justatinybunwriting

[justatinybunwriting]

!WET SOCKS!

FINALLY. CONTEXT BEHIND THIS COMMISSION

warnings: swearing

word count: around 1.3k

taglist: @awkwardgtace , @smolcomfycat , @just-a-tiny-bun , @tripodcat-gt

I sat at the end of the dock, feet dangling into the water as I took in the scenery once more in yet another unsuccessful attempt to calm my nerves.

Today was special.

Because today was the day Thad would finally be coming home from college. For good. And the last time we video called, he said we should do something to celebrate the occasion. And now I was here.

I squeezed my arms.

It'd been a while since I'd seen him in person and to say I was nervous was a huge understatement. What if I made things awkward? What if my voice didn't cooperate when he showed up? WHAT IF HE HATES ME?

I stared down at the water with a small frown, focusing on the reflection of the velki sized trees in the distance. If Thad didn't want to meet me then he wouldn't have asked, right? This was okay. Everything would be okay. Thad would get here and we'd probably have an awkward first exchange and then...eventually things would go back to normal (…hopefully).

But I knew it wasn't just the nerves that were causing my heart to flutter. I was excited to see him again. I missed the physical touch and the sound of his real voice and also when he...uh....when the...he…lips.

ANYWAY

Thad was going to be here soon and I was excited to see him again. I really missed him. And I really hoped he’d missed me too.

Luckily, I didn't have to sit there much longer before I could finally feel the telltale tremors of velki footsteps vibrating through the wood below me. I squeezed my arms to prepare myself as best as I could when I heard the trees behind me start to rustle, my heart jumping with every snap of a branch. Finally, something broke through the treeline and with my heart now pounding with anticipation, I took a good few seconds to mentally prepare myself before finally turning around.

And my heart jumped at the sight.

Thaddeus. Thaddeus Kayne. In the flesh.

And he looked like a mess.

His hair was chaos (…more so than usual, anyway). His clothes were wrinkled. He had pine needles sticking out of his jacket and hair. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days. But he had an absolutely massive grin on his face, his eyes softening slightly when mine met his.

He stood there for a long moment as we stared at each other, his bag sliding off his shoulder in the quiet.

And then his grin widened as he started walking towards me.

The dock was creaking under his weight and all at once he was right behind me (TOO FAST). This gave me just enough time to start rethinking my life choices before he bent down, his head hanging upside down in front of me. I had to lean back to make eye contact now.

Also his eyes were shining.

Oh no.

"Sy," he said simply.

I just nodded back at him, not exactly sure what I was supposed to be doing anymore.

"Would you say you have any electronics on you at this moment?"

…what?

I mean…I'd left all my stuff in a purse by the shore because I didn't want anything getting dirty. I shook my head.

"Anything you wouldn't want to get soaked?"

I shook my head.

"Hmm."

There was silence in the air for a long moment and I almost considered asking what he meant by that but before I could even fully process what was happening, the ground below me disappeared and the next thing I knew, I found myself underwater, completely soaked in freezing cold water.

WHAT HAPPENED???

It took me a while to get my bearings but when I did finally managed to find the dock again while doggy paddling, I had to crane my neck to maintain eye contact with Thad’s still weirdly hunched over form, looking to him for some kind of explanation. In return, Thad only watched me as his expression started to change.

His grin turned sheepish.

The perpetrator.

I just frowned up at him and then stopped frowning when he suddenly straightened up and somehow even more surprisingly than pushing me into the lake, took a step forward into empty air and fell face first into the water too.

???

The resulting waves from his absolutely terrible dive sent me flying away from the dock and once I managed to resurface again, I looked around only to see no sign of Thad besides the ripples where he’d disappeared into the lake.

I waited for him to resurface but when nothing happened and nothing kept happening, dread started to fill me. I was out in a comparatively bottomless lake and my giant, currently evil boyfriend could be anywhere below me. I started to paddle back to shore as fast as my arms could carry me but almost as if he was waiting for it (which he probably was), something quickly surfaced below me and started lifting me out of the water. I felt the faint twitch of muscles and the slight warmth radiating under me and I recognized what it was almost instantly.

A hand lifted me out of the water and then slowly, Thaddeus’ head emerged from the lake like some kind of river monster. His bangs hung in his eyes and his eyeliner was now running freely down his cheeks but his eyes were still shining, coughing up water in between fits of giggles.

“Sorry,” he just managed to get out between his laughter and despite everything, I couldn’t help but start laughing too.

Eventually, we both calmed down enough for Thad to start swimming back to the shore. He set his hand down on the dock and waited for me to get off before he placed his arms down on either side of me and bent them until my back pressed against them.

For a second, he said nothing, watching me in silence as he bobbed slightly in the water before he started leaning towards me. He stopped once his head was mere meters from my own and I once again considered all the choices that had led me to this exact moment before his lips tilted into a small smile and I could literally feel the tension leave the air.

"Hey," he whispered giddily and I felt my cheeks start to heat up as a small smile wormed its way onto my face.

I tried to speak but found the words jammed in my throat. I cleared my throat silently and tried to feel out the words. Said a phrase in my head over and over before finally just reaching out and brushing a hand over his lips instead.

The gesture made him smile and he actually leaned into it, letting me run a hand over the soft surface for a while before I finally had the courage to lean in for a hug, kinda just…draping my arms over what I could reach before I felt what must have been his arms press into me as he returned the gesture.

"I really fucking missed you," he finally whispered, the sentiment making my heart flutter.

He hugged me for a while longer before finally pulling away, brushing some of the wet bangs out of my face with a finger before pulling himself out of the water. He scooped me up before starting to walk back up the dock.

“I had like, a whole romantic forest picnic thing planned out for us but seeing how we’re both soaked in lake water for…some reason…and to be honest I’m tired as hell and probably need like a shower or something, I think I’m gonna just head home for the day.”

My heart sunk slightly.

“-BUT!”

My heart stopped slightly.

“-you’re more than welcome to join me. …if you want to, of course.”

I nodded so frantically that Thad immediately burst out laughing again, stopping only to give me a small kiss on the top of my head before he picked up both of our stuff and started making the trek to his house, eventually launching into a monologue of what his last few days of college were like and how the trip back was as I leaned back into him and enjoyed the feeling of having him back.

[justatinybunwriting]

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[justatinybunwriting]

[justatinybunwriting]

Hi, I'm still alive here. I thought I'd fill you guys in on some smaller updates.

Burnout has been real y'all. I've been having a hard time jotting down words as of late, and more often than not, I've been finding drawing more enjoyable than writing at this time. I'm slowly getting the urge to write again, and I'm sure stories will resume whenever the inspiration crashes in lol.

Small future plans time!

The rest of Forlorn rewrite has been drafted (save for the bonus chapter at the end, that one is taking a bit). It should be coming out soon, but I can't (or rather shouldn't since I'm bad at predicting stuff xD) say when it will be posted.

Playing With Fire is getting a rewrite from chapter 4 and going forward. While I liked the previous version of that chapter, I'll admit it was too dang rushed and ambitious for something that was largely meant to be a prompt xD The rewrite will be more evenly paced and will have a different ending that I promise is a lot less forced than the previous iteration. It is shaping up to be a longer story.

Now for the long-term stuff. I am considering using alternative methods to share some of my stories in the future. Ideas are still brewing in my head towards what they may be (could be visual or audio related, we'll see). And if and when this happens, I hope you guys would support and enjoy this new direction. I'm a bit excited about what the future may bring, so stay tuned for that x3

In the meantime, I'm more active on my art account, so go check that out if you're interested in seeing what I'm doing in the meantime x3

[justatinybunwriting]

Wolf In Sheep's Clothing

this takes place in a kinda modern au that exists just for this story

warnings: swearing, blood, violence, injury

taglist: @awkwardgtace , @smolcomfycat , @just-a-tiny-bun , @tripodcat-gt

The stage is set.

You are a crow, a vaguely humanoid little bird destined for nothing and then even less.

Your name is Kopec.

You’re a bastard child, an unwanted hybrid, a thief

And today you want nothing more than a small rock, about the size of a fist, it’s value in the millions. And so that’s where you find yourself now, perched on the edge of the gem in question, though it’s a little bigger than you first thought it would be. A giant’s rock for a giant’s fist for a giant’s museum. It’s taller than you are.

You really didn’t think this through, did you?

Now the spotlight hanging over the rock bathes your pitch black feathers and the glass walls of the stone’s display case in its blinding light, casting the rest of the room in shadow. An equally massive guard lays sprawled out just outside the glass, having just met the business end of your entire stash of paralyzers shortly after he stuck his hand into the hole you cut in the glass trying to catch you. He’s still completely conscious, taken to glaring up at you and growling angrily since he’s long since lost the use of his jaw. You probably don’t want to be here when it wears off.

With all the supplies you spent trying to get here, or should I say, all the supplies you wasted trying to subdue a single guard, you realize you honestly have no other choice but to find a way to take the rock by any means necessary. You glance around, looking for anything you can use to move the rock and fail multiple times to notice the security cameras pointed directly at you, recording every single movement you’ve made since you entered the building. Even that time you were so focused on trying to outrun the literal giant chasing you that you forgot to look where you were going and ended up slamming your beak into the hard stone, leaving a dent in both it and you.

Today’s just not really your day, is it?

After mulling it over for an amount of time that can only be described as the time needed for a hoard of other guards to block all the exits of, say, a small room, you decide the smart decision is to pull out a small dagger and push the blade into the beak shaped groove that…just so happened to be there when you got there. If you couldn’t take the whole gem then just a piece would have to do. You don’t doubt that you can still make off with a small fortune once you get out of here and sell it off.

That is, if you can find a buyer, if you can convince said buyer that the tiny shard you’re trying to sell off is even a part of the legendary gem and even then, if that buyer will even talk to you in the first place.

Your teeth are terrifying, Kopec. As is your mishappen beak. And your oozing left eye. And your feather covered but still human hands. And the way you-

“I GET IT!”

You huff before you return to trying to wiggle more of the blade into the dent as slowly a few guards start creeping into the room, one in particular taking the lead. You don’t notice the slight tremors that pass through the ground as you try to twist the blade. You don’t notice the frustrated grunts of the guard you paralyzed falling to silence as he sees that help has finally arrived. You don’t even notice the flash of red as a single guard steps up to the display case and leans down to see you better.

You loudly utter curses as the blade barely budges and then an even louder one when hands larger than your whole being slam down on either side of the glass box. And once you spin around, your fear quickly morps into deep annoyance at the massive face in front of you.

“Kopec!” The voice sing songs, the volume of it enough to vibrate the glass.

“…Andreyus,” you say back, considerably less enthused and slowly moving to hide the dagger behind your back. Andreyus watches the attempt almost gleefully, her one red iris tracking the moment before she continues. You try for an innocent smile and then frown as the sight alone causes several of the other guards to recoil. “What are you doing here?”

“Patrolling as always,” Andreyus answers nonchalantly. “You?”

“…nothing. I was just…seeing myself out.”

You try moving towards the exit only for said exit to quickly be blocked by the giant redhead’s palm.

“Were you now?” Andreyus purrs and you grimace, taking the time to think over your options before you casually walk up to the hand, lean forward and violently bite down on as much skin as you can.

Andreyus reacts to this immediately, pulling her hand and the crow still attached to it away from the glass box before the velocity proves too much for you and you finally let go, flying to the ground with an audible thud.

Your head hurts, your back hurts, the air swims before your eyes, there’s a faint metallic taste in your mouth and you’re pretty sure it belongs to Andreyus.

…déjà vu.

“Oh, you little-” Andreyus cuts off her growl when she notices the looks of her fellow guards, quickly masking the anger with a too wide smile.

“Kopec.” Her tone is sickly sweet.

Flat on your back and still trying to breathe after having the wind knocked out of you, you can’t do much at the moment but wheeze pathetically.

Slowly, Andreyus crouches down, looming over you as the display case lighting casts her face in heavy shadow.

“It’s always my museum, isn’t it Kopec? You like the new cameras? We finally got the money to install them. In Every. Single. Room.”

Andreyus reaches out and grabs you in a loose fist, bringing you to eye level as she smiles. The movement makes you nauseous. Turned away, the other guards can’t see the pure disdain in her eye as she starts tightening her grip on you.

You can’t breathe.

Your arms are pinned.

She stops just short of breaking your ribs, instead letting dull waves of pain pass over you as your body struggles to make your lungs expand again against the unmoving weight around you.

