#'the boy who cried wolf' is a long-standing story for a reason | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

nellie-elizabeth · 6 months ago

Text

Grey's Anatomy: Burn It Down (20x10)

Ughhhh. Wow. That was not a good finale for me, for a lot of reasons.

Cons:

Gosh, where to even start, my list of grievances is so long. I guess let's go with a couple of the smaller irritants first: Jo being pregnant is such a no from me. And her not telling Link about it? What? Yeesh. I guess I'm glad that her dramatic passing out was just exhaustion and that she's fine, just pregnant, but I'm also very grumbly about the whole thing. It does seem like this show prioritizes storylines that I'm less interested in, and pushes aside the things that would really compel me.

Case in point number two, Lucas and his future fate. I wanted to be moved by everyone showing up to plead his case in front of Catherine, and in a way I was: good on Bailey and the interns for standing up to Catherine Fox, she badly needs to be told she's overstepping, honestly. But Lucas is just so fundamentally uninteresting to me, that the idea that the cliffhanger of the whole season is "but what about Lucas's career" just... sucks, from an investment perspective. Yasuda and Kwan and Jules are at this point far more interesting to me, and I like Simone a lot when she's not tied up in Lucas's drama. I'm just bummed about where the story investment is going, is I guess what I'm saying.

There's been a lot of retreading familiar ground this season, as I think at least for some of the characters, this show is really showing its age. Never have I felt that more than with Richard. Holy shit, Richard's role in this episode pissed me off like you wouldn't believe. The wishy-washy way he's almost retired or stepped back from surgery over the years makes every story like this feel like the boy who cried wolf, but honestly? Fingers crossed he actually finally fucking retires. Why? Well, so we can stop hearing about it, for one, and also... he killed a man???

I was honestly flabbergasted by the handling of this patient's death in this episode. The fact that Richard can wax philosophical about his past and say "it might really be time for me to put down the scalpel" after he realizes he made a totally preventable mistake and it resulted in a patient's death is just... so off, tonally, to me. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Isn't this the kind of shit that should get Richard, and the hospital, into big, big trouble? Should we have seen the consequences through the reactions of this dead man's family or something? It just felt so flat! Someone tell Mika and Jules that they're not responsible for this man's death! And someone take Richard's badge away from him. Go on, Catherine, you're kicking every damn body else out of this joint, why not add your husband who clearly can't do his job anymore?

Before we get to Catherine, and oh boy are we getting to Catherine, let's talk about Bailey. I love Bailey, I love Ben, but this was another story that felt like such a retread of things we've seen a million times. Bailey being affected by Ben's job, worried about him constantly, it's nothing new - we see it all the time, whenever they want to amp up the potential drama here. Ben, evidently, survives the finale of Station 19, so I think hopefully we can put this to rest. I'm seeing rumblings that Ben might be coming back to surgery and thus jumping back over to Grey's. Wouldn't be mad about it, to be honest. Let's set this whole firefighter husband worry behind, for Bailey.

Then there's Nick and Meredith. Not much to say about this. I find them boring. I don't get why Meredith is invested in him. He is a nothing character with nothing interesting about him whatsoever. I hate that because of Meredith's part-time status on the show, we're probably just going to keep seeing the two of them go along in their boring relationship for the rest of however long this show goes. I wish Meredith could have been sunsetted off the show with a character I give a damn about.

And last but not least in my long list of complaints... yeah. Catherine Fox. You know, I've struggled to figure out my distaste for this character for a long time. Grey's is filled with brilliantly complicated characters, in particular it's filled with women who do bad things for good reasons, or even for bad ones, women who have egos and ambitions, women who refuse to fill a palatable role to make everyone comfortable. I'm fine with a flawed character, I'm fine with Catherine being in the wrong sometimes. But yowza! Her ego trip, her inflated sense of her own importance... I cannot with her! Do you know how much a character has to be pissing me off for me to take Owen's side on something? But when he snapped at her to let Teddy help with the surgery, I was cheering him on!

The pettiness of taking Meredith and Amelia's research away and giving it to Tom Koracick? Now, don't get me wrong, if this means we'll see Tom next season in some capacity, I'm all for it, but in terms of Catherine's actions here? It's aggravating beyond compare. Her playing politics with information that could actually save so many lives? Her complete lack of awareness that she's the one who fucked up by trying to silence Meredith in the first place? The absolutely petty move of cutting Owen's badge access off, along with Teddy's and Amelia's? Like, what the fuck did Owen do except snap at you a little bit for trying to stand in the way of a firefighter's life being saved? The audacity of her firing him too for that? Seemingly? Yeesh. Take several seats, Catherine Fox.

Pros:

Despite my many complaints about this episode, there were actually several moments I enjoyed just fine.

Catherine being annoying did allow for Owen to be a badass, and for Meredith to be even more of a badass. When Catherine says she's just like her mother, Meredith says "good, that means I'll win." Hell yeah, Mer. You tell her.

I also love Amelia so much, and I think the friendship between Amelia and Owen is honestly very charming and mature, so good for both of them there? I loved when Amelia asked him for advice and Owen said that she'd never taken his advice before, so why start now? He does eventually tell her that he personally wouldn't be giving the research to Tom Koracick, but that's just because he has extremely legitimate reasons to hate that dude.

I'm grieving hardcore for Yasuda not sticking around next season, and I hope there's a way for her contract to get renegotiated or something! Because that Yasuda and Jules almost kiss? Yes please? I haven't felt this invested in a romance that probably won't even happen in a long time on this show. But even without it being definitively a romantic thing, I love their friendship so much. I hope someone tells them right away that they aren't responsible for the death of that patient!

I'm still not "on board", exactly, for the Winston/Monica thing, but I suppose I can enjoy it for the drama for the time being? I do want Winston to be able to find happiness, honestly. I just hope Amelia/Monica is a thing we get to see in the future, too.

I'm also still in denial about Schmitt leaving next season, but I did like how annoying he was in this episode, honestly. He can be kind of a lot to handle, and I like that he's allowed to be a little more openly frustrating sometimes. Him being annoyed with Jo for not telling him she's pregnant was such a funny bit, as he realized what he had inadvertently done.

As boring as I find Lucas, I did like the little plot thread where he helps with the app to connect people who are trying to find each other. And I like that Dorian is finally discharged from the hospital - a happy ending for that patient was sorely needed after everything he's been through!

So... yeah. All in all, I'm annoyed with this episode. I'm annoyed with Catherine, I'm annoyed that Jo's pregnant, I'm annoyed that everyone's focused on Lucas, I'm bored by Nick. I'm happy that Dorian got discharged, and I'm happy that Meredith is standing up for herself, I guess? We'll be back for hopefully a bit longer of a season twenty-one. And we'll find out what the heck is going on with Kwan's amnesiac ex-fiancee... man, this show can be endearingly ridiculous sometimes.

6/10

#review #grey's anatomy #grey's anatomy review #greys anatomy #greys anatomy review #grey's abc #greys abc

12 notes · View notes

faithsbookdiary · 3 years ago

Text

Come Back to Me: BELLE is a journey of rediscovery

I cried in the theater. Ugly cried. I was by myself in a one o'clock showing on a weekday, so I figured I had every reason to be as loud as I wanted, and I did not hold back.

I'm an avid fan of Mamoru Hosoda and Studio Chizu's work. That, with the combination of Beauty and the Beast being my favorite fairytale princess story of all time, made the anticipation of Belle unbearable.

I've been waiting for this movie to come to the US since its announcement in December of 2020. I watched The Boy and the Beast in 2016, a trip that forced my sister to drive me some odd 50 miles to the nearest theater that was showing it. Mirai was an emotional force of nature (part nightmare fuel with that top-of-second-act train nonsense) that I enjoyed in the comforts of my own bed. We don't need to mention Summer Wars or Wolf Children or The Girl Who Leapt Through Time. We know.

These gorgeous films are just a few of the many that have risen in the wake of Studio Ghibli's success, and each one tells emotion-driven stories of rediscovery and family and wonder. Actually, I shouldn't compare them to Studio Ghibli; Hosoda has once again proven that his style and storytelling is more than capable of standing apart on its own two legs, and fantastically so.

GKIDS tagline for Belle, for those unfamiliar:

Suzu is a shy, everyday high school student living in a rural village. For years, she has only been a shadow of herself. But when she enters “U”, a massive virtual world, she escapes into her online persona as Belle, a gorgeous and globally-beloved singer. One day, her concert is interrupted by a monstrous creature chased by vigilantes. As their hunt escalates, Suzu embarks on an emotional and epic quest to uncover the identity of this mysterious “beast” and to discover her true self in a world where you can be anyone.

At the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, Belle received fourteen minutes of standing ovation. And rightly so. Belle tackles a heart-wrenching narrative of a freckled princess and her beast that have faced both trials and the need to escape them, and as much as this is a story of coming together to overcome obstacles, this is also a story of rediscovery, healing, and personal growth.

Buckle up for a very long and thorough deep dive as to why this movie was such a special experience for me!

THE FOLLOWING CONTENT WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS OF BELLE.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

What initially attracted me to Mamoru Hosoda's films was the beastly aspect to them. Belle from Beauty and the Beast was my favorite Disney princess growing up because she thrived in a story that focused on inner beauty and the process of forgiving past behaviors and mistakes, a "good girl x bad boy" cliche dressed up in beautiful gowns and monstrous creatures and books (lots and lots of books). It was another example of how love could heal deep emotional wounds.

Any version of this story was welcome in my rolodex of fairytales, so imagine my excitement upon discovering that most of Hosoda's films herald beastlike creatures, whether that's through internet personas or beast men in a parallel world or child werewolf transformations. Hosoda likes to approach humanity by contrasting people to their animalistic counterparts, because that's what we are: animals with our own version of order. It's especially telling when the true monsters of the film are human- that evil is a human-constructed concept, that you can't truly judge a book by its cover, etc. etc. I'd love to make a series of Hosoda's movies for this blog and address the use of beasts as one of his central themes, but that's for another post. I'll get there.

Where The Boy and the Beast touches on a world of beastsxhumans and loosely ties the narrative of Beauty and the Beast- because there has to be some connection there, a familial one- Belle is a direct retelling. I kept looking for the telltale signs of the classic and unconsciously made comparisons between the two. Belle's entrance to the castle was reminiscent of Disney's. The roses were present, though their functions were different. Beast's room was torn to shreds, a rejection of a past haunting him. There's a rescue scene; despite his harshness and initial inability to accept his mistakes, the Beast is altruistic, and doesn't let his negativity cloud his judgement when it's essential. There's a gorgeous, iconic dance between the two. I can go on and on, but my point is that Belle is definitely Beauty and the Beast.

But as well as the narrative keeps true to its plot points, Hosoda turns the classic on its head. This isn't a romance (this doesn't include the little side plots of crushes sprinkled in) but a story of platonic love, one rooted to a deep sense of care and empathy. One of Hosoda's strengths is his exploration of love outside of the romantic, as most of our own connections to the people in our lives lie in the realm outside of our significant other.

Belle's motivation was also a refreshing twist compared to the original. The Belle in Disney's film was led by her curiosity (and her eventual love) towards The Beast, which originates from the small seeds of kindness in him and her ability to transform his selfishness and pain into care. Hosoda's Belle, on the other hand, was motivated by her sympathy. She recognized the Beast's pain as her own, and unconsciously realized that if she could heal his emotional wounds, she could heal hers.

That's what I love about this movie, and why it's a stand-out among its collection of other retellings: Belle isn't a movie about fixing someone else but about healing yourself. Our titular character is not bored of her provincial town or looked at weirdly for reading books or belittled for her larger-than-life ideas- she's in her own pain, in her own castle, facing her own demons, "a shadow of herself."

There are many things to explore in this film. The animation? Superb. Gorgeous. We got whales- another popular Hosoda theme. Alternate realities/personas? Check. How media transforms the accessibility of a crafted world, and how that connectivity differs from large-to-small scales? Sure. Belle is also a story about a normal (albeit shy and detached) girl with the sudden pressure and burden of becoming a global sensation overnight, and as much as I want to tackle this and everything else, I've managed to pace myself and condense my many thoughts into the five concepts/themes that impacted me the most, disguised as songs from Belle's own setlist because I saw an opportunity and I took it.

"U"

Belle is built on a vibrant virtual reality called U, an alternate scape that boasts an expansive internet society full of countless possibilities. The avatars (AS) are "automatically generated based on personal biometric information", and promises an opportunity to start over, a second chance at life. It doesn't explicitly state that you can be whoever you want to be, but we can all read between the lines. U is everyone's dream escape from the cruel reality we live in, and when Suzu is given her chance, she takes it. Of course she does. She knows that her life isn't satisfactory.

Despite the appeal of a second life, it's interesting how users aren't given a choice over their persona. Some of the users look monstrous, and I wonder if it was a theme that some easily accepted knowing that it was their own biometrics that built that image. Suzu's biometrics give her Belle, the gorgeous princess that even she wasn't sure belonged to her (but sweetie those are your freckles!!), which ends up becoming a visual representation of what Suzu is like on the inside- she's kind, sensitive, talented, gorgeous. The beast is also a shadow of his true self- a poor kid angry at the world he has to endure. I wonder, however, if the two would have looked differently if they were given a choice?

U offers that escape from reality, sure, but it only does so by presenting a different one, one that almost seems more vulnerable. It touches at the deepest roots of oneself and draws out hidden strengths and potential, like Suzu's ability to sing in the virtual world instead of the real one. The initial idea I had about U was that it was that chance to be different, that there's a general fear of being "unveiled" and revealing your true self, but isn't that backwards? Isn't your true self the one that's deep in your core, the one that only you know? The one that AS ends up building?

I walked into this section totally ready to tear down the concept. I had this idea of "if U was about being anyone you want to be, then what happens to the theme of accepting oneself?" But what Hosoda did sent me on a loop. Suzu knew who she was all along, but her trauma and self-esteem prevented her from being that person. U gave her the chance to step out of that shadow, and eventually embrace it during her own unveiling.

The contradiction of accepting yourself by becoming someone else somehow contradicts itself: Suzu's transformation was not a step away but a homecoming, and allowed her to fall back in love with the person she already was.

Here, I'll introduce a common thread that I've found while listening to the songs I've chosen on repeat: all of the songs have a common line between them. Suzu's "lalalas" scattered throughout her music are symbolic of her return to singing, the skill that sent her into U to find. Our opening song "U" starts us off with a rapid "lalalai/lalalai", a confident bell-like opening ringing in the beginning of Suzu's journey to reunite herself with her passion.

"GALES OF SONG"

The reveal of Belle's arrival to U, "Gales of Song" is a number teeming with anticipation. Suzu had just brought the audience along for her traumatic backstory of loss and grief, and we got to know our mousy high schooler who didn't think much of herself in the wake of her peers. She has a desire to sing, but trauma prevents her (emotionally, psychologically, physically) from opening her mouth. It's tragic. The scene of her losing her mother ripped my heart out of my chest; I can still hear the screaming.

So what does losing your mother in an accident have to do with losing yourself? Great question. We can always delve into that well-known narrative of a loved one always being a part of you, even when they're long gone, but I'd also like to touch on the opposite- that when someone leaves, they take a part of you too. In this case, Suzu lost her music, a gift from her mother. Her happiness stemmed on that part of her life, and suddenly she had no access to it.

There's self-depreciation here, too. The climax of this movie anchors heavily on one sentence that's mentioned in act one, when the news of Suzu's mother's death is being played in the back of Suzu's mental anguish of not being able to compose. She asks herself, "Why did you choose to save that girl instead of stay with me?" And it was that question that became her undoing. It was such a small line, I would have missed it if I never felt the same before. There's a reason I'm writing this post. This movie touched a part of my soul.

When you believe you're not worth it, when someone's choice puts your value into balance, you minimize your impact on the world so that no one has to make that choice ever again. You make that choice for them. When Suzu denies her love for her childhood friend in order for a more popular friend to get a crack at him, she breaks down, but she'd rather nip a loss in the bud then experience it out of her control. When sadness is manageable it's easier to carry, even if it consumes you.

That's why this song is so powerful. It's ranked 3rd in my top 3, because it's Suzu's release from her sadness. I gasped audibly- "thank god, she can breathe now" is what I must have thought. She's finally detached herself from that shadow she's trapped herself in, which is why the entire scene afterwards sees her grinning from ear to ear. She's finally found herself again. Things are working. Living has become a bit easier.

There's a desperation in this song, of her hoping that the "gales of song stay by her side", as it's a plea for happier times. This song starts with our "lalalas" as a tentative step into a new world, a test to see if her wishes will come true- and when they do, she embraces herself, and the love for what she does spreads to those who watch her. She has finally found her voice.

"LEND ME YOUR VOICE" (+ draft)

THE. BEAST.

I love foils in relationships. Give me a good girlxbad boy pairing and I swoon. The reason that bad boys are attractive (to me) is their confidence, a tangent I can go on for a long time if you'll let me. But I won't subject you to that. Not here. Here, we talk about The Beast.

Our dragon is a large, monstrous creature, defined by his ruthless victories in battle and the bruises muddling his back. The narrative spends much of its time deciphering his true identity, a search that seems strangely motivated at first. Because why search for the beast? What draws you to him, Belle? What makes an angry, violent guy like that worth paying attention to?

Suzu has a special way of looking at the world, that's why. She's seen things she wishes she hadn't. Her world is a dark and lonely one, a place where she shies away from a group photo with her friends or a microphone at karaoke or talking to the boy she likes. And when she spots our beast for the first time, she doesn't see him for the monster U makes him out to be, but immediately his eyes stray to the bruises on his back. He's hurt. He's hurting. Who is he?

He's you, Suzu. He's hurting just like you are.

Belle's motivation to help the beast is led by her empathy to his pain rather than her kindness, and this detail is what makes Belle a powerful narrative. She goes out of her way to uncover his secret not because she's swept up in the craze of his identity, but because she sees someone who needs help- desperately- and there's an internal clock ticking in her to reach out before it's too late.

It is later revealed through a strenuous search that the beast is a fourteen-year-old boy who spends the days after his mother's death protecting his brother Tomo from their father's abuse.

Despite experiencing similar losses in their lives, Suzu and Kei deal with their trauma differently. While Suzu minimized herself and navigated her life with indecisiveness, lack of confidence, and stifling self-inflicted loneliness, Kei lashed out as aggressively as he could. The world wasn't fair to him, and he wasn't going to live by the rules because of that. He became violent so that violence could not be done to him.

Belle mentions that the bruises on the Dragon's back are a sign of strength, but it's one of endurance, a lonely strength. It's the layering of pain that hardens one's shell. This pain does not lessen- it really can't- but instead, the body gets used to that suffering and gains the ability to carry it around. It's a method similar to how Suzu carries her grief, but these are defenses against attacks, not from a world reaching in to help. The fact that these bruises come from verbal abuse (it's hinted, but we're not sure if it's physical) shows that Kei is just as affected by the cruel words of his father as he would be if he was struck.

There's another lesson of worth here, too. Kei's been protecting his brother for who knows how long, but those words are nasty, and the saying "sticks and stones" has no power here. There's a point when victims start to believe their abusers words, because it's what they're used to hearing, and nothing has happened to prove them wrong. Kei's dragon persona may be a version of his strength, but I wonder if it's also the version of himself that he's convinced he is. He certainly acts that version when he pushes everyone away.

"Lend Me Your Voice" is our "Beauty and the Beast" of Belle- #2 on my list of top songs. Here, we see Suzu using what she's best at to reach the heart of someone she feels attuned to, and it's incredibly important. Not because of the dance sequence. We all loved the dance sequence. It was gorgeous. But this is our penultimate midpoint to our film- Belle's intentions change for the better.

Let's start with the draft of this song. Suzu is given the idea of writing a love song to Beast from her mother's choir friends, and on her way home she gives it some thought. Under her breath, she starts to hum a tune. That "lalala" comes in, shaky, and she trots along, but she's singing. This song is the first song that Suzu sings in the real world, and it's a powerful moment because she's singing for somebody else.

What made Suzu's detachment to music unbearable was that her mother was no longer there to listen to her songs. Sure, Belle has an audience of 5 billion people, but what got Suzu composing again was that she knew her song would touch the heart of someone that mattered to her, and her understanding of the Beast is a mirror to her getting to know herself a little better. Suzu is undoubtedly at her brightest when she sings songs dedicated to others.

And THE. BEAST. He's so taken in during her performance. This moment is just for him. It is a labor of love, a girl asking permission for him to open his heart and be vulnerable for him because she'll accept everything. And that's so important for fourteen-year-old Kei, who had to handle the burden of taking care of a broken family, of being dealt pain and abuse and suffering. He probably forgot that he was worth loving, too.

Belle asks the Beast to lend his voice to her, so that she can become his strength and source of love when he himself can't muster it.

And this. The light in his eyes. The pure adoration and wonder of this hug. She accepted him. This was everything.

"A MILLION MILES AWAY"

"But she cried in the theater, didn't she?? Where? Where did she cry??"

I cried at the climax. Obviously.

I wasn't the only one that cried. Didn't you see? The entire universe of U did too. Wonder why? Let me break it down for you.

