to fix her own problems. He held her accountable for her own actions.

And in turn, the man who actually listened to her. The one who actually treated her as an equal and respected her is who she shot because she claimed she was his victim.

He told her this shit is medieval. He told her if she wanted to be the king she had to kill the king. But a real queen would at least own her shit instead of pretending to be a victim.

She wanted a kingdom HE built without any of the dirty work and effort. She felt entitled to it.

And then she shot him hoping she killed him and Christopher Columbus appropriated his empire.

Is this your Queen?

That finale highlighted just how interesting this season has been. So in the end, Rio is the only who didn't "win" but too many of these other terrible characters get passes? Hm.

#good girls spoilers #nbc good girls #good girls nbc #beth boland #rio #brio

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consultingsnowqueen · 5 years

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Wasteland, Baby! Part 3: We’re a Long Way from Home... Welcome to the Pleasure Dome

Notes: Ugh, this felt like it took FOREVER. It’s not my best because I’ve been so stressed with school, but we’re getting to the fun part now. I am going to stray from canon but I promise I’ll keep it interesting! I’ll also be making a masterlist as soon as I get time (and as soon as I figure out how), but if you’re new here and you’d like to read previous parts, let me know and I’ll reblog them or send you a link!

Tags: @ladynuwanda @tribble-from-wonderland

Summary: After the bombs went off, a few lucky survivors were placed in Outposts. However, an Archangel-in-training and her mentor are hiding out in Outpost 3. Disguised as a Grey and a Purple, they are waiting to investigate Michael Langdon, the Anti-Christ, and hope to bring peace to the world. Things begin to go wrong, however, when Langdon gets a little too attached to the Archangel-in-training.

Maureen spent days dodging Langdon. Barely anyone saw her besides Angelo, who was obsessively teaching her protection spells and getting her to steal salt rations from the kitchen because “Oh Maureen, they aren’t putting the salt in the cubes and you know that. Surely they won’t mind us using a bit of the rations for protection!” Maureen expected Langdon to be a bit more observant about her sudden disappearance, but he didn’t say anything. Did he even notice? Angelo had said that he wanted her to be the only Grey to clean his room. Perhaps that was just all talk?

It wasn’t that Maureen minded. God, no. She relished in being away from him. Angelo promised to keep watch and contact her only if needed. Besides, Evie Gallant had taken a liking to Maureen, well at least liking Maureen as much as Evie could like anyone. None of the Purples could tolerate her ramblings anymore but Evie remained blissfully unaware of this. When no one else could understand Evie’s wild Hollywood stories of partying with celebrities, Maureen listened carefully and was able to be truthfully enthusiastic.

“Maureen, dear,” Evie began, lounging on her bed in a nightgown. “Did I ever tell you about how I hosted a wonderful dinner party with Elizabeth Taylor?”

Maureen whirled around from the closet she was organizing.

“Seriously? Elizabeth Taylor?” Maureen exclaimed, laughing in glee and astonishment. “Do you have pictures in that photo album you brought?”

Evie patted a spot next to her and Maureen practically jumped on the bed next to her. Beaming at her audience’s captivation, Evie flipped through the photo album and pointed to a picture of a younger Evie with Elizabeth Taylor herself. Maureen gasped as Evie began flipping through and telling her stories of the fantastic people she met. It was a weird friendship that the two of them relished in. Evie thought of Maureen as more of an audience who lived vicariously through her stories. It was egotistical of her, but Maureen didn’t mind. It was nice to have one person speak to her and keep things interesting. Evie found Maureen’s knowledge of Golden Hollywood astounding… perhaps a little too good though? They should’ve known that in this darkened place nothing so pure could withstand the corruption around them.

Angelo and the others were sitting in the library when Coco began to list off reasons why she was a sure choice for the sanctuary.

“You?” Evie scoffed. “Mr. Langdon will have to choose someone with my knowledge. I can educate the future generation on true culture, elegance, and fashion.”

Coco scoffed at this and jerked her thumb towards Maureen, who was silently dusting.

“What about Maureen? She’s half your age, doesn’t have shriveled up ovaries, and she has all your knowledge. She’s listened to your stories and she actually knows what you’re talking about enough to respond. Langdon would be a fool to choose you instead of her.”

Evie gaped at Coco, but her eyes squinted at Maureen, who was now shaking her head in horror.

“Is that what you’re trying to do? Get all my valuable knowledge so you can go to the Sanctuary in my place?”

She advanced on Maureen, who held up her hands in surrender.

“No, no. I swear… that’s not what I want!”

“Nana, stop!” Gallant exclaimed, trying to pull Evie away from Maureen.

“You’re not taking my spot, you bitch!”

Langdon walked in just in time to see Evie Gallant position her sharp, manicured nails as if she were a cat and swipe down Maureen’s face, leaving bloody scratches in their path. Gallant gasped in horror as the realization of what just happened dawned on everyone’s faces. Langdon looked utterly unmoved until Maureen suddenly burst into tears of humiliation. She pushed past Gallant and Angelo, both trying to comfort her. In her hurry, she bumped into Langdon, who raised his eyebrows at her, showing a touch of concern. She was held in place by his intense stare and stayed completely still as he caressed her bloody cheek. The trance was broken as Maureen suddenly heard Gallant apologizing over and over. Maureen pushed Langdon’s hand away and continued walking back to her small, cramped dorm.

Angelo was left to comfort Gallant in his suite.

“I can’t say how sorry I am about Mo. Nana has always been harsh, but I can’t believe she did that to her.”

Angelo rubbed Gallant’s back and shrugged. “Mo understands. She’s very empathetic. Besides, it isn’t your fault. You can’t control your grandmother.”

“I should’ve never brought her here,” Gallant said, suddenly vicious. Angelo widened his eyes at this. Gallant saw his expression and softened, hyper-aware of how this could change Angelo’s opinion of him. After all, Angelo was a priest.

“God, Angelo. I’m sorry. Forget I said that.”

Angelo shook his head. “Don’t be. You have a right to express your emotions.”

Gallant felt his stomach twist as Angelo smiled at him lazily. Was it sacrilegious to fantasize about a priest? Gallant shook his head of that thought and reminded himself that his eye was on Langdon. After all, Angelo couldn’t grant him salvation. Gallant flopped back onto his bed after Angelo said good night. He was woken up by a knock on his door. Imagine his surprise (and excitement) when Langdon stood there in a full, black rubber suit.

At the same time, Maureen was woken up by knocking.

“Angelo, I’m fine,” she called. “Go to sleep.”

The knocking persisted, so Maureen got up, touching the scratches across her face with a grimace.

“Angelo, I—”

Maureen was cut off by her own gasp as she looked up. Langdon was smiling down at her with an expression that was a mix of hiding concern and keeping his own pride.

“Sorry to disappoint you,” he said, hiding some sort of hurt in his tone.

“Oh, Mr. Langdon. I’m so sorry. I didn’t think… well… uh…”

Langdon raised an eyebrow as Maureen stammered on.

“May I come in?”

Maureen’s mind was screaming ‘No,’ but her voice squeaked out a “Yes.” Langdon exhaled and walked in, feeling relief course through him.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” he blurted out. Maureen cringed at this and felt guilt settle in her stomach in place of fear. How was she supposed to explain that she was just carrying out orders? God, if Angelo found out she wasn’t even afraid of him anymore.

“No. No, that isn’t true.”

Langdon turned and looked at Maureen’s pleading expression. She could see something different in his eyes. It was something emotional, something that looked to be hurt.

“But it is, Maureen.”

Maureen swallowed and looked at the ground.

“You don’t have to be afraid of me,” he said, placing an extra emphasis on ‘you.’ Maureen nodded as he walked closer to her, raising a hand and caressing her damaged cheek. She felt the pain leave and sharply took in a breath when she looked in the mirror behind him to see that the scratches were gone.

“Thank you,” Maureen breathed out, reaching up to touch his hand.

“Do you feel anger towards the woman? Do you feel anything negative towards her?”

Langdon looked as though he was anticipating something from her, yearning to hear her snap, finally. He wanted to know just how good she was.

“No,” Maureen admitted, truthfully. She was an angel, after all.

Langdon widened his eyes. He could sense that this was the truth, and he knew she was just too good. He could feel her purity and light radiating from her. It was disgusting. It was heavenly.

He left with no words, dragging his hand slowly out of her touch. If she thought that encounter was strange and awkward then Gallant bragging about his wild night with Langdon was mortifying and petrifyingly awkward. Angelo was struck speechless with the description of the obscene acts, but Maureen was absolutely terrified. How could Langdon be in two places at once? She waited until her chores were done until she tried to find Angelo, but then Angelo had to comfort a traumatized Gallant. It wasn’t until late at night that Maureen finally got Angelo alone.

“That horrible woman reported Gallant for his night with Langdon. He just got out of being tortured by Venable’s gang,” Angelo hissed when Maureen walked into his suite.

“That wasn’t Langdon!” Maureen exclaimed in horror.

Angelo squinted. “What are you talking about? It had to have been him!”

Maureen shook her head. “He was with me.”

Angelo was about to speak when a man’s screaming rang through the air. Maureen and Angelo both bolted out of the room and ran down the hallway to an open door. Angelo and Maureen both gasped in horror when they saw Evie Gallant’s bed covered in her own blood and Gallant on top of her holding a knife. He was even covered in blood.

“Angelo… I swear…”

Angelo shook his head slowly. “What… happened?”

Gallant began sobbing hysterically. “I saw Langdon in that suit again. He was here. I meant to stab him to get him away from me, but then… it was Nana.”

Maureen and Angelo both looked at each other.

“Go get cleaned up, Mr. Gallant. We’ll talk later,” Angelo said, mostly because he needed Maureen alone. Gallant ran out of the room.

Angelo raised his hand and the door closed and locked with a slam. He closed his eyes and then opened them, revealing cloudy blue instead of his normal eye color. Evie’s body was covered in a black mist now and he clicked his tongue in annoyance. Looking over at Maureen, her eyes were the same and the dim light around her shined golden. Angelo’s large halo was much brighter and as he shook his head, it shimmered.

“Her soul wasn’t meant for Heaven. Satan’s underlings already claimed it,” he explained as the mist faded.

“I see,” Maureen said, nodding with a grimace. “Angelo, do you believe Mr. Gallant?”

Angelo nodded. “Yes. I can sense the presence of a demon. This was definitely Langdon’s doing. The man in the rubber suit wasn’t human. It was a demon sent from Hell to torment the Outpost. It’s weak, though. I think we can easily take it down.”

Maureen blinked a few times, leaning toward Angelo.

“What? You want us to take him down?”

Angelo nodded simply as if it were nothing to him.

“The demon is still lurking around. If it finds out what we are, it’s over for us, Maureen.”

Maureen thought for a moment and then looked at Evie’s lifeless body. She held her hand out over it and the blood faded away and the wounds healed. It wasn’t enough to bring her back, but it was enough to make it look less conspicuous.

“Go tell Gallant we’ll say it’s a heart attack. I’ll tell Venable,” Maureen said, shaking her head as the light around her dimmed and her eyes returned to normal.

“Meet me in my room. We need to summon Gabriel,” Angelo said, striding out of the room.

After cleaning up the mess and getting Venable and Mead, Maureen made her way back to Angelo’s room. He was kneeling and praying when she walked in, so she locked the door behind her and kneeled beside him, praying. A bright light appeared before them and faded. Standing before them was a tall man in a white suit, pale skin, and neatly styled pale hair. His bright blue eyes were shining down at them.

“Hello, Gabriel,” Angelo said with a bright smile.

Gabriel looked around with a grimace.

“Well, this place sucks.”

#michael langdon #michael langdon fanfic #michael langdon x oc #langdon #ahs #ahs fanfic #american horror story apocalypse #ahs apocalypse #apocalypse fanfic #american horror story fanfic #mr. gallant #evie gallant #cody fern

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cheesytoucans · 5 years

Text

Starlight Supernatural AU: Meeting the Pawrents

Maya was trying to get her nerves hidden, which was difficult considering her girlfriend has been freaking out for days now. The vampire was also more than a little hurt. You see, she’s been dating Claudine for over a year now (closer to three years, if you count all the time they spent mutually pinning and then not-dating), and in all that time Kuro has tried to keep her as far away from her parents as possible.

At first she thought it was just Kuro being independent and trying to keep their relationship as their own business, but as time went on she started getting worried. Would kuro’s parents disapprove of her and that’s why Claudine didn’t want to tell them? After she found out the blonde did tell her parents, she only got more worried, convinced that they were against the relationship and Kuro just didn’t want to tell her. Then, about a month ago, Claudine reluctantly told her she was formally invited to France after graduation to spend a month with her family.

“It’s about time!” Banana exclaimed, to Maya’s confusion. “Your mom has been asking me about Maya all year!”

“I told you to stop talking with my mom!”

While Nana scolded Kuro, Maya was frozen. It was sounding more and more like Kuro’s parents had wanted to meet her for a while, but Kuro has refused.

Why? Was something wrong with her? Was her Claudine not as serious about this relationship as Maya was?

Maya quickly hid her feelings and accepted the invitation.

She would have talked to Kuro about it, but her girlfriend had been so stressed about this meeting that Maya didn’t have the heart to tell her. Besides, she’s been pretty busy with graduation and preparing for the trip (her parents thankfully didn’t need her for anything clan-related so she had gotten their permission quickly. They had actually seemed happy on their own way as soon as she told them it was to meet Claudine’s family. Maya wasn’t very surprised. Her parents probably loved their own donors more than they loved each other, since their marriage had been arranged. They even wanted to meet Kuro too, but Maya managed to do some fast talking to get her girlfriend out of that for a while. She’ll worry about it if she survived her own meeting with the parents).

And now here she was, about to arrive at France, and her girlfriend looking more and more as if the world was about to end.

Luckily, they managed to find their baggage quickly and didn’t have time for anything else before they heard an excited shout.

“Puppy!” Kuro pretty much ran to hug the couple waiting for them. Maya had seen pictures, and seeing how gorgeous her girlfriend was it didn’t come as a surprise, but Claudine’s parents were really attractive. Kuro took after her mother a lot.

After letting the family have a moment to reconnect, Maya came closer.

Kuro nervously introduced her and Maya said her greetings in both French and Japanese. She was going to do everything she could to get Kuro’s parents to like her. Including acting as formal as possible to hide her nerves.

She barely came out of her deep bow before she was attacked by a hug and kisses on the cheeks courtesy of her mother in law.

“We’re so happy to meet you dear, our pup won’t stop talking about you!”

Her senses tingled, trying to tell her something, but she was so caught off guard by the effusive greeting that she couldn’t tell what it was. Then came a handshake with Kuro’s dad, who insisted she call them “mom and dad”. Maya resisted a bit, she was supposed to be formal and courteous but she also didn’t want to go against her in-laws’ wishes, so they reached a compromise with “mother and father”.

The whole car ride to the house (it was more like a beautiful villa, but who cares about semantics?), Kuro’s parents kept her off balance by being so damn welcoming and warm. Maya spent so long thinking about worse case scenarios that she wasn’t prepared to deal with how downright friendly and supportive of their relationship Her Claudine’s parents were. Complimenting her on how beautiful, smart and well-mannered she was, congratulating Kuro for such a catch, telling her just how much Kuro talked about her. Kuro loudly complained about how embarrassing they were being.

Maya was floored to find out they had even asked Kuro in advance about her favorite food, so they had a big feast prepared to celebrate their graduation that had both Kuro’s and Maya’s favorites. There were several gourmet dishes involving potatoes, and crab. Maya probably ate more than was polite, but in her defense, mother and father kept pushing her to try everything and have seconds and even thirds.

After stuffing themselves, Maya and Kuro were ready to drop. The flight was catching up to them. Mother insisted on Maya sleeping in Kuro’s room (Father just gave a long-suffering sigh in the background, resigned to this fate).

Mother gave them both a hug goodnight, and that’s when the feeling at the back of her mind that had been bothering her clicked. Still, Maya didn’t say or do anything about it until the next morning when Kuro and her weren’t feeling like zombies.

Maya woke up spooning Kuro. She was pretty sure her girlfriend had been awake for a while now but had decided against getting up because she was too comfy to move. They both stayed like that, cuddling in silence until Maya worked up the nerve to ask.

“Your mother is not a werewolf, is she?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Maya regretted it because her wolf tensed up immediately. Still, the damage was already done so she pressed forward. “Is that why you didn’t want me to meet them? Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Who would want to tell their girlfriend that they are a freak of nature?” The words and the bitterness in Kuro’s voice surprised Maya. She made Kuro turn to face her and lifted her chin to make eye contact. Claudine had that defiant look on her face that was mostly bravado, since her eyes were shining with tears and here lower lip was pouting more and more every second. It broke Maya’s heart.

“Don’t you EVER say that about my girlfriend. Ma Claudine is a beautiful gift, and I won’t let anyone believe otherwise. Especially not you.”

That’s all it took for the waterworks to start. She held the blonde tight to her chest as she cried and let all the fear out. It turns out, Kuro had also been worrying herself sick all this time. For some reason that Maya couldn’t fathom, Claudine though she would be disgusted if she learned the truth.

Maya would NEVER be disgusted by or reject her girlfriend for something outside of her control, and she repeatedly reassured her of this. But she had to admit Kuro’s whispered explanations were a little surprising.

You see, when two supernatural creatures of different species had kids (IF they could have kids), said children would take after the species of one parent, never a mix of the two. Sure, there were tales of mixed offspring, but Maya thought those were myths. Until now.

Kuro’s mother was a weredog (and Maya would bet a lifetime supply of blood that she knew exactly what kind, considering how Claudine’s wolf form looked) and her father a werewolf. At most, Kuro said, she should have been a wolf with golden colored fur or a dog with a fur coloring pattern similar to her dad, not… Whatever she was.

Thankfully, she smelled like a wolf (or at least similar enough), so she managed to pass as long as people didn’t meet both of her parents and saw her transformed form. Somehow, no one in Japan had put two and two together. Probably because her parents spent a lot of time in France, or because people put anything weird they noticed about her own scent down to her being half-french. Claudine was just thankful the vultures of the press never got wind of it. Being so different was a sure way of ending your career if you’re not well established.

Maya just listened and tried to reassure her when she could. They quietly discussed very important topics, like the fact that Kuro saw herself as a wolf regardless of her unusual biology, and how much it freaked her out whenever people compared her to a Golden Retriever and she had to pretend to be angry to deflect any possible suspicions (Maya decided to subtly interrupt any future teasing by their friends, since they didn’t know any better). That this secret was the reason why she tried to keep herself apart from the other wolves at the beginning until they became friends. That she was afraid they would reject her, even now that she knew them better and was pretty sure they wouldn’t do that, you can never be completely sure and there was no way to take it back after telling them.

(Although she was convinced Nana already figured it out somehow. Maya agreed).

The vampire promised that everything related to this was Kuro’s secret to tell, and that she would support her in whatever she decided, even if she decided to never tell another soul.

Then Maya confessed her own insecurities and Kuro apologized profusely for giving her the wrong idea. The blonde insisted she was more than happy with Maya meeting her parents. Even if they shared embarrassing details about Kuro.

After this long overdue talk, they both could finally relax. Kuro especially looked like she had taken a huge weight off her shoulders, so Maya decided it was safe to do a little gentle teasing.

“You know, I really wasn’t lying. You’re truly adorable when you cry.”

“Shut your mouth right now, Tendou Maya!”

~~~🌟~~~

Notes: And that’s why Kuro-chan is so tiny. I’ve been saving this for a while lol

Sorry for any typos, my tablet’s keyboard is acting weird for unknown reasons.

#oh my god #curly this is the best shit #thank you for these gifts #kuro is a werewolf!#she's small and we love her and she's doing her best #and all the other puppies love her too #she's a member of the pack!#that means she's family #supernatural au #long post #shoujo kageki revue starlight #submission

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bombae-sapphire · 4 years

Text

2020 & lex

I have not spent one moment thinking over 2019. I think a lot of it was stressful for me and it’s one of those things that I think I’m glad it’s over with. School was really hard. I was very challenged and I had to make a lot of decisions for what’s next.

I got a new job and it made me grow up a lot. It made me settle down a little. It gave me confidence.

I fell more and more in love with Arizona. There wasn’t a day there that I didn’t think about how much I loved my city. Everything was perfect. I loved my apartment. I loved my job. I loved my major. But I knew I wasn’t really happy or treating myself the best that I could have.

The decision to leave was very hard and very unplanned at the same time. It was something i was toying with and had to make a last minute decision to pull the lever or not. I really removed myself in those moments.

I think I just knew I outgrew it. I love everything about Arizona. But I knew I was still unfulfilled and there wasn’t something in Arizona that could compensate that.

I think that’s why New York seemed like the right choice. I had to go bigger. I knew if I wanted to make bigger strides I had to put myself in an environment that would wow me and challenge me in ways I haven’t been before.

Leaving jess was probably the hardest part. I think about her face when we said goodbye a lot and it really breaks me. She helped me be a million times better. I will never have another friend like her. At time same time I think we both knew that if it didn’t end this way then neither of us could be really truly free to be the people we wanted to. We were trapped with each other and it was hurting both of us. That last month we got so much closer maybe because we knew we couldn’t really hurt each other anymore. I love her so much.

Driving cross country was weird. I felt relieved that the weight of my will she or won’t she move mindset was fully lifted. It was also just kind of interesting to see how comfortable I’ve become with sitting and staring at nothing for hours. It made me feel like I needed a break from weed. I could just sit there and not think and that was just weird and a little unnerving at times. It’s gotten better.

This is the hard part to think about next. This is my current chapter and I don’t know why that’s hard for me to think about. I think I have to admit truths and I don’t necessarily want to do that for myself. It’s easier to get through it than to evaluate it.

It’ll be easier to start from the beginning I guess.

Being around family felt really refreshing coming back. It felt good to dance with my sisters and teach haven her letters and so puzzles wih kai and be there for Courtney after her accident and see trace walk and be able to just get lunch with Shauna. And nana is just a short drive away. It was, is, nice. And I don’t feel like I’m losing myself the way I thought I might. My morals are in tact and I have myself.

Every single person was overwhelming supportive. Not only did I get physical help from my family but so much emotional help. They all were so willing and I never felt like a bother to anyone really. My mom has, for one of the first times in my life, but the absolute most emotionally supporting person thus far. She’s never one to sympathize but she really did that for me this year. It meant absolutely everything for me.

Unfortunately I think I learned that I need to start keeping more to myself. I don’t want to share everything with them. I feel like when I find success it’s starting to be taken as me having a big head and that’s a large part of why I liked to be so far away. I didn’t need to play the youngest littlest sister roll or the poor kid roll or the depressed teenager roll. I was free to make myself a new person and I think everyone’s perception of me is not the reality of who I am and I’m sick of having to feel badly sharing new things. So I’m not going to. I’m going to be proud of myself and do it for me.

School was hard for so many reasons. I couldn’t think of them all if I tried. It was just plain hard and it didn’t feel like the same type of welcoming learning environment that I was used to at SCC. I got depressed. For sure. It was a low moment in the middle of the semester. I failed a lot of stuff. I didn’t care. I didn’t work. I wanted to be nothing. It was all just exacerbated by stress and the new environment and I think my body was just shutting down.

Absolutely no one is going to help you in New York except yourself. And even if you think you have yourself, and you can do all the right things, you often have to fight tooth and nail to figure out the difference between what you think is right and what is actually right. People do not care about you and it’s as simple as that.

No one cares about your success, so you have to care. It was different.

I didn’t really make any friends this semester. I made the usual classroom buddies but I didn’t meet someone new that I bonded with and that’s always scary for me. I struggle with relating to people and I worry that finding my family here is going to take a lot of time.

Having so many of my classroom friends come from another country is very interesting. I learned a lot about different cultures just from chatting about the homework etc. It’s been eye opening and I like it.

The other thing with New York that I’ve been struggling with is honestly the food. It’s not very good. I know this sounds fucking crazy, but it’s just not. Like there’s been some things that I’ve been like DAMN or like $30 pasta dishes that I’ve been like cumming over sure but it’s different than Arizona. I had so many cheap good choices. And I miss Mexican food. I literally am probably going to back to Arizona partly because I need the food again. I spent so much time this semester trying to find new places around me that i like and so far it’s pretty much just tender greens lmao and this one vegan restaurant by the train. Shake shack in Madison square park is disgusting and eataly is overrated.

I am doing good at finding my own spots around the city, food aside. There’s these stairs I’ll eat on when it’s nice out, or there’s a spot in the library I really love, there’s a place on the island i will go and look at the skyline at night and just think, there’s a bar that plays only soccer and has this great bartender, when it’s nice there’s a good place to hang in Madison sq park. I have 2 designated Starbucks. I’m enjoying finding my spots.

The travel has honestly been a god send. I don’t know if it’s because when you travel that’s literally all you have to do. I don’t have to answer emails or do math or talk to anyone. I just need to listen to music and go. I love love love my bus rides between New York and pa and I love x10000 the drive between my sisters and parents house. I love taking the tram and looking at the view and the subway is not that bad. It’s kind of fun. You see so much. Everyday millions of people get up and go and do their thing. It’s inspiring.

I got better by the end of the semester. I confided in teachers and I pulled my grades up. I ended the most important class with an A- and I literally could not be fucking happier or more shocked.

I’m learning to love my body more. I’m learning confidence more. I’m exploring new things sexually. I love it.

I love my friends. The New Years happened and we all passed weed around and yelled at each other about politics. That’s how we started 2020.

It’s been hard and most of what I wrote is me trying to find the good in it. I’m happy with that. But it would not do justice to the year if I didn’t say that I’m worried about myself. I’m worried about my drive and my inability to connect with people. It’s hard to do that when you don’t want to. I don’t care about making relationships with people. It sucks and I sound like a bitch. But I’m trying. I’m working on it.

I’m worried about my living situation. It’s not okay. I’m very unhappy that I don’t have my own space right now. It’s hard for me to make a decision of save money or struggle for money for the sake of my own space. I don’t know what to do.

2019 just had so much change. And I’m a little exhausted. I’m not totally me after the end of 2019 but I’m hopeful that that’s changing.

I guess one of the last notable things to think about would be my dad. He’s really bad. He’s totally just not here anymore and I miss him having opinions about my life. As weird as that sounds. He can only nod and make understanding noises. He’s doing weird things like feeding the dogs Cheerios and ranch dressing in their bowls and putting the bowls in the freezer. He threw out his teeth. He sleeps all day. He’s just bad and there’s nothing I can do for him.

I found out so much about my birth mother. And I found out it’s unsafe to reach out to her. So I never can. She’s involved in a really bad group of people. It’s ironic because i used to live with my ex and her stepdad introduced me to this group and i got super into it and thought it was so crazy and interesting and they wanted us to remove our last names from social media to stay protected from them and now it’s come full circle.

And she can barley spell and she seems very unstable. I don’t really feel disappointed. I thought about writing her a letter with no return address, just to tell her about me, but there’s absolutely nothing I could think of to write that I thought I’d like her to know. I tried. I just don’t want her to know and I don’t think it would do any good for anyone for her to know. I actually think I can let her go now. I don’t have anything left to wonder about.

The last thing that’s happened this year is my family is suddenly together. All my sisters are showing up in the same place at the same time and their kids we never saw are around. It’s really nice and really different. It’s a huge blessing. I’m so so blessed.

I could go on forever about the different changes this year but I’m glad I wrote out what I did. I didn’t care at all the reflect on the year starting typing this over an hour ago and I think it was worth it that I did.

New year. New decade. I can do it.

#personal #me

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badwolf1988-blog · 7 years

Text

Abbotts Creek: Chapter Five

*** July 16, 1923

I read in the paper today that out in California, they put up a new sign in the L.A. Hills. The paper even had a photograph. The sign says, “Hollywoodland”. Oh, how I would love to see it some day! ***

“Hey, Persephone, can I ask you a personal question?”

“Jesus Christ!” I jumped half a foot in the air.

“Sorry,” Zak chuckled. He was seated at my desk while I sat on my bed as we read through GiGi's journals.

“It's okay,” I shook my head and smiled. “And yes, you can.” I actually really liked Zak so I was willing to try and open up.

“Where are your parents? You said you grew up here but I haven't met them.”

Oh, joy. This was the part where I told him about my tragic past – a past that I didn't even remember – and he pitied me.

“My dad wasn't...right...at least that's what Nana Betty says. When I was two and Willow only a few months old, he shot our mom and then himself.”

Zak surprised me. He didn't tell me how sorry he was or try to relate to my experience like most other people would. He just nodded to let me know that he understood and we went back to our reading.

***April 13, 1945

Oh, this is horrible. What a horrible, wretched day! We awoke to the news that our beloved FDR passed away yesterday in Georgia and things only grew worse. My darling brother, Roger, has been killed in action. His son, Phillip, poor little motherless (and now fatherless) Phillip, will be coming here to live with John, the children, and I.

It seems the curse has visited us once again. With one son in Europe and the other the Pacific, I can only pray that it is satisfied. ***

“What the hell?” I sat up a little straighter when GiGi mentioned a curse. “Zak, I think I might have something.”

“Me too,” Zak got to his feet and come to join me sitting on the bed. “And I hate to ask but...do you know the date your parents died?”

“July 4, 1990,” I replied. “Why?”

“Read this,” He passed me the red leather journal that he had been reading.

*** July 4, 1990,

I knew that something was wrong when they didn't shop for the BBQ but still I never expected this. Clay gone. Cynthia gone. There are no words. This curse will never let my family go. ***

“You should read this.” I handed him the journal that I had been reading.

“Your GiGi believed in some kind of curse as early as World War II,” Zak said after he had read the entry and set the journal aside.

“And she was still believing it when my parents died,” I added.

“Now, we just have to figure out what kind of curse...would you mind meeting with a psychic friend of mine?” He looked up at me.

“No, I don't mind.” I shook my head. Anyone that Zak trusted, I trusted. I know that was weird because I had only known him for a few days but it was the truth.

“You look tired, sweetheart,” Zak said after a moment.

My response was to promptly yawn.

“I am tired,” I admitted what was already crystal clear. “But, one: I'm scared of the obvious and two: I'm kinda creeped out even further by the cameras.” I did not like the idea of being filmed while I slept.

Zak stood and began collecting the dozen or so journals that were scattered around my bed. He put some on the nightstand; some on the dresser.

“The cameras don't have mics enabled, there is no live feed for anyone to watch, and I will be the one reviewing the footage.” He reassured me as he deposited the final stack of journals neatly on the floor next to the bed.

Going back to the whole weird trusting him thing, his words made me feel a lot better.

He lightly tapped my hip to get me to move over a little (which I did) before pulling back the covers on my side of the bed and nodding for me to lay down. Once I was where he wanted me, he covered me up and took a step back. He was wearing a pair of black pajama bottoms and a gray t-shirt but he suddenly decided to forgo the t-shirt. Holy shit. I knew he had a nice body but...damn! I have no idea how I kept myself from drooling at the sight of his chiseled chest.

“As for your demon friend...” He said as he walked around and climbed in the other side of the bed after shutting off the lights. “There's holy water spread along every door and window, a crucifix under your bed and on the wall, and I'm here.” Just like last night, he scooted right up to my back and wrapped his arm around me. Maybe he wasn't as mad at me as I thought. “Demons hate holy water and religious icons. They also like to attack when someone is alone and feeling vulnerable. I think you feel safe with me.”

“I do,” I found myself saying as I turned in his arms so I could look at him. “I'm sorry,” I said sincerely.

“For what?” The hand of the arm that was around my waist began to softly rub my back.

“Being a total bitch back at the storage unit,” I explained. “I'm an introvert and not really good with people. Nana Betty keeps me away from working directly with the guests as much as possible.”

He chuckled before saying, “I'm not mad at you and I never was...I like you just the way you are.”

A warm feeling spread through me and I smiled. “I like you too...a lot.”

Oh. My. God. I can't believe that I just said that. What was I thinking? I had probably just made a giant fool of myself. I wanted to close my eyes against the rejection that I was sure was coming but I was a big girl and kept them open. I was a grown up. I could handle this.

Zak didn't look shocked or angry. He didn't laugh and he didn't appear to be disgusted. In fact, after a minute, he actually smiled.

“So, when you say “a lot”, do you mean that I can kiss you right now and not get injured or do you mean you'll just stop being a bitch to me?” He asked playfully, a warmth in his pretty eyes.

“I'll probably always be a bitch to you,” I told him truthfully. I was a bitch and I owned it. “So, I guess it means you can kiss me.” He wouldn't actually do it...would he?

A second later, I got my answer when he leaned forward and gently sealed his lips to mine. He ran his tongue along the seam of my lips one time and gently nibbled on my bottom lip before pulling away. He laid back on his pillow and just...studied me...like I was a priceless Leonardo Da Vinci painting hanging in the Louvre.

I was in the shock. I had never been kissed before (because I was a poor excuse for a millennial) so I didn't know what to expect but I hadn't expected THAT! I didn't know that simple kiss could feel so good...or make that many emotions stir up in me.

“That was your first kiss,” Zak said as a statement, not a question as he scooted a little bit close so that we both lay on our sides without fronts flush against one another.

“How'd you know?” I asked. I wasn't even going to attempt to deny it. I'm sure I had done something to give it away.

“When I ran my tongue along your lips, you didn't open your mouth.” He didn't sound like this had bothered him at all.

“Oh, God.” I groaned in embarrassment. He had wanted to French kiss me and I had been too stupid to get a clue. Clueless, party of one!

“Hey, it's okay.” He laughed and kissed the tip of my nose affectionately. “I liked the kiss...so much that I'd like to do it again if it's okay with you?”

Amazed by the fact that he actually wanted to kiss me again, I just nodded slightly against my pillow.

This time, he didn't have to lean in very far to press his lips to mine and this time, when I felt the tip of his tongue on my lips, I didn't hesitate to open my mouth. I always thought that French kissing would be gross but the feeling of his tongue exploring my mouth and the taste of his cinnamon toothpaste mixed with his Listerine smelling breath was...nice.

This time when we parted, I giggled, “Well, at least when people ask who my first kiss was with I can say Zak Bagans and not, like, the bagger at the local Food Lion.”

Zak briefly took his arm from around my waist so he could reach up and tuck my blue hair behind my ear. “What if I was your first and your last kiss?”

Hold the phone. Be kind, rewind. What was he saying?

“What?” I needed clarification...badly.

“What if you were my girlfriend and we played for keeps?”

“Seriously?” My heart rate shot up.

“I won't lie. I'm possessive, I'm dominant, and I'll probably drag you all over the world chasing things out of your worst nightmares...but I like you. I care about you and I want to be with you...if you'll have me.” The arm around my waist tightened a little as he spoke.

“I'm bitchy, anti-social, and I'll ignore you on a regular basis to read and write,” I warned him. “I have no clue when I'll be ready for sex but...I want to be with you too.”

Even in the dark, I could see the wide smile that overtook his face before he pulled me forward for another kiss.

CHAPTER INDEX

MY WEBSITE

#ghost adventures fanfiction #zak bagans fanfiction

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justanartsysideblog · 7 years

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Reincarnation AU: Ashokara

Have some Melarue finding Ash in the reincarnation AU! Kass (mention), Ashokara, and Ash’s father belong to @scurvgirl.

---

They hear the sound of a baby’s wails reverberate through the thin walls, and pause in pouring themselves a glass of grapefruit juice.

They’ll need to put up some extra silencing wards, it seems, if Aelynthi’s frown is anything to go by.

It’s times like these that they really wish they’d bought the surrounding property when they’d purchased their flower shop. But they’d wanted to settle down quietly, live simply again, and they hadn’t wanted to arouse any suspicions. A simple florist buying an entire building to renovate it was odd enough, let alone if they’d bought the buildings on either side.

But the old warehouse next door had recently been converted into a jumbled mess of cheap apartments that were probably not up to code. At the latest local businesses meeting, some of the other shop-owners had raised concerns about the lowered market value and some of the “shady characters” they’d presumably seen.

So far, all Melarue has seen are a couple of exhausted college students that attend the nearby university and a young Dalish elf that they have a feeling is a runaway from her clan. No one that could pose a threat, and their home is warded so heavily they can sleep relatively easily at night.

The shop is closed, and Aelynthi is off of school, and they’d planned on heading out for an afternoon with their son, so they think little more of it, as they finish pouring their glass and head back to the dining room table.

---

The baby does not stop crying.

They put up the appropriate silencing wards to muffle the sound, but their own heightened hearing picks it up at night nonetheless.

Something is not right, that much is obvious. The babe sounds hungry, and miserable, and perhaps a little colicky. And it’s been three days.

Regardless of how Melarue feels about drawing attention to themselves, they can’t just leave a baby in that kind of situation without doing something.

If the baby is still crying at the end of the night, they’ll shift and sneak inside, just to see if there’s a problem. In and out, with no one the wiser.

That’s their plan, they decide.

It doesn’t last long.

They are cleaning the shop window when they spot a figure coming out of the apartment complex next-door. They glance over briefly, eyes flickering to hunched shoulders and towering horns, before going back to the cleaning rag in their hand and then they go still.

That is Kass’ husband.

Kass’ abusive ex-husband.

The baby. There is a baby crying—Ash, crying babe, hurt, mistreated—Kassaran trying to protect her…but they had heard no shouts. No sound other than a man shouting and a babe crying where is Kass!?

Be careful. He has to come back here. He can’t be gone for long. He’ll be back soon for the babe. Let’s check on Ash first. We need to make sure she’s alright, Deceit warns.

But they are moving before they even realize what they’re doing, flipping the sign on the front door from OPEN to CLOSED as they go, shifting their features so they are unrecognizable, just in case there is a security camera somewhere in the building. They doubt it, but being overcautious has kept them alive too long to stop now.

It does not take much to break into the apartment. A little magic and the lock clicks, door swinging open. They can still hear a baby’s cries. The place is a mess, clothes and takeout boxes strewn across the floor; there’s a crib in the corner, tattered and likely secondhand, and they reach down and pull their daughter from a pile of grimy blankets and barely manage to keep from crying.

She is so small, small enough that the nubs of her horns are just two tiny dark bumps nearly hidden under a mop of white curls. Wailing, and coughing, and obviously malnourished, but undeniably Ash.

“Shhhh, shhhhh,” Melarue soothes, holding her close, “It’s alright firefly, Nanae’s got you.” And Ash does quiet a bit, still sniffling, and Melarue looks around the place briefly. No sign of Kass, which makes their chest go tight, and Deceit goes eerily quiet.

They need to get Ash to safety, first. Then they can return and question that oxygen thief of a Vashoth. On their way in they’d noticed the predictable lack of security cameras, but they still shield Ash’s small body with their own as they head out of the apartment building and hurry toward their own shop.

They need to get in, and make certain Ash is alright, before her father returns from wherever he’s gone off to. If he’s even remotely competent as a father—which they doubt—he won’t stay away for too long. Then again, leaving her alone at all is reprehensible. They do not wish to do it themselves, but they know they must, at least for a few minutes, to learn what they can from her father.

Besides, she will not be alone, not truly. Deceit can stretch itself thin, to remain linked with them both, and keep an eye on her, and she is barely old enough to do more than turn her head. Melarue places her in the middle of the large bed, and knows that she can’t even move onto her side, let alone roll herself toward the edge, but they are still hesitant to go.

That’s when Anaris meows loudly and hops onto the bed and stares down at Ash, and then looks up at Melarue as if to say, I will look out for her, do not worry.

They are not quite certain what Anaris is, truthfully. Not a spirit, but not a cat…or not entirely a cat. He reminds them quite a bit of Screecher, that abominable bird creature that Thenvunin had loved so dearly, though even that seems not quite right.

Still, he has been with them for a long while, appearing on the street outside of their old apartment in Antiva City when they’d gone there to brood, and shut themselves off from all contact, and properly mourn the loss of all their loved ones.

That had been…more than fifty years ago, and he has stayed with them ever since.

“Make certain she doesn’t turn onto her stomach,” Melarue announces, and Anaris lets out an offended yowl, likely to say I know how to keep babies safe!

Still, they will make certain that Deceit is also watching her, as they head back down the stairs and toward the apartment. They turn the lights off inside, and place a few quick silencing wards in case they need to get rough, and settle themselves against the wall to wait, listening through Deceit to Ash’s soft sniffles and sobs.

It does not take him long to return.

He walks through the front door holding a plastic bag from the local drugstore, a lit cigarette between his lips, and places it on the couch before he seems to realize that something is off. He turns, just as Melarue grabs him and slams him against the wall.

“Where is Kassaran?” They ask. He’s taller than they are, more muscular, but Deceit’s strength lets them overpower him easily, and it takes little effort to keep him in place even as he struggles. The biggest effort comes in refraining from killing him outright, but they need information.

“What?” He spits, “I don’t know what—”

“Think harder,” Melarue drawls, pressing their nails against his throat. They let them grow out a bit, tips pinching at skin, threatening to do more. “It will be far more difficult to talk without a voicebox, so I suggest you speak now.”

“I don’t know any Kassaran. I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, crazy fuck!” He is not lying. He does not know Kassaran.

“The babe’s mother,” Melarue continues coolly. “I am talking about the babe’s mother.”

“Paloma?” He gasps out, “That bitch ran out on me. If you find her—”

Paloma.

A different name, perhaps, Deceit interjects. Different name this time around. Not unlikely.

But Kass would never abandon Ash. Would never leave without her. She would never leave her daughter here with this thing.

A different name. A different person? Or perhaps people are not always the same. We have changed. It is likely they have as well.

My son is the same.

He is not.

He is close enough. He is still my son. He would never be a murderer or a rapist or a disgusting piece of filth like this. He would never go so far from himself. Kass would never—

We do not know. We must fix this. We must know everything.

They pull out their phone from their back pocket, and find a picture of Kass, and hold it up. “Do you know her?”

He stares at the image, and time seems to slow, before he shakes his head. “I don’t know who that is.” He’s telling the truth.

Something eases inside of them, then. Kass is not here. Kass is…Kass is safe, then? But how can Ash be here without her? Where could she be? They have to stop that line of thought quickly, before they get lost in what ifs and possible theories. Now is not the time for that. No…they must…they must deal with this pest first.

“I could kill you right now, if I wished to.” Melarue continues, holding his gaze, “It wouldn’t be difficult to dispose of your body. No one would come looking for you. No one would question your death. Right now I am trying to decide if I should waste even that minimal amount of energy, do you understand?”

“Yes,” He croaks. His nails have dug into their arm, and they can feel that the skin has broken, but the pain barely registers.

“You are going to leave this city immediately. If you are still in this apartment tomorrow, I will kill you. If I find out that you have found a place to live elsewhere in this city—and I will find out—I will kill you. If you ever try to see your daughter or Paloma ever again, I will kill you.” They do not believe that Paloma is Kass, but they wish her safety regardless. “Do you understand?”

He lets out a wheezing moan, and they loosen their hold on his throat long enough for him to gasp out another yes.

“Good.”

They let him drop to the ground and head for the door without another word, closing it behind them. They stand outside, for a few moments, and listen for any sign of pursuit, but they hear nothing but harsh breathing and strangled curses.

Ash is crying again, when they walk into their home and pick her up. Definitely colic; they’ll have to set up a doctor’s appointment for the next day. They make a mental note to call Aelynthi’s pediatrician, before they press a kiss to Ash’s forehead.

It hits them then, that this is real. That they’ve found her. Their legs threaten to give out on them, and they hurriedly sit down on the edge of the bed and let out a soft sob.

They were too late to save Nithroel and Faunalyn.

Please, please let Kass be alright. Even if I never find her, just let her have a good life.

Ash hiccups, as the crying stops, and she reaches for Melarue’s hair. Melarue swallows, and gives her a trembling smile.

“Looks like we’ll need to grab some things, hm? We’ve got a few hours before your big brother Aelynthi comes back from school. Want to go for a little walk, firefly?”

Ash responds with a playful giggle.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

#reincarnation au #melarue #ashokara #kassaran #mel is finding their babies!#and they'll find Kass in a few years #even if they don't know it yet #but for now they need to go buy diapers and formula #very important things

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