She cocks her head to the side slightly, a small smile lighting her features as she watches you struggle for a moment.

There’s no escape from this.

You’re done.

Except…you aren’t really yet, are you?

Wake up, Kopec.

Open Your Eyes

[justatinybunwriting]

Midnight Rendezvous

Continuing the miniseries that was based on the promptober list that @/Bittykimmy13 made.

This is part 4 of Forlorn

<<Previous Chapter

A tantalizing aroma filled the air as the expertly carved steaks was finally served. While the cuisine was delightful to the senses, the two friends paid little mind to it at first as they focused instead on each other in their small, yet still important chatter. These talks were short lived yet welcomed, for long, awkward pauses often followed between each sentence. But as time went on their wariness lessened, and the atmosphere would gradually turn into a welcoming calm.

Richard barely touched his plate, despite a Wile giant's typical response to fresh, grade-A meat. This wasn't something that Jac took lightly, for she assumed since he got here that the shrunken Wile had neglected his appetite for far too long.

"Eat up," Jac reminded. "You're beginning to look like skin and bones under that suit! You can't hide that from me.."

"No I don't..." Richard mumbled.

Jac then cuts out a large piece of beef and shoved it into his mouth.

"Good, right?"

Richard was annoyed by this gesture but ultimately couldn't refuse. After the swallow, his eyelids sprung upward, and at long last his stomach trembled desperately for more. He leered at the still sizzling meat for a few seconds before he started to dig into it quite menacingly. While he was more than ready to forgo utensils in favor of sinking his teeth into it literally, he knew that maintaining a proper form was the safer option in a place like this. He still looked less than humble, to put it gently, and Jac couldn't help but crack a smile at the sight of him destroying his meal.

"This is barely enough to satisfy you." She laughed.

Wiping his mouth, the Wile gave out a toothy, yet softer than normal grin.

"I have work arounds. Even so... to be honest... I had considered staying in this size for a little while longer."

"Wha, really? Wouldn't... that take up a lot of energy?"

"I'll be okay. If Beta Wiles can handle it, then I shouldn't have a problem."

"It's... not like you though... Is there some other reason for this?"

Richard lowered his napkin and stared blankly at his empty plate. He was still taking his time to say anything, for his overwhelming guilt showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. Even the smallest of words required careful consideration, and Jac understood this. Although she appreciated this approach, she was far from fond of it.

"Please... you don't have to be scared of me. Do you think that every little thing you say is going to make me angry?"

"...No... It's not that..."

"You're afraid of messing up, even if it's by accident... is that it?"

"Yeah." Richard sighed. "Is it... ok if I ask you something?"

"Sure."

Richard sighed and spoke as softly as he could.

"I... would like to go somewhere in the human district. Since... I'm in the proper height to actually be allowed inside now, haha. I would, like to walk with you... and talk, and listen... If, that's okay of course."

Jac was quiet for a moment, yet she never looked away from the shrunken Wile's face. She rose to her feet before she placed a hand over his forehead.

"You don't seem warmer than usual."

"I'm fine..." Richard grumbled.

"Well... to answer your question I... don't mind that at all if I gotta be honest. But, I don't want you to be uncomfortable for my sake! We can always do something in your true height, and on a separate night if you're too tired. It's not a big deal."

"Jac, I want this. It's the main reason why I... well..."

Jac cocked an eyebrow and pondered for a minute. Surely there was no foul play here, after all her best friend was clearly too afraid to do anything remotely manipulative. Her caution was warranted, but ultimately trust paved the way to her final decision.

"Well, if it isn't that much harder for you, then... yeah. I would like that."

Richard could not express the relief he felt upon hearing those words. For the first time in forever it seemed, he was finally able to crack a proper smile.

..........

After Jac ate her fill, the duo left Frederico's upon Jac's insistence with paying half of the bill. A small squabble between these two over money duties was nothing new, and after a few minutes they were able to laugh it off without much worry.

They walked for some ways in a quiet street, the stars obscured by the giant streetlights a hundred feet above. Jac never enjoyed walking beneath them, and secretly wished that she could ride under the crook of the giant's neck to avoid these flickering annoyances altogether. Her focus then turned to Richard, who was already feeling the strain of walking without, at least by his normal standard, covering much ground.

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah! I... need a bit of a workout. So, uh... where were we heading to again?"

"Shi...su... I forget the name. But it's a garden located on the other side of town. The view is fantastic at night, and every time I visit I always wished that you could be there to see it."

"That sounds great." Richard replied, his thoughts enamored by the visuals described.

"We have to take the monorail to get there, but it's open to the public all night. Think that'll be all right with you?"

"Yeah! Let's go then."

He reached out but suddenly stopped midway, his hand shaking subtly in the air. Jac gave him a puzzled look before he decided to pull back.

"I'm sorry." He sighed.

"For what?"

Jac then took out her own hand and grabbed his, which caused him to panic for a split second.

"C'mon! We haven't got all night!" She chuckled.

Jac had virtually pulled Richard for a few steps before he finally followed along. They continued like this for over a minute with the latter not knowing what to say or how to feel about it. Realizing this, Jac slowed down her pace.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"Is... this ok?"

"What do you mean?"

"The... hand..."

Jac looked down at her hand, which held a firm grip on Richard's digits. His was loose, however, and she realized then that they were still trembling.

"You don't... like this?"

"No! I... uh, I'm not used to it."

"That's okay. I'm sorry."

Jac then let go of the Wile's palm and walked a little ways ahead of him.

"Nonono! It's fine!" Richard said. "It just... caught me off guard."

"Yeah, I... should have given you a warning."

"Don't say that..."

The two strolled for a few moments before Jac broke the silence.

"I... always wanted to hold your hand. I just thought it would be kinda neat, that's all."

"So... that's, ok with you?"

"Yeah! Of course! Why didn't you think it would be?"

Richard didn't reply straight away, though Jac was able to put the pieces together on her own.

"I see... that's, why I decided to stop. If you're not comfortable with that, then--"

"Nono, I'm not... it's... hard to explain."

"It's confusing, right?"

"Yeah... I suppose so."

"It's okay." Jac sighed through her nose before continuing. "Society instilled the idea of holding hands as being more than just a thing that friends would do... Just know that... I personally don't agree with that."

As soon as they were finally away from the lamp posts, Jac breathed a loud sigh of relief before looking up into the night sky.

"I don't mind it personally, and I will hold hands with any friend who allows it. I also don't mind a lot of stuff that... people think is romantic. Like snuggles... and kisses."

Richard lowered his head, and started laughing between low energy breaths.

"Now I'm really confused."

"I get that a lot, don't worry. That's what it means to be a part of a spectrum. Some aromantic folks don't like those things but for me, personally, I don't mind! I don't see those actions, by themselves, as romantic. There's, more to it than that... that would make me uncomfortable."

"I want to learn." Richard said calmly. "Teach me... what is okay, and what isn't... so that I don't... make those mistakes again."

"I will. It's my fault for not explaining these things to you a long time ago. Though, to be fair, I was learning a lot of this myself, on my own..."

The two friends didn't say much to each other before they reached the railway station, but they both enjoyed each other's company with quaint smiles that never faded. They went off topic to talk about this and that while they waited, but in what felt like only a moment it was already time to step on board.

Jac flashed her card and went through the turnstile quickly, but before Richard could do the same a alarm was sounded along with red lights that flashed from the gate itself. Jac turned towards him and saw the distressed look on his face, his eyes dilated in the light as if he was a cornered animal. While there were only a few people who boarded the midnight express, there were a couple among them that stared down the young man.

"Wile giant..." One voice uttered.

Jac leered back to find whoever it was, but gave up quickly to return to her friend, the bars of the gate separating them by a couple of feet.

"Anti... Wile giant zone..." Richard grumbled.

"I'm sorry, Rich... I had no idea."

"It's... whatever. They probably think I'm going to grow into my full height while on board. While, excessive... it does happen suddenly sometimes, so... I can see why they'd be cautious about that."

"I see..."

Jac wasn't about to give up just yet. She pulled a brochure from the shelves and rushed back to the gates while flipping through the pages swiftly. And sure enough she found a map of the city and the places where the human and giant districts are segmented apart from each other. Using her finger as a guide, she gave Richard instructions for the next course of action.

"If you size up, you should be able to meet up with me before the monorail arrives right around... here! To the north east."

Jac grabbed her pen and made broad circles around the rendezvous spot. She then shoved the papers to his hands and squeezed them tightly.

"Think you can handle that?"

"Yeah," Richard sighed. "I'll be fine."

"You'll have to shrink again..."

"I know. But, I want to see this through."

"Okay."

Just then the monorail horn blasted, which instantly sent Jac running.

"I'll wait for you there!" She shouted.

She stepped in just before the doors shut, and within a few seconds the vehicle began to stir. Richard stayed put in his spot as he watched the monorail depart, waving goodbye to his friend inside even though it was unlikely that she could see him from his position.

Richard was saddened, yet a new sense of determination began to emerge from within. As soon as he stepped out, he hurried to the giant border and immediately sized up when his shoe touched the pavement. As always he had to kneel down to allow air back in his lungs, and during this time a passing security guard stepped in.

"You okay?" The man shouted.

Richard looked back at the Beansprout who was standing mere inches from his leg.

"I'm fine," he sputtered. "I wasn't going to do anything in there, I promise."

"I figured." The guard replied.

As the human walked away, he turned his head back and hollered.

"Go get her."

"Uh, thanks... She's, a good friend."

"Nevertheless! Good luck out there."

"...I appreciate that. Thank you."

Richard then got up, and began to brisk walk towards the path to the northern Sprout border. He uttered a spell under his breath, and the minuscule brochure in his hand grew in relative proportion to his current height. The molecular structure was thankfully in tact, and Richard was able to read the map as intended, with Jac's pen mark as a highlight.

"Thank god that worked." Richard sighed. "Ok Jac, I'm on my way. I'll be there in no time."

[justatinybunwriting]

Regret

A part of a miniseries based on a promptober list made by @/Bittykimmy13

This is part 3 of Forlorn

<<Previous chapter

(Cw for angst and discussion of mature topics. This chapter is intended for mature audiences - viewers' discretion is advised.)

The cool night's breeze helped to ease the two friends out of the awkward silence they had started off with. After a few instances of clearing their throats, they both spoke at the same time.

"There's something I want to--"

"I have to tell you outright that--"

"...You go first." Richard said.

Jac gave out a deep sigh through her nose before she pulled a piece of paper from her coat. She unfolded it and pushed it in front of the shrunken Wile giant.

"Read." She commanded. "I was going to send this via message, but you saved me the trouble by... getting smaller, heh."

"Hm? What's this?"

"I... don't really have it in me to say these things out loud. So I wrote down my thoughts here."

Richard paused for a second before he carefully looked over the hand written notes, and in no less than a moment's notice his eyes widened upon discerning its contents. Various events from within the past eight or so months began to replay in his mind, though through the lens of the human they went very differently from how he remembered it.

"Wait... What? I thought...?"

Jac flattened her lips as she tried her best to shift her eyes away from her friend. She side glanced towards the musicians who continued to play a gorgeous piece with their fiddles, as Richard continued down the written notes slowly.

"I... didn't know... I, always thought you enjoyed our games..."

"To an extent, yes. But... lately the cat and mouse chases have become, well..."

"Jac, I... You, said yourself that you didn't mind--"

"Of course you always force me to have it your way in the end!" Jac exclaimed. "Your excuse is always 'oh, I can sense that you're only pretending to not want this right now' blah blah! I mean... it's just not as simple as that, okay? Sure I... think about it, positively sometimes. And yet I..."

"Jac...?"

There was a genuine nervous hitch in Richard's voice, which had drained all the confidence Jac had built up to that point.

"I... I just..."

Before long Jac grew quiet, as she felt her old habits tear at her numbingly once more. The strong desire to hold back her feelings in favor of silent acceptance was relentlessly pounding the back of her mind, but she quickly managed to fight the impeding sands that had sought to pull her in. The young woman seized this momentum by shifting priority to her right hand. And with a click of a pen and a rip of a new notebook sheet, she went straight to work.

Jac was internally grateful that Richard was as patient as he was with her on this night. An improvement, she admitted, but none too surprising. She looked up at last towards the shrunken Wile, who appeared perplexed and equally frightened. Not that he would show off the latter outright, his best friend could discern and recognize his body language regardless. She handed over the freshly jotted notes, which Richard accepted with renewed hesitation. His eyes darted side to side in quick succession, until they finally landed at a crucial part.

