#who knew the lack of rain could be so emotional

[yanderestarangel]

HEADCANONS MW3 - "HE TOLD ME TO TAKE CARE OF YOU" | GHOST X READER

TW: spoilers about the canon story of mw3, death, mourning, angst, smut, praise, comfort, care, gn reader, use of medicines, breakdown, ghost soft spot, reader moves on after Mactavish's death, nsfw, reader's mixed emotions and ghost, post death of "soap mactavish" , dark themes.

A/N: People who are fighting in the comments: this is a work of fiction, if you take it seriously just DON'T READ IT.

Your world collapsed after the news that your fiancé "John Mactavish" aka "soap" had died, and what's worse, for Makarov. You felt your feet tremble and your breathing hitch - Price himself gave you this news, making you sob on the phone while Price, Gaz and especially, Ghost, listened to your pain and anger.

Ghost already knew you, he was soap's closest friend, he had been to your house several times and was even going to be best man at your wedding, along with Farah, however, Mactavish's young death took that away from you - and the man felt guilty, maybe if Ghost had been quicker, maybe if he had been close to Price he would have stopped Soap from trying to play the "hero" and getting shot in the head, maybe - Simon's mind was filled with "maybe " mute and would never have an answer.

You couldn't go with Ghost, Gaz and Price to throw Soap's ashes into the sea, you really wanted to - but part of you was paralyzed, as you clung to old photos and videos of Soap, or rather, your boy, your Johnny. Ghost went to your house, carrying the jar - now empty - of your fiance's ashes, he saw how weakened you were, and how quickly you tried to close the door in his face, however, he obviously didn't let you, using one of the hands to stop the blow. "-We need to talk (Y/N)." He just said that, muffled by the skull mask, his hard and cold eyes now carried a dead glow of sadness, anger and concern, Simon entered your house, without even hearing a vocal response from him.

"-I know things can be difficult for you, I know you loved Mactavish... But he asked me to take care of you (Y/N)" he paused significantly, a silence of understanding crossed the small and empty space between the two of you, while Simon squeezed the handle of the suitcase with all his strength, while holding back the single tear that tried to slip from his eye. "-He told me to take care of you if something happened to him and I will keep my word, whether you want my help or not." he added, as the cold gaze returned to you, searching for some kind of understanding on your face, he knew what it was like to lose someone you loved - however - he was focusing on you now, he could handle the pain, but you couldn't.

Then he did something he never did, he let the head of the impetuous and soulless man collapse slightly and letting the suitcase fall to the ground in a light tumble, the sound called you back to reality making you look at the tall and muscular form of Ghost with his arms open to you, while he was teary-eyed but refused to shed any tears, mixed emotions between the two of you, but the same feeling - the pain of sudden loss - you ran into the soldier's warm grip, feeling the smell of clothes wet from the rain and the thick, uncomfortable fabric of his sweatshirt, however, there was a warmth there, a warmth that you needed. You allowed yourself to cry, cry until your throat hurt, Simon's big hands made a pattern on your back and went to the top of your head, he didn't need to say anything at that moment, he just needed to give you the comfort you needed, you felt It allowed you to be taken care of, even if it was by a person you never thought would take care of you.

Simon watched you sleep after crying so much in his arms, lifting you in his arms to the upper staircase and placing you on the double bed, empty, due to the lack of John. He sighed heavily beneath his balaclava as he sat on the edge of the bed, watching you sleep. "-I will truly keep my promise, I swear to you my brother..." Ghost whispered as if he was talking to Soap, or, the ghosts that haunted him.

The next few weeks were calm and uneventful, with Simon offering to help you with the household expenses. "-You just took care of the house right? Totally dependent on Soap?" He asked calmly, no judgment reverberated in his voice, just doubts and an attempt to get closer. You nodded silently, as you watched him hand you a notepad and a pen. "-Write down all the groceries you need for the house, I'll buy them, I may not be Johnny, but I'll take care of you just like he did." he said seriously, his penetrating gaze looked at the floor as he rested both hands on his knees, waiting for you to finish the list. You didn't question it, his look was serious, a statement you couldn't deny.

So, slow steps were worked into these daily narratives, with Ghost always checking in on you, whether you were taking your medicines right, whether you were eating right and even whether you were well enough - with rare occasions of you not being able to eat and Simon preparing some soup. for you, ordering you to sit at the table while he himself fed you with a spoon, some small compliments were whispered under the typical skull mask. "-You're doing well (Y/N)." "-I'm glad you're accepting the food I made." "-Just this spoon and you can go rest, ok?" - he wasn't used to being soft with someone, but, besides the promise he made, something about you made him want to see you well, but he pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind like many others.

Soon the two of you began to live together more and more, not just polite everyday conversations or routine silent care, but rather, verbalizing some abstract feelings from both your hearts. Some nights Ghost would stay with you in the dimly lit kitchen, a hot coffee in front of you both, the steam dancing between you as you smiled sideways - a sad smile, full of hurt and nostalgia, but still a smile - showing some photos of Soap, some photos of you together traveling the world on the few vacations he had while he was alive. Making him smile beneath the fabric that covered his face. "-Oh, I see... He was really quite an adventurous man." he spoke calmly, seeing your sad look as he ran his finger over the cold screen of his cell phone, so Ghost had the idea of ​​telling some stories he shared as a protagonist with Soap - like the time Captain Price made him and Mactavish clean the entire barracks because caught you both listening behind the meeting door - you smiled, now, genuinely happy, making Simon's heart warm a little, as if he was on a mission and it was finally bearing fruit, your happiness.

He accompanied you to doctor appointments and shopping, he insisted that you should take better care of yourself - Ghost dragged you to an expensive clothing store and gave you permission to spend his money however and on whatever you wanted, you couldn't deny it just nodding and swearing he could see a chaste smile appear slightly on the black fabric he wore. You changed for him, trying out some clothes while he approved them all, making you smile beautifully, questioning him if he was being sincere. Simon just crossed his arms and let out a breath through his nose "-I'm just being honest, you're a beautiful person, any clothes you wear look great on you." he spoke sincerely, not noticing the words slipping off his tongue. You thanked him for the compliment, while selecting the clothes, the two of you heard the attendants talk about what a beautiful couple you made. You didn't say anything and neither did Simon correct them, just holding your shoulders in a gesture of shy affection.

Your feelings were confused, you practically lived with Simon now, even giving yourself the freedom to walk around the house in just a towel, you felt good, good about yourself and the man who took care of you - even if your mind wondered if it was right to accept such intimate contact with your late fiancé's friend -

Questions were also present in Ghost's mind, but he liked to take care of you, it wasn't just an obligation for a promise but for pleasure and self-satisfaction, the two of you now practically lived together - something that happened naturally, over time , just proof of a greater connection that was growing in both of you - soon you found yourself arranging Ghost's clothes, like you did with Soap, taking care of his lunch, even though nothing more intimate had ever happened, nothing more than pleasant conversations and warm touches, but covered by the fabrics of your body and Simon's gloves. The spark that was igniting there transcended any bond he had formed and any morals built during his time with Mactavish. He wondered if it was worth going over everything he believed in and trying something with you, touching your skin, feeling you on his fingertips, seeing your happy face and contorting with pleasure because of him - thoughts he didn't think about. he managed to free himself, after all, no man is hypocritical in his pleasures and desires - and Ghost was one of them.

It didn't take long for it to happen, a few glasses of wine, a few laughs between you like any ordinary weekend you were both having in that routine of caregiver x person who was dying from care. But something shone in both your eyes and his, a look that didn't need words but just actions - when you saw it, you were leaning over the kitchen counter, the taller man's thick cock hitting your holes, the swollen balls of cum hit your skin, leaving your skin red. It had been so long since you felt a cock filling you and Ghost was there, fucking you without much thought, just sweet compliments as he ravished your needy hole against his hard, cold marble on the counter. "-Yes fuck... You look so beautiful like this, take it all baby..." "-Don't be ashamed, just let go, I'm here, you've endured so much, haven't you? Yes, you're so strong... So beautiful... Let me take care of you sweetheart." "-Mmm... Fuck (Y/N)... You're squeezing me so good, keep it up okay? I'm going to make you cum, I'm here for you." He spoke between moans in the air, holding your thighs, you forgot everything, the mourning, the past, who you were, just focusing on the blur with each thick thrust and hoarse praise, full of Simon Riley's accent to you. You two didn't know how you were going to act after that, but it didn't matter about the momentary carnal pleasure.

After the post-orgasmic bliss, you and Simon exchanged more glances. "-Sorry, I just... We can't do that." Ghost spoke first, while he was still physically connected with you, leaving slowly, seeing your satisfied form but full of doubts and guilt, even so he helped you take a shower, the two of you sitting in the same bathtub, just an oral silence and the sound calm of the water filled the air particles. You didn't know how to feel, nor what to say. Ghost agreed with the idea of ​​pretending that nothing had happened between you... And that didn't do anything.

It happened again, it always did, another cold, rainy night, with Ghost above you, Simon's thick hands caressing your thighs, his warm breath on your neck. "-I promised to take care of you, I think... Soap would be happy if I made you happy in other ways too." he whispered against your wet, sweaty skin, pushing the shaft already covered in his semen even deeper, from other times he had cum, and maybe, he was right, Mactavish wanted you happy, and you were happy. He reached out his hand, grabbing yours, as he looked you in the eyes, pushing you to your limit. "-Tell me dear... You want another chance to be happy, right?" he spoke from behind the skull balaclava softly and with expectant eyes, all that was needed was your answer to your future, a future with Simon or, a future trapped in memories of the past.

©YANDERESTARANGEL 2023

#yanderestarangel #cod mw3 #call of duty headcanons #call of duty mw3 #mw3 #mw3 x reader #ghost mw3 #ghost mw3 x reader #mw3 headcanons #ghost x you #ghost x reader #ghost simon riley #ghost headcanons #mw3 spoilers #simon riley x reader #gn reader #cod #tw angst #tw smut #cod x reader #cod x y/n #simon riley #simon ghost x reader #simon riley mw3 #ghost mw3 x you #ghost smut #simon riley ghost mw3 #call of duty angst #soap x reader #call of duty fandom

[suguru-getos]

|| octaves part -1 | gojo satoru x geto suguru x f!reader ||

summary: being suguru’s s/o, you were in agony with the news of his death, and satoru had only one mission in his head, heeding the last words of his best friend and saving you from being broken

warnings: lots of angst, this series will have sm angst and dark themes, comfort, etc.

a/n: i just want to bleed thru my words for stsg else i cant cope up with how my heart breaks for them😭 lmk if you wanna be tagged for part two !!

the skies felt drenched with the heaviness of the grief you carried in your heart. you dragged yourselves out of the bed, footsteps dragging against the wooden floor as you strided towards the balcony, glossy eyed and gazing up at the sky. the only sight in your head was suguru’s smile. he looked so tender, as if he was made of glass. breakable at the slightest touch; whenever he was being himself. a lonely rain drop fell on your cheek, and before you could envelop your senses for anything more, you were drenched. your tears mingling with the rain, masking your choking grief and misery.

suguru geto was no more…

the man who killed his parents, just because they were non-sorcerers, couldn’t bring himself to kill you. he thought the immense cursed energy you had within yourself could be controlled, could be— moulded into something that’s supreme. suguru refused to see you as a filthy monkey, even though. that’s just what you felt you were. yes? you could see cursed energies, but you were no sorcerer. sometimes you wonder if the man who so tenderly cherished you would’ve slayed you just because he hated you for not being one of his kind.

“let’s curse each other.” is what he had said to gojo satoru, and still— he didn’t let you enter the battle. himiko and nanako opened the door to your room. locked by suguru and hugged you till they passed out crying; telling you suguru was no more. you had no words, no emotions to explain the tightness in your chest, your head haunting with the daunting fact of suguru’s absence which will linger forever.

you didn’t really agree with what suguru wanted, you knew in the end; he just wanted the suffering to end. he didn’t want his comrades to be gory dead bodies. suguru cared, suguru cared oh so much that it took him his heart. you didn’t mind that. you were broken just like him, suguru accepted you as it is. only fair you did too… even if; it was… unacceptable. besides, you thought you could change his unhinged ideals. typical case of, ‘i can fix him’, while he continued getting worse.

suguru never wore his kimono/monk dress with you, with you he was— suguru. smiling softly, wearing clothes that scented like him, that scented like home. the way he’d smile and grin whenever you’d kiss him on the cheek, whenever you’d kiss his forehead and tell him he’s beautiful. whenever you’d pout over his hair being longer than yours… suguru geto was an exquisite man, and now you were bearing the consequences for loving him with all your being.

it was like your heart was slowly forked out, carved out of your chest with the pain, you wanted to scream out until your throat burns and you wanted to kill yourself… you didn’t want to live in a world without suguru geto.

“y/n san.” himeko called out, shaking your tranced form in the bathing rain. dragging you inside and wrapping a blanket against you. you still remembered them as little girls, dazed eyes and shaky hands wrapping and cupping her face as a pathetic chuckle escaped you. tears drenching your face. “himeko chan, where’s suguru?” part of you knew the answer to it, yet asked the same question. refusing to believe it.

“geto san-” himeko teared up, leaning her forehead against your knee. “please, y/n san. please.” she silently babbled, begging you to not ask that again. you were his family and he was yours. right now, all you felt was intolerable grief.

“make it stop.” you mumbled, eyes strained from the lack of blinking due to your haze. “himeko chan, leave me alone.” your words didn’t seem like a suggestion, it was an order. the girls knew better than to respect you, especially in a time like this. when you were shattered, broken, unmendable.

himeko got up, looking at you and wiping her tears. you wanted to be there for them, for everyone. but you wanted to be selfish as well. you wanted to destroy the world, you wanted to destroy yourself, you wanted to destroy every single thing in this world. the next thing you heard was her footsteps, fading away from you as you sunk down the couch.

there was a pin drop silence, until you could hear the second hand of the clock tick with every moment. everything started to seem overwhelming at that point, suguru’s smile engaging with your grieving soul. his warm hugs, the intimacy of feeling him inside you.

a shrill scream echoed, tearing through the deafening silence of the room. it was you, horrified with everything. you screamed until you couldn’t anymore, until your silent tears turned into wails, broken sobs and panicked breathlessness. “come back, come back, come back please please pl-”

meanwhile, the man who stood outside your door, satoru gojo. hearing everything and also sharing your pain as tears spilled from his baby-blue eyes, remembered the last conversation he had with his best friend, the only one he had.

“any last words.”

“… no matter what, i fucking hate those monkeys”

“suguru…”

“satoru… promise me. you will take care of y/n. i deliberetely kept her away from everything- from,” a weak chuckle escapes suguru, causing him to cough out blood. “from who i am as a whole, just so she is redeemable if i am not here. that’s my last word to you. neh? satoru. promise me.”

#gojo satoru #geto suguru #gojo x reader #geto x reader #stsg #satosugu #stsg x reader #jjk x reader #jujutsu kaisen #jjk angst #jujutsu kaisen angst #gojo x reader angst #geto x reader angst #jjk x reader angst #jjk imagines #jjk x y/n #jjk x you #jujutsu kaisen x reader #gojo satoru x reader #geto suguru x reader

[temozarela]

-> miss you already

GETO X READER MDNI, smut, slow burn, fluff, angst, soft geto, comfort, mutual pining

geto finds you after his defection to say goodbye

WORD COUNT: 4.5k

inspiration (@ayyy-pee)

part 2

ao3 version

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The beginnings of dusk settled over the mountains, soft lavender clouds blushing as the amber sun settled behind them. You were settled at your desk, pen loose in your grip as you stared out of your window. The breeze was cool on your cheeks and you knew that it was probably time to pull the windows closed since the remnants of Summer were scarce, only obvious through the very last of the green leaves, of which were tinged red at the very tips. You could see the main courtyard of Jujutsu Tech from your room, meaning that you often knew who was present and where they were. Previously that day, you had watched Geto leave at 7am, then Nanami at 2pm, and Shoko and Gojo- presumably to the bar- at 5pm. You didn’t get offended about the lack of invite, after all, you often said no these days. Since Geto didn’t choose to go out much, you often chose to stay back with him instead. It was nicer than the sweaty noisiness of the bar Shoko liked. It was her special discovery in second year- a bar that didn’t ask for ID. The others quickly adopted it too, and despite them now being of age, they never grew out of it. You guessed they were emotionally attached to it now, despite the poor quality of the drinks. Geto and you often read together on those quieter nights, or you watched shitty horror movies. You had a tendency to be shyer around bigger groups, so being able to have time alone with Geto was nice, and you felt a lot closer to him because of it. You weren’t an idiot though, you knew he got a lot of female attention. It wasn’t uncommon for you to get glared at when you went out together, and there were occasions where girls had come up to you for permission to ask him out. Truthfully, these girls were often stunning, and part of you even resented Geto for being the one who got their attention, especially since he always politely apologised with a bow- or on his lazier days, he gave them Gojo’s number instead. What a waste.

You had been expecting Geto back at 4pm, but you hadn’t seen him come back yet. In an act of desperate boredom, you’d even checked his room, the training areas, the vending machines, and even the classrooms. Nope. No Geto in sight. It was a shame that he wasn’t there for a ‘just us two’ evening, but that concern was long gone by 6pm. Where was he? You had tried texting and calling him. No response. You had even texted Gojo about whether he’d contacted them.

Nah but u sure he isn’t stuck in the toilet or smth? xoxo

And Shoko.

nope.

not since tues soz

So there you were, sat at your desk, anxiously watching the school entrance. For a second, you had wondered about reporting him missing, however you shook it off. What could the police do that a special grade sorcerer couldn’t?

By the time it was dark, your back ached and you hadn’t made any progress on your homework for at least 3 hours. 9pm. Something was definitely wrong. You tried not to fret, you had noticed how tired he’d been lately- maybe he had chosen to stay in the city for a while to get his mind off things. You groaned, burying your head in your arms. You really missed him, and the worst part was that you were the only one.

See, Shoko and Gojo had the mindset of ‘if it was something he couldn’t handle, it’d be all over the news’, and you were more sensitive than them- you knew that- but it hadn’t stopped you from turning the news on anyway, letting it drone on in the background. Just in case. However, after a while, the hours of constant murmuring about war, murders, a girl being kidnapped, and heavy rain forecast for the next few days wasn’t doing much for your emotional state, so now you finally reached for the remote, turning it off, and by consequence, plunging yourself into deafening silence.

It was late and you were still in your uniform, you noted. You were tired too.

With a hefty sigh, you collapsed onto your bed, staring at your ceiling. The wind whispered, lowly outside, causing goosebumps to rise on your arms. You idly chided yourself for forgetting to close the window, but you couldn’t find the energy to do anything about it.

Finally, after a few deep breaths, you found solace in sleep.

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You narrowed your eyebrows as you felt your body being jolted, large hands gripping your face, and then your shoulders. Groaning softly, you turned in your sleep, trying to make sense of the voice fading in and out of your brain. It didn’t sound like it was from your dream… It was hushed… low… soft…

It sounded like your name.

Cold hands touched your face again, turning your head. In response, your eyelashes fluttered open. You were surprised, in your groggy state, that you couldn’t see your room. Was something blocking your view? Then, regretfully, you noted that your uniform was sticking to your skin, and that you never did change.

Also, it was freezing.

“Hey.”

You jumped.

“What the fuck.” You croaked, squinting upwards. “Geto?”

“Yeah-”

“Finally.”

“Look-”

“You fucking stink.”

“Ok, just-”

“No seriously, it’s rancid. Hang on, let me get the light…” You mumbled, blinking sleepily.

“Wait, first I should tell you-” Your numb fingers found the light switch, and you flicked it on.

“Ok, ok,” You paused, eyes widening as his figure was illuminated, and suddenly you were very awake. “What the fuck.”

Geto was dripping with blood. His face, his shirt, his trousers- drenched. You studied his face, head cocked. He thinned his lips, looking… mildly unimpressed.

“As I was trying to say,” He started, “I’m leaving.”

“You… just got here.” You muttered, squinting at him.

“No, I-” Geto sighed, running his dirtied fingers through his loose hair, “I’m leaving Jujutsu Tech.”

“Why?”

“I want to create a world of only Jujutsu sorcerers.” He swallowed, hands clenched by his sides. You stilled, mind buzzing.

“How…” You rubbed your temples, looking around, “How… did you get in here?”

Geto stared at you, dubiously. “That��s what you want to ask?”

You nodded. “I have other questions too, but I lock my door at night and now I have safety concerns.”

“Your window was open.”

“Oh yeah.” You mumbled, running a hand over your face. “Fuck.”

“I’m tired of the higher-ups avoiding the root of the problem, so I’m leaving.” Geto continued, carefully.

“Oh.” You said, struggling to find words. “Right now?”

Geto looked at you strangely, then nodded.

“Do the others know?”

Geto shook his head.

You stared at him for a second, eyebrows furrowed, a pensive frown fixed on your face.

“Holy shit!” You sat up, eyes wide with realisation. “Whose blood is that?” You raised your voice, gesturing at his shirt. You were so used to seeing gore as a sorcerer, it hadn’t even occurred to you that the blood on his clothes was anything strange at all.

“Don’t be so loud.” Geto hissed, “It’s just from some non-sorcerers.”

With a raise of your eyebrows, you scrutinised him, “Just some non-sorcerers’?” You scoffed. “Just? How many?”

He swallowed, “112.”

You blinked at him.

“Just… 112… innocent people?” You replied, slowly.

Geto breathed, deeply, “I had to.”

“What would’ve happened if you didn’t?” Your voice climbed as you gestured frantically.

“I wouldn’t have solidified my resolve.” Geto’s shoulders tensed.

You almost wanted to laugh.

“It’s always you and your fucking resolve, isn’t it?” You muttered, dryly. Geto watched you, uncomfortably, his arms hanging uselessly by his sides. A heavy silence hung in the air like a toppled vase, microseconds away from shattering on the floor.

You sighed heavily, crossing your legs, “So… what now?”

“Come with me.”

“Excuse me?”

Geto crouched to your level, hands reaching for yours, “I don’t care if you hate what I do, just come with me.”

You froze, fingers twitching between his clammy hands.

“You’ll have a home, an allowance, I’ll try to give you the best life possible. I don’t want to leave you here to work 50 hours a week and then to die at 26.”

He had a point.

It was a good offer.

Your eyes darted between Geto’s dark ones. “Why me? Shouldn’t you take Gojo?”

“I couldn’t, even if I wanted to.” Geto squeezed your hands tightly. “Satoru enjoys it- fighting with the higher ups and spending his free time exorcising curses. It’s who he is. It’s not who you are, though.”

“It’s not.” You agreed, softly.

Geto moved to perch on your bed, but you swatted his shoulder, silently gesturing at his bloody clothing. He nodded, an amused glint in his eyes, as he moved to politely kneel on the floor. You climbed out of your bed to sit next to him, shivering slightly at the iciness of the wooden floorboards. Stretching your legs in front of you, you slowly exhaled.

At least he was safe, right?

To be honest, you still didn’t really know what to think of it. It’s not something you had even thought to prepare yourself for. You’d miss him if he left, you knew that. He knew that you didn’t enjoy being a sorcerer, and you were a little pissed that he had used it against you, but he wasn’t wrong. Being a curse user with him didn’t sound half bad, either. It wasn’t an easy decision to make though and he had to understand that.

“We need to get you out of those clothes.” You murmured.

Geto looked at you, “Do you even have anything I can change into?”

You shook your head, “I can stop by your room, I’ll get a bath running.”

“We can’t.” He replied, “I don’t want to be seen.”

“It’s 2am, Geto.” You said shortly after sparing a glance at your clock, “We’ll be fine.”

Geto looked hesitant as you stood up, offering him a hand.

The walk to the bathroom was silent as you snuck past the dorms. Gojo and Shoko were long asleep, so being caught wasn’t too much of a concern. After retrieving a few bits from Geto’s room, you crept into the bathroom, locking the door behind you. The tiles were cold under your bare feet, but you paid it no mind as you turned the bath tap on, waiting for the water to run hot. Behind you, Geto changed out of his ruined uniform, and you willed yourself not to look. Silence settled over the two of you again, but you knew this time it was because you were deep in thought. Once the tub was full, you turned the tap off, stepping back to allow Geto to climb in. He thanked you softly before stepping in, but your eyes were fixed on the floor as your cheeks heated. When you looked up again, you saw that he was mostly submerged by the water, the ends of his inky hair soaked and curling as it floated in the crystalline water. He watched you expectantly, his gaze sweet and warm, like honey, as you rolled your sleeves up.

