#raises the question on why people adore nana so much then

[vickyvicarious]

So having just finished watching The Bank Shot Job, I have realized another thing I adore about Hardison.

His confidence.

And not just in his computer skills. Those are obviously well-founded and given his reputation it makes total sense he'd be cocky and overconfident about them. Except it isn't overconfidence, is it, when he always backs it up.

No, what struck me here was his confidence with people. He isn't a grifter like Sophie, he isn't an especially great actor. He says ridiculous stuff like "we just got back from handling a chupacabra situation" and overacts his emotions to the point of comedy. His characters aren't necessarily very nuanced. But he gets away with it, every time, and why? Because he is so confident in himself, he railroads right over the logical part of people's brains going "....wait a minute."

One of my favorite early scenes from the Mile High Job is when Hardison enters the elevator as a janitor, blatantly blocks the other guy from coming in, changes clothes on the way up, and then accuses the guy of being racist so he doesn't catch on to Hardison being the same guy. He SAW his face, he KNEW it was the same person. Hardison raised a fuss, talked quickly and over top of him, then got out while he was still reeling.

And even that guy, by the end of the episode, didn't question that Hardison worked in the building for a while before this. He gets people so caught up in his pace that they just go along with him, and that is carried purely by his confidence.

We see it with the whole crew to some extent, of course. While Parker is the one most obviously worried about grifting, everyone has their own moments when they hesitate. Still they all have confidence and plow through to achieve their objective - but none with Hardison's flair. He never just takes up space, he owns it.

And part of it is simply the fact that he is such a genius. He knows it, and uses it, and his skill, intelligence, and creative mind help him through everything. But it would be so so easy to go the route of having the genius hacker be socially awkward or have confidence issues when compared to someone like Eliot. And Hardison just never does.

He proudly proclaims "age of the geek, baby," gets annoyed at Eliot mocking the geek stereotypes. He likes all the typical geeky stuff (scifi, WoW, Doctor Who have been specifically namedropped already) and isn't as comfortable in a physical altercation. There are other things that make him feel out of his depths too, on occasion. But that doesn't seem to bother him on any deep level, he doesn't feel lessened by it. Someone's gotta beat up the injured guy and he's fine with it being him, he says. And he isn't actually a skinny weakling, just not well versed in fighting.

Just as Eliot subverts the gruff manly tropes with his interest in cooking and his respect for the women he's slept with, or Sophie with the femme fatale being the mother figure, Hardison subverts the socially awkward genius and the hacker uncomfortable outside of their computers. He dislikes when the option to solve things with hacking is taken away from him, sure, but the same goes for everyone else on the team with their respective skills and they all face situations where they have to adapt.

The writers made a very deliberate choice to make Hardison, not just NOT awkward, but very comfortable with people. He has fun with his cons, throwing in silly and ridiculous details for his own amusement, grinning at people, befriending them easily. They write him being taught how to get along with people into his backstory, and it's not just to contrast with Parker or support her learning how to connect with others though that is a part of it. I'm sure meta on his emotional intelligence and his relationship with her has been written, most notably the "pretzels are waiting for you whenever you want them" scene, and that all holds true.

Hardison is a genius. He's pretty young, which could also play into this usually, the overconfidence of youth (except he never faces a harsh lesson and loses that confidence, not really - gets less brash maybe, more technique, but doesn't lose that base layer of confidence). He is skilled with computers, but he is also well-rounded. Not just in the 'exposition-dropping because I'm smart and I know a lot of stuff' way, though that too. He is an artist, a musician, he likes to learn and likes to create and likes to share his work with people. He is not at all a loner, and flashbacks show that even if he didn't always have close friends he wasn't an introvert.

He knows his talents (and they are many) and believes in himself so much, and it's so clearly not some act covering deep insecurities, that whenever he does hesitate or doubt himself the scene instantly gains so much more weight. It doesn't happen often; it doesn't need to. (Not in any major way, not more than the usual moments of uncertainty the entire crew has on occasion.) But when he does really doubt himself, we really do feel it - and then the others reassure him because he always comes through, and then he does just that. Because it isn't false confidence at all, just honest skill at the end of the day.

After he shows Sophie the edited footage of the bank robbery in this episode (done on the fly, out in the open, while ordering around the cops), she teasingly tells him, "You're still a geek."

Hardison just grins and says, "Power of the geek." He knows that is not an insult. Even if someone ever said it to him meaning it as one, he would know they were wrong and wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

Because he knows his own capabilities, trusts in himself, and walks confidently through life.

(And the whole team are so good about supporting one another and, teasing arguments aside, clearly respecting one another's skills. They all are wonderful with this but I especially want to thank Hardison's Nana because she clearly did so much right by him.)

#leverage #rewatch #alec hardison #my meta #watching hardison makes me realize how tired i am of those tropes #i just love seeing that confidence #i love characters who put on a confident front but have insecurities #but this is so so wonderful

[selohtun20]

you can’t choose what stays and what fades away

When she says sorry to her son, it’s got a double meaning. 

”I’m so sorry, Izuku!”

She loved her brother, she loved him, wanted to protect him after their parents died and left them alone in an unstable world. But her brother loved heroes, grew up on the comics she’d find in dumpsters, forgotten, or cheap ones she’d grab when they had the money. Her brother read all day, comics keeping him entertained while she went out and got money any way she could. But a love of heroes meant a hatred of villains. Her brother always tended to see things in black and white. 

So when he finally caught wind of what she was doing, he confronted her, tried to fight her. It was laughably easy, of course, because he was Quirkless. Or, at least, she thought he was. 

Giving him a Quirk kept him safe, made it so when he left her alone, her brother wouldn’t instantly die, even with his frail state. She didn’t account for it merging with the one he already had, didn’t account for the thieves that would carry her brother’s Quirk long past his death. To kill them was her form of mourning him, when they refused to hand over their stolen Quirk. Fools, all of them. She would’ve made their deaths much quicker if they had. 

Instead, Shimura Nana fights her and loses, the overconfidence that lead to her downfall passed onto her protégé. She has no desire to fight a teenager. Not while he’s so weak, not while he’s angry and foolish. She doesn’t claim to fight fair, but the boy is too stubborn to pass One for All to her. She’ll have to wait. 

~

Hisashi is the bravest damn underling she’s ever had. Both in fighting and his dealings with her. Most of them wilt in fear, keep their heads down. Hisashi looks her in the eye, isn’t rude by any means but clearly isn’t nearly as afraid. She figured it was foolishness for a while, but the man isn’t an idiot. She wouldn’t have kept him around for so long if he were. She gave him a Quirk, yes, but he paid his dues. He had no reason to stick around, but stick around he did. Luck for her. 

Falling for him wasn’t in the plans. It hardly ever was. The amount of men who’ve gone past a one-night stand is small, even after all these years. But Hisashi is charming, not all that nervous around her. Sure, he’s cautious, but she’s not about to off him over something small. He’s too useful for that, and eventually, she loves him too much for that. She’s hesitant to call it that, love, but she didn’t get this far by lying to herself. She loves him. He loves her. That, somehow, is enough. 

Izuku… well, he’s not an accident, per say. Were they completely ready? No. Was she overjoyed to have a child? Absolutely. Izuku is beautiful, a tiny bundle of joy. Perhaps she’s biased, but it’s true. He’s healthy and strong, and that’s what she cares about, in the moment. Her empire and those who work for her can wait, even if it’s been radio silence for some time now. Hisashi is high enough in her ranks to guide them while she’s gone without getting too many questions. Her son is here, and she can’t bring herself to think about the world he’ll face when he gets older. But for now, she’ll raise him, protect him, keep him safe. 

~

Raising Tomura is a petty thing, really. Shimura Nana was a hero. It’s only appropriate her grandson is a villain. Besides, it would make All Might weep, and she’s long since accepted that she tends to be petty. All Might’s attachment to his master would make him weak, would make him think twice before killing Tomura. The boy is a puppet, nothing more, nothing less. He calls her ‘Sensei’, is told that she’s a man. It works well for her cover. Hisashi helps to oversee his training, and she lets her husband borrow the voice changing Quirk she uses to talk to Tomura, makes the boy think her and Hisashi one and the same. 

It’s worth it, to watch Tomura grow into a monster. The perfect little tool for her plans. 

~

Her son can’t be a hero. He can’t be, she refuses to let him. To destroy his dreams so blatantly isn’t an option, however. He’s smart, clever like she is. He’d notice that something was wrong, perhaps not while he’s so young, but when he looks back, gets older. Her greatest enemy’s face is on her son’s walls, bedsheets, shirts, everything. Izuku adores All Might, but she swallows down the bile she feels looking at the man’s face. It doesn’t matter. Even if she thought he might grow out of his heroic desires, he can’t keep his Quirk. It’s far too much like her own. 

Her son is Quirkless, because she told Ujiko as such. Not that Izuku has one anymore, but it’s not like he was born that way. The x-ray had to be modified. She refuses to hurt Izuku any further with false hope. His destruction of her son’s dreams are a little more heavy handed, but it plays into her plans. She lets it slide, gives the doctor a harsh look before she walks out the door. The man wilts slightly, but the fact that she lets him live should indicate her respect for the man. Or his usefulness, really. If he weren’t the perfect combination of intelligence and moral failings, she would’ve gotten rid of him decades ago. 

~

All Might gets back up, even as she bleeds out. She’s got enough healing Quirks to keep her alive, and Hisashi and the doctor are by her side in an instant. It’s not pretty, the scaring she’s gained. Her eyes are gone, and the knowledge that she won’t be able to see her son anymore except in her mind stings more than she thought it might. 

At least Hisashi wasn’t hurt in the battle. Someone needs to raise Izuku. He’d come back from overseas, even though she’d told him not to. He was right to do so, she can admit now. If she can scout enough illusion Quirks, she might be able to visit them. Making a story for Izuku is going to be the hard part. 

Her son still wants to be a hero. Despite all the power she’s lost, how far back her plans have been pushed, perhaps that’s the biggest reason she still hates All Might. 

~

Hisashi keeps her updated. Izuku is growing. Izuku is being pushed around and treated like shit by other kids, and she makes those kids go missing. No one hurts her baby. Katsuki stays around only because Izuku is too attached to him. If he went missing, Izuku would investigate, no matter his age. Izuku is still too smart for his own good, still patches himself up and she hates it, hates that she’s not there to kiss his wounds and see him off in the mornings and be there for him. She heals him, when she can. Sneaks into his room at night and does her best to make the scars fade, even if it’s only a little. She can’t stay forever. If Izuku wakes up, there would be far too much to explain. 

But her son pushes through it, still wanting to be a hero, still wanting to save people and help them. Hisashi toes the line, he tells her, because he doesn’t want Izuku to realize what he’s trying to do, and she’s always been better with subtle manipulations. He writes in his notebooks, mumbles ideas and strengths and weaknesses and analysis and she’s proud of him. It runs in the family, because Hisashi’s never been quite that good. It’s a skill he encourages, a skill she encourages when they talk on the phone, even if Izuku seems determined to use his knowledge to become a hero. 

Hisashi tells her that he came home beaming, once, his notebook clutched tightly to his chest, slightly damp, and she vows to find a way to kill Katsuki and his little gang as soon as Izuku loses his attachment to the boy. But still, he was delighted, and for once, she lets herself not look too much into it. Izuku is happy, instead of the fake smile Hisashi tells her he plasters on sometimes. There’s only so much prying either of them can do before Izuku closes off again. Her son is happy, and she’s going to let him stay that way. With any luck, it’ll stop his heroic ambitions. 

~

The USJ fails, because she knew it would. Tomura is too angry, too impulsive to plan anything like that out fully. Heroes tend to find a way to pull through, and when they target children that’s even more true. If Katsuki had died or been injured in the attack, she might’ve considered it a success, but sadly he didn’t. A shame, truly. 

Her blood runs cold at Tomura’s ranting about a green haired boy with freckles and a Quirk he should not have.

Hisashi calls that night, asking her if the attack was her own. She asks if he knew Izuku had applied to the hero course. Apparently, he had not. The only reason he’d even known was because of the attack, and the ensuing paperwork he’d filled out. Izuku had gotten injured the day before, but must’ve forged Hisashi’s signature. 

Her son has a Quirk. Her son has a Quirk. This is her worst nightmare. The only Quirk that can be passed on that doesn’t come from her is One for All. It shatters his bones, apparently, and she almost screams at the idea of it. Out of all the children in the world, why Izuku? Why did All Might have to corrupt her son so far, take him away from her? 

She can’t warn Tomura to stay away from a certain child. He’s unaware of her family, and she would like to keep it that way. She can’t pull her son from U.A., not when she hasn’t been there for so long, and Hisashi can’t really either. If they do now, there will be suspicion on them both, and that’s the last thing either of them needs. She’s not known, but Hisashi sadly is. His face is different, but the Quirk is the same. If records get pulled, they’ll be caught in an instant. 

She’s stuck, and it’s horrifying to her. 

~

Search isn’t perfect, but it lets her see her son again. He’s unhappy at Katsuki’s kidnapping, but she’s delighted. When Tomura inevitably cannot push the child to his side, he’ll go to her. He can join his lackeys once again. It’s a wonderful thing, even though she can’t help but feel burning hate towards the villains that harmed her son. Muscular is perhaps lucky that he’s in jail. If she had her way, he’d be screaming for a long time, before being shoved towards the doctor to be made into something actually useful. 

Izuku, of course, decides to save his childhood bully. The wall stays intact, because she refuses to harm her son. Losing the brat is worth her son’s continued life, even as she gets shoved into Tartarus, even as she’s powerless to stop Izuku from hurting himself over and over and over again. She’s forced to see him break his body, die repeatedly to save a single child, only brought back from the edge by the volatile Rewind Quirk the child possesses. 

Rewind, huh? That could be useful to her. 

#bnha fanfiction #bnha fanfic #BNHA au #bnha #my fic #afo is izuku's parent #afo is midoriya inko #what i am now dubbing as 'mom for one' #mom for one

[madllamamomma]

Journey Back to the South Part 6~

[Warning: Mentions of a graphic animal death, mild smut(-ish), and profanity. 18+. SFW (kinda-- just be smart people)].

Part 6~

The Traveler and The Kokhurian

After the nightmare that you had with the ferret, Muriel leaped into almost every dream. He may not have been there the entire time, but he at least made sure everything was alright. It makes you wonder if that’s one of the reasons why he never slept well in the first place. Thankfully nothing tragic occurred like it did that night. Some flashes of memories popped here and there about Ezavior, your ferret familiar that toy had apparently when you were younger. Mostly the memories were like how he would scurry about around your pockets, how he liked to hide things under your sheets, how cute his little squeaks were when how excited he’d get when you brought him food—he particularly loved eggs, how he would like to burrow himself in your neck when he was sleepy, and how he was there to listen when you were sad... sweet memories such as that. You also remember that you could hear his voice, like you and Asra can hear Faust. It was high pitch and screechy, but still a male’s voice, almost like a child’s.

It’s strange. You still can’t remember who gave you Ezavior. Neither can you remember who the person was that killed him, their face, or why they did (if they had a real reason). All you do remember is the pain he felt and his horrified screams when he was being killed. You could feel him as the life was being drained away, it was like a part of your soul being ripped away from you. Feeling every bone in his tiny neck being snapped under the pressure of that figures’ hand. A familiar is bonded to the soul of a person. It was devastating for you to feel that all over again, but coming to terms that it was actually real somehow helped. You dealt with it once, you’ll do it again... you have to.

One thing you do know is that with Muriel being there next to you physically and in your dreams makes all this better, makes you feel stronger. He just wants to be there for you anyway he can. He always makes you feel like you could accomplish anything being by his side. Despite what he might think, he’s very comforting and supportive, especially when you need it the most. You love him even more for that.

In the mornings, you’d find yourself tangled up in Muriel’s large arms, even more so than usual. Both of you didn’t mind though, you both enjoy the closeness and contact of one another’s skin. That one rogue rooster never fails to wake the two of you up around day break. Today was no exception and you both lay there in each other’s arms annoyed at the loud calls and soon you hear other people start to stir outside. Your hands and cheek right resting on Muriel’s chest, left leg draped over his torso while his arms are wrapped around you, both of you laying on your sides, facing each other.

“....Rhemi…” Muriel finally whispers, rubbing the small of your back and shoulder with his large warm hands. “...Rem…Hey, Rem.”

“....Hmmmmm?” You groan slightly irritably, not ready to leave the bed quite yet.

“It’s morning. Gotta get up.”

“Ugg….....Nooo.” Quickly you loop your arms around his neck trying to get a few more minutes of warm cuddles.

He snorts at your grumpiness. “Rem…” He whispers with a yawn as he continues, “..Una is going to be waiting... C’mon.”

“Nnnnnooooooo.” You groggily whine burying yourself into his chest more, enjoying the warmth. “...Don’t wanna. It’s cold… Don’t make me...”

He chuckles softly through his nose. “Fine…. You don’t have to get up yet, but I do.”

“Nnnnnoooooo! You’re sooo waaaaarm!!” You wrap your leg a bit tighter around his torso.

He kisses the top of your head and whispers again. “I’ll stoke the fire—“

“—Don’t want fire….. Rhemi want Muri!” You moan, muffled by his bare chest.

A warm huff blows out from his mouth.“...You're worse than Faust.” He grumbles but you can feel a smile on his lips as he attempts to very gently pry himself out of your vice like grip. But it's useless, he’s stuck. He sighs deeply and shakes his head, he could easily force himself out of your grip if he really wanted to. But of course he doesn't, he never does anything that may somehow hurt you. He then moves his left hand to the back of your head, pulling back your hair and starts to kiss your shoulder and neck sweetly, trying to wake you up. And unfortunately it’s working.

You can’t help but smile a little and start to let go of his neck, but lace your figures loosely through his hair as you slowly roll onto your back and finally open your sleepy eyes, feeling a bit aroused. You mischievously smile, gliding your right hand on his morning wood. “...We can get other things up~”

You feel him tense up suddenly. “—R-Rhemi!” He grunts pulling away from your neck, feeling his face and chest getting warmer and his expression looks torn. You start to kiss his lips and cheek. He shivers and groans a little as you continue to sleepily stroke him through his pants and love on him. After a few seconds of kiss you back, his eyes fly open, snapping himself out of it and pulls himself away now that he has the chance. “—Hey! N-No! That’s not—....You…. You’re terrible!” He says trying to hide a grin and red painted on his cute face as he sits up looking a bit adorably flustered.

You cutely giggle, still feeling groggy. “Yep~.” Yawning as you speak, “...But you started it!”

“D-did not.” As he makes his way out of the bedding and stands up to get dressed. “...You just instigated.” He mutters under his breath.

You finally sit up and stretch your arms a little. “...Fair. What can I say, I can’t resist you~” Muriel turns away from you so you can't see his full silly love drunk smile. It’s noticeable getting a little colder the past few days and you shiver without Muriel’s body heat. Inanna notices you feeling cold, trots over and lays her heavy body in your lap. “Oof. Well, good morning to you too, Inanna.” You scratch her head and she licks your face a little. She is at least warm and you hug her furry neck. “Ahhhh. Toasty wolf. Thank you, Nana.” You could honestly go to sleep with her, but you know you shouldn’t.Eventually you get yourself out of soft warm bedding, wash yourself up, quickly get dressed and splash some more water on your face. 

For the past few days Muriel and you continued to spend half the day apart. In the morning he would go off with Una, Keavy and a few other people in the fields learning how to grow plants and spreading seeds, today was the last day. You both would meet back up around the early afternoon. While he was busy doing that, you would start the morning working in your journal, write down the story from the night before and other things about the Kokhuri. Then, as promised, you started to teach Ava how to use the shadow puppetry, a type of illusion spell typically used for entertainment. 

Ava was in charge of the early morning patrol a few hours before dawn until the mid morning where someone else took over, then they’d sneak away to the hill side where you liked to work near the camp with all the forget-me-nots and other wild flowers so you could teach them in peace. To make things easier, Ava even made a speech board of some kind out of one of the pages of the small notebook you gave them. Such as, ‘thank you’, ‘show me that again’,’please slow down.’, ‘Is this correct?’, ‘explain that again’, and ‘I don’t understand.’ and whatnot. Common things. You even start to pick up on some of their hand language after a while.

Ava is surprisingly a quick learner, very quick. By the first day they nearly had the concept down and were able to form a small animal. It took you about a week to even get that far when you were learning it. Their aura and magic is a beautiful darker blue color with little bright sparkles in between that remind you of starry night sky. It feels almost like Muriel and Una’s. Very organic and earthy, solid, strong, but it smells of freshly cut herbs.

The Kokhuri just continue to amaze you with their ability to overcome adversity. Ava was no exception. But one thing has been bothering with you that you want to know. Why? What are they going to do with this? Not that it really matters, they may just want to know for fun, or to just show off. But Ida did say that they don’t have many friends… They don’t seem to be the party going type either, so what else could it be for?

“Wow, Ava you’ve really got the hang of this, haven't you.” You say before you both sit down in the tall grass mixed with all the wildflowers and forget-me-nots, taking a small water break. Ava got most of it down and is now able to manage to manipulate multiple figures at once, they even enquired about making some kind of smoky atmosphere and other different effects. That honestly is a very extensive use of magic, but then again, like Muriel, they’re a lot bigger than you are, and probably have a bit more to spare. But the question still lingers in your mind eager for an answer. Your curiosity is overwhelming and you can’t take it any longer, you have to ask. “H-Hey…. Ava?” They look up at you and raise their brow sharply telling you that you have their attention. They still are a bit easily embarrassed by you, but they seemed to have gotten over some of it, or at least got better at hiding it. “... I’ve been wanting to ask… why did you want to learn this so much?”

Ava’s eyes widen from the sudden question. Cheeks faintly pink for a moment as they avert their eyes and lips tighten. With a heavy heartfelt sign, they pick up the notebook, turn to a fresh page and begin to write a small sentence. Once they are done, they hold the small notebook to their chest, still looking away towards the ground, unsure that they really want to share it or not. You tilt your head smiling and try to look as sincere as possible. “...You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, Ava. It’s your choice. But if you do, I promise I won’t make fun of you or anything.”

Ava glances up with their green eyes and takes in a large breath and reluctantly hands you the notebook with a sheepish face. It reads; “...There have been stories of a different type of Master Speakers centuries ago that used magic to tell the old tales. They were called Illuminators, but the practice was lost over time.”

You glance over to Ava after you read it quietly and flutter your eyes, your thoughts connecting together. They wanted to be a Master Speaker like Gilbert… Wait.. That makes way more sense now! You feel a small smile creep across your lips as you open your mouth to speak. “Ava…. Do you want to the be an—“

Suddenly Ava snatches the notebook out of your hands and stands up. Ripping out the page they wrote, shredding it into small pieces appearing irritated with themselves for some reason. They make a few movements with their hands frustratedly as if to say; ‘Forget I said anything.’ And tries to shuffle away, looking rather embarrassed.

“Hey! Wait… Ava!” You stand up and quickly grab the crease of their left wrist and they abruptly stop, whip themselves around, beaming at your hand and blush crazily. You let go and kindly smile. “You shouldn’t be embarrassed! I don’t think its a bad idea at all! I….I heard that you wanted to become a Master Speaker.”

Ava jumps as you utter those words, surprised that you know that. They’re brow narrows in suspicion. They make a gesture pulling up an imaginary hood over their head, they’re asking if little Ida told you. You hold your hands behind your back and nod your head a bit, your tone a bit apologetic sounding. “Yes…. It was Ida.” They scowl and huff a sharp exhale, holding their arms tightly, shaking their head to themselves, looking at the ground. It wasn’t really your business to know such things. Then their face starts to soften again and they scratch their right cheek. Eventually lifting their eyes back at yours with such sheepishness like they didn’t want to look foolish. “Ava, I don’t think it's silly at all. I think it's really awesome actually!”

Their brow lifts up and blush gets even deeper crimson. “...You think so?” They say with their hands then rub their shoulder with their opposite hand. You knew that at least.

You give them a reassuring smile and pat their bicep. “Of course I think so, Ava. It’s beautiful… Perhaps you can’t speak anymore, but I think becoming… what was it called, an Illuminator?” They nod a little. “...Becoming an Illuminator would give you a great opportunity to still do what you love.” Sluggishly a small grin forms on their lips, but avert their eyes back to the ground. It seems like they needed someone to talk about this, needed encouragement or approval. You understand that. Sometimes you get in your own head too and just need someone else to tell you it's okay. It may be hard to talk about any of this with their family. Ava’s voice being lost seemed to be a very sore subject, especially to Gilbert. It was tragic what happened, probably traumatic to their family.

Lightly you playfully punch their bicep and smile wider showing your teeth. “C’mon. Let's get back to—”

“—Ava!!!” Shawn calls coming over the hill with two look staffs, cutting you off. You both turn around to where Shawn is calling and his gaze meets his sibling’s. “Aha! There you are!” He comes barreling down the hill half yelling to be heard. “...You promised some sparring time before you take your nap this afternoon!”

Ava closes their eyes tightly, throws back their head and gently slaps their forehead then says, “Sorry” with their hands.

Shawn smiles gingerly as he gets closer. “Yeah I figured you forgot. It’s ok I have your—” He then realizes that you're there and gives you a strange look. “Hey, there...Rhemi…. What are you doing here… with Ava…. alone… without Cousin Muriel…” He squints his eyes a little, looking warily at the two of you.

Ava and you look at him blankly. Nooooo. It’s not what you think, Shawn…. “Oh, we’re—” Ava clears their throat and secretly shakes their head. They don’t want anyone to know about this apparently. You blink your eyes a few times and think up a quick excuse. “...Ahhh… Ava is teaching me their hand language.”

“....Rrrreeeeally?” Shawn darts over to Ava with a raised eyebrow and they nod their head, shooting him a rather convincing looking expression. Well… technically, it's true. They are teaching you. His gaze returns to you, eyes squinted again. “Doooooes… Cousin even know you two are like… hanging out?”

“Yes. Muriel does.” You snort a bit when he asks that and give him a reassuring smile. “And he’s fine with it.”

Shawn's face softens and he shrugs. “Alright…. If you say so.” He turns away for a moment, putting down the two staff and doffs his parka and folds up a little.

Ava writes in the notebook again quickly then hands it to you before he looks back. “Sorry. Guess we’re done for the day. Thanks for not saying anything. We’ll talk more tomorrow.” You give them a sneaky quick wink, they flush all over again and you stifle a giggle. There is something about a Kokhurian blushing that is just so damn cute~.

“Hey do you both mind if I stick around?” Feeling curious you feel the need to watch. Muriel and you actually keep up with your combat skills ever since last year. But you haven't really spared or seen others spare. You want to see what these two could do.

Shawn and Ava exchange a quick glance, Ava shrugs with pink still stained on their cheeks. Shawn grins and also shrugs. “I don’t see why not.”

You take a seat on the hillside Ava takes off their fur cloak, they even pull their hair back into a small ponytail, showing their shaved sides. The two of them get really to start about twenty-five or so feet away. Both equipped with training staffs, much like Muriel’s quarterstaff, and they take their positions. Ava charges quickly at their brother, taking the offense, they jump up and bring down their staff and Shawn blocks hastily and pushes them off. Their style is similar to how Morga’s was now that you think about it, a bit aggressive, but very effective.

Shawn is able to get off the defensive with them and it goes on for a while until Ava finally knocks the staff out of Shawn’s hands and it goes hurling over the hill towards camp. “Shit!” Shawn mutters as his weapon goes flying. “Flying stick!!! HEADS UP!!!” He shouts cupping his mouth to amplify his loud higher baritone voice.

Instead of hearing a wooden clack on it falling to the ground. You hear a fleshy sound, like someone caught it. You whip yourself around, a smile automatically takes over your lips as you see your favorite Kokhurian making his way down the hillside, Inanna trailing behind him, Shawn’s staff in hand. He apparently caught it before it could hit anyone.  

