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jjngkook7 · 25 days

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Motives (1)

NCT Jaehyun X Reader / Demon AU / Angst, Fluff (?), Suggestive Smut

Summary: You didn’t know how good you had it until your new job suddenly takes you far away from home. Desperate to settle into your new life, you turn to an eccentric medium who introduces you to an entity named Jaehyun. He offers you three wishes, but do you dare make a deal with the devil? ***Please ignore the mantra later. I literally copied and pasted their Favourite lyric sorry if its CRINGE****

“Goodnight! Love you!” you force the biggest smile you can as you wave to your best friend over facetime.

“Goodnight!” Karina blows you a kiss and the call ends.

A heavy sigh escapes your lips as you drop your head onto your pillow. Your phone lays still on your stomach and you’re tempted to just throw it across your room until it shatters into a million pieces. Seeing your loved ones posting little life updates on social media used to warm your heart but is now the reason you cry yourself to sleep. Facetime calls with your friends went from every other day to every other week because there was really nothing to update them on besides work and how much you missed them. Besides, you didn’t want to burden your friends with the knowledge of how truly alone you felt. You took a peek at the time and let out another sigh when you realized that if you wanted to get through the day tomorrow, you had to sleep now.

As a creature of habit, the prospect of relocating to a new city for work was almost off the table. You’d be a plane ride away from everything and everyone once knew. Your new employer gave you a week to decide and for the whole week, you contemplated long and hard. Your family and friends were completely supportive of your move for good reason: you get to explore a new place, expand your view on the world and make new connections. Alongside the possibility of growing as an individual, the job also promised a pay raise and a better role. All these great reasons eventually led you to make the move. After two months, your bank account was a little bigger, your role in the company was a little better and your mental health was a little worse. The city you moved to was the complete opposite of where you came from. First, this place was significantly smaller than the bustling city you grew up in and seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. Second, a fun time was going to the only plaza in the middle of town to buy knick knacks for your home. Finally, it was quiet and actually quite peaceful. The citizens here really cared about preserving the environment as much as possible, so highways were few to none and many people chose to walk or bike. You appreciated how much closer the mountains looked and how much cleaner the air smelled but there was no one to appreciate the serenity with. For a creature of habit, you were kind of pleased with the limited amount of restaurants and shops to choose from but once again, it was hard to appreciate these things without someone to share it with. Your growing loneliness made this small city seem so much larger than it was.

“Tomorrow will be a better day,” a mantra you whispered every night before bed in hopes to manifest for the next day.

__________________________________

A shiver ran down your spine as a cold breeze blew past. You hugged your scarf closer to your face and quickened your pace in order to get home faster. Autumn settled a little too quickly for your liking. The weather was constantly gloomy and with your city being so close to the mountains, it was already below freezing. In the past few weeks, you worked really hard to remain grateful and positive to get through the day. You put in a lot of effort to make your place feel like home and you tried to foster some sort of relationship with your coworkers. Your coworkers were a lot older than you but hearing them talk about their family and weekend activities was somewhat comforting to hear about during lunch breaks. However, with the days getting shorter and the weather getting worse, you worried that you would slip back into old habits.

As you kept your head down to bury as much of your face in the warmth of your scarf, you noticed a weird tune playing a couple feet in front of you. Curious about the source, you first noticed neon pink lights dancing on the sidewalk as you lifted your head. Your eyes went towards a store front you never saw before despite walking down the same sidewalk to get home for almost three months. A flashing pink palm with the words “PSYCHIC” in the middle decorates the mysterious storefront. You inspected the shop a little more and noticed that it was only twenty dollars to get a full reading. You scoffed, figuring that this store was a scam just like every other pseudoscience out there and averted your gaze. As you continued down the block, you thought about what you were going to do this weekend and felt an all too familiar ache in your heart. There was no one to see, no where you wanted to go and nothing you really wanted to do. Your pace slowed down as you thought about your sad weekend plans. Your cold hands formed into fists in your jacket pocket as you tried to push the intrusive thoughts about how pathetic and lonely you were. I worked way too hard to keep feeling like shit. You felt your body go backwards until you were in front of the psychic store again. Maybe they can tell me what to do this weekend.

You almost gasped at how much colder the store was inside compared to outside which was odd considering how cozy it was decorated. The lights were dim creating a warm and welcoming atmosphere. A large, fuzzy white rug sat in the middle of the store with two green sofas on top. On the side was a large wooden bookshelf with various texts, trinkets and a diffuser spraying out what seemed to be an essential oil of some sort. You peered around the store and noticed that you were the only person inside. As you looked around more, you noticed a closed door in the back leading to what you assumed was the staff room. Continuing your guessing games, you wondered if the staff couldn’t hear you come in. You walked over to the wooden bookshelf and skimmed through the spines. There were lots of titles you expected in a store such as this like, “Speaking With the Other World” and “Supernatural Beings”. What caught your eye was a large crystal ball with what looked like clouds trapped in the sphere. It seemed like the closer you looked inside, the bigger the clouds got. You reached out your hand to hold the ball but quickly retreated when you suddenly felt the hairs on your body stand. You turned around, swearing you felt someone behind you but found no one else in the store. Wanting to suddenly leave, you turned on your heels and headed towards the front door.

“I’m sorry, were you waiting long?” a voice asked from behind.

You thought your soul had escaped from your body from how hard you jumped. You quickly turned to face whoever spoke.

“Did I scare you? I’m so sorry!”

You couldn’t help the racing of your heart as you scanned around the room. Where could this person have come from? You looked towards the back door and noticed that it was still closed. Were you too engrossed in that stupid crystal ball to hear them open and close the door? Your eyes went back towards the man standing in front of you. He looked almost as worried as you with his brows furrowed and his hands placed in front of him. His bangs were long, almost covering his eyes and he had little beauty marks scattered around his face.

“I just-I didn’t hear you,” you stammered, embarrassed by your reaction, “sorry I just-I thought-“

“I think we both need to calm down,” he laughed and reached out his hands towards you, “I’m Haechan! I will be the one to do your reading if you’re interested.”

You shook his hand and felt a jolt run through your arm, he was ice cold.

“It’s nice to meet you,” you smiled back, “I was just curious because I walk by here everyday and have never seen your store before.”

“Ah,” Haechan nodded, “we kind of just opened like yesterday. Before I took over, this store was literally just a grey building which is probably why you’ve never noticed until now. Please sit!” he gestured towards the sofas.

You hesitated but eventually gave in to the thought of how this might turn out to be a funny story to tell your friends over facetime later. Haechan waited for you to get comfortable before taking a seat across from you.

“So what brings you in today?” he asked.

You scratched your head in thought. You battled the desire to vomit up your sob story to this stranger because it would feel so good to just talk to someone and be honest without feeling like a burden. Your friends knew you were having a hard time settling into your new life but they didn’t know the extent of how miserable you were and there was no way in hell you were going to open up to your coworkers. Another thought hit you, if this guy really was a psychic, shouldn’t he know why you’re here?

“I honestly was just curious.” you finally answered.

Haechan hummed in thought and leaned towards you. You felt your face get warm by how intensely he was staring at you. Is this part of the reading…?

“You haven’t been doing well huh? I’m picking up something to do with transition, dissatisfaction and loneliness.” he suddenly says after what seemed like forever.

You felt your heart begin to race again. You knew that psychics do cold readings and their predictions are usually very general but what are the chances of him describing your situation to a T in three words.

“Uh…kind of.” an uncomfortable laugh escapes from you.

Haechan shoots you a sympathetic smile and you swear the room suddenly gets colder.

“Change is hard but adapting to change is harder. You must remember your strengths during these times. Just looking at you, I can tell you’re more than capable of fighting through this.” Haechan says.

You smile and feel a sense of victory. He was right, you are strong and capable! It felt good to get some validation even if it was coming from a conman.

“I can’t fix your problems for you but I can offer some ways you can practice mindfulness in order to heal your energy. On a scale of 1-10, how accepting are you of help?” he asked.

“I’m pretty open minded.” you lied.

Whatever this guy was going to tell you to do, you were absolutely not going to do. You figured that for an extra $50 he was going to perform some stupid energy healing for you where you guys sit in silence for a few minutes while he closes his eyes and pretends to speak to your "spirit guides".

“Repeat this mantra three times after the clock strikes midnight and you’ll find your greatest desire fulfilled.” Haechan says instead.

He hands you a little piece of paper, which you swore he produced from thin air. You take the paper from his hands and read what’s on it. Thorns, crown, poison. Let my world shatter as I swallow it all. You gasped as your eyes looked up from the paper and you see Haechan standing in front of you. The room becomes unbearably cold as he looms over you. You then notice that he’s wearing jeans and a simple cotton t-shirt.

“I keep scaring you tonight, I’m so sorry!” he apologized.

“It’s alright! You just move so quietly!” you laughed as you wave his apology away.

You and Haechan exchange a few more words before you decide to call it a night. He fights you as you try to pay him $20 for his scam. He argued that since you’re his first customer, he wants to give you the session for free.

“If the mantra works within the week, then come back and I will take your $20.” Haechan suggests.

“Sounds good!” you agree, “I hope it does then!”

”It will.” Haechan chuckles, but the laugh doesn't reach his eyes.

You wave one final goodbye to Haechan as he closes the door. The cold autumn air seems to warm up your freezing body. How the fuck is he just in a t-shirt. Maybe my $20 will go towards a heater for his store. As you walked home, you felt a sense of contentment wash over you. You tried something new for the first time since you moved here and you couldn’t wait to tell your friends about it!

You stretched your legs as far as you could as you plopped down on your bed. After a long hot shower and a face mask, you were ready to get comfy and watch tv all night. You rolled over to your nightstand to grab your remote when your attention lands on the paper Haechan gave you earlier. You sit up and grab the paper. For a mantra that was supposed to be uplifting, it was kind of dark. You laughed to yourself at the thought of Haechan typing this out on his computer and printing it out to give to potential clients. You came this far with this ridiculous scam, you might as well just finish-and it was free! You checked the time on your phone. 12:01 am. Three times right? You closed your eyes and whispered the mantra to yourself secretly hoping that things would look up from here.

________________________________

”Going somewhere, Jae?”

Jaehyun yawned as a portal appeared beneath his feet.

“I’m heading to work,” he replied while stretching his arms, “thanks for the new customer, Haechan.”

Haechan gave Jaehyun a thumbs up as he watched the portal glow brighter until Jaehyun began to disappear into the other world. As Jaehyun prepared himself for his entrance, he wondered what his new client would be like and how long it would take before they destroyed themselves. Haechan bet a week and Jaehyun bet a month, winner got to keep the customer’s soul.

#jaehyun nct #jaehyun imagines #jaehyun x reader #jaehyun demon au #jaehyun smut #nct127 #nct 127 imagines #nct 127 x you #motives #jung jaehyun #haechan #doyoung #jeong jaehyun #jaehyun scenarios #nct 127 scenarios #nct 127 demon au

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pasta-in-the-pudding · 9 months

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I absolutely love Toby and I’ve recently discovered your account and I ADORE the way you write him. That last post was fuckin amazing btw, if it’s not too big of a deal, may I please get some headcanons of Toby being clingy with a reader who’s equally as clingy/affectionate? Like cuddling and following eachother around wherever the other goes. Toby is just so AGHHSHDDH I LOVE HIM

Aww im so glad you liked my last post!

Thank you so much for requesting!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Clingy!Toby x Clingy!Reader

Toby had a rough childhood, that's no secret

And as a direct result of that, he craves both physical and emotional intimacy

And now that he has you, all of those needs that he couldn't fill before, are constantly being met and more

When he wakes up, you are there, either acting as his pillow and playing with his hair, or tucked under his arms, with him holding you close

When he's working, you are there, helping him with his tasks and chores, sneaking kisses along the way

And when he goes to sleep, you are there, looking up at him happily, maybe pressing some soft kisses to his lips before closing your eyes and dosing off

It's one of the things he prides himself on, that no matter what, you are always there

You make him so happy, and he is certain that no one else has ever felt this good before

You follow each other around like lovesick puppies

It's quite cute, honestly

You could be watching tv when toby will get up to get a snack, and you will follow suite

Or if you decide to go out (for food, feneral shopping, etc) toby will be not far behind, asking you to wait for him as he ties his laces

Of course, there is space given (although, bery rarely do either of you want space)

If you wanted to just go out and hangout with some friends for a night, toby would betotally ok with that

But when you get home, be prepared to never escape the kisses

He'll kiss you on your face, ears, hands, arms, neck

Anywhere he can get his lips, really

Cuddling normally consists of Toby laying on you in some way, but if you wanted to lay on him instead, or maybe be in some sort of "neutral" position, he'd love that just as much

But if you are ok with him laying on you, boy be prepared

His favorites are: 1) laying on your stomach, his arms wrapped around your hips and your fingers in his hair, or maybe even rubbing his back

2) laying between your legs, playing on his nintendo 3ds or scrolling on his phone, with at least one of your hands on his shoulder so he can kiss you as he pleases

3) laying on your chest and listening to your heartbeat, he especially likes if you play with his hair in this position, as it never fails to lull him into sleep

What's yours, is his

And what's his, is yours

If your around his size (or even bigger than him he doesnt care) he will absolutely steal your clothes

His favorites to steal are tee shirts, because he can wear them wherever, whenever

Also, if he's put in a situation where he can't sleep with you (for example, an overnight mission) he would pull out one of your tee shirts (yes, he always has one on him) and wraps it around whatever he sleeps on, so that he can still feel some semblance of sleeping with you

You are the only person allowed to touch his snack stash as well

His only condition is that whenever you want something, you owe him a kiss

Which of course, is something you are happy to do

Most times you will sneak up to him, whispering a "boo" in his ear, and wrapping him in a hug from behind

He smiles, and kisses your nose, and in turn, you kiss his cheek and wave the bag of snacks in front of him

"Wanna go snuggle?" You ask him in a soft whisper, giving soft kisses to his shoulder

He nods with a "mm-hmm" and the two of you go up to his room, getting comfy in his blanket and scooching in close together

Toby would literally move mountains if you wanted him to

All you have to do is ask <33

#creepypasta #creepypasta x y/n #creepypasta x you #slender mansion #creepypasta x female reader #ticci toby #ticci toby x reader #ticci toby x y/n #ticci toby x you #ticci toby x male reader #ticcy toby #toby rogers x reader #toby erin rogers #toby rogers

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moni-logues · 7 months

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Kintsugi 11

Pairing: Yoongi x reader

Genre: strangers-to-friends-to-lovers, non-idol!au, angst, smut, tiny bit of eventual fluff

Summary: In a fit of spiteful, post-break-up self-improvement, you sign up to a baking class. Yoongi, in a bid to appease his demanding girlfriend, signs up, too. Determined to make him your friend, you end up with more than you ever imagined.

Word count: 5.7k

Content: literally nothing to warn for; this is pretty much just one extremely fucking long scene lmao

A/N: thanks to @quarter-life-crisis2 for beta-ing and letting this therapy-less bitch know what a therapist does (not) say 😂😂

Chapter Ten | Masterlist | Chapter Twelve

Chapter Eleven - The mountain

It had been your therapist’s idea and you had been so surprised that you had agreed to it without protest. Which is why you were now standing outside his building, working up the courage to press the buzzer. You knew the codes, of course, but it didn’t feel appropriate to let yourself in like this was casual, everyday. So you stood, flexing your fingers, counting down from three, and then doing it again, and then once more, promising yourself you really were going to hit the buzzer this time.

“Hello?”

His voice, even fuzzy and cracked through the speaker, hit you like a bolt.

“Um, hi. It’s me,” you answered, and then you corrected yourself and gave your name; it had been a long time since you had just been ‘me’. “Um, I... I wanted to talk, if that’s ok?”

There was a long pause and you physically bit your tongue to stop yourself filling it, stop yourself talking unnecessarily, letting your nerves get the better of you.

“Yeah, it’s ok,” came the eventual reply and you heard the buzz of the door, allowing you in.

You had to pause at his front door, too. You knew you couldn’t take long over this because he was expecting you now but you needed to steel yourself a little; you weren’t sure what you would be greeted with. The fact that he had said yes and let you in was a good sign, but it had been such a long time and there was so much between you...

You raised a hand and knocked. The door swung open.

“Hi, San,” you said meekly.

“Hey, you.”

His hair was darker now – it was always darker after winter – and longer than it had been, swooping back and over his left eye. You’d managed to forget just how handsome he was. He smiled at you and it was timid, it was cute, it was a little unsure and you remembered that you were the one who came here and asked to talk, but now you were just standing on his doorstep, staring at him.

“I hope it’s ok for me to just show up like this.”

“It’s ok. Are you ok? Are you hurt? Or in... trouble?”

You shook your head.

“Ok, good.”

Then he stood back and gestured for you to come in. Walking into your old apartment was like walking into a dream—somewhere that you should have known, but didn’t, somewhere that should have been familiar but wasn’t. It was uncanny, almost, that things looked so much the same but felt so different. The layout and furniture was every bit as you had left it, but it wasn’t home anymore; it didn’t feel like yours. It wasn’t yours. You felt suddenly so glad that you had been the one to move out; you didn’t know if you’d have been able to cope with living alone in the place you had lived together, seeing the spaces that you both used to occupy. A wave of sadness rolled over you, sadness for San, who did stay, who was there alone.

“Is it weird if I ask for a hug?” you whispered, your voice already choked with emotion. You didn’t know how you were going to get through this conversation if you were already close to tears.

You saw San hesitate, his eyes flicking away quickly and then back to you. He nodded and opened his arms. Tears stung in your eyes as you wrapped your arms around him, having forgotten this: how warm he was, how his arms felt when they came around you, how he smelt, how your face tucked into his neck just so. It was a rush of comfort so strong it almost made you sob.

“Are you sure you’re ok?” he asked, not letting you go.

“I’m ok,” you confirmed, your voice wobbling. “Just a bit longer, please.”

“Ok.”

He held you a little tighter and tucked his head against yours in the way he always used to and you hiccupped, stifling the cry as best you could while your tears spilt, running down your cheeks and wetting San’s neck. You pulled back so you could wipe your eyes with your sleeve.

“Sorry. I’m not here to make it weird or try to get back together or anything,” you said, unable to look at him as you cried, feeling embarrassed and awkward and like there was no possible right thing to say. You tried to laugh the tears away but it came out more like a stuttering gasp. “I think I just forgot how much I missed you and there’s-… there’s other stuff—there's stuff I want to talk to you about but it’s been so long and being in this apartment again and you, and-” you scrubbed roughly at your face “- it’s a lot more than I was expecting.”

San did as he ever did: he told you it was ok and he pulled you back into his arms; he rubbed your back and he waited for you to stop crying.

“Sorry,” you repeated with a shuddering inhale as you stepped back from him a second time. “Sorry, I really didn’t come here to cry.”

“It’s ok; you always cry,” he replied with a shrug and a tentative grin.

You punched the air just in front of his arm and pouted.

“I don’t always cry.”

“You can’t lie to me; I know you.”

If your face hadn’t already been hot and blotchy from the crying, it would’ve been reddening from embarrassment. He did know you; you did, alas, always cry. You had forgotten what it felt like to be seen by anyone who wasn’t Yoongi or Taehyung.

“Do you want something to drink?” San asked.

“Tea?”

He moved into the kitchen and you followed behind him, watching as he moved about the space in the same way he always did. It was a little like déjà vu; it was also a little like it was your first time there. There was something so familiar and so unfamiliar about it all, something just not quite right; like a doppelgängland or a dreamscape or... or like being in your ex-apartment with your ex-boyfriend whom you’ve not spoken to in a year.

“I’m sorry for just showing up like this. I didn’t really know I was going to come; I kind of just grabbed the impulse.”

He turned to look at you as the kettle boiled, his face calm but watchful.

“Like I keep saying, it’s ok. And I know I’ve asked and you’ve told me you are but, really, are you ok? … We haven’t exactly kept in touch so I feel like it would have to be something big to bring you here.”

You shrugged.

“I am ok, I promise. I... My therapist said I should come.”

He seemed surprised but took it in stride.

“Is it still Nina you’re seeing?”

“Yeah.”

He nodded. The kettle clicked off and he turned his attention back to the tea. You waited in the silence, rehearsing the things you had talked about with Nina, rehashing the ever-changing list of things you’d been wanting to ask him and talk to him about, since he broke up with you.

“Ok,” he said when the tea was made. “Is this going to be a chocolate conversation, or do we need ice-cream? I have both.”

“Chocolate will be fine.”

You couldn’t suppress your smile. You had been afraid he wouldn’t want to speak to you, or that he would let you in but he would be angry, dismissive, uninterested. You hadn’t expected him to be... him. To be the San that you remembered, that you had loved so much. Part of you felt like it should hurt, that he was the same man who broke your heart, who remembered all your habits and routines, who still knew the name of your therapist, who teased you affectionately about how much you cried, that he was still here and no longer yours. But it didn’t hurt. It soothed. You were reminded of every good thing about him, everything you loved and everything that made you happy; you remembered the comfort and security of being with him. You felt reassured by it: he was still the man you had known which meant he was still kind, still sweet, still safe. It made you feel like maybe, just maybe, you could do this.

You moved to the sofa and San broke the chocolate bar into pieces, laying it out on the coffee table. You took a piece to delay the moment you had to start talking.

“So,” he began, “what can I do for you?”

“I actually don’t really know where to start.”