Desperate to search for Kei in order to help him from his abusive scumbag father, Suzu has to take the leap and sing as herself in order to gain his trust. This decision was highly debated by the friends who rallied by her side for support (which I loved to see, because even when you make yourself small and insignificant there's still so many people who love you). Hiroka, her bestie and producer, is terrified of what'll happen if Belle's true identity is revealed, because all of Suzu's self-confidence will return to what it was before. Shinobu (oh handsome heartthrob Shinobu) urges her to take that step- not for Kei, but for herself. It was necessary to unveil herself, because she needs to be vulnerable to reach him. He has ulterior motives, which we'll get to shortly.

Suzu makes the move to unveil herself, and to everyone's awe the famous global superstar is... a normal high school girl?? What a power move. There were snickers from those who thought ridiculing her would make them somehow superior (she's just a normal girl), but I HAVE to mention Peggy Sue, her briefly mentioned rival who at the sight of Belle whispered, "She's just like me...."

Suzu starts to sing an emotionally charged song. She's asking Kei to reach out and return to her. "Come back to me." She's turning herself into a beacon so that the wounded boy can find her- and in turn, find solace.

Right?

Remember what the title of this movie is?

Belle is a story of rediscovery. It's a story about a girl who's lost her way, who finds a boy who's lost his. It's a story of this girl saving this boy, but she is not worthy of saving him until she is able to find the courage and strength to save herself. Shinobu knew this. That's why he told her to sing.

"A Million Miles Away" landed as my favorite song for a reason. It is not only a call for The Beast's trust, but it is a song for Suzu. Suzu's love for herself- one that could stand alone from her mother's affection- drifted out of her reach alongside her mother's death. There's a stark image of that child in the river during the middle of this song that stops Suzu in her tracks and dries her throat. She's asking for her happiness to come back to her, but does she deserve it? Is she worth that happiness, for even doubting her mother's decision in the first place?

When depression takes a hold of you, there's a desperation for returning to what once was. Happiness is a faraway dream, and you forget what it feels like. Even in my own dark moments, I wanted nothing more than to be able to write again, and it was hard knowing that the inspiration just wasn't there. But being desperate for happiness shows just how important is- the desire for light, for an unbothered breath of fresh air, for a moment of peace. Suzu's been in the dark for so long now. When she sings "come back to me", she's begging for that pain to finally leave her.

She gains an understanding. Just as her mother sacrificed herself for that little girl in the river, Suzu sacrificed the security of her persona in U so she could save Kei. This was never about worth- in order to save Kei, she needed to save herself, because how could she live with herself if she didn't?

The "lalalas" of this song are the most prominent. Her breath is shaky. She's startled by that flashback. She wavers, confused, unsure of herself, but its then that the voices of U's users sing back to her. They're all crying. We're all crying. They know that this world is an escape for them, and the desire for healing is strong and overpowering. They're rooting for her. They want happiness to find a way back to them, too.

The voices of those around her urge Suzu to be strong. They care. She matters. She's worth it. A celebratory motif sweeps into the soundtrack, her hope returns, her voice builds. Suzu urges herself to sing. She's found her voice, and she's never been happier.

Community is also a strong theme Hosoda carries through his films. It's a security blanket that wraps the protagonist in warmth and care. They're never truly alone, despite what they believe. Kei isn't alone now. And Suzu isn't, either.

"FACES IN THE RAIN"

There was one thing I was looking for in the final act of Belle, and I'm properly convinced that everyone else was looking for it, too. What happens, now? Will our antagonist get what he deserves?

Because we have an antagonist now, don't we? Kei's father is abusing his kids, and abusers must be punished so everyone can have a happy ending. Right?

Suzu makes it her mission to save these boys, despite the negative reaction from Kei when she offers her help. He's convinced that this is a situation he can never escape from, and he has to endure. Endure. Endure. So when Suzu does everything to find him against impossible odds, it's a moment of shock for everyone. Belle came for them. She's here.

But what can a high school girl do?

Scare the crap out of a grown man, that's what.

I love how this was handled. I know that there's a sense of dissatisfaction to the resolution- because their father wasn't arrested or even punished, as far as the audience knows. I was hoping to see that bastard in the back of a police car or behind bars- and maybe that's what happened to him.

But this story is about Suzu.

She arrives and takes both of the boys in her arms, and when their father tries to claw her away, she stands firm. Suzu is not that cowering girl in the beginning of the film. She doesn't say a single thing. She holds onto those boys as tight as she can and protects them with everything she has, and when she turns and stares down the true monster, he cowers. How could he not? This girl comes out of nowhere and sees him for the monster he is. She is not one of his victims. He has no power over her, and that is a terrifying realization for a man pushing people down for his own... ego? It's an awful thing to find a reason for why people hurt others, and I'm not here to find that out.

The open ending of the brothers is frustrating, sure, but Suzu's grown so much throughout the story that it's forgiven. She's found her voice. She's standing on her own two feet. She's protecting those that need her. "Faces in the Rain" is only her "lalalas" drifting against an orchestral accompaniment, and here we know that Suzu is who she's meant to be. This is her song. She's filled her voice in quite nicely. I love her for it.

Belle is a call for self-love and healing. It's a wonderful addition to Hosoda's collection, and I'm grabbing at it as soon as it gets a home release. It touched me deeply as someone looking for reason to return to better days, and I highly recommend it for those who haven't watched even though this post totally spoiled it for you. I hope you get as much out of it as I did, even though watching for the sake of the animation and the gorgeous music is a wonderful experience in itself!

I could say so much more about the importance of rivers or the cute sidebar of Ruka and Kamishin or even do a cute little post about avatars because how fun are those!!! But I'll leave you here.

This is my first post for my new blog, Faith's Book Blog, and even though I started out with a movie analysis post, I hope you can stay for future content! I'll also be doing some more deep dives on the other Hosoda movies because they're very near and dear to my heart, so a follow would be much appreciated!

Thank you for reading this ramble. Have a wonderful rest of your week!

(My favorite shot in the movie for your viewing pleasure.)

#belle #belle rambles #belle hosoda #mamoru hosoda #belle: the dragon and the freckled princess #movie #film #anime #anime movie #studio chizu #belle 2021 #belle movie #faiths book diary #movie review #animation #film review #u

694 notes · View notes

dreamescapeswriting · 3 years ago

Text

Everybody Has Sick Days ~ BC [Request]

⤜WORD COUNT: 3.9K

⤜PAIRING: Chan x Fem!Reader

⤜GENRE: parents of the 00’s, family au, non idol, cute, insta love,

⤜Copyright: © DreamEscapesWriting - March 2022

⤜MASTERLIST

Icy fingers wrapped around your body as you shivered a little, glancing around the playground for Chan while his sons ran around with your own. It was so cold out thanks to it being the middle of winter and you couldn't help but try and snuggle closer to your coat to try and warm up a little. For the last twenty minutes, you'd been waiting for Chan to show up but he was either running completely late or had forgotten to pick his kids up which you very much doubted. From the stories, Felix and Jisung told you he was a very kind and doting dad to them both and you knew that there had to be a reason for him being this late.

"Mum!" The voice of Seungmin called out as he rushed over to you, hugging your legs and looking up at you with huge puppy dog eyes. The whole reasoning behind his nickname "puppy" you'd given to him from a young age, he knew how to get his own way. You knew exactly what he was about to ask, both he and Hyunjin had been asking the same question for the past twenty minutes.

"What is it, baby?" You cooed, running your fingers through his brown hair and ruffling it up a little as he groaned at you. Seungmin did his best to straighten it out and stared at you giving you a playful glare,

"Can Jisung and Lix come to ours?" You looked at him and over at the two boys that were chasing after Hyunjin, you gathered they were playing some form of "tag" games. You wanted to take them back to yours and get them warmed up since it wasn't exactly the kind of weather that warranted playing outside for too long.

"We have to wait for their dad, buddy. I'm sure he'll be here soon," You whispered sending him back to the others who were all laughing and joking together. You hoped that Chan was on his way, the school had called him over ten times and you were beginning to worry something had happened to him.

The two of you hadn't even officially met but you looked after his kids during school since you were a teaching assistant and you were now waiting behind finishing time with them. From what you'd heard from other teachers in the school Chan was a single parent just like you were and how he was almost always busy so you weren't going to hold this against him.

"Miss Y/l/n, can we please go inside?" Jisung asked as he stood beside you, his nose was beginning to turn a red colour and you knew there was no use standing out here forever. At least inside you would be able to make sure they stayed warm and entertained.

"Sure, tell the boys." You rubbed his back softly as he rushed back over to your son's and his brother, all four of them slowly heading back inside while you took one last look around for a car but there was nothing. No sign of him in either direction so you were going to make the best of the time that the five of you had together.

"How about...We tell the story of the boy who cried wolf?" You gasped loudly looking at the boys who were all giggling with one another, they'd heard the story before but you always told it in different ways.

You'd left a message for Chan on his phone letting him know that the kids were in their classroom while you waited for him, doing your best to occupy the boys. You'd not bothered to tell any of the other teachers what was happening as you didn't want them to get any authoritative figure involved with this when it could be a simple mistake.

When you'd first headed into the classroom Felix told you that Chan wasn't ever this bad and there had to be a reason, also dropping a hint he may have been a little sick earlier that morning. You loved how even at 8-years-old he was so honest with you and you'd decided to make sure they'd have fun while they waited.

"The boy who cried wolf?" Hyunjin asked as he watched you getting up and going over to the teacher's desk, reaching inside for something. All four of them had their eyes on you the entire time, Hyunjin leaning forward as Felix and Jisung watched with wide eyes.

"THIS WOLF!" You yelled out grabbing a stuffed animal and rushing toward them, all four of them screaming and running in different directions as you began to giggle a little.

"Come out, come out wherever you are." You sang out as you began to hunt around for each of them, all four of them hiding in different hiding spots within the classroom.

As soon as Chan heard all five messages he'd practically sped down the highway ignoring the fact that he had a ticket and headed straight into the school. There were beads of sweat beginning to gather on his forehead as he walked through the halls, his head poking into every classroom until he reached the one you were standing in. You were holding a stuffed animal in your hand as Chan heard giggling coming from inside of the room,

"You won't find me Miss Y/l/n!" That was Felix calling out and Chan smiled looking around for him but his son was very, very good at playing hide and seek. Chan let out a small breath as he realised that they were safe with you and he swallowed a lump in his throat, trying to ignore the fact that he was so dizzy.

"Lixie, I'll get youuuuu," You sang out before pulling back a curtain by the window to reveal him, Felix let out a small yell as he tried to escape but you'd already picked him up and began giggling a little swinging him from side to side.

The sight of you with his kids sent a warm fuzzy feeling and he could have sworn that he'd stopped moving and breathing at the sight of you. You looked so happy as you played with the boys, despite it being way past the time you were being paid for. The smile on your face was enough to make his knees give out and he almost fell. Propping himself up on the doorframe as he watched you taking Felix over to the other boys.

"I win, what shall we play next?" You questioned as you noticed all four of them were starting to get a little upset, Jisung was holding his stomach before it let out a small growl.

Had Chan really been that late? He glanced down at his watch and sighed as he saw the time. He hadn't even noticed it getting so late, he'd woken up on his desk and felt so disgusting and he'd rushed to the school. Scared the boys were being taken away from him, the first time in eight years he'd missed picking them up and all because he was feeling a little under the weather.

"Let me call-" Your sentence stopped as you turned to look up at Chan and you froze in place. You had no idea how long he had been standing there but you could feel your entire body heating up with the way he was staring at you. His eyes were staring into yours and you could have sworn the rest of the room faded into darkness as you held his gaze with your own. The feeling of being the only two people in the world was building as you imagined fireworks exploding around him but all of that faded as you blinked and saw him again.

"Chan? Are you okay?" Your voice came out panicked as you saw him standing there with sweat on his forehead and his face was completely flushed and appeared to be swaying on the spot a little. This wasn't the sight of someone who had been busy at work this was someone who was clearly sick.

"Dad?" Felix questioned as he and his brother walked over to Chan, he swayed a little and you rushed out to grab him by his waist trying to steady him as best as you could. You grunted as he leaned on you, holding your shoulder as you smiled weakly.

"I-I just...I have a headache," He lied holding his hand against his head as he tried to ignore the throbbing that was happening inside of his head and the fact that his stomach was in knots.

That's where he'd been all day at work trying to fight off the fact that he felt so sick. He must have fallen asleep at his desk before coming to pick the boys up since he couldn't remember much of anything else.

"You look awful...N-No offence." You added as you began to help him out of the school, all four boys following you as they tried to help steady Chan on the other side of his body.

"I'm fine...Just...Just a little under the weather." You smiled weakly as you thought about him taking the boys back to their home, alone.

"How about I take you home? O-Or you can come to mine and I can you get you some soup?" You suggested as you all began to head out into the cold, while you and the kids all shivered Chan seemed to relax in the winter chill which only confirmed what you were thinking. He was sick and bad.

Chan hadn't said anything about you taking him back to his so you'd gotten all of the boys in the car before placing Chan into the passenger side of your mini-van, smiling weakly as he seemed to fall asleep instantly.

"Slumber party," Felix cheered as you brought the boys up some snacks for them to eat. You'd gotten them back about three hours ago and you were in for a long night since Chan was barely moving and you didn't exactly have the heart to force him out of your house.

"Will Dad be okay?" Jisung asked as he looked at you, Chan was curled up in your bed with a sheet covering him. You'd taken the time to take off his shoes and socks, stripping the bed of anything too warm so that he could try and bring his temperature down.

"Yeah, I think he's just a little sick." You comforted him, looking at the four of them as they got ready to watch a movie together. Luckily it was a Friday which meant you didn't have to sit and try and get all four up for school the next morning.

You just had to make sure their dad was okay and wasn't going to die on you in the middle of the night. You'd done this plenty of times whenever your boys would get sick, it wouldn't be any different if Chan was ill.

"Is there someone I should call? Maybe your grandma or your-"

"Grandma is on holiday and Mum isn't around," Felix told you as he slowly turned his attention to the movie, you nodded and bit down on your lip. It really was just Chan on his own and you weren't going to send him home to struggle with his boys.

"I'll go and check on him," You whispered, leaving all of them to the movie as you headed out of the room.

Was it wrong for you to want to care for a man you'd never met? God, you'd felt such a strong attraction to him when you locked eyes with one another that this somehow was normal for you to do. It felt so familiar to you.

Your hands slowly and carefully placed the cold and wet cloth onto his forehead, brushing some of the brown strands out of the way and watched as his facial features seemed to relax. From what you'd heard from people around the school he was super hard working and barely took time to care for himself. You figured it was a lie at first but seeing the state he was in now you knew it was all true.

The man forced himself to work even though he was clearly so ill he passed out in a stranger's bed. You were glad it was you though and not some creep that was going to take advantage of him.

"Chan..." You whispered, shaking his shoulder a little but there was no budging him, you wanted him to at least take some painkillers. He clearly needed the sleep so you left some tablets on the side of the bed along with a huge bottle of water and headed out of the room.

Beams of light began to stir Chan from his sleep and he groaned looking at the window, the light wasn't bothering him as much as he had been yesterday and he smiled. At least he'd managed to battle off whatever headache was getting him so down so he stretched a little. His eyes glanced over to the clock on his nightstand but it wasn't there. Neither was the photo of Jisung and Felix...Panic began to bubble inside of him as he realised how unfamiliar the room he was in appeared to be.

"What..." He sat up in a rush and glanced around the room, taking in every aspect he could see. The wallpaper was a pale pink colour, there were photos of other kids spotted around the room and he looked down. This wasn't his bed, this wasn't his room. Where was he?

Carefully he stayed still for a moment, trying to remember what the last thing he had done the night before was. He'd been rushing to get the boys from school when he saw you, Yn. He had to have been at your place since you were the last person he'd seen so he had to be with you?

"Shh, you don't want to wake him up." Your voice was barely a whisper from outside the door and he slowly began to make his way over to it, cringing when he creaked the floorboards but you hadn't seemed to notice.

"I made pancakes, are you boys hungry?" You were so lost in speaking to all four boys you'd not even noticed the door to your room slowly opening and Chan watching you. His eyes taking in your appearance, you were dressed in pyjamas with an apron on, covered in flour from the pancakes and you were making sure each of the boys was awake.

"Is dad okay?" Felix asked as he looked up at you, worry filling his eyes as Chan still hadn't woken up yet. You'd been in to check earlier when you left him some juice and water but he'd been asleep still, though you had checked he was breathing with a mirror just to be sure.

"I'll check on him soon, we should let him rest." Your voice was so calm and tender it made Chan's heart flutter as he carefully shut the door retreating back into the bed when he saw the other nightstand.

If you wake up please don't panic. I didn't know what else to do so I bought you here, the boys are okay! They had a sleepover, take some medication and drink water. - Yn.

Even through a small note, Chan could see just how caring you had been toward him and his boys and he smiled weakly. He couldn't believe he had passed out on you and kicked you out of your own bed leaving you to look after his kids.

It wasn't a very good first impression on the teacher his kids seemed to adore so much. Felix and Jisung were always talking about you at him, how they always loved going to spend time with you during their break time since you weren't their teaching assistant, just one that was used in the school. From what Chan had seen just now you were a very kind and caring person toward everyone you met, even looking after his kids and himself.

"Oh..." You froze in the doorway as you walked into your room, heart hitting against your chest heavily as you locked eyes with Chan. You were going to sneak some clothes out and bring Chan some more freshwater when you saw him sitting up in your bed. His head was leaning against the wall behind him and he looked a lot better than he had been yesterday.

"You're awake...Are you feeling better?" You questioned softly, smiling at him as he locked eyes with you. Chan didn't even know where to begin thanking you for everything you had done for him and the boys.

"I-I am...Thank you, for everything...I'm so sorry!" You shook your head at him, walking further into the room and standing by the bed. It hadn't bothered you in the slightest

"No, it's okay...You can't help getting sick and it was no bother, Seungmin and Hyunjin have been wanting a sleepover for a long time," You tried to brush it off as if it was nothing but Chan got up, walking over to you and shaking his head. This wasn't something he was going to let you sweep under the rug, this was huge.

"I'll never stop thanking you, I should have called someone when I felt myself getting sick," He explained as you smiled weakly at him, it was no bother. You'd rather enjoyed looking after more kids and seeing how happy the four of them had been to be together, it had always been a dream to have more kids.

"Chan...I'm serious, it's fine. They had fun and as long as you're resting it's all okay." He sighed at you, how could you ever be so nice? When he'd passed out on you and forced you into sleeping on a sofa and looking after his kids?

"Are you an angel or something? You took my kids in and me? You cared for me and gave me your bed? Most people would have kicked me out and called the police." You smiled weakly at him shaking your head, that was the last thing you would ever do. You knew how hard it was to be a single parent with two kids and you weren't going to throw him under the boss for something that could happen to everyone.

"You're sick and a single parent, I know how it is...Believe me chan, this is okay." You promised as you placed your hand on top of his, running your fingers along his knuckles as you both stared at one another. Sparks had flown the second you had come into contact with each other and you felt your body heating up a little. The two of you leaned closer to one another but before it could go any further you heard laughter from downstairs,

"Felix and Jisung are doing the dishes with the boys...I-I should go back down and make sure they haven't flooded my kitchen." You stuttered out, completely forgetting that you had gone up there to get clothes.

"I-I promised to er...To-" You were losing your train of thought the longer he held onto your hand and Chan could feel his heart thumping rapidly against his chest as he looked down at you. Whenever you looked at him he could have sworn the whole world stopped moving and it was only the two of you.

"To take them to the park...I-If you're up for it-" You were going to say if he was up to come with you but he cut you off suddenly, nodding his head rather quickly and excitedly. Spending more time with you? That was a given.

"I'd love to come." He spoke happily as his hand slowly let go of yours both of you looking a little disappointed that the contact had ended between you.

You turned to leave only to turn back in and go to the wardrobe, trying to ignore the giddy feeling you could feel burning throughout your entire body. Chan could feel himself buzzing as he watched you picking out clothes, both of you letting out small chuckles as you picked out something to wear.

"You can go and shower down the hall if you want, there's plenty of shower care and an extra toothbrush in the cabinet." You told him as you finally grabbed some clothes and began heading out of the room. You could go and change in the downstairs bathroom once you'd checked that the boys were okay and Chan nodded. Thanking you once again for letting him stay with you.

It wasn't the last time that Chan and the boys would be staying with you but it was the last time that he had spent the night alone in your bed. Most nights you would go to bed together curled up and speaking until you fell asleep midway through a topic. Your relationship together had blossomed through the years until you were married and expecting your fifth child together.

"I say we call him Jeongin." You said as you looked at the ultrasound in your hand, all six of you were gathering around the kitchen table looking at the baby in your stomach. Chan pressed a kiss to the top of your head. The boys were all excited to have a younger brother joining them and had even helped with decorating a nursery with you and Chan.

"Why Jeongin?" Chan questioned, taking Felix's place beside you as Felix rushed to go and do his homework.

"It just came to me," You shrugged looking up at him and smiling widely, there was something about that man that never failed to make you smile.

"Cute, Jeongin it is then." He whispered as he pressed another kiss to your cheek, smiling happily at the thought of you both having a child together. Of course, you had the boys but this would be the perfect combination of the both of you.