“...Dropped something?” He scoffs with a small grin at Shawn as he makes his way down, then tosses it effortlessly back to him.

Shawn catches it then scratches the back of his head a bit embarrassed at himself. “Ha… Yeah, sorry. Thanks, Cousin.” Ava grabs Shawn’s shoulder to get his attention and speaks to him every expressively with their hands as their staff rests on their collarbone and shoulder. Looking like they are giving him pointers before getting started again. “Yeah, I know! I know...” he grumbles.

Inanna brushes against your back and curls around your side when she reaches you. You scratch behind her ears. “Hey, Nana.” You quickly glance up to Muriel before you look back to the sparring match, smiling up at him. “Hello, handsome~”

Muriel takes a seat next to you handing you a half of a juicy green apple that he must have cut. You peer down for a second at the piece of fruit and your stomach growls at the sight of it, realizing how hungry you are, magic does that to you. “Ooooo! A green one, my favorite! Thank you, Love~” You take it happily, he even cut out the core so it was easier to eat. I love this man.

Muriel snorts at your enthusiasm. “Figured you were hungry… Ida gave me it before I came down here..”

You continue the conversation, but keep your eyes on the match. “Well that was awfully sweet of her!” You take a bite of the crispy apple enjoying it immensely.

“Yeah, it was.” He says under his breath.

“So...How was it today?” You ask with a bit of apple still in your mouth.

Muriel shrugs sharply. “...Fine.” He summons up a little magic into his hand and with his pointer finger he blooms a patch of budding wilding flower next to both. Taking your eyes off the sparing for another moment you watch in awe as they sprout effortlessly. They’re primroses. He plucks one carefully and gives it to you with a little pink of his cheeks. “...Guess I’m teachable.”

“Wow….” You take it with a wide sweet smile. “That is incredible, Muri!”

He scratches the back of his neck, his attention back at the sparring, Ava repeatedly winning and disarming Shawn. “W-Whatever… Just a flower.” He shrugs trying to not make a big deal out of his accomplishments as always.

“Flower-s! Plural! And you can grow a whole handful after just a few days! Una’s right, you are a natural.” You say lovingly before taking another bite of your apple, leaning your head in his arm, then proudly place the flower behind your left ear. Muriel’s blush darkens and the corners of his mouth curl up into a little grin.

A hard wooden crack followed by a sharp gasp and Shawn shouting, “—Look out!!” Makes you jump. Before you could blink or think you throw up both hands and cast a large shield with your magic. —THUUUMMMMM!!!!!

Luckily you were able to block all three of you from the staff but drop the last quarter half of the apple in the process. You moan sadly, then Inanna darts between you and the piece of fruit with her big yellow eyes. You snort, “Help yourself, Inanna.” She doesn’t hesitate at all as she starts to munch it down making very quick work of it. It has dirt stuck on it now. Oh well… better than it going to waste I guess. 

Shawn looks towards you both very apologetically and concerned. “Are-are you both alright?! I'm so sorry!”

“Yeah. We’re ok, Shawn.” You utter, more saddened by your apple now completely gobbled up by Inanna than you are concerned about nearly getting hit.

Muriel grumbles then horse whispers to you. “Why are you just sitting here?... Do you want to be hit with a flying piece of wood?”

You smile a bit mischievous, sarcasm thick in your tone. “Hmm. You’re right, that's on tomorrow’s addenda.” Muriel can’t help but bark a short laugh at you and you giggle with him a little. “I was just curious how they fought. We only saw them in action for a brief moment less than a week ago.” You both watch as Ava irriatedly smacks the back of Shawn’s head and scolds him silently. “....Besides. Don’t you think someone could use pointers?” You look up Muriel with your big eyes and twirl a piece of your hair, trying to look convincingly cute. But he gives you a very blank look for a moment. Your smile falls and you stick out your bottom lip. “...They’re training to be prepared to protect their family, Mur.”

Muriel thinks about your words for a moment, then looks back towards Shawn as he finally makes his way over to the two of you. Muriel sighs as he stands to his feet and grabs the staff from the ground. As Shawn approaches, Muriel looks down at him, making Shawn shrink into himself a little. He smiles warily as Muriel just gazes at him unsure if he’s angry or not. Muriel exhales through his nostrils and softens his face a little. “....Have ….have you ever been in a real fight, Shawn?” He reluctantly asks.

“Other than you two?”  Shawn rubs the back of his neck looking into the sky pondering. “....No…. No I have not.”

Muriel huffs. “First thing in combat, try not to lose your weapon. So long as you can help it.” He says a little grumpily and he hands the staff back to him. “...You're not holding it right either. Ava needs to hold theirs closer together, but you need to hold it like this.” Muriel adjusts Shawn’s hands while he watches intently. “...’Bout shoulder width apart… elbows in…” Muriel takes a step back and folds his arms. “...Now try it.”

“O-okay.” Shawn nods sharply and runs back over to Ava taking his stance, seemingly retaining Muriel’s instructions. Ava comes back at him the same way they did before with a jump attack, he seemed to be able to defect a bit easier this time. Ava then tries to disarm him again, but this time was unsuccessful and he pushes them back which he wasn’t able to do before. Shawn just glances down to his staff and arms completely blown away. “For the love of Great Father, that actually worked!!” He says, uttering a startled laugh.

Ava smiles wide then drops their defenses and shoots Shawn a very proud older sibling look. They walk over and grab their brother’s shoulder and tugs him close for a quick one-armed hug and messes with his hair a little. Once the two finish they’re small celebration, Ava looks towards Muriel with a determined look on their face. Shawn then smiles wide and glances towards him too. Muriel stiffens, not looking very enthused with the looks on their faces. “Good idea, sis!—Muriel, Ava wants you to show them what you’ve g—” He stops as he sees the deep scowl on Muriel’s face.

You stand to your feet and grab his hand. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to…” You loudly whisper to him. “...But it’s no different sparing me.”

He sighs and thinks about it for a moment, eventually softening his scowl. Reluctantly he reaches out his hand for Shawn’s staff. Shawn tosses it over to him with an excited grin. Warily Muriel stares at it then looks over to Ava. “Ava... If you get hurt—”

Ava splutters, cutting him off, leaning on one leg, and starting to speak with their hands with a cocky looking large smile like they had during the games a few days ago. Shawn snickers to himself before translating. “Ava said, ‘Don’t worry about me, Cousin. I’ve seen my fair share of fights. Like you, I’m Kokhurian, I don’t go down that easily…. Besides I’m a lot better than him.’...—Hey! Wait a minute!! Ava!!!” Shawn whines a little. “Give me a break! I’m still just learning! Papa was able to teach you!” Ava laughs muffley, smacking their knee that he actually translated that out loud.

Muriel snorts a little and has a soft smile on his lips, looking just slightly more relaxed as he pulls off his cloak. You open your arms with a proud smile and hands it to you. Carefully fold it as best as you can and place it on the ground and take a seat back with Inanna as he makes his way over towards Ava, rolling up his long sleeves. Shawn sits a few feet away looking a bit excited, like he’s been wanting to see this for awhile. Muriel is not that much taller than Shawn, but he’s much more muscular. Ava has a lot of muscle too, but not quite as large as his. But they obviously have a lot of hidden strength being their smaller build physique. During the Brùth Carachd game, they took out more than a handful of people around Muriel’s height and even ones who were taller, so this should be a very interesting match.

Muriel and Ava take their positions, but the air stays rather light, no maliciousness anywhere. Ava is the first one to make a move as they charge toward and slam their staff towards Muriel’s head he quickly blocks it with the middle of his and pushes them away. Ava recoils and smacks it back down, they both push back with all their might, the look on Muriel’s surprised face is a bit priceless as he apparently feels Ava’s strength. You can tell he has to fight to push back a bit more than he expected. This is the first time he’s ever fought against another Kokhurian.

The atmosphere may be friendly, but the tension is getting increasingly higher as Muriel throws Ava off, recoiling into an attack, pushing Ava away and for the first time placing them on the defensive. It keeps going back and forwarth, making it very interesting to spectate. Shawn just stares in awe as he finally gets to see his Muriel in action. “Go, Cousin Muriel!!!” He cheers with a huge toothy smile. You can’t help but gawk at your hermit’s strong forearm muscles as they tense and relax, how his broad shoulders move so gracefully somehow. Ooooo… My god… How the fuck did I manage to nab this hunky man? You think to yourself, and immediately feel a pulse from between your thighs radiate all of your pelvis.—W-why are you getting horny at a time like this, Rhemi?! Stop that! You shake off the thoughts and realize that this match was getting even more intense. It seems like the two of them are now giving it their all, just barely holding back. Somehow Ava knocks Muriel off balance and Ava smirks confidently. But just as he nearly falls he catches himself and finds himself a clear opening and whacks Ava’s staff out of their hands and it goes flying the opposite direction of you and Shawn. Ava just stares at the flying staff, their mouth gaped ope, completely dumbfounded. Both breath heavily as silence takes over the hillside. Ava then gives a large smirk and looks back at their opponent, seemlily very impressed. Muriel smiles a little back, looking relieved in a way.

Shawn jumps up with both arms raised, shouting. “WOOOOOHHHH!!!! That. Was. AMAZING, COUSIN!” Muriel lowers his defenses and wipes the sweat off his brow with his forearm, sticking the butt end of the staff into the ground. Ava comes to his side with a very good sportsman-like and gives him a playful punch on the shoulder and opens their hand for a hand shake. Muriel flinches a bit, but then then takes Ava’s hand firmly. You feel so proud of him right now. This is a very important step, you know how hard it is for him to fight. But this is a good way to bond with his kin, and good practice. Shawn quickly makes his way over to him and you stand up and make your way over too. Pink takes over Muriel’s cheeks as Shawn continues to praise him. “I have never seen my sister lose at anything!! You’re a really good fighter!!! Where did you ever learn that—?” Ava hastily smacks their brother upside the back of his skull and shakes their head. “-Ouch… What was that for?” He mumbles, rubbing the back of his head as Ava quickly speaks with their hands. “...What do you mean it’s none of my business?” He mumbles and Ava gives him a sore look as they speak again with their hands. “...Well how am I supposed to know he doesn’t like talking about it?” He loudly whispers and Ava just beams at him irritatedly looking like they are thinking, ‘Could you shut up already??’

Muriel looks at Ava with confusion, his brow furrowed a bit. “....I never told you that… how do you know?” Ava blink rapidly for a moment and scratches their cheek, unsure how to answer. He sighs sharply. “...W-....was it Una?” You finally make it next to Muriel’s side as Ava pulls over the invisible hood over their head.

You tilt your head and raise an eyebrow. “Ida?” Ava nods their head slowly looking a bit sheepish. “Little Ida… You’re little sister, the adorable six year old?”

“We only have one Ida, Rhemi.” Shawn snickers a bit.

Muriel shakes his head to himself looking a bit more confused. “I… I never told— ...I wouldn’t ever—” His words suddenly die in his throat when another thought comes to his mind, and stumbles on his words. “....Does she—...Can they—…. She’s like your mother isn’t she?”

Ava and Shawn exchange wary glances for a moment before both nod slowly to answer him.

“You mean… Ida can leap into the past too?” You ask, feeling almost as shocked at Muriel. The other day when he and Ida were making flower crowns, she touched his scarred cheek then asked if someone ‘bad’ hurt him. That makes so much since why she was so empathetic towards Ava, and why she seemed to know more than Muriel told her. Did she… see all of it?

Shawn shuffles his feet a little, looking a bit awkward. “Ida is the only other person that we know of that has one of the gifts—” Shawn’s eyes widened for a moment in realization. “Oh! Wait, Papa said that you were one too right, Cousin?”

Muriel flutters his eyes, still completely shocked at the discovery, almost looking frightened by the thought of Ida being able to see such things. He probably wouldn’t have let her even touch him if he had known. You lightly grab his arm and it snaps him back into his senses. He swallows hard before answering. “Y-...Yeah… I can leap into dreams apparently.”

“Wow! Really? That is a really rare gift. At least that’s what Papa told us.” Shawn attempts to make him feel better, but it doesn’t seem to be working.

Ava huffs and walks over to Muriel and places their hand on his shoulder. He looks up from the ground and they start to speak with their hands. Shawn translates for them. “Ava said, ‘... Sorry. I’ve told her countless times not to leap without asking. But don’t worry, she’s still young and is learning. She can only see little glimpses. Not full memories yet.’..”

“...What… What did she see?....” He murmurs almost sounding afraid to know the answer.

Ava inhales deeply, looking a little guilty. They know it wasn’t their business to know. Shawn watches them for a moment as they move their hands before speaking. “... ‘Ida only saw someone with a large spear cut your face and that it hurt you and how scared you felt at the time. That’s all…’..”

You lean into Muriel’s slightly trembling arm, and stroke his now very tense bicep with your thumb. “...Ida didn’t think anything less of you, Muriel. Remember? She stayed with you after she leaped. She wasn’t afraid at all, she still isn’t afraid of you.”

“Were…. were you a warrior, Cousin?” Shawn can’t help but ask. He’s confused and just wants to know.

Muriel is very reluctant to talk about it. But you hold his arm tighter as he opens his mouth to speak again. “...I ...I was forced to fight as a gladiator back in Vesuvia.” Shawn tilts his head confused, not seeming to fully understand, but Ava’s eyes widen with sadness and shock. They seem to know exactly what they were. Muriel then sneers with a bit of anger in his tone, “... it's a person who fights and…. and kills for ‘entertainment’.” Ava looks to the ground and appears to somehow empathize. Then they pat his shoulder comfortingly and look up at him with an understanding expression.

Shawn looks like he feels so guilty even mentioning anything. “I ….I’m so sorry. I wouldn’t have ever asked if I’d known.”

Muriel takes in a large breath, the shaking finally ceases. “...It… it was a long time ago…” He mumbles then clears his throat to continue and speaks a bit louder. “...I don’t like to fight… unless I have too.” He glances at you with his mossy green eyes and holds your hand. “....But I will fight to protect the people I love… I will fight to protect my family...” He looks back up towards Shawn and Ava and his eyes soften a bit looking like he feels a sense of pride. “... And I mean all of them...”

Ava and Shawn smile widely, admiration behind their gaze. Ava starts to speak with their hands again and Shawn translates once more. “Ava says, ‘That’s why we fight too… Not for sport, or glory, but to just keep the one we love safe’…” They pause for a moment, taking the staff out of Muriel’s grasp and hands it to Shawn. “... ‘Thanks for sparing me. You’re a very strong person, Cousin.’…”

Muriel smiles back just a little. “You’re welcome….” But then his smile falls a little. “....what about Ida?”

“Don’t worry about her. She leaped into...” Shawn looks to Ava for a moment then and seems to change the subject. “...Well... I’ve never seen Ida so social before meeting you. She seems to be coming out of her little shell since both of you arrived!”  Shawn says with a jolly laugh.

Muriel snorts, “It’s probably Inanna.” Inanna raises her head up from the grass with a prideful look. Ava just sputters into a large muffled chuckle at Muriel’s words. The rest of you can’t help but join in, even Muriel does a little.

“But really, she likes you two. A lot… She doesn't care about that, Cousin. Neither do we. You're our family. Momma and Papa, Tad and Ronin, Evander, and a lot of the other elders had to do things they wished they didn’t. You have to do what you must to survive. ” You smile up at Shawn. He may be a young man. But he’s pretty smart. All of Gilbert and Una’s children seem to be wiser than their years. 

“...Thanks.” Muriel utters, the smile never leaving his lips and starts to look like he feels better after listening to what Shawn and Ava had to say.

Ava looks up towards the sky inspecting the sun and stifles a yawn. “Guess it's time for you to get some sleep, eh, Ava?” Shawn says, starting to walk up towards the hillside backwards. “Hey! If you won’t mind Muriel, tomorrow if you're not doing anything can we do this again? You’re a good instructor, maybe you could… spare with me? It’s nice having someone my height. No offense, Ava.” They shrug, unperturbed. “...T-That is if you wouldn’t mind...”

Muriel peers down to the ground and thinks about it for a moment while rolling down his sleeves. “...Maybe. We’ll see.”

Ava and Shawn smile widely. “Awesome! Hey, we’ll catch you both later for the games and dinner!”

As the two of them start making it up the hill you grab Muriel’s right arm with both of your hands and look up at him lovingly. “I’m very proud of you, Muriel. You handled that very well.” Muriel shrugs a bit looking over toward the hill, but as soon as Shawn and Ava are out of sight he leans down, holds your jawline, stealing a quick but passionate kiss, completely taking you by surprise. You blink a bit with a startled grin and touch your lips very delicately. “Well~ What was that for?” You giggle.

He flushes a little and shrugs again as he grabs his cloak from the ground next to Inanna. “...Felt like it.” He says trying to stifle a devious smirk.

You look up at him warmly with a stupid smile. Your smile then falls, suddenly remembering, “Oh crap! Hey, Muri! We are having Tad and Ronin for tea this afternoon!”

“We—we are?....Wait who now?” He scratches his chin a bit confused as you collect your cross body satchel.  

“Tad and Ronin! The couple that made me breakfast the other day.”

“Oh… W-why are we having tea again with people again? We’re with people all day.” He grumbles a bit, obviously feeling apprehensive about meeting more new people.

“So you can make your acquaintance with them! Don’t worry, they’re really nice.” He doesn’t look very convinced. But you don’t really have time for that. “Come on, Muri.” You attempt to coax him, grab his wrist and tug it along up the hill, and he of course goes obediently despite his grumpiness.

Hastily you both get to the tent and you both quickly clean it up a bit to make it look presentable then start to heat up the tea kettle, brewing up a nice blend of earl gray. Soon after Tad and Ronin showed up to the tent and even brought fresh berries and some tea cakes from their home. Apparently their port was famous for them, they actually tasted a bit familiar to you, but you couldn’t exactly put your figure on it, and you ignore it for now. Muriel was of course a bit wary and shy as always, but once he realized how kind and welcoming they both were, he started to slowly relax. You all converse about how things are going lately; Tad had been tasked with making baskets with Shona and a few other people. Ronin was busy with Gilbert fishing, hunting, fixing a few things there and there, and helping out like that around camp. It was so interesting to see how every Kokhurian seemed to have a job, a place and a purpose, even though they weren’t really a true band anymore. They took care of one another, they loved one another, and it shows.

After a while Ronin just stares at Muriel for a moment, seemingly remembering something fondly. Muriel flushes a little, feeling a bit uncomfortable under his gaze. Tad nudges Ronin gently, and he shakes his head and scratches the back on his neck. “Sorry, Muriel… You just… You look so much like him… Artturi that is.”

The corners of Muriel’s mouth curl up slightly, and his shoulder relax a bit after hearing that. “...It’s fine… I’ve been told that. A lot actually.”

Tad just smiles and snorts a bit taking his little cup away from his lips. “See, everyone else says that they see Artturi, but all I see is Glenna’s face with Artturi’s stature.--Mmm! Rhemi, this tea is amazing.”

Ronin scoffs a bit at his husband. “PFFT! Are you kidding me,Tad?? Look at his face! That’s Art’s face!!”

Tad just smirks. “That's alright, my sweet. You can just be wrong.” He looks at Ronin pointedly through a sideways glance and slips his tea sassily.

“Hmph. Whatever.” Ronin growls under his breath. But then they both exchange cute little playful grins.

“... Did you both know them as well?” Muriel finally asks.

“Mmm...” Tad takes away the cup from his lips again. “Well, we were just teenagers back then. I didn’t really know Artturi like Ronin did. But Glenna was a mentor to a lot of us here during the winter gathering. She taught a lot of us how to use herbs for medicine. She was very skilled with them. She was even called the—”

“The plant shamen.” Muriel interjects, and Tad nods with a grin. A faintly prideful smile creeps on Muriel’s lips and takes hold of your hand and you squeeze a bit back. “...Una said that too.”

Ronin pops a few berries into his mouth and washes it down with a bit of tea before he speaks again. “...Art was a part of my band. A lot of us kids looked up to him and Gilbert. Those two were like brothers. They both were brave, strong, and kind. The man I always strived to be like, I still do. I was really sad when they both left for the southwestern band.” Muriel nods to himself, a bit of bittersweet expression on his face. “Oh! That actually reminds me.” Ronin then takes a very large knife with a leather sheath out of his fur cloak. It looks actually like a small sword to you, but in his very large hands it seems to be a normal sized buck knife. “Here.” He passes it over to Muriel, who takes it very carefully and marvels at the craftsmanship. The wooden handle is beautifully carved and has three bears, one large, one medium sized and one small one. Even the leather sheath has gorgeous details in it. It looks like the tundra that the camp is on, the snowy mountains surrounding the land. “It was your father’s. He gave it to me before he died.” Muriel glances up from the knife towards Ronin and bats his eyes in disbelief, hands stiffening a bit. He said I’d make better use of it. But since you came back to us, I feel like it was only right that you should have it instead.”

Muriel eyes widen as they shoot back up. “....Wh-what?? N-n-no! I-I…. I can’t. He gave it to you. Not me.” He hands it back to him tentatively, unable to accept the beautiful piece of work.

Ronin just shakes his hands with a reassuring grin. “Only reason why he didn't give it to you was because you were just a little cub back then. I remember you leaving happened so fast too… those days seemed like a blur. I think you were four or five, just a babe really. You must not really remember it do you?” Muriel shakes his head, a bit of sadness washed over him.

Ronin pushes the knife back to him. Muriel just stares at it in his hands, his thumb feeling the carving on the handle, unsure what to do as he opens and closes his mouth a few times. Struggling for words. “... I… I don’t know what to say, Ronin…. T-Thank you.” A bit of blush washes over his cheeks again.

“You’re welcome, Muriel... I have a lot to thank because of your father. Artturi was the one who got me into carpentry, actually. He was very skilled with his hands… He even made that knife. Smelted the iron and everything. He used to make hand crafted knives like that and other things… He even traded them with some other tribes in the Steppe.” Muriel doesn’t look up at him, appearing to feel a bit guilty still, and Ronin seems to read that too. You pour more tea into his cup and he looks at the hot liquid for a moment before speaking again. “...I guess in a way I’m like you, Muriel. I didn’t get to know my father either.” He finally meets his gaze again and listens intently. “..Mother died giving birth to me. Father died when I was about three or four and I was actually raised by my grandparents. I heard all these great stories of who he was, but I still felt like I was robbed of my folks…. The battle took the rest of families and ravaged their things.” Ronin then shakes his head and smiles at Muriel a bit. “...But now you have a little piece of him. I’m just happy I was lucky enough to know him. Wouldn’t be the same person without him.” Tad interlaces his fingers with Ronin’s as he leans into him slightly.

You place your hand on Muriel’s very stiff knee and smile lovingly at him and he smiles softly back before looking back at Ronin and Tad.“... T-thank you, again. I… I don’t think I’m worthy of this, but—“

“PFT!” Tad almost chokes the last of his tea. “Are you joking?! You’re a hero too apparently!”

Muriel flushes all over again and groans a bit and looks pointedly at you. You shrug and stifle a snicker. He still doesn’t care for being called a hero, but you can’t help but think he’s adorable when he’s flustered like that.

Eventually it was almost time for the games, and all four of you say your goodbyes for now, Tad and Ronin returning to their tent. While the two of you got ready for dinner, you caught Muriel just gazing at his father’s knife. He normally doesn’t like having large sharp weapons like this on his person, but this is different. It also made you feel happy that now he actually has something from his parents. You can definitely relate to that too. You have your Aunt’s necklace, a green gemstone that you treasured and wear everyday. Even though it's just an object, having a small trinket can make a world of difference. You feel just that much closer to her even though she is gone. You barely remember her, you can’t even remember her face, but you know you were close somehow. It must be the same for Muriel in a way. The little bear on the handle had to be him. You just have this feeling in your gut that it is. Ronin’s right, he is meant to have it.

Some time later, when the games were over and dinner was being passed around, you feel a very cold icy stare from someone across the large tent. Glancing over to where Ava always sits with Ida and a few of their other younger brothers, you find Shona just glaring at you very scornfully for some unknown reason. You try to ignore her beaming glare and continue to eat, conversing with Una and Gilbert a bit pretending not to notice, but it proves to be rather difficult. She hasn't paid any mind to you for a while, seeming to forget, or ignore, that you existed since the first day of the gathering after you beat Ava in the Brùth Carachd game. So why is she now glaring at you? What did you do to upset them?

After Gilbert tells another story, Muriel and you return to your tent rather exhausted. It has been a very long day and all you both can think about is resting. Both of you start to get undressed and do you nightly routines.

“...Why was Shona staring like she hates your guts tonight?” Muriel asks while sniffling a yawn taking off his shoes while you brush your hair.

Placing the brush down you groan and fall onto the bedding. “I have no clue. All I know is that they don’t like me because I’m an outsider. I don’t think I did anything else to them.”

Muriel reaches down and pushes a stray hair out of your face. “... You’re not to me though.”

“I-I know! Don’t worry, I don’t mind, Muri. Shona is the only one here who seems to care! Everyone else has been great.…” Muriel plops down on the bedding beside you, taking off his belts. “...Whatcha think of Ronin and Tad?”

He snorts a bit. “You’re right. They are nice… I still have no idea why Ronin gave me that knife.”

“Because it was your father’s.”

“I—I know. It just feels so… wrong. He said he looked up to him, but I barely remember him.”

You stand on your knees and wrap your arms loosely around his shoulders from behind and place a few kisses on his neck. “It’s a gift, Muriel. Sometimes gifts are ones that are important to giver, which makes it just more special.” You tug his trunk onto the bedding and he lays his head down onto your lap. Petting and scratching his hair and scalp and lightly massaging his neck muscles, both of you enjoying the heat of the fire.

He’s nearly boneless by the time he inhales deeply, groggily speaking again, trying to make sure he doesn’t fall asleep in your lap. “...You’ve been sleeping better lately.”

“Yeah. I guess so.” You sigh a bit.

“... Any new memories?” He asks just above a whisper.

“No. Not really. Just a few about Ezavior…  He used to curl up and hide in my pockets as a kid… but that’s all.”

He reaches up and cups your left cheek, concern behind his eyes. “...Nothing else?”

Shaking your head a little and kissing his palm. “I promise.” You lean into his touch, then rub your tired eyes.

He grins a little taking back his hand. Reluctantly with a little grunt he sits up off of your lap and grabs the blankets. “...Should get some sleep.”

Nodding in agreement, you both get settled in for the night, Inanna joining you at your feet. So you find yourself drifting off into a refreshing dreamless sleep.

——————

The next morning you got up earlier to write some more in the journal before Ava got off patrol. Muriel wanted to make sure that Una and Keavy didn’t need any help with anything before it was time to spar again. You get to a good spot on the hillside and get starting on jotting down last night's story. It was especially interesting last night. I was a folklore about a man who could speak to animals. As soon as you get about halfway done, you hear footsteps from behind you, their gait sounds just like Ava’s. You look up at the sky, it’s still not the time yet, but you place the journal back into your bag. “Huh… You’re a bit early. I thought you weren’t off until—” You turn yourself around and to your surprise it’s not Ava—instead its Shona. Still looking as sour as ever to you. “Oh! Morning, Shona.” You stand back up to your feet, brush off the dirt and grass, and greet her as sweetly and kindly as you possibly can, but she rolls her eyes. “How have you—”

“—Please…” She scowls, interrupting you. “...We’re alone. Drop the cute bubbly little magician act. It’s annoying.”

...But I am bubbly. You stick out your bottom lip and your brow slightly narrows. Well. That was rude. Especially first thing in the morning. “... I’m…. I’m not acting, I was just saying good morning, Shona... Am I not allowed to greet you?”

