#here are some tiny boys made from a tiny file

[presidential--suite]

Trey and Marc 2000

#trey parker #marc shaiman #here are some tiny boys made from a tiny file #trey

[reallyromealone]

BABYHAUL 3

Fluff, male reader, baby reader, reader is adopted by Yamada and Aizawa, domestic, cute

🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐🪐Yamada was exhausted as he held little (name) in his arms, making coffee while Aizawa made breakfast for them all. It was back to school already and nobody was nearly awake for this, little (name) staring dazed and confused before being seated in his high chair.

"We have... Apple and carrot" Shouts mumbled as everyone began eating, (name) smacking his hands on the plastic table for food "yeah yeah, open wide" the exhausted hero said and (name) opened up when the little spoon got close to his mouth and looked very happy when tasting his food before looking at Shotas food curiously when he ate some of his own breakfast "ABABABA!" He tried reaching for some of it but sadly his chubby baby arm couldn't reach "here, a little bit" Shouta handed (name) a small bit that was cooled off on chopsticks and (name) looked very excited as he shoved it in his mouth.

Getting dressed and preparing (name)s baby bag the family headed off to school, Yamada grinning at the fact he managed to get the itty bitty babe in a onesie that looked like the uniform, Shouta having to explain that an actual mini uniform probably won't go well with the choking hazards via buttons and tie that the babe would most definitely try to eat.

Aizawa took (name) first as he collected his belongings, his new son looking at the students happily as they passed. Aizawa had Shinso hold his stuff as (name) kept insisting on trying to play with it.

Shinso found his new brother fascinating, the babe most definitely had a quirk that could fundamentally do anything! He could be anything!

And currently the little one was "helping" their dad prepare for class.

The students started filing in, at first not noticing the tiny addition strapped to their teachers chest, Aizawa currently writing things on the smart board "President, you can give attendance" Aizawa said passively as he turned to grab the work to be passed out off the podium and the class froze at the infant who was staring back curiously before looking around.

"Sir?" It was kaminari who spoke up with a raised hand and Aizawa grunted as a response to the blond "what's with the baby?"

Aizawa knew they wouldn't focus until he addressed the tiny elephant in the room so with a sign he scanned the class "this is my son, the U.A daycare is under maintenance so he's here" Aizawa said simply and Izuku seemed fixated on the small babe.

He looked... Familiar.

"How old is he?" Mina asked curiously and the teacher sighed "he's under a year old"

(Name) stretched his little arms and the class cooed "now" Aizawa got to business and popped a pacifier in little (name)s mouth before getting on with class.

(Name) mimicked Aizawas hand movements much to the classes amusement as Aizawa let him hold onto his finger.

"Is that him?" Nemuri asked with a soft excitement as she stepped towards the duo, Aizawa going to the staff room to get the heroics notes. "This is (name)" Aizawa said simply and Nem squealed softly but stopped when (name) looked a little startled at the sound "he's so little... Look at his little socks" she said and Aizawa took him out of his carrier a d let the other hold him, (name) immediately trying to grab her glasses to no avail "he does that with Hisashi" Aizawa said as his son began fussing.

"I think someone needs a nap" Nem said softly and Aizawa took him back and put him in the Carrier though this time facing Aizawa and began soothing the boy.

Hizashi smiled as he held his new youngest son, little (name) waking from his nap mid class and looked at the Gen-Ed students half awake, looking like he just woke from a damn good nap and clothes slightly disheveled.

"Good morning sunshine" (name) let his dad clean the drool from his cheek before popping a pacifier in his mouth "oh-- we finished early... Well I suppose you all can talk amongst yourselves" Hizashi said but his students just looked fixated on the baby who gave them some half awake side eye "sir? Is that your son?" One student asked and Hizashi grinned "yes he his! This is my youngest son (name)!" He waved (name)s sleepy arm and the boy just let him do what he wanted "how old is he?" Another asked and the blond adjusted (name) before speaking "a few months, he's a wiggly little guy" (name) gave a prime example as he whined to be put down and his dad complied, gently setting the boy down and (name) began army crawling around his little blanket set out "he's not good at the whole moving thing yet"

(Name) wiggled on the floor till his arm got caught under him and the class stiffened as his little lip wobbled and then a cry broke out as Hizashi lifted the itty bitty into his arms and tried to soothe the babe who was absolutely loosing it to no avail till his son came up "can I try?" hizashi let Hitoshi hold the itty bitty as the bell rang, the blond letting the students leave.

When it was just the trio, Hitoshi held (name) close and pat his little back gently and... Started reciting words meanings from the dictionary?

It seemed to work as (name) calmed down "how" Hizashi asked his son who shrugged "works on Eri"

The two laughed as (name) looked around confused "it's lunch time baby, they went bye bye"

"Why does he have tear marks?" Shouta asked as he took the babe "lil guy crawled on his own arm and lost his mind" Hizashi said teasingly and Shouta nodded "bound to cry eventually"

"The machine beeped!" Midnight said as her and powerloader made tea and Shouta wandered to the bottle warmer and (name) began bouncing at the machine he quickly learned holds his food "yeah yeah, keep your diaper on"

(Name) made content sounds as he ate, the teachers talking about classes and students and upcoming events "I still can't believe you two are going to be the hosts for the sports festival" Snipe snorted and Aizawa shrugged "it's only logical"

When (name) finished his bottle, Aizawa burped him and let him look around in his arms, everyone waving at him and to the adults surprise he clumsily waved back "I am pretty sure that was his first wave" Hizashi said excitedly and the teachers cooed and thankfully Vlad had video of it all and sent it to the blond.

"So is he eating solids?" Powerloader asked and Shouta nodded "he's a monster with custard" at the mention (name) looked at him curiously and the man chuckled "papa!" Little Eris voice rang as she ran in excitedly "Hi baby! Nedzu let you out early?" With the help of nedzu and a Quirk specialist Eri had been learning to control her quirk in a safe environment "yeah! He said since I got a new baby brother that I could have extra lunch with him!"

Eri smiled as Shouta crouched so she could see the little babe whom she vowed to protect in her little heart and though he shared features with her abuser she was very aware that they were not one in the same and during her captivity she often grew curious about the little baby.

A few weeks passed, the dorms fully finished and the family moved though Shinsou was in the student dorms though his training he would hopefully be joining the Hero course.

It was the weekend and the Yamazawa family were hanging out at the in school park for teachers who were parents, little (name) having the time of his life on the baby swing as he was gently pushed by Hizashi as Shouta pushed Eri on a big kid swing "higher!" She squealed as Shouta pushed her only a smudge higher "could the Yamada/Aizawa please report the Principal Nedzus office"

Hitoshi met with his family in casual clothes, it being the weekend and not needing a uniform at this moment as they knocked on it "enter please!" Nedzu said as they walked in, eyebrows raising at the man sitting in formal attire "what's going on?"

"Well due to the... Departure of Overhaul, he's been declared deceased due to the video spread of you know what" Nedzu spoke carefully as there were two tiny sets of ears through one was far more interested in his dad's capture weapon.

"So what?"

"So now we must read the things that's been left behind for our dear (name)!"

A will reading?

"Yes! It seems our dear (name) has been left quite a fair amount!"

The family sat as the lawyer began reading, the babe left estates and and priceless things in vaults quite literally anything and everything"and finally (name) Chisaki is left a total sum of 65,154,375,000 Yen (450m), here are the codes for the safes along with deeds to the estate's"

The Yamazawa family was... Shocked to say the least.

"Holy shi--""language" Shouta said though he wasn't much better, the tiny baby in his arms in little shorts and a blue striped shirts and matching shoes was absolutely loaded, the lawyer leaving them.

"My my, isn't this interesting" Nedzu said with a content smile and watched the family look shocked save for the littles who didn't have a clue on what was happening though (name) was very curious about the cookies and treats on Nedzus desk "I-I don't know... What?" Yamada was speechless as he processed the fact his baby was a multi millionaire "could we possibly have the homes and material items left behind be appraised and checked? To make sure they aren't stolen" Hitoshi brought up and the other adults genuinely considered it "since you two are his legal adults, we could do that" Nedzu said handing the teen a cookie for his excellent point "that would be good seeing as he was a criminal" Shouta agreed with his sons point.

"I will make arrangements"

So much stolen items.

So so much stolen items.

All the estate's, vaults and everything checked and the amount of stolen items was astounding and they barely dented it.

Generations of stolen goods from the crime family.

And all while this happened, (name) was excited that he got new blocks as Yamada worked with a lawyer to draft trust funds and such so the money would be accessible to (name) when he was 18.

#male reader #baby male reader #baby reader #bnha x male reader #bnha x reader #yamada x reader #yamada x male reader #aizawa x male reader #aizawa x reader

[captain-joongz]

Abraxas; Act 1, ch. 1

Pairing: mafia boss!Min Yoongi x police officer!reader

Genre: angst, humour and some fluff, investigative, dark themes, sloooooowburn, later on a fuck ton of smut (not in this act tho :(( )

Chapter summary: As a new addition to the organized crime unit after a huge corruption scandal burnt through it, it definitely wasn't easy to seamlessly fill in and join the team. Tasked with menial shit and kept away from the actual investigation, my patience ran out after meeting the one man the unit was after, Min Yoongi, thus leading me to getting myself involved with one of the most dangerous men in the whole of Korea.

Everything is fair in love and war, isn't it? And this was war.

I would take him down, no matter what.

Word count: cca 26k

Warnings: reader is somewhat innocent and naive (in a sense that she's very idealistic), there will be brief reader x OC, but worry not, Yoongi is endgame, nothing much here, workplace sexism, some slight discussion of illegal stuff, description of the boys as criminals, reader is just a tiny bit obssesed with taking Yoongi down, some slight stalking (illegal tailing and stake out)

Series masterlist | Next Part

A/N: welcome to the first chapter of my new series! i have a ridiculously soft spot for mafia yoongi fics, so this is a child of me watching daechwita and haegeum too many times drooling over min yoongi himself, i hope that you stay with me throughout the entire ride and enjoy yourself as much as i did when writing this <3 i will attempt to update this every month, the semester is starting soon again but i'll be having less classes so i should be able to do it, take this love letter to long-haired yoongi <3

"That which is spoken by God-the-Sun is life; that which is spoken by the Devil is death; Abraxas speaketh that hallowed and accursed word, which is life and death at the same time. Abraxas begetteth truth and lying, good and evil, light and darkness in the same word and in the same act. Wherefore is Abraxas terrible."

- 3rd sermon, Seven Sermons to the Dead, Carl Jung

Winter, first year in the force

“Minjoon, for fuck’s sake! Move it!” the booming voice of Senior Inspector Park rang out through the station as the poor man in question scrambled to put on his jacket, grab his badge and gun and ran after him. When he was passing by my table, he sent me a little sympathetic smile and then hurried to catch up to our superior before he left to make the arrest without him.

I sighed heavily and then sulkily returned to filing away some old hand-written cases. It’s been 3 months since I’d been assigned to the Organised crime unit, fresh out of academy and full of hope to change the world for the better. The second I got my badge I sent in my application to SMPA, hoping to make it to violent crimes. Instead, I was pushed to this division. The official reason was because they were lacking manpower, which wasn’t exactly wrong, after what happened. But I knew what they were really trying to do – clean up after a huge scandal that broke through this unit just a few months before my joining, when several young policemen were caught tampering with evidence and reselling confiscated drugs. After a few tough rounds of investigation, three men were fired from this unit and several others from affiliated places.

That meant that when I walked through the door, all rosy cheeked and wonder eyed, excited to start my career, the reception was more than icy. Senior Inspector Park, who was in charge, barely ever spoke to me except for barking out orders, and I was almost never allowed to do any actual work, always confined to the office and left with tasks that no one else wanted to do. My colleagues were ranging from cold and reserved to actual full-blown assholes, happy to take advantage of young blood knowing I couldn’t say anything in return to my seniors. Except for Minjoon, who actually made effort to be cordial, everyone in this hellhole was insufferable. Thus, I pissed away my days filling out forms, cleaning out cabinets, cataloguing files and putting old files into the system.

I looked wistfully out of the window and just caught the sight of our team’s van leaving the parking lot of the station. It was an arrest pertaining to our current leading objective – an informant was finally able to gather enough evidence for us to be able to interview one of the higher standing members of a gang this unit was currently focusing on. They knew we most probably wouldn’t be able to keep him long, after all it wasn’t that substantial at all and his boss always found a way out of any arrests, but it was better than nothing – we’d annoy him at the very least. That’s what Park always said anyways – never let them forget you’re hot on their trail, even if it meant being a little petty.

I walked over to my computer and sat down. All I could do was wait.

It was a surprisingly short amount of time until Senior Inspector Park came barrelling through the door with three men hot on his tail dragging a tall, handcuffed man with them. Unlike what you’d expect from an arrested man, he had a serene expression on his handsome face to a point he almost looked smug, lazily walking and letting himself get pushed around by eager officers, not a hair out of place and his expensive suit looking absolutely pristine.

They briskly walked through the office space to the back hallway where the interrogation rooms were situated, not sparing a single glance to anyone still sitting by their computers. By the disinterested short glances of the present colleagues, it was obvious that this wasn’t that unusual here. I myself was a witness of similar arrests of members from this gang, but this was my first time seeing someone this high up. This wasn’t just anyone. It was Kim Namjoon.

With careful peeking around to see if anyone was looking my way, I made sure the coast was clear, and then curiously moved after them into the hallway. I walked to the very back and lingered for a moment by the door, gathering courage, before grasping the handle and confidently walking into the listening room. Park was sitting there with a senior detective by his side, watching as Minjoon and his partner prepared the computer to start their interrogation while Mr. Kim sat there looking bored. Park looked to the door and did a double take when he noticed it was me. A disapproving look etched itself onto his face and he was just about to say something when I beat him to it.

“Please, sir! I’d never been able to watch my colleagues during interrogations, I want to learn,” I pleaded with him, “I’ll be totally quiet, you won’t even know I’m here!” I clasped my hands together in a praying motion and gave him my best puppy eyes. He looked at me and it almost seemed as if he was considering my words, but then his face closed off again. My heart was beating against my chest as I waited for him to shut me down.

“Don’t you have anything to do?” he asked, and displeasure oozed out of him in suffocating waves. I shook my head. “I was just putting the files I’d been working on away when you returned.” He was just about to speak again when Minjoon in the other room suddenly cleared his throat and began talking to the eerily calm man, asking him basic questions about his personal information and occupation. That sufficiently claimed Park’s attention and he just waved at me and said “whatever, just be quiet”. I bowed to him even though his back was already turned to me but didn’t even dare to mutter a thank you in fear he’d throw me out for speaking.

When I was first assigned to this department, I was warned that this particular unit unfortunately was a sausage party – no female officers in sight. While my colleague’s distaste of me never really felt overtly sexist, I knew some of them doubted my capabilities as a female detective, and Park was definitely one of them. He didn’t shy away from speaking out about how he’d always worked only with men and male officers and how a woman in a unit full of men would only bring trouble and unnecessary drama. He never got over the fact that they pushed me on him and didn’t listen to his bullshit.

 While none of them ever asked me to make them coffee or bring them lunch, I knew that they kept me occupied with work that they viewed as “softer” and “more suited for a woman”. It infuriated me to no end, but I just needed an opportunity to showcase my skills. I didn’t need their approval; I just wanted to fully do my job and not be stuck at a desk all day.

I knew one day I’d get that. No matter what it took, I would make it happen.

I was brought out of my reverie by a shockingly deep voice that struck me to my core as I was wholly unprepared for it. Kim Namjoon, who was completely silent until now and only nodded along or hummed, had finally started talking. I didn’t catch the question and I barely made out what Mr. Kim said in answer, but my attention zeroed in on him in a second and refused to let go. I knew who he was very well, after all, his picture along with several others was hanging on our wall in the meeting room, all connected to each other with strings, intel and many, many cases we were trying to push against them. I’d see him every morning when I walked in, every time I went to the toilet or for lunch and every evening when I was leaving.

But in his picture, he looked very different – hostile and angry, with a face full of fresh bruises from a recent fight, miles away from the suave self-assured man currently occupying the room in front of us. He had a domineering aura to him and even if he was supposed to be here as a suspect, he gave off the vibe like he wanted to be here more than anywhere else. In a sick twisted way, he fascinated me to no end. I’d seen mobsters before, petty thieves and drug dealers, tatted up, with foul mouths and hands dirtied by crime, but this man was a whole different class with his sharp eyes and sneering mouth, dangerous in a way that made the hair on my arms stand up. He knew how to mask his violence and that made him even more terrifying.

“I see that you have a law degree,” said Minjoon cooly and I saw Mr. Kim subtly roll his eyes, “Is the work you do for him pertaining to that?”

“We talk about this every time we see each other,” he answered coldly, “You know I have a degree. You also know that I currently work in accounting. You have my file memorised to a point that you probably know my measurements better than I do. Let’s not waste time with pointless bullshit.”

“Accounting is a very broad concept,” Minjoon didn’t let himself be intimidated and matched his indifferent attitude, “I want to know what exactly your line of work is.” Mr. Kim looked at him and put on the fakest smile I’ve ever seen.

“I’m sorry, officer, what is my arrest pertaining to exactly? Why are these questions relevant to whatever you brought me here for?” he said in a professional voice, his eyes glinting in challenge.

I stayed there and watched their back and forth for whole two hours. The whole time Minjoon drove hard questions about the exact nature of Mr. Kim’s work while the said man played hot and cold with him, teasing him with little remarks and then returning to cold professionalism or prolonged periods of confident silence. I learnt that the intel they’d been delivered this morning was a vague allusion to certain tactics of tax evasion that were closely related to his boss’s smuggling activities. But all these were easily deconstructed by Mr. Kim in a matter of seconds.

It seemed that everyone involved (even Mr. Kim himself) already knew that though and judging by Park’s intense focus on Mr. Kim’s mannerisms and speech, this was about something completely different. As I found myself splitting my attention between the lawyer’s fascinating dance and my own superior’s complete interest, I realised that he was studying him. He was learning him. And for the first time, since this was the first time I saw him in action, I felt real respect towards the older man and his dedication to his work. This wasn’t even about being annoying, it was a purely academic endeavour. I found myself lightly laughing at the revelation.

Behind the glass Mr. Kim was running the two officers in circles, never surrendering any new information and only regurgitating bits and pieces we already knew in different context, and I could see how exhausted Minjoon was becoming.

I was stepping around by the door, alleviating a certain leg to ease the pain and discomfort of standing for such a long time, also nearing my limit, when Park leaned closer to the mic, pressed the button and said: “take a 10, let’s talk”. Hearing that, Minjoon and his partner stood up and with unfriendly smiles thanked the clever lawyer for his cooperation. They left the room and in a minute they were pushing into the listening room.

When Minjoon stepped in and saw me, he looked surprised for a split second and then gave me a kind smile, which I returned, while his partner stared rather impolitely. Park didn’t pay attention to any of that, eyes never leaving the sole man in the interrogation room, who was now leaning back on the chair and picking his nails in a bored manner.

“As expected, as a lawyer he’s skilled at this,” Park muttered, “What a talented prick, if we didn’t know it already, I bet we wouldn’t be able to get even his name out of him.” The officer sitting next to him finally spoke for the first time.

“Still,” he argued, “this is the first time we’ve managed to actually get him to the station. It means something. Min’s gonna be pissed.” At the mention of the name, Park smiled animatedly and nodded quite happily. I tried to blend into the wall while I watched the men converse and try to come up with a new strategy.

“It’s clear questioning him leads nowhere,” Minjoon added to the convo, “He doesn’t even seem bothered by it. Just look at him. He has all the patience and time in the world.” He motioned to the glass and the man sitting calmly behind it.

“I’m not surprised, he’s had years of experience dodging the police like this. Fucker’s barely thirty and yet has already spent more than a decade covering up his boss’s mess. That’s more than I’ve spent in academy and the force combined.” We all turned to look at Minjoon’s partner, officer Hwang, who was dispiritedly leaning on the doorframe. He was right, but Park didn’t seem to be put off by that.

“That’s how it works here in this unit,” he said firmly, “You sometimes spend years just to get a chance at arresting someone. We’ve been working on this for almost a year and we’re already starting to get somewhere, but this is only the beginning. We need to learn how they work and that takes time.” No matter what my personal opinion was on him, I could see that Park was truly an experienced detective when it came to organised crime. I made a mental note to myself to pay attention to what he says carefully and learn.

They talked for a little while longer when suddenly a commotion was heard back in the office space of the station. We all looked at each other, some more surprised than others. Park got up and pushed his way out into the hallway. As he was passing me, I heard him quietly mutter “here we go” as if this was the main point of the evening. And I quickly realised why.

When I also pushed my way into the hallway and peeked over Minjoon’s shoulder, I was able to see a man confidently making his way through the station flagged by two others. Before I had a chance to gasp at the sudden appearance, he’d already stormed all the way to us.

Just like with Kim Namjoon, seeing his face on a picture on our wall every day could never prepare me for the experience that meeting Min Yoongi was. I was beginning to curse the people who chose the pictures, because they were clearly dangerously understating these men’s aura. With longer black wavy hair, sleek black jacket, black tee and ripped jeans, standing there looking both incredibly angry and incredibly bored, was one of the most dangerous men in this city and the man Kim Namjoon called master. As did half of the city’s criminals. To an ordinary person he was just a businessman, an owner of a few clubs and, recently added, a hotel in the posher area of Seoul, but to us he was a leader of a gang that rose in power and ranks so rapidly it was like witnessing a wildfire. The blink-and-half-the-forest-is-gone kind.

I’d never met him before, and judging by officer’s Hwang flabbergasted expression, I wasn’t the only one, but the man in question barely paid any of us attention. He walked up to Park as if they were old friends, cruel annoyed smile on his face.

“Here I am!” he proclaimed in a faux sweet voice and threw his hands into the air, “That what you wanted? You come into my house and steal my things when I’m not looking now?” Park returned his smile in a similar manner. He was extremely pleased at having pissed off the man to this extent.

“Mr. Kim was lawfully retained due to suspicions of illegal activity,” he answered the man, “He was arrested in one of your clubs.” Min Yoongi’s eyes minutely flitted over to me and there was a tiny spark of surprise and then interest.

“Huh, you’ve got fresh blood here?” he asked all jokes and games, “How come I’ve never met her, isn’t that like a rite of passage here? Coming to see Uncle Yoongi?” He waved at me and laughed like he was encountering a cute animal in the wild. I felt the anger coursing through me, but I knew this wasn’t the situation to lose my cool, so I just scoffed and turned away from him. He fake pouted and then put his attention back on my senior, suddenly turning all serious again. Watching his moods swing was like trying to keep up with a bouncy ball in an empty room.

“Whatever, just release my man,” he said firmly, “You know that anything you came up with to get him here is bogus, so just let him go and I’ll let this slide.”

“How gracious of you,” Park gritted through his teeth. Tensions were beginning to brew between them, and the more annoyed Min Yoongi was, the more teeth showed in his wolfish grin. Just when I thought the whole building was just going to combust, Minjoon stepped in.

“We are legally allowed to keep him here for eight hours at the minimum,” he said calmly, “It’s only been two and a half.” The man’s whole attention shifted to my colleague and, standing behind him, I saw how all-consuming it was to be at the centre of Min Yoongi’s focus. His intense stare and dangerous smile only deepened having noticed just how much he was throwing me off balance. I knew he was getting off on intimidating people and I tried to not give him the satisfaction, but suddenly coming face to face with him, I wasn’t prepared to withstand it, especially since he was so intimately familiar with our entire force that a new face stuck out to him like a sore thumb.

“I know that,” he retorted sharply, “But he wasn’t brought here to be questioned. He was brought here because he-“ Yoongi pointed in Park’s direction “-wanted to know how long before I showed up to bail him out. So, here I am. Release him.” Minjoon looked at our superior with questioning eyes, but he only nodded.

“Let Mr. Kim go, we got everything we needed from him,” he smiled pleasantly in Min Yoongi’s direction, “Have a nice day Mr. Min.” With that he moved back into the office. Mr. Min’s attention once again shifted to me and Minjoon, watching with rapt interest as he moved towards the interrogation room, and I followed him like a loyal shadow. The moment the door opened, Mr. Kim was already hallway outside, coming to his boss and giving him a half hug. Neither of them said anything, they just shared an amused smile at our expense and then turned around to leave with cheeky smiles. As Min Yoongi was rounding the corner, he winked my way. Absolutely flabbergasted by his behaviour, I couldn’t get the encounter out of my head for the entire rest of the day.

While much of Min Yoongi’s childhood was a mystery to us, we had a pretty good idea of what his life was like since around he was 16. So, a good decade of criminal life. As a young teen, he started an apprenticeship as an underling of one of the former ruling gang’s top men, and basically was brought up by him into the man he was today. While the old royalty was torn apart in succession wars after the old master died and his four sons all decided they should be the sole heir, Min Yoongi started up with his own few loyal followers, all who today are his most trusted closest subordinates. With cruelty, tenacity and violence, he took the city by the storm and before they knew it, he was ruling most of it. Too caught up in trying to kill each other, neither of them reacted fast enough to stop young Yoongi’s rise to power. Today, with the original gang wiped out, his was undoubtedly the one at the top of the food chain.

He started with one club and now he owned several of the most prestigious clubs in the city, making enough money to buy him a hotel and finally catapult him into the sphere of honest business. In hindsight, it was pretty stupid of me to show up to one of them to “scope it out”.