"This is the best gift ever," He told you as the boys all headed up to their rooms to go and play, your hands rubbed your bump as you smiled at the thought of it.

"Best not to tell the boys that," You teased as he rolled his eyes at you,

"They're all my best gifts but this-" He pressed a kiss to your bump as he smiled, the dimples you loved so much showing up and warming you inside.

"This is the best gift we'd made together." He held your hand this time as he swirled your engagement ring around your finger. A chance meeting had left you in the arms of the man you were going to spend the rest of your life with and you couldn't have been happier.

"All this because I was sick," He chuckled happily as you both began to get up, your arms wrapping around the back of his neck and smiling.

"Is it wrong that it makes me so happy you were?" You questioned as his arms snaked around your waist,

"Not at all, I was thinking the same thing." He whispered before pressing his lips against yours. Your heart thumped as you pished your hands into his hair moving your body as close as you could to his. Even after all these years sparks still flew out of you after every touch and kiss, further confirming that he was the man meant for you.

Tagline: @minholuvs @taestannie @sw33tnight @acciocriativity @mwitsmejk @taeechwitaa @justbangtanthingz @stillwithlix @lolalee24 @yubinism @ethereallino @aerastus @kimahnjung98 @halesandy If you would like to be added or removed please let me know x x

#skz #skz x reader #skz imagine #skz imagines #stray kids #stray kids x reader #stray kids imagine #stray kids imagines #bang chan #bang chan x reader #bang chan imagine #bang chan imagines #chan #chan x reader #chan imagnie #chan imagines

333 notes · View notes

21burritoseavey · 3 years ago

Note

for corbyn based on hard!

hello! hope you enjoy this I’m so sorry it took so long. Let me know what you think:)

here’s a link to my masterlist for my other stories:)

a/n: oop i kinda lied about when i was gonna post...but i actually like this a lot so read it...or else....jkjk.

Summary: When Y/n knocks on Corbyn’s door, he lets her stay the night without an explanation.

Hard (c.b.)

Corbyn jerked his head up at the sound of a faint knock on the front door. His hoodie was draped cosily over his head and his tired eyes were now focused on the wall opposite him. The printed frames of the band’s accomplishments stood out brightly in the beams of a streetlamp’s light that poured through the window. Corbyn stayed on the sofa, resting back against the cushions, and letting the dim T.V. screen grasp his attention again as he thought his mind was just playing tricks on him. On a measly, sluggish Wednesday night, who would even have the energy to show up at his place right now? Eben and Jonah went to bed just before midnight settled around them, painting the sky with deep jet black and shooting daggers of heavy raindrops from above along with loud thunder. They’d left only Corbyn awake to suffer through a painfully boring movie alone. It was something he did often just to soothe himself to sleep.

Sleep was always a struggle for Corbyn. Despite myriad attempts to figure out why, nothing ever seemed to shut his eyes. More often than not, he’d find himself on the living room sofa in the morning, and tonight was merely one of many nights where he’d hope to fall asleep with a T.V. show or movie mumbling in the background under the eeriness and coldness of the house.

Another knock came dancing along the quiet atmosphere. Corbyn glanced at the door again before his gaze flickered back to the T.V. 12:46am was shown at the corner of the screen. Deciding that whoever it was standing behind that door must’ve had a good reason to be, he tiredly lifted himself up with a quiet groan. Y/n’s voice seeped into the house, gradually increasing in volume as he walked towards the door. It was weak and raspy - nothing like the usual softness Y/n’s voice had.

“Y/n,” Corbyn breathed, feeling the hood of his sweatshirt fall backwards as a cold gust of wind swept over him. Y/n shyly stood before him. Her hair dangled in two braids, although it was damp and dishevelled at the top and her mascara stained her cheeks in streaks like it’d been painted on her face. Corbyn’s lips turned downwards into a genuine frown at the sight of her, not only visibly sad but shivering from the rain and cold that reddened her cheeks and soaked her clothes. His gaze stopped at her chapped lips when he heard her whisper. But the heavy downpour of rain engulfed Y/n’s sorrowful murmurs, barely allowing her words to be heard over the pitter patter of raindrops hitting the ground, so he just let her in with a gentle tug of her wrist.

“Hi,” Y/n tried again once the place quietened, looking up at him. The faint sloshing of her shoes had them both dropping their gazes to the floor, roaming from Y/n’s boots to the small gap at the bottom of the door. A narrow trail of mud had followed her in from the welcome mat. “Sorry,” She exhaled again, giving him an apologetic smile.

“No, that’s okay,” Corbyn assured her. He gave her time to take off her shoes before changing the subject. “It’s nearly 1am.” He chuckled humourlessly. “what’re you doing here?” Taking a seat on the edge of the couch, he waited for her response. But when the eerie silence emerged again, he started thinking out loud with his own guesses. “Were you locked out of the house? Did you get in trouble?” He stopped for a second, catching his thoughts before they could travel to him. The one guy he really didn’t want to be the cause of his best friend’s sadness, or the reason she risked her own safety just to come over here. A ripple of hailstones came clattering against the rooftop and the loud sounds sent Corbyn out of his mind and back into the present.

“I didn’t have anywhere else to go,” Y/n mumbled, gazing towards him with an almost scared expression in slight fear that he wouldn’t let her stay. But that wasn’t the case at all. In fact, Corbyn loved when she stayed over, and when he noticed the small uneasiness in her expression, he assured her she was fine to stay with a gentle smile, regardless of the heart wrenching swirl of emotion inside him.

“Okay.” He said quietly, “you can sleep here tonight.”

“M’kay,” Y/n bit back her smile of relief and merely watched him hop off the couch and head towards her. He’d set his hands in hers but flinched back at the temperature of her soft skin.

“They’re so cold,” He chuckled softly, resting his crinkled eyes on hers. Y/n gave a half smile back when she felt his warm breath on her skin, her hands now clutched together with his and raised up to his mouth in an attempt to warm them up. Soon, without any control, Y/n’s dimpled cheeks turned scarlet at the sight of him placing a tender line of kisses on her fingertips. He dropped both their hands after a moment and felt himself heat up from just seconds before. Did he really just do that?

“I’ll get you some dry clothes,” He stuttered, starting for the hallway to his bedroom, but turned back to meet her eyes again. “Wait, actually I’ll get you a towel,” Y/n nodded. The patter of his footsteps up the stairwell faded into the atmosphere, just like the weather that had managed to calm from a ravaging storm to an ambient patter of raindrops.

As her clothes were extremely wet and her presence not quite welcome in her eyes, she remained standing in open space of living room. Her damp stocking feet missed the rug and only walked around on the wood floor while Corbyn was busy.

“Here, I got you both just in case.” Y/n looked over her shoulder to see him slightly panting with some folded clothes in his hand.

“Thank you Corbyn.” She smiled.

“And you can use my bathroom.” He said lightly, watching her brush past him and up the stairs. He followed behind her after a minute to go into his room. Y/n shut the door as soon as she got into his bathroom. She sauntered slowly to the mirror, and with the belief that she had complete privacy - although Corbyn was in his bedroom - she got changed into Corbyn’s sweatpants and hoodie.

Corbyn was by the bed, stripping his used sheets and replacing them with fresh clean ones for Y/n, when he heard her crying. A sudden pit weighed him down to sit on the edge of the bed, white sheets clutched lazily between his fingers and face now dulled into a mixture of all sorts of emotions. Something must’ve happened with this stupid idiotic boyfriend of hers. He pushed himself to hide his thoughts away though. Y/n couldn’t know that he heard her, so he forced himself up again to finish changing the sheets.

The click of the doorknob unlocking made Corbyn look up again. Y/n pulled a grin towards him as she walked in closer, clothed in a dry comfy outfit and face free of smudged makeup. With a small glance to the now made bed, he said “you should get some sleep.”

“Yeah,”

“Okay,” He sighed, picking up his phone from the bed. “I can sleep downstairs and you can sleep here.” He looked at her with a ghost of a smile playing at his lips, though it seemed practically non-existent in the subdued warm lighting of bedroom. His eyes dropped down to the sleeves of his sweatshirt. The edges were now darkened, not with raindrops, but with her salty tears he heard fall when she was in the bathroom.

“No, I can sleep downstairs,” Y/n stopped him. Her face was blotchy with red spots from crying. “This is your room.”

“I insist Y/n, and don’t worry I changed the sheets.” He smiled, gulping down the sad feeling creeping up his throat again. “Now come on,” He ushered her over with a wave of his hand. Y/n made her way across his room to his bedside. Corbyn started peeling back the comforter for her to slip inside but he paused when he’d noticed her hair. Her usually luxuriously soft locks were still messily braided in a pair down her back. “Do you want me to take them out?” He asked.

Y/n glanced at him, frozen mid movement as she thought about an answer. “Yes please.” She nodded. Corbyn smiled and shuffled her further on the mattress so they sat on the centre of the bed together - Y/n cross-legged in front of Corbyn who was tending to her hair. Neither of them spoke as he unravelled her braids.

“Okay,” He gave her back a loving pat. “All done.” He smiled as Y/n looked over her shoulder.

“Thanks,” she said. Corbyn had hopped off the bed and Y/n shifted under the covers. The fresh comforter was a brilliant white against her pinkish skin and her hair spread like feathers across the pillow under her head. Corbyn’s eyes lingered on hers, finally softening with the relief that she was safe with him.

“Goodnight.” Y/n’s eyes sparkled under the pleasant warm light of his bedside lamp. Corbyn’s smile that had played at his lips faltered for a second. Then he bent down and placed a soft kiss to her forehead. His delicate lips met her soft supple skin for only a fleeting moment before his lips detached again, pursed and coloured a soft red.

“Goodnight, Y/n. I love you.” He mumbled, placing another lingering kiss to her nose. A quiet flutter of giggles spilled from her lips, and she scrunched her nose at the ticklish feeling.

“Love you too.” She replied, glancing back at the boy close to her.

taglist: @chilling-seavey @marthagryffindor @randomlimelightxxx @hiya-its-amber @the-girl-who-cried-wolf @hackerXavery @jonahlovescoffee @onlyangelavery @sadbitchfangirl

join my taglist!

#corbyn besson #daniel seavey #why don't we #why don't we imagines #why dont we fanfic #why dont we oneshots #zach herron #jonah marais #jack avery #corbyn besson imagines #daniel seavey imagines #daniel seavey fanfic #wdw boys #why dont we corbyn

128 notes · View notes

bringbackthebastard · 3 years ago

Text

Bring Back the Bastard Daily Prompts

Hello, folks! I'm posting these two weeks before we begin our fest, on September 1st, to give folks some inspiration on what to write each day as we celebrate Severus Snape's pettiest, most dastardly moments. I specifically picked out moments Snaters always harp on, that Snapedom personally enjoys--from any moment with Trevor to bitching at Lupin at Sirius, to the moments that Lily turns away and Dumbledore's face flashes with disgust--sure, he's a bastard, but he's our bastard, and that's what we like about him. You don't want him? Good. We'll keep him. Here are 30 scene prompts for 30 days--it's a long list, pulled chronologically from all seven books, but I found that it reminded me of everything I love about this character. The moments where he's called deranged, the moments where he slips into all-caps, the ugliest moments of the soul. Hope yall enjoy. Excited to kick off the fest starting September 1st, and absolutely excited to see what Snapedom will do. Let's Bring Back the Bastard! The prompts are below the readmore.

Day 1: The Scar Professor Quirrell, in his absurd turban, was talking to a teacheer with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin. It happened very suddenly. The hook-nosed teacher looked past Quirrell's turban straight into Harry's eyes--and a sharp, hot pain shot across the scar on Harry's forehead. "Ouch!" Harry clapped a hand to his head. "What is it?" asked Percy. "N-nothing." The pain had gone as quickly as it had come. Harder to shake off was the feeling Harry had gotten from the teacher's look--a felling that he didn't like Harry at all. "Who's that teacher talking to Professor Quirrell?" he asked Percy. "Oh, you know Quirrell already, do you? No wonder he's looking so nervous, that's Professor Snape. He teaches Potions, but he doesn't want to--everyone knows he's after Quirrell's job. Knows an awful lot about the Dark Arts, Snape."

Day 2: Bad Impressions Snape, like Flitwick, started the class by taking the roll call, and like Flitwick, he paused at Harry's name. "Ah, yes," he said softly. "Harry Potter. Our new--celebrity."

Day 3: Potions Class "Potter!" said Snape suddenly "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" Powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of what? Harry glanced at Ron, who looked as stumped as he was; Hermione's hand shot into the air. "I don't know, sir," said Harry. Snape's lips curled into a sneer. "Tut, tut--fame clearly isn't everything."

Day 4: A Horrible Sight Snape and Filch were inside, alone. Snape was holding his robes above his knees. One of his legs was bloody and mangled. Filch was handing Snape bandages. "Blasted thing," Snape was saying. "How are you supposed to keep your eyes on all three heads at once?" Harry tried to shut the door quietly, but-- "POTTER!" Snape's face was twisted with fury as he dropped his robes quickly to hide his leg. Harry gulped. "I just wondered if I could have my book back." "GET OUT! OUT!"

Day 5: Maybe He's Ill "Hang on..." Harry muttered to Ron. "There's an empty chair at the staff table...Where's Snape?" Professor Severus Snape was Harry's least favorite teacher. Harry also happened to be Snape's least favorite student. Cruel, sarcastic, and disliked by everybody except the students from his own House (Slytherin), Snape taught Potions. "Maybe he's ill!" said Ron hopefully. "Maybe he's left," said Harry, "because he missed out on the Defense Against the Dark Arts job again!" "Or he might have been sacked!" said Ron enthusiastically. "I mean, everyone hates him--" "Or maybe," said a very cold voice right behind them, "he's waiting to hear why you two didn't arrive on the school train."

Day 6: Slytherin Takes the Field "But I booked the field!" said Wood, positively spitting with rage. "But I booked it!" "Ah," said Flint. "But I've got a specially signed note here from Professor Snape. 'I, Professor S. Snape, give the Slytherin team permission to practice today on the Quidditch field owing to the need to train their new Seeker.'"

Day 7: No Quidditch For You! "I suggest, Headmaster, that Potter is not being entirely truthful," he said. "It might be a good idea if he were deprived of certain privileges until he is ready to tell us the whole story. I personally feel he should be taken off the Gryffindor Quidditch team until he is ready to be honest." "Really, Severus," said Professor McGonagall sharply, "I see no reason to stop the boy playing Quidditch. This cat wasn't hit over the head with a broomstick. There is no evidence at all that Potter has done anything wrong." Dumbledore was giving Harry a searching look. His twinkling light-blue gaze made Harry feel as though he were being X-rayed. "Innocent until proven guilty, Severus," he said firmly. Snape looked furious.

Day 8: Expelliarmus! "Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape," said Lockhart, flashing a wide smile. "He tells me he knows a tiny little bit about dueling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don't want any of you youngsters to worry--you'll still have your Potions master when I'm through with him, never fear!" "Wouldn't it be good if they finished each other off?" Ron muttered in Harry's ear. Snape's upper lip was curling. Harry wondered why Lockhart was still smiling; if Snape had been looking at *him* like that he'd have been running as fast as he could in the opposite direction. Lockhart and Snape turned to face each other and bowed; at least, Lockhart did, with much twirling of his hands, whereas Snape jerked his head irritably. Then they raised their wands like swords in front of them. "As you see, we are holding our wands in the accepted combative position," Lockhart told the silent crowd. "On the count of three, we will cast our fist spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course." "I wouldn't bet on that," Harry murmured, watching Snape baring his teeth. "One--two--three--" Both of them swung their wands above their heads and pointed them at their opponent; Snape cried: "Expelliarmus!" There was a dazzling flash of scarlet light and Lockhart was blasted off his feet. He flew backward off the stage, smashed into the wall, and slid down it to sprawl on the floor.

Day 9: Only Bite Him A Little Bit, Please "Don't move, Potter," said Snape lazily, clearly enjoying the sight of Harry standing motionless, eye to eye with the angry snake. "I'll get rid of it..."

Day 10: Poisoning Trevor The end of the lesson in sight, Snape strode over to Neville, who was cowering by his cauldron. "Everyone gather 'round," said Snape, his black eyes glittering, "and watch what happens to Longbottom's toad. If he has managed to produce a Shrinking Solution, it will shrink to a tadpole. If, as I don't doubt, he has done it wrong, his toad is likely to be poisoned." The Gryffindors watched fearfully. The Slytherins looked excited. Snape picked up Trevor the toad in his left hand and dipped a small spoon into Neville's potion, which was now green. He trickled a few drops down Trevor's throat. There was a moment of hushed silence, in which Trevor gulped; then there was a small op, and Trevor the tadpole was wriggling in Snape's palm. The Gryffindors burst into applause. Snape, looking sour, pulled a small bottle from the pocket of his robe, poured a few drops on top of Trevor, and he reappeared suddenly, fully grown. "Five points from Gryffindor," said Snape, which wiped smiles from every face. "I told you not to help him, Miss Granger. Class dismissed."

Day 11: Insufferable Know-It-All Everyone sat in motionless silence; everyone except Hermione, whose hand, as it so often did, had shot straight into the air. "Anyone?" Snape said, ignoring Hermione. His twisted smile was back. "Are you telling me that Professor Lupin hasn't even taught you the basic distinction between--" "We told you," said Parvati suddenly, "we haven't got as far as werewolves yet, we're still on--" "Silence!" snarled Snape. "Well, well, well, I never thought I'd meet a third-year class who wouldn't even recognize a werewolf when they saw one. I shall make a point of informing Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are..." "Please, sir," said Hermione, whose hand was still in the air, "the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several small ways. The snout of the werewolf--" "That is the second time you have spoken out of turn, Miss Granger," said Snape coolly. "Fire more points from Gryffindor for being an insufferable know-it-all."

Day 12: Your Saintly Father "I would hate for you to run away with a false idea of your father, Potter," he said, a terrible grin twisting his face. "Have you been imagining some act of glorious heroism? Then let me correct you--your saintly father and his friends played a highly amusing joke on me that would have resulted in my death if your father hadn't gotten cold feet at the last moment. There was nothing brave about what he did. He was saving his own skin as much as mine. Had their joke succeeded, he would have been expelled from Hogwarts." Snape's uneven, yellowish teeth were bared.

Day 13: Don't Talk About What You Don't Understand "KEEP QUIET, YOU STUPID GIRL!" Snape shouted, looking suddenly quite deranged. "DON'T TALK ABOUT WHAT YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!" A few sparks shot out of the end o his wand, which was still pointed at Black's face. Hermione fell silent. "Vengeance is very sweet," Snape breathed at Black. "How I hoped I would be the one to catch you..." "The joke's on you again, Severus," Black snarled. "As long as this boy brings his rat up to the castle" --he jerked his head at Ron-- "I'll come quietly...." "Up to the castle?" said Snape silkily. "I don't think we need to go that far. All I have to do is call the dementors once we get out of the Willow. They'll be very pleased to see you, Black...pleased enough to give you a little Kiss, I daresay...."

Day 14: A Great Disappointment "He must have Disapparated, Severus. We should have let somebody in the room with him. When this gets out--" "HE DIDN'T DISAPPARATE!" Snape roared, now very close at hand. "YOU CAN'T APPARATE *OR* DISAPPARATE INSIDE THIS CASTLE! THIS--HAS--SOMETHING--TO--DO--WITH--POTTER!" "Severus--be reasonable--Harry has been locked up--" BAM. The door of the hospital wing burst open. Fudge, Snape, and Dumbledore came striding into the ward. Dumbledore alone looked calm. Indeed, he looked as though he was quite enjoying himself. Fudge appeared angry. But Snape was beside himself. "OUT WITH IT, POTTER!" he bellowed. "WHAT DID YOU DO?" "Professor Snape!" shrieked Madam Pomfrey. "Control yourself!" "See here, Snape, be reasonable," said Fudge. "This door's been locked, we just saw--" "THEY HELPED HIM ESCAPE, I KNOW IT!" Snape howled, pointing at Harry and Hermione. His face was twisted; spit was flying from his mouth. "Calm down, man!" Fudge barked. "You're talking nonsense!" "YOU DON'T KNOW POTTER!" shrieked Snape. "HE DID IT, I KNOW HE DID IT--" "That will do, Severus," said Dumbledore quietly. "Think about what you are saying. This door has been locked since I left the war ten minutes ago. Madam Pomfrey, have these students left their beds?" "Of course not!" said Madam Pomfrey, bristling. "I would have heard them!" "Well, there you have it, Severus," said Dumbledore calmly. "Unless you are suggesting that Harry and Hermione are able to be in two places at once, I'm afraid I don't see any point in troubling them further." Snape stood there, seething, staring from Fudge, who looked thoroughly shocked at his behavior, to Dumbledore, whose eyes were twinkling behind his glasses. Snape whirled about, robes swishing behind him, and stormed out of the ward. "Fellow seems quite unbalanced," said Fudge, staring after him. "I'd watch out for him if I were you, Dumbledore." "Oh, he's not unbalanced," said Dumbledore quietly. "He's just suffered a severe disappointment."