Tense silence chokes the hillside as you both just feel an icy light breeze blow over the tundra. Shona finally breaks it with a hard sigh, she speaks firmly and almost seems to be looking down her nose at you, making you feel a bit infuriated. “I don’t know what Ava has been doing lately. But I know you have something to do with it. And in case you haven’t noticed, you have a betrothed. Or do you intend to break two of my people’s hearts or something?”

“Pfft!! What?!” You can’t help but splutter, then quickly stifle a chuckle. Shock takes over her face, but what she is implying is very absurd. “Okay, okay. Clearly, you don’t know me at all.” Your smile falls and a serious frown pulls down your lips tightly. “... Please understand, Shona. I would do anything for Muriel. And I mean anything. He is the only person whom I want to be with in this world. I love him. Very, very much. I would never hurt him. I would never betray him. And I have no interest in anyone else. Don’t mistake my kindness for flirtatiousness.”

Shona folds her arms loosely and looks down at you even more. “Well, unless you're incredibly dense or just don’t care, my sister for some weird reason likes you... Spending time with them is going to send the wrong message.”

Starting to feel a irritated by her incredibly unnecessary rude and mean demonir you place your left hand on your hip and sound firmer in your tone and tick off numbers with the other. “Well. First off, Ava is an adult, they know I perfectly well that Muriel and I are together.—Secondly, all I want is to be your sister’s friend. In case you haven’t noticed, they don’t have many. And thirdly, it’s nothing like that… we’re—” You catch yourself before you say it out loud and you drop the hand that you were using for counting. Ava made it clear they don’t want anyone to know. You can’t betray their trust.

Shona taps her foot waiting for an answer. “You’re…. What?? What in the world are you two doing together for half the day?”

You huff sharply. “I… I can’t say. I’m sorry Shona.”

Her nostrils flare as she growls and throws her arms down to her sides furiously. “GAH!—They won’t tell me. And now you won’t tell me?! If it’s something you two have to hide, then apparently it’s not good!!”

“Shona, I wish I could tell you. But Ava asked me not to say anything to anyone!”

“Fine!—You know what... I don’t even care—Just stay the hell away from Ava!” Shona turns sharply, her long braid whipping around her head and she starts to stomp up the hillside.

Your shoulders sink a little, you can’t just leave things like this. You don’t even dislike her, you don’t know her enough to come to a conclusion about how you felt about them. “Shona! Wait!!” You dash over to her, in a way, you can understand her frustration. You don’t know why Ava is so secretive about wanting to be an Illuminator either, and you hate it when people keep secrets from you too. On top of that, Shona is not only Ava’s sister, but their twin, the two are incredibly close. They have a bond you will never understand, and you don’t want income in between them.

Luckily you’re much faster than Shona and grab hold of the sleeve of her parka before they could get away. She stops her stride, darts her head around, jerking back her arm. You can sense such intense furry in her eyes when you slightly touched her. You stick up your hands to look as unthreatening and apologetic as possible. “Shona…. Look. I... I know you don’t like outsiders very much. I get why you don’t...” Her eyes widen as you say that for some reason, but you continue. “...Neither did Ava, but then we got to know one another….So … so maybe if you’d just… give me a chance and… and get to know me, then… I don’t know… maybe we could also be—”

“—Friends?!” Shona half shouts making you start a bit. “HA!! You expect me to be your goddamn friend?!” She scoffs almost amused by the mere thought as she turns her entire body the rest of the way around to face you again.

You shrug a little, feeling a small bead of sweat on your brow. “Y-...Yeah… Maybe… What’s so wrong with that?”

Shona sneers hard, towers over you, then digs her very long left pointer finger firmly on your sternum, her brow furrowed and eyes angrily squinting. “Look, NewComer. I was trying to be nice before…” You blink a few times at that statement and try not to make a face… Really??? Could have fooled me... “... but I don’t want to get to know you. And I never want to be your damn friend. I don’t dislike outsiders. I dislike you!!” What? Why do you hate me?! As she finishes her very mean rant, you see Shawn, Ava, and Muriel walking over the hill. They all pause as they see and hear Shona angrily speaking to you. Looking furious, Muriel takes a large step to walk down the hill but then Ava hastily throws their arm out and pushes him back as they storm down the hillside first with an every more enraged face. But this conversation isn’t over just yet. You have to know the reason for their anger and try to fix it if you can.

“Why, Shona? What did I ever do to you?” You start to feel your heart beating faster in your chest feeling pressured that you have to find the answer.

She stares at you for a moment, like she isn’t going to answer you, but then she opens her mouth once again. “...You’re…. You’re a Traveler! I knew it the first time I saw you…It’s in your damn eyes.”

You feel your stomach drop when you hear that word again and how much pain it has seemed to have caused you years ago, but you press on. “O-ok…. so I’m part Traveler. So what? What does that have to do with anything?”

“I… I just hate Travelers!!” Ava starts to rush down the hillside a little faster as they hear her trying to stop Shona. But you want to get to the bottom of this. Why do they hate Travelers? No one else seems to dislike them… Well, accept maybe Ava, until they go to know you.

“Why?!” You ask with a bit of force behind your tone.

“I… I just do!!—It’s none of your business, NewComer!”

You throw up your arms in frustration. “Fine! You know what, Shona? I didn’t know I was one until a few days ago—I don’t have most of my memories before four years ago!”

She tuts sharply. “Well isn’t that just convenient!”

Your face contorts a bit at that, it stung a bit more than it probably should have. “—I don’t know anything about them, Shona! Nothing! So, please! Tell me why are you so threatened by me!” She takes a step backwards and starts to tense her shoulders and fists, her face becoming red hot. But you just soften your gaze as she grows even more enraged, you just want to know. You plead,“...What have I done to you? Why do you think you need to protect your sister from me? Aren’t we going to be family?”

Her entire face twists in disgust when you utter those words. “...YOU?!....—You will never be my family!!!! Kokhuri are my family!!! And it is my job to protect my people from getting hurt from people like you!!”

“Wh-what?! Shona, I haven't hurt anyone! I-I would never dream of hurting any of you! I… I love your people!! What in god’s name makes you think I’d hurt them?!”

Just as Ava reaches out for Shona’s left shoulder, unexpected tears swell in her furious green eyes, completely taking you off guard as she screams out, “--BECAUSE IT WAS A TRAVELER THAT ALMOST KILLED MY SISTER!!!” Ava stops dead in their tracks just inches behind her. Their eyes wide, their outstretched hand starts to tremble, face turns white as their eyes dart towards you.

You feel your lungs holding in your breath....

To be continued~

Sorry about being so long since the last chapter. I know I post rather quickly compared to most though. I hope you guys keep enjoying this long journey! But I’m very excited for the next half of this story! 

As always, enjoy my hot trash my little hungry raccoons!! 

#the arcana #journey back to the south #madllamamomma #the arcana game #muriel #muriel fanfic #fluff #rhemi #rhemi the apprentice #muriel of the kokhuri #kokhuri #for my hungry trash pandas #my hot trash

[pinkykitten]

Hairspray pt. 1

Stranger Things

Billy Hargrove x plus size! female reader

Warning: curse words, body-shaming, things get a lil steamy at the end

Specifics: comedy, angst, fluff, romance, chapter fic, race neutral reader, plus size reader, chubby reader, pictures

People: billy hargrove, nancy wheeler, jonathan byers, heather, your dad, your mother, amber (bully, oc) 

Words: 4,089

Summary: Based on Bell’s 2.5k Challenge, @acciosnapes. Being rich was tough. Your parents expected so much out of you; they expected you to be perfect. Owning practically all of Hawkins, Indiana; they perceived themselves to be above everyone else. Having that thinking made you alone, as you were not allowed to hang out with people beneath you. 4th of July of 1985 holds the fair for Independence day. You had feelings for a certain bad boy and if luck comes your way you may tell him the truth and who knows maybe he’ll even ask you to the fair. During those moments though, you will have to endure top secret evil science labs and experiments. You will uncover Hawkins secrets, make friends and who knows maybe break a couple of rules.

Authors Note: y/f/n = your father’s name

y/m/n = your mother’s name

this is the first part of the chapter fics hairpsray. this is for a challenge and i love this so much. i love writing confident plus size characters and readers. the aesthetic was made by me and the beginning to the end of this fic i got inspired by hairpsray 2007 by the start of the movie all the way to miss baltimore crabs number. i put an amber in here like the movie and some quotes and dialogue is taken from the movie hairspray, lets see if u guys can figure it out. anywho i love this hope u love it and im so happy i did this challenge there will be more so check out for this series and im excited to show u guys. yay! 

The summer of 1985. It was hot and sticky outside. The cicadas singing as they made their way near you home. You were excited. You were going to, no matter who tried to stop you, get a job.

It very well likely might not have made sense to anyone. You were rich. Grew up with a golden spoon in your mouth. You never knew life to be hard. Every little thing was given to you, whether it be toys, dresses, makeup, you had it all. At least thats what your parents thought. Your father was basically equal with the Mayor. The two helped each other out with smart work and of course the dirty work. Y/f/n thought you didn’t know but you sniffed out the clues and put them together. You knew your father was no innocent man. He played his cards right to get this money, not earn it. And y/m/n, just followed your father around like a lost puppy. You could see the kindness in her sometimes but she always listened to your father. 

What your parents didn’t know was you were searching for something more important. Something that meant a whole lot to you. Money didn’t matter. You didn’t want that life. You wanted to be independent and be able to make mistakes and live life. Your parents always disciplined you on peers. You were not allowed to be with low lives; people who weren't as successful as your family. But all the friends your parents wanted you to love were snobs and thought so highly of themselves. You wanted to get away from that life. Your whole life was planned out for you. You are forever and always this pretty, perfect sweet girl who follows rules even though sometimes you didn’t feel those things. 

You woke up to the sun beating down on your face. You rolled around on your pastel pink king sized bed. Groaning, as you subconsciously hit your alarm clock but noticing you were awoken before its ring. 

“Hmm, thats never happened before.”

You stretch as you jump out of bed to start your first day of work. You would never tell your parents. They would never understand and probably make excuses to stop you. You were going to try to get hired at Hawkins Community Pool. It was a risky decision based on your size. You were plus sized and adored it! You felt on top of the world most times and never cared what anyone thought. But there were times where you did get down from comments but you still pushed ahead and loved yourself. You were willing to give the lifeguard gig a chance and there was a plus side. Your crush Billy Hargrove was there. You just hoped you could entice him enough to give you a go. 

You scrambled to your feet as you raced to your phone. You dialed your best friend Nancy’s number. You had to keep the relationship a secret. If your parents knew about your friendship they probably would flip. You knew about all the secrets of the kids and Hawkins lab. Nancy felt guilty not telling you so she spilled the beans about everything to you. About Eleven, the monsters, scientists. It sounded unreal but you knew Nancy would never lie to you. 

“Hey Nance, are we still on for the mall today?” You asked, twirling the cable with your fingers. 

On the other side you could hear Nancy struggling, “yep we’re still on. Sorry I’m running late to my first day of work.”

“Oh yeah its today. What are you gonna be doing again?”

Nancy made a yelp as the phone was muffled, “sorry I just slipped putting on my dress.” Just as Nancy said that you could hear Jonathan’s voice in the background. 

“No way!” You squealed. “Did you sleep with Jonathan?”

Nancy giggled, “...sorta...kinda...yeah.”

“You naughty girl!”

“Whatever!”

“Tell him I said hi,” you said.

“Oh my god y/n, you’re unbelievable but I gotta go now.”

“Wait? Are you still coming with me to get my bathing suit?”

“Like I would miss this. Y/n’s first job and pretty much your first time being a independent young lady. Y/n, we’re definitely going to celebrate!” She hanged up the phone and you got dressed for the day. 

You went to the living room and turned on the tv. “Good morning Hawkins, Indiana.” The news man and lady said as they raised their morning cup of coffee to the viewers. 

You skipped around the kitchen finding something to eat. Humming a tune you couldn’t get out of your head as it was a song you made up. 

“I love you Hawkins, and someday when I take to the world, the worlds gonna wake up see. Hawkins and me,” you sang as you were stopped by your father. 

“Why are you so jumpy this morning?” He wore a scowl on his face. 

You shrugged, “nothing in particular dad.” You kissed him on the cheek. Your mother walked in swatting your hand as you were about to make breakfast for yourself. 

“The maids can get it honey,” she said as the maid ran in and got started in cooking you your favorite. 

You rolled your eyes as you got your bag, “you know I think I’ll just eat on the road. I’ll pick up something on the side.”

“Honey, make sure its nothing greasy,” your mother said. “You have to try to back away from foods, remember.”

“You remind me everyday mother.” Your parents always pointed out the fact that you were bigger than most girls your age. They always tried to put you on diets and workouts but nothing worked. It didn’t work because you didn’t want it to work. You were totally fine with your body and wish they could see what you saw. 

Finishing the rest of your corn dog from the food court you awaited on Nancy by the store. Checking your time you knew Nancy was supposed to be here.  

“C’mon Nance, where are you?”

Finally she showed up from around the corner. Her hair all disheveled. It looks as if she was rushed. 

“Hey there best friend...you okay?” You asked, hugging her as she came up. 

She waved your question off. “It can wait. So what are you thinking of getting? Whats your vision?”

“Well,” you said as you entered into the tiny shop. Women of all sizes were there but you can see the look of disappointment on many of the bigger girls faces. There was barely anything there for them. You looked through the clearance for “Big Girls” it read on the sign. “since I have to make a good impression, I’m going to wear something sexy but also professional. I don’t want to look like no stripper.”

Nancy chuckled, “right. Also isn’t this swimsuit for only this time cause you have to wear their red one while you work there.”

“Correct. Like I said though I want them to see I am trying and I am not going to half-as* it.”

“How bout this one?” Nancy said as she brought out a blue one. It had sequins on it; very beautiful. But it was too sexual. The breast area was very much wide and open. The back showed too much butt. “What do you think about this?”

“Don’t get me wrong its super pretty but like I said; I need to look professional. Plus there’s gonna be kids there.”

“I gotcha. Sorry I maybe just want everyone to pass out when they see my friend.”

“Oh I bet everyone will, even if I don’t wear anything sexual. They’re probably gonna be like agghhh an earthquake when they see me walking in and I’ll respond like, you bet b*tch.”

Nancy laughed. 

“How bout this one?” You pulled out a Hawaiian one. It was pretty but more for old ladies and it was boring. 

“Okay yeah sure...for my nana!”

“Well how do you know me and your nana don’t have the same taste?”

“Look you need something more than that. Like you said, making a statement.”

You bit your lip, “man this harder than I thought. I’m kind scared to be honest about doing this. Like I think the last time I ever got this scared was when they announced the new coke.”

Nancy tried her hardest to hold back a giggle, “why are you scared?”

“Picture this, what if a stranger hands me a blunt and you know I’m curious by nature and I accept it? What in the world will Billy think? He’ll probably think I’m like a druggie 24/7!”

“First off, that is the oddest situation I’ve ever heard of. Second, is this your weird way of saying what if Billy doesn’t like you?”

“No I know he’ll like me sexually but I mean platonically. What if he doesn’t want to be like a normal couple and hang out? What if he’s ashamed to be with me? These are good questions.”

Nancy held your hand, “than he’s the jerk I always thought him to be and you’re too good for him.”

You nodded, “I mean I’m too good for him now but in that moment, if he’s a d*ck then I will be 10 times better than him. So any ways...how was work?”

Nancy rolled her eyes and looks down, “I kinda don’t want to talk about it.”

“What? What happened? Am I gonna have to slap a b*tch?” You became territorial and overprotective of your friend.

“No, no, no its just, the men at work sorta treat me like I’m dumb and that I’m not really of use to this type of work. I guess cause they see me as a woman they think they can take advantage of me. They make fun of myey/n. In front of everyone. Its bull sh*t.” Nancy almost looked as if she wanted to cry.

“Hey its okay. This is your first day. People are going to be jack as*es but you listen to me. Whenever any one has talked about me differently or made fun of me because of my weight or whatever I either laugh with them, ignore them, or say something smart back to them. There are ways that we women can stand up for ourselves without having to insult or hurt someone physically.”

“Its just easier said than done. But I’ve got a lead. A lady called me today about diseased rats. I think that maybe this is my chance to be a journalist like I’ve always wanted to be.”

You clapped her on the back, “atta girl. You take that chance. You take it right in your hand and never let it go. No matter what they tell, or do to you; you have the right, the power. Use it Nancy. Use your voice.”

Nancy smiled and picked out an orange swimsuit. You didn’t care if people called you an actual orange; all you saw was perfection. 

“How bout this one y/n?”

“Thats the one Nancy. Its perfect!”

“Hey pancake y/n and Nancy drew,” Amber, your arch nemesis. The bully, the b*tch of the town walked up to you two. Her high heels clicked as they met with the floor. Her skirt was so short you could almost see her goodies from up high. Her makeup was too overdone and her blonde hair was as perfect as Tom Cruise’s abs. She snickered as she saw you hold up your swimsuit to pay. “And you’re gonna wear that? Where are you going? To the Hawkins pool?”

“Yes as a matter of fact I am. Thanks for you looking out for me...Amber.” You said as you walked right by her; nudging her lightly. “Now I don’t wanna get there late so if you excuse me-”

“Oh sorry, too skinny of a space?”

“Amber-” Nancy started but you waved a hand out to her. 

“No its okay Nance. She’s right, it was too skinny for my delicious body.” You shrugged. 

Amber motioned closer to you. Her foot stepping on yours. “Are you going to the pool to see Billy?”

You almost forgot. Rumor had it that Amber was going to try all Summer to get with Billy but so far you heard he was single and you sure as he*l were not going to miss the opportunity. 

“Well I mean I will see him whether I want to or not. He kind works there.”

“I’m not talking about that fat-a*s. I’m saying are you doing all this. Wanting to work there just because he’s there?”

“Wow Amber! I didn’t realize you were my mother. Congratulations! Now shall I tell you about all my business?”

Amber snarled, “I swear to God if you try anything with Billy I will hunt you down. If you think for a moment that he would ever like someone like you? You are completely and utterly stupid. Know your place and be careful... you might stop traffic in that.” Amber chuckled as she walked away. Her butt swaying as she tried to show you she was better than you.

“Yeah well I have a better a*s than you!”

Nancy shook her head as she led you to the register, “C’mon y/n, lets just go.” 

Did that little interaction ever stop you? 

Never! You still went with your plan. Get this job in order to get your Billy. It was plain and simple. And also to prove to yourself and your parents that you can do things on your own and you didn’t need anyone. 

Nancy dropped you off. You got changed in the bathroom and knew it just turned into Billy’s shift. You met with the other kids at the front desk. As they saw you they laughed. “Well, well, well if it isn’t y/n l/n, the rich girl. What can we do you for?”

As you were about to speak one of the boys put his hand up, “I’m sorry but we don’t have any gold bars here at the moment. Maybe you’ll have to ask the President of the United States.”

You glared at the boy and were silent. The boy thought he broke you and you acted very suspicious. Suddenly you laughed, “yeah well maybe I’ll go ask your dad since he seems to pay me every time I’m with him.” You of course knew it wasn’t true. You had never even slept with anyone before heck with his dad. It was all for games. 

The others hollered out loudly at your come back and the boy stood back flushed. 

“Now I want to work here and I think I deserve a resume. I see your sign that you are hiring so what do I have to do here folks?” You clapped your hands. 

A girl named Heather walked by and heard your conversation. “Y/n, right?”

“Thats me.” You shook her hand. 

“Awesome, yeah I remember your call. You wanted a job here?”

“Correct again.”

“Well around here we do things differently. In order to get the job we need to see your walk.”

“My what?”

“Your walk.” The other teens tried to stifle their laughter. “Thats the most important step. We need to see how you walk in order to get to your post.”

“Oh okay for a minute I thought you wanted me to walk on water or something.”

Heather rolled her eyes. “No. I need to see how you do and then we can talk and I can give you a resume.”

“Wait. You’re the one who conducts the interviews around here and stuff like that?”

Heather nodded. Lying.

“Cool so when do I start the walk?”

“Now!” Heather pushed you into the open. 

“Oh okay,” you were shy at first but then conducted yourself. The sun shone on your skin deliciously making your skin glow. You looked at your surroundings. A lot of kids. A chubby kid running, which you knew was a no-no. The other side, near Billy was, “Mrs. Wheeler? What in the world is she doing looking at Billy like that?” You felt anger erupt within you. Yes, you were a little jealous. Even though their relationship was extremely wrong you still felt jealous. You proceeded to walk. Not caring if anything budged out, jiggled, nothing. You felt sexy, beautiful and that’s all that mattered. 

You shook your hips as you walked up to the chair. You had talked to Billy before but never a full out conversation. It was little ones. Billy stood right by the chair, talking to Mrs. Wheeler. As you showed up Billy looked at you straight in the eye. You bit your lip winking at him. Billy then looked all over you, raising his brow. He licked his lips. 

“Hi y/n,” he said all suave; putting his hand out to stop Mrs. Wheeler’s conversation, interrupting her. 

“Hi Billy, hello Mrs. Wheeler.”

Mrs. Wheeler seemed angry so she sat back down in the sun. 

“Well, well, well, what are you doing here?” Billy asked as he leaned against the lifeguard chair. 

“Well I heard y’all were hiring. I saw in the newspaper that they’re making another lifeguard here, coinciding with the first one of course. Heard it gets hectic around here.”

Billy chewed on a toothpick as he came closer to you, smirking. His eyes seeming almost a sea green when it hit the sun. “Yeah it sure does get hectic around here, but I think with you around; things will get more hectic. Trust me.”

“Will it be by your doing?” You got closer as well. Playing his games.

“I don’t know, might be.”

“Got any more bigger girls like me around here?”

“No just the one and only you.”

“Oh so you were looking?” You didn’t mind that he called you bigger or when someone called you fat. It was the truth and you learned to love those words. 

“Is that a bad thing?” Billy asked as his eyes scanned all over you once more. His eyes became lustful. 

“No, I mean you might as well learn what a real woman looks like. I guess I’ll be making history around here. Y/n l/n, the first lifeguard that is really and surely a-”

“Whole lotta woman,” Billy said as his voice came out raspy and more of a moan. 

Your knees were becoming weak. “Thats right.”

“Alright miss making history. Why do you want this job? Aren’t your parents rich? Doesn’t your dad work with the mayor?”

“Yep but I feel as a young lady, I need to learn and live.”

“Don’t worry you’ll learn all those things here; I’ll make sure I’ll teach you.” Billy said as he touched your arm, sending electricity coursing through your veins. 

“So Billy Hargrove will be my lifeguard teacher, huh? Not bad. But...will you ever need to punish me?”

Billy looked shocked as you said that and laughed. He inched closer to you until his plump lips landed on your ear, “only when you’re being a bad girl.”

It took everything out of you not to moan right there. You coughed as you tried to act natural again. Billy got you good. 

“Bashful much?”

“More like turned on,” you muttered not knowing Billy heard as he smiled wide. You turned around and walked straight back to Heather. Your a*s shaking a lot as you walked back making Billy almost have a heart attack. There was no way he was going to go through summer without you. 

“So how’d I do?” You questioned Heather. Excited to hear the news. 

“Well...it was okay.”

“Okay?”

“You weren’t supposed to talk to anyone yet.”

“Um, its a community pool. Everyone's talking.” You said. 

“No we mean when you were talking to Billy. You see a lot of the girls here like him. And we can’t have you jeopardizing their chances and scaring Billy if you know what I mean.” Heather said as she winced. 

Billy had wanted to hear the news about you working here and stood nearby; hearing the whole conversation. 

Your eyes widened, “no I’m sorry I don’t know what you mean?”

“Its just with your rich parents and well your weight for another thing we feel as its just too much...stuff for this job requirement.”

“So you’re basically saying I’m too fat and rich for a small summer job?”

Heather tried not to laugh as the other kids in the office did. You rolled your eyes. “And all this walk and stuff, that was fake too I suppose.”

Heather couldn’t control herself. She bursted out laughing. “You’re totally right! And you fell for it!”

You tried your hardest not to let them get to you. Not to cry. But it was difficult. They embarrassed you, hurt your feelings, rejected you because of your weight and life. You felt like you could get nowhere with them. 

You smiled, “thank you for your time guys.”

“Whatever!” Heather waved you off. 

Billy on the other hand was furious. He knew what it mean to be treated differently and to be hurt. He wanted to stand up for you but he was scared he would lose his job. 

You walked away and Billy walked up to Heather. “Hey, why do you have to be so cruel?”

“Says the guy who literally bullys everyone. What makes y/n any different?”

“Maybe its because she’s not a b*tch. Like some people are.” Billy walked away to get back to work but he could not for the life of him stop thinking about you. You clouded his brain all day. 

You walked home. Thinking about all that was said to you today. You had high hopes of getting the job but now you didn’t know where to go. Crashing onto your bed you cried onto your pillow. Your mother was out shopping with a group of her rich friends and your father was helping the Mayor out with the 4th of July fair. They didn’t care how you felt that day. When someone hurt you. They only cared about themselves. 

Your phone rang and it was Nancy. You sniffled your tears, wiping your face, “hello Nance. Whats up?”

“Hey y/n oh my god you’re not going to believe it! I got a lead on the rats! Me and Jonathan went to go check it out at Mrs. Driscoll. She showed us her basement and all the fertilizer bags had holes in them from the rats. She said that maybe they had rabies and wanted us to notify the public but y/n when I got a good look at these rats it was not like the norm.”

“What do you mean?” You sat up.

“What I mean is that these rats were like having a convulsion. They were acting really strange. Like crazy, I’m gonna investigate more tomorrow and then maybe just maybe the guys at my work will actually take me seriously.”

“You show them! But be careful okay, I don’t want you or Jonathan to loose your jobs. Pursue this story your way.”

“Thanks. Hey what about you? How did things go for your lifeguard summer adventure? And what about Billy? Oh my god did he see you that? He probably had such a big boner-”

“Nancy!” You started to cry again. “I didn’t get the job.”

“What the h*ll do you mean? Do I have to smack a b*tch?”

You chuckled lightly, “no its nothing like that or what I mean is theres nothing you can do. I went in and they pranked me and called me names and pretty much made fun of me saying that I couldn’t work there because I was rich and fat.”

“So? Who the h*ll cares? Jesus, I hate people.”

“Me too, but never you.” You sighed. 

“You know what you do?”

“What Nancy? I tried everything-”

“You try again! Go tomorrow and wear their attire their red swimsuits and show them that you are not playing around. Make them see that you are the woman for the job. You are an amazing person y/n, show them and show Billy.”

You wiped your tears away and got the boost you needed. “You’re right Nance, thanks. I’m gonna keep trying until I have done all that I can.”

“Yeah and if not there is a new mall that you could work at and really anywhere. People would be lucky to have you.”

“Thanks Nancy. You always know how to make me feel better.” You hanged up the phone and got a good nights rest for the next day where you would try your hardest to achieve something you so badly wanted. 

Tag list: @harrington-lover, @angelgl16, @perfectlybeautifulsuit, @hyehoney, @haven-prelude (wont let me tag), @leasly, @totally-alexa21, @creamy-pasta-boi, @multireese, @fanfictionrecommendations-com, @prentisskelley, @malereaderforkpop (wont let me tag), @guardian-of-cookies, @justafangirl-97, @teenageshitposts (wont let me tag), @dippergravity (wont let me tag), @some-booty, @fromfoolishpeopletodeadpeople, @collectiveyou, @wtfisalltherandoms, @dirbel, @eastcoasthaven, @fangirl-4-life415 (wont let me tag), @idontknowwhattocallthisworld (wont let me tag)

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#stranger things #stranger things fanfiction #fanfiction #x reader #imagine #billy hargrove x reader #billy hargrove #billy hargrove imagine #billy hargrove x plus size reader #plus size reader #chubby reader #billy hargrove x chubby reader #dacre montgomery #stranger things imagine #stranger things season 3 #netflix #race neutral reader #bell's 2.5k challenge #hairspray #hairspray pt. 1

[s13e06]

Recuerdos Perdidos

Draco Malfoy / Female Reader

Harry Potter AU

Warnings: mild swearing and mentions of death

Words: 4.2k

Summary: She could see the pictures with her own eyes, right there in her hand. She knew they were real. It was her in them, plain as day. But who was the boy next to her... and why did it hurt so much to try and remember?

