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mtg-cards-hourly · 2 months

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Raise Dead

Artist: Jeff A. Menges TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

#mtg #magic the gathering #tcg #jeff a. menges #raise dead #summer magic / edgar #sorcery

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eskawrites · 1 year

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EskaWrites AO3 masterlist

now that i have well over 175k words of fic up on ao3, i think that i can no longer claim this weird obsession with stranger things is just a fleeting thing. so! here’s a lil fic masterlist for myself and for anyone else who cares

one-shots

if i ever were to lose you (i’d surely lose myself)

“No—god, I just, I don’t care, okay? Forget about everything else—forget the kids, forget Robin, they’re not important right—you’re not even listening to me!” And she’s not. Her eyes are wide and she sits frozen, staring over his shoulder. Frustration spikes. He turns to follow her gaze, to see what the hell she’s looking at— —and he sees Robin.

or, Steve speaks without thinking, but words aren't the only thing that can hurt

you’re the reason that i’m hanging on

Max picks at the hem of her sleeve. “Did you see the clock?” It occurs to her, distantly, that Max is seeking comfort as much as she’s offering it. Robin feels something stir in her chest, and she thinks she should say something. Do something. She thinks she would normally know what. Now, she just doesn’t.

or, the obligatory Robin gets Vecna'd fic

the fallen leaves tell a story

"Say one day a Tarnished does take the throne. Say that you do. The smaller corners of the world will mean nothing to you, then, and neither will I.” “That doesn’t bother you?” “Why should it? I cannot change it, and it hardly affects me.” Nancy studies her for a long moment. “What’s your name?” “Robin,” says the woman. Nancy looks her over. Bright blue eyes. Freckles painted over her cheeks. Warm firelight making her glow. Robin.

or, the Elden Ring au that literally nobody asked for

May Chaos Take the World

She wonders, looking over the empty ruins of the village, if it’s worth it. If anything in this wretched world has ever been worth it.

Robin is.

Nancy calls her to the grace, her hands empty, no strength to give or to gain, and yet Robin comes anyway. She kneels beside Nancy, keeping her space but smiling at her all the same.

“What do you wish of me?” she asks.

“Stay,” breathes Nancy.

To her delight, to her dismay, Robin does.

or, another elden ring au no one asked for

screaming in the dark (i howl when we’re apart)

When Eddie asked what everyone was doing on Halloween, Nancy was prepared to hate whatever he had planned. At best she’d be indifferent, sitting around with the kids because they need even teams or something. Instead, she finds herself increasingly intrigued as Eddie continues to spin his tale. It helps that Robin keeps squirming beside her—crossing and uncrossing her legs, fingers tapping or twisting with the endless energy that buzzes through her constantly—and every motion seems to put her a little bit closer to Nancy.

or, the party plays Werewolf; game or reality, Nancy doesn't like the idea of losing Robin

if you wanted, you could do no harm

She stops for gas at the station on the edge of town, the one that technically isn’t even in Hawkins, even though it serves as the universal indicator that you’re officially too far into rural small town America. There’s no one there as she fills the tank, no one there as she digs around the passenger seat for a road map she already knows she was stupid enough to forget, no one there when she growls under her breath and marches inside to buy one.

But when she turns around, map in her hand and a water bottle tucked beneath her arm, Robin Buckley is glaring at her.

sweetest submission, drinking it in

(smut/pwp) (posted anonymously)

Robin responded by taking Nancy’s wrists and slowly pulling them over her head. Nancy tilted her chin up as if in defiance. She could see Robin’s shadow hovering over her through the blindfold. The mattress dipped beside her, causing her to slide just slightly into Robin’s knees. Nancy sucked in a breath, part of her hoping that Robin would shift to straddle her, to use her warm weight to hold Nancy down as she— “Are you worked up already?” Robin asked, a low chuckle in her voice. - in which Nancy has a very, very good night

Raise Dead series

Raise Dead

(warning: major character death)

“Okay,” Jonathan cuts in. “Can one of you explain what exactly you’re talking about?” “Raise Dead is a fifth level cleric spell that allows the caster to restore life to a humanoid creature,” Dustin reels off. “Wait, El can do that?” Steve turns to El. “You can do that?” El looks scared. “I don’t know.” “We’ll never know unless we try, and El’s definitely a powerful enough caster to—” “This isn’t your stupid game,” Nancy snaps.

