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lime-parfait · 9 months

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Paranatural Parents: A Quick Analysis (Spoilers)

Please blacklist #long post for this because a “read more” will be unavailable if this blog were to be deleted in the future and it won’t be accessible.

Also no beta on this analysis

Anyways, been awhile since reading Paranatural seriously (ever since the story’s style changed to a text format it was harder to focus and read it). Anyways, there’s something that ‘clicked’ for me when reading some the recent pages. And it was simply that Paranatural is full of incompetent adults (no brainer). But specifically, it was full of incompetent PARENTS. Especially the ones who are involved in the whole world of spirits.

Okay, okay. Think about it. Isabel’s attitudes towards her family. The way that her grandfather finds ways to constantly point out her flaws and teaches her to use spirits as weapons. Isabel’s father, who we recently learned about, DOES want to care about his daughter, still chooses to be involved in the realm of spirits because he believes that Cherub’s words will help to make balance in the world. And yet, Isabel still doesn’t want to be around her father (based off the attitudes she has and it took a lot of strength for her to even ask her mom to drop her off). Isabel has something important to tell her father, but she reacts negatively when he doesn’t take her seriously. In a nutshell, Isabel has 2 guardian figures in her life who do not listen to her. Her grandfather wants her to be a disciplined warrior at the age of 12, while her father doesn’t seem to do his part in making communication between them easier.

Cody, his father was also involved in the Consortium. That man is a business man now and all he does is try to take property away from people. Back in the long (Jim the Brain)chapter, Cody is super hostile towards his father, who’s about to kill a spirit (because that’s what his father did back in the Consortium; stab spirits). Cody becomes cold and harsh, saying that the spirit was HIS to kill. Like, Cody took a deadly turn and it makes for a theory that his father taught him to be a cold-blooded killer towards spirits. But in the evidence, it’s vague why Cody feels this way towards spirits (we only got Davy saying that even though he wants to protect those he loves, Davy pulls out the ‘dad will take care of it’ card). Cody yells at him after that, forcing him to leave the school (due to vampire rules). It ‘s clear that Cody doesn’t his father to be on his turf and that he can hold his ground at school (remember, he’s school president). But Davy and Cody have a family tension the involves in protecting what they care about from the ‘evil spirits.’ However, Davy probably failed really bad as a parent if Cody gave him death glares and yelled at him.

EDIT: another thing to consider is that Davy sees his son as a reflection of him (literally) and gets really pissed when Max counters his statement by saying that Cody isnt his mirror. clearly Davy cannot see his son as a son, but some sort of copycat that needs to follow in his footsteps.

Rick Spender (as an adult) is literally the worst at being a reliable person for the Spirit Activity Club, theres records of the way he failed to be there for most of the members. Failing to reassure and listen to Isabel and purposefully keeps isaac in the dark that sparked these two to fight each other because they were both hurting

Ed’s parents who were clearly part of the Consortium and they eventually met their doom WHEN Ed was BARELY 3 YEARS OLD. Ed’s parents weren’t there long enough to actually raise him and see him grow up. Like, they decided that it was okay to pass their kid off to a new guardian in the most nightmare fueled moments before they disappeared. They didn’t try to leave him have a happy memory, but planned to just erase themsleves from his memories??

There’s plenty of other parents who also failed to be decent parents in the story (they weren’t part of Consortium, but they existed and basically don’t look after their kids. Penny and her parents’ treatment towards her and the way they favored her brother. Where the hell is Isaac’s parents). But it seems that a lot of the adults who are deeply involved in the spirit’s world, often tend to overlook their own children. Most of them claim to want to protect their kids from it, only pushing them away and the kid feeling neglected. But in the end, working in the Consortium makes these parents see their own children as an after thought because they’re buried in this this work, only dragging their kids in the mess.

And let’s look at Max Puckett. His mother was part of the Spectrals and possibly in the Consortium. She must have seen this sort of cycle. All of these parents who had spectral kids and planned out their futures to live that sort of life. Isabel’s family planning for her to be a warrior. Ed’s parents accepting their doomsday fate as workers of the Consortium. Max’s mom looked at all of this and didn’t want that. She would not repeat this mistake as other parents of the Consortium. And you know what? She married Peter Puckett, a man who wasn’t a spectral, or a vampire, or a wealthy man. But here’s the thing that Peter Puckett had that every other parent lacked; emotionally availability and unconditional love and care.

Like, Dad Puckett didn’t give up on his kids when his wife died. He picked himself up and did everything to raise them. He accepts that Max is Max, a moody preteen. He gets into the same interest as he does (Insolent Children music) and get involved in his life. Yes, he seems like a manchild at first glance because of his happy attitude and not being that smart. But he can be serious about serious topics when needed. He takes both of his kid to a kids’ arcade in order to let them have fun and be able to ask if Max was being bullied in school. He doesn’t make it a joke either, Peter Puckett is direct and wants to make sure that Max wasn’t being bullied in school. Hell, Dad Puckett took Max to the hospital for a broken arm and everything and you see that his face was full of concern for Max’s well-being. He literally makes time just for his kids no matter what it is. Going to a concert? Yes. Going to the hospital and rushing to get there? Peter will not hesitate. Like, Dad Puckett found the strength to continuing being there for his kids after his wife died. He moved to a new town to begin a new life, he takes their physical and emotional health seriously, he is involved in their interests and he listens to his kids, he doesn’t put pressure on his kids’ futures, all he wants is for them to be happy and safe. No matter what bad happens, Dad Puckett will always make himself emotionally available for his kids.

EDIT: another thing that was interesting during a re-read was that Peter said that Max took after his mom in personality and humor, and honestly that checks out based on what we know about her. This contrasts to Davy treating his son as a mirror, but in reality, Cody is nothing like him. Basically saying that Mr. Puckett understands his son better than Davy assumes what Cody is.

Meanwhile, all of the parents of the Consortium are fighting against a doomsday and not actually thinking about what their kids need most is to be there for them.

To Mom Puckett: you chose the best husband who was more prepared to care about his children

#paranatural #pnat #pnat spoilers #paranatural spoilers #long post

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mayumiiyuu · 2 years

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xi. scarlet.

the kaleidoscope project masterlist

tw: mentions of blood, wounds.

Laying down in the middle of an open field surrounded by electric heat radiators connected by various extension chords to the RV while also being wired to several rechargeable batteries was probably the strangest form of preparation to kill an all-powerful being from the Upside Down.

A harsh contrast to the others, who were hammering nails away at the tops of garbage cans to create deadly shields, crafting makeshift spears with knives, and flammable projectiles. Nancy and Max were hacking and sawing through the end of a shotgun, for what purpose I didn't know.

Though it seemed as if I were leisurely soaking up the heat, my powers heavily relied on my absorption of heat and electric energy—that of which was provided by the radiators and batteries. Heatstroke was of no worry to me, in fact, I was practically immune to it.

With cables that were meant to jumpstart a car clamped down on my palms, I closed my eyes, drinking in all the energy I was surrounded by like a cold lemonade on a hot summer's day—only it was really the other way around.

I open an eye momentarily, distracted by Eddie and Dustin's playful rough housing, glancing at the others now and again to see what they were doing. As I closed my eyes again, I let my thoughts flow, not in a way to let them aimlessly wander, but to go over the plan one more time, and the countless 'what if' scenarios that came to my mind.

Still, one thing remained unchanging despite all of the unpredictability of our circumstances: I was going to protect them all with my life.

"Holy shit, I knew it was gonna be hot but I didn't think it'd be this hot."

I chuckle, knowing exactly who that voice belonged to. "I told you, I need this."

"Look at the rest of us, all hard at work while High Priestess (Y/N) harvests the powers of the sun."

I unclamp the cables from my hands, propping myself up with my elbows, taking in Eddie's warm brown eyes.

"You know, I still don't know why you guys trust me even after.."

Eddie takes a seat near me, far enough so he doesn't get caught up in the sweltering heat the radiators cast. "Because we know you, (Y/N), you aren’t going to let Vecna in your head again—besides, we’ve got ABBA on our side."

I chew on my bottom lip anxiously, my eyebrows furrowed. "Are we really going to take the chance that Vecna somehow implanted something inside me to turn on you guys?"

Eddie shrugs. "You know me, not much of a gambler. But I'll take those odds."

"What if he tries using me against you again? What if I'm the reason everything goes wrong?" I mutter, fiddling with my fingers.

He looks up to the sky, deep in thought as he scratched his cheek. "You know, Max said something about Vecna only bringing out the darkest parts of you so..maybe if you thought of happier stuff that'd make it harder for him to control you—which, I uh, doubt will happen anyway," He looks to me, cocking his head at me curiously. "Have any memories in mind?"

I stand up, switching off the radiators as I sit by him. "Yeah, I think I have a few, no matter how utterly depressing my life was before." I mumble out the last part under my breath, which despite its lowness Eddie somehow manages to hear it.

"Let's practice then," he turns around so we're sitting face to face. "Think of a memory right now, okay? Three, two, one, go!"

I shut my eyes, a small smile on my face as I recalled a particular memory that made me smile.

"Aw, come on, (nickname), you've gotta say it out loud."

I crack open my left eye at him. "What do you mean?"

"Pretty sure I read somewhere that you remember things better I'd you say them aloud."

I widen my eyes, a hand over my chest as I feign shock. "You read?"

He gives me a playful shove, causing me to giggle before I shove him back.

"Okay, seriously, go, do it!"

"Okay, okay!" I shut my eyes again.

"So what're you thinking of?" I hear a lilt in his voice as if he were amused.

"I'm thinking of.." I pause as my mind fills with images of the memory, like I was watching it on a television screen. "That time you dared me to jump into Lover's Lake that one summer, and when I asked for your help to get back up, I pulled you in." My words are tinted with a giggle as I crack my eyes open once more, seeing Eddie grinning from ear to ear.

"That's a good one." He nods.

As we continue to play the game of me closing my eyes and telling him all my happiest memories, we eventually trickle into lighthearted conversation, as if we weren't just about to face yet another life or death situation, leaving our lives entirely up to fate, laughing and joking around like we were normal teenagers talking about stupid little things as twilight started to stretch across the atmosphere.

I feel the muscles of my stomach finally relax after having cackled so hard about one of Eddie's anecdotes, I found my fingers twisting and pulling on the grass as I fidgeted, a thought sticking itself to my mind, urging me to speak it aloud—which I do.

"You know," I start, reaching out to trace the rings on his fingers. "I think I've realized something."

"Lay it on me, sugar." Eddie responds with a smile.

"When—when I was in that trance, or whenever I got a headache, I realized that it was you," he furrows his eyebrows as he stares at me, puzzled. "Not like that, more like..like you were the one thing that anchored me back to reality. Your voice is what brought me back each time."

I see Eddie's tongue prod out of his teeth as he processes this, opening his mouth to say something, but before he can utter a word, Nancy calls us all back to the RV in order to finalize our preparations and plans.

I feel my stomach twist as Eddie and I shoot each other a look.

Here goes nothing.

....

Dark settles over the atmosphere as night rolls in, furthering the intensity of the tension we all feel as we took our places in the vehicle, armed as we donned on our battle gear.

"Okay. I wanna run through it one more time." Nancy's stare is fierce and unwavering as she looks at all of us. "Phase one."

"We meet Erica at the playground. She'll signal Max and Lucas when we're ready." Robin answers.

"Phase two." Nancy looks at Steve, whose stare is uneasy yet determined.

"Max baits Vecna. He'll go after her which'll put him in his trance."

"Phase three?" She turns to Dustin and Eddie.

"Me and Eddie draw away the bats."

Nancy inhales. "Four."

"We head into Vecna's newly bat-free lair, and," Robin shakes a bottle full of lighter fluid. "Flambé."

Nancy looks to me, and I already feel my palms start to sweat nervously under her gaze.

"(Y/N), as per what you told me about Eddie being able to anchor you, you'll stay with them. We'll send out a signal if we're in trouble and need your help."

I can only nod as I feel my heart start to pulsate.

"Nobody moves on to the next phase until we've all copied. Nobody deviates from the plan, no matter what. Got it?" Nancy's voice is stern and steady as she looks to us for an answer.

"Got it." We all day in chorus.

While the others were decked out in hunting garments, I settled on combat boots and my red jacket—for luck, I told myself. It had been the jacket my mother had gotten me for my first ever birthday, I had worn it one day I aced a test I wasn't prepared for, and I wore it that day I met Eddie. I wasn't much of the superstitious type, but I figured we needed all the luck we could get.

In the dead of night, we made our way towards Eddie's trailer. Eddie’s hands and mine brush one another as we walk, and I feel static between us again. I beg the gods and all my lucky stars and each and every celestial body that I get to feel his touch more even after this.

Once we enter the trailer, Steve is quick to heave himself up and back into the Upside Down, landing perfectly on his feet as he flipped. He shrugs up at us, to which Robin responds with a quirked eyebrow.

"What does he want us to do, applaud?" Even as we enter a dangerous situation, I appreciate Robin and all her sarcasm. I nudge Nancy softly as I see the smirk on her face, which makes her roll her eyes at me.

After we all climb up one after the other and crash on Eddie's mattress on the other side, alone with the rest of their weapons, I take a moment to look at each of them.

"Hey," I say. "We need to kill that son of a bitch. For Max, for everything at stake. Whatever it takes."

They all glance at each other briefly, Eddie placing a hand to my shoulder.

"Whatever it takes." He nods, and the rest follow.

Before Robin leaves I give her one last hug.

"Be careful out there, Buckley."

She gives me a lopsided grin, patting me on the back.

"Be back before you know it, Willows."

Steve turns to us, utter seriousness taking over his features as he reminds us that if things took a turn for the worse, I would get Eddie and Dustin to abort.

"I'm counting on you, Willows." He gives me a small nod, to which I reply with a curt one, before he settles his gaze on Eddie and Dustin.

"Don't try to be cute or be a hero or something, you guys are just—"

"Decoys," the two day in chorus as Dustin speaks up. "Don't worry. You can be the hero, Steve."

Eddie nods. "Absolutely, I mean, look at us, Eddie and Dustin share a look. "We are not heroes."

His eyes find mine, as if to say I were the only exception. As Steve turns to leave, Eddie calls his attention.

"Make him pay."

The tension in the air is palpable, I could practically feel all our heartbeats pulsate as silence fills the air, before the two men give each other a silent nod.

Dustin, Eddie, and I are quick to start of reinforcing his trailer, gathering up various sturdy materials and working with a power drill to turn his home in the Upside Down into an impenetrable fortress. I help heft up Eddie's sound system up on the roof, pushing and pulling until we have everything set up.

We stand back, chests heaving from our initial preparations. The trailer looks straight out of an apocalypse movie, fortified to keep out zombie hoards from attacking—or in this case, bats from hell.

In spite of the perilous situation that had begun to slowly unfold, Eddie and Dustin still smile, proud of their hard work. "Not bad."

"Not bad all." Dustin echoes, while I huff in disbelief over their laid back nature, still on edge as my heart palpitated each time lightning flashed through the sky.

Eddie nudges the both of us.

"Now for the fun part."

....

"What do you say Henderson, Willows?" Eddie mutters as he picks up his guitar, still awestruck by how it was, quote on quote, 'destined for an alternate dimension'. "Are you ready for the most metal concert in the history of the world?"

"That a rhetorical question?" Dustin grins.

I fold my arms over my chest, running my tongue over my canines as I shrug. "Give 'em hell, Munson."

Eddie slips on the strap attached to his guitar.

"Let's do it."

Eddie grabs my hand as he helps hoist me up to the roof, I do the same to help Dustin until the three of us stand there, eyes and ears peeled out for some sort of sign. I chew on my lip, anxiety taking over me as I feel my palms start to sweat, hurriedly wiping them on my jeans. Noticing my unrest, Eddie laced his fingers with mine, effectively grounding me back to reality, bursting me out of my thoughts.

"(Y/N)," he says, gaze flickering towards Dustin, I follow his gaze, turning my head to see Dustin's grin fade into a neutral expression as he pretends to pick at his nails. I furrow my brows in confusion before I feel Eddie's hand scup my face, forcing me to look back at him. "I just.. I want you to know that—that I, um.. you-you mean a lot to me."

I gaze at him, doe-eyed and somewhat puzzled at his sudden sentimental words before I nod, squeezing his hand. "You mean a lot to me too."

"More than everything, (Y/N). You mean more to me than everything."

"You mean so much to me, too. More than anything, Eds." I lean my face into his touch. We both pull away abruptly as turn to when we heard radio static, then Robin's voice.

"She's in, move onto phase three."

I suck in a breath, my nerves on end as I imagined Max now trapped in Vecna’s sick mindscape.

"Copy that. Initiating phase three." Dustin answers, turning to Eddie with a nod as he connects the amp. "Let's hope they hear this."

Eddie's usual carefree demeanor is long gone as his facial features turn into a grave expression, eyes smoldering like a forest fire as he practically rips off his guitar pick necklace.

"Chrissy," he mutters, steadying his guitar. "This is for you."

With a whine from the amp and a yell from Eddie, the concert begins. His body moves back and forth, banging his head to the rhythm of the song as he strums the guitar, fingers meticulously crossing to and fro on the respective frets.

I can't help but follow him, stomping my foot along to the music that poured loudly through the speakers, rocking my head back and forth while there were still no sign of the bats. I did this more so to ease my nerves than anything, shake everything out of my system before my own anxieties would cause a fluke in the plan. I was not going to allow myself to succumb to my thoughts.

"End of passion play!" I shout out, too entranced in the music to care, remembering all those moments Eddie had me watch him rehearse this song for weeks on end. "Crumbling away!"