"So you...?"

But before the Wile could say another word, he double checked what he had just read. And in that moment, his face fell.

"Do you understand now?" Jac uttered. "I used to enjoy the running and the cropping and everything else in between! But after a while..."

"It had become too much... It was, no longer fun..."

Jac nodded.

"I... overdid it?"

Jac nodded again.

"I mean... I like teasing... it's all part of the game! But, I had no idea that that would actually..."

"It's... not the teasing I hate. It's how you've gone about doing it lately that's the issue here... You see..."

Again, she made her case known on paper when her voice failed her. But no matter what format she spoke in, to Richard the message was received just as loud and clear.

"Lately you have a tendency to twist my words to get what you want. This is especially true when..."

The shrunken Wile then paused before he retorted in his own tongue.

"Huh? Push my height around? What does that mean?"

"You... would lift me up in the air and give me no room to leave on my own terms, for one! I can think of a bunch of other examples, but judging by the look on your face, I think you get the idea."

"I..."

Ultimately however, Richard was left without any more words to convey.

"Keep reading." Jac said. "You'll get a better idea what I mean then."

With another long breath, Richard continued down the original notes, as he took in the numerous occasions where Jac's boundaries were loyally crossed. Many fond memories had become shattered under the weight of his renewed understanding, which brought the shrunken Wile into an even deeper pit of despair. His eyes sunk as an unyielding sense of guilt had begun to claw into the sides of his heart. Each revelation caused him to steadily furl into himself, so much so that he was on the verge of falling off of his chair.

Jac understood that look, and felt as though she needed to intervene before he would be swept away by his emotions.

"I know that Wile giants need to chase. Need to crop... it's something that you can't really help. And I was all for helping you... which was, one of the reasons why I didn't say anything at first."

"You... didn't list the graduation party..."

"Huh?"

The fact that night was brought up had caught the human off guard, though she was able to shake off the initial shock relatively quickly.

"Funny you should mention that. To tell you the truth I, honestly enjoyed it that time. The biggest difference then was... was..."

Infuriated by her increasing nerves, Jac kicked an invisible stone before she reached for her pen a third time. Richard's hand was visibly shaking as he accepted this particular set of freshly made notes. He wasn't sure why, but he had already sensed that he wouldn't be ready to swallow the pill that was to come. Nevertheless, he sucked in a breath and braced for impact, for despite everything he endured so far he wanted more than ever to listen and soak in every word. He understood that in order to make things right, he needed to man up.

Another deep sigh followed, before the Wile opened his eyes and read out the rest of her sentence.

"You weren't rough back then... You were gentle, sweet, and caring... before, during, and after our play times... You weren't selfish, and was a lot more considerate about my own needs. And most of all you weren't posses... sive... you weren't controlling...?"

Richard momentarily grew silent before he continued.

"This was the worst of your offenses. Before I even realized it, you have gone so far as to isolate me from my other Wile giant friends. You try your best to cover up your je... je... but you can't hide it from me anymore--"

"Jealousy?" Richard quipped, his voice a shadow of its former self. "Jac! Since when have I..."

The look on Jac's face when he said this forced him to stop midway. The human then proceeded to write on her notepad again, though in the process she stopped and contemplated her options. In a moment's time, she dropped the pen.

"You've changed." Jac spoke flatly. Her nervousness was largely apparent, though she chose to push through. "The Richard I knew... from that time is, different from the one sitting here right now."

"I don't understand..." Richard admitted. "I'm, still me?"

Jac lowered her head. "You may not realize it. But..."

Jac gulped a few times, but numbingly continued to voice her displeasure. The more she spoke, the more her confidence gradually increased.

"Remember when we broke up? You... said to me then, that you were... fine with it. I gave my reason, and you told me that you were in full support of that... But... think about it for a second, Rich! What was the one thing you held me back from doing above everything else? The one thing that, for gawd sakes you told me you never thought about in a romantic sense? And yet every time the mere thought of anyone else giving chase and..."

"And why would they?" Richard cut in. "Why would you even consider letting someone else do tha--"

"You're just proving my point!" Jac exclaimed.

Richard's eyes had shot open, though this time he was clearly vexed. Towards what Jac couldn't tell. Jac sensed that their surrounding might have overheard the anger in her voice, though in truth the background chatters had all but drowned it out. In any case, she drew in another breath and continued to speak in a quieter, yet firm tone.

"Never had I once thought of it in that light, and I never will. But deep down you didn't want anyone else to nom me. That right belonged to you and you alone. Why should it matter, why should you feel such unwarranted envy? Unless..."

Jac took a moment to breath, before finishing her sentence.

"You haven't moved on."

Richard stopped dead on his tracks. He opened his mouth, but no matter how hard he tried, not a single retort, counter nor defense had made its way out. He barely understood why those fours words sent chills through much of his nervous system, yet he could only express guilt ten times the amount as before the further it sunk in.

And with that muted response, mist began to form in Jac's eyes.

"You still love me. In that way... And despite me being very clear back then... when I told you I'm aromantic... you decided... to push through anyway. Against my wishes... I don't know if it's due to frustration... but you started to take it out on me... without even noticing it seems! And I haven't been comfortable since..."

"Jac..."

These words made the shrunken Wile quiver at his very core. Despite being torn apart by them, he chose to let her continue without contest.

"The reason why it's been tough these past few months... was because, subconsciously or not, you chose to satisfy your own desires at my expense! You couldn't get what you wanted from me, so you chose to do all those things... by taking advantage of the fact that I've felt sorry for you! You never thought about how I had felt. Even when you claimed you did... everything was skewed towards how you saw fit. And as a result, you've overstepped my boundaries over... and over again."

Nothing was said for a few minutes as tears began to flow down their faces. Jac took notice of the way the Wile clenched his fists, and she could feel the heat that was starting to seep from his bubbling rage. Her own anger and sadness paved way for a greater sense of fear, and she stumbled a little as she tried to get the rest of her words out.

"It's... my fault too... I should have said something a long time ago... I may have been worse off because I chose to remain silent. I was too scared of... hurting you... and that was dumb on my part. You... never really asked for my opinion anyway... so I thought... it wouldn't have amounted to--"

All of a sudden Richard rose up from his seat. Jac pushed back against her own spontaneously as she readied herself for the inevitable shout, but what came out of his mouth was the last thing she would have expected.

"You were scared of hurting me? But I wounded up hurting you!! How is that better?! How could... I have been so..."

Jac looked up and saw the face of a miserable man, the wrinkles of his brow crumpled up into a hundred knots, his eyes stinging from the hot tears that fell along with his head to the floor. He banged his fists on the tiles, which alerted the attention of staff inside the restaurant. But none of that mattered now.

"I'm so sorry... for everything, Jac... How...? How did I not see this for so long? Why was I... so stupid?! Idiot!! I'm such an idiot!!"

A guttural sound escaped his mouth as he started to physically throw fists in the air. His suit came undone slightly as he continued to bellow profanities at himself. Jac halted security who came to check in, as she dove to be by his side in spite of his increasing ferocity. She watched and waited mere inches from the shrunken giant as his growls and temperament gradually lessened over a good while.

She didn't say this at first, but deep down Jac felt this was the best possible outcome she could have foreseen. She was afraid of the Richard that would snap back, who would fight with every tooth and nail. But this... wasn't him. He wouldn't do that at this delicate moment, she realized. For instead, even in his moderately feral state, she saw a broken down man who thought of himself as a monster. Which made her even more terrible for taking a stand, even though she knew it was right.

Jac held a hand to Richard's back, which caused him to jolt his head up. His eyes were a narrow catlike slit for a split second before he registered his friend's face, his pupils quickly softening to it's former state. It was very apparent to Jac that the Wile was fearful, maybe as much as she was just moments prior. And to that, she could only respond with a humble acknowledgement back. They stared at each other, nearly without blinking, until at last the shrunken Wile finally croaked.

"I'm... appalled at myself... no apology can make up for what I have done..."

"It's a first step..." Jac cried. "And your eyes are open now. It'll take time but... I want to give you another chance."

"...Really...?"

Jac took a moment before she nodded.

"I like you too much, for all the good things. And it... would be wrong of me if I didn't give you a chance... to save this friendship. After you've shown me, that you actually cared to listen..."

"But... I was so toxic to you... worst still, I was too dumb to even... notice..."

"You were... yeah..."

"Then why...?"

"I won't forget all the good. I won't forget the bad either but... if you work on it, and promise me that you will genuinely make the effort to change, then... I don't mind sticking around. And waiting to see the improved Richard for myself."

"Why are you so... willing to accept me back?"

"I don't know! Maybe I'm dumb too. Will you accept that for an answer?"

"...No... Maybe..."

"Good." Jac smiled. "Now then..."

Jac looked back at the empty table just as catering was about to ride into the balcony.

"I think we should try to make the best of tonight. You went through a lot of pain because of me, and I'm sorry for that... So I, want the rest of the night to go well at least."

"Nonono, please! Don't be."

Richard pulled himself up and brushed his coat. He tried to reach out to do the same for Jac, but hesitated at the last moment. Jac realized then that her words had actually come out in her brush with adrenaline, and with her luck that was likely the only time that would ever happen.

Maybe it was fate, weird...

They returned to their seats as silent as a mouse, waiting for the other to speak first. It was Richard who finally broke the monotony.

"I promise... I'll make it up to you. Tonight, and every night after this."

"You don't have to make a big show of it. Just... being you is enough."

"Aside from... that side of me." Richard shuttered.

"Obviously."

The first chuckle came since their discussion began, a welcome feeling to break the tension however brief. Food was far from their minds at this point in time, but they were just relived that the storms that weighed heavily on their shoulders had finally started to lift.

Next Chapter >>

[justatinybunwriting]

Promptober day 12: Nuzzle

Where Jac hugs the nose of her good friend Goro

[justatinybunwriting]

Serenade

Day 7 of the promptober list that @/Bittykimmy13 made and the second part of Forlorn

Several days had came and went with no response to messages, no phone calls or emails. Even a letter would have given the Wile giant a much needed sigh of relief, anything that could get him out of this agonizing hole that he was sinking deeper into. Ever since Jac left, Richard had spent his every waking moment feeling utterly miserable and hot to the touch. Everything else he had to do to get through the day- work, transportation, etc.- was overshadowed by the scene of his best friend walking away, which played in a constant loop in his head over and over again.

Jac...

He barely ate. He bathed minimally, and his nights were restless with turbulent thoughts. That looming dread of losing his best friend... of what that could mean and, what he considered doing if it ever came to that point. He was weakening by the hour, yet he chose not to care.

Jac meanwhile was faring no better. The revelation of that night had infected her mind and it was difficult for her to maintain self control. She released her pent up emotions by lashing out violently at her pillow on numerous occasions. But in a few days time, even that feeling had passed, and in its place was a sense of hopelessness, resentment and despair.

And yet, nothing that Richard had said surprised her, nor did it cause her to outright hate him. She started to miss the parts of him that she loved, yet each time she tried to look back on them she was reminded of the side of him that, in her words, sucked.

Deep down I knew... that he still sees me this way. No matter how much time had passed...

She wanted dearly for things to go back the way they were, but not if he couldn't past her being a romantic partner. The very thought of that gave her cold chills that crawled up to the base of her neck. But at the same time, she knew that if she continued down her current path, she would never get the closure she desperately wanted. Something needed to be done, and soon.

Jac called her friends and told them her side of the story, and they all basically reacted to her the same way.

"We've gone through this before, Jac..." Aiden replied worriedly. "You have a tendency to bottle up your thoughts, and that's probably why he's been acting this way these past few months. You need to set boundaries, by letting him know what is ok and what isn't, you see what I'm saying?"

"You gotta stand up for yourself!" Jillian exclaimed. "Show him who's boss! You told him you don't like him being all lovey dovey, right? If he doesn't respect that, accidental or not, you need to reinforce that you can't accept that part of him! By not giving him the time of day until he learns to accept that change!"

Jac's response was always the same.

"I know that... It's... it's just not that easy for me. It's always been hard to confront people, even when that person is my best friend, sometimes... Even when I know damn well that being silent is possibly the most unhealthy thing I could do. It's better than getting hurt in the process... and seeing him get hurt because of me..."

"You have to at least try. Otherwise, you'll never know the truth." Aiden said. His voice was mildly choked up from the other line. "I know how much your friendship with Richard means to you. And if you cared that much and want it to last, then... you need to talk to him. And be upfront with how you feel."