Pt 2, Pt 3, Pt 4

-

Chapter 1

The news had hit you like a truck. With just those seven words you felt everything around you stop, you couldn’t even breathe let alone speak. It was like all the sound around you washed out, replaced with the deafening hum of silence.

“It’s your parents…There’s been an accident”

-

Walking up the familiar stone steps to your childhood home you felt a bittersweet smile rise on your face. You recounted a simpler time as you studied the aging wood of the porch. What you wouldn’t give to just relive one of those days. To cherish it in a different way… at this moment it was all you desired.

Stepping into the house you couldn’t help but feel how overwhelming the emptiness was. It’s like the house knew it was empty… but how could it?

Fighting back the urge to cry for the millionth time you were greeted by the comforting sight of your younger brother. He was currently sat on the couch looking through an old family album. The look on his face as he eyed each photo told you all you needed to know. Growing up you weren’t that close, but it wasn’t as though you were on bad terms. The age difference just kept you apart most of the time. However, you knew that he wasn’t one to show when he was sad. At least other people wouldn’t recognize. But his intense gaze and silence told you everything.

“Hey,” you said coming to sit next to him, glancing at the album in his hands. This album, in particular, was of your family's trip to Ecuador. You smiled a little remembering how at the time you were particularly moody. It was a mixture of the fact that you were only 14(your early teen years were particularly angsty) and the fact that the humidity did hell to your hair.

“Hey” was all he replied with as he shut the album quickly, he wasn’t going to show you he was vulnerable… you knew it.

“So… I figured you could start packing up in the kitchen and I’ll start in the attic” you suggested, purposely giving him the kitchen as there weren’t too many tear-jerking memories in there.

He agreed with a silent nod of his head as he stood up and made his way into his designated room.

You watched him disappear around the corner and waited a few more moments before heading into the attic. You figured it wouldn’t be too hard since everything up there was already boxed away. You just had to go through those boxes and deem what was worth keeping really.

As you made your way up the worn-out pull downstairs you chuckled softly at the memory of how terrified you were of the attic as a child. You were convinced that there was some pale girl with long black hair living up there, a rational fear considering your early interest in Japanese horror movies.

As you stood in the dimly lit room you scanned the area calmly. Reaching up you pulled the cord to the uncovered lightbulb, the light coming in from the small window just wasn’t enough. The space lit up significantly more and you hummed in content as you set your eyes on the first box. It was unlabeled so you figured it was a good place to start.

Kneeling down and ripping the box open you were surprised to find that it was full of old Christmas decorations. Tinsel and ornaments shoved into the box completely unorganized, your dad definitely packed this one. Digging a little deeper your hands felt the soft texture of Christmas stockings. A smile grew on your face as you pulled them out. Both yours and your brothers were handmade by your mother and as you hold them in your hands you couldn’t stop the tears from streaming down your face again.

“Fuck” you rasped out while wiping away the tears harshly.

Mentally deciding that this box was an automatic keep you quickly refolded the top and moved it towards the entrance to the attic.

Turning back to the corner you started in you noticed a box with your name on it. You scrunched your face in confusion. Not because you didn’t have any boxes up here but because all the ones that you did were labeled in your mother's handwriting. She was notorious for taking charge when it came to packing and organization. So why would there be a box here labeled with your name… in your handwriting.

You carefully came to sit down beside it, pulling it between your legs.

You noticed that this box was tightly taped shut unlike most of the others. But you had brought a box cutter for just this circumstance. Pulling it from your back pocket you carefully began to open the box. Upon opening it you found the contents rather peculiar. It was full of random things you didn’t quite recognize right away. An old journal, a white envelope that appeared to be quite full, a worn looking hoodie, and a smaller brown box taped securely shut. The longer you studied it the more you became confused.

Picking up the journal you flipped it open to find the first entry to be a short story you had written years ago. Glancing at the date you finally pieced together what this box was. This was a box you sent back home from your summer in England with your grandparents. You were 18 at the time and fresh out of high school.  You remember begging your parents to let you spend the three months before college started with your grandparents in a new country. They had lived there all your life but the only time you saw them before that summer was when they came out to visit your family in the U.S. it was no secret that they were wealthy so their trips were actually quite frequent. However, that summer you insisted on being the one to visit.

It had been five years since that summer so naturally, you didn’t remember much but what you did remember was pleasant. The hoodie was something you were almost daily there as the weather was cloudier than you expected. The smaller box… you were unsure. Same with the envelope.

Deciding to focus on the envelope first you took it in your hands. Carefully ripping it open you peeked inside to discover that it was full of photos. That was… not what you were expecting.

Taking out the bunch you began to flip through them. They were all pictures of your summer in England. You smiled as you recounted the memories behind each one.

Some were of you posing in various places of their house obviously caught mid activity, a grin on your face. A few were of your grandparents, taken by you, smiling cheerfully. You continued to thumb through it. A few scenery shots, your grandparent’s adorable calico cat, and then you saw something you didn’t recognize.

It was a photo of you… and a boy.

This was someone you didn’t recognize. Not one memory came to light as you stared at the photo.

It was taken from a selfie angle, clearly, by you, you were smiling wide and he was smirking slightly as he looked at you and not the camera.

“What the hell” you whispered to yourself starting to grow a little scared at our inability to remember who this was.

You flipped to the next photo and felt your stomach turn.

There he was again.

In this photo though you noticed that you were both holding hands as you threw a peace sign up with your free hand. The strange boy beside you was giving a lopsided smile as his free hand stuck in his dress pant pocket. This photo was either taken with a timer or by someone else.

It was clear by looking at it that this boy, whoever he was, was more than a friend.

So how on earth could you not remember him? Nothing made sense and the more you stared at the photos the more your head began to hurt. Your vision blurred and it felt as though someone was squeezing your brain.

You winced as the pictures fell from your hand and back into the box.

What was happening?

Why was this happening?

You couldn’t make sense of anything.

The pain was becoming so unbearable that held your head and turned over into a fetal position, waiting for it to go away as silent tears streamed down your face.

-

When it seemed like the pain had faded completely you sat back up and peered at the box next to you. Deciding that it was best just to pack it back up and save the headache for later.

You really didn’t want to think about it anymore… not now.

Folding the box closed without much more thought you shoved it to the side by the other box at the entrance.

Eyeing it for only a second more you wiped away the last traces of wetness on your face before turning back to your corner of unopened boxes.

-

By the time you’d gone through the entire attic, you’d noticed that the sun was beginning to set. It had taken a while but you’d made great progress. You felt satisfied overall, all thoughts of the strange forgotten memories shoved to the very back of your mind.

Walking back down the stairs you headed to the living room where you were greeted by the tired-looking sight of your brother.

“Good place to stop for today, yeah?” you asked with a smile.

He only sighed before looking at you with a judging look.

“It took you the whole damn day to sort through the attic. Whereas I completed the kitchen, living room, and garage” he told you clearly unimpressed by your slow pace.

You only laughed in response before shrugging your shoulders.

“Don’t question my methods young one” you smiled before heading towards the door, but something made you stop. You turned slightly to face him again "Say... can I ask you something?" the nervous tone to your voice shifting the mood immediately.

"Sure... go ahead?" he answered, very obviously confused at where this was going.

"Remember that summer I spent at Nana and Papa's five years ago?" you asked slowly.

He raised a curious brow before answering you as slowly as you had asked. "Yes, why?"

Here goes nothing, you thought.

"When I came back... do you remember me mentioning anybody? Someone that I may have met there? A boy maybe?" you asked, scared by your own words.

For a moment your brother said nothing as he stared at you with an expression of worry. He could tell that you were thinking about something unnerving and if his answer was what you feared you could see why it was all the more alarming.

"I don't... remember you bringing anyone up... is something going on?" he questioned taking a step closer.

The situation was seeming to become more serious by the second and for some reason you didn't want him to be involved. This was your mystery to solve. It wouldn't help any to have him worry. "Hmmm, It must have been a different trip then. You know me, I have too many boy toys to keep track of," you said with a grin while wiggling your eyebrows. you hoped that this effort of comedic relief would deter his curiosity.

He rolled his eyes at you dramatically before mumbling something about you being an ass. Well, at least he wasn't suspicious anymore.

"Well I think we've done enough damage for today," you said with a chuckle while shuffling to the door. “same time tomorrow?” you asked.

He looked at you for a moment, seeming to think about something before visibly shaking it off. “You bet” he replied with a chuckle.

-

In the weeks that followed you and your brother successfully managed to sort through and move out the entire house. Taking the few boxes of your own belongs back to your separate places.

After the will reading, you attended a small and neatly organized funeral. Both of your parents were cremated as you knew that would be their wishes.

After everything was said and done your brother was on a plane back to his dorms across. Hopefully the few weeks away from college hadn’t hurt his grades too badly. Luckily for him, he was only a freshman. Without your parents help tuition would be harder but the football scholarship and small inheritance should help him. If need be you wouldn’t mind stepping in to help as well.

-

When you settled back into your apartment you eased onto your small sofa and begrudgingly looked at the small collection of boxes you’d brought back from your parents’ house. You knew you had to unpack and sort them soon or else they’d collect dust there forever.

You stood up and stretched as a yawn escaped your lips. Trudging over to the boxes you began to stack them according to where they should go in makeshift organization. As you did so you were once again faced with the five-year-old box full of mysteries.

You picked it up and set it onto your kitchen counter, eying it warily.

Against your better judgment, you opened it again slowly.

With timid fingers, you grabbed onto the two photos again. Still splayed out messily in the box where you dropped them.

Studying them once again you began to feel the aching in your head as you stared at the mystery boy’s face.

It seemed like the harder you tried to remember him the more your brain tried to stop you.

But why?

Nothing was making sense and you were afraid you were going to go crazy.

You knew you’d never find answers yourself… not when you couldn’t remember a thing.

There was only one place where you could possibly find the answers you were looking for, and thanks to the small fortune your parents left behind in their wills, it would be no skin off your back to make the expense.

-

You shouldn’t have felt as nervous as you were sat in your cramped airplane seat. But you couldn’t help but agonize over what you might find when you got to England. After all… if you didn’t know anything, would your grandparents?

You didn’t know the answer. But this was your best bet.

Besides, if all else fails… at least you’ll get a vacation away from everything going on back home. All the pain that seemed to have settled permanently into your life like a thick gray smog.

Maybe this could be your chance to breathe.

-

When the taxi stopped in front of your grandparent’s large house in Wiltshire, England you felt like there was a weight on your shoulders.

All the uncertainty was weighing on your mind in a way that you couldn’t even begin to comprehend.

Making your way up the long narrow path to the house you hadn’t seen in so many years felt partially surreal. The last time felt so long ago now that it hardly seemed real.

When you arrived at the door you gave it three hard knocks; knowing very well that your grandparents were quite hard of hearing at their old age.

You stood there at the doorstep rocking on your heels as you clutched onto your large duffle bag. Considering the visit was so last minute you didn’t really put much thought into what you brought with you. You weren’t even sure how long you were staying seeing as you just bought a one-way ticket there.

Just as you started to get lost in thought the door opened wide in front of you.

“Hello there, dear! Oh, how I’ve missed you! Please come in, come in.” your grandma beckoned you from the doorway, stepping aside to make room for you. “We were so happy to hear that you were coming”.

You walked in with a smile.

“Hi Nana, I’ve missed you too. Things have been well I take it?” you asked politely.

“We’ve been just swell. Although I suppose we can’t say the same for you… I’m so sorry we couldn’t make it to the funeral but it was just such short notice I hope you understand” she spoke to you softly as you saw her eyes water in sadness.

They may have been your parents but it was their daughter and son in law as well. The loss hit them in a way you probably couldn’t even begin to understand.

“I understand, Nana. Don’t worry, it was a small service anyway. Private… like they would’ve wanted” you said with a sad smile.

She simply nodded at you lightly with a forced smile on her face. She was being strong for your sake. The sorrow in her eyes gave it away clear as day.

As you walked through to the living room you couldn’t help but notice that even after five years barely anything had changed. It was almost refreshing to see them living just as they were before. Even down to the same four porcelain frog figurines lined neatly atop the fireplace mantel.

Something about the sight brought a warm feeling to your chest.

-

You had been sat on the all too familiar plastic-covered sofa when the smell of roasted chicken began to waft into the room.

You smiled, knowing that your grandpa made it just for you, he remembered that it was your favorite.

“Something smells good” you commented while walking into the kitchen.

“Ah, there you are dear. Go have a seat in the dining room, I’ll bring it out shortly” your grandpa replied with a toothy grin.

You headed into the dining room to find your grandma already sat at the table, intently reading over a rather hefty looking book.

Taking your seat in your usual place to her right you glanced at the title. It looked to be another Stephen King novel. They were her favorite after all.

You recalled that she owned all the books, gleefully purchasing each one as they were published. It was an interest that she’d passed down to your mother.

The thought was bittersweet now but it would be impossible to count all the times you’d caught your mother, nose deep in a Stephen King novel growing up. She loved them dearly and with an aching in your heart, you realized that she’d never be able to read a new one again.

“Dinner is served!” your grandfather exclaimed while strolling into the dining room with several plates of food all carefully laid out on a platter. Your painful thoughts were easily blown away as you chuckled at the sight. He looked like a personal chef rather than the owner of the house.

Eating with them again after so long felt nice. You’d of course seen them a few times in the five years after your visit but being here in their house felt different of course. It was so uniquely them that the feeling of it all couldn’t really be replicated any other way.

You talked about how they’d been doing, where they’ve traveled to lately, how their garden was coming along, and current events in England. It was always interesting to hear their take on things.

In turn, they, of course, asked you all about how your life was going as well. Asking about work and any potential male suitors (as family tends to do). You laughed with them as you recounted your last failed attempt at love which had lasted all of two months. The guy, to be blunt, was a real bum and you weren’t yet at the age where you felt like mothering something.

The topic of boyfriends being brought up started to get you thinking once again. About the thing, you were so desperately trying to figure out… the whole reason you had come here so abruptly, to begin with.

The boy in those photos… this is where you’d find the answers if there were any.

You decided that after dinner you would confront your grandmother about it casually. Hopefully, she could shed some well-needed light on the situation.

-

Once you heard the sink start to run in the kitchen you knew that now was the time to confront your grandma.

“Hey, Nana need any help with the dishes?” you asked while walking over with a smile, already pulling up your sleeves before she answered.

“Oh, how kind of you to offer. Of course, you can dry.” She said while gesturing to the neatly folded hand towel in the corner.

You picked it up and began to dry the freshly cleaned dinner plates; wondering how exactly you were going to casually ask about this mystery boy.

Well, better to go all-in than dance around the question, right?

“Say, Nana… when I was here five years ago, did I have any friends that you knew about?” you asked, too nervous to turn and face her.

She continued to scrub in silence and for a brief moment, you wondered if she’d heard you at all. But then she spoke.

“No, not that I can remember. You spent most of that summer in the house with us or out exploring around the property.” She said in a curious tone. “Why do you ask?”

Your stomach twisted in knots as you processed this information. Would no one be able to solve this mystery?

“No reason… it’s just been so long a few of my memories are a little fuzzy. I just thought if there had been someone it would be nice to say hello again.” You said quickly realizing that it wasn’t a very good excuse. “But, now that you mention it I really didn’t meet anybody huh? I was very to myself in those days”. You laughed, trying to brush it off.

You turned to her and saw that she was studying your face, clearly questioning something. But to your relief, she didn’t press it further.

-

That night as you lay in bed, pictures in hand you began to feel overly restless. What if this was a dead end after all? Would you just have to go back home as clueless as when you left?

The thought left a scowl on your face.

But that’s when you noticed it.

In the background of one of the photos.

There was a humongous house, dark and gloomy in appearance.

It didn’t look very welcoming and was barely visible in the background of the photo but to your amazement, you had seen this house before.

You were certain of it.

But where?

You didn’t have to think much longer before it came to you.

You had seen it in the cab on the way here. In fact, it was the last house before you reached your grandparents. Meaning that it was the neighbor…

Given how large each property was though, this didn’t mean the house was just a few feet away… but it wasn’t very far.

Glancing out the window you noticed how dark the sky had become, it was sure to be a little chilly as well. But how could you simply forget about it now… not when you finally had a lead.

Quickly throwing on of the few hoodies you had brought with you, you began to quietly make your way through the house. You knew very well that despite your age, you’d be scolded for sneaking around at this time of night.

When you safely made it outside the house with no detection you clutched the small photo in your hands as you began to walk in the direction that you came in the cab, knowing that it would lead you to your destination.

-

After walking for what felt like hours you finally saw the huge building come into full view. Rather than call it a house you would be inclined to say that it was actually a mansion.

Tall, dark, and looming. It stood surrounded by a vast property. Whoever lived here must be wealthy beyond your imagination that much was for sure.

As you stared at the house you brought the picture up in the air. Glancing from the image there to the one in front of you.

This was definitely the same place.

But now what?

You stared at the mansion, studying it closely. It was like you were completely transfixed and before you knew it there was that pain again.

Clutching your arms in an effort to redirect the pain you desperately glanced around. There was no one in sight, no one to see you like this. That was a relief.

Looking back at the picture you saw a flash of something in your mind.

A single white rose.

Your brain felt like it was in agony. Desperately trying to keep you out. But you focused on it harder.

Then came another flash.

A small brown box with beautiful carvings of flowers and swirls decorated all around it.

More pain.

You fell to your knees as the world around you began to blur. No sound could be heard except an ear-piercing buzz that ripped through you like a bullet.

Then you saw something else.

It was a stick of some kind… held in a pale hand. Pointed right at you. The person holding it was completely blurred in your memory. But the object was crystal clear.

But what was it?

The three images flashed through your mind continuously, each time they did so the pain grew worse and before you could even feel it coming… you collapsed completely.

Everything around you going pitch black as you lay on the cold wet ground.

---

AN:// Ahhhh I’m so excited to finally start this one! I’ve got a lot of ideas for it so far and I really hope you all enjoyed this first chapter. So much is going to happen in future updates, I promise!

#Draco Malfoy #Draco #draco malfoy fic #draco malfoy fanfiction #draco fanfiction #draco malfoy imagine #draco malfoy x reader #Harry Potter #harry potter fanfiction #harry potter au #harry potter imagine #draco x reader

[insfiringyou]

BTS - V watches another guy fuck you

Contains: Smut. Oral sex. Vaginal sex. Slight angst.

Although this can be enjoyed on its own as ‘reader’, we imagine the girl here to be our OC girlfriend for him, Cassandra. This is a major part of their ongoing storyline and is set a month before the disastrous events of ‘V and Cassandra try roleplay / use their safeword’. 

The events of this fic were briefly mentioned by Cassandra to Nana in ‘Refuge’ and we decided to expand on what happened...

To read each member & their girlfriend’s headcanon universe fics in order, follow the links here: RM   /   Jin  /   Suga  /   J-Hope   /   Jimin   /   V   /   Jungkook 

& Our full masterlist can be found here

Rated content below the cut

If there was one thing you had learned in over two years of dating your boyfriend, it was that he could be incredibly stubborn and once he got an idea in his head, it was often much easier to play along than to argue. ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ had been a massive success and the international cast had brought in a large audience from all over Seoul. Your co-star, Taylor, was half American and a recent graduate from a drama school in New York. His typical good looks and muscular body paired with a youthful innocence made him the perfect choice for Marlon Brando’s character. You yourself, in an attempt to avoid being typecast, had auditioned for the mature role of Blanche and, in the month of practise before the debut, you had perfected the dainty, southern belle accent; even taking to use it while at home. Taehyung had found this adorable and kissed you softly on the mouth every time you entered the room. Your affection for him which, you had to admit, was sometimes tested, came flooding back in an instant the first time he mimicked your accent and, in broken English, teased that you were the prettiest thing he had ever seen. He had been acting strange ever since he received the service letter and these moments of sweetness meant a lot to you.

The afterparty of the closing night had been bustling and you rushed to meet Taehyung by the bar; forgetting to remove the pale powder from your face and the rosy, petal-coloured blush on your cheeks. He had smiled at you, his eyes full of admiration as he pecked you softly on the lips. It hadn’t taken long, however, for his demeanor to change once he was introduced to Taylor. While he was polite to the younger man, his stance immediately shifted and you found yourself thinking of exotic birds, displaying their flamboyant tail feathers. You were more than surprised when he finished his glass of red wine, his third of the night, and invited Taylor back to your shared apartment for a couple of celebratory drinks. 

The shipment of wine had arrived directly from France, courtesy of a vineyard you had visited together the year before, and Taehyung wasted no time in cracking open a bottle in the loft of your studio. Despite your protests, your boyfriend had sold his Gangnam apartment six months before to move in with you; an arrangement which had caused some tension when you realised how quickly the cost of housing in the district was going up and what an investment he had lost out on.

 You eyed the actor opposite as he helped himself to a second glass, and couldn’t help but wonder what your boyfriend was playing at. When the younger man excused himself to use the restroom, you turned towards Taehyung. 

“Do you want another?” He asked.

You shook your head and lowered your voice. “Why did you invite him back?”

“What do you mean?” You couldn’t read any clues in his voice which frustrated you further. 

“Taylor.” You whispered, indicating in the direction of the bathroom. “Why did you invite him back?”

He shrugged casually. “Why shouldn’t I? He’s your colleague.”

You felt yourself deflate, wondering whether you were being unreasonable. “We haven’t spoken much outside of work.” You explained. “Our relationship on stage is pretty intense…”

“I could tell.” He said somberly, looking up at the sound of the bathroom door opening. Taylor had a huge grin on his face as he sat back down on the sofa opposite.

“Who’s is the false teeth?” He asked.

“Mine.” Taehyung said. “They’re antique.”

The straight delivery of this made you smirk, remembering how he had brought home them home in an old jar following a visit with Namjoon to an antique warehouse in Prague. He had immediately put them by the sink in the bathroom, finding them hilarious. Taylor clearly didn’t get the joke and a slightly awkward silence ensued. 

“Do you want me to top you up?” Taehyung asked after a moment, picking up a half-empty bottle of Syrah. 

Taylor eyed the puddle of liquid inside his glass. “I should probably head off soon…”

“Stay for another.” Your boyfriend insisted, topping up his own glass. “It seems like we should enjoy ourselves a little longer. The show was packed tonight…” You felt his hand caress your uncovered knee. “And besides, it’s the final one - you deserve to relax a little. You both did a great job.”

A sense of unease fell over you as you anticipated the younger man’s answer, hoping he would say no so you could just go to bed and forget about whatever weird motive Taehyung had for inviting him here.

“Well, maybe just one more…” Your heart sank as your boyfriend leaned over the coffee table and poured the remainder of the bottle into the man’s glass. “The wine’s really good.” Taylor’s smile made him appear younger and the image flashed through your head of a deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming truck, or, perhaps more fittingly, a young fawn who is blissfully unaware he is being watched by a wolf. 

Taehyung smirked. “Do you prefer French or European wine?”

“French definitely…” Taylor said confidently, the deliberate shift in his position breaking his youthful facade. “European’s too bitter.” He settled back against the sofa casually and slowly sipped from the glass, trying to appreciate the notes and flavours in a manner that would satisfy the host.

“Tae…” You warned quietly, suddenly realising your boyfriend was, for some reason, trying to make the man opposite look stupid. 

He turned to you, raising an eyebrow. “More?” He offered. You knew he had at least a dozen more bottles in the wine rack under the kitchen sink.

“Can I have a word?” You asked.

Taehyung smiled softly. “You can have several.” You were already halfway across the room when he rose, and he turned to Taylor apologetically.  “Sorry, excuse us.”

You looked around for a quiet place to talk and realised that, other than the bathroom, there were no viable options. Taking a quick glance at the younger man to make sure he didn’t look suspicious, you unlatched your front door and stood on the landing. “What are you doing?” You questioned sternly, pulling the door closed.

The way that Taehyung shrugged made you want to hit something. “Entertaining our guest.” He replied simply, moving his hand to your shoulder to push up the thin strap of your short dress which had slipped down your arm. 

“Stop it.” You snapped, making him pull away. “You know French is European.” 

There was a pause and you realised that his sweet, creamy vetiver aftershave you usually loved suddenly seemed cloying; the space at the top of the stairs was narrow and you had no choice but to stand close together.

“Do you not want him here?” He asked in a low voice. 

“It was you who invited him…” You argued.

“I thought you two had great chemistry.” 

You paused, eyebrows furrowing. “On stage?”

“You looked good together…”

You slowly exhaled, sensing you had finally gotten to the route of the situation. “What are you trying to get at?” You asked, trying your best to remain calm. This entire thing was ridiculous and you wondered how your boyfriend couldn’t see this.

“Do you find him attractive?” Taehyung asked, his voice equally calm, as though asking you how your day had been rather than whether you wanted to fuck your co-star. You had been through this before, countless times with different actors, and didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of a proper answer.

“Are you jealous?” You enquired, keeping your tone steady so as not to betray your annoyance. 

“Should I be?” He asked seriously. 

“No…” You answered honestly. “But it seems you want to be...” You sighed, knowing that while he was undoubtedly being a stubborn asshole, there may be an underlying motive as to why he had asked. You continued gently. “I know you’re worried about going away...but I wouldn’t cheat.”

“Have you ever thought about it?” His reply took you by surprise and you met his gaze across the dark landing.

“Have you?” You challenged. 

He hesitated, refusing to break his gaze as a bout of silence stretched for what felt like minutes.“Eighteen months is a long time…” He eventually said, his voice soft.

You thought for a moment. “Do they have escorts in the military?” The idea should have been painful to think about, but you realised he was right...eighteen months was a long time, and if he needed some relief while inside, you wouldn’t object. 

“I wasn’t thinking about me.” He said, voice barely a whisper. 

Your jaw clenched at the implication. “I wouldn’t…” You said, echoing his soft tone. 

He seemed to ignore you. “You seem a good match.” He nodded towards the closed door, where Taylor sat on the other side.

You placed your hand on your hip in an argumentative stance. “We have nothing in common.” 

“You both speak English.” Taehyung contended. 

“So do a lot of people.” You said with a sigh. 

“I’d understand if you did.”

You found yourself growing angry once more as you realised he wasn’t paying any attention to what you were saying, his own ideas fixed and, as usual, taking priority. “So why don’t you fuck him?” You raised your voice, regretting it at the last second when you remembered there was only one wall separating you from the living room.

He was silent for a moment and, for a second, you suddenly became fearful that he would turn on his heels and march down the stairs in a rage. “I’d rather watch you do it.” He eventually said. 

You took a step back in disbelief, your back connecting with the door. “What?” You tried to wrap your head around what he had said and were disappointed to find that it sort of made sense. The events of the evening suddenly clicked into place and you internally rolled your eyes, realising your initial suspicions about Taehyung’s motives had been wrong.

“You heard...” He said in a deep voice, before nodding towards the apartment door. “We’ve kept him too long.”

You turned to head reluctantly back into the studio, quietly wondering whether Taylor might have changed his mind and wanted to leave early after all. “You talk about him as if you’re planning on murdering him.” You commented, twisting the handle.

“I won’t touch him.” His promise was not entirely reassuring.

Taylor was as you had left him but the glass in his hand was now empty. “Is everything okay?” He asked tentatively as you slipped down onto the sofa by Taehyung’s side.

“Peachy.” Your boyfriend smirked, speaking in English. 

Taylor smiled at the attempt. “Cassandra says you make music.” He said, clearly trying to make small talk. 

“I do.”

“How did you two meet?” The younger man asked with curiosity and you realised it wasn’t something you spoke about often. 