"Come crawling faster," The lyrics to the song falls out of my mouth in mumble now as time passes, steadying myself as I felt it again, something crawling around inside me, making my stomach lurch, I mustered every ounce of willpower inside me to ignore it. No, don't come crawling faster you stupid piece of shit, stay the hell away from me.

"Obey your master." I mutter to myself, reminding that I had complete control over myself. Images flash in my mind, causing me to wince in pain as another headache racked my brain. I grit my teeth. No, I think, I'm not giving into you, Vecna. Not when I have people I need to protect.

"Guys!" I hear Dustin shout, my eyes glowing red as my fingers twitched, pulsating with energy. "We gotta lock down in T-minus 30 seconds!"

"T-minus 20!" Dustin yells again as he looks with his binoculars, launching Eddie into the sickest, most insane guitar solo I've ever seen him play, as if he himself were the Master of Puppets.

"T-minus 10!" Dustin's voice now feels muffled against the high-pitched ringing in my ears. I shook my head, screaming at myself to get a grip, all the while Eddie played faster and faster as Dustin continued to count down, ending his solo just in time as the bats drew close.

I clenched my jaw, palms sparking red as I threw blasts at them, effectively covering Dustin and Eddie as they scrambled inside. I let my fingers dance and twitch as I hurled once last sphere at one that flew too close, before Eddie grabbed me by my jacket and shut the makeshift gate.

I rest my hands on my knees as I huffed, evening out my breathing while Dustin and Eddie jumped around, adrenaline rushing through them as they screamed in exhilaration. I chuckled softly at their antics, before I feel the hairs in my neck stand on end.

"Red." A voice growled in my ear, I shut my eyes, hands covering my ears.

"Shut the fuck up." I mutter through gritted teeth. Eddie and Dustin take quick notice, rushing towards me.

"(Y/N)? (Y/N), what's wrong?"

"Nothing—just, another headache." I mumble out as I clutched my forehead.

"Shit." Dustin says, shooting Eddie a concerned look. "But, Max, Vecna's in her head right now, how—?"

His question is interrupted abruptly as we hear the bats start to attack the outside of the trailer. I scramble to my feet, hands raised, with my palms outward as I continued to collect energy from within myself, standing back to back with Eddie and Dustin who held their weapons and shields.

For a moment, the screeching stops. But that only makes us all the more tense as we stand on edge, watching and waiting for their next move. Dustin yells out to the bats, but I only pay half attention, all my concentration centered around keeping that damn crawling feeling from coming back to me, even as whispers and distant cries echo inside my mind.

We look up as we hear a clattering on the roof.

Spears in hand, I follow Eddie and Dustin as we slowly make our way towards the sound, bats trilling and ceiling rattling furiously until we spot one trying to get in through the vent.

"They can't get in through there, can they?" Dustin mutters.

He spoke too soon, as a bat screeches, clawing it's way inside. Dustin and Eddie yell out a war cry, raising their spears to attack and stab at the incoming bats.

Sweat trickles down my forehead as I step closer. "Move!" I raise my fingers, carefully aimed at the bats, a small sphere spinning around my pointer finger before I positioned my finger straight at the bats, hand gestured in a way that I was mimicking a gun, blasting them away with a fine beam to assure that I didn't create a gaping hole in the roof.

Just as I'm about to raise another hand to blast at more of the bats, I stumble backwards, a migraine worse than the last crashing over my brain.

"(Y/N)! We need you!" Dustin yells out, too preoccupied and panicked to realize what was happening to me while more bats tried to enter. Eddie was quick to spot me, grabbing a chair and his shield to plug up the vent, stabbing through the bats in the process.

We all stand there for a moment, our breathing growing heavier by the minute. I meekly turn my head up to Eddie.

"Are-are there any other vents?"

His eyes grow wide. "Shit."

I fumbled in my step as we all ran towards his room, only to be met with a flurry of bats crashing through the floor. Eddie quickly ushers us away, slamming the door closed, only to see the claw marks of the bats as they viciously tore through the wood.

"That's not gonna hold!" Dustin screams as his frenzied eyes look at the door.

"Go! Now! Both of you!" I order, palms inflamed in red, even as another migraine shook my skull, forehead no drenched it sweat.

Dustin is quick to obey, climbing up the rope as Eddie and I watch the door.

"It's time to stop resisting." I hear Eddie say, his weapons clattering in the floor.

"What?" I spun around to look at him, only for fear to churn in my stomach as I saw his murky eyes.

"Stop resisting, Red."

....

I gasp for air as a tendril shoots out from a wall, trapping me by my throat and limbs. I struggle, of course I do, my heart hammering against my chest as I realize I’ve been forcibly pulled out of my own consciousness and back into that hellhole of a dimension yet again.

Vecna doesn’t waste his time, he is standing right in front of me, hand raised.

“I told you, Red. Out of the goodness in my heart I gave you an offer, and you refused,” he steps closer, and I feel his fingers scrape my scalp. “You have seen how they fear you, Red. You will always be made to destroy, that is your fate.”

I try to turn my head away from him, feeling my hands spark with power, only for the tendril around my neck to twist even tighter, completely blocking off my air supply.

“You will always break everything, and you will always be broken.”

“No.” I splutter out, barely even able to choke out the words. “You’re wrong.”

Vecna’s words echo throughout my mind: turn that anger into wrath and that wrath into power.

But I could always draw power from something else.

I shut my eyes, my memories flowing freely, focusing intently on the good ones. Eddie and I wrestling for the remote on his couch, my mother and I singing our hearts out to ABBA songs, goofing off with Robin as I annoyed her when she worked at the mall. All the best, happiest memories came flooding in all at once.

I didn’t know what to expect, but when I opened my eyes all I saw was Vecna, head cocked to the side.

“You will never be anything else. All you will ever bring is pain. You are a weapon, meant only to destroy.”

I feel my nostrils flare, my eyes bearing directly into his murky ones, all the muscles in my body contracting and tensing as I felt a surge of unadulterated power course through my veins. "I don't need you to tell me who I am."

I rip my hand from the wall, vines bursting into dust, freeing my wrists then my limbs, until I stand proudly on my own, face and mind etched with open defiance.

"You have no power over me. Not anymore." My eyes glowed, dangerously scarlet as energy began to gather in my palms. For a split second I see shock flash on his desiccated face, before it vanished as quickly as it came.

"They will never stop fearing you, loathing you for your abilities." Vecna snarls, bringing his hand forward to let more debris fall onto me. I don't even bat an eye as I raise my hand, turning it into nothing but harmless feathers with my touch.

"Then let them fear me—I can't control their fear, only my own."

Vecna stumbles backward with each blast I hurl towards him, each one faster and stronger until he falls to his knees. That's when I slam my palm onto his head, gripping his forehead tight. Interdimensional being or not, he was still made of something—born from matter and molecules as I used all the willpower inside me to decimate him. A beam of red light shoots out from my palm, turning him into nothing but dust.

"Get the hell out of my mind!"

I am suddenly pulled back into reality as I land on my knees, coughing violently as I spluttered out something that had just been dislodged from my throat. My stomach turns with disgust as I see a spider-like creature covered in my own spit feebly attempt to escape before I crush it under my foot.

Rot in hell.

"(Y/N)!" I turn abruptly at the sound of Dustin's voice as he comes crashing into me, hand on my back to soothe my hacking.

"Where—" I manage to say, wiping drool from the corner of my mouth. "Where's Eddie?"

The answer to my question comes in the form of Eddie's yells coming from the distance. My eyes widen in realization before I bolt right up back on my feet, sprinting even as my lungs barely recovered from the aggressive hacking I had gone through earlier, burning and begging for air as I continued to ignore it. The only thing that raced through my mine was that I needed for Eddie to be safe.

My body moves before I can even think, swiftly bursting through the door and climbing over a chain linked fence, even as I land awkwardly and stumble, I disregard the ache in my foot as I continue to run desperately to where Eddie was; heart hammering against my chest as I willed my legs to go faster when I saw a bat wrap it's tail around his neck, followed by two other bats attacking.

I dive, sliding on my knees against the pavement as to avoid any of the swooping bats, blasting them with all my might, quick as lightning before I find my hands wrapped around the tail that held Eddie's neck in a vice-like grip. In a panic, I dig deep into its molecular structure, manipulating and commanding the atoms however I intended; despite being completely unfamiliar with its makeup, matter was still matter, everything was made from atoms and carbon. The bat crumbled to dust in my hands.

Before I can even act on the bats that attacked his legs, I'm whisked into the air by a flurry of even more bats, biting and gnawing at my arms. I let out a scream, my eyes flashing red as I feel energy completely envelope me, the bats’ hold on me weakens, dropping me onto the ground almost brutally. Despite the pain of the gashes they had torn into my flesh and the ache in my body from crashing into the ground, I keep going, I keep pushing and flicking my wrists while my fingers twitched at the sudden bursts of energy; hurling, flinging, and casting charges at the creatures. I am angry and wrathful and so fucking tired of being frozen with fear, fear of my abilities and my potential to hurt. Fear no more, (Y/N). You are a weapon and you will be used for good, no more fearing yourself. Not when you have people to protect.

Anything to protect them—anything to protect Eddie.

Eddie.

In the heat of the battle, only then had I realized my back was turned from him.

I look towards Eddie, and my heart stops. I hear my heartbeat in my ears, quelling any of the demonic screeches of the bats, the tumultuous booming of thunder as red lightning flashed across the sky, Dustin's own frantic yells as I catch sight of Eddie, laying on his back as the creatures dig their teeth into him.

All I see is red; violent, ferocious red, as white-hot fury consumes me. A shockwave echoes thunderously across the atmosphere, electrocuting and stunning bats midair, demobats exploding into ash as I let out an ear piercing wail. Even the bats that surrounded him faded away into nothing but smoke as I fell to my knees, anguish and rage racking through my body.

No, I tell myself. Not like this.

I rush to his side, barely collecting myself as I gently lay his head on my lap, my hands running over his torso as I checked the severity of his wounds—only to see my hands covered in blood.

"Shh, shh, it's okay, Eddie, it's going to be okay, everything's going to be okay." I chant like a prayer, even when I knew that there was no god here. Not in a place like this.

Even as blood dribbles out of his mouth, he smiles at me, with those sweet brown eyes I had learned to love so dearly.

"Come on, Eds, get up, you need to get up." My words sound like pleas as they make their way out my mouth, he stumbles back even as he attempts to prop himself up, my urging continues as I try to heave him up into my arms. I cursed the lab for not instilling in me super strength, but none of that mattered now, all my thoughts and whispers in my head were silenced as he shakes his head.

"I can't," he chuckles. "I'm sorry, (Y/N), I can't."

Tears stream down my face, an endless waterfall as I find myself hiccuping in between sobs.

"No, no, please don't say that Eddie."

"Hey, it's okay, I'll be okay. It's my year right? I can feel it, it's finally my year, (Y/N)."

"No! You can't—no, please, Eddie, don't leave me, please." I bury my face into his palm, peppering his hand with kisses as it starts to dawn on me that this may be the last time I'll ever feel his touch.

"'M never gonna leave you gorgeous," He breathes out, still smiling at me even as a tear slides down his face. "Always gonna be here, right in your heart or some cheesy shit. But I'll always be with you babe, forever and ever," he coughs, and I hold him even tighter.

"Never even got the chance to tell you how much I love you. More than anything—more than everything."

"I love you. More Than anything and everything." I don't even know how I manage to say that as my body is racked aggressively with even more sobs.

"Take care of the kiddos for me, alright? All the lost sheepies out there."

"No, no, Edward Munson don't you fucking say that to me, don't you ever—"

"Just say it, doofus." He grins, poking my nose feebly.

I nod my head, holding his hand in mine. "I'll take care of them."

"Save the world, supergirl. I know you'll be great." He chuckles, coughing up even more blood even as I lay my hand on his chest, attempting to steady him.

“I didn’t run away this time, right? ‘M always like that, except when it comes to you. Never gonna runaway when it comes to you.” My lip trembles at his words, the memory of him saving me in the past clear as day in my mind. I cursed at myself, screamed at myself for not connecting with him further back, to spend more time with his lovable, kind self that always looked out for other outcasts, kind and selfless towards everyone even when the world had turned their backs on him.

His breathing is labored now, chest rising and falling softer and softer until he closes his eyes.

I was not losing him. Not like this. I am not going to go another day without seeing his eyes crinkle with laughter, his arms around my waist as we slow dance to some old-timey song that he pretended to hate. We're going to grow old together, Edward Munson, we're going to get high and debate about the meaning of life and whether or not ABBA was better than Metallica and create chaos as we chase each other around in wheelchairs at a home for the elderly. I am going to tell you how much I love you every day of your life.

I am not losing you—I just can't.

I still feel his heartbeat, as faint as it was, it was still beating, fighting valiantly to stay alive. I press my hand over his wounds, clamping my eyes shut as I focused, digging deep into my mind and soul for some ounce of strength to bring him back. I couldn't bring back the dead. But I could manipulate atoms however I wished, and everything was made from them.

Another memory pops into my head, another stupid memory. But this one was important. It had to be. I remember Green, how he could heal with a touch of his finger, how I had asked him how he did that; he told me to listen, listen carefully because if you paid attention enough you'd know that everything had some sort of life in it. And I was going to pull that life back into him.

I furrow my eyebrows in concentration, commanded the atoms in his flesh to produce more platelets to stop the blood from gushing out, freezing blood cells in place, stitching together tissue and reconnecting blood vessels.

I didn't even get the chance to see whether I had succeeded or not in healing him as I passed out from exhaustion, Dustin's voice echoing faintly in the distance as darkness took over my vision.

....

taglist: @preciousbabypeter @iiheartbowie @beebeerockknot @nightless @lovelydivs @lovelydivs @lunar-flwr @naughty-koala07 @slutforsteve @chaoticvigilantes @loudbluepancake @frozenhuntress67 @greekktragedyy @neenieweenie @efvyqrs @vintagemoss

#eddie munson x reader #stranger things x reader #eddie munson #stranger things season 4 #stranger things #eddie munson stranger things #stranger things smut #eddie munson smut #stranger things fic

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spaceopinions · 1 year

Text

Zodiac LTM Rankings (#1)

A friend and I were talking about which zodiac signs we would successfully be able to spend a whole day with and I thought it was funny. So here’s my list.

BASED ON SUN SIGNS ONLY. (And yes, this list is incredibly biased)

Time I would spend with the signs: least to most 👇

11/12 - Virgo/Cancer

10 - Capricorn

8/9 - Libra/Scorpio

7. Leo

6. Taurus

5. Gemini

4. Aries

3. Sag

2. Pisces

1. Aqua

11/12). Virgo/Cancer

Amount of time I could spend with them: 30 minutes (if held at gun point)

bro. These people complain, complain, COMPLAIN. It’s too hot, it’s too cold, the vibe is off, it’s boring, it’s too loud, it’s too quiet, big or small IT NEVER ENDSSSSS.

Yes, you share a sun sign with Beyoncé, Michael Jackson, Ariana Grande, etc. But you are not them, beloved.

You are an average citizen working a job that you hate, yet somehow justify it because of the money or because “they wouldn’t know what to do if I quit”. I’ll tell you what they would do babes — hire your replacement. Speaking of work, thats literally all they talk about. (Depending on other placements) very one-dimensional people.

Always about the problems at work, or at home, or in their love life (they cheated before yes they’ll probably do it again). And normally that wouldn’t be an issue, what are friends for if not to listen to you vent? The issues is that they CAN NEVER RECIPROCATE. You could tell them a family member has a deadly disease and they wouldn’t offer more than an “oh, I’m sorry to hear that. But yeah can you believe my boss wouldn’t let me take the day off?”. Will always find some way to minimize what happened to you. Also, will always want you to dislike the people who have wronged them, but will remain oddly neutral towards those who have wronged you. But again, your problems aren’t as important.

And before someone goes “omg no that’s not true cancer is the sign of the mother, cancer is super caring la-di-dah”. Cancer is a cardinal sign, they are inherently selfish. Cancers are the most “emotional” when something affects THEM. And Virgos… I don’t think they need further explaining. Delusional as Pisces without the entertainment factor.

Only positive is that they will most likely feed you and most likely pay for it. IF you can tolerate them bringing it up for the rest of your life afterwards. Personally, I’d rather starve.

10). Capricorn

Amount of time I could spend with them: 1 - 2hrs. If we’re working on a project together (where they will inevitably takeover)

Represented by The Devil in tarot… need I say more?

No, but seriously. This is a sun sign that needs other fun placements in the chart. Otherwise, you might as well find a dirt road, pick up a rock, and bring it to lunch with you. 10/10 guarantee the conversation will be more interesting.

In my experience Capricorn’s always have this “secret side” to them but aren’t interesting enough for you to want to figure it out. They think they are more eye-catching than they actually are.

Will always repost quotes on social media saying stupid shit like “money on my mind I can’t do nothing else 💯” or “it’s always lonely at the 🔝” or “moving in silence never let them know your next move 🤫” (if you’re announcing your moves then you’re not being silent, dingbat) I always say they’re like Scorpios without the charm or the intrigue.

They might be your boss. They might be your neighbor. They might be that teacher you had in grade school that would never give you an extra pen even though they had a desk full. They’re everywhere, just not remarkable or noteworthy.

8/9). Scorpio/Libra

Amount of time I could spend with them: the length of a part-time shift if we were coworkers and 3 hrs. max otherwise

These two are tied simply because I didn’t feel like putting too much brain power into deciding which I actually liked best.

Some pros are that these people are down for an adventure (planned or spontaneous) and can actually be loyal friends when they feel like it. I have some great memories with individuals with these sun signs. They tend to say things that will stick with you.