Day 15: Haven't You Heard? "Blimey, haven' yeh heard?" said Hagrid, his smile fading a little. He lowered his voice, even though there was nobody in sight. "Er--Snape told all the Slytherins this mornin'....Thought everyone'd know by now...Professor Lupin's a werewolf, see. An' he was loose on the grounds las' night...He's packin' now, o' course."

Day 16: I See No Difference "And what is all this noise about?" said a soft, deadly voice. Snape had arrived. The Slytherins clamored to give their explanations; Snape pointed a long yellow finger at Malfoy and said, "Explain." "Potter attacked me, sir--" "We attacked each other at the same time!" Harry shouted. "--and he hit Goyle--look--" Snape examined Goyle, whose face now resembled something that would have been at home in a book on poisonous fungi. "Hospital wing, Goyle," Snape said calmly. "Malfoy got Hermione!" Ron said. "Look!" He forced Hermione to show Snape her teeth--she was doing her best to hide them with her hands, though this was difficult as they had now grown down past her collar. Pansy Parkinson and the other Slytherin girls were doubled up with silent giggles, pointing at Hermione from behind Snape's back. Snape looked coldly at Hermione, then said, "I see no difference."

Day 17: The Dark Mark Snape strode forward, past Dumbledore, pulling up the left sleeve of his robes as he went. He struck out his forearm and showed it to Fudge, who recoiled. "There," said Snape harshly. "There. The Dark Mark. It is not as clear as it was an hour or so ago, when it burned black, but you can still see it. Every Death Eater had the sign burned into him by the Dark Lord. It was a means of distinguishing one another, and his means of summoning us to him. When he touched the Mark of any Death Eater, we were to Disapparate, and Apparate, instantly, at his side. This Mark has been growing clearer all year. Karkaroff's too. Why do you think Karkaroff fled tonight? We both felt the Mark burn. We both knew he had returned. Karkaroff fears the Dark Lord's vengeance. He betrayed too many of his fellow Death Eater to be sure of a welcome back into the fold."

Day 18: If You Are Ready...If You Are Prepared... "Severus," said Dumbledore, turning to Snape, "you know what I must ask you to do. If you are ready...if you are prepared..." "I am," said Snape. He looked slightly paler than usual, and his cold, black eyes glittered strangely. "Then good luck," said Dumbledore, and he watched, with a trace of apprehension on his face, as Snape swept wordlessly after Sirius.

Day 19: Obviously "Now...how long have you been teaching at Hogwarts?" she asked, her quill poised over her clipboard. "Fourteen years," Snape replied. His expression was unfathomable. His eyes on Snape, Harry added a few drops to his potion; it hissed menacingly and turned from turquoise to orange. "You applied first for the Defense Against the Dark Arts post, I believe?" Professor Umbridge asked Snape. "Yes," said Snape quietly. "But you were unsuccessful?" Snape's lip curled. "Obviously." Professor Umbridge scribbled on her clipboard. "And you have applied regularly for the Defense Against the Dark Arts post since you first joined the school, I believe?" "Yes," said Snape quietly, barely moving his lips. He looked very angry. "Do you have any idea why Dumbledore has consistently refused to appoint you?" asked Umbridge. "I suggest you ask him," said Snape jerkily. "Oh I shall," said Professor Umbridge with a sweet smile. "I suppose this is relevant?" Snape asked, his black eyes narrowed. "Oh yes," said Professor Umbridge. "Yes, the Ministry wants a thorough understanding of teachers'--er--backgrounds...." She turned away, walked over to Pansy Parkinson, and began questioning her about the lessons. Snape looked around at Harry and their eyes met for a second. Harry hastily dropped his gaze to his potion, which was now congealing foully and giving off a strong smell of burned rubber. "No marks again, then, Potter," said Snape maliciously, emptying Harry's cauldron with a wave of his wand. "You will write me an essay on the correct composition of this potion, indicating how and why you went wrong, to be handed in next lesson, do you understand?"

Day 20: Very Like His Father "How touching," Snape sneered. "But surely you have noticed that Potter is very like his father?" Yes, I have," said Sirius proudly. "Well then, you'll know he's so arrogant that criticism simply bounces off him," Snape said sleekly. Sirius pushed his chair roughly aside and strode around the table toward Snape, pulling out his wand as he went; Snape whipped out his own. They were squaring up to each other, Sirius looking livid, Snape calculating, his eyes darting from Sirius' wand-tip to his face. "Sirius!" said Harry loudly, but Sirius appeared not to hear him. "I've warned you, Snivellus," said Sirius, his face barely a foot from Snape's, "I don't care if Dumbledore thinks you've reformed, I know better." "Oh, but why don't you tell him so?" whispered Snape. "Or are you afraid he might not take the advice of a man who has been hiding inside his mother's house for six months very seriously?" "Tell me, how is Lucius Malfoy these days? I expect he's delighted his lapdog's working at Hogwarts, isn't he?" "Speaking of dogs," said Snape softly, "did you know that Lucius Malfoy recognized you last time you risked a little jaunt outside? Clever idea, Black, getting yourself seen on a safe station platform...gave you a cast-iron excuse not to leave your hidey-hole in future, didn't it?" Sirius raised his wand. "NO!" Harry yelled, vaulting over the table and trying to get in between them, "Sirius, don't--" "Are you calling me a coward?" roared Sirius, trying to push Harry out of the way, but Harry would not budge. "Why, yes, I suppose I am," said Snape.

Day 21: Wormtail's Whine "We...we are alone, aren't we?" Narcissa asked quietly. "Yes, of course. Well, Wormtail's here, but we're not counting vermin, are we?" He pointed his wand at the wall of books behind him and with a bang, a hidden door flew open, revealing a narrow staircase upon which a small man stood frozen. "As you have clearly realized, Wormtail, we have guests," said Snape lazily. The man crept, hunchbacked, down the last few steps and moved into the room. He had small, watery eyes, a pointed nose, and wore an unpleasant simper. His left hand was caressing his right, which looked as though it was encased in a bright silver glove. "Narcissa!" he said, in a squeaky voice. "And Bellatrix! How charming--" "Wormtail will get us drinks, if you'd like them," said Snape. "And then he will return to his bedroom." Wormtail winced as though Snape had thrown something at him. "I am not your servant!" he squeaked, avoiding Snape's eyes. "Really? I was under the impression that the Dark Lord placed you here to assist me." "To assist, yes--but not to make you drinks and--clean your house!" "I had no idea, Wormtail, that you were craving more dangerous assignments," said Snape silkily. "This can be easily arranged: I shall speak to the Dark Lord--" "I can speak to him if I want to!" "Of course you can," said Snape, sneering. "But in the meantime, bring us drinks. Some of the elf-made wine will do."

Day 22: A Loving Caress Snape set off around the edge of the room, speaking now in a lower voice; the class craned their necks to keep him in view. "The Dark Arts," said Snape, "are many, varied, ever-changing, and eternal. Fighting them is like fighting a many-headed monster, which, each time a neck is severed, sprouts a head even fiercer and cleverer than before. You are fighting that which is unfixed, mutating, indestructible." Harry stared at Snape. It was surely one thing to respect the Dark Arts as a dangerous enemy, another to speak of them, as Snape was doing, with a loving caress in his voice? "Your defenses," said Snape, a little louder, "must therefore be as flexible and inventive as the arts you seek to undo. These pictures" --he indicated a few of them as he swept past-- "give a fair representation of what happens to those who suffer, for instance, the Cruciatus Curse" --he waved a hand toward a witch who was clearly shrieking in agony-- "feel the Dementor's Kiss" --a wizard lying huddled and blank-eyed, slumped against a wall-- "or provoke the aggression of the Inferius" --a bloody mass upon the ground.

Day 23: Better People "What does it matter?" said Malfoy. "Defense Against the Dark Arts--it's all just a joke, isn't it, an act? Like an of us need protecting against the Dark Arts--" "It is an act that is crucial to success, Draco!" said Snape. "Where do you think I would have been all these years, if I had not known how to act? Now listen to me! You are being incautious, wandering around at night, getting yourself caught, and if you are placing your reliance in assistants like Crabbe and Goyle--" "They're not the only ones, I've got other people on my side, better people!" "Then why not confide in me, and I can--" "I know what you're up to! You want to steal my glory!" There was another pause, then Snape said coldly, "You are speaking like a child. I quite understand that your father's capture and imprisonment has upset you, but--"

Day 24: Revulsion and Hatred Etched on His Face "Severus..." The sound frightened Harry beyond anything he had experienced all evening. For the first time, Dumbledore was pleading. Snape said nothing, but walked forward and pushed Malfoy roughly out of the way. The three Death Eaters fell back without a word. Even the werewolf seemed cowed. Snape gazed for a moment at Dumbledore, and there was revulsion and hatred etched in the harsh lines of his face. "Severus...please..." Snape raised his wand and pointed it directly at Dumbledore. "Avada Kedavra!"

Day 25: Don't Call Me Coward Mustering all his powers of concentration, Harry thought, Levi-- "No, Potter!" screamed Snape. There was a loud BANG and Harry was soaring backward, hitting the ground hard again, and this time his wand flew out of his hand. He could hear Hagrid yelling and Fang howling as Snape closed in and looked down on him where he lay, wandless and defenseless as Dumbledore had been. Snape's pale face, illuminated by the flaming cabin, was suffused with hatred just as it had been before he had cursed Dumbledore. "You dare use my own spells against me, Potter? It was I who invented them--I, the Half-Blood Prince! And you'd turn my inventions on me, like your filthy father, woudl you? I don't think so...no!" Harry had dived for his wand; Snape shot a hex at it and it flew feet away into the darkness and out of sight. "Kill me then," panted Harry, who felt no fear at all, but only rage and contempt. "Kill me like you killed him, you coward--" "DON'T--" screamed Snape, and his face was suddenly deranged, inhuman, as though he was in as much pain as the yelping, howling dog stuck in the burning house behind them-- "CALL ME COWARD!"

Day 26: The Guest Voldemort raised Lucius Malfoy's wand, pointed it directly at the slowing revolving figure suspended over the table, and gave it a tiny flick. The figure came to life with a groan and began to struggle against invisible bonds. "Do you recognize our guest, Severus?" asked Voldemort. Snape raised his eyes to the upside-down face. All of the Death Eaters were looking up at the captive now, as thought they had been given permission to show curiosity. As she revolved to face the firelight, the woman said in a cracked and terrified voice, "Severus! Help me!" "Ah, yes," said Snape as the prisoner turned slowly away again.

Day 27: I Regret It "All this long night, when I am on the brink of victory, I have sat here," said Voldemort, his voice barely louder than a whisper, "wondering, wondering why the Elder Wand refuses to be what it ought to be, refuses to perform as legend says it must perform for its rightful owner...and I think I have the answer." Snape did not speak. "Perhaps you already know it? You are a clever man, after all, Severus. You have been a good and faithful servant, and I regret what must happen." "My Lord--" "The Elder Wand cannot serve me properly, Severus, because I am not its true master. The Elder Wand belongs to the wizard who killed its last owner. You killed Albus Dumbledore. While you live, Severus, the Elder Wand cannot be truly mine." "My Lord!" Snape protested, raising his wand. "It cannot be any other way," said Voldemort. "I must master the wand, Severus. Master the wand, and I master Potter at last." And Voldemort swiped the air with the Elder Wand. It did nothing to Snape, who for a split second seemed to think he had been reprieved: But then Voldemort's intention became clear. The snake's cage was rolling through the air, and before Snape could do anything more than yell, it had encased him, head and shoulders, and Voldemort spoke in Parseltongue. "Kill." There was a terrible scream. Harry saw Snape's face losing the little color it had left; it whitened as his black eyes widened, as the snake's fangs pierced his neck, as he failed to push the enchanted cage off himself, as his knees gave way and he fell to the floor. "I regret it," said Voldemort coldly.

Day 28: You Hurt Her! "Tuney!" said Lily, surprise and welcome in her voice, but Snape had jumped to his feet. "Who's spying now?" he shouted. "What d'you want?" Petunia was breathless, alarmed at being caught. Harry could see her struggling for something hurtful to say. "What is that you're wearing, anyway?" she said, pointing at Snape's chest. "Your mum's blouse?" There was a *crack*. A branch over Petunia's head had fallen. Lily screamed: The branch caught Petunia on the shoulder, and she staggered backward and burst into tears. "Tuney!" But Petunia was running away. Lily rounded on Snape. "Did you make it happen?" "No." He looked both defiant and scared. "You did!" She was backing away from him. "You *did*! You hurt her!" "No--no I didn't!" But the lie did not convince Lily: After one last burning look, she ran from the little thicket, off after her sister, and Snape looked miserable and confused....

Day 29: Save Your Breath "I'm sorry." "I'm not interested." "I'm sorry!" "Save your breath." It was nighttime. Lily, who was wearing a dressing gown, stood with her arms folded in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady, at the entrance to Gryffindor Tower. "I only came out because Mary told me you were threatening to sleep here." "I was. I would have done. I never meant to call you Mudblood, it just--" "Slipped out?" There was no pity in Lily's voice. "It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends--you see, you don't even deny it! You don't even deny that's what you're all aiming to be! You can't wait to join You-Know-Who, can you?" He opened his mouth, but closed it without speaking. "I can't pretend anymore. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine." "No--listen, I didn't mean--" "--to call me Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I any different?" He struggled on the verge of speech, but with a contemptuous look she turned and climbed back through the portrait hole....

Day 30: Anything "If she means so much to you," said Dumbledore, "surely Lord Voldemort will spare her? Could you not ask for the mother, in exchange for the son?" "I have--I have asked him--" "You disgust me," said Dumbledore, and Harry had never heard so much contempt in his voice. Snape seemed to drink a little. "You do not care, then, about the deaths of her husband and child? They can die, as long as you have what you want?" Snape said nothing, but merely looked up at Dumbledore. "Hide them all, then," he croaked. "Keep her--them--safe. Please." "And what will you give me in return, Severus?" "In--in return?" Snape gaped at Dumbledore, and Harry expected him to protest, but after a long moment he said, "Anything."

#severus snape #snape fest #bring back the bastard fest 2021 #bring back the bastard fest #bring back the bastard #bring back the bastard prompts #harry potter fandom fest #hp fandom #snapedom #pro-snape #snapelove #prompts #daily prompts #snape prompts

157 notes · View notes

raewritez · 3 years ago

Text

Still

based on this request: I’m thirsty for a love triangle. Maybe Sokka and Zuko fighting for the reader’s affection. And she chooses ____!

warnings: one swear word right there ⬇️, aangst, simping

It fucking hurt.

Sure, Sokka knew Zuko was good now, and he knew that the two of you had history. But he couldn't have prepared himself for the ache that took place in his chest whenever you would choose to sit by Zuko around the campfire, when you would tease him in that playful tone of yours, when you would smile at him and it seemed like the sun beamed a bit brighter. It hurt because Sokka didn't get that anymore. Or maybe he did, but he was too blinded by jealousy to process the fact that you cared about both of them. In Sokka's mind, your gaze was always on Zuko, on his stupid fluffy hair and his oh-so-perfect stupid face. Your hand was always somewhere on him; on his arm, around his shoulder, on his face when you healed the cuts that resulted from your latest skirmish. He could only clench his jaw, standing and storming off to where he could be alone with his misery. He'd feel your eyes on him as he walked away, probably widened in confusion and your head probably tilted in that stupid, adorable way that made Sokka's heart melt every time. But he'd continue, not sparing you a glance. It's not like you cared, anyway.

You did care.

What was his problem? Things hadn't been this tense between you and Sokka since you first met, since he labeled you as the enemy and scoured you with his glares. But that was months ago. You weren't used to this standoffishness, not used to the way he'd turn on you and leave you in the dust. No, you were used to Sokka, your Sokka. The one that held you when you cried when the Earth Kingdom fell and Zuko sided with his sister, the one that teased you mercilessly with that lopsided grin of his, the one that raced you to the top of mulberry trees to see who could get the best fruit. The one that came to you when his mind was racing, face nuzzled into your neck as your fingers pulled his hair loose from his wolf-tail. That was your Sokka, not the stranger that walked away from you now.

Your concerned gaze was broken by a soft tap on your shoulder.

"Hey, you ok?"

You forced a smile, turning to Zuko. "I'm fine. Just tired. Your story put me to sleep."

He scoffed, bumping you and turning away to hide his grin. "Well, it's actually my Uncle's story. You can blame him."

"I'm sure I'd be more interested if Iroh was telling it," you grinned. "Maybe you're just a bad storyteller."

"I'm a great storyteller. You're just a bad listener."

"Mhm. Sure."

He let out a breathy chuckle, eyes darting to your face. Spirits, he'd missed you. This is what he'd longed for those three years; this closeness. Memories of his childhood ran through his mind - memories of playtime and friendship, of two best friends who had nothing to fear but curfews and monsters under the bed. Zuko had fought and struggled, had chosen right and chosen wrong, but all those choices had led him here. Back to you. And now, his body lit aflame by your touch and his heart skipping by the song of your laughter, he'd never been more certain of anything in his life.

He was thrilled to have you back, but it was different. Before, in the painted halls of the Firenation palace and under the maroon quilts of his mother's bed, he'd had you all to himself. Now, he had to share. It was strange, seeing you laugh so boisterously with Toph or hug Aang so closely, seeing you walk arm in arm with Katara as you went into town for groceries. He was in much better standing with the group now - he knew he was forgiven for his mistakes and was welcome to share in the friendship they so generously provided. He was overwhelmingly grateful, but he cherished the moments he spent with you. And they'd have been better, if not for the other boy in the group.

Zuko had no problem with Sokka. Quite the contrary, he admired him for his leadership and laughed at his jokes, and the time he spent with him was something he enjoyed. But he envied him. Zuko saw the way the Water Tribe boy looked at you; like you were the sun itself and had put all the stars in the sky just for him. He saw the fondness in the other boy's eyes when you spoke, saw the comfortability in his movements as he wrapped an arm around your shoulder. He had to remind himself that the two of you were close - that you'd spent months traveling together while he chased you all over the world. He'd guessed you would be close, but it seemed he'd underestimated the power of your love for your friends and this boy. Because you were brighter when he was around, eyes flickering to him as if on instinct whenever he arrived at the campsite. Your eyes grew tender and your voice soft, and Sokka's affection mirrored your own.

Your eyes locked on his, and he felt like he could drown in them forever. Your lips curved into a grin, and his worries and insecurities were washed away as quickly as they came. You stood up, offering him your hand. "Come on, let's get ready for bed."

He took it eagerly, smiling up at you in a way that made your heart warm. You reached up to ruffle his hair, skipping away and laughing at his indignant "Hey!" before he caught up to you and flicked your forehead. You swatted his hand away, glaring up at him. He only smirked before walking ahead of you.

You grabbed your bedroll, laying it out on the dusty ground. Zuko laid his close by. After putting out the fire and bidding goodnight to your friends, casting a sad look to Sokka's figure which sat idly upon the cliffside, you made your way inside and shut your eyes, Zuko not far behind.

///

Yep. Sokka was annoyed. He thought going for a walk would clear his mind, maybe preoccupy his thoughts with something other than you, but he guesses he was wrong. It was impossible when he could hear your laughter all the way from camp, no doubt directed towards the Firebender. He swallowed roughly, picking up his pace. He couldn't stand it; you and him. Sokka had no problem with Zuko. They were friends! Well, pretty much. Zuko had proved himself to be loyal, and there was no reason for him not to be trusted. He was cool - a little awkward albeit, but hey, Sokka can understand where that would come from after spending three years as an isolated, ponytail-wearing, Avatar-obsessed banished prince. He had no problem with Zuko, really. He guessed that he just...missed you.

Katara said he was jealous, something he promptly waved away, dismissing her with a wave. She'd rolled her eyes and called after him, "You can't ignore it forever, Sokka!" Ok, whatever Katara.

He was not jealous. He didn't care about the time you spent with the fire bender, or the way you seemed happier now that he was around. He didn't care that he hadn't talked to you in two days, and he definitely didn't care that your sleeping bag was sidled up cozily next to Zuko's.

"I'm so stupid," he muttered, lowering himself to the ground. He swung his legs over the cliff, feet dangling in the air. He turned his head, catching glimpse of the dying embers in the campfire, Toph's rock tent and Katara and Aang's sleeping figures, and you, asleep with your arms stretched in Zuko's direction. He held his head in his hands, sighing frustratedly. Yeah, maybe he was a little jealous. But really, why wouldn't he be? He used to sleep next to you, he was the one who made you laugh and woke you up in the middle of the night to sneak a ride on Appa. Now what? It'd been days since the two of you had a real conversation, so different from the constant chattering and jokes that had made his time saving the world so much more bearable. He missed you. So, so much. Spirits, what he would give for a day with you, the ones like you used to have. Where you would do whatever you wanted and usually end up scolded by Katara, but those were the days that made him forget the war and the reality of his unfortunate circumstances, when his heart was light and his worries quenched.

Those days meant everything to him, but he was afraid they were expendable. Because now you spent them with Zuko without so much as a glance his way. Sure, it wasn't like he was making much an effort, but still. You'd told him about Zuko; about the friend you'd lost to banishment who'd come out like his father. He'd thought you were crazy when you said with such conviction that he still had some good in him, but had comforted you nonetheless. He sat with you in his arms and told you the story of the time he got beat up by a penguin back home. He felt proud when he made you laugh.