“Anywhere is fine.”

You took another piece of chocolate. It suddenly felt insensitive to be here and tell him that you had met someone else but that was really what it was all about. That is why you were there.

You went around in circles with everyone (well, Taehyung and Nina, the only people you spoke to about it); you wanted to move forward with Yoongi but you couldn’t. You wanted to see if there really was something between you but your brain was screaming at you that you shouldn’t because, even if he felt the same now, he wouldn’t for very long. It would all go wrong. He would get sick of you. You knew that. How did you know that?

Because that’s what happened with San. He had been with you for years; you lived together; you had a life together; and none of that was enough to stop him leaving you. You and Yoongi didn’t have that much yet. Yoongi didn’t even know you in the before times. There was simply no way that you could sustain a relationship, that anyone could sustain a relationship with you. It couldn’t be done.

That was your argument. Nina and Taehyung saw things slightly differently but you didn’t want to hear it because they didn’t really know. The only people who knew what happened in your relationship were you and San because it was your relationship.

Nina told you it sounded like you needed closure. As if you didn’t know that already. Didn’t everyone? Needing it wasn’t the issue; getting it was. So there you were.

You cleared your throat and took a sip of the still too hot tea.

“There is... someone... Someone that I... Someone I want to be with... Is that weird? Sorry, I don’t know if- I-. God, sorry, maybe I shouldn’t have come.”

It hit you as you said it out loud. Maybe you shouldn’t have. You were coming for yourself, to fix something for yourself, not for him, not even for the both of you. You were letting your anxieties make you selfish. You had just shown up, out of the blue, no warning, to tell your ex-boyfriend that you’ve met someone else, to make him carry out an autopsy on your long dead relationship. He didn’t need this; he didn’t ask for this.

San smiled.

“It’s ok. It’s all a bit... weird, yeah, but I’m... I’m kind of glad you’re here actually. I’ve missed you.”

“You... have?”

He frowned, his head tipping to the side.

“Yeah, of course. Why wouldn’t I have?”

“Well, I just... B-”

“Because I broke up with you?”

You shrugged, feeling too shame-faced to say it out loud even though, yes, that’s exactly what you had been thinking. San sighed.

“You know I care about you, right? I know it was my decision; I was the one who did the breaking up but I loved you. Obviously I missed you. And I still care. I want you to be healthy and happy and all the rest... And I would’ve understood if I never saw you again or you didn’t ever want to speak to me but... it took a lot of getting used to not having you around, not having you to speak to.”

That was an understatement if ever you’d heard one. You hummed.

“Did you not miss me?” he asked and you checked his face to make sure he was joking because he had to be.

You lifted your leg in a gesture of kicking without actually making physical contact.

“Hey, you’re not allowed to tease me about that; you broke my heart. Of course I missed you.”

His smile fell.

“I’m sorry, you’re right. And I am sorry fo- well, I'm not sorry for breaking up because I still think it was the right thing to do but I am sorry I hurt you. That... It wasn’t what I wanted; there was just no other way.”

You shrugged.

“It’s fine,” you said and you really did mean it. “I mean, I get it; I would have broken up with me too.”

San frowned, then tilted his head to the side again, confusion plain on his face.

“What?”

“What? I just mean, yeah, like, if I had been you, I’d have broken up with me, too.”

San took a minute, chewing over what you had said, taking a piece of chocolate and chewing over that, too. Then he turned and looked at you seriously.

“Why do you think I broke up with you?”

And there it was: one of the very things you had come here to talk about, to ask him, to make sure of. This was what you were here for but, now, you weren’t sure you could bring yourself to say it. It had been easier saying it to Nina, acting it out, rehearsing your words. The real thing was different.

“Because... I was... I was a burden to you. I wasn’t a good girlfriend; I wasn’t fun. I didn’t make you happy.”

Then you shoved two pieces of chocolate in your mouth to stop you saying anything more.

San sat back against the sofa and sighed, looking towards the ceiling for guidance.

“All this time,” he said, turning his face towards you again, “that’s what you’ve thought? You think that’s the reason?”

You shrugged, still chewing.

He exhaled a soft ‘fuck’ and ran his fingers through his hair. He rubbed his hand over his mouth and paused there. You let him pause, still not wanting to say more.

“I am really, really sorry. I obviously did a very bad job of communicating at the time, so I can only apologise for that now, but let me be fucking clear: I did not break up with you because of you. You were not, ever, a burden to me. Tell me,” he demanded, like he always used to.

You curled your toes in your socks and looked down at your tea. You didn’t want to say it.

“Hey.”

San nudged you.

“Tell me,” he repeated, but it was soft this time.

“I wasn’t a burden to you,” you told him, mumbling, almost unintelligible.

“And how about once more with feeling?”

It was so embarrassing to feel like the past year hadn’t happened, that everything you thought you had achieved had just eroded in an instant and you were still as sad and pathetic and incapable as you had ever been. Because, somehow, almost a year on from your break-up, San was still trying to coach you through being nice to yourself. Somehow, you had ended up back on the same sofa with the same man, trying to get you to learn the same things.

You channelled that embarrassment into frustration. You were better than this. You had grown. Even if it had been true at the time, it didn’t have to be now. You mentally corrected yourself; it hadn’t been true at the time. That was what San had always told you and what he was telling you still. You had worked on this.

“I was not a burden to you,” you repeated, stronger this time. “But I felt like it. I know that there was unequal pressure in our relationship; you bore the brunt of all your own difficulties as well as mine. I wasn’t capable of pulling my own weight.” You used your therapy voice, slow and sure, laying out your rationalisations of what went wrong, listing the reasons that you failed him, that you failed the both of you. “I didn’t contribute to our happiness; I didn’t contribute to yours and I didn’t have any of my own. That is why I was not a good girlfriend. So I understand why you broke up with me.”

He considered your words for some time. Then he took the last piece of chocolate and ate it before turning back to you.

“You’re wrong and I need you to understand that. I loved you. I loved you more than I have ever loved anyone and everything I ever did was because I wanted to. I was grateful every single day for your continued existence on the planet and in my life. You absolutely contributed to my happiness. Ok?”

He waited, eyebrows raised, expectant. You nodded.

“And I think if that is truly what you think, if you really believe you didn’t contribute to my or our happiness, that you were a bad girlfriend and all the rest, you need to fire Nina and get a new therapist.”

You gave a shocked gasp of laughter.

“No, it’s not her fault. We actually haven’t talked much about why we broke up; she said it would be better to focus on the ‘now’ and work on getting better rather than getting hung up on the past and why we broke up.”

San narrowed his eyes, peering at you, trying to decide if he believed you. He relented.

“Fine... I’m sorry you felt like that, feel like that; I hope I didn’t do or say anything that made you-”

“No! You didn’t! You never did, I swear. You never made me feel bad; I just did. And I feel like I dragged you down, too, until you just couldn’t be happy anymore.”

He shook his head.

“I really must have fucked up this break-up and I’m sorry. I can’t believe you’ve been walking around thinking that I thought that about you, or think that, or whatever. Did I really explain myself that badly to you?”

You shrugged. You had tried to forget it—everything about the break-up, really; it hadn’t worked entirely but the minute details of the conversation had been lost. You didn’t want to remember anything about him telling you he was leaving you.

“You said we weren’t in love anymore but I thought it was just an excuse.”

“Thought? What do you think now?”

“I guess I haven’t really thought about it. I told myself that that’s what happened, that’s what you thought and then I guess just didn’t examine it. I thought you were lying to spare my feelings-”

“Do you think I would have lied to you? Really?”

“Sorry.”

San slid down the sofa, more lying than sitting now, and ran a hand through his hair again.

“You know we weren’t in love anymore, right?”

It was hard to look back at the last months of your relationship with anything approaching objectivity. You had been depressed and then you had been depressed and heartbroken. You had said dozens, hundreds of times, that you loved him; you had cried it and sobbed it and whispered it and shouted it—to him, to Taehyung, to yourself, to no one at all. But had you still been in love with him?

You shook your head.

“I don’t know.”

“And it wasn’t because of you, either. These things happen, I guess, sometimes. I don’t know. I don’t know why or how, but I felt it come and I fought it for a long time because I still loved you and I still liked you and I didn’t want to leave you. In the end, I just... couldn’t fight it anymore. I wanted us both to have... more.”

“More than each other?”

“More than... familiarity? Comfort? Habit? More than just that. I know how I used to feel about you and I know how I felt when we split and it wasn’t the same. We both deserve to be with someone who is in love with us... I feel like I’m making this sound weird, but you know what I mean?”

It was hard for you to swallow, that it just ‘happened’, that it wasn’t you. Things don’t just ‘happen’, do they?

You thought about it and San let you. You tried to remember how you felt, how you felt about him, at the end of your relationship but all you could feel was, first, safety and then despair. He was your safe space, your comfort, your relief and then it was all taken away from you. You supposed that wasn’t being in love, no, but you must have been, surely? It must have been there, too. If not, where had it gone?

You flopped backwards onto the sofa, copying San’s slouched position.

“I don’t understand,” you said.

“Understand what?”

“If we weren’t in love anymore... I don’t understand how that happened.”

“I don’t either.”

“How are you supposed to stop it if you don’t know where it came from?”

“I don’t know. Maybe you don’t stop it.”

“So it just comes along, somehow, and fucks up your relationship and you can’t do anything to stop it?”

He shrugged.

“Do you think we could have stopped it?” you asked and your voice was smaller, careful, unsure. “Do you think we could have got it back?”

When San didn’t answer, you turned to look at him. He was looking at you, sweet and kind and a little bit sad. He shrugged.

“Yeah, I know it doesn’t really matter now...” you replied.

San put his hand in yours and squeezed. You squeezed back and he let go.

“Is that what you wanted to talk about?” he asked. “Why we broke up?”

“Kind of. Yes, but-, well, yes, that is it really. I … I guess I just needed you to tell me that I’m not unlovable because I had convinced myself that I am, because we broke up. I thought, think? I thought that if you couldn’t love me anymore, then no one else would be able to. I feel like I can’t... I can’t try to have a relationship because there’s no point. There’s no point because no one can love me forever, so why bother?”

“Why can’t anyone love you forever?”

You didn’t answer but you didn’t need to because he got there himself.

“Right,” he said. “Ok, yes, because I didn’t. Sorry, I’m getting it now. I get it. Ok.”

He stood and walked into the kitchen and you thought he was abandoning the conversation (abandoning you), thought he was giving up. You couldn’t see what he was doing from where you were sitting and you didn’t know what to do so you stayed, sitting a little more upright, a feeling of panic starting to rise.

He hadn’t sounded annoyed but was he? Was he tired of you, tired of talking about this? Was he hurt? Angry? You worried that maybe you really didn’t know him any longer, that he was a different person, that he had, all this time, just been trying to be nice to get rid of you. Maybe he-

He came back and sat on the sofa, a tub of ice-cream in one hand and two spoons in the other. He handed one to you and dug the other into the ice-cream, taking a big scoop for himself.

“Chocolate conversation,” he muttered, under his breath but designed for you to hear. He rolled his eyes and grinned. “This is an ice-cream conversation and you know it.”

He gestured for you to take some, too, but you didn’t; you stayed still. You waited for him to speak next, your nerve all gone and mouth dry and hands shaky.

“I think I understand now,” he began. “There’s someone, you said? Someone you want to be with. But you don’t want to go there because, when I broke up with you, you thought that I was doing it because of you, because you were a burden, you were a bad girlfriend, you didn’t make me happy, I didn’t love you. Right? You’re worried those things are true because, if they are true, then this person won’t want to be with you.”

You flopped again, covering your face with your hands. Yes, that was true; yes, that was right. Yes, he had got straight to the heart of the matter even though it had been so long since you’d last spoken; he still saw you. It was overwhelming. It was embarrassing to hear your thoughts said out loud, to realise how foolish they sounded and how unlikely you would be to accept them from anyone else. If Taehyung had tried to say those things about himself after Hyunjin left, would you have let him? No. If Yoongi tried to say those things about himself, would you have let him? No. But they still felt true when they were about you.

“Yes,” you said first. Then, “are you going to tell me those things aren’t true?”

“I’ve already told you: they are not true. They are not true. They never have been. Never will be. You are lovable; I know that- I can prove that because I loved you. You were not a bad girlfriend; I know that because I loved you and I loved being with you and I enjoyed your company and you made me happy. Those things were true and they can be true of someone else.

“Think of it this way,” he said, sitting up, turning his body towards you, changing tack. “All of those things were true—I mean, the good things! The good things were true. I had all these enormous, loving feelings for you, but we didn’t work out. Which means that there’s someone out there who’s better for you than I was. It can be better than what we had; it can be more than what we had. Don’t you want to try and find out?”

You hadn’t thought about it like that before. You hadn’t really thought about what you might gain because you could only see what you had to lose. You thought about Yoongi—being with Yoongi, kissing Yoongi, going to sleep and waking up with Yoongi—you thought about that all the time but only ever as a fantasy, never as something that you thought could be really real because you knew you couldn’t go through with it, couldn’t make that leap. The loss of him if things went wrong was too great a risk.

But the reward... Those fantasies made real... Was San right? Could it be better with Yoongi?

The thought made you feel a little sick. Too good to be true. Not possible, not for the likes of you.

“Ok, I can see you thinking. Let’s put a stop to that. Why don’t you tell me about him?”

You started.

“Uh, reallly?”

“Yeah! I’ve got to know if he’s good enough for you, haven’t I?”

“Oh yeah like you’d get a say in it.”

And just like that you were right back there. Comfortable in his familiar presence. You rolled your eyes playfully at him and he grinned. Then he rolled his hand, gesturing for you to start talking.

“Ok, his name is Yoongi...”

You told him everything: the baking, the ex-girlfriend, the sex, Sungbin, the beach, the hook-ups, the Hallowe’en party, Daegu, his birthday, everything up to you sitting on San’s sofa. You delighted in it, revelled in the joy you felt at talking about him, getting to say everything you’d already told Taehyung too many times. You didn’t have room in your head for consideration once you started talking; it was all Yoongi. You had forgotten that San was your ex, that this might be too much detail, your happiness too effusive. You were too swept away by your own tale.

Laid out all at once, it seemed obvious. You felt like you had been missing it this whole time, but, recounted as a story, of course it was Yoongi. From the night you met, it was going to be Yoongi. When you talked about him like this, enumerating his virtues, explaining what he meant to you, telling the tale of your friendship from its very inception, you couldn’t believe it had taken so long to see it. You had to admit (again, reluctantly) that Taehyung had been right; you didn’t want to be his friend. You just needed time to get there.

And Yoongi had given you that time.

When you finally finished speaking, you fell back with a satisfied sigh, not even trying to stop the smile that split your face in half.

“So yeah, that’s him. That’s Yoongi.”

San was smiling, too.

“So you’re going to tell him, right?”

And it felt so real at that moment. Of course you were. You had to. You couldn’t deny that you wanted to, that something about you and Yoongi felt meant.

“I do want to,” you replied, trying desperately to hold back the ‘but’ on the tip of your tongue.

“He’d be crazy to let you pass by.”

You shrugged.

“He might, though. Just because I feel this way doesn’t mean he does.”

You took a scoop of ice-cream to give yourself something to do with your hands, something to do with your mouth to stop it talking you out of it.

“Don’t talk yourself out of it,” San said, knowing you all too well. “He obviously makes you very, very happy and I, for one, am probably at least 95% happy for you about it.”

“What’s the five?”

He raised his eyebrows, palms, and shoulders in a silly shrug.

“Ehh, I’m a little jealous. I know I shouldn’t be; I have no right to be and it doesn’t really mean anything. But it’s there.”

“To be honest, that makes me about 5% happier. I know it shouldn’t but...”

You grinned; you wanted to tease him because you felt like you could. You were comfortable with him, satisfied that he still knew you and knew you would never mean any harm.

He poked you in the leg, grinning back at you.

“I take it back; I’m only 90% happy for you.”

“That’s fine because every percentage point less happy you are is a percentage point happier I am!”

“You stay winning, babe.”

The surprise of the pet name gave you a jolt.

“Sorry... In all seriousness, I do know that it is kind of rude of me to come to my ex’s house, unannounced, and ask you listen to me talk about this new person I want to be with-”

“I promise, it’s fine. I genuinely am happy for you; this is what I wanted, right? I said we both deserved more and we do. Now you can have it.”

“What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Do you have it? More?”

He shook his head.

“No, work is crazy at the moment and I don’t really have the time.”

You gestured to his otherwise empty apartment and then to yourself, who showed up with no notice and found him free as a bird. He laughed.

“Ok, ok, I’m not really trying either. It’s just not a priority right now.”

“But you’re ok? Happy? I realise I’ve been here for ages and I haven’t even asked anything about you.”

“I’m good. I’m doing good.”

“Good.”

You hugged him goodbye when you left and he squeezed you as hard as he could.

“Hey!” you wheezed, staggering back as he let you go. “Thank you. For everything. Like, including breaking up with me.”

“Sure!” He laughed. “What are friends for? I will break up with you any time.”

“I’m serious!”

“So am I! I’m here for you, y’know? Don’t be a stranger. I want to know how it works out.”

“Even though you’re 5% jealous? What if it all works out? 10% jealous?”

“Maybe even 15.”

“Ooh, steep.”

“Please do try, though; please tell him. I’ll give you free pep talks if you need them. Or, if you want, I can threaten to beat him up if he rejects you.”

You poked him in the chest.

“No beating him up, but I can’t say no to a pep talk. Or six.”

“Well, you know where I am.”

You nodded and couldn’t help yourself going back in for another final hug.

You walked a lot of the way back to your apartment, needing the time to think things through, needing the fresh air and the lengthening evening to help you see things a little clearer.

It wasn’t as simple as San telling you you weren’t the problem; that didn’t automatically change how you felt, or what you had spent the past year believing. But it did help. It helped you shift the perspective of your break-up a little. It gave you arguments to use against yourself when you talked yourself down. San had been insistent that it wasn’t you and that he liked you and cared for you. Sitting with him had been surprisingly comfortable after its initial awkwardness. He was still so familiar, just exactly the man you had known, and you felt something click inside you, something solid and warm moving into place like a hollow spot being filled.

San was right; he had broken up with you for a reason and it had been some time since you resented that or felt any bitterness about it. He had been right to do it. You were a different—better—person now than you had been then. You knew that; you felt sure of that. You had forgiven San for the break-up a long time ago and now perhaps it was time to forgive yourself for it, too. If you agreed with it, why were you letting it give you excuses not to tell Yoongi how you felt? If you agreed that you were a better person now, why were you so scared that he would reject you? If you wanted all the rich rewards of Yoongi as your boyfriend, why were you so unprepared to risk yourself for it?

Chapter Ten | Masterlist | Chapter Twelve

Taglist: @chimmisbae, @idkjustlovingbts @miriamxsworld, @quarter-life-crisis2, @tarahardcore, @simp47koreancrackheads, @xyahrinx, @olyd, @diorh0seokie, @thelilbutifulthings, @acquiescence804

#bts fanfic #bts x reader #yoongi fic #yoongi x reader #yoongi fanfic

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teshamerkel · 10 months

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Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Seekers of Soul

[Chapter 50]

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Tobias and Nia take the ferry north to the guild, but the river might not be as peaceful as they would hope.

When Tobias wakes at sunrise, he has to take a few minutes to settle his thoughts. For once, they’re racing almost as soon as he’s conscious, still tangled up in all of the information Nia dumped on him after her impromptu talk with Giratina yesterday.

As if that situation wasn’t terrifying enough on its own.

No, she also had to come back from her little chat with news of the world ending. And somehow, Nia and Tobias are the ones put in charge of stopping it.

No pressure or anything.

Tobias knows they can’t just ignore it, though. If Giratina is telling the truth—and Tobias is still a bit iffy on that, but can’t find much reason for why he would lie about such a thing, either—then it needs to be fixed. It’s not something he’s willing to take a chance on.

At least they have a plan. Tobias isn’t looking forward to groveling to Will for the assistance Nia is convinced he can give, but he’ll feel better once he loops August and Alistair and some of the other guild ‘mon in on this. See what they know. Someone has to have an idea of where Xerneas’ resting place could be.

But before worrying about all of that, they need to actually make it back to the Lexym Guild. Even taking the ferry, it’ll probably be a couple of days until they reach home. They can think over how to bring all of this to light once they’re back.

Tobias sits up with a groan and goes about his usual process of rolling Nia out of bed. She whines in protest, but he manages to hurry them both out of the inn and into the heart of Shivergleam just as the first rays of dawn start to peek orange-bright through the foggy gray morning.

Shivergleam is strange to see in the light of day. Most Pokemon are either already asleep or heading to bed, and as they pass a grocery store Tobias sees a yawning gourgeist flip their OPEN sign to CLOSED. The ominous, twisted wooden structures around them suddenly look harmless. Almost like a town of whimsical treehouses, some distant cousin to his own home in the Lexym Tree.

Tobias leads Nia across creaky bridges (which are scarier in the day, when he can see just how far down the drop is to fog-capped swamp water) towards where he’s pretty sure the Aqua Jet had docked the night before. It’s not like it’s too big of a town, and Cordelia’s white and orange ferry stands out against the much more modest wooden canoes that the locals own.

The two of them hurry down the steps to the ferry, catching Beck just as he pulls himself out of the swamp. Water runs in rivulets through his thick orange fur and splatters onto the wood as he looks up.