"It's never easy Jac, and it never will be." Jillian replied. "But you gotta start off by practicing talking things through, no matter how hard it is. It's the best thing you can do to protect yourself, and to hopefully see a positive response if he's willing. You gonna be pouring rain nonstop otherwise. Doing nothing will lead to nothing. So the best thing you can do, is to let him know what's up."

While brunt at times, Jac was nevertheless grateful to hear these words. When she hung up, her resolve was strengthened to the point where- for a moment- she could not wait to dial the first contact saved on her phone. But just before her finger landed on the call button, she abruptly stopped. Her second guessing had caught up with her, and threatened to dampen her momentum with a new wave of dread. After a couple of moments of wallowing in a constant loop of asking herself "I'm ready for this?" She paused and stirred up a different question: "why am I not using my energy to actually put my brain into action?" Slowly but most certainly, a plan began to take shape, which helped in turn to boost her confidence to sky high levels. After a few minutes of refining her new master strategy, Jac took a deep breath, and began typing.

As soon as he heard that notification, the one designated just for Jac, Richard dropped what he was doing and grabbed his phone in the speed of a bullet.

"Meet me tonight."

The Wile giant texted back.

"Where?"

After a minute long pause which felt like hours, Richard got the fateful reply that elevated his spirits profoundly.

"I don't care. Wherever you decide. How's that?"

Richard could not help but put on a pathetic smile.

"Sounds good. I'll text back soon!"

As cryptic as that seemed, Jac accepted his response in silence. It took a while to sink in, but she too started to feel a heavy weight being lifted from her shoulders.

..............

"Meet me outside Frederico's Fine Dining."

That five star Italian restaurant across town... I haven't been there in ages.

Jac was admittedly cautious, but followed the Wile's direction without complaint. She was hoping that she didn't have to dress up for the occasion, but the Wile had went through the trouble of reserving a spot in the balcony just for the two of them, so she couldn't walk in with her every day attire. Just to rub it in his face, she chose to go in the clothes she would wear when attending a job interview- nothing more or less.

When she arrived at the designated spot, she was greeted by a single, human sized dining table, with candles near the edge of the balcony that illuminated her path. The star filled night was crystal clear, and the picture perfect scene was topped off with paid musicians who played a somber serenade with their violins.

He went all out...

Jac wasn't sure what to make of this just yet. Was this a love-struck friend's last ditch effort to profess his feelings for her? Or was it, in her own eyes, something more meaningful?

It took a few minutes before she spotted him off the distance. Sure enough he was in a suit and tie, but nothing like Jac was expecting. If her hunch was right, he too was wearing the same clothes that he wore for his own job interview. Which drew out a light chuckle from the human.

Richard's ears perked up as he turned his attention to the side of the building, and when their tired eyes met he was overwhelmed with emotions of every kind.

"You came..." He cried.

Jac said nothing at first, as the Wile giant walked up to meet her face to face. His top half was all she could see from her vantage point.

"I was worried that you might have... uh..."

"I was the one who texted you, you know." Jac snapped back, though she made sure to lower her voice after that. "I wouldn't have if I didn't wanted to see you..."

The two took in each other for a moment before any more words were exchanged. Jac noticed right away the Wile's slightly rough shave, as well as the horrendous dark spots that had formed under his eyes.

"You look like you got hit by a train."

"Sounds about right..." Richard replied. "You look, nice."

"Thanks, I guess."

Jac looked back at the table and placed her hands on her hips. "I don't know what the deal is here, but seriously Richard? You couldn't even get us mixed seating?"

"I can explain! See..."

Jac could tell his heart was racing, but she decided to give him time to allow air to flow back in his lungs.

"For one, mixed tables were booked. And second, and most importantly!... I... thought I should even the playing field a bit. At a time like this, I figured that perhaps I'm a bit too imposing as... I am now. So maybe..."

Jac's eyes opened widely at the implication of what he meant.

"First of all. I don't really care about your size, you know this. But... at the same time, I don't mind seeing all of you at once. It would help right now... I think. But, are you sure?"

"Positive." Richard answered nervously.

Richard backed up until he nearly reached the street.

"Stand back!"

"WAIT!!" Jac exclaimed.

Richard hit the ground running as a bluish white light began to flow from his back, and he leaped towards the the air just as the rest of his body glowed in an intense flash. He had shrunken midair into the size of a human just as he had made a grand entrance- by sliding across the balcony floor before plummeting against a wall. The music screeched to a halt as Jac rushed to be by his side.

"Oh my gaaawd!! Are you okay?!"

The Wile laid painfully on his side, but he tried his best to open his eyes for her.

"I... did not think this through..."

"Of course not!! What the hell was that?!" Jac yelled. "You could have gotten yourself killed..."

"Nonsense, I... could have maybe done that a little bit better, but I'm still here, heheh..."

As Jac aided Richard in as he slowly pulled himself up, as she brushed off the dirt that had clung to his suit during the incident. He still ached a bit, but it was nothing that his unfailing determination couldn't ignore. That, along with the other implications of what this could possibly mean, had begun to scare Jac slightly.

"Why though?" Jac uttered, as she looked down at her feet. "I know how much you hate being this size. So why do this now?"

"I... wanted to talk with you eye to eye. I know! We do that normally. But I wanted to see you... like this. To talk to you while seeing every bit of you upclose, and to really give you the opportunity to speak without a barrier or... even punch me in the gut if you have to!"

Jac held a hand to her mouth. "Don't give me any ideas."

"You'd like that, huh."

"Yeah.." Jac giggled slightly. "But, I think you've gone through enough pain tonight. I will warn you now though, that if you say anything that warrants it, then..."

"Then don't hold back. I mean it."

A pause followed, although this time the duo never looked away from each other's faces. Jac sighed and gave the shrunken Wile a rather cocky smile.

"You forgot one thing."

"What's that?"

"You... can hold me in this size."

Richard took a step back in surprise. "I-Is that allowed?!"

"Maybe... but you gotta earn it."

The two friends walked slowly over to the dinner table, as the sweet melody resumed in the background once again. Jac was quick to pull up her menu, but her mind drew a blank when she scanned the offerings. She glanced over at Richard and saw that he wasn't paying attention either, as his hand strummed atop the unopened book.

"How long do you think the food will take?" Jac asked.

"An hour, maybe? Frederico's has the best cuisine this side of town, but they're not known for their fast service."

"Perfect. That's all the time we need to have this discussion."

Richard nodded slightly and gave his first smile of the night. With enough time allowed, maybe things will go the way the two of them had hoped after all.

Next Chapter>>

[justatinybunwriting]

Forlorn (rewrite)

Notes: Day 6 of this year's promptlist that @bittykimmy13 made is forlorn, so I felt it was time to revisit an old prompt I had made back in 2021. The previous version was very rushed so I wanted to do a slight do-over x3

(Cw for angst and brief mentions of mouthplay. This story and its subsequent chapters are intended for mature audiences. Viewers discretion is advised.)

What began as a quiet afternoon in Richard's house would turn into the scene of a near fatal incident, the casualty being that of a long held friendship.

It all started simply enough when Jac recalled an event that she could have sworn was recorded on her phone. After three thorough scans of her photo gallery however, she had proven that this was not the case. With no where else to turn she begged the Wile giant to let her investigate his device, which resulted in the latter giving her a sharp eye roll in return.

"First of all, that was a weird way of asking," Richard replied. "And, well... of course I'll help you out. We'll look for it, together." He was quick to add.

The brunette sat on the single seated sofa with Jac firmly perched on his left arm, as a perfect view of the much too large screen was placed right before her. Throughout the next hour, they swiped past several hundred images of various historic events in their lives, stopping every few seconds to reminisce and giggle at their findings.

"Is it this one?" He asked. The selected photo showed the two of them as older teens as they posed in front of a water slide at an amusement park.

Jac shook her head. "That's not it... It was a little further back I think. We were still in high school and you took a selfie of us just as you fell backwards into a pool."

"That was an accident..." Richard mumbled.

"It was definitely on purpose! No one could have made such a clean dive." Jac laughed.

"Do you think I wanted to hit the water directly on my back? I slipped on a pool toy some Sprout had left on the side. My shoulder blades were aching for days..."

Memories of times gone by filled their heads in ways they had not expected as the Wile giant continued to scroll backwards in his saved files. Some were precious little moments that helped to shape their lives for the better, and others were from times that the two could barely recognize.

As their search went on, Richard began to develop a sense of yearning. His brain fluttered back to the days of his youth, a period where he did not have to worry as much about careers, social expectations and the often unrealistic baggage that came with living in such a hostile world. He projected himself into these cherished moments as they were pulled up into view, like the joy of seeing the first snow of winter, or the pleasant day before their graduation, and the many moonlit nights he would spend together with his dearest friend.

"Hey, what's this folder?... Bittersweet..."

Richard was startled back into reality when Jac spoke those very words, and he swiftly grabbed his phone from her reach.

"Hey!" The human protested.

"What were you doing looking through my stuff?"

"You were fixing to fall asleep, so I thought I could continue the search on my own. Why are you being so huffy about that?"

"...You're right..."

Richard sat back down and returned the phone on his lap.

"I'm sorry... I honestly don't know how to explain this to you."

"You can try. We're best friends! You don't have to keep secrets from me!"

"It's just..." Richard paused before he gave a out a long sigh. "I just don't think I should be sharing this. It's a bit too... personal."

In an alternate universe he would have shown her, boldly and unapologetically perhaps, but this Richard knew the complications of what would come from it if he did reveal its contents. Still that did not stop Jac from trying to put two and two together.

"Is it pics of that girl that you met in college?"

"NO! Why would I have that? I want nothing to do with her!"

"Biggs, you know I don't really care about who you were dating. We discussed this."

"Yeah, but really Jac? That person?"

"Well, maybe I was a bit off... But you know I'll keep second guessing until I get it right."

"You're so nosy..."

Truth is... you say you don't care about anyone I date, but I can't be too sure in this case...

They both silently agreed to drop the topic for now. And since Richard was wide awake as a result, he went straight back to his search. After a few expected stops along the way, Jac was suddenly bursting into laughter.

"What the hell is going on here?" She heckled.

The photo in question was taken in front of a display that was carved in the likeness of a shark. In front was a younger Richard who looked back at it with the appearance of utter shock. That coupled with the cups of beverages that was suspended in midair just below his outstretched hands made this the perfect comedy scene for the tiny woman, as it was enough to cause her to fall backwards. Richard, on the other hand, looked upon this child version of himself with disdain.

"Oh dear God, why is this even here?"

He was just about to aim for the delete button, when Jac lunged herself onto the Wile's index finger. She wrapped her arms around it in an attempt to pull it back.

"What are you doing? You can't erase that! It's a part of history!"

"Well there's some portions of 'history' that's best left unseen!"

And with that it was unceremoniously trashed, which had made Jac rather upset.

"C'mon, was it really that bad to see your old self with renewed eyes? You won't see me deleting old photos, no matter how much of a pain it is to relive those moments sometimes..."

Jac paused before she continued her sentence, "I still hold onto them. Like it or not, it's just one of those things that I don't want to let go of..."

The two friends then grew silent for a short while, though the Wile giant's curiosity had perked up upon hearing Jac's words. To the point where he felt the urge to test their authenticity. He quickly shook off that notion however, beating himself mentally for even thinking such a thing, and shifted focus back to his phone.

"Well, not in this case. Pout all you want Jac, but I think it should be lost to the sands of time."

Jac had to fold her arms and puff her cheeks to that remark.

We'll just see about that.

For what seemed like the rest of the afternoon, the two friends continued to laugh and share their thoughts about the photos that were on display. They would eventually find the image Jac was searching for, a far from interesting picture of the two in front of a public swimming pool, at least when compared to the far more interesting pictures that had equally tugged for their attention.

As the sun began to set, the Wile giant had set off to a brief visit to dreamland once more. Now's my chance, Jac thought as she carefully pulled the phone from his loosened hand with all her might. With a flick of her hand she pulled the glorious shark photo out of the trashcan, placing it back, as she considered in her mind, to where it belonged. In the process she had come across that peculiar folder again. The word Bittersweet called to her like a dinner bell, yet she could not bring herself to go against Richard's wishes.

"It's nothing... there has to be a good reason for him not wanting to show me..."