You meant everything to him, but maybe it was different for you. He knew you loved him, although maybe not in the way he was beginning to question his own love as being, but he knew you loved him. You made sure he knew; in your smiles, in your words, in your touch. But he also knew you loved everyone else - the way you talked with his sister and softened her edges, allowing her to rest from the motherly role she put herself in and taking her under your arm instead. The way Toph latched onto you, teasing you with utter fondness and accepting your help without resistance. The absolute adoration that Aang held for you - resting his head on your shoulder and coming to you with his troubles, always searching for your guidance in his trials and relying on your strength and unwavering faith in him.

But it seemed different with Zuko. With him you were unbearably gentle, reassuring him of his value and rekindling the lost friendship of children ripped apart. It was obvious to everyone; the pure affection you held for this boy. It was obvious to Sokka, and, spirits, it stung. Because had you ever looked at him like that? Had he ever made you laugh as loudly as you did for Zuko, who was seemingly not even trying? He didn't know and it ate away at him, clawing at his chest and leaving it burning. Maybe he was in too deep now, too lost in love and bitterness to see the olive branches you offered him and the way your eyes darkened when he turned them away. It was fine. He was perfectly fine and would continue to be fine, even as Zuko's hand reached out for yours. Even as he felt you slipping away, even as he was alone. So terribly, painfully alone.

———-

part two?👀

289 notes · View notes

teamxdark · 3 years ago

Text

The sun beat down from overhead, and the scent of salt carried over as the breeze guided the waves to the shore. Below his feet, the captain felt the soft rocking of the ship sway him from side to side, back and forth, a sensation so familiar that he had to concentrate if he ever wanted to notice it.

And, well... He wanted to notice it right then. Anything to keep his troubled thoughts at bay.

Shadow was no captain. He had never considered himself good for the role. He could govern himself just fine, but when it came to a group, the weight of responsibility for others pushed him to his worst.

The problem was that no one noticed it.

The hedgehog lifted his head, keeping a hand on his hat to prevent it from flying away, and looked up at the clear skies, dotted by a few seagulls gliding on the currents up above. A perfect day to set sail, as the navigator had told him; Knuckles had an exceptional sense of direction and the strength of body to carry out duties as the helmsman or at the rudder, even when weathering a storm.

Even though he still sometimes drank himself to sleep to handle the guilt of refusing to accompany her.

A flash of yellow swooped by his periphery, and the captain turned to see Tails hard at work, checking the rigging and assessing the sails. The lad was young but brave, and had exceptional knowledge about the structural integrity of the ship. He could spot issues that most would gloss over, even with years of experience. A prodigy, an asset, an invaluable member of the crew.

Shadow still saw the boy's hands shake as he retied the knots, and he knew he still slept in the same hammock as his brother, worried that he might meet the same fate as her.

"Here you go, Captain!"

Amy's cheerful voice interrupted Shadow's brooding, and she pressed a large sandwich into his hand. "It's the last day we can have bread, unsalted meat and fresh vegetables, so I decided to make everyone something special."

The cook was her own force of nature, with a bright and friendly disposition that made those around her feel calmer and happier, and she made meals so good, even with a limited pantry, that the crew swore she was capable of magic. Yet, Shadow had seen her at the cannons, firing mercilessly at those who threatened them. She never missed a shot.

She still cried into their stew, sometimes.

Amy carried on, bringing the next sandwich to Silver, who thanked her with a kind smile. The cabin boy was the newest addition, a stowaway-turned-crewmate that they couldn't manage to turn away. He was an odd one, optimistic and thoughtful, yet impulsive and filled with a rage that brought the worst storms to shame. His telekinetic abilities helped him keep the ship spick and span all over, and when obstacles couldn't be avoided, it was often he who held the ship together... quite literally.

Shadow knew she would have found him to be priceless.

"Ready to set sail, Captain?"

Shadow held back a sigh and looked over to his first mate. Sonic was leaning over the side of the ship, feeling the breeze hit his face, his eyes serenely closed as he noticeably avoided looking at the water. For someone who didn't know how to swim, Sonic still fit in the crew like a hand in a glove tailor made for it. A jack of all trades, he was quick, decisive, courageous, fearless...

She should have picked him.

Shadow's hand rose to his chest, feeling the bumps and indents of the necklace hidden underneath his shirt, until it stopped over his heart, where the jewel lied.

Pink. Heart-shaped. Not worth much by a jeweller's appraisal, but absolutely priceless to any and everyone on that ship. The true symbol of the captain.

"Sometimes you have to make the value yourself," she had told him as she slipped the stone back under her shirt, safe from view.

"Just about," he finally responded to Sonic, noticing how the other hedgehog's ear dropped a tad before lifting back up.

"Sorry Cap, but it doesn't really sound like it."

Shadow hated that he was right. He hated that he still didn't feel ready. He hated that he had such a fantastic crew that he didn't feel worthy of inheriting.

When he was only responsible for himself, it was one story, but he didn't know if he could stand being responsible for anything that could happen to the rest of them. Shadow knew himself; after so many years of following her orders, so many instances of breaking away from her plans because he needed to figure out something for himself, he had come to a conclusion:

He was selfish, self-centred, and unfit to be the one calling the shots for people who needed someone with a strong mind and a constant focus on the big picture.

Why did you give this to me, Rouge?

Any of them could do a better job. Sonic, though he seemed carefree, commanded attention and loyalty and inspired trust and morale. Amy was a natural leader, responsible and resourceful. Even Knuckles, who still fell for Sonic's dumb pranks, had shown that he could step up to the plate and lead when he needed to.

Shadow had been the wildcard, a mix of a lone wolf and a follower, a gun to be aimed and fired by someone with enough clarity of mind to know what she needed to shoot for in the long run.

Rouge had been the perfect captain, except for one thing.

For some reason, she had named Shadow as her second in command.

"Still comparing yourself to her?"

Shadow's hand fell from his chest. He refused to respond.

Sonic leaned back from the railing, opening his eyes to the sky. "I guess I get it. Big shoes to fill and all that. But no one's a perfect captain, you know. Captain Rouge might have been one of the best there was, but the instant she saw a pretty gem..."

"... we'd get sidetracked," Shadow finished, pressing his lips together. It was true; as great as Rouge had been, she had a weakness, and that weakness was why she wasn't with them now.

"I just wish she had told us where she was going..."

It was a question the crew often asked themselves. Why had their captain run off to find a treasure reputed to have a curse so terrible that the map was torn apart and scattered. Why they had spent the better part of a year sailing around to find the pieces. Why Rouge had put together the map in secret and left to find it alone, leaving Shadow her necklace with the announcement that he was in charge. Why she hadn't taken anyone with her, save for the joking offer to Knuckles to accompany her, which the echidna still managed to convince himself was a true offer as a way to find something concrete to blame for the guilt and fear that he felt. That they all felt.

Shadow had nothing like that. He envied Knuckles in a way for it.

"Think of it this way," Sonic said, once again pulling Shadow from his thoughts. "It's an adventure of our own, and the prize is finding her again."

Shadow clenched his fists, crushing his sandwich in the process. "If she's still alive," he muttered, saying what so many of them were afraid to even think about.

"Hey now, come on--"

"Six months!" Shadow snapped. "It's been half a year and there's been no sign of her at any of the rendezvous points!"

You left us. You left me here, with your crew, and now I have to do what I could never do.

"And that's why we're looking for her, right?" Sonic asked, remaining calm even as Shadow felt his world split apart, yet again, as it did far too frequently when he was left with his thoughts. "That's why you ordered this search. Because you know that giving up on her when there's still a chance is the worst thing you could do for her."

Shadow breathed in heavily through his nose, forcing his hands to unclench. Sonic was right. There was a stupid, dumb, idiotic, pathetic part of him that couldn't accept what he knew should be the truth.

Rouge, if we find you and you're still alive, I'm throwing you overboard myself.

"We set off in two minutes," he ordered, stuffing what was left of his sandwich into his mouth. Next to him, Sonic grinned and gave him a salute.

"Aye aye, Captain."

With that, he was off, no doubt relaying Shadow's order to the rest of them. Shadow, meanwhile, walked to the bow of the ship, looking out to the horizon as he drew the necklace out from under his shirt.

They had no leads. They had a great many countries and vessels after them thanks to their history of heists. The odds of finding anything helpful were so astronomically slim that they might as well be sailing to their deaths.

But if any crew could do it, it was this one.

And Shadow, no matter how little he believed in himself, no matter how much fear he held, had to lead them.

"Sit tight, Captain," he whispered to the necklace's heart-shaped gem. Behind him, he heard the sound of Silver raising the anchor and Knuckles calling out directions to Tails at the helm while he pushed the rudder.

It was time to begin their adventure.

#Smash speaks.#I wanted to see if I could write a short thing and decided pirates.#Turns out writing short things is very hard.#This feels like a Chapter 1.#Luckily I have none ideas on how to continue so 🎉#Also I did not edit this. I am very tired and I can't tell if hungry or unhappy stomach.#Either way I wrote pirates I hope you enjoy.

84 notes · View notes

ladyartemesia · 5 years ago

Note

Fic recs for taehyung? I love your stuff btw I’ve read them all uwu

As a beacon of extra-ness in an already extra world, I am entirely incapable of just recommending fics like a normal blog. No. I’ve got to wax on like a bloomin connoisseur. I have compiled some (but not all) of my favorite works in several different categories and sorted them accordingly. This crazy list is so long I had to add a “keep reading”... but I simply couldn’t bear to leave any of these off the list. They are all so good!

Fics have been divided into 8 categories. Some are under the cut.

▨ FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS and FRIENDS TO LOVERS ▨ ▨ ARRANGED MARRIAGE ▨ ▨ FANTASY ▨ ▨ ANGST WITH A HAPPY ENDING ▨ ▨ HYBRID and ABO (alpha/omega) ▨ ▨ MULTIPLE PARTNERS ▨ ▨ NEIGHBORS AND ROOMMATES ▨ ▨ TABOO THEMES and DARK FIC (Sex Work/Power Imbalance/Very Unsafe Sex) ▨ ▨

▨ FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS and FRIENDS TO LOVERS ▨

Insomnia by @hobiwonder

This is one of those fics I read and literally could not stop thinking about. It is wildly hot and honestly hilarious. Poor reader cannot sleep and the beautiful bro she’s tutoring offers a rather unconventional solution.

(Ego) Hoe Chronicles: KTH by @suga-kookiemonster

Listen. If you find a niche fan blog devoted entirely to Ego Tae... I’m not gonna say it’s mine. But it’s probably mine. I once told suga-kookiemonster that I would literally read a story about Ego Tae going grocery shopping on a Wednesday night and I stand by that. In this lurid romp, the reader falls into the clutches of everyone’s favorite bohemian sex lord and he rails her into another dimension.

Falling, Falling, Gone by @johobi

Pining (mutual or otherwise) is not really my thing, but I would straight up read Jo’s laundry list if she posted it. As usual I was blown away by how everything she does seems somehow better than any other version of it. This reader is really unique as well, and her relationship with the wildly popular soccer star Tae comes to a sexy and hilarious head at a sort of bachelor auction. With sharp dialogue, delightful subtext, and fantastic side characters, you really shouldn’t miss it. It’s pretty much perfect.

A Friendly Favor by @baeseoul

This is the classic “teach me some sex for another woman” trope and it is done so well. Sweet best friend Tae is looking to benefit from your experience, but his is not the only world about to be thouroughly rocked.

Officer Kim and the Criminal Crush by @ddaengyoonmin

This is one of the best twists on childhood friends to lovers I have ever seen. Tae grows up to become a cop and reader grows up to be a societal menace. I won’t spoil it, but it’s the perfect blend of nostalgia, tenderness, and smut. This fic technically doesn’t have a name so I had to give it one to link it. It’s part of an AMAZING series Zoe did that I also highly recommend.

Out of the Blue by @jimlingss

This is one of those stories that blooms throughout the narrative until you are left with this gorgeous flower at the end. I loved the journey of these two characters. It was real and it perfectly captures the experience of finding your soulmate in the person you least expect.

Sin Pijama by @brilliantlybasicb

This fic is a switch culture fic. It is wild wicked hot and this Tae is unreal. I love the way he lets the reader think she is in control just long enough. It is a wild romp with an adorable sequel and honestly you should read it.

Girls Like You by @jjiminah

I was in jjiminah’s asks IMMEDIATELY about this fic because I had FEELINGS. The reader begins wordlessly teasing and tempting Tae on their morning bus ride every day until he is literally losing his mind. Everything that follows is fire. Jjiminah has hinted she will wrote more for these two and I NEED IT.

Sighs and Sonnets by @btsaudge

This fic is beautiful. Like it’s basically art. This is a bad boy who is bad for you. But he has the soul of a poet and the stroke game of a renaissance master. Bittersweet and seductive, this fic is a full experience.

The Text by @taetaesbaebaepsae

Tae is your friend with benefits but it looks like feeling may have been caught by one or more parties. When you attempt to soothe your aching heart with another pretty boy, Tae decides to stake his claim. This was very sexy. The whole fic was sexy.

▨ ARRANGED MARRIAGE ▨

Monster by @neonlights92

Monster and all of its companion series about each of the boys is one of those fics that I reread constantly and also just think about constantly. This is one of the best mafia AUs out there and it’s characters are vivid and unforgettable. Tae’s stubborn resistance to his lovely new wife in contrast with her quiet, clever strength really brings this story to life. A word of warning. The masterlist links are a bit messed up. To read part two you must click on part three. And to read part three must click on part four. The link to part four is at the bottom of part three (or you can just search it on her site. It is definitely all there though).

Dichotomy by @kpopfanfictrash

There is a reason the incomparable Shanna is on this list three times. She is truly incomparable. This is childhood friends-to enemies-to spouses and it is wonderful. I adore this Tae. He is sharp and vulnerable and occasionally heavy handed, but truly a gem. This fic also features one of the best angry sex scenes I’ve ever run my eyeballs across.

▨ FANTASY ▨

Chism by @kpopfanfictrash

The world-building in this story is genuinely awe inspiring. You could write series upon series within this vivid universe. The god of Winter is missing and Summer’s heat burns unchecked for many years. The reader is a warrior with a unique ability tasked with guarding a very interesting prisoner. This story is so good. I mean it is really bloomin incredible. It’s hard to say what I liked best about it, because it was stellar across the board.

Obsidian by @kpopfanfictrash

In the pantheon of delicious Tae incarnations, Obsidian Taehyung is essentially unrivaled as a grey witch who moonlights as a sexy rock star. His extremely erotic clash with a white witch detective plays out as the two of them track down a sinister killer (with the help of some truly memorable side characters).

Out of this World by @ddaengyoonmin

This one is really unique. Tae is a merman scientist on the water planet of Neptune and when the reader and her misguided crew crash into his sea, he takes it upon himself to improve inter-species relations. This fic features excellent world building alongside several twists and surprises. Clever scientist Tae is downright irresistible.

▨ ANGST WITH A HAPPY ENDING ▨

Picking Flowers by @jamaisjoons

So this story is a journey - truly a beautiful one and it’s a gorgeous addition to the hanahaki genre. There is real pain and I cried real tears, but gosh it was so sexy and so worth it. I was surprised by how truly immersed I ended up in this piece. I lost track of everything else. The end is insanely satisfying, but the journey is really what makes this fic unmissable.

Until Yesterday by @jimlingss

This fic destroyed me slowly then slowly put me together again piece by piece. When I say I went through it - I WENT THROUGH IT. The story is loosely based on the movie “The Vow” and it is just fantastic. Beautiful and tender till the last word.

The Foolish Muse by @bibbykins

This is the story of someone who is deeply in love, but knows they deserve better. It is a sexy and evocative work with allusions to mythology that fit seamlessly into the narrative. I think my favorite part is Tae discovering how much the reader meant to him and what choices ultimately lead them to a really delicious conclusion.

Back to You by @ladyartemesia

The last time I did a fic rec list, it got like 700 notes. Ya girl is not makin the same mistake again. I spent hours on this list. My work is comin along for the ride. Kim Taehyung is the love of your life, until one day he disappears without a trace.

Vacancy by @ppersonna

This one is the only idol AU on the list and I normally don’t read those, but Lindy’s work is too good to miss in any setting. I am thrilled I took a look because what I found was a glimpse into a beautiful relationship that weathers and eventually overcomes the challenges of loving in the limelight. There is a LOT of emotional depth and symbolism which really elevates everything about this lovely story. The reader’s internal struggles in the face of her lover’s fame are extremely well done.

▨ HYBRID and ABO ▨ (alpha/omega)

Eye of the Tiger by @opaljm

I am beyond hype about this story which is (very) loosely inspired by Zootopia and features a cocky tiger Taehyung and a fiesty prey hybrid he needs to fake date in order to keep panther Jimin from murdering him. (Tiger Tae got a tad too frisky around Jimin’s mate and now things are dangerously awkward.) This story is already so freakin good. I cannot wait for the rest.

Silver and Blue by @taetaewonderland

What happens when you get on the wrong side of the right werewolf? Very sexy - very crazy times. Chronologically this is the first of the Silver and Blue series which follows barely civilized were-Tae through his courtship and eventually his relationship with the spunky reader. Holla to all my impreg kink homies. This is the fic for you.

Heat Run by @ladyartemesia

As I said before, the last time I did a fic rec list, it got like 700 notes. Ya girl is not makin the same mistake twice. I spent hours on this list. My work is comin along for the ride. Alpha lawyer V is a man of many secrets, but his well ordered reality spirals wildly out of control when he crosses paths with a fiery omega set on saving the world from his wicked ways.

Beautiful Stranger by @interludemoonchild

This was a wild ride from start to finish. Taehyung is a tiger hybrid shifter who escapes from the circus to be close to a veterinary student he bonded with. There is a lot of interesting twists and surprises in this one. I was definitely screaming at the end.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell by @jingabitch

A very young wolf hybrid Taehyung adopts you as his pet human when you are just a kid. After Tae leaves to serve in the military he returns to an adult version of his sweet little princess and chaos ensues. Mind the tags for this one folks. It’s excellent, but there are very triggering themes throughout.

▨ MULTIPLE PARTNERS ▨

Level of Restraint by @lemonjoonah

This is not strictly a Tae fic in that he is only one of three major players in this twisted masterpiece. Lemon is the undisputed queen of the surprise twist and this one is truly brilliant. People dropped this fic in the discord calling it the best fan fiction they had ever read and I am not here to argue with them at all. Fair warning, every word - every inch of this fic is sexy and it’s delicious brand of titillation is wrapped around your psyche good and tight by the end.

Four by @luxekook

The quadruplets next door are fueling your very lurid fantasies. It turns out they have some fantasies of their own... You will need water if you read this fic. This is the original patented Kim Taehyung Horny Hive Mind 4D Experience™

▨ NEIGHBORS AND ROOMMATES ▨

The Heat Wave Series by @curly-bangtan

The original story (chapter 1) in this series is definitely famous, but I don’t know how many people have read all 9 chapters and if you haven’t, you are really missing the incredible journey of two very horny idiots stumbling recklessly towards real and amazing love. Everything is set off when the air conditioner breaks and a pair of wild roommates shed their inhibitions along with their clothes.

Flicker by @chimoona

So this fic started out with adorable neighbor dynamics and ended with erotic rope tying. Baby I was ABOUT IT. This was so bloomin hot and also like sweet and tender. Really a sexy and sentimental treasure.

Not Your Typical Flower Shop Story by @jungtaeyoongles

This story goes from “aww” to “WHAT THE-” real quick. Fast paced plot and twist after twist turn the whole flower shop au upside down and then inside out. I can’t say more because spoilers but like - WOW.

▨ TABOO THEMES and DARK FIC ▨ (Sex Work/Power Imbalance/Very Unsafe Sex)

Extracurricular by @ppersonna

One of my favorite professor-student AUs. The reader writes her gorgeous professor a borderline erotic analysis of several major works of art and he feels compelled to discuss it with her privately. Lindy really outdid herself on this one. It is scorchin. Professor Tae is actually really sweet and somehow that just makes the whole thing hotter.

Akrasia by @nitaescence

This is insanely hot. Emphasis on the insane because it’s basically a super erotic romp where you have sex with a man you don’t know (Taehyung) on a crowded public bus. I literally felt my blood pressure going up the longer I read. Whew.

The Client by @jungkookiebus

This one hit me right in the feels. Taehyung is a sweet and lonely man who has a standing Wednesday appointment with an upscale sex worker. As the story progresses, feelings become involved on both sides. When I say I am checking her page thrice daily for part three... This is so engrossing. And this Tae. I just want to hold him.

Daffodil Dreams by @sombreboy

Tread carefully ladies and gents. This story is excellent, but it is easily the darkest fic on the list and, if you choose to read it, please read the trigger warnings carefully. The reader is a psychologist called in to analyze a very dangerous criminal. As their sessions progress, however, several boundaries are crossed.

Obey by @jjkfire

Taehyung is the most feared and ruthless member of the local mafia and you are the world’s most inept escort. You needed a job, but had no real interest in sex work and you’ve managed to fly under the radar as a glorified waitress until Kim Taehyung himself walks into your agency and decides that you’re the only girl he wants. Oh my gosh I loved this story so much. It was downright amazing and there is a surprise at the end that makes everything even sweeter.