“He saw me playing Titania.” You explained. The blank look on Taylor’s face, however, showed you he didn’t get the reference. Some theatre student, you thought. “In A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” You clarified. 

“Oh…” He smiled, finally understanding. “I dig Shakespeare.”

Taehyung interrupted, once more stroking your thigh beneath the short hem of your black and gold dress. It was a 20s style, flapper number you had picked up in America during your brief stint on Broadway. “I saw the poster. Queen of the fairies…” You felt his hand move, slipping affectionately around your shoulder to caress the ends of your ponytail delicately. His voice was nostalgic and a little dreamy. 

“He sent flowers to my dressing room after the show.” You explained, remembering how shocked and flattered you had been to see them on the table. The role was only your second in a major theatre and, so far, you had received little attention as an actress.

“Red carnations…” Taehyung remembered. 

Taylor smiled. “Because of her red hair?”

Your boyfriend met his gaze directly. “Because I wanted her.”

You rolled your eyes, noticing a nervous smile touch Taylor’s lips at your boyfriend’s blunt explanation. It didn’t surprise you; Taehyung seemed to get a kick out of making people uncomfortable. 

“How did you meet your girlfriend?” The older man pressed on. 

Taylor shifted. “Oh, actually I’m single right now.”

“Isn’t there anyone you’re interested in?” 

You noticed Taehyung’s deliberately casual tone and suddenly wondered why he had never gone for more acting roles; he clearly had the talent. 

Taylor sighed a little. “It’s hard to date when you’re on the road.”

His answer made you scoff quietly. The only road he had seen in the last three months was the one from Incheon International to the 5 star hotel he was staying at in Gangnam. 

“I manage.” Taehyung shrugged.

You sighed, getting to your feet. You had grown tired of this little game and wanted the hot-shot actor out of your apartment before things had the chance to escalate. “It’s getting late…”

“Sit down.” Taehyung commanded, placing his hand gently on your bottom without taking his eyes from the man opposite. You sat back down quietly, realising that Taehyung was serious about what he wanted to happen and that he was already putting the ground-work in place. “Do you have a type?” He pressed on. If the other man had noticed that something was wrong, he didn’t let on. Instead, he sat back on the sofa, relaxing into the cushions. 

“Confidence is sexy…” He shrugged. “And with a good style.”

Taehyung smiled. “Like her?” He asked, nodding towards you. You shifted uncomfortably. 

Taylor faltered, a little timid smile playing on his lips. “I guess so…”

“You seemed to like kissing her on stage.” Taehyung said nonchalantly, making you cringe internally. And there it was, the penny finally dropped. You saw Taylor’s eyebrows scrunch in confusion and almost felt sorry for him. 

“I think you’ve got the wrong end of the stick.” His eyes briefly fluttered to yours, as though waiting for you to step in, before moving back to your boyfriend’s. “It’s not like that…”

You sighed loudly. “He knows it’s not…”

Taehyung ignored you, his gaze fixed lazily on the man opposite. “If you had the chance to fuck her, would you?” He asked. You sensed the curiosity behind his question, despite him trying to mask it beneath a casual air. 

Tipping your head to the side in a dismissive gesture, you rolled your eyes once more. “You don’t have to answer that…”

Taylor seemed to ignore you, his focus instead fixed on Taehyung. “What are you suggesting?” 

You felt your already bubbling frustration begin to rise as the two men bargained over you like you weren’t in the room. 

“That you fuck her.” 

“What?” Taylor raised his voice in disbelief. 

“I want you to make her cum.” Taehyung said casually. The other man finally locked eyes with you. 

“Is he serious?”

“Unfortunately yes.” You admitted, knowing at this point Taehyung was not going to let up on the idea.

The younger man hesitated. “And you’re okay with that?”

You hesitated, realising that if you wanted to back out, now was the time to do it. While Taehyung was clearly fixed on wanting this to happen, you knew he would not object if you did not want to. Nethertheless, the whole idea was ridiculous, and a part of you hoped that allowing this to happen would make your boyfriend see just how stupid and petty he was being. You sighed, giving in. “You don’t have to make me cum.”

“Yes he does.” Taehyung said coldly. 

Taylor looked at you both, his eyes flicking from right to left, before finally fixing, unsurprisingly, on your boyfriend. “You want me to do it here?” He asked, looking at the pair of sofas; the delicate, autumnal tapestry pattern a near-perfect match to the busy wallpaper. You regarded him blankly, disappointed that he had not put up more of a fight. Then again, you weren’t surprised. Men could be so predictable. 

“The sofa was expensive.” Taehyung said in a manner that suggested he was disappointed the younger man couldn’t tell. “On the bed.” He requested. 

There was a moment of hesitation were you were sure the actor would come to his senses and ask to leave, but eventually, he raised from his seat and walked across the living space and towards the double bed. The open-plan layout of the studio meant that Taehyung didn’t have to move to get a good view and, when you followed the younger man and sat on the edge of the duvet, you noticed you would be in your boyfriend’s eye line. 

“Suck his cock.” Taehyung’s voice was low, but you heard him clearly. Taylor, whose back was to the sofas, turned around. 

“Are you just gonna watch?” He asked. 

“Yes.”

The actor shrugged. “That’s okay man, if that’s what you’re into.” 

You suspected, not for the first time, that while Taylor was undoubtedly straight, he had paid his way through acting school by taking on a number of elicit modeling jobs and that his clientele, with his handsome looks and muscular form, composed of more males than females. You looked up at him from your position on the bed. “Don’t worry...it’s not about you. He’s just got this idea in his head.” You said dryly, nodding towards your boyfriend who met your gaze. 

“Do it Cass.” Taehyung said gently. 

You paused for a moment, before nodding, looking away to slide your hands across the younger man’s leather belt and unbuckle the clasp. He gasped as you pulled apart the material to stroke him through his white underpants, finding him already hard. This didn’t surprise you; guys like Taylor, in your experience, did not take a lot to get worked up. You wasted no time in slipping your left hand beneath the elasticated waistband, grasping his cock in yours and pulling it from the confines of his shorts. He was, annoyingly, well-endowed; a few drops of pre-cum glistened from the tip and you brushed your thumb over it, spreading it over the flushed head. At least, you thought as you stroked him, he had an attractive cock which might make this whole experience that bit more pleasurable. His taste was different, unfamiliar, as you closed your lips around him and sank your mouth down his length. You clutched him in one hand, holding him steady as you looked past his hip to your boyfriend who watched intently. He sipped his wine slowly, clearly enjoying the sight of you as you sucked Taylor’s cock. It didn’t take the younger man long to get into it and he started to moan loudly as you quickly worked him; his eyes scrunching in pleasure. You wondered as you pulled away to lick along his length, whether he had half-forgotten your boyfriend’s presence in the room. You took him back in, moving your hand in time with your lips to avoid the need of taking him in too deep; you couldn’t deny that a part of you had started to enjoy the feel of Taehyung’s intense gaze on your face...of having him watch you do this to someone else. You moaned loudly, adjusting your position slightly to get more comfortable and, in turn, blocking the view as you continued to lick and suck his erection.

“That’s enough…” You weren’t surprised to hear Taehyung asking you to stop and you complied easily, unwrapping your hand from around the other man’s thickness and allowing his wet cock to drop from your lips as you slowly backed up. Taylor stepped aside, taking his erection in his hand and pumping it a few times as his eyes moved down your chest. Glancing over at your boyfriend to make sure he was looking, you took both of his hands in yours and brought them to your breasts, running them along the outside of the silky fabric. You had foregone a bra and your nipples poked at the material as the actor palmed them, pushing them together a little roughly before squeezing them one at a time. 

“It’s okay to enjoy it…” Taehyung commented, making you realise that you hadn’t yet broken eye contact with your boyfriend. You let out a groan you really didn’t feel as Taylor moved forward, pushing you gently onto the duvet as his lips met your collarbone, kissing along the visible skin with his warm mouth. This felt better, and you sighed softly at the sensation. 

“Her nipples…” Taehyung suggested. “They’re really sensitive.”

The younger man took the hint and you allowed him to slip the straps of your dress over your shoulders, pulling the material down over your bare breasts and running his thumbs slowly along the hardened buds. You gasped and your eyes momentarily connected with Taylor’s for the first time since you had started this; he could see that your boyfriend had been right and, dropping lower, he closed his mouth over your right breast, cupping the soft swell of flesh in his palm as he sucked your nipple sensually, pulling away to circle his tongue around the areola before capturing the other one. You moaned, feeling thankful as you realised the space between your thighs had started to tingle in pleasure; that when he finally undressed you, you would be soaking. As if on cue, Taylor released your nipple and moved down, sliding the dress the rest of the way from your body and discarding it easily on the floor. You could just about make eye contact with your boyfriend from your position on the bed; he looked at you hungrily as your body was revealed to him.

“She tastes exquisite...” He piped up, taking another sip of Syrah. You suspected, from his longing tone of voice, that the wine was not his first choice of beverage in that moment. “Like almonds and silk.” He finished.

“Enough of the running commentary Tae!” You complained, to no avail. 

“Why don’t you try it?” Taehyung smirked. 

Taylor looked at you, waiting to see if you would protest. You slowly nodded, giving him permission and he slid his fingers beneath the elastic sides of your nude-coloured underwear, pulling the string panties down your legs to join your dress on the floor. His tongue was flicky on your clitoris; the contact brief in a way you had seen tens of dozens of times in porn. You wondered how often he did this, and whether he seemed this squeamish with all of his girlfriends. Taehyung’s sly smile grew as he observed the man’s pathetic attempt at oral. It was worlds away from how your boyfriend ate you out.

“Is that good babe?” He asked loudly from his space on the sofa. You sensed his mocking tone and moaned loudly, spurring the younger man on. 

“Quicker…” You instructed. “Use your fingers...”

Taylor complied, increasing the speed of his tongue against your sensitive nub and hooking his fore and middle finger inside you. The change was welcome and, while the feeble pressure of his clit work was not doing much for you, the feel of his digits stretching you was incredibly pleasurable. 

“Careful…” Taehyung piped up, his voice laced with sarcasm you suspected only you could detect. “You don’t want her to cum too soon.”

“Fuck off.” You groaned, directed at your boyfriend, before brushing your hands through Taylor’s dark hair to get his attention. He pulled away, looking up at you from between your parted thighs. “Put it in me.” You requested. 

He looked a little relieved at the prospect of getting his release and shifted position, hovering over you. “Should I use a condom?” He asked. 

“Do you have Chlamydia?” 

“Fuck no.” He seemed offended and you couldn’t help but smirk sourly. He was happy to be fucking someone else’s girlfriend, but the suggestion that he could have caught something unsavoury while ‘on the road’, as he put it, was too much for him to comprehend. 

You sighed beneath him. “Then he’ll want to see you do it inside me.” You nodded towards the living room. “He’ll enjoy it more.” You admitted. 

Taylor paused, trying to wrap his mind around this. “If you’re sure…” He said.

Taehyung was silent as the other man undressed and entered you deeply, the sounds of your thighs coming together echoing loudly around the wooden beams of the loft. You focussed on the sensation rather than the man delivering it, and found yourself moaning loudly as you clenched your muscles around him; his cock hitting your inner walls deliciously. As you shifted position, turning Taylor around to ride him, you were able to tune out the fact your boyfriend was watching from behind; his gaze undoubtedly fixed on your naked back and bare arse as you bounced up and down on the young man’s cock, pursuing your orgasm. 

Reaching up, you unfastened the bobby pins which held your hair from your face and let the red curls cascade against your chest, brushing your nipples which Taylor eventually reached for; playing with them between his thumb and forefinger, pinching and tweaking lightly as you felt the first wave of your climax rock through you. Keeping up the fast pace, almost unaware of how loud you had become, you rode through it, encouraging it to peak as your thighs began to tremble around the man’s hips. You laid your palm flat against his chest as you grinded your clitoris against him; his neat tangle of pubic hair tickling the smooth skin of your labia as you came roughly. Your orgasm was surprisingly intense; you couldn’t remember the last time it had stretched on for so long, and you tried to savour it, rocking forwards and backward in time with the pulsations which grew and eventually ebbed away; waxing and waning like the tide. You were too exhausted to move when you finally came down from your high and was more than happy to be flipped over onto your back as Taylor tried to follow. 

The pleasure was still there but had a dull edge to it as the man finished inside you with a loud groan, half-collapsing against your chest as his breathing slowed. Like yourself, he took a while to get over the intensity and you became vaguely aware that he was still inside you, softening, as he clung to you. “That was amazing!” He sighed, pulling away to smooth a gentle curl of hair from your forehead. His own skin glistened with a sheen of perspiration which, you thought ironically, would undoubtedly have caused the mostly-female audience at the theatre tonight to lose their minds if they saw. He slowly, and reluctantly, pulled out of you as he pressed his lips to your forehead, kissing you affectionately before moving down, towards your mouth. 

“Get the fuck out.”

Your boyfriend’s voice rang through the room and Taylor snapped back, turning around to see the older man slowly standing up from his position on the sofa. Taehyung’s eyes roamed over your naked body, to the space between your legs and you closed them automatically, a little ashamed as the younger man dismounted you and scrambled anxiously off the bed. 

“Are you serious?” He asked, voice full of confusion and, if you were correct, an ounce of fear. When your boyfriend did not answer, he held his hands up in disbelief; palms outstretched in an act of surrender. “You asked me to do this!” He protested. 

“I know I did.” Taehyung agreed easily. “Now I want you to leave.”

You worried for a second that he was going to argue, but were relieved when he quickly grabbed his underwear and slipped them on. At least you wouldn’t have to see him again. He finished undressing in a hurry and backed away towards the front door, taking one final glance at you as your boyfriend joined you on the edge of the bed. The younger man hesitated, wanting to have a final say, before thinking better of it and leaving in silence.

You sat up against the headboard as Taehyung looked at you tenderly, his eyes moving over your breasts and stomach before resting on your pubis. He gently nudged your thigh, and you moved it aside to let him view your plump lips and inner folds, uncovering yourself to him.

“He’s made such a mess of you…” His voice was incredibly soft as he reached between your labia and ran his fingers down the centre until he reached your exposed cunt. He sank the very tips of his fingers in gently and you felt your body leak the remainder of the fluids Taylor had left in you. Taehyung bit his lip as the cum dripped from your opening, watching as it trickled down your perineum and anus before puddling on the bedsheets. “How does it feel, having another guy’s cum inside you?” He asked in a low voice, pulling his fingers away. 

“It was your idea…” You reminded him. 

“Tell me.” He pressed gently.

You shrugged. “Pretty gross.”

His mouth met yours passionately and your tongues merged together as he pulled you closer by the back of your head. When he finally moved away, he caressed your lips softly with the pads of his fingers. “At least he didn’t ruin your pretty mouth.” You couldn’t help but moan gently as he leaned back in and captured your lips once more in a gentle, open-mouthed kiss. 

“I’m proud of you.” He eventually said, brushing your hair away from your face and stroking your smooth cheekbone. You knew it was true and, despite how ridiculous the request had seemed at the beginning of the evening, you were likewise proud of yourself for going through with it. “Can you take more?” Taehyung asked cautiously, knowing you might be too sensitive or not want to. 

You had known he would want to fuck you afterward from the moment this whole thing started and anticipated the question wondering, not for the first time, if he had an emotionally masochistic streak. “If you’re gentle.” You nodded.

He kissed your cheek sweetly. “Of course I’ll be gentle.” 

Laying back against the covers, you watched him take off the formal shirt and tie he had put on for the show, before moving to his plain black trousers and underwear. As promised, he moved against you slowly; unbothered by the slick sensation he was met with as he pushed through your folds and held you close. 

“You’re so beautiful…” He whispered, gazing at you with deep, expressive eyes as his hips pressed forward. “So lovely…”

You remained silent, allowing him to talk while he was in the mood to do so; sensing that whatever he needed to say was important. 

“I’m really going to miss you.” He eventually said, his mouth flush against your chest as you rocked together gently. 

You felt your chest ache, knowing this had been on his mind for weeks, ever since he got the stupid letter in the mail. “We still have a while yet... ” You reasoned, kissing his face softly.

“I don’t want you to be lonely.” He revealed sadly. “Who’s going to take care of you?”

You shook your head, knowing he meant well but unable to let it slide. “I can take care of myself…” You paused. “I’ll miss you too.” You said honestly. 

Burying his head in the concaving space between your shoulder and neck, he pressed his lips to your skin, savouring your scent and taste. “Someone needs to keep you warm at night.”

“You’re overthinking it...”

Your faces were inches from each other as he pulled away to look at you. “Are you upset with me?” He asked. You knew what he was referring to and, for the first time that evening, saw that he was feeling apprehensive about what had happened, and how far he had pushed things.

“No…” You said truthfully. 

“Can you understand why I asked?”

You thought of the conversation you had shared on the landing, about how he was worried about you being alone for so long. “You have nothing to worry about.” You reassured. 

“I’m not anymore.” He admitted and you frowned, finally realising why he had been so eager for you to do it. 

“Did it put your mind to rest?” You asked.

“I thought it would kill me…” He spoke softly, his breath gentle against your face. “Seeing you with someone else...”

“So you just had to see it?” It made sense, in a strange way, that in order for him to get over the fear of you cheating on him, he needed to see you do it with someone else. 

“I can’t explain it…” He said, a little breathlessly. “It made me appreciate you more.”

“How so?”

“That you’d be willing to do that for me.”

Your lips came together softly as his body finally shook against you.

***

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[writinginthesparetime]

A place far away pt5

pairing: actor!Park Haejin x student!reader

Warnings: famous!au ; college!au ; litte bit of swearing?

genre: fluff

previous: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 6

(If needed I will add more warnings and upload the genre tags in next chapters)

Summary:

So that’s how all started.

It was a rainy day in Seoul and I was the new girl in town. Precisely the new girl in college, just moved from europe to study abroad.

How could i ever imagine?

A/n: It’s a super long chapter, hopefully you’ll forgive me for taking this long!

————————————————

I woke up with the strongest headache I ever experienced. It felt like someone was hitting me with a cooking pan on my head.

I turned around hiding my face under the pillow with the hope to shut down all the sounds around me. The streets outside sounded like a war.

“Shit. Never again.” I whispered coughing. The movement made me nauseous, forcing me to get up and then run to the bathroom.

I got out a few moments later, tottering and pale.

“Y/n you look so bad.”

Nana was laying on the couch still in her pyjama, a wet cloth on her forehead and a hot water bag on her stomach.

“I see it’s a good morning to you too.” I said hinting a smile and sitting next to her. I started thinking again at the night before: we didn’t drink much, but for me it was enough. I got tipsy quickly.

I am not made to drink alcohol. That’s it.

“Y/n I don’t think I am able to offer you drinks tonight.”

“I could never accept. Not when I’m like this.” We both smiled.

“Tomorrow.” She whispered closing her eyes, still a smile on her face. “Tomorrow I’ll take you on this place, it’s a nice pub ten minutes away. They prepare the best martini cocktail.”

Just thinking about alcohol my stomach was upside down again. Nana giggled.

It took me six hours of sleep, some medicines, two litres of water and a hot shower to get out of drunkenness.

Incredible how, once I finished studying, It was already dinner time.

Nana knocked on my door just on time, as soon as my belly started complaining about the lack of food.

“I am hungry.”

“I had no doubts.”

Nana entered the room like a hurricane, throwing her hoodie on my bed and sitting on the only chair of the room, laying on the desk between my books.

“What about we order some pizza?” I proposed since just the idea of cooking made me tired. I didn’t ate all day because of my nausea and I started feeling a little bit hungry. Pizza felt like a good hangover food.

“Oh yeah.” She said throwing puns in the air.

“Pepperoni pizza?”

“Oh yeah.” She then looked at me, raising an eyebrow. “It’s your favourite pizza?”

“I’m a hoe for spicy.” I shrugged.

“I like you every day more and more.” Nana winked at me, then took her phone and called a number.

Half and hour later we were sitting on my carpet, with a maxi pizza between us.

“Your favourite ice cream?” I asked while eating. We didn’t stop asking each other those really silly questions.

“Vanilla, yours?”

“Mint and chocolate .” She almost chocked on her bite, hitting her chest.

“I take back everything I said to you early.”

“How.” I laughed. “Just for ice cream?”

“Just? You say JUST? What if we go eat ice cream and you order before me and some mint and chocolate gets on my precocious vanilla?”

“Then I’ll let you always order first.” I left the crust on the box. “I am full. And I don’t want to talk about favourite food ever again.”

“Ok so let’s talk about guys.” Nana shocked me, like any other day. I liked that she had this personality completely opposite of mine, but she was still able to make me feel comfortable, even about our diversity. “Or girls.”

“I am not interested.” I sipped my coke while rubbing my belly. Maybe I did ate too much.

“I don’t want to be another queer girl who says ‘you never know until you try’ but you will never know until you try.”

She was so confident talking about her sexuality, her life choices and her favourite dessert. Always smiling, Nana was ready to open up to me and reveal every shadow of herself, fearless and joyful.

Another thing I adore about her.

“I’ll let you know.”

“What do you like about a man?” she sipped her coke with a straw, looking me with eye big curious eyes.

“I don’t know, I had just a couple of crushes.”

“So you like everything?”

“Maybe.” I blushed.

“C’mon y/n, there must be something you find attractive. At least physically.” She was so curious I could tell by her pose: her upper body slightly closer to me, her head tilted and her eyes locked on mine. “Black hair or blonde? Blue eyes or dark eyes? Tall? Short? Fit?”

“I really don’t know ...” I moved next to the bed, laying on it. I looked up to the ceiling to focus. “I like tall guys.”

“That’s it?” I nodded. “Well, We still have 90% percent of the male population considering your height.” She looked at me like she was taking mental notes.

“I think I like guys with a pretty smile? Let’s say I don’t like serious guys, I like a man who smiles often. And he should be making me laugh often, so a pretty smile is important.”

“So we are talking about personality now. I’m listening y/n-nie.”

“Why so interested?” I suddenly felt uncomfortable.

“We need to know each others, so if I eventually bump into a nice guy I want to know if he’s your type.”

“So you can arrange a date?” She nodded proudly.

“Nana!” I faked being offended, crossing my arms.

“If I tell you what I like in a partner, then will you open up?”

“That sounds fair.”

“I tend to gravitate to mysterious people, someone who doesn’t speak a lot. They make their self desired, they appear and disappear, you have to look for them, kinda run after.” I widened my eyes at her description.

“It sounds tiring.”

“But the best part is the chase.” Her eyes lightened.

“That’s a weird approaching to relationship.”

“Oh no no no.” She shook her hands. “Who talked about relationships? I am not ready for this.”

“But ... I thought that ... you talking about ... “

“That I want a love story?”

“Yeah?” I suddenly felt sorry.

“I am not interested for now.” She made a bitter sweet smile and started looking around.

“So ... I think I like funny guys, they have to make me laugh.” I started talking to interrupt the weird silence. “Of course they have to know when to act seriously and think. Maybe I’d like someone who can choose for me when I’m undecided, like they know the right thing for me.”

“That’s a good description.” Nana gave me her prettiest smile.

“So my ideal partner is the opposite of me.”

“Yeah, I got it. Especially the funny part.” She said seriously. I slapped lightly her shoulder and we both giggled.

“Thank you for yesterday, Nana.”

“You’re welcome.”

I closed the building’s door behind me, putting the key inside my purse. Nana was waiting for me a few step ahead.

“Really, thank you.” I repeated while fixing my hair. “I never had a girl talk about boys. It was fun.”

“We can do that again.” We started walking on the street, a cold September evening. But I felt this warm feeling on my chest. So that’s what a friendship looks like?

“You actually still have to tell me about that mysterious man.” I almost tripped.

“The mysterious man?” I stuttered.

“Yes. The man who offered you beer and got you drunk. The man who have beaten me on time.” She giggled.

“Ah.” I looked up, admiring the dark sky above. No stars for Seoul tonight. “I don’t think I’ll meet him again.”

“What do you mean?” She asked holding tight her coat. I looked her long legs walking fast against the cold breeze, high boots marking her steps.

“I’d actually prefer to know more why you forced me to wear my prettiest dress tonight.”

“Don’t change the subject.” She glanced at me. “What do you mean you don’t want to meet him again?”

“It’s not like I don’t want to.” I shrugged and we stopped at a street light, waiting to cross the road. Around us many people, of different ages, ready to enjoy the night out. “Seoul is so big.”

“Yes but you met three times already. He must lives around here.” She looked so impatient. I grabbed her arm and we crossed the road silently.

I didn’t like how every conversation lead to Hae-jin. Why Nana was so obsessed about him? She didn’t know his face, yet she sounded so enchanted about the whole story. And then the description of her ideal partner hit me.

“You have a crush on him.” I said bluntly. For once she was the one shocked.

“I believe you have.” Nana said quickly. “Yet I can’t deny he must be an interesting man.”

“Going back on my question, why are we so well dressed up for karaoke again? We are going to meet classmates.”

“Because Jackson will be there.” She smirked.

“Jackson who?Jackson from the makeup class? Jackson THAT JACKSON I talk to a few days ago? Nana what did you-“

“Nothing. Don’t worry. The fact is that he’s the only guy you ever talked to since you came to Seoul, if we exclude the mysterious man.”

“And so I have a crush on him?” I felt suddenly a burning feeling deep down, a mix between anger and embarrassment.

“Y/n-nie don’t worry, I just made sure he was actually coming.”

“But Nana I don’t know him. He is probably already thinking I’m into him.” I stopped her, while talking non sense. I hided my face with my hands, not even realising we were arrived at the karaoke.

“Well we’re here now.” She said smiling.

“He will think I dressed up for him.” Still desperate about the whole situation.

“Didn’t you?” She teased me, then she came closer, holding my shoulders and trying to hearten me.

“I’m here to protect you. If he became a weirdo we just leave.”

“Girls! Y/n!” We both turned to the building entrance. “We are waiting for you, but surely the guys already started without us.”

Jackson welcomed us with his most precious smile. He then lead us through the long hallway until the very last room. We could already hear singing voices and loud pop music.

Jackson offered to take our coats and put them inside the lockers for us. Nana undressed quickly and entered into the room, not without winking at me secretly.

“How are you?” Jackson asked me while I was giving him my coat. I was nervous, maybe already sweating.

“F-fine, you?”

I hated this.

I hated this whole situation.

Yesterday the idea of talking to him privately didn’t bother me. Now my palms were sweating and I couldn’t look him in the eyes.

“Good, I was looking for meeting you tonight.”

Ah.

I faked a smile and actually run inside the room before we could keep on talking.

The room was dark, just blue and pink lights to create a party vibe. The music was loud, but the voices singing the refrain of this song were even louder.

Nana quickly grabbed me from my uncomfortable feeling and lead me to a bright display.

“Let’s do a duet. Just pick one.” She screamed to overcome the music, yet her voice sounded like a whisper.

“I don’t know korean, and I don’t know Kpop.” I screamed too.

“Then I choose.” The display showed the longest list of songs ever and Nana typed some letters. I sighed as soon as I realised she picked ‘Ehy Jude’ by The Beatles. She noticed my relaxed face and smile.

And the the whole thing hit me. I had to sing in front of an audience, that now looked like a crowd.

Nana grabbed my hand and we were quickly facing the big tv display. With her free hand she gave me a microphone. She smiled, heartening me and giving me a tiny bit of courage.

The song started playing and we did too. First phrases sang with closed eyes, to avoid any possible eye contact.

But everyone was singing with us, voices mixing. Nana tightened her grip and kept on smiling for me.

At some point without even realising, we ended up jumping and laughing and being breathless.

The song was maybe too short and we received a round of applauses. A new couple started singing right after us.

“You’re finally relaxed.”

“I don’t think I ever saw y/n laughing so much.” Jackson surprised both of us.

“Jackson!” I squeaked.