She stared at the file for some time however, and the more she pondered the more her inquisitiveness had started to get the better of her. The human peered back at the Wile, who had his head reared back with drool pouring slightly over his mouth. Jac thought it was now or never, and she would keep it with her to her grave if she had to.

After one last brawl with hesitation, she opened the folder and peered at its contents. And almost immediately she began to regret her decision. Some of these images she held fondly to this day, like the dances they had made in the various prom nights they had over the years, and the dinners that occupied the light of the full moon. But others gradually made her sick to her stomach, like the photos of Richard swooning and the two of them sealing a lip to lip kiss. Which was then followed by a picture of her being sucked between his lips, which shot open a memory she would rather forget of their tongues embracing while she was inside.

"J... Jac...?"

A very drowsy Richard began to stir, but before he could fully process what happened, Jac gave out an involuntary shriek that torpedoed his eyelids open. Jac hopped onto the screen and pushed the back button just as she was being scooped into his hands.

"What happened?" He asked. "Why are you...?"

It did not take long for the Wile to put the pieces together on his own, as evident by the bright tomato red that Jac tried desperately to hide.

"Jac, I... how could you..."

"I'm sorry..."

Tears started to form from the base of her eyes as the giant breathed harshly through his nose.

"I know I didn't tell you outright not to, but... that's a serious overstep of my privacy, Jac. I thought I could trust you to not look through my secret files, especially when I said--"

"I was dumb, ok? I, let my... feelings get the better of me..."

"It's ok..." Richard sighed after a long pause. "I'm not mad... it's just...I really didn't want you to see all of that... To be honest, I should be the one apologizing."

"W-What for?"

"For not giving you an explanation and... holding onto these photos to begin with. I've considered deleting these... after a while. But yet, I just... can't bring myself to do it! Every time I've considered it, I worry that I may regret it later..."

"Nonono, you're good!" Jac said quickly with a higher voice, "It just... caught me off guard... Like, I said earlier... no matter how uncomfortable and gross some of the past makes me feel, you shouldn't erase history."

Hearing Jac describe their past dates in that way was like jabbing a blade through Richard's heart. His eyes began to cloud ever so slightly, which Jac immediately took notice of. Her face cooled off slightly, but in its place her mouth had flattened.

"Do you... still look at them fondly?"

"W-what?"

"Be honest with me. Even though we broke up our romantic ties... does all of that, still... mean something to you? Aside from just, a memory."

Richard didn't know what to say after that, and a long uncomfortable silence followed. Jac's expression darkened afterwards, which caused Richard to react in a pained tone.

"Of course not! I don't want to ruin what we have now. You know that."

"Even though you still love me... in that way?"

"I... uh..."

Jac gave out a long sigh.

"It explains a lot honestly."

"Jac..."

"Even though I told you this isn't what I want... What I had envisioned our future to be..."

Richard chose not to stop her from going down his pant leg as she started to walk away.

"I need time if that's okay."

"I'm sorry Jac..."

Nothing else was said between the two as the human retreated to another room. The Wile giant then sat silently for some time, and pondered about what he could have done differently. Everything that they went through today... the memories they held so deep, the treasures that they both shared... stood a very good chance of falling apart. He needed to act, and soon, if he stood a chance at repairing the opened wounds.

Richard rushed over to the other room, before he checked all of her usual hiding spots. Not a single sound could be heard, nor any trace of her presence. It was then he had realized that she had long left the house...

Next Chapter>>

[justatinybunwriting]

Not going anywhere but I'm planning to make this account into primarily a writing archive so that folks who like my stories can find them easily just by scrolling. I will be posting any new art and reblogs over at @just-a-tiny-bun so follow that account if you want to keep up with my stuff! I will still be posting my own writing here and reblogging anything that's relevant to them.

Thanks for your support! I got some neat things planned between all of my accounts in the near future, so stay tuned for that ^^

[justatinybunwriting]

Not going anywhere but I'm planning to make this account into primarily a writing archive so that folks who like my stories can find them easily just by scrolling. I will be posting any new art and reblogs over at @just-a-tiny-bun so follow that account if you want to keep up with my stuff! I will still be posting my own writing here and reblogging anything that's relevant to them.

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[justatinybunwriting]

Contact

this takes place in the space au

warnings: swearing, fear

word count: around 4.8k

taglist: @autism-alley , @awkwardgtace , @tripodcat-gt

T-minus 10

“Could I ask you something, big guy?”

9

“Sure.”

8

“Are there other ways you hold the planet? It can’t always just be in your hands, right? That has to get tiring.”

7

“…well, sometimes I kinda…cup the planet to my chest. Like when I lay down. …or just…I don’t know…whenever.”

6

“Dear God, you are touch starved.”

5

“…touch starved?”

4

“Mmm...it means you crave physical affection.”

3

“Touch…,” I can sense the wistfulness in his voice. “I’ve seen the way some humans hold each other…I think it’s called a hug? And just…I don’t know, getting lost in someone’s arms for a while…it seems…really nice. I just…I wish there was some way for me to hug you, Mia, but…well, you know.”

2

“...maybe there is.”

1

“…what do you mean?”

Lift off.

There’s a giant that lives up in the cosmos who holds the world to prevent it from freezing over now that the sun’s dead. It's literally something out of a children’s story but the scientists have been working on this long enough to know that somehow, impossibly, it’s still the truth.

Weirder still is that this giant never asked for anything in return.

Until, that is, when a particularly tired intern got the shit scared out of them when the massive cosmic entity known as Jax popped into their head to quietly ask them if it would be okay to send their cranky janitor to space. And once the higher ups got word of it, they knew it was probably for the best not to say no to the giant who literally held the entire planet in his hands and started on it right away.

Of course, they could have said no. Jax knew that. I knew that. They didn’t know that. I guess they were just happy Jax hadn’t started asking for human sacrifices or something.

So that’s how I ended up here.

I’m in a ship and a bulky suit, watching the sky turn darker and darker as I leave the Earth’s atmosphere. The constant shake rattling through the ship is horrible and the jolt of the engine separating from the rocket is even worse. The ship stops shaking soon after but gradually, I can feel the sheer weight of gravity pushing me deeper and deeper into my seat as the vessel tries to escape the Earth’s pull. It’s almost agonizing in its intensity, the sounds and sights and feelings all working together to turn my body and brain effectively to mush but then finally, finally

the engines shut off and I’m left sitting there in the dead silence that follows, still so stunned from the trip that it takes a few moments too long to even bring myself to move.

And that was the easy part.

My legs feel like jello and both my back and neck feel stiff but still I wrestle my way out of the chair to go look out the window.

And the first thing I see is the Earth, an impossible sight of blues and greens and yellows all condensed and mixing together, masses of huge storm clouds passing over continents. The backdrop of stars and darkness make it almost glow.

And then I see something else.

Something that just about makes my heart stop beating.

As the Earth slowly, very slowly, gets farther and farther away, I can see that it’s not suspended in the star filled void of space like it’s supposed to be. Instead,

something

something so huge I can’t see where it begins or where it ends, something so huge my brain can’t even fully comprehend what I’m looking at,

something rests just below the planet, cupping it, holding it up in the cosmos

something flesh coloured

something warm

I’ve seen this before, when Jax projected himself into my head or…whatever the hell he did to me but seeing it here, now

It’s too much

It’s genuinely too much

And as the Earth gets smaller and the flesh surrounding it remains the same endless expanse, I find it harder and harder to stay calm.

My brain is screaming, screaming at me to get away but I can’t breathe and

instead I choke on my own spit, staring at the view as my breaths get harder and harder to control until I finally manage to turn around, pressing my back to the cool glass and instead focusing on the dull interior of the shuttle as I try to get my breathing back under control. I’m starting to sweat again and the insulation the suit provides isn’t helping. I try to take in every single detail of the room I’m trapped in, the grooves in the seats and the dull walls, the fluorescent lights and the panels and panels of buttons lining the main console, the screens and the sensors and very very distant hum of fans and other machinery quietly working away to keep me alive.

The constant beating in my chest as it finally starts to slow

As my vision stops dancing in front of me

As my head gradually stops swimming

And then I hear it, a call so sudden it causes me to jump.

“…Mia?”

Jax.

Jax

A being so fucking huge that the world is nothing more than a marble to him. Of course, I’ve seen him so many times before in the sky, his huge face stretching across the horizon thanks to his sheer size, an eye larger than the Earth completely engulfing it when I want to show him something. Even when he holds an arm out so I can see him better, the concept of him holding the planet is still something I can’t even begin to register.

And now I don’t have a barrier to protect me.

It doesn’t take long before I can feel tears streaming down my face as I hug my arms close and then closer.

“…Mia?”

Quieter now.

I can’t stifle a sob in time and somehow, somehow, I know he hears it.

“…I…I’m sorry, M.” He sounds pained and my heart pangs even as I slowly lower myself to the ground.

My friend.

This cosmic fucking giant is my friend.

I guess on some level I just never fully thought about what I was dealing with.

Jax is a giant, one so goddamn huge that any space program that wants to send something out has to let him know in advance so that his damn fingertips don’t block their flight paths.

He’s not human. He’s never been human but

“…do you want to go home?”

He’s tentatively whispering in my head like we’re equals, asking me questions, asking me what I want to do. There’s genuine distress in his voice. He wanted this more than anything and yet I know he’d give it all up for me. He’s…

“…Jax?”

A lengthy pause on his end. Then

“…Mia?”

I take in a few more gulps of air, staring at my now empty chair before I speak again.

“…give me a moment. This is…a little hard for me to deal with right now.”

“Are you sure?”

“I am.”

“…alright.”

Some time passes in silence, me eventually starting to run a hand up and down the material of my suit to try and ground myself before Jax hesitantly speaks again.

“…I…actually, there…might be something I can do to help.”

I try to focus on his voice. “…and what’s that, big guy?”

“Just…just give me a moment.”

“Okay.”

More silence for a long long time before,

“…Mia?”

“…Jax?”

“Look out the window.”

“…what?”

“Trust me. Please.”

There’s something about his tone that cuts the tension. There’s desperation, yes. But now there’s something else too. Something that almost sounds like excitement.

I frown, staring down the empty room before finally breaking. Damn it, now I’m curious. And I did trust him at the end of the day.

I slowly uncurl myself from the floor and move to peek out the window. And I see

Jax

He’s…

Oh my God he’s so far away right now.

I don’t even know how far away he is but I know it must be a lot because I can fucking see him now

All of him

He looks like a regular human floating a short distance away from the glass. I can finally see his fucking clothes properly, some kind of weird flowing orange-purple crop top and a long flowing skirt to go with it. He tentatively waves when my eyes meet his because of course he can see when my fucking germ sized eyes meet his planet sized ones over the how many millions of miles he just marathoned in his quest to make me feel more comfortable.

And goddammit I can’t believe it’s working.

He’s just…he’s so fucking sweet. And God, the face he’s making right now is so cute if he wasn’t the size of a goddamn galaxy, I’d squish his cheeks.

A half smile slowly worms its way onto my face and after a moment, he seems to relax too.

“Are you alright?” I know his mouth doesn’t move when he talks to me like this since he’s projecting his voice directly into my head but it’s still trippy to see, especially like this.

“I…think so.��

He smiles. “So now what? Do you want to just…talk like this for a while before you go back?”

“Dude. I didn’t go through months of space training and being questioned by the feds to just talk to you.”

The man’s smile grows.

-

After dancing around the subject for a while, I finally bite the bullet and leave the room to go put on a space suit even bulkier than the one I’m currently in. Jax is a constant nervous chatter in my head as I check the suit over and over and I try my best to reassure him even as my own heart rate steadily rises at the mere thought of what’s about to happen.

And once I’m finally done looking the suit over and over desperately for anything I can use to stall for just a second longer, I give up and make my way to the airlock.

There’s a palpable tension in the air now. I know exactly what’s on the other side of those heavy metal doors and it takes a second to even make myself bring a hand up to the panel.

I take a slow breath in

And a slow breath out

and then I press down.

The doors open and it takes only a second for the lack of pressure to kick in before I’m all but shot out into the black void that yawns open in front of me.

It takes some time to get my bearings now that gravity’s moot and for a while, I just try to stop spinning by any means necessary. Means in this case being flapping my arms and legs around until the universe finally stops spinning. At some point I can even hear Jax start to chuckle quietly in my head and it does not help.

But once I’m finally able to place myself, I take some time to take in my surroundings. Because God, they are stunning. The black void of space completely engulfs everything around me. It’s full of stars and what has to be a few unfamiliar planets all hanging in the empty space, dotting the dark backdrop with a massive array of colour and light. It’s…beautiful. Ethereal.

Completely silent.

There’s something quietly unsettling about it all, the way it doesn’t seem to end, the way I’m the only visible living being for miles, the way the silence is so palpable it makes my ears ring. Beautiful, yes but uncaring, lifeless

Lonely.

…what Jax must go through every single day of his life.

I can feel his gaze on my back, one that makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand and my latent survival instincts kick into overdrive.

The stare of a giant who holds the world.

And now there’s no magical barrier. No ship. No nothing.

It’s just me.

For a long time, I stare into the cosmos aimlessly until finally, a small whisper starts up in my head, the abruptness of it making me jump.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

I swallow, trying to find my voice. “…yeah, it is.”

There’s a long pause and I try to find something else to say to stop focusing on how hard my heart is beating.

“I…don’t recognize any of these planets. Never-,” I choke on my air for a moment but force myself to continue, “-never saw one with three rings around it like that.”

Jax is silent for a long moment.

“…Mia…you don’t have to-”

“Where are we?”

“…what?”

“I…I don’t recognize any of these planets so…where exactly are we, big guy?”

He’s quiet for a moment longer before “…I travel around, I guess. Your system is…well…it’s not habitable anymore so you guys just travel with me now.”

You guys

The entire population of Earth is just ‘you guys’ to him.

The idea is so inconceivably, horribly absurd to me that I almost burst out laughing, instead choking on my own spit as I forget to breathe for a few moments too long.

“…Mia?”

That voice in my head again, even quieter than before because, and the realization helps to ground me just a little, he’s hesitant, because he doesn’t want to scare me further or, God forbid, because my reaction actually scared him.

There’s something so undeniably human about the way Jax carries himself. In spite of his ridiculous size and the power he holds over billions of comparatively minuscule lives, he acts like a person. We’re all just ‘you guys’ to him. Equals, friends. Hell, I’m actually his friend. It’s insane. All of this in insane but-

after taking a few sharp inhales and trying to get my breathing back under control, I finally bring myself to start really looking around. Not for the scenery but for my gigantic friend.

And finally, I see him floating in the distance just as before, one of his hands cupped and the other hanging loosely at his side. I know what’s cupped in that hand but try not to think about it, instead focusing on the man himself. He doesn’t say anything but cocks his head slightly at me instead.

I quietly squeeze my hands before I speak again. “…so, how do you want to do this?”

“…you were having trouble breathing, M.”

There’s this deadness in his voice that makes me wince. I ignore him and try again, fighting to keep the shake out of my voice.

“How do you want to do this?”

“…I don’t think this is a good idea.”

We stare at each other for a long moment before I raise a hand and beckon him forward.

“You’re shaking, Mia.” He sounds close to tears, now visibly upset as he hangs in the dead of space.

“I’ll get over it.”

“No, you won’t.”

“Yes, I will.”

He looks like he wants to argue more but instead tries something else.

“I don’t want you to do something you don’t want to do.”

“That’s great, Jax, but I want to do this.”

He looks away.

“…Jeez dude, do you even want to do this?”

He nods slightly after a long moment.

“Then?”

“…I don’t want to make you panic again. …or you know…throw up.”

“THAT WAS A ONE TIME THING!”

Jax actually laughs a bit at that and I frown at him.

“You’re an ass, you know that? Now get over here.”

“Mmm.”

“Mmm?”

“…I don’t know…”

“Jax, I swear to God.”

He stares at me.

I stare at him.

After an unbearably long silence I just start swimming towards him and he almost immediately starts back peddling away from me frantically.

“YOU ARE AFRAID OF ME!” I yell as I keep up the pace.

“I’M AFRAID OF WHAT I CAN DO TO YOU!” he practically wails as his legs kick away from me. “IT’S NOT THE SAME!”

“IT MIGHT AS WELL BE, YOU DRAMA QUEEN! GET OVER HERE!”

I try to swim after him for a bit longer before he becomes little more than a speck in the distance and I stop to catch my breath with a sigh. Unfortunately, with that no longer my main focus, the creeping dread of space starts to get to me again. Beautiful and desolate. Completely silent.

…

My ears start to ring.

…

I only have a few small meals that were packed in case anything goes wrong. I’m not sure how much oxygen I have left but I know it’s not enough to live on.

Stranded.

The infinite darkness all around me, closing in.

Closing in.

Closing in.

“…JAX!”

My voice comes out a strangled cry and the pale dot in the distance immediately freezes. “Mia?” He sounds concerned.

“Don’t go. Please.”

There’s a long period of silence before he speaks again. “Oh! Oh no, I’m sorry, Mia, I didn’t mean it like...you’re not- I wasn’t going to- I’m sorry I just-” He cuts himself off, taking some time to get his thoughts in order before he speaks again. “I’m sorry, I’m coming back. I won’t leave you, I promise.”

With that, the speck in the distance slowly grows until once again I can make out a person. I can feel distant relief seeing another living thing.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers again.

“I…it’s ok, big guy.”

Jax watches me for a long moment before he speaks again. “I’ll do it.”

“Hmm?”

“I’ll come over to you and we can…touch.”

“Are you sure?”

He nods slightly.

“Okay.”

And so slowly Jax starts making his way over and as the figure of him grows and grows, a distant part of my brain starts screaming and after a second, Jax stops again.

“You’re scared again,” he says quietly.

I just use a now trembling hand to wave him over and he shakes his head.

“Mia, are you sure you want to do this? You really don’t have to force yourself. We can always just talk and I really appreciate you trying like this but-”

“Jax?” There’s a shake in my voice that I can’t quite fight down.

“…Mia?”

“Get over here.”

“…but I-”

I hold my arms out to him and he watches me for a long moment before slowly he starts moving again. His figure grows and grows in the middle distance but I remain frozen in the sky, arms held out in invitation, my heart beating faster and faster and my breaths struggling to catch up.

Jax pauses again. “…are you sure?”

Unable to form words, I just nod and Jax eventually starts moving again. The movement causes me to flinch and Jax stops, cocking his head slightly.

I’m about to beckon him again but

“…you…your hair is green and fluffy. You told me it’s dyed that colour and I think it really suits you.”

He’s whispering again. Continues his approach. It takes me a second to realize what he’s doing but as soon as it clicks, I close my eyes and focus on his words, a small smile starting to grace my lips at the familiarity.

“Your eyes are brown. Kind of a dark brown like…hmm…really dark chocolate.”

That gets a small chuckle out of me and he returns it in kind. There’s a noticeable change in the atmosphere now, like I’m starting to get pulled into a gravitational field. I know what’s causing it but just try to focus on the voice in my head.

“You’re…uh…you…said I was white so…”

I cough to warm up my throat. “…you can just say brown, big guy. It’s fine.”

“Brown then! And you’re…,” he stops to think about it for a second, “…uh…kinda skinny and muscular at the same time? I can’t see your body through the suit but I’ve seen you on Earth and you’re pretty strong, M.”

“Thanks.”

He hums in acknowledgement. “I…can’t see your clothes right now either, M but your…space suit I think it’s called?”

“Yeah.”

“Space suit then. It looks…well…um…”

“You can just say it looks like shit. It’s fine.”

Jax snorts at that. “I mean…I’ve seen worse. And…right now, your eyes are closed and you’re shaking badly but I know that you’re trying and well…”

There’s a long pause before with a jolt that makes my heart jump, I can feel something plush below my feet. I don’t open my eyes just yet.

“…there we go,” Jax whispers.

And so I slowly take a seat.

Take a deep, deep breath.

And finally,

open my eyes

And now I’m here.

Sitting on what it takes me way too long to recognize as the pad of a finger so massive it dwarfs the Earth.

I can’t really make out anything besides the massive black void that makes up what must be his pupil, stretching on and on in every direction like the night sky. Every time he blinks, I can hardly understand what’s happening and on some level, I’m distantly horrified as I stare back at him, the frozen death of space warded off only by the heat rising out of the endless stretch of flesh that makes up the pad of his finger. Every single groove of his fingerprint is like a bottomless chasm to me, my legs dangling off of one as I sit partially rooted to the surface below.

He blinks again and the night sky eclipses with it.

I’m literally nothing to this man.

Nothing at all and the fear is almost enough to make me want to gag but

He’s whispering quietly in my head again too, reassurances, using a voice I can comprehend and even as I can feel my eyes start to glaze over in fear, I can’t fight the smile that’s making its way onto my lips at the familiar voice muttering quietly in my head.

Because in spite of literally everything, he doesn’t want to scare me.

I know this man and he knows me.

Impossibly, I’m safe here

I finally force myself to move and use a shaking hand to rub the surface below me and the voice in my head stops in an instant, replaced with a small sigh as the massive eye in front of me closes in contentment.

“Oh,” is all he says after a long period of silence.

“Oh?” I finally make myself ask.

I hear a small sniff in my head and after a moment, he opens his eyes and my view is replaced by a black ocean suspended in the air in front of me.

He sniffs again and in that moment I want nothing more than to wrap my arms around him and never let go.

Which is…beyond impossible here but still, heart pounding, I hold my arms out to him instead.

He watches me for a long time, a blink sending what must be several oceans of water floating into the atmosphere but I hold my ground until finally the man speaks again.

“…I’m…not sure that’s a good idea, M.”

I just wave my arms at him again and he lets out a watery chuckle.

“I’m too big, Mia.”

“And I’m still waiting, big guy.”

“…I don’t want to hurt you.”

He sounds a little desperate so I finally drop my arms with a sigh. “Fine. In that case just stand still.”

“…what?”

“Trust me.”

He laughs at that. “…alright.”

That out of the way, I make myself stand up and examine the massive eye in front of me for a moment longer before I kick off of Jax’s finger and start swimming through the air.

“…uh, Mia?”

“Shush. I’m trying to prove a point here.”

Jax watches me swim through the air for an impressively long amount of time before he finally speaks again. “…if you’re trying to get somewhere, I could help you out?”

I look around and see that I’m basically exactly where I started.

“…fine.”

Jax laughs. “Where are you trying to go?”

“Just…your face I guess.”

“…oh.”

There’s silence for a long moment before everything starts moving again, the giant black globe rotating until it changes to grey and then a stark white, finally settling on a massive patch of flesh that must be the skin between Jax’s eyes. He then leans forward until the bridge of his nose lays a short distance away.

“Is that okay?” he asks quietly.

And I feel my heart warm up at that. And with that I can feel my hands start to twitch. Why is he so fucking cute? IT’S NOT FUCKING FAIR. I CAN’T EVEN SQUEEZE HIM LIKE- “I…yeah, actually. Thanks, big guy.”

I hear him hum in acknowledgment and literally want to kill him. He’s an incomprehensibly huge cosmic giant and it’s not fair not fair not fair not-

I start swimming towards him almost frantically and finally, FINALLY

I reach the man’s face and all but throw myself at him, grabbing as much of his skin as I can and rubbing the glass of my helmet against him.

“You…this is more…aggressive than I thought it would be. I…,” he lets out a small laugh, “…is this normal?”

I let out a small squeak and continue squeezing him and he chuckles in response. “You alright there, M?”

“No.” I finally manage.

“No?”

He sounds a little distressed so I try to clarify. “Jax, I’m fine. I just-,” I squeeze handfuls of flesh for as long as I can manage before letting go and wrapping my arms over as much of him as I physically can, “-GOD, I CAN’T.”

“You can’t?” he sounds more worried now and before I get worked up about that too, I try to calm myself down a little.

“Jax?”

“Mia?”

“You’re being fucking adorable right now and humans do this thing sometimes where if something is too cute it makes us want to hurt or kill them.”

“…so you’re trying to…kill me?”

“…uh,” I feel my arms tingle and know in my heart that I want to punch him repeatedly and also throw him into the sun, instead settling for hugging him tighter. “…not actually but…yes?”

“…oh? You…don’t feel like you’re trying to kill me though. You just seem a little…,” he cuts himself off to hum a little when I try to nuzzle him again, “…rough.”

“That’s ‘cause I have self-control.”

“Oh.”

There’s a long period of silence where I continue trying to awkwardly cuddle Jax to death and he enjoys the physical touch. Eventually though

“…we’re still friends then? You’re not actually trying to kill me?”

“Jax, oh my God, you’re killing me here.”

There’s a long pause and eventually I just frown.