Carefully, you poured some of the water over his hair using a cup. You then reached for the shampoo. After pouring a dollop onto your palms, you massaged it onto his scalp. He leaned back, sighing softly as you washed his hair, fingernails gently scratching his skull.

“Where are you going next?” You started, continuing to wash his hair.

Geto hummed pensively, “Who knows… Where do you want to go?”

Your hands froze in place. “I never said I’d go.”

“Right,” Geto said, “but you will, won’t you?”

“No.” You replied, defensively.

“No?” He sounded amused.

“Nope.”

“In that case, maybe I’ll go abroad…”

You swallowed, “How far?”

“Maybe somewhere pretty like Croatia.”

“…That’s far.”

“It is.” Geto agreed.

“Can I convince you to stay?”

“Nope.”

“Ok.” You frowned, resuming the movement of your fingers in his hair. After a moment you stopped again, “What if I promised to join you later?”

Geto sat up.

“I have too many loose ends,” You added, “I don’t want to regret this.”

“How long?”

You exhaled, slowly, “Maybe a year or two?”

Geto looked at you over his shoulder, his stare dark, “That’s long.”

“Well,” Meeting his gaze, you raised an eyebrow, “I hope you’re willing to wait for me, then.”

“I am.” His response was quick, maybe even too quick as it took you off guard.

“Ok.” You nodded slowly, “That works.”

The rest of the bath was quiet, the two of you in contemplating the decisions being made. Only the lulling waves of the water, lapping against the white porcelain tub, alongside both of your soft breaths filled the otherwise silent room. Geto’s hair was silky as you ran your fingers through it. In the light of the bathroom, you noticed how the finer strands looked more chocolate than black, notes of hazel glittering amongst the glistening, dark locks. You squeezed the excess water out of his hair, then dried your hands on your trousers. Afterwards, you moved to stand in front of the bath so that you could see his face. He looked elegant. It seemed that he had either lost, or chosen not to wear his gauges as his gaping earlobes hung, empty. You realised then that you had never seen him without them before. It was different. Previously, you had brushed his hair away from his face, allowing you to see him without obstruction, and you thanked yourself for it now. His face was chiselled, everything about him seeming so sharp from his cheekbones, to his jawline. There seemed to be more colour behind his tanned skin, at least more than there used to be. The purple blotching under his brooding eyes was still there from months of exhaustion, but his facial expressions no longer held that lingering fatigue anymore. He looked healthier, happier even, than he had for a while. Geto’s thin eyebrows were raised as he stared at you, no doubt because you were staring at him. You couldn’t help it though, the way droplets tumbled down his broad shoulders was hypnotising and you almost wanted to condemn the water for concealing the rest of his body under a thick layer of bubbles.

“Are you done?” Geto drawled, sounding equal parts charmed and bored.

You cocked your head, furrowing your eyebrows, “No, not quite.” You muttered, absentmindedly.

He really was beautiful.

In that moment you understood every girl who had given you death glares for standing with him, and every girl who had boldly asked for his number. God knows, you’d be too scared to. You pitied that they were never able to see him like this. Every girl deserved this at least once, you thought, it was definitely more therapeutic than anything a psychiatrist could offer you.

Lethargically, you stretched your arms above your head, yawning. “Ok, yeah I’m done.”

For a second, it seemed that Geto was trying to glare at you, but starting with the slight twitch of his mouth, he broke into soft, flustered laughter.

“Fuck,” He ran a hand over his face. “You really are something, aren’t you?”

Suddenly unsure of how to respond, you looked at him, wide-eyed, your cheeks burning.

Geto smiled at you affectionately, “Just pass me my towel, please.”

You nodded, reaching for the white, fluffy towel you had left out for him. When Geto made a move to get out, you covered your eyes.

“I was meaning to ask,” His voice sounded somewhere behind you, “how come you’re still wearing your uniform?”

Oh yeah.

“I didn’t exactly intend to fall asleep like this, you know.” Your hand moved from your face to pull at the creased fabric, self-consciously. “I was kinda distracted yesterday.”

“Oh?” The rustling of Geto’s clothing paused. “How come?”

You scoffed, “Because you went missing? I had the news on and everything.”

“You did?” He cooed, teasingly, pulling a shirt over his head, judging from what you could hear.

“…Yes.” You scowled.

The way he said your name after that was far softer than you had ever heard it before. It made you feel warm in every nook and cranny of your body, like fire spreading from your cheeks, and flickering inwards to consume your beating heart. When you felt his hand land on your shoulder, you tensed, chewing on the inside of your cheek with anticipation.

“I’m sorry.” He said, voice low and smooth.

You turned to see him changed into a white t-shirt and grey joggers. “Really?”

Geto nodded, “I didn’t realise that you’d worry.”

“Of course I would.” You looked up at him, carefully studying his face.

“I know it’s selfish but… I’m glad you did.”

His confession made you smile warmly.

“Stay the night.” It wasn’t a question, you knew that he wouldn’t be able to find a hotel room at this time.

Geto shook his head, “You know I can’t, my room is directly next to Satoru’s. It’s too risky.”

You rolled your eyes, fondly, “Stay in mine, then. Shoko won’t wake up until 3 in the afternoon.”

He opened his mouth to protest.

“This is non-negotiable, by the way.” You added.

His mouth closed.

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

By the time Geto had tucked himself into your bed, you had changed into pyjamas. It was cute seeing him snuggled next to your plushies, it just seemed so… right. You climbed in next to him, unable to close the gap between you, despite yourself. Admittedly, you had been expecting some kind of argument over who would take the bed and who would offer to sleep on the floor but end up taking the bed anyway, but much to your relief, Geto seemed too exhausted to care. You weren’t going to complain. For a while, you just watched each other, wordlessly, eyes half-lidded.

“Will you be gone when I wake up?”

You knew the answer, but you asked anyway.

Geto shifted under the covers, brushing his hand against yours. “Probably.”

“Shame.”

He watched you for a moment, moving his hand to cup your cheek. Like many times that night, you met his gentle gaze, leaning into his touch, gingerly.

“A year is a long time.” Geto murmured.

You agreed.

“It’s a long time to wait to do something I’ve been wanting to do for months.”

Fuck anything you had said before about being tired, you were wide awake.

“Excuse me?”

Geto smiled at you, lopsidedly, “Sorry if I read you wrong but… I like you. I really do.”

“And…” You swallowed.

“I want to say goodbye to you… properly.”

Fuck.

“I’d like that, Geto.” You whispered.

Before you knew it, he was on top of you, muscular thighs hugging your hips. You sat up, hands reaching to pull him down by his collar. When your lips crashed into his, you felt euphoric. As his warm lips moved against yours, your hands moved to his hips, slipping under his t-shirt to trace the ridges of his abs. You felt his muscles tense as you touched them, paired with a low ‘fuck’, whispered into your mouth. When Geto leaned back to peel his shirt off, you instantly missed his body, but the sight of his torso in full was… jaw-dropping. Without doubt, you knew that he was the kind of man that the Ancient Greeks erected temples for. Everything about him was beautiful, from the dusky areola which orbited his nipples, to the trail of hair below his navel. You swallowed, running your hands up his torso. In response, Geto leaned down, pressing a kiss to the crown of your head.

Next to go was your shirt, which ended up on your floor next to his. Geto’s hands were quick to cup your breasts, fingers brushing the sensitive nubs as he gently squeezed them. You whimpered, softly, looking up at his focused face.

“Please…” You arched your back, pushing your chest towards him. He swore under his breath before pushing you down so you were horizontal. In an act of fleeting tenderness, he brushed your hair from your face, pressing a chaste kiss to your lips, before attacking your neck with bites and kisses. You gasped as his hands roamed downwards, grazing over your stomach before his fingers strayed under your waistband. He paused his work on your neck to look up at you, silently checking on you with a sweet smile. You nodded, slipping one of your hands into his damp hair as you guided his head back to your neck. Without hesitation, he started pressing open-mouthed kisses to your skin, no doubt leaving a myriad of marks. When his hand breached your pyjama bottoms, cupping your cunt with excruciating affection, your stomach erupted with butterflies.

“How- do you- want- me?” He asked you between kisses, nose buried in the crook of your neck.

You swore, hips uselessly pushing against his touch, “I’m really not picky.” You rushed, becoming more and more desperate for his touch.

Geto snorted, pressing a gentle kiss against the column of your throat, “That’s not very helpful, sweetheart.”

“Just- touch me!” You whined, impatiently, your grip on his hair tightening. As you tugged, Geto made a low noise at the back of his throat.

“Whore.” You laughed breathlessly as he playfully bit down on your neck, his fingers finally slipping between your folds.

Geto smirked into your neck and you could feel it. “I wouldn’t be getting so cocky, if I were you.” He warned, circling your clit with his fingertip.

“Do your worst.” You grinned, pulling his face back to yours to make out with him again. When you pulled his hair again, he moaned against your lips oh-so prettily, fuelling the burning lust inside of you. You were hyper-aware of every graze of his skin against you, somehow his fingers against you felt 10 times better than you own and it made you insatiable. You could feel the coil in your lower stomach begin to snap as Geto’s tongue fucked your mouth, shamelessly moaning against your tongue. You were so close, soso close…

Geto pulled away, watching you with a grin. “Sorry, sweetheart.” He kissed your cheek, apologetically, “I’m impatient, and I really fucking need you right now.”

Despite your initial frustration, his words set your heart alite as you whined. He grunted as he lifted his hips, enabling you to kick your pyjama bottoms off, hastily. When you spread your legs for him, he sat back, using his middle and index finger to spread your dripping folds.

“Fuck.” He breathed, pressing his thumb against your entrance, “You’re soaked.”

Your hips involuntarily jutted into his touch, desperately searching for more.

“Geto, please.” You begged, hands clenching your sheets. His eyes flickered up to yours, his gaze dark.

“Suguru.” He muttered, starting to palm himself through his joggers, “Please. Call me Suguru.”

In the moonlight, the outline of his cock looked more impressive than any Renaissance painting you’d ever seen. You needed him so badly it hurt.

“Fuck, Suguru…” You pressed your thighs together, needily, as you watched him pull his joggers down, his cock hard and heavy, springing to stand against his lower stomach.

He was big.

No fuck that, he was massive.

You knew you had never even tried anything that big in your life, but maybe it was the way his precum dribbled down his thick shaft, you didn’t feel nervous at all.

Geto leaned in to kiss you softly, uttering gentle praise as he pressed his leaking tip to your entrance. Your fingers found purchase around his neck, fingernails digging in at the ache of the intrusion.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck…” Geto groaned against your lips, “Fuck, you feel so good, so fucking wet for me…”

Once he was halfway in, he slowed to kiss your cheek. “Such a good fucking girl.”

Impatiently, you rocked your hips against him, making him slide in further. You moaned, gasping at the feeling of being so full.

Geto wasn’t faring so well either, letting low whines slip as he inched in a little more until his hips were flush with yours.

His eyes met yours desperately, “You ok?” He swallowed, watching you carefully as you adjusted.

“Mhm.” You uttered, weakly, “You can move.”

Geto nodded, cheeks flushed, as he experimentally fucked into you, the steady slapping of your skin speeding up as you begged him for more. With a groan, he buried his head in your neck, releasing soft pants and grunts against your bruised skin. You cried out, nails raking down his back as his pace bordered on lethal as he pounded into you, forcing your body up and down your bed.

“Mhmm, ‘Sugu!” You whined, arching your back as he pressed inside of you. Geto nipped your neck, hands securing your hips as he changed his angle, hitting that sweet spot inside of you that made you drool.

“Right there- right there- please-“

You wrapped your legs around his waist as he abused your cunt, the wetness soaking the insides of your thighs and no doubt Geto’s crotch as well.

“Right there?” He teased, but his voice was husky and it was clear he was approaching his peak from the way he grunted after. One of his hands moved from its position on your hips, instead pressing down on your lower stomach. You wailed, thrashing against him as the burning pressure in your lower stomach climbed. You were so close.

“Fuck, please- Suguru I need you-” You were cut off by Geto’s lips as his hand moved to where you needed it the most, his fingers rubbing your sensitive clit. His pace sped up as he chased his own orgasm, the heat of your core irresistible to him.

“Fuck.” Geto groaned, “Can I?”

Your thighs tightened around his waist against your will. “Fuck no.” You hissed between kisses.

“Shit.”

It was too good, you didn’t want him to pull out, and you knew sure as hell that he didn’t either. You couldn’t risk it though.

With a final pinch of your swollen clit, you came, legs shaking and fingers tugging at his hair as you cried out. Geto wasn’t far behind, swearing as he pulled out despite your legs trapping him in.

With a few final tugs of his length, he came on your stomach, panting as he watched his spend dripped down your thighs.

“Fuck.”

“…Yeah…”

You closed your eyes, basking in the sleepiness of the aftermath. Somewhere next to you, Geto moved, leaning over you before you felt soft fabric on your lower stomach, cleaning up his mess on your body and your own mess between your thighs.

“Thanks.” You muttered, sleepily.

When Geto finally lay down next to you, he pulled you into his arms, kissing your forehead tenderly.

“I’ll see you again one day.” He whispered against your skin.

“You will.” You murmured, ignoring the lump in your throat, “One day.”

Geto released a content hum which vibrated in his chest and throat.

“I miss you already.”

#angst #gojo satoru #jujutsu kaisen #geto suguru #jjk gojo #jjk geto #jujustsu kaisen x reader #geto x reader #jjk smut #jjk shoko #comfort #jjk angst #jjk comfort #jjk fluff #fluff

[di-42]

Why are we obsessed with Good Omens?

Why are we obsessed with Good Omens? And, more specifically,why are we so obsessed with Good Omens season 2? And why is this such an intense obsession? I've been obsessed with other TV series in the past: Sherlock, Doctor Who and Gilmore Girls are just a few examples. But my obsession with Good Omens is stronger. I loved Good Omens, the book. I was delighted when not only did Good Omens season 1 not disappoint compared to the book but was excellent in its own right. But after watching season 2 I was a different person. And I know I'm not alone in this.

Why is this? Why is this show affecting us so deeply? To the point that sometimes it feels destabilising?

Like I said above, I loved the book and I loved season 1. I loved the complexity of the plot, the many layers of the story, the humour of course, all the characters and in the TV show the way these characters were portrayed, especially of course our two main heroes. I loved the way the story unapologetically approached religion and teased it and played with it and made fun of parts of it, especially the bureaucratic/hierarchic part without being disrespectful to believers (I think and hope, but since I'm not a believer myself I'm happy to be corrected). I loved how much was in it and the many lenses we could read the story.

Now I'll be honest. When I started watching season 2 I... loved it. Of course I did. The way you love things you know. The way you love things that make you feel safe. The way a toddler loves mum and dad and the way we love going for a coffee with our lifelong friends. Something risk-free, something we know, something we don't need to worry about. Something beautiful but... Shall I say it? Something beautiful, truly beautiful and safe and cosy but not something extremely exciting. The plot is Crowley and Aziraphale have to hide Gabriel who, for some reason, has left heaven. OK. Nice. We get to know Crowley and Aziraphale better, we have more glimpses of their history. Truly, truly beautiful. But safe. A lovely rom com. We fall in love with 1941 all over again. Beautifully emotional. But where's the danger? Is the world really not ending this time round? It was difficult to take the threats from heaven and hell very seriously when we saw our heroes visiting the coffee shop, driving to Edinburgh and miracling rain to make two humans fall in love.

I was enjoying it, I was... yeah. Loving it, sure. We were all happily watching it but, let's face it, we all knew how it was going to end, didn't we?

And that there. That's why we are so obsessed with Good Omens. Well, that's definitely why I'm so obsessed with Good Omens. At first I thought it was just the lack of closure. But it's not. It's because after alluring you in with cosy safe tartan blankets and cocoa winged mugs it smites you mercilessly. It's because it subverts all the expectations it created in the first place. This is what is so destabilising. We've all read and watched lovely, moving, heart breaking love stories before. We've all lost it a bit over maddening cliffhangers. All the beautiful stories in our lives. But the ending of Good Omens season 2? It does change you as a person. The impact of changing the narrative so suddenly and forcefully. We were watching a comedy and now we are witnessing the unfolding of a tragedy. That's what did it, I think. That's why it stays with us and occupies a good part of our thoughts while we go about our daily activities. That's also what makes many of us want to write, draw, analyse and create. As obsessed as I was with other series and books before, it was only after Good Omens season 2 that I felt I needed to write about it and find a community where I could talk about and share my thoughts and read other people's thoughts. I know many of you are writers or artists but I also know many of us aren't and it's only thanks to Good Omens that we overcome our fears and self doubts and put our thoughts out there. Thanks to Neil Gaiman. Thanks to Neil Gaiman promising one thing and delivering another. Thanks to Neil Gaiman deceiving us. I can't wait to see how it all pans out and we do know everything will be OK. But in the meantime I'm so happy to have had my expectations taken and thrown in the bin.

#good omens #good omens season2 #Good omens 2 #subverting expectations #the beauty of stories

[atlasofthestaars]

[MK X READER] New Era - Chapter .014

first part | previous part | next part

NOTES:

Hoping for the best that I get this out sooner than nearly 3 weeks haha I’ll update this part with how that goes.

Edit: I had a very hectic last few weeks. Oops. But here’s the chapter finally haha

Some of the ideas in the fic, like the Johnny section was helped by some of my anons on tumblr, ty guys for interacting!

As requested, here’s Rain’s repoll! Probably the only repoll I will do haha ^^ AO3 fans give me your thoughts! The poll will end in a week!

FROM THE EYES OF SOMEONE WHO HAS TO HELP SOMEONE OUT

“I thought I would find you here.”

It was a warm night. It was the type of night where one could sit outside for hours on end listening to the crickets chirp. The sky above was the perfect accompaniment this particular night, being so clear and free from clouds and any sort of light pollution that you could nearly see the entirety of the universe above. It was the perfect night for one to relax and enjoy life. 

But that was not what was happening.

You stood on the very beginning of the crest of the hill, a little away from Liu Kang. Your eyes scanned the hunched over form of your friend. It was an odd look on him, a form so undisciplined from one of the most diligent men you knew. As odd as it was, it only made sense. After all, how could you expect a picture perfect form from a man who has lost his best friend?

The grass rustled as you walked forward, moving to stand right next to where Liu Kang sat. You kept your gaze forward, not turning your head to look at him. You didn’t need to. Without even looking at his face, you could tell all the emotions that he must be experiencing. Frustration, grief, loneliness. It was the same emotions that had been clinging to your friend like tar for a while now.

So, instead, you stared adamantly at the tree. A rush of emotions surged through you as your gaze settled on it. So many memories were connected to this tree. Long days of just relaxing under this tree with Kung Lao came to mind. The three of you would sit under here, chatting and enjoying each other’s companies as the cicadas would sing in the background. 

Or sometimes, you would find Kung Lao here, having sneakily gotten out of lessons to simply sit and snack on a few treats he had stolen from the kitchen. You never sold him out. Even when your father gave you a pointed look, you would feign innocence and claim that you had no idea where the razor hatted man went. 

It only made sense to bury him here, underneath the tree he loved so, so much. It was even his favorite type of tree, the cherry blossom. 

A certain silence hung in the air. It was the silence that could only be made by those who have lost someone important to them. It was the combined silence of someone who had let grief consume him and of someone who refused to grieve yet. The two reactions to the death of your friend could not be any more different between the two of you, but the unspoken words between you two could not be any more the same.

You both missed him, dearly.

“He died in vain.” Liu Kang spoke, breaking the vow of silence he had taken on. His voice was hoarse. You knew it must be from the lack of talking. But there was another part of you who knew the gravel-like quality to his voice must be from his grief and how it tore at him. You could not help but let out a sigh as you dropped your eyes to the humble gravestone in front of you.

“I know.” You replied, your voice laced with resignation. There was a tremble in your voice, your lip quivered for a moment before you set your jaw to prevent the little sign of weakness from persisting. You could not help the slump in your shoulders. It was a hard, harsh truth you’ve come to accept. As much as you’d like to believe that Kung Lao’s death meant something, the invasions Outworld has been sending as of late has proven otherwise. 

You turned your gaze to Liu Kang. It was not inaccurate to say he looked like a wreck. Reddened eyes which felt like they carried the weight of the world met yours. You could still see the freshly dried tear tracks on Liu Kang’s face. It seemed like, at least for now, the champion had finally run out of tears to shed for his long time friend.

“Kung Lao would hate to see you like this.” You said, unable to keep the words from tumbling out of your mouth. You observed the way the man carried himself, and how he almost seemed like a different man entirely. The fury that he had held when he had slain Shao Kahn had burnt out, and only in his eyes could you see the remnants of the dying embers.

“I wish he were here to at least see it.” Liu Kang spat out, bitterness dripping from his voice. You did not flinch at it. You knew well enough the vitriol in his tone was not directed at you. Even if it was, the man was hurting. How could you blame him? His head raised to look at the cherry blossoms, idly watching as a few dropped and scattered around in the breeze.

“Hey, look at me.” You said, tone gentle and soft. You watched as Liu Kang kept his gaze aloft, eyes searching the skies above for an answer to his prayers. You sighed as you raised a hand, putting it gently to his cheek. Even when his fire was put out, he felt warm. Your thumb rubbed softly upon his cheek, taking a moment to wipe away the tracks that the tears left. “I know you’re grieving, but you’re falling apart.”

Liu Kang leaned into your touch. You watched as his eyes attempted to brim with tears he no longer had. His hand rose to cover yours, clinging to it as if your hand was a lifeline. You felt your heart shatter at the sight, but still, you refused to let the man in front of you see your resolve break. You could care less if he saw you at your weakest, you trusted Liu Kang enough to let down your walls. But you knew now you did not have the luxury.

The world was falling apart. Invasions were arriving. You and others would need to forge a group to fight them off. Raiden would need a confidant who had a clear mind. Liu Kang needed an anchor to keep him from drifting off. All of these duties needed someone who could rise to the occasion, and you were willing to do so your allies would not have such a heavy burden.

It was the very least you could do to make up for failing Kung Lao. You could only hope that the others did not see how much your heart was aching too.

“I’m not asking you to stop grieving.” You said. You were slow to speak, choosing each word carefully so as to not upset your friend anymore than he was. “I’m not asking you to forget him either, but you need to start living again.” The way you delivered those words felt less like a moving speech to inspire him to move on, but more like a desperate plea. 

“How?” Liu Kang’s voice cracked and at the same time, your heart squeezed. His eyes searched you, as if the answer to his question would be written upon your skin. You felt his hand squeeze yours with desperation. You did not complain about the tight grip, keeping your gaze steady on his face. “How am I supposed to live knowing he won’t be here anymore?”

In truth, you didn’t know how. But you couldn’t tell your friend that. You couldn’t let him drift aimlessly anymore than he already was, you had to do something. So, instead, you gave him a soft smile as you rubbed his cheek softly once more. You prayed to the elder gods that he did not see the weakness in your eyes.

“Well first, you must take little baby steps.” You said, trying to think of the years worth of advice you had gotten from your father. “I think the first step you can begin to do is to start taking care of yourself again.” You gestured to his form. “Stop skipping meals, stop spending hours out here on end, and start letting yourself accept the fact that he is gone.” You took a deep breath. “I know that sounds like a lot, but I can’t watch you let yourself deteriorate anymore.” 

“But Kung La-”

“Wouldn’t want you to stay by his grave like this.” You interrupted him, sending him a worried look. You closed your eyes and thought back to your friend. “If anything, he’d be upset that you’re doing this. He’d want you to live in his stead, to carry on his stories.” You paused, opening your eyes to watch Liu Kang’s face as you let him absorb your words. 