Peeved by our last (and first) interaction and driven by the need to prove myself to my unit, I’d decided that the way to go was start right on his turf and dig around. I’d believed that with how much business he had to take care of, both legal and not, there’s no way I’d show up at the right club at the right time to actually meet him there. How foolish. They did always say that he stayed at the top by working endlessly, stupid of me to not actually take that into account.

I didn’t even know how I managed to actually get into the club, considering the long waiting list and lines outside, it was a miracle one Friday evening I found myself sitting inside Dynamite, one of his clubs, watching everything go on like a hawk.

I knew this was something that was rarely accomplished by the people in our unit. Maybe a few months ago they had the liberty to sneak onto his territory, but currently he knew very well about our interest in him, and everyone associated with our unit quickly got blacklisted from half the establishments around the area, owned by Yoongi or not.

I knew that anything pertaining to illegal activity would definitely be taking place in the VIP zone with private booths and waiters, so getting there was the actual challenge. Somewhat foolishly I decided to just try my luck and think of the plan as it went. Little did I know just how easily I’d manage to get invited in.

I was just sitting there minding my own business when I felt a presence next to me. At first, I thought nothing of it, thinking they’re probably just trying to catch the barman’s attention, but suddenly I felt them press into my personal space. I sighed, annoyed, turning around to send whatever sleazy flirt that was trying to get into my pants to hell, when my breath caught in my throat. Sitting next to me, leaning on the bar with a million-watt smile was none other than the owner himself. I cursed every god in existence and three generations of their ancestors and steeled myself for what was coming.

“Didn’t expect to see a police officer letting loose in one of my clubs,” he drawled out playfully, “They all know which ones to avoid. I suppose you’re either stupid or up to no good.” I rolled my eyes to him and turned back to look onto the dancefloor.

“My friend insisted we go here,” the lied slipped through my lips easily, but by Yoongi’s smirk I knew he didn’t believe me one bit. “Oh, and where does this friend happen to be right now? As far as I could see, you’ve been just sitting here glaring,” he laughed at me lightly, as if we were just two friends teasing each other.

“Do you have a habit of watching partygoers like a creep?” I bit back at him, annoyed at being sniffed out so quickly. What are even the chances of him being at this exact club the night I decided to snoop? Something not of God was on this man’s side to arrange a coincidence like that.

“No,” Yoongi answered with a teasing lilt, “But I do happen to remember faces very well. Two weeks ago, you’d slip right by me, but now I know you’re an officer.” I cursed under my breath, and he laughed again. Then he stood up and turned to me. Suddenly a hand was offered to me.

“Come on,” he said, this time a little more serious, “Let’s talk.” I ignored his hand but stood up to follow him. He snickered and started in the direction of the VIP zone. We were currently on the ground floor, which was the general area with a dance floor dominating the centre of the room. The VIP zone was situated on a little gallery overlooking the ground floor.

The flashing lights, bass boosted music and mass of moving sweaty bodies made it difficult to orientate myself in the space, but I kept my eyes on the back of Yoongi’s head as he leisurely made his way through the crowd like he had no worry in the world. He led me to stairs that were cordoned off by red velvet rope, with two very big and very angry men standing on each side. When they saw Yoongi coming near, they both put on professional smiles and bowed wordlessly. He didn’t react to them in any way, just waited till they let him through patiently. As I walked in behind him, they both stared me down as if I was about to jump on Yoongi and stab him right in front of them.

I knew this was probably my only and last chance to get a look around this place, since after being found out I’d definitely get blacklisted just like all the other police officers, so I hungrily scanned the VIP zone and tried to take in all the details. It was very dark there; some booths were out in the open while some had curtains and it was surprisingly packed with people. Waiters were busily buzzing around, serving drinks and appetizers, hum of conversations and laughter carried through the space comfortably. At first glance, you couldn’t see anything wrong or illegal going on, just young people having fun, but I knew better than to trust that.

I followed Yoongi through the area all the way to the back, where one corner was similarly cordoned off. The couches and tables were situated in a way that allowed a little more privacy and separated the space a little from the rest of the people. This must have been his personal lounge.

He made himself comfortable smack in the middle of one of the couches and I timidly sat on an armchair right across him, with a small table between us. Immediately waiters descended onto the space, bringing in plates of appetizers, most probably assuming all kinds of crazy shit since Yoongi brought a woman to his personal zone. The man in question was nonchalantly asking for some cocktail and acting as if this was a completely normal situation and I wasn’t the police. I declined his offer for alcohol and just uncomfortably sat there, watching him settle in.

He gestured to the food and said: “Do you mind if I dig in? I haven’t eaten the whole day.” I gave him a polite smile and told him to go ahead. Yoongi started filling his plate, sharp eyes watching my every move while offering me various food items with annoying courteousness, smirk in place on his lips cause he knew just how much he was pissing me off. It was absolutely crazy – here I was, small-talking with a man I was trying to get behind bars.

Then I had to sit there while he enjoyed himself with his appetizers. When the silence stretched enough to become awkward, I started losing my patience.

“Have you brought me here to watch you eat?” I barked out annoyed, crossing my arms in front of my chest and leaning back into the chair. He looked up from his plate with a little amused smirk. Then he finally put it down.

“Why exactly are you here, officer?” he got straight to the point, “What are you hoping to accomplish?” He mirrored me and leaned back into the couch, his form slouching comfortably with hands laying on his thighs.

“Isn’t that obvious?” I answered, sudden insecurity taking a hold of me. Why was I supposed to explain myself to this guy? He smiled and this time it wasn’t as ferocious.

“I fail to see how this helps in your divine plan to put me under.”

Truth is, I didn’t know either. I was angry and frustrated that nobody was taking me seriously, the encounter with him last week only serving to push me further over the edge. I didn’t know how this was supposed to help, I just knew I needed to do something. Anything. It was better than just endlessly sitting behind a computer typing away. I had to do something that would put me on the radar in my unit and if it involved humbling Min Yoongi a little bit, I was all in.

Truth was, no matter how much I didn’t want to admit it, I was shaken by him. Seeing in flesh this fabled monster, having him stare and smirk at me while he shamelessly strutted around a police station as if he was untouchable, it took everything in me to hold up under his scrutiny. But now, sitting across from him and returning him the favour, I felt some control slowly trickling back into my hands and it calmed me.

He was watching me contemplate with rapt attention and suddenly I was reminded of the prickly feeling of having his eyes trained solely on you. They were dark, so much darker than in the bright daylight in the middle of a police station, and all-consuming in a way I’d never encountered before. It felt as if he was reaching straight into the centre of my being and pulling, pulling something out of me. I shook my head subtly and looked away.

When I failed to answer him or defend myself, he sighed.

“Look, I’m saying this, because you seem like a really naïve genuine person,” he started, “Take this advice to heart – don’t bite off more than you can chew just to stick it to some old guy. This is a dangerous place for people like you, don’t get pulled under.” Now that made me angry. Somewhere deep down I realised that my stubbornness actually was putting me in danger and that I was stupidly jumping headfirst into things that could be my end, but I was so done with getting treated as a fragile little thing.

“Whatever do you mean by that?” I answered him prickly and sat more defensively. Yoongi looked at me and for a moment I could see a glint of something almost melancholic there, but then he was all wild grins and suave demeanour again.

“Let me speak frankly for a moment,” he said and winked conspiratorially, “You decided to single-handedly take down a whole gang, allegedly, that controls half the city, allegedly, because your superior is a sexist pig, that doesn’t seem like biting off more than you can chew to you?” Every time he said the word “allegedly” he smirked a little and I could see he was having fun playing around with me like this. I smirked right back at him and leaned forward until I had my elbows resting on my knees.

“Who said anything about single-handedly? That’s what teams are for,” I whispered teasingly, “Why do you even assume it has anything to do with Senior Inspector Park?” I tried to mask the genuine emotion, but he still must have realised that one was actually spot-on.

“I’ve known Park for quite some time,” he explained and leaned forward as well, “Heard about him a long time ago, been seeing him here and there for years and then been in personal contact with him for about a year now. He’s an excellent policeman, no doubt about it, but even I know he’s a shit person. He lives for his work, but in personal life he’s a jerk.”

“He’s a jerk at work too,” I couldn’t help myself and muttered. To that Yoongi laughed lightly, eyes gleaming at me. “Should I be asking how you even know about his behaviour outside of work?” I quipped in quickly.

“I’d be stupid if I didn’t run some basic checks on people that are hell-bent on making my life difficult,” he answered me with a dangerous glint in his eyes, but quickly relaxed again. I found myself tensing up and relaxing alongside with him. The realisation that talking with him was like constantly walking on ice and hoping that even though you hear cracks you won’t fall in, hit me square in the face and put me off balance again. He kept effortlessly flip-flopping between joking and being serious and I was starting to get whiplash from it. I decided to leave this subject behind.

“So, what is your advice exactly?” I returned to the previous topic, “To just let you go and leave you to your little crime syndicate? Live happily ever after knowing you’re out there?” He snickered at that.

“No, you can do whatever you want,” he said, “I’m just warning you to be careful. This, this space right here, it has its own rules. It’s very easy to end up badly.” It didn’t feel like a threat even though it may have been worded like one, imagine my shock when I recognised actual genuine emotion behind his words. Instead of shying away from it, I bored my eyes into him just as intensely as he did to me.

“Rules or no rules, no one is above the law, not even you, Mr. Min,” I told him prickly. He smiled at me sardonically and then sighed again, but this time it was more amused.

“Since you’re someone that spent most of their life studying the law, I’m surprised you still haven’t realised that it’s quite useless,” he laughed and I could see the switch in him, becoming meaner and smiling cruelly, “The only thing that law does is fuck over those who are already in a bad place and benefit those who are already in a good spot.” He laughed mirthlessly and continued. “No one is above the law? Oh, my dear, many people are above the law. All you need is money and power and not even God can touch you on this mortal plane.” I took full offense to his words, feeling the anger overpower my instinct trying to tell me this man could potentially be extremely dangerous.

“Spoken like a true criminal,” I spit out venomously, “That’s a load of bull.” Yoongi’s eyes flashed minutely and then he relaxed into the couch again with a lazy smirk full of sharp edge. His hand suddenly pointed somewhere behind me. “You see that guy? That one in the striped shirt?” he asked.

For a moment I debated whether I should turn my back to him or not, but my curiosity overpowered me. Steeling myself for potentially getting attacked from behind, I turned and searched in the crowd of people. There, a little to my left, was sitting a group of young men. Each of them had a girl or two by their side, they drank and laughed and looked exactly like the kind of company I’d never want to find myself in. One of them, sitting on the far edge of the couch facing me, was wearing a horrible unfashionable striped shirt. I turned back to Yoongi with a queasy stomach.

“Yeah, I think I see him,” I told him suddenly quietly, unsure of where the conversation was going. Yoongi leaned forward to me again as if he was about to tell me a great secret.

“He could walk over here, steal your gun, then walk outside and shoot someone straight between their eyes in front of a street full of people, and you wouldn’t be able to charge him with anything. You wanna know why? His father sits in the parliament. Before you knew it, he’d be skiing in the Alps while you faced losing your badge because you crossed a politician.” Yoongi smiled at me triumphantly and my stomach swooped again.

“This kid comes here four times a week, each night breaking at least five different laws at a time,” Yoongi continued meanly, “and the most trouble he’s ever gotten into with the law was a parking ticket his father took care of for him.” He waited for a moment to see whether I’d react, but when I stayed silent, he went on. “Go ahead and arrest him, officer. Go over there and pull out your badge and bring him into the station with you. If you test him now, you’ll probably find every drug that’s available on the street in his system. But I guarantee you, you won’t be able to keep him there longer than two hours before you’ll be steam-rolled by his family’s lawyers.” He threw his arms into the air in a pompous gesture.

“Look around here. This place, it doesn’t work because I came here and brought crime with me, no. I sprung up here, because they needed a space to do rank shit in. You could bring me out back, shoot me in the head execution style, and tomorrow you’d be sitting back in that chair talking to the same clown in different clothes. The way this goes is that you find a spot that works, and you grab onto it, and you hold on for dear life until someone either kills you or puts you away. I’m like mold, darling, wherever there’s a place damp, cold and dark enough, there I will grow. I’m a product of the people. Not the other way around.” I felt bile in my mouth as I looked around the area and saw the little evidence of illegal activities. Girls too scantily clad and flirty to not be working, powdery smudges on the tables, prints of guns under jackets. Behind me, Yoongi kept going on in his spiel.

“You put me behind bars, and tomorrow there’s going to be the same guy doing the same shit in the same place. The people will keep coming here and they will keep doing their thing here, it doesn’t matter to them who runs it, as long as they can fuck and get high in here.”

I turned back to him, and he was just sitting there like a king of the underworld, sardonic grin on his face while he looked over his hard work. He was beautiful and terrifying at the same time and there was something demonic about him in this dark lightning with shadows dancing over his face and cruel lips curved around sharp teeth. I felt my throat close up as panic seized me, shaking hands gripping onto the armchair to attempt and get some stability. My stomach was protesting, and I feared I might throw up if I stayed there a second longer.

“You’re disgusting,” I whispered. He smirked.

“And you’re naïve.”

I got up, turned around and left without looking back. Still, I felt his eyes burning into me all the way home.

I was soullessly staring into the computer, hopelessly trying to focus on my work, but instead I kept coming up short. My mind was elsewhere, unable to comprehend anything that was written in front of me. The fateful meeting with Yoongi had already happened a few days ago, but I still haven’t shaken off the effect of it.

His words, as cruel and self-righteous as they were, I knew there was truth to them. And I knew I had to do something about it. I had to do something about Min fucking Yoongi and his empire. So, as shaken as I was by the encounter, it also served to make me more determined. I’d help to bring him down, no matter what.

I stood up from my table and made my way across the office to the meeting room. I wouldn’t be able to do any work anyway, not right now when I was too pumped with adrenaline to focus on anything. I walked in and bee-lined for the back wall, which was covered in pictures and papers. Dominating in the centre was a picture of Yoongi. He was younger there, with short, bleached hair and face still a little plump from adolescence, but I could already see the signature smirk forming on his lips. Under him there were six more pictures, one of them Kim Namjoon which I had met for the first time a little over a week ago. Those were those closest to him, his friends who each monitored a different part of the gang’s activites.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t much information on them beyond a few years back. Yoongi himself emerged out of nowhere when he was 16 and made a dent out for himself. At that time, he already knew Namjoon, God knows how. Together they quickly climbed the ranks of the Song gang, which was ruling over Seoul at that time. Back then, they were already notoriously known for their violence and determination, which made them favourites of the gang’s higher ups. They were also quite liked by the underdogs and quickly a group started forming around them. They were Yoongi’s loyalists and this… this was most likely the moment he realised he can soar even higher.

When the Song gang was falling apart, just like war strategy dictates, it was a matter of knowing whose side to take. Between four sons, two were on par, one knew he could only survive by hugging the thigh of the strongest and one was barely hanging on. If Yoongi chose his loyalties correctly, he could gain a lot. If he chose poorly…

But he didn’t. He took Namjoon and their dogs and together they stormed an “enemy” club – it was recently acquired by one of the brothers. He won the fight of course, and then brought the keys to Song Hwan, the weaker of the two winning brothers. He wormed his way in – offered his intel, his expertise and whispered poison in his ear. Every win he got for Hwan was actually a win for Yoongi himself and through Hwan he started laying base for his own road to power. Long before Hwan fell, most of the gang was already following Yoongi’s lead.

When the war ended and Song Hwan stood victorious, Yoongi murdered him and stole his throne. He went on a bloody rampage against everyone that didn’t support him and from the blood and fire emerged a new gang, a stronger gang, and at its centre – the devil himself with his six. That was seven years ago.

It wasn’t all sunshine and roses at the beginning though. His territory was contended often – others saw it as an opportunity to steal turf right from under his nose, and it took a long time before his gang was respected in the scene. They thought him to be a child that won by pure luck and love for killing, that he’d be easily taken down, either by one of them or one of his own. But he stood his ground and time and time again he proved himself, until there wasn’t a single person in this city that didn’t know he owned it. These were Min Yoongi’s streets, painted with blood, sweat and tears.

That’s when he started coming up on this unit’s radar until he gradually became the sole focus, the main purpose, the goal.

I stared intently at the mess of strings all connecting together people, events, news and crimes. Missing persons, corruption, arrests, murders, intel, dirt. It was all there, black on white. I reread the headers of the articles, the names of files and the accusations until I was dizzy and could barely make any sense of it.

After what felt like hours, I was brought out of my reverie by the sound of the door opening. I jumped a little and turned around quickly, an excuse hot on my tongue, but relaxed once I realised it was Minjoon.

“What’s up? Jae said you’ve been standing here just staring at the wall for whole 40 minutes,” he said in lieu of greeting and I blushed with embarrassment. So they saw me, I thought nobody here was paying attention to me. I peeked over my shoulder where some of our colleagues were curiously glancing our way. I frowned. Should have closed the blinds, I thought to myself.

“Just… catching up, refreshing the information,” I explained lamely and sat down at the table, still with a perfect view of the cursed wall. He hummed and leaned his back on the table. For a moment we just quietly existed there, side by side studying it.

“What’s with the sudden interest?” he asked a little hesitantly, “Not that I want to discourage you.” I sighed.

“It’s not sudden,” I muttered a little petulantly, “I’ve been coming here from time to time, I just mostly did it when no one else could see. Felt like I wasn’t really allowed to look at it.” He smiled a little at my attitude and went around the table to sit at my side.

“Why not? I think it’s great you’re outwardly showing interest.”

“Just- You know, it doesn’t feel like I’m welcomed here, I didn’t want to overstep.” He hummed again, but kept his eyes trained in front of us.

“So, what’s changed now?” he asked the question of the hour, fingers drumming a pattern into the table.

“I’m done with that,” I said firmly, glancing his way, “I am part of this unit, I’m staying and I’m solving this fucking mystery. I’m taking Min Yoongi down and I’m gonna be looking straight in his eyes the entire time I’ll be tearing his life apart.” Minjoon next to me chuckled, amused by the sudden turn of attitude.

“That’s quite charming,” he hummed again and finally turned to look at me. We both grinned at each other.

“You know… I understand,” he started hesitantly after a moment of silence. We both focused back on the wall and Yoongi’s picture in the centre of it was like a magnet – no matter what you did, you found yourself drawn to it. With slight reluctance I tore my eyes away from it to look at Minjoon questioningly.

“I mean… this, I understand this,” he stated more firmly and gestured between me and the wall, “I was also quite distraught the first time I met him face to face. He has a way of messing with you. It’s a mix of everything, I mean, you go months hearing about the atrocities of this one man, and then suddenly he’s there, right in front of you. And he just stares and stares and stares while talking calmly, too calmly for the crimes that he’s being investigated for. It’s unnerving. So, I understand.”

I knew exactly what he meant. It was the same feeling I had with Namjoon too – you know what they’re capable of, you’ve heard of their crimes and when you see them, you can almost feel the danger in the air, but the violence is hidden just beneath the surface. Sometimes you see it peek out momentarily in flashes of sharp teeth and slanting eyes, but then they reign it in and just play with you again.

“Well, yeah, meeting him was jarring,” I conveniently omitted having met him just a few days ago too, “but it’s not just about that. I just don’t want to be underestimated anymore.” He smiled at me, a real genuine smile, and it warmed me knowing at least someone here was on my side.

“But you joined the team before the whole Yoongi thing, no?” I asked suddenly. For a moment he was confused where this question came from, but then brightened up.

“Just barely,” he answered earnestly, “You joined like three months ago? In early September, right? For me, a one-year anniversary is actually coming up, I joined in December last year. It was just as all the shit was going down. They were investigating mainly this mid-size gang in Incheon that was wreaking havoc in the harbours and steadily rising in power. There was a lot of corruption in that area, and they managed to snatch control over some ports. The unit had been working on it for about two years and were super close to an arrest, but it went bust. The guy fled, a question about the corruption in the force rose and an investigation into our guys started. That’s when I joined.” I hummed in sympathy. That must have been extra rough. I told him as much and he gave me a thankful smile.

“It wasn’t easy. When I asked to be transferred, I thought everything in this department was okay, then I walk in and suddenly I’m in the middle of a botched two-year operation, forever lost suspect and a lawsuit waiting to happen,” Minjoon kept talking, “Within few weeks, the three guys had been suspended and a more in-depth investigation was promised. The case was lost, the boss had managed to flee somewhere south, most likely Malaysia, so it was put on a backburner and instead an open case that was sitting on someone’s table, slowly piling up more evidence, was brought forth. That was the Min gang. Two teams had already been tasked with looking into it and when it was confirmed that the previous case was dead, they made it a priority.”

I jumped in quickly to ask more questions. I’d never asked Minjoon about his time in the force before and till today I didn’t even know he was here only a year. He was always Park’s first choice to everything concerning Min Yoongi and he relied on Minjoon and his partner Hwang a lot, so I assumed he must be one of the more experienced members of this unit.

“Where were you stationed before?” I asked curiously and put my attention on him instead of messing with the wall.

“I was part of the drug prevention team,” Minjoon clarified and gave me a grin, “I was one of those fools they dress up nicely and send into schools to warn kids. It’s still a part of the force, but it’s a dead-end spot and you don’t actually do much, at most you here and there deal with some petty criminals selling weed on the street. It’s usually where older policemen go when they want to have some peace and quiet before retirement, it’s not the best place to start your career. But thanks to that I was able to make it here, cause my expertise on illicit substances was a big plus.”

“I see,” I laughed, “You’re right, that is pretty much a dead end. I didn’t even know they assigned youngsters there.”

“Well, they try to, because kids are nicer to them and they take it easier from someone closer to their age,” he explained, “Some graduates actually do ask for the position, but I was trying to get here and didn’t make the cut.” He was still smiling kindly and occupied himself by playing with the string on his hoodie.

“I was actually trying for the violent crimes unit,” I confessed quietly. I’d never told that to anyone here. Besides the fact that they absolutely weren’t interested in such information, I was also kind of scared they’d be acting even more hostile since I “clearly didn’t even want to be here”. “I got sent here because of understaffing problem,” I continued.

He looked at me and didn’t react in any way, just leaned back and said: “Oh yeah, we do work with them quite often. Can’t have organised crime without violent crime. If you survive it here for some time and make a little name for yourself, I’m sure it would be easier for you to transfer. But a lot of people strive for violent crimes, so it’s kinda cutthroat to get there.” I relaxed at his words and finally smiled back fully.

“Yeah, maybe I could make it there if I help with Yoongi,” I muttered and focused back on the wall, “I’m sure, considering his reputation, that violent crimes have their hands full with him.” Minjoon stood up and walked over to it. He raised his hand softly tapped on a poster of a missing man.

“Actually, unfortunately it’s more about missing people,” he said, “He has a great clean-up team, it’s super messed up.” His hand moved downwards and this time he tapped on a picture of two men. “You know these guys?” he asked absentmindedly.

On the photo, there were two incredibly familiar faces. One man a bit taller, with wide shoulders, dressed in a nice suit, his perfectly sculpted face in a neutral expression and framed by light brown hair. By his side there was the second man – a bit shorter but with much fiercer displeased expression. His hair was cut into a mullet and the hair just about touched his shoulders; he was clad in a fitted black turtleneck that gave away his strong lean muscles.

Of course I knew them. In this whole building there most probably wasn’t anyone who didn’t know them. Actually, I’d argue that in this entire city only a few people had the pleasure of not knowing.

“I’d be an embarrassment of a police officer if I didn’t,” I joked at him, “It’s Kim Seokjin and Jung Hoseok, they’re part of Min’s six.” Minjoon smiled approvingly.

“Tell me everything you know about them,” he challenged, teasing, “Shoot.” I gave him a wolfish grin as excitement coursed through me. He was giving me a chance to show I’d really been studying this case. I sat on the table and made myself comfortable.

“Kim Seokjin studied medicine and has a degree. He poses as the main seven’s personal physician, but the assumption is that he most probably deals with all wounds of anyone from the gang that were sustained during any illegal activities that cannot be taken into hospital. He owns a house up in Gangnam, just a few streets from Yoongi himself, and has a clinic there. He’s the second son of a pretty wealthy family, his record’s completely clear and it’s unknown how exactly he came to know Yoongi or became involved with crime.” I looked at Minjoon from the corner of my eye and he was just humming, but there was a pleased smile on his face. That gave me courage to continue.

“Jung Hoseok on the other hand, has been arrested several times for assault or causing bodily harm while getting into fights, but never prosecuted. Then he went off radar only to reappear a few years later as a part of illegal fighting rings. He quickly rose through the ranks and was a champion for three years straight. But that also means he most probably killed a lot of people, since these fights only end when one of the two fighters drops dead. It’s presumed that’s where he met Yoongi and became familiar with him.”

Minjoon nodded along and patted my shoulder. “Good job, newbie, you really did spend ungodly amount of time here,” he joked, but I felt the praise anyways. My cheeks heated up and I couldn’t help but feel intense satisfaction.

“It’s mainly Hoseok that’s in charge of clean-up, but Jungkook also participates. They do both clean-up of unwanted people and clean-up of unwanted evidence. Sometimes those two cross over. In other words, they both murder and get rid of it,” Minjoon spoke, his face serious, “I mean, that’s our theory anyways. If we were able to catch them murdering and disposing of a body, they’d already be rotting in jail. But the point stands – there’s a huge number of missing persons tied to this, mostly petty criminals or people known to be associated with enemy gangs. No bodies though.”