#kim taehyung #bts #kim taehyung smut #kim taehyung x reader #kim taehung fanfiction #viola recommends #fic recs #I CANNOT BELIEVE TUMBLR FORMATTED MY POST SO MY BANNER IS HIDDEN I WANT TO LITERALLY CRY #TUMBLR we are FIGHTING oh my gosh

2K notes · View notes

soldierswar · 3 years ago

Text

Kobik - Chapter VII

Bucky x Reader

Angst

Plot: You, Sam, Bucky, and even Kobik learn that she may be a lot more powerful than anybody thought.

Masterlist (For other chapters)

“Kobik,” you said, and signaled for her to stand behind you.

“Don’t make this harder than it has to be,” one of the three guys barked.

You and Bucky nervously eyed each other from the corners of your eyes. You really wished you brought earpieces.

“What is it that you even want from her?” you hissed.

“Come on. Don’t you know what this thing can do? Spoiler alert, it’s not just little party tricks.”

Kobik held on to you and nervously squeezed your leg.

“Don’t you dare think about touching her,” Bucky said in a low, threatening tone.

You suddenly spotted Sam facing the backs of the men hiding behind a wall of the parking structure. You dared not look at him for longer than half a second so as to not give away his spot and stayed as still as a statue.

Suddenly, Kobik did something that you never would have expected, nor would you have let happen if you had any control. She unwrapped her arms from your legs and stepped towards the meanest of them, outstretching her arms to him so that he could pick her up.

Bucky looked livid.

“Kobik, don’t you dare.”

She looked back at him with innocent eyes and let the man pick her up.

“See?” the man gloated.

“That wasn’t so ha—”

But before he could finish his sentence his whole body lit up into a glowing blue and began convulsing as though he were being electrocuted…Because he was.

She didn’t let go of him until he fell backward and dropped to the floor. All of you stared at the two in shock. You didn’t know that she could do that. Kobik just stared at the man on the ground with a straight face.

“He’s not dead,” she stated in a matter-of-fact tone, as though she was talking about a bug.

Before the other two guys had a chance to retaliate against the three of you they looked like they had been stunned in the back one by one and fell to the ground writhing in pain.

“Neither are they,” she added.

“But I didn’t do that.”

“Well, are you coming or not?” Sam yelled from across the parking lot holding a stun gun waving at you to come to the car in the parking structure. Right before following the direction you realized that Kobik was missing. She was right in front of you a second ago.

“Kobik? Come on before they wake up!” you called out.

But nothing…And then Bucky looked up.

“Kobik! Get down from there!” he yelled.

And there was Kobik. She was on the roof of the hospital ten stories up.

“But I have to see!”

“No!” Bucky protested.

“Come down now! We’re leaving, and the coast is clear!”

She was too far away for her expression to be clear, but she was too concentrated and defiant to even reply. Who knew if she was even listening.

“Now you know what it feels like,” you gloated.

Bucky shot you a glare.

Finally, she disappeared and seemed to teleport from the roof. But she didn’t come next to you. She suddenly appeared in one of the parking structures. But…it wasn’t the one that she was supposed to be at.

“Wrong one!” Bucky yelled so that she could hear.

“Kobik hasn’t quite gotten full control of her powers yet,” he explained.

You both ran towards the correct structure waiting for Kobik to just appear where you were supposed to go. But she didn’t. She just stood at the entrance with her shoulders slumped over. And she began to look a little weak.

“Come on, Kobik,” you doted.

“I can’t,” she panted.

You couldn’t hear much of what she said as she was relatively far, but it sounded like she was saying that she was too tired to move now. She might have exhausted herself because of all of the energy she had emitted within the past 15 minutes.

“I’ll go get her,” Bucky sighed letting you go meet up with Sam.

“Thanks for the rescue, Cap,” you panted. You couldn’t believe how winded you were after only ten seconds of running.

“No problem,” he replied shoving his stun gun in the back of his pants again.

“Is she gonna be okay?”

“Yeah, I think so. She’ll just need a lot of rest.”

And then…Before Bucky could get to her she let out a blood-curdling scream. When you turned around to her direction another guy had grabbed her. But she didn’t do what she did before. This time she glowed brighter than you had ever seen before. And then the seemingly impossible happened. The entire front half of the parking structure exploded.

“Kobik!” you screamed.

Right before you were about to run, Sam held you back standing in front of you with his hands grasping onto your shoulders tightly.

“Get in the car and start the engine. We’ve got this.”

“No! I have to get—”

“Y/N, I’m not going to tell you again.”

Your jaw clenched as you looked at the destroyed part of the building. You felt helpless. But there was no possible way that you could get out of his grasp.

“Listen if you want to help, do this.”

Your jaw clenched. And you held back an eye roll when you took a moment to accept that he was right.

By the time you turned the car on Bucky was calling you on your cellphone.

“Bucky?”

“She’s okay,” he said.

But she didn’t sound okay. You could hear her crying loudly like she was scared. She sounded close enough to the phone for you to know that he was at least carrying her.

“Meet us at the hospital exit. We’re coming.”

You floored it out of the parking spot over to the exit.

Kobik was covered in rubble and in obvious distress sobbing harder than ever.

Bucky sat in the back with her trying to get her to calm down, and Sam joined you in the passengers’ seat.

“I’m sorry,” she cried.

“I didn’t mean to I…”

“I know,” Bucky would whisper holding her close.

“Did I hurt anyone?”

But Bucky wouldn’t answer that question.

“Don’t worry about that. Let’s just get you home.”

That answer didn’t stop the crying. There was nothing that he could do that would stop her crying. And in turn, you found tears begin to fall down your cheeks. You hoped that nobody noticed.

…

When you finally got home you needed to talk to Bucky. Sam was more than happy to stay with Kobik who had finally stopped crying but wouldn’t talk anymore. You grabbed Bucky and closed yourselves in your room.

“What the hell happened back there?”

Bucky sighed.

“She…She still hasn’t developed full control of her powers yet.”

His jaw clenched as you stared at him with a very serious look.

“What do you mean? I thought you said that she was totally harmless, James.”

“To you, Y/N,” he stated.

“Listen. She’s never been known to hurt anyone that she trusts or at least doesn’t have a reason to distrust; which was why I was totally comfortable leaving her with you.”

Fair point. She was nothing but harmless and playful.

“But when it comes to things like this when she was completely alone and caught off guard…Stuff like this could happen. With what happened this afternoon and tonight…It was probably too much for her.”

“So things like this have happened before?” you questioned.

“Y/N, why do you think that two scientists were studying her and keeping her existence under wraps? In the wrong hands, she could be, well, unstable. But she’s a lot better at controlling her powers now than she was a year ago…But she still needs help.”

You sat down on the bed absolutely exhausted after the incredibly long day that you had. It barely even registered that at the beginning of the day you were having a completely normal, happy morning and afternoon.

You sat down on the bed not having the energy to carry any type of expression on your face. You probably looked like you were in a trance.

“We have to know the damage,” you said after a solid minute of sitting.

“It’s probably all over the news now.”

Bucky sat down next to you and nodded in agreement while pulling his phone out. Before he even unlocked his phone there was a news article notification headlined, ‘Brooklyn Hospital Parking Structure Destroyed: 1 casualty.’.

You were both guiltily relieved that the only person that died was the guy that tried to grab Kobik. On the flip side, a lot of car owners and insurance companies were going to be pissed.

“How was she able to harbor all of that energy, James? You had to go get her because she was too weak to walk. And then she just exploded half of a building?”

He shook his head.

“I don’t even know if she has the answer to that question. I think it just happened without her knowing that she could even do that.”

He opened his phone again and went for further news coverage.

“They’re not tracing anything back to her or us.”

Not only did nothing get traced back to you guys, but the suspects of the explosion were the three guys that had their guns pointed to you before Kobik’s little trick, and Sam’s rescue. The only weird thing to news outlets was that there were no traces of whatever could have possibly created an explosion that big. Which most importantly meant that there were no signs of Kobik existing.

“Are you scared of her again?”

Bucky seemed worried about your answer. And you knew now that it was because he loved that little girl. Probably just as much as you loved her. And for that, you were grateful to her for coming into your lives when she did. Looking back at how caring he was for her made you see how much of an amazing dad he was going to be. Flashes of your eventual future watching him make your child laugh, or taking care of them when they had scrapes, and even the cliché of teaching them how to ride a bike. No matter how terrified he might feel about now knowing how to be a father, it was clear that he knew exactly how to be a dad.

He seemed a little bit more nervous from your cryptic pause. You then frowned and kissed him, offended that he would even ask you that. So you gave him the answer that he hoped you would have.

“Never.”

Note: I am so grateful to every one of you that have gotten invested in this story. It's been truly a joy to know that reading this makes so many of you guys happy. I love you all. <3

Tagged: @buckylove123 @teenagedreams-bucky @typicalnerd98 @veroxloki @white-wolf-buckaroo @acciosiriusblack @pastel-boy-sungjae @flightsandfantasy @noiralei @unstablesleepygal

47 notes · View notes

egopocalypse · 3 years ago

Note

28 4 16 21 20 and 28 >:D

28) Is there a part of A Warden's Secrets you’re surprised no one has picked up on yet?

You asked this question twice, so I'm going to answer it with two different fics. While A Warden's Secrets is in the early stages, I'm surprised only a few close friends have picked up on the foreshadowing I've layered in since the Prologue (though maybe it's because they know me too well <3). The build-up to the reveal is going to be so much fun. I can't wait to reach it. ;)

4) Did you have any ideas that didn’t make the final cut of Gone Away?

Originally, Gone Away was meant to be a multi-POV story, but the structure wasn't working, so I cut everything I wrote for those other POVs and focused solely on Tubbo's. I do plan to finish and upload the other content as extra interludes, but that won't be for a long while. Right now, I wish to focus on my three main WIPs.

16) What fanfic tropes do you avoid writing for?

In terms of DSMP fanfic, I tend to avoid writing fics that have side characters swoop in and fix the main character's issues with ease (for example, all the fics where c!Emeraldduo save c!Tommy from Exile, baby him, and kill c!Dream). It strips the POV character's agency from them and feels too much like a Deus Ex Machina for me to feel comfortable writing myself.

While my whole schtick is Bad Ending AUs, the major part of putting characters into rough situations is to see how they claw out of them. There may be times where they give into moments of despair, but ultimately they find a way to move forward and survive despite the obstacles standing in their way. Plus, c!Tommy, Tubbo, and Sam aren't weak characters. They might need some guidance to find their way out of the darkness, but once they see the light, they can push through themselves. They don't have to be carried out.

21) Is there an idea you’ve always wanted to write, but haven’t yet?

So many. I've had a c!alliumduo Lab AU developed since September; the original concept of Pandora's Locked Tight where c!Sam lets c!Dream out after he holds c!Tommy hostage post-prison lockdown, which I thought of prior to c!Tommy's death and c!Sam stating that was the exact reason why he didn't let c!Tommy out past the seven-day mark; my c!Beeduo plotline centering around the Enderwalk that I've posted a snippet for but never talked about fully; and a post-prison break c!Primeboys/discduo storyline that continues their horror/Boy-Who-Cried-Wolf arc. (That last one may be getting off the ground soon, though. I'm so excited for it.)

20) What feedback makes you the happiest to hear?

Whenever someone comments on the pacing, emotional effect on the reader, metaphors, characterization of characters I've never written before, and/or scene description, I appreciate it so much. Scene description and developing metaphors are the hardest concepts for me to grasp since I'm not a visual person, so whenever someone praises either aspect of writing, it helps me know I'm doing it right and helps me improve. Pacing is also difficult for me (especially with the recent monster chapters), so I love getting comments on that as well. Not to mention how there are plenty of characters I try (though don't always succeed) to stay on top of analysis for, so when I try to write them (like c!rocketduo in the latest chapter of A Warden's Secrets), I always appreciate commentary on how I captured their characterization and voices. It takes a lot of effort to balance!

28) Is there a part of Gone Away you’re surprised no one has picked up on yet?

Absolutely. Like A Warden's Secrets, I've inserted a lot of foreshadowing in Gone Away that only a rare few have picked up on, particularly in the most recent chapter. However, some of that payoff will come in the next chapter (once I finally get a chance to update it). I'm excited for the reactions. ;)

Thank you for all the questions! :D

Ask game

#ask game #Finishing up the last ask from Friday because I was busy yesterday #I believe this is Blip but please correct me if I'm wrong

3 notes · View notes

whump-town · 4 years ago

Text

In The Woods Somewhere

Warning: country shit, you know? they kill a coyote...

this is just one long ass metaphor so...

Her scream pierces the warmth of the late autumn afternoon. Above her lazy ravens ascend to the sky, puffing little irritated calls to one another as they move away from the screeching child. At the commotion, the woods themselves seem to shift, annoyed with the agony-laced sound. Old tree branches splintering and the soft, unsatisfied chatter of life deep within.

She is seven, standing where the branches reach with hungry fingers out to her. Where her father tells her their property ends. The threat of what happens to curious children who trespass in the woods hums deeply in her veins. She’s drawn to the memory of the boy they found in the river last summer and standing around the campfire. Leaning into her father’s leg as he told stories about the beasts deep in the woods. Murderous, lustful things that will take carelessly. Going on even when her mother had hummed disapprovingly warning him with the simple mumble of his first name.

He’d turned to her hushed and high on the same adrenaline bucking her knees out from underneath her body. Foxes and Coyotes, he’d told her, they deceive the woods for what they truly are. “Smaller than what you think,” Roy whispered, smiling as she pressed closer. Curious but afraid, seeking his warmth as much as his comfort but begging for more. “Look like a wolf, you’ve seen a wolf haven’t you? Coyotes look an awful lot like them but brown and they’re ravenous little bastards.” There’s an intelligent glint to their eyes, unmistakable and haunting. It’s easier to conceive nature as consuming and destroying. But it’s simply untrue and to find yourself standing face-to-face with it is a daunting, demeaning task. To see in nature’s eye your own insignificance.

She hadn’t understood that word, ravenous, but had heard her father shout out into the field something about bastards before to know it was not good. He’d never meant it as any sort of compliment. He’d taken her hand a few nights later, guided her out to the porch, and held her skinny body against him. Shushed her when she’d tried to ask him what they were doing, trusting him blindly as a child does, but fearful of the depths of the night spread out before her. The clear sky above their heads hidden by the roof so she’d held him a little tighter. Heart pounding in her chest.

The first sounds just like a dog, her head swivels to identify exactly where it’s coming from. The second is shrill, sends a shiver down her spine and her fingers tighten on Roy’s shirt. It makes the hairs on her body stand tall, rocking her thin limbs in shivers. More erupt, some sounding so close she fears the creatures the sound emits from could snap and grasp her in its jaw from here.

“Coyotes,” her father rumbles, she can hear the smile in his voice.

They howl on and off, their presence so near. Feverish, she can feel it and knows there’s an untold but not inherently unused threat in animals that lurk just past the extension of the porch steps.

Despite the rolling cool air of September washing over Virginia, Haley is out in the backyard letting the sweater her mother had tucked around her fall off her shoulders. Jessica’s old overalls too short for her long legs, making them perfect for afternoons spent rummaging about in the dirt and grass. Her bare feet stomping against the cool grass as she runs, eager to just be. To feel the wind snap against her cheeks and the plush grass give under her feet.

Something rattles on the far edge of the yard, too far for her to see from where she is. It makes her pulse jump, but not pound as it does now in her little chest. A bird caged between ribs, beating its wings against her insides to make her stomach tighten with apprehension. It does not sing out, does not warn her of the danger she encroaches upon.

When she finds the live, snarling and snapping, creature ensnared in the fence but she’s not sure what it is. The sounds it makes, teeth barred but all mixed signals as it puts weight on its injured side and whimpers softly. Only to meet her every cautious move with a throaty growl but her curiosity is piqued and her ability to perceive the threat is diminished by it.

The animal, the size of a dog, snaps at her. Barring stark white teeth, sharp canines, covered in its own blood. It hunches low, pulled up on its front legs enough to distract her from the bangled sight of its left hind leg. To pretend to be every bit of a threat that it might be if not wounded. It moves too much and she cries out again, flinching when it whimpers as it falls limply back to the ground. Struggling to pull itself back up. The animal stills, laying on its side and heaving deep breathes.

That’s when she sees the blood.

She screams, oblivious to the ravens that take to the sky, black against the oranges of the sunset.

She’s played along this fence a thousand times, knows to not mess with it. The barbed wire won’t hurt her, Roy had struggled to explain this but she’d understood, in the end, that if she messed with it unnecessarily it could. Its intent is to keep the cows in the neighbor’s yard from wandering into theirs. She’d watched the cows brush up against the edges, scratching themselves against the edges that would tear through her pale, thin skin.

She’d touched the edges and, while they’re not inherently blade-like, she’d still marveled at how sharp they are. That was the end of it. But now she looks at the wounded animal at her mercy, succumbing to its fate be whatever it is. Sees the wire fence wrapped around the animal’s leg. The serrated flesh caused by the barbs and where the animal had been half-successful in chewing through its leg.

“Haley!” Roy runs to her, pulling her away from the animal but her eyes stay glued to it. The way it struggles to lift itself up to snap at the new threat, to bare its teeth and present itself as something it most certainly is not. Roy sighs when he speaks, placing his hands on his hips and shaking his head at the sight. “Nosing around where you shouldn’t have been,” Roy mumbles to it. He turns back to Haley, running the palm of his hand through his hair. “It’s just a coyote,” he explains, glancing back when the wounded animal falls back to the ground with a tired, pitiful snort.

“It’s hurt,” she says. She’s watching flies land on its back, moving over the blood. The wound is infected and the leg is useless. She knows what happens to lame animals. Feels the bird within her chest shake, beating against her lungs until they ache. “What are you going to do to it?” she asks but she already knows. Wild things aren’t tamed. They snip and bite no matter how you love them. She knows seeing the pink of the bones peeking through blood matted fur what her father will do but she’s blinded. She’s hopeful for this creature. Thinks of her kind father and the gentle way he bandages her wounds and knows he can save it. He can if he’ll only try

“Go back to the house,” Roy instructs

Haley shakes, “no.”

Roy turns around, caught off guard by the sudden conviction from his youngest daughter. The child that seems to follow him so blindly, her loyalty so deep it often scares him. But he remembers being her age, remembers looking at his father with that same look. Having curated this idea that he could save the world. It’s amazing to be on the receiving end of but it’s always a matter of time before every child learns the truth. That their fathers are just men. Horrible, awful men and feels a little light in him die. “Look away, Haley.”

She sees him reach for his belt, the belt he keeps on him while working outside. The only thing separating them from the creatures in the woods. She runs. Her feet hit the Earth hard and fast, screaming for her mother. Begging someone to see reason.

When the hammer strikes she falls as if the bullet has been lodged into her spine. Tears sting her eyes, pouring down her cheeks in rage, as she pulls herself back up. Her mother steps out onto the porch and Haley throws herself into her arms, sobbing and choking around the story. Missing details and so angry, so broken that he hadn’t even tried. Her father hadn’t even tried to help the coyote.

Her mother holds her, soothes her tears and they sit in the kitchen. Her sobs dissipating until she’s just hiccupping, face buried in her mother’s smooth skin. “Why didn’t he help the coyote?” she asks. Mothers always seem to hold the secrets of fathers and Haley knows this is no exception.

Her mother rubs her back, “sometimes, baby, no amount of help in the world can save something lost. Sometimes the only thing you can do is… mercy.” Her mother presses a kiss to her head, “daddy was showing the coyote mercy, Haley. That was compassionate. That was all he could do.”

She’d seen the blood on her father’s hands after he returned. Watched from the safe cocoon of her mother’s arms as he’d come in the kitchen door, letting it bang and clatter shut. “Daddy?” she hiccups. She presses closer to her mother, drowning out the memory of the snarl and hiss of the coyote with the sweet scents of her mother. Hoping the squeeze of her mother’s arms around her shaking body wrings her dry of the animal. “What did you do to him?”

Roy washes his hands, carefully working the blood off his skin and grunting to communicate he’s heard Haley but isn’t ready to respond. He doesn’t face his wife and child until he’s clean of it, the blood washed from his hands and from the sink. He dries his arms off slowly, taking his time to gather his response. Settling the back of his hips against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest, he looks at his daughter. Sees the tear tracks drying on her cheeks and that look in her eyes. He knows all too well the importance that will be placed on his next few words, sees the glint of a core memory forming.

She’ll base worth and sense off his next words.

He crouches down in front of her, taking one of her soft, small hands in his own. “What comes from the woods, must be returned.” All things must be returned. It’s why people are buried or singed to ash, to be turned back into the Earth. The way that Roy had dragged that Coyote as deep into the woods, as far he dared. Such is the way of nature, all things that are taken must be compensated for, and with his fingers curled into the cool main of that limp coyote, Roy had thought of his too curious daughter. Of the way she’d find herself back to that mangled heap of twisted fencing, staring at the animal's congealed blood. The curdled darkened crimson left on the cleared dirt. How long until she searched further? Sought to find better answers to questions she can’t form coherently with her tongue, little legs driving her to the trees.