There was a long period of silence that stretched between you. Afraid to break the fragile tension, you even held your breath. Conflict danced in his eyes, wavering between whether to trust you or the hurt that dragged him down. Silently, you pleaded for him to believe you. You already couldn’t save one friend, you had to save another. 

You couldn’t fail again.

“Alright.” Liu Kang croaked. And finally, you let yourself breathe. His eyes fluttered closed as he seemed to lean his weight into your hand. In that moment, it felt like you took on his burdens. You forced your hand to be still, so he did not see your will waver. The slightest of slimes appeared on his lips, and you felt your heart soar. For even just a bit of his happiness, you would take on the world. “I’ll try.”

“Thank you.” You whispered, hoping he didn’t hear the way your voice nearly cracked. His eyes opened, and you put on a smile for him. You watched as he sat there, watching you for a few more moments before he let go of your hand. When stood up, wobbling just a touch. You wrapped an arm around his waist to steady him. Gently, you squeezed his hip. “Come on, let’s go inside, Princess Kitana has been dying to thank you for freeing her and I have to go with Nightwolf to find a new base in America to help with the recent invasions.”

“Thank you.” Liu Kang said, his voice full of warmth.

“It’s no issue.” You said, your words full of sincerity and fondness. “I would do anything for you.” You told him, a broad smile on your lips. Your heart felt lighter than it has in a while. Just barely, you caught the hint of pink upon his ears when he turned his head. “I’ll have your back, always, Liu Kang.”

Waking up felt like a haze. 

The warmth of Liu Kang’s flank against your side lingered. You laid upon the bed, which had been somewhat patched up due to you sewing up the sheets and the mattress. Your hand fiddled with the sheets, staring up at the soft glow on the ceiling as you ruminated upon what you had discovered and what to exactly do with this information.

How strange it was despite your long years of knowing Liu Kang, you still had memories left to discover with him connected to them. And those words you said, why did they feel so familiar? Not familiar in the sense that you had said them, but you swore you heard them elsewhere. You thought long and hard about it, trying to find a rhyme or reason why you had these feelings. There were several minutes that passed. You sighed as you rubbed your head. The most logical conclusion you could come up with was that it was because you’ve been in Outworld.

What else could it be? All these memories did resurface ever since you’ve gotten here.  

You paused, a sudden thought breaking through the rest like a sprinter did when they ran towards the finish. You breath caught as you stared at the ceiling. Was there any point in returning to Earthrealm if all your memories were here? You laid there for a long while after, unable to ignore the logic your brain was conjuring up.

You groaned as rubbed at your face. There was no point incessantly worrying over this issue, it was not like you could do anything to change the duration of your stay here. At least, that’s what you’re trying to convince yourself. The little whisper in your head would try and continue to try and think over it. You swung your legs over the edge of the bed. Your fingers glided over the hasty sewed up areas of the bed, noting the bumpiness. You’d just hope no one would notice. 

Then, after a few more moments of sitting, you sighed. You sighed so hard, like you were trying to relinquish your worries that way. You closed your eyes, trying to rid your worries once more. Then after that futile attempt, you got up and stretched. Might as well start your day.

After going through the morning routine you’ve become somewhat accustomed to, you stepped out into the hall. Perhaps it was the room, or maybe it was the last of the warm memories finally leaving, but it felt…colder outside. Not enough to have you shivering, but it sent a slight chill through you. A few goosebumps appeared on your arms.

You stood there for a moment. At first, you didn’t realize why, but then as you heard the tapping of feet coming from the far down hallway you realized you were waiting. You turned your head to see the usual culprit, Princess Kitana. You gave her a cheery wave to which she gave a respectable nod. You met her halfway down the hallway. If someone were to observe, they may notice, just for a fleeting moment, that her steps went faster before meeting you.

“Glad to see we’re both back on schedule.” You commented, a light playful tone to your voice. You watched as Kitana’s eyes squinted slightly, the edges of her lips curved upwards in the slightest smile. She hummed, a hint of amusement in her voice. As soon as you joined her side she seemed to be content and nodded, as if she were acknowledging that contentment. Still, as you stood next to her, you felt that familiar nagging feeling once more.

Why did you always feel it around her?

“I heard you got the privilege to tour the Imperial Academy.” Kitana spoke, breaking the silence. Her voice did not hide her intrigue at the idea of you at the academy. Her eyes seemed to rake over you, scrutinizing every little detail of you she could see. You resisted the urge to shiver, to not show the slight moment of weakness upon her observant gaze. “How did you find it?” She inquired a moment later, her voice seeming to imply she already knew your answer. Your eyebrows raised just very at the thought. 

“It was lovely.” You admitted, finding yourself unable to conceal the underlying admiration you felt towards the location. You tilted your head upwards to look at the vast expanse of white marble overhead, thinking of all the wonders you had seen. You were even beginning to see the swirls of magic within the material above. You didn’t think you were obsessed, but it would be hard to deny that idea with how you were seeing things that weren’t even there. You didn’t notice how her smile grew, becoming less restrained. “I wish magic was more used in Earthrealm, it’d be nice to see a school much like the academy there.”

“You seem very interested in magic.” The princess said, reading your reaction. It wasn’t an incredibly difficult feat though, it was obvious to anyone who could see. You could not help but nod in response, only feeling a touch embarrassed at being so obvious. A small chuckle left your lips. Her eyes seemed to soften, if just a touch. “If I recall correctly, you have magic as well. Animal shapeshifting, correct? I overheard it at the banquet.”

“Yes, animal shapeshifting.” You confirmed. You held out your hand, letting it shift into a lion’s paw outstretched with its claws out. You saw the hint of amazement in Kitana’s eyes. Her eyes traced the length of your transformed limb, then stared intently at the flesh where it transitioned. “I’d like to think I’m rather proficient in it.”

“I see.” The blue clad princess said, her tone indicating a hint of interest at your display of magic. “Had you been an Outworlder, I would say you would have a chance at excelling greatly at the Academy.” She admitted. For a moment, your heart skipped a beat at the high praise. Then, you felt a little silly at being so pleased at the compliment. After all, it’s not like it meant you could get in even with your magical skills.

“A shame that I’m not.” You say, a small wistful tone in your voice. It still felt…odd to not label yourself as an Outworlder. In Earthrealm, you did not feel right calling yourself one of them. But here, you did not feel right calling yourself an Outworlder either. Was there really a label you’d feel comfortable with?

“Perhaps, in another life, you could have.” Kitana said, offering you an apologetic smile. You nearly stumbled in your steps upon hearing those words, and the nagging feeling disappeared as the pieces fell into place. Your eyes widened and you stared at the princess, who seemed none the wiser as she gazed into the Great Hall, which you both had ended up at finally.

That’s why you had that feeling and why it was always around her.

Those were the exact words she said as she had laid dying in your lap, in that vision you had about the amulet. Your fingers twitched as you took in a deep breath, holding back a wave of nostalgia as you gazed at her for a few moments more. It was an odd feeling, seeing the princess alive and healthy with little idea of who you were compared to the last time when she had said those words and she had been one of your closest allies and dying in your lap.

“Enjoy the match.” Kitana bid you goodbye, offering a small smile before walking off. You nodded, barely able to return her goodbye before she was out of earshot. Your gaze lingered on her a moment more. Your stomach twisted, and you were uncertain how to make use of the information you had gleaned.

Why did it seem like everyone you had cared about in the last life died? 

Was that fated to happen once more?

Before you could get too lost in your spiraling thoughts, you felt a hand on your shoulder. Your thoughts paused, as if the hand on your shoulder pulled you away from all the noise. You turned your head slowly to see Kenshi looking at you, eyebrows raised. You sent him a bit of a forced smile, trying to not worry him any more than he seemed to be.

“You were spacing out.” Kenshi said simply. His eyes focused on you, searching your face for any indication for your unusual behavior. You felt your smile grow the slightest bit strained, like a string being pulled just a bit too tight. His eyebrows knit together, and you felt a sense of embarrassment at how he could read your expression.

Or maybe you were just easy to read in general. Either way, you didn’t feel too great about that.

“Early mornings, you know how it is.” You said, using possibly the lamest excuse you could have. You nearly wanted to smack your forehead as you realized how uncharacteristic that sounded as well. If anyone were to say that excuse, you were the last one who should have. Your jaw set a tiny bit more, trying to make your smile more prominent.

“I see.” Kenshi said, after a few more moments. There was an odd tension between the two of you. It was the type of tension that could only be made between someone who had lied very, very horribly, and by someone who could see right through the lie as if it were the most polished glass in the world. His hand squeezed your shoulder. 

Your gaze dropped to the hand on your shoulder. You stared at the tattoo on his hands, having nearly forgotten the designs on his hands. He didn’t put them on display very often. Your lips pursed, and you thought long and hard about whether he had similar tattoos, if any, in the old timeline. You don’t think he did.

“See something interesting?” Kenshi’s words cut through your thoughts. You glanced up, seeing his concerned expression having changed into one of interest. The ex-yakuza member’s eyebrows were raised, and his head tilted ever so slightly to the side. His eyes, which you now noted to be just the perfect shade for him, were trained on you. There was a certain tone to his voice that you couldn’t pin down, was it playfulness?

“I was just looking at your tattoos. They’re really pretty.” You admitted, before wanting to smack yourself. It was not because of the admittance, it was because you had forgotten the connection the tattoos had to his past. “Not that I think they’re too pretty, because of your connection with your past.” You quickly added on, resisting the urge to cringe at the addition. You sighed and closed your eyes, shaking your head. “I think they’re nice, regardless of your past, is what I meant.” 

“Maybe the early morning is getting to you.” Kenshi said, his voice having just the tiniest hint of a teasing lilt to it. Once more, he squeezed your shoulder. His eyes seemed to shine a bit, and a smile grew. Out of all your champions, he smiled the least. But whenever he did, you always seemed to notice how bright it felt to you. “But thank you for the compliment, now let’s join the group. Even Cage is there now.”

And so, the two of you walked over to the group. A round of greetings were passed between the group. You did your best to maintain your steady composure. It was getting harder and harder with all the memories coming back rapidly, especially with how dreadful they’ve been lately. Liu Kang and Kung Lao’s greetings were the hardest to return as you were trying your best not to space out and linger on the differences between their past selves and now.

Still, you did it, and no one seemed the wiser. Kung Lao had even given you some food. You were nearly honored by the gesture, knowing he saved you some food instead of taking it all for himself. You let out a small huff at the little wink he sent your way when he handed you an extra portion. 

“What was up with your little moment with Tattoo?” Johnny asked, leaning over with an all too nosy tone in his voice. You’ve seen the older women in Fengjian be less nosy than he was. And man were they always vying for some gossip whenever you visited Madam Bo. You sent him a perplexed look, which seemed to spur him on. “You know, like, when he had his hand on your shoulder.” He said. His hands were very emotive, portraying the story all on their own.

“Nothing.” You said, dismissively. You shrugged, and you watched as Johnny seemed to deflate at your answer. He was either not pleased at the lackluster answer, or how little you elaborated. Probably even a mixture of both. “It was seriously nothing, he just noticed I was spacing out.” You continued, hoping to satiate the little bit of curiosity he had.

“Mhm, sure.” He replied, a hint of skepticism in his tone. “We’ll discuss this later.” The actor insisted. You opened your mouth to respond that there was nothing else to discuss, but then the Empress and princesses strode in, causing you to fall silent. Instead, you sent him a hint of a glare. Of course, the actor didn’t care, just sending you a sunny grin in return.

What unlucky timing.

“Once again, we gather to witness another day of the tournament.” Sindel announced, scanning the crowd. When her eyes landed on Raiden, who seemed to be growing in confidence with every win, her lips pursed. You held back a chuckle at the slight annoyance that glimmered in her eyes. You saw her take in a deep breath before continuing. “After three fights, your resolve has not yet broken.” She observed, raising an eyebrow. “Today, we shall see if that will change.”

There was a pause before she continued.

“Today, you shall fight one of my most trusted allies.” The Empress announced. You were surprised for a brief moment. The last two fights were chosen by the general, did she finally get fed up with his choices? You held back yet another laugh at the prospect. “Sheeva of the Shokan shall be your opponent today.” 

From the end of the hallway emerged a broad, tall figure. Nearly rivaling Kotal in size, a woman dressed in battle-ready armor appeared. You felt a slight buzz upon seeing her, but nothing overly major. Her armor, though indicative of a warrior, appeared different from the ones that both Reiko, Kotal, and General Shao had all donned. It was a hint more decorative, and it reminded you very slightly of the umgadi gear. A purple sash that matched Sindel’s colors was pinned across her body.

“Sheeva is one of the best warriors from the Shokan. Fierce and loyal, she is one of the best guards and warriors I have come to know.” Sindel said, a certain type of fondness in her voice. It felt like a stark contrast to the way she had regarded Li Mei. Sheeva seemed to take the praise in stride, holding her head up high. All four of her arms flexed, showing the muscles that she had gained through the years. “May she grace us with a fight to display just how well she can fight.”

“I have heard many things about your prowess, young one.” Sheeva spoke, gazing down at Raiden. Her face, though it looked unimpressed, did seem to hold just a bit of respect within it. Her upper arms crossed over her chest, while the lower set of arms were firmly placed upon her hips. Her gaze was so strong it was nearly unnerving. “We shall see if they are true.”

“I will try my best to prove it true.” Raiden replied, nodding. Despite the difference in both bulk and height, Raiden seemed to not be cowed in the slightest. You smiled at the sight, feeling proud of the strength he displayed. He has certainly come a long way since the beginning of your training. From a meek sapling to a strong, sturdy tree.

Sheeva’s way of fighting reminded you a bit of Reiko’s. They both utilized the same grappling style, trying to latch onto Raiden like a leech to hit him. The Shokan was amazingly proficient at using all of her arms within combat. Her fighting style, though like the second in command, did not match the calculated way she fought. That part of her felt more like Kotal.

Her brutality was not out of bloodlust, but from the cold precision of knowing her true strength and how to use it against her opponent. Even when she stomped harshly on Raiden’s back, there was no maniac energy from her. It was a detail that you did not miss.

Had Raiden not fought against other grapplers and those who already outsized him in a match, he would have fared far worse. But, unfortunately for the Shokan, it seemed that the previous two matches only served to prepare him for this fight. Sure, he did take a heavy hit here and there, but for the most part it went far smoother than the last few matches did. 

It did not take long for him to stand over Sheeva, a tired but elated look on his face.

“I hope that proved my determination to you.” He said, his voice a bit breath as he adjusted his rumpled clothes. A groan left the beaten Shokan’s face. But as she stumbled to her feet, she seemed to nod in response. Her head dipped low, a look of shame coating her face. She seemed to hold herself a little less tall now. The two exchanged bows, before the woman walked out, her footsteps heavy with defeat.

“Congratulations upon yet another win.” Sindel said, her lips curling upwards. Her smile, once again, did not reach her eyes. In fact, her eyes did not even seem to follow the victor. Instead, they trailed after Sheeva, a slight look of disappointment within them. She cleared her throat, and the momentary weakness disappeared. “We shall adjourn at first light once again.”

“Hah, was that even a challenge for you?” Kung Lao spoke, walking merrily to his friend. A playful shove was sent Raiden’s way. A small “ow” left his lips as he rubbed his arm, which certainly must be sore from how Sheeva had been tugging him around. “I think you’ve got this in the bag!” He encouraged, though this time it lacked the little shove.

“Indeed, your training reflects well in your matches.” Liu Kang added in. He sent a little bit of a look towards Kung Lao. “Remember not to grow complacent, the next few matches may prove to be more challenging than the previous ones.” He warned. His hands were clasped neatly in front of him. The fire god’s gaze then turned to you, expectantly.

“Lord Liu Kang is right. As long as you remember what we taught you when you fight, you’ll do fine.” You said, giving him a small smile. You crossed your arms as you shifted your weight. “But I do agree, you’ll need to be vigilant. I’d say it was a lucky streak that your last opponents had similar fighting styles, but the next few may fight very differently from them.” You placed a hand on his arm, trying to be comforting. “But I, and so do the rest of us, believe in you.”

“I-” Raiden began, seeming a bit caught off guard by either your words or the touch on his arm. He cleared his throat, a faint flush on his cheeks. Johnny took your attention away by slinging an arm around your shoulders. Turning to give him a confused look and to shrug off his touch, you missed the brief look that Raiden sent your way before you turned back. “I understand, I’ll do my best.” 

“Good.” You commended, sending him a bigger smile this time. Then, after a moment, your hand dropped from his arm. Liu Kang picked up from your little moment, telling the group a few things before he dismissed them. You watched as Liu Kang, Kenshi, and Raiden all walked off. But Kung Lao lingered, a look of contemplation on his face. You tilted your head as you walked forward to stand next to the man. “Something on your mind?”

“Just thinking.” Kung Lao answered, a thoughtful tone to his voice. You raised your eyebrows, nodding to see if he would go on. After a few moments, he did. “I know Raiden deserved to be the champion but…” He said, trailing off as he looked to the side. You nodded, placing a hand on his bicep and squeezed it gently, making him return his gaze to you.

“I admire your willingness to fight.” You said, cautiously picking your words. The memory of the old Kung Lao dying because he had been far too eager to fight lingered in your mind. Was it a warning of things to come? Or was it merely just a stain in your mind that would never go away? “But know that we all see your value even without you launching yourself head first into battle.” You pinched his arm. “Don’t go around and be reckless to try and prove yourself, okay?”

“If I were to fight though, I’d win.” Kung Lao retorted playfully, but that attitude melted away to reveal a more genuine smile. “I know, though.” He said, nodding. “I promise I won’t go around picking fights…unless they deserve it.” He said, grinning at you. When you sent him an unamused look, he rolled his eyes before laughing. “I’m kidding! I won’t.” He claimed, raising his hands up in surrender.

“Good. I’m going to do some shopping now, okay?” You said, nodding with a satisfied smile. You dropped your hand, missing the way the farmhand’s eyes trailed after it. As you were about to walk off to go tour Sun Do for gifts, you felt a hand upon your arm. Your eyes trailed up from the hand to the culprit. It was none other than Johnny. “Did you need something?”

“Yeah.” The actor said, his smile that was so bright it nearly rivaled the sun. His hand dropped so he could spread his arms out wide. “Saw the other day that Rai-dude got to have a day with you, it’s my turn now.” He announced, seeming almost a bit too proud of himself. “That, and I did say we had stuff to discuss later.”

“We’re taking turns hanging out?” Kung Lao spoke up, having not left yet. His eyebrows furrowed as he looked back and forth between you and Johnny Cage. A look of utter confusion was obvious on his face. You were nearly certain that a similar look was upon your face. You were no less confused than he was. “When am I getting my day?” 

“We’re not taking turns, don’t worry about it.” You reassured the former farmhand. You looked back at Johnny with an exasperated look. “Don’t say things like that, people will get the wrong idea, Cage.” You scolded him pointing a finger his way. “Why do you even need me to accompany you today?” You inquired. You noticed the slightly irritated tone in your voice and sent him an apologetic look. “Not that I mind.”

“I need someone to help take some pictures of me around Sun Do so I can post it on my socials.” The American informed you causally. Either he didn’t notice the tone in your voice, or didn’t care. You were assuming that with him, it was the latter. A broad grin crossed his features as a more confused look appeared over your face. 

“But I wouldn’t anyone else be bet-” You began. You were shortly cut off by Johnny grabbing your hand. With a surprised shout, you were dragged off by Johnny outside of the palace before you could protest more. Too stunned, you let him lead you away, mind still mulling over the strange excuse he had given you.

Left in the dust was Kung Lao who looked at where you two had disappeared to. There was a moment where there was nothing but sheer confusion spread across his face. Then, Kenshi passed by, having returned to the Great hall. He looked at the farm hand with a perplexed look as well. He glanced back and forth between where Kung Lao was looking and the man himself.

“Are you okay?” The swordsman asked, having not been there to witness the little scene. 

“Yeah.” Kung Lao said, snapping out of his stupor. He shook his head, trying to dispel the strange hurt feeling he felt before shrugging. “I’m just really, really confused.”

“You didn’t have to drag me out here, Cage.”

“Nah, I totally did have to.” Johnny said simply. The blunt response stunned you for a moment. Normally, you would have a witty remark or be able to bounce back. But with how strange Johnny has been lately, you’ve found yourself more and more uncertain of what to say in response. You didn’t quite like how speechless you’ve become. 

“No, you really didn’t have to.” You insisted. Your words fell upon deaf ears as Johnny continued to drag you towards the capital. It wasn’t until you both made it to the city that he finally released your hand. You sighed as you sent him a look before shaking your head. “Well, we’re here.” You stated the obvious, looking around at the crowd. “Where did you need the picture?”

“Oh, we don’t need to do that now.” The actor told you with a grin. You stared at him with a look of disbelief. “In fact we have to wait. I wanted to do these pictures at sunset so we can get those sweet, sweet colors.” You looked upwards into the sky, noting just how early it was. Sunset was hours away. You sighed, you guess you were stuck with the man for a bit. He didn’t seem dismayed at all by your reaction, instead slinging an arm around you and leaning in close. “So, where to first?”

“I didn’t really have a plan.” You said, crossing your arms. “I was really going to go window shopping.” You inform him, trying to think of ideas for the two brothers you hadn’t gotten gifts for yet. So far, you were drawing a blank. Glancing over to Johnny, who seemed to be very pleased with placing almost all his weight upon you, you pursed your lips. “I suppose you don’t have any ideas for what to get Bi-Han and Kuai Liang?”

“The ninjas?” Johnny inquired, eyebrows raising. Before you could correct him that they weren’t quite ninjas he continued, “I dunno, some breath mints for frost face?” He suggested, shrugging. You sent him an exasperated look, but you supposed asking Johnny out of any of them was the wrong decision. He probably didn’t hold either of them in such high regard after what they did to his…Hichuli. He laughed at your reaction, nudging you. “Okay, fine, how about we go window shopping like you said, we’re bound to think of some ideas.”

“Sounds like a plan.” You said, nodding. You stood there, waiting for him to move. When he remained leaning against you, you raised your eyebrows. “Are you expecting me to be able to drag you around everywhere?” You inquired, a tinge of amusement in your voice apparent. A smile spread across your lips. Maybe it was because he was an actor, but he never failed to be entertaining to you.

“Where’s your sense of fun?” He groaned, a hint of a pout on his lips. Still, he relented and got off of you. With an overexaggerated bow that reminded you of certain characters in a movie, he gestured towards the city. “Lead the way?” He inquired, his eyebrows waggling playfully. You rolled your eyes at the grand performance and chuckled before beginning to walk over to the stores.

Even after touring part of Sun Do with Raiden, there were still plenty of shops you had not explored yet. Both you and Johnny peeked into stores, marveling over their wares with different degrees of wonder. There were a few times where you’d hear mutter how he wished that he had an easy way to convert his American dollars to the Outworlder coin. 

It took a while until you found a good gift. Or rather, until Johnny found a good gift.

“How about this?” The actor asked. The two of you had ended up in some sort of jewelry store. While you hadn’t been too keen on the wares here fitting the idea of a gift for either of the brothers, you both decided to tour it anyways. Upon seeing the suggestion Johnny lifted towards you, you were infinitely glad that you did.

You grabbed the ribbon he had held up, eyes wide with amazement. It was made of gold and black fabric, perfectly long enough to do someone’s hair. In fact, it seemed meant to be tied into one’s hair to keep it up. The thread work was immaculate. It was woven intricately, creating a pattern that vaguely reminded you of a scorpion. 

It was practically perfect.

“Where did you find this?” You asked. You rubbed your thumb over the design before flipping it over and admiring how soft the fabric was. You looked from the ribbon over to Johnny to see what may be the smuggest look you’ve seen on his face. “I mean, this is pretty much what I’ve been looking for.”

“Just over here.” Johnny told you, pointing his thumb in the direction of a display of other ribbons. You wandered over, humming as you perused the rest of the collection. Unfortunately, there was nothing that stuck out to you as something you’d want to give to Bi-Han. Still, as you looked back down at the ribbon in your hands, you were grateful to find something. “You seem really pleased by my findings.” He observed. You could hear the grin through his words. “Do I get to have a reward or something?”