or, Robin dies, the group falls apart, and the kids never know when to quit

what could’ve been, would’ve been

It’s not all Robin’s fault, of course. Nancy doesn’t really spend that much time with them, and when she does, she usually keeps her thoughts to herself. So, despite the fact that Robin has been introduced to Hawkins’s own brand of hell now, Nancy finds that it’s easy to keep the distance between them. But there are times when Robin will lean over and whisper some sarcastic commentary for only Nancy to hear, and there are times when it will make Nancy laugh—genuinely, unexpectedly laugh. And there are times when Robin will grin at that, looking almost proud of herself.

or, the months leading up to March 1986

i’m with you (that’s where i’ll stay)

Robin sleeps like…well, like the dead. It unnerves Steve, who more than once has taken her hand and pressed his fingers to her pulse just to make sure she’s still there. Robin is never this still, not even in sleep. He’s long since lost count of the number of times he’s woken up to the covers pulled away and tangled around Robin, or to her legs kicking gently against his, or to her having moved from his side to the edge of the bed and back again. Robin turns, she rolls, she twists and she tangles but the one thing she never does is stay still. Asleep in the hospital bed, pale and drowning in the starch white of her gown and the bedsheets, she barely even breathes.

or, coming back to life is easier with your friends around you

thriving in the apocalypse series

(works listed here in timeline order, but you can go to the series page to find them in the order they were posted! it’ll make sense either way)

as empires crumble and cathedrals flatten (in my heart)

Robin’s eyes are heavy when they meet hers. Nancy hears an accusation in her own voice. You saw this. You knew this would happen. You didn’t stop it.

or, the author is obsessed with Nancy's visions of the end of the world

cast some light and you’ll be alright

Everyone else has someone. Everyone else has been caught in the aftermath. But Nancy—she pushes Jonathan toward Will, knowing he needs it more. And she puts makeup over the dark spots beneath her eyes. And she isn’t noticed by anyone.

or, nightmares in the wake of Vecna's victory

soldier (on better things, your heart is hung)

“Does this count as littering?” Robin asks, nodding toward the cans. Nancy rolls her eyes. “We’ll clean them up.” “Okay.” Nancy bites back her smile and pulls out her revolver. She catches the way Robin tenses, but she pretends not to notice as she looks over the weapon.

or, Nancy chooses a successor

i found a way (i found a way to reappear)

It’s not her conversation. It’s not her friendship. It’s not her house, or even her friend’s house. Nancy is your friend, she reminds herself. But Nancy isn’t here right now, either. And besides, Nancy has only ever been her friend at the end of the world. When there are mysteries to solve, and monsters to fight, and nightmares to talk about, Nancy is her friend. She thinks Nancy might be her friend other times, too, but it’s a theory that hasn’t been proven yet, and there’s a part of her that’s terrified of pushing her luck.

or, movie night at the Wheeler's house

but your hand’s wet with sweat, and your head needs a rest

Robin looks over her shoulder. She can hear the boys grumbling in the bathroom, and then a peal of laughter. She looks back at Nancy and nods. They’re okay. Nancy’s expression softens. Slowly, she sits back down, and her friends immediately absorb her in their conversation. Still, her eyes flick back up to Robin again, a small smile in her gaze.

or, 4 times Robin sticks up for the party, +1 time Nancy sticks up for Robin

all the comfort invested in my soul

Nancy's smile fades. “We can’t just go swimming to go swimming?” “At eight o’clock on a school night?” “School’s a joke these days anyway.” “Nancy.” Nancy frowns out the windshield. “It’s…stupid.” “Try me.”

or, Nancy faces a fear with Robin at her side

breakfast for dinner

“What are you two up to tonight?” “Probably just heading home,” Max says with a shrug. El shifts beside her, a small frown pulling at her features. Robin twirls her keys around her finger, thinking. “Are you interested in a little field trip? I gotta get groceries on my way home.”

or, girls' night with Robin and Max and El

made a family from people you found

“Will,” she says softly, then waits for him to look up at her again. “Do you want to tell me more, or do you want me to talk?” He looks torn between fleeing and crying. “I don’t—I don’t know how to talk about it.”

or, the Will and Robin coming out scene we deserve

i don’t wanna live like this (but i don’t wanna die)

She’s not stupid. She knows it happens. Has spent too many late nights in Hawkins’s library poring over the books and newspaper clippings everyone else steers clear of to not know that it happens.

It just…doesn’t happen here.