Here’s the problem. Scorpios can be too spiteful, obsessed with being a “lone wolf”, and just borderline pathetic. While Libras are hypocritical yet judgmental; and very, very annoying when in a relationship.

Like I said, Scorpios are fun at first. When you’re just getting to know each other it’s like they’re down for anything. Until that fixed energy comes out to play and they get too comfortable. Unlike Sag’s, who get jealous of their inner circle, I notice Scorpios tend to get jealous of others who they aren’t super close too (or at least they’re smart enough to hide it).

The problem is that it’s exhausting to listen to someone shit talk all the time, tbh. About strangers and about people we know. Like yeah, your ex moved on after you had an amicable split 3 years ago. No, I’m not going to pop any tires with you. Gotta let it go. And then, in that scenario, when you decline to go with them. They get into this “nobody is there for me” or “Born alone, die alone” energy. They do not like when you disagree with them and I’m not a yes man, unfortunately. They are vengeful and never wrong. Even if they slapped you in the face, they’ll justify it. “Well why did you do xyz to make me hit you?” Yknow, classic water sign manipulation.

And with Libras, it’s a tale as old as time. They also love talking about other people way too much. And the funniest part is that usually they’re doing the exact same thing but in a different font.

For example, a Libra making minimum wage working in retail will make fun of another person working minimum wage but in fast food. Like idk how to break it to you hunny but…. LMAO. You are not giving Zuckerberg or Bill Gates. Also, respect all people who get off their ass everyday and make it happen. Doesn’t matter what job you have.

OR I had a Libra friend that used to talk shit about college (with multiple friends in school) saying it’s useless and not worth the debt etc., which is cool you’re allowed to have your opinion on it, yet got themselves into $30k+ credit card debt for shopping. You payed a tuition price with nothing to show for it. Used to piss me off so bad. But anyways, yeah, hypocrites.

Also cut us off because of a boyfriend and would only speak to us when they fought but that’s typical Libra behavior, moving on.

7.) Leo

Amount of time I could spend with them: have to test it out, will bring AirPods with noise cancellation just in case

I’ve never been close to a Leo so this is a very distant perspective, but they seem like good surface-value friends. Nice to dress up with, go out, get drinks, do something fun. Talk more than Geminis (quite a feat). But other than that, ehhh.

They also get jealous fast, friendships and otherwise. Leo’s love taking that “king of the jungle” shit seriously. And while I love that for them, we’re not in a Disney movie, this isn’t Pride Rock and you are not the boss. Don’t like to be reminded they aren’t in charge and will throw a tantrum.

Also, never as independent as they like to seem. Someone is always behind the scenes when it comes to them. Another sign that tries to be “secretive and mysterious” but is somehow always shouting their business from the rooftops at the same time.

If I have them on social media, their accounts are most likely muted. (Thanks Instagram!)

6.) Taurus

Amount of time I could spend with them: majorly depends on placements. On average, I’ll say a full-time shift if we’re coworkers or 5 hrs. in everyday life

Taurus’ are simple people. Compared to the chaos of the previous signs it’s like a breath of fresh air.

They will definitely get snacks or food with you. Will run simple errands with you. Will watch movies with you. If you go out of town, you can give them a key and they’ll feed your pets while you’re away. Good people.

Or they can be the follower type (and no being fixed doesn’t automatically mean you can’t be a follower, idk who told y’all that), can be opportunists when it comes to friends. (Loyal to a point)

For example, normally not flaky but if better plans come up with people they like more, they WILL flake. And I know this because I’ve always been the friend watching them do it to other people. People like to pass Geminis or air signs in general as the “fakest” but thats not true lmao. They definitely can be, but there are other signs that do the same shit. And Taurus is one of ‘em, let’s be fr guys.

Also will cancel plans if they’re just not feeling it anymore, which I respect. Can be annoying though if you do it multiple times. And then get mad people don’t invite you out as much.

Overall, they don’t usually leave a super strong impression. They’re dependable friends, though (if they like you).

5.) Gemini

Amount of time I could spend with them: if it’s the good twin, 8hrs. If it’s the bad twin, ill take the first train to hell, pls.

Ah, if it isn’t the worlds most hated.

I rather like Geminis. Or at least, what Geminis could be. Especially in work/school settings (that is where they flourish after all). Gets shit done. Might be a know it all, and will definitely respect you more if you show you’re as smart as them in someway. If you show you’re worthy.

If they know you’re not the one to fuck with, they’ll leave you alone, for the most part, in favor of someone “weaker/dumber”

Geminis pick their battles. And they will always do it when they think they can get away with it (mind games/gossip/etc.) To add to this, they are extremely observant. They don’t use that skill for good most of the time but they are and don’t ever think they’re not. That’s how they getcha, is by playing dumb.

I once read on some Instagram profile that Gemini isn’t actually based off good/evil, but of the two “jobs” they had in Greek mythology. The messenger, Hermes also doubled as the grim reaper. So not good/evil but playful and social vs. solemn and dutiful. I’m explaining it very bare-bones, but once I looked it at that way I feel like I understood the sign a lot more. Because whether you want to hear it or not, they are one of the most complex signs.

Now don’t get me wrong, they’re not super high on the list for a reason. The Geminis that the internet is always complaining about are very aggravating people. Shit starters, followers, gossips, bullies, overall irritating individuals. Let’s just say most of the ones I have on social media are muted (thank you Instagram!) Because they post their entire lives on there. The very definition of “peaked in high school”

They are entertaining, at the very least. And they don’t care if you’re laughing at them or with them, and I respect that. Also, they know how to keep in touch.

4.) Aries

Amount of time I could spend with them: Sometime after they reflect on a situation that pissed them off for the 100th time but before they start the anger-cry nonsense

I find that Aries can be more loyal than earth signs in friendships. Will fight with you. Your enemies are their enemies. Will get you out the house if you’re a homebody or will stay in with you if you insist. Good friends when they wanna be.

Aries are incredibly selfish though. They are good friends, partners, family members, coworkers, etc. until they just don’t want too anymore.

They are less obvious about it than virgo/cancer, and will at least listen to you vent, but deep down they really don’t see anyone else’s problems as equal to their own. They just don’t.

Also, they secretly think they are better than everyone else in their lives. Not necessarily in a secret jealousy way, more like a stated-fact kind of way.

Like - “Grass is green, water is wet, I’m better than you, the sky is blue “ LMAO no that’s literally how they think I’m not even joking.

I won’t say they’re particularly aggressive, but I always notice they have misplaced anger? Or angry at the wrong time. They’ll get worked up about something that happened 2 years ago, yet won’t confront the person/situation that did it. In my experience, Aries pick their battles too (again, other placements depending). Other than that I’d say they’re pretty calm.

They cannot see when they did wrong, though. They would rather forget about what happened instead of work through it or Yknow, apologize.

3.) Sagiterrorist

Amount of time I could spend with them: Until they piss me off enough that I manage to find a way to enter hell by choice

If you seen my last posts, you should know I much I hate to do this. But I have to be honest here.

Sag’s make great surface level friends. I will never get close to one ever again, placements be damned, but damn do they make great conversation.

I could talk about any random thing with a Sag. Good speakers and good listeners (when they wanna be). Charming, intellectual, attentive, again, when they want to be. The artist Kehlani has an album called “It Was Good Until It Wasn’t” and that is how I would describe any interaction with a Sag

They are transactional friends. When they can’t get what they want from you, they get vengeful. They hate when people outdo them (by their standards) and will bring you down in any way they can. Sometimes by influencing outside opinions on you, all while smiling in your face. Always playing both sides.

If you keep ‘em around, don’t keep ‘em close.

2.) Pisces

Amount of time I could spend with them: depends on the length of their delusions

These people can be first or dead last.

It’s simple, though. Pisces are the most adaptable sign. They can be what you want them to be, for the most part. Stay home friend, go out friend, vacation friend, you name it they’ll do it.

Some of them lack a backbone. Some of them have too much of one. Some of them pretend to have one until the last minute.

And all of them play victim like it’s a video game character. Gets really tiring. It’s just never their fault. (Again, classic water sign)

Inconsistent, unrealistic, and so, so much fun when they’re not being terrible people.

When a Pisces loves you, they will ride or die for you. More so than any other sign Tbh. But on the other side, they will (attempt) to destroy you if they feel wronged (which is usually you setting a boundary that they continuously cross, doesn’t take much for them to feel wronged lmao).

And when I say destroy I don’t mean in the cool, femme fatale, sword fights and gun slinging way. I mean in the petty lies, throw your darkest secrets in your face, kind. Tacky and over dramatic. GOSSIP ALMOST MORE THAN GEMINIS lol. But will throw a compliment in with an insult.

Other than that, Pisces are a sign I can immediately get along with. And I like that they will always check in on you. Will also listen to you vent and very much appreciate when you listen to them, as a lot of people in their lives usually don’t.

1.) Aquarius

Amount of time I could spend with them: a full 24 hours (if I’m feeling patient)

Aquarius are so much fun when they’re not being ridiculous. That’s really all I can say LMAO.

The ones I’ve been super close too I’ve loved dearly, and the ones I wasn’t super close too were still easy to talk too. They’re open minded, quick to take your problems on as their own (if they like you), and will catch up with you in some way whether it’s sending a meme or a TikTok, calling or texting, or seeing you in person. Knows what it means to be a friend.

On the flip side, they can be just too caught up in their world. Every time you hang out it’s on their terms, you eat where they prefer, you go where they wanna go, your opinions aren’t really worth much at times. Selfish.

Some will try to do what you want for once but will be in a mood the whole time which is an instant vibe killer. Aquarius have their own world with their own plans and you either fit into it or you don’t.

I respect that, but much like their Sister sign they have trouble understanding that they are no one’s boss.

Also, some (not ones I’ve been close too but like coworkers/acquaintances I’ve had, etc.) try way too hard to be “different”. Like, don’t get me wrong, I understand Aquarius is the rebel and all that is lovely, but it doesn’t always apply. Like, they go as far as swearing people are copying them even though they’re just copying trends?

You buy trending items off tiktok, you’re obsessed with y2k, or cottage core, or whatever else the internet says to be obsessed with nowadays. You don’t understand fully tarot but you use an app on your phone to “read” for your friends. You think it’s revolutionary when you don’t style your hair. You have an eyebrow piercing and chunky bleached highlights.

Babe. Respectfully, you are no more unique than Sarah, Jim, and Taylor.

All those things are great but you didn’t invent them nor make them popular. Be fr.

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kittenwhiskers · 2 years

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Do you have ler Max headcanons?

ohohohoho do I

- Very rare that Max actually lers, she's not the type to just tickle others whenever and wherever

- but if she's in the right mood and she happens to pick you as her target- run

- she is so skilled it's scary, it'll take her less than a minute to find all your worst spots

- Lucas, I can guarantee you, has been the victim of her attacks many more times than anyone else in the group

- El probably being the second most frequent lee but not by much

- not the type to use conventional teasing, but her teases are still deadly effective

- "god, I'm barely touching you are you're already going insane!"

- "oh, just wait till I get *worst spot*."

- "come on, a little laughing never hurt anyone."

- she has this certain aura to her when she's in her rare ler moods that the group basically has a sixth sense to

- I mean she can clear a room just by walking into it, the gang knows not to ever take chances with Maxine The Ler

- still takes consent and limits very seriously

- if someone says they genuinely don't wanna be tickled/touched she instantly backs off

- same for if the lee reaches their limit, she cares about her friends' comfort

- though she's not one for aftercare. She'll snicker at the giggly mess she leaves her lee and just walks away all smug about it

#tickling #tickle #asks #headcanons #tickle headcanons #ler!max mayfield #stranger things #max mayfield

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lizzyplaysthesims · 2 years

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SEVEN DEADLY SINS LEGACY CHALLENGE: GEN ONE, PART TWO

Day Two of the Lust generation was so full of drama, I forgot to take screenshots of most of it. The drama started when Penelope found Baby Daddy #3 in Imran Watson, who as per the rules of @spannersims Seven Deadly Sins challenge had to be the third parent to Penelope’s ever-expanding children. To spice up the drama (and split up the amount of work J the Third and Penelope had to do around the house), I had Imran move in - which was a huge mistake.

While J did not seem to notice that Penelope’s pregnancy was not his doing and seemed unphased by Imran’s moving in, Penelope was FUMING. J and Imran got along better than Penelope and J OR Penelope and Imran did, and when she walked in on them in the middle of a woohoo session, it’s safe to say that Penelope was only okay with an open relationship if she got to be the one sleeping around. In the middle of all of this jealousy, anger, sadness, and embarrassment, Penelope went into labor and delivered ANOTHER set of twins, boys named Zach and Shayne.

Imran was able to welcome his sons into the world while J (off camera) immediately stepped in to be a better parent than anyone else in the house and care for the other baby. Seriously, J. How are you so good at this and how is everyone else so bad? In a moment of celebration after his babies’ birth, Imran decided to go for a swim. It was then that tragedy struck - as if a vengeful god wanted him dead to end all of the drama in the house and get Penelope and J back to fixing all of the GODDAMN APPLIANCES THAT THE KIDS BREAK EVERY DAY or some other cosmic, unknowable mystery. Somehow, while swimming, the ladder disappeared.

twitch

Imran, however, climbed out of the ladder less pool in a most un-Sim-like fashion, so the vengeful god who wanted working appliances had to be more creative. When going to swim again, it was Imran’s unfortunate fate to discover that the pool was now surrounded by walls and a couch, and he could not climb out. Thus is the tragic life of a Sim whose only purpose is to become a father, but never a father figure.

The family (l to r: Julia, Penelope, J 3, J 4, and a now teenage Harper in need of a shower) gathered to watch (???) as Imran breathed his last and his soul was gathered by the Grim Reaper. Mysteriously after this picture was taken, the walls and couch were no longer around the pool and a ladder was instead installed. This is probably my favorite in-game screenshot I’ve ever gotten. The drama, the tragedy, the stinky sim and the toilet speech bubble - that’s The Sims, baby.

It was on this note that Day 2 concluded, Penelope now finished with the process of finding Baby Daddies and with the rest of her adulthood to finish maxing out that fitness skill.

#lizzy ts4 legacies #the sims legacy #the sims 4 #ts4 #ts4 gameplay #7ds nightmare legacy #7ds legacy #7 deadly sins #7 deadly sins legacy challenge #7 deadly sims #gen 1 lust

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soylago · 3 years

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Lewis: What do you guys say when you answer the phone?

Lance: What up?

Daniel: Who this be?

Max: No he's dead. This is his son.

Lewis: O-okay

#max probably saying this with deadly seriousness #thats what you get jos #lewis hamilton #lance stroll #daniel ricciardo #max verstappen #mercedes amg petronas #red bull f1 #mclaren #aston martin #f1 #incorrect f1 quotes #f1 incorrect quotes #source: glee

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justlightlysedated · 3 years

Note

24 or 25...or 31.....or 32....

31. You will receive the same injuries as your soulmate (unless deadly).

Alex is in the middle of speaking when his voice cuts out with a gurgle.

Alex feels the pain sharp and sudden in the hollow of his throat and he lifts a hand to his neck, and feels the blood, hot and gushing.

It immediately pools in his palm and starts slipping between his fingers.

Alex looks over to Kyle, who is looking at him in horrified silence.

"Michael," he breathes out, and the word seems to snap Kyle out of it.

Before Alex is really aware of it, Kyle has him down on the dirt outside, putting pressure on his wound, talking into his phone, but all Alex can fully concentrate on is Michael, that Michael is hurt. Not badly enough to kill him, no, probably because Max was around.

But Alex, Alex is pretty sure that he's not gonna make it.

Which is why it's such a surprise that he opens his eyes and finds himself blinking up at the hospital ceiling.

It takes him a second longer than usual to remember how he got here, and once he does, he's sitting up, and trying to rip the IV off, needing to leave as soon as possible. Pain spears up the back of his neck and down to his right shoulder, making him grunt in pain.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Kyle is saying, pushing Alex back down on the bed. "You need to keep still. You shouldn't even be awake yet."

"How long?" Alex asks, needing to know how much time has passed. He has the strangest feeling that something monumentally bad was about to happen, and he needed to get to Michael before it did.

"About three hours," Kyle says. "We just got you settled into this room."

"I need to go," Alex says as firmly as he can.

Kyle gives him a highly incredulous look, "You just got out of surgery. You move too much and you can rip your stitches open, and actually bleed out."

Alex just shakes his head, "I'll strap my right arm to my chest and not do any heavy lifting, I promise. But I have to leave. I need to see-"

He cuts himself off, shaking his head, and looks at Kyle as seriously and capable as he can manage, "I need to get out of here. And I will, with or without your help."

Kyle sighs, long and loud, and then steps forward, turning the machines that were monitoring Alex's signs off, "You will be careful. And you will be coming in tomorrow morning so that I can check you over."

He looks at Alex seriously, and Alex just looks back at him unwavering.

Kyle puts the sling on him, and threatens to put him in a brace if Alex didn't agree to the wheelchair.

Alex had ordered an Uber and it was waiting for him once he got out.

He let Kyle help him into the car, but he waited until the driver was on his way before he let his head fall back, wincing just a little when it pulled at his stitches.

He breathed out heavily, looking up at the roof of the car, and watched the fabric at the corner right where the wind shield is, flapping in the cool AC breeze, and he hopes that Michael is okay, that Max got to him in time.

The Uber leaves him right in front of the Airstream, and Alex gives the driver five stars and an extra tip, since he didn't speak and didn't play any music, just let Alex stew in his silence.

The truck isn't there, and Alex can see his car, and can just barely make out the dark spot where he'd been bleeding out until the ambulance had gotten there.

Alex presses a hand to the gauze wrapped around his neck and he swallows hard, wincing slightly.