“Or something.” You sassed back, shaking your head. Still, you looked over to the man with a smile. “Thanks for helping me, Johnny.” You thanked him sincerely. The smile he sent made your heart skip a beat, though you weren’t quite sure why. Deciding not lingering on the why part, you turned and went to the counter to pay for the item.

Surprisingly, it was cheaper than you expected. A fact that you were grateful for so you did not completely lose your money on this one gift. The centaurian man who helped you even offered to package it in a pretty gift box for free. 

“You’re not trying to find a pretty little trinket for yourself, wildstyle?” Johnny inquired as you rejoined him near the entrance. He sent you an inquisitive look as he crossed his arms. You shook your head as you tucked the box away into your bag for safe keeping. You would be devastated to find that you had lost the perfect gift for Kuai Liang. “You’re a strange one.”

“Really now?” You quipped back, raising your eyebrows as you turned back to look at him. You peered over to the sky, noting how low the sun had gotten. Browsing around had taken far more time than you had expected. It was nearly time for taking pictures soon, assuming that the man still wanted them. “Did you want to go find a spot to take your pictures now? Or did you still want to help me look for Bi-Han’s gift?”

“Still don’t get why you’re buying gifts for the man who broke my Hichuli, but I guess we’ve got some more daylight to burn.” Johnny replied, shrugging.

And so, the two of you continued to browse. Unfortunately, even between the two of you, you still failed to find something appropriate for the icy grandmaster. Luckily for you, you still saw that there were plenty of stalls to go through. Tomorrow, perhaps you’d have better luck.

That’s how you got to the pier, squinting down at Johnny’s phone. You’ve rarely touched his phone. The only times you’ve bothered to interact with it was to play Candy Crush whenever the actor wanted to bribe you to give them a break, or to show Kung Lao the video. 

Still, holding it in your hands, something about the device felt oddly…familiar.

“You know how to take a picture, right?” Johnny said, leaning over to point at the screen. You looked over to him, giving him a sigh.

“That’s what I was going to tell you, Cage.” You told him, sending him an exasperated look. You had nearly forgotten about his little excuse to drag you out here. How silly it seemed now. You thought about telling him if he had just asked to accompany you on your little shopping trip that you would have let him, but you figured you were past that point now. “I have no idea how to really take a picture, so your luck with me taking actual quality ones for your social media is pretty low.”

“You’ll probably have a knack for it.” The actor encouraged you. He positioned so he could wrap his arms around you, placing his hands upon yours. While Johnny was usually touchy, this felt…different. You suppressed a shiver as you noted how gentle he was being. “Here, lift it up to this angle.” He instructed, his voice quieter than usual. And yet, when it was right next to your ear you hardly noticed how he was pretty much whispering. Was your face getting hot?

“Good.” Johnny praised, and like usual, you could hear the smile in his voice. The smile your heard though, was a different type of smile. It wasn’t arrogant or smug. It felt like he was proud of you. “You’ll want to tap the screen if it’s out of focus.” He said, and tapped on the screen to demonstrate. You nodded, pursing your lips as you tried your best to focus on the task at hand. Did he really have to be this close though?

“Anything else I should know?” You asked, hoping the way you spoke didn’t reflect the way you were feeling oddly nervous right now. You had no idea why your nerves were acting up, it isn’t as if you were being tested on anything. You did not turn your head, feeling like you would grow more nervous if you turned your head to look at the man.

“Nope, you should be good. I’ll be telling you whenever to take a shot. Oh, taking a picture is this button by the way.” He said, pressing the circle at the bottom of the screen. You nodded diligently, back oddly straight as you tried to focus on anything but him. You had to hide your sigh of relief as he unwrapped his arms, backing up. “Alright, let me get into position.” 

You watched as Johnny jogged over to the spot he had apparently determined in his head. You kept your arms up, not wanting to lose the perfect angle that the man had decided for you. Still, the memory of his touch on your hands lingered in your mind. Johnny prepped himself, moving between a few poses before he settled on one and called out for you to take a picture. You grinned at the rather amusing pose he struck. Was he trying to pretend to hold the sun?

Nodding, you moved your thumb to press the button. Accidentally though, you made the screen flip, making it turn to your smiling face. Following that accident, you pressed the button. With a sigh, you furrowed your eyebrows as you tried to figure out how to turn it back around. After a few moments, you offered him an apologetic smile as he walked back to you.

“Did you get the shot?” He asked, raising his eyebrows. You shook your head and handed the phone over, sighing.

“I told you I didn’t know how to take pictures.” You sighed, pointing at the screen and how it was still using the forward facing camera. “I accidentally flipped the screen and made it take a picture of me.” You explained, your tone indicating your embarrassment at not knowing how to navigate the device well. You watched as he lifted the phone up, so he could see it better. The only issue now was that you couldn’t see it. “So I didn’t get the picture, sorry.”

“Main man Lord Liu Kang should really get you a phone so you can start learning. Don’t sweat it though, Teach.” Johnny observed, humming as he tapped the screen a few times. His eyes lit up after a few moments. A small smile curled onto his lips. Then, almost as if remembering you were there, he cleared his throat as he looked back to you. 

It was rare to see him taken off his guard.

“Here.” He said after a few moments. When the phone was handed back to you, it was correctly oriented this time. “Try not to switch it again, or do, I don’t mind having a few photos of you in my phone.” Johnny teased you, sending you a wink. Before you could retort, he jogged back to the spot. You shook your head, unable to resist a smile.

This time, you took what you thought was a pretty good picture.

By the time you and Johnny returned to the palace, it was dark. You had spent the fading bits of daylight on taking every picture you could. You thought it was excessive, but the actor had told you something along the lines of “we don’t finish until it’s perfect in the industry”. You had tried to tell him that there was no industry here, but he promptly ignored you.

You had half a mind to groan at his stubbornness.

“Busy day?” Raiden inquired, seeing the both of you walk into the hallway. It seems the reserved seats had changed for the both of you. You had a choice of either between Kenshi and Liu Kang or between Raiden and Kung Lao. You slipped into the one next to the champion, humming as you reached over to get your share of food. 

“You could call it that.” You replied. You muttered an apology as you bumped into Raiden as you leaned over. He took your apology in stride, smiling generously at you. “I managed to get another gift under my belt. No luck in finding one for Bi-Han though.” You said, sighing. “Then again, I predicted getting a gift for him would be the most difficult.”

“Maybe tomorrow I can help.” Kenshi spoke up. You glanced up at him, a bit of surprise on your face. You nearly missed the look of what you could only call betrayal on Kung Lao’s face. Why that was the case, you had no idea. You felt a little bad, it looked a little funny. You brought a hand to hide the bits of a smile that threatened to slip through. You hummed, tilting your head after you recovered from your near smile. You thought about the offer for a moment before nodding.

“I wouldn’t mind that.” You said. As you peered down at the food on the table, you missed the pointed looks the swordsman got. When you looked up, they were gone. “I’ve found that I find the gifts whenever I’m with one of you anyways, might as well not break the streak.” You said contemplatively. “How was the rest of the day for you guys?”

The rest of dinner went smoothly from there. There was chatter here and there, catching up on each other’s day. It wasn’t until dinner was over that you encountered something unexpected. You stood up from your seat, excusing yourself. You had plans to get a bit of alone time before your usual meeting with the princess. Yet, when you turned around you were met with the sight of Rain.

“Oh, hello.” You greeted, blinking owlishly. You offered a small wave, to which the mage returned. “Did you need something from me?” You asked, looking around to see if there was something obvious around to indicate what he wanted. 

“Ah, nothing much. I just wanted to talk.” He said, offering you a smile. You returned the smile, a hint of surprise and joy in your eyes. You knew Rain had offered you friendship the other day, but you didn’t actually expect him to want to spend more time together than he did yesterday. “Do you have the time for a little chat?” He inquired, his hands sweeping out to gesture to a hallway.

“Oh, definitely.” You said, nodding perhaps a bit too eagerly. You weren’t sure why, but Rain and you seemed to click quickly. You chalked it up to the shared interest in magic, and how he seemed to admire your drive to get better. “I’ll see you guys around.” You said, waving to the group before you walked off with your new friend.

“Lord Liu Kang, your stare is…intense.” Raiden pointed out quietly after you and your new friend disappeared down the hallway. The Fire God diverted his gaze away from where you had gone to the champion. He cleared his throat, putting on a cordial smile.

“Do not worry about it.” Liu Kang reassured the man. He cast his gaze upon the rest of the group, nodding at them. “Enjoy the rest of your evening. I shall see you all tomorrow for Raiden’s next fight.” He then stood and disappeared too, retiring to his chambers.

Even gods like him were not immune to human emotions.

You had talked longer with Rain than expected. 

It wasn’t until you saw the man yawn that you realized just how late it had gotten. You felt a twinge of guilt course through you as you quickly realized you had to dismiss yourself. Searching around, you excused yourself, giving him an apologetic smile.

“I really should be going, I struggle with waking up without proper sleep.” You lied. You did feel bad lying to your new friend, but you weren’t certain just how public the information of your meetings with Mileena were. You figured it was best to play it safe and pretend they did not occur. With an understanding nod, the mage smiled.

“I understand.” He said. There was a pause, his lips parting before he shook his head. Your eyebrows raised at the action, but didn’t question it. You didn’t want to be too forward and scare him off.  “I hope to talk to you soon. It’s refreshing to talk to someone like you.” 

“I feel the same.” You told him, nodding. You watched him walk off, taking slow steps away. Then, as soon as you deemed yourself safe enough not to be caught in a lie, you slunk off in the darkness to the hanging gardens. You nearly transformed to make the job easier, but you figured that was more suspicious, so you stuck to the teachings Madam Bo had taught you.

Reaching the gardens, you let out a sigh. Here you felt safe enough to not sneak around. You looked around, spying for any sign of the princess. You caught a hint of pink, and walked right over. Just as expected, she was waiting on the bench for you.

“Apologies for my late arrival.” You said, not even certain if you were even late. It is not as if you had a clock to judge the time. Even if you did, you weren’t even sure if Outworld ran on the same time system as Earthrealm did. You rushed over to take your spot near her after she indicated towards it with her hand. “I got caught up in conversation.”

“Lucky for you, I just got here.” Mileena remarked. The jesting tone in her voice had you relax, letting out another sigh of relief. Hints of thinly veiled amusement sparkled in her eyes accompanying the little smirk on her lips. “I assume you were giving your champion a rousing speech for tomorrow’s match?” She inquired, an expectant tone in her voice.

“Ah, no actually.” You said. You felt a little silly, realizing that her assumption was something you actually should be doing. You knew Raiden did well off of praise. Not only that, but it didn’t hurt to be a little more encouraging towards the champion. Maybe you should do that tomorrow night, especially since you knew that if he won this one, he would have to fight the princess beside you. “I was talking to the High Mage, Rain.”

“I did not know you two were so…familiar.” The princess said, raising an eyebrow. You heard the curiosity in her tone. You chuckled at her phrasing, shaking your head as you waved your hands dismissively.

“Not at all.” You said, holding back a disbelieving chuckle. “He and I simply got along well during the banquet and became friends of sorts..” You explained. You turned your gaze away from the princess to the sky. “It’s refreshing to hear someone talk about magic with such fasciation and depth.” 

“I did not realize you were so intrigued by magic.” Mileena remarked. This time, a hint of surprise appeared in her voice. “Do you possess magic yourself, or are you simply fascinated by the subject?” She inquired. Her gaze scanned your form, trying to see any indication of magic upon your person. Her calculating gaze felt just like her younger sister’s.

“I have magic.” You said. “Magic doesn’t really exist in Earthrealm in the same ways it does here.” You explained. “Very little people know magic themselves, and the ones I know who have such magic don’t have the same passion as the people I’ve met here.” You shrugged causally.

“Perhaps it has something to do with the goddess Delia.” Mileena proposed. “As far as I am concerned, the only god Earthrealm has is Lord Liu Kang, correct?” She inquired. You nodded. You doubted Liu Kang would have hidden another god of Earthrealm from you. “Delia is the goddess of magic, it is natural that Outworld would simply have more magic than Earthrealm.”

“I suppose.” You said, not knowing what to quite respond to that. She was probably correct. You pursed your lips as you pondered on the subject of magic for a few moments more before realizing that Mileena had been staring at you. “Oh, right the story, my bad.” You said, straightening up. You cleared your throat before glancing at the princess. “Any particular stories you’d like to hear about tonight?”

“How about you tell me about Earthrealm’s version of magic?” The princess proposed, connecting the prior conversation to the story she wished to hear. You smiled at the sentiment, thinking of what to tell her before nodding and proceeding.

That night, you told her of magic. And that night, you tried your best to ignore the longing ache in your heart.

part fifteen

tagged - @bonezisded @lollipopin @simpxinnie @zhivaxo @koisuko

#mortal kombat x reader #kung lao x reader #liu kang x reader #reptile x reader #smoke x reader #sub zero x reader #scorpion x reader #bi han #liu kang #raiden x reader #johnny cage x reader #johnny cage #tomas vrbada #kenshi x reader #syzoth #mortal kombat #mortal kombat 1 #mk1 #fanfiction #mk1 x reader #mk x reader #shang tsung x reader #shang tsung #mileena x reader #kitana x reader #syzoth x reader #ashrah x reader #havik x reader #rain x reader

[avocad1s]

Bring Back What Once Was Mine

Chapter Summary: You finally confront the False Creator

Characters Mentioned: Tsaritsa, Dottore, Lumine, The Imposter

Content Warning: Cult and Religious themes ahead! You've been warned.

Reader is the true creator of Teyvat. GN! Reader

Part Six Part Seven (You are here!) Part Eight

I had a bit of help on the beginning from someone who doesn’t even play Genshin 💀

Like always. This isn’t beta read 🗿 forgive me for any mistakes.

The creation of Teyvat was something Celestia would never forget.

The world was vast, full of untold wonder and color. Celestia could not have imagined something so beautiful. Yet, it always so eerily quiet, astoundingly quiet. For a while, just the two of them was enough to sate the needs of the creator. Something was missing from this new creation, something was lacking and the creator felt unfulfilled for some time.

And then the Creators loneliness returned.

“What’s the point of having all this space without anyone to share it with?” Is what the Creator would say.

No matter what protests it had, Celestia wouldn’t dare go against the Creator. So they watched, watched as they created life to live on the world.

Evening fell on Teyvat, and The Creator had been gone since morning to oversee the change of seasons. Celestia had kept a watchful eye over the creator from above. They had grown weary from watching them growing ever closer to the Gods and mortals of this world.

A small child had gotten separated from their mortal familiars. For many hours they wandered in the treacherous forest. A strong river flowed near by, and the rivers end was slippery and steep. Thick mud and gravel lay at the river bed and it was beginning to rain, turning the once calm river into a torrent.

Closer and closer the child came to the river, through the wooden thicket collecting small cuts and scraps from the lower brush. For a child so young, the cold would take them if the river didn’t. It happens more often than not, a simple thing.

In the beginning, the creator would have turned a blind eye to the nature of the world. Yet, Celestia watched The Creator follow the small child into the thicket. The child wailed and cried, but they found no comfort in the dark. The river’s edge was so close now, they slipped on the wet grass.

Celestia waited for the splash, but none came. Looking down yet again, small tears edge the child’s face but they were drying from the heat they radiated from the Creators chest and arms. They had wrapped them in their cloak and were carrying them across.

Celestia felt a small vexation toward the child, and noticeably was counting the centimeters that separated the two of them, and finding the measurement inadequate.

Time was an irrelevant thing to Celestia, unlike the mortals on Teyvat, it had no fear of growing old and dying. It knew that one day, the Creator would return, Celestia just had to be patient.

Yet decades, no centuries pass and the Creator never returned, never reached out. They continued to interact, continued to love the life that resided on the planet.

It burned inside to know that the second creation received more attention. Oh how Celestia craved even a fraction of the attention Teyvat received.

And then among the chaotic emotions Celestia experienced, the Creator left. Celestia scanned every part of the world and found only traces of them. Mortals weeped due to their disappearance but Celestia had faith. It would finally bask in the grace of their Creator, maybe they weren’t forgotten, weren’t the second choice.

Celestia spiraled into despair after that. The hope it held on to that the Beloved Creator would return diminished. No matter where it looked, Celestia never found them.

Celestia had no regard for life on Teyvat, looking down on it only made Celestia remember that the last time the Creator was seen….. it was on this planet.

If it could, Celestia would desecrate every atom on this world until there was no evidence of its existence. Listening to the foul ramblings of the so-called Gods who witnessed the Creators greatness; and expressing how much they missed Their Grace was more than Celestia could bare.

No one could fathom the loss Celestia did.

Why couldn’t they reach out to them? Beg them to return?

Celestia would do anything to get Their Grace to return, consequences be damned.

Sumeru City was finally in view.

With every step you take, you could feel an indescribable amount of dread being placed on your shoulders. Your mind was racing with endless possibilities of reality. What might happen once you were face-to-face with the imitator, and if it was Celestia, would they bend to your will?

“Your Grace…”

A voice breaks you from your thoughts, and you notice that the group has stopped. All of the them were looking intently at you.

“Are you alright?” Lumine asks softly, “you’ve been quiet.”

A soft sigh escapes your lips, “we need to find a way to discreetly enter the City. If we draw any attention we’ll lose our advantage.”

Dottore saunters over to you, “Your Grace,” he bows a bit, respect radiating from his figure. “I have a way for us to enter the City, if you’re up to it”

You look into his mask trying to sense his intent.

“Well? What is it?”

“A sound wave,” he explains, “it can put people to sleep, it doesn’t work on Gods.”

“Wait, Your Grace,” the Traveler approaches you standing on the opposite side of Dottore, “that doesn’t seem safe, are you sure you trust it.”

“You are really going to let your personal feelings get in the way of the plan?” the Tsaritsa says coldly crossing her arms.

“Well do you have a better idea?” You ask. Lumine closes her mouth with a downcast gaze.

You turn your gaze back to the doctor, “then we are going with your plan.”

You notice him smile underneath his mask, “of course Your Grace,”

-

Something is…. off.

The Imposter could feel it deep in their bones. The grating voice of the thing that created them rang in their head on loop. No matter how hard the Imposter tried, they wouldn’t have a moment of peace.

However, what is peace when you are a poorly constructed imitation of something far greater?

Their only job was to get the true one to return, they were supposed to talk like them, act like them, be them, but they were a puppet. With no will of their own, all they had were the unbreakable strings that left them tethered to their creator.

‘Once they return, I will free you’ it said.

Is freedom what they wanted? When the real one returned, would they be granted that privilege?

For hundreds of years they pretended to be them, and they know for a fact that they had lost the purpose long ago. All they were was a tool their creator used to intact revenge on what it believed to be the reason the real one left.

The Imposter nails dig into the palms of their hands as they grit their teeth, how is it possible for someone as infamous as the Traveler to disappear without a trace?

Suddenly the doors are pushed open and a guard comes staggering in breathing heavily, “your Grace!” He shouts, “everyone has suddenly fallen asleep!”

The Imposter tilts their head raising a brow, “what? What do you mean everyone has fallen asleep.”

The guard hunches over holding his stomach as he tries to catch his breath, “I was doing my rounds when everyone near the entrance collapsed. I came here to tell you immediately.”

“And you decided to come here instead of checking the problem out yourself?”

The guard opens his mouth to speak but quickly shuts it when they lift their hand up. “If you want to be useful then go check it out, I have no need for cowards.”

The guard stands up straight nodding quickly before exiting the room.

The Impostor let’s out a long sigh, so the time has come.

Unexplained circumstances like this could only mean that the Creator was approaching. Even though the Imposter had no true connection to them, they knew the Creator was near since Celestia’s instructions repeated louder and louder in their head.

The Imposter already knew that once the Creator enter these door they would be put on the back burner. Celestia would use their connection to take over their body and talk to them itself.

Moments later the large double doors again and a beautiful woman with white hair enters gripping the arm of a blonde haired girl. They both stand in the middle of the room staring at her on the throne.

“Your Grace.” She says coldly staring at them. “It seems that your guards are not trained well enough to bring you what you ask.”

She pushes the blonde girl on the floor, presenting her as if she was a gift.

The Imposter stares quizzically at the two women, “Tsaritsa. After you had kicked me out of your nation and told me to never return, you now show your face.” They cross their legs a smirk on their lips, “and the famous Traveler, you lied. Right to my face! But now you are groveling at my feet.”

They let out an amused laugh, “did you finally realize the consequences of your actions?”

Lumine stays on the ground as the Tsaritsa casts her gaze down at the floor, trying to come off as apologetic as possible.

“I am here to apologize. It was blasphemous for me to forsake you the way I did.”

“That was decades ago,” the Imposter explicates, “why should I trust you now?”

“I’ve heard you were looking for the Traveler, so I brought her as a peace offering.”

The Imposter stands from the throne walking down the stairs, their steps echoing throughout the cold room. “And how is it that out of everyone, you managed to find her?”

Before the Archon could respond the Imposter speaks again, “I just find it very hard to believe that after all these years you finally decide to come and apologize.”

They stand from their throne walking slowly down the long staircase their footsteps echoing throughout the room. Once they stood in front of the two girls, a cold look replaces the facade that has been on their face for years.

“Prove it.”

The Tsaritsa’s eyebrows raise slightly, “Pardon?”

The Imposter crosses their arms, “prove your loyalty to me.”

Lumine looks up from her spot on the ground a concerned look on her face, what could they possibly mean?

“How should I prove it?”

They point down at the Traveler a blank look on their face, “kill Lumine.”

“Kill… Lumine?” The Tsaritsa repeats.

The Imposter nods, “I have no care for outlanders and she has committed the biggest act against me. If you want my trust, you’ll end her life.”

The room falls silent as it starts to grow incredibly cold, to Lumine, it was unclear if the chill in the air came from the Cryo Archon or if it was due to the Imposter’s shell finally cracking.

“Well,” they say, “what’s it gonna be?”

Right Outside The Door

You had decided to send the Tsaritsa and Lumine into the room alone while you, Dottore, and Paimon stood right outside the door. You wanted to listen for a moment to know exactly how the Imposter acted to pick the best course of action.

And to see if you can feel any resemblance to Celestia before you were face to face.

“What are you gonna do?” A high pitched voice asks.

You notice Paimon floating near you a concerned look on her face. If she didn’t talk, you would’ve assumed she was anxious from being away from the Traveler but it seems her worry was all on you.

“If Celestia is at fault what will you do? Will you…” she trails off but you knew what she was going to say.

Getting rid of Celestia wouldn’t be an issue for you physically. As powerful as it was, Celestia could never overpower you no matter how hard it tried.

However the guilt you will feel if you get rid of it would be immeasurable, Celestia was your first creation and throwing it away as if it were trash would break you.

‘Why should I trust you now?’

You wince, maybe your plan of having the Tsaritsa apologize wasn’t as great as you thought it was. Even having the Traveler wasn’t enough to quell the worries of the Imposter.

You hear footsteps echo throughout the room, what could they be doing?

“I will do what is necessary…” You say truthfully to the fairy.

You push open the door slightly to sneak a peek of what was going on in the room. The Tsaritsa and the Impostor stood face to face while Lumine was on the floor.

‘Prove if to me’

‘How should I prove it?’

The next words made your blood run cold and you weren’t the only one. The color had drained from Paimon’s face as no other words were spoken in the room.

‘Well, what’s it gonna be?’

Your body moves on its own and you push open the door causing the trio to look at you. Lumine gives you a relieved glance while the Imposter’s eyes widen at your unexpected entrance.

Their cold look is replaced by something you couldn’t describe as they take a few steps back, “it’s you…”

You walk towards them slowly, “your reign over my creation is over.”

You payed no mind to nothing else in the room, everything was leading to this moment. Everyone who had helped you over these past few days had lead you right here.

The Imposters entire demeanor quickly changes, the look of surprise that was in their eyes replaced by a neutral smile as they stared quietly at you. You hadn’t even talked to them yet and they seemed completely different already.

“You have been on Teyvat for a while, but we now finally meet…”

You stare at their face blankly, not saying a word.

They took note of your silence and continue speaking, “I’ve waited a long time for you. Now that the time has come, I don’t know what to say.” They chuckle a bit.

You feel your heart sink as you close your eyes, “Celestia…” you whisper.

The Imposter’s posture fixes as a look of gratitude spreads on their face. “You’ve been gone for so long I didn’t think you’d recognize me anymore.”

“Even with this mask you wear, I will always recognize you.”

The Imposter, or rather Celestia takes a few steps closer to you, “I have missed you, my Creator.”

You take a step back, “You steal my face and caused pain to the life I created in this world, why? Why must you betray me like this?”

They stay silent for a moment as if they were choosing their next words carefully, “you left me…”

“I… left you?”

“it was supposed to be just us, then you had to go on and make this world then the life on this world.” The frown spitting the words out like venom. “You discarded me as you spent all your time here and then you just left!”

They snap their fingers to emphasize the meaning behind their words. “I was just a toy to you, and all I wanted was for you to come back.”

So this was its reasoning for everything it did, simply not giving Celestia attention made it act as if it were a child.

“You’re right, it was wrong of me to leave with saying nothing. Especially after not interacting with you for decades… but the doesn’t give you the right to mess with something that doesn’t belong to you.”

You bring your hand out gripping their chin forcing them to meet your gaze, “if you truly cared for me, you wouldn’t have done what you did. You are selfish.”

“I am so-“

“You’re not sorry,” you interrupt, “you’ve done this for decades, if you truly felt regret, you would’ve stopped long ago.”

You and Celestia stood right in front of each other as they look you right in your eyes, being reprimanded by you was their least favorite way of getting your attention.

“Giving you any rule over Teyvat is my biggest mistake.” You hiss, “I thought that after the Archon war that I could depend on you to keep life on Teyvat in order, but all you did was abuse your power.”

Their face falls a look of total devastation on it, “My Creator-“

“I don’t want to hear it!” You snap, “you’ve done enough damage.”

The room falls silent, no one behind you dared to speak up only watching the interaction between the two of you. Through the vessel, Celestia stares at you with trembling lips and watery eyes.

“You will return where you belong and never return to Teyvat again.” You demand.

“And what will you do?” Celestia stammers.

“I have to clean up your mess, you used my face and disgraced me on my own Creation. You’ve made people fear me and you say you did this all because you love me.”

They hang their head down in shame, “please forgive me, My Creator… disgracing you was never my intention I just…”

“You just what? Acted like a child to get me to return?”You let out a sigh, “don’t make this any harder than it already is. Just leave.”

The color from their face drains as their body goes limp in your arms as if it was a doll and if you weren’t talking to it just a moment ago, you would’ve believed that to be the case.

Footsteps from behind approach you slowly and you feel a warm hand in your shoulder, it was Lumine giving you a sad smile. “Are you alright Your Grace?”

You look down at the now empty vessel that was in your arms, “I should apologize. To all of you. You told me that it was Celestia this whole time and I didn’t want to believe it.”

Tears threaten to spill from your eyes but you quickly wipe them away.

“Now that the Imposter, erm- Celestia, is gone. What happens now?”

“Everyone else deserves to know the truth.” You mutter, “reversing all the damage Celestia has done is the most important thing right now.”

“Your Grace,” you hear the Tsaritsa call out as she approaches standing in the opposite side of the Traveler. “No one is going to blame you for this.”

“I blame me.” You look at the Cryo Archon. “I’ve should’ve been here.”

Despite the enormous amount of guilt you had for allowing everyone to suffer in the hands of Celestia for so long you knew you couldn’t dwell on it right now. Getting to every nation and telling the truth is more important and figuring out what to do with Celestia still sits in the back of your mind.

Even after all the terrible deeds it’s done you needed to have a proper conversation with it. It’s clear that the floating island still had lots of love for you but it was blinded by their jealousy. Was that enough to let them off the hook? If you decided to go off-world again would they just do the same thing?

You knew that you must sever the connection between Celestia and Teyvat, even if you do decide to forgive them, you couldn’t trust them with the well-being of this planet anymore.

You pick up the now lifeless doll draping it over your shoulder, “I am going to Celestia, it shouldn’t be gone online but once I return I will fix everything. I promise.”

Since you had no reason to his your identity anymore, you could use your powers. Not that there was any other way to get to Celestia without teleporting.

“I appreciate all of your help, and for telling me the truth. I won’t forget what you’ve done for me.” You express.

Lumine and Paimon smile at you, “you’re our friend, of course we’d help. While you’re away we will let everyone know the truth.”

“I will have my harbingers do the same,” the Tsaritsa says quietly to you.

You give them a small smile, “thank you. I will return soon.”

The group watches you leave without another word leaving them alone in the room where the False Crestor resided. The Cryo Archon turns her attention to Dottore, who had not said nothing during the entire encounter.

“Inform the other Harbingers of the situation.” She orders the coldness in her voice returning. He nods at her order not putting up a fight, leaving just as quickly as you did.

She turns her attention to Lumine, “I knew we’d meet eventually but I didn’t expect it to be like this.”

The outlander nods, “me either…”

????

He was beyond frustrated.

He knew that when he met the Creator in that tent, he should’ve brought them with him. No one would be able to help them better than he could, but that stupid woman they were with had stopped him before he could even ask. Oh how he wished he would’ve gotten rid of that woman, but if he had hurt her, the Creator would’ve never heard him out and that’s the last thing he wanted.

He runs a hand through his hair letting out a annoyed sigh.

“Your Majesty,” an Abyss mage approaches from behind bowing.

“What!” The Prince snaps, he was not in the mood to deal with any failures right now.

The Mage shrinks back glancing up at him, “We have been following Their Grace without being detected as your ordered. They have defeated the False Creator.”

He feels a smile spread across his lips, “finally you have brought me good news.”

“But” the Abyss Mage continues, “there’s one other thing.”

“Hmm? What is it?”

“Your sister. It appears she was helping Their Grace the whole time…”

The Prince stands from his seat his braid blowing in the wind, Stormterrors lair never failed to be windy. “And is she aware of my… involvement?”

“Their Grace never mentioned you.” The Abyss Mage answers and the Prince nods.

“It seems that Lumine is finally becoming aware of the truth of this world.”

The Prince could feel the excitement bubbling in his chest, finally he could see you again without any interruptions, the Archons, the Adepti, and Celestia itself means nothing in your presence and he could not wait to bask in it once more.

Note: The last chapter will be fairly long as it will deal with your travels to every nation(besides Fontaine and Natlan lmao) including Celestia and the Abyss. Lots of characters will appear so if there’s anyone you’d be interested in seeing let me know! 🙏 Sorry for the almost two week wait for this chapter but I kept rewriting it because I couldn’t figure out if I wanted Celestia to be evil or not 💀

Taglist: @esthelily @the-dumber-scaramouche @grimreapersscythe @seawater-aurelia-writing @probablynoposts @genshin-impacts-me @itsredactedlove @chidouna @thedevioussmirk @hoo-hoo @chaoticfivesworld @akemiixx01 @lunarapple @nowords-onlybreathing @fangirlinindia @veyu002 @blackcoffex @kaveh-is-pretty @ariasdream @averycuriousperson @bloopthebat @chuuya-brainrot @crazydreamcat @sparklyphantom @multistanbee @bluebelony @mokakoto @mega-trash-cringe CLOSED

#genshin cult au #sagau #self aware genshin #genshin sagau #genshin impact sagau #sagau x reader #imposter sagau #sagau impostor au #genshin cult #sagau lumine #sagau tsaritsa #sagau dottore #sagau aether

[elixirfromthestars]

My Dearest

Pairing: Duke!Bucky Barnes x Lady!Reader (Regency Era AU — Bridgerton Inspired ) 

Summary: On the night of Lady Maximoff’s ball you find yourself in the gardens, troubled by your emotions. As if by fate, the rain pours down reuniting you with the one who is the very object of your troubles.

Word Count: 3k

Warning(s): heartbreak / angst / longing / implications of cheating / rejection / creative liberties for this era (yes I did do research, but bear with me if there are any inaccuracies in this piece of fiction 🤍) / PDA -> stays at a TV-14 level / a surprise cameo / female reader

a/n: This little piece has been in the works since I got into the Bridgerton series. Binge-watching the spinoff Queen Charlotte this weekend gave me the motivation to finish this piece. Thank you for reading! 🤍 Likes, comments, and reblogs are appreciated!! ❤️

for ambiance 🌧️

Your fingertips poked at the surface of the water in the fountain. Unstemmed red carnations danced along the water to the rhythm of the ripples. The faint music of the ballroom was ever so slightly drowned out by the stream pouring from the fountain at the center of the garden. You were sitting on the edge of it, hoping to ease your nerves with some fresh air. You wished you had brought a coin with you to throw in the fountain and wish your worries away. 

Wishes, however, were for children and the fairytales they believed in. You were no longer a child nor were you in a fairytale—much to your dismay. Your father made sure you knew of this, reminding you of your duties at every possibility. As the only child of the one and only Earl L/n, you were expected to marry into a higher status. Your mother, on the other hand, wished for you to marry for love and nothing more. 

You thought you had found both—you almost had both. 

Unfortunately, the one you truly desired broke your heart before he even fully had it. You pushed the thought of him away, for he was the very reason your emotions were an entangled mess. 

You looked down at your ball gown, its baby blue color muted by the lack of lighting in the approach of nightfall. You tugged at the ends of it lightly, wanting nothing more than to be at home wearing your nightgown instead. One of your favorite romance novels in hand, basking in the warmth of the fireplace. You always dreamed of having your own happily ever after, and for a while, you thought you had. A love story any poet would be over the moon to muse over. 

You were sadly mistaken.

A few droplets of rain plopped themselves onto your arm. You scanned the sky above you, the once royal blue evening turning a smoky grey. A clear sign it would soon start to rain. It was only a slight drizzle, making you realize a few of those fallen droplets weren’t from the clouds above, but from your very own eyes. 

You couldn’t let the prince see you like this.

You rose from your spot and searched the garden for a place to compose yourself. In the near distance stood a greenhouse decorated with overgrown ivy, obstructing the view of the inside. A perfect place to hide away from your troubles and the rain.  

You lifted the ends of your ball gown, making sure to not muddy or tear any part of it, as you made your way to the greenhouse. You stepped inside, immediately enamored with the various flora surrounding you. You knew Lady Maximoff treasured her garden, but never in your wildest dreams could you have conjured up the breathtaking view before you.

You strolled along the path, taking it all in. The rain started to come down in a pour, ridding any outside noise from coming through. Thus making it harder to hear the footsteps that were approaching you.

“ Y/n? My dearest, what are you doing here?” You froze in your spot, recognizing the voice of the one who broke your heart. You turned to see James Buchanan Barnes the Duke of Brooklyn standing a few feet away from you, drenched from head to toe. It seems he too was caught in the rain. 

“ Your grace, my apologies. I did not know you were here. Please excuse me,” you attempted to remove yourself from the situation, but he wouldn’t let you. Stopping you by your hands, holding them delicately. 

A frown overtook his features,“ Why do you address me so formally? Have we not grown past this?”

You swallowed hard, not wanting to dwell on this topic of conversation for long,“ We did, but like anything that grows, there comes a time when it withers. We have withered.” 

You yanked yourself from his grasp, his mouth parting in disbelief, “ Y/n, what are you saying? Is this because of the prince? Have you indeed traded your love for me for the status he can bring you?” He threw the accusation in your face with such disdain you felt as though he had struck you. 

A rage bubbled within you. 

“ How dare you? Do you truly think so little of me? I would have given up the world for you. You, however, would never have done the same,” you turned to walk away again and he swiftly maneuvered his way in front of you, blocking your path. You felt tears prickle at your eyes, but you forced yourself not to cry in front of him. 

“ I apologize. I did not mean to insult you. It is only that you have been so cold toward me lately, and I do not understand why. At tonight’s ball, all I wanted was to have you in my arms once more and instead, I had to stand there like a fool watching you dance with the prince. I left for the gardens when the incessant rumors of a marriage between you two were all anyone could talk about,” his eyes searched yours for an answer, resentfulness lacing his every word. 

You looked down, not being able to meet his eyes, “ I do not have to justify myself to you. And those rumors. . .are not rumors. I believe the prince should propose any day now.” By the end of your sentence, you feigned what little confidence you had left and fixed your posture, ready to face James with a steady gaze. However, as soon as you met his eyes you found yourself taking a step back. 

James looked at you like he had taken a bullet to the heart.

“ And what of us? My dearest, I do not understand what I have done wrong. Tell me, so that I may fix it. I cannot bear to lose you,” his hand reached for yours to pull you in closer. You side stepped his advances, his hand recoiling at your relentless rejection. 

You took in a deep breath, a sigh escaping your lips,“ You already have. The moment you decided to entertain other women while claiming your heart was mine. I am the fool for believing your grace was honest about courting me.” Irritation crept its way back into your heart at the memory. 

This caught his attention as he stared at you with a puzzled expression,“ Is that what this is about? Y/n, you must know that was merely for diplomacies—for business. ”

You bit the inside of your lip to refrain from insulting the man in front of you. “ Then that is what I was then, merely a means to a business transaction between you and my father. Did you think I would not find out? My father would have never invested in that mine of yours if it were not for him believing we were courting. It was no coincidence that as soon as the papers were signed you were seen with Lady Natasha alone in your home,” you paused for a moment, realizing you had raised your voice at James, causing you to take a deep breath before continuing, “ You should be grateful my father is not holding you to any responsibilities since he is now focused on assuring I become royalty.” 

James’ fists were clenched at his sides,“ How could you doubt my honor? How could you ever doubt that my heart is anyone's but yours? My business with Lady Natasha is nothing but a misunderstanding. I swear on my honor.” 

You scoffed, “ Your honor means nothing to me. Your reputation of being the most prolific Rake in town precedes you. I should have believed everyone when they warned me.” His lips formed a tight line, an impatience overtaking him, “ You should know by now my darling, I do not care what others whisper in the shadows. You are all I care about, and if that is what you truly think of me then—you wound me.” 

You shook your head, ready to retaliate once more with your words when he swiftly made his way to you and held you by your shoulders. “ I love you. I am certain what fuels this frustration and hatred toward me is the love you feel for me,” his voice was gentle, his features softening. His eyes held you in your place, as your body longed to be closer to him. A mere touch and a part of you was already screaming at you to forgive him. 

The two of you stood there for a moment, staring at each other’s eyes not saying a word. You had no strength to pull away from his grasp, “ Your heart will move on. It will find love in another,” your response was reduced to a whisper by the end. You weren’t sure if you were trying to comfort him or yourself with your words. 

He shook his head, “ My dearest, the heart here has no say. I cannot say I love you with all my heart for it will one day stop beating. I love you with my entire soul, for my love for you will live on with it for all eternity. I am forever bound to you.” James’ declaration tugged at your heartstrings. 

“James. . .” his name dropped from your lips in a pleading whisper. Whether that was for him to stop or keep going—you weren’t sure anymore. You were left speechless. Any protests or rebuttals that were initially in your mind were gone with one declaration. He pulled you in closer—if that were possible—and embraced you, planting a passionate kiss on your lips. You returned it with as much intensity.  

You melted into each other, the reciprocated love burning into you. This one kiss ignited within you all of the feelings you were trying so desperately to extinguish. James tasted of wine and smelled of sandalwood, a combination you found strangely addicting. 

One of James’ hands slipped down your back, your own gravitating to the nape of his neck. He pressed his body against yours, a small gasp escaped your lips allowing him to deepen the kiss. The continuous kisses he bestowed upon you grew needier by the minute. If his words weren’t getting through to you, he wanted to make sure his lips did. 

His mouth moved down to your neck, continuing to show his devotion to you. Your body betrayed you as it leaned to the side giving him easier access. You held in a breath at the sensation. It was evident no one could make you feel the way James does.

This was the opposite of what you had been striving for these last few weeks. Your father made it clear to you how important it was for the family for you to rise to the status of a princess. The prince had been kind and charming, but he was no match for James. You knew there was no argument to be had with your father since now that a prince was interested in you, there was no way in hell he was going to accept a Duke as his son in law. You didn't care and figured that in time he would forgive you once he realized how in love James and you were. You hoped he would see what your mother saw and accept this path to your happiness. 

That was before the incident.

  A month ago you took a carriage ride to James’ home accompanied by your Lady’s maid Kate. The purpose of this escapade was to confide in James over your father’s intentions. Unbeknownst to you, his true intentions would be brought to light instead. 

Your carriage was merely a block away when you spotted them. They were laughing as James’ footmen escorted both him and Lady Natasha inside. There was no one else in sight and no one else entering the home with them. This meant they were in there alone and unchaperoned. Only impatient lovers would resort to such means knowing a scandal could break out if they were caught.

You clutched at your chest, overwhelmed with the way it ached. You felt as though James had come up to you and ripped it out of your chest, exposing it to everyone to gawk and laugh at. To laugh at how stupid Lady Y/n had become in thinking the biggest Rake in town had truly, madly, and deeply fallen in love with her. 

Kate took you in her arms and ordered the coachmen to take the long way back home. You sat there, crying into her shoulder throughout the entire journey. You vowed that day to never fall for James’ charms ever again.  

The memories of that day hit you full force and knocked the air out of you. Your body caught up to your brain and with as much strength as you could muster you pushed James off of you. He looked shaken by your reaction, staggering back almost tripping over a cluster of purple hyacinths. 

With your anger at his betrayal still fueling you, you lifted your chin in the air and spoke your final words to him,“ You cannot water what has already withered and believe it will come back to life.” 

You didn’t bother to look at him this time, knowing too well the expression on his face was one that would make your resolve crumble in an instant. You quickly turned and ran out of the greenhouse and back into the garden. The rain was still coming down in a pour, soaking you from head to toe. Tears were streaming down your face and the ends of your ball gown were now covered in mud. In spite of that, you continued to run to the furthest part of the garden closest to the carriages and farthest from Lady Maximoff’s manor.

You were yearning to be home—to be in your mother’s arms and bask in her comfort. To have Kate prepare you the warmest cup of tea and sugary scones to indulge in. Anything to remove the taste of wine and the smell of sandalwood that was now deeply imbedded into your senses. This in hopes to forget the events of tonight ever happened. 

“ Miss Y/n, you are soaked to the brim, we must get you home. I shall fetch the Marchioness at once,” your coachman draped a blanket from the servant’s quarters over your shoulders and helped you into your carriage. You hugged it tightly against you as the coachman walked away to get your aunt, the Marchioness of Syracuse. You had completteley forgotten she was the one who accompanied you tonight. How were you going to explain your current state to her? 

“ Miss Y/n?”

That voice—you know that voice.  It belonged to the person you least wanted to see at this moment. A lady should never let a prince see her like this. 

“ Your Highness, I beg of you not to look in the carriage. I was caught in the rain and I am not proper,” the door of the carriage was wide open, the prince’s emerald green attire coming into view. You angled your body so that he could only see the bottom half of your ball gown, hiding your face from him. 

“ Your wish is my command, my lady,” he stood by the entry of the carriage facing froward, his side profile visible to you. Your shoulders relaxed, relieved he didn’t have to see you at your worst. His personal attendant was beside him, holding an umbrella above him to ensure his royal highness was not touched by the rain. 

“ I must thank you for bestowing upon me the pleasure of dancing with you tonight. I regret we did not get to spend more time together. You looked absolutely breathtaking in your dress,” he complimented you, bringing a smile to your face. “ You flatter me, your Highness—thank you. I will make sure to not get caught in the rain next time, so that our dances may continue.” You made light of your situation, bringing out a soft chuckle from him. 

“ No matter if there is rain. I would gladly charge right into the storm of it if it meant I could have you by my side,” he stated, a warmth overtaking your cheeks. Any flirtations coming from another man other than James were foreign to you and flustered you easily. James’ flirtations were inviting and expected, while others were far from it. They felt wrong to hear and to accept. In doing so, it was as if you were being disloyal to James. 

You would have to keep reminding yourself there is nothing more to be disloyal to. 

“ You’re too kind, your Highness. I am not sure it is worth catching an illness over this weather for a dance,” you responded, trying to keep your voice gentle and light. You didn’t want any negative emotions to take charge just yet. They could do so once you were in the privacy of your bedchambers. 

“ For me it is. You are worth it, Miss Y/n,” the prince had never confessed his love to you, but with this sentence, it was clear his feelings toward you were much stronger than you had previously believed. Many proposals were given on attraction alone—to have a proposal based on love was the rarest of blessings. 

You stilled in your seat, his words making your heart skip a beat. From the bottom of your heart it was clear to you, you were not in love with this man. Nonetheless, you thought, maybe in the future you would. Maybe if you tried hard enough your heart could move on even if your soul refused to. 

“ Oh! Prince Loki, your highness, what a pleasure to see you here with my niece. . .” your aunt arrived just in time, saving you from having to respond. Your mind wandered off, your aunt’s voice and the prince’s getting lost in the background as they spoke to one another. 

You draped the blanket over your head to cover the stream of tears that refused to stop flowing. If you pretended to be asleep than you could avoid all of your aunt’s pestering questions on where you had snuck off to while the prince was waiting for you. 

No, you did not love Prince Loki.

Yes, you were in love with James Barnes the Duke of Brooklyn.

However, for the sake of a love lost along with fulfilling your duty, you would have to learn how to love another. 

Rake:  A rake is a 19th-century term for a womanizer or a man who flaunts their exploits with women and avoids any real romantic attachments.

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes au #bucky barnes x y/n #bucky barnes x you #bucky angst #bucky barnes angst #bucky barnes fanfiction #duke bucky #duke bucky barnes #james buchanan barnes #bucky barnes fic #bucky x female reader #bucky x you #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes one shot #bucky barnes x female!reader #bucky oneshot #james bucky barnes

[stinkyme]

Hello! As you've chosen on the poll, this is part three of Nowhere else to go. I hope you like it and enjoy it! :) <3

Part one, Part two, Part four (coming soon)

CW/TW: SFW, gn!reader, more memories (all made up), reader meets up with Fyodor, manipulation, guilt tripping, faint trauma bonding, itty bitty fluff, Fyodor uses "my dear" a couple of times, if I forgot anything please let me know! :)

This part is mostly focused on reunion, there were other things I wanted to add, but I think it's okay for it to end here. There will be two more parts :D 

* Now...y'all remember how Fyodor can kind of mess with people's minds like he did to Mushitaro and possibly Ivan? Yeah, that's why he is touching the reader ☺️ (not inappropriately)

I apologize for any mistakes in advance! :)

A demon's fool || Fyodor Dostoevsky x Reader

After thinking for a while, you got ready and quickly got on a train. You weren't sure what you wanted to do, but you knew you wanted to see Fyodor. Figuring that once you see him, you will get a clear answer as to what to do and what choice to make. 

Train is awfully slow, it's heavily raining so there is traffic everywhere. You check the piece of paper once more, silently hoping he didn't leave the place yet. You lean your head on the window, watching the drops of rain slide down the glass. This day could be peaceful. You sigh, thinking about a man you've just met. Nikolai, was it? He had some fair points, but he seems like a lunatic. Or perhaps…?

Perhaps he made lunatic points, but with a fair reasoning behind them. It's confusing to you. Your love for Fyodor and awareness about who he is, keep on fighting inside of you. Logically speaking, the smartest and least painful move would be to move. To not leave a single trace behind. To forget him. To cherish those little moments of intimacy and closeness you shared. The ones that meant everything to you and nothing to him, by his own words. 

So why? Why do you keep on fighting for him? There is a part of you that feels responsible to love him. No, there was a part of you that used to feel responsible to love him. Because of what he went through. You thought it was your duty to love him, but eventually it turned into real love.

Perhaps, it was a real love from the very beginning, just slightly pushed by feelings of responsibility. Because, truthfully, you could never forget how his eyes had a glimpse of gratefulness, even though he only said it once. You could never forget holding his hand when you were young children and enjoying the beautiful sunshine of a hot summer in big fields filled with flowers.

How, before everything bad that happened, he taught you how to tie flowers together to make a crown. How he taught you some random facts and always seemed so excited about them. How he never misbehaved besides stealing more books than he was allowed to take with him. How he would get caught every single time because he was too weak to carry them all. How everyone laughed and how embarrassed he looked.

Sometimes, he would steal sweets as well, sharing them with you and his siblings. That was a secret you all would keep, giggling from excitement and blaming the lack of sweets on ghosts only to be scolded.

How his mother used to brush his hair on their porch, humming some sweet song to him. The same song he would hum to you later. The same song you learned so you could hum it to him when the moment feels right. The same song that made him smile at you. 

But then, it all came to an end. So, perhaps there was no responsibility as much as hope. A pure hope that those days will come back. That you will be able to grow old with him in a way you used to.

Through softness, laughter, love, delicacy, innocence and pure emotions. It seems like a fool's dream, but to you it means everything. You centered your whole life around him, and as much as the idea of hating him seems easier than the reality of loving him, you simply can't. You could never hate Fyodor. And he knew that too.

You finally arrive in front of his hideout. Rain is pouring and the hideout looks...old and unsettling. It's made out of low quality bricks, some of them have pieces crumbling down. There are dying roots spreading between the cracks. Wooden doors seem old and heavy. You cautiously walk closer, checking your surroundings. However, there is nothing. It seems like an abandoned forest, if you could count, what seems like, ten huge trees around it as one.

Sky is gray, it's hard to look at it. You don't have a good, nor a bad feeling. It's hard to say do you have any feelings at all currently, unsure as to what to do. You have no clue what you will tell him. 

You hesitantly push the door open, a squeaky sound making you panic for a moment. You look around, while also trying to focus on any sounds that may come your way.

It's darker inside, it seems like there is no light bulb. There are doors on your right. You slowly open those, barely using your fingertips to hold the weak knob. It looks like a tiny storage room, however it's empty. You slowly walk around, nothing else is to be heard besides your footsteps.

There are no stairs, only one window on the left that seems half-broken. You walk deeper inside the house, observing everything that may give you some clue about Fyodor's whereabouts. You hear a small, weak squeaky sound and turn around quickly. It's a mouse. How fitting. You stomp your foot a bit harsher and it quickly runs away.

This is beyond an unsettling place. You reach the back of the house, there is only one room that doesn't even have doors. It only contains one bed and a nightstand. It's questionable if the bed is even functional, or were the sheets washed.

Lack of noises makes you notice how fast your heart is beating, slight commotion settling in your chest. You walk towards the nightstand, and it seems there is nothing on it. Not even in a small, barely slidable drawer. You sigh in disappointment, it seems that he left before you got here.

You take a look underneath the table, just in case. Maybe he left a note. You are met with another failure when you notice another door on your right, in a white color that was breaking at places. It seems like a bathroom, and you explore through it quickly given that there was nothing. Besides a lot of spider-webs in corners, a half-used soap and an old, plastic, green cup on the sink - there were no signs of life.

You go back into the room, checking underneath the bed. There was absolutely nothing besides the dust. It makes you cough a bit as you stand up, checking beneath the pillow and covers. There was nothing on the bed, so you check inside of the pillowcase. You sigh in annoyance as there is nothing inside. You squat down, again checking the bottom side of the nightstand, just in case you missed an area.

"Looking for something?" a voice that is a mixture of silkiness and annoyance makes your blood freeze.

It's him.

Your whole body remains still for a good moment before you swallow, turning around to face him.

His figure is tall compared to your position, additionally covered by his coat. His gaze looks irritated, but there is a polite smile on his face. He is blocking your exit and you notice that there are no windows in this room.

"I was looking for you." your voice is unsteady as you slowly straighten up, but still not moving anywhere.

"And why would you look for me underneath a nightstand?" his voice is flat, you almost want to chuckle from this and your nervousness.

"I was...looking for a note." you choose honesty this time.

"A note?" his voice grows slightly confused.

"I thought you left, and I wanted to see if you left a note." your voice is a bit calmer now.

"Why would I leave a note?" he asks, tone cold.

You were screwing up. You knew Fyodor hated when people like you tried to read him or predict him. As if he would leave a written note for you. At the best, it would be a coded message no one can understand, but a very few people. Chosen ones. And you were not one of them. You knew that much. Although, every bone in your body was aching to be one.

"I don't know, but...I did come here looking for you. So, once I couldn't find you, I-" your voice is cautious, even though you were telling the truth.

"Why is that?" he gives you a little smile as he walks up to you, slowly sitting down on the bed. He takes his ushanka off, and you notice that it's not wet. In fact, his shoes aren't even wet. How long was he here for and how did you miss it?

You feel a lump forming inside your throat, unsure what to do. There was always a lingering uneasiness when you were with him, but today was different. It was painfully eerie. Your body feels frozen. You regret coming here.

"I...was worried. I wanted to check how you are doing and are your wounds healing properly." your voice is barely to be heard, there was a part that was worried, but the real reason was different.

"Is that so?" his voice is breathy, eyes closed as the anxiety settles beneath your skin.

"You are so kind. Even after I treated you the way I did, you came all the way here to check up on me." his tone is steady, silky and you can't find any maliciousness in it.

You let out a nervous chuckle, slightly adjusting your clothes as you nod. 

"Ah, forget about that, I understand-"

"How about you tell me the real reason why you are here instead of trying to make a fool out of me?" his tone is cold and sharp. His gaze is exactly the same, you can't look away from it.

It feels like he has you nailed in place, your whole body and mind at his disposal. You manage to find the strength to gulp, barely blinking as a rush of coldness spreads through your body.

"I-" 

"Be very cautious of your answer." his tone pierces through your body. 

There is a dark, dreadful and heavy feeling crushing your shoulders and squeezing your chest. It feels like an entity was hugging you, but with a desire to break every bone inside your body. Physically, you are above Fyodor, but it feels like you are at the mercy of his palm.

You felt abandoned by him before, you felt anxiety and fear around him, but you craved his approvance. You craved him, but now you felt...threatened by him. The way you never did before.

"Nikolai. I met Nikolai. He gave me an address." you let out quickly and he doesn't seem satisfied.

"He told me to..-, he wants to kill you." your voice is becoming unsteady as you notice deeper disapproval on Fyodor's face.

"He wanted me to join you and...help him." you feel ashamed of your own words.

There is a sudden, intrigued sparkle in Fyodor's eyes. He slowly stands up, his frame feeling bigger than usual. More suffocating. It feels like you can't move even if you try to.

"I take it…" he slowly spreads his hand towards you, putting it on top of your head, slightly covering your forehead.

"...that you tricked him into giving you an address and came to warn me, correct?" he has a sly smile on his face.

His hand feels heavy, it feels like your mind is completely exposed to him. You can't do anything. It's terrifying. Fear pierces through your bones, making your body shake and twitch in places.

You barely nod, like a coward.

"I figured. You could never hurt me, am I correct?" his tone is low, his hand now feels like it's crushing your skull without actual consequences.

You gulp, weakly nodding again.

"I know. You truly are too kind, but also...quite an intelligent move. Not just anyone can trick Nikolai." his tone is dark, you know he saw through your lies, or rather, lack of truths.

He slowly removes his hand away from your head, sighing. You still feel frozen, thankful to be alive, but unsure of what is next.

"I know he wants to kill me. He is the one who left me in such a pitiful state after all." his tone holds a certain sorrow, as he looks away from you.

"He told me that." you reply softly.

"But, not entirely on his own, of course. The other people I want to cleanse this world from helped him." he sighs, voice holding a heavier sorrow now.

Your fingers tremble, you knew his plan was terrible, but you didn't know everything. If those people are just like that guy you've met.., if all of them are capable of hurting Fyodor like this, then just maybe…

"He didn't tell you the whole story, it seems. Don't trust clowns, my dear." his voice is softer, gaze pitiful.

His voice sends shivers through your body, you haven't heard him say that in a very long time. Your heart flutters, as you become more relaxed.

"He told me that you are his friend." your voice is quieter, as you were trying not to disturb him.

"Perhaps, but he wasn't mine, as you can tell." he sighs and you feel an urge to comfort him, but contain yourself as much as possible.

"I am sorry." your voice is gentle.

Fyodor gives you a little smile, closing his eyes for a moment. He delicately puts his hand on top of your head again, this time it gives you a feeling of comfort. A sense of trust. A sense of serenity.

"No need to be. After all, I don't need anyone else as long as I have you. Can't you see that you are the only one I can rely on?" he whispers, gently rubbing his fingertips over your scalp.

You feel hesitant, but there is a part inside of you that is urging you to help him. You want to give into his words.

"I was harsh with you, wasn't I? You didn't deserve such awful treatment." his tone is quieter, a sense of sympathy melting off of his tongue.

Your heart flutters, it feels...oddly comforting to hear this from him. You feel understood and seen. It makes all the pain melt away, feelings of warmth returning to your heart.

"A little bit, but I chose the wrong moment to...confess." you say shyly, your body slowly relaxing under his touch and words.

"Don't blame yourself, my dear. The sole reason I did it the way I did was to protect you. I failed, given that Nikolai found you. I am just glad you made it out alive." his tone is soft, and he slowly moves his hand down, gently cupping your cheek. He slides his thumb over it, eyes filled with...regret?

It makes your heart speed up, as your body grows warm. You always imagined what his touch would feel like, given that you only felt it on your hands. It feels better than you could ever make it out to be. 

His hand is cold, but soft. So soft. Secure and delicate. Freeing. It makes you want to close your eyes, lean into it, and stay like that for as long as possible.

"I could never forgive myself if something were to happen to you. You are too valuable to me. Now more than ever." he whispers, his voice forming a soft, sweet knot inside your tummy.

He slowly moves his hand away from your face, using the back of his index finger to brush over your other cheek.

"God may forgive me for making such a foolish mistake. This is why I would like you to join me. If we are together at almost all times, nothing would happen to you. Or me. Don't you agree?" he gives you a warm smile, his touch sending tingles down your body.

You nod, smiling at him.

"Remember how we used to be by each other's side all the time when we were young?" he chuckles and your smile widens.

"Of course I do." you chuckle yourself, eyes sparkling.

He pauses for a moment, gaze fixated on your lips, deep and unreadable.

"I like this look on you." he says softly, gently cupping your cheek again as he brushes his thumb over the small line at the edge of your happily curled lips.

"But, I must ask, do you also remember what happened the first time we parted?" his voice changes to a pitiful one, and your smile drops as well as you remember his family.

Ah, that's correct. Now you remember. That day you haven't seen each other at all. You can't remember why, or where you have been. All you can remember are the screams, insults and prayers of people.

Was he...leaving you behind all this time as a form of punishment? 

You nod weakly, hesitant to say anything.

"Alas, it's your choice." he sighs, slowly moving his hand away from you. It makes your body move towards him, in desperate need for him to touch you once more.

He slowly pulls away, giving you a sorrowful gaze.

"I understand if you don't wish to stay with half of the man I used to be. I won't force you to." he nods, almost shamefully readjusting his coat on the side where the wound of his missing arm was.

"If you wish to end me now, I wouldn't fight it. It would be an honor to die by your clement hands." he smiles, closing his eyes, remaining still.

There is pure tranquility on his face, regardless of being vulnerable in your eyes.

It makes you take a quick deep breath in, a sudden feeling of guilt spreading inside your tummy. It's abrupt, it makes you think about how you even let Nikolai speak to you for so long. There is hatred inside of you. Hatred towards him for hurting Fyodor and towards yourself for even considering helping him. 

The person you wanted to help this whole time was Fyodor. If this is the only way to do it, if this can turn your foolish hope into a reality, if this can free him, if this can make Fyodor love you, then…

"I said I could never hurt you and I meant that." your voice is steady and secure. You made a decision.

Fyodor's eyes widen for a moment.

"I will do it. I will join you." you nod, giving him a little smile.

Fyodor smiles back, a little chuckle escaping his throat.

"How could I ever doubt you?" he spreads his hand towards you, gently taking yours.

"Thank God for your kind heart. You truly are the only one I can put my trust in." he whispers, gently kissing the top of your hand.

It makes warmth spread beneath your cheeks, your body feeling safe after such a long time. You smile at him, feeling content with your decision. This was the right call to make, and there must be a reason you chose it now. Everything feels like it's falling in the right place. 

Your sense of hope is now bigger than ever. There is an excitement inside your body, you can already see the end you were hoping for. It feels warm. It reminds you of a blissful childhood. The promising future, the freedom - it's all palpable.

You feel chosen by him. Just like you always wanted. Yes, he wanted you to join him before, but you never knew he thought of you that highly. He was praising you before, but after that night, this feels...more genuine. Honest. A new beginning.

You can't contain your smile, not aware that your innocent heart is soon to be tainted.

You became a demon's fool.

The End :) <3

I hope you liked it and enjoyed it! Part four should be posted soon :) <3

Thank you so much for all your love and support, it truly means a lot to me! :D <3

Forehead kisses for everyone :3

#fyodor x reader #fyodor dostoevsky x reader #fyodor x you #fyodor x y/n #bsd fyodor #fyodor dostoyevsky bsd #bsd x reader #bsd x you #bsd x y/n #bsd fic #bsd imagines

[kookygranger]

He Came From Hawkins

The day Steve Harrington's afterlife changed forever.

Ghost!Steve Harrington x Witch!Reader

Series Masterlist

750 words

The patter of rain against your bedroom window lulls you as you sit in front of an unorganised stack of books, the rug underneath you tickling at your thighs. You’d come upstairs looking for a particular book. One of your oral histories of the music scene in New York, but you can’t remember which, or even particularly why and now you think you might just take a mid-morning snooze.

Not an actual nap, just a moment or an hour to close your eyes and listen to the rain. You’re just about to get up from the floor, the soft cotton of your sheets calling you when you hear a noise downstairs.

It sounded like a voice, deep and confused.

Your front door is unlocked; there are no threats in your witch’s coven up in the mountains, but it wasn’t common for any of your sisters to come in uninvited. Everyone knew you valued your privacy. An introvert who wasn't always up for company.

You make your way downstairs, the wood creaking under your light steps as you descend slowly.

“Uh, hello?”

“Jesus fucking christ.” You stumble clutching at your heart that’s rapidly increased in pace. A young man is standing in your living room. “Wh–who are you?”

“Steve Harrington.” The boy reaches his hand out as if offering to shake yours before faltering and placing it back in his pocket. “I think I’m in the wrong place.”

“No shit.” You take him in, this boy who allegedly broke into a witch’s house in the middle of a well-established, secret coven. Your eyes flick from the moles on his exposed neck, the perfect quaff of his thick hair and widened hazel eyes, finally noticing the slight translucency to his form as he stands before you. “Oh, you’re a–“

“Ghost? Yeah.” He holds up a hand, face squinting as if to say what are you gonna do about it? “I was supposed to be like moving on to whatever comes next I guess.” He scratches his jaw, “I was just in this trailer back in Hawkins, saying goodbye. This witch, a good witch, was helping me say goodbye–and now I’m here.” He looks around your house. “This isn’t it is it? Like, the afterlife?” His eyes fall back on you, giving you a once over before smirking, “Not that I’m complaining, it’s just not what I expected.”

“No, you’re still in the land of the living…kind of.”

He nods, taking you in again, “You don’t look that shocked.”

Your shoulder shifts in a slight shrug, face showing little emotion, “I’m a witch too.”

“Oh, cool.” He smiles wide, a sureness in his features that prickles at your skin. “Do you know why I’m here?”

“No,” you shake your head, and he bites his lip. “I don’t see what business you could have here I’ve been borrowing this land for eight hundred years.”

“Right, well I just died last week so…where are we?” He looks around again, trying to get a glimpse of any recognisable landmarks outside of your window.

“Uh, Catskills.”

“Never been.” He frowns.

“Right.”

The ghost of Steve Harrington didn’t leave that morning, or the next. He wasn’t sure where he was supposed to go so, he stayed.

It was weird, even for a witch familiar with the unexplainable nature of the world. You didn’t really know how to help him, your experience of communing with spirits lacking. Steve said he didn’t mind. Told you with that disarming smile of his that he’d just hang out until he figured out what to do.

So, he did. He hung out.

He hung out while you pottered about your house, cleaning the kitchen, doing laundry, reading by the window with the afternoon light. He hung out as you cooked dinner and settled in front of your staticky TV in the evenings. He hung out as you watered your garden, looking on from the window as you nervously smiled at fellow coven members passing by, his gaze burning the back of your neck.

The ghost of Steve Harrington wasn’t leaving. In fact, he seemed pretty settled, growing in confidence every day with the amount he stared at you, unabashedly and with a smirk that made your body tense.

“Is there a problem?” You didn’t have to look up from the book you were reading to know he was doing it again.

“No. Just admiring the view.”

You shake your head, hiding your fluster with a look of agitation, “Any closer to figuring out your next move?”

“Nope.”

You bite your lip at the evident smile in his voice. “Great.”

#steve harrington #steve harrington fanfic #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x you #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things au #ghost!steve harrington #witch!reader

[shiut]

Both danganronpa and even rain code have this underlying but incredibly persisting theme of the cognitive dissonance between one's personality vs their own nature that I can't help but think about a lot.

In my head I tend to call it the "Leon paradox" because he's the first and most obvious character I think of in regards to this, though he's far from being the only one. Despite being an effortlessly talented baseball prodigy, he dislikes doing it and his actual passion is becoming a musician. However, he's pigeonholed into doing something he doesn't enjoy simply because he's good at it and it's a means to an end since it's his only way of getting anywhere.

This gets expanded in dr2. Imposter's dissatisfaction with having to always be someone else. Akane not caring about being a gymnast much at all aside from the perks it gets her. Nagito's disdain for his luck talent that brings him constant misery while also acknowledging that it's the one thing about himself that he can count on the most.

It even becomes a focal point with Hajime, who did everything to fight his nature of lacking a talent. However, Chiaki points out that it's the fact that he has no specific talent that gives him more freedom than any of the ultimates that he admires. Turned out, gaining every talent put Hajime into his own prison, and it's his loss of personality that made him essentially useless.

Even in V3 you have Kaede who actually loves her talent so much that she feels like it's an obsession that affects her ability to socialize normally. Kokichi also seems to have brief moments where he acknowledges that his talent is a huge barrier to being able to actually connect with people and causes his loneliness, but decides that it's a compulsion that's too troublesome to change so he just accepts it.

Shuichi sticks out to me when it comes to this theme. He's extremely good at detective work and will often do it on impulse regardless of reward. However, even just stumbling on his first murder case and solving it before the police could even touch it, he could not cope with the results of the person he'd affected. His emotional sensitivity traumatized him into being avoidant, even using a hat as a literal blinder. He was prepared to die in the first trial in fear of revealing the truth. His compulsion to do detective work even kind of ruined Kokichi and Kaito's plot in ch5, as he got so ahead of himself with revealing the truth that just kind of blurted everything out before realizing that he shouldn't have. His compulsion with detective work even seems to make him comparatively calmer and more focused during investigations than the other protagonists, despite easily being the emotionally weakest-willed out of all of them. He repeatedly keeps falling back into his talent despite the emotional toll it has on him because he just can't help himself. He kind of acts as an example of one of the reasons why Kyoko was trained to be emotionally detached.

Jin actually is very much like Shuichi. He tries to actively avoid detective work because he despises the emotional detachment required for it. You wouldn't even know that he's actually really good at it, but you see glimpses into his skill in the novels where he'll end up figuring things out before even Kyoko does on more than one occasion. I can talk a lot about Jin, but I do get the feeling that one of the reasons why he works at Hope's Peak is because he knew more about what would end up happening there than he let on. He probably could have gotten quite a few things done if he wasn't so insistent on fighting his own nature as a detective.

Very honorable mention to Yui, who turned down an invitation to Hope's Peak for her high-jumping talent in order to pursue her passion as a very mid detective. She might've even lived if she went to Hope's Peak because I'm pretty sure she would've graduated by the time of the tragedy, but at least she died in the most based way possible by rejecting them.

And of course, Junko is a prime example of the detrimental effect of talent. Because of her analytical abilities, she can practically guess everything that's going to happen. Her obsession with despair is a desperate attempt at being mentally stimulated in a society that has let the status quo stagnate to such a critical degree that it's the reason why the very concept of talent had been rotted to this point. Sorry to Kodaka, who has repeatedly said that Junko is meant to be a truly evil villain with no motivation, but he did kind of accidentally give her a motivation in dr0 where we're shown for a fact that without her memories and ability to analyze, she's relatively normal and tame. That is her nature, just a kind of weird girl who wants to be a tradwife and go grow corn somewhere. However, I think it can be argued that what is meant by "pure evil with no motivation" is that she doesn't have any sort of tangible tragic backstory. You can even say it's not her analyst ability alone that caused her madness, since there's plenty of normal non-world-ending analysts. It may simply be that her personality happened to mix terribly with her talent, and that's the nature of what makes her pure evil, because both of those aspects of her are part of her nature that she can not (nor does she even want to) control despite the misery it causes her. She simply learned to love the misery.

Makoto himself is very clear about being bitter about his luck. For the most part, what's apparent to him is that it causes him constant trouble and the good that it actually does for him is so subtle and disjointed that he doesn't even realize it's his luck. However, I think what makes him different from people like Nagito or Junko is his personality. He doesn't obsess like they do, and his optimism makes him bounce back easily. I think his luck even feeds into his personality and, inverse to Junko, it's the unpredictability of his luck that makes him hopeful and optimistic. Since he never knows what's going to happen to him, he had to develop a way to roll with the punches.

The aspect of personality vs ability also carries over to rain code. The master detectives are people who have innate psychic abilities that are seemingly based on their nature, and then it gets refined and specialized based on their personality. Not only does their personality help to refine these powers, but you see that their personalities and abilities often have detrimental impacts on each other.

Halara can't see living things in their postcognition because they aren't good at looking at people. Pucci's ability makes her hearing so sensitive that it's at least partially caused her emotional detachment. Melami not only likes fashion so much that she must wear the clothes of someone to use her power, but she also has to actually like the clothes too. Vivia is constantly fatigued and has depressive tendencies due his tenuous attachment to his spirit.

Former Number One/Makoto are a great example of this sort of destructive feedback loop of cognitive dissonance. You can infer that their empathy and obsession with helping people is what gives them the ability to use coalescence and share anyone's abilities, yet it's the fact that they can do anything that makes them feel like they must do everything. Ironically, the fact that they've convinced themselves that they must do everything makes their ability essentially useless because they end up only working alone. As a result, Former Number One became detached with every emotion except for his obsession, and it's what caused Makoto to ultimately spiral.

#danganronpa #rain code #raincode #rain code spoilers #my analysis #shiutpost

[baby-jaguar]

John Price; Drop Everything Now.

Part 2

CW: PTSD, Songfic inspired by "Sparks Fly" (Not in a cringe way I promise)

GN!Reader who is a sergeant on TF141. WC: 2,262

AN: I needed to post this before I completely tore it apart (again) and decided to scrap it. LMK if you'd like a part two because I have a good chunk of it but unsure if I'd like to continue this since I want the PTSD to linger and not be just diminished because reader is love of his life (I'd like to at least try to have some realism, rip). This was actually created for a test run of writing PTSD so I am happy to take any constructive criticism or tips for writing it. Hope you enjoy!

Being stationed in the Middle East meant that you weren't used to much besides the hot sun baring down on every activity you did and dust storms that would blow over, which effectively made you shut your mouth to not breathe in the dirt. However, that didn’t mean that Mother Nature would not bless the dry lands with an ounce of rain every once in a while. 

You wouldn’t know about the rain usually unless you were outside training or on a mission when the dark clouds would roll in, giving you a rare break from the sun. Other times, the clouds would cover the stars and moon in the night sky, but you wouldn't be able to tell just what kind of clouds they were. 

And that, unfortunately, is how tonight is going without your knowledge.

The rain was never an issue on base, its greatest hindrance being the lack of vision, the annoyance of getting wet, and the general time it would take to wait it out. However, there was always the unspoken thought of the thunderstorms that could arise. 

You’ve served two years within TF141 as a sergeant, having been recruited and transferred to be on base under Price’s command. Now having some experience under your belt, you’ve seen a thing or two- but nothing compared to your superiors.

From an external point of view and reflection on yourself, it brings a possibility that your mind has yet to realize if the memories are getting trapped within yourself. Your nervous system may have gotten stuck in the past at a few points in time, but while you remain living in the action, your biggest symptom is nightmares and anxiety that you brush off each time.

The same can’t be said for your Captain.

Price, with his two decades of service, has lived through more than you could ever imagine and things he wishes to not recall. He plays the classic tough guy act, brushing his emotions off as something he can deal with when he’s home and not deployed- nor does he want to even believe they are necessary to process, his ways still being a bit old-fashioned.

When you were recruited, his viewpoint shifted a bit. Price wasn’t sure that you would be a good fit within the team, and debated putting you on a platoon further down the branch that he still oversaw from time to time. Yet, during your grace period, he would check up on you- being sure to debrief with you after long days of training exercises or drills that were getting harder and harder. When you had proven your worth to him and the team, an unspoken agreement between you two was formed. You would casually reside in his presence but keep it under the notion of him offering guidance to the rookie. This often resulted in you filling out reports or paperwork on your laptop in his office while he worked at his desk.

Price was not a sharer of his inner turmoil. But, sometimes, you would confide in him and he would allow a sliver of a softer man to peak out in the late hours of the night.

That's how the deeper part of your relationship worked with him. Hard-ass by day, and a mildly reserved man by late night. You’re close with the entirety of the team, but you’ve always had an attraction to Price, classically never trying to show it or verbalize it to anyone. Yet, you had a good hunch that he already knew from your softened behavior towards him when the veil of superior and subordinate came down to friends in the dark glow of his office.

You knew it was a bad idea to ever indulge yourself in having his attention and reciprocating it, but now you over-indulged for the last year and find yourself with a cavity at the sweetness you suck from his words. Your mind is always left in a trance on any touch he unknowingly spoiled you with; a hand to the small of your back, adjusting your elbows if you were using a heavier loadout during training, or a pat on the head after a job well done.

Tonight, the storm rolls in with thunder chasing right behind it. 

It's late in the evening as you stand in the common room, having had dinner late, and washing the dishes while quietly humming to yourself. The subconscious part of your mind notices the flashes of lightning and deep thunder that penetrate the barriers of the base but leaving it as a non-threat. You wash your dinner plate, moving the sponge around, but before you can put the plate down to dry, your phone rings with a call from Price. 

It's not unusual for him to call when he decides he’d like your presence while completing paperwork, yet your eyebrows furrow as you see the time to be later in the night than his usual request.

Before you can even speak into the phone after answering, your ear is polluted with the sound of his ragged breaths; the sound of rain hitting the ground is amplified more than what you hear while being inside. It sends a roll of skin-prickling anxiety down your spine as your eyes widen. “Price?” You ask after a blink, trying to understand what this call could be.

You hear it when he speaks, a tremor in the back of his throat and you can imagine the adrenaline-crazed look on his face. The sound of your name is called from him, and it almost sounds questioning, as if he isn't sure it's you, even though he called.

“I- I don’t know where I am…” He pants out, sounding choked up, trying to swallow air and the lack of saliva in his throat while in the pouring rain.

Drop everything now

Without a second thought, you drop the plate, the clatter of it breaking once hitting the ground echoes in the common room and snaps everyone's attention on you. Not having any need for apologies or reason, your body is already supplying the adrenaline needed to set into a dead sprint out of the common room as you weave past the other bodies to push through the hallway and enter the stairwell with the clamor of the metal doors swinging open.

“John, where are you- tell me what you see.” You call out as your body gets set on autopilot, practically flying down the stairs of the barracks and onto the ground floor moving into the hallways. “Do you see the training yard or do you see a road?” You pant out while pushing to find the exit door of the base.

It's here and now, that you now actively recognize the roll and clap of thunder as if it's taunting you to hurry up and find Price before it does.

But it seems it already has.

Each door, person, and corner you pass feels like a deliberate obstacle, frustrating you as you try to get outside faster.

“I- I see a road and the-” He’s interrupted by a bright flash, a strong shake of thunder following right after, and you hear him grunt in aggravation at the sound he lacks control over. With a call of your name, he makes a quiet plea. “Please, I need you here. Now.” He manages to ground out with a sharp breath, causing you to almost second guess yourself at what he said. 

You bank a hard left, towards the East entrance, finding the door to take you outside towards the main road that leads to the base's entrance. Shouldering the large door, you grit your teeth while taking the metal harshly against yourself, but almost come to a halt when you feel the pouring rain pelt on your body.

Meet me in the pouring rain

“Please.” His voice shakes again through the phone, and the rasp from his panting re-escalates the adrenaline through your body.

It breaks your heart to hear him sound like this as if he’s succumbing to his demons. “John, I’m gonna find you but you need to help me, ok?” You ask as your legs begin to burn from the force that you run through the damp earth with. “-you see the flag pole? ” You bark out while another flash of lightning crosses the sky, closing your eyes as you wince. “Hey- listen to me, focus on me.” You command, praying that he isn’t locked inside his memories.

After a moment, “Y- Yes, I see it. The- the rains comin’ down hard- won't fucking stop.”

The shake in his voice is back; he’s shivering and his irritability is beginning to build up faster as it makes itself evident the longer he stays held within the turmoil of his nervous system.

Running and finally entering the main yard after having had to cut through the detached buildings to make it to the front, you place your free hand over your eyes to try and gain some semblance of visibility while the flashes of lightning aid for a moment.

“Meet me there. It’ll be just you and me, only us.” You pleaded with a hint of firmness, needing to direct him as you move with haste towards the lit flagpole, the light being a beacon through the pelting rain.

While running in the dark and wet ground, you lose footing and slide your foot into loose gravel; your right elbow is now scraped while you clatter to the ground with a “Fuck-” Your voice breaks through the night air, as your yelp of pain staccatos out in the silence between the flash of light and complimenting rumble of thunder. 

In a moment before you can stand up, you hear your name being yelled out, whipping your head up in response. The raw tenacity of his voice through the thrumming of rainfall hits when there is no other force of the storm that can distract either of you.

Your gazes find each other; he looks frozen for a moment, then immediately runs to you.

“John-“ falls past your lips in a cry when you spot him. His fatigues stick to his body, his hair wet and bucket hat long gone. Making his way hurriedly, his body slows with unexpected grace as he helps you to your feet. Almost as if in a hurried frenzy, you latch onto him by his arms, blinking through the falling rain as you look up and search his face. 

The expression he wears, as he makes sure you’re alright, contradicts the voice he had just seconds earlier; his eyebrows furrowed with worry as he checks over you, quickly placing his large hands on your ribs to stand you upright as if you are a toddler who has just taken a tumble.

“Bloody- You alrigh’ sweetheart?” He asks as the warmth of his panting breath fans across your face while pulling you up against him.

“I’m ok, I just slipped from the rain. Thank you.” You speak while still holding him tight, latching onto him. Your heart aches at seeing him care for you no matter where his mind places him, always putting others before himself.

John nods, letting out a small sigh. The feeling of your warmth against his chest brings him back down as he looks over you, trying to blink the anxiety and rain from his eyes. The feeling of his hands, cold and now gentle, glides up to move the wet hair from your eyes. It surprises you for a moment as he stays completely silent besides the tremoring breaths he takes.

At the silence, you let a small huff of laughter escape before closing your eyes and giving a smile in relief at having him in your sight and arms, before fluttering your eyes open to gaze up at him. 

You return the gesture when you move your hand to wipe his hair off of his forehead, the rain having matted it down to his skin. “With me as I’m with you. Always with you, John.” The lull of your voice surprises both of you as it can be heard perfectly in the rain, with no sign of thunder or lightning interrupting your words. 

John cups the base of your skull, looking at the raindrops that fall in small splashes and trails along your face. His eyes dilate when focused on you, the sight of him this close and his icy blue eyes keep steadfast on you, leaving a haunting mark on your memory and heart.

He moves his head down to meet yours; pausing for a moment as if he isn't sure this is real- he isn’t sure that this isn’t a dream and his mind is granting him a wish. Is this a true trick of his mind? This can't be a memory, surely-

He looks as if he’s in pain, so you take the last leap of faith for him.

The new and added warmth of his lips on yours is tender. It contrasts the rough environment of where you stand, the life you both live and the constant battles faced within. Your arms and his alike move to wrap around each other in a harsh and tight embrace.

As the raindrops fall all over both your faces, you feel as if you’re in a movie and the climax has just hit when the lovers are united.

You both are soaking wet, but neither of you seems to mind. He pulls you back into him, deepening the kiss with a determined and desperate force.

Kiss me on the sidewalk

Take away the pain.

#task force 141 #call of duty #captain john price #john price #john price x reader #captain jonathan price #jonathan price #cod mw2 #call of duty modern warfare #captain price x reader #captain price mw2 #cod price #price x reader #captain price #141

[mrsbuckybarnes1917]

FINDING YOU Chapter 4

Summary: You're in a relationship with Steve Rogers, but his best friend just always seems to be around!

Word Count: 4.1K

Warnings: angst

MASTERLIST

CHAPTER 4

The murky morning light barely permeated the drawn curtains as your eyes opened to your phone alarm. Steve's place was empty beside you, he had gone for his morning run and let you sleep in. You were glad, it had been a late night and you were struggling to get up as it was. The sound of wind and rain pounded on the glass and a chill crept through your spine as you eventually threw back the covers. You sighed, it looked like it was going to be a rather gloomy day.

Steve hadn't made it home before you needed to leave and Bucky was nowhere to be seen. A pang of loneliness stabbed your heart and you tried to shake off the ridiculous feeling. You had no reason to feel that way, you had a wonderful boyfriend who loved you and a secondhand best friend who continued to keep you at arm's length, but had a strangely comforting presence in your life. So you shook off the insecurities and set up the coffeepot for them to use when they got home. 

The morning seemed to plod along as a series of mundane lessons, the kids in your classes seemed just as apathetic as you felt that morning. So instead of micromanaging their activities, you let them run wild with their training. At least you had lunch with May to look forward to, her pragmatic approach to life would shake you out of the Monday slump you were in.

You were imagining just how she'd roll her eyes and glare at you until you had forgotten about your problems. Head in the clouds you almost ran face first into Agent May.

"Hey!" you smiled at your friend and colleague. 

"Come," she turned on her heel and marched off in the opposite direction from where you'd come.

You sighed. This wasn't going to be good.

"Where're we going?" you asked. "May?"

Melinda May ignored you, and kept walking. And like the good agent you were, you followed orders. She led you to her car and got in. 

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" you asked, sliding into the passenger seat.

She started the ignition and pulled out of the car park.

"May, you're scaring me. What is going on?" You could feel your heart pounding in your chest, the anxiety bubbling up, just waiting to boil over as you demanded an answer. 

You studied May's impassive features,  watching her open and close her mouth a few times, trying to find the words. "There was an… incident."

"What kind of incident?" You felt exasperated by her lack of clarity. 

"We found a time jumper."

"Ooo…kay? And how exactly does this affect me?"

"It's Peggy Carter."

May's words rang in your ear like an exploded bomb. It felt like your whole world had slowed down, your heart sounded louder than you'd ever heard it, your mouth went dry and you couldn't focus on the road in front of you.

You hardly registered May calling your name or the short lived hand on your shoulder. The transference of your emotions from you made her withdraw sharply.

Thoughts whirled around your brain like a tornado. How did this happen? Why did it happen? Why was she here? Was there another end of the world catastrophe that needed to be dealt with? In the end, none of those questions mattered. You knew one thing was certain, you'd just lost the man you loved. 

You heard your name again.

"Yeah?" you turned to face May, eyes taking in your familiar surroundings. She had pulled up outside your apartment building. "Why are we here? 

"Peggy is asking for him," she said, softly.

"So you brought me here because…?" 

"I thought you should tell him."

You scoffed. "Gee, thanks. What do you expect me to do? Go and tell him that the love of his life is back and that he can have her?" You sounded slightly hysterical and tears had filled your eyes.

May's stoic expression remained unchanged, but her eyes betrayed her sympathy.

"I assume he is upstairs?"

"Yeah," you sighed.

Reluctantly you climbed out of the SUV and trudged up the stairs to your second floor apartment. You paused at the door, steeling yourself to the inevitable conversation once you'd entered. The key slid in and turned with ease and the door swung open without you even trying.

"Steve?"

"Ace? What're you doing home?"

You opened your mouth to answer but no sound came out. As soon as you told him everything would change, was it wrong of you to cling on to those last fleeting moments of happiness? You walked over to where Steve was washing dishes. 

The urge to break down and let him hold you was overwhelming. The blonde had the warmest, most comforting embrace and you wanted nothing more to be consoled by the one person who was about to break your heart.

"Ace?" Steve's look was concerned.

"Yeah?" You pushed back the tears.

"Everything OK?"

"Yeah." You made a show of taking off your jacket and putting it on a chair so you could hide your face. It was annoying how easily he could read your emotions.

"Give me a minute, I'm almost done with this."

You couldn't wait, you didn't want to. It was much easier to wrap your arms around his waist and bury your face between his shoulder blades. So you did just that. The heat he emanated, his strong steadfast sturdiness is what you clung to.

Steve dried his hands and wrapped his fingers around your wrists. Gently he pried your finger apart and turned around to face you. 

"Talk to me Ace, why are you home in the middle of the day?"

You shrugged, "I wanted to see you?"

"Now why don't I believe that?"

"OK, but I need you to do one thing before I tell you."

"Ace, what is it?" Concern was etched across his face.

"I just need one thing from you first."

"What do you want?"

"Kiss me," you whispered.

"What?" Steve was astounded by your request. 

"Kiss me, please?" You wished you didn't sound so desperate. 

He complied with your request, leaning down he placed a quick peck on your lips. 

"No, Steve. Kiss me like you mean it."

"I always mean it, Ace."

"Then show me."

Steve wanted to demand a reason for your behavior from you but he knew you could be just as stubborn as he was. It was easier to give you what you wanted. Not that it was a difficult request.

He bent forwards again, locking his lips with yours and you closed your eyes to take in every sensation, committing it to memory; the pressure, their texture, how soft they felt against yours. The eternity you wanted to be lost in was over in mere seconds. Steve’s hands lingered on your face, his thumbs caressed your cheeks for a little longer, leaving you with a gentle forehead kiss. 

“Ace?”

You held his hands to your face, hoping he would never let go.

“Hey, talk to me,” his voice was low, as though he was talking to a scared animal.

That’s how you felt, skittish and ready to run with the slightest movement. Instead you took a deep breath and broke away from the perfect bubble you’d wrapped yourself in. You took his hands from your face and led Steve to the couch.

“Let’s sit for a bit.”

Steve sat beside you, your knees touching, your hands wrapped around his. He watched you expectantly.

“Steve… you remember how you were able to time travel?”

Steve nodded and you heard yourself continue to speak, almost like you were watching someone else.

“Well that’s not the only method of time travel. We’ve had someone who has traveled here from the past. Someone you know.”

Steve frowned quizzically at you.

“Peggy.” Your voice was barely audible.

It was slow, but you could feel him pulling his hands from yours. Your doubts, your fears, your worries, every single one of them had been confirmed at that moment.

“Are you sure?” The hope in his voice felt like a knife through your heart.

“I don’t know,” you shrugged. “May told me.”

“Where is she?”

“S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters.”

Steve stood up, he looked like a deer in headlights, not knowing what to do next. He was looking at you but you knew he didn’t see you.

“Steve?”

“Yeah?” 

“May's waiting in the car.” You heard yourself say the words, all the while a voice inside you was telling you to shut the hell up. Instead you put a hand on his back and guided him to the front door. “Let’s go.”

The car ride to the new S.H.I.E.L.D headquarters was deadly silent. It wasn't that you were a stranger to silence, you'd spent enough quiet time with both people in the car in the past, but today was different. May was driving, her grip on the steering wheel was more tense than usual and you knew her empath powers could sense both your emotions and Steve's. 

You cast your eyes across to the side mirror where you could see Steve's reflection in the back seat. He was staring out of his window and though his eyes were open, he looked like he was lost so far in his thoughts that you'd never find him again. Steve had always been a pensive soul and there had been many occasions where he'd float away to a place you couldn't follow.

What was he feeling? Steve had always kept his cards close to his chest but you'd thought he had let some of his guard down around you in the last year. But the man who sat behind you was much more like the closed off person you'd met all those months ago. You'd spent so much time peeling back the layers of thick skin, coaxing him out of the shell he'd built around him, only for the barriers to go back up in mere moments. 

You tried to put yourself in his shoes and exercise some of that empathy you were supposed to have. What would it be like to have someone you'd loved in the past come back to the present? Someone who had been ripped away from you, someone you'd never stopped loving. The feeling of tightness in your chest worsened. Empathy didn't feel like a helpful skill to utilize at this moment in time. You looked back at Steve in the mirror, wanting to wrap your arms around him and hold him closely until the anguish left his beautiful features.

This line of thought got you wondering about Peggy Carter. She was the founder of the organization you had worked for, she’d accomplished so many incredible things and had done so at a time where women got even less respect than they do in the present. You hated yourself for comparing your own achievements to that of another woman, but the overwhelming feeling of inadequacy was crushing. In your heart of hearts, you knew that your relationship was over but you were looking for a way for it all to hurt less. What chance did you have against the legendary Agent Carter?

Directing your resentment at Peggy would be the simplest solution, but the logical part of your brain strongly advocated her innocence. You wanted to hate her, the person you had held in such high regard, almost worshiped prior to this day. Did you dare fight for him? You’d heard the tales of their romance and you knew he still kept an old compass with her photograph in the cover. You’d found it once at the back of his sock drawer. How could you even compete? He had previously confessed that the only reason he had stayed with S.H.I.E.L.D. was because of her association with it. 

Did you know him as well as you thought you did? Steve was a man of few words, but what he lacked in language use, he often made up for with small acts of service. One of your favorite things that he would often do, without you even realizing when he had done it, was fill your car with gas. It was never empty! He’d make small sketches and leave them on your bedside table for you to find when you woke up, or would slip them in your bag for you to find at work. They were often accompanied by a quote or poem which warmed your heart and brought a smile to your face. It was often little things which made you happiest and to you it counted more than larger romantic gestures which were few and far between. He made you feel comfortable in a way that no one else had and you thought you were special to him. 

Sam had often regaled you with tales of their old exploits, saving Bucky from his HYDRA tormentors, the feud over the Sokovia Accords and so many others. You recalled a fond memory of you, Steve and Bucky visiting him in Delacroix, where you’d ended up spending most of your time helping him fix the family’s fishing boat and it almost made you smile. Steve gave his time often and freely to people he cared about. But he did the same for strangers too. He was willing to lay down his life for people he barely knew or had never met. Did that lessen his feelings for you? In the past you would have said no, but the crippling anxiety you sometimes felt was rearing its ugly head.

The emotions and thoughts swirled around inside you, threatening to erupt like a volcano, waiting to leave disaster in their wake. Just when you thought you couldn’t cope with sitting in the SUV any longer and May pulled up in front of your destination. Every movement you made after that felt like you were submerged under water, every step you craved oxygen, but wave after wave pushed you further down. You tried to claw your way to the surface, but you were met with paralyzing resistance, your anguish weighing you down like an anchor, suffocating your very essence. You watched the events unfold through the lenses of frosted glass; entering the building, watching Peggy run towards him, the way he wrapped his arms around her. He didn’t look away, he didn’t look back.

It was excruciating and yet you watched. You watched until you couldn’t. Then you waited. What if he needed you?

At the end of the day, May took your arm and guided you out of the facility. She didn’t drive you home, instead she drove to her house. You’d often suggested that the two of you should live together after you’d left S.H.I.E.L.D. but May had vetoed the idea with a look of pure disgust. But if you’d never moved into your apartment, you’d never have met Steve. 

“Do you need help?” you asked. Standing nervously at the breakfast bar watching May move around the kitchen.

“Yeah, make dinner.” She handed you a knife and you standing alone in the kitchen.

One skill that May had never mastered was the art of cooking. You were happy to start slicing and dicing vegetables, trying not to let the knife accidently take off your finger tip as you vehemently attacked the innocent onions. You’d reached the stage of throwing food into hot oil when May returned, with a ridiculously large glass of your favorite wine. 

“Wine, really?”

“What were you expecting?”

“To be honest, a sparring session.”

“Easily arranged. But no physical contact, I’m not in the mood to deal with your emotions today.”

“That makes two of us.”

“You’d prefer I get drunk and you get high from that?”

“You remember that alcohol is a depressant, miss M.D?” she said dryly.

You glared at your friend before taking an unnecessarily large mouthful of wine. Even though May had little time for comforting others, she cared deeply for you, something you had once doubted. You were very grateful for her friendship and the support she was currently giving you. It was the small act of kindness which tipped you over the edge. Tears welled up in your eyes, spilling over drop by drop.

“What do you think he's going to do?” you whispered, your lip quivering dangerously.

“Does it matter what I think?”

“He isn’t going to stay with me.”

“He doesn’t deserve you.”

“You think Captain America isn’t good enough for me?” you asked skeptically.

“No.”

“Is anyone?”

May shrugged.

“But I want him,” you sniffled.

Even as the words left your mouth you felt pathetic and desperate. He had never stopped loving her. The voice in your head scolded you for ignoring the fact that you were the one he had settled with. It was your fault for wanting to be special. 

Your mind wandered back to the weekend you’d spent with Steve and the baseball game you’d taken him to. It was one of your best memories with him. The joy on his face throughout the game had warmed your heart. You didn’t know a thing about baseball, nor did you care to and it held not a single iota of interest for you. But just because you didn’t understand it or find it interesting, you understood why people could be passionate about a sport. That passion was one of the reasons you’d fell in love with Steve when you’d met him.

That was when you felt like Steve had really opened himself to you. It wasn’t the sex, it wasn’t the words he had used, it wasn’t the way he had said ‘I love you’. It had been the moment he had let himself be vulnerable with you. Steve didn’t talk about his fears to anyone, except maybe Bucky. He was a very reserved individual with strong morals and being given the mantle of Captain America had given him an even bigger reason to uphold an image of strength. It wasn’t an easy responsibility to shoulder and it clearly weighed on him a great deal. Everyone needs someone who they could share their burdens with.

Bucky Barnes was Steve’s best friend, they had a number of shared experiences, he would have been the natural choice to be Steve’s confidant. Except Steve now spent most of his time and energy taking care of the broken supersoldier. It made you feel special, to think that you were the one he had chosen to take care of him, to be his partner, to be worthy of his love. But now you had lost it all.

Dinner was a somber affair following which you curled up on May’s couch. Sleep didn’t come until the early hours of the morning when the tears finally stopped falling.

The coming days were spent hiding out at May’s. Steve tried to call you a number of times but you couldn’t bring yourself to face the situation. You knew you had to go home eventually and there was no way you could avoid him then.

You felt instant regret as you entered your apartment late that night. Sleep deprived and physically exhausted after an intense day of training with May, you rushed into your home and fell into bed. It didn't take long for you to enter a deep slumber, dreaming of the life you could have had.

Morning came far sooner than you would have liked. You washed and dressed on autopilot, trying not to think of the different ways you might run into your beloved Captain. It happened much sooner than expected and liked. On your way out, you heard voices through the door. They sounded happy, full of laughter. 

Maybe if you waited, they would leave and you could escape undetected. After a few moments of silence, you peeked through the peephole, the coast looked clear. You pulled open the door and ventured out only to come face to face with the happy couple locked in a kiss.

There was nowhere to go. You'd already closed your front door, trying to unlock it would attract attention, so would any attempt to slip passed. You were well and truly trapped in a nightmare.

Peggy spotted you first. "Oh, hello. You must be our neighbor!"

"Ace," Steve said your name so softly, you wondered if you imagined it.

"It's nice to meet you," Peggy held out your hand.

The years of training allowed your body to respond appropriately while your brain felt like it had been put through a blender. You shook Peggy's hand politely.

"Nice to meet you, too."

Steve was looking at you like he'd been caught committing a crime.

"Hi," you felt compelled to fill the silence.

"I didn't know you were here."

"I got home pretty late last night."

"You two know each other?" Peggy interjected. 

Steve introduced you to Peggy. "She used to be a S.H.I.E.L.D agent. Now she is a teacher to some pretty special kids."

"Wow, everyone's part of the family here." She smiled at you warmly. 

"Ace, do you think we could have a chat, please?" His eyes were pleading silently.