“There you are! Perfect timing. Our other passenger just boarded so we’re ready to go.”

“Who’s the other passenger?” Nia asks.

Beck scratches at his chin. “A sableye. Some kind of researcher? He’s heading to the caves north of the Lexym Guild, near the foot of the mountains.”

Nia perks up at the word researcher. “I wonder if he’d tell us what he researches!”

“Not sure. He was a bit mumbly—real quiet guy.”

Tobias can handle quiet. They don’t need any shenanigans on their trip back north, especially considering they have to be on the water again. Not exactly any fire type’s favorite place to be.

“And they’re back!” A voice crows from up near the captain’s cabin. A blue and yellow maw leans out to peer down at them, teeth bared in an obnoxious grin. “Couldn’t stay away from the beautiful riverfront, could you, Charmander?”

Tobias curls his lip at her in return. While Nia waves and says hi, Tobias boards the ferry and moves to the back deck out of the croconaw’s line of sight.

It’s there he spots their new co-passenger: a spindly, dark purple ghost type with large, unnerving gemstone eyes. As in they literally look like cut gemstones. Creepy. The Pokemon is curled around a backpack and tucked up against the cabin of the ferry, half-hidden in shadows.

Tobias’ gut instinct after last night with Edme (and the general distance of the Shivergleam residents as a whole) is to be wary of their fellow passenger. Not that it would be likely for Edme to send someone after them for information about Giratina or revenge or something, but…

“Tobias, did you—“

Nia stops as she catches up, blinking as she notices the other passenger. It takes her a beat longer than usual, but she does step closer to give the ghost type a nervous smile.

“Hello! You must be the researcher Beck mentioned, right? I’m Nia and this is Tobias. I thought we should introduce ourselves since we’ll be traveling together for a few days!”

The sableye curls in a bit more at the greeting, but does quietly say, “H-Hello. Carnelian. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too!”

Carnelian gives a jerky nod. Not rude, but clearly anxious and maybe not used to socializing.

They take a few steps away to give him some space. As the crew finishes preparations, Nia looks to Tobias, probably waiting for him to head back down to the boiler room with Ignatius.

Tough luck. After last night he’s not letting his danger-prone partner out of sight quite yet. He waves her off, gesturing for her to sit wherever she’s planning to sit so he can figure out where he’s settling for the morning.

Nia frowns, catching on. “You can really go inside if you’d like.”

Tobias rolls his eyes and takes the initiative, plopping down against the ferry’s middle, as far as he can from Carnelian. “I’ll go in if I want to.”

Nia doesn’t look convinced, but she doesn’t argue as the ferry starts up. Tobias hears Beck and Nori leap overboard with a quiet splash. Ignatius must’ve already descended into the boiler room to get the steam engine running. Which only leaves—

Caspian comes plap plap plap-ing around the corner. The little quaxly is clearly full of energy despite the early hour. He waves happily to Nia and Tobias before scampering from one side of the deck to the other to make sure that everything is in place and properly tied down. Tobias still isn’t sure if the kid is actually responsible for that part of the routine, or if the crew just gave him a “job” to help him feel useful.

Regardless, as Nia and Tobias watch, Cas runs to and fro before deeming the ship worthy. He leans through the railing to wave down at the river, and Tobias hears a quiet splash as Beck swims around to the front of the ferry to give Cordelia the all-clear. Within a minute, they’re moving slowly across the swamp, through the narrow channel leading back to the Lilycap River.

In the light of day, the swampy environment just looks…peaceful. Inviting, even, if you don’t mind water.

Carnelian doesn’t seem too keen to chat, so Nia sighs and lays back across the deck. “…I should probably practice my aura.”

Tobias raises a brow. It’s not unusual for Nia to practice her aura abilities, but it is unusual for her to jump to that option immediately, especially this early in the morning. She must be thinking about what Giratina said. Tobias has the itch to train too, knowing what they’re up against.

“Aura?”

Cas has moved to their side. The quaxly tilts his head at Nia.

Nia sits up. “Oh. Um, it’s sort of like….a specific set of moves I can use as a riolu. Everyone has aura, but I can use it for attacks and sensing things and reading someone's energy.”

Cas’ brow furrows. “‘Reading?’ Like a book? How do you do that for energy?”

“Well…aura is sort of like each pers—each Pokemon’s, um. Life energy, I guess? And everyone’s is unique! Like a fingerprint. I can look at them and know more about someone’s character and personality.”

“Could you read mine?!” Cas asks, confusion dropping in exchange for sheer excitement.

Nia looks torn between amusement and discomfort. “I-I mean. I could? But it’s sort of…personal. I see a lot about who you are. Some Pokemon find it kind of…invasive.”

“I don’t mind!” Cas insists, plopping down and scooting closer with all the reckless excitement of the child he is. “Please? It sounds neat! And I’m not big enough to help out with anything else right now so I have time.”

After another moment of hesitation, Nia huffs a laugh. She relaxes and holds out a paw. “All right. Could I have your wing for a minute?”

Cas complies, and Nia closes her eyes. Bright blue energy outlines her body, and the appendages at either side of her head lift as she concentrates her aura.

Tobias watches this process with vague curiosity. While he’s been adamant from the start that Nia not read his aura, the process doesn’t seem quite as awful to him as it once did. Not if Nia’s the one looking at his soul, at least. He would still rather she not, a little uncomfortable with what she might find, but the thought doesn’t send anxiety rushing through him, either.

Plus, she already glimpsed it down in the mines. Red. He’s red, apparently. Whatever that means.

“You’re sort of a bright pinkish-purple,” Nia says. “Almost fuchsia.”

Cas, who had been nervously staring at Nia, perks up. “That sounds pretty!”

Nia smiles, eyes still closed. “It is pretty. It’s like…the reflected colors in a bubble. Fun and light. Or…coral? Supportive. Tougher than it looks.”

Caspian looks like he’s feeling self-conscious but isn’t sure if he should be. “So is fuchsia…good?”

Nia releases the quaxly’s wing and smiles. “Well, I sure like it!”

Caspian looks down, feathers fluffing with pleased embarrassment.

“A lot of water metaphors this time,” Tobias notes, amused.

Nia shrugs with a smile. "Just felt right."

“Is that because I'm a water type?" Cas asks. "Do all types have the same color aura?”

“No, as far as I can tell your type doesn’t actually matter,” Nia says. “I’m sort of a turquoise blue, but I’m a fighting type. And I know another water type who’s green.”

“Oh.” Cas looks up thoughtfully. “I wonder what color Delia is.”

Tobias snorts. He can’t imagine Cordelia feeling comfortable letting Nia look at her soul. She seems like the fiercely private type—not that he has any room to talk.

Nia shrugs. “Could be anything, really.”

Cas mulls that over, leaning to the side and trying to peer around the tall cabin of the ferry as if he could actually see Cordelia at the wheel, let alone into her soul.

“Your aura control is really solid now,” Tobias comments.

Nia's tail wags a bit. “Thank you! I still feel like I have a long way to go, but I’m getting better. I’ve been practicing a lot!”

Tobias knows, considering he’s been around for most of her practicing.

“You going to show Val the new aura radar trick you figured out in the mines?"

“Yeah! I just hope I can recreate it when I talk to her.”

Cas tunes back into the conversation, chirping, “So what all can you do with aura?”

Nia gives Tobias a wink before forming a short staff of aura and giving it a twirl.

Cas gasps. “That’s so cool!”

“You have any cool tricks?” Tobias asks the little water type.

“I can’t do anything like that, but Auntie has been working with me on a lot of other moves and stuff. Here, watch this!”

The quaxly hops to his feet and spurts a weak water gun attack out over the railing to splatter harmlessly into the river channel.

Nia claps, and Tobias makes a suitably impressed face.

“I don’t have much else, though. I’ve mostly been working on, uh, status moves,” Cas says, sitting down. “Auntie’s a primarina, so she’s really good with that sort of thing. And she says that I shouldn’t be in the middle of serious fights at my age anyways.”

“Status moves, huh,” Nia echoes, idly twisting her aura baton through her fingers.

Tobias knows that look. She must be thinking about which ones she could use herself. He nudges her. “You ever gonna try learning work up? It’s a normal type move.”

Nia’s eyes widen. “I forgot about that one! What does that do again? Raises attack, right?”

“And special attack.”

Nia’s brow furrows. “Great. So now all I have to do is just…learn it.”

“Is it a TM?” Cas asks.

Nia blinks, first at the water type and then at Tobias.

Tobias barely bites back a rude remark. “No, it’s not a trained move for you. Should be learned naturally.”

Cas turns a confused look onto Nia.

“I…have trouble learning new moves,” Nia explains, sheepish. “Learning moves naturally. It doesn’t come to me as easy as it should.”

“That’s all right!” Cas says, surprisingly genuine. “I struggle sometimes with the moves Auntie and Delia teach me, but eventually I figure ‘em out! Usually I just gotta figure out how to form ‘em.”

Nia tilts her head. “How to form them?”

“Yeah!” Cas nods. “Like how a water gun is all about focusing my power in my belly, where my water sac is, but for disarming voice I try to push my energy into my lungs and throat.”

“Oh! Right.” Nia watches Cas with a quiet intensity as the klinklang turn inside her head. “How…how would you try using a move like work up? Where your whole body gets stronger? I was thinking that I would just need to spread my aura—my energy throughout my body, but that doesn’t seem to work.”

Cas glances at Tobias, as if unsure of why Nia is looking to a twelve year old of all ‘mon for guidance. But then he speaks up, “Well…does it feel like you’re giving your muscles any kind of boost when you do that?”

Nia closes her eyes for a moment, as if testing it out, and frowns. “…No. it feels like it’s just leaving my body without doing anything.”

“Oh, I used to do something like that!” Cas says, clearly thrilled to be able to help. “It's probably ‘cause you’re just pushing your energy out, away from your body. Auntie said you just waste it when you do that.”

Nia groans, head landing in her paws. “Great.”

“She told me that instead of pushing your energy away from you, you have to, um…how’d she put it? You have to use your energy like a river.”

“A river?” Tobias asks, doubtful.

Cas nods. “Yeah! Like, channel your energy through your body in one big loop instead of outward, starting at your shoulders then down to your feet and back up. She said that keeping it moving is what makes the power.”

Nia’s eyes widen as she straightens up. “Like a water wheel. If the energy is the water, then keeping it in a constant river loop keeps it contained in your body—“

“Instead of just pushing it away from yourself and wasting it,” Tobias realizes.

Nia grins. “Of course! Oh, that makes so much sense. Thank you, Cas! I’ll try that.”

Cas fluffs again, happy but shy. Once Tobias asks him about his aunt who taught him that, he starts chattering again, clearly super proud of the primarina.

As he does, Tobias glances at their sableye travel-buddy, who is still hunched over in the shade of the boat’s middle. Then Tobias lets himself fall back to the warming deck and closes his eyes, pillowing his head with his arms to listen.

While he might not be fond of boat travel, there isn’t much else to do over the next couple days aside from plan and do what little training they can. Might as well chat with Cas and relax while they can.

—————————————————————————————————

Over the next day and a half, Tobias’ fear of leaving Nia alone dies down, allowing him to retreat to the warm isolation of the boiler room when the river starts to become too much. He still doesn’t stay with Ignatius as much as he did on their first trip, though.

He feels the need to keep an eye on Nia, worried about where her head is at. It’s just like the period after her illness, when she would space out and drown in her own thoughts. Sometimes Tobias catches a sheen of tears in her eyes too, like she’s just barely holding it together. Tobias doesn’t know if it’s the fear and pressure of the mission dropped onto their shoulders, or if she’s worried about being able to return to the human world.

Either way, he can tell that she’s…off.

Tobias doesn’t know how to ask her if she wants to talk about it. He feels hot embarrassment burn at his face and close his throat any time he considers it. Instead, he opts to just stay close.

Not that Tobias is much better, between his own fear regarding their world-saving mission and…well.

He’s thinking about Team Zenith again.

It starts with the crobat—Asra or Vesper or whatever his name was at the end. Tobias still hates him, still feels loathing sit cold and heavy like a ball of steel in his chest. He hates the crobat more now that he knows the coward got to live a happy life with his family after what he did to Tobias’ own.

Even if his mate was right and the crobat regretted what he was a part of. Even if Tobias recalls in scattered memories that the crobat didn’t do much more than corral them, he still didn’t stop Dismas or Sulien either. Instead, he let them kill Tobias’ family then ran away.

At least he’s dead now. Tobias should probably feel bad for the quiet satisfaction that thought brings, but he doesn’t.

Instead, Tobias thinks about Dismas and Sulien. The pangoro and arcanine presumably still out there, living their own lives. Do they regret it? Have they had their own families too? Tobias doesn’t remember much about the pangoro aside from flashes of black and white fur, snarling and grappling with his mother, before the arcanine pinned Tobias down and took up the entirety of his vision.

Tobias can only think of what happened to him in pieces before forcing himself to focus again on the world around him, digging his claws into the wood of the boat and looking out over the river. His heart pounds and a chill rises over his skin. He feels his head go light.

Funny enough, the end of the world is somehow a less terrifying thing to focus on. Tobias and Nia haven’t talked about it much since learning of it, seeing as they already have their vague plan and nothing to do until they get back to the Lexym Guild anyways. Tobias doesn’t think talking about it in circles would help.

So they both stay quiet.

Beck catches on quickly to their distracted thoughts and somber mood. The floatzel doesn’t ask, but Tobias notices how he checks in with them when he can, recruiting Cas to buoy the atmosphere. Beck talks to them about the river and the crew’s travels, clearly working hard at making Nia smile. Normally, Tobias would find something like that annoying, but Beck isn’t overbearing about it.

Tobias does find their sableye co-passenger—well. Not annoying, per se, but off-putting. He keeps entirely to himself, occasionally digging through his backpack to write in a little notebook, and Tobias can’t help how suspicious he is of what the little ‘mon writes so fervently.

The last time they trusted a ghost Nia got yanked into the distortion world against her will. Tobias doesn’t think anyone could blame him for a little caution. Well, anyone but Nia apparently. The third time she catches Tobias glancing warily at Carnelian, she pulls him aside to ask him what’s up.

“Weren’t you the one who said ghost types get unfairly discriminated against all the time?” She whispers.

“I’m not doing that!” Tobias hisses.

Nia gives him an unconvinced look.

“He’s just…weird.”

Nia huffs a laugh. “Just because he’s quiet doesn’t mean he’s weird. Maybe he’s anxious because he’s not used to being away from Shivergleam.”

Tobias sighs, rubbing at his face. Is he being suspicious for no good reason? Would he be less suspicious if the passenger was just as weird but not a ghost type?

…Probably, some small, ashamed part of him admits.

“Sorry,” he mumbles. “Just…on edge.”

“I get it.”

From that point on, Tobias does his best to just ignore the sableye lurking around the ship. Even when they stop to eat in the evening and the sableye mysteriously vanishes.

“Probably finding his own food,” Ignatius explains once he notices Tobias looking around.

“Ah, right. Sableye eat rocks or something, right?” Cordelia says through a mouthful of the stew they’d cooked up.

“Rocks?” Cas echoes, eyes wide.

“Gems,” Nori corrects quietly. “Crystals and minerals.”

“Eh, same difference,” Cordelia dismisses.

The second day of travel dawns as calm as the first. The river is still flooded, rushing by at unsettling speeds, frothy and impossible to see through, but Nori and Beck manage to navigate the rough waters with ease, and Cordelia’s hands are steady at the wheel.

Even the weather is decent. Slightly cloudy and overcast, but no longer pounding rain like it was on the way into Shivergleam. It’s even warm enough for the deck to heat under Tobias’ scales and lull him into a nap while Nia practices her aura.

It’s not until early afternoon that something goes amiss.

Their first sign of danger is Carnelian, scuttling to his feet and looking around. The little Pokemon is fidgety, but something about the abrupt gesture speaks of panic.

Tobias and Nia snap into ready positions themselves a moment after, looking around. Cas, who had been perched on a crate nearby and watching the river, looks nervously between the three of them.

“Carnelian?” Nia asks, quiet. “Did you notice something?”

Carnelian opens his mouth, only for an unfamiliar shout from the front of the boat to snag their attention. It’s more feminine than Beck’s deep voice, and it takes Tobias a moment to realize that it’s Nori. The golduck who has been nearly silent the entire time they’ve known her.

That can’t be good.

Nori is calling something up to Cordelia, who Tobias can vaguely hear cursing in the captain’s quarters. The boat swings suddenly to the side, as if trying to slow to a sudden stop. Nia and Tobias stumble and grab onto the railing, and Caspian falls into Tobias’ side. Carnelian yelps and goes sliding across the deck.

A second later, Tobias feels what Carnelian and Nori must’ve noticed first. A tingling against his skin, in his limbs. Something uncomfortable and off, hard to pin down but familiar enough by now.

A mystery dungeon.

Nia, probably still unable to sense it due to her fighting type nature, frowns at his paling face. “What?”

“Mystery dungeon,” he grits, trying to determine how close it is. If he can feel it in the air, it must be dangerously close.

Cordelia finally manages to ease the boat against the muddy bank of the riverside. It shudders to a stop, and everyone breathes a collective sigh of relief.

Cordelia leaves the cabin and rushes around the corner, eyes honing in on Caspian and relaxing once she catches sight of him. Then she glances around. “Everyone all right back here?”

They all nod. A moment later, Beck and Nori leap out of the river with a splash and thud on deck.

“Everyone okay?” Beck echoes. “Where’s Natius?”

Right on cue, the door to the inner cabin swings open and Ignatius stomps out on-deck. “By Moltres’ flames, what is going on out here?”

The crew relaxes seeing their last missing member in good shape.

“Got a bit too close to a mystery dungeon,” Cordelia sighs, rubbing a clawed hand down her snout. “Nori caught it in time.”

Tobias is glad she did. Even now the tingling is strong, still blaring alarms in the back of his mind that danger is nearby. Tobias looks at Nori. The golduck is staring out into the forest, ruby eyes narrowed.

“U-Um,” Carnelian pipes up, voice high and nervous. Everyone turns to him, surprised to hear the sableye speak.

He shrinks, but glances at Nori, claws twiddling anxiously. “M-Miss Nori, I could be incorrect, but do you still..?”

Nori’s beak flattens out into a grim expression. She nods. “Something’s wrong.”

Tobias exchanges an uneasy glance with Nia.

There’s a tense moment of silence, save for the loud rush of the river. Tobias’ heart pounds as he swears the tingling feeling gets stronger, somehow. His head feels fuzzy, which is strange. He didn’t hit it or anything.

Tobias sees the moment Nori figures it out. “The dungeon is still forming. Right on top of us.”

Oh. Oh no.

Cordelia, who had crouched to pick up Cas, stares at her crewmate.

“W-Wait—it’s still forming?” Nia asks, glancing out at the forest. “Here? Right now? But if that happens—“

“We’ll turn feral,” Ignatius sighs, sounding almost resigned. He puffs out a cloud of smoke. “No telling what’ll happen after that.”

Tobias feels his blood chill, goosebumps rising on his skin. Now that he knows what’s happening, he can consciously recognize how slow and clumsy his thoughts suddenly feel. Like his mind is trying to wade through thick, sticky sap. If the mystery dungeon forms on top of them, they’ll turn feral until it clears again, which could be weeks. And in the meantime they’ll be mindless beasts. If one of them gets hurt, then—

Cas whimpers, burying his head in Cordelia’s stomach. Everyone else looks quietly terrified, eyes down and hands balled into fists.

“C-Can’t we do something?” Nia presses. “Can we outrun it?”

Beck shakes his head. “‘Fraid not. I’ve heard musings, but…”

“Musings?” Tobias asks.

“Unsubstantiated musings,” Nori says.

“I don’t care if they’re substantiated or not!” Tobias snarls. “If you’ve got an idea then say it!”

“Safeguard,” Beck says. “Heard a rumor ‘bout it. But unless one of you has safeguard in your arsenal, we ain’t got no way to protect ourselves even if it would work.”

There's a heavy moment of silence. Then—

Nia’s head whips up. “Protect. Would protect work?”

The crew blinks slowly at Nia, as if trying to process her words. Tobias hears Carnelian let out a animalistic whine of fear.

Nori is the first one to shake out of it enough to speak. “I don’t—“

“Do it!” Tobias growls.

Nia throws out her paws, and her aura snaps into being around them, surrounding the group in a thin dome of blue energy. Immediately, Tobias feels his sluggish thoughts clear, like the first breath of fresh air after a stuffy nose. He realizes he’d been hunched over in a crouch, and straightens up.

Everyone else snaps out of the creeping effect of the dungeon too, standing taller as their eyes clear. Cordelia almost seems to be ashamed about succumbing to the effect, and focuses on murmuring reassurances to Cas. Beck lifts his chin to look up at the protect bubble in awe. Nori is rubbing her forehead, wincing, while Carnelian whimpers and cowers closer to Nia.

Ignatius simply says, “Huh. I’ll be.”

Tobias relates. He kind of can’t believe that worked. It’s…unheard of, to get firsthand experience from Seekers or researchers who were caught in a forming mystery dungeon and able to ward it off. He didn’t know it was possible for a move to save them from such a thing.

“It worked,” Tobias breathes, relieved.

“Why did it work?” Cordelia asks, frowning and looking to Nori. “And why haven’t I heard about these rumors?”