He gets inside of the Airstream and sits down heavily on top of the small bed, lifting his free hand to his head.

His stomach clenches unpleasantly, and the anxiety makes him bounce his knee a little too fast, and he can’t shake the feeling that something really bad is going to happen.

He spends almost half an hour trying and failing not to think the worse, and when he hears the crunch of the tires pulling up, he feels the relief threatening to overwhelm him, but he tries to keep a lid on his hope until the door to the Airstream gets pulled open and Michael runs up the steps.

He turns towards where Alex is, and Michael stops frozen, staring at Alex.

Alex's eyes dart all over him, and he stares at the blood staining the collar of Michael's sweater, the mark spreading down his chest and across his shoulder. And Michael’s eyes dart all over him at the same time, making a low pained sound when he sees the white bandages wrapped around his throat.

They both move forward at once, and Michael’s hand hovers above his shoulder while Alex stares at the mark less spot on Michael’s neck.

“You’re okay,” Michael says, voice coming out choked. “I thought for sure it would’ve killed you.”

“No,” Alex says, swallowing hard. “If it would’ve been fatal then I wouldn’t have gotten the wound.”

“Just because it wasn’t fatal for me doesn’t mean that it won’t be for you,” Michael says, the words sounding familiar, like it was something that Alex had told him before.

“I’m fine,” Alex says, shrugging a little, and wincing as the move tightens the bandages across the stitches.

Michael steps closer, and presses one hand to Alex’s jaw, tipping his head upwards with fingers pressed against his chin as he undoes the bandages wrapped around his throat with his other hand.

Michael lets the gauze fall to the floor, before he unpeels the square bandage tapped over the stitches.

Alex winces as the adhesive tugs against his skin, but he doesn’t say anything as Michael stares at the wound.

He hadn’t asked Kyle how many stitches, but the cut didn’t feel like it was big, only deep.

Michael’s breathing shakes, but he doesn’t say anything as he tips Alex’s further to the side and then ducks his head down, leaning in close and pressing his mouth right to the spot where Alex feels the pain flashing red and hot.

He shudders at the dual sensations of pain and pleasure that sweep through him, and Michael just inhales ragedly and presses another kiss against his skin, before he’s leaning away, and pressing his hand across the wound, palm pressing tightly against his skin.

Alex hisses because it hurts, opening his mouth to ask Michael what he’s doing, but then he gasps as a bright light begins to fill the room, coming from where Michael has his hand pressed to Alex’s neck.

Alex feels heat, like a balm spreading across every spot where he hurts and aches, and gently sweeping it away.

Michael gasps a little after a moment, a small and painful thing, and he pulls away from Alex then, turning to brace himself on the counter.

Alex swallows hard, eyes wide and staring at Michael, and he lifts his hand to his neck, and he can still feel the stitches against the tips of his fingers, but he can’t feel any of the pain.

“I can’t really heal, I haven’t practiced nearly enough for that, but I can take the pain away, at least for a little bit,” Michael says after a second, and Alex focuses his gaze on him, and sees that Michael is staring at him from beneath the fringe of curls that have fallen across his face.

“Thanks, anyway,” Alex says, taking a step closer to Michael and wanting to reassure him in some way, but Michael takes a step back away from him, shaking his head.

“I’m sorry,” he says when Alex frowns at the move. “I want to sit with you, and maybe lie down with you and just go to sleep and forget this god awful day for a good twenty-four hours, but I can’t. Noah is still out there, and so are Max and Isobel, and I know they’re in danger, and I have to help them.”

Michael turns to look at him, eyes bright with tears, and Alex just crosses the couple of feet separating them and he puts his hand to Michael’s face, and shudders when Michael leans into the touch almost desperately.

“Then go and help them,” Alex says softly, and Michael’s eyes snap open, and he looks at Alex, slightly incredulous.

“Go help them, “ Alex repeats, moving closer. “But promise me you’ll come back. We need to talk. There’s so many things that I want to say to you. So many things that I should’ve said to you a long time ago.”

Michael nods his head and pushes his face forward, pressing his forehead to Alex’s, both of their eyes falling shut.

“I promise,” Michael says, voice low and earnest, and Alex just shuts his eyes tighter, pressing his fingers harder to Michael’s face, wishing that he could keep him here and safe by sheer force of will, but knowing that when it involves Max and Isobel that whatever he wants comes second.

He pulls away from Michael then, and Michael’s eyes flutter open and he stares at Alex, as Alex takes a couple of steps backwards and drops back to sit on Michael’s bed.

“Then go,” he says, feeling like maybe he’ll be able to actually fall asleep, and wonders if Michael’s trick with the pain also erased some of his anxiety.

“I’ll be right here, waiting,” he finishes.

Michael nods his head once, and he heads towards the laundry, pulling his bloody sweater over his head and pulling on a clean shirt.

He stops right by Alex, and then leans down and presses his forehead to Alex’s temple.

“I’ll be back,” he says, and Alex just lets his eyes fall shut and he doesn't open them again until he hears the truck driving away, taking with it the peace and warmth Alex had been feeling a couple of seconds ago.

He breathes in shakily and carefully leans back on the bed, looking up at the ceiling and feeling like this was going to be a long night.

#malexprompts2021 #thank you for the prompts my dear this is the one i picked!#i hope you like it 😊😊❤#me constantly thinking about the retcon malex scene where alex was very clearly telling michael that he was ready to fight for him??#more likely than you think

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kuroos-moon · 4 years

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『Hate’s Twin Called Love』

— request by anon whose initial ask i could no longer find 😫

❥ pairing: Iwaizumi Hajime x Reader

❥ genre: enemies to lovers, fluff, mutual pining, denial

❥ warning/s: language

❥ wc: 2.4k

“I got here first,” you frown, narrowing your eyes as you placed a hand on the chair nearest to the window.

“I placed my bag here, which means I got here earlier,” he casually replies, wondering why you won’t back down despite your height difference and his intimidating facade.

Your frown deepens, and he does the same when neither of you give in. “I don’t care, I wanna sit here,” you say, your inner brat surfacing just because the way he glared at you ticked you off, so you stubbornly sit on the desk.

“What a nuisance,” he grunts, sitting down on his chair as he rightfully should.

Ever since then, you never passed up the opportunity to piss him off or give him even the slightest inconvenience of the day, devilish, you’re well aware. He’s the devil himself though, and only you could point that out. With him showing a sly grin your way when you lose a pen, only for him to proudly use it for you to see.

“Hajime you asshole, give me back my pen,” you give him a death glare, and he innocently looks at you, acting confused. “I don’t have it, y/n.”

“Cut the bullshit, that’s my only one,” you grimace, irritated at the fact that of all the numerous pranks he could do on your never-ending war ever since highschool, he just had to steal your pen right before a test.

“Don’t blame me when you’re the one who lost it,” he blinks, perfecting the art of acting clueless. “Give it back I don’t have another one!” You raise your voice, and he stops scribbling, looking at you in amusement.

“What?” You huff, and he only chuckles under his breath, momentarily biting your pen to further irritate you. “I’ll fucking kick your ass after this,” you bite your tongue, wanting to scream at him if it weren’t for the many other students and a strict teacher here with you.

And that’s just one of many encounters with the sly seemingly-mature ace who knew just how to annoy you like it were his second nature, but deep down, your day’s never complete without the usual sarcastic banters or the subtle mouthing of ‘fuck you’ or ‘whatcha looking at’ between classes, that’s why you sit bored in class for a few days when they’re excused for practice.

Your happiness literally comes from seeing him so mad that he’s speechless as he sees you’ve uploaded an embarrassing baby picture source: oikawa or as he realizes you’re the one who’s been giving away his number.

For him, you’re the exact same, you’re the devil’s spawn. Trotting along so casually as if you were an angel, only for the disguise to fall off the moment you open your mouth, profanity after profanity especially when you were talking to him. It wasn’t long before your string of curses was music to his ears and the highlight of his day, taking pleasure in having you yell at him, or in especially irritating occurrences, you’re throwing things at him.

It just so happens when you’re casually sitting in the corner of the room, minding your own business as you listen to music. “Y/N-CHAAN!” You look up to see Toru, out of breath as he leant on the doorway of your classroom . “Iwa-chan’s talking with some girl, come look,” he grins, and just like that, your eyes twinkle with excitement.

Time to to get back at him for that ruined test, you smirk to yourself, the clueless Iwaizumi standing at the end of the stairwell as he flirts with the poor girl who didn’t know at all how much of an asshole he was.

“Babe!” You exclaim, the fakest and widest smile on your lips as you throw yourself at him, loving how he cringed away from you the moment you wrap your arms around his torso. “What the fu-

“I missed you, shall I come over tonight?” You gush at him, locking your hold on him with intertwined fingers as he tried to push you off without actually using too much force to hurt you. “Cut it out, you little shit,” he mumbles to your ear as he stills, waiting for you to unwrap yourself from him.

“Who’s this Iwa-chan? Is she a friend?” You say enthusiastically, the deadly aura he gave off only making you want to piss him off more. “Iwaizumi is she your girlfriend? I thought you hated each other,” she raises a brow and you smile, looking up at Iwa.

“That’s just our love language though, isn’t it babe?”

He has had enough. It’s been days since you’ve bantered, the only interaction the past few days were the failed attempts to trip each other in the halls, but he wasn’t in class the whole week. Some part of him thought that he was relieved in your absence, but lately he’s been feeling empty.

“Iwaizumi?” The blonde girls huffs, crossing her arms against her chest.

“Iwa-chan, doesn’t she know how much you love me?” You pout, squeezing his bicep which you really hadn’t realize was this rock hard until now. It was the look of annoyance and pure hatred that made you smirk for only him to see, but you thought wrong.

He wasn’t mad because you interrupted his romantic stairwell rendezvous, nor was he mad that you literally show up out of nowhere, being this close to him. He was irritated because you thought you were winning, you thought you were pissing him off; but joke’s on you, he actually found himself amused by this whole ordeal.

“Babe let’s just go, you’re not cheating on me are you?” You add fuel to what you thought was a burning flame, thinking you had succeeded on ruining his day.

“How ridiculous, you know I only have eyes for you,” he leans down, a teasing and excruciating mere inch between your faces, the side of his lips curving upwards so subtly you’re not sure it’s really there. Your eyes widen, and his grin grows as he could practically feel you stop breathing.

He watches you storm off, knowing fully well he was victorious for this round.

Iwaizumi - 1

Y/n - 0 (Loser)

The game against Seijoh and some other school was over, and like every other game, you got first-row seats, it was the one and only time wherein you actually admire Hajime (admittedly). You stood outside, waiting for your friends to finish gushing over Oikawa and you look up questioningly when you see pairs of shoes on the ground.

“Uhm, do you guys want something?” You ask, confused, somehow feeling ganged up on with three girls surrounding you.

“We’ll cut to the chase, stay away from Hajime,” she spitefully says, and you snort the moment you hear his name.

“You don’t even have to beg me for it,” you say and they furrow their brows. “You’re acting so coy! Pretending to be some goofy girl who tries to piss him off only to get to spend more time with him!”

You sigh, “I’d kill to have him away from me for as long as possible, what are you guys even on about?”

“Just stay away from him y/n l/n, he’s mine.” Cue another chuckle from you, “yours? I question your taste but Hajime doesn’t belong to you,” you sweetly smile, not knowing where the sudden irritation came from.

Seriously, how could she say he was hers when he probably doesn’t even know her name like the stupid non-caring jerk he is, but you somehow thank him for it, somehow relieved that he could barely name a girl in your class that wasn’t you.

“What do you know?!” She seethes, about to land a palm right across your cheek but it doesn’t come, instead, she stood petrified as she meets Iwaizumi’s gaze, securely standing behind you as he firmly grasped her wrist.

“That’s quite enough,” he glares, the girl immediately withdrawing her hand. “What are you here for?” You bitterly ask, the previous encounter in the stairwell still having your hate meter for him past its max.

“Y/n-baaaaka, where’re those killer moves of yours that almost have me injured all the damn time,” he says, his lips tugging downwards as he looked at you, and you stiffen under his touch when he rests his elbow on your shoulder. Now looking at the girls, “You’re quite the troublesome bird-brained bunch, pathetic too. You better not come anywhere near us again,” he grunts, a dull ring to it in fact; but his usual voice was also usually intimidating, hence the effortless success of scaring away the girls for good.

You scoff, “what’s with the sudden chivalry?”

He raises a brow at you before a scowl forms at his lips, “shouldn’t you thank me?”

“What? For coming to my rescue? How charming, nothing less to expect from our ace,” you huff, turning around to walk away. You know how much he disliked you, so why was he being kind? Why do you a favor and rest his elbow on your shoulder and act like friends, maybe lovers— you recall the position you were in last time, you clinging to his arm while he leaned in, face painfully close to yours.

“Did you really mean that? You’d kill to have me away from you,” he chuckles, “what strong emotion,” and you halt, turning around to look at his expression which resembled the masking of hurt. “You were listening?” You ask, but he merely walks towards you.

“Thought I’d hear some sort of love confession,” he stops a foot away from you, “but that was fucking disappointing.” You’re beyond confused at this point, why in the world would he expect a confession out of you? YOU of all people, you’re enemies, same sides of a pole that simply will and never attract.

“What would you have wanted me confess?” You narrow your eyes at him; your pathetic attempt to be defensive when in reality your walls were all crashing down, and he’d be free to walk in and capture you his; vulnerable and genuine, free from your lies and forced obliviousness.

“I’m exhausted,” he says, leaving you stupefied when he holds your chin between his thumb and index, warm from having spiked the ball multiple times as the ace from the game earlier on. “I don’t give a fuck, just keep your fucking hands off of me Iwaizumi,” you glare, making him grin.

“You swear a lot with that pretty mouth of yours,” he presses on you more, knowing this would either be a hit or miss. A hit for when you crumble and give in to him, spilling the truth about how you truly felt which he has long figured, because he can’t be the only one who felt this way, no?

The miss wouldn’t be much of a miss though, he’d still love it if you exploded, punching him or something but at the same time postponing your long overdue truthful conversations because you convinced yourself too much that love and hate were separated by a thick line, which was far from how it actually was.

“I hate you,” you spat, but he can’t see any hatred in your eyes at all. “Does that mean you don’t want me?” He taunts, his lips inching closer and closer to yours. You only find yourself looking down, unable to breathe at the suffocating feeling of having your emotions come out all at once.

love or hate, which was it? The latter. No, it couldn’t be, you wouldn’t be finding yourself getting lost in his eyes if you did truthfully despise him. Then, was it the former? Perhaps... Maybe... Probably explaining why you were going to say it, “if you don’t kiss me right now, Hajime, I will.”

Bingo, he wins, it was a hit.

In one swift motion, he locks lips with you, your hands coming to rest on his broad shoulders as he tilts his head sidewards to deepen the kiss, not wanting to spare an inch of your mouth. It was the perfect kiss, one to show your yearning for the other through questionable means such as inconveniencing the other’s life, and one to express the raw passion of love that without a doubt made every bit of you ecstatic.

“Oya, Oya, what’s this?” Oikawa’s annoying voice reaches his ears, Iwaizumi pulls away with one last peck on your lips. “I’ll fucking kill you,” he mutters under his breath, Toru flinching before letting out a nervous chuckle. “Uh, well then, I’ll leave you two to it,” he grins, waving at you before running off.

“So you’ve had a crush on me all along, huh,” you smirk at him, his ears turning red as he looks at you. You snicker, poking at him teasingly as he covers his face with his hand.

“Don’t push me,” he finally says, and you let out another laugh, of course you’re going to push his buttons, “eh, so what are we now, babe? I don’t think I like you at all, honey, that was charity.”

“Charity?” He muses, grabbing your wrist to whisper closely in your ear, you gasp, his breath against your skin leaving you flustered. “If anything, all I did was fan service.” HE HAD YOU ALL FLUSTERED AND SPEECHLESS AND FOR WHAT?

You push him away, irritation making you want to breathe fire, “FAN SERVICE?” You exclaim, wearing the deepest frown he had seen on you making him laugh.

“Kidding, kidding,” he nonchalantly says, and you scowl, “I hate you.”

“If you hate me so much then why not go out with me?” He says, all seriousness in his tone.

“What?” You blink, that was sudden.

“You should date me, cling to me, piss the fuck off other girls who try to get in between, and make sure I see your face everyday, that would ultimately make me miserable, and you hate me so much that you want that, don’t you?” He finishes, hands in his pockets as he looked straight at you.

This time, he actually feared how this would turn out. He had revealed his cards already, there’s no going back to normal after this, things could only go from being strangers or to being lovers.

“Sure, let’s date. Give me the luxury to annoy you everyday, and you better not break up with me for it,” you smile, and he chuckles, letting out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding.

“Then don’t break up with me if I make you mad like ten times a day,” a soft subtle smile plays at his lips while you both walk hand in hand together outside the building, the sunset striking so beautifully at the two of you but you didn’t have much time to admire it as you were kept preoccupied with each other’s conversations.

_____________________

General Taglist [Open]: @noyasbitchh

#haikyuu!!#haikyuu!! scenarios #haikyuu headcanons #haikyuu x reader #iwaizumi x reader #iwaizumi hajime #haikyuu iwaizumi #haikyuu!! headcanons #haikyuu!! x reader #haikyuu scenarios #haikyuu #hq #hq scenarios #hq headcanons #hq iwaizumi #iwaizumi hajime x reader #iwaizumi fluff #haikyuu fluff

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abacus-and-paper-money · 3 years

Text

Comet Theory Thursday: Character Analysis; Helene Bezukhova

It was a reeeeally close vote this week but Helene won out! Thank you to everyone who voted ^^ I did an extra long one this time! Content under the cut!