They always talk back, the trees, and Roy had known what they’d say. Knew they’d beckoned her into their depths. He’d taken from the woods and they would take from him. With a sigh, Roy places the worn skin of his palm on Haley’s pale cheek. “I took him home,” he whispers. “Even wild things have homes.”

She’s fourteen when she meets a boy who moves like the coyotes that trot through the yard. The ones her father shakes his head at and tells her must be sick, they shouldn’t be out in the light like this. That familiar glint in his eyes, the impulsivity of what comes next is unknown to both but his shoulders flex. Long thin limbs waiting for her to move first, to establish if he’ll run or fight. Not the sort to turn his back to her. He’s looking at the crosshairs aimed at his chest and he knows any sudden movement will be his last.

She’s fourteen and found another wild creature she’s convinced she can change.

Sees that pink marrow, the dark crimson pooling and weaving through the tall grass. The fencing wrapped tightly around his lame limb, his dark eyes looking back at her and waiting to find what she’ll do next. If she’ll cut him free, withstanding his snarled bites until he falls limp with exhaustion and defeat. Heaving those panting breaths. She’ll wrap him in a blanket and drag him home. Shush his whimpers while she bandages his wounds.

She should have done what her father had and put a bullet in his head while it was still soon enough to call it mercy. Dragged his tired, broken body to the woods. Do as her father had instructed all those years before and return him to the woods. To his home because that is not her.

She’s seventeen, screaming for her father. Another mangled thing bleeding out in the field in their backyard, propped up against that old fencing. His blood soaks into the neck of his t-shirt, the material hardening, as he sits there panting. She’d seen him coming, his tall figure working its way through the woods. From her bedroom window, she’d waved at him, getting up to go greet him. When she runs out onto the porch she throws the light on, her beaming smile dying as she’d searched for him.

Roy tears through his backyard for his daughter trying to find the danger his mind buzzes with. He’s not surprised to find Aaron cradled to her chest, face a swell of wounds.

“What do I do?” she asks. She’s too old, knows better than to ask him to handle the matter. She knows what he does to wounded things and she knows he sees Aaron for what he is. He’s beyond saving but that’s a lesson she’ll have to learn on her own. That he’s no different than the coyote, in this very field, that had chewed through its skin. It would have taken its own leg off to escape the fence. How far into the woods would it have made it? On three legs, losing blood, and fighting an infection. How long until infection won out? Until something bigger, something stronger clamped teeth to its neck. Mercy. Not for the hunt but mercy.

Her father and Aaron lock eyes, just as that old coyote had before her father shot it. They share a wordless conversation and Roy turns away, taking with him that coveted mercy.

She’s too innocent.

She’s too hopeful.

There is no mercy in her love and she drags his aching, dying body up to her room. Looks past the infection set into his heart and corrupting his mind. She sees life in something dying so painfully slow, unable or unwilling to see desperation.

She brushes the back of his fingers against Aaron’s nose, watches his lips twitch as he slips into a fitful sleep. Lips falling and jaw relaxing under her touch until his breath ghosts over her cheek. He inches closer, making soft little noises. Wounded, punched sounds as he searches for something in his sleep. Finding it in her, wrapping his arms over her hips and pressing his face closer to her own.

She feels him relax in her hold and closes her eyes.

She’s taken something from the woods, knows this thing that aches so openly against her breast is not hers to have. It is simply a matter of time before the woods call him back. Before he slithers back to his tree and she’s left with the bitter mouthful of their actions. A sweet thing to undertake but soured as they lay with it.

He’s a wild thing she thinks she can tame. She can file down his teeth but it’ll be too late when he hurts her. He’s too big and she’s small and you just can’t change a man like him. He’s going to hurt her, kill her, and by the time he realizes what he’s done, it’ll be too late.

#criminal minds #aaron hotchner #haley hotchner

30 notes · View notes

dxxdlexxdle · 4 years ago

Text

Mr. and Mrs. Prongs Love Story Headcanon!

my fav heteros deserve some love tonight. it’s raining currently where i live, and it’s a good night to write some heart-wrenching headcanons, i think!

words: 1,694

warnings: fluff, hints at smut, maybe? pain. eternal fucking suffering cause this fandom kills me. some of the storyline may be fucked my memory is HORRIBLE and i tried to base some scenes off of MsKingBean89’s all the young dudes

—

In their first year at Hogwarts, the very first day they had even been inside the castle, actually, James Potter realized something.

The copper haired girl across from him was awfully pretty.

She was disgusted at the way he declared someday they would be married. “WHY would I ever marry you?” She had shouted, moving down the table to the blonde and curly haired witches she had met earlier on the train. James stared at her, doe-eyed. She was perfect.

This did however mean he was the first of the boys to take an interest in girls. By girls I mean, well, just Lily. Sirius Black thought it was awfully funny. “Mate, girls have cooties.” Remus Lupin was too shy to have an opinion. Peter could hardly even tell his own feet apart from left and right, and his lip trembled when he got yelled at, so there was no hope for him.

James took to teasing Lily to try and get his point across. Lily thought it was horrible. Why was he being so horrid if he supposedly fancied her? Why did he even fancy her in the first place? Somebody like her, a witch from non-magic parents, and somebody like him, a pureblood wizard?

It wasn’t until one day in potions she told him just what she thought of him. His tormenting had gone on too long. He had bewitched one of her pigtails to tug on its own from across the room.

“You are foul, James Potter!” She had shouted, resulting in thirty points from Gryffindor. James had just beamed.

James was a smiling mess, really. For starters, she had said his name, out loud, to him. Secondly, her nose scrunched when she was angry.

Anybody would notice a girl’s nose scrunch when she was angry, surely?

In second year, he announced that this would be the year she would want to marry him too. Alas, no luck. If anything, this year, she came prepared with snarky remarks to his teasing. It made him swoon.

In third year, Lily Evans overheard the boys whispering in the common room.

“What are you four planning?” She had asked, plopping down beside her lanky, slightly edgy looking best mate Remus. She avoided James’ eyes.

“Look at this, Mrs. Prongs come to join the party.” Sirius chuckled, and James punched him in the arm.

“Mrs. Prongs..?”

“SIRIUS.” James hissed at his friend who was doubled over.

In fourth year, she had begun to tolerate him. The teasing from Sirius was what did it. James was bad enough, his almost-brother was as relentless as him, but for different reasons.

“Prongs and Lily, sitting in the Whomping Willow, S-N-O-G-“

“Sirius!” Lily and James shouted in unison, equally red.

Fifth year changed them both. This was when Lily realized Remus was a werewolf. She swore secrecy, and promised to tell nobody else, as long as she lived.

James had already known. Once a month he was running in the woods as a stag, pushing his half-wolf friend around playfully with his antlers- or should I say prongs? ;)

In sixth year, Remus Lupin noticed Lily sitting in the stands, watching Gryffindor’s quidditch practice.

“What’s got you here? Marlene isn’t at practice today?”

Lily had turned a shade almost as red as her hair. “Oh Remus, don’t make me say it,” she hissed. Remus was in a fit of giggles.

“You fancy James!”

“Hush!” And she whacked his arm with her textbook.

To be honest with herself, this was not the beginning of how she felt for James. It had been a fluttering feeling in her tummy when she noticed him in the common room a few weeks earlier, sweater sleeves rolled up, reading over the quidditch signups. His messy hair, his glasses perched on the bridge of his nose..

But, anybody would notice the way a boy’s sleeves were rolled up, exposing brown skin and pretty veins, surely?

Lily never knew this, but James had noticed her watching him. He kept the smirk to himself. He felt the flutter too. Ah yes, twitterpated.

Sixth year was also the year they learned how to cast a patronus. A silver doe shot from Lily’s wand on her first try, which elicited squeals from the girls and cheers from the boys. The deer pranced around the room, as if looking for something. As if missing something.

James purposely disrupted the class that day, so he could be sent out. It cost 50 points, but he didn’t care. He knew as soon as he cast the stag that would shoot from his wand everybody would know, and he just couldn’t do that to Evans.

In 1977, when the Marauders and co. went on their camping trip, James and Lily really had only stayed up talking that night, despite the somewhat knowing looks Sirius tried to pass to James in the morning.

It had been late, after Remus had come out, and the other girls crashed in their tent. Sirius had gone down to the beach after him.

“Sirius ought to leave him be, reckon that was difficult to admit..” and James scratched the back of his neck. Lily had turned to him then. Their eyes met.

“Are you joking? They’re both gay, you idiot. They’re very clearly in love. Look at the way Sirius looks at Remus, he looks at him the way I look at you.”

Their kisses had been hot and heavy in the darkness of their tent, but that was it. Kisses the two had waited far too long for.

That night, James admired the girl lying beside him. He pulled out his wand and cast his patronus, and due to the size of the tent the stag was tiny, dancing over their heads. Lily blushed and cast hers. For the first time, the doe wasn’t searching anymore. She had found the stag.

Their relationship was as expected. Letters all summer, Lily even taught her boyfriend how to use a muggle phone. Then, in the autumn, they were all over each other. Holding hands in public, snogging in broom closets,

“You are foul!” Lily had giggled, smacking her boyfriend on the hand as it slipped up her skirt in potions.

“What was that, Princess?” He murmured, and she couldn’t argue with him anymore

James admired her every minute he had the chance. How she looked reading, sleeping, spilling tea down her sweater, and especially how she looked at him with her heavy, fluttering eyelashes.

Because, how could he not admire the prettiest girl in the world when he was on top of her?

After they graduated, they immediately moved in together. Due to the war, Lily promised her muggle parents she would be safer. Although they didn’t understand (or like) the idea of their daughter fighting a war, they let her go with warm goodbyes.

They fought. They attended order meetings. They had lunch with Peter and Sirius and Marlene and Mary and Dorcas when they could. They fretted over Remus’ whereabouts. They paced.

Lily proposed. Well, I suppose James proposed first every damn year at Hogwarts, but she meant it for real that time. They were married by the fall. They invited everybody still alive, and they danced, and they seemed to glow under twinkling fairy lights. They had cast their patronuses again that night, just so the doe and the stag could dance over their heads.

“Reckon they like each other?” James smirked, and Lily just laughed.

When she found out she was pregnant, James slung her over his shoulder and spun around with her, and they laughed. They laughed until they cried because holy shit, we’re having a baby!

He talked to her belly every time he had the chance. “Hello little boy-“

“Could be a girl,” Lily objected, leaning against the headboard, guiding James’ hand with hers over to where the baby was kicking.

“Right. Whatever they are, they’ll kick ass on the quidditch pitch, huh bub?”

In July, with a scream and a cry and a push, a slimy baby was placed on Lily’s chest. She couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe she was here, with this boy who chose her, looking at their beautiful boy. James was right, and he was ecstatic.

“A son! I’ve a son-“ and then he was too choked up.

They taught Harry how to hold his head up, they both tried to get him to say “Mumma” and “Dada.” They took polaroids of his drooly smiles and his giggles. They took pictures of Uncle Moony and Padfoot holding him. They had a picture of Uncle Peter with Harry on his hip, and the pen on the bottom read ‘future chess master ;)’

When they went into hiding, their only real fight was about whether Remus was the spy.

“He’s our friend,” Lily had argued, angrily picking up baby toys from the floor and putting them into the toy bin.

“But he’s a were-“

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence,” Lily said, tears threatening her waterline. “Remus is a good man. He’s as good as you or Peter, or Sirius. He is our friend. He’s my friend. He would never.”

And although that night they fought, James still told Lily to take the baby and run, because even though they were angry, he’d die before he ever let Voldemort touch her.

“James, wait, I’m sor-“

“You and me, right Lily?” His voice was strained. He almost couldn’t look at her. At the fear in his eyes that reflected in hers- the eyes he had to see every time he looked at his beautiful son. He wanted to run with her, but he knew he couldn’t. “Take Harry and go. It’s him. I’ll hold him off.”

Lily Evans made it upstairs by the time the front door was blown open. Harry had been asleep. She cradled him in her arms, preparing for the blast of the door being opened.

“Harry, Mumma loves you. Dada loves you. Be brave, Harry.”

James Potter died thinking Lily Evans had made it out alive. It wasn’t until the stag saw a familiar silver doe at the edge of the woods, waiting for him, that he knew.

—

#imsosorryyall

#im fucking crying #why did i write this #lily evans #james potter #atyd #fashion #fiction #novel #harry potter headcanon #marauders headcanon #jily headcanon #jily love #patronus

15 notes · View notes

allforbtsu · 4 years ago

Text

On eachother we rely- Chapter 2

Ot7 Werewolf x Werewolf Reader (eventually)

Summary: In a world where werewolves are known to exist and are being hunted down for science reasons, y/n has to regain her freedom after being captured. What she didn't know was that a new beginning was looming, new people entering in her life. Will she be able to find a new home in them? Has all she been through help her protect her new family?

Word Count: 3.1k

Warning: Mention of breeding and nothing else I think...

Chapter 1

The night passed in an instant, before she could even realise Hobi was tossing around on the bed waking her up. “I'm sorry, I got a cramp on my arm” She kindly stood up a little and let the werewolf take his arm under her head. “Sorry” She closed her arms and stretched. When y/n turned around she found Hobi already staring at her. “Good morning” He sang. “They are probably gonna bring the food in a little while, we slept quite a lot”. “I can't believe they just feed us once a day, and barely anything.” y/n got out of the bed. “Better than nothing” Answered Hobi. y/n scoffed. “Better than nothing” She mumbled.

“I need to go to the bathroom” y/n cried. “Me too” Said Hobi getting out of bed as well and tidying it. “I also need a shower, I reek. Do they let us shower here?” “Only once a week. It gets pretty savage in there when the time to shower comes. There's only one place for that and they don't separate male from females, it's a mess. The alphas get super possessive over their mates and almost always an omega gets beat up. Those days are truly something”

“So we can get in contact with other people from here” y/n realised, her heart skipping a beat in excitement. “Yeah! Shower time and playtime are usually the only moments I get to speak to other werewolves and figure a way out. That's how I met up with jungkook actually. He's really nice, another beta. That was before he got taken away from the section I was in though, I think he got a match as well. We will probably meet up with him in the showers or in playtime.”

Y/N sat on her bed. “Playtime?”.”Oh, yes. They usually want us to change into our wolf forms, so they let us go outside to a little backyard they have.”, “Has no one tried to attack them and escape?” Hobi grimaced. “The last time that happened they were killed” y/n eyes shot wide open. “The only way to escape is during the night and with a great amount of luck” Hobi answered while he got closer to the glass door, already smelling the food. The same old lady gave them their little ration of food and left. Hobi turned around, the plate in his hand with the same steak from yesterday and two carrots to the sides. “Show me something more appealing than this, I'll wait.” y/n joked, making Hobi let out a little giggle.

They sat on the floor and started eating. Without her realising Hobi put his hand on her knee and caressed it in affection, a timid smile on his lips. Y/N blushed, but let him pet her anyway. The cage was filled with comfortable silence, the two young people basking in having found each other. As they told one another stories about their childhood and family they couldn't help but share some laughs. Y/N couldn't believe someone could smile as wholeheartedly as Hobi, so while he threw his body forward laughing at one of her antics, she caressed the back of his neck, he did not respond, only sending a smile her way. Hobi's heart filled with warmth and swore to himself to protect her no matter what. They both had lost their families, but he was sure they had found something similar in each other, security, at the very least.

The afternoon went smoothly, singing funny songs with Hobi and staring at the cage across, both girls already knowing her and sharing smiles. A few hours before nighttime, an alarm sounded once again. She looked over to Hobi in his bed. “It's shower time i guess.” He stood up. “Enjoy it, you will not have another one till next week.” “Do they also use this to study us?” She asked. “You bet. It's a complete mess in there. Keep close to me, ok? Don't stare at anyone.They could be an alpha or their mate and you are fucked” y/n gulped, but nodded either way. She went closer and stood up next to him on the door, waiting for the guards to handcuff them and take them to the bathrooms. “Will we meet that guy...mhm, jeon..?” “Yes, jungkook! He will be there. I want to know if he got a good cage partner, I hope so, he is a good guy.”

The guards came and took them along the corridor. “Don't grab him like that! He didn't do anything, slow down!” Hobi and y/n turned their heads to the left, where the cupid-like nose boy shouted to one of the guards who was holding the dumpling boy a little too roughly. “If he had behaved other times we wouldn't be in this position.” Answered the man holding him down. Hobi got himself closer to y/n as if trying to protect her and kept on going, both being pushed forward by the guards. Other werewolves being taken out of their cages as well.

The bathroom looked like a long hall, with closed showers on each side, a long bench in the middle of the corridor going to the back of the room. “There's not enough showers for everyone” Said y/n seeing how person after person was entering the place, the room being unable to hold more than forty people. “Nope, that's why we have to be quick and…” “Move over” Said a guy cutting Hobi off and pushing both of them to the side.” Aish, see what did I tell you. Right from the start” Growled Hobi. They went to the back of the room, where less people were gathering around. Right behind them two young boys came in sight. “Hobi?” Said one of them, startling the already two distressed werewolves. “Jungkook-ah!” Shouted Hobi, coming closer and hugging the boy. “How are you? Such a long time. This is Taehyung” Jungkook nodded behind him, where a guy with a shy smile on his face hid. “Tete, this is Hobi. The friend I told you about.” Taehyung wave his way, making Hobi smile. “This is y/n, my cage partner” Both werewolves looked behind him, where y/n hid as well, the two guys blushing at the sight that it was a girl. Jungkook stared at Hobis eyes in disbelief. “Oh no, that means…” Hobi nodded. “We have to leave here as soon as possible then. I'm still healing from the fight, but…” Jungkook was cutted of by another guy pushing him, he reeked of alpha. y/n couldn't believe their luck. Hobi and Taehyung walked backwards, far away from Jungkook and the confronting alpha. Hobi grabbed y/n and led her to an empty shower, all the others being used and people waiting in line for them.

The beta and alpha stared at each other for a few seconds, till Taehyung reached over and grabbed Jungkook's arm, prompting him to back down. He would not budge.”Ay, why is he so confrontational. Let it be jungkook-ah” Mumbled Hobi. “Hobi, I'm scared” He looked down at her and nodded. “Get in the shower, flower. No one will go in there, I will stay here” y/n watched the scene in front of her, where a very riled up alpha was about to beat jungkook up. “Not if you don't get in with me. You are gonna get in that mess. At least in there I can be sure you are safe” She told him. Hobi blushed, but nodded either way. They started stripping down inside the shower, before turning it on, so no one could watch them bare. “I won't look” Mumbled Hobi softly before she could take off her undergarments. She giggled. “I don't mind” He stared at her eyes and smiled.

They both discarded the rest of their clothes and turned on the shower. The sound of a very distressed Taehyung scolding Jungkook dissipated as both werewolves took in the sight of each other. Y/N had never seen someone as pretty as Hobi before and neither did him. She blushed and looked down, she couldn't believe her sight, her stare coming right up. Hobi giggled. “It's ok, I don't mind” He joked, copying her, making her laugh and embrace him. They stood there under the hot faucet for a few minutes, holding onto one another. Hobi”s hand caressed her back, as she rubbed the back of his neck.

After showering and putting on their clothes, they were separated once again, y/n being taken back to the ward and Hobi back to the cage. He caressed her hand in reassurance. Back to the room filled with doctors, y/n sat back down on one of the beds, waiting for her doctors, one guard next to her all the time. Next to her bed another girl rested in one of her own, her eyes puffy, she had been crying. Y/N stared at her, until Minji appeared in her sight. “Well, hello y/n. Give me a moment, I will be here with you shortly with Jaebong.” The woman said, sending her a cold smile that didn't reach her eyes, getting lost once again in the sea of beds and patients.

“You already know what they want you for, right?” Asked in a hoarse voice the girl who was lying on the bed, causing y/n to turn her gaze on her once again. The guard next to her seem to tense up, ready to listen to the conversation. The girl's eyes seem full of sorrow, y/n had the feeling the girl understood her and wanted to tell her something. The girl looked over to the guard in nervousness, her stare falling back on y/n, who slightly nodded in reassurance. “They will take him away”. “What?” Asked y/n. “Silence!” Shouted the guard. “The baby, once you have it” The guard puffed out and closed a curtain separating both of them. Her voice no longer heard, her message had already reached its receiver. Y/N sighted, legs trembling once again. She hated this place with all her being. Would they truly take the child if she had one? Had they taken the girl's baby out of her grasp? That is surely why she looked so sad and told her this information. Before y/n thoughts traveled farther, Minji came back with Jaebong. “Hello y/n” Said the man. Both doctors were standing next to her. “The check up from yesterday came completely fine, you are a very healthy young lady indeed. Perfect for childbearing. Incredible news for the conditions you use to live out there in the wild.” The words made y/n cringe. “We have been observing your behavior, as you know, and we are completely happy to see you have responded well to your cage partner.”

The stare on the woman's eye made y/n believe she knew more than she should, her gaze falling back to the floor. Wanting to get out of there as fast as possible. The doctors talked with her about other medical stuff and let her go, they mostly wanted to check her menstruation cycles and heats. Information y/n didn't want to share, but was forced to, threatening her by saying they wouldn allow her and Hobi to eat till she decided to speak about it.