Stupid, she thinks. Of course it happens here. If supernatural monsters can run rampant in Hawkins, homophobic killers can exist in the next town over.

or, sometimes, Robin still feels so alone

when love became an act of defiance

Robin doesn’t know what’s worse: being on patrol when they run into something, or knowing that she could very well sleep through disaster on someone else’s night. Going with Steve makes it easier, but going with one of the kids makes it harder. Tonight, with Steve driving them to the trailer park and Will sitting in the backseat, Robin feels like she’s one bad scare away from losing her mind.

or, Robin finally snaps

i looked around in a blood-soaked gown

She hasn’t been in the running for valedictorian since sophomore year, and there’s no way anyone in Hawkins High would vote her for class president, but somehow her mother was still delusional enough to expect some incredible achievement from her once graduation rolled around. I’m alive, Robin thinks. How’s that for an achievement?

or, the Hawkins High School Graduation Ceremony, 1986

even in darkness i’m smiling (i know that fear is a good thing)

Back in the car, Max flips her knife open and shut, open and shut. “I want a flamethrower,” she says. “You want to give Steve a heart attack?” Robin asks. Max catches her gaze in the rear view mirror and grins.

or, Nancy, Robin, and Max patrol Hawkins late at night

love will not break your heart

Robin's been so full of anger lately, of fear, of all these emotions that Nancy sees like a reflection, and others, feelings she doesn’t quite understand, but wants to ease the burden of all the same. And Steve has been fretting over Robin the last couple of weeks. Of course he would do something nice for her like this. But it doesn’t make sense for them to not tell anyone they were going.

And there it is, the fifth red flag: Steve lied.

or, Nancy gets the answer to a months-long question

paint me in trust, i’ll be your best friend

Robin is avoiding her.

Well, no—that sounds drastic. Robin still smiles when she sees Nancy walk into a room. She still laughs whenever Nancy says something sarcastic or rolls her eyes at one of the kids. She even makes sure Nancy knows when and where movie nights are, and even votes to postpone when Nancy can’t make it to one.

But she won’t let Nancy touch her.

or, Robin Buckley, through Nancy's eyes

i know i may not look like much (just another screaming speck of dust)

She huffs—a sharp, frustrated exhale—and threads her fingers through her hair. She keeps her hand there, pinning the annoying strands in place, and digs her nails into her scalp angrily. Nancy has been angry a lot lately.

or, Nancy Wheeler deserves to rage

let’s hope it’s a good one, without any fear

Nancy is supposed to be back in town after months away, a week full of finals in the books, already thinking about next semester’s schedule and her plan to get more articles published in the paper. Instead, she’s spent the last few months patrolling the woods and falling in love.

or, a cozy night around the fire

celebrity fake dating au

this story that we found ourselves in

(warning: misogyny and sexual harassment, substance abuse, addiction)

Three days later, they find a magazine on their doorstep. Steve flips it open to a picture of him kissing her cheek beneath tall, bold letters:

FANTASY ROMANCE ALIVE AND WELL

Stuck to the page is a crinkled post-it note and Jonathan’s handwriting: thanks for the tip—wishing you both the best.

Robin sinks into the kitchen chair. It’s official. She’s in a relationship with Steve Harrington.

or, the Robin-centric celebrity fake dating au

now i am a heart with a head on my shoulders

“Look, I…” Max pauses. She tilts her head back, looking up at the ceiling as if searching for something, then drops it again and levels her gaze—surprisingly bright, full of a fire that she’s never been on the direct receiving end of—at Nancy. “I want to be a little better about this than I was with Steve, but I think we still need to talk.” Nancy’s thoughts race, then freeze. Her heart sinks a little. “Oh.”

or, Max and Nancy have a talk

our hearts know deeper seasons than our memories

“I love you.” Robin keeps breathing. It’s not loud, but it’s so much more than what she’s grown used to. Her apartment has been mostly silent since May. It’s been empty since Mike stormed in a few weeks ago, the magazine with Robin’s interview rolled up in his hand, only to find her sitting at the kitchen table with tears in her eyes, already reading it. Nancy has been so alone for so long—was ready to be alone forever in penance for what she did. But she’s not. Robin is here, somehow, despite all the times Nancy pushed her away or let her go. “I’m so in love with you, Robin Buckley.”

or, the celebrity fake dating au, Nancy's POV

flayed!robin au

the devil’s after both of us

“Robin?” Steve asks, still trying to approach her. Robin shakes her head. She’s so pale. A bead of sweat trails down from her hairline. There’s a cruel light in her eyes that Nancy has never seen before—has never even thought Robin capable of.