My eyes flitted to the picture of the mentioned younger man. Jungkook’s picture, for me, was really hard to look at, because unlike all the others, he was just a kid in his. It was an old photo, most likely taken from a yearbook, with his serious face still round and cheeks full of baby fat, dark hair cut short and styled neutral, but it still hit too hard. Especially when my eyes slid lower to a more recent photo, which depicted Jungkook standing on a balcony smoking, all hard edges on his emotionless face, long hair blowing around and blurring out his tatted-up fingers holding a cigarette and black shirt bulging with muscles. He was the youngest and it was also a mystery about how he became involved with Yoongi, the most we knew about him was that he came from a lower middle-class family and led an unproblematic school life as one of the top students. Where he met Yoongi, or even how he started to involve himself in illegal activities, no one except for them knew.

“The rest of them, as I’m sure you’re already well familiar with,” Minjoon continued talking, “are trying to look more legit. Kim Taehyung and Park Jimin oversee some of his clubs and help him with the hotel and restaurants too. They try to seem like stand-up men with no ties to the underground to grant him an air of an honest man. And Namjoon, well, you’ve already met him. He’s in charge of the finances and that’s exactly where most of the crime is the most visible.” I nodded at him and gestured for him to continue.

“Yoongi’s smuggling in insane amounts of goods, everything from luxury items and artifacts to alcohol, exotic foods and ingredients, to drugs. He sells it to himself, supplies it to his own clubs and restaurants for dirt cheap and then makes crazy money on selling it to clients. If you ask for VIP treatment, you get it deluxe – you don’t have to lift a single finger, Yoongi supplies everything. You want a unicorn? He finds a way to smuggle it in. You ask, he delivers. Namjoon’s job is to make all this look legit, so that he can’t be busted.”

It was so much to take in, but I was finally starting to make sense in it all. Even though I’d been reading the files and trying to catch up on the happenings, there were things I was confused about, things that were lost in context or just lightly referenced without more information, and I had no way of fully understanding it until someone properly explained it to me and filled me in. I was waiting for it to happen in the first few weeks, even asked about it once, but I was shut down and quickly realised that no one was planning on talking to me about it. They rather kept me busy with petty stuff and didn’t let me get in on the operation. I was eternally grateful to Minjoon for taking the time to properly explain what they’ve been doing the past year.

“So that’s why you’re currently breathing down Namjoon’s neck,” I mused out loud, “You want in on whatever magic he’s working to make Yoongi appear as an honest businessman.” Minjoon nodded and added: “And that’s why Yoongi appeared immediately when we brought him in. Park wanted to get a feel of the man. See how he’d behave when interrogated and to test out how strong of a bond they have.” I hummed.

“They’re tight,” I stated, “And Namjoon’s impenetrable.”

We both sat there for a moment, taking in everything that’s been said. I was wracking my brain for a game plan. There had to be something I could do.

“Are you doing stake out missions?” I wondered. He looked at me a little surprised which quickly turned into embarrassment. “I’m sorry, I had no idea you were this much out of the loop,” he said quietly and rubbed the back of his neck. Now it was me who got embarrassed. I was about to stutter out some excuse or an apology, but he started talking again.

“Not currently no, there used to be some in the early stages, before Yoongi caught wind of the efforts. Now that he knows us and knows that we’re interested in him, it’s practically impossible to do stake out missions, unless you just want to annoy him and show him we're there. Not to mention it takes a lot of manpower which we do not have. We’re trying to crack down on the lower levels of the organisation. You know, take in some common mobsters selling substances, threaten them with a sentence and then try to get intel off of them. Some do agree to talk, but somehow Yoongi always manages to sniff them out and they don’t tend to end well. He has a tight hold on everything, despite the size of his empire. Mainly what we gathered is that he is an incredibly paranoid man, he most probably does very frequent inspections and doesn’t hesitate to get rid of anyone just slightly suspicious.”

“Well, in some way, it’s to be expected,” I pondered out loud, “A man that has accomplished this much, it doesn’t surprise me that he’s basically become omniscient.” Minjoon hummed in agreement and flicked some of the pictures around absent-mindedly.

“There was even an attempt to infiltrate,” he said quietly, “We did manage to get in, but it went bust pretty quickly.” I could feel it was definitely a sensitive subject and I didn’t want to pry, but the implication here was absolutely devastating.

“Did he…?” I couldn’t even bring myself to finish the question, but thankfully Minjoon understood. He smiled sadly, shook his head and said: “Thankfully not, but he did end up in a hospital for like two months. They messed him up. He didn’t even return to the force, wouldn’t be able to anyway due to some injuries. When I went with Park to confront Yoongi, he just straight up laughed in our face and told us we’d better feel grateful that he wasn’t interested in becoming a cop killer, because rats in his organisation usually end up much worse. It was the most we’d ever heard him admit out loud, but we didn’t even manage to record it or anything, we were too upset to think straight and missed an opportunity.” He sighed again. I was just glad that the officer ended up okay. At least Yoongi was aware that if he’d killed a cop, he’d become the most wanted man in the eyes of the entire force. There wouldn’t be a moment of rest for him.

Somewhere deep down I felt a little bit of shame though, because I did the same mistake just a few days ago. Yoongi didn’t end up saying anything even remotely that damning, but he still talked to me pretty openly.

I was just about to open my mouth to try and dispel the awkward silence that took over, but Park chose that moment to burst into the room loudly. He didn’t even spare us a glance, too focused on a folder in his hands. I’d jumped off the table in panic and straightened up, but he barely paid attention to anything else. Slowly our colleagues started filing in and taking seats. When after a while no one said anything about my presence, I sat down next to Minjoon, who gave me a reassuring smile.

Park closed the file and slammed in onto the table, then made his way over to the most interesting part of the room – the wall.

“Alright, emergency meeting,” he started, “we just got new info from violent crimes about the disappearance from two weeks ago.”

As I sat there and half listened to the information presented, a plan was starting to hatch in my head. Although Yoongi knew about me, could even pick me out from the crowd, I had to figure out a way to tail him. And when I did, I had to find out more about what Hoseok did. And where. And how. While my unit focused on Namjoon and worked from the bottom, I had to learn about the most criminal aspects of this gang to cover all the grounds. I had to catch a killer.

I’d never been on a stake out mission before. That was one of the few things they didn’t teach at the academy, and I had to figure it out all on my own, while trying to tail a man that probably knew even how many pieces of ham I put on my toast that morning (it’s always two).

Once I pulled information about Min Yoongi’s probable whereabouts, all I had to do was jump in my car and go find him, which was easier said than done. I’d decided to do this in my free time, since asking for the permission to tail him would most definitely not be met with much excitement in the department, especially since they themselves have given up on it.

Now, here I was, sitting in my car at 4 am on a Friday, intently watching a posh house in the middle of Gangnam, hoping that Yoongi is either already in there or soon to return. Since through my snooping I was left with several addresses all ranging from clubs, restaurants and a hotel through factories and warehouses to offices, I figured my best shot would be to catch him while leaving his house rather than running through half of the establishments in Seoul. I also pulled information on the other six, but quickly found out that we had working addresses only for like four of them, so no luck staking out Hoseok’s house or anything.

I was desperately trying to keep myself from falling asleep, the fact that I only slept 3 hours catching up to me, my head drooping and my eyes barely staying open. The house was dark, and I figured at this time he either had to be getting up soon or coming home to rest.

The next three hours were absolute hell. I was so tired, fighting sleep and frustration, I had gotten extremely hungry because I ate through my snacks in boredom, and I was losing my mind. Nothing was happening. Not even a shadow moved on his property. The fact that Yoongi was now probably sleeping happily in his bed, not a care in the world, was pissing me off beyond belief. And another thing – I was freezing my ass off. Duly noted – tailing for dummies: don’t do it in winter.

I had just begun losing hope that Yoongi’s even home, when suddenly a light came on somewhere in the house. My heart jumped with excitement, and I was so happy I could cry actual tears. It seemed that he started his day around 7 am. I wrote it down into my journal and ignored the rising feeling of being a total creep, keeping records on someone like this. This was a professional endeavour. I was doing it for the greater good.

I watched as the lights slowly moved downstairs to the ground level where Yoongi must have been messing around in the kitchen. At 8 o'clock the door opened, and a lady walked out, turning around presumably to say goodbye only to be narrowly missed by Yoongi immediately slamming the door shut behind her. She started shouting something and banged on the door for a little bit, screaming expletives and other interesting comments, before calling it a day and sulkily walking away. I took a look at her as she was walking by and winced. Damn, I definitely didn’t envy her the walk home in those heels. Godspeed, sister.

When the clock hit 8.30 am, a car rolled to a stop in front of the house and Yoongi himself walked out in all his glory. This time he was wearing a classic black three-piece suit with a white shirt, hair slicked back behind his ears, phone in one hand and a to-go cup of coffee in the other. He didn’t look around at all, just sped all the way to the car, got in and in a second, they were on their way god knows where.

I took a moment to check my own reflection. Compared to the sleek mafia boss, my hair was messy since I barely even brushed it that morning, my face puffy and unkept and I had an old, stained hoodie on. I was almost embarrassed. Almost. After a moment I’d decided I gave them enough space and pulled out of my spot.

I had the list of potential addresses sitting out on my passenger seat and as we began weaving through the city, I was trying to guess where they could be going. My mind was constantly on keeping enough of a distance to not look suspicious but be close enough to not lose them in the morning traffic. With my heart beating out of my chest and damp clammy hands tense on the steering wheel, I managed to follow the car up to one of the clubs.

The car had just stopped when Yoongi briskly jumped out and jogged to the entrance. He disappeared inside for about 20 minutes and then he emerged again, a briefcase in hand and a smile on his face. I jotted it down into my journal and then we were on our way again.

I spent my day like that. Yoongi had always rolled up to a club, for a moment went inside, then came out again, sometimes holding something and sometimes empty-handed. Once I even managed to catch a glimpse of one of his six seeing him off. Based on the head full of soft blond curls, it must have been Park Jimin.

Gradually as I went after them, I relaxed, setting into my new role. My journal was getting packed with information, mostly useless things about where we stopped for now. I would be able to put it to more use once I had more stable and reliable info about his routine.

Around 2 pm he went into one of his offices and stayed until 9 o'clock, after that he went back to the club where he met Jimin. I was all cramped up from sitting in my car the whole day, my back absolutely killing me. I was hungry out of my damn mind, and I’d run out of water an hour ago. I just wanted him to go the fuck home and stay there, but he stayed until midnight. When I finally saw him walk back into his house, 1 o’clock in the morning, I was done and tired, but regretting nothing.

That’s how my life went on for a few days. I’d spent full three days tailing him, showing up at his house at around 5 am (I’d given myself an extra hour, but I didn’t want to risk missing him leave) and then drove around the city jotting down all the places he went to and all the things he did. Currently my journal contained everything from the various items he carried around his clubs to his order in Starbucks (which I wrote down very reluctantly, but I figured since I’m already there, I shouldn’t half-ass it). When it was time to go back to work, I’d taken the journal with me and discreetly wrote down any kind of new information that my team brought in.

It was my fifth day of stake out when it all crashed down. I was feeling good about myself, thinking maybe I’ve managed to actually dodge his attention, but I also realised I knew nothing about the kind of scoping out his bodyguards did. When Yoongi moved about, he either had some stone-faced strangers I’d never seen before with him or there was Jungkook by his side, and I quickly came to the conclusion that his job must have also entailed keeping Yoongi safe. It seemed that I never actually popped up on their radar, I’d never noticed any suspicious glances around, no one from Yoongi’s squad had ever even looked in my general direction, so I thought I was good. I wasn’t.

I was sitting in my car, leisurely eating a subway sandwich. It was 4 pm, which meant Yoongi was going to be in his office for another few hours at the very least (that’s how it’s been for the past four days). My car was parked a little off to the side some distance from the main entrance, monitoring who came in and who came out, while the car in which he came few hours earlier was still parked in the same spot and some of the guys were standing around, smoking and talking. Jungkook was with Yoongi today and they went in together, so they most probably had some free time until Yoongi needed to go somewhere again. It had begun snowing a little while ago and everything felt quiet and peaceful.

Then suddenly my passenger door opened, and a person filed in, settling on the seat with a loud exclamation of “god, it’s so cold outside, isn’t it?”. In a split second my hand went for my gun, but I ended up grabbing empty air – I wasn’t on duty, I didn’t have a gun currently. Panicking I turned to the side, prepared to fight, only to come face to face with a smugly grinning Yoongi. The fear immediately all drained out and instead frustration burst through me like a grenade.

“Fuck!” I screamed and hit the steering wheel. I managed to get the horn and in the distance I saw Yoongi’s bodyguards perk up at the sound, immediately checking their surroundings with hands on what one could only assume were their concealed guns. Out of the corner of my eye I also saw a face peek in through the passenger door window to check on the situation, and realised Jungkook must be standing outside the car. Yoongi was just sitting there, completely unfazed, watching me with amusement.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” I growled and glared at him.

“I could be asking you the same thing,” he drawled out, playing with his fingers unbothered, “Though I do have to praise you, we didn’t know about you for full two days. Guess we’re not used to having to worry about that anymore.” I closed my eyes and attempted to calm myself down. I didn’t need to embarrass myself further by throwing a full tantrum in front of them.

“How did you find out about me?” I gritted through my teeth and willed myself to relax more into the seat, stubbornly keeping my eyes in front of me and not looking over at Yoongi.

“You’ve been tailing me for days, of course we’re going to notice,” Yoongi replied cheekily. Then he gave me a once over. “No gun and no badge,” he hummed, “not on official business, then? Am I so charming that you just have to see me all the time?” He smirked at me playfully when he saw me peeking over, now starting to play with my little journal. It was closed, but I was still tensely watching him whether he’d decide to open it. By his smug expression, I had a feeling he knew what he was holding in his hands, and when he decided to put the journal down with a little playful wink, it was very pointed.

I cleared my throat. “It is official business,” I said, and really, I wasn’t even lying.

“Oh, is it?” he hummed noncommittally, “Because right now you just seem like a crazy stalker.” I looked over at him annoyed and he seemed to be very amused. A disembodied hand knocked on the window. Yoongi looked over and suddenly became more serious. It only lasted a second though, and then he was smirking at me again.

“All I can say is, I’m quite impressed, Y/N,” he winked at me, “Good job. Try a bit harder next time, though.” With one last amused smile he opened the door and clambered out. One hand leaning on the open door, he bent down at the waist to look in and contemplated for a moment what to say. Behind him I could see a hulking black mass as Jungkook immediately moved closer to safeguard Yoongi.

“See you around, officer,” Yoongi settled on in the end and then finally moved away from the door to slam it shut. I was left in there alone with all that cold air he let in and an unsettled feeling. I watched him cross the street to his own car, watched him as he turned around one last time and waved to me, then got in and sped away.

Only when I was left staring at an empty curb, I realised he’d called me by my name.

So… a change of tactic it is. Even though he didn’t say much, I didn’t think Yoongi had gotten into my car to threaten me. Quite the opposite, he seemed almost suspiciously encouraging. He most likely wanted to know whether I’d been assigned on this task or not.

Well, I learnt a few things at the very least. First, tailing everyday with the same car when you don’t want to be discovered is a big no-no (honestly kind of stupid on my part not to have realised that). Second – Jungkook was like Yoongi’s shadow and Yoongi’s bodyguards were all most likely under him too. He must be doing some intense scans of the surroundings, given the fact that after two days they realised a car was tailing them. After that they most probably just entertained me to see what I was doing and took the time to run a background check on me.

So, I had to find a way to be more inconspicuous. I was on their radar now; they would look out for me, and they knew more about me. Renting cars would get too expensive too quickly, it would also make me look very suspicious. My car was out of the question since they already knew it.

Honestly, I was surprised they let me tail them for that long when they already knew about me, but this might be the one time someone underestimating me would actually play into my cards. Because my goal wasn’t to aimlessly shadow Yoongi. It was to get closer to information about Hoseok. And I got a little tiny snippet.

When I sat at my computer at work the next day and stared mindlessly into the wall, I was wracking my brain on how to recuperate from this fumble. The previous night I had been going through my journal for hours, trying to come up with a way to keep a surveillance on Yoongi without letting him know I was following him, when I realised it.

Through the five days, I’d been catching glimpses of the other six. Of course, I saw Jungkook the most, but here and there I’d see Kim Taehyung’s shoulder as he was chatting with Yoongi outside of a club, Namjoon calling someone and smoking in front of the office building, Kim Seokjin coming out of Yoongi’s house, Park Jimin’s profile in the darkness of an alleyway by Yoongi’s car. They were all extremely close to each other and their lives were intertwined rather finely.

And I’d seen Hoseok too. It was for a split second, just a flash of the man’s face through a crack in a warehouse door, but I’d seen him. I had written it down, just mindlessly jotted down “door might have been opened by Hoseok”, and that was my chance. All I had to do now was start investigating that warehouse and move from there. Tonight, I had to go there and scope out the surroundings to see whether there was a place I could comfortably watch the area from.

The door to Park’s office suddenly slammed opened and I jumped in my seat, heart almost lurching out of my chest. I glared at my superior’s back and cursed his habit of storming into rooms as loudly as possible. He walked over to Minjoon’s table and started quietly telling him something. My curiosity won over and I couldn’t help glancing their way. Minjoon caught my eye for a moment and smiled, but mostly kept his attention trained on Park.

After a while of mumbling and several hushed okays, Park briskly walked through the station out to the parking lot and Minjoon and his partner both stood up and started gathering their things to follow him. I mournfully watched them get ready and grumbled behind my computer, but as I was about to petulantly grab some files and put them back into the cabinets, Minjoon came over to me and asked: “You wanna come with?” I stared at him for a moment, completely flabbergasted. He waited patiently until I got my wits about me again and then smiled when I started very enthusiastically nodding. The others in the station were also surprised, but I wasn’t about to give them my attention as I also grabbed my badge and a jacket and followed Minjoon out.

“It’s 7 pm on a Saturday, which means Yoongi’s at the Pied Piper,” he explained while leading me to the service car. Pied Piper was Yoongi’s most successful club, one that sat smack dab in the middle of Itaewon and drew attention with its fancy exterior and sleek interior. It was a hotspot for both locals and foreigners, and young trust fund kids often bragged about being on the VIP list, having the privilege to just come and walk in instead of having to wait endlessly in the line. “That also means that Namjoon’s currently sitting alone in the office. Park’s been tirelessly working on obtaining some insider info and he wants to go have a chat with the lawyer while he’s on his home turf.” I nodded along as we filed into the car and started on the journey.

I was a little nervous around the mysterious calm man. I could handle Yoongi’s endless banter, but Namjoon unnerved me with his silence and sharp eyes. It was as if he was slowly uncovering every little dirty secret you had deep within you just by looking into your eyes, he didn’t even need to say a word and you just wanted to spill all your sins. He was a dangerous man, an intelligent one that knew how to use it to intimidate others.

“Our job,” Minjoon suddenly spoke up after focusing on the road, “is to go to Pied Piper and annoy and distract Yoongi, so Park can have a peaceful uninterrupted moment with Namjoon. He doesn’t want Yoongi to even text him anything, so we have to put on a proper show.”

“I see…” I replied finally, the reality of the task setting in. I was a little relieved I didn’t have to confront Yoongi’s right-hand man, but unexpectedly I felt embarrassment flood me. I’d been having some truly awkward encounters with the man, and he seemed quite fond of teasing me. I was a little afraid he might blab about what I’d been doing in my free time and put a mark on my back within my own unit. I knew he definitely wouldn’t pass up the opportunity to put me in a difficult position.

The whole ride over I was preparing myself for dealing with the jokester again and potentially having to stop him from spilling some secrets. So, when we walked up confidently to the bouncer and Minjoon showed him his badge, I was full on panicking, nervously picking on my scarf with shaking hands. While we waited for the bodyguard to relay to Yoongi the police were here, Minjoon must have misunderstood my nervousness as fear of facing the mafia boss again.

“Actually, this is why I wanted to bring you with me,” he said quietly so nobody could overhear, “I wanted you to get over the first meeting, so you could continue with this task. Once you meet him a few times, the novelty wears off and he’s just an annoying dude that commits crime in his free time.”

No, yeah, I already knew that. I could cry inside, that wasn’t why I was nervous at all. But it was better he thought that than knowing I’d actually met Yoongi twice more already and he seemed to be getting quite interested in making my life difficult back. So, I just nodded and smiled at him gratefully, thanking him for bringing me along.

“Alright,” the bouncer suddenly came back to us, “right this way.” With that he turned around and made his way inside the club. I scrambled to follow after him through the crowded area, wading through partying youngsters. I could barely hear anything over the pumping bass of the music and with the flashing lights and crowds I couldn’t even really see what the inside looked like. I saw some dark grey walls, some mirrors and flashy patches of silver met with dark stone, but the rest was covered up with smoke and dancing bodies.

Similarly to the club I’d been to some week and a half ago, we were led to a staircase and up onto a gallery overlooking the ground floor, but it seemed that Pied Piper offered completely private rooms that were in a corridor off to the right, while left side was occupied by a bar. Surprisingly, it seemed that the VIP area also served as a sort of a restaurant, as I saw several couples and groups enjoying a dinner. The sound of the music wasn’t as overbearing up here and it created sort of a constant hum in the background, lending the space some added privacy from eavesdropping.

I expected getting led to a cordoned off little corner somewhere like before, but instead we walked through the entire area all the way to the back, and then up another, albeit a little smaller, staircase to a sort of a half balcony hanging over both the ground floor and the VIP area.

There on a velvet red couch, was sat Yoongi, greeting us with an amused smile. His pitch-black shirt and dress pants were popping with contrast to the vibrant red, just as his pale skin and long black hair was. For a moment I was so consumed by the vision that was Yoongi, that I didn’t even realise there were two other men present.

On a couch to our left, Kim Taehyung sat in all black suit, all spread out with legs wide open and arms resting on top of the couch, wavy dark hair framing his curious face, mischievous expression slowly taking over as he watched us grow more and more restless. And finally, leaning on a wall behind us, was Jungkook. He was expressionless as always and almost blended into the wall with his also pitch-black t-shirt and cargo pants. What was visible of his arms was heavily tattooed and definitely served as make-shift camouflage in this dark space.

I snickered and before I could stop myself, I was speaking. “Did we crash a funeral or what? What’s with the fits?” I glanced at all three of them amusedly. Taehyung started giggling while Yoongi full-on laughed. His face was coloured by surprise at my words and once again, I’d managed to catch his full attention. The nerves I felt combined with my annoyance at the man helped me put up a more confident front than I was feeling and I needed to take full advantage of that.

“Well, personally I think I do look quite ravishing in black, darling,” Taehyung drawled out seductively, righting his posture to lean closer to me, “Don’t you agree?” Minjoon looked between us confusedly and I made a mental note to make some excuse about why I wasn’t a complete wreck in the face of the three men.

I ignored Taehyung’s words and instead sat down on a chair straight across from Yoongi and Minjoon, who finally came out of his stupor, sat down next to me.

“So, tell me, officer,” Yoongi asked noncommittally, “What are you here for this time?” Even though he aimed the question at Minjoon, he was looking at me the whole time and I knew he was also experiencing the same déjà vu as me.

“You know, just checking that everything’s fine here,” Minjoon replied cheekily, watching me out of the corner of his eye, “Weekends can get pretty rough. We wouldn’t want a fight to break out.” Yoongi just scoffed and gestured to the general area.

“You don’t have to worry that head of yours, Mr. Jang,” he replied with a snark that I’d never caught from him before, “We have quite the few very strong and very professional bodyguards and bouncers around here. People know not to mess with them.” He looked back at me and then added: “Would you like something to drink or eat? I must say the appetizers are absolutely stellar today.” With a swipe of his arm, he gestured to the table between us that was decked with food. From my left, Taehyung giggled and leaned in to grab a few grapes.

To be honest, it felt like we were two stupid little lambs that wandered straight into the wolf’s den. And the fact that they were all around us didn’t help. It was finally starting to catch up with me and I nervously rubbed the top of my thighs with my clammy hands. I gulped and looked at Minjoon, expecting him to lead the conversation. I wondered how Park was fairing at the office and whether he’d already met Namjoon.

“Well, it’s our duty to look out anyway,” Minjoon shot back, “Serve the public and all that. Just making sure nothing naughty is going on. People tend to get a little crazy on Saturdays after all.” He was rewarded with a toothy wild smirk, all sharp edges and dangerous glints.

“Yes, they do tend to do that. If I see anyone being naughty, you’ll be the first one I’ll tell,” Yoongi laughed and gestured at the bodyguard at the stairs. He immediately turned around and left. I was on high alert, trying to track him from the balcony and see where he was going. The conversation between the men continued as they traded thinly veiled insults and passive aggressive remarks, while I was frantically searching the crowd.

I only relaxed when he returned to the balcony – a tray of drinks in hand. Each of the men took one – to my horror even Minjoon accepted a glass that was clearly meant for him and took a tiny sip. I gave him a pointed stare. He was the one that drove us here, for fuck’s sake! Not to mention there should be a golden rule about not eating or drinking anything given to you by a gangster in a club he owned.

The bouncer made his rounds, and the last glass was suddenly thrust in front of my face. It was a sex on the beach. It was the single cocktail I ordered and sipped on not to look too suspicious at Dynamite the other week. I shot the man in question a half surprised half horrified look. He was watching me from behind the rim of his own whiskey glass, eyes dark and curious for my reaction.