Back at the cage she broke down, not wanting to be in this place any longer. Begging Hobi to hold her and stay by her side. Before she knew it they were sleeping again and the day began once more. Hobi woke up excited, exclaiming today was playtime day. Y/N could not share the same excitement, the thoughts about yesterday coming back to her mind. “Hobi, today we have to speak to that jungkook guy. We need to get out of here, please.” He looked at her with a sad smile, hugging her. “Yes, we will speak to him, but we need to be carefull, It's not common for werewolves to exchange long conversations during playtime.” She nodded. Hobi couldn't stand seeing her so sad. “I will see your wolf for the first time! And you will see mine! Aren't you excited?” A smile broke into y/n face. “Yes, Hobi, Im happy for that”

After they had the food portion of the day, the time came when they were escorted to the big backyard the facility owned. You could see the woods through the electric fence, what brought y/n a sense of comfort, freedom. The green space was big, it looked like a little forest, with its own lake and trees, many little spaces to hide and talk. You were able to see the werewolves with their own partners and friends, no group bigger than three or four. You could see some wolves playing on the grass or chasing each other, biting their legs or caressing others. This brought joy to y/n's delicate heart. Bringing some hope for the future.

“Are you ready to transform?” Asked Hobi with a smile. y/n nodded. Both of them walked behind some trees together and changed in front of each other, away from the praying eyes of the biologists. Hobis wolf was one of the most majestic things y/n had ever seen, with fur that looked more reddish than brownish and his bright eyes that looked at her in wonder. y/n wolf was white as snow, soft eyes staring at Hobi. “Your wolf is beautiful!” Said Hobi from their mind bond. “You can talk to me through the bond already?” Asked y/n in surprise. Hobi jumped up and down. “Of course, you are my pack, my family” y/n couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had never felt before what she felt for Hobi. y/n prayed she could feel like this forever, happy.

She got closer and caressed her head against his neck, showing her love and appreciation. Hobi nuzzled back. “Come on, let's run and meet up with jungkook-ah” Both of them ran around the park, shoving each other to the side, almost always touching one another. Near the pond, y/n and Hobi could smell the two werewolves they encountered at the showers. Both of them were play fighting against one another, tumbling around on the glass. Hobi started to wag his tail in happiness, coming closer to them both. "I'm gonna talk with Jungkook through the bond, you probably won't be able to listen, don't worry, taehyung won't be able as well. I will tell you what we talked about later." Y/N nodded.

As both males talked, her gaze fell back once again on the forest. Her mind somewhere else. Suddenly she felt someone pushing her to the side, Taehyung, making Hobi growl at him to be carefull. The sweet wolf's ears went flat to his head, but as he realised y/n was wagging her tail, he started jumping, prompting her to play with him. Y/N went and bit softly on one of his ears, causing Taehyung to whimper and throw himself on the grass dramatically as she had bitten it off. This made her internally laugh as she threw herself on top of him, tumbling around on the floor. As y/n and Taehyung played around, Hobi and Jungkook couldn't help but look at them fontly. Even though none of them had mated to one another, they felt an extremely big connection to each other.

Once Hobi and Jungkook finished talking about the plans, they joined both werewolves to play. Jungkook had never been this close to a female before, and as y/n rubbed her head against his neck, he couldn't help but feel a shiver run down his spine. She did the same with Taehyung, leaving him petrified, saying goodbye to the wolves, as she and Hobi followed everyone else from their section back to the cages.

Back in their room, y/n felt exhausted, the day feeling way too long. Hobi and her got on their respective beds, that didn't last long. "Y/N?" "What?" Mumbled y/n half sleep, "Don't you want to know what we talked about?" "Yes" She opened her eyes, "In three weeks is gonna be the full moon, and as you probably guess shit gets crazy in here, so they usually reinforce security during that night. The good thing is, and what we are gonna take advantage of, is that the amount of security the day after is way less than any normal day, as they believe we are way too exhausted after the full moon, and also because they send the guards who made the night shift back home. We are acaping the night after the full moon. No other day of the month is better than that one, we have no other opportunity."

Y/N remained in silence, taking all the information in. "Is it okay with you?" Asked Hobi softly, starting to believe y/n was gonna back down, too scared to escape, but that was way beyond the truth. "Yes, Hobi, it's perfect. How did you all come up with this?", "Me and Jungkook have been in here for a while, we had the need to escape since the very beginning as well. So since we were in other section, that was way more secluded than this one, we began studying how this facility works and to work up a plan to get out of here."

"What was that section about? Why did they have you there?" There was a pause, "I think they had all the wolves best for breeding in there. I believe they collect them in there and then they distribute them along the females that arrive or the one that matches best in genes" y/n shivered, "This is truly a nightmare" Hobi turned around, as he was facing the ceiling, and stared at y/n, who was prompted already looking at him, "I know, but in three weeks, if we are lucky, we will be out of here", "And if we are not lucky, then what? What will happen to us?" Hobi stared at her eyes, "I don't know"

They stayed in silence, staring at each other in the dark. Y/N stood up and went over Hobi's bed, laying down, him scooting over so she could lay comfortably. Both of their faces were centimeters apart, and as Hobi exhaled in nervousness, y/n went closer and pecked his lips softly. A smile broke in the young boy's face, his eyes shining, as she copied him. He went closer once again and kissed her nose, her eyelids and then her mouth, "Don't worry about that now, ok? We have each other and we have hope, let's just hope for the best"

110 notes · View notes

instasiswetrust · 3 years ago

Text

Werewolf AU (Steve centric)

When the wolf finds him, Steve's been sitting on that rock for nigh on an hour. Or at least, he assumes it could've been an hour even when it feels like he's been there for merely a handful of minutes.

He doesn't turn to greet the wolf, doesn't even flinch, heavy gaze entirely focused on the two-story house he can make out at the bottom of the hill. From his place on the raised rock, just at the edge of the trees where the pine forest meets the last remnants of the suburban landscape, he knows no one can spot him from down there. He can see them though.

Two figures, partially hidden by the curtains that frame the open window, sit at a table. He thinks they might be having dinner, trading inane chatter like it was any other day. And you know, maybe it was.

(He tries not to dwell on how much that thought makes his chest ache.)

Behind him, a soft rustle can be heard, the crunching of heavy boots on dried pine needles, before someone sits next to him on the rock. Their legs dangle off the edge of the raised rock, and by the mismatched pink and green striped socks they are wearing, Steve can easily tell who they are.

"It's been two hours, Stevie. Dad thought you had gotten lost in the woods again."

Susie.

(For some reason he had thought Frank would've found him first. He decides not to think about the small spark of disappointment that he feels.)

"Sorry." He mutters, prying his gaze away from the house and facing her properly. She's shorter than he is and it makes him have to look down at her. In her hands is a partially eaten chocolate bar - where she got it, Steve doesn't know - and when she notices his eyes on her, she raises it slightly so he can take a bite from it.

Steve wonders if she's doing it because of the dried tear tracks on his cheeks, or the way his hair is lying limp against his head from all the times he had run his hands through it. Either way, he's glad she doesn't mention it

"Doesn't chocolate make us sick?" Maybe it's ironic for him to ask when he's taking a bite of the chocolate too, but he could do with the sweetness.

"Life without chocolate it's not worth living." And when she smiles, her cheeks dimple in the cutest of ways. It's honest, happy, and slightly manic, childish in a way that reminds him so much of Dustin that he ends up choking back tears.

She doesn't say anything but her eyes soften. Next thing he knows, she's all but pulled him into an embrace, his face smooshed into her shoulder in a slightly awkward angle due to their height difference. The way he doesn't even bother finding a more comfortable position, his whole body relaxing under her touch, is evidence enough of how much he needed something like this.

"I miss them." Whispered like a secret, his words muffled against the fabric of her pink cable knit sweater, even as the first sob wracks through him. “I k-know I shouldn't because they don't s-seem to care that I left but-”

Her hands are on his hair, fingers carding gently through it, even as she hums a lullaby under her breath. It makes him sob harder, face hidden against the curve of her shoulder, hands desperately clinging to her.

Susie never comments on it. She doesn't try to justify his feelings or vilify his parents. Her sole focus is on him, letting him cry it out without caring if her sweater gets stained with tears. Once he's finally calmed down, she waits for him to put himself back together before standing and helping him up.

“Come, Stevie. Let's go back before Dad starts worrying.”

------

The thing about shifting into a wolf was that keeping any coherent thoughts was absolute hell to do, especially when you had only been a wolf for three whole weeks. Thinking he could somehow sneak into town without being seen was foolish to even consider.

That still didn't stop Steve.

Dustin. Robin. Nancy.

Names repeating in his brain that made absolutely no sense to a wolf who couldn't make sense of abstract concepts. But they were important. He could feel it under his skin, like an itch that he couldn't scratch. How he would find them, he wasn't sure, but he would.

And that's how he ends up climbing clumsily into the open window that leads to Dustin's room, making a racket as he topples over half a dozen action figures that were settled on the dresser. His nails clack sharply against the hardwood floors, nose twitching curiously at all the scents that fill the room.

A sudden movement out of the corner of his eye has him turning his head to the side, finding himself at the foot of a raised structure that he vaguely remembers is meant to be den. On it, a human child holds a complicated plastic...thing, pointing it directly at him. He smells of curiosity and fear but under it, all is a scent so familiar that it makes the wolf's chest ache with emotions he can't name, a soft confused whine escaping him.

The child tilts its head at the sound, curiosity seemingly winning over his fear as he crawls closer to the edge of the raised platform, eyes locking on the wolf- No. On Steve.

That single moment of clarity is all Steve needs to trigger back the change, skin morphing and bones cracking, as his body protests with the pain of forcing him back into a form resembling something human. At last, there's no wolf, just a very naked teenager sitting in the middle of Dustin's room with a nerf gun pointed at him.

"Steve?!" He flinches despite Dustin's voice being no louder than a whisper. A cold breeze streams through the open window, making him shiver and reminding him that he's still very much naked.

"Look, I promise I will explain just-" Steve flushes, fumbling with the necklace on his neck until it spits out the change of clothes he had saved in there. "Let me get dressed because this is awfully embarrassing."

"I uh- sure?" And it's clear by his tone of voice that he's choking on a laugh but he does cover his eyes to give Steve some privacy.

It doesn't take long before he's fully dressed, sitting on the corner of Dustin's bed while his friend stares at him with eyes filled with curiosity and accusation. Steve cannot blame him. For all everyone knew he could've been dead no matter what the note he left behind said.

"So you're a werewolf." Not a question but he nods, feeling uncomfortable as he remembers Evan saying he couldn't tell anyone else for the safety of not only himself but the pack.

"You weren't supposed to find out about that but it's hard keeping human thoughts while I remain a wolf." Dustin has that look on his face that Steve knows means he wants to ask more questions but is refraining himself from doing so. It makes him smile at the familiarity of it all. "I'm not actually supposed to be here, in fact."

"Why? Did you get kidnapped by a werewolf cult or something? Is that why you left?"

Steve snorts, shaking his head quickly. "No, no. Nothing like that. It's just for safety, y'know? Monster hunters are common in small towns like this according to Da- according to Evan."

His slip up makes Dustin quirk an eyebrow.

"Were you just about to call this Evan guy, Dad?"

"Look-" But before he could start explaining, the younger boy interrupted him again.

"Wait, you said Monster hunters, not Werewolf hunters. Does that mean other creatures are real? Like Fae, and Tieflings, and Vampires? Is Dracula real? Is Mothman real?" He's firing questions with the swiftness of a TV presenter, Steve immediately putting hands on his shoulders to slow him down.

"Slow down, dingus." He teases, the old nickname making Dustin roll his eyes. "I'm not really supposed to be saying any of this but I guess since you've already seen me..."

"C'mon Steve, tell me at least a little! Please?" And Dustin's known Steve for long enough that he's aware the guy is absolutely weak when it comes to puppy eyes.

He sighs, running a hand through his face before caving in. "Monsters are real, yes. I only know a few, those that have visited the pack for the most part, but Dr. Herman has many Bestiaries around that he agreed to let me read once I graduate from Evan's pack dynamic classes."

Dustin is absolutely beaming with all the new information, a hundred questions waiting to be voiced on his lips but suddenly his expression falls, brows furrowing and teeth worrying his bottom lip. He's avoiding Steve's gaze and his scent stinks of sadness.

"Hey, what's the matter? I thought you would be excited to know Mothman might be real?" He's still saying nothing and Steve is starting to grow worried. Did he do something wrong?

"This means you aren't coming back...right?" It's barely above a whisper but Steve's hearing is so sharp that he has no trouble hearing him. Inside his chest, his heart clenches painfully.

When he shakes his head and Dustin's gaze falls to his lap, Steve feels like his body is being filled with lead.

"I still have my phone with me, and I might be able to visit in the future but... No. I'm not coming back, Dustin." Grief bubbles in his chest, choking him up and making his eyes burn with the tears he wants to shed but refuses to.

Dustin tackles him into a hug, squeezing him so hard that it hurts but Steve doesn't mind, hugging him back just as tightly. If either of them cries they don't bother mentioning it.

It's not important after all.

----

Dawn shines pink and orange over the horizon when he makes it back to the ranch, exhausted to his bones.

Evan is waiting for him in the kitchen when he steps in and Steve is not surprised. The older werewolf had the uncanny ability to know when any of them were getting into trouble, after all. So all Steve does is hang his head, feeling the weight of Evan's gaze on him.

"Sit." He says, and his voice doesn't give anything away. So Steve sits and waits for the reprimanding he's so sure will come.

Except it doesn't.

"You have been crying. Are you hurt?" Evan is truly concerned it seems, his voice firm but not too loud. Is enough to bring the tears back to Steve's eyes, a broken sob leaving him as he hides his head in his hands. And all the older man does is rub his back comfortingly until his sobs have been reduced to occasional sniffles. Only then does he speak again.

"Feeling better?" Steve nods, once, before stopping and shaking his head. Evan chuckles, his gruff voice is oddly comforting. "Ah, here I was thinking you had been taking all these changes a little too well."

"I'm used to rolling with the punches." Steve tries offering him a smile but it comes out looking more like a grimace so he ends up giving it up altogether. He hates how true that statement is but Evan understands.

(Somehow, he always understands when it comes to Steve's parents.)

They are both quiet after that, the silence comforting were it not for the way Steve's stomach roiled with his guilt. He had to say something, apologize, or the shame would eat him alive.

"Look, I'm... I'm sorry I went out to town without telling anyone but it's just- I was homesick, and I missed my friends so much, and I basically left without giving Dustin an expl-" He's babbling out of nervousness, excuses spooling out of him like worn thread but he pauses once Evan settles his heavy hand on his shoulder. Big hands. Hands capable of drawing the softest of portraits with as much ease as they could choke out a deer.

"I'm not mad, pup." Steve has to bite his cheek at that to stop his eyes from filling up with tears again over something so silly as a word. "Kinda expected you to eventually do it. Had Danny's cat familiar follow you last night just to make sure you would be okay."

Steve thinks he should feel offended by that last bit of information but he honestly cannot give a fuck when he's basically swimming in the relief that courses through him at Evan's words. He knows and he isn't mad. Knows and doesn't blame him for showing weakness.

(Knows and still loves him.)

Evan smiles, barely an upturn of his lips but it's there and his words are soft when he says, "Go to bed, pup."

He does. And for the first time in a while, he doesn't dream at all.

#dbd #dead by daylight #drabbles #steve harrington #evan macmillan #dustin henderson #dbd susie #werewolf au

8 notes · View notes

razieltwelve · 3 years ago

Text

Meeting (Final Rose x GOT)

Ned Stark looked his friend up and down. Robert was the very picture of a mighty king, his presence filling the courtyard. There was no trace of weariness or weakness about him. His blue eyes were bright, and his powerful frame still rippled with muscle. For a long moment, neither of them said a word, but Robert’s lips twitched ever so slightly.

Robert smirked. “You’ve gotten old, Ned.”

Ned smirked back. “And you’ve gotten fat.”

A shocked silence swept over the courtyard, and then Robert gave that deep, booming laugh of his and lifted Ned clear off his feet in a hug so strong that the Lord of the North feared that his ribs might break.

“Gods, it’s good to see you again.” Robert chuckled and squeezed just enough to make Ned’s ribs creak before setting him back on his feet. “Where have you been all these years?”

Ned made a show of rubbing his ribs. He’d almost forgotten just how strong Robert was. “Keeping the North for you, Your Grace.”

“Hah! And keeping it well if all I’ve heard is true.” Robert threw one arm over Ned’s shoulders and leaned over to whisper in his ear. “We’ve much to talk about, you and I. Your last letter was... interesting.” Then he raised his voice and gestured grandly at the crowd. “A man - and a king - is only as good as his friends. A true and loyal friend is worth more than his weight in gold. I’d not have this crown on my head were it not for the loyalty and friendship of Lord Stark here and all of the North.” There were cries of approval from the crowd, and Robert beamed. “Too few kings have paid heed to the North, but you need never fear that from me and mine. As my wife’s House is so fond of saying: a Lannister always pays his debts... and so does a Baratheon. While my line sits on the throne, the North will always have a friend in the South.”

Ned grinned. It was nice to see that the years had not changed his friend for the worst. He had worried, for a time, that Robert might never overcome his grief at the loss of Lyanna. Yet from the letters they had exchanged, he knew that the birth of Robert’s children had restored his sense of purpose and allowed him to move on. “You have my thanks, Robert. You and yours will always be welcome in the North.”

“And speaking of you and yours, Ned.” Robert nodded at Ned’s children who were standing dutifully nearby. “Introduce me.”

Ned finally managed to pull out of Robert’s grasp. “I should start with my wife first. You remember Catelyn, I’m sure.”

Robert grinned. “As beautiful as I remember.” He nudged Ned and glanced over his shoulder at Cersei. “We’re lucky men, Ned. Both of us lords and with pretty ladies to boot.”

Ned and the queen both shook their heads in fond exasperation. Catelyn, of course, adopted a more polite approach. “You honour me with your words, Your Grace.”

“None of that,” Robert said. “And you too, Ned. I’ve too many people already toadying up to me and calling me Your Grace. I don’t need it from either of you. I’ve no better or more loyal a friend than you. Call me Robert, both of you.” He embraced Catelyn. “Thank you for keeping an eye on Ned here. He likes to think he’s the sensible one out of us, but I remember growing up beside him at the Aerie...”

“And moving on,” Ned said quickly. Both he and Robert had ample stories of childhood misdeeds, but his friend had seized the initiative as he was wont to do. “My eldest, Robb.”

“Ah, my namesake.” Robert studied Robb. “You’ve the look of your mother, lad, but there’s steel in those eyes of yours.” He glanced at Ned. “Blooded, is he?”

“Aye,” Ned admitted. “Helped saved his younger brother from Wildings.”

“Good lad.” Robert squeezed Robb’s shoulder. “A man should protect his family.” He shifted his attention to Ned. “I’ve heard mutterings of the Wildlings stirring. We can talk about it later, but if you need help, you’ll get it.” He glanced past Robb to Sansa. “And who is this lovely young lady?”

“Sansa, Your Grace.” Sansa gave the king a perfect curtsy, and Robert beamed.

“A perfect lady, just like her mother.” Robert looked to the two younger boys beside her. “And unless my memory fails me, then, from your letters, Ned, these must be Bran and Rickon.”

“Aye.” Ned said. “Bran’s got a clever head on his shoulders and Rickon...” He chuckled. “And Rickon is still young.”

“You’re really big,” Rickon said, staring at Robert.

Robert threw his head back and laughed. “That I am, lad. I doubt you’ll ever be my size, but there’s plenty of growing in you, I think.” He paused. “Ned... didn’t you have two more, or am I remembering your letters wrong?”

“Uh...” Ned breathed a sigh of relief as Lyara finally returned, all but dragging Arya. His youngest daughter had, of course, decided that the best time to take a tumble in a muddy puddle was right before meeting the king.

Robert stared at the pair for a long, long moment. Ned could understand his shock. Lyara resembled his sister in many ways although, objectively speaking, Ned could admit that she was fairer, having inherited much of Catelyn’s classical beauty to go with the wild charm his sister had possessed. Then he shook himself, and his shoulders began to heave as he took in the sight of Arya covered in mud.

“Hahahaha...” Robert had to reach up to wipe tears from his eyes. “Oh, Ned, this reminds me of... before.”

Ned mentally breathed a sigh of relief. Another king might have been insulted, but Robert wasn’t like other kings. “Aye. Arya has a knack for trouble.” He put a mock scowl on his face, and he had to fight to hide his smile as Arya quailed. Robert noticed what he was doing and only laughed harder. “Greet the king, Arya.”

“I... uh... welcome to Winterfell, Your Grace.” Arya did her best to sketch a curtsy and failed miserably. Catelyn covered her face with one hand.

“So...” Robert finally got his mirth under control. “Tell me, girl, what do you favour, the sword, the axe, or the spear?”

Arya stared at him in shock, as if she couldn’t quite believe what she’d heard. And then she smiled, the brilliant, wonderfully warm smile that Ned could honestly say would be breaking hearts in several years. “The sword, