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#bo is really close to becoming an adult!!
chaerryeoniis · 1 year
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when cupids fall | l.dh
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genre ꒰ঌ cupid au, friends to lovers (sort of), slowburn, fluff, angst pairings ꒰ঌ angel! donghyuck x angel! reader word count ꒰ঌ  6.6k synopsis ꒰ঌ you’ve never thought of love as something possible for yourself, but it only takes lee donghyuck accidentally drinking an aphrodisiac meant for mortals to change things very, very quickly. warnings ꒰ঌ none info ꒰ঌ  this is a special fic for valentines day!! i hope everyone has a lovely 14th regardless of whether you celebrate or not and i hope that this makes your heart flutter  songs ꒰ঌ angel - chancellor, taeyeon | valentine - laufey | 7pm - bss, peter elias | the perfect pair - beabadoobee | love me 4 me - rina sawayama
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You’re tired of love.
Absolutely sick of it, which likely isn’t the best idea when your entire job revolves around matchmaking. There had been a time when the very idea of it made your heart flutter, and the prospect of finding compatible couples made a grin break on your face.
But after close to a century of repeating the same task over and over again, you’re starting to dread the idea of picking up your bow and arrow.
That was purely metaphorical, however, as your old methods had been replaced with more modern ways to accomplish the same task.
Essentially, you had become a heavenly office worker - an absolute nightmare, only made slightly better by the prospect of eventually being released from your job to waste away the rest of your days on whatever you wished.
“Here are the matches for today. Take a look, and let me know if you need me to search anything else.”
Renjun places a thick white file on your desk, complete with little sticker hearts that had been added at some point. You take a few seconds to flip through the profiles, frowning up at him.
“This is an awful lot of coffee shop meet-cutes.”
Your colleague only sighs, shrugging in resignation. “Valentine’s Day is in a month, and from what I’ve heard, this cafe is giving out free coffee to anyone on a date.”
“Wow. It’s like they’re replacing our job,” you grumble, and Renjun only pats you on the back comfortingly. “At least all your work today will be on the same campus.”
It’s a small respite, but one nonetheless, considering you won’t have to put too much effort into disguising yourself. There’s a specific wardrobe you have for tasks like these, and your more youthful appearance means that you’re often allocated to teenagers and university students, while the older angels like Jeongsu and Bo-ah deal with the adults.
And you definitely prefer a university campus to high school, because people are much less likely to ask about your origins, or really care about your presence at all.
“I’ll get going then. See you, Renjun.” The boy already has his back turned to you as he scribbles down something, and he only waves a hand in farewell as you leave.
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It’s barely two hours later when you’re standing in the coffee shop, denim jacket tugged around your shoulders as you nurse a quickly-cooling latte.
The first couple of today is currently sitting two tables away from you, both of them waiting for their drinks to be called out. They’re obviously engrossed in conversation, and judging by the soft smile on the boy’s face, you won’t have to do much to get them together.
His order gets called out first - an earl grey coffee, and you quickly weave through the tables to reach the order counter before him, the pink capsule in your hands.
The first time you had been given this, Renjun had frowned.
(”Aren’t we essentially drugging people?”
“We were shooting them with arrows previously, Renjun. There really isn’t much of a difference.”)
And the motion is already practised - you grab the plate holding your croissant with your left, while your right hand passes briefly over the cup and lets it drop in. Barely detectable, and you let a breath of relief escape you before you quickly turn around and return to your table.
Another hour before your next target arrives, which allows you precious time to enjoy your breakfast. It’s surprisingly easy to people-watch, and you’ve grown used to the long periods of waiting between each couple. It’s much easier than running around in a fruitless attempt to find them.
But you’ve barely taken your first bite when someone sits down opposite you, and you look up, alarmed. You’re not supposed to interact with any mortal unless absolutely necessary.
Until a familiar face appears, and you relax. “Oh. It’s you.”
“Don’t sound so unenthusiastic about it.” Donghyuck’s wearing a grey hoodie and black jeans, a mug in his hands as he leans back into the armchair, smiling at you. “It’s not that often that we get assigned to the same place.”
Ah. Lee Donghyuck. Where should you start?
You remember the first day the man introduced himself to you, a cocky smirk decorating his face as he shook your hand and planted a kiss on your cheek.
He was on probation, according to Renjun. A head angel sent down for too much mischief, to be disciplined. But Donghyuck had enjoyed the job much more than expected, and even when he returned to his original place on the upper rungs of the heavenly corporate ladder, he still acted as a Cupid in his free time.
Of course, you didn’t see him around that often, but the both of you had gone from squabbling over his very first assignment to a certain casual sort of friendship. You had grown less hot-headed over the years, and Donghyuck’s teasing gradually became manageable once you realised he was only doing it out of pure amusement.
And you suppose there isn’t anyone else who was more perfect for the job, considering his flirtatious nature. Donghyuck often toed the line with his Cupid matches - you were quite sure that he had no qualms about talking to mortals directly.
“Which one’s your couple?” he asks, and you jab a thumb over your shoulder. “That one. Just finished.”
Donghyuck whistles lowly, impressed. “Damn. You managed to get the pill into a takeaway cup?”
You’re almost about to agree, before you frown in confusion, leaning forward to get his attention. “What takeaway cup? I put it into his mug.”
“Turn around,” he says, pushing your shoulder and pointing to their table. “Maybe he changed it?” Donghyuck suggests, grinning slightly.
And as you take in the sight of the couple, a sense of dread begins to creep up on you.
Instead of the mug you had held your hand over, the man is holding a takeaway cup, which causes you to groan in disbelief.
“God, I’ll have to do it again. I hate this,” you grumble, causing Donghyuck to laugh.
“I was going to say nothing beats experience, but I suppose you make mistakes too sometimes,” he teases, earning a glare from you. He takes a sip of his coffee as he says it, nodding in satisfaction.
“This earl grey coffee is really good,” Donghyuck muses, staring down at the mug as if it holds all of the secrets to the universe.
“Yeah, I like this café a lot- what?”
“What?” Donghyuck blinks up at you, his expression completely unaware. But horror is slowly flooding you as you stare at Donghyuck, and he stares back.
“What coffee did you order again?” Your voice is flat, devoid of any emotion as you tighten your grip around your fork. “Earl grey,” he mutters, looking at you strangely as he takes another sip.
Oh God.
You’re quickly realising exactly whose cup you put the pill into, and you’re unable to watch with anything but abject horror as Donghyuck finishes the rest of it, mouth agape.
And it seems he realises something is wrong, because the man blinks drowsily, setting the cup down. “I feel strange,” he mumbles, head lolling downwards.
“Donghyuck…” Despite his sudden onset of fatigue, the man turns his attention to you.
“The drink that the guy ordered. It was earl grey coffee. And I put it in a mug,” you force out, voice monotone as you make a futile attempt to stop your hands from shaking.
Your sentences come out one by one, but Donghyuck registers them anyways.
It feels like everything is happening in slow motion, the rest of the cafe tuned out beside you and the male angel sitting opposite.
And you see the exact moment that realization dawns on his face, before it’s replaced by something else - a certain starstruck, dazed look of adoration that you know too well, and typically would celebrate as it meant another job well-done. 
Except that there’s only one small, teeny-tiny problem.
It’s directed at you.
“Oh, fuck.”
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“Oh, fuck.”
Renjun glances up from where he’s sitting, alarmed as you dash over to him, ducking behind the wall. “Renjun, if Donghyuck comes, can you tell him I’m out on an assignment?”
“This probably isn’t the best way to go about it, you know.” Renjun looks at you, his voice lacking empathy as he watches you dart around frantically. “Are you planning to avoid him forever?”
“Yes- shit. Remember what I said!” You almost shriek when you hear footsteps coming down the hallway, settling for ducking behind a couch.
And when you hear Donghyuck’s familiar voice, you close your eyes, muttering a silent prayer that he’ll believe whatever excuse Renjun decides to come up with. It’s the fifth time he’s tried coming to the office to look for you.
“Y/N! I know you’re here,” Donghyuck shouts, and you can already visualize him, standing with his hands tucked into his pockets as he looks around for you. When the man isn’t masquerading as a college student, he’s usually wearing a dress shirt and jeans, which is how you’ve come to recognize him.
“She is,” Renjun confirms, and your mouth drops open at your colleague’s direct betrayal. But you ditch it in favour of looking for another way out of this situation, especially when you hear Donghyuck coming even closer to where you’re hiding.
But there aren’t many places you can go in an empty, open office like this one, and Donghyuck’s always been much faster than you, whether at finding the correct targets or well, anything really.
And when his shoes come into your vision, shiny enough that you can see your horrified expression reflected in them, you look up into Donghyuck’s eyes.
He only lifts a hand to help you up, the motion oddly sweet as you rise to your feet.
“Come on,” Donghyuck tugs on your hand insistently, and you turn to Renjun, a silent plea for help in your eyes.
“Better now than never. Besides, Donghyuck already has everything planned,” Renjun tells you, causing you to turn to the man holding your hand. “A plan?” you ask, and he nods, eyes sparkling.
”I’ll tell you when we get there. Now follow me,” Donghyuck urges, and you’re left with no choice but to follow him as he leads you towards the hallway. But you plant your feet into the carpet once the both of you are alone, and he turns around, an almost exasperated expression on his face.
“Donghyuck. We need to talk about this. I’m sorry for putting it in your coffee, but-”
“You don’t like me. I know. And I mean, neither did I, but-”
“Hey!”
The man gapes at your reaction. “What right do you have to be offended? Currently, I have the most embarrassing crush on you, and it’s not even of my own free will.”
His words cause your shoulders to sink, and Donghyuck senses the moment guilt overtakes you, bumping your shoulder with his gently.
“Don’t look so down. I’m not blaming you. Besides, it’s kind of fun. I haven’t had a crush in eons,” he offers, the sincerity in his voice causing you to laugh.
“I didn’t know you were capable of feeling human emotions.”
“Angels can fall in love too, you know,” Donghyuck says, his voice oddly earnest as he says it, fingers still intertwined with yours in a way that makes your cheeks warm.
You cough awkwardly, looking for a way to change the topic. “So what do you want me to do?”
Donghyuck grins then, his eyes turning into crescent moons. “I’m glad you asked. Well, I asked Doyoung, and he said the effects will wear off eventually. But in the meantime, my feelings are your responsibility, which means you have to entertain me.”
“Entertain you…how?” You’re looking at him, eyes wide, and Donghyuck clicks his tongue disapprovingly.
“Get your mind out of the gutter. I meant spending time with me. Letting me think I have a chance, until I don’t need it anymore,” he remarks, smirking when he sees the way your ears redden.
You suppose you don’t have much of a choice. After all, it is your fault that Donghyuck’s like this now. “Fine. Lead the way, then,” you reply, watching as his face immediately lights up.
“I have so many plans. You’ll like them a lot, I promise.” Donghyuck barely looks back as he pulls you along, almost bouncing with excitement.
And despite the situation you’re in, you find yourself smiling.
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“This was what you had in mind?” You’re staring at the gates of the amusement park disbelievingly, and Donghyuck waves two tickets in front of your face excitedly.
“There aren’t any places like this in Heaven. Romance is a little dead up there,” he grumbles, causing you to laugh.
“I suppose mortals are good for some things,” you acquiesce, and Donghyuck tilts his head. “Does that mean you’re okay with this?”
And you’re surprised when you hear the hesitation in his voice, as if the man is waiting for your approval. It’s endearing, and you can’t deny the excitement that fills you - strangely, you don’t mind the idea of doing this with Donghyuck. Feelings or not, he’s always been fun to be around, and you enjoy his presence more than you’ll ever let on.
For now, you only paste a nonchalant expression on your face. “Well, I suppose you’ve bought the tickets.”
Your reply is barely anything, but with the way Donghyuck’s expression turns jubilant, it’s as if you’ve offered him the world.
“Everything’s on me today, I promise,” he tells you, passing the tickets to the attendant.
“This isn’t even your money,” you point out, and Donghyuck only silences you by placing a finger on your lips. The contact makes you freeze, only moving when you realise the attendant’s staring oddly at you. But Donghyuck seems to barely notice the effect his action had on you, instead waving for you to catch up with him.
The both of you walk down the pavement, your eyes scanning the faux storefronts that line the boulevard. It’s meant to look like a holiday town, and you can’t help but find it cute, grinning to yourself as a child runs past you, cotton candy in their hands.
“What ride do you want to take first? I’ll go to whichever one you want,” you offer. But when you’re met with silence, you turn to see Donghyuck following quietly behind you, an unreadable look in his eyes.
“Donghyuck?”
“Hm?” The usually cheerful angel is strangely silent, and when you backtrack to move closer to him, Donghyuck averts his gaze, a familiar blush dotting his cheeks.
“Is something wrong?” You ask worriedly, ducking underneath to make eye contact with him. “I wonder if angels can get sick,” you muse, and he shakes his head.
“It’s not that.”
“Then what is it?”
“It’s just-” Donghyuck lets out a frustrated sigh, carding his fingers through his hair. “-you look really pretty today, and I can’t stop staring. It’s infuriating.”
It takes a while for his words to register, and when they do, you fall silent in shock. The compliment causes your heart to flutter involuntarily, and you let out a nervous laugh.
“That’s what has you…like this?” you ask hesitantly, and Donghyuck nods, confidence gradually returning to him as it leaves you.
“It’s not fair, you know. I mean, I’ve always known you’re pretty, but with these feelings, it’s hard.”
The knowledge that he’s always found you pretty doesn’t go unnoticed, and you’re quite sure that you’re currently completely and utterly flustered, unsure of how to respond.
“Thank you. You’re…pretty too,” you mumble, causing Donghyuck to laugh in resignation. “Of course you’re cute too. This isn’t fair,” he groans, and you find yourself unable to look at him any longer.
“You need to stop flirting with me,” you murmur, looking up at him. “It’s making me nervous.”
But Donghyuck only loops his arm with yours. “Right now, that’s a good thing to me. But I get it. I’ll try to let up on it. Must be jarring, after not having a man fancy you for decades.”
“Lee Donghyuck!”
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It goes on like this for the next few weeks, Donghyuck darting in and out of your office to whisk you away on dates, or romantic outings, as he so affectionately terms it. You’re not entirely sure what strings he’s pulling to get you out of your work each time, but you’re beginning to look forward to his appearance every morning or so.
Because Donghyuck constantly has an endless plethora of ideas - from flower arrangement classes to movies to picnics, he’s accomplishing everything that could possibly be on the mortal checkbox of romance.
And you can’t say that your heart doesn’t flutter whenever you see the flowers on your desk, or the lavender latte and pain au chocolat from the campus café where you first met him in.
It’s nice to feel loved, and spoiled, even if it’s only a temporary arrangement. And the experience of being in an almost-relationship has revitalized some of your enthusiasm for matchmaking couples.
And Renjun seems to have taken it upon himself to tease you each time you rise from your desk to go to Donghyuck. Today, he’s reading in an armchair when your name is shouted from the front door.
“Have fun, lovebirds!” he calls out, earning a glare from you as you grab your purse- another gift from Donghyuck when the both of you had gone shopping together. “Fuck off, Renjun!” You shout, before rushing to the doorway to be greeted by the sight of the man himself.
And you’re not sure what it is about him, or something in the air, perhaps, but you’re oddly breathless as you look at Donghyuck, eyes catching on the way the white shirt accentuates his shoulders, tucked into a pair of faded blue jeans that taper perfectly at his waist.
To make things worse, he has his hair combed back today, revealing his forehead - it’s a look that you’re unused to, but it suits him perfectly. Donghyuck looks devastatingly attractive, and you’re frozen to the spot as he walks towards you, lips already tilted up in a gentle smile.
“Hey, pretty.” The nickname causes your breath to catch in your throat. You’re not quite sure when he made a habit of using it, but the team of endearment makes your heart skip a beat each time.
“Hey.” Your greeting comes out breathless, and you don't even realise your fingers are balled into a fist until Donghyuck unravels them to link his hand with yours.
“Guess what we’re doing today,” he requests, eyes sparkling with mischief, and you swallow thickly. “Tell me.”
He frowns, but relents. “Ice-skating.”
You’re not the most coordinated person, and the idea of doing ice-skating should alarm you. But your brain can only focus on the warmth of Donghyuck’s palm against yours, and the way he smells like cedar wood and mint - a comforting scent that you’ve grown familiar with.
It feels as if the hallway is suddenly too warm, and you’re tugging at the collar of your blouse, sweat beading at the bottom of your neck. “Let’s- let’s go, then,” you stutter out, and Donghyuck only looks down at you, bemused. “Sure.”
And as the both of you walk down the street, your mind keeps drifting off, thoughts of the boy beside you flooding your head.
Over the countless dates you’ve had with him, you’ve realised that Donghyuck has one of the prettiest laughs, a honeyed sound that tugs amusement out of you effortlessly. He’s made you smile more times in one day than you have in the past year, and being with him pulls at your chest in a strange way, as if you’re floating in a dream.
Until you hear the familiar ringing of a bicycle bell behind you, and before you know it, Donghyuck is pulling you towards him with an arm around your waist.
“Careful.” His voice comes out as a low murmur in the bustle of passersby, lips barely brushing the shell of your ear. The contact causes your brain to short-circuit regardless, and it’s as if every nerve ending in your body has been set alight, with the way you feel each and every one of his fingers holding onto your waist, and each part at which the warmth of his body seeps into yours.
In an effort to compose yourself, you close your eyes, ignoring the way your heart thunders in your chest.
You’re starting to realise that maybe agreeing to entertain Donghyuck was a terrible idea.
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When you return to the office, it’s already late, and most of the desks are empty. But one light remains on, and you rush over, tapping the man on the shoulder.
“Renjun,” you whisper, and he turns around, raising an eyebrow. “I thought you were out with Donghyuck,” he says, and you nod, fiddling nervously with your fingers.
“I was. But I wanted to talk to you about something,” you say softly, and it seems that he gets the hint, because Renjun moves towards the pantry, pulling out two teabags.
By the time he comes over, two steaming cups of chamomile in his hands, you’re sitting on the couch, hugging your knees.
“Thanks,” you mumble, taking a sip of the tea and feeling the warmth flood your body.
“So, what did you want to talk about?” Renjun asks, leaning back onto the headrest.
And it’s at this point that your breath hitches, your expression vulnerable.
“Is it possible for angels to fall in love?” you ask, and he frowns at your odd question. “Obviously. I mean, Jeongsu and Bo-ah are married-”
“But that was before they died and started- well, doing this. What about people like us?” you ask, the question leaving your lips before you can realise its implications.
“I suppose so,” Renjun says, shrugging. “I mean, we feel the same emotions as mortals, like happiness or anger. Why not love?”
You nod, and Renjun, observant as ever, notices the way your shoulders sink down. The outing with Donghyuck, the way your face lights up each time you hear soft singing coming through the doorway - he connects the dots much quicker than you expect.
“Is this about Donghyuck?”
And when your face falls, it confirms Renjun’s suspicions. “Oh, Y/N,” he mutters softly, and you don’t wait to ask before you hug Renjun, resting your head in the groove of his shoulder.
When he hears soft sniffles, the boy stiffens. “Are you crying?”
But you don’t respond to his question, instead pouring out the words that have been on your mind since the afternoon.
“It’s stupid, but each time he gets close to me, I get so nervous, and my hands keep shaking. And he’s so sweet to me, Renjun. I can’t help it. But the worst part of it is that I know none of this is real, because I’m the one who caused this entire accident. Once the time is up, he’ll pretend none of this ever happened, and I’ll just be left with my own feelings.”
Your worries flood out of you endlessly, and your best friend doesn’t say a single thing, instead hugging you close to him until you’ve quietened down.
“You should talk to him about it,” Renjun suggests softly, hand brushing over your head comfortingly.
You pull away to wipe at your eyes, and it’s the first time that Renjun’s seen you this scared, this hesitant. “But what if it makes things worse? He’s already doing this against his own will. If I confess now-”
“I’m not saying you have to confess, but if you think that this isn’t good for either of you, you should probably put some distance between yourself and Donghyuck.”
But the very idea of it causes your heart to fall to your feet, lip wobbling as you look at Renjun, who only sighs.
“Think about it, okay? This is up to you,” Renjun says, gently placing the cup of tea back into your hands. “It’s a long day tomorrow, and you should rest. You don’t see Donghyuck until…”
“Thursday. He said he wanted to bring me to a restaurant for dinner,” you immediately respond, and Renjun tries not to let his concern show as he smiles slightly. “Yeah. Two days to figure it out. If you need to talk, I’m here.”
You smile gratefully at him despite your blurry vision, brushing the tears away from your eyes.
“I’m sorry for ruining your hoodie, by the way.”
“No problem.”
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You’ve never met one, but you’ve heard of angels who can change the very fabric of time and reality, like the fine threads of yarn.
Unfortunately, your capabilities do not extend that far, which means Thursday eventually rounds the corner, and you’re left standing in front of a mirror checking your appearance a few minutes before Donghyuck arrives.
You’ve never been to this part of the city before, but it looks the same as most of the other districts - towering glass buildings lined by red-brick pavements, and people walking by in woollen coats and scarves. Something about autumn is particularly enjoyable to you, and you’re not sure whether it’s the general sense of comfort brought along by the season, or the just-perfect chill that hangs in the air.
“Hey. You’re early.” Donghyuck’s voice jolts you out of your temporary daydream, and you turn around to see the boy smile at you. His hair is down today, and it falls over his eyes as he looks at you.
Before you can stop yourself, you lift a hand to brush it out of his face, an affectionate action that he definitely notices, but thankfully doesn’t comment on. “I walked here because the weather was good. I’m not familiar with this area, so you’ll have to be my tour guide for today,” you say.
You try not to make it too obvious how happy you are when he loops his fingers through yours without thinking and leads you down the street.
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“God, I’m full,” you mutter, a hand placed over your stomach for emphasis. But Donghyuck only rolls his eyes. “You’re going to ask for dessert later.”
“You’re right. You know me well.”
And you’re not sure if it’s a special talent that he has, knowing each and every one of your preferences and making lucky guesses for the ones he’s unfamiliar with. But you suspect that the man simply has an exceptionally good memory, recalling things that you’ve only said in passing.
“By the way, how are you so familiar with this area?” you ask, turning to him.
“I lived here a long time ago.”
At his words, you turn to Donghyuck curiously. “Oh?”
You realise that the both of you have never shared much about your origins, and you don’t really have any real idea how old Donghyuck is. But judging by his appearance, he likely wasn’t much older than you when he was transformed.
“See that building?” He points to an office tower, and you nod. “That was where my house used to be. It was only one storey tall, but I guess they demolished it.”
“How long ago was that?”
Donghyuck frowns in an effort to recollect, shrugging. “Eighty years, give or take.”
At his reply, your shoulders shrink down in relief. “That’s good. We’re not that far off in age.”
“Maybe we met each other and never knew,” he suggests, smiling, and you can’t help but grin back. “Maybe.”
The conversation falls silent as you turn towards the river, observing the way the streetlights reflect off it at night. There are couples dotted along the shore, some strolling, while others sit, leaning on their partner’s shoulder.
You wonder if you and Donghyuck looked like that too, when the both of you were walking side by side.
“Y/N.” You turn at the mention of your name to see Donghyuck, wind ruffling his hair slightly. The way he says it never fails to make your heart stutter over its rhythm, his tone much too gentle for you to ignore the affection it carries.
“Yes?” You almost sound scared when you say it, eyes wide in a mix of excitement and apprehension. There’s a heaviness in Donghyuck’s gaze as he closes the gap between the both of you, never taking his eyes off you.
You watch as his throat bobs slightly, the man running a hand through his hair. “Thank you for doing this. You didn’t have to.”
And your heart can’t help but soften slightly as you look at Donghyuck, wondering what exactly is going through his mind. “I enjoyed it, as much as none of us planned for this,” you reply, feeling oddly nervous as you reach for Donghyuck’s hand.
“Can I- can I admit something?” he asks, eyes darting down towards where your fingers intertwine with his.
And you wonder if he can hear how shallow your breathing is, or how fast your pulse is going, as you nod your head hesitantly. “I’m listening.”
“I really want to kiss you. I’ve been thinking about it since last week, and I just-” his voice trails off, but you’ve tuned out the rest of it.
He wants to kiss you. Lee Donghyuck wants to kiss you so badly that his head goes blank at the thought of it, and the worst part is that you don’t think you would mind if he did.
More than not minding. You would absolutely love it.
But that’s the worst part, because as much as you wish that Donghyuck could kiss you, you’re not sure if this is what he really wants.
Each time he looks at you, or hugs you close to him, you have to consciously remind yourself that it’s the pill working its magic, falsifying a love and adoration that isn’t there.
It takes everything in you to shake your head, and you feel the disappointment rippling off Donghyuck, the exact same heartbreak that you feel in your own chest.
“You can’t. We both know that, Donghyuck,” you say, voice watery, and you see him swallow thickly, face blank. “I know. I shouldn’t have asked.”
You’re not sure how to reply, but it seems that there’s something else on his mind as Donghyuck takes out his wallet and pulls something out, a white slip that you take a while to recognise.
It’s a Polaroid photo. One of the both of you, two weeks ago, when he had brought you ice-skating.
“Would the both of you like a picture?” The elderly woman who approaches you looks kindly, and you can’t help but smile at her, even as you shake your head in refusal. “No, it’s really alright.”
“My grandson bought me this camera, and I’m getting tired of taking photos of scenery,” she explains, and at the hesitation on your face, she only smiles wider. “Please, I insist. The both of you are a lovely couple.”
“We’re not a-”
“Thank you so much,” Donghyuck cuts you off, grinning at you in a way that tells you to simply go along with it, and you decide to relent, allowing him to throw a hand around your shoulder and smile brightly into the camera.
But the shutter doesn’t go off, the lady instead pulling back to frown. You wonder if she might have changed her mind, until she makes a shooing motion. “The both of you should stand closer. This film is expensive, you know.”
And you’re unsure of how to move, but you freeze when Donghyuck moves his arm down to your waist, hand resting on your hip. You wrap your arms around him reflexively, and smile brightly as the flash goes off.
“Wait, is it okay if we take one more?” Donghyuck asks, and she nods. But you turn to him confusedly, before the boy makes a shushing motion.
“You’re technically my first crush. I want to keep all of these for the memories. I have photos from each date we went on, you know.”
The knowledge stuns you into silence, and you remain in the same position, Donghyuck within your embrace as he leans his head against the top of yours, lips ghosting over your forehead gently.
And it’s the second photo that Donghyuck’s handing over to you now, the one that made him blush when the film finally developed. He had refused to show it to you that day, quickly keeping it somewhere out of your sight.
You never knew it was so close. That he had kept it all this time.
“You should take this, at least,” he murmurs. “So you don’t forget me.”
You’re still unable to find the words to describe what you’re feeling, wordlessly plucking the Polaroid from his fingers. It feels precious, a little moment in time when you didn’t have to worry about your growing feelings for Donghyuck and instead could simply lose yourself in the way he filled your life with pure, unadulterated joy.
He exhales harshly, and the smile that makes its way onto Donghyuck’s face is a little forlorn.
“I probably owe you an apology too. For lying,” he says, and you look up at him despite the tears threatening to escape.
“The pill stopped working a long time ago. A week after, actually. It seems they don’t have that much of an effect on angels.” He chuckles softly as he says it, missing the way you turn rigid. “But I wanted to keep seeing you. So I lied. And Doyoung told me that they can only amplify feelings that are already there.”
You’re not sure if you’re still breathing, but Donghyuck continues. “And it was selfish of me, to do this, but- I enjoyed it. A little too much, actually. But my time was always going to run out eventually. And you probably won’t want to see me after this, so I thought- you should at least know,” he admits, watching your expression carefully.
But you’re still reeling from what he’s told you, and it seems that Donghyuck reads the horror on your face wrongly, from the way he extricates his hand from your grasp and steps back.
“Thank you, Y/N. For everything. And I’m sorry. I’ll see you around, okay?”
You watch as Donghyuck turns to walk down the riverbank, slowly getting further and further away from you. Until you’re suddenly seized with panic at the thought of him leaving, prompting you to run after him.
“Lee Donghyuck! Stop!” You shout, and it’s like slow-motion, as he turns around, arms reaching to slow you down. You fall directly into his embrace, slightly breathless as you stand back up to face him directly.
There’s an apprehensive look on his face, as if he’s not quite sure what you’re planning.
“I like you too,” you burst out, hastily shoving your hair behind your ear. “I didn’t want you to kiss me because I thought you didn’t mean it. But now I know you do, and I just wanted to say that I like you too. A lot.”
And you’re wondering if the same look of disbelief on his face was previously reflected in yours, because Donghyuck looks as if he’s dreaming as he brings himself closer to you, doe-brown eyes searching yours.
“Are you sure?” he asks, and it’s a question so tender, so warm, that it only confirms what you’ve already known all this while.
When you nod, you can’t stop the smile that makes its way onto your features. “Kiss me, Donghyuck.”
And he doesn’t hesitate, not as he leans down to close the distance between the both of you and slot his lips over yours.
It’s impossibly sweet, almost like candy, and you feel like your heart is about to burst as you tiptoe to press yourself even closer to him, fingers brushing against the soft woolen material of his scarf.
Eventually, you pull back, Donghyuck almost looking disappointed as he slowly opens his eyes. Your thumb brushes over his cheekbone and the moles that dot his face, the skin smooth beneath your fingers.
But he’s smiling, eyes shining as he pecks you gently on the cheek, a gesture that somehow makes you redden more than the kiss itself.
And you’re not one who likes public attention, but you can’t get yourself to care about the eyes that are likely watching you and Donghyuck as you lean your head on his shoulder.
The both of you stay like that for a while, watching the night scenery in comfortable silence, Donghyuck occasionally shifting to kiss your forehead gently
Until someone disrupts the peaceful silence, tapping you on the shoulder gently.
“Hello! I’m from a magazine, and we’re looking for couples to interview for Valentine’s. May I know if the both of you are dating?” It’s a bright-eyed lady, one whose eyes soften into crescent moons as she smiles at the both of you.
And you know that you’re likely breaking protocol, because angels aren’t supposed to talk to mortals under any circumstances. Besides that, there’s no normal way for you to explain you and Donghyuck’s relationship without making it sound at least a little suspicious.
But you’re too overcome by joy to possibly focus on the consequences, instead focused on how it feels to have Donghyuck’s embrace around yours and your hand held gently in his grasp.
After all, what are two angels in the big scheme of things? You’re just as capable, and as deserving of falling in love as the people you help. And the type of happiness that Donghyuck makes you feel is one that you’ve never known, not even in a long life like yours.
Which is why you paste the brightest smile on your face that you can possibly muster. “Yes. We’re a couple.”
And from the way Donghyuck grins and pulls you impossibly closer to him, you can tell he likes it just as much as you do.
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trippygalaxy · 2 months
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The Spring Keeper
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An idea for a (GN)Reader x Twilight headcanon series? Fic? No clue, but I had this idea of the reader being like, the keeper of the Ordon spring and im lowkey loving it.
I'll expand on this more if people are interested!!
Pairing: GN! reader x Twilight Warnings: Mention of child abandonment,
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Since reader was young, they always had a connection to the Ordon spring. Most of the village believes that because when they found the (human or hyilan) child in the middle of the winter, seemingly abandoned for goddesses knows how long, the child's cheeks held no flushness and was warm to the touch even when laying along snowy bank of the frozen over spring
As they grew, they became more fascinated by the spring, like it was a second home...a safe place. Always hanging around there, always in the water and always giggling even when no one was near. Though no one really saw anything, it wasn't uncommon to hear the splashing of hooves accompany the young one's wild giggles.
In Reader's early teens, they had many dreams with with the spirit Ordona in them. The two would relax in the spring, like two old friends catching up with one another after years apart but sometimes….sometimes the dreams wouldn't be in the springs and those ones...Those ones were far from 'dreams.' Reader would see many disasters that would pass over the village like a horrible blanket. (IE, big winter coming so stock up, monsters getting too close to the village, homes/structures in the village in need of repair that arent obivous at the first glance.)
At first Reader ignored these nightmares, not knowing what to make of them but too scared to speak out about them in fear of being seen as 'nutty' or just...crazy but there was one person Reader often confided to. Twilight.
The two young teens had always been close, even at a young age, and so when the teenage boy notices his closest friend walk around like they were a tired corpse, he was quick to check up on them.
So when Reader quietly confessed about their horrible dreams and their concerns for the villages safety, Twilight was quick to offer his aid to his dear friend, offering to be the one who tells others about these concerns but phrases it as his own concerns so his friend, reader, wouldn't be in the spotlight.
But soon enough, the dreams were found out and the village (mostly mayor Bo and a few other adults) started to piece together the reader's strange connection to the spring!
-FAST FORWARD BY MANY YEARS-
Reader, having been seemingly selected by Ordona as it's avatar, was now deemed the protector and caretaker of the spring! And as they have taken up the role, their once subtle abilities started to become much more prominent!
But as the years gone by, Twilight was ALWAYS by their side, always defending them and always making sure they would take care of themself even when they pour their heart and soul into taking care of the spring and the spirit.
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slasherhaven · 2 years
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What do you think the slashers would get up to in a more normal world where they just got therapy and DIDN'T kill anyone? Like I think Brahms would've become a composer tbh, I headcanon he writes his own music? And Tommy'd probably still just work in the slaughterhouse or, if the slaughterhouse still closed down, as a farmhand??
What if the Slashers never became Slashers?
Thomas Hewitt
If the slaughterhouse never shut down, Thomas would definitely still be working there. It's the only real job available for people in that town, for many it will be their first and last job.
However, if the slaughterhouse still closed down and Charlie didn't instantly jump to cannibalism, Thomas would be eager to get back to work.
I see him working physical labour. Thomas knows that his strengths are, well...he's strength.
I could see him working as a farmhand or in construction of some sort.
Plus, it would really work on his confidence. Having a job where his natural size and strength were something to be proud of, that helps him and makes him effective.
Hopefully he'll get some nicer co-workers...I just want him to be happy.
Michael Myers
Michael is in therapy his whole childhood. His family spot the early signs that cause concern and get him help.
He's still pretty quiet, not super social, but not mute or irresponsive.
I remember reading a post ages ago about Michael receiving effective therapy and receiving consistent support from his family and I wanted to link it here but I couldn't find it again, I feel like that said everything I want to say 😂
Anyway, maybe he still spends some time in Smith's Grove but gets released back into he parent's care.
He develops a really good relationship with Laurie. She grows up visiting him and becomes an encouraging factor in his therapy.
In this universe, I suppose Michael would be a 'functioning psychopath' if that's what you want to call it. He'd still have a personality disorder but he has developed coping mechanisms to help him in life.
It's difficult to say what he might go on to do career wise but I think for Michael it's more important and interesting to think about his interpersonal relationships.
Jason Voorhees
Camp counsellor Jason!
Now, I can see this going two ways.
Firstly, lets say Jason loved camp. He made at least one friend, got to a bunch of fun activities, summer camp was the best time of year for him even if it wasn't perfect.
In this case, Jason would go back to work there so he could give other shy and bullied kids the same experience.
Alternatively, everything went the same expect Jason didn't drown. He was still thrown into the lake, the kids still laughed, the counsellors still weren't around, but he somehow survived.
He would have still hated camp but that would be what motivates him to go and work there.
He wanted it to be better for other kids, to make sure that if another poor child got tossed into the lake, there would be a counsellor around to protect/save them. He would be there for them.
Brahms Heelshire
As much as I love the idea of Brahms becoming a composer, I have to admit that I have less faith in him.
Assuming that his parents still spoiled him beyond belief and let him get away with shit, just no fires or death or anything, Brahms would be a little shit his whole life.
He'd become a rich fuckboi.
He'll have gone to some private school.
He'd have every opportunity to become a composer, so it's absolutely possible, I just imagine he would go through a 'rebellious' phase.
He's smart and I'd imagine he'd get pretty good grades, it will just take him some time to calm down and actually get his mind set on a career.
He's going to be living off of his family's money for a while.
But maybe he ends up being a composer and becomes his best self...
Bo Sinclair
I can see a few options for Bo.
I think he would still be a bit of a wild card in his teenage and young adult years but in the end I think his brothers are still important to him and he would want to stay close.
He might help Vincent run Ambrose a little.
If he does have a genuine passion or talent when it comes to cars, he might become a legit mechanic. I imagine he likes the process of fixing up cars, it gives him something to focus on.
I could also see him owning his own bar, somewhere near Ambrose, he and Vincent sending business each other's way.
Vincent Sinclair
Vincent stays at the wax museum.
He continues his mother's legacy and brings a whole new life to the infamous House of Wax. He modernises the museum while still paying tribute to his mother.
And he does a good job, managing to bring a whole new life to Ambrose again. The tourist just keep coming to visit the House of Wax.
Maybe he even sticks to the Town of Wax idea and fills the abandoned town with wax figures but in a less murdery way.
That would serve to bring more tourists in.
I like the idea that he also sells some of his artwork, kind of like a side hustle.
His main focus is the House of Wax but he occasionally sells his other creations.
Lester Sinclair
Sure, Lester might just stick with his roadkill clean up gig but I think he is likely to remain close to his brothers either way.
I kind of like the idea of Bo being a mechanic and Lester working with him, likely his only employee but Bo can be a bit of a control freak.
Lester is a simple guy and finds joy in the smalls things.
Whatever job he has, he's likely happy with it.
He lives for time at home with Jonesy or dinners with his brothers.
And he's always more than happy to help Vincent out around Ambrose.
Bubba Sawyer
He would love to just work on his family's farm. Family is important to Bubba and I think he would love farm work.
He wouldn't mind working out in the sun, planting and tending to crops.
He doesn't mind the heavy lifting and manual labour.
However, he would love working with the animals.
He would work so well with them and they would love him.
Just imagine Bubba cuddling a little baby cow!!!
Billy Lenz
Hmmm Billy's is kinda difficult.
We don't get to know much about him but I headcanon that he's a big fan of movies and tv.
Maybe he had a part time job in a movie theatre as a teenager, just feeding his love for media.
Anyway, he goes through a shit ton of therapy. And it's effective in this case.
Maybe after leaving the institution he received his care in, he'd go back to school.
Hopefully he will find a passion for something there, starting to develop a more clear plan for his future.
Asa Emory (The Collector)
I mean, I think I've made my stance on this pretty clear.
Professor Emory.
He teaches entomology, of course.
The students either love him or hate him. He's very strict but if you perform well in his class, he'll take that into consideration.
In his time off, he's a pretty secluded person, preferring his own company.
He sticks with his usual hobbies, just with bugs instead of people.
His home is covered in preserved specimens, it's a genuine hobby that hasn't been twisted horrifically.
Jesse Cromeans (Chromeskull)
Jesse likes power and he likes money.
So, with the less psychopathic, sadistic, murderous desires, he's going to be a CEO of some successful business.
It's difficult to picture Jesse in anything but that black suit of his.
However, in that one flashback we get in the second film, it seems that his father was a mortician.
So if certain fetishes hadn't formed, maybe he would take over his father's business, owning his own mortuary.
Otis Driftwood
I think in a world were Otis wasn't already obsessed with death and torture, meeting the Fireflies would have been great for him.
They're an eccentric bunch but they'd love him unconditionally.
Otis doesn't want to do anything big with his life, especially not with his career. He still wants to focus mostly on having fun, so he gets small job to make some money.
Probably working with Spaulding at the gas station or in some dive bar.
That being said, I don't see a world where Otis is a model citizen.
He might not be a murder in this universe but he has a history of violence, stupid bar fights and the like. He's also a bit of a petty thief.
If some drunk leaves his wallet on the bar...he can't not take it.
Baby Firefly
The last thing Baby wants to do it work. She just wants to focus as much time as she can on having fun.
Plus, she can't stay focused on one thing long enough to hold down a job with a real boss.
She knows how to get things for free, how to get other people to pay for things, how to get her family to give her what she needs.
It's in her name! She's the baby of the family, they'd do anything for her.
Her and Otis have mastered the art of petty theft.
The two of them can be quite the con artists when they put their mind to it.
However, I can see her doing the hair, makeup, and nails of local women in the area for some pocket money.
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materassassino · 17 days
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🐅💛🕊🗡✨️ for both luke and din
Oh, you spoil me!
Luke // Din
Characterisation: when he's tired or stressed his accent slips. Get him tired enough and he'll sound fresh off Tatooine and come out with something so hick, so desert rat, you'll do a double take.
Can hold his liquour like nobody's business. Don't believe the propaganda that this boy only drinks milk, he comes from Bumfuck Nowhere where the only things for teens to do are shoot womp rats, race speeder bikes and drink, and the Rebellion made it worse because you know those X-Wing pilots party hard.
Can cook, but as a means to survive. He can handle two recipes really well but the rest is just stews and soups because it's hard to get those wrong and they last for ages. However, he's pretty adept at following a recipe and when he does it comes out decent.
Is terrified of the day he'll be asked to choose between his family and the galaxy again, but refuses to even consider the possibility.
Has officially dropped the aloof Jedi facade almost entirely unless it's necessary for something mission-related. It was, he realised, an externalisation of his trauma, and thus he recognises its disappearance as him healing.
Doesn't have any hobbies at all. There was little encouragement of them in the covert, and now he's in his late thirties with a surprising amount of downtime and doesn't actually know how to fill it. Luke encourages him to try new things so he's seeing what sticks at the moment. He's found he actually enjoys overseeing the work to rebuild Mandalore, and he enjoys reading more than he thought he would.
Better cook than Luke, by a long shot. Handles the meals.
Has no actual idea what he looks like in the sense that he doesn't entirely comprehend what he looks like to others. Is he handsome? Is he ugly? Is he average? He genuinely has no idea what others make of him because he's only been seen by like four living adult people and one of them he's literally married to.
Familial relationships: Obviously very close to Leia. They were best friends before, but now there's just added depth, a rock-steady certainty that they will always, always have each other's back. Obi-Wan told him Leia was younger and he's vowed to never, ever tell her.
Tries very hard to both treat Grogu as impartially as possible as his master, but ultimately fails because Grogu is his son. Definitely less of a soft touch than Din, however. He will tell Grogu off if needed.
The closest thing he has to family outside Grogu and Luke is the covert, and that is now a fraught relationship, but the societal norms of the Children of the Watch don't lend themselves to building the deepest relationships. Considers the Armourer as close as realistically possible to a mother figure, consider Paz a brother, in a way, but there's no great depth there, and eventually he realises he feels more of a familial feeling towards Bo-Katan than Paz or the Armourer anymore. He's adrift, in that sense, and it's actually a relief that Luke's side accepts him so openly and generally easily. It's much easier to view Leia as a sister than it ever was to view Paz as a brother.
Platonic relationships: Is friends with all his exes: Han, Lando, Wedge... As for enemies, he does try not to hold grudges, but man he just fucking hates Boba Fett. Poor Din, caught in the middle! Also supremely good at making friends with whoever he meets.
Din's platonic relationships have all been developed extremely recently: Boba, Peli, Fennec, Cobb, Bo-Katan... he's still trying to navigate the concept of having friends. It's weird?
I have no fighting style headcanons for either of them. Just watch canon content? Luke is a powerhouse, Din is supremely competent and prone to head trauma.
Worldbuilding: the rebuilt Jedi Temple is on Mandalore, designed by Luke and built by the New Jedi Order. Eventually they discover a wellspring of the Living Waters on the surface, and they build a garden around it. Neither will live to see Mandalore become green again, but Grogu does.
headcanon ask game
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clawedandcute · 9 months
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Accidental Sith AU Qui Gon Jinn
(TW: Child abuse discussed)
I have so many Thoughts about my version of Qui-Gon Jinn in the Accidental Sith AU... Literally this man is such a jerk sometimes, but he's MY jerk, and I have brain rot. So congratulations, you get to be on the receiving end.
In this AU, he was physically abused by Dooku when he was a padawan, but no one knew. And when Dooku left the Order, literally nothing between them was anything close to absolved. Qui-Gon had hardly actualized that he'd been abused yet, but he knew he did NOT want to be like Dooku to his new padawan, Xanatos.
And he wasn't. He never hurt Xanatos, but we all know Qui-Gon Jinn. He tries, but he tends toward emotional negligence, maybe even abuse sometimes (look, I just watched Phantom Menace, and he tries but he has ISSUES). Eventually, Xanatos leaves the Jedi Order too, and Qui-Gon lets him go -- cuz you know, he's a Jedi. Of course, this was exactly what Xanatos was hoping he wouldn't do, but anyway. So now Qui has been abandoned by two people in his eyes, and he frankly doesn't want to touch personal relationships with a ten foot pole by now.
But then Obi-Wan comes onto the scene, and through a series of events, he has another padawan. And he's trying his best, but of course he's still repeating the same patterns. And then Obi-Wan is kidnapped and tortured by Xanatos, who is having abandonment issues and handling it badly. Not to mention Xanatos has had contact with Dooku too, which did him exactly zero favors. To save Obi-Wan, Qui has to strike down his own old padawan. Xanatos dies in his arms, and Qui-Gon blames himself.
But Obi-Wan assumes Qui-Gon blames him -- this feels like a reasonable conclusion to him. And they never speak of it, but their entire relationship is colored by them mutually feeling like they've failed each other. Qui-Gon just want to make sure Obi-Wan is strong and never falls to the Dark Side, and Obi-Wan is convinced at any moment that Qui-Gon could finally get fed up with him and abandon him. It certainly doesn't help that Xanatos managed to plant the idea that Qui-Gon's going to get him killed in his head (or that Anakin repeats it later on).
It's not that either of them have bad intentions, but they're both really broken and uncommunicative -- Qui-Gon probably more than Obi-Wan -- and their relationship is fundamentally screwed up from then on.
Then. Introduce Satine Kryze. I have MASSIVE brain rot for Qui-Gon's messy relationships with his two accidentally surrogate daughters (Satine and Padme). Like, my man espouses no attachments, but here he is accidentally adopting two terrified and teenaged planetary monarchs, both displaced at one time or another by war. And oh no, he is feeling FEELINGS because these two were not raised in the Temple, which means they have absolutely none of the hang ups that keep him and Obi-Wan from becoming truly close to each other. In fact, the two of them serve to drag him and Obi-Wan even CLOSER to each other, to their mutual terror. And Qui-Gon has absolutely no idea how to effectively parent, especially not a GIRL, but these two girls -- at least for a while -- end up looking at him like "Hello Responsible Adult, you'll protect us, right?" And he is just in no way equipped, and yes, he absolutely screws it up massively, but he TRIED.
I'm just thinking of Satine especially. In my canon, she has to flee from her home when civil war breaks out and her father is killed by dissidents. Bo-Katan, her older sister, stays behind to fight, but Satine, who is the heir (because Bo knew who Mandalore needed on the throne, and it wasn't her), has to go on the run with Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan. They're together for more than a year. She's a sixteen year old who just lost her dad and her home, and she doesn't know if her sister is going to survive. Not only that, but once the war is over, she is destined to rule, which will require on some level, forgiving the people who hated her father and supported those who killed him. Suffice to say, she's young and she's going through a lot.
And then Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan are there. They're her friends. And in the absence of her father, Qui-Gon becomes her protector. He sees her, and experiences the Paternal Instinct. Because Qui really does try. He's damaged and egotistical, but he has a kind heart. But he is forever afraid, which leads him to dark places because he has no idea how to deal with his fear.
Next to her sister, he and Obi end up being the people Satine trusts the most. They survive hell together. They pull each other out of the fire. When she's in danger, her first thought is that Qui-Gon will come or that Obi-Wan will come. And while all this is happening, she and Obi-Wan are falling in love (Qui-Gon sees and he doesn't know what to do, so he leaves it alone. He does that to many things he is frightened to touch, until he can no longer ignore them).
Then the war ends. Satine can finally go home. But she doesn't want to go home. Not yet. Home means Obi-Wan leaves and goes back to the Jedi Temple, and neither he nor she want that. So after the coronation, as fireworks flare in the sky (insert Fourth of July by Fallout Boy here), they run away. They slip away in secret and elope, but of course it's not going to be that simple. Of course Qui-Gon finds them because he can find Obi-Wan anywhere.
When Qui-Gon can't ignore something any more, he always comes down on it like a ton of bricks. His way is the only way. He'll trample over whoever necessary to make it happen, and that's what goes down here. He barges in the morning after and handles things exactly wrong. He calls them both fools for thinking that this could be the ending. Obi-Wan is a Jedi, he will always be a Jedi (Qui-Gon isn't going to have another person leave the Order and leave him behind), and Satine is a Mandalorian. The war just ended, and she wants to bring a Jedi into the palace as duke? Is she thinking? Does she want another war?
Was Qui-Gon right? Probably. Did he break their hearts and their trust at the same time? Heck, yes. Satine goes back to the capital alone because there is no other choice, because Qui-Gon gives her no other choice, because she has to choose her people. Obi-Wan goes back with him because he isn't going to jeopardize Satine's reign and he isn't ready to defy his master to his face.
Satine never wants to see Qui-Gon again and tells him so. She is an orphan, and she would rather be one than be anywhere near him. She tells him that too.
Two teenagers separate with broken hearts and a lot of resentment centered on one person.
Seven years pass and there's Padme. In this AU, she is elected queen at twelve, and when Qui-Gon is assigned to protect her, his paternal instinct goes off again. He doesn't want it to. He remembers what happened last time. He isn't an idiot. He isn't out to hurt people.
But she needs someone, and he's there. He and Obi-Wan are there, and they keep being there as she grows. And this small, idealistic, fierce queen ends up healing them both a bit -- she is not Satine, she doesn't remind them of Satine, and she links Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan back together after the debacle with Satine tore them apart. She is the glue of this strange surrogate family that the three of them can't acknowledge, and all Qui-Gon wants is to protect her and see her happy, though he will never admit it to himself. It's the same with Obi-Wan, although he is a bit better at admitting it.
Within ten years, they're as inseparable as two Jedi and a civilian can be. Obi-Wan has a little sister (though he will never call her that) and for a moment, it seems like maybe everything will be okay. But then they face Geonosis together and things come to a horrible head. Padme and Obi-Wan almost die fighting Dooku, and that's when Qui-Gon realizes that he loves them both. He loves them both too much, and that is terrifying. He can't handle that. He loved Xanatos, and he died by Qui-Gon's hand. He loved Dooku, which made him just soft enough, just vulnerable enough to be a target in Dooku's eyes. He loved Satine, and he ended up breaking her heart.
He has to let go of everything he fears to lose, and that is made very easy when he and Padme end up on opposite sides of the clone issue. It's not hard to push away someone who hates you, and it's not long before he and Obi-Wan are right back where they started. Padme isn't there to be the bridge any more. It's Obi-Wan trying to do that now, and he's far less equipped for it than she was.
And then there's Anakin, and suddenly Padme has a new person to trust. A person she goes to besides them. A person Qui-Gon is dead certain is dangerous, but Padme won't listen to him. She's falling in love and falling further away from him, and denying his love for her doesn't make it go away. Then Obi-Wan is growing more and more distant too, picking a side that is not -- for once -- Qui-Gon's, and everyone is leaving him all alone again.
Idk. I have so many thoughts.
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Autism is Not “Fun”
(Brutal honesty ahead.)
I think when autistic people such as myself get defensive about certain behaviors or personality traits “not being autistic,” we’re not trying to gatekeep, we’re telling it how it is.
I myself get really aggravated when certain kinds of people who would have been vicious bullies towards me and other autistic peers back in grade school become adults that then turn around and go “omg, autism is cool now! So this innocuous thing I did as a kid MUST be an autistic trait.”
No, it’s not. Autism is not cool. It’s the furthest thing from cool.
Autism is painfully uncomfortable, autism is gross, autism is lonely, autism is isolating, autism is embarrassing.
Autism is slow processing, and looking stupid in front of your class because you don’t understand the material. Even if you’re considered “gifted.” Or not being able to debate friends because your brain isn’t working fast enough.
Autism is having a full crying meltdown in front of your whole class because the fire alarm won’t stop going off or because your science class is using balloons and you’re terrified of them. In high school.
Autism is seeing another autistic kid wearing headphones all day and thinking “god, I don’t want to be equated to that freak.”
Autism is throwing other weirdos under the bus in self defense because “at least I’m not that bad. Maybe if they bully him, they won’t target me.”
Autism is your whole class laughing at you because you’re “freaking out” for seemingly no reason. Then forgetting you even exist the next day.
Autism is picking your nose and eating it or chewing your nails because it’s the one habit you can’t break. And doing it unconsciously in front of your peers.
Autism is having college-level writing skills and first-grade math skills simultaneously.
Autism is constantly being seen as “stupid” or “not applying herself.” And also being on honor roll.
Autism is sudden, violent rage that gets you sent to ISS for verbally threatening one of your bullies.
Autism is the teacher saying your handwriting looks like “chicken scratch.” In front of the whole class.
Autism is fighting with your mom because she wants you to dress “appropriately” but the fabric of the jeans is too overwhelming and all you want are ugly sweatpants.
Autism is being a terrible and possessive friend because you’re so scared of being alone again.
Autism is not having voice modulation, and shouting when you’re nervous.
Autism is not understanding why the class is laughing at you when you mispronounce “Uranus.”
Autism is not ever being able to enjoy fireworks because your brain equates it to being shot at.
Autism is never going to loud concerts and missing out.
Autism is not being able to stand working in retail because your brain fixates on the music until it drives you bonkers. Autism is constant miscommunication with customers.
Autism is not liking the feel of deodorant, so you smell like BO until a teacher calls you out on it.
Autism is farting in class because you don’t know you’re not supposed to do that.
Autism is not knowing you’ve bled on yourself until ANOTHER teacher points it out.
Autism is not being able to look teachers in the eye, even if it’s for something good, because it feels humiliating.
Autism is knowing, deep down, there must be some kind of disconnect, some kind of reason that you only gel with the other autistic kids, but your parents and counselors not having enough knowledge to help you.
Autism is your friends not knowing that THEY are also autistic, or are in denial about it. Even as adults.
Autism is your parents being in even deeper denial about it, because you’re so “high functioning.” But your therapist saying you are, beyond a shadow of a doubt, autistic.
In closing, I don’t completely hate being autistic, I don’t want to be cured, but I’d never say I’m “glad” I have autism. Life has gotten easier not being in public school, but the workforce still sucks with autism. It is what it is.
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nerdieforpedro · 5 months
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I wish you would write a fic where… Joel had been called to mentor Reader in shooting, but doesn't really want to and is being mean to her, but only because he has a crush on her and she’s younger than him.
I can try. It will likely be post-outbreak Joel. Pre-outbreak Joel knows how to shoot but doesn’t do it often because peace, work, caring for his daughter, etc. (This is how I picture pre-outbreak Joel so soft, so sad, so much work, so Joel.) 🥸
It’s required and encouraged by post-outbreak Joel. I haven't really written for post-outbreak Joel so this will be a first, here we go!
Pairing: Joel Miller x plus size female reader
Warnings: None really I think? 😎
Word count: 1057 (An actual Drabble?! Maybe)
Tommy and Maria had thought up this grand scheme. A plan rather to make sure Jackson is as prepared as can be in case clickers or raiders attack, all able-bodied adults would be taught self-defense and gun skills, both handguns and rifles. Joel agreed with this plan last month. It sounded great then, but now, standing across from this short plump woman who annoyed him to no end. She can barely hold it correctly. She can’t figure out how to remove the damn safety after showing her three times and she wasn’t able to take the gun apart or put it back together. What frustrates him even more is that he looks forward to teaching her, though he knows he’s doing a piss poor job of it. There’s nothing to show for the month as far as gun skills. 
Joel was halfway confident she would be able to break away from an attacker and get help or at least injure them. She did well with the knife and was able to aim for the chest, neck, and stomach to slow an opponent. The soft hands that pushed his chest in practice and wrapped her soft hands around his throat, barely able to touch the fingertips to each other, he found himself thinking about them after their sessions. It made him feel like a worse teacher, hearing her voice ask him, 
“Am I hurting you? I don’t know how hard push.” 
“I’m scared to get a good grip; you’re not actually attacking me. Mr. Miller.”
“Can I just use the knife? I’m really bad with guns it seems.”
“I’ll do better, I’ll practice after clinic hours.”
Joel couldn’t let her use a gun without him. He told himself that it was because she was so horrible at it. But now he was legitimately concerned that he may be sabotaging her efforts to learn. She seemed capable to learn the simple hand to hand techniques, but Joel couldn’t bring himself to ask another one of the scouting to instruct her either. He found himself becoming greedy when it came to his subpar pupil.
The older Miller brother stopped by the clinic, it appeared to be closed, but he heard her voice and a male one coming from around back. He crept around back and saw her speaking with Ted, a fellow scout and one who usually scoped out the Tipsy Bison looking for his next lay. The guy was closer in age to her, Joel being in his early fifties, and he was pretty sure she was in her late twenties or early thirties at most. The cold air displayed the steam coming from their conversation as Ted put a hand on her shoulder. A benign act that Joel took personal offence to, he strode over and slapped Ted’s back hard on purpose under the guise of greeting him. The younger man took the hint and left, leaving the clinician smiling at Joel. She did that too often as well. Who smiles that damn much at the end of the world? 
“Hey Puddin’. Ted give you any pointers?” Even if Ted had, he was going to point what was wrong with them and how she should follow his directions. She shook her head.
“No Mr. Miller. He said something at practicing at night. He clearly wasn’t going to teach me anything I needed know.” She shrugged her shoulders, she shifted her weight between her feet, Joel noticed she did this when she was nervous. “I-I haven’t practiced any shooting. I don’t want to injure anyone. Oh! I think I can almost get my hands to behave to aim at least. Having unsteady hands doesn’t bode well for hitting a target.” Her chuckle makes Miller sigh, she shouldn’t be learning how to shoot at all. She needs to be working the clinic and maybe relaxing in the evening with hot chocolate and a book. He pictures her as someone who would read in the evening curled up under a blanket, maybe her thick legs draped over him as he sipped some whiskey. 
“Mr. Miller.”
Joel was sure he’d need to talk to Tommy about this eventually. She really doesn’t need a gun.
“Mr. Miller? Are you alright?” She asked, grasping his coat sleeve and Joel yanked his arm away instinctively. He stepped back and crouched partially making himself ready for anything. The young woman stepped back and bit her lip, now he was angry at her again. 
Well maybe angry this time, before he just seemed perturbed with her lack of skill with guns. She felt someone as skilled as Joel shouldn’t be teaching her and the very thought of working with a novice like her drove him to such levels of vexation. She was sure he’d rather be doing anything else. At least she was okay in hand to hand, but guns scared her so much, knowing what they could do. That was the point of them, but still the thought of shooting someone caused her anxiety and Joel with his gruff booming voice, especially when she was sure he was going to throw the gun at her after she couldn’t get the safety off for the umptieth time.
“Shit Puddin’ you can’t just grab me like that. I’d cut ya,” He exhaled and regained his composure. Joel then realized that he had just threatened to slice her. He reached a hand out to her but she recoiled and stook a few more steps back.
“S-Sorry about that Mr. Miller. I didn’t mean to…Fuck I can’t do any of this right.” Her gloved hands covered her face in embarrassment. Not only can she not work any type of gun, she made her mentor have a fight or flight response. Maybe she would speak to Tommy and Maria, she wasn’t made to use a gun.
“Now look Puddin’ sorry fer scarin’ ya. I don’t do too well with touch.” He focused on the ground, he felt that he should do or say something else, but what? “Don’t worry yerself none. I reckon I scared you more than you did me Darlin’. I mma get going. Don’t cry. Nothin’ to cry ‘bout baby girl.” The elder Miller brother patted her head as he said ‘baby girl’ softly. Her sniffles slowed and he walked away, leaving her out back of her clinic.
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lenteur · 4 months
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random thoughts about castaway diva, episode nine
(read more because i always get carried away lol and this post might contain spoilers)
Seeing bo geol confront his father reminds me of that time he blew up and shouted at him, telling him how he wished he left the family alone. He's courageous enough to face him and hopefully get rid of him. I'm still scared for him but he's the only one in the family who is able to do so. Even when he was a teenager, he was the one who told the truth to his father. Both the mom and the older brother were too scared of mr jung. It's heartbreaking to see him go there alone, even though he has a support system now. He doesn't want them to be hurt. Plus, add to that he's the one in the family who spent the longest time with mr jung. I'm rooting for him. I'm sure he can find a way to make the father leave them alone, but I'm still scared about his safety.
It's interesting how ki ho's decision to meet with mr jung was influenced by mok ha's words, stating how she was sad when her father p*ssed aw*y... It's also incredibly kind of her to put herself in her father's shoes, explaining how he too had a harsh past. Mok ha really is kind and empathetic. Even though she was a victim of ab*se, she still tries to defend her father, perpetrator of said ab*se.
And now we see bo geol repeat mok ha's words to his father. He said he should've lived a happier life and ignored his son who abandoned him. Manipulative behavior from the dad who keeps putting all the blame on his family, when he's the one that pushed them away because of his ab*sive behavior.
I'm so proud of my boy ki ho for outsmarting his biological father. But sad at the same time that he had to use such measures to prove he's been ab*sed for such a long time 💔 .
I find it sad that mok ha puts yoon ran joo before herself and she's willing to bow down at her and take all the criticism just because she's admired her for such a long time. Where is the fighting spirit she had when facing people like lee seo jun? I just want her to fulfill her lifelong dream of becoming a singer. No matter how close she is to ran joo, i don't want her to be so weak in front of her. She can stand up for herself. Mok ha has always been faithful and an incredible support system for ran joo. And to see ran joo take advantage of that by using harsh words directed at mok ha is hurting me too. I find it so unfair.
But at the same time (should become my catchphrase atp), I do understand how ran joo feels because she's been betrayed by a previous artist with a similar path to mok ha's (my bet's on that man is now eun mo rae's manager). She doesn't want to be disappointed a second time. It's true that she put her all into that artist and she now knows the consequences of such actions. However, that doesn't mean it'll be the same for mok ha. They could've sat down and had an adult conversation about mok ha's sudden decision.
Both women are suffering (for different reasons) which is why they're both emotional most of the time. But they're also two of the strongest women i've seen so I hope they make up and start anew with a better mindset.
Me? Don't mind me I'm being emotional because ki ho was finally strong enough to be vulnerable around mok ha. After such a long time putting up a front and acting like nothing happened, he's freeing himself of all that emotional burden that's been there for far too long. Also, we finally see mok ha comfort him after he was the one comforting her when they were kids 💗💗💗 I AM EMOTIONAL :(((
Ah, I was wrong Mok ha told him he'll never see mr jung again because she was the one who was going to take care of him. Now i'm scared for mok ha... Stop playing with my heart please!!!
I knew it! Eun mo rae's manager was the artist who gave up. I'm glad they gave him a backstory and gave us an explanation as to why he seems so harsh and cold.
Yoon ran joo still feels sorry for mok ha and wants what's best for her. I hope they can make up and mok ha starts thinking about herself too.
Seeing mok ha choose rnj ent and standing up for herself is a great thing to see. I really hope ran joo can be a part of her project.
I'm pretty sure stagnant water is either eun mo rae's manager. Edit: and i was right!
So happy to have so many mok ha singing moments. Park eun bin's voice is no joke.
I knew lee uk was doing something behind everyone's back when he overheard that bo geol went to see mr jung. I don't know what but I'm curious to find out.
BO GEOL RUN TO HELP MOK HA AND YOUR MOM THEY'RE IN DANGER!!!
First you're leaving me on a cliffhanger and now you're giving me that preview? How can I wait for the next episode? HOW???
I'll give this episode a 8.5/10
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duckit7 · 7 months
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Online Dating Can Be Hard 18
Whelp. It's Friday. We made it another week. To start the weekend off on a high note how about a chapter and maybe a joke.
How do you know when a joke becomes a dad joke?
When it becomes a parent.
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Maybe a little corny but there you go. Now the chapter I promised!
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Sending Kate that text was probably the hardest thing I have done in my adult life. I texted her in the morning and we agreed to meet at her place around noon. The second hardest thing I have done in my adult life was actually going over to her place.
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My nerves were eating me alive as the clock inched closer and closer to noon. I cleaned my house as best as I could. I took a shower and put on nice fresh clothes. And then proceeded to pace my apartment for what seemed like eons. How was this going to go? Was Cam still mad at me? Will he listen to me? Will he tell me to fuck off and never bother him again? No matter what I knew I had to tell him how I felt. Even if he told me to fuck off… If we are on our way out then I’m at least going to go out with a bang.
As I completed my 349th lap around the house my doorbell rang. I let out a long sigh. Now or never. The 10 steps it took to walk down the hall didn’t seem long enough. I filled my lungs with a deep breath to collect myself before opening the door. Cam stood there in his usual git up except this time he had on a backpack with a daisy peeking out the top. My heart skipped a beat. Did he bring that for me?
I looked at him dumbfound for a second before I shook off my stupor and invited him in. Cam nodded with a sad smile. Fuck… Sad right from the start…
“I ah… brought you this flower as an olive branch.” He said after I closed the door behind him. He pulled it from his pack as he lifted it up to me.
“Thank you.” I said with a warm smile as I plucked it from his tiny hands.
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We were silent as Kate rummaged for something to put the flower in. Cam you are so pathetic for only bringing one flower! Most other human men would have brought a bouquet. But you are too fucking small to bring more than just one… The negative self-talk ran rampant in my mind.
Before I could go any further into self-deprecation Kate rounded the corner. I stood there expecting her to pick me up to go to the couch, but we did no such thing. Instead, Kate laid on the ground about a foot from me. Was she trying to make me feel more comfortable? Kate gave me a soft, warm smile as she rested her chin on her folded arms. Her presence was slightly overwhelming to say the least. I didn’t know what to say. With both the proximity and the curveball of laying down, Kate had me at a loss for words.
“Cam…” She began before she looked away. I could tell she was just as uneasy as I was.
“Kate I’m sorry.” I blurted out without even thinking. My abruptness caused Kate to turn toward me. Confusion plastered all over her face.
“Don’t be Cam.” She said with a sad smile. “It was my fault… I never meant to hurt you…”
I nodded and started to rub the back of my arm for comfort. “I was hurt Kate. I was really hurt. And in all honesty, it was because I really care about you. Like really really care about you… Like… I… Love… You…” The words escaped faster than my brain could stop them. I felt both bile and tears starting to pool. I can’t believe I just confessed.
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Did Cam just say he loved me? I felt weightless as I stared at the little man in shock. Does he really love me?! Has this thing just been a stupid misunderstanding? I couldn’t hold back the laughter that bubbled up from within me. As much as I tried, I couldn’t contain myself. This whole thing just us being two fools.
Cam didn’t take my laughing well. Immediately he started to bristle. Cam set his jaw as he stared at me with daggers before turning on his heel and storming off. I couldn’t let him go. Now that I knew that he loved me I decided to be a little bold. Reaching forward I gently wrap my fingers around his small body. Almost instantly I was met with resistance as Cam kicked and punched at anything he could get in contact with.
Part of me felt bad for holding him against his will. The other part of me knew it was going to be worth it. Slowly I pulled my irate little man back towards me.
“LET ME THE FUCK GO KATE.” Cam roared. He was about to scream more profanity but was cut short when my lips pressed softly into his back. All the fight in him evaporated in seconds. I pulled my lips barely off of him as I whispered. “Cam Chaudhry. I am madly in love with you. That’s why I was stupid jealous of Sara.” My breath tussling both his hair and clothes.
Cam whipped around in my hand with shock and awe on his face. “No… You are lying…” he said in disbelief.
I shook my head. “I swear to God I’m telling the truth. I would never lie to you Cam. I really did bring her over because I thought it would be nice. But low key I wanted to toss her out the window when she started flirting with you. Didn’t you notice me getting really quiet?”
“I thought you were getting quiet because you didn’t want to interrupt her!” Cam exclaimed.
I just laughed. “Nah. I wanted nothing more than to pluck you out of her grasp and hold you close to me. I thought you couldn’t see past me being a human so it pissed me off even more when a parvus was doing everything I wanted to do to you.”
Cam couldn’t hold back his laughing this time. “Well I feel like an absolute dick now…”
I smiled warmly at him as he rubbed his tiny hands down the bridge of my nose that hovered millimeters above him. “Don’t be… we both were just clueless fools I guess.”
“You can say that again…” Cam said before motioning for her to come closer. “Come ‘er big girl. It’s my turn to give you a kiss.” How could I say no to such a man. I leaned forward this time letting my lips engulf basically all of Cam’s face. I hoped he loved the feeling as much as I did..
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The kiss was everything that I had imagined. Her soft lips engulfed all of my senses. The only thing I could hear, smell, see, taste, touch or even think was her. The feeling was pure ecstasy. Kate loved me! I just wanted to scream it at the top of my lungs.
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solrika · 5 months
Text
Zeb meets his new colleague. Also on AO3.
~
It was a quiet fact that Lasan’s spy network had risen from, and remained closely tied to, its holy folk. Zeb himself had begged for bedtime stories of the whisper masters, brave priests and priestesses who had sent messages along the trees and rivers to save their queendoms from certain ruin. As an adult, he highly doubted that the trees themselves could pass intel. The priests, though… 
And so, when he was summoned to Chava the Wise a week after the invasion, he went with a bit of an idea of just who else might be attending the meeting. 
She met him at the temple gates, imperiously gesturing for him to bend down so she could give him the customary kiss of blessing. 
“Do we really have to?” Zeb asked. It was a long way down. She was just so short. 
“These are dark days,” Chava retorted, “and you need all the blessings you can get.” 
“Well, in that case,” and Zeb folded himself up so she could mutter some words and smack him on the forehead. When she was done, he unfolded again with a small groan. 
Chava smirked up at him. “Getting old already, Captain?” 
Flicking his ears back, Zeb grumbled, “Oh, leave off.” 
Snickering, Chava waved him to follow her through the temple’s grand doors. Zeb followed, pointedly ignoring the reproachful looks of all the junior priestesses around him. Chava had rocked him to bed as a kit; as an adult, he reserved the right to be a little impudent. 
She led him to her own office. Privately, Zeb thought that workroom might be a better word for it, with how many bits and bobs lay scattered about. Sure enough, when he stepped in, there was barely enough room for him and the two other lasats already there. 
“Here’s the boy, Sitith,” Chava announced, and wandered back out with an absent pat to Zeb’s forearm. 
“Sitith?” Zeb repeated.
The lasat occupying the one empty chair raised a hand. “Me. They-them.” They had the thick build and shaggy fur of the polar clans, though most had been clipped short to account for the capital’s warmer weather. “Has Chava told you who I am? No, of course she hasn’t.” With a lopsided smile, they continued, “I’m the current management for all the little birds in the capital. We’ve been keeping an eye on things since the invasion.” 
“Ah.” Zeb eyed them warily, then flicked his gaze to the other, silent lasat standing besides them. “And you?”
“To you, Illeah Hartosse. She-her.” She was wholly unremarkable–a desaturated, dusty rose, faint spots, indeterminate features and average-length fur. “I’ll be the commander for the agents we’re installing in your Guard.” 
Resisting the urge to flick his ears back, Zeb said, “We don’t take the uninitiated.” Glancing at Sitith. “Respectfully.” 
“And we don’t take foreign non-lasats as regents, but here we are.” Sitith spread their hands. “We need to know what’s going on with our new ruler, Orrelios. Your Guards are the best way in.” 
“I–” Zeb switched his tail. There was truth to what they were saying, and a relief in knowing that yes, someone was doing something about this mess the Imperials had brought, but… “Why not just ask us to report back to you?”
Sitith tapped a claw against their datapad. “Would you know what to notice?”
“Me, maybe. Most of the rest… No,” Zeb admitted, as much as he felt like he was betraying his Guards. Most of them had no experience in politics. They didn’t need to; that was the job of the people they protected. But to let someone untested into their ranks… Stalling, he asked Illeah, “Can your people keep up in a fight?” 
Her smile showed all her fangs; Zeb barely kept his hackles from rising in returned threat. “Don’t worry about that, Captain.” 
“The bo-rifles are hard to get used to,” he hedged. “And–picky.” 
“Which is why I gave you Hartosse and her band.” Sitith turned to their datapad; Zeb had a feeling they were already becoming tired with the conversation. 
Illeah stepped in before the silence grew awkward. “We’re all Children of the Bendu. Give us an empty bo-rifle, and we’ll supply the souls.” She opened her hand; something flashed a brilliant blue before she flicked it away into a pocket. “I don’t want to force any of your weapons into a partnership.” 
“Oh.” Zeb blinked, and then, with a sudden bark of relieved laughter, “You could have led with that!”
Illeah grinned back, and this time it felt less like a challenge. “We wanted to let you have your questions.”
“You did,” Sitith muttered, tapping away on their datapad. “Orrelios, Hartosse can give you more details. I need to talk more with Chava. Dismissed.” 
“Quick chat,” Zeb murmured, but followed Illeah out.
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mamamittens · 5 months
Text
STALKED IN THE WOODS (NOT CLICKBAIT!!!)
Part 4/13 of Spooktober!
@raptures-finest
Hopefully this meets your standards, as it was a little hard writing from a camera's pov, ngl
Sabo/Kaku/OC(Andy)/Koala
Monster: Serial Killer, yandere vibes and inspired by "The Blair Witch Project" (1999)
Warnings: Murder, kidnapping, stalking, and dubiously written shaky cam.
Word Count: 3,925 (not as long as the others so far though I tried my best, and I apologize for this taking so damn long)
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The monitor buzzed with static as several seconds of darkness rolls by.
Suddenly, disjointed clips stutter across the screen.
Miles and miles of forest shot from overhead, soft, eerie violin playing in the background.
Thick trees surrounding a group of young adults, the fading light casting shadows around them as they laugh. No added background music but a faint static.
The shot is tilted, the camera recording laying on it’s side in a pile of leaves, low battery light flashing in the upper right corner. It’s looking up at a massive, worn down mansion with boarded windows and ivy climbing up the sides. The door wide open as a faint thud is heard, screams echoing through the building with no apparent source. The static is heavy and laced with crickets as the sunlight just barely spills over the tallest rooftop.
The video jolts, cutting back to black and static for several more seconds.
A video fades in, image and sound becoming clear.
A camera is held in unsteady hands, laughter ringing out as it pans across the backseat of a car. The woman next to the camera operator rolls her eyes behind large, red sunglasses. Frilly red top buttoned low, exposing the top of a lacey red bra. She pats down her purple hair curling close to her neck.
“So! Betty-Bo-Betty, tell us where we’re going!” A young man pops out from the passenger seat with a bright smile, dark curls bouncing around his ears. His dark skin marred with splotches of lighter, smooth burn scars. Green eyes bright against the smeared backdrop of the forest that blurs past the vehicle.
Betty smiles, tipping back her head.
“It’s an old mansion that used to be owned by this well-to-do family. The Outlooks. But they’re all dead now, have been for six years, and no one’s been out here since. Rumor has it, it’s haunted by the people they wronged to get all that fabulous wealth!” Betty declared. “It’s really far out though, so I’ve graciously decided to accompany your group—don’t forget to follow my channel and subscribe or you’ll miss my beautiful features in your lives~!” Betty smiled at the camera sweetly.
“Ahah, yeah! And don’t forget to follow Lucci, too. He’s the one that’s letting us borrow his drone—and his car—for this trip! He usually just likes posting nature shots so, naturally, he’s going to get a lot of good pics out here!” The camera is jostled and peaks around the driver’s seat to an older man with sharp features and dark hair, a well-trimmed beard curling up his chin in a unique fashion. He glared at the camera before returning his attention to the road.
“As if I would trust any of you with the equipment, Andy.” He drawled with a smirk. Andy sighed, smiling as he settled back in his seat.
“And as usual, Kuma and Lindbergh are manning the cameras. Check out their work after the video, yeah?” He smiled, tugging on his flannel sweater.
A short young man poked his head out from the far back with a wide grin and crazy green hair that failed to be contained under a tan beanie. His eyes obscured behind goggles.
“You know it!” The camera was pushed forward to look at a young woman with orange hair sleeping against the far window. “Keep sleeping, Koala, and you won’t be able to sleep a wink tonight!”
The video cut out abruptly before anyone else could respond.
Lucci’s voice cuts into the black over a montage of clips and photos. Each one a different image of several people. Andy, Koala, and two other men. Both blond with dark eyes, though one has more aristocratic features compared to the other with a markedly long, boxy nose.
“I’m worried. Something isn’t right with him. Hasn’t been for a long time.”
The montage stops on a large group photo, panning from Lucci looking over at the core group in concern. There, in the middle was Andy, arm over Koala’s shoulders and the dressed up blond with curly hair. The other blond just behind them with a wide smile, eyes fixed on the camera with his hands visible on top of Andy’s shoulders.
“And if I’m right?”
The screen cuts out to black.
“This trip is going to be a disaster if I don’t stop it.”
An image flickers over the screen for a half second, burning bright just fast enough to leave an afterimage of a body in a shallow river, blood flowing downstream as birdsong echoes.
The video is paused and goes back, frame by frame, confirming something.
There is no head.
There is a snort and a crunch of leaves.
“Really?”
The screen goes black again, video resumed.
“Not my finest work but—” The video glitches, static and stuttering digital degradation overtaking the screen and speakers for an uncomfortably long period of time.
The change to a campfire is jarring. Laughter echoing as the group of six gather around, roasting weenies on metal sticks for hot dogs. The shot is steady, the camera men now in frame as they enjoyed their meal. Still images flash over the scene of dubiously scorched meat and overburdened buns. Laughing faces and grins lit up by the fire as night falls.
Every shot that has the forest behind the joyous campers lingers longer than the others. The shadows between the trees dark with a gleam—the shape of a figure watching them.
The video cuts again.
“What can you tell us about the Outlooks?” Koala asks with a soft smile, addressing an older woman. She purses her lips in a frown.
“Rude bastards, the lot of them. Even that son of theirs was rotten—not the other one, god bless his soul.” Koala glances at the camera.
“Oh? They had two sons?” The woman huffed.
“Yeah, the older one was quite the charmer for such a rotten family. Sweet, somehow. Certainly didn’t get it from his folks. They claim he ran away but never reported it. I think they dumped him in the river and forgot about him. Serves them right, what happened to them. Good riddance to trash!” She spat.
Koala grimaced.
“Ah, right. The murders—”
The video cuts to the back of the group, trekking through the woods while they chatted and laughed.
“My shoes are ruined!” Betty cried with a pout, looking at the camera for support.
“You’re the one that wanted to come!” Andy laughed.
“Should’ve gotten Gucci boots or something instead of heels!” A large man with curly hair teased, shouldering a heavy backpack.
“Shut up, Kuma! Mourn my perfectly good heels like a decent human being, damnit!” Betty screeched.
“Well, at least you have an excuse to buy another pair? Maybe that’ll be your next video!” Koala suggested with a grin over her shoulder. “Andy, you got the map, right? How much longer until the first stop?”
Andy paused at the front of the group, looking back at them all, map spread out wide with a sheepish grin.
“Well… another three hours?”
There were cries of denial as the screen went dark.
It returned to the camp seen before, Lucci building up the fire dutifully.
“We all have our assignments, correct? Let’s get it done before dark. We’ll leave at eight. If we make good time we might even make it to the mansion by tomorrow afternoon.” Lucci mused.
“Cool! You gonna get drone footage today or wait till we’re really in the thick of it?” Andy asked, tugging on the corner of a tent to pin it in place.
“Today and tomorrow. We’ll probably be too tired for that on the way back.”
“Sweet, I bet the woods look amazing this far out!” Andy smiled.
A long, tracking shot over the trees starts, the setting sun illuminating the treetops in golden light. It speeds up, zipping over the uneven landscape and old growth as night falls.
There’s two fires visible from several hundred feet up and the drone pauses in place. Light overtakes the drone and it crashes into the trees, breaking on impact.
The screen is dark as Lucci’s voice cuts in, whispering into a microphone.
“This is Lucci. I am travelling with five others towards the abandoned Outlook Manor and I believe we are being stalked. My drone was taken out when I scoped out the area and I am reluctant to inform the others. Out here, no one around for miles… if it is who I suspect, it may already be too late. If you find this, look in the black box under my kitchen sink. That’s where I’ve hidden the evidence I’ve accumulated so far—” there’s a snap of dry wood. “… I fear I may have overestimated my ability to keep us safe. I won’t be sleeping well tonight. If at all.”
“He was a good friend.” Someone mused softly, pausing the video.
“He was… nosy as shit though. Should have just stayed out of it, isn’t that right, nightingale?”
“Don’t tease him. Adjusting is hard.” A feminine voice cut in harshly.
“It is! That’s why we put this together. So he understands.” Another masculine voice simpers. “We worked so hard for the surprise~”
The video kicks back on to the morning. Andy is kicking dirt into the fireplace with a perplexed frown.
“Where the hell is he?” Andy muttered before looking up adruptly, smiling quickly.
“Ah! Luddy, hey! Have you seen Lucci?” The camera jerks.
“Nah, Andy. Didn’t he say he wanted a morning shot, though?” Andy’s smile fell.
“Yeah but… his equipment is still in his tent.”
Lucci stepped out of the bushes abruptly with a scowl, holding up a broken drone.
“Oh, shit! What happened?!” Lucci glared at the camera with a pinched expression.
“… bird hit it.” Andy grimaced.
“Sorry to hear that. Is it recoverable?” Lucci shook his head at Andy.
“No. I’m afraid not.” Lucci scowled again. “I’ll have to be more careful with the backup.”
“I’ll reimburse you after we get back, I know those aren’t cheap.” Andy pat his arm, the camera panning over to a tent where Koala and Betty came out.
“Shit, sorry! Didn’t mean to sleep in—give us five and we’ll be all ready to go!” Koala smiled, Betty wrinkled her nose at the morning light.
“Ugh, daytime. I need more beauty sleep.” Betty complained.
“You wanted to come camp with is~” Koala sang with a laugh, jostling the other woman.
“Alright, everyone pack up and be ready to leave soon! The faster we leave, the faster we can sleep in a decrepit mansion!” Andy cheered. “Spooky mansion~ spooky mansion~ spooky mansion~!” he skipped over to a tent and clambered in while everyone laughed.
Kuma paused, looking out into the forest behind him, head tilted to the side as his hands froze in the middle of packing a bag.
“What’s the matter?” Koala asked, turning to look. “You hear something? Maybe a deer?”
The large man shook his head.
“…No. I don’t think it is.” Kuma picked up a camera and trudged off. “Go ahead and keep packing, I’m going to make sure it’s not a bear.”
“A bear?! Are there even bears out here?!” Koala screeched, her voice jolting as the shot switched, evidentially to Kuma’s camera as it started recording. “What the hell are you going to do if it is?” She called out behind him.
“Run faster than you.” Kuma laughed, the camera swaying with every step as it panned over the trees. There was a spot of color that vanished when the camera swiveled back abruptly. “…What was that?” He walked towards the direction, the sound of running water faint over the leaves crunching beneath his feet.
Five minutes of walking with no results and he paused, a small river a few feet away. Kuma hummed, looking out at the forest for a moment.
“I should go ba—” The camera flew into the dirt, sound glitching as a heavy thud echoed. The lens fixated on the leaves close by, blurry background a smear of green and red. Something moved in the background, a dark, fuzzy shape lumbering as something was dragged into the water.
“Hmmm? Ah, right.” A voice faintly called through the static. Boots softly stepping closer until the lens abruptly focused on the dark leather. The image spun as the camera was lifted, jerking as something brushed over it, dirt and leaves falling to the ground. It turned to look at the river.
Kuma’s body sitting in the water, head gone and blood oozing into the flow. Someone chuckled darkly.
The video cut out.
“Where the hell is he?!” Koala screeched, “It’s been half an hour!” The camera panned over the mostly packed campsite. Everyone looked worried and Lucci in particular was pale.
“Maybe he turned back?” Lucci offered weakly.
“Why would he do that without saying anything?” Andy asked. “And without the map, too—if he needed to go home he could have said so and we’d turn back!”
Betty huffed.
“And waste all this time getting halfway? Nuh-uh! Maybe something happened and he needed to go home ASAP!”
“Lucci has the keys, Betty. Unless he needed to leave immediately without saying a word but not so immediately that he could walk all the way to town, I don’t think that’s likely.” Lindbergh said from behind the camera. “Do you think he got lost?”
“…S-Should we call someone? That’s what you have to do, right? Call someone so they can start search and rescue?” Andy asked.
“No one has signal out here, Andy. If we wanted to do that, we’d have to either go back to the car or go to the manor. It’s probably got a phone line or something. No way those posh bastards were that isolated.” Koala pointed out.
“Without power and after so long?” Andy mused. Koala shrugged.
“It’s probably also pretty clear—closer too if that map is accurate.” Betty offered.
The camera cut out and returned to the group walking in silence. Betty nowhere to be seen.
“…are we really doing this?” Lindbergh asked softly from behind the camera. Lucci looked back at him, swallowing hard.
“Two people disappeared after breaking from the group. We can’t risk anyone else. We’re going home—” Something flew into the trail, Andy flailing back with a scream.
“What! What!” Koala gasped, looking down at it and screaming too. “Run! Run! Go-gogogogogogogo!” Koala grabbed Andy’s arm, pulling him as he stared at the object. Lucci swearing as he ran.
Lindbergh’s grasp on the camera made it shake violently as he looked at the object. Breathing hard and sobbing as he manually zoomed in with a mechanical whir.
Curly hair tangled with leaves rested in the middle of the path, blood shining in the sun.
“K-Kuma--!”
The video glitched, stuttering over frantic running and hysterical crying. Day to night.
It settled over a small campfire, the camera settled on a log overlooking the four remaining. They looked pale and shaken, Andy curled up against Koala while Lucci periodically looked out at the woods.
“… I think we’re being herded to the manor.” Lucci warned with bloodshot eyes. “We need to get to the car and leave.”
“I-I don’t even know where we are anymore.” Andy admitted with a sob. “The map disappeared—I must have dropped in when—when…”
“We’ve clearly been followed. Who knows we’re out here?” Lucci asked in a stern whisper.
“No one! I-I wanted to do a surprise video—unless B-Betty said something… no one should know we’re out here.”
“Well, we can’t go to the manor. It’s clearly not safe!” Lucci hissed.
“Then where is safe!?” Koala shouted before deflating. “I-I’m sorry—I didn’t mean to…” Lucci reached over and patted her knee.
“It’s alright. This is hard for everyone, I understand.” Lucci murmured, looking out at the woods one last time. “We should sleep in shifts. No one leaves the campsite for anything. Anything. Do you understand? Not alone. Not… not until we’re safe.”
Andy sniffed.
“Y-Yeah. It’s… uh, nine. Daylights at seven. Ten hours, nine if we go to bed a bit later… s-soooo… two hours give or take each?” Koala sniffed, nodding her head. “Yeah. Two h-hours each. Who wants first watch?”
“I’ll take it. I’m too keyed up to sleep right now.” Lucci offered. “I’ll wake whoever is next.”
“I’ll go next.” Lindbergh said softly.
The video cuts to a short video from inside a tent. Crickets chirping loudly as the fire cast shadows across the fabric.
There was a loud snap and a repressed whimper. A figure passed the tent and there was a muffled, gasping sound.
It was daylight. The birds chirping as the camera fixated on the trees.
“Where’s Lucci?!” Koala’s voice cut into the air, the camera jumping. “W-Where is he?! Lindbergh, did he wake you for your shift?”
“N-No! No he didn’t, I-I didn’t wake up at all—”
“Liar! We’ve known each other for years—I can tell when you’re lying off your ass, what! HAPPENED?!” Koala screamed, the camera sent flying. It hit the ground, Koala shaking Lindbergh’s shoulders just on the edge of it’s vision.
“O-Okay! I-I heard something but I didn’t know what it was—I was too scared to leave the tent!” Lindbergh stuttered. Koala froze.
A slap echoed into the forest, sending the smaller man to the ground.
“You bastard! Lucci! Lucci!” Koala ran into the trees blindly.
“K-Koala, no! D-Don’t leave alone—STOP!” Andy ran after her, Lindbergh still sat on the ground, crying.
There was a loud snap of a branch and he ran, stumbling and crying as he picked up the camera. Running madly through the forest, the camera never focusing enough to make out more than a blur of trees and the sound of rapid breathing and steps.
It cuts to the outside of an old, overgrown mansion. The sun rising as Lindbergh wheezed in fear.
“A-Andy? Koala? I’m sorry—I’msorryI’msorryI’msorry—”
The screen turned to black with a heavy thump and a low whimper. Video flickering to a tilted view of the manor. The image paused.
“This feels mean.” Someone complained. “Songbird is just getting upset. I don’t think they can really appreciate this just yet. Maybe we should put on something else?”
There was muffled crying.
“He needs to see it at least once.” Someone else cut in. “It’ll be a good reminder of how much work we put into this.”
There was a sigh and the video jumped back to life, afternoon sun bathing the trees in golden light in the tilted vision of the abandoned camera on low battery.
There was a thump and a scream.
“K-Koala!?” Andy called, kicking the camera. “SHIT! O-Oh—Lindbergh’s camera? I-Is he--?” Another shrill scream and the camera was picked up as he ran into the house.
It was dusty and eerily still. Clearly abandoned for a very long time, faint light pouring in from the windows.
“W-Where are you?!” Andy shouted.
“H-HELP!” The camera jerked towards the right, peering down a hallway.
“K-Koala?”
“ANDY!” He ran, camera bouncing frantically between closed doors and lush, moth eaten carpet. Koala’s voice growing closer as he approached the end of the hall and a dark, open doorway.
The concrete stairs led down into a basement, his steps heavy as he ran to the bottom. There was a click and a whine as a light cut into the dark, an expensive flat screen sitting on the floor.
Andy came to an abrupt halt, camera fixed on the tv as it played an old video, his own voice cutting into the stifling air.
“Good morning, everyone! Andy here with another abandoned building to explore! Remember, take only pictures and leave nothing but footprints!” B-roll of an abandoned supermarket rolled by, white linoleum floor peeling away from years of poor weather than fell through the high ceiling.
“W-What?”
“I like this one.” Andy jerked, spinning around to find Koala standing behind him, smiling in the ghostly light of the tv. “You screamed so loud when that racoon popped out of the garbage.” She laughed.
“K-Koala! You’re alright—what… what are you doing in here? Why were you screaming?” Andy asked hoarsely before chuckling nervously. “O-Oh, I get it—I get it! T-This was all a prank! Shit, you guys really got me good—eheh… I-It’s uh… a bit of a dark joke though. With the head and all. How’d you get Lucci in on it, he’s so serious all the time!”
Koala shook her head.
“No prank. He’s dead.” Andy’s chuckle died.
“D-Dead? I-I thought he just…”
“Disappeared?” A soft voice asked behind the camera, Andy screaming.
“SHIT!” The camera fell to the ground, cracking the lens and refracting the light from the video on the flat screen. Two figures fought on the ground.
“Easy, songbird! Easy!” Koala called out.
“Relax, Andy, it’s me!”
“Get off! GET OFF OF ME!”
Someone clicked their tongue and another figure approached, kneeling at the head of the two with something in their hand.
“I think that’s enough excitement for you, Nightingale.” They pressed something over the pinned person’s face and slowly, they fell still.
There was a deep sigh.
“Well, that went better than I expected!”
“Sabo!”
“What? It did! Look at our baby, barely a scratch on him!” Sabo protested.
“I thought the plan was to wait until they reached the manor?”
The video cut out.
Someone sighed again.
“It was the plan, but Kuma saw Sabo, so…”
“And then it all went downhill from there! You two seriously suck at sticking to a plan!” Koala hissed. “Who’s idea was the head, anyway? You almost hit Andy!”
“Hey, you guys were almost at the car! What was I supposed to do, let you?!”
“The hell were you keeping the head for, Kaku?!” Koala snapped. “You never kept trophies like that before!” There was a long sigh.
“It was my idea, actually. I wanted to put it somewhere in the manor to herd whoever was left into a dead end. But Kaku panicked and took it from me.” Sabo grumbled. “Anyway, I think our poor little songbird has seen enough.”
“We’ve set everything up. All that’s left is repairs—sorry but you’ll have to stay in the basement until they’re done. Officially, Sabo has ‘regained his memories’ and is sprucing up the place since he’s the sole inheritor. Where he finds—” Kaku is interrupted.
“—Me, distraught and searching for my friends who have all disappeared. Kaku comes to be emotional support at search and rescue comb the area. They won’t find anything but still.” Koala huffed, “Officially, you’ll be missing until you adjust, songbird. We’ve put a lot of thought into this. I promise, we’ll all be very happy.” She coos softly.
The video resumes, flashing between missing posters and newspaper clippings detailing the disappearance of two youtubers and their friends.
Only Koala is found, having stumbled onto Sabo Outlook’s manor as he looked over the property in a lucky coincidence that likely saved her life.
No bodies were ever found.
“Maybe we’ll play this again next year, you know… to celebrate?” Kaku suggested.
“Maybe! Oh! Maybe Andy will feel better and we can add some cute photos of us together too?” Koala gushed.
“We’ll have to see. He’s still pretty… upset with us right now.”
The video ends with muffled sobs and soft reassurances.
“It’s okay, we just wanted you to see how safe you are with us, baby~”
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somethingaboutmint · 1 year
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i'm curious how Ziva's other main companions respond to her age, she's only 2 years younger than McCready and is the same age as "elder" maxson
Maccready doesn't think its weird but thats because both him and živa have eerily simmilar life circumstances and have basically skipped the "young adult" part of their lives to get straight into parenthood. They get along really well (wink wink nudge).
Other than maccready preston and piper are the closest to her in age (hc them both to be 23ish). Preston does not think its that unusual but then again he's also very young and already suffered insane trauma/is overworked as fuck constantly so he's not really a good frame of reference. Piper does secretly think Živa having a kid at 19 is a very "WHAT THE FUCK" moment because she had to take care of her sister at that age and determined that its way too young to be taking care of another person but she never really voices it because živa is close to snapping at any given point and she doesnt want to make it worse. Curie also vibes with živa which isn't relevant to how young živa is (curie spent 200 years as a robot and doesnt have the same sense of age that humans do i.e she can't really comprehend how young 19 is in the grand scheme of things) but because she dropped out of college so young (started at 17 and dropped out a year later cause of pregnancy basically) she never got an actual medical degree which is one of her biggest life regrets so curie ends up teaching her a lot about medicine that she would not get to learn otherwise.
The "older" companions are more prone to kind of treating her as a kid but she also isn't as close to most of them because...well.....not a lot to relate to. Nick is a brief older male role model to her and his opinion of her is basically "her whole deal is tragic as fuck someone make this girl some soup please". Hancock still acts like hes 20 so hes like damn really fucked it up by becoming a parent so soon you should be out having fun doing drugs or whatever the hell they did in your time and živa is a bit too uptight to appriciate that advice. Danse might have a simmilar "oh shit i thought you were older maybe i fucked up recruiting someone so young and traumatized to the BOS" to deacon but honestly him and živa spend so little time interacting that he probably never figures out what her age is. Then again his boss is the same age as her and in the millitary being young is like a given so maybe not who knows.
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simchallenger · 1 year
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The Sims 4 Fable Stories Challenge
Submitted By: https://weirdscience1500.tumblr.com/
Edited By: https://simchallenger.tumblr.com/
Generation One: Bo Peep
You follow your heart and you follow the herd... Being a fable has complications, but you always find a way to create life and start a new beginning. You’ve always loved to live off the land, and being one of the last fables being out in nature away from a society and a big deal to you.
Let’s start a story together!
The Rules:
You must live off the land and start off with $100.
You must fall in love one time and must be with them until the day you die.
You must live on a farm.
You must master the country caretaker aspiration and master the cross-stitching skill.
You must raise your grandchild.
You never get a job, you make your money off of:
Living on the land
Your animals
Plopsy
Your favorite colors are
Baby Pink
Baby Blue
White
Your Traits are:
Animal Enthusiast
Loyal
Loves Outdoors
Generation Two: Goldie Locks
You’ve always been a bit of a wild child, classy but questionable. You love the simple country life, but you want more opportunity and more than a family or child... You’re a fable that wants more and keeps their enemies close, but your secrets locked away.
The Rules:
You must have an ‘enemies to lovers’ romance
When you have a one night stand with your partner, you conceive a child with them. This is the end of your relationship and you never see them again.
Become enemies with your whole family and your lover’s family.
You must break off an engagement.
You go to college and you drop out.
Master the secret agent career and the party animal aspiration.
You must never get married.
You have one best friend when you become an adult. You eventually become more than friends, but you never get married, maintaining a boyfriend/girlfriend relationship.
You live in an apartment until you have your child and then you move back in with your parents.
You taunt your ex-lovers parents for child support and money. Take what you want you little klepto.
Generation Three: Little Red Riding Hood
You love the color red. Red buttons, red velvet cake, red everything... You’ve always been a kind of loner, a bit of an outcast, but the love of your grandparents keep you going.
You baked with your grandparents all the time, and you have a passion for that because of them. There’s a bit of a mystery to you, especially with the moon (What’s up with that?) Also, who is that person? They’re always in the background of your life, and now that you’ve noticed them, you have to follow the trail.
The Rules:
You must live with your grandparents until they die.
You must master the knitting and baking skills
You must have five dogs your whole life.
Have a high school sweetheart, and break up with them when you guys become young adults.
Every weekend you bake together with your grandparents, and carry on with this tradition with your kids.
You work a part-time job as a teenager
You eventually fall in love with your one true love. A werewolf, your Big Bad Wolf.
You join the culinary career, but you don’t have to master it if you don’t want to.
You find your lost parent after becoming a young adult, they move in with you when they become an elder and you take care of them till they die.
You open up a bakery.
Your favorite colors are red and spice brown.
Your traits are:
Loner
Self-assured
Lactose Intolerant
You plant roses and wolfsbane in your garden
Generation Four: Cry Wolf
Cry, cry, cry, your tears flow. You’ve always been so emotional, sometimes you just can’t help it. Growing up, you were always that emo kid in school but you have a secret...
You’re a werewolf, and not a very good one. But your weakness has always been love, but you’ve never been really great at that either. You destroy everything you touch. The paranoia that your exes are out to get you leaves you scared.
The Rules:
Master the villainous aspiration and the guitar skill.
You must have four failed marriages.
Join the business career and get to level 7.
You must have at least one alien baby.
You must go to college to get a business degree.
When you get married for the fifth time, you must die at the hands of your spouse, leaving everything to them.
Your favorite colors are dark blue and grey.
Your traits are:
Gloomy
Unflirty
Paranoid
Every friday you go to the bar to get juiced.
Generation Five: Ugly Duckling
When you’re with your siblings or stepmother/stepfather, they always look down on you, making you feel ugly and unimportant. People might not think you’re pretty, but you’re stunning and very smart. You’re one tough cookie, no one’s gonna to put this fable in a corner! You will have your happy ending no matter what.
The Rules:
Join the detective career. You don’t have to master this, if you don’t want to.
The nights that you don’t work, you go DJing.
You leave home as a teenager and you’re homeless.
As a teenager, you DJ to make money until you graduate high school.
You follow your siblings partner, fighting feelings for them, and them for you.
You have triplets (you can cheat for this).
When you get enough money, you can re-buy your grandparents bakery from your stepparent, as it rightfully belongs to you.
You quit your detective job after you become an adult. You’ve figured out your parents death at the hands of your stepparent.
You must raise all three children to young adulthood.
You play with this Sim until they die.
As a small child, you join scouts.
Your three triplets will throw you a party/funeral when you die.
Your favorite colors are:
Orange
Black
Dark Salmon
Your traits are:
Freegan
Goofball
Clumsy
You must be an alien.
You must master the soulmate aspiration, and master the DJ mixing skill.
After quitting your detective job, you join the fisherman career.
You like to craft your own furniture and go to the flea market when you have time.
The End
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the-laridian · 1 year
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1-5 for Gunnar, 6-10 for Willow, 11-15 for Greta, and 16-20 for Rufus !
ok!
Gunnar! (FNV) 1 - Race/Species - Human 2 - SPECIAL stats - ooooh crap I should have this written down somewhere by now, but I don't XD He's a Charisma/Intelligence build with low Perception (which is how I explained him/me constantly walking into mines and traps). 3 - In-game songs - I don't actually listen to the radio in-game! But I'd have to say Ghost Riders in the Sky. 4. How does he feel about people from before the war? - well he has a very close connection with them, it turns out. He's very aware that they were just people, some of them good, some bad, most of them just trying to get along in their lives. 5 - Where is he from? - Born in Bismarck, North Dakota, but ended up living in the mountain states/Four Corners area for a big chunk of his adult life.
Willow! (FO76) 6 - What faction(s) is he currently a part of? - well, he sides with the Settlers, and is on good terms with MODUS, which would upset some people if they knew. (Can you be part of the Enclave if you don't really understand what they're about, and aren't told the more unsavory parts, but you still get the cool uniform?) 7 - What faction(s) in the past? - technically, Vault 76, though he avoids most of the other Vault Dwellers, particularly the Overseer. He's good friends with Ricky Gee though. ( @theartofblossoming 's FO76er) 8 - Has he met any canon characters? - well, pretty much all of them, I think. Not so much the BoS gang. 9 - Friends with canon characters? - Beckett, Beckett's brother Frank, but Willow is not as sociable as some of my OCs and he's fine being acquaintances rather than friends. Biv’s fun to hang around with, 10 - Romantic with any canon characters? - Yep, with Beckett.
Greta! (FO76) 11 - What weapon type? - ballistic. Greta was a sniper before the war, and she's kept up her skills. She can use the heavy ballistic weapons too. 12 - Armor type - Greta uses whatever armor has the most stopping power. She doesn't like power armor much, but can use it if she has to. Also, pocketed like whoa. 13 - Comics/Magazines - the US Covert Ops stuff, mostly. To a lesser extent, Guns & Bullets (she thinks it's a little too sensational/over the top sometimes, not to mention patronizing) 14 - Chems - None. Not even alcohol. 15 - Would she keep a wasteland pet? - at one point she had a radstag doe following her around like a dog. (She didn't have Wasteland Whisperer, so it wasn't that). The deer had a big happy dopey grin on its face and wasn't afraid, which, she figured that would mean it was going to get itself killed. But she shot anything that came near it, and they hung out together for a few days. That's about it. She'd probably get a dog at some point just because a dog is useful. Plus, better company than people.
Rufus! (FNV) Rufus is still very young so some of this is predicted :) 16 - Any cosmetic surgery/tattoos? - He'll want one when he's grown, and deal with "but I shouldn't get one" / "Dad won't like it" and wrestle with that for longer than necessary. 17 - Afraid of radiation? - Cautious about it, but since it's invisible and undetectable if you don't have a Pipboy, it also falls under "not much I can do about it if I wander into it". 18 - How does he feel about killing? - Very pacifistic for his culture (which weirds people out). Ends up as an adult with the nickname "the Merciful" which isn't necessarily meant as a positive. He doesn't want to kill anything or anyone. Yes, there's self-defense, but it should still be a last resort. 19 - How about robots? - they're rather offputting; he grew up without robots around, and they unnerve him. 20 - In another universe? Well, technically that's happened a couple of times now, lol, FNV is the most recent one. But he's a very unlikely protagonist for most games, because he wants to avoid combat. In other universes he'd probably go become a teacher or a doctor.
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maddmuses · 10 months
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Re: Naruto's physique and fitness routine
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Time for weird fringe meta posts from Madd again. So broadly speaking, the anime and manga both simplify most examples of physique in the Naruto series, this makes sense as both productions were subject to crunch, and the physique of many characters was rarely a matter of detail.
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But y'all know I'm a tad on the weird side so I'm going to talk about it.
Among animanga it's not entirely uncommon for a MC to be the "median" physically among the cast. Not too tall, not too short, not too big, not too thing. Unless possessing a specific quality is pertinent to their character, often through the narrative, such as Sena in Eyeshield 21 or Gon in hiatusXhiatus, it's rarely deviated from.
Accordingly, most drawings of Naruto's body are never showing anything exceptional as a young adult, although the anime (and manga towards the end) did portray him as a chubby kid he had a tendency to thin out before 13. If you want to know the source of this info it is found in Naruto 538.
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This means that shinobi training, or at least the kind we know Naruto to get up to based on his training menus in both pieces of media, are very cardio intensive, as well he probably simply lost the weight. Though this weight loss is more than apparent, his physique on the anime side is a bit inconsistent and undetailed. Referring to the images towards the top of this post of the senjutsu training vs. what follows here:
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Basically no toning lines defining or suggesting the muscles in his abdomen, which are definitely tones per above and here
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Overall this is a good reference point. Throughout Shippuden, Naruto's build is definitely thin, but developed, so wiry would probably be the shorthand. It's evident that he can achieve significant physical feats both with and without chakra, consistent with a character who does a lot of calisthenics.
Being that Naruto is 5'6" tall during the Shippuden databooks (data on further physical growth uncertain after age 16/17ish but likely) it becomes apparent that this is probably a baseline build for most shinobi who are capable at taijutsu, but not strictly specialized, with an emphases on agility. Contrary to popular fandom perception, though Naruto's actual hitting style and close-up tactics tend to not be pretty, he is agile and mostly is mobile throughout a fight, particularly when employing the use of his shadow clones. A decent example can be found in ED 15.
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Though he's adaptive through it depending on his opponent, the fact is that his style is pretty "hard" with a key emphasis on moving explosively and staying within striking range of his opponent. It's why her pursues his opponent even when dodging, and really only modulates his firing range against Tenten who is armed with a bo. We know it's a hard style, particularly when fighting Lee, as it's practically identical. One could probably call this "Strong Fist lite" as he's not employing any of the inherently exhausting techniques that require him to leap and flash step distances, but it's still tiring to stay that mobile even after four brief spars.
Seeing as it's not that different from what Konohamaru uses, and Naruto has the access, it's fair to assess that this is a pretty common style of fighting in Konoha, and thus a body that's optimal to use it is consistent among characters like Naruto and Lee who have these body types (and to a degree Konohamaru who does develop a similar build in adulthood).
Overall a body type that is compact and flexible is what we can extrapolate a detailed design of Naruto to be having. Particularly, while sleight, Naruto's shoulders are on the slightly broad side compared to other men who engage in this fashion of training, inheriting a slightly wideset nature from his Uzumaki family (pictured: his ancestor) and his mother, who was frequently compared to a tomato as a girl, and has more of a pear or rectangular shape to her body. This would probably also extend to his middle too, meaning he probably wouldn't develop an "inverted triangle" but rather more trapezoidal.
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Overall I'm operating under the assumption that Naruto, beyond age 15, starts to develop some serious definition, though the mass doesn't start to become impressive until 17. Beyond that point, his mass never becomes offputtingly heavy, as maintenance of a body that is quick enough to conduct his style of taijutsu is necessary. Stylistically I would compare it to real-life De Niro or Lee, rather a point somewhere between them:
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So overall, I think Naruto's actual regiment/menu as an adult includes:
-Taijutsu Sparring (when he can get it) -Weighted Free-Running Cardio around Konohagakure (at least an hour on an optimal day, but most days will go for roughly 20 km/12 miles per day) -Muscle Group-Targeted Weight Lifting (Based on day but has specific days for arms, chest, back, and legs) -10x10 calisthenics (pushups, pull-ups, sit-ups, squats) on a light day -15x10 calisthenics on a moderate day -20x10 calisthenics on a heavy day -10x100 punches on a heavy bag (still dressed like Kakashi)(Weight supplemented on leg and back days) -Meditation (15 minutes on a heavy day, 20 minutes on a moderate day, 30 minutes on a light day, 5/10/15 minutes practicing senjutsu meditation) -Practice Ninjutsu (30 minutes minimum, rounds up remaining time until training completion depending on the day)
Naruto's general training block in a day can range from 4-6 hours, though he will do 8 hours for an especially intense experience when he is a young adult and more or less doing only missions.
That's the post ig, have a good day!
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anonymousewrites · 2 years
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There's a Will; There's a Way (Extra) Chuuya and Akira Part Two
            Several weeks had passed. Between missions and work, Chuuya and Akira caught moments in the Painted Glass. They still teased each other, but they had become closer. They were close friends. Neither had told the other their last name, it was too dangerous for either to do so. However, there was a connection and honesty between the two that neither had really felt before. It was different from Chuuya’s comradery with Dazai; it was different from Akira’s sisterhood with (Y/N). The two felt close on a level they really hadn’t experienced with anyone else. They felt safe and comfortable, free to be themselves without worry of judgement or jobs.
            “So then, that asshole fucking claws me, but I twist around and kick him in the face!” Akira grinned as she recounted the story. “Then Atsushi gives us this whole big speech about working together—which, by the way, bo-ring—but then we all work together and kick Shibusawa’s ass! You should have seen it.” She leaned back in her chair and laughed. “Man, it was exhilarating!”
            “You seem pretty happy for someone who didn’t end the fight,” commented Chuuya, smirking.
            Akira rolled her eyes. “Listen, without me, those kids wouldn’t have won. Doesn’t matter how powerful they are. They’re still just kids in the end.”
            “They’re adults.” Chuuya took a sip of wine. “If they’re fighting there, they’ve clearly been through a lot.”
            “Doesn’t mean they’re mature or know what they’re doing. I have a feeling you and I both know what it means to really grow up and learn how to survive in this world. They haven’t,” said Akira. “They still think everything is black and white. They’re learning about the grey.”
            Chuuya nodded in understanding. “Who exactly were these kids?” He was feigning ignorance and maintaining his relative anonymity.
            “Akutagawa, Atsushi, and Kyouka?” Akira leaned back and laughed. “Bunch of punks.” She took a drink of whiskey.
            “Atsushi and Kyouka…I’ve seen them in the paper, haven’t I?” commented Chuuya. “They’re part of that….Armed Detective Agency, right?”
            “Yeah,” said Akira. “Guess they’re kind of famous now.”
He was carefully guarding the fact that he knew them. “How’d you get to working with fancy detectives?”
            “What? Is it so hard to believe I like the attention and drama sometimes?” teased Akira.
            He rolled his eyes. “You are a small-time bar owner. How do you get mixed up with people who get hired by the government?”
            Akira smirked and leaned closer to him. “Promise not to tell?” she whispered conspiratorially.
            Chuuya raised an eyebrow. “What, you a criminal or some shit?”
            Akira’s eyes sparkled slyly. “And if I was? Would I have to tie you up so you didn’t run to the police? I would have a lot of fun stringing you up.”
            Rolling his eyes, the redhead pretended to consider. “I guess I could keep your secret.”
            Akira laughed. “Even if I was very bad? Evil, even?”
            You can’t be worse than me. Would you accept me if you knew the dark parts of me? “I wouldn’t care,” said Chuuya honestly.
            Akira blinked and paused as she was lifting her glass. For a moment, the world stopped as they both realized how serious things had just gotten. It had gotten dangerously close to breaching the fine line they had created between being close friends and the emotions that were just below the surface.
            Akira cleared her throat and said, “Information broker.” She shattered the moment easily.
            “Hm?” Chuuya started from the sobering moment they had just had.
            “That’s why I help the Agency out,” said Akira. “I have a nice little habit of getting my hands on information that people prefer to keep private.”
            “So I was right!” Chuuya chuckled, trying to get back to just joking around. “You probably do blackmail your connections.”
            “Maybe a little bit,” admitted Akira cheekily, smirking. “Anyways, a few years back this cutie, (Y/N), stumbled into my bar during a case, and we became friends. Ever since then, she’s contacted me many times for information. That’s how I end up helping the Armed Detective Agency.” She took a swig of whiskey. “Mind you, I wasn’t asked to help during the fog incident. I just stumbled into the group by accident.”
            “Was it the same for the last kid? Akutagawa?” Chuuya was genuinely curious this time since Akutagawa hadn’t really mentioned how he fought with the weretiger and the Agency.
            Akira sneered. “Yeah, he was getting beaten by his ability.”
            “You don’t like him, do you?” Can’t exactly blame you. Impertinent kid.
            “He’s Port Mafia,” spat Akira.
            Chuuya felt his heart ache for a moment. Quickly, he took a drink to clear his throat. It suddenly felt too tight. “That’s a lot more anger than the average person holds for the Port Mafia.”
            Akira’ eyes darkened. “I lost all I had left to the Port Mafia,” she murmured.
            His heart clenched again. Chuuya didn’t like hearing her being hurt. Even worse, it was because of an organization he was a part of. “I’m sorry.” He didn’t ask for explanation.
            However, Akira volunteered it. She felt safe with Chuuya. She didn’t dare admit everything, but…Akira could tell him parts of the truth. “My mom…she died when I was young. I still don’t know the full story of how it happened…”
            “Was the Port Mafia involved?” murmured Chuuya.
            “No.” Akira took a drink. The liquid burned her throat, taking the pain along with it. “No. That would have been simpler. I just remember my father coming home one day and telling me she was gone. He never talked about it after, and even with all my connections…there haven’t been any answers.” A few tears began to gather in the corners of her eyes.
            Chuuya waited silently for her to continue. He wouldn’t rush her. Not in this state.
            “So, uh, a few years later, my father went to the war. He was a doctor, you know? That was the first he left me,” said Akira softly. “He took a nurse with him. She…He always preferred her over me.” She laughed wryly. “I never did figure out what I did to have my father dislike me so much.”
            “Akira…” murmured Chuuya.
            Akira downed her drink and reached to refill it. “When he came back, the girl wasn’t with him. I thought that I finally had my father back, but…He was different. He only cared about work. Always gone, always out of the house. I went to and from school by myself. I learned to do everything by myself. My father and I were pretty much strangers. I came to terms with just seeing him getting home late and night. I came to terms with everything…”
            “There’s more, isn’t there?” Chuuya could tell so much weighed on her mind. And, nothing about the Port Mafia had come up yet.
            Akira chuckled mirthlessly. “I wish there wasn’t.”
            Chuuya reached over and brushed his thumb over her knuckles softly. “You don’t have to tell me.” It was unusual for him to be so gentle, but…this was special.
            “I want to,” replied Akira honestly. “I trust you.”
            Chuuya blinked. A warmth he had never felt spread through his chest. He liked the feeling. He wanted more.
            “I was at his obsession with work, right?” asked Akira, acting as if she was retelling an everyday tale. “Right…Well, I really thought things couldn’t get any worse. Turns out I was wrong.” Akira took a gulp of whiskey. “One day, my father was just…gone.”
            “Gone?” questioned Chuuya, frowning.
            “Gone. The only clue I ever got was that there were mafiosos waiting around our house. I did the research when I got older,” said Akira.
            “Is he…dead?”
            To me. “My father is gone,” said the raven-haired woman. My father is dead. Ogai Mori, Port Mafia Boss, is alive. Akira put her drink down. “I’m never getting him back.” Tears began to fall down her cheeks. For all her anger at Mori, she still harbored a deep pain and sadness at having lost him. Hidden away in the darkest corners of her heart was the agony of knowing her father was out there. She pretended like the abandonment didn’t bother any more, that she was just angry, but she was lying. Akira wished with all her heart to understand why he had left her. To understand why she wasn’t good enough. To understand… She was broken from her mind by a sudden pressure on her face.
            Chuuya brushed his fingers over Akira’s cheek gently, wiping the tears away. He said no words. He had never been great with emotions, certainly not expressing them. He simply sat there next to her, quietly comforting her. The inside of his mind, however, was less peaceful. Chuuya knew he could never admit to her his job. It would not only be a betrayal because she had been so truthful, but it would ruin his friendship with Akira. She would hate him, and Chuuya… For some reason, though he knew for only a few months, he couldn’t bare that thought. After all, he liked her in a way he had never experienced.
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