Character Analysis: Helene Bezukhova*

*(It’s important to note that this is ONLY an analysis of Great Comet!Helene, not W&P!Helene, as I have not read the book yet.)

Elena “Helene” Bezukhova is without a doubt, one of the most complex and layered characters in Natasha, Pierre, & The Great Comet of 1812. Both smarter and nastier than her brother Anatole, Helene is a cunning woman who knows how to wrap people around her finger. So much so that she’s been dubbed “The Queen of Society.” Everything that Helene does is intentional. (Possibly with the exception of her bad French.) Almost Every. Little. Thing. Right down to the way she carries herself. The tone of her voice. The things she wears.

However, underneath the master manipulator, there’s a little soft spot. If only a small one. For her brother, and maybe even for Natasha. But more on that later. First, let’s talk about Helene herself.

I believe that Helene is the smartest character in Great Comet, or possibly second-smartest, it’s a tough call between her and Dolokhov. But I digress. The point is that she’s incredibly smart. Seriously, if she was a D&D character, she’d have the Wisdom and Charisma stats maxed out, which is a deadly combination. That was another tangent, sorry, bear with me here.

So, how does Helene get people to like her? Like I said before, it’s a combination of everything. It’s all intentional. First, her voice. Helene slurs her voice slightly, possibly because she’s a little drunk, but possibly just to evoke the feeling of intoxication in others. (Not even to mention Amber Gray’s insanely gorgeous singing)

Next, how she carries herself. Helene has a very fluid way of walking, interspersed by some occasional harsh movements. Watch her in The Opera, prancing around with her head held high as she’s introduced. Almost like a snake, with her graceful foot, but then a sudden movement of her arm or head. (Like how she raises her glass in The Duel.) Additionally, Helene is very expressive with her arms, often reaching out towards people, and/or gesturing to them with both arms outstretched. She does this a lot with Natasha.

The things she wears. Helene is always seen in the highest of fashion. Feathers in her hair during The Opera, the high waistline that was so in style in the 1810s, and high-quality fabrics from all over the world. She wears green throughout the whole show (I made a wholeass post about this so I’m not gonna restate all of it here.) Her CONSISTENT wearing of green gives her a ‘thing,’ something visually iconic. Think like Ariana Grande’s ponytail, or Heather Chandler’s red scrunchie. No matter what, you can find Helene in green.

And finally, how she interacts with others. Helene is a master of hyping people up. And because of all the aforenoted things, she makes you feel special and important like no other could. You’re being told how beautiful you are by the queen of society. That’s gotta be like the biggest confidence boost possible. She gets you to love her by making it seem like she loves you. Of course, we also can’t discount Helene being the seductress that she is, her unashamed sexuality makes her seem yet more confident. And confidence is widely regarded as the most attractive quality in a person. Not even just sexually or romantically attractive, attractive in all ways. People want to be around confident people, especially people who make them feel confident too.

Alright, now that we’ve got that covered, let’s look deeper into Helene’s actual character. Like how she is as a person and shit. Her flaws, her redeeming qualities, her soft spots. I’m not going to pretend that Helene is a super great person or anything, she’s #3 on my asshole ranking, but she’s certainly not two-dimensional either.

First off, and most obvious of her redeeming qualities, Helene clearly loves her brother. They appear to be very close. They’re the classic double-trouble siblings. Throughout the play, she’s not even acting in her own self-interest, she’s helping Anatole win over Natasha. Although the “Thought of throwing them together” does amuse her. We can see her being protective of her brother in ‘Find Anatole,’ where Anatole is devastated, as he’s just been chased off by Marya for being an absolute SCOUNDREL and therefore unable to pick up or even see his beloved Natasha. “Anatole, come Anatole, Anatole hush, Anatole.” She reaches out with both arms, then and embraces and comforts him while they sit on the stairs. Don’t get me wrong, he’s a total asshole, but Helene seems to truly love and care about him. She also hypes him up to the audience while introducing him in The Opera, kinda being like ‘hell yeah that’s my brother he’s fucking stupid but cool af’

But then, we obviously get to the other side of this. Helene plays people like a fiddle, with no thought of how other might be affected by her actions. She’s actively hostile to Pierre, who she only married for his money in the first place, telling him to keep drinking during The Duel because she knows it’s dangerous for him. Also in The Duel, she somehow manages to get Pierre and Dolokhov, people who are FRIENDS, to duel over her. While it’s way more about honor than her love, it still happens. There’s really nothing anyone gains out of this, so it really seems like she set this up for her own amusement. After the duel takes place, she comments “What can I say? It’s a gift.” In response to Anatole saying that she “Certainly brings out the beast in men.”

There’s a possibility that she genuinely likes Natasha as well. She compliments her even before Anatole shows up. She probably compliments everyone, but still. I don’t think she’d bring over a wholeass evening dress and give away her pearls to somebody she didn’t actually enjoy hyping up. Also, the thing with the dress swishies near the end of Charming is fucking adorable and I will stand by that until I die.

Unlike Anatole, Helene seems to be aware that she’s kind of a dick, and like she enjoys that. She might consciously choose to keep being an asshole for a number of reasons. Like maybe she feels inadequate, though that doesn’t seem the most likely. Maybe she feels like she should make use the ‘gift’ she has. Maybe she’s afraid of being hurt (Again?) and has resolved to stay one step ahead of everyone else. Maybe she has a hard time controlling herself and her actions (ADHD?) so she controls other people just to have control over something. Maybe she’s just a shithead. You could make arguments for all of these, and I’m sure for other things too.

So, all in all, I love Helene. She’s an incredibly interesting character to analyze, and I hope you enjoyed reading this. I might dive even deeper in the future, if that’s something people want. Hope you enjoyed this very special (late) Comet Theory Thursday! (Friday) As most of you know, yesterday was my fifteenth birthday, so that’s why I didn’t get it out earlier- thanks for bearing with me! New topics to vote on will be up a few minutes after this gets posted!

#comet theory thursday #great comet #helene bezukhova #character analysis #literary analysis #great comet analysis #npatgco1812 #natasha pierre and the great comet of 1812 #the great comet of 1812 #the great comet #helene kuragina

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mikauzoran · 3 years

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Lukadrien: Among the Wild Things: Chapter Eight

Read it on AO3: Among the Wild Things: Chapter Eight: Friends

“Nino! Marinette!” Adrien shouted, grinning like a madman as he darted across the study and threw his arms around his two closest friends.

“Adrien!” they chorused, wrapping him in bear hugs of their own.

“I can’t tell you how much I missed you guys,” Adrien whispered into Nino’s neck, squeezing them both tighter as he remembered how he had longed for his friends while he’d been away.

“Not as much as we missed you,” Nino assured.

Marinette gave a snort. “Speak for yourself. You just had to guard him. I had to dress him. Do you know how hard it is to keep this boy looking presentable?” she laughed. “He either rips or stains everything within a week of owning it. He’s impossible.”

Nino clicked his tongue. “You think dressing him is hard? You should try keeping him from getting himself killed. How do you think his clothes get ruined so regularly?”

“…Point,” Marinette conceded.

Adrien pulled back to pout at his friends. “Complain all you want, but I bet you’ve both been bored with me gone.”

Marinette and Nino shared a conspiring glance and burst out laughing.

“Guilty,” Marinette admitted. “The break was nice, but I’m ecstatic to be back in work…starting with your wedding-slash-coronation outfit!” she squealed in delight, colours and fabrics and patterns beginning to flow through her head.

“Speaking of which…” Nino tipped his head in order to look past Adrien at Luka. “I’m guessing this is your kelpie heartthrob ‘Orpheus’?”

Marinette smirked, breaking away from the boys to slowly approach Luka. “Hi. I’m Marinette. I’m sure he’s mentioned me.”

“He has,” Luka chuckled, standing and going to meet the enchanting seamstress. “It sounds like he mentioned me too.”

Marinette rolled her eyes. “Please. I only had to listen to him whine and mope about his supposedly ‘unrequited’ love for you for two months.”

“Marinette,” Adrien groaned, releasing his hold on Nino to go stop Marinette from further embarrassing him.

Luka quirked an eyebrow at his husband. “Two months, My Love? You sure fell for me quickly.”

“Like, the second he saw you,” Nino snickered, coming over to join the others.

“Et tu, Nino?” Adrien hissed accusatorily.

Nino shrugged.

Adrien turned his pout on Luka. “I was a mess.”

“You’re still a mess,” Luka chuckled, leaning in to give Adrien’s cheek an affectionate lick. “And I love you.”

“Aww,” Marinette cooed. “See, Adrien? I told you he was into you.”

“I told him that first,” Nino grumbled. “I’m the one who told him to go for it.”

Marinette waved Nino’s protests away. “I’m the one who helped him practice confessing because it made you too flustered when he practiced confessing to you.”

“Nette,” Nino hissed. “Stop. You’re going to give the guy’s husband the wrong idea.”

Luka snickered. “I actually came to the wrong conclusion all on my own when he told me he was in love with someone. I thought he was talking about you.” He tipped his head to indicate Nino.

Nino turned to glare blandly at Adrien. “Dude. How did you screw up the confession that badly that he didn’t even know who you were talking about?”

“We spent hours practicing, Adrien,” Marinette added, putting on a miffed, disappointed expression.

“In my defence, I was kind of distraught because my father had just told me I had to marry a woman I didn’t love,” Adrien whined as his friends ganged up on him.

Nino and Marinette both shook their heads unsympathetically, not letting up.

“That’s no excuse,” Nino sighed, hands going to his hips as he clicked his tongue in feigned disapproval.

Adrien crossed his arms over his chest, turning up his nose and looking away. “I don’t know why I missed you two so much. You’re both mean. My new fae friends are a lot nicer.”

“No, they’re not,” Luka snickered. “Kim and Alix regularly bully you. That’s why they’re your favourites.”

“Rose is my favourite,” Adrien corrected with a fond smile. “But, yeah. Giving each other trouble is how Nino, Marinette, and I show that we love one another, so Alix and Kim reminded me a lot of the things I missed from my old life.”

“Well, we’re glad that we count among the good things,” Nino replied, giving Adrien’s arm a pat.

“And we’re glad things have been going well for you since you left too,” Marinette added. “We kept hoping that you were happy wherever you were.”

Adrien’s face fell as a realization struck him square in the stomach. “…I didn’t say goodbye. …I didn’t tell you where I was going. Guys, I’m so sorry. I didn’t think…” He looked away. “Well, I mean, I did think about it after the fact when I’d been gone a few weeks, but…I didn’t dare come back. I—”

“—Adrien,” Nino cut him off gently. “It’s fine. We kind of figured where you’d gone.”

Adrien looked back and forth between his two friends. “You didn’t worry?”

“We did,” Marinette confessed. “A little bit, but not much. Like Nino said, we guessed that you’d run off with your Orpheus, and, wherever you were, we knew you’d probably be happier than you were here.”

Adrien blushed, looking down at his feet in a mix of guilt and shame. “I was. I’m really, really happy with Luc and his family. I feel like I’ve finally found the place I’m meant to be…the person I want to work towards becoming. I’m really happy in the enchanted forest.”

“Good,” Nino responded warmly, giving Adrien’s arm a supportive squeeze. “Maybe send us an ‘I’m not dead’ message next time…but good. I’m really glad that you found your place, Man.”

“Me too,” Marinette seconded.

“I’d love to show you my home.” Adrien perked up. “And introduce you to my new friends.”

He turned to Marinette. “You’ll love my sister-in-law Rose. She’s the sweetest, funniest person. And Mylène and Max and Ondine. And Alya.”

He looked to Nino. “I have got to introduce you to Alya. She’s a fox spirit who’s really fascinated with human affairs. She comes into the city a lot to people watch. I bet she would love some humans to talk to and ask questions.”

Adrien stopped abruptly, turning to his husband. “Orpheus, would it be okay for Marinette and Nino to visit me, or would they just wind up getting killed? Everyone back in the woods is perfectly civil with me, but…”

Luka pursed his lips as he considered the scenario. “I’d have to consult with Maman, but I think it might be okay if it’s just a short visit. Maybe a few hours tops. And they’d have to be chaperoned at all times.”

“Is it really so dangerous?” Nino inquired, quirking an eyebrow dubiously. “Adrien’s not in danger, is he?”

“No,” Luka quickly assured. “Adrien is fine. He’s protected, and the people mostly adore him. He’s a member of our community now. The forest is deadly to outsiders, though, so it would be unwise for either of you to waltz in unaccompanied. My people can be cruel and senselessly violent.”

Nino hummed curiously. “…Sorry if this is rude, but you don’t really look…threatening.”

“I was actually thinking the same thing,” Marinette sheepishly admitted. “You just look like a regular person.”

Luka snorted in laughter. “That would be the glamour you’re seeing. …Shall I drop it?”

Nino looked to Adrien. “Is he scary or something? I thought you told me he was the most beautiful man you’d ever seen.”

Adrien shook his head. “Beautiful doesn’t even begin to cover it. He’s ethereal.”

Marinette addressed Luka tentatively. “Do you mind, Luc? Sorry. We don’t mean to treat you like a curiosity. We—”

In the blink of an eye, Luka’s black hair was replaced by pale blue, and his eyes seemed to give off a Caribbean teal glow. The entirety of his being seemed to shimmer a bit, like sunlight reflecting off of a lake.

“Oh, wow,” Marinette gasped. “You…wow.”

“Yeah,” Nino gulped. “Wow is…” He turned to Adrien, whispering sotto voce, “Do all fae look that pretty?”

“Not all of them,” Adrien chuckled, amused by his friends’ reactions. “I’ve met a lot of attractive people in the forest, though.”

Luka’s eyes narrowed in displeasure and suspicion. “Like who? Kim?”

“Easy,” Adrien snickered, turning to face Luka and looping his arms around Luka’s waist. “No one is even half as attractive as you.”

Luka smiled into the kiss as Adrien pressed his lips to Luka’s in a vow of fidelity.

“Yeah, it’s highly unlikely Adrien will stray,” Nino testified. “He’s very loyal and takes matters of the heart incredibly seriously.”

“And he doesn’t fall in love easily,” Marinette agreed, nodding along to Nino’s points.

Luka arched an eyebrow at a blushing Adrien. “He doesn’t? I thought you two said he fell for me on sight.”

“Yeah, but that was the first and only time in nineteen years,” Marinette explained, waving away any concerns Luka might have. “And it’s not like it was for want of suitors. He grew up around plenty of pretty young nobles.”

Adrien’s face burned redder as Luka looked at him in astonishment, whispering, “I’m your first love?”

“First, last, and only,” Adrien mumbled, averting his gaze to help himself feel less transparent.

Luka wrapped his arms around Adrien as he gave him an affectionate squeeze. “I may have had other loves, but you’re the first person to turn my world upside down and wreck me. I had to update my definition of the word love when I met you.”

“I accept your attempts to butter me up,” Adrien chuckled, turning his head to press a kiss to Luka’s cheek.

“Aww,” Nino cooed. “Why can’t I meet someone who says sweet crap like that to me?”

“Maybe things will take a romantic turn between you and Adrien’s fox friend,” Marinette snickered.

Nino hummed thoughtfully. “Maybe. All I know is that I need to find someone to be that disgustingly cute with as soon as possible.”

“You two are adorable,” Marinette confirmed. “I can tell you’ve been really good for him,” she informed Luka with a tone of gratitude. “Just seeing him talking in that meeting earlier was a positive change.”

Luka arched an eyebrow, looking back and forth between Adrien and Marinette. “Really? He didn’t seem any different than usual to me.”

“Mec, the way he shut Viscount Raincomprix down when he was disrespecting you?” Nino had to try hard to contain another giggle fit as he called up the memory. “Nice spine, Your Majesty,” Nino chuckled, giving Adrien’s arm an appreciative punch. “It suits you.”

Adrien rubbed at the back of his neck. “As much as I’ve wanted to put those three blowhards in their place my entire life, I think I may have gone a bit too far. Viscount Raincomprix has been kind to me in the past, and I think I owe him an apology. He really looked shaken when I told him off.”

“I think that was mostly due to your eyes glowing like that,” Marinette weighed in.

“Yeah,” Nino agreed. “That was, perhaps, a bit much. It was super cool, though.”

Adrien blinked at his friends dumbly. “What are you guys talking about?”

Nino and Marinette shared a look.

“When your eyes were all molten and glow-y,” Nino clarified slowly, looking at Adrien expectantly.

Adrien turned to Luka. “Do you know what they’re talking about?”

Luka bit the inside of his cheek, avoiding his mate’s gaze. “…Your eyes may have started to glow whenever you’re experiencing intense emotions,” he reluctantly admitted.

“What?!” Adrien demanded, gaping at his husband incredulously. “Since when?! Why didn’t you say anything?!”

Luka winced, shoulders rising up to meet his ears as he shamefacedly confessed, “It started a couple months ago. I asked Maman, and it’s completely benign, and I thought it would only upset you, so I didn’t say anything.”

“I feel like…this is the kind of thing you mention?” Adrien choked, voice high and tight as he collapsed back down onto the couch.

“Dri, I’m sorry,” Luka cooed, sitting next to Adrien and tentatively cupping his cheek. “I should have said something, but I didn’t want to upset you when there was nothing we could do about it and it wasn’t hurting anything.”

“Well,” Adrien responded quietly, “I’m upset now…sort of.”

He took a deep breath and turned his gaze on his husband. “I’m more upset that you didn’t tell me than anything. Since when do we keep secrets from one another?”

Luka looked away, cowed. “We don’t,” he whispered penitently. “I’m so sorry, My Little Prince.”

Adrien leaned in to give Luka’s cheek a lick of forgiveness. “Don’t do it again.”

“I won’t. I promise,” Luka swore.

Satisfied, Adrien nodded, looking to Nino. “Does it at least look cool, or am I just terrifying?”

“I thought it was cool,” Marinette volunteered, going to sit in the armchair that Nathalie had recently vacated.

“Totally cool,” Nino affirmed, taking the other chair. He looked at Luka. “Can he do anything else?”

Adrien’s eyes narrowed at his mate.

Luka laughed, shaking his head. “Not at this point. Just the glowing eyes. Maybe in a few years new powers will manifest. I don’t personally know any other humans who have lived long-term among the fair folk, so I’m not quite sure what to expect, but this is hardly a unique situation. My people have been adopting mortals for centuries, so Adrien is hardly the first.”

“Something to look forward to, I suppose? Random new features,” Adrien sighed. “I mean, if these changes aren’t going to hurt anything, that’s fine, but…” He shifted uncomfortably.

“You’re upset,” Luka surmised, his mood plummeting.

Adrien shook his head, trying to reassure his mate. “No. Not really. Just…I felt like I had finally found my place, like I was getting my feet underneath me. …But since learning of my father’s death, it’s like I’ve been on shifting ground, and this is just one more thing to get used to. I’ll manage, but…I’m feeling a little overwhelmed today.”

“Understandably so,” Luka replied, slipping his arm around Adrien and resting his head against his mate’s. “Just tell me what you need, and I’ll move heaven and earth to make it happen.”

“Maybe just a break. A little joviality?” Adrien suggested, looking around at his spouse and his friends. “Nino. Say something funny.”

Nino balked. “What? On command? Adrien, I’m not the court jester. I can’t just say witty things at the drop of a hat.”

“I don’t know,” Marinette snickered. “You do a pretty good job of playing the fool any other time.”

Nino gasped, feigning indignation. “Adrien, do you hear what this mean, spiteful woman is saying about me? Defend my honor or something already.”

“Marinette, it is rather mean to say that to his face,” Adrien attempted to admonish with a straight face but ended up chuckling, ruining the effect.

“What can I say?” She grinned. “Real friends stab you in the front.”

“Thanks,” Nino replied dryly. “I really appreciate that….” He perked up after a beat. “…Say, why don’t we talk about Adrien’s adventures in fairy land? That should be fun, right? Tell us about all the weird stuff,” Nino urged, turning to Adrien with wide, hopeful eyes.

Marinette started to bounce in her seat in excitement. “What are the clothes like? Tell me all about fae fashion.”

Adrien acquiesced, sharing his impressions of his experiences as Marinette and Nino asked probing questions for nearly half an hour.

Luka mostly just listening, fascinated by Adrien’s perspective on things. He did, occasionally, field a few questions himself or add some clarification on things that Adrien was unsure about.

They eventually came to discuss Luka and Adrien’s fae wedding ceremony, and that led Marinette (after she had pumped them both dry of information) to remark, “You know, I should really get to work on the outfits for tomorrow’s wedding-slash-coronation. I have less than twenty-four hours, and, even if I pull an all-nighter, it’s going to be intense.”

She pursed her lips and studied Adrien. “Your father had actually instructed me to begin preparations of your wedding clothes before you left, and he had me continue work in the hopes that you would be found in time to marry on schedule, so I already have an outfit prepared for you. I just need to make alterations…unless you want a new outfit specifically for your marriage to Luc? Either way is fine.”

She tipped her head to the side and awaited his response.

He waved the idea away. “I’m sure that whatever you already have made is perfect, Marinette. We’ll just need something for Luc.”

Marinette hesitated before inquiring, “Would it be okay if I took your measurements, Luc? It’ll be real quick.”

Luka shrugged nonchalantly. “Whatever’s necessary. Did you mean now, or…?”

“I actually have my tape measure with me, so…” she informed, smiling sheepishly as she pulled it out of her belt.

Luka shrugged again, untangling himself from Adrien and standing up. “Let’s do it, then. How do you want me?”

Nino snorted, muttering, “That’s what he said.”

Adrien rolled his eyes at his best friend. “Stop thinking indecent thoughts about my husband.”

Nino put his hands up in a placating gesture. “Hey, Man. It’s not my fault that your husband is hot.”

“He is, isn’t he?” Adrien purred, admiring the view as Luka walked past.

Marinette motioned for Luka to come over closer to the fireplace where the light was better. “…Nino’s thinking it, so I’m just going to ask: Who tops?”

Nino clapped a hand over his mouth to keep from bursting out in astounded giggles.

“Marinette,” Adrien whined, face going phoenix red.

Luka smirked puckishly. “Mostly him, but we experiment according to whatever feels right in the moment.”

“Orpheuuuuus,” Adrien hissed in mortification.

Luka clicked his tongue even as he held still so that Marinette could take her measurements. “No need to be embarrassed, My Love. Is it not acceptable in your culture to talk about one’s love life?”

“Adrien is just sheltered,” Nino assured. “Please go on.”

“Is he a good lover?” Marinette inquired, sticking her tongue out at Adrien who let out a horrified squeal.

“Very,” Luka snickered. “In all the ways that really matter. He’s enthusiastic but attentive, adventurous but—”

“—Luuuc,” Adrien wailed. “Please stop. This really isn’t funny.”

“Speak for yourself,” Nino cackled. “I’m having a great time.”

“I hate you,” Adrien informed sulkily.

“Hey, Marinette’s the one over there pretty much begging for a demonstration,” Nino kindly threw his friend under the bus.

Luka choked on a laugh, the convulsion interrupting Marinette in the middle of her measurement so that she had to restart that portion.

“Be nice, Nino,” Marinette grumbled, suddenly losing her good humor.

Nino immediately sobered, backing off with a muttered, “Sorry, Nette.”

Marinette nodded mutely, pointedly focusing on the work at hand.

There was a tense silence hovering in the air until Nino got up and went over to sit on the sofa next to Adrien. The two cuddled up like puppies, and Nino recommenced catching up with his friend, sharing details from his own life that Adrien had missed in his absence.

Luka was content to listen as he watched Marinette at her work. He caught her looking over to the couch several times, a warm, affectionate, and yet melancholy quality to her gaze.

Luka’s eyes narrowed as he determined that she was sneaking looks at Adrien, and a cold realization turned Luka’s blood to cement.

“Forgive me for asking,” he whispered so softly that Nino and Adrien couldn’t hear over their own conversation. “but there wouldn’t happen to be something between you and Adrien, would there?”

Marinette gave a start, her fingers slipping, losing their place on the measuring tape.

“Sorry,” Luka quickly backpedaled. “It’s none of my business. It’s just the way you were looking at him, I…”

“O-Oh.” She nervously cleared her throat, trying to regain her composure. “No. No, it’s fine. I…It’s nothing, honestly. Nothing you need to be concerned about, anyway. It’s all in the past,” she confessed in a whisper. “You’d be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t been in love with Adrien at some point or another. I fell for him when I was thirteen, but…”

She paused, shaking her head and remeasuring from Luka’s hip to his shoulder. “I long ago came to terms with the fact that even if I had been born of his social station and become his wife, he would never feel for me the way that I used to feel for him. I was the first person he told about his attraction to men, and, after that, I promised myself that I wouldn’t allow myself to be miserable because of him. I also promised to do everything in my power to help him find happiness, so…”

She looked up at him, meeting Luka’s heavenly blue eyes with her marine ones, a fierce determination glowing from within. “I have never seen him as happy as he’s been since falling in love with you. Looking at him now, it makes my heart almost want to burst. I’m feeling a little nostalgic,” she admitted with a soft smile as she went back to taking measurements, “but I’ve moved on. I have someone wonderful in my life, so I have my own happiness. I don’t begrudge you yours, even though you have something I once wanted.”

“Good.” Luka breathed out his nerves. “You’re a very important friend to Adrien, and I wouldn’t want to be a cause of tension between you. You and Nino are extremely precious to him, and I don’t want to cause problems.”

Marinette shook her head, assuring, “You have nothing to worry about on my account.”

She raised her voice and added, “Nino is the one still hopelessly in love with Adrien. He’s the one you should worry about.”

Nino’s head snapped up, and he glared at his friend. “Nette, are you trying to make the king’s kelpie husband jealous so that he kills me or something? I am not in love with Adrien. Things are strictly platonic between us.”

Luka couldn’t help a stifled snicker. “Says the guy with my mate half in his lap.”

Adrien pressed the heel of his hand to his lips to keep in his own giggles at Nino’s expense.

“This is platonic snuggling,” Nino insisted, affronted by the accusation. “Do the fae not snuggle with friends?”

“Yes,” Luka conceded, “but are you trying to tell me that there’s nothing sexual about two guys on a couch with their limbs all entwined like that? This feels suspect to me.”

“Completely platonic,” Nino reasserted.

“Come on, Nino,” Marinette teased. “You know you would die for him.”

“Platonically!” Nino denied. “I’m his guard. It’s what guards do.”

Marinette turned to Luka with a cat-like smirk. “Nino was Adrien’s first kiss.”

“False!” Nino exclaimed, tan complexion going latte light as the blood drained from his face.

“Actually, Marinette was my first kiss,” Adrien finally spoke up in Nino’s defence.

Luka cocked an accusatory eyebrow at Marinette who grinned nervously.

“I told her about my suspicions that I was gay and asked if I could run an experiment to see if I felt anything when I kissed her,” Adrien explained, his cheeks colouring in shame.

“He told me that if there were any girl he could come to have feelings for, it would be me,” Marinette snickered, shaking her head. “The silver-tongued snake.”

Luka whistled, shooting Adrien an incredulous expression. “It sounds like my little prince was quite the cad as a youth.”

“Guilty,” Adrien groaned, covering his face with his hands. “I was confused, and I didn’t know who else to turn to. And I wholeheartedly believed what I said. I just didn’t realize yet that being gay wasn’t something you could ‘fix’ like my parents insisted, so… I’m sorry. I didn’t—”

“—Shh,” Nino interrupted, gently prying Adrien’s hands away from his face. “No one’s mad at you. Nette and I both enjoyed helping you out with your experiments. No harm done. We’re all just joking. Okay?”

Adrien looked from Marinette to Nino to Luka, and they each nodded.

Adrien blew out a slow breath, beginning to nod as well. “…Okay. Good. I just…still feel bad about that period when I was trying to figure myself out. I did some things I’m not proud of.”

“Shhh.” Nino pulled Adrien in closer for a hug as he called to the others, “You two get over here and snuggle too.”

Marinette tucked away her measuring tape and went at once to squeeze in on the sofa on Adrien’s opposite side, wrapping her arms around Adrien and Nino, assuring, “There’s nothing to feel bad about. No one’s hurt. Nothing’s broken.”

Luka came up along the back side of the couch and leaned over to nuzzle Adrien’s hair. “Listen to your friends, My Love. They’ve already forgiven whatever needed to be forgiven.”

“Thanks, guys,” Adrien whispered, letting go of his worries.

They remained in their cuddle pile in comfortable, warm silence for nearly a full minute before Marinette spoke.

“Wanna hear a secret?”

“What secret?” Adrien responded curiously.

“I’m seeing someone,” Marinette confessed tentatively, a giddy excitement bubbling just under the surface.

“Ah. Her imaginary boyfriend,” Nino snickered. “You’ve been on about him for years, Nette. Does mystery boy finally have a name or something?”

“Be nice,” Adrien chastened, giving Nino a light smack on the arm before turning his attention back to Marinette. “Is this the same guy you’ve mentioned before? Your mysterious nobleman?”

Marinette nodded shyly, taking a breath before announcing, “Her name is Kagami.”

Nino and Adrien’s jaws dropped.

Luka arched an eyebrow. “Is this the same Kagami that Adrien fences with?”

Marinette smiled nervously and nodded. “Yep. We’ve been together officially for three years now.”

“Holy crap,” Nino finally got out. “Nette, how the hell did you keep this a secret this long?”

Marinette shrugged. “People really aren’t as suspicious of two women spending a lot of time alone together as they would be a man and a woman. We used the pretext of me making clothes for her a lot in order to meet.”

Adrien blinked, still stunned at this revelation. “Wow…that’s…I’m really happy that you’ve found someone. That both you and Kagami are happy. I mean, besides my mothers, there’re no women I esteem higher than you two.”

“Thank you,” Marinette breathed in relief, feeling lighter now that she had the secret off of her chest.

Adrien bit his lip. “I just wish you had mentioned… I never suspected that you… Why did you never say anything? When I was busy lamenting my cursed fate to be alone and not know love my entire life, you could have said something,” he pressed, unable to hide the twinge of hurt in his voice.

Marinette shook her head. “I’m like Nino. I can be happy with a man or a woman, so no one ever had to know I wasn’t quote-unquote ‘normal’. My situation wasn’t like yours, so I didn’t feel I had any business making things about me when you were hurting so deeply.”

Adrien studied his friend intently for a long moment before sighing and resting his head on her shoulder. “…You still should have said something.”

She looked back and forth between Nino and Adrien before bowing her head, suitably chastened. “You’re right. I should have said something. There was never a good time, though, and then it felt like I couldn’t say anything because I’d waited too long.”

“Well, at least you’re telling us now,” Nino reasoned, giving Marinette’s arm a supportive pat. “Congrats. We’re happy for you.”

“I’m going to have to get to know Kagami better now,” Adrien hummed thoughtfully. “I thought I knew her, but I was obviously wrong.”

“She definitely has layers,” Marinette giggled.

Adrien tipped his head back and looked at Luka, still standing behind the sofa. “You’re not feeling left out, are you? I feel like we’re being exclusive.”

“You’re fine, My Love,” Luka chuckled, giving Adrien’s hair a loving pet. “I’m enjoying getting to see you with your friends. You know I’m an introvert and don’t necessarily need to be the center of the conversation.”

“Just let us know if we’re being too in-group-y,” Nino urged, giving Luka an amicable grin. “You’re family now, and we want you to feel welcome and comfortable with us.”

“What he said,” Marinette seconded.

“Thank you,” Luka replied earnestly, making his way over to the armchair closest to the fireplace. “But I promise you that I’m very low maintenance. Please continue your conversation. I don’t need to be included in everything so long as I eventually get my husband back from you to cuddle with him myself.”

“Cool,” Nino chuckled. “We can definitely agree to those terms.”

Silent snuggling continued for a few minutes until Marinette spoke up once more.

“Adrien, did I hear right? Did you make a royal decree legalizing same-sex marriage?” she inquired, holding her breath in anticipation.

“Uh…yeah. Yeah, Nathalie took care of that earlier. She said that people would start announcing it right away, so the news should be getting out by now,” he confirmed.

Marinette gave a trill of joy. “I’m going to ask Kagami to marry me.”

“Dude, wait,” Nino insisted. “We haven’t even vetted her yet.”

Adrien elbowed Nino in the stomach. “That’s awesome, Marinette. You’ll have to let me know when the wedding will be so I can come back for the ceremony.”

Nino and Marinette blinked in tandem and then shared a look.

“Wait. What do you mean ‘come back’?” Nino asked slowly, a feeling of dread knotting the pit of his stomach. “Aren’t you…like…already back?”

Adrien winced.

Marinette’s joyful expression abruptly diminished as her forehead furrowed. “You’re not staying here, are you?”

Adrien shook his head.

“You’re going back to the forest,” Nino whispered as understanding dawned upon him.

Adrien nodded.

There was a heavy moment of silence.

“…How long do we have?” Marinette inquired, voice sounding brittle as she tried to mask her sadness and pain at the thought of losing her closest friend all over again. “How long before you go back?”

“I don’t know,” Adrien confessed. “Not long. I only returned because I feared that the kingdom would descend into chaos and dictatorship in my absence after my father’s sudden passing. I’ll stay until I see a peaceful transfer of power and feel confident that my people will be okay without me.”

“It sounds like we’ve still got some time, then,” Nino remarked, trying to be optimistic. “We should…We should make the most of it, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Marinette whispered, snuggling in closer to Adrien.

“Yeah,” Adrien agreed, squeezing his friends tighter.

#Lukadrien #Miraculous Ladybug #Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction #Adrien Agreste #Luka Couffaine #Nino Lahiffe #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Marigami #Kagaminette #Friendship #Fluff #Supportive Friends #Mikau's Writings #Among the Wild Things

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integra1127grimmreaper · 3 years

Text

Psycho Lady Colonel - Clay meets his match - chapter four

Series Masterlist

Cht 3

A/N: song - Sexual by Amber

The Next Day

Clay and Y/N were sitting in a car across from the gentlemen's club Max had been frequenting in the most of lately. Jensen and Pooch were parked further down at a corner, while Cougar was keeping watch from the building across from the place.

"Did any of you hear from Aisha yet?" you ask Clay.

"No. Jensen checked the flight records and it showed she landed safety" Clay answers.

Deciding to fish a bit, you then remark, "so, she might have told me about the two of you and the whole story about her father."

"She did? Well, wasn't like it was a secret or anything. We were involved and then it ended when she found out about her father" Clay shrugs in response, "It was just a sexual attraction, nothing more."

"She told me the same thing, also that she plans to kill you once Max is taken care of" you look at him with concern, "aren't you a least bit worried?"

"She wouldn't be the first woman I've been involved with that hasn't at some point tried to kill me" Clay remarks with a chuckle."

"Wait. What?" you look at Clay in shock.

"Let's just say; I have the tendency to attract volatile women" Clay shrugs in response, "at some point they always try to kill me."

"Ok..." you sternly stare at him then, "as long as she waits until after we've taken care of Max. You guys can settle the score afterwards, if not; then I'll be forced to step in and you wouldn't want that."