Because Robin’s eyes aren’t cruel. They’re warm, and usually crinkled in a smile, or at least some level of mischief. Even when she’s angry, her eyes are bright, not dull and cold like they are now.

They’re also, Nancy realizes, usually blue. But now they’re dark, too dark, nearly black.

Nancy is so, so stupid.

or, the flayed!robin au

karen gets vecna’d au

you’re not much, goodness knows

“It’s about your mother.”

“What’s wrong with her?” Nancy asks sharply.

But she knows. As Powell sighs again, looking helplessly down at his feet for an explanation he doesn’t have, she knows. As Steve looks anxiously between them—as behind her, Max peeks around the corner and starts walking closer—she knows.

or, the Karen gets vecna'd fic

#pray to the tumblr formatting gods that this works and isn't super annoying #eskawrites #ronance #ronance fic #rdau #raise dead #celebrity fake dating au #thriving in the apocalypse #writing things

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strwpup · 2 years

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so!

gentle repose does not work for revivify at this point, BUT it increases the time frame for the spell raise dead! which is an especially funny spell to use on laudna

also it's the revival spell that gives you a -4 to all rolls, which is EXCELLENT for angst in case anyone wants to take that and run :)

#my post #critical role #critrole #cr spoilers #laudna #gentle repose #raise dead #revivify #revival spells my beloved #imodna

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hidekuni-art · 1 year

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Old art~ (2019) Memento Mori. HE is my Necromancer, super derpy, super tall and awful in staying properly alive. Please someone come by, hold him and make sure he is eating. Check him out on TH ~ even if this page might still be in progress~

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thebibliosphere · 3 months

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I feel like I've complained about Tim's email situation in Gotham Knights before (edit: I have), but the truth of it is just so funny.

He's signed up for so many podcasts, video game streamers, and random news alerts; it's just a constant barrage of data going straight into his constantly whirring brain. Hell, he even floats the idea of the Batfamily having their own podcast as a way to correct misinformation about them (which Jason shoots down instantly), and it's made me realize something.

Timothy Drake would be a YouTuber.

In this universe specifically, Timothy Jackson Drake, the heir to Drake Industries and the foster son of the late Bruce Wayne would be a YouTuber.

Think about it. It'd be the perfect cover. Who would ever suspect that some 16-year-old nepo baby with a YouTube channel could ever be Red Robin? You'd have to be mad. I mean, look at him.

Red Robin just dropped out of literal thin air and garotted someone four times his size, and you expect anyone to believe that's the same kid who does 24-hour Minecraft charity streams and occasionally drops 6-hour video essays (his last one was on Lex Luthor's illegal bit mining operation on the moon)?

That kid?

You think that kid is Red Robin?

Ch'yah, okay, sure. And the Joker is funny 🤡.

#gotham knights game #I'm now incorporating this into all my Tim headcanons across the multiverse #twice a week as part of maintaining his Normal Teenager Identity #he streams random shit on YouTube/Twitch #he's got the full gamer set up in the background #LED lights around the ceiling and walls #rainbow keyboard/headset #mini fridge filled with Monster Energy Drinks #(other streamers have 'take a shot' prompts in chat. his audience has 'drink water before you die')#whenever he hosts a charity stream Bruce makes an appearance in chat via the official Wayne Enterprises account #and promises to match whatever they raise #and then hangs about for a bit to cheer Tim on #he's the epitome of 'are ya winning son?' meme #meanwhile off screen #Tim's keeping an eye on a seperate monitor #and helping Babs run remote ops #if his stream suddenly dies (which is does fairly often) he blames it on the Manor having shitty wifi #and that tracks #it's an old house #it's probably FILLED with lead and dead signal spots #in reality Tim killed the stream because Red Robin is needed #and no one will ever know

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ghost-bxrd · 5 months

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Prompt:

Jason is terrified of Damian al Ghul-Wayne.

Talia dipped him in the Pit, fed him lies, put him through the worst kinds of pain possible for the sake of training and turned him into a monster that went to heel when called. A monster even Ra’s was wary of.

He’s terrified of Damian, because if his mother managed to manipulate and play him like a fiddle, then she must have taught the same to her son.

Damian, who only has memories of a catatonic Jason cooing at him, cuddling him and protecting him, is becoming progressively more distressed by Jason’s perpetual cold shoulder and skittish behavior whenever Jason sees him.

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uninspired-choatic-angel · 4 months

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James and Sirius hang mistletoes at every doorway/entrance, so they have an excuse to kiss Regulus and Remus.

Regulus asks Remus to help him set the table while James and Sirius play with Harry.

As Regulus comes out of the kitchen, Remus runs into him at the entrance

Regulus:

Remus:

Sirius:

James:

Sirius: We didn't think this through

James: No, we did not

Harry: Kiss!

Remus gives Regulus a peck on the forehead

#Christmas with the mauraders #platonic moonwater #jegulus raising harry #siruis black #remus lupin #regulus black #james potter #the marauders #dead gay wizards #jegulus #black brothers #starchaser #wolfstar

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nerdpoe · 2 months

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Little Zuko and little Azula love Lu Ten. They love Lu Ten so much, they successfully smuggled themselves into Lu Ten's baggage when Lu Ten left to go fight.

Lu Ten, meanwhile, finds out that his little cousins snuck along for the ride way too late.

He knows they're gonna lose the fight.

He isn't about to let a couple of little kids die like that, murdered by Ba Sing Se soldiers too hyped up by war.

He may have been prepared to put his own life on the line, but he's not sacrificing Zuko or Azula's. But he also knows that if he flees the field with them, then Ozai will absolutely use that as an excuse to "punish" his own children.

Lu Ten does not want to know what that punishment entails. He is, in fact, more terrified by whatever it may be than the literal war raging outside his tent.

So.

He swallows his pride for his country, his love for his father, and his dreams of being a successful general.

He grabs the kids, fakes his death, and runs.

#atla au #atla #lu ten #azula #zuko #zuko and azula raised by a stressed and trying lu ten #iroh still grieves #but during his journeys he realizes that lu ten probably isn't dead #but he steers clear of where he thinks lu ten went because he doesn't want to lead ozai to him #he has the order watch over them from afar #ozai still had his father killed #but his meeting was interrupted by ursa instead #so he challenged her to agni kai #and scarred her #and ursa is the one banished from the fire nation in search of the avatar #iroh went along with her #but she intends to help the avatar destroy the fire nation #since it is the one that took her son and daughter #story prompt

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mtg-cards-hourly · 3 months

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Raise Dead

The earth cannot hold that which magic commands.

Artist: Carl Critchlow TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

#mtg #magic the gathering #tcg #carl critchlow #raise dead #ninth edition #sorcery

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eskawrites · 1 year

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tagged by @ronancebuckley and @hellsfireclub thank you thank you!

rules: post the first lines of your 10 most recently published AO3 stories. if you have less than 10 fics posted, post the first lines of all your fics

when the heck did i publish more than 10 fics how did this happen this was supposed to be a fleeting obsession okay let’s go!

this story that we found ourselves in

Robin Buckley pauses just beyond the clear glass door. She can see a skinny young man messing with a recorder. A redheaded woman stands beside him, already jotting notes on a pad. Robin rubs her palms on her thighs, resisting the urge to pull at her hair instead. Jonathan still wanted to get a few photos.

i'm with you (that's where i'll stay)

Steve can’t stop staring at her.

made a family from people you found

El supposes it would be easy to blame it on Henry, or the move, or starting school again, this time at Hawkins.

what could've been, would've been

Nancy Wheeler has been awake for nearly two days, her entire body is sore from being thrown against a hospital wall, and she’s facing her third apocalypse when Robin Buckley perks up and says, “I’m Robin, I work with Steve.”

the fallen leaves tell a story

The Lands Between are beautiful, in a sad, haunting, dangerous kind of way. Nancy can appreciate that kind of beauty.

let's hope it's a good one, without any fear

“Here.”

Nancy looks up at the mug offered to her, then lifts her head further to see Robin, silhouetted by the firelight, eyes warm and crinkled as she smiles down at her.

i know i may not look like much (just another screaming speck of dust)

The early autumn air is colder than it’s supposed to be, and it tears at Nancy’s hair, pulling strands down from her ponytail and whipping them across her eyes. She brushes them back in a quick, harsh motion. A moment later, it happens again.

i found a way (i found a way to reappear)

Robin thinks she prefers the Wheeler house when the world is ending.

soldier (on better things, your heart is hung)

The spring rains come to Hawkins with none of the warmth they’re supposed to have. Nancy has been woken by the thunder more than once—always so much louder after dark—and she has to scramble in bed for a moment before she realizes the rattling of the window is because of the storm and not because the ground is splitting open again.

Raise Dead

Something small and hard hits the pane of Nancy’s window.

also stealing this idea from @dufrau and sharing the opening line of the flayed!robin au, which has no title yet but will be published soon-ish:

Three weeks. That’s all they get. That’s all it takes.

tagging...you! (asdkfj everyone i would’ve tagged has already done it or is already tag, y’all gotta stop doing these while i’m at work, they get around so fast!) anyway if you see this do it! tell the people i tagged you they won’t know the difference!

#writing things #ronance fic #ronance #uhhhh do i tag them all #yeah fine #celebrity fake dating au #elden ring au #raise dead #rdau #thriving in the apocalypse #so much thriving in the apocalypse #flayed!robin

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sunderwight · 4 months

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Bingqiu roleswap where disciple Shen Yuan knows he's gay, and figures out that he has a big huge crush on his handsome Shizun, but also concludes nearly at once that he's not going to be drawing Luo Binghe's eye any time soon. Firstly, Luo Binghe is notoriously straight. Secondly, even if he weren't, he wouldn't go for his scrawny untalented nerd of a disciple! Shen Yuan's not bad looking, not before or after transmigrating, but he's neither a beautiful nor a hot manly man, and he assumes if Luo Binghe were into dudes he'd be into the same kinds of twunks that Shen Yuan likes. Guys on his own level, etc etc.

Plus Luo Binghe hated the original disciple Shen, and only started to warm up to the transmigrated version after Shen Yuan got injured in front of him trying to stop the other disciples on the peak from killing a small animal. For some reason, Luo Binghe brought Shen Yuan medicine. He got even nicer after Shen Yuan distracted the skinner demon by trying to convince it to take his skin instead of Luo Binghe's, and then again when Shen Yuan successfully fought off a demon invader -- though initially when Luo Binghe volunteered him for that job, he thought it was an assassination attempt. His heart was in his throat when Luo Binghe nearly took a poisoned blow for him, but luckily he reacted more quickly and got hit by the thorns instead. His heavenly demon blood took care of the poison, and he managed to convince everyone that he narrowly avoided getting cut at all.

Shen Yuan's careful not to read anything into it when Luo Binghe finds out about his, erm, uncomfortable dormitory situation and moves him into the side room, or when he completely messes up trying to make dinner and Luo Binghe takes over cooking and bans him from the kitchen (he swears he's not actually that bad at cooking, he just never had to use a kitchen without a microwave or an electric hot plate before...)

After all, it's not like Luo Binghe is cooking for him, he's just making food he likes and letting Shen Yuan eat it too! Because he's nice! He's way nicer than the book gave him credit for being, see, clearly Shen Yuan was correct in signing up for his defense squad, "top ten worst villains of all time" his ass that poll was nonsense...

Unfortunately, though, the plot's still gotta plot. Shen Yuan is heartbroken when the Immortal Alliance Conference rolls around and his shizun stabs him and throws him down into the Endless Abyss. Heartbroken, but not surprised. After all, it was always going to go this way, wasn't it?

But at least, now that it's done, he has some agency in how he reacts to it. He's changed the story enough that he doesn't need to go get revenge. Maybe Luo Binghe's still the villain of his story, maybe that was inevitable, but some heroes let the villains get away. Don't they? It's all part of that noble, breaking the cycle of abuse type stuff. He can be that kind of hero. He can let it go. As long as he avoids Luo Binghe altogether, it should be fine, right? It's not like he's obligated to turn people into human sticks. He asked the system, he's definitely not!

Technically he's not even required to conquer the demon realms. He just has to get out of the Abyss and the be sufficiently cool and/or tragic. Conquest is just one means of doing that, and not even Shen Yuan's preferred, since he doesn't exactly want to rule over anybody. Going around the demon realms beating up some jackasses and rescuing some damsels in distress and becoming sworn brothers with Shang Qinghua, one of the current demon kings, is suitable. He definitely doesn't want to marry any of the damsels he encounters (thank fuck the system lets him off the hook for that!)

But eventually he has to go back to the human world. Not only is it mandated by the system, but he also misses living there. The demonic realms are in many ways better than expected, plus a lot of the monsters are really cool, but he misses the weather and plants and the people he's more accustomed to being around.

He misses Qing Jing Peak, if he's being honest with himself. Shizun's cooking and the bamboo forest and the crisp mountain breezes, the comforts of home.

Not that he can actually go back there in specific. Of course not. If he did that, Luo Binghe would try to kill him, or else the system would try and make him kill Luo Binghe. Bad ideas all around. No, he can't go back to Qing Jing Peak, but he can go find someplace nicer than the demon realms at least. He just has to keep a low profile, which shouldn't be hard since the original goods did that even while actively scheming to kill his former master!

Except.

Everywhere he goes, suddenly Luo Binghe is also there?!

Good thing Shen Yuan thought to take a page out of the book of Luo Binghe's actual love interest, Liu Mingyan, and start wearing a veil. He just didn't want any randos who might have seen him at the Immortal Alliance Conference or on any of the other missions his shizun sent him on to recognize him. But one minute he's investigating a strange case in Jinlan City, and the next the streets are full of Huan Hua cultivators (Shen Yuan has no intention of joining them, that's the path the original took to getting revenge! He doesn't want revenge!), and then Luo Binghe and Sect Leader MBJ and Peak Lord SHL show up, and SY is ducking down alleys and hiding behind columns, just trying to stay out of the way until the lockdown on Jinlan lifts and he can leave.

Except...

Luo Binghe really isn't acting like himself?

He looks like he hasn't been eating or sleeping well. There are dark circles around his eyes, and something almost melancholy in his countenance. And he's dressed entirely in white, none of the usual Qing Jing greens and blues anywhere to be seen. Of even greater concern, he's being reckless. Shen Yuan can't stop himself from rushing out when he sees his former shizun get infected by a sower demon.

Luckily, it's been some years since the last time they saw one another. Shen Yuan's gained a few inches in height, so he's almost at eye-level with his old master now, and though he's still more slender than bulky he's picked up some totally new styles from training the demon realms. He doesn't move the same way he used to. With that, plus the veil, it's enough for him to quickly swallow back his words as he grabs Luo Binghe and quickly administers a cure for the sower infection.

Well, he has one of course. He wouldn't need it himself, heavenly demon blood and all, but his time running around playing hero in the demon realms meant he rescued a lot of humans from such fates. Which is hard to do if you don't have a cure to their afflictions, but between him and Shang Qinghua, sourcing such things was almost easy.

Luo Binghe looks at him like he's just seen a ghost. The other Cang Qiong sect members are alarmed by SY suddenly accosting one of their own and of course find him suspicious, so he runs away right after, and then he has to lose Sha Hualing's pursuit in the city.

But what else could he do? He manages to evade the system's attempts to railroad him into meeting Gongyi Xiao, avoids the rest of the Cang Qiong crowd, and drops some of the cure through the current Qian Cao peak lord's window to get the incident sorted out. Then he flees and puts a good amount of distance between himself, Jinlan City, and every righteous sect he can think of.

The only problem is that after this point, Luo Binghe is everywhere.

Any time Shen Yuan stays in one place for longer than a few days, Qing Jing disciples start turning up. Any time he takes a job hunting some cool-sounding monster or pursuing some interesting tome of knowledge, the better to satisfy the system, it seems like Luo Binghe has selected and gone after the exact same target! Which is especially annoying because back when SY was a disciple, Luo Binghe was always assigning him to do this stuff. Since when does his chronic homebody master have an interesting in six-tailed scorpion lemurs or ancient spiritual kilns?

What's weirder, though, are the rumors.

It seems like any time SY stops at some well-populated place and asks for the latest gossip, he has to hear about how the Qing Jing peak lord lost his beloved disciple during the Immortal Alliance Conference, and mourned like a widow, and now wanders the earth in search of solace for his grief. Seeking something, possibly even the ghost of his dear disciple.

What nonsense! Luo Binghe threw SY into the Abyss himself. He had to do it, it was the plot! And also his obligation as a righteous cultivator, confronted with a "dangerous" half-demon. Does it sting? Yes it stings! That's why SY wouldn't just forget it! Despite logically knowing it's pointless, is there some part of him that wishes his master would have chosen differently? That thinks he should have known that no matter what kind of power Shen Yuan had, he would never use it to hurt people recklessly, or harm innocents, or especially not harm... well. It's pointless, his blood condemned him, and if there is some part of Luo Binghe which regrets what happened, it's doubtless just that he unwittingly harbored a monster for so long.

Which is fine and Shen Yuan would leave it at that, if the guy would just let him!

But no. Instead he has to deal with Luo Binghe turning up and asking him questions, trying to get him to talk (SY has no hope of disguising his voice, if he says anything he's not even sure it won't crack as he comes perilously close to tears instead, so he just stays silent), and then asking for his name, asking if he's mute, asking about his background, his sect, his kin. Is his a righteous cultivator? Where did he get that sword? (NOT Xin Mo, thanks, he used that thing once and then tossed it back into the Abyss before the portal finished closing behind him -- he knows a poisoned chalice when he sees one, although knowing the plot twist about that sword from the novel sure helped.) Where did he learn those forms? Is he... does he have a safe place to go home to? Someone to tend his injuries? Make sure he eats his meals?

SY, of course, stays silent. But it's difficult. Not only because Luo Binghe asks, but because he still looks... bad. Sunken, sorrowful, desperate almost. Shen Yuan can't figure out if he knows or not. Maybe he's unsure, maybe he's looking for SY to give him a sign, so that he can figure him out and then flip a switch and try to finish the job he started.

That can't happen. If they fight, SY will win, and he doesn't want to hurt Luo Binghe.

But even if Luo Binghe's not a heavenly demon, he is a highly accomplished cultivator, and it seems he's got his own breaking points to reach. Eventually he corners SY and gets a hand on his veil, and for a moment SY is sure he's going to rip it off, see his face, and confront him all "I knew it was you, you twisted evil demon, you won't escape justice a second time" and he feels a deep, icy terror close around his lungs--

Luo Binghe lets go of the veil before he can lift it.

But then something even worse happens. Because Shen Yuan's handsome, peerless, noble master breaks down. He falls to his knees, begging forgiveness, sobbing, clutching at his head like he's being driven to madness.

It all spills out of him, then. How he pushed his own dearest disciple into the Abyss, which obviously SY already knew, but also how he was apparently qi-deviating the whole time, and his senses could not differentiate between one kind of demonic "threat" and another. How he realized what he'd done only after he regained his senses hours later, and rushed back to the place where the tear to the Abyss had opened, but could not find a way in after the one he lost. How he had betrayed and thrown away the only person who cared about him, and couldn't even explain that he hadn't intended to. How he would accept anything, any punishment, hatred, penance, or revenge, if only he could see his disciple's face once more.

SY is stunned.

Apparently, Luo Binghe hadn't rejected him for his demon blood?

Not only that, but beforehand, he seemed to have valued Shen Yuan a lot more than Shen Yuan would have credited.

Is it a trick? Is he lying? SY would have guessed so, would have assumed that Luo Binghe's plan was to lull him into complacency only to turn on him once he finally had confirmation. But somehow, he just... doesn't think this is an insincere display. His old master is too cool for this stuff! He has too much dignity to just throw it away on a scheme! There are other ways to get what he wants.

Even if it is a lie, Shen Yuan is tired of running. He's the hero. He won't actually lose, and if it comes to it, it's still in his hands to decide if he wants to spare Luo Binghe or not (he does, of course he does, even if this whole spiel is an act). Plus he's got a backup plant body in one of Shang Qinghua's greenhouses if all goes to shit.

He takes the veil off himself.

Luo Binghe, teary-eyed, stares at him as if his face is the most beautiful he's ever seen.

Shen Yuan nearly puts the veil back on. His cheeks heat up. Dear Shizun, aren't you an immortal master? A noble peak lord? Isn't it your calling to vanquish demons? Get up off the dirty ground right this minute! Where did your dignity go? Shen Yuan did not spend all those nights doing the laundry to watch his teacher dirty his knees for no good reason!

There's a quaver in Luo Binghe's voice as he points out that Shen Yuan was terrible at doing laundry. Luo Binghe had to redo it the day after, all the time.

Shen Yuan chides at him that he should have made one of the other disciples do it then.

Luo Binghe just laughs, and stays on the ground, until finally Shen Yuan has to physically pull him up. Muttering about how he's being ridiculous, what's he crying for, why's he been moping so much, doesn't he know that handsome face should never look so bereft? Then he realizes what he's saying and shuts his mouth, but Luo Binghe just looks happy for the first time in years. Since the Abyss. How is it possible that SY, who actually had to slog through that awful place, can still smile more than Luo Binghe, who didn't?

They're standing so close. Holding on to one another. Almost as if... as if the scene's tone is... well...

Oh what the hell!

Shen Yuan closes the last little bit of distance between them, and kisses Luo Binghe.