He wanted to talk about your relationship, your former relationship. Did he want to do it in front of her?

"Maybe we could go for a walk later? After you're done at work?" he clarified.

"Yeah, after work. I should go there, to work, now." You nodded and pushed past them.

"Have a good day," Peggy called after you.

"Thank you," you answered without looking back, not wanting either of them to see your pain. 

There was bedlam when you arrived at the Academy. Two of your students had taken it upon themselves to practice their sparring while they waited. Needless to say you spent most of your morning mediating the animosity that had been created in your absence.

By the time you had scratched the surface of your lesson plan, it was 4pm and your students practically dismissed themselves.

"We're not done here! I'd better not come in to any more destruction tomorrow!" you yelled after them.

You received a cacophony of goodbyes with few assurances of peace. You loved your kids but they were exhausting! As you finished cleaning up and making progress notes, you noticed the time and the conversation from the morning came flooding back to you. It was probably time you headed home to face the music.

Steve was waiting for you outside the building. You spotted him before he saw you and you grabbed that moment to admire his physique and how much you missed how he held you.

“Ace!”

His voice broke through your reverie. “Steve,” you greeted him softly. “It’s nice to see you.”

You weren’t lying. It was wonderful to see him, regardless of the situation and what you knew was coming next. Neither of you seemed to know what to do next, the temptation was to fling yourselves into the other’s arms, but that was out of the question. And you could tell Steve was thinking the same.

“Can we go down to the park?”

“Sure.”

“Let me take that for you.” Steve took your bag from your arms, chivalrous to a fault.

You let him, you would have let him do anything in that moment. The walk down towards Prospect Park was tense, both of you felt like you were walking through a field of landmines.

“I spent the whole day trying to figure out what I wanted to say when I saw you. None of it sounds right now you’re actually here.” Steve finally spoke.

“I don’t know if there is anything to say, Steve.”

“The last thing I want to do is hurt you, Ace. I lo-"

"Don't." You reached up and put your fingers across his lips. It was a little more invasive a move than you'd intended but you couldn't bear hearing Steve tell you he loved you. Not after you'd seen him kissing the love of his life that morning.

"What do we do now?" he asked as you withdrew your fingers.

"Judging by Peggy's greeting this morning, I assume you haven't told her about our… the relationship we had."

Steve didn't answer but the shame on his face spoke volumes.

"Then the answer is simple. We're neighbors. Do you think we can do that?"

"Ace, I don't want to lose you."

"We don't always get what we want, Steve."

#steve rogers x reader #steve rogers fanfiction #steve rogers x female reader #steve rogers x you #peggy carter #agent carter #bucky barnes x reader #buckybarnes x you #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes fan fiction #finding you

[duskspring]

A Picnic and Magic - Ghouls&Human Children

Domestic December- Day 19

Summary: The Clergy hosts a picnic to teach its children about the ghouls

Content (do let me know if I forgot anything!): No dialogue, they/them AND chronically ill Zephyr

Word count: ~1.2k

The Ministry saw a lot of new faces each year. Yes, most new recruits came with the success of the Ghost Project, but there was also a portion of children being born into it by Siblings of Sin. And although some new parents chose to leave the abbey after birth, others wanted their kids to grow up there.

The grounds housed a second, smaller building for families, one where children wouldn’t be exposed to some of the more egregious sinning by accident and where they could attend various classes.

Raising those kids at the ministry did come with a few challenges, mainly their understanding of the ghouls. At first, most kids either didn’t understand or flat out feared them. Thus, the upper clergy had to come up with a solution.

The plan was simple, on one particular warm summer day there would be a picnic for all to attend, where the ghouls would get a chance to interact with the children and try to win them over with the use of their powers.

Although not everyone got to attend. More stoic, quick tempered or sensitive ghouls had been kindly asked to not show up. At least not on that day, but maybe next time. The kids had to be eased into it, you see. Most of them didn’t complain, not minding the lack of responsibility towards the most frail individuals.

Another hurdle came with their masks. A real discussion was raised of if the children would be more afraid of the masks or their glamoured forms. Eventually it was decided into a split, where if there was more than one ghoul representing an element, one of them would be wearing their mask.

Different parts of the grass field were dedicated to said elements. Children were encouraged to visit them all by means of offering a variety of foods and games at each section, as well as a showcase of the ghouls’ powers of course. For every ghoul there was a sign with some basic facts about them, to humanize them further in the eyes of the kids.

At the water section it was just Rain. Although six more (partially) water ghouls walked the ministry halls, all had been deemed either too scary or too… Dewdrop. Still, he was excited to show off a bit, and most of his fellow ghouls came to stand with him from time to time. Especially Ifrit who also stood alone.

He was mostly in charge of keeping everyone cool by, when given permission, summoning splashes of water to spray people with. He did so mostly by conjuring it from his index fingers while he held his hands in gun gestures.

As stated, Ifrit was the second lonesome ghoul. Once again, the other fire ghouls were either too scary or too… Dewdrop.

He was acting like a firebreather, but mostly summoned shapes and letters of fire in the air, spelling out kids’ names, much to their amazement. Although he was the most directly dangerous, he made sure everyone stayed at a safe distance.

Omega and Aether worked together to represent the quintessence element. Phantom had been considered as well, since he mostly came across as harmless, but his packmates knew he would probably get overwhelmed very fast.

Quintessence was a hard element to show off physically, so they mostly helped hurt kids feel better or read their emotions, in an attempt to impress.

Omega was already more well known, helping out families from time to time and having been there for the delivery of most of the children. Many asked to hug him as a familiar, which he never minded. He’d accidentally turned into the posterghoul for all of them; someone friendly and approachable, who would help you out in times of need.

Mountain and Pebble showed off plants and flowers they’d helped grow and even summoned some brand new ones on the spot to hand out. Most children, however, only focused on giggling about their height difference. The smaller of the two was not at all amused at first, but got less annoyed at it throughout the day, while the other kept awkwardly trying to laugh it off.

And finally there was air. Zephyr, Cirrus and Cumulus had been easy picks, since they were already known among adults as nice and calm individuals. As part of the older generation of ghouls, the only missing air ghoul had always been less concerned with being family friendly, although Secondo did drill into his mind that he should try his best not to scare anyone. Still, it was best for him to sit this day out.

The present three worked together very carefully to raise some of the children a little bit off the ground. Their small feet dangled maybe a few inches high at most, but every last one was ecstatic. Most of them ran to their friends afterwards, telling anyone who would listen that they had just flyed.

There was no representation for multi ghouls that day. Copia had tried to explain to Swiss as kindly as possible that his smile would probably scare the kids more than comfort them. And Aurora still hadn’t properly adjusted to interacting with adults, let alone children.

As the day progressed, even some of the more cautious kids had at least admired the ghouls from afar. All parents were very supportive of them, encouraging them to approach the ghouls and telling them they were all friendly.

Every last ghoul had been popular with someone throughout the day. Some kids had jokingly retaliated against Rain by getting their own water guns and it turned into a whole game of him versus the children, where they would oh and ah when he managed to stop a spray midair.

Some other kids had discovered Ifrit’s functionality as a jungle gym, and were climbing up to his shoulders and hanging from his outstretched arms. All the while he stayed very still, treating it as a work out to try and keep them all up.

Omega had already been liked, but when it got time for the kids to go home that sentiment had spread to Aether as well. He’d probably be able to help out in the family infirmary from that point on as well, something he felt immense pride for.

Pebble ended up getting his hair braided by two little girls, summoning flowers Mountain suggested for them to weave through it.

Zephyr had gotten quite a few questions about their wheelchair in the blunt, frankly rude way that children asked questions about those sorts of things. They’d answered them in as simple terms as possible, kindly correcting anyone who had accidentally said something distasteful.

Cirrus and Cumulus had started singing a few songs throughout the day, getting a small choir of children together and helping them sound their best. A few of them asked to receive vocal lessons more often, and although Cirrus was a bit nervous about interacting with such young kids so much, Cumulus was nothing but excited to make it a reality.

Eventually the time came for everyone to go have dinner. The ghouls all got a lot of goodbye hugs, and although the day was a fun success, they were all glad to finally get a break again.

Needless to say, the picnic worked wonders, with the Clergy already trying to plan the next one.

[My Main Masterlist | Domestic December Masterlist]

#I wrote this at 2am so I could upload something while with family #Some kid definitely started calling Rain Kyle Ren after that day #the band ghost fanfiction #domestic december #rain ghoul #ifrit ghoul #omega ghoul #aether ghoul #pebble ghoul #mountain ghoul #zephyr ghoul #cirrus ghoulette #cumulus ghoulette #ghost bc #nameless ghouls #headcanon #ghost fanfiction #the band ghost #the band ghost fic

[everybodyshusband]

deus in absentia ; chapter two

[previously known as: you're so goddamn frail]

rain/swiss (the band ghost)

explicit | m/m | 6.6k words (12.5k overall) | HURT/COMFORT, coming out, crying (so much crying), making up, pet names, so much LOVE, supportive as fuck swiss, anxiety, unreliable narrator rain

—the world's biggest thank you's are in order for @spoiledleaff who helped with a few sections that were giving me grief months and months ago and to @ghoultrifle who beta'd this whole chapter and has been far more enthusiastic about this whole thing than i ever expected anyone to be <3 and if we could all pretend that this chapter hasn't taken me over a year to write and publish that'd be GREAT ksnksjfdf i hope you all enjoy the fic as much as i've enjoyed writing it !!!

snippet and ao3 link under the cut !!

As time went on and the earth ghoul still hadn’t returned, Rain found that his eyes kept flicking back to the plant mischievously, tempted to pour at least some of his water into the pot, just to see if Mountain would really notice, or if the earth ghoul was just using Rain’s lacking knowledge of earth ghoul magick to his advantage. Unfortunately for Rain’s ever-present sense of mischief, the calmer and at least vaguely rational side of him told him to suck it up and finish the glass; if not to avoid the worsening of his headache, then at least to avoid Mountain’s inevitably disappointed shake of his head. He drained the remaining water in the glass and set it on a side table, more than happy to wait by himself for however long it took Mountain to come back. Before he had the chance to sit with himself for very long however, the sound of running footsteps in the hallway startled him. Excitement sparked in him at the thought that Mountain would be back so soon, along with confusion as to why the earth ghoul would be running to return now that he knew Rain was safe. When he heard a voice call out however, it wasn’t Mountain’s.

“Rain? Baby?”

Rain froze, heart beating as his breath caught in his throat and unshed tears began to sting at the corners of his eyes. Not now. Please not now.

Not when he’d just started to feel better.

“There you are, mi renacuajo.” Rain turned his head towards the door slowly, inhaling sharply at the sight of Swiss standing there, breathing heavily, a relieved smile on his face for having found his love. “I was so worried I wouldn’t be able to find you, Rainy.” Rain could feel his chest heaving faster and with less and less rhythm the more Swiss talked. No matter how hard he tried to control his breathing, his body shook with the force of it and the tears were now threatening to spill down his cheeks.

The second Swiss noticed this however, the smile dropped off his face, immediately replaced by a concerned slant to his mouth and a worried furrow of his eyebrows as he scanned Rain up and down, no doubt taking in the signs of distress. He walked over and crouched on the floor in front of Rain, careful to avoid contact with the water ghoul. “Are you– Are you alright?”

Rain opened his mouth to tell Swiss he was fine, to tell him not to worry, to tell him to go away and leave him alone, but all that came out was a choked sob. Once he started crying again, Rain quickly realised he couldn’t stop himself. It wasn’t the multi ghoul’s fault, it never was, but the sight of Swiss had brought back every single turbulent emotion Rain had been experiencing that day. Despair and dysphoria washed over him knowing that Swiss would, inevitably, say the wrong thing and there was nothing the water ghoul could do about it. This was only followed by waves of worthlessness that took immense delight in reminding Rain that he’d be able to stop these horrible situations if only he could suck it up and tell swiss; if only he could stop being so fucking pathetic. At Mountain’s appearance, Rain had thought the worst of his day was over, but now, with Swiss’ return and remnants of his thoughts from earlier coming back in full force, he wasn’t so sure.

Who was Rain to keep such sensitive information about himself, one of the multi ghoul’s packmates, a secret from him? Who was he to use Swiss as a means of making himself feel worse without his knowledge; to force the multi ghoul to fuck him while neglecting to tell him the full details of Rain’s situation and identity? And who was he to be able to do nothing but cry at the mere sight of Swiss, his friend; his partner? He wasn’t even able to pull himself together enough to pretend he was fine, to relieve Swiss of his worries and reassure him that he’d done nothing wrong. Sathanas, Rain was a fraud. A burden. How dare he let himself break down like this in front of Swiss? All he had to do was smile, hold back the tears, and nod serenely in order to convince the multi ghoul that he was okay.

So why couldn’t he just do that?

[read the rest on ao3 !!]

#husband writes #rain ghoul #transmasc rain :3 #swiss ghoul #nameless ghouls #the band ghost #tw dysphoria #tw gender dysphoria #the band ghost fanfic

[milkywaybottles]

Smile - Papa IV / Copia (The Band Ghost) x Reader Fluff

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Hiya! Thanks to the amazing response on the last Ghost post (Thank you all so much by the way <3), I'm back, but this time, with Copia! Please enjoy and don't forget to interact if you feel like it xx

Reader's Pronouns: Unspecified but typically more feminine descriptions. (Is labelled as ‘Sister’)

Prompt: 'There it is, there's that smile'

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

The gardens of the ministry were by far the most peaceful area you had access to. The soft sound of water running from the pond complimented the streaming lights through the trees and the fresh smell of blossoms. The garden terrace was home to many arches of dahlias and vines, draping over the greenhouse beautifully. You were sure that even the resident birds had gotten used to your presence. It was times like this that you took to reflect or create art alone.

If someone needed you, they definitely knew where to find you.

In fact, Sister Imperator was so insistent in your involvement in that side of the ministry that she essentially made you Sister of the Satanic Garden, if there was such a thing. But it wouldn’t have surprised you if the kind woman simply wanted to keep you busy while Copia was away performing rituals. Nevertheless, you enjoyed tending to the flowers in all their glory, chopping the heads off of roses to keep the stems or watering the nightshade.

Though, this time around, you were swept with a wave of loneliness. Even the flowers appeared to be in sync with your emotions, the trees groaning with disapproval. The watering can you held clung loosely to your side due to slumped shoulders. Sighing, your eyes flickered across the garden beds, mood deflating. It had been weeks since you had seen Copia, felt his embrace or delighted in his conversation. It was always hard, especially as the job of Papa was so taxing on him, but this particular ritual cycle took everything out of you both. With little time for letters or any other form of communication, you felt yourself begin to drift from the members of the ministry and spend more time outside. Even when he was home, he tended to be distant.

It hadn’t been for lack of trying, of course. Many of the ghouls and ghoulettes had attempted at cracking through your hard shell but did not succeed. Cumulus would bring plates of dinner to yours and Copia’s room, only to find yourself curled in layers of his blankets, fast asleep. She would place the plate on the bedside table, stacking a pile of untouched food as high as the sky. Aether, who believed he would be the one to get through to you, would come on walks with you in the garden, eager to hear your ramblings about your latest endeavours. He would smile and nod, occasionally engaging in a handful of inquisitive questions. Even Rain, Fire and Mountain had their fair share of attempts.

To find the motivation to get out of bed, you would count the days. With each sleep, the number would fall ever so slightly, much to your satisfaction. When the number reached seven, your mood had lightened, coming down in the morning for breakfast. After indulging in a conversation with one of the Sisters, you found yourself in the garden again, picking a bouquet of flowers for the morning sermon held by Sister Imperator. The number echoed through your mind, taking a permanent seat there.

“Just seven, then there will be rest period” you repeated, grumbling and mumbling as you worked. Unbeknownst to you, Sister was peering through the window of the ministry, arms folded while watching you, face twisted with concentration. Your heart ached for companionship. Even if one of the ghouls had approached you, you would have never turned them away. And the company would have been lovely on such a harsh day, wind whipping against your face and your hair flying wildly. The clouds had darkened, shadows cast over the ministry. You were partial to this type of weather, the untameable and unpredictable kind. It was the kind that meant you could sit on the windowsill in your room with a hot drink and a book, shrouded in a blanket and Copia resting between your legs while brainstorming songs.

Without him, you felt as though you were suffocating, Copia was your air. You understood well that his religion was crucial to him, meaning rituals were a top priority, as they were to you, but the man worked tirelessly with little to no reward. Even when he was home at the ministry, you would catch him in the library or in his office at godly hours of the morning, face lit by candlelight as he studied Latin. The corner of your mouth turned upwards at the thought of him sleepily making his way back to bed.

Too entranced to notice the subtle crunching of leaves, you pursed your lips and continued working. A patter of rain beat against your body.

"Cara mia, what are you doing out here, eh? You're going to catch a cold". Your heart skipped a beat at the voice, the pet name, the inflection of the words, the speech pattern. You whipped your head around at the sound, eyes landing on a familiar figure. Barely able to hide your beaming smile, you observed the man. Copia still had the same salt and pepper hair, makeup smudged across his face and was still in the more relaxed ritual clothing. "There it is, there's that smile"

"Copia! What are you doing here?" You quizzed, suddenly feeling awfully insecure about your appearance. Since you thought you had a week before his return, you hadn't prepped to look your best to give him a proper greeting. Upon seeing this behaviour, Copia shook his head and stepped toward you, his gloved hand snaking up to your cheek.

"I am the Papa of this ministry, am I not, bella?". His innocent statement prompted a fire to break out across your skin, your cheeks covered in a hot blush.

"You know that's not what I meant"

"Si, the rituals ended early". You paused at his hand on your cheek, embracing the man with haste. The scent of fresh incense filled your nose, warmth radiating across your body. The desire to hold your partner and never let go was strong. His face found its way into the crook of your neck, hot breath against your skin. "So pretty, as always. I see nothing has changed"

"I missed you so much" you mumbled, pressing your hand to the back of his head to savour the hug.

"I missed you as well, Cara Mia. Sister told me you would be here... and oh my, the gardens have flourished under your care". He always knew how to compliment you in the right way to make you blush. His arm pulled out yours, extending it and his lips briskly brushing against the fabric of your sleeves. Soon, he left a trail of kisses in his wake, making his way up your arm and to your shoulders before placing a peck on your lips. A fire burned in your belly.

"I needed something to do while you were gone" you replied bashfully, squinting as the rain fell into your eyes. "I do get rather lonely sometimes". That was perhaps the biggest understatement. His eyes flickered with an unrecognisable emotion, eyebrows arching as he took his hands in yours, holding them to his face.

"Come with me next ritual, please" He begged.

You timidly smiled, "I don't think Sister will let us"

"We will make her listen". Another peck was planted on your drenched forehead.

From the window of the ministry, Sister could barely make out two figures, silhouettes blissfully reuniting in the haze of rain. Under the branches of a willow tree, the figures took each other's hand and the smaller figure was spun, falling into a twirl in the other's arms. Their devotion was sealed with a kiss.

Satan had blessed you with a smile once more, and Copia thanked him gratefully for it.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

#rain ghoul #nameless ghouls #Cardinal Copia x reader #dewdrop ghoul #the band ghost #ghost #cardinal copia #papa iv #fluff #x reader #oneshot #aether ghoul #Papa IV x reader #papa emeritus iv #Papa IV #Popia #copia x reader #cumulus #fire ghoul

[geewintg]

Hydro archon, hydro archon, don't cry

Fandom: Genshin impact Characters: Neuvillette, furina Theme: Angst, relief, 4.2 spoilers

Hydro archon, hydro archon, don’t cry

There was a children’s story in Fontaine that when it starts to rain, the hydro dragon is weeping. Therefore, people would say, “hydro dragon, hydro dragon, don’t cry!” Yet none consoles their dear archon that sheds a tear.

Perhaps it was fate that her suffering was her own, despite her sacrifice, she bleeds where she bore the weight of sins not her own, of lives she is not held accountable… but partly, she knows she is. All according to plan by her divine self. Thus, she feels half as responsible for people’s suffering.

But what o’ can a little mortal do? Powerless against divinity and fate having only but a mere human case?

And so she weeps, and she weeps, until tears roll to rivers. Her sorrows and madness trapped chasing each other’s tails in an empty room echoing around her.

Who is she now if she is not the hydro archon?

Who is she now if she no longer has a role to play?

Who is she now if she no longer needed?

Please tell me… who am I?

A mask that sews itself to her face, if unsewn, would leave its mark of holes that will never be undone having to bury its needles and threads for centuries on the skin. The mask—the role has become her, and she is it. It gave her purpose—to be as fit and perfect the mask sits on her face, but at the same, hide every flaw of her underneath it.

No holes, no cracks, no breaks.

A lone tear rippled the girl on the water. A distorted image of her reflection, a visage of superficial anatomy yet she thinks it fits her all the same.

“Is that the hydro archon?” A child voice gushed. She flinched, instantly pulling the mask on seamlessly like she had honed for centuries. No holes, no cracks, no breaks— no. It wasn’t like she was any other else. She is Focalor, the hydro archon.

Pfft, who else could she have been?

“Wait, Hydro Archon, are you crying?”

She burst out to haughty laughter. “Crying? Me, crying?” She cried out ridiculously, a hand over her stomach.  “What a wild imagination! Oh I even shed a tear! No mundane things can ever make an archon worry. Hmph, what such a bold allegation, child! You should know that it’s a crime to assume things about an archon! Are you ready to face the consequences in court?”

“Uhm…” The child tilted his head in confusion. “What’s making you sad, hydro archon?”

Furina made an offended face. “As I’ve told you, I am not sad!” But her features softened once she saw him frightened. “I just…” Her unspoken thoughts hung in the air as her gaze drifted. Every ounce of strength left in her drained as everything all seems to be for naught.

In a small soft voice, the child mustered, “Hydro archon, hydro archon, don’t cry…”

How could she cry? She’s not the hydro archon anymore…

“If there’s anything troubling you, feel free to come and visit. All of your needs will be taken care of and though I lack understanding of emotions, I will do my utmost best to see what there is to be done.” She remembered him say. Such a concise reply, she expects nothing more from their renowned chief justice.

Yet she gave out only an exasperated sigh. “No need to trouble yourself.  I can handle my own. I wouldn’t come to you for any of those anyway, don’t worry. We both know those aren’t your strong suit.” He may look unfazed but she knew his silence wasn’t. She had known him for centuries after all.

Although she already had her back turn on him, he still insisted. “I will be here if you need anything…” But she never looked back.

Yet after all those reassuring resolves, she finds herself yet again in front of the damned building that brought her so many bad memories. With her own two feet. What it is that she wanted? What is it that she wants to speak of him?

She had no clue. She doesn’t even know what to tell him when she sees him.

She found her steps faltering as clouds dimmed the sky. It seems that it’s about to rain… What could have made him feel as such? She wonders.

“Furina…?” The disbelief in his voice.

Did he go out? How was she not informed?! What now? Out of all the timings… it just had to be this. How unfortunate she is.

“Oh, uhm! I didn’t know you were out, ha-ha…” She didn’t expect her voice to come out so meekly but she detests it.

“What is it that’s troubling you?” He took steps closer that made Furina panic.

“N-nothing! Nothing’s troubling me! How on teyvat did you even come to such conclusion?” she faked a laugh but she knew there wouldn’t be fooling this person no matter much of a professional she may be. It worked for five-hundred years before but not now—not this.

“I can sense the water’s woes.”

Never in Furina’s life had she ever felt this small next to someone, always sitting up in the high chairs—she is the one who looks down on everyone—yet now, she does. Neuvillette waited for her to speak but her throat tightened around the words until only silence hangs in the air while the rain drowns everything around them.

And it was just the two of them.

She tore her gaze away. “Nothing’s wrong…”

“Furina…” She turned. “Furina, you can cry…”

Because the rain will hide it away, and only he will know.

#writing #genshin #genshin impact #creative writing #furina #neuvillette #fontaine #whos cutting onions not me you are #these two #I need more of them #not sure if this counts but #neuvifuri #i guess #people kept saying don't cry hydro dragon but what about the hydro archon #we must protect furina at all cost #hydro dragon hydro dragon don't cry #but then #furina furina you can cry #is just