“…We’re still friends. I’m not trying to kill you,” I deadpan and he chuckles.

“That’s a relief.”

He’s humming and crying and I’m trying to tear his skin off his body when something occurs to me.

“…wait, big guy.”

“Hmm?”

“You said you wanted to hug me too, right?”

“…Mia, the pad of my thumb is bigger than your planet.”

“So? I trust you.”

“You really shouldn’t.”

“Be untrustworthy then. See what happens.”

“…hmm.”

“Hmm?”

“…maybe some other time.”

“…what do you mean by that?”

Jax just chuckles and I frown.

“Hug me, man. It’s why I’m here.”

“I don’t want to kill you, Mia.”

“Then you won’t.”

I go back to squishing handfuls of his skin together in the silence that follows and eventually I feel more than see something approaching, the way the atmosphere seems to be physically moving away from some unknown threat. I try to focus on the movement of my hands against his skin instead.

“…Mia,” Jax finally says, “Your heart is-”

“Keep going.”

Jax is quiet for a long long time and I eventually drop the skin with a sigh. “If you want to touch me, Jax, keep going.”

Jax doesn’t immediately respond to this and so I try to soothe him by running a hand up and down the mass of flesh in front of me.

And finally

“Are you sure?”

“I am.”

More silence now.

I’m about to say something more when suddenly something bumps into the back of my helmet and propels me forward slightly, pressing me almost tenderly into the warm skin in front of me. Jax doesn’t say anything and for a long time and so neither do I, wrapping my arms around what I can of him once more as we soak each other in in the silence.

And as I feel the trembles running through what I assume to be Jax’s finger finally start to die down and I settle into him, I raise my head slightly and look to the general direction of where one Jax’s eye might be, trying to find my voice one more

“Hey,” I whisper to him.

“…hey,” he whispers back.

[justatinybunwriting]

Good luck with that bud!

I may do another round of this again, though with a combination of art and writing this time ^^

🍂PROMPTOBER 2023 🍂

Autumn is my favorite season creatively. October is my special girl. 🍄

Any and all are welcome to participate with art, writing, etc.

No rules, no pressure, just vibes 🍁🍂📚☕️🌥

[justatinybunwriting]

Goro the mother hen

Had to draw the scene from chapter 3 of Playing With Fire. Out of context it doesn't make much sense, but simply put, the Wile giant is trying to keep Aiden warm. Needless to say, the latter isn't too pleased xD

[justatinybunwriting]

Because I have just seen this specific thing for the second time, I would like to say:

If I reblog your art, I do not expect you to reblog (or share!) my fic in return

If I comment on your fic, I do not expect you to comment on (or read!) mine in return

My enjoyment of anyone's work does not come with strings or expectations

My friendship is not a bill that you will have to pay later

That's it!

[justatinybunwriting]

Playing with Fire 3

<<Previous chapter

Chapter 3: Orange

Word of the strange firebird that ascended towards the heavens had quickly spread far among the residents of the forest. Murmurs among the flock of the equally peculiar man who was the cause of this phenomenon had soon reached the ears of the Alpha Wile. The thought of what this could imply had become a pressing matter that trickled in the back of his mind, yet the ruler needed more evidence before any course of action could be implemented. His only option was to lie in wait, as he forwarded a task to his trusted lieutenant.

"See to it that you will bring this so-called, magician to me. I would like to have a, word with him."

Rikuo's voice was calm, yet Goro understood that it was a firm and direct order. The smaller Tengu bowed his head dutifully.

"Aye sir. Leave it to me."

Using Jac's tree hollow home as a haven, the witch and her Beta Wile friend had spent many days offering much needed provisions and support for their new guest. Goro loaned the magician some of his energy, doing so by covering him under his down much like that of a nesting mother. Other unorthodox methods were also used over time, such as skin remedies made of mud and other odd spells, which had greatly helped in speeding up the healing process. By the time of the new moon, Aiden had already recovered quite considerably. He still struggled to lift himself and was slower of pace, but he was rejuvenating faster than what would normally be possible even when putting magic into consideration.

One fateful morning, Jac walked into the magician's room with a basket of goodies in hand. She was surprised to see that Aiden was already on his feet, preparing a wizard robe that had likely been repaired by his own magic. When questioned, the magician merely replied. "I must be going soon. I don't want to burden you for too much longer."

"You're leaving? Why?"

"There's a whole wide world out there, full of people who would love to see my performances! I can't stay put for too long, for a great magician needs to spread his talents far and wide! My audience awaits--"

"You can't be serious!" Jac cuts in. "Remember what they did to you back there?"

"Yeah..." Aiden mumbled, though he perked back up right after. "But the world, Jac! Think about it! I could travel to different villages across the vast plains and beyond the ocean yonder... And I can put on one show after another after another and bedazzle the crowd with my infernal crafts! I can picture it now..."

As he spoke these words, he began to immerse himself in the whimsy of his thoughts, as if he was proudly standing on stage with thousands of people seated around him. The various moments of his tricks had bled out into reality, as he waved his hands and spun around in a sort of trance. He was humming a little tune to top it off. To this display, Jac could only shake her head.

"You expect things will be different? If you ask me, I don't think it's worth the risk of dodging the human enforcers at every corner! You could wind up seriously hurt again! Or..."

"Relax, I've survived this long!" Aiden said as he continued his dance. "I'll be a-okay! Don't swea--"

Suddenly the magician involuntary swung his foot forward, which snagged on his cape and caused him to nearly tumble. Had it not been for the armrest he had clung onto he would have fallen face flat on the wooden floor. Frazzled and a bit confuddled, Aiden was pulled up by Jac as she began to walk him to the very bed he dreaded ever going back to.

"You certainly don't look like you're in any shape to be traveling far yet!" Jac remarked. "C'mon now, your body still needs rest! I don't think it'll hurt to stay for little bit longer."

Aiden grew crestfallen, though he was good at hiding it from his friend. The magician was rather frustrated at himself, for deep down he sorely wished to be free of the doldrums that came with staying in the same room for the past half month or so. He could have sworn that he had healed so much faster in the past. He turned his head towards the hollow window and sighed. He wanted more than anything at this moment to soak in a little sunshine, at the very least.

"I won't leave yet, but... if I may be honest? A change of scenery would be nice..." Aiden finally said. "Will it be alright if I stepped out for a bit of fresh air at least?"

"If your body is up to the task, then I don't see why not. We can go about this one step at a time." Jac gave it some thought, before her eyes lifted up wide. "Oh! And when you're feeling better, I could give you a tour of the entire forest if you'd like! There are landmarks and all sorts of places we could visit! Like the Umbra Falls. Solemn Peak has a lovely view in the springtime. Or how about--"

Aiden could only give out a sigh in response. The magician could tell that Jac perked right up when the prospect of showing him around as addressed. She was already treating him like a formal citizen of the forest, despite not knowing if the other residents would take kindly to him, not that he planned to stay long enough to find out. It really seemed like she was enthusiastic over wanting him to stay for more than just the safety reason that was given. It didn't surprise him if the monotony had gotten to her too.

The fresh forest air greeted them when they walked out of the tree hollow door, and the magician basked in the soft rays that tried their best to penetrate through the thick groves above. Aiden was carefully taking his time, with Jac staying one step behind him to ensure no stumbles would be repeated on the path. Despite this they did manage to walk a good ways through the wood, with Aiden's stride steadily growing stronger with every step. Indeed, this was just what he needed.

As they trekked, they continued to talk about a multitude of little things, from magic to nature, and of life itself. Their chatter was the one bright spot that got Aiden through the turbulence of the last few days, one that he greatly appreciated. Soon the topic of socializing came about, which gave the magician the chance to prove if his hunches were correct.

"Do you miss it? Being able to... connect with people, and travel anywhere you want?"

"Hell no!" Jac scoffed. "I'm done with all of that, especially after the hell I went through before I arrived here. So no thanks! This place is as close to a real life paradise as it gets! You have all the food you can eat, you never get cold or hot, it's like a dream come true!"

"But..." Aiden looked around and subtly pointed out how eerily quiet it was. Not a single chirp or sound. "...Doesn't it get lonely?"

That seemingly innocuous question caught the witch off guard. "N-no!" Jac stuttered, before she collected herself again. "I have... I have the Wiles! Goro is the nicest person I've ever met. And... um..." Aiden blinked a few times as Jac placed a hand under her chin. "Hm... A-sushi is... unreadable. I don't know him that well. Soju is, ok... Haru is an asshole. Richard is worse... yet somehow better? It's hard to explain..."

As she was struggling with that, Aiden put his hands behind his head and chuckled. "Maybe this works best for you... you can be happy here, and free. But for me? My life is out there! I am a wanderer at heart. And I have a mission I must fulfill."

"A mission?" Jac questioned.

Aiden took off his hood, revealing the messy orange hair underneath. " Truth is... I don't have animosity against humans, even after what happened. For I know that for a time, humans once embraced magic, and looked up to those of us with the gift of wielding it... The world needs a positive outlook on magic again. Because..." Aiden took a deep breath and gave out a long sigh from his nose.

"If those... fanatics keep having their way, then sooner or later, magic will cease to exist in the world! I can't imagine what our future would be like without it! The world may turn into something... cold... and, unrecognizable..."

Jac looked down on her feet and trembled at the thought herself. "That sounds horrifying... But at least we'll still have the forests! And the mountains and caves and other fae havens. So long as there are good places like this, I'm sure magic will continue to thrive!"

"If these battles keep happening, then I'm not so sure.." Aiden sighed. "That's why I took it upon myself... to be that someone who can show them the truth even with the risks involved. If I can make at least a little bit of a difference with my performances, even if I merely change the hearts of a few, then... it will still be worth it for me."

Just then, the sound of cracking bark could be heard nearby. Aiden was rattled enough to stop on his tracks, as Jac went in front of him to stand guard. Her stance lessened in a few seconds however, when a familiar giant bird came into view.

"Goro-chan!" Jac exclaimed happily.

The Beta Wile greeted Jac with open wings, though at the same time Aiden chose to keep a considerable distance. Goro's sharp eye could see the timid one clearly as the former gave a cheeky smile.

"I see that you are well enough to be moving on your own, Aiden." He said.

The sorcerer shivered. "Uh... thank you once again for saving me..." his voice grew quieter, "please, I don't need your energy anymore. I'm fine! See?"

Aiden then whipped around with his star patterned cape flowing behind him. He wobbled a bit before he quickly regained his balance, his chin held high throughout. "See? I'm getting better! You reallly don't have to roost next to me like I'm some kind of baby chicken again!"

Goro had to chuckle aloud. "There's no need for that anymore. I can assure you. You should be able to heal on your own from here on out."

"Thank the suns..." Aiden coughed. "I'll admit, that was a bit, humiliating..."

Smiles and laughter swept over everyone's faces, which made Goro even more hesitant to say his next words. He really wanted to give the magician more time, but alas, the master's order took top priority. The Tengu had to give out an abrupt ahem before making his announcement.

"Aiden, the time has come where I must inform you," Goro paused briefly before continuing, "that whenever you are able, our master Rikuo has requested to have an audience with you."

"Oh suns..." Aiden grumbled.

"What?!" Jac yelled. "Why?! This is the first I'm hearing of this!"

"Second time for me actually..." Aiden confessed.

Jac whipped her head to the side. "Seriously? Why didn't you tell me? Is this why you were so bent on leaving?"

"Well!... It's not the only reason, but it's uh.." Aiden shrugged nervously,..."it's why I'm in a hurry, heheh."

"Oh my gawd." Jac fumed. "What the hell does Richard want with him?" She beckoned for Goro to lean closer, which he complied forthwith. She then whispered rather harshly into his ear. "He can't be thinking about eating--"

"Nonono! I highly doubt that!" Goro interrupted. "I believe he just wants to talk this time."

Jac chose to showcase her frustration by folding her arms rather than to explode in a profanity ridden rant, for Aiden's sake. The latter then crept closer to the Beta Wile as he spoke with a slight quiver.

"Will he... take no for an answer? Heheh..."

Goro sighed through his nose and spoke firmly. "I'm afraid we do not have a say on that matter. So long as you remain in this forest, you will have to abide by the command of its ruler."

"To hell with that!!" Jac exclaimed.

"Well!" Aiden said in a slightly higher voice. "I... guess this means I better get a move on after all! Heheh..."

"Aiden no!" Jac exclaimed. "If we have to do this, then Richard will have to go through me first! Trust me, I can handle the guy."

"I, believe you." Aiden replied upfront, though this did nothing to calm his nerves. Jac then took one of his hands and squeezed it tight.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure to not let him lay a single claw on you. He'll be getting a fist full of flames if he tries!"

"...Thanks Jac..." Aiden sighed.

"A fist full of flames, you say?"

The two friends jumped at the sound of that voice, and even Goro was taken by surprise. All of a sudden a strong gust around them whipped across the field in a startling cold snap. Not even a few seconds would pass before their entire view was covered by a massive shadow that zipped overhead. This was followed by a loud and heavy thump that rattled the forest like a small tremor, as a familiar black bird much larger than Goro stood before them with wings spread wide. Jac marched forward with a livid huff as she placed herself between the magician and the enormous king of the forest. The pupils of the monster's eyes were needle sharp, likely caused by reflection of the surrounding light, yet the sight of their menacing gleam had caused Aiden to flinch on the spot nonetheless.

"Hello Jac." The Alpha Wile crooned.

"Richard, why the hell are you here!!" Jac roared.

"First of all, stop calling me that. Second, this is my domain, and I can come and go as I please." As the Alpha spoke, his quaint smile grew ever wider. "I told Goro that I would meet up with our 'guest' if he failed to fetch him by this time."

Goro then bowed in apology, both to his master and simultaneously to Jac for not informing her sooner. The Alpha Wile then turned his attention towards the magician who feebly hid himself behind the witch.

"So this is the little fire bird." The Alpha Wile spoke with a cat like voice. "Why don't you be a good little... man and come closer?"

"Over my dead body!!" Jac intervened.

As the Alpha Wile stepped forward, Jac made sure to stand in his way. Size made no difference in her stance, for she was still effective at putting some distance between the two. The monster bird gave his most placid expression, returning Jac's frown with a warm grin. The witch was used to that look however.

"I can assure you, Jac, that I will not hurt him." The leader of the Tengu Wiles said softly. "The new arrival is not a mere human, far from that in fact. That automatically makes him, well... free from my wrath."

Jac still wasn't convinced. Meanwhile, Aiden was given enough time to take a few breaths as he slowly calmed himself to a more manageable level. It still pained him that he had to go along with whatever the Alpha had planned for him, but he had already accepted that the opportunity to sneak out of this mess had long since passed. It was best to get it done and over with, even if it meant he had to suck in as much courage as he could handle up to this point.

As Jac had done to him prior, Aiden expressed his gratitude and his willingness to stand up for himself by gently squeezing the witch's left hand.

"It's okay." He said. "I believe him... I, can handle this."

Jac continued to cautiously leer at the black feathered fiend, although her stance had mellowed somewhat. "You promise you won't do nothing. No funny business, all right?"

The Alpha Wile grew silent for a few seconds before replying. "You have my word."

Jac continued to stand on guard for a moment longer, though it was ultimately Aiden who made the first move by walking away from her cover. Whether his decision to approach the Alpha Wile was a brave or foolish one, the magician knew not. Despite how he felt, that it was now or never.

"Okay... I think I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

The Alpha's smile had spread ever wider, and made for an unsettling look.

"I knew you'd come around."

****

The interview took place at the heart of the Wile's base, deep within the tunnels where the king's nest resided. The other Wiles of the flock had all gathered within the shadowy corridors, ready to assist at their Alpha's beck and call. Most of them chose to distance themselves as they gazed upon the sorcerer warily, with at least one of the Beta Wiles apprehensively raising the feathers on his back in a fight or flight response. Goro was given the order to hold Jac back with a wing claw in his own corner of the tunnel; while far removed, the witch maintained a sharp eye on the much too large avian throughout the interrogation. No matter how convincing his sweet talk was, she knew Richard still had a wild side to him.

At first the master Tengu craned his neck to scan the magician front and back, which did not help to keep the latter's nervousness in control.

"What happened here?" Rikuo gasped lightly. "That is a nasty seal..."

Aiden gulped as the Alpha looked him straight in the eyes. "What shall I call you?"

"If... I may be selfish, this once... I can't give away my name so readily, sir..." the magician tried his best to suppress his trembling. "B-basic wizard rule."

"Fair enough." Rikuo replied. "'Thou are to not give out thy name, lest thou be easily manipulated through means of enchantment.' I am well aware of that law. So then, how shall I address you?"

Aiden took a moment to steel himself before he put on his stage moxie. He took in a deep breath, and within a few seconds, his eyes opened revealing a level of confidence he had not shown before. With a wave of his cape and a bow, he spoke from his chest without wavering.

"I am... known as the great pyromancer! A magician of the infernal arts! Yet I am but a humble showman, and my passion is to capture the hearts of people around the world as I bedazzle and enrich them with the wonders of my fiery spells!"

"How interesting." Was Rikuo's response. "May I ask you to share a demonstration of your talents?"

Aiden's eyes darted swiftly between his hands and the monster bird as a slight hint of fear darted over his head. But just was those feelings sought to overwhelm him, the magician took another deep breath and used this momentum to do as he was told. A smoke-less fireball then magically appeared that hovered just above the sorcerer's index finger. He flung it in the air as he gracefully maneuvered it to dance between his arms like that of a will-o-the-wisp, all the while the Alpha Wile remained silent as he carefully took in the wondrous sight.

As I suspected... a master of his craft...

Throughout this conversation, alarm horns had already sounded off in Jac's head. She was familiar with Richard enough to know he was not the type to be charmed by flashy stunts, magic or otherwise. And on top of this, his speech here seemed... off.

"What are you plotting?" Jac muttered.

Goro's ear was close enough to hear her admittedly valid reaction, to which he gave out a short sigh in response. Jac raised an eyebrow to him accusingly.

"Do you know something?" The witch whispered.

Goro said nothing in the first half minute, before he finally answered. "I... believe it's time you learn that Aiden is, not what he seems."

At the same time, Aiden's fireballs had increased to ten as he began to juggle them with relative ease. This dazzling spectacle reached its climax in a few minutes time, however not in the way the magician expected. One by one the flames fizzled out, with only a single fire remaining. Aiden's head was drenched in sweat, but he still had momentum to take a bow as proper.

"I could show more," said the magician, as he briefly gasped for air, "but I still need more time to recover it seems, heheh.."

Rikuo looked upon the pyromancer with calculating eyes before he gave out a slightly unnerving smirk.

"Perhaps I can help you with that." He replied cryptically.

At his master's call, Souji swooped down to present a wooden stick before returning to the shadows as swiftly as he arrived. Rikuo took it by the wing claw and brought it up close to Aiden's face.

"Tell me now, does this look familiar?"

Aiden tilted his head in confusion as he gazed at the staff of burned wood, but after a moment his eyelids shot up wide. The sorcerer then took the last fireball above his fingertip and carefully placed it on top, which instantly caused that part of the stick to bloom into life like a small, fiery flower. Warm and delicate, and oddly familiar.

"What is this...?" Aiden gasped. "Normally my fire should engulf it completely..."

Rikuo smiled. "Indeed. Would it surprise you that a human came with this torch in hand? Such dubious circumstances really. It was as if fate had gifted me with the acquisition of such a profound magical artifact. One that actually holds the key..."

The master Tengu then closed in until his head was just beside the magician's body. His whispers were as soft as rain, yet as dark as twilight.

"...to your awakening."

The very essence of these words had caused the temperature in Aiden's head to drop a few degrees. His tried his damndest to speak as his heartbeat intensified, but not a single sound would escape the magician's mouth. This gave the Alpha ample opportunity to snake talk.

"There's no sense in hiding it anymore... The might of your internal flame, the power of what it chooses to burn... indeed you are more than just a mere magician." The feathered fiend slowly coiled his neck to surround the trembling sorcerer as he continued. "Tell me, great 'pyromancer', do you recall spreading your wings and souring to the highest of heights? Does your fiery soul wish to burn even brighter than the nearest star?"

The sorcerer's mouth grew slightly agape before it slackened wide, as a new sense of dread unlike any prior to this meeting enveloped him like a sudden storm.

"You know these binds were made to do more than just limit your true potential." The Wile whispered. "There is a reason why you are not healing as quickly as you would be normally... That is why I want to help you. I only ask..." he said as he placed a wing claw under Aiden's chin, "that you give your name, and your full devotion to me. Temporarily, or longer if you so choose. Indeed you could become a valuable member of the flock. Though I grant that choice to be yours."

These words shook the foundation of Aiden's very core, so much so that he nearly collapsed on the spot. Sensing her friend's anguish, Jac shot up from her position.

"What the hell did you say to him?!" she yelled. "Give him some space! He's suffocating!!"

Jac rushed to be by Aiden's side as Richard, surprisingly, did as he was told. The magician allowed the passage of time to recuperate and was thankful that the folks around him gave him the space to do so. There was a lot to unpack in the Alpha's words as they continued to echo in the back of his mind even as he had come to. At this time however, the sorcerer was much more concerned about how Jac took the news, as he sensed that she was behind him even before he looked back. Soon the magician slowly stood up and turned to meet the witch's face with a solemn smile. There was a sense of guilt in his expression, as if he felt like he had betrayed her in some way.

"I... guess you know now." He uttered. "I... I'm sorry... for not saying anything sooner..."

Jac just shook her head with a smile on her face, which brightened up Aiden's mood more than he realized.

"I don't really care about that." She said calmly. "Whether you're a Wile or human doesn't make any difference to me. I'm sure there was a good reason for it, so I won't judge."

"Truth is," Aiden sighed. "I've always known that I was a Wile... But, I barely remember anything of it. My life as I am now is pretty much all I'm used to..." He looked down on the dirt below and began to kick his heel in stimulation, which helped him gain more energy to get his words across. "This was a lot to process... Never in my wildest dreams would I... have guessed I was avian like you guys... On one hand I'm... curious about that. To be able to fly... and to travel great distances in a short span of time? That sounds like it could be the experience of a lifetime.. And yet..."

Aiden dropped to his knees and began to fold onto himself once more, though not as tightly. "What if I change? I could become dangerous, especially to humans, and that's... counterintuitive to everything I stand for... How am I to show the world that magic is meant to be beneficial when I become the very thing that people fear?"

"It's lamentable how badly the humans have bewitched you." The Alpha Wile mumbled.

"Shut it, Richard!" Jac exclaimed to the bird, before returning to Aiden with a softer glance. She took a moment to come up with the right words, before she spoke softly. "Goro has enlightened me to a lot of what's going on. Do you know who did it? The one who sealed you in your human form?"

"No." Aiden replied. "It must have happened before my memories were wiped."

"If my readings are correct, it remains." Rikuo announced. "Unbinding your soul will help you to regain everything you have lost. Your memories, your magic, and your full lifespan. You have more to gain than not from this."

"For once, I'm in agreement." Jac replied. She sat down on her knees next to the still humbled magician, and with the latter's permission, she held a hand to his back. "I don't think you need to worry. All the things you've said to me earlier, about your mission... I can tell that your heart was poured into those words! I believe that no matter what happens, you won't turn against humans. Even if this, seal or whatever it is, is broken... you'll still largely be your old self!"

"You think so?" Aiden asked, as his intrusive thoughts were gradually getting the better of him. "What if I snap?... Or turn ravenous! Or..."

"Easy now..." Jac gave it a brainstorm, but in the end she chose to reply to his question honestly. "I can't say for certain that you won't ever do those things. But frankly? I think you'll be fine. You're too good natured to be a monster. Besides, if Goro and most anyone here is any indication, you'll only turn feral as a last resort to protect someone. It matters not what they are, but who."

"...You think so?"

"I know so!"

A long sigh from Aiden was all that left his mouth, to which Jac responded by giving his back a rub. He in truth appreciated his friend's reassurances more than he could verbally express, and it had helped to part the clouds in his head as time went on.

Eventually Aiden stood up and addressed the Alpha without looking at his face directly.

"I... need time, if that's alright. I need to process everything... and... prepare."

The Alpha's smile was back, however small. "Very well then. I will permit a few moons time, or longer if necessary. When you are ready, you shall meet me at sundown at this very spot. That is when the unbinding ritual shall commence!"

Aiden stood with his face towards the ground for a few moments longer, for he couldn't shake the strange feeling he had whenever "unbinding" was brought up. Regardless, he chose to suppress those feelings, as he took a few deep breaths and slowly looked up to the giant with a renewed conviction.

"I guess I gotta." He finally said. "Honestly, if anything, I do look forward to soaring in the sky."