“I am sorry.” He said while bowing. We giggled.

Instinctively, I looked for my phone to take a photo to remember the moment, but I quickly realised I was wearing a dress without pockets.

“What are you looking for?” Nana asked while tapping on rhythm.

“My phone. Maybe it’s on my coat.” I said after checking inside the purse too.

“Forgot something?” Even Jackson got curious.

“My phone.” I screamed.

“What?”

Nana forced me to get up and go. Always hiding a wink for me. So I had to get out, obviously followed by Jackson who held the door open for me.

“I forgot my phone in my coat.” I said hastily opening the locker. “Here it is.”

“Do you want to go outside a minute? To get some fresh air.” I held the phone tight on my chest.

“Outside?”

“Yes, I need to smoke.” I didn’t know what to do, so I nodded.

He quickly took my coat helping me to wear it, he then took his and wore it. Inside his right pocket, he grabbed a lighter and a pack of cigarets.

“Do you smoke y/n?” He asked while walking on the hallway.

“Not really.”

We exited the building and he lighted his cigarette. The whole movement made me stare at him.

Sexy.

And that’s the only thing I could think. Sexy.

Wow y/n. You literally just had an argument with Nana because she decided to kinda set up a date and that’s what you do?

Jackson lifted one eyebrow, blowing some smoke from an angle of the mouth.

Sexy.

“S-so ... have you b-been smoking for a while?” I stuttered looking around. I ended up watching a group of people waiting below a street light.

“Yes, for a while.” He repeated giggling. “Have you ever tried?”

“Not really.”

“Here.” Jackson got up just to hand me a cigarette and his blue lighter.

My gaze moved from the street light, now green, to my hands.

“I d-don’t need it, t-thanks.” I turned, almost shaking.

“Give it a try. Nothing bad will happen.” He shrugged, a smirk on his face.

I wanted to tell him that so many things could happen. Smoking leads to addiction, I could get hurt, and worst of all I could enjoy it.

“I’m fine, thanks.” I tried to hand it back. He kept smoking ignoring me. “Jackson ...”

He reached my hand just to hold them tight.

“I don’t want it back.” He said smirking.

I started panicking, feeling the pressure of doing something. I didn’t want to smoke, everything suddenly felt weird. Maybe I could give it to Nana, she definitely knew a smoker, or I could throw it in a bin on my way home. I was sweating, feeling Jackson’s gaze on me.

I looked up hearing steps coming closer, a group of people walking and chatting loudly.

“Y/n you’re so cute when you act naive.” Jackson laughed, finishing his cigarette.

“I ... don’t .... “ I was speechless, I wanted to leave.

The group of people divided in half, to avoid hurting me while walking, and I heard them talking clearly about work, projects, school.

And suddenly a fear hit me. The fear of always living like this: invisible in the crowd and uncomfortable.

“Hae-jin Oppa, tomorrow we need to go to the tailoring shop.”

This name made me turn right away. The answer to this phrase, soft and kind, confirmed my thoughts.

“Hae-jin?” I called. So quietly that I didn’t even heard myself. No one turned around and the group kept walking away. I made a little step ahead. “Hae-jin?”

I called again, this time louder. A few people turned, and so he did. His gaze first confused became quickly relief.

“Y/n?”

And suddenly I didn’t feel lonely again.

Hae-jin moved closer, distancing from who I thought were his collogues. A well dressed girl gave me a quick glance.

“Y/n, how are you? You look pale.” Hae-jin talked so softly, his voice like a caress, his only presence calmed me. “I am so embarrassed about how we left the other day.” His smile made me even forget I was actually angry at him.

Maybe not actually angry. But a feeling between disappointment and confusion.

“It’s my fault.” I said bowing.

“No, please, let me apologise.” Hae-jin bowed profoundly. My hands reached his shoulder.

“Please, you don’t need to ...”

“What’s this-“ Hae-jin looked at me confused while he was looking around suspicious. “Is t-this tobacco?”

A hot feeling hit me, my cheecks turning red. Embarrassed, I closed my hands into fists, but he noticed. Always with a gentle touch, he grabbed my hands and found the cigarette.

“Do you smoke y/n?” This question again, disappointing in his voice.

“N-no, actually...” I couldn’t end the sentence because I found myself pointing at Jackson who was turning off his cigarette by stepping on it. He looked up, his gaze stopping on me and then on Hae-jin.

It took me three seconds to understand what a mistake I made.

#park hae jin #park hae jin x y/n #park har jin x reader #park haejin #actor #college #student #chapter #fluff #story #imagine #reaction #kdrama #south korea #korean actor #original #kactor #y/n #writing in the spare time

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 227: Basically Just Me Saying “Holy Shit” a Bunch

Previously on BnHA: We went on a semi-enlightening romp into Toga’s past. Basically she was an adorable child who just so happened to have a taste for blood. And whoever’s job is was to explain to her, “hey Toga, I know you like blood, but other people like being alive, so, you know. Let’s explore some other options for you,” they basically dropped the ball there. So after she murdered her hapless Deku-looking classmate in middle school, she went on the run, and we basically know the rest. Back in the present, Toga had just been blown up from the inside out as you may recall, so she spent most of the chapter kind of out of it. At one point Kizuki even started talking about her like she was already dead, reassuring her that she’d become a martyr for the Army’s cause (which, no thanks). But then Toga managed to stumble to her feet and transform into Ochako as she tried to flee. It was revealed that while transformed, she can use the quirk of whoever she’s turned into, and she proceeded to demonstrate this by floating Kizuki (and half her redshirt goons) a hundred feet into the air before dropping her back down to the pavement. Yeah. So I’m pretty sure she’s dead now. Ah well.

Today on BnHA: Toga passes out in a shed after a job well done. We learn that the MLA is recording all of the fighting, most likely for propaganda purposes because as we have previously established they’re a bunch of dicks. Hanabata confirms that Kizuki is dead and gets the Army all fired up. They charge at Tomura, who is really fucking sleep-deprived you guys, and as he stands there blinking at them he has another flashback. Turns out the little girl from the previous flashback was his sister, and back when they were cute lil munchkins and she was still alive (sob), she showed him a picture of Nana and told him that their grandma was a hero. Tomura doesn’t remember this clearly, but he remembers the accompanying emotions, which is enough to get me hyped out of my mind fyi. Back in the present, Tomura disintegrates I’m-gonna-go-with-about-200 Army henchpeople basically instantaneously without even touching some of them, which, oh shit. And then Dabi is all “oh cool I want to do some mass murder too” but before he can let loose, some dude with fucking ice powers shows up to challenge him. I guess this means we’re never going to get Touya VS Shouto, or if we do it’s going to be very repetitive. But it’s not like I’m complaining either way. Here’s hoping the villain flashback trend continues next week because omfg.

(All comments are my unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter like an hour ago lol. I did a quick edit for grammar and clarity, but aside from that this is as close to a live liveblog as I’m going to get. It took two-thirds of a year, but these recaps are finally caught up.)

this is so exciting guys. I mean, for me the reading process is basically the same, but the posting process is going to be a new one since I’ll be trying to get this up the same day once I’ve read it! so you can expect many exciting errors and brain farts! prepare for the full brunt of my unpolished rough draft thoughts!

so anyway, here’s Toga

lol so much to analyze here. real quick:

“sleepy.” if that isn’t the most relatable chapter title in the history of time, though

loving the “my villain academia” logo in the background! as far as I’m concerned that’s the official title of this arc

“the conclusion of the battles” y’all I read this and I was like “what?! already!?!” but then I realized they’re talking about volume 23, which features the conclusion of the joint training battle arc. so who knows how many more villain battlin’ chapters we’ve still got ahead. I have a feeling we’re already winding down, though

note how all of the stuffed animals are stabbed. ah this girl

it’s 2214, who the fuck still uses polaroid cameras. that would be like someone in our time using a [googles inventions from 200 years ago] modern suspension bridge. ...wait

anyway you guys maybe I should start reading the actual chapter already if I want any hope of actually getting this posted before fucking midnight though

oh hey, so Toga is dying in a shed you guys. fun

I’m not really thrilled about this! to be honest! I mean for fuck’s sake she’s only 17. she was blown up from the inside out. and although the consequences initially seemed to have possibly been handwaved, it appears that no one can escape BnHA’s realistic injury clause for long! so. yeah

I get why she hid, because it’s not like the others are just gonna drop everything to come help her (although Twice, though...), and there are enemies everywhere so this is probably safer. but it also means that if she passes out here there’s a good chance she’s not going to wake up again! and that is bad! that is very much not good

what she really needs to do is call Ujiko! hitch a ride out of there while you still can! he is a doctor, right? even if it is the questionable mad scientist type! worst case, you end up as a Noumu. actually, wait a sec, maybe we should think this through

and yet the fact that she’s still laughing, though. just. goddammit. I love her so much. I swear to god Toga if you fucking die...!!

so now she’s curling up in the fetal position and thinking “once again I’ve gotten closer to you”

yeah, Deku really does do this every other week. or he did for a little while at least sob

and now we are cutting to ReDestro who for some reason is monologuing about Toga!

oh right, because he had the cameras and shit set up to livestream that shit

okay but is it just me or is he not looking at any cameras. he’s just enjoying the view from his little observation tower same as before. does his quirk allow him to see everywhere at once or what

is it bad that I barely even paid attention to the actual content of his ramblings lol. it’s just the same old same old. blah blah society rejects anyone who’s different, it’s so unfair, blah blah

it’s not a bad point, mind you; it’s just that RD and his army are completely full of shit and acting like they’re so much better even though they’re just a bunch of mur-diddly-urderers. it’s like how PETA acts like they’re champions of animal rights when really they mostly just kill shelter animals, insult Steve Irwin, and claim that milk causes autism. but I digress sob

oh shit I forgot about this dude

here I was thinking there was only the one other miniboss to go before the big bad. silly me. how could I have forgotten that two page spread and our friend here with the Gorillaz mouth and the Beatles haircut

wow are you serious?

Giran sitting there with one skeptical eyebrow raised thinking about how these guys threatened to kill him in order to lure his friends out so that they could, you guessed it, kill them!

and also, way to completely disregard the dozens of other minions who already bit the dust before Kizuki. like, your entire town is basically doomed, guy. but sure let’s cry for the one dead villain who actually had a name though

holy shit you guys

are you telling me that’s why you were recording the whole thing? is that why you invited the League here in the first place?? for the fucking publicity? kill the bad guys and earn the public’s good will? did I miss that part of the planning sesh, or was this objective already painfully obvious and I somehow either missed it or forgot all about it?

either way it’s amazing how these guys become bigger assholes with each progressive chapter

oh now he’s explaining it all on the next page lol. so I guess I didn’t miss the memo, good

okay but first he’s getting real physical with my boy Giran here though

okay first of all, all he did was say “footage...?” like wth was so fucking impolite about that. and second, why do I get the feeling that there’s probably a fair percentage of people who read this chapter and got to this panel and now suddenly ship it sob

I mean, he just got so up close and personal though. all up in his face. this guy has such a weird energy and it’s really creeping me out now ngl

anyway so here we go with the explanations

holy shit you guyssssssssss

when did Giran get so fucking hot?? and is he single?! asking for a friend???!

anyway so now RD is wiping away his crocodile tears and says Giran is lacking in imagination

oh hey

what an interesting segue back to Tomura!

wow, Spinner’s asking how much longer until Big G wakes up, and Compress says one hour and twenty minutes. so that means they’ve already been at it for like an hour and fifteen minutes! minus however much time it took to warp over and then follow Back-Stab n’ Go out to the center of town for the ambush. even if that took a whole half hour they’ve still been fighting for a long time! but I guess they’re more than used to that by this point, thank you so much Ujiko and your six weeks of brutal endurance training

Spinner’s all “no matter how many we defeat, they just keep on coming!” and I know, dude, it’s almost like there’s over one hundred thousand of them or something dfskdj

although to be fair, probably not every last one of them is actually there. can you imagine. it might take a whole nother hour to beat them all

now Hanabata is driving in on the back of an election van. because apparently he just fucked right off in the middle of his fight with the League, and then came back. with a van

so he’s all “EVERYONE I HAVE SOME DEEPLY SADDENING NEWS” and oh my gosh what is it

oh

yeah dude we already been knew. RIP and all that

so the crowd is all distressed and asking what the Supreme Leader said

really?? that’s what they call him?? yeah you guys aren’t evil at all

and Hana quotes, “‘do not let her sacrifice be in vain’“

sorry bruh. but. it’s gonna be in vain. hate to break it to you

right??

GASP

TWICE STOP BEING AWED AT HANABATA’S INFLUENTIAL AURA AND START PAYING ATTENTION TO THE DUDE WHO’S SNEAKING UP BEHIND YOU AND TRYING TO SNATCH YOUR MASK OFF

anyway so in the meantime this is happening

maybe there are 100k of them. seems like there’s a lot. I do like that from this angle it appears that Tomura and the others have holed up in a relatively narrow alley, thus creating a choke point and limiting the number of enemies who can attack them all at once. although this panel does make it look like there’s just a big ol’ wave of bad guys surfing their way towards them though, so it remains to be seen how effective this strategy will actually be lol

eh?

yeah no shit boy you’ve been fighting Daruk from BotW for the last month and a half

anyway so apparently he’s feeling ~weird~ though

I shit you not guys, my sister was hospitalized a couple months back (she’s fine now) because she started hallucinating after a three-day bout of insomnia. shit is no joke. don’t be like Tomura. go to bed and don’t stay up all night fighting villains

-- OH SHIT!?!

ASDFALSDFHLKSDHLFKJHAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

IT’S A LITTLE GIRL!! AND SHE’ S OPENING A SECRET DRAWER!!

SHE’S ALL “IT’S OUR LITTLE SECRET!” OH MY GOD

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

SWEET JESUS MARY JOSEPH!? HORIKOSHI DO YOU FUCKING READ THE THEORY POSTS ON TUMBLR JUST SO YOU CAN IMMEDIATELY SHIT ON THEM TWO DAYS AFTER?? HOW THE FUCK

AND IS NANA’S SON WEARING DEKU SHOES?? OH MY GOD PLEASE

AND THIS MEANS THE LITTLE GIRL IS ACTUALLY TENKO’S SISTER SOBBBBBBBBB NOOOOOOOOOOOOO

BUT ON THE PLUS SIDE THIS MAKES TOMURA MUCH MORE LIKELY TO GO APESHIT ON AFO’S ASS IF HE COMES TO REALIZE THAT AFO INDIRECTLY MURDERED HIS SISTER OH SHIT

BUT SHIT YOU GUYS, SHE’S SO CUTE AND SHE’S FUCKING DEAD NOW SOB THAT’S SO FUCKING HORRIBLE I MEAN IT I’M REALLY UPSET THOUGH

BUT LET’S CONTINUE WITH THE FLASHBACK TO SEE IF HORIKOSHI WANTS TO TOY WITH MY EMOTIONS ANYMORE!!

NANA DIDN’T DO A GOOD ENOUGH JOB ERASING ALL TRACES OF HER CONNECTION TO HER CHILD AND IT EVENTUALLY RESULTED IN HIS DEATH OH SHIT. I’M SERIOUSLY SO UPSET ABOUT THIS??

NOTE HOW BABY TENKO’S FACE IS PURPOSELY BLACKED OUT EVEN THOUGH (A) HIS SISTER’S IS NOT, AND (B) WE SHOULD, IN THEORY, ALREADY KNOW WHAT HE LOOKS LIKE! IT’S BECAUSE HE DOESN’T HAVE THE SCARS OR THE WHITE HAIR YET CUZ AFO HASN’T WIPED HIS MEMORIES. [nods sagely as though I have any sort of proof of this whatsoever and it’s not all just wild speculation and conjecture]

HANAAAAAAAA oh shit I better come up with another nickname for Hanabata then. looks like it’s Back To The Full Name for you mister

!!?!?!?

okay you guys I think this is intentional misdirection. we’re meant to believe that Tenko’s dad was perhaps abusive and that his behavior toward his son ultimately triggered the awakening of his quirk and led to all of the subsequent Horrible Things happening

but I think what it actually is is that Tenko’s dad probably resents Nana for giving him up. and maybe Tenko wanted to know more about her and maybe he got in trouble for it? because now Hana is showing him the picture, and then talking about this mysterious conversation with their dad and saying she’s on Tenko’s side. so that’s my bet

anyway! but this means Tomura might not need as much convincing as I previously speculated! I figured he probably wouldn’t know much, if anything, about his grandma even if he did somehow get his memories back, because he was only four when all that shit went down, and Nana had parted ways with Tomura’s dad years ago. but if he actually did know a bit about her and even possibly felt a connection with her, as this flashback suggests, that could go a long way towards fueling his eventual breakaway from AFO’s side once All Might is able to explain the truth

ahhhhh you guys this is exciting I’m excited. though also still very sad though because wtf seriously

so Tomura’s tiredly thinking that the least his stupid memories could do is show him the whole picture instead of these fragments. “it’s like a broken tape recording or something”

HOLY SHIT

...I have no words. holy shit

anyone else getting flashbacks to the Highway to Hell though? what is it with Tomura and periodically pulling off the most badass stunts in the whole fucking manga. all because he didn’t get his nap dsflkjlk

ReDestro look at this loss of life. are you crying again. no, I can’t imagine that you are. you ass

you guys are probably getting tired of me just going “holy shit” over and over, but

hooooooooooooly shit

guys, if Tomura can dust people without even touching them he might as well just change his name to fucking Thanos and we’d better start praying this kid gets redeemed and soon

so now there’s a panel of Tomura being all drooly, and honestly he looks like he’s about to pass out. not sure if this is intended to be a glam shot or what lol

ohhhhSHIT

YESSSSSSSSSSS DABI. DRACARYS

!LKJDSLFKJLSDKJF!!

OH SHIT YOU GUYS, IT LOOKS LIKE WE’RE ABOUT TO GET ALL A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE UP IN THIS BITCH

who is this weird little black mage. I’ll tell you one thing, he’s the only guy I’ve seen so far who’s actually dressed appropriately for fucking December weather, though, so good on him

will he defeat our boy Touya (spoilers, he won’t)? will Touya have some flashbacks of his own (TOUYA PLEASE), since that seems to be what all the cool kids are doing these days? will I lose my fucking shit all over again next week? stay tuned! but yes I absolutely will, oh jesus this is awesome

#bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha 227 #toga himiko #giran #shigaraki tomura #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #makeste reads bnha #are there any theories about tenko's sister possibly still being alive? #please you guys I need there to be theories where she lived #justice for the shimura sibs #brb going to pore through the entire manga looking for clues about who she might be if so #she's probably a couple years older than him #but we don't know her quirk #she could be anyone dammit #shimura hana please show yourself please I need this

[rosemaidenvixen]

A Secret’s Worth

Chapter 3: Darci

Ao3

Darci spotted the two boys pulling into the parking lot on their bikes. Without turning she reached over and tapped Mary on the shoulder “They’re here,”

Mary glanced up from her phone towards the newcomers, pressing a button to make the screen go dark before sliding it into her pocket.  

Jim and Toby came to a stop in front of them and began locking their bikes into the nearby racks “Good afternoon ladies,” Toby said while shutting his bike lock with way more flourish than was needed “I trust the ride here was pleasant enough?”

Darci was barely able to keep from groaning while Mary disguised a snicker as a cough, “Yeah, my dad dropped us off,” Toby wasn’t nasty with his flirting, not compared to some of the jerks they’d had to deal with, but it got old fast.

Jim stood up from his bike and glanced around the parking lot “So, uh...is Claire here? I thought she said--” 

“Here I am!” Claire jogged up to the group, panting from the exertion of her short run “I had to get the wristbands from my mom,” she handed out four strips of waxy paper, keeping the fifth to fasten around her own wrist “These should get us on any ride here,”

Jim’s eyes practically popped out of his skull “You didn’t have to buy all these, my mom gave me some money to--”

“It’s no big deal. As one of the city council members hosting the fair she gets a certain number of wristbands for free,”

“Oh...that’s cool,”  

They finished attaching the wristbands and headed into the fairgrounds proper. In no time at all they were surrounded by eye burningly bright primary colors splashed onto every structure and tent, metal creaked against metal as the rides started up with the first passengers of the afternoon. And it smelled like something, or maybe everything, was being being deep fried.

Darci eyed the boys walking a few steps ahead between her and her friends. They seemed alright as far as boys went, but hanging out with people that weren’t Claire or Mary just felt weird. But that wasn’t a reason to not hang out with them. If anything that was more of a reason. When Darci started high school she’d made a promise to herself. Get out of her comfort zone, spend time with people that she wasn’t friends with already.

Steeling herself, Darci sucked in a big breath through her nose. 

She could do this.

Her own personal goals aside, this whole thing had been Claire’s idea. To try and reach out to Jim after what had happened two weeks ago.

Not to mention they’d learned some pretty nasty details about why exactly Jim had broken down in the first place.

Claire had practically begged her and Mary to come with today, so that Jim wouldn’t think this was just a pity date. Not that she had to twist Darci’s arm too hard. She was always willing to lend a hand, especially when it involved going to the county fair. And if it forced her to spend time with new people, that was just an added bonus.

Now time to put operation Darci-comes-out-of-her-shell into action.

“So what do we want to do first?” she piped up.

They all glanced around at the various rides and booths, Mary’s gaze landed on a large, white tent “How about we see what’s in there?”

“Sure,”

“Sounds good,”

“I’m ok with anything,”

Reaching a lukewarm agreement, the five of them headed over to the tent in question. Stepping inside, Darci was hit with an odor that was musty and undeniably animal. Looking around, she saw that the whole tent was full of small to medium sized cages sitting on the straw covered ground and on plastic tables set up around the room. 

“I think this is where 4H is showing some of their animals,”

Toby crept closer to one of the cages, looking at the swan contained in it with wide eyes, only for the bird to flare it’s wings and hiss menacingly at him, causing all five of them to jump back.

Jim let out a nervous laugh “Hah...didn’t know swans could hiss like that,”

Darci raised an eyebrow “Have you seen canadian geese? Birds are monsters,”

Mary edged around the swan’s cage, making sure to never turn her back to it “Maybe we should skip the birds...”

They moved over to the other side of the tent, it looked like this was the rabbit area, based on the abundance of bunnies in the cages around them.

Claire fiddled with the tag on one of the enclosures “I wonder what they judge rabbits for?”

“Says here that this one is a ‘Holland Lop’,” Mary said while squinting at a cream colored rabbit with long floppy ears “‘Junior buck’, whatever that means,”

Claire stepped over to the Holland Lop cage and looked in, Darci and the boys joining them.

“What I’m wondering,” Darci asked “Is what they do with all these rabbits after the competition is over,”

They all pondered over that for a moment.

“Meat maybe?” Toby chimed in.

They all looked back at the adorable little bunny sitting in its cage and winced. Darci thought she could even see Jim turn a little green. 

Toby flushed and shifted from foot to foot. The silence awkward and heavy.

Darci wasn’t against eating rabbit meat, at least not in principle, but definitely not while looking at one of the cute little balls of fluff.

Needing to do something to break the tension, Darci scrolled over all the rabbit cages, only to do a double take when she got to the end of the row. Not quite believing what she was seeing, Darci stepped closer to it “Guys,” she pointed at the cage sitting on the end “Look,”

They all turned towards the cage in question, each of them freezing in turn before slowly approaching. The cage held a rabbit, much like the others, but with one huge difference.

“Awesomesauce….” Toby said in a hushed, reverent whisper.

Reaching over, Mary pulled up the tag “Apparently it's a ‘Flemish Giant’,”

Claire leaned her face right up against the wire of the cage “I didn’t even know rabbits could get this big,”

The rest of them made sounds of assent, still fixed on the almost comically oversized rabbit that was still chewing on its grass, oblivious to the teenagers gawking at it. 

“This thing’s the size of a coyote,” Darci said, still reeling from the fact that this rabbit could actually exist in real life.

“I’m pretty sure even coyotes are smaller than this,” Jim added.

Claire snorted “Can you imagine, a coyote sticks its head into a rabbit hole only to come face with twenty pounds of solid bunny?”

A giggle rippled through the group.

“That would be awesome!” Toby got right near the cage next to Mary “I totally want to see this guy duke it out with a coyote now,”

“Tobes I’m pretty sure the people here wouldn’t be down with animal fight club,”

“But could you imagine!”

They all laughed. 

And just like that, the ice was broken. 

Once they were done looking at the animals, they all went and checked out the rides, which were all pretty fun, in a sketchy, county fair kind of way.

After the teacups they made a unanimous decision to take a break from rides before someone,

Claire, and Darci if she was honest with herself,

Puked, moving to the games. They were all rigged across the board, Darci knew that, but they could still be fun.

Forty minutes and thirty dollars later, all they had to show for it was a fish that Toby won and graciously declined at ring toss,

Apparently it wouldn’t get along with his Nana’s cats,

And the giant plush penguin Mary had somehow defied the odds and managed to pop ten balloons in a row to get.

Once they’d been forced to quit at the games for the sake of their lightening wallets and empty stomachs, the five of them migrated towards the food tents to get something to eat.

Snacks bought and paid for; Claire, Mary, and Toby wasted no time tucking in. Jim and Darci held back, eyeing the...food...in front of them suspiciously.

“C'mon guys,” Mary said between bites of her corn dog “It’s not going to kill you,”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that….” Jim said while nervously prodding at the golden brown lump in front of him with his fork “I like cheesecake as much as the next guy, but deep frying it seems like a mistake...”

Darci looked down at her own cheesecake uncertainly, her feelings exactly.

“Quit being such a food snob Jim,” Toby chided “We didn’t come to the county fair to not eat delicious fried foods of dubious origin,”

“Just try it guys,” Claire’s own fried cheesecake had been reduced to a paper wrapper and the wooden stick it came on “I swear it’s really good,”

Darci and Jim shared a grimace, knowing that they had lost the battle. Gingerly, Darci tore off a chunk of cheesecake with her fork and raised it to her mouth, Jim doing the same. 

She bit down and started chewing, preparing herself for the worst, but much to her surprise, it was scrumptious. The crispy fried outside and the sweet, creamy cheesecake filling went together perfectly.

“Ok I admit it,” Jim said, the picture of defeat “This is delicious,”

“Told you so,” Toby said in a sing-song tone while Mary and Claire smirked at them.

Darci opted to ignore them in favor of eating more cheesecake.

The loud beeping of a phone alarm made Darci jump in her seat and swallow her cheesecake prematurely.

Jim slipped his phone out of his pocket, causing the ringing to intensify, before he tapped the screen a few times until the sound stopped. He slid the phone back into his jacket pocket before gathering up his food.

“Sorry guys, I have to take off now,”

Skeptical, Darci glanced towards the horizon. It was really early, the sun wasn’t even down yet. What was the rush?

“Already?” Claire lowered the deep fried oreo she had been preparing to take a bite of. She sounded pretty disappointed. Of course she was, Jim was her secret, not-so-secret, crush “Do you have to go now? There’s going to be a fireworks show later,”

Jim flashed them an apologetic look while folding the paper wrapper around his cheesecake “Sorry, my mom really doesn’t like me being out too late,” 

“Don’t worry about it,” Darci jumped in, if there was anyone her that understood overprotective parents, it was her “We can hang out some more later,”

Claire’s deep fried oreo fell out of her hand and Mary’s eyes widened. They had all agreed to go to the fair together, but none of them had said anything about what they would do beyond tonight.

The stunned looks on her friends’ faces didn’t bother Darci one bit. She knew what she was doing, Toby and Jim were a lot of fun. Definitely people that they could spend more time with. 

Operations Darci-comes-out-of-her-shell and help-Claire-with-her-not-pity-date were both off to a terrific start.

Toby was smiling from ear to ear and Jim visibly brightened at this “That...sounds really nice,” he stood from the table, picked up his food, and started heading towards where his bike was parked “I’ll see you guys later, thanks again for inviting us,”

“See you tomorrow Jim,” Toby waved as his friend walked away “I’ll try to win you a stuffed animal,”

“Bye,” 

“See you later,”

“Have a good night,” 

Darci, Mary, and Claire joined Toby in waving and saying goodbye, actions Jim mirrored until he was out of sight. 

There was a brief murmuring of disappointment at Jim’s departure, but the cheerful mood quickly returned. All of them, four now, finishing their food and getting ready to go back to the rides. 

Darci swallowed the last few bites of her cheesecake and chucked the stick in the trash. Tonight  was going great. Jim and Toby were nice guys, and they’d all had a lot of fun.

They should definitely do this again.

#trollhunters #tales of arcadia #fanfic #rmvwrites #a secret's worth #darci scott #claire nuñez #mary wang #toby domzalski #jim lake jr

[loquaciousquark]

Talks Machina Highlights - Critical Role C2E42 (November 20, 2018)

Dani was actually goofing around quite a bit here, but this still makes me think of some glorious 90s band, so I’m keeping it.

Anyway! The inimitable @eponymous-rose has done more than her share of recaps lately, so here I am picking up where I’ve been slacking off. Tonight’s guests are Marisha Ray and Laura Bailey (with special guest appearance from Ronin! Awwww), so I can hardly wait. We’re discussing Episode 42: A Hole in the Plan.

Tonight’s announcements: Brian is bursting with an announcement he’s not allowed to reveal for another six months. His favorite guess: something about him stealing all the money from the company and moving to an island, but that’s actually his long game, not the short one.

Throughout November, they’re raising money for Operation Supply Drop, Travis’s favorite charity, which supports both active and retired military.

No episode of Critical Role this week due to Thanksgiving. There will also be no episode of Talks Machina next Tuesday; instead, they’ll be airing Sam’s Fireside Chat! This was a reward from the Critter donations to the Pablove Foundation.

Critical Role hoodies are back in the store; the print is very similar to the original with a bit more embellishment on the text on the back.

“Honey Heist 3: Tova’s Honies” airs this Friday at 7pm Pacific! Marisha: “It was bear-nanas.” Laura: “Oh, no.”

CR Stats: Jester has cast Blessing of the Trickster 31 times; 15 of those times were on Nott. Jester technically won her bar brawl with Sorris! She dealt 16 points of damage to his 15. Beau continues to have the most natural 20s with 49. She also has the most natural 1s, womp womp. Marisha: “Well, I roll a lot, you know?” Brian: “Well, your husband is also a tyrant and not to be messed with.” Marisha says she thinks Gil’s die is cursed and everyone gasps. How dare.

Does Brian feel the pressure of following Dani, who was such an excellent host last week? No; when he went through the potential list of fill-ins, the only one that made sense was Dani.

Marisha sees Darktow as a super-abusive socialist society, which does not sit well with Beau. It’s a silk trap.

Jester’s conversation with Caleb was triggered by Fjord’s kiss, especially with her wondering if it really meant anything to either of them. Laura thinks of her high school crushes and how hard you crushed & how devastated you were at every perceived slight; Jester only has the view of romance through her mother, which means physical affection is very different from emotional affection in her mind. On Brian’s asking, Laura’s high school crush was Han Solo. When Laura’s sister was 12, she paid her $15 to paint Han and Leia in a dip kiss, which she still has framed in her current house. I’m dying, this is adorable.

Beau doesn’t exactly trust that Fjord is going to do the right thing, but him sleeping with Avantika doesn’t trigger her red flags in terms of “looking out for each other, keeping each other in check.” She’s looking more for them bullying someone when they don’t need to, being violent when it’s not necessary. “Pursuing power to endless depths and fucking hot pirates, that’s fine with Beau. She just doesn’t want to kill children.” Brian marvels at how this fits into Jester & Caleb’s conversation about killing people from the most recent episode.

Jester can tell Caleb is tortured, and more than anything she wants people not to be sad around her. She just wants desperately for him to be happy.

Marisha has thought a ton about what Beau would have said if Jester had come to her first about the kiss, especially since it was Jester’s first kiss (Marisha assumes, and Jester answers in an adorably non-committal not-not-a-negative). Beau would have been game for it. She doesn’t know if Beau would have given good advice, but she would have tried her best.

Brian spills that Mary’s character’s CHA in their home game is 6. They discuss Nott’s score of 5 and enjoy themselves mightily at both of their expenses.

GIF of the Week! By @ropadoper, it’s Liam casting Reduce and then the Wall of Fire at the end of the episode, both of which involve Marisha falling out of her chair to the floor in reaction so that only her forehead is visible. Everyone is being so cute this episode I can hardly stand it.

As a reminder, an international shipping facility has been created in the UK. Laura asides to tell Travis the keys are in the diaper bag. Literally everyone is in the studio tonight except Sam, EVEN ASHLEY.

Jester thinks the Traveler always gives very good advice, but his suggestion to trick Fjord was the first time ever she felt a little hesitation to follow his advice. Brian: “Is that because he’s never been wrong or because she’s never been allowed to disagree?” Laura says it’s always been amazing advice so far, much more a best-friend relationship, but this was the first time she didn’t want to take his suggestion wholesale because she wasn’t sure it’s how she wanted to get Fjord to like her. Marisha really likes the dynamic of finding out your childhood best friend is a god.

Beau finds herself still being careful with her walls--Marisha imagines Beau was put in a lot of, like, pageant dresses as a kid--so when Jester commented on her hair and then laughed, she felt a little of that “wait, what, do you actually care? Do I look like shit?” Laura says she laughed, not Jester, because it was the most random thing to compliment Beau on.

Beau’s haircut came into being because it was cool & because Marisha wishes she were brave enough to try an undercut.

Brian’s convinced Fjord’s got gills. Dani: “What do you think Fjord is?” Brian: “Obviously a water man. Water genasi. What are water genasi?”

Beau wasn’t surprised Allison rejected her; she’s used to it. Ack. She was looking for an ally against Avantika, Big Brother style. “Instead she just shat in an alleyway with Nott.”

Laura’s not perturbed the Traveler hasn’t mentioned Fjord’s god; he doesn’t really talk about/care about other gods or patrons. Brian suggests he’s actually the Dongfather in disguise. This show’s collective mental age is smaller than Pike, haha. 

Beau felt like such an interloper when Sam asked her to help with Fluffernutter, like the best friend trying to be in on a joke without really knowing what’s going on. Marisha also takes a moment to praise Laura for her Jester over the last few episodes; she’s digging into the metaphorical popcorn every time Jester & Nott start going off. (Me too, bud.) Jester’s description of the insect carrying a piece of bread is one of her favorite D&D moments ever. Both Marisha & Laura are agog at how many little plans they’ve tried have gone disastrous and then circled back around to being mostly okay again.

Beau was a little hurt when she wasn’t asked to help break into the captain’s quarters, since that’s her specialty, but it was eased by being able to help with her knowledge anyway. However, she knew since she didn’t have any magic, she had no escape plan aside from jumping off the boat. She laughs that that’s what they ended up doing anyway. 

Jester views sex as a transaction, which is why she’s not particularly bothered by Fjord sleeping with Avantika.

Fanart of the Week: @jdillustrates, with a lovely portrait of Caduceus.

Jester’s warring between the logical part of her brain (he was saving her life) and the romantic part of her brain (did he want to kiss me, though?).

There are reasons Beau learned Deep Speech--not as complicated as most people think--that will be revealed eventually. “Nerdy reasons, not because she was kidnapped and turned into a cultist.”

Fjord/Avantika does make her jealous, but it’s also serving a purpose. Laura compares it to telling the high school crush to go hang out with a best friend, only to have them start dating.

Marisha doesn’t feel like Beau’s plans were overly shot down this episode--it’s something she hadn’t even noticed until this question. Marisha feels like it’s so much of a group effort with everyone trying to get to the right plan that it’s hard to pick out who contributed what part of which plan.

Brief interlude to examine a portrait of Brian that looks like George Michael.

In re: the Molly disguise: Beau felt like there was just a wall of regret walking towards her, because it was the friend she let die and the one-night stand. Beau never felt it was actually Molly, though. Jester picked Molly because when Nott said “Keg,” she instantly associated it with “someone who is really cool--who’s also super cool?” Everyone commiserates over how into the night’s shenanigans Molly would have been.

Beau was frustrated while being detained, but she also knew it was going to happen, so it wasn’t a huge issue. She felt like that was where the challenge began for her--anything to get the guard away from what was going on. 

Another brief interlude where everyone experiments with how to make power vaginas with their hands. “This is the car salesman power vagina.” I feel like wherever the rails are for this show, they’re so far gone they might as well be little stars in the sky.

Laura thinks Jester’s reaction to Caleb’s backstory would be much different than Caleb imagines it. Both Laura & Marisha talk about how Caleb’s convinced the moment people realize, they’re gone; there’s also the complication that Beau’s “comforting” is not actually that comforting. “She’d say, ‘you know, they won’t care,’” (which Marisha points out, Caleb would respond--how could someone not care about this?) when what she means is, “They love you and won’t abandon you over this.”

Laura and Marisha are both pumped about Caleb’s Wall of Fire--the walk to the dock was like “getting called to the principal’s office, except the principal is going to kill you.” Laura’s immediate reaction was regret she’d tossed the gems, but she loved his decision since she was panicking IRL & her heart was legit pounding. They also both get super enthusiastic bashing Nott’s plan to dump the haversack in an alley. “It’s bright pink! Someone would have definitely seen it!”

Marisha really misses Professor Thaddeus, but is convinced she’ll never see him again. Dani: “He’s your Nymeria, your Arya.” Marisha, tearfully: “He’s gonna come with his flock of owls and gouge out everyone’s eyes but ours.”

Laura’s convinced Sprinkle is magic, since he definitely should be dead twice over.

Quebec is for Lovers: After Dark edition

Neither Laura nor Marisha are cooking this year. Laura & Travis have no Thanksgiving plans at all this year. My gosh, if they were here my parents would be stuffing them full of turkey yesterday, even though they have no idea who they are.

Brian teases Max over messing with Trinket & carrying him back and forth in his car. Dani wants one TM where Brian isn’t mean to Max. Max, offscreen: “I’m FINE. I’m GOOD.” Marisha laughs that Max was okay with Brian’s teasing but shooting daggers at the TDs laughing.

Brian gives Dani an A for amazing and adorable, but not asshole.

Dani ships Percy/Vex, Keyleth/Vax, and Fjord/Jester. Close after is Kima/Allura & Caleb/Jester. She would be surprised if it happened, but wouldn’t object. Marisha asks, as a shipper, what does Dani look for in a quality ship. Dani likes clear feelings with clear reciprocation, canon connections; she doesn’t ship a ton of subtexty stuff.

Laura has been relistening to Vex’s playlists & crying. Both she & Marisha really miss Vex & Keyleth. Liam texted Laura the other day a fanvid of Vex & Vax that made her cry.

Marisha gets emotional seeing fanart of older Keyleth because it means that she’s living on & being happy. Noelle also came up & thanked Marisha for giving Tova a purpose after the latest Honey Heist, and everyone talks about how many hours they’ve spent creating and living in these people.

Marisha can’t listen to Tokyo Sunrise by LP anymore because it instantly makes her cry.

Beau is not a mindflayer. Everyone’s convinced, Marisha.

If Laura had Jester’s paint set, she’d draw home improvements. She’d draw a door for her bathroom into Ronin’s nursery. Marisha would draw more producers--”Not to undermine the ones I have! We’re so overworked!”

Brian looks to Max for the time left, only to have missed Dani literally just giving him the signal.

Brian starts to say he’ll see us next week, but Dani tells him not to confuse us since there’s no TM next week. Brian: “We’ll see you next week this Thursday Critical Role on youtube.com, Logan Paul guest starring, along with Paul Rudd, Rudney Dangerfield...”

Max, as the sound fades: “Okay, please...”

And that’s it for tonight. See you next time, everyone!

#critical role #critical role spoilers #talks machina #talks machina spoilers #long post for ts

[kimjoongs-main]

first love! au - jaemin

↳ based off of this idea i had

↳ type: bullet scenario

↳ warning(s): n/a

↳ a/n: the amount of hw i could’ve finished instead of making this :’)

okay let’S GO

we all know how passionate is jaemin when it comes to volunteering and giving back to the community

so imagine him volunteering weekly at a daycare center near his neighborhood

he absolutely loves and adores all the children he meets and acts like a big brother figure to them

his reason for helping out in the daycare in the first place is that when he was younger, his mom would put him in a daycare and bc she had to work, and he remembers the older boys and girls who volunteered there when he was just a kid

he remembers how nice they were and the way they treated him, especially the boy who would always secretely give him a piece of candy every time he came in, and he remembers the sweet girl who would always boop his nose and ruffle his hair

jaemin wanted to reciprocate their love and affection to the kids at the daycare so that’s why when he first heard from renjun that they needed more people, jaemin jumped on that train so quick

now he’s been helping out at the daycare (w jeno, renjun, and hyuck as well) for about a year and a half

the kids absolutely admire him and would always cheer whenever they see jaemin walk in

the people who work at the daycare were very impressed at jaemin’s ability to memorize every single child’s face and name and even remember little things about them

and when a new child joins, jaemin easily makes them feel welcome by hovering around them and asking them to join in on games

he’ll tie back a little girl’s hair or give her a cute braid and he’ll give a little boy a piggyback ride around the center just to hear him laugh

also you better believe jaemin’s fiercely protective of these kids,,,like fiercely protective

one time a little girl named minji tripped and scraped her knee, she only let out one small cry and jaemin was already sprinting across the room, reaching little minji and scooping her up in his arms, gently tucking her head into his neck and quietly shushing her

he then proceeded to clean the scrape so it doesn’t get infected, all while carrying minji in his arms, and then after he read her a story to help her fall asleep soundly in his hold

renjun took a pic of this moment and jaemin loved it so much he made it his wallpaper

since jaemin’s super super good w the kids, the people at the daycare put him in charge of helping out the new volunteers and showing them how to do things

and that’s where you come in !! you’ve been desperately trying to find a place that takes volunteers bc you may or may not have made a stupid decision that almost got you suspended if it wasn’t for your parents pleading to the school to ease up the punishment

now instead of suspension, the school’s making you complete at least 200 hours of community service as a chance to “whip you into shape”

ofc you didn’t want to but it was better than getting suspended, so you reluctantly accepted the deal and now here you were, standing inside a daycare in front of a boy w peach pink hair and a smile too bright for your liking

“hi! you must be the new volunteer, my name’s jaemin and i’m in charge of helping you. nice to meet you!” he holds out his hand and you have to physically restrain yourself from flinching

you see, you weren’t the social type, the complete opposite actually, so you could already tell that this guy was someone you weren’t going to be all buddy buddy with

but you needed the hours so you just sucked it up and managed to send him your best smile and shook his hand

“nice to meet you too...i’m y/n” you replied quietly

right behind jaemin were three other boys who looked about the same age as him; one was currently painting a picture w a 4 year old girl, another was sitting on the floor w a group of kids and reading them a story, and the last one was running around the room chasing a little boy

jaemin looked over his shoulder to see what you were looking at and laughed “oh i should probably introduce you to everyone else. the one painting is renjun, the one on the floor is jeno, and the loud one is donghyuck”

you blinked at him as he gestured for you to follow him inside, which you did, but immediately regretted it when five children ran up to you and peered up at you curiously

they kept talking over each other, possibly trying to ask you a bunch of questions, and you felt overwhelmed

sensing your obvious discomfort, jaemin quickly moved over to stand next to you and clapped his hands, catching their attention

“okay kids that’s enough, y/n’s our newest helper so make be nice and welcoming okay? go on and play w the others, i’ll be right back”

and to your suprise, the kids responded back w a loud “yes nana” and left

jaemin looked at you sheepishly “sorry about that, they get really excited when a new person comes by since it’s usually us four that come in”

“it’s only the four of you volunteering here? i would’ve thought there’d be more”

jaemin sent you a sad smile as he showed you to the back room where he gestured for you to sit on the leather chair as he sat across from you

“i thought the same too, but whenever new people come they tend to leave pretty quickly after” “why?”

he sent you another sad smile “they find it difficult to take care of the kids. my friends and i are the ones who’ve volunteered the longest, so the center’s pretty grateful for us”

your heart aches slightly at the revelation and you peer out the door to look at the children, heart aching even more as you see them running around and laughing

“so, what brings you here?” jaemin asked, and you winced at the question, causing him to raise his eyebrows

“i..um...i made a really stupid decision..and my school’s making me do community service to make up for it.”

jaemin let out a soft oh and you mentally slap yourself; great, this guy probably thinks i’m a terrible person who’s only here bc i’m forced to, which technically isn’t a lie but—

“do you like kids, y/n?” jaemin’s next question interrupted your train of thought and you blink before it fully registered in your brain

“oh uh..yeah i do actually. i just..i’m not...very social..so i don’t know how to act around them yet.”

jaemin nodded his head at your answer, a serious look on his face, before he broke out into a soft smile and walked over to you, placing his hand gently on your shoulder

“well that’s good enough for me! listen, i know you probably think that i think you’re a bad person bc of the reason you’re here, but trust me when i say stuff like that doesn’t matter to me. just the fact that you came here instead of somewhere else says a lot. i’ll be here to help you out if you need it, so don’t worry y/n. i’ll make sure you not only complete your required hours, but that you also have fun doing it.”

jaemin grinned once more before he turned around and walked out “i’m gonna grab your uniform really quick, so stay put!”

you just sat there staring at the door in shock at what you just heard...it was the first time someone’s been that nice and nonjudgmental towards you

you glanced down at the comm. service log sheet in your hands and sighed “maybe....this won’t be so bad”

for the next few weeks, you and jaemin are practically glued to each other as he helps you get into the swing of things

as expected, you fumble a couple of times, but jaemin is always there to help you back up and even offers some advice so you don’t make the same mistake

since you two spend a lot of time together, it was inevitable that you two would grow close pretty quickly, and not just jaemin, but renjun, jeno, and donghyuck too

you sometimes found yourself being invited to hang out w them outside of the daycare and it’s so..refreshing to be around them

as the weeks pass, you also slowly become fond of the kids and vice versa; you’re especially fond of a little boy named juhyun who loves to hold your hand every chance he gets

and as jaemin watches you play w the kids, he can’t help but smile at how much more comfortable you’ve become, not just w him, his friends, or the kids, but w yourself too; he can tell you’re rlly enjoying your time here

and as you two spend more time together, and learn more things about each other, you two can’t deny the feelings brewing in the depths of your heart

jaemin’s kind, and self-less personality is what drew you to him and your willingness to learn and awkward, yet endearing nature is what drew jaemin to you

he was never rlly quite sure what his feelings for you were, until he witnessed something about you he’s never seen before

there was a new volunteer at the daycare and as usual jaemin was in charge of showing him around; you were playing w juhyun when jaemin left for a bit to grab the new guy’s uniform

at first everything was normal, but then you heard little areum start crying and your head whipped up so fast; areum was sitting next to a pile of toppled blocks and the new guy was standing next to her, glaring

“quit your crying, your block tower was in my way” his sharp tone caused areum to cry even louder

appalled, you stood up and made your way over to areum, carefully picking her up in your arms and tried to calm her down; you sent a glare to the new guy “what was that for? she’s just a little girl, you don’t have to be so rude”

the guy rolled his eyes “she’s annoying that’s what”

“if she’s so annoying then why don’t you leave? it’s obvious you don’t get along w kids so why are you even here?”

the guy stepped closer to you “you can’t tell me what to do”

“but i can” you breathed a sigh of relief at the sound of jaemin’s voice, and the guy whipped around

jaemin was standing there w a bright grin on his face, but the way he was clenching the uniform in his hands told you that he wasn’t actually happy

“here at the daycare, we put the well-being of the children as our first priority and ensure that they are safe and happy. however, since you’ve shown behavior that goes against that policy, i’m afraid i’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

the guy scoffed, but left w/o a word, knowing that this was a fight he couldn’t win

when jaemin came back, he saw you kneeling in front of areum, gently cradling her face and wiping away her tears, and he felt his heart clench tightly at the sight

the worry on your face and the way you held areum as if she were a fragile piece of glass solidified his feelings for you

however, he was still unsure of how to express those feelings to you

and unbeknownst to him, you felt the same exact way :’)

a few more months pass and one day jaemin decided to walk you home from the daycare

on your way there, he asks you the comm. service hours thing is going and you falter a bit, biting your bottom lip shyly

jaemin, as perceptive as ever, quickly notices and asks if you’re okay

you stop walking and sigh, looking up and locking eyes w him; your heart skips a beat when you take in his iridescent eyes, twinkling as they reflect the light of the moon, you could get lost in them forever

“jaemin, there’s something i need to tell you...” you pause and he nods, urging you to continue “my community service hours...i completed all 200 hours a few weeks ago”

his eyes widen in surprise “seriously?! wait, if that’s the case then you don’t have to volunteer at the daycare anymore right?” you nod your head slowly “......then, why?”

you take a deep breath as you force yourself to step closer to him; jaemin gulps when you do so, but doesn’t make any move to stop you

“well it’s simple, i’ve fallen in love” jaemin felt his heart stop and his breath caught in his throat

“i’ve fallen in love w the kids, they’re my absolute world now and i would do anything for them. i’ve fallen in love w the daycare, it’s my safe haven. i’ve fallen in love with little juhyun who keeps falling asleep on me. but most importantly...” you step closer “...i’ve fallen in love with you, na jaemin”

jaemin’s chest fills with so much happiness and adoration for you as your words register through his brain. his beautiful bright smile appeared on his face, and you can’t help but smile back

and that’s all it takes for jaemin to close the tiny gap btwn the two of you; he brings his hands up and gently cups your cheeks as his lips land softly on top of yours

the kiss is sweet and so jaemin-like that you feel your stomach doing all kinds of flips and tricks; you reach out and grab onto his jacket, tugging him closer to you as the kiss deepens

you two break apart when the need for air becomes apparent, but jaemin leans forward and rests his forehead against yours

“that’s funny, bc i’ve fallen in love with all of those things too” you start blushing “except for juhyun tho, that little guy needs to back off”

you giggle at the playful glare on his face and jaemin’s expression softens at the sound; he plants another kiss on your lips and...let’s just say your parents weren’t too happy when you came back home after the sun went down :’)

the next day, you and jaemin walked in the daycare hand-in-hand, receiving knowing looks from renjun and jeno, and a loud whoop from hyuck

and when the kids saw you and jaemin sneak in a quick kiss, chaos ensued

“jaemin and y/n sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g!” “jaemin just kissed y/n!!” “eww they’re kissing”

you just laugh and scold the kids for their teasing, and jaemin kisses you again for fun

#nct #nct dream #nct scenarios #jaemin scenarios #nct au #nct dream au #jaemin au

[what-the-fuck-khr]

I see you talking about disliked characters. Hmm, if you ask me, I absolutely detest Iemitsu. He's like the worst father in the series after failing to carry out his responsibilities as a parent. Also, he proved himself to be a bastard when he beat the crap out of his son during the Battle of the Rainbow only for Reborn to save Tsuna. I'd totally understand if Tsuna would consider Reborn as his father more than him.

oh I think I expected this one to show up in my inbox because anon, you’re not the only one trust me it’s quite a popular opinion

while I don’t personally HATE Iemitsu (bc I do think he was trying, considering he was in the literal mafia and trying to protect his family and still sent them his income to keep them housed and fed etc) I’m not the fondest of him either for the same reasons everyone else hates him.

bc he’s just.... while he was trying to protect them, when he WAS in Japan he was lacklustre and unresponsive to Tsuna as his child, basically picked up another kid in Italy (sorry Basil), and just kind. does nothing. at all lol and it’s frustrating and hard to make a defence for the bastard bc he’s just.... y’know

#raises the question on why people adore nana so much then #when she was by far not the most excellent mother either #if we’re trying to be fair here is all #23 #ask #lovely anon #disliked characters

[afraschatz]

Leverage - The Rashomon Job

‘The Rashomon Job’ is clearly one of the cleverest episodes ever, is pretty much sheer storytelling porn all over. And I’m not even trying to go for a full analysis why it is so awesome and instead just stick to a random list of stuff I love aboutit. I love (that)...

... how the ep starts with the bar being ready for closing but the team minus Nate are mid-argument and completely oblivious to the fact that everyone else has left. This is so their living room, and as much as I like the notion that they all have other friends (one of my favourite thing about The Girls Night Out / The Boys Night Out actually), there is nothing more lovely than proof of them hanging out, even when they are not on a job

... Parker having fetched Dad err Nate to resolve the argument

... Sophie’s “shush, you did fine in prison the first time”. Like, Moreau who? We’re having a SERIOUS argument here

...”I STOLE IT” and ALL their expressions, but particularly Parker’s facepalm (haha, you know you’re in trouble when Parker is the sane one in a fight) and Hardison’s MASSIVE eyeroll. And Nate’s utter GLEE. He is so evil. And I think one of my favourite things about this ep is that his smirk does not go away for the ENTIRE episode. He is just so amused for the entire thing <3

... Eliot and Hardison backing each other up re: Sophie is lying

... Sophie being the first one to tell her story. Which makes so much sense because everything we see - the museum itself, the guests in the background, the music, the food, everything, is what Sophie TELLS us. Even though we don’t hear her say all that of course, the fact that we as viewers see all that is due to Sophie setting the scene with so much attention to detail. It’s a setting that the others’ stories will continue using / warping to their convenience, but the ground work is all Sophie’s

... Sophie’s choice of dress for this. I love you, Sophie, but what an actual catastrophe is that pink thing? Whyyyyy? I mean, okay aside from the fact that everyone else is NOT wearing pink and clearly she is the center of attention (I mean, she takes the time to tell us that she got fricking APPLAUSE on arrival)

... Nate appearing out of nowhere behind her, completely not dressed for the occasion and the only one not smitten with her. His questions of course clue you in that this is Nate-in-the-pub asking these questions, but I am so in love with his sudden appearance, his casual clothes, his lack of admiration being the visible info that he is NOT part of the story. And don’t get me started on the mirror / Nate behind glass thing, and Coswell standing in exactly the same spot that Nate just vacated

... and there is the second thing about Sophie’s way of telling the story. She is so proud of her accomplishment and the scene she set and is setting again for Nate’s sake that she includes details such as other people’s jewellery etc, but she completely fails to focus even just once on other people. She dismisses the waitress/Parker without looking at her, same as she didn’t even glance at Coswell. Such a great bit of Sophie characterisation right there

... Bioko slapping the offended guest’s butt. Because of course Bioko is Hardison and while we can’t trust his account of events later on either (=being adored by every female in the room), THIS kind of behaviour doesn’t fit him either. So again, it’s down to Sophie’s kind of faulty storytelling here; she needs an oaf for a fall guy/distraction and Bioko kinda fits the bill and she leaves it at that

... Sophie hurrying up the storytelling when Bioko is coking. That contrasted to the amount of time she spent relaying to us how utterly enchanting Abernathy found her? Again, so neat, because Sophie isn’t really interested in any kind of drama she isn’t the centre of, and thus the entire man-dying-situation is merely a footnote to her - hastily told, strangely paced and comically overacted by Abernathy

...Sophie’s completely different body language when she plays the doctor. Her accents of course are legend, but man, the way she changes her walk and posture and gestures as well? So flawless

... Sophie perceiving Coswell’s attention to her as a threat and thus completely missing that he is flirting with her. That in combination of her thinking that Abernathy is flirting while Eliot definitely has other motives (as well)? Wow, Sophie, something really is going wrong with your pulling game that night :)

... Sophie even adding sound effects to the completely over-the-top (and imaginary) shotgun that Coswell in her story carries down the stairs

...”The dagger wasn’t in the shipment” - and Eliot’s GLEE. Seriously, he and Nate in this ep? Such dicks. Such brothers. <3

...the setting for Eliot’s part of the story. Where Sophie gave us an establishing shot of the museum, then the museum in all its glory and filled with guests, what does Eliot give us? Some concrete walls, cardbord boxes and neon light. What is far more important is a detailled account on the fight with two guys we don’t even know and that don’t even matter. Because fighting is important, damnit

... “If I’m not honest with you, you can’t improve”

...after Eliot re-used Sophie’s establishing shot of the museum, once again, he goes for the dark-corners-close up. In that car, with that poor guy. And all Eliot has to do to be seriously scary is to just not smile. He doesn’t even need to raise his voice

... Eliot taking the piss out of Sophie’s accent. We know he can do Sophie’s normal accent properly - he just DID it when he took over the story and told the team that he was Abernathy - so the sole reason why he uses that accent is because he wants to mess with Sophie <3

...the size of the knife. Thank you, Eliot, for clearing that up. That makes so much more sense than Sophie’s (or Hardison’s or Parker’s OR Nate’s version)

...Bioko and Eliot in the basement. Eliot being annoyed by Hardison without even knowing it IS Hardison, hahaha <3

... locked-up comedy frame. Always hilarious

...again, a very detailled and close up account of the fight

... Coswell carrying the box for the roses, not a gun, in Eliot’s story. Because different from the grifter, the hitter of course can tell a box from a shotgun

... “Ipcress. Weird eyes. Funny hair.” - Hahaha, so charming, Eliot

...Eliot throwing away that vase so it shatters. Given that the entire box of stuff belongs to Sophie? Just another way to mess with her

...Eliot’s story ending before he opens the box. Different to Sophie whose first version of the tale showed us her holding the dagger (“That was the plan”), Eliot is honest, he just leaves out the important bit. Too bad that Hardison knows what happened next

... “What, is stealing mail a crime?” Parker <3

...”Well, whatever it takes to get the job done, babe.” - WHY, Leverage? WHY is Eliot not calling Sophie “babe” all the time. I want that now. Give it to me.

...I also want Hardison to call Eliot “babe”. Why didn’t I get that either? Unfair

...such a neat way to wrap up Eliot’s side story of Gutman blackmailing him. So perfectly framed - because while watching it for the first time, you’re so hooked on the dagger theft that you don’t notice Nate’s expression and the suspiciously convenient way that got resolved

... Hardison’s villainous cackle and his grin <3

...Parker and the shell-game. Again SO NEAT. Because this is what’s being done to us as viewers here and we SHOULD know how the shell-game works, that Hardison doesn’t end up with the dagger either, that Parker as the one operating the shell game actually has the prize (well, is closest to it)

... Hardison’s accent. Accent porn

... Hardison’s repeated slip-ups (“My nana’s house, err my house”) and his competely over-the-top recollection of his flirting success in that ultra-short montage

... his version of the Eliot/Sophie dance and his grin of approval. Why exactly do you take a photo of that, Hardison??

...Hardison making Sophie sound like one of the dwarves from LotR. Because clearly he COULD do a better job at a British accent. But why should he? Especially since the boyfriend err I mean the partner in crime err Eliot so obviously approves

...Eliot, the maniac, tackling him to the ground, trying to open his throat with a figgin machete (what is a knife that size doing at that party?)

... “Let’s get you somewhere quiet now, where there is no witnesses” continued by Eliot being CREPPY in the basement and Hardison’s ultra-fake smile hahaha

...”I still beat you” - because for Hardison this is what this is about. Beating Eliot. Who are these other people even :)?

... the shell game reveal and Nate is SO PROUD of Parker <333

...Parker’s story is SO not about any of that mood-setting shit or any of the details like... other people in the room. She even interrupts Nate when he asks her for her way in. Because this is about where to stash her gear, and how to get to the prize. Nothing else matters.

...Hardison stealing food and being SO adorably Hardison, Sophie being weird in her Britishness, Coswell being annyoingly “there” in Parker’s story

... SOUND EFFECTS FOR THE HUGE KNIFE. Because Parker’s life clearly is anime.

...the hasty and jagged storytelling. Yes, that is also because we’re hearing the story for the forth time, but it definitely shows how Parker tells a story

... Parker skipping <3

...Parker being honest about losing the dagger

...Nate’s portrayal of the others in his version. Sophie being just that little bit arrogant, Parker being cold, Eliot and his swagger, and all that in contrast to the utter adorableness of Coswell (and Nate being a DICK to him) : All that is very realistic. And then he adds a dash of humour to it: the size of the knife that Parker hands Eliot and Eliot’s WTF reaction to it for instance

... the actor playing Coswell is just awesome. So awesome. I feel for him here, poor guy.

... Nate not being IN his version of the story except for the beginning and the end. Instead his job is to put the pieces together and get the most imporant (and realistic) bits from the others in a straight line

... “Pretty eyes, little ponytail in her hair” - Aw, Nate <3 (And Eliot’s AMUSEMENT in that version of the story. Really, Nate, in your world Eliot is a romantic softie? I am not judging. Actually, I approve. Of that and of “You need a tissue” compassionate Hardison as well)

... Nate being a cold-hearted insurance guy asshole. I mean I don’t love him like that because he is horrible, but I love the contrast of that Nate to Team-Leverage-Nate and what that says about the influence of these four people on him <3

... while Sophie, Parker, and Hardison run out, Eliot hangs back. That moment of silent communication between him and Nate? I LOVE their relationship

SUCH a perfect episode <3

#leverage #nate ford #sophie deveraux #alec hardison #eliot spencer #parker #things I love about #the rashomon job #episode reaction

[babykpopsweets]

Sadness Behind a Locked Door

Request- Hello! May i request a Jaemin scenario where he cheats on you and you find out. And the ending is up to the author. Thank you!

Unedited.

Author’s note; hola. I am beyond sorry for how long this took. We haven’t posted much due to problems in our personal lives. But surely we will be more active from now on. On here as well as on our other blog @peachyfanfics !

(My baby 🥦🥦 -Jamz)

——

Jaemin entered the dorm while being completely exhausted. He dragged his feet and kept his shoulders low. Practice was always such a bum and it never failed to make him exhausted. As he began raising his head he saw Chaeyoung, a girl he’d been seeing at the same time as you. She stood up and ran to him.

“Jaemin-ah~ why do you overwork yourself!?” She began speaking with a whiny voice.

“Cause’ it’s what I do. It is why I love and I will do anything to keep it.” Jaemin replied while tossing his bag from practice across the floor.

Then the other boys came in. It was a big laughing herd. It all got silent though when they saw Chaeyoung holding Jaemin’s shoulder.

“Yah! What is this? Jaemin I thought you were dating Y/N?” Taeyong asked with concern about Jaemin’s current actions.

“Aish. NOTHING! How many times do I have to say? There isn’t going on between us two. Okay?” Jaemin answers with anger annoyance apparent in his tone.

“Okay~ if you say so.” Lucas teased and then led everyone out of the living room.

Chaeyoung was extra careful when around the boys. Any small mistake in words for her and they would know. From them they’d tell you. Which wasn’t a good thing.

“What are we going to do Nana? This secret has been kept far too long. Y/N is gonna find out soon.” Chaeyoung continued “plus you love me right? Not Y/N.”

“That isn’t a question I have a real definite answer to.”

“Come on Jaemin! You’ve been cheating on Y/N for a month now and you still can’t make up your mind on whether or not you don’t love her. Its obvious you. If you did you wouldn’t be with me.”

“Stop Chaeyeong. The reason I am with you has not a thing to do with Y/N so leave her out of this.”

“wow obviously you aren’t who I thought you were. I am sick and tired Jaemin it is either me or her. Pick.”

“No. I-I can not.”

All conversations ends abrutly at the sound of a knock at the door.

“Um, I thought today was supposedly for us only.”

“It was Chaeyoung I told Y/N I was too tired to go out.”

Jaemin then proceeds to answer the door. His heart drops when he sees your face.

“Y/N.”

“Jaemin who is that?” You softly whispered with a shaky voice.

“Chaeyoung. A girl from SM. A friend of mine.” He replied.

“Oh. Is that how it is? I see you have made your choice. Well Y/N I am Chaeyoung Jaemin’s second girlfriend.”

Your heart dropped at her words. You had come to the dorms to comfort Jaemin since you knew he was tired because of work. And you just got the worst news.

“O- I- um. I will leave you two then. As for Jaemin, don’t even try to explain this. You cheated on me and lied about it. It is over.”

You didn’t even let him say a word before you turned around left. As you made your exit you felt tears welling in your eyes. The other people entering the dorms looked at you confused. Everyone knew you were dating Jaemin, it wasn’t a hidden secret that was kept from the public either. Fans knew of the relationship you two were and weren’t too happy at first but warmed up to it.

After all you guys had been through... all the backlash and heartbreaking hate you guys overcame together. And Jaemin just decided to treat you as if you were less then him. Never in a million years would you ever let him do that to you.

The tears running down your cheeks increased when you saw happy couples that reminded you way too much of Jaemin. You unlocked the door to your house and closed it (locked it) the second you got in. Whatever did you do to Jaemin to deserve this harsh unfair treatment.

-

Jaemin sat alone in his room after Chaeyoung left. He couldn’t take his mind off the way your eyes seemed so heartbroken. He couldn’t take his mind off the fact your face became shaky whilst stuck in this situation. He couldn’t take his mind off the fact that he did that to you.

What kind of human being would hurt the one they “love” by loving someone else?

Jaemin messed up big time now. And he doesn’t if can ever make things go back to the way they were.

- one year later -

You sat at the arcade waiting for your date to show up. Two hours had passed already and they still weren’t here. You looked around at all the other couples around laughing and having fun with each other. A deep sad sigh was emitted from you as the realization hit you that you had been stood up. All hope left you as you turned off your phone and started to walk away.

There hasn’t been a day in your life since that day with Jaemin where you haven’t missed him. However, you knew with great pain was a great cause for it. You couldn’t go back to him. He was the man who treated you as if you were less than him. He was the man who cheated on you and if you were to go back he could do that exact same thing. You knew you weren’t suppose to feed into an unhealthy relationship and you weren’t planning to.

As you were walking you felt a few rain drops on your faces. Not sure if it was going to rain or not you check the weather on your phone.

‘Crap’ you thought to yourself as you read that it was raining.

Immediately you run into the nearest store to you right now. You took out your wallet and payed for one of the prettiest umbrellas you could find. The second you were about to leave, it was pouring. You opened the umbrella and tried dashing towards your house.

On your way to your house, you spotted a male figure outside in the rain. Without having to step any closer your heart dropped. This man looked a lot like Jaemin — the man who shattered you into broken glass. He looked great though. He looked like a fine piece of art hung in the museum for tourists to adore. Expect it wasn’t that. He was a beautiful man with many fans, but with his beauty the heavens cursed him with a dreadfully awful heart.

His heart only cared for certain people and you weren’t one of them. And if he didn’t want to open up the gates of his heart to you, why did he let you do it? He didn’t care and he never will.

Your thoughts started to trail off as you saw him sitting on the bench in front of the corner store. The place where you guys went right before your first date. Seeing him in the rain sad, alone, and depressed made you feel some type of way. He was going to get sick if he stood out in the rain like that.

Quickly you rushed back to your house and went to your closet. Luckily for this moment, you still had one of Jaemins old sweatshirts you had taken awhile back on a movie date at NCT’s dorms. You snatched it out of the closet and ran back out to him with the umbrella you just bought.

You arrived to just see him in the same exact position. The red light was lit for the cars and the walking person signal told you to cross. Which you did. Confidently you walked up to him, before you could back out of the plan.

“Here.” You stated plainly towards him.

Upon hearing the familiar voice his head shot up. Was it really you?!

“Y/N? You’ve c-come back?” Jaemin stuttered as the cold breeze passed.

“No. Just take this sweater and the umbrella. Just because we broke up doesn’t mean I can’t care for you.” Quickly you handed him the umbrella and sweater just so you can get out of there.

You let go of a heavy sigh once he took hold of it. Without merely a second going by you turned around and walked away from. Trying to let go. Let go of the feelings. Let go of the pain. Let go of him...

Then you felt a large hand grab your hand and turn you around to look at him. Ugh, Jaemin. He looked deep in your eyes as a tear slipped down his face. He softly placed his lips on yours. It felt comforting. To have a sense of connection with him again. But for right now you were forbidden from him.

The kiss last 2 seconds before you realized how wrong this way. You couldn’t just let him back into your life, at least not this easily. The grasp of his hand on your neck loosened as you gently pushed him away.

“No. I can not do this. Do you not realize how much your actions ruined me?” You argued as you saw his tears stream down.

“I know. But please just let me love you again. You were and still are my everything. I can’t afford to lose you.”

“If you couldn’t lose me, you would’ve stopped treating me like a fool and actually think about my dignity and pride. Or myself in general!”

As silence hit in between the two of you before you decided it was time. Time to leave. You swallowed your sadness and tears as you turned around once again and left.

-

You entered your house and slammed the door shut (you locked it too ofc!). That’s when the tears were allowed to come out. Your sadness was only allowed to spill out when you are by yourself behind a locked door...

(This got me in my feels. But still love you Jaemin💝💝)

-Admin Jamz

#nct #nct scenarios #nct smut #nct jaemin #nct dream #nct u #nct 127 #nct reactions #nct smut reactions #nct angst #nct fluff #nct mafia #nct mafia reactions #nct mafia scenarios

[sleepinglune]

never enough, pt 2

once upon a time, you and mark were lovers. but, some things don’t work out as you let your emotions of insecurity break apart the love you shared. back to the present, you and mark meet up once again as music majors who have to compose a song together.

part one ← part two. ➝ part three.

you dreamt about meeting mark. you envisioned this scenarios many times. they were all different from each other. the stark contrast was always on what kind of expression he had. most of the times, it was a sincere one. no malice as the boy wasn’t able to bare such emotion. there was another constant in the mix. the distance. it was an arm-length away. neither of you dared to vouch into that space. it was the space that marked your ever-wallowing emotions. it was also the leeway that justified the day you broke two hearts. yours and his. but, most importantly his.

but, here you were. your hand willing crossing the barrier, fingers eager for touch. you thought for a moment maybe he wouldn’t hold it. but, he did.

if this happened in more favorable circumstances, you would think mark’s touch was euphoric. it caused electricity to course through your veins. the blood racing as your limbs are trying to retain their strength. but, you’re thankful by how your focus was on your sticky fingers. the remains of the dried-out coffee cause sweat to accumulate on the dents of your palms. that’s why your heart relaxed the moment you heard the word you always longed to hear. you pulled your hand quickly, the remains of palpitation still pulsed through your palm.

despite you didn’t really thought about it, donghyuck and yukhei did. they noticed how hasty your action was. you sensed how your best friend’s eyebrow rose, questioned the nervous energy you radiate. at the sudden gaze, you felt self-conscious on how your sudden pull would be taken. god, you were just hoping mark wasn’t taking it the wrong way.

“ha, good. i don’t think i need to worry much then. you’re a good artist, after all.” you asserted, tone filled with genuinity.

your features that were plastered with anxiety somewhat softened. the tails of your lips were upwards, a smile you only handed to him. mark remembered that look very well. it was the look he usually caught you had when you stared at him with awe. adoration crinkled in your eyes.

whilst you two shared these gazes whose weight was becoming evident to bystanders, donghyuck’s curiosity simply grew. it was like trying to contain a burst of flame. he cleared his throat to have everyone’s attention.

“oh?” his tone released an airy feel to it. his head tilted as his gaze fixated into yours. under his eyes, you felt rather intimidated. “i been having this question running through my head for a while actually. how do you know mark? or better yet, why you keep acting between knowing him and not knowing him at all?” his words strung in the air that grew tense.

your fingers reached for the hem of the shirt, crumbled the piece of fabric. your first reaction was a rather foolish one as you let the nervous bubble of laughter burst. it resonated on the confined space you did. “uhm,” your throat somehow found your voice under the crumples of your body waiting to combust. “mark and i have history, per say. yeah!” your tongue tried to adhere together as you grew scared of getting tied together between your debate to lie or tell the truth.

“i just- we have known each other for awhile.” you settled for that answer, slightly proud you didn’t stutter. but, you knew that wasn’t the answer he was searching for. but, mark rescued you from the scrutinizing his best friend was putting you through.

“stop giving her that look, hyuck. she’s right. we’re acquaintances.” his voice mellows out the situation, a depth of hurt concealed by his kind nature. donghyuck realized this as he has been friends with the boy beside him since eternity became a word.

“i’m not questioning that. i’m just curious on how you know each other.” he refuted, a pout etched on his lips.

“well,” you said, your mouth eagerly betrayed you. “we met through music. i quickly became his fan. i really like that song, sentimental.” your tone managed to not quiver under the three gazes focused on you.

at the mention of the song, mark’s facade faltered a bit. his lips weren’t able to maintain the friendly smile he upheld. sentimental was a song he composed when his emotions were too wild. he couldn’t keep the wild beast called the heart in the confinement of his ribcage. hence, he let it free when he wrote sentimental. sentimental was the song about your break up.

donghyuck who witnessed quietly this interaction finally connected the dots. his eyes widened, lips parted at the new revelation he just unveiled. before his throat could vibrate with sound, yukhei intervened. his own mind twirled the gears and connected the straws without a destination.

“i agree! it’s a great song! but, y’know. my heart lays with the songs cherry bomb and we young. those songs always have me hyped!” his tone fragments the quiet atmosphere that loomed over your shoulders. you have never been more thankful for yukhei’s ever so friendly personality.

you saw how mark’s expression returned to its glory. the big eyes that held the stars and the smile that challenged the sun’s spark. his cheeks are painted with the prettiest shade of red, deluded between the space. a sheepish laugh escaped. “i’m glad you guys enjoy my songs. i hope you keep supporting them.” his tone rimmed with joviality as his eyes wandered from yukhei’s to yours.

“of course! you know i’m your biggest fan!” your best friend chimed with a chirpy tone to compliment.

your features were no longer the stone figure you molded. it broke apart with a similar smile as mark’s. it was a smile that expressed the warmth that oozed throughout your body. dang, his effect on you hasn’t lost any impact. “i’m sure i will.” your voice somehow turned softer than you realized. it was so soft, so quiet that if you were farther, it would have been carried by the wind. but, mark was always good at catching words that weren’t meant to be heard.

donghyuck cleared his throat once the initial shock faded from his system. or well, it wasn’t as overwhelming as it first was because he didn’t sign up to be part of a drama. for all he knew, he signed up to sing his heart out and that’s it.

“y/n,” he called your name with that sweet voice of his. you simply turned your head in response, eyes catching his. “i’m sorry, i misjudged you right there. you see, my boy mark here,” his arm latched beside the other, arm over the shoulder. “he has been through some heartache and i’m just trying to protect him from it.” he knew those words were meant to hurt. they were meant to raise something that was buried. which, it worked.

your eyes twitched slightly, your fingers cramped and you had to reposition your feet to maintain stability. the instigated reaction caused donghyuck to realize that this love you and his best friend had still burned. he confirmed his assumptions as those stories from mark found sense. so, it was time to put his role as the protagonist’s best friend into action. his mind already had several plots on how could this relationship of yours will be executed.

“hey, don’t say that.” mark replied immediately, hand against donghyuck’s chest. “it’s not even true and how is it relevant? hyuck, that’s not nice to assume.”

guilt revolted in the pit of your stomach because of course. they seemed to be close friends. why wouldn’t donghyuck not know about you? or well, more how he caught the hints that were unconsciously dropped.

“it’s okay!” you spoke again, cringed on the inside. “i understand. i wouldn’t want my best friend to be hogged by some random strangers.” you said as your arm wrapped around yukhei. more than this action being meant to brag, it was meant for comfort. you were glad to see how the boy caught the message as his hand reached for yours.

“don’t we have it so tough mark? being handsome is always a hard chore. we are lucky to have people to support us on this journey.” your best friend jested as he tried to lift the mood.

you weren’t exactly mad at donghyuck for saying such a crude statement. it was meant to be raw and you knew it. if someone hurt yukhei like you hurt mark, you would probably react the same way. but little did you know, it was just donghyuck giving you his last judgment before giving you his blessing.

mark laughed at the comment, the joy emitted. “we are lucky! but, hyuck here is more popular than i am. just while ago, renjun called him to claim his spot as his number one best friend! imagine that level of threat.” your ex followed with ease, trying to cause the conversation to rift somewhere else.

“what a relatable struggle! y/n here keeps talking about nana this and nana that. i swear my best friend status keeps getting threatened.” he huffed with fake annoyance as his eye met yours.

you scoffed at his behavior, a sound resembling a snort. “yuki, we went through this. nana is my other half while you are my best friend. totally different titles.” you refute, arms crossed as you stared at him.

“yes! different titles. mark, you are my bro while renjun is my best friend. glad to see y/n has intellect.” donghyuck joined again, the penetrating intent gone from sight as it boiled on the background as it maneuvered a plan.

“that’s the same concept. it’s just having a lot of sidehoes because you can’t commit to one hoe. sounds like someone i very well know.” yukhei said with humor, one you found yourself laughing at.

“that’s not true! i have one sidehoe and it’s not you. it’s chenle. he is the sidehoe who i lie about being my favorite junior when he shares the title with jisung.” you humored back, some of the weight of before removed. but, you see how mark and donghyuck share gazes at the mentioned names. this seemed that it would become a usual thing. the questioning thing.

“wait, you said chenle and jisung?” mark questioned, for the first time speaking to you directly.

“yeah. park jisung and i are roommates as neither of us really wanted to live in the dorms. zhong chenle is nana’s roommate.” you replied back, not sure why you were being very descriptive.

“oh my god, the world is so small. we fucking know jisung park and zhong chenle too. mark and i share hip-hop classes with both.” donghyuck snorted his reply as he saw the evident shock on yours and yukhei’s faces.

“are you serious? how come jisung has never talked-” you said before you stopped mid-sentence where your eyes flashed a flashback where jisung is over in the kitchen telling you about his new seniors. he said one of them looked like a baby lion while the other looked like a monkey. “oh my god! you two are baby lion and donkey! that makes so much sense. yuki, these two are the ones jisung kept using casual language.” you exclaimed, excitement rushing through your words as the two were rather embarrassed by how you used their nicknames so easily.

“oh, baby lion and monkey, huh?” your best friend’s face approached theirs, scanned it. “oh boy, you do look like baby lion and a monkey.”

before either of the two boys could refute back, you see how someone said an loud “hi” at your direction. you see it’s none other than lee jeno with the most gorgeous smile you have seen in your life. god, no wonder you had this big crush on this boy! you started waving, only to realize everyone else is too. jeno arrived at the spot, offered a smile to everyone. only you seemed to be the one who slightly blushed at the sight.

“oh wow, i didn’t know all of you were friends! if i did,  i would have made a bigger goings!” at the sound of his words, it caused your stomach to feel like it broke apart.

so, not only you’re meeting your ex again. you’re working with him again. your best friend is working with his. you both share common friends. but lastly, your crush had to be great friends with your ex! 

what a fucking joke.

“what happened to your shirts?” the newcomer asked, eyes glued to your shirt. the better question would be, what didn’t happen.

“life.”

#nct #nct u #nct 127 #nct dream #nct scenarios #nct u scenarios #nct 127 scenarios #nct dream scenarios #nct au #kpop scenarios #mark #mark lee

[s3venpounds]

okay so chapter 193...

spoilers for those who dont read the manga or those who didn’t read up to chapter 193. just a theory about deku

okay hear me out here. I think deku DOES have a dormant quirk. Its the quirk to “attract power” very vague and unnoticeable but it makes sense. Quirks can work genetically and since the father is nowhere to be seen I think it still holds true since Deku’s mom could “pull things toward her”. Then theres the overeall argument between one for all and all for one about how the worlds unfair blah blah blah blah. But this raises the question how will this play into the final confrontation or at least deku’s journey from point a to b. I’m willing to bet (i’ve also watched chibi reviews on this chapter so its got me going on this kinda thought process) that deku’s gonna have some sorta goku spirit bomb moment to defeat one for all. it would play into this dormant quirk, it would result in everyones quirks being gone (thus making it true deku becomes the worlds greatest hero since super powers stop at that point or maybe one for all stole the worlds quirks somehow idk maybe involving eri by tracing and rewinding a quirk that used to be the very first and absorbing that thus gaining every quirk in existence? I just think eri has to play a part in it somehow, you dont give someone that overpowered quirk and not use them as some sort of turning point later) Theres also the mystery behind deku’s dream with the original holder of one for all (lets call him OFA (OFA deez nuts ayyyyyyy) ). kay so yknow how all might is basically just covered in flames? I think thats related to how he used his last bursts of one for all. I also like to think he wasn’t actually USING One for all , not in the truest sense or the way its intended to be used and that the previous holders that are clearly in vision are ones that actually mastered it and reached the same stage deku is currently in. ( seeing the predecessors and shit) It would make sense since All might has no idea that was a thing and was completely oblivious to it when deku brought up the first hints. It would also fit with his “dormant quirk” Like chibi says , he think itll be like an avatar state or imo, hit man reborn where the main characters meet their past guardians and inherit their power or fuck it even like naruto and the tailed beasts chakras. He learns from them, masters new techniques and eventually gains the predecessors quirks. This whole thing makes even more sense when you think about how all might has a muscle form but even during the fight with all for one, Nana shimura didn’t have a muscle form. All might wasn’t using one for all he was more of like, a guy who got his hands on a big sword and swung it around. The real one for all stockpiles basically the essence of all previous users. This makes it sound even MORE cool because one for all becomes this antithesis of all for one. Taking power by force or misdeeds vs a power build up through trust friendship and respect. Then theres OFA appearing like “ boooooooo~ i wanna show u more but u can only access 20% oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo” that relates to izuku only being a head and hand with no mouth. The more he masters and accesses one for all the more in sync? i guess? he will be with the predecessors and once he gets the full story of OFA and AFO and gets the powers of the previous people he can be like “ oh damn both sides need saving or some shit” saves them and is like “ ayyy greatest super hero in the world” 

okay okay i went wayyy off on some points like with the whole “attracting power” okay hear me out. deku’s quirk has been activated from the very start. since that good cinnamon roll popped out of momma midoriya’s cooch this boi has been quirking it up and attracting power setting shit in motion. as a kid he attracted bakugo, a kid who everyone adored as strong and amazing because of his quirk (of course only after it manifested). skip time and suddenly Deku is a hero fanatic. watching heros in action taking notes. now I understand that society has evolved to have these heroes roaming around on a daily basis but would it be so hard to believe that conflict is attracted to him enough that he gets these front row seats to all these hero fights? enough to say... study them? then all might appears the biggest fish his quirk caught. then slime ball appears whos so powerful no one in the immediate area could counter his quirk cept yknow, all might. I like to think none of these are coincidences it makes for much cooler development. fast forward and suddenly out of all the robots, the BIGGEST FUCKING ROBOT JUST WALTZES TO FACE. something none of the applicants could fight. theres so many situations this could apply like????? todoroki and endeavor??? big fucking powerful. fucking nighteye, eri and overhaul? HELL FUCKING MUSCLE MAN GUY AT CAMP?!? WHY WAS HE THE ONE TO RUN INTO DEKU INSTEAD OF ANY OF THE OTHER OPERATIVES

also the two people who were in shadows or too far away. Using my theory it would mean those two ALSO reached the true potential for OFA however theyre “out of reach”? Maybe they were forced to transferring the quirk? or maybe like chibi said theyre alive somewhere, or maybe even villains OR MAYBE THEYVE BEEN TURNED TO YOUMU AND THE ONE FOR ALL CONNECTION GOT SEVERED DURING THE NOUMUING PROCESS(after they passed it on of course) since that still remains to be seen just how exactly noumu are made. 

#my hero academia spoilers #spoilers #bnha #theories #manga