"Uh... sorry to disturb your conversation 'Mom' and 'Dad'" Jensen suddenly radios in, "Max is about to drive pass you, so I suggest you duck."

"Shit!" you curse out, looking around in a panic when suddenly an idea pops into your head. Grabbing hold of Clay's face, you pull him to you for a kiss.

Clay was caught off-guard at first but then decides to go with it, parting his lips to deepen the kiss. Y/N gasps out in surprise and Clay takes advantage of it, flicker his tongue against hers twice before she pulls away from the kiss.

"Um... we should probably follow him" you mumble softly, avoiding eye contact. Clay silently stares at Y/N for a second, then starts the car.

There was a deadly silence in the car as they followed Max around the city. The entire car ride, Y/N would either stare straight ahead or at the side window. Not once did she look at Clay, if she had; she would have noticed him sneaking glance at her every few seconds.

"I think we've followed him around enough for today" Clay radios into the others, "don't want them making us so soon into the game."

"Y/N-" Clay tries to speak once they stopped in the driveway but she bolts out of the car before he could say anything further.

"Shit!" Clay curses out loudly to himself. What were you thinking!

"Where's the Col? Clay asks entering the game room.

"She went upstairs to change" Pooch answers.

"You ok there, Clay?" Jensen curiously stares at him.

"Yeah..." Clay replies, "just got a lot on my mind with Max and everything else."

"It's a good idea that Y/N/N suggested we have a braai tonight then" Jensen remarks with a grin.

"Braai?" Clay looks at him in confusion.

"I mean; BBQ..." Jensen chuckles out in response, "over here they call it that."

"Ok... I'm going to take a shower and get changed too" Clay informs and then leaves to head upstairs.

Reaching your bedroom, you immediately strip out of the clothing you were wearing. "What the hell just happened? Did Clay seriously kiss me back?" you loudly ask your confused reflection in the mirror, "why? The kiss was just so that Max wouldn't see us, then Clay returned the kiss... but why did he?"

Just forget about it! You silently scold yourself then. He probably did it out of shock, its not like he's attracted to you or anything. Yeah! That's it, shock. "Where did I put my hairbrush?" you ask yourself out loud then, searching through your room for it.

"You're such an idiot!" you hiss at yourself loudly when you enter the bathroom to look for the hairbrush.

"And why might that be?" you hear a husky voice suddenly ask you.

"What the fuck!" you screech out in fright when you notice Clay leaning against the cabinet in his boxers, staring at you in amusement.

"I-I was just looking for my hairbrush..." you stammer out, nervously making your way towards the cabinet he was leaning against. Trying your utmost best not to look at his half naked form as you reached around him to retrieve the hairbrush.

You then feel the warmth of his breathe close to your ear, "you alright there, Col?" Clay huskily whispers into your ear.

"Why wouldn't I be..." you turn around to face him with a glare, "you should lock the doors when you're using the bathroom."

"And maybe you shouldn't be walking around in your underwear then" Clay smirks at you, his eyes dark as he scans you up and down.

"What?" you look at him in confusion and then remembered. "I was busy changing, then I remembered my hairbrush was in here" you replied, trying to put forth a stoic look. "I didn't think you'd be in here as the door had been unlocked" you then make a hasty retreat from the bathroom.

Later That Evening

Jensen and Y/N was busy in the kitchen, preparing the salads. "This was a great idea, Y/N/N" Jensen remarks while you were busy, "we needed to let loose before diving deep into this mission."

"Seeing as this is the only meal you fellas can make... I thought; why not give myself a break by suggesting this" you grin at him in response.

"Smooth move, Boss-Lady..." Jensen chuckles, nodding his head in respect to your geniuses.

"Here we go fells..." you announce as Jensen and you bring the platters out to the entertainment area.

"Food should be ready in 5!" Pooch calls out from where he and Clay were busy at the grill.

"Jensen, have you heard anything from Aisha?" you enquire from him.

"She sent a message, saying she landed" Jensen answers, "said she might have to go off grid while watching Roman." You narrow your eyes suspiciously at the information. "It's Aisha" he shrugs in response, "she does whatever the heck she wants."

"What's your poison, Boss-Lady?" Cougar then calls out to from behind the bar. "I'll have a beer for now, Cougs" you call back in response.

"Alright guys, here we are..." Pooch comes over with the meat, "let's dig in!"

Y/N did her utmost best to avoid any and all eye contact with Clay during diner, whereas he; couldn't keep his eyes off her.

"Everything ok there, Clay?" Jensen asks, snapping him out of his daze like stare.

"Uh-huh" Clay responds, his eyes remain focused on Y/N.

"You sure about that?" Pooch then comments, "because you've been staring at the Boss-Lady for the past 20mins now..."

"What?" Clay looks at him in surprise, shaking his head, "No... I was just deep in thought. Didn't even realize it."

"Ok..." Jensen chuckles in response, "for a second there; we though you were crushing on her." Causing Pooch and Cougar to let out a snicker at the remark, while Y/N ended up chocking on her drink.

"You ok, Boss- Lady?" Cougar stares at you in concern.

"Yeah... I'm cool..." you respond in-between coughs. "Think I might need something stronger now though..." you mumble out and head to the bar.

"Aisha then pitched up, firing a bazooka out of nowhere!" Jensen chuckles out loudly as he tells Y/N/N the story about when they were held captured by Max.

"The whole thing might have been funny to you, but not for me" Pooch grumbles, "you weren't the one that got shot in both his legs!"

"Aw... don't be like that, Legless-Pooch, at least we didn't die..." Jensen grins at him in response.

Pooch growls at him in response then, "I told you, call me; Legless-Pooch again and you're going to be; Headless-Jensen!"

Cougar and Y/N/N sat snickering at the two of them, when suddenly she yells out, "I think it time for some Tequila shots! Who wants?!"

"Heck yeah, Boss-Lady!" Jensen and Pooch both yell out in agreement, their pervious argument completely forgotten.

Clay shakes his head at them all as they knocked back shot after shot, "I'm going to the bathroom."

Coming back from the bathroom, Clay could hear the loud sounds of music as well as cheering. Once he gets closer, he's stopped in his tracks by the sight of Jensen and Y/N/N, booty-shaking against each other while Cougar and Pooch cheered them on. "What the hell are they doing?"

"Cougar dared them" Pooch roars out in laughter, "Y/N/N! I dare you to sexy dance for Clay!"

"Wait! What?!" Clay looks at him in surprise. Before he could register anything further, Jensen grabs him and pushes him towards her.

Flashing Clay a mischievous smile, you wrap your arms around his neck to pull him closer to you. Your lips extremely close his as you sang along to the song.

I confess I watch your mouth move baby when you're speaking

Study your body when you walk out of the room

Slowly your hands run downwards from his shoulders, roaming all over his body as you seductively stare into his eyes

You'll see how much you value my friendship

But I want you addicted to my perfume...

You turn around then, reaching up to hook your arms around Clay's neck again and continue dancing to the music. You were so lost in the music and the alcohol you had consumed that you don't immediately register when Clay grabs hold of your waist; pulling you directly into his crotch, grinding himself against you in return.

You're snapped out of your drunken daze when the music stops, feeling Clay's erection against you; you immediately break free from his hold.

"Wooow!" the guys were clapping and cheering, "Way-to-go, Boss-Lady!"

"That was hot!" Jensen declares, patting Clay on the back, "Wasn't it, Clay?!"

"Um- yeah..." Clay responds breathlessly.

"You ok there, Boss-Man?" Jensen curiously enquires, "you seem a bit flustered."

"It was nice partying with you fellas..." you quickly change the topic, "but I think its time for me to be heading to bed. Goodnight guys..." you head into the house then, avoiding all eye contact with Clay.

Great move, idiot! Clay silently scolds himself out. You have to stop thinking with your dick! "I think it's time to wrap things up and call it a night" he gives the order to the others.

"Yeah-" Jensen remarks, drunkenly swaying on his feet, "it's no more fun without the Boss-Lady-"

Clay shakes his head in amusement, "see you all first thing in the morning."

NXT CHT

#Lt. Col. Franklin Clay #the losers (2010)#jeffrey dean morgan #clay #clay x reader #clay x y/n #plus size reader #franklinclay #JDM

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carriagelamp · 2 years

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CarriageLamps Favourite Books From 2021

This is an incredibly late end-of-the-year book round up, but December ended up being Way Too Busy for me to get it finished and posted. And I figured I should probably get it done before, like... I started on my January book list, rip

This feels like an odd list, but lbr it was an odd year and my reading habits apparently reflected on it quite a bit. These books helped make it a little bit easier to get through.

I wrote more detailed descriptions about all of these through out the year, depending on which month I read them in, but here’s also some quick blurbs:

All Systems Red by Martha Wells

I read the whole Murderbot series this year and loved with with my entire heart and soul. A scifi story about a SecUnit who hacks its own governor module not so it can go on a murderous rampage and destroy humanity, but so it can do its job in the most mediocre way possible, watch space soap operas, and try to ignore the intense inbuilt anxiety.

Bear by Marian Engel

Horny Canadian literature that does, indeed, involve fucking a bear because when Marian Engel is given a challenge she doesn’t fucking pussy out. I started it as a joke, but hey guys? It actually won the Governor General’s Award for a reason. It’s actually a really solid piece of literature that gives you a lot of things to think about, I genuinely enjoyed it.

FRNCK by Olivier Bocquet and Brice Cossu

A phenomenal bande desinée series about an teenage boy who runs away from the orphanage he lives at, and ends up getting swept off to the prehistoric era where he has to contend with cavemen, hostile floral and fauna, cannibals, and a tragic lack of vowels. Beautifully drawn, hilariously funny, and frankly a crime that you can’t buy them in English. Book 4 was an amazing climax to the current arc and I’m happily reading the second arc now.

From the Holocaust to Hogan’s Heroes, the Autobiography of Robert Clary

I got deeply back into the show Hogan’s Heroes to help cope with pandemic stress and decided to buy a copy of Robert Clary’s autobiography that recounts his childhood, to his time in concentration camps during the Holocaust, to his career as an actor afterwards. Fantastic read, and I would totally recommend it to anyone who’s a fan of either Robert Clary specifically or WWII history in general.

The Game by Linsey Miller

I will devotedly read Linsey Miller’s books, even if I am very slow at getting to them and have been struggling to read over this pandemic. This novella was a change from her previous stories, and a fun one. Instead of fantasy and magic, The Game is about an annual grad game that the local grade twelve students participate in. It starts out as normal, before taking a shocking and deadly turn. Now the main character seems to be mysteriously wrapped up in it all and there’s no answers to what’s happening in sight.

MASH by Richard Hooker

Along with Hogan’s Heroes I got back into MASH as well, and decided I should read the novel for the first time. Can’t say the same for the sequel, but this book at least was hilariously funny and I can see how it spawned such a good show, even if they’re quite different in characters and tone. For those unfamiliar, MASH is about a doctor named Hawkeye Pierce who was conscripted against his will into a M*A*S*H unit during the Korean war, and all the crazy things he and his fellow conscripts do to stay sane amid the horror of war. It’s crude, but ultimately too fun not to enjoy.

Minecraft: The Island by Max Brooks

I started this as a joke but somehow it was actually really good. And I say this as someone with an almost negative interest in Minecraft. It’s about a character who wakes up on a deserted island, with no memory of who they are or how they got there, and has to learn from the ground up what to do to survive. And since it’s written by Max Brooks, an author who writes legit zombie survival novels, it takes the entire premise way more seriously than most would. Imagine how horrific it would be to wake up with no idea how your new body works, what the physics or limitations of this world are, or what these things trying to kill you are. It’s basically a Minecraft isekai but taken serious. Shockingly good, would recommend honestly.

Sweep: The Story of a Girl and her Monster by Jonathan Auxier

A magical realism book set in Victorian England, about a chimney sweeper who is just trying to survive until she finds herself caught in a chimney fire… and is saved by the strangest of creatures.

The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

The author really describes it best:

“Because vampires are the original serial killers, stripped of everything that makes us human — they have no friends, no family, no roots, no children. All they have is hunger. They eat and eat but they’re never full. With this book, I wanted to pit a man freed from all responsibilities but his appetites against women whose lives are shaped by their endless responsibilities. I wanted to pit Dracula against my mom. “As you’ll see, it’s not a fair fight.”

A very interesting novel, with lots of delicious tension.

Hunger Pangs: True Love Bites by Joy Demorra

A book that has a little bit of everything. A disabled werewolf, a very political vampire with serious anxiety, and a mysterious woman investigating the death of ancient, magical trees. I’m not sure I can describe it in a way that does it justice -- it’s fast-paced, full of sincerity and heart, and bounces between a hilarious queer romance and a relentless, amusing social satire. One of my absolute favourite novels from this year and I can’t wait for the sequel.

Upright Women Wanted by Sarah Gailey

After reading River of Teeth I desperately wanted more Weird Western Vibes, and to my delight discovered that Sarah Gailey herself has written more Weird Western Novels. This novella is about a dystopian regressive future with a wild west flavour. It follows one young woman who, horrified by her “morally wrong” and illegal love for women, decides to run away and join the travelling librarians, a group of people who are supposed to be some of the most morally upright women you can find. Who else could help her but them? It involves a lot of queer characters, gun slinging, and humour.

wishtree by Katherine Applegate

The story of a much beloved neighbourhood tree who is the home to all sorts of animals. He loves all his animal friends and watches over the neighbourhood — until one day a slur is graffitied over him and now there’s talk of simply cutting him down… it’s an incredibly touching that looks at how one life can touch so many others, and what it means to be a community.

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bloodyshadow1 · 3 years

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not saying it’s going to be an easy fight, but I still think despite the ass kicking they got, I still think that if they get a rest in, the Nein can take the tombtakers.

The Tombtakers are dangerous, and deadly, especially against a party like the nein that is composed of mostly magic users, but they’re not invincible

Lucien’s cone is especially bad, not going to lie, but it is a cone, which are annoying but easy to get out of if you spread out your casters

What they need to do is focus on Cree and Otis to a lesser extent, they’re all bloodhunters with various subclasses, with Cree as the exception as a blood cleric, that make them dangerous, but Blood hunters have the very dangerous drawback of burning through their hp to buff themselves up. 6-8 damage is used to buff up their regular rites, not even amplifying their curses which they’ll have to roll for. They need Cree to keep them up and healthy, so I’m sure she has a bunch of wide range healing spells like mass cure wounds and healing word. None of them were really damaged comparably in the Gelidon fight to the Nein so she could focus on doing massive damage, but that’s why they need to focus on her. She’s likely not as buff as the others since she isn’t a martial combatant. so they need to take her down and she’s their only real caster. Otis is a profane soul which is a half caster of a warlock so they’re a spell caster that’s dangerous but still good to take out. Likely has a great old one as a patron if them speaking deepspeech is a clue. Nuking Cree should be their top priority since targetting the healer keeps you alive in party v party combat

Lucien is the worst, he deals a crazy amount of damage and a lot of his abilities don’t seem related to being a bloodhunter. His antimagic cone is especially bad for a group of mostly casters, but like a beholder it is beatable. They need to spread out so he can’t just stop all their spells, probably go light on the buffs if at all and just hammer away at him and his people until they can face him as a group instead of party v party like with Lorenzo ironically enough. Lucien is a huge unknown, he has powers well beyond what bloodhunters get in addition to their powers,

After a long rest, the nein will have all their big guns back, Jester and Caduceus taking Harm would be great against the Bloodhunter Tombtakers. I’m sure they have huge con saves as bloodhunters since they need it to live and also get to add their int bonuses to their saves, but lowering their max health is great against people who need their hp to fight.

Lucien’s antimagic cone seems to disrupt his own people’s stuff, including their rites, though it doesn’t seem to stop them, just repress them for a bit, so it prevents them from using their big stuff as a spell target if his cone is on them

and a big advantage that the nein have over the tomb takers is that they’re played by 7 players who are very intelligent and good at planning. Matt is very smart, but he’s balancing a lot more than his players, there have been a lot of times when his players shock him. He can plan for what he thinks they’re going to do, but the 7 of them can plan for what they’re going to do against him

And finally, the Nein are damn good at killing things and people who underestimate them. yeah they got their asses kicked this last episode since they did so without a rest after using everything they had against an ancient white dragon while the tomb takers had minimal damage in comparison and only Cree didn’t get her stuff back on a short rest compared to her companions, but the Nein can be idiots but they’re not stupid. Lorenzo, Avantika, Obann, they’ve all underestimated them despite having serious power over the nein, the Nein need confidence to stay and fight not try and use polymorphs to get targets and bargain. I don’t think they’re going to try and talk next time at least not how they did this last episode, maybe they’ll have help, but maybe they’ll have to put the Tomb Takers down

You don’t have to take this seriously, I write strategies to get the nerves out

#critical role #the mighty nein #critical role spoilers #cr 2 ep 123

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half-bakedboy · 3 years

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You’re a Shadowhunter Now (read on ao3)

Pairing: Clary Fray & Alec Lightwood Rated: Gen Summary: “If she decides to go on her own, we’ve lost Valentine’s daughter to the downworld, and who knows what that means for the Circle,” Jace added even though Alec had already made up his mind. Alec shook his head and let out a frustrated breath through his nose as he walked away from his siblings.

“She’s not gonna listen to me,” Alec yelled as he walked in the direction the redhead had stormed off.

“Make her, Alec, you’re good at that,” Jace supplied.

Alec muttered to himself, “Apparently not good enough.”

For 5 Years of Shadowhunters presented by the @malecdiscordserver!

The redhead was feisty when she was pissed off and there was something about that aspect of her that both surprised and intrigued Alec. It also had Alec sympathizing with her for the first time in the few hours he had known her. They had gone back to the Institute to figure out how to deal with the nerdy mundane being taken by the New York Vampire Clan in the most diplomatic manner - Alec briefly reminded himself that he was the only one that wanted to deal with it with thought and not action - and the redhead was pissed, to say the least.

“Someone has got to talk to her,” Izzy said as she inspected her nails, pointedly ignoring any responsibility that she might have been given. Jace sighed and crossed his arms over his chest, shaking his head at whatever thoughts were running through it.

“I think Alec should do it,” Jace offered and Alec just gaped at him.

“You want me to deal with her?” Alec said with a scoff as both Izzy and Jace stared up at him.

“C’mon, you’re the one who couldn’t bother to be around the mundane and accused Clary of being some Circle spy all within a few hours of meeting her. Maybe if you just apologize--”

Alec held up a hand and argued, “Apologize?! You want me to say I’m sorry for being the only one pointing out scenarios in which this-- this little girl is much more than just a damsel in distress that you can save? I think I’m the only one who is thinking with my head here!” It seemed like his words did nothing to focus Izzy and Jace away from whatever they felt for the redhead and he relented, as he always did, with a heavy sigh.

“Just go talk to her. Explain why we can’t just go after him and maybe she’ll understand that you want to get Simon back just as much as she does,” Izzy said softly, resting a hand on Alec’s arm comfortingly. He shrugged her off but he couldn’t argue with her words. Shadowhunters were sworn protectors and as much as Alec wanted to just let the vampires get away with the kidnapping, he held duty above all else, and it was his responsibility to get the mundane out of their grasp.

“If she decides to go on her own, we’ve lost Valentine’s daughter to the downworld, and who knows what that means for the Circle,” Jace added even though Alec had already made up his mind. Alec shook his head and let out a frustrated breath through his nose as he walked away from his siblings.

“She’s not gonna listen to me,” Alec yelled as he walked in the direction the redhead had stormed off.

“Make her, Alec, you’re good at that,” Jace supplied.

Alec muttered to himself, “Apparently not good enough.” He had tried to get Jace to listen to him on many occasions, to stop being so reckless and stop taking in strays as if they were prizes he competed for, to follow the guidelines sent down to him from his parents and the Clave, but it was useless because Jace did what Jace wanted. His bad decisions were rubbing off on Izzy and Alec silently thanked his parents for taking Max away before he could go down the path of resistance with the rest of his siblings.

He stopped walking when he heard soft sobs coming from one of the residential rooms. His heart tightened in his chest as he remembered the times he had waited outside Izzy’s door while she cried herself to sleep after their mother had berated her. It happened far too often and Alec was always afraid of knocking on the door and offering his support. Izzy had to be strong in order to be who she needed to be and who Alec knew she could be and he wasn’t going to interfere with that. So he would sit outside her door until he was sure she was finally getting some rest and spend the rest of the night staring at his ceiling, wondering if he was doing the right thing.

With a steady inhale, Alec let his knuckles rap against the door softly, calling out a gentle, “Clary?” He heard some shuffling and sniffling as if she was trying to hide the fact she was crying and Alec respected that more than he thought he would. The door opened slowly and the glare the redhead had on her face was almost as deadly as the one Alec had perfected.

“What?” She spat, her hair whipping into Alec’s face as she turned quickly and sat on the bed with a huff.

“I just wanted to-- Are you okay?” He asked and the question seemed to surprise Clary. She nodded at first, quick and sure, but then her bottom lip started to tremble and she shook her head.

“It was my birthday yesterday,” she began as a tear fell down her cheek. Alec stayed silent from where he stood, unsure of how to comfort this girl he had barely just met. “It was supposed to be the best day of my life. I turned 18 - a real adult by human standards - and was accepted into my dream school. I had a mom who-- who was-- is my best friend and a stepdad who I trusted with my life. And I had my best friend, the one person who has been there for me since I was little, celebrating with me.” Her voice shook with each passing confession and Alec resisted the urge to sit beside her and place a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“And now?” He asked because if he knew anything, it was that hiding feelings and emotions from those that just wanted to help was the most detrimental thing a person could do to themselves. He wasn’t sure why he wanted to know Clary, but it was too late to change his mind as Clary looked up at him with wide eyes and shook her head again.

“My mother pushed me into a swirling hole of magic that her best friend created and now I might never see her again. I showed up at my step dad’s work only to overhear him admit that I meant nothing to him, that my mother meant nothing to him. I almost died and was only saved because some guy I just met gave me some mystical tattoo of healing, and now?” Clary took a deep breath and the tears that threatened to fall seemed to disappear as she tried to compose herself. “My best friend has been kidnapped by a guy that had fangs for teeth and the ability to disappear before I could even register what I was seeing.”

“He’s a vampire,” Alec said ignoring the glare that Clary shot in his direction, “a very powerful one that is using the mund-- Simon,” Alec corrected, “against you.” He sighed heavily, taking a few steps closer to Clary to sit beside her on the bed before continuing, “As much as I hate to admit it, you’re a shadowhunter now. That means you have to follow the rules that have been created to keep all of us safe and protected.”

“But what about Simon?” Clary questioned, turning toward Alec to grip his thigh in her hands, her nails digging into the flesh there like a desperate plea for answers that Alec couldn’t really give her. Alec rested his hand over hers to urge her to relax. She didn’t know it yet, but he was the one with the mind to make a plan and the good sense to make sure they took the correct next steps in order to keep everyone safe. There was a small part of him that hoped he could prove it to her.

“They won’t hurt him,” Alec began and at Clary’s look of disbelief, he added, “They won’t. They want something they think you have and I’m starting to believe that you know less than everyone thinks you do.” Clary nodded quickly and sniffed as an escaped tear fell down her cheek. Alec reached up before he could stop himself and swiped it away with his thumb before resting his hand on her shoulder and squeezing reassuringly. “But we can’t just barge into a nest of vampires without a plan, Clary. You know Simon better than the rest of us and you trust him to stay alive, yeah?”

Clary agreed, “He’s probably torn between fear and excitement that vampires actually exist and he gets to see one in person.” Her watery laugh had Alec relaxing enough to stand and peer down at her. He admitted to himself that he had - still held - reservations about the redhead, but her ability to be thrown into the Shadow World with barely any fear crossing her features was something Alec admired.

“Then we’ll figure out how to get him back, but we’re going to need your help. I need you to calm yourself down and clear your head,” Alec commanded. Clary stood up and wiped at her face, fixing the leather skirt Izzy had lent her before nodding at Alec again as if ready for action. Alec shook his head and nudged her back to sitting with a gentle hand.

“Take a second. Mourn the loss of the mundane life you knew because from now on,” Alec said as he walked toward the door, “you’re a shadowhunter first. You’re the responsibility of the Clave which means you’re my responsibility and I take that very seriously.” Clary stared over at him and Alec had to avert his eyes before he became uncomfortable with the trust he saw forming in them.

“Thank you, Alec,” Clary whispered. Alec nodded but said nothing else as he walked out the door. He shut it behind him and when he heard Clary’s sobs start up again, he slid down the wall outside of the room just to make sure that she was going to be okay.

#fraywood #fraywood brotp #clary fray #alec lightwood #shadowhunters #my writing #mdsrewatch #5 years of shadowhunters #ahhhhhh i love them so much 🥺#dont @ me okay #clary is baby

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itsuki-minamy · 3 years

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“K SIDE: PURPLE 06”

Translation: Naru-kun Raws: Ridia

K - Side: Purple (Chapter List)

The next day.

Yukari calmly appeared on the vacant lot and asked Hase to practice.

"Please, teacher."

Hase could only scratch his head and growl, "Um.", at Yukari who said again.

He wasn't mad at Yukari. Rather, he just wondered if he was in a bad mood for Yukari. He didn't know why he adopted such a tough attitude, but Hase knows that he is a boring person. Somehow, he thinks he has touched something that should not be touched.

Hase crossed his arms.

Holding a wooden sword, Yukari stood there. The expression is a bit strained, probably because even this boy really cares about yesterday. On the other hand, Hase seemed to like the attitude of not apologizing or making an excuse. He's begging for him to teach him, but he doesn't want to give up yesterday's anger.

On the contrary, even if he pushes that anger away, this boy wants to learn the sword by himself.

Hase exhaled heavily and faced Yukari with a wooden sword in hand.

"Yukari. I'll take back what I said earlier."

Yukari blinks. Hase smiles as he holds his sword before his eyes.

"I said I was in the middle of my own training, but I wanted to see the limits of your talent. As a teacher of the Miwa Meishin style, I will teach you properly from now on."

"……"

It was the first time he saw this boy's expression overflowing with joy.

Hase felt ticklish and at the same time remembered regret for having gone away for the first time in a long time. Hase yells cheerfully, shaking thoughts from him and clutching the handle of the sword.

"Alright! Attack from anywhere!"

"Yes."

Yukari's response was calm, as if he was trying to curb the overflowing joy. However, the flames of fire in his eyes are no different than yesterday. Curiosity and passion. It seems that defeat and regret are not in Yukari's heart at all.

The flexible body jumps without hesitation and hits hard. Hase's eyes narrowed dazzlingly and met him squarely.

Truth be told, yesterday's fix was Hase's fault.

The difference in ability between Hase and Yukari is clear. He is a first-class sword master, and a beginner who has just grasped the sword. It would have been easy for Hase to get rid of Yukari without having to leave him so badly.

However, he did not do that because Hase's instinct as a swordsman seemed higher than he expected upon seeing a sword for the first time in a long time.

To put it in other words, Yukari's talent was incredible. He wanted to work as a swordsman, not as a teacher. Thus, he played a trick like taking him down with a single attack and stun him.

However, Hase is different now.

As a master he was seriously adjusting to face the swordsman Mishakuji Yukari.

As a result, what happened was that Yukari was "cut" dozens of times.

He smashed his head, penetrated between his eyebrows, cut his neck, hit his chest, slaughtered his belly, and both hands and feet were shattered.

Of course, that was not the case. Hase's wooden sword didn't even touch Yukari. Everything came to a halt in a single attack, leaving Yukari to naturally admit defeat.

Yukari squeezed his omnipotence and tried to resist. He wants to do at least one attack. Otherwise, he will want to stop using the sword. Surprisingly mature Yukari, only with a youthful spirit, boldly attacked and did everything to the max.

"Okay, that's it!"

Hase bows with the wooden sword at his waist. Sweat is slightly wetting him, and he can't even see how tired he is.

On the other hand, Mishakuji had his wooden sword against the ground for support, and he was standing there with a sigh at best.

"Uh..."

Sorry to overdo it. Yesterday, it was likely that he had hit him badly, so this time he was more careful than necessary. It may have damaged the child's self-esteem.

Hase pulled the water bottle from his chest and handed it to Yukari. Yukari leans on the wooden sword and looks him in the eye.

"Take it."

"……"

Returning something head-on, Yukari received it. In that rhythm, power is released from his waist and sticks to the spot. Sweat beading his brows, Mishakuji straightened his knees and sat down again, resting his mouth on the water bottle.

Hase does the same, after seeing Purple take a breath.

"You are bold."

With that said, Mishakuji looked mysteriously at Hase.

"But you're too bold. I'm impressed that you just drop your defenses and avoids and jump just to hit me."

"But if I don't, I couldn't manage to even attack my master."

Hase responds to Yukari's unsatisfied voice as if to remind him.

"It would not be possible to just attack. Since you are faced with a sword, the main way is to control the opponent and find the winning line. You can also sit down and look for your opponent's weaknesses, right?"

"Against an opponent you can't beat, do you mean to stay until you win?"

"Instead of a special attack prepared to smash, I still have more eyes on that."

Yukari still seems dissatisfied. Ask yourself.

"Isn't that beautiful?"

"……"

Yukari did not reply and refused. Hase crossed his arms with a "Fu."

"I really don't understand what you mean by 'beauty'. Is it more important than the outcome of a win or a loss?"

Yukari looked up and looked at Hase. No matter the technique, after practicing for a month or so, he has come to understand a bit what this kid is thinking. That is to say,

"What? Don't you get it right?"

Yukari had a bad expression on his face.

Hase was about to explode. Still, this boy's desire for "beautiful things" may not be false. He just can't put it into words.

Hase also understood that feeling. Originally he is not the one who speaks well. He takes into account what he feels, and he has spent half of his life that way.

After a while, Yukari said in a low voice.

"The sword movement you showed me that night was beautiful."

That night was when the bully who was attacking Yukari, was hit by a "quick hit". Yukari connects the words.

"I don't know how to put it. He's straight, slim, and doesn't hesitate. I might find him 'beautiful'."

Ah, Hase seemed to be good at it.

"Sure. Sword art can have the 'beauty' you say if you go all the way. I don't know if I've reached that level."

"No."

Looking at Hase, Mishakuji says in a strong tone.

"That is not the case. The technique was certainly beautiful. So…"

Having said that, Mishakuji stopped.

Hase bows his head. So…? Hase, who admits to himself and others, could not guess the words that followed.

Mishakuji looked at Hase with a kind look, but soon sighed as if he had given up. He stands up, puts the sword on his waist and thanks.

"Thanks for practicing with me today."

"Oh, also, nice to practice with you too."

Hase also hastily got up and bowed. Seeing that, Mishakuji laughed. Unable to understand the meaning of the smile, Hase scratched his head with his hand.

"Well for now, are you going home for today?"

"Before that, let's take a shower. Sayuri makes a lot of noise when I come back dirty. Would you like to eat at 'Hanawarabe' today?"

"Um, that's correct. Let's do that."

When Hase starts walking, Yukari follows him. Hase and Mishakuji went home together, with a bitter smile in their heart, saying that it was very different from yesterday.

++++++++++

Noriya Haraki was sitting in a corner of the detention center and looking at his hands.

Around the room, criminals with similar circumstances crouched in the same way. It's not a herd or a fight, and he casts a vague glance beyond the walls, ceilings, and railings. Realizing that he was definitely one of them, he clicked his tongue.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. He is not a person to be put in such a place.

It does not mean that he is not guilty. If that's the case, he has been counting it over and over again. Since he was less than 20 years old, he has been stealing and swindling. If society were to be divided back and forth, then he would definitely be a "later" resident.

Still, he feels the current treatment of him is unfair.

There are supposed to be younger people here. Young pawns, they know nothing and can be treated as convenient for the group. As a young leader, that's what these guys do here, that's the industry.

However, the "youth" are gone.

Did they turn to charcoal or ash and spread to the ground or scattered across the sky? Life and existence have disappeared without a trace.

"Tsk!"

Remembering that moment, his body trembles.

If he had returned to Takeido-cho's office at that time, he too would have disappeared from the world.

What is still burned on the back of the eyelids is bright red and black.

Kagutsu's flame that burns the night sky.

Men in black screaming frantically in that context.

Until now, he thought that he belonged to a violent organization. He thought that he was a powerful person. Most people had to resist that power. Everyone knew that they would panic and succumb to the violence that crept through the web of law.

It was sweet.

Those who belonged to the same organization as him, with high ranks and more terrifying, begged for forgiveness while crying, burned alive and stuck. He witnessed the apparition.

"Purgatory", a group of talented people with the "Red King" at the top.

Just remembering the name, he doesn't stop shaking. He knew there was an extraordinary ability to live in the underworld, but the calamity caused by "Purgatory" was a different order of magnitude. That is not a type of violence, it is "destruction".

"Purgatory" is a group of monsters that spread "destruction" on themselves.

The extraordinary idea of avenging the death of his companions did not exist in his head. Everything is a potentially deadly species. Once he got a lot of money, he was going to run away somewhere.

That was…

"Damn!"

He got angry and damn his lack of luck. For those who were fed up with "Niibangai", if they were to squeeze a bit, the money to escape would have accumulated. To make money at the moment, he should have been able to wholesale some of Ajima-gumi's "assets", which are difficult to collect, and illegal "assets." That way, he could have gotten enough money to live.

It's about that kid and the giant guy. That's when he hit the ground with his fist as he cursed.

"Noriya Haraki."

Being called by his name, he suddenly raised his face. An officer was behind the iron grate.

"Get out."

"What?"

Involuntarily, he raised his eyes and said that. He has been detained now because some crimes have been revealed, but he should not have been released so soon.

To answer that question, the officer was in a clerical tone,

"A benefactor has appeared. You are released."

He wondered who he was.

Benefactor? For him now?

Confusion swirled in his head. Ajima-gumi's group should have been wiped out, but maybe there were some who survived like him. Such hope arose suddenly and he got up. He bowed and walked out the open prison door.

Accompanied by the officer, he walked down the corridor inside the police station. Meanwhile, he heard a cheerful voice from the back of the corner.

"Here, and here, and then, uh, here? No, sorry. I've never written such a document. Hahahaha."

Hearing the voice, he reflexively stopped.

"...? What's wrong? Go on."

Even if requested by the officer in charge, he remains at the scene.

Somehow, a dark premonition clung to the hope he had in his heart. He will not proceed as he is. It is much better to turn around and go back into that prison.

"Hey, come on. Go ahead!"

Still, the officer gives him a shove. He began to walk indeterminately. Like a prisoner, he climbs thirteen steps. The moment he turned the corner, he knew his intuition was correct.

The man who was writing the documents at the reception suddenly looked up and saw him.

Thread-thin eyes on the back of sunglasses. A smile that seems to stick to his mouth, and in a black suit like a undertaker.

"Ah, Noriya Haraki-san. Nice to meet you. I'm Soma Hitoshi from 'Purgatory'. If you have any questions, could you come with me?"

Saying it in a fuzzy voice, Soma set fire with the missing little finger of his left hand and lit the cigarette in his mouth.

#k #k project #k side purple #k fan clan #K stories #mishakuji yukari

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