In the end, I took it because I’d started to feel awkward with the bouncer just standing there with his arm outstretched, but I immediately sat it down on the table, intent on not drinking it. I shot Minjoon another look, trying to signal to him he should do the same, but he was cooly sipping on his and only subtly shook his head at me. I pointedly ignored Yoongi’s gaze hungry for attention. I would not give him the rise he so wanted to get out of me.

“You see, right now I’m only trying to figure out in what club is your partner currently wreaking havoc, to have you here distracting,” Kim Taehyung suddenly joined the conversation, his silky deep voice catching me off guard every time. I jolted, but Minjoon kept his cool.

“You guys know us too well, this is getting a bit repetitive, isn’t it?” he joked back and drained his whiskey glass in a single big gulp, “Guess you’ll have to find out yourself. But entertain me here for a moment, otherwise you’ll just embarrass me in front of my boss and the newbie.”

Suddenly, four pairs of eyes were on me, and a wave of goosebumps ran through my entire being. I met Yoongi’s black eyes again and this time didn’t divert the eye contact. He leant forward, until he was leaning on his knees, and even though there was an entire table between us, it still felt dangerously close.

“You have been quite uncharacteristically quiet, officer,” he said and drawled out the nickname with a deep voice. I was afraid of what else might come out of his mouth, so I quickly butted in.

“What do you mean? You don’t know me at all,” it was both a warning to shut up and warning that we’d just begun, and he really did not know what I was capable of. My eyes were throwing daggers at him, but I tried to keep on a fake polite smile.

“Well, for someone who waltzed in here calling it a funeral and dissing our clothes, I was expecting some more smart comments out of you,” Yoongi explained, and I was relieved he was entertaining my threat to keep our previous conversations secret. He was looking thoroughly amused though.

“You’d have to be saying something smart, for me to have smart remarks.”

Kim Taehyung laughed out of surprise and pointed at Yoongi, who was fighting back his own grin. “She got you, hyung, you’ve gotta admit that,” he teased him good-naturedly and it was almost surprisingly wholesome to see them interacting as friends.

“There’s rarely anything smart said when talking to cops,” Yoongi retorted and it was more of a dig towards Minjoon than me, who stiffened next to me. It must have been a sore subject coming from Yoongi, which I understood with how hard he was making everything for us. Unfortunately, as a cop you sometimes did feel like the criminals outsmarted you… and then hearing them tease you about it, I’d be mad too.

“Okay, okay, we can sit here and call each other dumb the whole evening,” I mediated the situation before it went sideways, “Tell me then, Yoongi, what smart things do you want to talk about?” I spit out his name as if it was a curse, but I saw his entire being perk up at hearing it, a smug smirk tugging at his lips. I ignored it and waited for him to answer.

“Oh, I’ve got many things to talk about, one more interesting than the other,” he said dangerously, and I quickly realised we were nearing a no-go zone again. I suddenly understood why he was so interested in this, in letting me so near and never reprimanding me, playing with me like a cat does when it’s hunting for mice. He was getting off on knowing there was something I desperately needed him to stay silent about. At that moment, he was holding something over my head, something that could get me in a lot of trouble with colleagues that already didn’t like me, and if he threatened to press charges for harassment and stalking, he could most likely even boot me out of the force. But to him, it wasn’t about destroying my life. It was about amusing himself knowing I’m depending on him for something so important when I’m hellbent on taking him down. That way, he still remained in control of all of our meetings.

But I didn’t think he had the intention to truly rat me out. It was too much fun for him, and he seemed the type to let things play out. Ultimately, he must have believed once I became bothersome, he could shoot me down no problem, so why not amuse himself while the opportunity was there? So, I took a gamble. He wanted a challenge, maybe I’d give it to him. Maybe that’s why he encouraged me to do better and chase after him more.

“Yeah?” I said and trained all my attention to him, just as he always did to everyone around him, “I’m all ears.” He looked me straight in the eyes and I fought myself not to flinch away. The longer we stared, the more prominent the amused smirk grew on his face. He tested me, how long it would take me to break the eye contact and back down, but I steeled myself, squeezing the armrests with my nervous shaking hands, keeping the fear at bay by attempting to look as fierce as possible while falling apart with panic on the inside. Finally, it was him who looked away, but it didn’t feel like he ceded. It felt like we both won.

I released a breath I didn’t realise I was holding in and slumped a little into my chair, the tension suddenly draining out of my body in one fell swoop, leaving me almost boneless. Only now I started noticing the tense awkward silence the whole space sunk into, the other three men watching us with very different expressions. Jungkook as stoic as ever but with a hint of something in his eyes, Taehyung hungrily taking in the exchange with open curiosity and a playful grin, watching me as if I successfully tackled some kind of a challenge, and finally Minjoon, his face both confused and alarmed. I really had to think of some good excuse on the way back home.

Yoongi’s phone was buzzing on the table, but he barely paid it any attention. Instead, he gulped down his whiskey and gestured for the bodyguard to get him more, before turning to Minjoon once again.

“I’m sorry, but you seem kind of boring compared to the balls on this lady,” he mocked him, “this is the most fun I’ve had dealing with you guys.”

“I’m not here to amuse you,” I growled through gritted teeth. He flashed me a smile and said: “Oh, of course not, I know that. You’re here on a super secret, super important mission. But I am having fun, which normally doesn’t happen with these guys.” Minjoon snickered next to me, and his next words somehow felt like a punch in the face.

“I should have known that a pig like you would get off more on having a female detective grill you,” he muttered, fully aiming to insult Yoongi, but I stiffened next to him. I couldn’t figure out why, but his remark really didn’t sit well with me, putting me out of my comfort zone way more than anything the three gangsters did the whole evening, and Kim Taehyung’s first words to me were shameless flirting.

“Only a pig like you would only see the fact that she’s a woman and not that she’s just more interesting than you,” Yoongi retorted almost instantly, spitting out the whole sentence in a single breath, leaving Minjoon speechless with the quick comeback. Then he rolled his eyes, trying to stay as calm as he was when he came in.

“That’s not what I said, stop trying to spin this on me,” he said, clearly annoyed with the turn of the conversation, “We’re talking about you here.” I stayed silent and for the first time that evening yearned for taking a swig out of the now melting cocktail still standing on the table in front of me.

“Right,” Yoongi drawled out, running out of patience dealing with the officer, “And I’m a pig why exactly? Last time I checked that’s what people called the police. Not me. And especially not after I’ve just-“

“Shut up, both of you,” I jumped in, annoyed and not interested in whatever Yoongi wanted to say, “You can measure each other’s cocks when I’m not around. Act like adults.” Taehyung off to the side giggled again, thoroughly enjoying himself watching this all go down. I chanced a glance at Jungkook, who was attempting to hide an amused smirk by looking out of the balcony. I didn’t want to look at either of the men I had just reprimanded, but my attention was drawn to Yoongi when he cleared his throat and said: “Of course, I let myself get carried away. Sorry ‘bout that.”

I had been afraid he’d take it badly, but he was laughing when I looked at him. Minjoon looked angry, but stayed silent, instead he petulantly looked to the right, away from all of us. I guess I’d be reaping the consequences of that later.

The awkward silence was broken by the man I was least expecting to speak up. “They’re with Namjoon hyung at the office,” Jungkook briskly informed Yoongi from behind us. When I turned around, he was just putting his phone to his ear walking out of the space.

“Well, I guess the cat’s out the bag now,” my attention turned back onto Yoongi, who still wasn’t checking his periodically buzzing phone. I also pulled out mine to check the time. 7:43 pm. We’d been there for a little longer than half an hour, but it felt barely like ten minutes to my shock.

I looked at Minjoon again, seeking his advice on how to tie up this situation. He finally shook out of his embarrassed silence and was more or less back to his previous self.

“Well, thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Min,” Minjoon said, still a little strained and refusing to look at him for too long, “It was truly a fruitful evening.” Yoongi chuckled.

“Right, I feel like we all learnt a lot of things about each other,” he retorted mysteriously, giving me a grin and then turning to Taehyung, “It seems we both lost the bet. I said it would be The Rose and you betted on the hotel.” The Rose, another one of Yoongi’s clubs, was currently managed mainly by Park Jimin and situated on the other side of the city centre. It was another one of his high-profile entertainments, but most of the time it hosted the filthy rich and honed in on the feeling of privilege and prestige. That was definitely a club you couldn’t just get into from the street, no, you had to be invited in or taken by a member, that’s why the police were so interested in it.

“You were betting on us?” I asked surprised. Minjoon looked at me and grinned. “They do that quite often, actually. We do our best to try and keep them on their toes.”

I glanced at Yoongi, who as the entire time, was watching me closely. I hummed and pretended to think about it for a moment, and finally said: “Honestly, The Rose is a pretty good guess. Keep ‘em coming, I’m sure with an intuition like that, you’ll get it right once.” He laughed heartily and leaned in.

“I know it’s a good guess,” he whispered, “I get them right most of the time. I know you people, more than you think.” I shuddered and pulled away, hitting the back of the chair. With a slight flush of embarrassment at my earlier comment, I scrambled to get up and go on our merry way. That had made him even more amused, and I cursed both him and myself. I should really learn to keep my mouth shut sometimes.

Yoongi didn’t bother standing up as we were leaving, he didn’t even bother to check his phone, that had gone suspiciously silent. He just stared at me from across the room as the bouncer started leading the way back out and Taehyung waved at us with a little wink, looking annoyingly pleased and relaxed. I rolled my eyes at him one last time and then disappeared down the stairs. If I strained my ears, I could almost hear him laughing loudly at my antics.

Outside of the club, back by our car, Minjoon suddenly stopped in the middle of the empty quiet parking lot. I staggered to a stop as well, looking at him confused and slightly worried something happened. What if Park hadn’t managed to have that talk with Namjoon and was waiting for us mad at the station? Panic flashed through me, but I was surprised when Minjoon looked at me with worried sad eyes and started apologising.

“Hey, I’m really sorry about before,” he said and I could finally see the full extent of his embarrassment, “You’re right, we were bickering like a couple of little boys. It’s just- He always gets such a rise out of me. I try and not react, but he always does or says something that just pisses me off.” I softened a little at his genuine shame and a little awkwardly patted his shoulder.

“It’s okay, I understand,” I replied quietly, “He got a rise out of me too. Don’t worry about it.” He smiled at me, a little lighter and less sad, and I returned it. When we returned to the station, Park didn’t say anything about us or our mission and just launched right into his spiel about Namjoon’s behaviour at the office. I considered that a win.

Later that night, sitting in the empty meeting room, Minjoon turned to me and said: “I didn’t get a chance to say it earlier, but you fared surprisingly well tonight. I wasn’t expecting you to be like… that. It was amazing.” I blushed both from his words and his gentle embarrassed gaze and played with the edge of my sleeve to escape his eyes.

“Thank you… When I get nervous, I just start blabbing out the first thing that comes to mind,” I replied with a half-truth half-lie. He didn’t need to know I’d been getting some practice with dealing with the infuriating man in my free time. That would stay between me, Yoongi and the devil.

The next time I saw Yoongi was actually a few weeks later – in January of the new year. As I promised to myself, I took the time to scope out that one warehouse where I caught a glimpse of Hoseok. I had been staking it out carefully for almost a week, losing my mind with boredom just watching harbour workers milling about, when I came to the conclusion that he actually wasn’t there. The one time I’d seen him there clearly must have been a fluke, because he didn’t come at all the entire week. It was a pretty easy to scope out location, and when I continuously didn’t notice any evidence of Hoseok’s presence, I had to face the reality that this just wasn’t one of his spots.

So, that sent me back to following Yoongi around. And I had to figure out how to outsmart the literal king of snakes.

One day, when I was walking through the station, it hit me in a form of a single simple leaflet pinned to a noticeboard. I stopped so fast I almost tripped over my own feet and then hobbled back to the board to take in the huge bold FREE MOTORCYCLE TRAINING FOR OFFICERS FROM THIS PRECINCT. I had to stop myself from laughing maniacally right in the middle of the station and immediately saved the contact information into my phone. It was time to learn some new skills.

While I started taking lessons to be able to get a license for a motorcycle, I had to hold off from tailing Yoongi. Rolling up to his house in a car he already knew would be just embarrassing to me and explaining to someone else why I needed to borrow their car to drive around Seoul for 24 hours straight would be too difficult and, not to mention, extremely weird. There aren’t enough excuses in this world to borrow a different car every night and I didn’t even know enough people to achieve that.

Sometimes I would snoop around his office building or clubs when I knew he either was there or wasn’t, depending on what I was trying to achieve. I also still periodically dropped to the warehouse, just to chance whether maybe Hoseok showed up that time. But no luck. It was like he got swallowed by the earth itself. It did make sense for Yoongi to keep him in the shadows, considering what we suspected he did in the organisation, but I didn’t expect for him to be this hard to spot.

Here and there I would go through the other buildings Yoongi owned and tried to figure out where he could be spending most of his time, but there were just too many. Thus, one night I ended up buying a huge and very detailed map of Seoul that took up almost all of my bedroom wall and got to work on that. First, I marked all of Yoongi’s properties including his house in red, then I added properties that were known to be in possession of his six each with their own colours, and then marked with different colours who I spotted where. Finally, I added post it notes with details of when I spotted them or when Yoongi went there.

As I stood in my bedroom, proud of my hard work, a realisation of what I was doing hit me. There was no going back now, and whoever entered my house and found his way into my bedroom would be positively creeped out. I myself had to admit that sleeping next to a huge map detailing the whereabouts of a certain individual that I acquired through illegal means wasn’t ideal, but I had to do what I had to do to help catch him.

And like that, Christmas came and went and suddenly New Year was here, and I found myself sitting in the meeting room, first thing in January, going over new findings and strategies. I was barely holding my attention to what was said, itching to supervise Yoongi again and trying to come up with ways to check on what he’s doing.

“We’ve made contact with a new informant,” Park said suddenly, “He’s willing to pass info to us, he’s fairly confident that he can dodge the safety checks since he’s seen people fail them quite often. He knows very well the consequences he faces if he gets caught and agreed to help anyway.”

“Which faction does he belong to?” one of the officers present asked him. Faction, that meant under which member of the six he worked. Since they all had such different areas of coverage, a lot of the time the personnel under them was directly employed to them and not necessarily to Yoongi himself, though he owned the umbrella corporation. These groups of employees directly belonging to a certain member of the gang we called factions or squads.

“He works around the clubs and the hotel, so he’s Taehyung’s, but he mostly gets into contact with Jungkook,” Park answered readily, “But, and that’s most important, he gets his fare share of time with Namjoon. He runs a lot of errands for him and Taehyung when they’re together. Which is often.”

Suddenly Minjoon leaned closer to me and whispered: “Namjoon spends most of his time at the office building, but he does go to the clubs and checks on their offices and bookkeeping periodically. Taehyung’s and Jimin’s responsibility is making sure that everything is ready there for him.” I nodded at him and gave him a grateful smile. I thought back to the five days I spent sitting mostly in front of the office space and I did see him a lot. He seemed to be an avid smoker and spent a lot of time standing by the side of the building smoking and shouting something into his phone. Maybe he was like Yoongi and went to the clubs in the morning and then spent the afternoons there.

I leaned to him and whispered back: “It’s almost unfair how much information we have on them and still can’t legally even give them a parking ticket.” Minjoon smiled sympathetically and patted my shoulder.

The meeting droned on and as I sat there, I decided that parking tickets actually didn’t sound half bad. Next time I went out after him, I should take some just in case. I vowed myself to be the most annoying menace he’s ever come across and I fully intended to hold up to that.

About a week later I was once again sitting at my table punching some useless information into the national police database, trying to stay awake as I’d been spending the nights crawling around the industrial parts of Seoul checking out warehouses and the surveillance around them, when Park, as was his habit, stormed into the room letting his door bang loudly into the wall. I’d stopped flinching at this point, no one in the room was even fazed, all of us have heard it so many times it wasn’t even surprising anymore.

As usual when something happened with Yoongi, he went straight to Minjoon and Hwang, his partner, gesturing for them to grab their things and follow him out. I tried to catch Minjoon’s eye, hoping he’d take me with them again, but he just shook his head at me gently. When both of the other men left, he made a stop at my table and in a hushed voice explained: “I’m sorry, not today. Something happened at a warehouse that’s on Yoongi’s turf, probably some kind of fight with a rival gang or something. The police officers from the area are already there, but they’re waiting on us to see. It’s a pretty ugly and bloody scene.” With that he ran out of the door, barely managing to wave goodbye as he rushed to the scene.

I looked at his retreating back in disappointment, not understanding his reasoning behind leaving me out of it. What was he worried about? That I’d be upset if I saw a little blood? That I shouldn’t witness violence? Determination rose in me as I got angry at the perceived discrimination. I checked the clock. 4 PM, Wednesday. I scrambled out of my chair and quickly grabbed my badge and jacket and ran out as well.

As I gripped my steering wheel like an insane person and drove through the centre, I was hoping that his schedule was as solid as I assumed, even though I didn’t follow him for long. In a few minutes, I was parking in front of his office building and charging my way inside like a storm. There was a lady sitting at the reception and when she first saw me walk in, she attempted to talk to me, but quickly gave up and lost interest when I just brushed past her.

I’d never been inside but I hoped that all the movies and series didn’t lie, and his office would be on the top floor, so I flagged down an elevator and pushed the highest button. Now finally standing here, I started getting nervous. I once again acted before I thought about it and standing in an elevator taking me to Yoongi’s office, I didn’t even know what I’d say to him. If he even was here. I had nothing to talk to him about except for inquiring about the disturbance at a warehouse, but I doubt he’d ever tell me anything about it, not that I even had any closer information to ask about. This was reckless and stupid.

The elevator slowly rolled to a stop and the door opened. I self-consciously walked out and took a look around. It was a nicely furnished hallway lined with dark wood and deep scarlet details. At the end a huge vase with white lilies stood, right next to an abandoned desk of who I assumed must be Yoongi’s secretary. To my left, straight in the middle, was a black double door, no doubt leading to the man of the hour.

I loitered outside for a while, gathering courage and thinking about how I should explain my sudden appearance. Right as I moved to the door, it opened and a black-clad figure backed out, both of us colliding between the open doors. With surprisingly quick reflexes he turned around and grabbed onto my elbow, stabilising me before I embarrassed myself in front of Yoongi again.

“Oh! Sorry about that!” a cheerful high voice rung out through the corridor, “I gotta watch the road more.” He ended it with a melodic laugh and his other hand grabbed onto my shoulder, finally shaking me out of my stupor. I looked up to thank him, the cheerful personality putting me at ease a little more, but as soon as I laid eyes on him, the words died in my throat on an embarrassing half choked sound. I froze up and just stared at him for a moment, until I could see confusion paint his face.

It was Jung Hoseok. Hoseok was standing in front of me. Laughing and joking around, hands still holding me upright.

“Hey, you okay?” he asked, suddenly a little more serious, watching me with concern.

“She’s fine,” a voice from the inside supplied, “Maybe she’s just stunned with your beauty, with finally meeting you in person after staring at your picture for months.” All confusion and concern disappeared from the man and he started laughing again.

“Oh, so you’re the police officer,” he announced with a smirk and something a little more teasing crept into his voice. He finally released his hold on me and watched me with amused eyes as I stumbled away from him with red burning cheeks. So much for not embarrassing myself. It didn’t help that he most definitely was beautiful, almost unfairly so for someone who was allegedly a stone-cold killer. Damn these men to hell, what was it about being a mobster that attracted the good-looking guys.

“Thank you for catching me,” I gritted through my teeth, already staring daggers into Yoongi, who was leisurely sitting behind a huge dark desk in the room behind us, watching us with a lazy smirk.

“Don’t mention it,” Hoseok replied almost instantly and winked, “Well, I gotta get on my merry way. Have fun you two! Bye bye~” He waved at me cheerily and walked out. Then he backed into the room again and pointed at Yoongi in a teasingly reprimanding manner and added: “Not too much fun though.” With that, he was gone.

I walked into the room, completely flabbergasted by his surprising character. Yoongi watched me like a wolf, waiting for me to sit down on a chair on the other side of his table, as was our tradition by now. I could see the anticipation rolling off of him in waves, so I took the time to properly soak in the room. There was a lot of dark wood and grey tones with splash of colour here and there, but the darkness was offset by a huge three-piece window in the wall behind Yoongi. Right now, I could see the beginnings of what would soon turn into a sunset.

I knew I couldn’t win in a battle of will against him, so once I dragged it out enough, finally I moved over to the table to take a seat. Immediately, Yoongi had a cordial smile on his face, as if he was greeting an old friend and not a police officer. Speaking of that, I remembered something – I took the time to bring it for the sake of our second meeting.

Yoongi wordlessly watched me rummage in my pockets until I finally found what I was looking for. A second later, my hand slapped my badge on the table between us. I nodded towards it and muttered: “That official enough for you?” He looked at it shocked for a split second and then he was laughing.

When calm enough to speak to me, he said: “I see that whatever I joke about with you, you’ll take it to your heart. I’ll have to think about my words a bit more carefully from now on.” He stared at the badge for a moment and then thoughtfully hummed.

“Now, that reminds me, I should probably check whether you’re recording this talk,” he joked with me, “I won’t stop you of course, just watch my mouth.” Annoyed, I reached into my other pocket and this time I slapped my phone on the table. I went the extra mile of showing him it wasn’t calling anyone or recording anything, and then glared at him in challenge, all under his amused gaze.

“So, can we talk?” I bluffed, pretending like I showed up here for something specific. He made himself comfortable in his chair across from me and motioned for me to start. I took a moment to think about how to start. With no idea what I wanted to achieve here, it was hard to just start up a conversation. But it seemed I was worrying for nothing.

“Actually, I don’t need you to start,” he stated matter-of-factly, “I know why you’re here. With your colleagues currently running around in the docks, it doesn't take a genius to put two and two together. But it’s not their usual MO, they’ve never sent here someone while they were investigating.” I stuttered under his piercing eyes, and he smirked. “So… not that official, is it.”

“It still is, though, I’m here during work hours regarding an on-going police investigation,” I defended myself somewhat petulantly, following his figure with my eyes when he suddenly got up and moved to a small bar in the corner behind me. With his back to me, mixing up cocktails, I realised I’ve never seen him from this angle, always had to face him head on and fight for everything I was and everything I did. This felt as if we were supposed to be relaxed in each other’s company and I didn’t like it.

He hummed again and turned around, whiskey in one hand and pink gin and tonic in other. He motioned for me to move and sit at a small green sofa in the other corner of the room, and I mindlessly listened to him. To my surprise, he situated me on the sofa and pushed the gin into my hand, while he himself made himself comfortable on the fluffy carpet, leaning on the table. The sofa wasn’t super high, but I still found myself looking at him from above for the first time ever. It was putting me off – he had to be planning something. Why else would he behave this way?

I put the glass on the table and gave him a reprimanding glare. “I told you, I’m on duty and I drove here.” He scoffed and sipped on his own drink, ignoring my words.

“And the things you’ll learn here, you’ll share them with your colleagues? You’ll go back to the station and divulge your findings?” he asked seemingly innocently, but there was a dark glint in his eyes. It was the most serious I’ve ever seen him. I didn’t know whether I should lie to him or not. I knew I wouldn’t share it, at least not until a little later, when there was an opportunity for me to showcase my knowledge in the most impactful way. And it seemed that he was aware of that as well. And the longer I took to answer him, the more obvious the answer was. So I chose to be honest.

“When the time comes for it, yes,” I said, and the words felt like ash on my tongue. I could barely look at him in that moment. I was doing something wrong, I was aware of that, I was putting my career on the line and bartering the information for my own gain and putting it out into the universe somehow felt like a curse. But Yoongi didn’t seem to care. He nodded and took a sip again, humming. I regarded him with suspicion.

“Is that why you came here to find out the information your own colleagues wouldn’t tell you?”

His question hung heavy in the air, and I froze completely. I was embarrassed that I couldn’t even disprove it, even though I didn’t think that’s why I came there. They really didn’t tell me anything. I would find out eventually when it was important for me to know. Or if I was lucky, I’d pull it out of Minjoon when he’d come in tomorrow. But I was angry and frustrated. I spent a lot of time studying Yoongi’s warehouses trying to find Hoseok, and he didn’t even give me a chance to tell him and ran. Didn’t even tell me a reason why exactly I wasn’t supposed to be there. So, I went and did something foolish.

But I still had to play my cards right.

For some reason, Yoongi seemed to be suspiciously eager to let me in on some of his dealings, from speaking to me openly that one time in Dynamite, to letting me tail him and even entertaining my clumsy attempts at distracting him or getting information out of him. Whether it was because he didn’t see me as a threat or because he was trying to play a game of his own with me, I had to use this to my advantage. As long as he was this willing, I had to try and milk this situation.

“Just trying to get all the points of view,” I answered cooly and tried to put up a strong front. I hoped that Yoongi had enough decency not to point out my obvious frustration and would take my words at face value. Which, thankfully, he seemed to do. He flashed me a smile and said: “Ah, I see. Just being a good cop.”

He looked at me for a moment and then suddenly got up. I was about to also get up, but he gestured for me to stay seated. He walked over to the table and leaned on it with his hip.

“I can’t tell you much more than what you’ll eventually find out about it,” he said, and it felt both like a ceding and a challenge, “But whatever happened there, we had nothing to do with it. A petty criminal allegedly affiliated with a group attacked another petty criminal allegedly affiliated with another group and it didn’t go as well as he hoped.” I wished I knew more about the situation to ask additional questions, but I knew this would be all I’d be getting out of him either way.

“Well, that’s not much,” I couldn’t help the dig and he scoffed. “Don’t complain when I’m being this gracious,” he retorted jokingly and pointed a finger at me much in the same manner as Hoseok did to him earlier.

I was about to retort too, when the door flew open. For a moment I almost thought it’s Park and my heart jumped into my throat, but the panic disappeared as quickly when I recognised the man as none other than Kim Taehyung. He waltzed in straight to me, paying Yoongi no mind and sitting down on the sofa next to me.

When I moved to stand up, he quickly caught my hand and gave it a swift kiss. “We haven’t been formally introduced yet,” was the first thing that came out of his mouth, “My name is Taehyung, but feel free to call me Tae.” I raised my eyebrow at him as he gave me a million-watt smile and slowly settled back into the couch.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Kim,” I replied, deadpan, and pulled my hand free. Somewhere in the room Yoongi laughed, but before I could turn to look at him, Taehyung spoke to me again.

“How mean,” he fake pouted and slumped into the sofa, only to spring up again immediately, hands going for the pink gin and tonic, “Is this free?”

“Yeah, knock yourself out,” I replied, stunned. I could have stayed silent though, as the glass was already halfway to his lips and there was no stopping him. He gulped down half the glass in one go and then offered me to take a swig too. I was so surprised by his erratic behaviour that I subconsciously grabbed the drink thrust into my personal space and froze.

“Come on, just one little sip,” he goaded me, seemingly all in good spirits, but I knew listening to whatever gibberish he had to offer me was a one-way ticket to hell. I pushed the glass back into his hands and said: “I’m sure you’ll enjoy it much more than me.”

Taehyung suddenly leaned into my personal space and seductively whispered: “If that was right, then I would be doing it wrong.” With his suggestive words hanging between us, obviously no longer talking about alcohol, I blushed so aggressively I might have combusted on the spot and pushed him away until he was squished into the other corner of the sofa.

Alarmed at his words I instinctively searched for Yoongi, holding out hope that he would sort out his friend and school him on how to act in front of a detective and a woman, but I found him half sitting on the armrest of the chair I previously sat on, attentively watching us with a light amused smirk.

“Sorry about that,” he muttered cocky, “He still hasn’t been house trained.” There was a whiny “hyuuuung” coming from somewhere behind me, but I was done with this conversation. I had just had enough of interacting with these lunatics, so I got up and started getting ready to leave.

“Oh, don’t be embarrassed,” Taehyung teased, “I’m just joking around, I always try this on new people to see how they react.” I huffed, slightly angry but more humiliated. “You mean new women.”

“Actually, he doesn’t care about that at all,” Yoongi answered for him, “You should have seen him when he first met your boss and the other cop, Jang. He almost got arrested for public indecency cause he made them so angry.” I turned to look at Taehyung to gauge the truth to this statement, only to find him properly embarrassed and almost as red as me. The image of Taehyung shamelessly flirting with a seething mad Park while Minjoon watched completely horrified entered my mind. I snickered at him and relaxed again.

“I should have known that cops have no sense of humour,” he muttered for himself, but then quickly shot me a wink and added: “No offense.”

“Don’t worry,” I replied, “That’s the least offensive thing you’ve said to me today.” Taehyung only smiled at me sweetly, as if he was the picture of sainthood and not whispering naughty words to people he barely knew on the regular.

I went to check the time and with a start realised I’d left my phone and badge just laying on the table when I earlier moved to the sofa. After quickly grabbing them, I walked over to the door and turned around. Both men in the room were looking at me curiously. I gave them my own wolfish grin and said: “Thank you for your cooperation.” With that I was gone.

So, that wasn’t the most fruitful thing I’ve ever done. I found myself even more confused about the strange behaviour of a man with such a reputation as Min Yoongi. For a moment teasing, for a moment dangerous, for a moment honest and genuine? I had no idea what he was doing, what he was trying to do and why was he letting me get away with so much, but everything about him and every one of our encounters was extremely suspicious.

Well. Even though it disappointed me a little, I knew that it was most likely because he kept underestimating me. So, I had to change that.

A week later I’d finally gotten a license for a bike. I was spending so much time there that I even became somewhat of a running joke between the lectors, but I couldn’t explain to them I was in a time press because I had a gang to dismantle and a mafia boss to humble. That would have made things real awkward real fast.

But now, with a license and slightly used black bike, I was virtually unstoppable. At least in my mind. From there I slowly got back into my routine of tailing Yoongi. During the month and a half I was out, I had been spending a lot of time staring at a map of Seoul and embarrassingly enough, I’d started to remember the streets to a point I could have become a cabbie. Maybe one day when I’ve inevitably lost my badge because Yoongi snitched on my unprofessional misconduct, I’d give it a shot.

I was absolutely sure to him I was just some cute little animal that sometimes barked and growled a little but would never do much worse than piss on the floor, but the moment I’d actually bite a nerve, he wouldn’t hesitate to get rid of me. I had to work quickly, before I became too much of an eyesore to him.

Speaking of which, Yoongi didn’t stray from his routine too much. In the mornings he would alternate between visiting the clubs, restaurants and his hotel, then he would either stay at the hotel’s office or move to his office building. In the afternoons he sometimes went to certain warehouses, but from what I could gather, it was mostly Hoseok, Jungkook and surprisingly Namjoon, who came to him with information about these places. The weekends he’d spent in his office until the clubs opened and then went either to Pied Piper or The Rose, both in which I wasn’t able to enter again.

Sometimes I would let Yoongi sit in the office and move to the warehouses. I alternated between them, checking on them to see who was where, and saw Jungkook and Namjoon very often. Hoseok stayed ever so elusive he might as well have been a ghost, but I was absolutely sure he must have been actively communicating with Yoongi.

I even tried to tail Jungkook, but the man was impossible to track down. No matter what I did, I’d always lose him after a few minutes, and I never managed to stay on him for longer than a few streets. I’d become so good at taking all kinds of back streets and alleys to keep out of sight that his ability to just disappear was truly mind-boggling to me.

While when I tailed Namjoon, I quickly realised that he moved in a very constricted area between the offices, some of the clubs and some of the warehouses. He never lingered for long when he was out but was capable of sitting for hours upon hours in the office building, so that ultimately also went nowhere.

The map in my room was quickly becoming crowded with differently coloured strings and post-it notes, in the evening (or sometimes early morning) I’d come home and add another new little thing and I was feeling like an obsessed stalker a little more every day. From Yoongi’s point of view, I most likely was. But it had to be done.

It had to be done.

It was one regular Tuesday when I chanced upon gold. I was sitting on my bike, bored out my mind, stuffing my face with fast food watching Yoongi laugh about something with Jimin and Taehyung outside of one of his clubs, when a black car with tinted windows pulled up. It was a car I sometimes saw with Jungkook, so I more or less knew to expect the young man, but when Hoseok in all of his glory jumped out and walked over to hug the two youngsters, I was so surprised I almost choked on a hot dog and fell off my bike.

Jungkook came out of the car right after him and immediately started looking around, so I ducked and started pulling my bike a little more behind a corner. The five men conversed for a moment and then Hoseok waved and started walking towards a different car. I watched him full of anticipation, my fingers flexing on their own, eager to try my best at tailing Jungkook if it meant I’d get to find out where Hoseok worked. But to my absolute elation, Jungkook wasn’t following. Hoseok was leaving alone. Fucking jackpot.

I was so happy I almost passed out. I didn’t know what sort of luck this was, but I wasn’t about to complain.

Hoseok walked over to a sleek silver sports car and sat in the driver’s seat. I was getting ready as if I was about to run the marathon, my sweaty hands nervously fidgeting with the handles of my bike, body taunt as a bow. He stayed still for a moment, a moment that felt like hours to me, but then I heard the faint sound of a running engine. He waved to the others again, and then he was off. I pressed myself into the building as he was passing me and then quickly followed.

I’d never been that nervous about tailing someone, not even when I first went after Yoongi almost two months ago at the beginning of December. This was most likely my only shot for a long time, there was no telling when I’d be able to spot him again.

He drove to one of the many docks that were under Yoongi’s control. In this particular area, they owned a whole three warehouses that looked over some of their ships and imported goods. I was here a lot when I was trying to find Hoseok on my own, I figured this was such a hotspot, if he went somewhere, it would probably be here, but I never caught sight of him. Now I was proven right but felt annoyed that I missed him so many times.

The reason for that turned out to be quite simple. The biggest warehouse, situated closest to the water, had another door that I haven’t noticed. It was in the back and blended into the wall so well I almost thought for a second Hoseok’s just loitering in the back banging on the walls. When a patch in the wall suddenly opened and he disappeared inside, it was like unlocking a whole new world in my mind. No wonder I’d never seen him, the whole time he was coming in from the other side.

I admit, it was a bit reckless to pour my attention here after a single sighting, but I was willing to risk it. I took the time to scope out the area while Hoseok was inside (if he was anything like the others, he’d be spending hours there anyway).

A little ways to the left was a small building, but right behind it I saw an abandoned half constructed concrete monstrosity, most likely a leftover of attempts to redevelop this part of the capital city that crashed and burned on the involvement of gangs in the area. I made my way to it.

It was fenced off, but a little probing here and there, I was able to break into one of the fence gates. Inside I apologised to whoever owned this building, but it was very obviously uncared for, so I justified myself in that way. I probably wasn’t even the first person that broke in, I told myself as I made my way up the stairs. I swallowed the sour sensation that left me with and trudged on.

Within an hour I found a perfect spot to stake out. It was high and secluded enough to see the warehouse and its surroundings without a problem if I used a telescope, while I wouldn’t be risking being seen by the people on the street. It faced the second exit, which must have been used by Hoseok enough to escape my notice the first time around. In two days, I’d return here and watch.

It almost felt like things were looking up, like I could finally stop mindlessly following Yoongi around and move forward with this case, and for the first time after a long time I felt some sort of joy and relief.

I reached into my pocket to take out my phone and take a photo of the number on a nearby column, so I’d be able to find it easily again, but found it missing. For a hot moment of panic I thought maybe I had dropped it somewhere around Yoongi’s club, which would mean he now no doubt had it and I’d have to go get it from him, and it would be extremely embarrassing. But then I realised I must have left it at my table at the station that morning when I stopped by to hand deliver some documents to Park. I looked around to find something that would immediately catch my eye upon entering, but in the end I decided to just luck it out and left.

On my way home I’d stopped by the station for the phone and ended up having a coffee with Minjoon. For a brief moment, when I sat in a cafeteria, drank that shitty coffee and laughed at some story Minjoon was telling me about his first few months in the force, I found myself thinking I wish all my days were this nice.

I should have known it wouldn’t last, though.

Due to the fact that it was still January, I was absolutely freezing my balls off on stake out the next few days. Sitting in an open room in minus temperatures staring into a telescope the whole day turned out to be a pretty bad way to spend one’s time and quickly I was turning very cranky. I was hungry, cold, thirsty and even though Hoseok turned up and took the back entry, he just sat there for the whole day and didn’t come out until evening. I was mostly just watching some of the low-tier mobsters mulling about, moving about crates, caring for the ships and continuously walking in and out of the warehouse. Which was something I had already seen when I was staking out here before.

It seemed that the reason Hoseok was so hard to find was because he spent literal days holed up in that metal building, doing god knows what.

On my fourth day I was absolutely losing it. I spent the morning at the station and then went straight here. Hoseok’s car was already present, but other than that there was no other trace of his existence, just like the other days. He didn’t even come outside to smoke like Namjoon would. Not one of the other boys came here either, which was weird since they always seemed to be in close vicinity of each other. I was tired and frozen and I could feel the beginnings of a nasty cold and I was getting nowhere.

My day got exponentially more interesting though, when Yoongi’s black car rolled up to the back exit. It was the first time in the four days he came here, and the first time since I’d started tailing him that he came to this exit. That should have been my first warning.

I watched as Yoongi walked around free of all troubles, wide smile on, and if I wasn’t currently more than 100 metres away from him, I’d punch him in the face. The door opened and Hoseok stepped out to greet him. I could cry with happiness at the first appearance of the man in days. And also punch him in the face. Together they disappeared inside, and I was left with the same sorry view as before.

Impatiently watching the clock, I saw the minutes drift away into two hours of silence and no movement in the back. Just when I thought about just slipping into a coma to escape this hellhole, I heard movement outside my little spot. Instantly alerted, I quickly stood up and pressed myself closer to a wall where I wouldn’t be immediately noticeable from the entrance into the room. My whole body was stiff from coldness and hours of just sitting, my muscles protesting and painfully pulling until I was barely able to hobble away.

The steps got closer and closer until a figure clad in all black stepped in. For a moment I thought it was Jungkook and was a second away from wailing in frustration, but it wasn’t him. It was a young man, based on his clothes he must have been part of Yoongi’s security, but I didn’t remember his face from before.

He located me in a second – after all, there weren’t many places I could be hiding in a completely bare concrete room. Without a word he thrust his hand to me. My eyes slid down to see a take-out coffee. When I wasn’t taking it, he impatiently moved his hand, trying to get me to relieve him of this definitely extremely bothersome task.

I did take it, mostly because I didn’t want to annoy him more when Yoongi was already doing such a good job of it and sighed in defeat. How the fuck did he even sniff me out here? The guy looked at me and then said: “Boss wanted me to tell you that he truly thinks it’s admirable how hard you work in such cold weather.” His face was completely unreadable, but I knew he must have thought this was such a laughable situation.

I wanted to feel angry, I really did, but I didn’t even have the strength to do it. Instead I sighed and pinched the root of my nose between my fingers. Frustration coursed through me and now I was annoyed with Yoongi too. Did he become omnipotent or what?

I returned the poor guy’s gaze and said: “Please send a message back. Tell him that he’s annoying and I hate him.” He nodded and left, no expression on his face. A true professional.

From then on, whenever I got closer to them, Yoongi would send me a subtle message that he knew about me. Either he would send me food or drinks or just stand in my line of sight and wave in my direction. Sometimes when I knew he could see me too I returned the gesture by flipping him off, to which he always laughed. Taehyung also caught on and to any birds sent their way he sent back a kiss and a wink.

It took me embarrassingly long to figure out that they planted a tracker on me. One night in a mad fit to find it I turned upside down most of my apartment. At 3 am I was standing on the street, pawing at my bike like a crazy person, attempting to stuff my fingers to all the nooks and crannies. A passing woman looked at me as if I was sexually harassing my own vehicle and after that I rather returned back home, not interested in getting the cops called on me.

Every time I went to stake out, I would leave home an item, just to try and narrow down where it could possibly hide. I decided to trust that my bike was tracker free and I bought myself a set of completely new clothes even though I thoroughly checked the old ones. I would wear different shoes, even if I knew there was no way they got to them. One day I even chanced moving about without my wallet. They still found me. And that’s how I realised what the only thing that I had on me all the time, no matter what was. My phone.

I thought back to the day I stormed into Yoongi’s office, distraught and upset, how he acted strangely nice and comfortable. Taehyung’s strange behaviour and my phone. Lying on a table, away from me, but close to Yoongi wandering around. He was messing about that table even when I stayed sitting on that damned couch.

All I could do was laugh at his craftiness. At how easily I fell into a trap of his softer demeanour because I was surprised he sat on the floor and talked seriously, how I let Taehyung completely consume my focus by flirting and teasing me. I had to applaud them, really. It was brilliant and I walked right into it. I was so stupid, I let him fool me even though I was suspicious of him the entire time.

At first I feared he was tracking me through the phone itself, but when I inspected it closer, I noticed a little bump under the case. When I took it off the phone, there it was. A tiny little tracker attached to the plastic.

I wondered what Yoongi was trying to accomplish. He put a tracker on me, but then also made it obvious that he knew more about my whereabouts than he was supposed to. He was quite literally giving it away. Therefore, knowing about the tracker didn’t necessarily put me at an advantage since I had no idea what his goal was. I decided to keep it there until I made up my mind about what to do.

But I was petty. Really petty. And as impressed as I was with my ability to fall for Yoongi’s cheap tactics, I was also peeved. That’s how one day I found myself at our station, loitering around an office where the IT guys had their stuff. When one of them rounded the corner, I immediately took my chance. It took a lot of persuading and lying. A lot of “I’m from this department” and “I was tasked with getting one for the next mission” and such, but twenty minutes later, I was leaving the room with a tracker of my own. Was it technically illegal? Yes. Would Yoongi find the tracker within the first 24 hours and then triumphantly return it to me while telling me to try better next time and I would return it right after before anyone noticed I ever had it in the first place? Also yes. No harm done, just a little revenge.

After that, every day for a week I went straight to Yoongi’s office. Whether I was on duty or not, every afternoon I was sitting on his stupid little sofa, grinning at him mischievously and sipping on tea that he started offering me instead of stiff drinks. I would find anything to talk about, I joked and played and asked stupid questions I knew he’d never answer.

And I could see it on him, he was trying to figure out where this was going. He would look at me, intrigued and confused, his head just whirring with ideas of what my new plan could be, and I was enjoying it so much. Sometimes he’d just stare at me in that way he did to people, and I’d stare right back at him and I was able to laugh. For the first time it felt like we both were trying to catch the other off guard, and not as if I was just mindlessly walking straight into his traps. For a few brief moments, the scales were balanced, and I liked that I was able to keep him in suspense. But I also had to move on from this.

At first his eyes would follow my every move, sharply watching me interact with things he had in his office, but once he'd become used to my presence, become used to how I hovered over things and examined the décor and played with the little trinkets he had on display, I was sometimes able to slip his attention. And then, on the seventh day, when he left the room for a split second to call for Jungkook down the hall, I slipped the tracker into a little tear I had noticed on his jacket, along with a little surprise for him, when he found it (which would be soon).

I walked out of there without saying much, wearing a mysterious smile on my lips when both men turned to watch me leave. Once outside, I took the tracker off my phone and slipped it into the bag of a random guy passing me by on the street. Let’s see how long before they figure that one out.

The game was on.

Series masterlist | Next part

A/N: thank you so much for reading this! i hope you enjoyed yourself, feel free to interact, i will be grateful for comments or asks of all sorts :)

Divider from the amazing @saradika-graphics &lt;3

Taglist (open) : @wobblewobble822

#bts fic #bts #bts x reader #bts smut #bts angst #bts fluff #bts mafia au #bts yoongi #yoongi fic #yoongi x reader #yoongi smut #yoongi angst #yoongi fluff #min yoongi fic #min yoongi x reader #min yoongi smut #min yoongi angst #min yoongi fluff #min yoongi #yoongi #namjoon fic #seokjin fic #hoseok fic #taehyung fic #jimin fic #jungkook fic #min yoongi mafia au #yoongi mafia au #abraxas series

[mamisfavmosher]

taunting call (part 2) // poly!judgment day x fem!reader

SMUT - MINORS DNI

warnings: mommy k!nk, daddy k!nk, suggestive language, oral, penetration, praise k!nk, slight degradation??, pure filth

summary: rhea, finn, and dom get back to the hotel in a hurry so that they can "appreciate" their girl in her tiny lil bikini (although she ends up appreciating them, more so)

After Rhea hung up the facetime call with Damian, she had filled Finn and Dom in on what she had just witnessed and ushered them into their rental car. Finn made quick work of speeding through traffic to get to the hotel. Once they were parked, the three of them filed out of the car, leaving suitcases and belongings behind in order to get to the pool area.

"Are they almost here?" I asked Damian who was lazily running his fingertips along my spine while I lay on his chest, his free hand scrolling through his phone.

"Should be here any minute, baby." He responded and left a lingering peck on my forehead.

"Priest! Leave some for the rest of us!" Damian and I turned our heads at the sudden shout and immediately spotted the three wrestlers quickly walking over. "We got here as quick as we could, but the traffic was absolutely horrible-" Dom stopped himself mid-sentence as his eyes took in my attire. "Woah."

"Hi, guys!" I got off the cabana bed and reached out to give them all individual hugs, relishing in the way their hands roamed my body. "Are you gonna come swim with us?"

"We're going up to the hotel room and you're coming with us." Rhea said in all seriousness. Her hands grabbed my waist and pulled me closer to her.

"Hi, Mami." I whispered and looked up at her through my lashes.

"Hey, baby." She replied in a soft tone and sweetly kissed my lips. Finn and Dom moved to sit beside Damian while Mami showed me her affection.

"Give us a spin, lass. You look beautiful." Finn complimented. I giggled and let Rhea take my hand to spin me around. "Absolutely breathtaking." The boys let out whistles and compliments as Rhea spun me.

"Alright, let's head up to the room. Dom's about to burst out of his pants." Damian laughed out before Dom silenced him with a harsh elbow to the ribs. The rest of us chuckled and Finn helped wrap a towel around my body.

We swiftly made our way back to the hotel room and as soon as the door was closed and locked, Dom yanked the towel off of me and pulled me into a deep kiss. His hands roamed my waist and hips while occasionally reaching down to squeeze my butt. I soon felt Rhea's hands join the mix.

Her fingers were toying with the strings of my bikini bottoms, gently pulling them up my hips to expose more of my butt. I let out a soft moan as her warm palms slid under the fabric, gently squeezing my skin.

"Lay on the bed, baby." Damian said while pulling me away from Rhea and Dom, gently tossing me onto the bed so I was laying on my back. He sat on the bed behind me so that he was leaning against the headboard, pulling me close to lean back on his chest. Rhea laid on one side of me while Finn and Dom sat near the end of the bed.

Mami kissed me deeply before swiping her tongue on my bottom lip. I quickly granted her access and whimpered at the feeling of her tongue exploring every inch of my mouth.

"Blue raspberry?" Mami asked, humming as her tongue left my mouth. "Your favorite. Daddy must have been treating you so well. Getting you your favorite slushies," She licked a stripe up my neck, her fingers tweaking my nipples through the bathing suit. "Tell me, babydoll. What else did Daddy do for you?" Rhea's tone was low, aiming a smirk up at Damian who was combing his fingers through her hair.

The words in my mind were an incoherent jumble due to the multiple sensations being inflicted on my body. Damian's nails were lightly scratching my scalp, the warmth of his strong chest radiating onto my skin. Finn and Dom were both running there hands up and down my legs, fiddling with the strings on my bikini bottoms and leaving soft kisses on my thighs and hips.

Rhea waited for an answer while yanking my top to the side in the process. She licked her lips before lowering her head to take one of my nipples in her mouth.

"Daddy-" I cut myself off with a moan as Rhea started gently using her teeth on my chest. "Daddy treated me so... so well. He-" The pleasure coming from Rhea's mouth rendered me speechless.

"Go on, baby. Tell Mami just how well I was treating you. Tell her how much of a good girl you've been." He cooed with a smirk. "Let her know how you sat so pretty and let Daddy fuck your face." His thumb slipped past my lips, a sign of him telling me to suck. Rhea grinned at the sight and pecked a few kisses onto my cheek.

"Is that right, baby? You let Daddy use you as much as he wanted? Took it all like the good girl that you are?" Her hand gripped my jaw as she spoke to me and I did my best to nod.

All of our attention turned to Finn as he made a sound of disapproval. "Sounds to me like you just went along with whatever Damian asked of ya..." His hand untied one side of my bottoms. "To make sure you got whatever you wanted." He tutted with a raised eyebrow, silently daring me to prove him wrong. Yanking my bikini bottoms down my legs and throwing them across the room, Finn harshly squeezed my hip to secure my attention.

"Finn's got a point, chica." Dom placed a kiss on my knee before rubbing his hand up and down my thigh. "You've been known to suck our dicks in order to get something you want." He playfully shrugged as I shot a glare at him.

"Well, it always works doesn't it?" I mumbled under my breath, but instantly regretted it as they all looked at me with feigned disappointment. "I didn't mean that, I swear! I just-" An icy gaze from Finn shut me up quickly.

"It's fine. You're just a spoiled little brat who manipulates people to get what she wants. Right?" Rhea cocked her head to the side as she asked this, her words laced with a hint of poison. I frantically shook my head to disagree with her. "No?" Her finger traced down the side of my face. "Then how about you show the boys how much you love sucking their dicks and that you don't get them off just to get something in return." She roughly grabbed my jaw and sat me up, shoving me in the direction of Damian's pants.

My fingers made quick work of unbuttoning his pants and pulling out his cock, nervousness causing my hands to shake. I cautiously looked up at Priest to find him already staring down at me. His thumb found my chin and forcefully opened my mouth while his other hand shoved his cock in. Mami was petting my hair, hums of approval sounding from her throat as she took in the scene.

"You wanna show your appreciation for Finn and Dom Dom, too?" She asked. I was already gagging from the length of Damian's cock, but I managed to nod as best as I could. "Alright, boys, go ahead." Rhea wore a sadistic smile as she gestured for the boys to undress and join in on the action. She swiftly untied my bathing suit top and groped my tits from behind as I bobbed my head up and down.

Damian moved me back so I was laying down and crawled on top of me, his dick right in front of my mouth. I happily parted my lips and let him do the work of moving his hips. Reaching out my hands to Dom and Finn, I grabbed hold of them and started attempting the best hand job I could offer at the moment. Every now and then, I would open my eyes to glance around and see Rhea fiddling with her strap-on, attaching it to her waist.

I was caught off guard by Damian pulling himself out of my mouth, multiple strings of spit linking my tongue to his cock. "How much do you love this cock, baby? Show Daddy some appreciation." He demanded, his hand gently wrapping around my throat.

"I love your cock s-so much, Daddy-" I started, but leaned up to kitten lick the tip instead. Rhea was now in my peripheral view as her hand fisted into my hair and yanked my head back down onto the bed. Damian shoved himself back into my mouth and ruthlessly fucked my face as Rhea caressed my cheeks.

"Yeah? You love Daddy's cock?" She tucked some strands behind my ear, waiting for a response. I let out a muffled sound that resembled a 'yes' as his tip hit the back of my throat, tears beginning to stream down my face. "Then make him come." She left a burning kiss on my cheek and I did my best to suck and move my tongue for Damian, eventually feeling his hips stutter. He filled my mouth with his cum and rolled off of me, watching me expectantly. "He gave you a present. Accept it and say thank you." Rhea's tone was aggressive as she lightly pinched my arm. I swallowed what was in my mouth, a few drops dribbling out of the corner of my mouth that Rhea was quick to lick away. "C'mon, what do you say?"

"Thank you, Daddy." I breathed out, my chest heaving from the previous lack of air. Priest reached out to ruffle my hair and smirked down at me.

"You're welcome, princesa. But I don't believe you've received all of your presents yet." He gestured towards Finn and Dom who eagerly came toward me.

Rhea patted the side of my leg before demanding, "Get on all fours." I did as I was told and waited in anticipation as she filled Finn and Dom in on what they were going to do. She came around the bed to stand in front of me and Dom quickly maneuvered himself to lay underneath me. Finn stayed behind me and almost immediately started rubbing his tip through my arousal.

"Okay, baby. Finn's gonna take you from behind while you're riding Dom Dom. I want you to make them both feel good, okay?" Rhea was starting to take control, Damian now sitting against the bed post and enjoying the show. She shoved two fingers into my mouth at the same time that Dom and Finn both pushed into me. Her fingers muffled my loud moan before she pulled them out and smeared my spit onto my cheek, quickly replacing them with her strap-on. The toy was thrusted into my mouth, Mami holding my head in place so I couldn't move away.

I worked my hips against Finn and Dom to hopefully gain them some pleasure, but they eventually took matters into their own hands, keeping me still and rutting into me at their own paces. Once I had gagged on Mami's cock enough for her liking, she pulled out of my mouth and smiled at me while wiping her thumb across my chin.

"Look at you, babygirl. The little cock slut of the Judgment Day, huh? You drooled all over Mami's cock like a good girl." She smirked and leaned down to give me a bruising kiss, lightly biting at my tongue. I moaned out as Dom and Finn started thrusting into me faster, and I reached out to hold onto Rhea's arms for support. Pounding me into oblivion, the boys were quickly approaching their orgasms, rocking me back and forth. Their thrusts grew sloppy and I felt them both pull out before painting my stomach and butt with their cum.

Rhea instructed me not to move while she circled around to the other side of the bed and scooped some of Finn's cum off of my butt and smeared it through my folds, her thumb starting to quickly circle my clit. "What do you say to Dom Dom and Finn, pretty girl? They just gave you a present." Rhea mentioned, harshly slapping my butt.

"Th-thank you! Thank you, Finn and Dom Dom..." I stammered out as Mami's thumb still worked on my clit.

Finn gently gripped my jaw and gave me a sweet kiss. "Anytime, lass. Now focus on Mami. She's gonna let you come soon." He landed another peck on my cheek before joining Damian near the bed post. Dom stayed underneath me, massaging and kneading my tits. I moaned loudly as Mami stuck two fingers inside of me, quickly thrusting them in and out.

"You gonna come, babydoll? I know you're close." Her fingers moved faster causing me to whimper. I felt the knot building in my stomach and desperately shoved my hips back toward her to get more of her touch, her chuckle sounding from behind me. "Patience, hun. I'll get you there." I whimpered at her words and she curled her fingers inside of me, the knot beginning to unravel. I moaned her praises as she slowed her movements, allowing me to calm down. "Such a good girl, baby. So good for all of us."

"Yeah, we're definitely going to spoil you for this." Dom chuckled from underneath me and I laid down to rest on his chest, cuddling my face into his neck. I felt Mami petting my hair, moving to lay beside us.

"Give Mami some cuddles, too, babe." She laughed and pulled me from Dom onto her chest. I eagerly snuggled into her as well before softly mumbling a, "Thanks for the orgasm, Mami." I felt her chest shake as she giggled. "No problem, bub." She kissed the top of my head and tightened her arms around me in a protective hug.

The four of them spent the rest of the day surrounding me in the hotel room. They were constantly checking on me to make sure I felt okay after their slightly rough session with me. I reassured them every time and they came up with multiple ideas on how to spoil me for the next few days.

#wwe #rhea ripley #the judgement day #wwe superstars #dominik mysterio #finn balor #damian priest #fanfiction #rhea ripley x reader #dominik mysterio x reader #finn balor x reader #damien priest x reader #the judgment day x reader #monday night raw #friday night smackdown #wwe x reader

[iloveaustinelvisandmannymore]

The Art of obsession.

Pairing: Austin!Elvis x reader

Summary: When you decided to be a preschool teacher you didn't know you would be teaching the famous Alpha Celebrity Elvis Presley's daughter Lisa Marie Presley. What you didn't know was that it would take a twisted turn when you got to know the 'Alpha' himself more and soon start to think you shouldn't have met him in the first place. (@galaxygirl453 )

Warnings: Manipulation, Gas lighting, Guilt tripping, Forced marriage, Drugging, Delusional/Obsessed Austin!Elvis, Baby trapping, Breeding kink, Forced marking, Creampie, dinner room sex, At school sex, Dirty talk, Housewife kink, Praise, Cock warming, Bullying, Pregnancy, and Pregnancy sex, Gorely murder.

A/n: So the anon who requested this, I hope you like it.

Elvis only could hear the clicking of his dress shoes against the preschool's tile, his thoughts grow wild. While he was at home, practicing with some of the Memphis Mafia in The Jungle Room, he got a call from the principal that Lias Marie had gotten into a fight, his Lisa? He knew it was hard for Lisa Marie to go through the change of having divorce parents but she wouldn't fight another kid, would she? No, she wouldn't. Elvis closed his eyes and took a calming breath in and opened the door.

"Ah! Mr. Presley, there you are." the principal exclaimed mockingly, a sarcastic smile on his wrinkled, chubby face "What happened?" Elvis asked as he sat beside a sniffling Lisa, putting a hand on her tiny back, quietly comforting her "Lisa Marie attacked a little boy, while they were playing. If I were you I'd discipline her better." the old white-haired man practically snarled, Elvis could feel his blood boil, his wolf growling and ready to protect his little pup. Elvis opened his mouth to reply when the door swing open and the scent so luring filled his sense of smell, Rose & honey with a hint of firewood, his ocean orbs snapped to the source.

"Miss. (L/N)!" The principal called out but you ignored him, and simply squatted down in front of Lisa "Are you, okay sweetheart? I heard what happened." you gently cooed to Lisa wiping away her tears, Elvis's heartbeat quickened as he stared at you in awe, his body heat raised and ringing filed his ear, it was getting hard to breathe, everything in his body screamed to be yours, your omega but you wasn't an alpha, you couldn't be, you don't act like one, plus he worked so hard to be an 'Alpha' to lose it. Elvis breathed in and thanked God for his dark shades that helped conceive his emotion. "Miss. (L/n) this is a private meeting." you stood and turned to your boss, with a warm smile that didn't reach your eyes " With all due respect, sir, We both know Bobby Field likes to push around others, it's quite boggling to me that little Lisa Marie is here instead of him" the elder man opened his mouth to speak, but you continued "I get that you might be jealous of Mr. Presley's effect on your new 'wife' but we should not take it on the children Mr. Dryier." The beta man in question looked away in shame "Leave me." the beta waved his hand dismissing him, Lisa, and Miss.(L/n). They wasted no time leaving the stuffy office and into the hallway.

"You alright little Marie?" Miss (L/n) asked bending down and smiling down at his daughter "'m alright." Lisa nodded to you and wiped her puffy face from the tears in her eyes, wearing a cute tiny pout that made her teacher giggle softly, to Elvis it was like the sound of Angels singing and joyful bells ringing, his heartbeat once again raced just a little. You stood up, turning to him with your warm and soft smile, and he swear his heart skipped a beat, his body heat raised hotter than before, suddenly his throat felt dry and he felt like he was hardly breathing, his wolf begging and whimpering for his Alpha "Thank you, for doin' that." Elvis managed to spit out, with a fax confidence smirk even though a raging storm of emotion waved its course within him, "Your welcome. I just hate when adults are petty and mistreat children." you huffed before a smile was back on your face " I'm (Y/N) (L/n), it's a pleasure to meet THE Elvis Presley." you held out your hand that he gladly took, electricity ride up his spine and a groan tried to force it's way out his lips, he suddenly needed to fuck, to breed you, the want became almost unbearable. Elvis gulped before speaking "Pleasure all mine, darlin'" You shake his hand "Well it's time for me and Marie to head to class, recess is over." you said taking his little girl's hand, waved at him, and walked off.

Once you were out of sight, Elvis rushed out of the school and drove to Graceland, with the pain going through his veins, body screaming for release. His back laid against his comfortable mattress, clothes on the floor, and his cock in his hand, pumping fast, pre-cum leaking out and over his hand, his hips jerking into his fist, wishing it was your pussy, He cummed with a whimper and whine.

That was the best orgasm, Elvis had ever experienced, he didn't cum that hard even with Priscilla.

He wanted you, wanted you to be his, by God, you will be, whether you want that or not, he decided you'd be his alpha, no matter the costs. He didn't put his plan into action until a month later, he convinced the principal to have you tutor Lisa at Graceland when you had the time, after all every man had a price. It was a Tuesday when he acted, it was a sunny day and you came exactly the same time you always have, a bright smile and warmth in your eyes as he opened the door "How are you today Mr. Presley?" you asked walking into the beautiful mansion "Doin' just fine." Elvis smiled back and locked the door behind him, actually, he was more than fine, he was excited, he got off his suppressants and stopped wearing his mask scents, and he was going into heat, no alpha couldn't resist an omega in heat, not a sweet little alpha like you. "So where is little Marie?" you questioned looking for her, normal the little girl would come running to greet you, "Goddamn, I forget to tell ya she's at her mother's. I'm sorry darlin'," he said "It's okay I can just go." "You sure? The drive here is at least 2 hours, would ya like a drink?" Elvis asked, gently guiding you to the dining room "I could go for some coke." you smile softly as you sat in a chair at the large dining table "Great, just relax darlin' I'll get yar coke."

Elvis walked into the kitchen, grabbed two coke bottles, and pulled out a set of different quickly, tasteless dissolving drugs, one to enhance your instinct and one to trigger his heat, dropping each drug in your respective drinks, he brought and sat your coke in front of you, before sitting across of you, taking a sip of his coke "So how was school?" Elvis asked leaning back in his seat, "It was okay, the kids were a little—" you trailed off, once a temping scent filled the air, The smell of fresh morning due and lavender sage, your eyes meet Elvis's when a pained whimper left the omega, wait omega? He usually smelled like another alpha, that of Sandalwood and vanilla, he was a beautiful sight, his normal ocean orbs were hard to see, his pupils so dilated he was breathing heavily and sweat begin to make his skin shine. A strong want for, no need to have this omega, ride him until he begs you to stop, your eyes dilated as you stood up and walked to him "Get up." you order and like a good boy he did what he was told "Such good omega" you cooed " your reward." you said before pulling the godly of a man into dominating and passionate kiss, tongues swirling each other and your hands worked on removing his black half unbutton blouse. You both parted Breathing heavily as you remove his blouse and he was working to remove his pants "Such a gorgeous Alpha and gonna take care of me? Huh, darlin'?" he teased, kissing your neck before taking off his pants and lifted himself onto the table, his cock stood tall, your mouth watering and your pussy became slick. You crawled over him and lined his cock with your weeping core and slowly descended upon him, and immediately started to ride him it's been so long since you had sex nevertheless, you couldn't believe your luck a male Omega they're is so rare as Alpha females, you throw your head back, and rolled your hips sharply causing a pretty gasp and moan from the men below you.

His large hands quickly gripped your hips, moans, and whines left his pink lips, his Raven hair stuck to his forehead, and his eyes lidded, desperate, you bounced faster and leaned down to kiss him, not once stopping. His scent filled your nose and lungs like a drug, your kisses strayed from his lips to his neck, and a sudden desire, temptation, want, set your body ablaze, a want to mark, claim this man, his hand held your head to his neck, and his arm throw over your waist, holding you as you bounce. His scent became deliciously overwhelming and you bit down on his neck, staking your claim. Elvis gasped, it worked! He flipped you both, your back on the warm smooth wood as you licked up the blood and the bite with your healing saliva, Elvis pounded into you with a strong punishing rhythm, each thrust from his skilled hips, would push your hips against the table and his cock reached your sweet spot like no, Alpha or beta never had, the sexy growls and huffs leave the rock and roll king brought you closer to your climax "T-That's it! Cum, cum on this cock lil Darlin'! Goddamn, I'm close!" Elvis panted, his already fast thrusting turn frantic, and with a rub against your little nub, you came with a scream, Elvis not far after, with a groan he came, painting your walls and womb white with his seed. it took you a minute to realize what happened, you forcefully claimed him, and your widen eyes snapped to Elvis who was tracing the mark with shock and terror on his face "I'm so sorry I didn't mean to.." you trailed off as guilt set heavily into your chest "I'm ruined.." Elvis whispered, pacing in front of you "What can I do?" you begged "There's nothing you can do." he said, his back turned to you, a sinister smirk on his lips, it really was working, you were going to his. "Please there must be something?" you plead more desperately "Move in here and marry me, people will think it was consensual and you will be able to keep your job. We'll say we kept our relationship secret" Elvis turned to look at you, his eyes holding a strange gleam but you were too much in turmoil to notice "O-Oh Okay." you shakily nodded.

You sighed as you struggle to get out of bed with your 8 months baby bump, your husband sound asleep, it was a rare sight to see, he laid on his stomach, his head on his arm, his lips parted in silent snores, his jet black a mess on his forehead, he was it was gorgeous even if he was asleep, 'no fair' you chuckled and bend down as best as you could, kissed his forehead and walked into the bathroom and got ready for work, it had been a year since that, and it wasn't bad being married to the rock star, sure he had his moments, but he treated you well and you have grown to even love the man. Though you could go without the bursts of anger and possessiveness, it was worse when your ex came around which happened more often than not, he works at the same school you did, and now that you think about Elvis acted more than an alpha than you did sometimes, You yawned as stretched your arms, it was lunch time so the little pups went to the cafeteria. you were about to reach for your lunch when a knock on your classroom door made you sharply inhale, feeling irritation enter your system you took a calm breath then smiled "Come in." you spoke calmly and your husband strutted in with a small smile "How're my girls?" Elvis asked taking off his famous shades and hooking them on his belt "We're doing alright." your smile turned genuine "What are you doing here?" you asked as he leaned against your desk, looking at you with the same loving and devoted look in his eyes when never he looked at you, his smile tugged into a smirk at your question, his orbs was overcome with lust. "I came to check on you and the babies. God..you smell so good."

'Oh' you thought as heat rushed into your body, it had got clearer, the closer you got into your pregnancy, you hungered for sex more, and seeing the predatory lust-driven glint didn't help, you could feel the Alpha purr inside of you, she was pleased, happy to have such a doting omega to take care of her and your needs. Elvis rushed to sweep everything off your desk and helped you upon it, lips locked in a passionate kiss as you slowly leaned down onto the light brown desk, Elvis's fingers hooked onto your underwear and slide them off from under your sundress, your core already slick ready to take your omega he fumbled with unbuckled his belt and unzipping his pants, letting out small whimpers of want. "Shh it's okay omega, your Alpha is here" you purred, eyes blew out as he slowly slid into your pussy despite everything in him wanting to slam into you, his thrusts were slow but precise at first, trying so hard to be gentle, in control but it was slipping as he pounded faster, the poor old desk creaked under the pressure. The classroom echoes your lewd moans and the arousing sound of skin smacking against the skin, and your wet pussy taking a beating.

You whined as Elvis whispered sweet nothing, his pubic bone smacking against your clit, your eyes drifted into the small rectangle window of your classroom door, a set of brown tearful orbs looked back at yours; your ex Joseph a hurt expression plastered on his face but you couldn't find it in you to care while you were being fucked dumb, you grabbed Elvis's face and pulled him into a kiss of swirling tongues, your hips bucking upwards to your husbands hammering, the band in your stomach coming closer to snapping a sharp thrust had you coming, you left out a satisfied sigh as he finished inside. Your eyes looked to the window once again, Joseph was gone and a tiny feeling of guilt wash over you.

Elvis helped you down, helped cleaned up, and organize your desk, he stayed with you for the rest of your break, and the room was filled with laughter and talking. He left as the bell ranged not before leaving with a kiss and that was the last time he really spend time with you.

You were on your 9th month and at home, Elvis and you had agreed you were too close to your due date to work, so you just cooked and cleaned around the house. He was as always at his Studio, hanging out and recording songs with the Memphis Mafia when he got home he would just kiss you on the lips and Lisa Marie on her cheeks before doing his own thing. Today you decided to clean some of the rooms downstairs, you just finished one and were heading to the other when something catch your eye, the door that was normally locked was open just a slit, like a cat that was killed by curiosity, you completely open the door and a set of stairs lead down into the poorly lit room. You grip the metal rails as you take cautious steps can you pause once you smell stench so horrible like something was rotting? You watched as your feet bit the bottom step and when you finally looked up a gasp of pure horror left you. Dried blood splattered everywhere, bits and pieces of Flesh ran across the floors and walls as if an animal ripped apart its prey not caring where the pieces landed, and a ripped leg enters your vision, your eyes traced up, and what you saw would haunt you as bile rises up your throat. A man's body slumps against the back wall, his left arm cut off, and laying beside his thigh, his jaw hangs open, some teeth missing and his other leg gone, what you assume it was the bits of rotting flesh scattered around. A familiar scent entered your nose beneath the rotting corpse, Seabreeze vanilla, and coconut... Joseph. A chill climbed its way up your spine and tears build up in your orbs then another scent enters your nose and your blood runs ice cold.

"Tsk, such a bad alpha." a voice mocked you in the Stillness of this horror, your head snaps up at the top of the stairs, and your 'innocent' husband looks down at you coldly, eyes glowing blue as he leans against the doorframe

Taglist; @reddie-freddie, @father-of-2cats, @yynneessmons, @trinityscarlett173, @mnessasstuff, @galaxygirl453, @xxmadhatter39xx, @pennyroyalcreep, @elvisalltheway101 ,@plasticfantasticl0ver, @kendralavon7, @crash-and-cure, @flwersgarden. @airyx0x0.

"You're afraid? Good, you should be."

(@galaxygirl453)

#elvis imagine #elvis presley x reader #elvis x reader #elvis smut #austin butler smut #austin butler x reader #elvis 2022 #yandere!elvis x reader #austin elvis imagine #yandere austin butler x reader

[eightmagicballs]

Reins Update: So, do you want the good news or the bad news?

sorry in advance if this reads like a wet newspaper there's a lot and i'm a lover not a writer

Alright nerds, here's my most recent update in the Battle of the Reins:

Good news! Apart from fixing some weights where the reins meet the bridle (still figuring that out but that's just a skill issue on my end), its super easy to attach reins to your bridle mesh! Take a look at this bad boy:

(ignore the janky positioning by the bit, I told you; Skill Issue)

(also also, look at the sheepskin pad LOOK AT IT get yours from SweetPea HERE)

Even better news: with this method, the reins now share the bridle section of the UV map, so even in this case where I just slapped them into @studiosweetpeacc 's bridle cc, apart from moving the reins map onto the bridle, I didn't have to do anything extra in regards to swatches! yay!

(basically the reins r now a part of the bridle mesh but you have to copy the rein weights from the reins CAS item *the horse ranch version, not the one w the base game symbol*. I've also made the default reins invisible so they're still technically there. That's to stop them from clipping with the new, better, cooler reins.) Great stuff we're all delighted! Good reins are on the way for us all!

Except, here's the bad news:

Since the reins aren't supposed to be applied, this is what they look like by default.

There's only one proper fix for this as far as I can see. In order to sort this teeny tiny issue out, I'll have to basically edit every single animation clip that the horse uses where the reins sit like this by default. Basically every unmounted clip.

The package of those files alone, unedited, is about 26MB and some bits.

That's like...a lot.

I think.

My potential compromise is this. I'd edit the CAS poses so the reins don't look janky while you make your horse. I'd also edit the pose the horse uses between shaking on the tack and entering the mount animation (that's the pose you see here),as well as the pose they enter between dismounting and shaking off the tack. There's also the 'being thrown off' pose you might have seen in my previous post, I think those are the ones we'd see most often that require fixing.

The reins will still hang like this for basically every other thing the horse does while tacked up (but not being ridden), but it means a much smaller file.

Also, bridles with no reins attached will still work for those people who take stud/confirmation pics of their horses, so no worries about them getting in the way.

(small caveat to this: because the default reins r hidden, they won't pop up when the sim mounts the horse unless you change the bridle to one with reins attached)

-

I think that concludes my report. I had no idea it would be this complicated (and to be fair it might not be but this is very new to me so I got lost quite a bit), but I hope that this helps with getting some nice tack!

**Stirrups update: I have ideas, I'll have to test them. Stay tuned.**

--

CC U CAN C IN THESE SCREENIES:

@minervamagicka Default Skin Replacement, Default Eye Replacement

@objuct HR Mane + Tail Retexture

@rheallsim Petrichor Default Eye Set

@studiosweetpeacc Simple Snaffle Bridle (edited w/reins), SHEEPSKIN PAD, Better Leg Wraps

@domaine-du-fleau Caliope - Riding Leggings, Solaris - Jumping Saddle Pad

Also I did the Default Stirrup Replacement ;-;

#ts4 horse cc #ts4 cc wip #ts4cc #sims 4 horse cc #sims 4 cc

[outtoshatter]

I just felt like putting together a little list of some recently published fics in our not-so-little fandom! I got a TON of help from @missanniewhimsy putting this together, thank you so much!! Some of these are more winter than Christmas but it’s mostly festive! This list got a tiny bit long so I added a cut to make things nice and neat! Please enjoy and maybe leave the authors some love if you can! :D

Krampusnacht, or How Derek and Stiles Got a Kid for Christmas by HisBeloved (6k, T)

When Peter Hale was a child he was almost taken by Krampus.  He's hated Christmas ever since.  This is the year that Krampus returns.

Hale’s Bookish Tales by raisesomehale (5k, E)

The man (who Derek had taken to calling ‘Bambi’ in his head) had arrived at Hale’s Bookish Tales painfully early that morning. Normally when he came in he would sprawl out in the desk under the large bay window up front, but today he’d made a bee-line for the lower level and hadn’t returned to the surface since.

Not even after the mass blizzard alert hit, and all the other customers had fled.

If it wasn’t for Derek’s increasingly unhinged infatuation with the man - and thus over-awareness of his presence - he wouldn’t even have noticed that a customer still remained in his bookshop. But Derek had been carefully watching the stream of customers filing out, and had noticed the glaring absence of one in particular.

give me your heart, darling, for christmas by sterekhale (15k, T)

  "I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend for the Christmas party because Joanna's gonna be there!" Stiles shouts as he barges through the door to Derek’s apartment.  

Derek doesn't look up from the book he’s reading. "I see that you're still handling your problems with the same level of maturity." — Stiles wants to convince his ex-girlfriend that he’s totally over her—because he is, he barely even thinks about her anymore—and he needs Derek’s help to do the convincing. He’s just a little oblivious of Derek’s feelings for him.

baby please come home by elisela (5k, G)

Stiles should be happy.

He should be happy, he should be fucking delighted—there’s a bottle of champagne being uncorked, hands being shaken, a too-hearty clap on his back that jolts him forward and causes him to stumble slightly. But the space in his chest that usually burns with the high of a closed deal is hollow, empty, and the twinkling gold Christmas lights one of the secretaries had hung in the office mock him, a depressing reminder that he’s about to be alone for the holidays.

It feels like I don’t know you anymore, was the last thing Derek had muttered to him, standing in the threshold of what had been their apartment, backpack slung over one shoulder and duffle bag strap clenched in his fist. I can’t do this.

Poetry in the Raw by Jmeelee (5k, E)

Derek answers his phone on the second ring.  “What.” No inflection whatsoever.  

“Does the ‘S’ in your middle name stand for Sexy?”

Silence.  Then, “Stiles.”  Still no inflection.  

“I doubt it stands for Stiles, dude.  There can only be one,” he answers in a kick-ass impersonation of The Kurgan.  “But tell me it isn’t, like, Sawyer or Skylar or something equally new-age and white-boy contemporary.”

“How did you get my number?”

OR: 5 times Stiles guesses Derek's middle name +1 time he knows.

All I Want for Christmas Is Brew (And You) by snarkatthemoon (4k, T)

“One spiced hazelnut mocha for the dude with the impressive eyebrows and cute scarf,” he says, handing Derek the cup instead of putting it down on the counter like all the baristas do. Their fingers brush gently, and Derek takes far too long to take the cup from Stiles, their eyes meeting.

Ask him for his number, his brain supplies in a voice which sounds scarily like his sister’s. Stiles raises his eyebrows, their eyes still locked and both still holding the cup.

The second Derek opens his mouth, the moment is broken by one of the other baristas shouting, “Stiles! We could all use a little help here considering we have a line going out the door.”

Stiles pulls his hand away as if he’s been burned, giving Derek a sheepish smile before he turns to get back to work.

Derek heads out past the line of irritated customers, ignoring the dirty looks he’s being given while he curses himself inwardly. Idiot. That voice sounds like his other sister.

.

Or, the one where Derek has a crush on a hot barista with a talent for baking and a questionable taste in festive headwear. Written for the Sterek Secret Santa 2021 gift exchange.

McLinski’s by StaciNadia (3k, G)

Derek is a coffee snob looking for some good coffee, but what he finds is bad coffee jokes and maybe a whole lot more. 

Build A Wolf by PalenDrome (5k, T)

Derek is a romantic. He dreams of finding his mate, of connecting with that special someone who will make his heart swoon.

Easy Wind, Downy Flake by wanderingeyre (16k, E)

The man’s hazel eyes snap with something like anger, his mouth a thin line. “We aren’t open.”

Stiles opens his mouth, gaze sliding from the fire, being cheerful, to the man standing five feet from the fire who looks like he wouldn’t know cheerful if it bit him in the ass. “The snow is bad. I barely made it here. If I try to go over the pass in this weather they’ll find my body at the bottom of the mountain come spring.”

Sock-Stuffed Stockings (and other traditions) by redhoodedwolf (9k, T)

Stiles just wants to make it home in time for christmas, so when traffic is crawling due to an accident on the highway he takes a detour down the back roads, only for his beloved jeep to give out. but doesn’t derek hale live in these woods? stiles hasn’t seen him since they were teenagers, but the gentle guy who opens the door with a kid on his hip is definitely not what he expects from the arrogant dick who ignored him back in high school.

#sterek #fic recs #rec list #christmas 2022 #sterek christmas 2022 #christmas recs #stiles stilinski #derek hale #teen wolf #recent recs #bookstore au #coffee shop #snowed in #winter fics #gia talks

[immortal-imagines]

Sabotage - Part 2

Summary: The start of a new uni year brings new classmates, new lessons and a new professor.

Parts: 1, 2, 3 (to be continued)

(professor!Joel x Reader)

Warnings: mentions of smut, alcohol, swearing

Word Count: 941

A/N: A slightly shorter chapter, but I promise, good things are coming!

If you were going to truly fuck with this asshole, you needed to take it seriously. He’d made your first lecture hell. You were going to do one better. It was two weeks into term and you were biding your time. The weekend rolled around and it was time to set step one of your plan into motion.  

Kelsey was having the time of her life with the boy next door. When she finally came home and joined you on the sofa, after a night presumably at his, she looked exhausted. Her hair was tangled, make up smudged, stinking of a cocktail of beer, vodka and sex.

She flopped down next to you, pulling your blanket over her lap. You wrinkled your nose.

“Have you showered?”

“No, why do I smell?” She held her arm up and took a quick sniff, answering her own question. “Gross.”

“You know you haven’t been to a single lecture?”

Kelsey shrugged. “I’ve done it before, I’ll do it again. Plus, you can catch me up, right?” She winked.

“Sure. There’s an assignment due next week.”

Kelsey pulled herself up. “Shit, on what?”

“The Great Gatsby. Professor wants an essay explaining the plot because he’s never read it.”

“You’re joking?”

“Nope.”

You sat in silence for a second, before you broke it with, “Want to go shopping?”

Kelsey groaned. “Normally it’d be a yes, but right now a tiny army are battling in my head and I’m running on beer and 2 hours of sleep.”

-

You’d saved up a bit of money over the summer, doing odd jobs here and there, so had some cash to spare. And some new clothes were step one of your plan.

The first shop you went to was teeming with summer dresses. You picked out a couple of red options, to replace the coffee-stained one, plus some blue and a little purple slip that you were sure was probably pyjamas or lingerie. It brushed your thigh, just short enough to fuck with an asshole, but still be kind of appropriate for uni.

You decided that was your choice for Monday morning. Start the week off right.

Professor Miller was already setting up when you walked in. No one else had arrived yet, which was intentional on your part. You wanted to be noticed. You wanted to tease.

“Morning, professor,” you said, as you passed him.

He grunted, not looking up from his papers.

You didn’t take your usual spot at the back corner. You sat in the middle, in plain sight. You took your essay from your bag and walked to his desk. The paper made a satisfying swoosh as you slid it under his nose. He looked at your then. That same dark look from day one in his eyes. His lips parted and you caught his eyes look you up and down. It was so quick that if you’d blinked you’d have missed it. When you leant over his desk, you revealed just the right amount of cleavage. He pressed his mouth into a line.

“My essay,” you said. As you walked back to your desk, you felt his eyes follow you.

Other students filed in, adding their essays to yours. Professor Miller didn’t look at you again.

He didn’t look at your for the rest of the lecture. It must’ve been hard, seeing as you were right in front of him. His eyes flickered onto you once, but just as soon as he’d looked, he turned back to the board behind him. You decided that this wasn’t good enough. While everyone was focused on a written task, you raised your hand.

Professor Miller’s eyes blackened as he acknowledged your hand. “What?”

“Sorry professor, can I use the bathroom?”

He grunted, which you took as a yes.

You stood, making sure you held his eye as you walked past him to the door. He looked pissed. Good.

In the bathroom, a wicked thought crossed your mind. You used the courage and anger that had built up since that first lecture and took off your black lace thong. You tucked it down into your bra so it was hidden. When you went to hand in your written task, you slipped the thong between the papers and put it in a plastic wallet. Sure, it was risky, but if it worked, the payoff would be perfect. Thank god for plastic wallets. You added it to the pile with everyone else’s and were dismissed for lunch.

A small doubt began to play in your mind as you sat down to eat your lunch. What if you’d got the wrong idea? What if you got kicked off the course? He was an asshole. He could report you, then what? Why did you have to be so stubborn and confrontational?

These thoughts only worsened when you stepped back into class to see Professor Miller, a look of pure rage, hands balled into fists, knuckles white, sat behind his desk. He glared at you when you walked in and continued to until you sat down. If he didn’t stop, other people would start to notice.

Thankfully, he didn’t acknowledge you for the rest of the afternoon. But that feeling of doubt stayed in your mind. You felt like you were going to throw up, but you couldn’t ask to leave. You didn’t want to draw any more attention to yourself. He’d looked pissed. What if he’d reported you already?

Class ended and all you wanted to do was run home. But Professor Miller had other ideas. As you headed for the door, you felt a large hand on your shoulder.

“My office, now.”

#Joel Miller #joel miller x reader #joel miller imagine #professor!joel #prof!joel #pedro #Pedro Pascal #pedro pascal x reader #pedro pascal imagine #pedro imagine #pedro pascal smut #joel miller smut

[pinkyjulien]

🟨 Then n' Now - High Voltage edition ⚡

Yoinking @arcandoria's idea and making one of those before/after post focused on the babies💛 motivated by AND motivating @elvenbeard to do the same 😌🤏

This will be both a VP and Modding journey 👉

▶ December 2020

━ "No mods, we die VP like men!"

AKA open up PhotoMode and get as close as you can to your fav, playing with angles while getting the camera stucks in the surrounding 80% of the time and trying to make the characters look at each others in a "natural" way 👀

▶ early 2021

━ "I learned how to app swap and I cannot be stopped"

I got into modding because/thanks to Mitch 🤠 and the first thing I did was to .app swap him into all of the romance scenes 😩🤏 My BIG MODDER GOAL back then was to have Him and Valentin in the panzer scene, meaning I needed to find a way to:

Swap Valentin into Panam's place

Swap Mitch into V/Player's place

Unlock the camera / have a true free-roam experience

and also remove all of the HUD and green filter

I was just a tiny dude with Big Dreams 👀

▶ first half 2021

━ "I can change clothes now! AKA OOC-fest"

Ugh. JHGFHJGHFJ

Looking back at some of the stuff I did before legit gives me so much icks now 💀 the joy and freedom of being a simp with fresh modding power, you just Do Stuff because You Can! Who cares if the character turns extremly OOC, right? keeping them for the memories 🤭

▶ first half 2021

━ "ReShade? What's a ReShade"

My first month of playing around with Reshade! Everything was way too saturated, too bright or too dark- but it was new and exciting! Experimenting with more swapping, more photomode-posing 🤏

▶ July 2021

━ "the Modding High"

Camera unlocks, Player Replacer, FixSwaps, Bi River trick, Blur Remover, Facial expressions for V, Swap to Everyone... my peak as a modder still to this day ngl

I achieved all I ever wanted, did the mods I needed to be able to smooch Mitch and have my canon panzer scene 🧡 (cannot showcase it here on Tumblr for hornyjail reason)

The "bi river" trick was involving CyberCat, an old save editor software that allowed you to swap V presets! You had to launch the romance scene with River as a fem V, then save at the start of it using the "Save Anytime" mod, edit your save file by swapping in your Male V preset, and Voila~ you had a Masc V in the River scene :D

▶ August 2021

━ "Custom poses Fever"

...and the first true love kisses!

Searching and modding your first poses swaps, then spawning the blorbos in game, timing the expressions and animation correctly and... having them "kiss for real" for the first time 🥺😩 ouugghh IT HITS! It hits so good!

From there, the rest of 2021 was focused on playing around with custom poses and exploring my own canon; giving new canon-compliant appearances to Mitch and Valentin, doing VP comics... also exploring some AUs and doing special occasion outfits, like Halloween!

▶ 2022

━ "I can create my own story"

I focused a lot on my own canon in 2022, via comics and photoset exploring what happens to both Mitch and Valentin's respective past and shared future together

Modding was also a big part of the year! There wasn't any big breakthrough other than the scenerid extract for custom poses, which allowed me to finally use the amazing tender animations from the Judy scene in my boys tent 🤭

▶ 2023

━ "Still here"

There will always be new exciting way of exploring and creating content for my babes- the knowledge of custom made poses allowing us for even more angst, tenderness, passion!

and I'm looking forward to it all 🥺🧡

Those years's been a whole creative journey~ and it's thanks to those two, my blorbos, my beloved stinkies, that I'm the modder and photographer that I am now!

Who knows where they'll take me next 💛😊

#Cyberpunk 2077 #Mitch Anderson #Valentin Da Silva #Aldecaldos #OTP: High Voltage #MLM #Screenshot #Virtual Photography #did I cried? Yes. Maybe UHAHUGHUEZHU #focused more on 2021 because that's when my brain unlocked for real #not that I didn't improved in 2022 or this year but it's not the same #also included my modding stuff as well cause I feel like this played a big part in how I appreciate my ship too #My love letter to them Mwah 😩🧡 #flame still burning bright so I won't be stopping any time soon 🤏 #I'm more focused on modding this year- and also IRL stuff that are outside my control life gotta life yknow #but they both been keeping me sane and made me incredibly more crazy HGFH 😌 #long post #fav #then and now

[ladykailitha]

WIP Wednesday Game

It’s WIP Wednesday, time for a little accountability, sharing your work, and getting a kick in the pants.

Here’s how it works:

In a reblog (or new post w/ rules attached), post up to five (5) filenames of your WIPs; not titles, file names.

Post a snippet from one of them. Snippet must be words you wrote in the last 7 days. We’re posting progress here. If you haven’t made any, go make some and come back to post!

After you’ve posted, people can send you an ask with one of your file names. You must then write 3 sentences in that file. If the filename is one you can't share from (for example, an event fic), write 3 sentences on it anyway, and then 3 more on another to share.

That’s it! You can invite others to join in, or just post. If you tag me in your post, I will send you an ask request!

If you’re reading this, you’re invited!

If you see someone posting a WIP Wednesday Game snippet, send them an ask! Make them write.

My only problem is that I tend to file name what the title is so I can find it easier, so...here’s what they were called before I titled them.

“File” Names

Werewolf Steve

Boy w/a Bat book 2

Rom-com AU

Steve in a metal band AU

Post season 2 Valentine's Day AU

Snippet

From Metal Band AU

“Hello, ladies,” Nancy said with a smile. “I’m sorry I was late, but I think I managed a god damn miracle and could eat an entire salad bar.”

Nancy sat down and put her phone in her purse.

“Oh are you vegan?” Chrissy asked as the waiter came up with a pitcher of water. Nancy waved him off and ordered a rosé.

“Just vegetarian,” she said with a shake of her head. “I love cheese too much. Plus, I knew a militant vegan and they scare me.”

Robin laughed. “Couldn’t be me, I went full vegan last year and haven’t looked back.”

Nancy and Chrissy both winced, but for different reasons, Nancy for her comment about militant vegans and Chrissy, well...

“I picked this place because it has the best rib eye steak on the planet,” she said with a grimace. “That’s not going to bother either of you if I order that, right?”

Nancy and Robin shared a glance and then shook their heads.

****

That great and wonderful time of the week again! WIP Wednesday!

The game runs from 8am-11pm EST.

Send in as many asks as you want as often as you want.

@mira-jadeamethyst @zerokrox-blog @forgottenkanji @w1ll0wtr33 @forgottenkanji

@acingthecounts @thesecondfate @beelze-the-bubkiss @just-a-tiny-void @kultiras

#my writing #stranger things #steddie #ladykailtiha writes #wip wednesday

[imabiscuitinthousandworlds]

hey can u tell me abt ball point pen history

OH BOY DO I EVER!!!

The first patent for ballpoint pens was granted in 1888. Specifically on the 30th of October, to one John J Loud. It was supposed to be able to write on coarser surfaces that a fountain pen could not.

However, this very first version of a ballpoint pen sucked balls. It was not a design that could not write on paper. At all. Also, the ink tended to either leak (in summer) or freeze (in winter) Mind, I only have one specific source on this model right now but. There's a reason they were yet to be used for a long time. Over the next couple decades, a few people tried to chime in with suggestions for improvement but Loud kept a tight wrap on those patents.

No profit was made from Loud's original version of a ballpoint pen. But, you know, technically it still existed.

Now, early 20th century. Enter László Biró, a newspaper editor who was frustrated about all the smudging ink from fountain pens and his dentist brother-with-chemical-knowledge György. Biró (already seeing the resemblance to some slang here) watched newspapers being printed and dry very, very quickly and went "actually, You Know What".

What they figured out was that to use ink that dries fast in a pen, you need a pen that prevents the ink from drying fast inside of said pen. Therefore, they spent Quite A While figuring out a mechanism to allow inkflow while preventing it from drying and clogging up inside. 1938, they filed for a British patent.

1941, the Biró brothers left Hungary due to its support of Hitler (based) and eventually settled in Argentina, where they founded/developed a new brand of ballpoint pens with their friend Juan Jorge Meyne and filed a new, better patent in 1943.

Now this is where things get messy and my sources differ sliiightly but considerably enough to be confusing.

One the one hand, you have two companies, Eversharp Co and Eberhard Faber Co teaming up to license this Birome pen in the USA.

Around the same time, a bit later, some American fuckhead, also known as Milton Reynolds gets a hold of a Biró pen and gets a whiff of sales money immediately. He goes back to the US and starts his own company. This is Absolutely Not A Copyright Infringement since he's selling an altered copy only loosely based on those Birome pens. Definitely. Absolutely.

I mean, to be fair, it was in fact different enough to count as its own brand. And it skipped and leaked and did not live up to user expectations. But neither did Eversharp/Faber's pens, and both companies were constantly caught up in their beef that both companies went down like a lead balloon.

Eventually, Parker Pens got out the first proper design that, you know, actually worked as intended (and was, I think, actually licensed to Birome pens), and a little later Bich, then shortened to Bic, made a design that actually offered quite some precision. This was around the 1940s/1950s when ballpoint pens now finally, actually, permanently came in use (Bic around the 60s I believe) and I love them.

Keep in mind, though, I only used three sources, one of those Wikipedia, and picked through slight contradictions to figure out what makes sense and is the most likely, so take this with a grain of salt.

For the initial purposes of my research, however, this was more than sufficient. (I needed to know if I could have a character in the 30s click a pen. Since they were still pretty much not in use back then, she got to twirl a pencil instead. It was one tiny sentence.)

Thank you for asking! It's my favourite piece of niche knowledge to whip out at random and the only one I can support with dates and names, though I did have to read up on my bookmarked pages. I am waiting for the day when I finally play powerpoint karaoke and get the topic of ballpoint pens. Please let this happen, it would be so funny. Uno uno (<- prayer of my friend group).

#a biscuit's rambles #ballpoint pens #ballpoint pen history #the brand name birome was just biró and meyer mashed together and the british still call pens biros sometimes idk i like that bit #i also think its really funny how two companies had beef about this only to both fail LMAO

[the-clari-net]

i'll be dead before the day is done

Ao3

“Danny, aren’t you the literal Ghost King slash Prince slash whatever? Can’t you just make her go away?”

“If I could, I already would’ve,” Danny hissed back. “This isn’t fun for me to see either.”

Sam growled, as the Banshee’s weeping continued in the back of the classroom. Dash and Kwan in the back looked like they were about to pass out or deck her in the face. No one really blames them.

The Banshee coming to Amity Park was a new development for everyone. At first, she appeared as any other regular oddity that occurs in the ghostly town. A woman singing down the streets with her long dark hair covering her face in an old green dress wouldn’t arouse much suspicion in the town. That is, until she made it to the elderly care home.

Once there, the details get scrambled for everyone who heard of the incident later. Some recollect her approaching an old woman in a corner of the recreational area, another claims that they saw her approaching one of the young receptionists. Truthfully, no one knows who she was here for. And it really didn’t matter once she started screaming.

It was a terrifying yell that resulted in all nearby windows shattering, and several people fainted from the shock and pain to their ears.

In the end, two people died, both elderly. Whether it was through the shock of the woman’s scream or through natural causes, it’s hard to say.

Since then, she’s been seen around. Not often, and not for every death. Oddly enough, when investigations on the death were concluded, it resulted that she doesn’t seem to be the cause of the deaths. It’s akin to an eerie canary in mines; a warning rather than a cause. The police are in the process of figuring out her pattern and tracking her behaviors, but it’s still quite perplexing.

Phantom once tried to talk to her, but she completely ignored him, which is an odd approach for a spirit. Danny knows his role as future king in the Ghost Zone makes his presence noticeable to say the least and impossible to ignore to most ghosts. She never even glanced in his direction. He became concerned with it a week after her arrival and decided to do his own investigation on her.

He found his answer with the Ghost Writer. 

“Ahh, yes The Banshee,” Ghost Writer says to himself while moving some of his manuscripts into some infinite filing cabinet that Danny avoids looking at to prevent a headache. Too many dimensions in a tiny space is not something his human brain is capable of processing well.  

Ghost Writer continues, “She’s untamable. Think of her as a grim reaper of sorts. No one’s really been able to track down what her logic is to be quite honest. No one wants to be exposed to her wailing long enough to figure out,” he shrugged.

“So… I shouldn’t worry about her being in my town?”

“Wait, what?” Ghost Writer fumbles with his manuscripts and turns his entire focus onto Danny. “She’s in your haunt?”

Hesitantly, the boy nods.

“Well, I’ll be damned…I thought you just wanted to talk on an educational level, kid. This is more serious and bigger than I expected it to be.”

Danny scoffs a little at that, “Bigger than fighting Pariah Dark? I’m not sure I can go bigger than that. I mean, the town’s been sent to the Ghost Zone, how much worse than that could it be?”

“I’m just saying, if she’s in some place, that usually means a big death is bound to come. You might want to brace yourself.”

After that discussion, Danny stayed a bit to help with Ghost Writer’s endless organizing before heading home to think.

Unfortunately, he wasn’t given much time to think because the following day, Danny arrived at school to see the Banshee crying in his homeroom.

At this point, all Danny knows is that this Banshee has been weeping in his classroom this morning, and he’s been a nervous wreck all day. If Ghost Writer says that it’s going to be a big death, then it has to be his class that’s in danger. Danny’s not the only one struggling. The entire class has been silent, trying desperately to ignore her crying in the corner and focusing on their work. It hasn’t been very effective.

Suddenly, there’s a knock at the door. Their teacher ignores it, when suddenly the door blasts open and in enters two men in white uniforms and government issued ectoweapons.

Danny’s heart freezes. The Banshee’s weeping is becoming louder.

“Daniel James Fenton, you are to come with us immediately to be decontaminated. We have collected months’ worth of evidence, indicating that you are in danger of ectocontamination, and will be taken into custody by order of the United States Government.”

“What?! No!”

“Son, this is not a request. Our scanners are going off the charts at the amount of ectoplasm in your body. You are a danger not only to yourself but your peers.”

There’s more jargon being said but Danny can’t hear anything. Blood is thundering in his ears. His breathing is shaky, his hands have clenched, ready to fight something.

Danny can’t go, they’ll find out everything about him, they’ll try to cut him open, they’ll kill him.

“I said…no.” Danny’s eyes begin to glow green and the temperature in the room suddenly drops.

The Banshee’s crying becomes more hysterical. 

“This isn’t ectocontamination, this is body possession! Set your blaster to stun!” yells one of the agents.

A noise goes off and Danny’s body lurches back, and his vision blacks out for a moment. However once it comes back, he turns towards the agents. They’re pale, and their weapons have fallen on the ground. He then looks towards his classmates who look at him in horror.

Danny looks down where their eyes are pointing, and he sees a massive hole where his core used to be.

Oh.

Danny feels his vision dim, and his body collapses, unable to move.

The last thing he senses as he falls into oblivion are the Banshee’s screams.

#Ectoberhaunt22 #EH Order #Day 5 #Banshee #danny phantom

[struggles-and-prose]

Ghost Files Season 2 Analysis 👻

The 2nd season of Ghost Files just came out, and oh boy was it good. There were a few things that Ryan wasn't sure what it was, and quite frankly, some of them I just wonder how did he not see it lol. So here are some key points from the 1st episode of the 2nd season that I thought I might just clarify or give my take on.

So 1st up, is @ 5:47~, where Ryan's flashlight begins to flash randomly. Shane mentions there might be a strobe mode and even jokes about it being morse code. But the truth is, and this is a fact, because I own one of those, it is morse code for S.O.S.

If you noticed, it flashes in a pattern and on repeat. For those who don't know morse code, it might be hard to even notice the pattern, but I'm telling you, that's what it is lol.

Morse code for S.O.S. is ...---... (which translates to "short, short, short, long, long, long, short, short, short" in terms of lengths). Basically, morse code consists of patterns of short and long sounds or in this case, light flashes. Each pattern is equivalent to a letter of the alphabet or numbers and even symbols like a question mark or a comma or even a dot which, believe it or not, is not translated by just a dot, lol. A single dot is actually and E. The pattern for a dot however, is ".-.-.-". Yeah, I know. A bit dumb if you ask me lol.

Here's a full list of morse code for reference.

And here's Ryan's flashlight pattern. Might be hard to notice, but trust me, I recognise an S.O.S. code anywhere.

The 2nd part I want to talk about is more of a hypothesis. It's @ 13:23~, when Ryan here's a faint noise which to me sounded like someone getting punched in the stomach lol. But thoughts are, it's maybe a bird from far away, which maybe echoed in a weird way when it got to our ghoul boys.

Next his @ 16:01~, when Ryan uses is SLS cam and both he and Shane see what they call a "little tiny guy" lol.

If you look to the top right part of their screen, you see the surroundings a little better than on the left screen.

If we look closer, there's actually a bar under where the figure is standing. Now, the SLS cam is made to detect humanoid shapes. So if it detects an animal, chances are, you're still going to get a human figure. My thought is that it's maybe a bird. You even see some green on the bar where it is, indicating the thing it's detecting is holding on to that bar. Just a thought, but it's the most logical explanation I could come with.

Next up, is @ 19:35~ and @ 19:41~. Ryan claims something with glowing eyes passes by.

Now, sorry to burst your bubble here people, and sorry Ryan, but that's just a raccoon or a very fat cat, but I'm more inclined to say that it's a raccoon. When it walks by, you can clearly see it's walking on four legs and it has a puffy tail. Maybe not on the GIFs here, but on the video, you can see it better.

Nocturnal animals have what's called a tapetum lucidum, which is a reflective structure that reflects light to help them see in the dark. Are their eyes actually glowing? Not really. It's just a reflection of the light. So when you see a cat outside or even your pet cat, you can see their eyes glow in the dark, which is a little freaky indeed lol. I know that when I get up in the middle of the night and see 2 glowing eyes in my goddamn hallway, it makes me jump when all it is is my cat who's freaking adorable normally, lol.

Now, where's this light actually coming from in the video? I don't know, but it looks like it's near a door to outside the building so, possibly the light from the moon.

Next is @ 19:50~, the same footage with the raccoon, where Ryan says you hear footsteps and someone tampering with the camera and then someone saying "I'm here". Footsteps didn't sound like human footsteps if you ask me so, I think it's the raccoon walking or whatever. The "tampering" of the camera and the "I'm here" is merely said raccoon taking a look at said camera, probably gripping it with his claws for leverage and the "voice" is the raccoon sniffing or breathing. That's it, nothing more.

And last but not least, @ 20:06~, which is again the same raccoon footage. When we see a small ball of light that looks like it just jumps, again, animal that passes by fast or turns its head in a weird angle or whatever. And the clank, it jumped and its claws made the noise or it hit something.

So here you have it people. My analysis of today's video. I think it's safe to say that I'm a Shaniac x). And with that, here are some moments I found funny that I made into Gifs. Enjoy!

I just like how proud he looks XD

Daddy Shane XD

Or whatever is happening here lol

Or here XD

Shane, what the hell are you doing? XD

And that's all folks! x)

Go watch it if you haven't yet!

#canada #montreal #quebec #ghost files #ghoul boys #watcher #wearewatcher #shane madej #ryan bergara #shaniac #boogara #Youtube

[aru-xx]

I'm here now. // Detroit Become Human x Heavy Rain

A/N: yooo! I really hope that whoever might be reading this, will enjoy the short story about this alternative universe! it actually took me a little time to make, but in the end i'm pretty happy how it turned out. any kind of feedback is always appreciated and if you liked this fanfic, then make sure to check out my account for more stories or leave me some requests for stories with your own ideas. have a great day/night! // Word Count: 3295 // not revised // ――――――――――――― 6th October 2034, 5:37pm, DPD I just sat there staring at the files and reports in front of me, not taking up anymore information I was getting. Suddenly a hand gently touched my shoulder, bringing me back to reality. "Mister Anderson, I think it'd be a good idea for you to go home and catch a break. This case will be in good hands and will have top priority, I can promise that." The man next to me spoke in a calm yet serious voice, making me slowly stand up from the chair I was sitting on. "We will be quick to inform you about anything new. Good evening." That was the last thing he said to me, before I heard his footsteps getting quieter as he was walking away to presumably do something of more importance. I took a sharp breath in while my eyes were still sticking to all of the reports I saw on the table. -nine year old boy found dead near the freeway! will the origami killer be back again this year?- -seven year old boy gone missing on his way home from school!- I felt myself feeling sicker with every second that passed just looking at all of this. Needing to get some fresh air and to clear my mind, I quickly stepped out of the building before feeling the cold weather outside instantly. I slowly started walking home in trance and silence. My mind was empty, I couldn't think straight anymore after the hours of sitting in the police station and explaining the officers what happened. I scoffed in frustration. I was the one who was supposed to take care of him. I am an Officer myself, so I should've been the one searching for him now. I should've looked out for him more and be a better father to him. My Cole. My sweet little boy. He's just 5 years old. How was he supposed to be out here all alone?

6th October 2034, 5:56pm, Michigan Drive 115 Opening the door to my House I felt like I was abandoning everything I have ever cared for if I only dared to close that door again. I stepped inside the warm home, trying to ignore the uneasy feeling before locking the door behind me. Hearing sumo walking out of the living room he was probably sleeping in before, i kneel down to his height waiting for him to approach me. "Hey there boy", I said almost in a whisper as I petted him before taking off my jacket and shoes. As sumo went back into the living room I saw some mails on the shelf, I grabbed them before walking into the kitchen and tossing them onto the table, not caring much about it. I then opened the fridge to get myself a beer, opening it and sitting down on a chair at the kitchen table. I took a big sip of the alcoholic drink, already feeling the sad comfort in my throat, before I roughly ripped open the mails. "Uninteresting, uninteresting, uninteresting.." I kept looking through them without much interest, before stopping at one specific mail that i was finding rather odd. I looked at the weird letter which had no sender address on it. Just a tiny bit more interested now, I opened this one with more care before pulling out the sheet of paper that was in it. When the parents came home from church, all their children were gone. They searched and called for them, they cried and begged, but it was all to no avail. The children have never been seen again. I swallowed at the sight of the kind of disturbing text, not knowing what that was supposed to mean nor why I got this mail. My mind was racing again and all I could think about was Cole. I heard a loud thunder rumble, which made me look at the window that was covered in thousands of rain drops. It was raining heavily again. I stared outside the window for a moment, seeing the dark clouds covering the sky and making the whole place look more depressed than it already was. Cole. He had to be out there. He would get sick. I felt my mood take a drastical twist as i looked inside the envelope now and found a ticket for a luggage locker inside. Again not knowing what this was, I still knew that something was off about this, so I kept the ticket before pushing everything else from the table in frustration, anger, unsteadiness and most of all sadness. I laid down my head on the table putting my hands over my head, not caring about the now shattered glass on the floor or the instant noodles that sumo would probably eat soon. I was at helpless and I knew it. I failed him and even myself, I knew it. I knew it but I just couldn't accept the fact that this was my fault. That him being scared out there all alone now.. was only me failing as a father.

7th October 2034, 2:18pm, Lexington Station The police hasn't reported anything new to me yet so they had most likely no trace of my son so far, but that would only be true if they were actually keeping their word on letting me know every new information about his well being and the investigation. I wasn't stupid though. I was a cop myself so I knew how things had to go. But the only difference here was, that i wasn't doing this as my job. I was doing this because I was his father and threfore I was on a different level than them. I did have a possible traceand I wasn't willing to give that up. Walking into the Train Station I almost feltlike a criminal even if what I was doing wasn't anything illegal. Getting some luggage from a letter that I received wasn't a crime, was it? But no matter what, in order to succeeded I had to keep my cool while walking past thesecurity and trying to find the right locker. Getting past the man that was apparently checking for any suspicous behaviour, was in fact just sitting in his chair and letting everyone pass with less than half care about it. "Row 18, locker 3", I whispered tomyself, checking the ticket and all the lockers in front of me, until I had found the right one. I carefully opened it before taking out the shoe box that was insidewith a rather confused look. I quickly checked the area for any civilians before not even hesitating to open the box and seewhat was inside of it, but what I saw made me feel sick. There were little origamifigures, an old phone with a memory card and .. a gun. My stomach began to churn, alarming me thatthis was nothing a normal person had to do with. It was more than clear that not only the gun was a hint to the killer but also the origami figures that were his kind of signature that he left right before every missing child was found, together with an orchid on the dead bodies. I just stood there for a longtime, thinking about how this would be my son if I didn't act fast enough. How this would happen to a lot more fathers and mothers. Thinking about all possible things. But in the end I came to the conclusion that I was only sure about the fact that I wanted to save my little boy. Iwanted to be a good protector to him again. A good father. But I knew. I knew. If I wanted to really save him, I had to give this to thepolice and let them handle it. I could do nothing for him. Again.

7th October 2034, 3:12pm, DPD I walked into the Police Department, having already informed the FBI Profiler Norman Jayden who was working together with Lieutenant Carter Blake in the origami killer case, about my findings. I didn't quite like the FBI because of their way of handling things, but I had a good feeling about this particularly man so I trusted him enough to let him try to save my son, which already should mean the world. Getting closer to all of the officer's desks I heard Agent Jayden and Officer Blake talk to a man who was sitting on a chair in front of a table that had different files on it. He reminded me of myself, sitting in that same chair yesterday. Reminded me of how i felt at that moment. I looked down at the box I was holding, feeling the sadness and guilt catch up to me again. Being lost in my thoughts for a second made me not realize how they almost finished their talk. That was until the man stood up trying to walk a little after the lieutenant, making me also look up at them. "Hey, do you think the origami killer..", he wasn't able to finish his sentence which led to an uneasy silence in the conversation. "Listen, your sons probably just run off and will turn up in a couple hours", the officer replied rather annoyed. "But what if it is the origami killer?", while the father was sounding more than just worried. "Well then we have about 4 days to find him alive". As soon as Carter Blake spat his words out and left, I instantly regretted listening in on their conversation and looked back down to avoid having to look into the mans eyes who has just recently had a traumatic experience. It made me realize. He was also a father. A father who lost his son. Like me. Like everyone else before. I was sure now. I was sure about that this was the right thing to do. To put a stop to this never-ending nightmare for all people out there who lost their lovely children. After I looked up again I saw the man leaving into the waiting area and talking to a woman which seemed to be his wife .. or ex-wife. At least the mother ofthe young boy. I decided that this was no longer something of my business, even if it wasn't in the first place either. I walked over to the FBI Agent who seemed rather stressed but not surprised to see me once he noticed me. "Mr. Anderson." He looked at the box I was holding before standing up straight again, after he was bending over the table for I was guessing the whole questioning from the father. "Please follow me into my office." He forced a calm voice out of him while I stayed silent. We walked into his office, and he closed the door behind us as I simply put the box on his desk. I gave a heavy sigh, not even daring to look into the mans eyes due to me being ashamed of myself that I was much older than this FBI Profiler and yet I couldn't even bring myself to even try or believe in myself that I could find and rescue my son myself but instead put it on other peoples backs. It was pathetic. "Save my son. Please. You have to. Not only for me but for everyone. For the father that also lost his little boy." I paused, opening my mouth to speak again but only shook my head and put my hands on the table for some grip while staring down at it. "Ethan Mars. I know i'm not supposed to share this information with you but that was the fathers name, and his son is named Shaun Mars. He also felt guilty about losing his son just like that even if he was supposed to take care of him. But if I can promise you one thing Mister Anderson .. then that would be that I WILL find your and Mister Mars sons and put a stop to this." I turned around, looking surprised for a moment that the Agent was sympathising with me and giving me personal informations about this man only for me to be able to get in touch with him. I quickly put a thankful smile on my face which not only showed and expressed my sadness and helplessness but also my gratitude and relief I felt at the moment. Without another word having to be spoken, I left the office and with that also the DPD.

11th October 2034, 7:22pm, The Old Warehouse A normal Friday evening, standing outside an old warehouse together with the police and just waiting for something to happen. Someone to come out of the building. My nerves were completely shot, and I haven't really slept for the past few days because of the fact that I was not knowing anything about how close or far away the police were to catching the origami killer and finding my son. But now. Now it was finally time, so when I got a call from Norman Jayden that he knows who and where the origami killer is I couldn't help but feel a little bit of hope grow inside me. And now I would either see my son come out of this building .. or not. Everything would be finished tonight and there was no other way. But I already knew that if my little boy wouldn't be here anymore, I would break. I would never be the same ever again. "Hank?" A man next to me spoke up and I quickly turned my head in the direction of the voice, seeing Ethan giving me an even more worried expression than he already had all the time, if that was even possible. "I couldn't bear to never see him again. I love him too much for something so brutally." I spoke truthfully, sharing what was going through my mind with him. Over the painful time I was kept in the dark, I decided to take the chance Agent Jayden gave me and get in touch with Ethan Mars. And now I would never regret doing that, because hearing his story and knowing there was someone who was going through the same as me right now made me feel much more understood with my own feelings, thoughts and the situation. "Movement on the front doors! Keep in position! On my call!" I heard and saw the whole situation getting heated up faster than I could blink and Ethan and I were both pushed a little further away by some of the cops to avoid us getting in the way or hurt. My eyes were fixated on the door, no thoughts were crossing my mind anymore. I couldn't think anymore. I just wanted to see my boy. I wanted to know he was fine. I wanted to see him smile as he was calling out for me. For his father. I wanted to hold him again. My .. One of the doors got pushed opened fully now as we saw the injured FBI profiler walking out of the building with his hands raised to avoid getting mistaken by the killer and shot. "Person verified. Agent Norman Jayden." My heart dropped seeing the man come out of the building alone. I froze up. Feeling sick again all of a sudden. Not being able to look at the scene anymore I put my hands on my knees to keep myself steady as i bend down in utter despair. "Two more persons verified. Shaun Mars and .." I flipped my head back up within a second, seeing two little boys walk slowly and terrified out of the building, being visibly overwhelmed by the scenery infront of them. "COLE!" I screamed as I ignored the instructions of the Officers and instead ran towards my son, earning his full attention. "Cole Anderson." The police officer finished his sentence before Cole came running towards me, closely followed by Shaun running up to his own dad. "DAD!", Cole screamed with tears in his eyes before just a few moments later I fell to my knees right before him and hugged him tightly. Keeping him close to me again. Holding him in my arms again. "Dad.." he sobbed in relief and sorrow, as tears started to fall from his face and almost instantly soaked into my clothing due to his face being buried in my chest. "Cole..", I cooed softly. The sight of my son clinging onto me like this while crying made my own tears, that were swelling up for the whole past days now, come out of my eyes. The happiness I felt of seeing my loved son again and keeping him close to me again after so long was more than just a wonderful feeling to me. Blending out everything around us, I memorized everything carefully. In that moment all I cared about was him. Even though I knew it wouldn't always be like this, I could only feel the comfort in keeping my boy close.

But as it is, not everything was supposed to have a happy ending. The luck is not always on your side. It runs out. I just would have never guessed that my luck would run out so soon again. Only one year later. One fucking year after this nightmare. A car crash. Just one mistake from a stranger. One second. Just one moment. And it should all be over in the blink of an eye, sending me back into the darkest places of my mind. That's what the future had planned for me. And there was nothing I could do about it. ➥ 𝚏𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚑𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔 𝚎𝚗𝚍. 7th November 2038, 1:19am, Riverside Park I breathed out heavily feeling somewhat relieved of getting this off my chest. As soon as I finished speaking, the cold winter air hit me once again, leaving me unfazed. "That's how my son was saved the first time but he.." I stopped talking due to the discomfort I felt when speaking about it, so I just stared at the view in front of me - Detroit glowing bright at night while the water reflected the lights on its surface. I took another sip from my beer before looking down at the bench I was sitting on, replaying everything that has happened back then in my head yet again. "I'm here now, hank." I was quick to look up at the sudden but calm voice talking to me, seeing Connor standing next to me with what seemed to be sympathy in his eyes as the wind hit my face more lightly once more. I looked at him for a while, only now noticing the similarities he had to Cole in his presence. I carefully started memorizing everything about him, like I did with Cole back at the old Warehouse and as if it was the last time I'd ever see his face again. But in reality I was actually finding a little bit of my own peace in him. Now replaying all of the moments I had with the detective android instead of the horrible events from the past years. We both stayed silent before I sighed out again, this time more relieved and with a slight smile on my face. We then turned our attention back at the beautiful view of Detroit, but now something was different than just a moment ago. It was much fuller with life and the silence wasn't as heavy as it was before. Maybe Connor was right after all. Maybe it was actually worth living for others. Maybe there's more to life than just what you've lost. Maybe I can believe in myself again and maybe he was the one who was able to change my way of seeing things in life. The first time for years now my thoughts were calm again, as I kept replaying the soothing words from the android in my mind. 𝐈'𝐦 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐰.

#dbh #dbh connor #dbh rk800 #hank anderson #detroit become human #dbh hank #connor rk800 #rk800 #heavy rain #connor #ethan mars #norman jayden #alternate universe #alternative #detroit #dbh fic #android #dbh stories #dbh x heavy rain #quantic dream #fanfic #fandom #fanfiction #deviant #heavy rain ethan #heavy rain norman

[bluejaysandblackbats]

Lily of the Valley

Fandom: DC Comics, Batfam

Summary: Jason Todd dies and comes back to life. As the League takes him in, he navigates his morality and family values over the years.

Chapters: 20/?

Characters: Jason Todd, Talia al Ghul, Ra’s al Ghul, Damian Wayne, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne, Sheila Haywood

Relationships: Jason Todd/Original Character(s)

Additional Tags: Immortal Jason Todd, League of Assassins Jason Todd, Protective Talia al Ghul, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Jason Todd Needs a Hug, Good Sibling Jason Todd, Hurt/Comfort, Adopted Children, Resurrected Jason Todd

Chapter Twenty: Angel's Trumpet

Upon Jason’s return home, Damian sat in the alcove window in Jason’s library, drawing the view of the garden until he couldn’t keep his eyes open. Jason crept through the library after saying goodnight to Saru. He crouched beside Damian and scooped him up. Damian stirred, and Jason rubbed his back. “It’s late. We’ll spend all of tomorrow together. I promise,” Jason whispered.

“I wanted to stay up and surprise you,” Damian whispered.

“You did surprise me. I didn’t think you’d wait for me here,” Jason smiled, “I missed you when I was away.”

“You did? Did Saru come and see you?” Damian questioned.

“Yeah… Did you send her?” Jason asked in reply. Damian couldn’t lie to him. He didn’t say anything. “It’s okay. I won’t be mad.”

“I don’t like it when you’re by yourself,” Damian mumbled. Jason chuckled, kissing the side of Damian’s head. “You aren’t angry?”

Jason carried Damian down the hall to his room and tucked him in. “No. I’m glad you sent her. I’ll be back in an hour. I have to talk to Mama,” Jason whispered.

“Did you talk to Grandfather?” Damian questioned. Jason shook his head. He dropped off the file but didn’t have time to speak to Ra’s. “I’m going away soon.”

“What?” Jason questioned.

“I’m not scared,” Damian whispered. Jason climbed into Damian’s bed and held his brother without speaking. He couldn’t say anything reassuring. “I’ll be here for your birthday tomorrow.” Jason lay down beside Damian and pulled his brother into his arms. “What about Mama?”

“I’ll talk to her tomorrow morning. I want to be here,” Jason mumbled.

“Did you die again?” Damian asked. Jason blinked hard.

“What? Who told you I died before?” Jason questioned. He felt sick to his stomach. Death training was the only secret Jason kept from Damian. No one spoke of death around Damian. There was no way for him to know.

“I remember when you died for a month. I missed you so much. I wanted to go with you,” Damian replied, “I didn’t know it was death until later…” Jason shut his eyes, remembering the first time he died during training. He remembered the warmth pouring from his body, leaving him cold and weak. The metallic taste of blood as Jason vomited into his palms. He could still taste it.

“I didn’t die again… Di, as far as I know, I’m the only—.”

“I’m not a baby anymore. I’m six,” Damian interrupted. Jason would’ve laughed if he wasn’t on the verge of tears. Growing up in the League made Jason and Damian much older than their years, but they were still children. At that moment, they were both scared boys pretending to be brave for the other. Damian held Jason’s wrist in his tiny hands. “You don’t have to worry about me.”

“Who said I’d be worried?” Jason asked. “I’m just—. I’ll miss you. I hope you’ll miss me too.” Jason’s lip quivered, and he shut his eyes tighter to fight the tears that threatened to pour from his eyes.

“Gē? Wherever you and Mama are… That’s home,” Damian repeated. Jason nodded.

“That’s right, sweet boy… And I was wrong about something. I have some living family in Gotham, but they’re not home. They don’t make me warm. I love you, Mama, and Grandfather, more than I could ever—.” Jason trailed off.

“Gē? When I meet my father, I’ll tell him all about you,” Damian promised.

Jason pretended to be asleep, so he wouldn’t cry. Jason didn’t want to separate from Damian. All he could think about were the many ways Damian could be killed. The fantasy of home and peace quickly faded. The nightmare returned, looming over Jason like a dark cloud.

*

Jason awakened before Damian and pulled Talia aside to speak to her in his library. “Mama, he’s six years old—.”

“Damian’s going to be fine. He’s leaving with a team the morning after your birthday. He’s trained for this for two years. It’s not up for discussion, Jason,” Talia replied, “How did your assignment go?”

“I kissed Saru,” Jason confessed. Talia’s eyes widened. “What?”

“Nothing… I thought—. Nothing,” Talia smiled as she fixed his collar. “You look ill.”

Jason flinched away. He didn’t want to seem weak or childish. “Mama? What’s going to happen when Damian meets his father?” Jason questioned.

“He’ll learn what he can from him… And maybe Damian will return home with me. If not, he’ll stay in Gotham with his father,” Talia answered. She didn’t seem sure. “Why?”

Secretly, Jason wondered if Gotham was the safest option for his baby brother. He wouldn’t dare tell his mother that, so he opted out of answering.

“Jason,” Ra’s called. Jason swallowed hard. In the few years he’d lived on the island, Ra’s never visited Jason’s library.

“Yes?” Jason innocently answered.

“Happy birthday,” Ra’s smiled as he gave Jason a box. “I’d like you to open it before dinner. You don’t have to open it now, but you may if you like.” Jason maintained eye contact as he carefully unwrapped his gift. It was a heavy binder with several photographs. Jason broke eye contact with Ra’s to skim through the book. Talia grabbed his wrist, stopping him in time to see a picture of Willis holding Jason as a baby. Jason hadn’t thought of Willis since he was ten.

“That’s my dad… I—. How did you—? My grandmother?” Jason asked. Ra’s nodded. “How did you—?”

“That’s a surprise for another time,” Ra’s interrupted, “If I see Damian in the hallway, I’ll send him here.” He left Jason alone with Talia to look through the photo album.

Talia joined him in the alcove window, dancing her fingers through his curls. “You were a beautiful baby,” Talia whispered, “Jason… Do you ever miss—? Do you think of your parents?” Jason shook his head.

“They don’t feel real to me anymore. Sometimes, I get flashes of them, but—. My dad was in and out of prison. I didn’t see him much towards the end. There aren’t any—.” Jason flipped through the pages until he saw one of Catherine. “This is my mom. My Catherine.” Talia placed a hand over his.

“She’s beautiful. Jason, what was your mother like?” Talia asked. He turned and looked at her. Jason didn’t like to compare his parents. “You won’t hurt me.”

“She was so funny… Mom was unpredictable and more like—. Sometimes, it felt like we were growing up together. It was fun until she got sick,” Jason whispered.

“Sick?” Talia whispered.

“Addiction’s a sickness… For Mom, it felt like a terminal illness. I watched my mom slip away, and there wasn’t anything I could do to save her. I couldn’t fix her. I haven’t thought about her in years,” Jason whispered as he turned the page. Talia reached for Jason despite her fear of rejection and wrapped her arms around him.

“I’m sorry, Jason. Life has not been kind to you,” Talia whispered, “But I still—. I want you to find comfort.”

Jason smiled at her. “You’ve comforted me when I didn’t think I could be—. Mama, I’m glad we’re home together. There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

“There’s a whole world out there for you to enjoy, little one. You’re free to come and go as you please, but this will always be your home. Don’t let this place become a prison,” Talia warned him.

Jason shook his head. “It’s not—.”

“But it could be,” Talia interrupted.

#fic #batfam #Jason Todd #Talia al Ghul #Ra’s al Ghul #Damian Wayne #Barbara Gordon #Dick Grayson #Bruce Wayne #Sheila Haywood #Immortal Jason Todd #League of Assassins Jason Todd #Protective Talia al Ghul #Good Parent Talia al Ghul #Jason Todd Needs a Hug #Good Sibling Jason Todd #Hurt/Comfort #Adopted Children #Resurrected Jason Todd #Jason Todd/Original Character(s) #lily of the valley fic

[prince-rosalium]

I gave Hawthorne fake nails today. With no tutorial to help me, I expected to crash and burn.

I did not. They are lovely.

Here are some notes on what I did, in case you want to attempt this yourself:

Before attempting this, I highly reccommend watching a few youtube tutorials on how to sculpt polygel over a nail form. It helps if you have knowledge of how to form gel nails.

I purchased a polygel nail kit for $20 off Amazon. It came with a curing light, a nail file, a brush, a spatula, slip solution, and tubes of polygel. I highly recommend this. I used everything in the kit, and it is much more expensive to buy everything separately. The only complaints in the reviews were that you get too small of an amount of polygel and slip solution, but if you are using this for dolls, this shouldn't be a problem.

You may want to replace the slip solution with 72% alcohol. It works the same way, is probably better for your doll than slip solution that is made for humans, but I did use the slip solution in the kit.

The first thing I tried was making nail forms out of Scotch tape, but instead of cutting a hole for the nail like a traditional nail form (the hole would be too small) I chose to cover the nail and sculpt with the polygel on top of them, then try glueing them onto the nail afterward. This would probably work with more practice, but it was much more effective just to sculpt right on top of the nail without a form. With this method, you will not be able to make them very long, but they will be sturdy, stick well, and look pretty clean and smooth.

The only issue one might have is the way it looks from some angles, but I personally don't mind. I'll try and explain what I'm saying:

I sculpted these without a form, and as a result, from some angles, the nails can look heavy and round. I chalk this up to it being simply unrealistic to expect paper-thin sculpting on a pair of tiny hands.

Personally, I don't think this shape is a downside at all. I've seen a lot of long-nailed BJD hands that have the nails sort of... "molded" into the finger, probably for ease of casting?? But probably also because they won't snag on clothes and break. If I hadn't made the nails this shape, it'd be a lot easier to break them.

However, the reason I am embarking on this journey of doll manicuring is because I have a gyaru boy on the way, who I want to give long, ridiculous, sparkly pink nails, covered in gems. This formless method will not work for him. For this, I am going to make long tips out of plastic from straws, glue them on, and build the polygel on top. In order to reinforce it, however, I will be adding more polygel underneath, because I do *not* want these to break. This is definitely going to be "hands-off when taking off his shirt" situation.

Polygel... is sticky. I had to cure these nails multiple times. It's hard to get a small enough bead on the tip of the nail because polygel is meant to be applied in one large bead on a human nail. It takes a lot of slip solution to sculpt it, and using too much slip solution can make the curing go too sticky. It takes a little practice, but the nails look great regardless. Didn't even have to redo any.

My work process was as follows:

1. Sculpt the nails

2. Cure 30 seconds

3. Add another layer of gel to get them a bit longer and stronger

4. Cure 1 minute

5. Clean off the stickiness on top of the nails with alcohol or acetone

6. File the tops of the nails AND the bottoms (with respiratory protection PLEASE) and shape them how you like

7. Gel topcoat. Very important.

8. Cure 30 seconds.

After that, I just cleaned off whatever stickiness the polygel left behind with acetone.

This was my first attempt at this, but I always have trouble finding tutorials about this that I understand. I don't think I can fully be an authority on how to make these after one set, but I hope these notes help anyone looking to attempt this! All it took was a kit and about an hour, not even.

#bjd #bjd nails #dolls #manicure #polygel #nails #tutorial #bjd nails tutorial #bjd mods #doll mods