Nori, still rubbing tenderly at the red gem on her forehead, shrugs. “Beck and I heard a rumor earlier this year. About someone using safeguard and escaping from a forming mystery dungeon unscathed. We didn’t think it was true.”

Safeguard…so that means—

“You saying Pokemon going feral is nothin’ more than a status condition?” Cordelia asks, squinting.

Nori shakes her head. “It has to be more than that. But it might work in a…similar way. A form of confusion. If so, it makes some amount of sense that it could be stopped by a strong safeguard.”

“Or a strong protect, apparently,” Beck says. “We’re real lucky you were here, Nia.”

Nia smiles, but Tobias can see the beginning of strain in her expression, in the way she doesn’t respond. She used her protect in the mines at Fort Asra, but Tobias doesn’t think she’s ever made a shield this large. It’s going to drain her quickly, even if she has been practicing with her aura.

“However it worked, we've bought ourselves a few more minutes of sanity,” Tobias says. “But now what? We’re still stuck in the middle of it and Nia can’t keep this up forever.”

Nia’s mouth twists unhappily, but she doesn’t argue.

“Could we move the boat?” Cas suggests quietly.

Cordelia shakes her head. “‘Fraid not. We would need the whole crew at their stations for that, and we’d be too far apart to protect everyone.”

“C-Could we send a distress signal?” Carnelian pipes up, voice shaking. He glances at Tobias and Nia. “To the guild.”

Oh. Right. Tobias feels a little angry that he didn’t think of that himself. He hurriedly reaches into their satchel to grab one of their badges. Then he frowns.

“No go. Too far out.”

Carnelian shrinks back into himself.

“Okay,” Tobias says, running a hand back and over his head. Think, Tobias. They aren’t technically on a mission right now, but they are Seekers. It’s their duty to protect the crew and make sure they’re safe. And Nia is busy as is, so he has to take the lead.

“Moves,” he says. “Or items. Does anyone have anything that might help? Something to stop confusion or get us out of here. Safeguard, protect, uh…fly, teleport. An escape orb?”

“Aren’t you the Seeker?” Ignatius huffs. “You should have the items.”

Tobias shoots the torkoal a nasty look. “Any helpful suggestions?”

Each Pokemon grows quiet, then shakes their head. All except Cordelia, who is looking down at the top of Cas' feathery blue head with a furrow to her brow.

Tobias stares at her, expectant.

She glares back at him, but relents. “We…might have something.”

Then she detaches the teary quaxly from her front, kneeling down to meet his eyes.

“Hey, bro?”

Cas sniffs. “Yeah?”

“Do you remember that move Auntie’s been working on with you? The one with the pink misty stuff?”

Caspian’s brow furrows. He tilts his head. “Misty train?”

Cordelia chuckles, but it’s strained. “Misty terrain, yeah. Can you do me a favor? D’you think you could try to use that?”

Tobias frowns. Misty terrain? The move sounds vaguely familiar, but…

The aura shield around them flickers. Weakens and thins and grows more transparent for just a moment as Nia growls. Tobias, concerned, steps closer and presses his arm against hers.

“A big burst of it, yeah,” Cordelia says, encouraging. “Enough to fill this whole bubble!”

Caspian glances around at everyone’s eyes on him. “W-Would it help?”

“Honestly, bite? Not sure. But it might. And we gotta try something.”

Cas falls silent, looking down at his feet.

Tobias glances at Nori. “Misty terrain?”

The golduck hums, gaze flicking between Cordelia and Cas. “Similar to safeguard. If he can use it, then we might be safe while the dungeon finishes forming.”

Tobias tries not to cling to that hope. He doesn’t want to put that kind of pressure onto a kid. But as he watches, Cordelia braces her hands on Cas’ small shoulders and gives him a squeeze before stepping back.

“All right, Cas. Give it a go. Just like Auntie showed ya.”

Everyone stills as Cas close his eyes. After a moment, he bobs his head—one, two, three, four. His little webbed foot taps along to an unseen beat. Nia, at Tobias’ side, is breathing hard as she continues to hold the protect.

Then Cas starts a little dance, surprisingly rhythmic. His feet tap and arc across the wood, his wings twisting and turning. Before Tobias can question what the heck he’s doing, he spins.

A cloud of pink energy bursts out from him in a wave. Tobias throws up his arms, and when he lowers them the air in their little bubble is…sparkly, the wood beneath their feet tinted with a shifting pink fog.

“Did it work?” Nia asks, voice tight.

Caspian, panting, looks between Nori and Cordelia.

Nori says, “No way to tell.”

Tobias grows colder. “So we have to just…”

“Try it,” Beck sighs. “Well? Do we want to rip the bandage off quick?”

“Awful casual about it,” Tobias growls.

Beck shrugs, though Tobias catches the concerned look he gives Nia.

Tobias sighs.

“Nia,” He says. “Drop the protect.”

She cracks open an eye, unsure.

“You can’t keep this up forever. Either it worked or it didn’t.”

Nia is clearly uncomfortable with that sentiment, but Tobias can see the way her arms tremble. How her ears fight to pin back with the strain.

“Nia,” he says, sharper.

She lets go with a gasp. The blue around them vanishes, leaving the open air of the river and the forest on either side. As Nia pants, Tobias holds his own breath.

The pink mist plays across the ground around them in a circle. It doesn’t dissipate, hovering around their feet like a protective presence.

Tobias glances at the others and can see the same nervous caution on their faces. But as the seconds pass, Tobias counting each beat until one minute passes, then two…he doesn’t feel that same fuzzy confusion return to slow his thoughts like tar.

“Did it work?” Ignatius asks, hushed. “Or did the dungeon already finish forming?”

Nori shakes her head, pointing out into the trees.

Tobias follows her gesture, feeling his skin crawl. The forest looks…restless. Trees roll in waves as the landscape shifts. Like the earth below them is a great waking beast. Even the boat tilts and groans, as if it too is being pulled into the distortion of the mystery dungeon.

Loud, sharp cries echo from the forest: Pokemon who weren’t as lucky as them. Pokemon caught up in the dungeon's haze. Within their circle of pink mist, however, their minds seem untouched.

Everyone releases a collective breath.

Cordelia whoops, scooping Cas up and spinning him in a tight hug. She’s yelling about how she knew he could do it and that he kicks tail. The quaxly giggles, a little teary-eyed.

Tobias finally relaxes, sinking down to the deck next to Nia. She laughs, tired and relieved as she bumps her head into Tobias’ shoulder.

“G’job, little ember,” Ignatius says to Cas. Then he turns to Nori. “How long will this hold?”

“Long enough, hopefully,” Nori says. “Eventually the dungeon will settle. All we can do is sit and wait for it to finish.”

Since Nori is keeping a watchful eye on their environment, Tobias allows himself to take a moment to breathe. He can’t make himself relax entirely, but he can’t do much at the moment either. He looks around at their companions.

Ignatius and Cordelia are murmuring to each other quietly. Cas looks exhausted by his big burst of energy, and leans heavily against Cordelia so she can scritch at his feathers. Carnelian is curled into a nervous ball around his bag, plucking at the backpack's cloth with his claws. He has scooted closer to Nia, as if soothed by her presence. Beck seems to be lost in thought, until Tobias notices how the floatzel glances at the edge of their protective circle. Ah. Keeping an eye on the misty terrain, then. Good.

Nia, finally having caught her breath, turns to sit against Tobias. He leans back as well so they’re spine to spine and tries to reign in his nerves. They need to stay calm and hope that the dungeon finishes forming before Cas’ attack wears off. Then…he supposes they’ll need to fight their way out of the dungeon.

He and Nia need to be ready to lead them when that time comes. They’re young, but they likely still have the most experience with navigating through situations like this.

“Huh,” Nia says, almost too quiet to hear.

“What?”

“Oh. I was just thinking that it makes sense. What Nori said, about the dungeon causing something similar to confusion.”

“Why’s that?” Tobias asks, tilting his chin back to look at the side of her head.

“Well…” her voice lowers. “If what Giratina said is true, then the borders of the rift are made up of aura. Of…life energy. And moves also come from our own life energy, our own aura. So I guess it just makes sense to me that damage in the border could…confuse the world in the same way Pokemon get confused by like, a confuse ray or something.”

Tobias snorts, remembering what Nia told him after her last breakthrough with aura. “Avery is going to lose their mind when you tell them that.”

Nia laughs. “I know.”

The group starts up a quiet conversation while they wait for the dungeon to finish forming, everyone likely trying to avoid thinking too hard about whether or not Cas’ misty terrain will hold. Tobias eyes the changing surroundings as they talk.

The forest almost seems alive, closing in tighter and tighter to form the mystery dungeons' trademark “rooms” and “hallways.” The trees shift and twist, weaving together with loud cracks that make Carnelian, Cas and Nia flinch. Weedy grasses and muddy banks rise higher into sharp inclines, boxing them slowly into a long corridor. It’s unnerving to watch happen, as if some invisible giant is ignoring the laws of reality and molding the world around them, stretching trees out like putty and raising the earth like sandcastles.

Slowly, the movements settle. The open air of the wide river has been contained to something much smaller, partially blocking out the overcast sky. An uneasy quiet descends on the forest, and Tobias isn’t sure why it feels this unnatural until he hears Cas murmur something about the river.

That’s it. The loud roar of the river is just…gone.

“I believe it’s finished,” Nori finally says.

Everyone stands tall to try peering over the lip of the boat and into the corridor they’re now trapped in. The “walls” of the hallway are unnaturally steep banks of mud, smooth river stones, and long grasses, with tree roots twisted throughout here and there. Tobias thinks he can see rivulets of water trickling down them, and hears the gentle burble of running water that can’t compare to the roar of the river.

The rivulets bleed into the “floor” of the hallway, which is covered in a sheen of water, as if it has become its own modest stream. Tobias feels his heart drop at the sight and squints, trying to look past the bright reflection of the sky to see if the water is deep or just surface-level. He has no idea how they’re going to fight their way out if the dungeon is covered in deep water. Just walking through a floor of the stuff would burn Tobias’ feet raw.

Nori is the first one to move. She exchanges a look with Beck, then calmly walks out of the protective circle. Tobias' heart jumps. Cordelia makes a sound of alarm and darts after the golduck, but Beck steps in her path.

“Beck, if you don’t move that waterlogged orange pelt—“

“Someone has to test it, and Nori is the most sensitive of us to psychic fields. She knows what she’s doing.”

Cordelia’s eyes flick past him to Nori. She grits her teeth and watches the golduck take a few more steps to the railing of the boat before turning to look at them, crossing her arms to wait.

“Give her a few minutes,” Ignatius says. “If she feels fine after that, we should be safe to move.”

After a moment, Cordelia returns to Cas' side. But she keeps her eyes trained on the golduck to watch for any signs of her being affected.

Luckily, Nori calmly stays in place, looking out over the corridor. After a few minutes, she pushes off and walks back into the protective circle of the misty terrain.

“I believe it’s safe.”

“Clearly,” Cordelia snorts. Then her voice hardens. “Don’t do that again. Captain’s orders.”

Nori nods, as if she didn’t just deliberately make a decision knowing Cordelia would object.

Cordelia grunts. Then she turns to look around at the rest of her crew and their passengers. “Well, Cas and the riolu saved our tails, but we still gotta get out of here. We ready to fight?”

“We’re not going to fight unless we have to,” Tobias counters, crossing his arms. The crew members look at him, surprised.

“And what makes you think you’re calling the shots here, kid?”

“Because Nia and I are Seekers, remember? Unless you’re secretly dungeon divers yourselves, we’re the most familiar with navigating places like this.”

“You suggesting you two lead us through this mess?” Ignatius asks, incredulous.

Tobias nods.

“Can you fight?” Cordelia challenges.

Tobias rolls his eyes. “Of course we can fight. But we should avoid ferals when possible because we have a giant group and an unknowably deep dungeon—we have to conserve our energy where we can.”

“He has a point,” Nori says.

Beck's tails twist worriedly, like a propellor. “This is unfamiliar territory you two aren’t used to. You sure you're up to this?”

Tobias snorts. “Every dungeon is unfamiliar territory. You wouldn’t be any more used to it than we are.”

Beck frowns, conceding the point but not looking happy about it.

“I would like to keep an eye on Cas,” Cordelia admits. Then, more of an order than a question, “What’s your team rank?”

“U-Um. D, right?” Nia says, glancing at Tobias.

Tobias winces, then hurries to add, “We’ve only been Seekers for a couple of months.”

“Awful proud for such shiny new recruits,” Ignatius mutters.

Tobias opens his mouth to snap something at the torkoal, only for Nia to stop him with a gentle paw on his arm.

“I know we’re young,” Nia says. “And we haven't been doing this long. But we’ve already been through…a lot. We’re stronger than we look.”

“And we’re the Seekers,” Tobias stresses. “Even if you can battle, this is different than a spar between two sane Pokemon. Let us lead.”

“We can clear a path for you,” Nia adds. “If it turns out that we can’t handle it, you guys can step in.”

The air is still heavy with uncertainty.

Tobias is irked that this is suddenly an issue at all when they face dangerous missions every day, but he knows Nia’s calmer approach is more likely to prove their point about them being mature enough to handle this, so he keeps his mouth shut.

The crew exchange looks with one another. Nori seems to surprisingly be on their side. She stares her crew mates down, apparently firm in her decision. After a moment, Ignatius grumbles something about young startups, but backs down. Cordelia, after a long and wordless exchange of expressions with Nori, nods once.

Beck is the only adult crew member who hasn’t agreed.

“What? What’s the problem?”

The floatzel sighs. “…Nothing. Just getting old and letting my instincts as a dad win out over my instincts as a crewmate.”

Oh. He’s…worried about them? He shouldn’t be. They just got the fate of the world dumped on their shoulders. They can handle a little mystery dungeon.

“We can handle it, Beck,” Nia says, echoing his thoughts. Her voice is firm but not unkind. She gives him a smile. “I know you’re worried, but this is kind of our job.”

Glancing around and realizing that no one else shares his concerns, Beck caves. “All right. Just…let me know if you two need help, all right? These old bones can still fight if need be.”

“Deal!”

The group cautiously moves out of the protective effect of Cas’ circle and to the edge of the boat. Beck insists on going down first, “Just to check how deep it is,” before slipping overboard. Tobias frowns when Beck goes entirely underwater, confirming that the path is too deep to walk through. The floatzel surfaces, glancing around to make sure nothing is about to attack before waving up at them.

Cordelia smirks at Tobias. “You sure you still want to lead, flame?”

Tobias, on completely stupid impulse, glares at her before hopping over the edge of the boat. Beck barks a startled sound but manages to catch him on his chest.

Tobias pushes roughly at the paws on his arms. “Let me go! I’m fine.”

“You can’t be implying you’re going to swim through this.”

“I said we’ll lead and I meant it!”

Beck tightens his hold. Tobias could break free, but he doesn’t want to hurt the stupid old ‘mon.

“Just…let me give you a lift through the water,” Beck says, meeting Tobias’ eyes. “In return, I won’t fret about you two leading us.”

“Or you could just let me go and not fret anyways.”

Beck’s gives him a look that feels too fatherly to be comfortable. As if to say he has the patience to wait out Tobias’ stupidity.

Tobias growls. “…Fine.”

Beck releases him, and Tobias sits up on the floatzel’s stomach. The water type is long and flat, admittedly perfect for ferrying passengers.

Nori slips over the boat next, into the gentle current with a quiet splash. Then Cordelia and Cas. After that, Cordelia yells up at the boat until Ignatius stops hollering about dying on solid ground where sane fire types belong. Then the torkoal tumbles over the edge in his shell for Nori to catch and hike carefully onto her back.

Finally, Carnelian peers over the edge, shaking visibly even from here. Nia is clearly trying to soothe the sableye, but whatever she says must work, because he eventually hauls himself over the side of the boat with jerky movements. Nia climbs out after him, watching the sableye’s feet and murmuring reassurances.

Tobias rolls his eyes. “Nia, watch your own paws!”

It’s a clumsy effort, but the two of them manage to slide down the boat in fits and starts. Beck drifts closer and Tobias holds onto the boat so the floatzel can roll over onto his belly. Then all three of them climb atop his wet back—Tobias in front, with Nia and Carnelian behind.

“Everyone good?” Cordelia calls. She’s treading water easily, Cas perched on her back.

Irritation gnaws at Tobias as the croconaw takes charge, but he nods.

“Keep an eye out for ferals,” Cordelia adds. She swims forward to take the lead, but hesitates and glances at the quaxly over her shoulder, clearly not wanting him to be in the first line of defense.

Tobias takes their chance. He gives the thick orange fur below him two pats, before anyone else can try to take point. Beck hesitates, but eventually obeys, moving forward to lead the group down the corridor with a near-silent lap of water.

Aside from the gentle rush of the stream, the air is silent. It feels even more tense now that they’re in the dungeon proper.

Tobias leans back to murmur to Nia, “I’ll keep an eye on the water since I have sharper eyes. You take above.”

Nia nods.

Their group drifts down the corridor and around the corner. Halfway down the next hallway, the terrain slopes up to grassy, muddy land before dipping back into the water again. Looks like they’ll be traversing a dungeon of streams and islands.

Lovely.

When they reach land, Nia and Tobias slip off Beck's back to stand on their own feet. The ground underfoot is damp and sticky with mud between smooth river stones and long patches of lush grass. Tobias tries not to let his distaste with the damp environment show as he takes lead, Nia right behind him.

So far no ferals, but Tobias can see Nia’s ears twisting and turning to catch distant sounds out of the corner of his eye.

“What kind of Pokemon do you think we’ll run into here?” Nia whispers.

Beck answers from right behind them. “It’ll be the Pokemon who live near the river, right? So water types for sure. Otherwise, likely grass and bug. Normal. Some dark types.”

Tobias flicks his tail. Most of those types shouldn’t be an issue, but the water types could be a pain for him. He’ll have to watch out for them.

Once they reach the stream on the other side, the group wordlessly moves back into their previous formation. Tobias grudgingly climbs atop Beck’s back in front of Nia as they wait for Carnelian to scramble on behind them. The floatzel slips into the water, and Tobias hears Cordelia and Nori follow behind.

They don’t run into their first feral until they reach the next patch of land, luckily in the same room as the stairs. The staircase sits eerily in the corner of the room, cutting off into nothingness six or seven steps up. They’re made of wood like Cordelia’s boat, with chipping paint to match.

The feral standing in their way is a thwackey nearly twice their size. It screeches with blank white eyes when it sees them, then launches at their group with sharp fangs bared.

Tobias and Nia rush forward to intercept. Nia is faster, and ducks low to kick out a leg and topple the grass type into the dirt. Tobias takes the opportunity to engulf it in a cloud of embers. The thwackey screeches and skitters back on four legs.

Nia hesitates on her follow-up attack, probably caught up in her own head again. Not that Tobias can blame her this time—it’s hard to think that this thwackey was probably a regular Pokemon living their life just an hour ago, and now—

Not thinking about it.

The thwackey wipes embers out of its eyes and goes at Nia with fists swinging. Nia creates a staff of aura and blocks the attack with a grunt. Tobias takes the opening while it’s turned away to breathe a plume of fire onto his hands. Then he darts forward to slash at the thwackey’s back with heated claws. 1-2-3-4—

The thwackey cries out, stumbling. Before Nia and Tobias can attack again, the feral spins and crashes off through the foliage, down one of the dungeon's hallways.

Tobias huffs out a breath, snuffing his fire down to smoke. He glances at Nia to make sure she isn’t injured, then back at the rest of their crew.

Beck is blinking at them, halfway into a battle stance and clearly surprised. Cas' eyes are starry, and even Cordelia looks a bit impressed with them.

“Not bad,” the Croconaw says. “Guess you two are a bit tougher than you look.”

Tobias rolls his eyes despite the warmth spreading in his chest. “Yeah, yeah. Everyone just hold hands already so we can go to the next floor.”

Cordelia looks sour once he repeats the command and she realizes he’s serious. Only the explanation that they might lose each other warping to the next floor makes her acquiesce.

Tobias climbs the stairs first, Nia right behind him. When Tobias reaches the top creaky step, his stomach turns with vertigo and their surroundings shift. In a blink, they’ve warped to a location that is eerily similar but distinctly different in its layout.

Unfortunately, they also warp to a room that is almost entirely covered in water. Tobias lets out an embarrassing yelp as he falls under with a splash. The gentle current feels freezing against his hot skin, and the immediate wave of prickling pain knocks the breath from his lungs.

A strong arm scoops him up and out of the water before he can thrash for more than a second. In a whirl of movement, Tobias finds himself still drenched but out of the water. He cracks his eyes open, panting hard and shuddering through shocks of pain. His clenched hands hold onto thick, creamy fur.

“Tobias!” Nia coughs, seated atop Beck’s stomach as well and dripping audibly. “Are you all right?”

Tobias wipes his mouth with a shaky hand. Ugh. “Fantastic.”

Nia’s paw lands lightly on his shoulder, but even that touch feels overly sensitive and raw. He jerks away with a hiss and she whispers a string of apologies.

Tobias takes a moment to catch his breath and calm his pounding heart. As the water falls off his body, the painful burn on his skin starts to die down to a more manageable ache. Finally, he looks around.

Beck, lying on his back, is watching Tobias with concern. Nia, sitting next to him on the floatzel’s belly, wears a similar expression. Carnelian is shivering as far away as he can get on their makeshift raft, tipping his backpack to clear it of water.

Nori seems to have caught Ignatius before the torkoal could get similarly dunked. Cas is floating anxiously next to Cordelia in the water. Most everyone’s eyes are on Tobias, so he flushes and forces himself to sit up straight so he can look around.

They’re in a room filled with stream water, the surface finally calming down after their sudden entrance. Two hallways branch off on either side.

“Everyone all right?” Tobias rasps.

Cordelia arches a brow. “You’re asking us?”

Tobias takes that as affirmation and scowls down one hallway, then the other. There really isn’t any rhyme or reason to how he and Nia usually pick directions in dungeons, so he points Beck in the direction of the one he sees grasses poking out of farther down.

“We can wait here a moment for you to catch your breath,” Beck starts.

Tobias shakes his head. “We shouldn’t. It’s best to keep moving in a dungeon or we might get ambushed. I’m fine. Go.”

Beck’s gaze flicks to Nia. The riolu looks like she wants to agree with Beck, but Tobias gives her a hard look so she doesn’t argue.

Finally, Beck swims down the pointed direction. Cordelia and Nori follow quietly behind. When they reach land, Tobias gratefully stumbles onto the marshy ground. His limbs are still a bit shaky and his skin feels tight and uncomfortable, but he’s fine all in all.

A rustle ahead is their only warning before a new, bipedal green Pokemon shambles out of the grass, something oddly rhythmic to its steps. The lilypad atop its head and its bright pink beak tip Tobias off.

“Lombre,” he hisses, he and Nia moving into defensive stances. “Water and grass type.”

The lombre chitters aggressively when it sees them with its milky eyes. It lunges. Nia meets it head-on with a burst of aura, then dances out of range.

The lombre turns on Tobias and sucks in a breath, clearly about to spit out a water type move. Tobias braces to dodge.

They're interrupted by the sound of crashing water, and then a bright blue streak slams into the lombre and sends it rolling into the tall grass. Tobias blinks, stunned, as blue water splatters to the ground and Beck cuts off his aqua jet attack to land on four paws.

Beck glances at Tobias and opens his mouth to say something, but he's cut off by a bright green ball of energy as it shoots from the safety of the grass and hits him hard. The floatzel stumbles back into the wall of the dungeon, then slides down to the ground.

“Beck!” Nia calls, distraught.

Nori is already moving to Beck’s side, so Tobias decides she can handle that. He focuses back on the fight with the lombre, only to hear a startled squeak from behind him, near the back of their group.

He looks just in time to see a blue Pokemon—a tirtouga?—spitting attacks at Cordelia and Cas. Cas hides behind Cordelia as she turns on the tirtouga with a snarl.

“I got ‘em!” Nia shouts, using quick attack to flash past Tobias. She leaps out over the water, staff arcing high over her head, and Tobias has a good feeling she’s going to hit her mark.

Tobias turns back to his own fight as a water gun shoots from the grass, narrowly missing him. He growls. If his opponent is hiding, he should just burn the feral's cover to the ground. But lombre are half water type and the grass is probably too wet to catch, so—

Dragon rage it is.

Tobias sucks in a lungful of air and releases it in a stream of purple fire. The flames catch on the damp grass much easier than regular fire would, quickly scaring the lombre out.

Tobias takes his shot amidst the feral’s panic and shoots off another dragon rage. The lombre shrieks under the fresh onslaught. Tobias rushes forward and spins, slamming the feral into the dungeon wall with his tail.

Tobias pants in the ensuing quiet, watching the lombre for a moment to be sure it’s down. Then he looks behind him.

Nia is paddling through the stream back towards land, waterlogged but no worse for wear. Cordelia pulls her out. The little quaxly in her arms is clearly spooked but seems unharmed.

Nia hurries immediately to Beck’s side, kneeling across from Nori. “Is he all right?”

The floatzel groans at the sound of her voice, eyes fluttering open. His gaze is bleary and unfocused.

“Beck?” Nia prompts.

The floatzel closes his eyes, scrunching up his snout. “‘M fine, Hazel. Stop worrying. Where’re the kids?”

Nia stills. She stares at Beck with a stunned expression. “H-Hazel?”

“His mate,” Nori says, watching the way Beck is blinking back to reality. “I suppose you do sound a bit like her.”

“His mate,” Nia murmurs, frowning. Tobias can tell that this info means something to her. The name Hazel is actually tickling something in the back of his mind, too, though he can't quite pin it down.

Cas escapes Cordelia’s protective hold and scampers to Beck’s side. “Are you okay, Beck?”

Something about the quaxly’s voice seems to clear Beck's mind. The floatzel shakes his head and slowly props himself up on his arms. He gives Cas a shaky smile. "I’m fine, dewdrop.”

“I’ll decide if you’re fine,” Nori says, pushing Beck back down with a webbed hand against his chest. “Follow my finger.”

Beck sighs but patiently follows her instructions as she checks for a concussion. Once she deems him safe to move, Beck climbs to his feet with a groan, using the shifting wall of mud and grasses to stand.

Good. He’s up. That means Tobias can chew him out.

“Beck.”

“Yeah?”

“What was that?!” Tobias snaps. “I told you to stay back and let us handle the fighting!”

Beck winces. “I…was worried about you facing a water type. Especially right after falling in.”

Tobias jerks an angry thumb over his shoulder.

Beck follows the gesture. Smoke is rising from the ashes of the large patch of grass Tobias just burned, purple embers still sparkling. The lombre is knocked out cold to the side.

“Riolu one-hit KO’d a tirtouga, too,” Cordelia laughs, glancing over her own shoulder to the water.

Beck blinks, then barks a laugh. “Well. Suppose I look a bit foolish right now.”

“…What.”

“You two said you could handle yourselves, and it looks like you were right. Sorry for doubting you.”

Nia beams. “That's all right! I know we’re not, uh...all that intimidating.”

"Speak for yourself," Tobias grumbles, rubbing at his face. Unsatisfied anger burns in his belly as all the wind leaves his sails. It doesn’t feel right to go on a tirade if the floatzel just…immediately apologizes. “Whatever. Just…don’t do it again.”

“Not planning to. That knock to the noggin hurt.”

“We should rethink how we travel,” Nori says, her quiet voice heavy enough to cut through their conversation. “If we continue this way, we have to worry about the back half of the group getting ambushed.”

“Yeah,” Nia agrees, frowning.

Tobias and Nia haven’t really taken many escort missions through dungeons—and especially not with a group this large—so they didn’t think about it beforehand, but…

“You’re right. We need a better formation,” Tobias says, crossing his arms. “Who here has experience fighting? Actual fighting, not just friendly spars.”

Nia, ridiculously, raises her paw. Tobias gives her a dry look until she lowers it again.

Cordelia snorts. “I can fight if I have to, but my first priority is keeping an eye on Cas and my crew.”

Tobias nods. “That works. Cas will stay in the middle of the group, so stick with him.”

Cas pouts but doesn’t argue.

“Nori and I are in decent shape, but we aren’t used to fighting often,” Beck says. “As you just saw.”

Ignatius puffs a wisp of smoke. “Hate to say it, but I’m probably as weak as Cas at my age.”

Tobias nods, looking between everyone and calculating. With Nia’s abysmal sense of direction, Tobias needs to be in the front of the group to direct them. But they do need someone to watch their backs, too, and Tobias trusts no one else but Nia for that. The most vulnerable members should be sandwiched in the middle when possible.

“In that case, I’ll take point. Nia, you take back. Cas, Cordelia, Ignatius and, uh…Carnelian. You all need to be in the middle. Beck and Nori, you flank me and Nia.”

“And when we’re in the water?” Beck asks.

Tobias hesitates.

“Well, we can’t do the same formation in the water,” Nia says, half to herself. She jumps when she realizes all eyes have turned to her. “C-Could we swap? Have Ignatius rides with Tobias and Beck up front and Carnelian and I go to the back with Nori? That way we don’t have to rearrange much when we get to land.”

To Tobias’ surprise, no one questions the idea, seeming to agree with both of their judgment calls.

After checking that Beck is good to go, they form up. Nia takes the rear, giving Tobias a thumbs-up. Nori moves in front of her with a quiet comment that makes her smile. Carnelian shuffles nervously in front of them, clutching his backpack close. Then it’s Cordelia, the croconaw keeping little Cas right in front of her, then Ignatius. Finally, Beck stands right behind Tobias, the floatzel acting as a taller lookout. He gives him a nod, all his previous uncertainty with Tobias’ abilities seemingly gone.

Huh. Tobias feels kind of proud about how well that went. He’s still uneasy about how large of a group they’re leading through, but they’ll just have to try their best and hope they make it out with minimal injuries.

“All right,” Tobias says, trying to sound more confident than he feels. “Let’s go.”

#pmd #pokemon mystery dungeon #pokemon #pmd seekers of soul #golduck #croconaw #quaxly #charmander #riolu #floatzel #torkoal #sableye #tesha draws #tesha writes

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snoreyua · 6 months

Text

₊˚ෆ ⁀➷　come back to me // ep. 5

synopsis : you and riki were childhood best friends doing everything together. when you entered middle school, you overheard him talking shit about you to his so-called friends. out of frustration, you moved schools and cut all contact with him. now starting a new year in high school, what will you do when riki unexpectedly transfers to your school? can you rebuild your friendship or will something much deeper will bloom?

word count : 1.1k

warnings : reader cries??, lowercase intended, not proofread, lmk if i missed anything

yua's notes : i had the biggest writer's block (it's the school air) 😭 im so sorry i left this for so long or if its not v good cuz like my brain isn't working at all 😵😵

previous masterlist next

story written under the cut

you yelped as your body was lifted swiftly. he had swept you off your feet, quite literally. riki chuckled at your reaction, looking at you with a fat grin painted across his face. you couldn't lie that you missed this feeling, when it felt like you and riki were the only people in the world. you felt your lips mirroring the silly grin he had on his face, as he continued to carry you out of the infirmary. "damn I've missed that smile," he looked down at you as your face went to a light shade of pink. he laughed at your face, causing you to blush even more.

"hey you know i'm not a baby, you can put me down i'm fine," you grumbled as riki continued to tease you. he chuckled before making a pouting face at you. "aww little y/n can walk by herself? I thought I needed to carry you all the way home," he laughed more as he gently set you down. you slapped his arm, causing him to flinch dramatically. he grabbed his arm and looked at you with an exaggerated pained expression. you rolled your eyes jokingly as you listened to his pleas of you kissing his arm to make it feel better.

after a walk full of laughter, screams and arguing, you had finally arrived at riki's house. he opened the gate, signalling for you to go in. he unlocked the door, showing the same house that you went to as a kid. you followed him inside, seeing his mother in the kitchen. "ah y/n! you're here again it's been so long!" she hummed cheerfully as she squeezed you in a hug. you hugged her back, a smile forming on your lips. "aunty! it's nice to see your beautiful face again after all these years," you grinned as she waved her hand. riki suddenly took your hand, telling his mother that he wanted to take you to his room before dragging you away.

"she still loves you as much as she did before," he sighs as he leads you to his room. you smiled proudly as you looked at his annoyed expression. "obviously, because i'm an angel unlike you," you teased as he stuck his tongue out to you, making you laugh. he rattled the doorknob slightly before pushing the door. his room had barely changed compared to before. his shinee posters still hung from the same spots, his dancing kit was thrown by the frame of his bed, his soccer carpet still an off white. the nostalgia hit you like a slap on your face. you watched him from the door as he walked inside, plopping onto his bed. he looked at you, patting the empty spot next to him.

you sat down next to him, falling backwards onto his bed. "your room has barely changed since I've last been here," your eyes met his as your head turned to him. he huffed before laying down next to you. "well, what can I say? I like how my room is," his eyes gazed at the creme ceiling. "it's still has messy. have you not cleaned it since I last came or something?" you looked at the piles of clothes on the floor. he laughed and shook his head. "I thought you knew me~ I'm too lazy to sort through them," he groaned as he looked at what looked like a clothing mountain inside his closet.

the sound of his mother's voice echoed up to his room. he got up, telling you he would be back. as he left, you stood up from his bed, walking towards his desk. it was slightly dusty, large stacks of books, paper and other things were scattered through the space. you giggled, thinking to yourself about how he never did his homework. your eyes landed on a photo frame on his desk. you picked it up, observing the photo.

you and riki were hugging each other, your body being lifted into the air as your faces were squished together side to side as you both had big grins on your face. it was from your first day of school. your jaw dropped, your eyes widening as you observed the photo more. why does he still have this? you thought to yourself. yes, you and him were childhood friends, but you didn't realise how long the two of you had been together. your bond was undeniably strong and the day that you left him was sure to also hurt him as much as it hurt you. your eyes stung with tears as you sniffled, your hands gripping on the photo tighter.

"y/n!! my mother made you soup! she said it will help you with your cold-" riki barged in the room, his face dropping when he saw you crying. he put down the tray, coming towards you. his hands gently turned you towards him. he hugged you tightly, stroking your hair as you cried into his chest. you really missed this feeling. he guided you to his bed, sitting on the edge as your tears stopped. his eyes landed on the photo frame in your hand, before looking at you again. "I'm sorry that was a bit dramatic of me haha," you managed to chuckle as you wiped your remaining tears away.

he stared at you with a sad look in his eyes. riki was going to say something but hesitated, thinking it wasn't the best time to ask you why you cried. he put the tray in his lap, scooching closer to him. "I know that you probably still aren't that comfortable with me, but please don't think that about yourself ok?" he looked at you concerned. you felt yourself crying again but you held back your tears and nodded. he scooped some of the soup into the spoon before hovering it in front of your mouth, waiting for you to drink it. you sipped the soup, the scratchy feeling in your throat being relieved. he continued doing it until there was no more left.

he set the tray aside, patting your back. "y/n, can we start over?" you looked at him, wide eyed as he stared at the carpet floor. you stayed quiet, thinking carefully. he did hurt you before, but the unbearable pain of him not being with you was way worse. you sighed, fiddling with your fingers before finally speaking up. "alright. let's start over," you smiled as riki's face lit up. he tackled you into a suffocating hug, making you scream in surprise before the two of you burst into laughter.

you didn't know how much you needed him.

taglist (closed) : @viagumi @lilriswife4life @keiipopped @w0nslvr @mizomani @k25vi @bacterla @yumilovesloona @wendypopsi @ak-aaa-li @jakevascaino @iea-tsand @bbinwrld @en-happiness @wonniewonwon @jayhoonvroom @lovelovelovebts @ploopy1423 @microwvdstrawb3rri3s

#enha niki #enhypen drabble #enhypen fanfiction #enhypen fics #enhypen headcanons #niki drabbles #niki fluff #niki oneshots #niki scenarios #nishimura riki #enhypen #enhypen drabbles #enhypen fluff #enhypen imagines #enhypen niki #enhypen scenarios #niki x reader #nishimura riki x reader #niki

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onestepbackwards · 2 months

Note

Imagine how different the Sinnoh storyline would be if self aware Cyllene, Kamado, Volo and Cogita kept a journal and it was passed down until their descendents have it. I'd imagine Cyrus reading about cyllene's life and starts looking for the player rather than go through the extra steps of finding the lake trio, getting the red chain and summoning gods on a random mountain to make a wish. I can't imagine what Rowan would think of kamado's paranoid rantings about the main character and us (although i spent hours just feeding random wildlife).

Hdksjdkd imagine if like, some of them had pictures of the Hero saved and kept in those journals too. How the Hero fell from the sky, and claimed to be from a future where pokemon and humans work and live together.

How they talk about things, such a ‘tee-vees’, or ‘microwaves’.

Rowan finds the book when digging through some old stuff in his attic. He ends up flipping through it, and catching a picture that falls out of someone.

After some investigation, Rowan declares his ancestor must have been hit in the head to be obsessed with someone and so paranoid. Though he does pity the man for losing his village as a kid, he wonders if that event caused too much stress for the man.

He does find some ideas interesting though, and decides to look into Sinnoh’s history later.

Imagine his surprise when he later sees someone who looks like a carbon copy of the person in the journals, and how well they use a starter pokemon.

Rowan decides then and there is fate is real, he will do what he can and give this person a pokemon. Especially since they seem to get along so well with the partner they choose. They’ll definitely need the experience…

Meanwhile, in an alternate timeline, Cyrus finds the well kept journal of his ancestor Cyllene when collecting things from his family’s old home that was left behind after a move.

As much as he dislikes the memories, he remembered a few journals he saw as a kid he wanted to find. Thankfully, they were left behind as junk in the attic.

He flips through them, curious if he remembered correctly how bizarre they were. Stories of people falling from the sky, and time travel, to literal pokemon gods.

At first, it sounds like crazy talk. If it wasnt for the clear cur way his ancestor wrote her journal, he’d have waved it off.

Until things such as planes and cars are mentioned. Some of those things specifically not having existed yet in that period of time. His interest is piqued.

Were they not ramblings of someone who lost their mind to stress after all?

Cyrus then comes across photos delicately sewn into the pages to help preserve them. His ancestor sitting with someone.

That would seem normal, though his eyes widen just a fraction when he sees several legendary pokemon behind them in some photos, like they are having a picnic of some sort with a few other people.

The same person besides Cyllene pops up though, labeled with a name, how they are from the future.

Cyrus then takes note how this Hero mentions how they battled someone named Cynthia. A name he is well familiar with.

Packing the journal into a case he brought with him, he decides then and there to change the course of action.

He would hold off on finding Giratina. That would be a plan he’s keep on a back burning if things didn’t work out.

Instead, he decides to search for you.

#pokemon #pla #cyrus #cyllene #professor rowan #kamado #ask #anon #zed.talks

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thecreaturecodex · 10 months

Text

Spawn of Rovagug, Xotani

Image © Paizo Publishing

{Sponsored by @tar-baphon. Although I imagine that @monstersdownthepath will be happy to see it too, since they had to sort of average the 3.5 and PF2e statistics of Xotani. PF1e skipped it completely, maybe because it appeared in literally the last D&D 3.5 adventure Paizo published. I did run Legacy of Fire, and loved it. Personally, I made a few tweaks. Even if Jhavhul had succeeded, his consciousness was just going to be overwritten by Xotani; you don’t compromise with a Spawn of Rovagug. The sponsor asked me to adjust its CR up by 1, which was really only a matter of deciding how many HD to give it. Besides that, and the lava bombs borrowed from PF2e, this is a pretty straightforward conversion.]

Spawn of Rovagug, Xotani CR 21 CE Magical Beast This creature is a living magma flow, a cross between a wingless dragon and a centipede. It is the size of a building, jagged obsidian plates rising from its back and sides, and gouts of flames shooting from cracks in its surface and drool from its maw. It has eight empty eye sockets, but still seems able to see just fine.

Xotani the Firebleeder is the weakest of the Spawn of Rovagug, but this still makes it one of the most deadly creatures in Garund. When Xotani is awake, it avoids the sun. It finds sunlight blindingly bright and surprisingly painful, and so remains underground by day, creating a network of tunnels from its own burrowing and from the lava that it spews and leaks. By night, it emerges, setting everything ablaze in its path. It has no desires or intentions other than pure destruction, although it will consume the ashes of what it destroys as a mockery of natural predation. It does take extra damage from the touch of cold, but cold damage enrages Xotani more than dissuades it.

Xotani is an unstoppable force in combat, moving like a lava flow over anything that stands in its path. Its very touch sets combustible objects ablaze, and weapons turned against it melt into slag. Xotani’s main strategies are either breathing a torrent of fire over clustered enemies, or grabbing and swallowing a single powerful foe. Wounds that open in Xotani’s flesh spew magma reflexively, and Xotani can fire lava bombs from its back. Xotani is barely sapient, but knows enough to avoid using its breath weapon against foes that are immune to fire: these it just eats after softening them up with claws and teeth.

The Firebleeder was “slain” by a powerful order of mages millennia ago, and is currently slumbering beneath Pale Mountain in Katapesh, where the color of the rock is said to come from the crushed bones of those who died in battle. However, Xotani came very close to being awakened in the recent past. The lovesick Jhavhul, an efreet general, attempted to possess Xotani in order to have a form worthy of the object of his obsession, Ymeri the Queen of the Inferno. Without the twisted wishcraft used by Jhavhul, Xotani will not awaken for centuries. But it does now stir in his slumber, and droughts, wildfires and heat waves are more common around the Obari Ocean because of it. And plenty of other doomsday cults, misguided fire worshipers or simply bad actors may be able to wake Xotani yet.

Xotani the Firebleeder CR 21 XP 409,600 CE Colossal magical beast (fire, spawn of Rovagug) Init +8; Senses blindsight 120 ft., darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, Perception +26 Aura frightful presence (300 ft., Will DC 27) Defense AC 38, touch 6, flat-footed 34 (-8 size, +4 Dex, +32 natural) hp 403 (26d10+260); regeneration 30 Fort +25, Ref +21, Will +20 DR 15/epic; Immune ability damage, ability drain, bleed, disease, electricity, energy drain, fire, mind-influencing effects, paralysis, permanent wounds, petrifaction, poison, polymorph; SR 32 Defensive Abilities heat, hibernation, supreme regeneration; Weaknesses cold, sunlight blindness Offense Speed 60 feet, burrow 40 ft., climb 60 ft. Melee bite +32 (4d8+14 plus grab and 5d6 fire), 2 claws +32 (2d8+14 plus 5d6 fire) Space 30 ft.; Reach 30 ft. Special Abilities breath weapon (70 ft. cone, 1d4 rounds, 16d10 fire, Ref DC 33), firebleed, lava bomb, swallow whole (AC 26, 40 hp, 2d8+21 plus 20d6 fire), trample (2d8+21 plus 5d6 fire, Ref DC 37) Statistics Str 38, Dex 19, Con 30, Int 3, Wis 17, Cha 18 Base Atk +26; CMB +48 (+52 grapple, +68 overrun); CMD 62 (cannot be tripped) Feats Combat Reflexes, Critical Focus, Greater Vital Strike, Improved Critical (claw), Improved Initiative, Improved Vital Strike, Iron Will, Lightning Reflexes, Nimble Moves, Power Attack, Staggering Critical, Stunning Critical, Vital Strike Skills Climb +27, Perception +26, Survival +23; Racial Modifiers +8 Perception, +8 Survival Languages Aklo (cannot speak) SQ unstoppable force Ecology Environment any land or underground Organization unique Treasure incidental Special Abilities Blindsight (Ex) Xotani’s blindsight is based on hearing. If it is deafened, Xotani cannot use its blindsight. Firebleed (Ex) As an immediate action upon taking at least 10 points of slashing or piercing damage, Xotani can spew lava from its wound in a 30 foot cone. All creatures in the area must succeed a DC 33 Reflex save or take 10d6 points of fire damage. Creatures that fail the save are coated in cooling sticky lava, being entangled and taking 5d6 points of fire damage for the next 1d3 rounds or until they spend a full round action to scrape the lava off. The save DC is Constitution based. Heat (Ex) All of Xotani’s attacks deal an additional 5d6 points of fire damage, and any creature touching or striking it with a unarmed strike or natural weapon take that damage. A manufactured weapon that strikes Xotani is incinerated and destroyed; a magical weapon may attempt a DC 33 Fortitude save in order to survive. The save DC is Constitution based. Hibernation (Ex) Spawn of Rovagug can sleep for years, decades, or even centuries and do not need to eat or breathe during these periods of dormancy, though they breathe normally and eat ravenously and almost constantly once they’ve been awakened. If a spawn of Rovagug is forced into an environment where it cannot breathe and would suffocate, it goes into hibernation until conditions are right for it to reawaken. Lava Bomb (Su) Once every 1d4 rounds, Xotani can create lava bombs as a standard action. Treat this as a supernatural version of the meteor swarm spell (ranged touch +22, Reflex DC 27) with a range of 400 feet. The save DC is Charisma based. Sunlight Blindness (Ex) Xotani’s light blindness is only activated by true sunlight. Supreme Regeneration (Ex) All spawn of Rovagug possess regeneration, and no form of attack can suppress this regeneration; they regenerate even if disintegrated or slain by a death effect. If a spawn of Rovagug fails a save against an effect that would kill it instantly, it rises from death 3 rounds later with 1 hit point if no further damage is dealt to its remains. It can be banished or otherwise transported as a means to save a region, but a method to kill Spawn of Rovagug has yet to be discovered. Unstoppable Force (Ex) A spawn of Rovagug can always charge, even if its movement is impeded or its path is blocked by another creature. It receives a +20 racial bonus on combat maneuver checks to overrun and Strength checks to break or destroy objects, and can make one such check as a free action as part of a charge. In addition, the natural weapons of a spawn of Rovagug ignore all forms of damage reduction and hardness.

#xotani #spawn of rovagug #pathfinder 1e #pathfinder 2e #D&D #legacy of fire #sponsored post

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juggalomary · 2 months

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She’s here and just sent off to my beta reader (ugh thank you again). I’m excited to announce the unbetaed "of scars and silence"

content warming! violence, mcd (technically), described injury ig? Enjoy

“John Elias Mactavish was an honored soldier and a loving uncle. He did not however live long enough to become a husband, father or grandfather. He had the ability to light up a room, literally and figuratively, and had never failed to get every possible man out of any situation. You may not know him as a soldier, but I did, and so did the men sitting in the place of his parents. That fireball of a man was once one of my closest friends. I wish him the best in whatever death may bring.”

Gaz has shed a tear, and Price is smiling reassuringly and sadly at once. Ghost clears his throat and blinks back a single tear. Losing comrades was the sad truth about the military. He watched his best men get gunned down and there was nothing he could’ve done. This was different.

Ghost had watched, and had seen Price get hit. He could’ve made a shot, but they were just moving too much to risk it. He attempted to go over to them, but a Konnie got a hit onto his temple, knocking his steps to a halt. He felt a single wave of darkness fly over his vision and leave, simultaneously with a gunshot. The thunk of the body on the floor was met by silence as he regained himself.

Johnny, lying dead on the concrete, active bomb being defused, no Makarov. He doesn’t remember shouting out to him, but apparently it happened. There was an exit wound. There was an entrance wound. There was no shot of him getting up.

Price and Gaz had the bomb defused by the time the initial shock was wearing down. His pulse was zero, his breath was zero. Everything was zero.

Soap was dead. He couldn’t come back. Goddamit ghost still had the the killing bullet in a box in his room. He didn’t actually admit that to anyone.

His ashes (most, soaps sisters and the task force, as stated in his will, were to receive some) were spread in the wind and water off the Scottish coast. His dog tags are worn by Mari Finch-Mactavish, his Irish twin.

The world kept revolving after his death. Makarov's heart is still beating after his death, not for long, if Price had something to do with this.

x/x

Waking up from a coma is a jarring experience, especially when you wake up with a massive blind spot in your left eye, and extremely obnoxious tinnitus in your ear.

As far as he can remember he shouldn’t be awake. A loud noise, likely a gunshot was his last sensation he can remember. He can’t remember much else. That seems like an issue for a later moment, he was tired.

He dreamed for the first time since being shot that night. He dreamed of the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse. Conquest, a blonde woman, late thirties, strong souled and confident. She was his adoptive mother, after his parents had left. War, a tall man with a hat and mutton chops, he spoke rough but cared deeply. In this he was a father, his source of advice. Hunger was a tall, young, lanky man, a cap with some flag sat atop his head. A brother and a friend, a lover, but not to him. He could make any man, even the strongest yearn, hunger, and beg, for his approval, but John (?) didn’t need to beg, he already had it.

Finally, if not the most important but the most scary was death. 6’4, shoulders wide as mountains. His muscles had to have been the size of his head. He wore a human skull across his face. He was feared by most, not his 3 other horsemen, not soap (?), but everyone else. He told jokes, he showed emotion, he smoke cigarettes as well as vaped, at least on the field. He would sneak onto the roof with john and watch as mars, named after the god of war, aligned with earth.

These horsemen were familiar. The dream brought him comfort in times of terror.

He woke up officially to a nurse changing a bandage on his head. An IV was jammed into his hand and his arm was in a sling. His whole head hurt, waking up from such an experience like this one, this dream was bound to give him a headache. The nurse walks in front of him, he only knows this when she walks around to his right and notices his stare.

He can hear what she says but she does say something. Then out of nowhere a man guarded by two burly armed men and a doctor.

“Good morning six. I hope you can hear me. We will get you a hearing aid soon. We’re wishing you a speedy recovery.” The man spoke with a thick accent, Russian likely. He didn’t know who he was, he knew he could barely hear him and couldn’t see his right side.

“Thank-“ he was hit hard across the face. He hadn’t done anything yet to deserve it.

“The task force is not to speak unless asked a direct question. You will learn over time.” And with that he's gone as quickly as he appeared.

He, who was referred to as six, which seems dehumanizing, was left to think.

He had to think about this task force. How was he qualified? Is this military? Is he military? He was six, so who were the other five? Who is soap, and why dies he refer to himself as it.

x/x

The nurses came in once every hour and a half. He only had a tv with Russian sitcoms playing. The nurse would chuckle, check and change his IV, every 3 nurses they would feed him through a tube in his nose.

That tube itself was a problem, he would throw it up nearly every night. And then gag and tear up when they put a new one in. He stopped being audible when he received a clean cut across his collarbone.

The injuries received after he got there just added onto a list of things wrong. The most notable ones include, puncture of the frontal lobe, entrance and exit wounds, deafness (cured by aids), complete blindness in his left eye, titanium plate in his head, and a shattered collarbone.

He quickly realized that those were just the things he was told because they were operated on. He had a vertical scar across his forehead, eye, and cheek. These cosmetic things did not bother him because he was not allowed to look.

Six was released into light training after about a month of recovery in the hospital. By this point he was completely silent, never asked questions so he never spoke. In light training he met another guy, one who used bsl, which six understood without ever learning. He learned he was called eight and had a steel rod in both his legs.

These two were only one apart in formation so they were also one room apart. Eight was ever the luckier of the two, knowing he was in the British Royal Navy, but had his legs shattered with an ied in Kyrzakhstan.

Six tried to remember but was only met by the four horsemen of the apocalypse. Death called him Johnny, sounding increasingly stressed and worried with each call until he was screeching in agony. He disliked dreams with death.

Still that man, death himself must’ve been important if his damaged mind remembered him. The other horsemen were there often enough that he didn’t fear sleep. Only one actually riding a horse, which was famine, on strangely enough, a chestnut thoroughbred racehorse. He would pet and brush this horse. When he showed up in dream he’d know it’d be a full night's sleep.

#fanfic #ghoap #simon ghost riley #soapghost #ao3 #john soap mactavish #cod mw2 #call of duty #ao3 crosspost #asexual

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ghoultrifle · 6 months

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ok I might be pushing it with another trip to your askbox, BUT, someone so rudely interrupted your talk about Mountain's ever so wonderful chest hair, so please do go on, I have the entire area secured and there are no guns on the premises

:)))

we all know mountain's massive, right? just everything about him is extra. his clit? we're talking in inches. his chest? fucking boulders, man, he loves it (and so does dew). anyway have a lil ficlet below, featuring hairy trans mountain and small dick dew <3

Dew sits on the edge of the bed, stroking himself. He's set a mild pace, enough to get him hard and riled up, but nothing that will send him over the edge any time soon. Between his knees, a shirtless Mountain kneels, a blank canvas, eager to please.

Mountain's beauty doesn't escape Dewdrop's notice, it's all he can focus on. His eyes are transfixed on the auburn hair adorning the earth ghoul's chest, all the more skin for it to flourish. Soft curls starting just below the collarbone, becoming more coarse as they weave their way down Mountain's chest. A forest of beauty concealing his breasts, covering them in a tawny fleece. Freckles peeking out from below, glistening in the evening sun. A light reprieve from the wilderness when Dew's eyes meet his dusky nipples, standing proud as the earth ghoul watches Dew tugging his cock with an ever-increasing pace.

The thick jungle on his sage skin is never-ending as it moves down his belly, convening into his happy trail, and oh is Dewdrop happy to see it. His gaze follows it down to the waistband of Mountain's tight boxer briefs, all the way to see that rock-hard clit jutting out through the fabric, no doubt encased in a thick bush of ginger.

"S- shit Mount, so fucking beautiful," Dew rasps, saliva running down his chin, sliding effortlessly down his smooth chest, "Need you on me, need your mouth."

Mountain obliges, never one to deny a ghoul literally drooling over him. He leans forward, gently grabbing Dew's cock as he brings it to his lips, licking the bead of pre formed at the tip. Mountain doesn't give Dew any warning before taking his length whole. It's not difficult, Dew's always been insecure about his size, but he will never be upset at it allowing him to be deepthroated like this. Mountain sets a pace not dissimilar to the one Dew had set before begging for his mouth. The fire ghoul is thrusting his hips in time with Mountain's head, chasing his release as he's enveloped in the wet heat of the earth ghoul's sinful mouth.

"Hhngg 'm close, ah- don't stop, don't stop, gonna- "

Mountain smirks, pulling off. Dewdrop opens his mouth to object but can't even form the words in his mind before Mountain closes a fist around his ruddy dick, stroking hard and fast.

"Cum on my tits, baby," Mountain whines, "Know you want to."

It's true. They'd discussed it before, months ago, Dewdrop idly twirling those bewitching hairs between his fingers. Mountain declined, he just wasn't at a point in his transition where he felt comfortable with his chest being acknowledged during sex.

"Ah- are you -fuck- are you sure? Really don't have to, my oak."

Mountain doesn’t respond, opting to stare doe-eyed at the fire ghoul as he continues to work him, slick sounds filling the room. The earth ghoul is chasing his own pleasure, rocking on the heel of his foot in an attempt to get some friction, feeling his foot becoming damp as he leaks through his underwear.

Dew can’t hold off any longer, the cresting wave of his orgasm crashing down. He forces himself to keep his eyes open as those broad hands completely enclose his dick, milking him dry. White ropes shoot from his cock, easily covering the short distance to Mountain’s chest. Droplets make themselves at home in the thick foliage, hair so thick that Dew’s release has nowhere to go but where it lands. In that sense, Mountain really is a canvas, perfectly capturing the moment of Dew’s release, framing it for the other to see.

The contrast of the white against the tinged sage of Mountain’s chest has Dew’s dick threatening to fill out again. It really does try when Mountain presses his tits together, cum stringing between them as they fall back to their natural position.

Dew goes to get a cloth, to wipe Mountain clean, to take care of his mate. What he’s done is no small feat and Dew knows he needs to show his love lest the earth ghoul get in his own head about it.

He brings the rag to Mountain’s chest but before he can make contact, a sizeable hand is grabbing him by the wrist, stopping him.

“Wanna let it dry, droplet.”

And Dew thinks that will be the end of him.

#mountain is a hairy guy #what can i say?#trifle writes #the band ghost #nameless ghouls #dewdrop ghoul #mountain ghoul #trans ghouls

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uwabbittuwabbit · 5 months

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in my head these r what miyazaki ghibli pairings map onto what motogp ships:

-rosquez are obviously howl and sophie, which i go more into depth into here. its also important that sophie and howl get into the fight about howl's hair, because sophie ultimately does go back, puts on her business face etc. i think the timeline would work out like, they get into that big argument whatever its about but marc goes back, vale tries to make up for it with the ring and beautifying marc's clothes and eventually the house in the mountains but during that time its like their relationship is completely frozen even though they're living in the same house...marc considers moving out to live with alex etc. just becomes older with his withdrawal because of the curse. And then vale moves the castle to marc's old home. sophie is also like very much obligated to her family as the oldest daughter (which is why she stays in the hat shop) which is very marc! he wants to make his people happy...Also don't tell me fuck ass bob vale DOESN'T scream young howl to you. say it to my face. u can't.

-enea/casey are san and ashitaka from princess mononoke. just imagine the "im going to cut ur throat/ur beautiful" scene with them...i dont think casey necessarily gets cured from the illness that he gets from the corrupted forest god it just becomes part of him, so its no longer killing him after the forest god's head is returned but still ails him. hes from a super far secret civilization and cant go back after being banished (kind of like how u can't fade into obscurity after rising to fame). rides an antelope looking thing and is so so noble. enea is feral and living with the wolves. hates humans. but when this stranger comes and gets shot in his name he can't help but feel something other than that hatred he has felt all of his life. chews casey's food for him and delivers it mouth to mouth when he's too weak to eat...the same mouth that spat out the poisoned blood around the mother wolf's bullet wound. etc.

-cele/bezz r sosuke and ponyo, but they also have the potential to be kiki(bezz) and tombo(cele) and sheeta(cele) and pazu(bezz)...to me cele is sosuke, the weird kid who lives in the house on a hill (alone), signals ships at night just to talk to somebody and flies maritime flags. likes to fix stuff, has a tiny little dinky car. works as a daycare science teacher taking the kids on trips to catch bugs and frogs but also helps out at the nursing home next door, fixing the wheelchairs of the residents and like taking them out for fresh air while the kids tag along. thats summer though and in the winter he helps out at the dock and on fishing boats. he would love you if you were a worm, in short. bezz's misadventures get him stuck in a jar (he could cry he's so embarrassed) but cele finds him when testing his newest like little motorized toy boat prototype he wants to show the kids and bezz IMMEDIATELY falls in love, it's crazy. you bet he licked the blood off of cele's gashed finger just like that. is absolutely INDULGING in the attention he gets when cele brings him in for Show And Tell/Storytime and explains in his pondering voice how he found bezz. gets sloshed on that forbidden magic juice right after getting plopped back home and runs on giant fucking waves as cele commutes home to impress him. all cele feels is like, mild concern like damn do i have to detour home? i would have known if there was some major meteorological event coming my way. when the curly haired stranger with an earnest smile shows up at his home and engulfs him in a hug, he meets it with the same bewilderment but because bezz feels familiar. consequentially is not very impressed or surprised about bezz being a fish loool. i was just picturing the thumbnail of this video the entire time i wrote this and that's literally their whole vibe. that's bezz in cele's tub right there. this post is getting away from me more than it already is so ill like do a quick preface of the other premises...bezz is a witch and his familiar is rubik...flies away to a big city and meets cele with his homemade flying contraptions...gets tattoed for the first time by some random artist in the woods...becomes depressed...can't fly anymore...cele is the last member of a royal family and falls from the sky after being held on an airship, with bezz as the one to catch him...bezz has always wanted adventure because his father was one of the few people to have ever seen the fabled castle in the sky...wants to take his chances with cele...cele's billowing curls and tragic eyes...all bezz wants to do is make him happy...all cele wants is to go home.

-luca/pecco as haku and chihiro from spirited away. their whole vibe is childhood friends that grew apart and then rekindled imo. when they meet in the spirit world luca introduces himself as maro and to pecco he seems familiar; you how it was on a playground when you were young and you knew everything about someone except for their name? so maro it is, and he takes pecco's hand when he cries about his roommates (pecco's in college and ended up in an abandoned places exploration group with them) being turned into pigs and is panicking about not being able to go home and is generally a mess and tells him to get up from where he's been curled up into a ball and run with him to the bathhouse where he gets a job and becomes just pecco, no francesco because his name gets taken away. life is pretty tough for pecco at first and he's very lonely while luca is away doing missions for the boss, which is most of the time. hes also very insecure and fears luca leaving him because he's not good enough. but he puts his head down and slowly earns respect from his peers. starts standing up for himself and becoming more confident, and eventually has his standout moment for completely cleansing a polluted spirit. luca (a river spirit) fell in love with pecco when he fell into him and wasn't able to swim. even though that was very much an embarrassing moment what made it worse were pecco's flailing attempts to keep his head above water, but that was what endeared him to luca. it was his stupidly stubborn will to keep his nose to the grindstone even when it filled his mouth with water and got him nowhere. that is how a river thinks, and luca could never forget pecco's lanky straggling form as he struggled up the banks of the river, wretched and alive but triumphant for doing so.

#sorry this is super fucking long...#but if you have any thoughts leave them on the post! there are definitely ships that i have missed #(namely pedronzo i cannot figure out their vibe)#but yea :)#rosquez #casey/enea #bezz/cele #pecco/luca #i should start tagging rpf lol #rpf #look away if u dont enjoy!#motogp #eternalectics

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skellyghosts · 1 year

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DEAD OF NIGHT • SOAP X CIVILIAN!READER PART 2

SCENARIO: you're a civilian who got caught up in a mission soap was on. he ends up in your care while the rest of the 141 is dealing with the mission at hand while looking for him.

you live in a small cabin and it's quite literally in the middle of the woods. it's big enough for one or two people, so taking in soap wasn't an issue. the only issue on the table was the fact he was bleeding out...

**told in y/n pov**

By the time I got into town, the sun was just cresting over the mountains and illuminating the sky. I kept glancing to my phone to see if Moira send a text back on meeting me, but I didn't see anything yet. So, I opted to go buy new clothes for Soap since he was filthy and covered in blood. He could probably use a shower too so i'll get him his own shampoo, conditioner, and body wash.

I parked at the front of the small store and got out of my car, eyeing the open sign and sighing in relief. I'm never in town often since I come once or twice a month to get things I need. I just don't like people, so living alone was great.

Until Soap came into your life, a small part of me grumbled. I couldn't agree more, but I couldn't let him die. I'm not that heartless.

I walked into the store and waved to the cashier. He waved back before going on his phone again, completely engulfed in whatever he was doing. I made my way to the men's section and grabbed anything that would suit Soap. I grabbed t-shirts, henley shirts, sweatpants, sweatshirts, wool socks, underwear—anything to keep him comfortable. I didn't know what size he was, but I took a guess with a large or extra large, then moved on to toiletries. I grabbed travel sized items then went to the medical area to get bandages, ointments, and more ibuprofen and melatonin. If he's going to be with me for awhile, might as well give him a supply of his own.

I noticed a woman staring at me as I grabbed a couple bottles of men's shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. She then eyed my cart full of clothes and other medical items.

"My brother's an idiot. Forgot all his clothes at home and then had the audacity to cut himself with a kitchen knife while cooking." I grumbled at her and she walked away. I wasn't in the mood for that.

Once I got what Soap needed, I pushed my cart to the snack aisle. I grabbed three boxes of poptarts, some chips, and a jar of Tostitos queso.

My phone buzzed on my pocket and I pulled it out, seeing a text from my pharmacist friend, Moira. I had explained to her VERY vaguely that I needed stronger medication for Soap without mentioning him, but judging from her text message, she wasn't going to give me any. I tried to convince her again, but she just told me to buy Tylenol, ibuprofen, and make sure to keep him elevated enough. After that, she completely ignored my text messages and I was left in my problems yet again.

Shoving my phone back in my pocket, I started to head in the direction of the checkout. As I walked closer, I noticed a group of armed men enter the store and the few of us in here started to panic. I stayed where I was and ducked behind the cart as if it would protect me.

"Stay calm, everyone!" One of the men shouted, his Spanish accent heavy as he looked at everyone around him. The cashier I waved to earlier glanced to me and tried to come over. Gun shots went off and everyone screamed. The cashier fell to the ground, bullet wounds littering his body and his eyes stared at mine.

I stood up completely when the armed men glanced at everyone.

"We're from the Las Almas cartel, and we're looking for someone who has info about our leader, El Sin Nombre. He's Special Forces—goes by the call sign Soap."

I kept my face void of emotion but I was screaming inwardly. How the hell was I going to get out of this situation alive? More importantly, why are cartel members so far up here? Like I thought before, I knew it wasn't impossible, but it was weird to me. I always thought of them as staying by the border..... I don't know if that's stereotypical or not....

"My men last saw him around this area. This is a small town. Someone must have seen a tactical-armed hombre with a stupid little mohawk?"

I almost cracked a smile and laughed at his statement, but I stayed silent. One of the men walked amongst the other terrified customers, his eyes looking over the groceries and items they had. I stared back at him when he approached me, his eyes looking at the mens clothing and toiletries in my cart.

He shouted in Spanish at me before he aimed his gun at my head. I didn't even flinch or scream when he did that, but rather stared with a bored look at my face. How was I doing this shit emotionlessly?!

"I have a name, y'know."

"You've seen him. Where?"

"I haven't seen him, you idiot. I'm buying clothes for my brother because he's a dumbass and forgot to bring his entire duffel bag to visit me."

I kept my gaze steady on the cartel member in front of me, my heart pounding against my chest and my head getting light. I kept my hands on my pockets to keep them from shaking, but I also dialed 911 by triple-pressing my lock button.

"You don't come clean, we'll kill you!"

"Even if I kept the guy you're hunting for under my watch, you don't have evidence to prove it!"

He grabbed the front of my shirt and hit the end of his gun to my temple. He got in my face, his hot breath hitting my skin and I resisted the urge to gag from how it smelled.

"We'll kill everyone here if you don't tell us."

"Just tell them!" A bystander shouted from her cart.

"Tell them! I can't die!"

"Save us!"

"Don't kill us, please! I have a baby at home!"

I looked at the innocents around me, strategizing a way to bargain and even get everyone out alive. I didn't care what happened to me. If I died, that would insure Soap's secrecy and safety.

But who would take care of Nic?

I sighed and nodded my head, telling them I would concede....not that I'm actually going to tell them where I live....

"Before I tell you, I want to strike a deal: everyone here gets to leave unharmed and not threatened. They remain anonymous. Second, if I tell you, I get to go free as well. Whether I'm unharmed or not, I get to go."

I happened to see something flicker from the back of a truck, then I saw someone duck down behind my car. The realization of who they were hit me and I decided now would be a good time to get out of the way.

"Anything else?"

"Yeah. How good are your reflexes?" I threw a box of poptarts at hm before diving behind a cash register. That's when all the bullets came through and the cartel members either dropped dead or scattered.

I tried to crawl toward one of the aisles but I was grabbed my the ankles. A remaining cartel member yanked me back, clawing at my legs and getting on top of me.

"Everyone run to the emergency exits!" I shouted and they didn't hesitate to do just that.

My fear overwhelmed me as I started to cry and scream for help. My "tough guy" facade was no more, and now I was a sobbing mess.

"GET OFF ME!" I screamed as I kicked him in the face and crawled.

A gun shot went off again, but this time it was me who got shot. The bullet burned into my calf and a scream ripped from my throat. I couldn't move as he grabbed me by the back of my shirt and yanked me upwards.

"You kill me, you kill this one!" The cartel member shouted as I cried. I looked out the shattered windows, seeing that the cops and Soap's team was aiming their weapons at me.

"TAKE THE SHOT!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, fearful tears streaming down my face. "TAKE THE SHOT!"

I closed my eyes and moved my head away to clear a shot. When I heard the bullet tear through the man's skull and his grip loosened, the two of us fell, except he was dead and I was a sobbing mess.

I felt someone gently place their hand on my shoulder as I cried from everything I felt. Pain, fear, trauma, my worry for my dog—hell, even Soap crossed my mind.

"You're the one who helped Johnny. Where is he?!" That familiar British accent asked me as I started to drift off.

I managed to tell him my address before completely blacking out, my head resting on my arm and tears continuing to drench my face.

When I woke up, I was greeted by an annoyingly bright light and the smell of disinfectant and alcohol. I blinked rapidly as I looked to my left, seeing Soap in the hospital bed beside mine. He was asleep and had oxygen tubes at his nose.

"You're awake. Finally."

I looked over at the corner to see a hooded man with a skull mask on. Only his eyes were visible and there was black smudged around them. When he stood, I couldn't help but stare. He was a unit....like, his bicep was probably the size of my head.

"No shit, Sherlock." I sighed, keeping my awe under control as he walked up to me. I could tell he was untrusting of me, but after glancing over to Soap, he loosened up a bit.

"I hear you found him?"

"More like he broke into my cabin and temporarily passed out in the bath tub. I stitched him up as best as I could and helped him rest. I just didn't expect, well, this."

I gestured to my elevated leg that was bandages heavily.

"I'm guessing you're the one Soap calls Ghost. I'm sorry I was cryptic when I replied to your 'how copy'." I did an impression of his accent and he stared back with a blank look. "I didn't mean to sound like I was holding him hostage."

The two of us went silent for a moment before the room door opened. Another man walked in, but he wasn't masked. He seemed more welcoming than Ghost but he still intimidated me.

"Y/N L/N, the one who, to an extent, saved Soap's life. While you were extremely cryptic in that response, I thank you for keeping my comrade safe. I'm also impressed with how you handled the whole hostage situation."

"Oh, that was pure adrenaline, now that I think about it. I sobbed like a baby when I dove away."

The man laughed a little and walked up to me.

"I'm Captain John Price, but you can call me John. The masked one is Ghost, and Soap is John McTavish."

"Do I get to know Ghost's real name?"

"Negative." Ghost responded and I looked away.

"Fair enough. Wait! My dog, Nic! Is she—"

"One of my men, Gaz, and two of our allies, Alejandro and Rudy, are taking care of her. If the hospital allows, we can bring her in."

I relaxed when I heard she was okay, sighing in relief as I ran a hand through my hair. I glanced to Soap when I heard him grumble and stir in his sleep. Price and Ghost immediately joined his side when he woke up, his Scottish accent hoarse and scratchy from being asleep.

"Bloody hospital..."

"Agreed." I said from my side and he looked at me. I pressed my lips together, staring at him as he stared back.

"Can I speak to Y/N alone?" Soap asked as he looked at his two friends. They glanced at me before nodding, the two leaving and Soap and I stayed silent for a moment.

I picked at my nails as Soap started to speak.

"I want to thank you. Ghost told me what you did for me while we were in the ambulance."

"It was nothing. Figured I got morals, might as well use them."

Soap laughed at my statement before looking at his hands.

"You remind me of Ghost in a way. He's the same as you: doesn't like people but he still has the honorable morals."

"Glad I could be of service."

Soap nodded, but I noticed his expression became solemn.

"What?"

"Once I leave, it'll be like we never met one another. I'll go back to being in the field; you'll go back to whatever you do...."

"Do you want my phone number?"

I looked at him with my eyebrow raised, the man staring in shock over me being so straightforward. I almost laughed but I didn't to keep the unfazed facade up. Inwardly, I was screeching and kicking my feet. I mean, it's not everyday a man covered in blood and grime comes into your life to make it interesting.

"That'd be nice." He replied, smiling softly as he looked back at me. I felt my cheek heat up.

"Do you have a phone I can put it in?" I managed to get out and scratched the back of my head nervously.

"How about writing it down on paper?"

"Dude, that's so middle school..."

I looked at him, Soap completely confused about what I said but I didn't elaborate. Instead, I grabbed a tissue from the Kleenex box on the bedside table and held out my hand.

"Do you have a pen?"

+ + +

pt.3?

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chubbyheadquarters · 2 years

Note

Swk and macaque x little brother reader one shots (who’s like 500 years younger then them and also a monkey) Im making a character and I need to see more platonic x readers ❤️ love your writings

That sounds neat!

Genre: Platonic

Pronouns: Male

TW/CW: None

Characters: Sun Wukong-Monkey King and Macaque-Liu Er Mihou

☀️Sun Wukong ☀️

"So, safe to say, you're super sick."

"Yeah, no shit, dipshit."

Wukong frowned, leaning against the doorway, "No cursing."

You scoffed, ready to retort back, but harsh coughs pushed past your lips. He immediately moved to your side, taking the cloth off your head and drying it before dipping it in water and placing it back to its original spot.

You could feel the nervousness radiating off of him, and it was making you roll your eyes.

You waved him off, "Just go get the medicine."

He pouted, but moved from your side, heading out with his footsteps getting faint-

Only for them to come rushing back to your room, with his head poking in.

"Are you absolutely-"

"Go. Get. The. Medicine."

He raised his hands, "Okay! Okay!"

You could hear him walk away, and with the silence, knew that he had finally left to get your stuff.

A weak sigh left your mouth.

You knew he meant well, but your brother could be such an fool sometimes. You weren't going to die if he left for a few minutes, and yet, he made a whole deal about it.

Granted, the two of you barely got sick, but your body wasn't used to all the stuff his was, nor was it in the best shape. While on his journey, his body had gotten used to all sorts of curses, illnesses, etc.

Meanwhile, you had stayed back and protected your monkey friends on Flower Fruit Mountain, passing the days by and eating with your monkey friends.

A soft chrip by your side had you smiling. All of your furry friends were huddled in your room, looking at you with worried faces.

It was cute how concerned they were.

Even with the constant assurance, they still seemed nervous for you. Wukong's stress must have rubbed off on them.

You could understand your brother's worries to a certain degree. After having demons constantly raiding your home and him coming back to see you and the others with new scars, you'd be worried too if you were in his shoes.

But the way he treated you like fragile glass at certain times is what made you upset.

You had the conversation with him multiple times, and he tried to be less protective, but it would still happen every so often.

...

Maybe THAT incident still plays through his mind...

Lost in your thoughts, you failed to notice the worry on the monkey's faces, who huddled closer to your side. Your hand unconsciously moved to pet them, which eased them a bit. Though, they were curious as to what plagued your mind.

Before long, Wukong had returned with the medicine, stepping inside and taking his shoes off.

"I'm back!"

Wukong waited for a remark, but when he heard nothing, his body was already heading towards your room.

You were still staring out that window, before turning to him with a blank expression.

He moved to sit beside you, "What's up?"

"Just thinking."

"About?"

You took the medicine from him, smiling, "How much of a loser you are."

You burst out laughing at the shocked expression he shot at you. With a few coughs thrown out there and medicine being taken, the two of you decided to watch some movies in your room.

🌙Macaque🌙

"Big brother?"

The soft squeeze of his hand signaled that you had his attention, "Are we almost done?"

Macaque nodded with a small hum, "We just need one more thing."

You smiled and cheered, happy to be finished with all this walking!

The two of you had reached your last destination, with the older monkey talking to the stall owner. Not long after, he's grinning, happy with the good deal he just bargained.

"Now we can-"

Looking down, he sees that you're no longer there.

He's freaking out.

Where the hell did you go!?

He literally looked away for a few seconds-

And now you're missing!

He hadn't even felt you move your hand from his!

While the poor simian was scouring the market, you, on the other hand, were following after a man pushing a cart of plums.

After finally catching up, you reached out and grabbed his pants, softly pulling on it.

The male turned, squatting down, "What can I do for you kiddo?"

Nervously, you rummaged for your money, "Can I get as many plums as this can buy?"

You shoved the few coins you had in his view and the man nodded, "Of course!"

He turned around, grabbing three before handing them to you and patting your head, "Here you go!"

A smile had graced your lips and your tail wagged with excitement, "Thanks mister!"

He nodded before tipping his hat and walking off.

You couldn't help but cheer in your head.

Big brother's favorite fruit!

He'll definitely be happy!

After all, he had been really busy and tired looking from his missions lately, and you knew that plums were something that never failed to make him smile!

With a call of your name, you turned around, seeing Macaque heading your way.

You waved, watching as he ran over to you before wrapping his arms around you. The force startled you, and your expression warped to concern.

"Don't ever run off like that again!"

He pulled back, hands now on your shoulder. His grip was tight, but not to where it could hurt you.

"Something bad could have happened to you!"

He couldn't lose you.

You were his little brother.

The only thing he had that kept him going.

Your tail and head lowered, eyes refusing to meet his, "I'm sorry..."

Macaque stopped, and took a deep breath.

He had to remember that while he was around 500 years old, you weren't.

You were just a child.

And he knew that you wouldn't do anything bad.

You wouldn't just run off.

"Where did you even go?"

You took the plums, shoving them in his face with an apologetic expression.

"I got it for you!"

"...With your money?"

You nodded, "I saw how tired you were, so I thought you'd like some plums. They're your favorites!"

.....

...

He felt too blessed at times.

Having a younger brother like you.

You were too nice for your own good sometimes.

Macaque patted your hair, ruffling it a bit and earning a laugh from you, "Thanks bro."

He stood up, extending his hand out to you, "We can enjoy them back home."

You grabbed onto his hand, smiling and humming as the two of you walked home.

"You're still grounded."

"What!?"

Sorry for any spelling/grammar errors!

#lmk x chubby reader #lmk x reader #lmk x y/n #chubby reader #x chubby reader #lego monkie kid #lmk #six eared macaque #sun wukong #lmk wukong #lmk macaque

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meetmyothersouls · 7 months

Note

Roll on this weekend for your many beautiful Jonah fics!

I hope you enjoy the start of my new series! Here’s my first Halloween special of the season!

The Through Hike

Jonah Hauer-King x first person reader

Warnings: Appalachian mountains, creature, blood, suspense

Chapter 1

In this current moment, I’m not sure what is bothering me more. The fact that this is not going to be an indie film like I was being led to believe or that the casting director handed out the male lead role. I’ve trained my entire life for a role like this. I earned this role in more ways than just my acting ability. I grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. I hiked the trails as an infant strapped to my moms back. I led my Girl Scout troop leader out of the Forrest with just a compass and the moon as my guide. I was born for this role.

Jonah Hauer-King was not. Clearly they handed him the role after his newly recent success from the live action Little Mermaid movie. I did my research immediately upon finding out he was to be acting along side of me. He grew up rich, probably never hiked a mountain in his life, let alone camped in the wilderness.

I roll my eyes as I enter the forest clearing for our first day of shooting. I see Jonah, it’s hard not too, he is incredibly tall. Even from far away I can tell he’ll tower over me which will make our kissing scenes even more awkward than I originally thought.

He looks over at me and I look away but not before I catch his eager wave and smile. He begins to walk toward me and I prepare myself. My thought is to pretend like I’ve never heard of him. Put him in his place a little bit. I won’t be pushed over but some A-list actor who things he’s doing is all a favor because he’s acting in an indie film.

“Y/n!” Jonah calls, kicking up leaves with each footstep towards me. I hate that he knows my name without me having to tell him. “Hi!”

I’ve got to look up to make eye contact with him. Jesus he’s massive. A little leaner than he was in The Little Mermaid, but massive nonetheless. “Hi,” I say back.

Jonah smiles again, a prominent dimple changing his face from attractive to downright adorable, but I’ll never make it known. He holds out his hand for a handshake. “I’m a huge fan of your work, I’m looking forward to working with you.”

“Oh are you?” I ask, I take his hand and give him a limp handshake. Suck up.

“Definitely, Eye for an Eye was incredible!”

This throws me off guard. I find it hard to believe any one knows about my films, let alone an actor of his status. Indie films usually appeal to a specific audience, one that I didn’t think he’d be a part of. “Well, thanks,” I say, unable to keep the facade of my hard exterior. “I’ve seen a few of yours as well.”

“Alright everyone! Let’s get to work,” Shaun, the director says. He’s got a few other behind the scenes people next to him. They begin marking areas with flags, so they don’t get lost on their way back out of the woods. Amateurs. “We’ve got a few scene on the docket for today, but nothing that’ll be too involved. Jonah, Y/n, we’ll be doing mostly nature shots for today, if you want to head back to the hotel for the day feel free to.”

Jonah looks over at me but says, “I’m good, I’d like to explore the terrain a bit.”

Shaun looks over at me and I wave him off. He knows where I’d rather be. I start walking, the feel of the ground beneath my new hiking shoes fills me with joy until I hear Jonah’s footsteps behind me. “So you enjoy the outdoors too?”

“Yeah,” I say, “I grew up here.”

“Oh yeah? Tell me about it.”

I eye him, arching an eyebrow. “Well, my parents are from Asheville, but moved out deeper into the mountain before I was born. My mom had me in the cabin her and my dad built and raised me on the mountain. You know how they say ‘the mountains are calling’?” I look over at Jonah, he’s smiling at me, listening intently. “Well, they literally know my name-the mountains I mean-they’re a part of me.” We’re silent for a moment, the only thing to be heard is the crunching of our footsteps on the ground. “What about you?”

Jonah huffs out a laugh, “ah well, I wouldn’t say I’ve got nature in my blood but-”

He stops talking once I hold my hand up to his face. “Did you hear that?”

Jonah looks around furrowing his brow as if the action would help him hear better. “What?” He whispers.

“I heard a scream.”

“Maybe an animal?” Jonah offers.

“Not an animal. I know every animal sound there is out here, that was human.”

Just as the words leave my mouth the scream sound again, only louder, more distraught and blood curdling.

“Okay I hear it now.”

Several more pierce the air and I turn back.

“I’m not sure how to get back!” Jonah calls out running after me.

“Just follow me and be quiet. No more yelling.”

Apparently we walked a lot farther than we thought, I haven’t seen one orange flag yet. We weave through trees and I make mental notes of everything that I can use as a natural marker. If I pass it again I know where going in circles. I whip past branches and duck skillfully under low hanging limbs. Jonah’s a few steps behind it he’s keeping up. Finally, I see an orange flag in the distance. I slow significantly, and hold my hand back so Jonah doesn’t bump into me. It’s eerily quiet. No birds chirping or squirrels dating from tree to tree. We walk gingerly across piled leaves. Jonah is next to me and I hold my fingers to my lips. We make our way to a massive tree, big enough to conceal both of our bodies. I press against it and peek around the bark.

“What do you see?” Jonah whispers.

I slow my breathing in an attempt to be as quiet as possible. There’s camera equipment scattered across the forest floor. There’s a shoe here and a phone lying in the mud right next to my shoe. Then I see a body. My hand goes to my mouth so my gasp isn’t audible. I’m quite sure that’s Keenan the boom operator. His chest is ripped open and organs are spilling out of his open abdomen. Something pulls his body out of view. There’s a wet crunching sound further to my left. I lean over a bit further but wish I hadn’t. Crouched down about fifteen feet away is what I can only describe as a monster. It’s skin is rotted and gray in some places. It’s wearing clothing but it’s extremely weathered and torn. It snarls as it digs into Shaun’s body. Blood squirts against the dirt, creating a bloody mud mixture.

“What?” Jonah barely whispers.

I turn to face him. “We have to go,” I mouth.

“Why? What did you see?”

“Shhh!”

“What is it?” He mouths back.

“It’s-”

As soon as I hear the iPhone ringing in the mud next to me my heart drops. I hear the creature drop Shaun’s entrails. Then I hear it’s footsteps. I peek back around the tree and we lock eyes. I gasp and dart back behind the tree. I’m not able to speak, I grab Jonah’s shirt collar and I’m only able to get one word out before taking off.

“Run.”

Tags: @danielabetancourth @luna2034 @wandamaximoffbae @twinkledinkleg-blog @justagirlwholovedtoread @nonsensical-nonsence @paramorelvrr @thedonswife13 @miniemonie2001 1 @jonahhauer-kingg @crazyyynyyyy @notagreekgal28

#jonah hauer king fanfic #Jonah hauer king #Jonah hauer-king #jonah hauer king x reader #jonah hauer king fan fiction #jonah hauer king one shot #jonah hauer king fanfiction #jonah hauer king x y/n #jonah hauer king imagine #jonah hauer king gifs #the through hike #my writing #halloween special

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sorayah2 · 1 year

Text

━ Sensory Lovers| Neteyam x oc FF

@Sorayahluvs on Wattpad

✠ ━━━━━━━ Chapter 2

✠ ┏━━━━━━━━

✩°̥࿐୨୧

"Get up kids! Start getting ready!"

Neytiri shouted from outside.

Tired groans can be heard from the sleeping children, tossing their bodies around and basically doing anything but opening those sleepy eyes. Even though they always go to bed early so they can get enough sleep, lifting the mightiest mountain in Pandora seems like an easier task for Neytiri and Jake than getting them out of their beds.

"Tuk move your feet," Lo'ak whined in annoyance, shoving his little sister's leg off his face. She rolled over, now doing the same thing to Neteyam.

"C'mon Tuk..." Neteyam tapped her ankle, he's laid flat on his back with his eyes closed, too lazy to actually move her.

"I told you she'd do it again, but your weak ass fell for her puppy eyes. Next time she sleeping with mom and dad, I don't wanna hear it." Lo'ak said after yawning and stretching his body.

Tuktirey was unresponsive to his complaints for a moment, so she could turn to Neteyam and apologize before returning her focus to him.

"As if you don't blabber in your sleep, weirdo. I was using my leg to shut you up." She remarks.

"First of all, I've never in my life done that crap. Second, nobody wants your stinkin' feet on their face, that's totally disgusting!" With a disgusted facial expression, he pointed out.

"Oh please, you must've been smelling yourself, not my feet! I don't think you even took a shower yesterday, ya nasty!"

"Why you—I did shower. I was the one who gave you one, you ungrateful smart mouth!"

"Lo'ak hush, you're literally arguing with a 7 year old. It's too early for this." Kiri says, rolling her eyes.

"I'll argue with a 7 year old if she's this disrespectful, I don't care."

"Fine, I don't want your big head to give me one today. I want Teyam to!"

Lo'ak waved her off. "Whatever. I wouldn't do it anyway."

"And I'm telling on you for breaking dad's camera, I saw you." Tuk stuck her tongue out at him.

"Snitch."

"Teyam, help me. Lo'ak is a big jerk and he's bullying me." She poked his left cheek.

"Gimme a few minutes, yeah?"

"Sure."

She stayed silent for a while then started shaking him, "Okay, minute's over!"

"I'm up, ma'am, I'm up," He gave her a tired smile.

Now fully awake, Neteyam was able to stand up while carrying Tuk in his arms and twirling her in an effort to lighten her mood just a little. Nope, she persisted in grumbling about how much of a bully Lo'ak actually is, thus it didn't quite work as he'd hoped. He would chuckle at the name-calling and false accusations that she'd make randomly, admitting in his mind that their brother was right to call her out on having a sharp tongue. Obviously, he was aware that she wasn't being sincere and will quickly forget about their 'fight'.

She loves him no matter what.

And his point was proven much sooner. He offered Tuk a drink of water and helped her do her daily morning routine before asking Lo'ak to lend her a hand with her hair and the new accessories that Neytiri gave her so that he could get ready as well. Lo'ak grumbled under his breath but still complied.

"I'm gonna make lots of friends! I hope they like me..I'm nice so why wouldn't they?"

Kiri gave them some of the fruits she went to get in their parents storage space. "Just stay out of trouble, we don't wanna give mom and dad more stress than they're already going through."

"Yeah that's Lo'ak's job, I listen to my mom and dad."

"I'm sitting right here."

"We can see that." Tuk simply bite into the piece of fruit, her comeback made Kiri laugh.

"We cAn SeE tHat." He imitated her in mocking tone, still putting her braids through the beads.

"I'll go see my mom one last time, catch you guys in a bit."

They nodded and Kiri took her leave.

About our lovely queen Kiri. She is the beautiful, inquisitive, intelligent adopted daughter of Jake and Neytiri. As she was born around the same time as Neteyam, they were both simultaneously given a first connection to Eywa at the Tree of Souls in front of the entire clan.

She is unlike any Na'vi or avatar that the Omatikaya have ever met before. From a very early age, she has had an unusually strong connection to Eywa, even more than that of a tsahìk. While out in the forest, Kiri occasionally gets lost in thoughts and quiet meditation and her siblings will find her, eyes closed, feeling Eywa's heartbeat beneath her.

Kiri deeply wishes she could have met her biological mother, Grace, when she was still alive. She does whatever she can to feel closer to her, whether it be visiting Grace's incubated avatar, trying to get answers from Jake, or reading the documents and video recordings that Grace has left behind. Interestingly, Kiri shares many of her mother's traits, such as a certain rebellious attitude and a rather pure love for all that Pandora stands for.

Because Grace had an avatar body, Kiri possesses human-like traits such as her eyebrows and four fingers on her hands. Similar to Lo'ak.

On her way to the lab, she saw Neytiri struggling to lift all the luggage on her own. Jake did tell her they wouldn't need all of those belongings, but she insisted that she isn't leaving anything behind and packed so much stuff that will remind her of home.

"Pfft, mom, do you need help?" Kiri tried to hold in her laugher. Neytiri's posture was amusingly awkward.

"Oh, hey, sweetie..kind of. Your dad's feeding Bob, so I'm left to do this by myself. I should divorce that man, I deserve better."

"Drama queen, I'll help you." Kiri took the other bags that were left; luckily, those were not heavy.

"Thank you, and be careful not to lose your balance. Walk slowly." Neytiri warned her. Following her to the Ikrans, Kiri nodded.

They were able to finish with the task in no time. Then, both let out audible sighs.

"I'll be right back." Kiri resumed with her plan, she started walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"To the lab. Don't worry, I won't be there for long, I'm just gonna say a quick final goodbye to mom and the others."

"Look if you can find any of those strange gadgets in there that can be useful to us!"

"Mom! You're already over-packed." Kiri waved her off.

Hours later:

The moment has arrived for them to leave. Despite understanding their decision, Mo'at felt devastated to be separated from her daughter and her grandchildren. As Tsahìk, the spiritual leader of a Na'vi clan and the most important member next to the clan leader, she couldn't leave her people; they needed her.

She gave each of them a squeezing hug while shedding unrestrained tears of sorrow.

Turning to Jake, she placed her hand on his shoulder. "Protect them with your life. That's my only wish from you."

"I will. That's my duty as a father and mate." She was trembling from all the crying when Jake put his hand on top of hers and made his vow.

Mo'at nodded. She did grow fond of Jake throughout the years; he brought her daughter tremendous happiness, along with four bundles of joy who called her grandma. She was grateful for such luxury. She had long since forgiven the previous betrayals and never held grudges against him. Jake atoned for his initial betrayal by becoming the sixth Toruk Makto in Na'vi history and aligning himself with the clan.

The clan harbors much respect for him as a former leader and had learned a lot from him. And the fact that Mo'at had guided the people alongside him, and her daughter made her feel honored. She accepted their marriage, loved and provided for the family.

"Daughter, be brave and strong like I know you to be." Mo'at instructed her daughter, gaze stern yet encouraging.

With Tuktirey in her arms, Neytiri sobbed and nodded. "Yes, mother."

"Geez grandma, stop squeezing so much, you gonna break my bones." Lo'ak grumbled, earning a smack from Neteyam.

"Lo'ak!"

"What?" He glares at him.

"Thankful that this thing is another territory's problem now." Mo'at said sarcastically and rolled her eyes.

"He's playing grandma, we'll miss you for sure." Neteyam assured her.

"I know. Go ahead, don't let me hold you guys back."

Eventually they all made their bonds with the Ikrans and set off.

'I'll be here waiting for whenever you come back.' Were her last words to them.

—༚༅༚˳✿˳༚༅༚—

|𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐤𝐚𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐧|

As Jake has previously informed them, the Metkayina are an oceanic Na'vi clan who live along the shores of the Pandora oceans, on islands or near the mainland. Their homes are marui pods, which are built into the roots of mangrove-like trees spanning the islands. These homes hang directly above the water, presumably for easy access for swimming. Massive seawall terraces, similar in appearance to travertine terraces, guard the villages from strong waves and provide an easy place for the clan to fish.

The wind whistles a new beat, its gentle breeze caressing his face as his world seems to just pause as he takes the majestic wonder in slowly. He loves nature. And the lustrous and bright blue waters that the Metkayina live on are like the oceans that Neteyam thought he'd only see in his dreams. A dreamy sea that has a rhythmic pulse to it unmatched by any other part of nature. Except his home forest, of course.

"Why do you come to us?" The chief of the Metkayina clan, Tonowari, asked Jake.

"I just wanna keep my family safe," Jake replied.

Curly hair appears to be the norm within the clan. Their skin also sways towards a more turquoise color than the traditional blue, and with the fluid, ripple-like stripes he's used to, they blend perfectly with the aqua blue-green of the sea. They have distinct areas of lighter coloration on their underbellies and faces. The people had physical differences that he figured made their life on water easier, like a stronger tail for swimming faster.

"Treat them as brothers and sisters, teach them our ways." Tonowari says to the people.

Neteyam thought their first meeting was quite overwhelming. Although the relationship between his father and Tonowari was civil, their wives definitely didn't start on pleasant terms. While her husband did sympathize with Jake's request to protect their family, Ronal otherwise believes that their arrival inherently invites danger, as they have already brought destruction to their very own home. Neteyam genuinely understood where she was coming from, but their enemy's ongoing ambition isn't solely the family's fault.

And his mother isn't any happier about the situation than Ronal is; she has had to leave her people, her title, and the only home she's ever known. Fortunately, Jake asked her to leave her bow behind or...let's just be thankful.

He didn't appreciate her first impression towards his siblings either; he had to keep his cool in front of his parents, who warned them to do so. Not that he would openly stand up to her; she does seem like she would whoop his ass in front of everyone in a flash with no remorse. Additionally, he made no fuss over the other boys who were making fun of him and Lo'ak because they're deemed irrelevant to him. They were childish jerks.

One thing that most certainly didn't go unnoticed by Neteyam is that the chief's daughter, Tsireya, almost immediately caught Lo'ak's attention when she made her grand entrance. His eyes even sparkled when her father told her to show them their way of life.

They were shown to their marui pods by Tsireya, where they'll be staying at in the meantime. The three of them are still sharing a room, and Tuktirey is now sleeping with their parents as a result of Lo'ak's desperate pleading. So, nothing has changed on that part.

"Okay, Sully's fall in." Jake called out to everyone.

"Remember? Family meeting." Lo'ak was tugged along by Neteyam a little more forcefully than he had intended. If he hadn't caught Lo'ak in time, he knew that he would've skipped the meeting. Kiri was on the same boat.

"-Come on, take a knee, let's go."

"Kiri." Neytiri urged her to sit.

"What?" Kiri said with an attitude. She was still upset about what happened earlier with Ronal; Neytiri could tell that, and she objects to anyone treating her children in such a way.

"I need you kids on your best behavior." Jake looks around as he speaks. "I mean it."

"Learn fast, pull your weight, don't cause trouble, got it?" He added.

"Yes, sir." Lo'ak answered. Neteyam smiled and touched the back of his neck. Lo'ak hissed at him; he too was mad at the way Neteyam pulled him.

Neteyam mumbled a, "My bad."

"I want to go home."

All eyes turned to the little angel in the room, who was quiet until she cried aloud.

"Oh, Tuk..." Neytiri gave her a sympathetic look.

"Tuk, this is our home now." She continues whining as her dad stroked her hand in a comforting gesture.

"We're gonna get through this."

"We're gonna get through this if we have each other's backs, right?" Jake took a quick glance at Neytiri, as a form of asking for her help.

And that she did. "What does your father always say?"

The children nonchalantly uttered their family's slogan, specifically the brothers. You can tell by the way they respond when they say it for the first time that they've really been hearing and saying this their whole lives.

"That's right, Sully's stick together. This time with some feeling."

"-Sully's stick together." Kiri and Tuk joined as they said it altogether.

After the family meeting, the siblings gathered with Tsireya, her brother Aonung, and their friend Rotxo. The Metkayina trio had a head start. Soon Kiri and Tuk dived into the water, following Neteyam and Lo'ak, screaming as they jumped in.

Beneath the Metkayina clan reef is an underwater world absolutely teeming with life. The extraordinary scenery greeted them, with its colorful corals, plants, and diversity of sea species.

The calm and peace down here were incredible. Fishes quickly surrounded them, being friendly. Both above and below the waters, the oceanic wonderland delivers breathtaking experiences.

Tsireya smiles as she watches them, they did look like they were babies taking their first breath but freaking adorable. She was so excited to show them her amazing home environment.

While this is great and all, Neteyam was finding it difficult to stay under the water for too long; his swimming was becoming clumsy, and he needed air. Tuk and Lo'ak were experiencing the same issue.

The three of them went back to the water surface to breathe. Tsireya and the rest noticed that.

Lo'ak afterwards dipped his head back into the water. Tsireya signed to him, "Swim together with us."

Despite their confusion about her gesture, she encouraged them to continue moving forward.

Taking a deep breath, they dived back in, swam for a bit and then resurfaced once more.

"What's wrong with them?" Aonung signed. The stopping was getting on his nerves.

"They're bad divers." Rotxo replied.

"Stop. They're learning." Since they arrived, they have been continuously making fun of the guys, which annoyed Tsireya.

She ignored Aonung's shrugging and resurfaced also.

"Are you alright?"

"You're too fast, wait for us." Tuk voiced, rubbing her eye.

"Just breathe. Breathe." She advised.

"You are not good divers." Aonung popped up. " You may be good at swinging through trees, but-"

He was stopped mid-sentence by Tsireya's smack at the back of his head.

"Come on bro,"

"We don't speak this finger talk. We don't know what you're saying."

Obviously they can't keep up, they just got here. Plus they're confused by the sign language.

"I will teach you." Tsireya gave Neteyam a slight look for referring to it as such and told them, meanwhile Aonung stayed smirking to himself.

Her eyes did a thing that Lo'ak keeps catching, he was impressed by it. He wanted to tell her that.

"Where's Kiri?" Rotxo suddenly interrupted the short conversation.

"Kiri?" Tuk became alerted.

"Who?" Aonung genuinely asked. He then remembered there's another one.

"Kiri." Rotxo replied. "Where's Kiri?"

"Did you see her?" Tsireya frowned, feeling worry creeping inside her.

While they were worrying about losing track of her, Kiri was in her own world. They eventually located her after a brief search. Tsireya led them to a spot where she and her group of friends usually hang out.

They were having their conversation by the seawall terraces, where several people were fishing.

"It was the first time I got to hold a gun like that, kinda heavy.." Lo'ak was telling them the story of when they destroyed the Sky people's supply chain.

"He didn't even know how to use the gun though."

"I told you dad taught me!"

"So? Man we almost died."

"Neteyam got hurt trying to protect his ass as usual, he never listens. He's obsessed with danger." Kiri licked her tongue.

"So much for being the mighty warrior." Aonung laughed.

Tsireya smack him again. She enjoys doing that. "Cut it out, that was brave of him for trying to save his brother. I can only imagine how intense that must've been."

Aonung glared at her, "How are you warriors but almost got blown away by puny Sky people? I can easily take them on."

"Dude, those people have dangerous high-tech weapons like those guns and other stuffs that can easily kill you. You'd wet yourself." Neteyam shook his head at the guy's ignorance.

"Don't mind him, he's just being annoying." Tsireya giggled, agreeing with what Neteyam said about her brother peeing himself. She knows that he lives and breathes cockiness.

"Speaking of annoying, where's little miss demanding? I haven't seen her today. Is she dead?" Aonung turned to her.

"You won't call her that to her face. And she's probably sleeping, so let's not disturb her."

"I wasn't going to, I love my life."

"Who?" Kiri asked confusedly.

"Our beloved cousin," Tsireya smiles brightly. "I'll introduce her to you guys tomorrow."

"Is she pretty?" Tuk asked.

"She's absolutely gorgeous!"

"Meh, I'd say mediocre." Aonung murmured and shrugged.

"What was that? I'm telling her."

"It was nothing!" He cleared his throat. "Why you acting like I'm scared of her or something..?"

Tsireya ignored him. He is scared of her.

"Is she nice like you?"

"Of course. We're literally twins."

"Tuk you'll meet her tomorrow, relax with the questions." Lo'ak softly pinched her cheeks.

"It's fine." Tsireya played with the ends of her hair, secretly eyeing him with dreamy eyes.

"Anyways, back to me..."

-༚༅༚˳✿˳༚༅༚-

Neteyam was strolling through the village's nearby forest alone. He's actually exhausted, but he wanted to free his mind. Just a peaceful moment to himself. He had enough of Aonung boasting about his greatness. Not that he hated the guy; he honestly was at his wit's end. During their ongoing chit-chat about whatever topic, his head was somewhere in the clouds. He'd occasionally say something, and that was it.

The forest had what he sought: peace and quiet. And to his surprise, there weren't that many creatures in sight, the ones he saw were very small in sizes.

He's happy that his family is welcome to stay here. His brother even found a crush on the chief's daughter. This does causes déjà vu. Lo'ak is so much more like their father than he gives himself credit for. Who would have thought that the boy who avoided any girl that approached him would fall in love as soon as he landed here? He was interested in how things would unfold for them.

A new page in their lives' story. It is as scary and amazing as it sounds.

Neteyam's instincts started kicking in all of a sudden. He looked around his surroundings and sighed. It happened again. Him getting lost in his thoughts.

Now he's lost for real. He spent the entire time walking aimlessly and now has no idea where he is or the path to go back. And since he left his throat microphone in the suitcase, he can't communicate with his parents.

I'm fucked.

He stayed put against a tree, walking further didn't seem like a smart thing to do in this situation. Glowing species similar to Shimmyflys' emerged from the flower nectars, heading in the same direction. The waterfall. The burbling was audible to him.

"Mommy's so proud of you, Chichi, you ate everything~!"

His ears perked up.

Was that someone's voice?

Neteyam glanced over his shoulder carefully. First, he saw the waterfall in the background.

He gasped in astonishment at the clarity of the purplish-blue, magical waterfall. At its widest point, it was surging and plunging down the mountain, drizzling onto the rocks. When it toppled into the ecstasy pool, it foamed at the bottom. The rest of the pool was varnish clear, enabling him to see down into the rocky bottom. Fronds of plants and flowers waved gently in the depths. The waterfall looked like a sheet of colors blended as it swished down. Its edges were hemmed with whipped white lines.

Then, he saw her.

The source of the sound revealed herself. His mind went completely blank.

An Ilu swimming freely beside her as she dived into the water. He could only make out her side profile. And he was taken aback by her appearance.

Neteyam suspected that she might not be purely Metkayina. She does have their long wavy black hair, which is casually floating onto the water as she swims. But her complexion is unlike that of any Na'vi he knew of—fair with faded greenish blue stripes. Her body is curvaceous and beautifully toned, similar to that of a female Omaticaya.

However, he wouldn't really draw the conclusion that she was mixed with only them; there are numerous clans in Pandora, some of which could even be hidden. Still, it's possible that she is.

"The more you eat, Chichi, the more you'll grow. Snatch bigger fishes then come to me so I can pet you. M'kay?"

Her voice is warm, charming and sweet.

She was just there, not far, nor close to him, caressing the creature as if it were the most delicate thing in the world. The Ilu swung its tail eagerly in response to her touch.

Should he go ask her for help?...She's a stranger...He's a stranger...What if he scares her...

Neteyam was startled and felt his knees almost give out and nearly fall when she unexpectedly looked up and locked gaze with him. He reacted by retreating. Placing his palm on his chest, he felt his heartbeat pounding.

And the next thing happened in a flash. His breathing, movement, and thought processes came to a complete halt as the knife made contact with his skin, pressing against his throat.

His heart was racing. She's right in front of him, a respectable distance between them, with a glare that was piercing through his soul. Big, bright, kind, and bold describe her eyes.

They remind him of the sea.

"Who are you?"

He did not, and could not, look away from those ocean eyes.

On the other hand, her patience was wearing thin. His silence made her tighten her grip on the weapon, face telling him if he doesn't start talking he'd soon be united with Eywa.

Snapping out of his trance, he raised his hands in defense. "Easy there, easy."

"Who are you? And why were you spying on me, pervert?" She asked, calmly yet firmly.

"Wait what—I'm not a pervert! This is a misunderstanding. I wasn't trying to spy on you, I swear."

"You were looking. Don't think I couldn't see you."

"Just let me explain, yeah?"

She stayed silent, so Neteyam took it as a sign to explain himself.

"The thing is, I was taking a walk since the forest kinda reminds me of home, then I got lost and ended up here by accident."

"An Omaticaya Na'vi taking a walk in a forest far away from his homeland, silly him got lost, and he decided 'hey

why not hide behind a tree to watch someone who could've been naked in a waterfall'. Hmm, that's crazy, right?"

"Well when you put it like that..."

"Boy."

"Alright, alright, I was playing." He grinned, finding her frowning facial expression cute. But this is a serious matter. She's serious, rightfully so.

"My family and I are welcome to stay with the Metkayina clan, approved by leader Tonowari and his mate Ronal. I'm not a complete stranger."

So he's one of the new newcomers some of the villagers were gossiping about, she didn't pay close attention to them. She was rushing by.

"You were wandering around in a place you just came to and not even familiar with? How stupid is that."

"Curiosity did get the best of me. In all honesty, it was better than listening to Aonung brag about how superior he is and what not. I had to pass out on that and dipped." He purposely mentioned the chief's son, although what he was saying was all true.

"Good for you." She shrugged.

"Look, I'm sorry. Even though it was accidental, I did violate your privacy with my actions and gave myself a bad impression." Neteyam knew he had to hold himself accountable, what he did was in fact wrong and awfully misleading. She deserves a sincere apology. "I was debating whether or not I should approach you and ask for help, but I went about it the wrong way. I apologize for that. Really."

Her gaze softened. Now they were just staring at each other. He was anxious, waiting for her to say something.

She didn't respond, instead put the knife in the pouch around her waist, gave him another look, then turned to leave.

"Hold on, wait!" He called out to her.

Slowing down her steps, she tilted her head with arched brows.

"Do you mind helping me get back to the village?"

"Why should I?"

"Uh.." He trailed off, not knowing what to offer her.

How...cute.

"Let's just say you owe me a favor."

"What kinda favor?"

"That's for me to decide."

He said nothing else and followed her.

"And I mean it, you were staring..way too hard at that."

He mumbles under his breath, "Can you blame me..."

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

—༚༅༚˳✿˳༚༅༚—

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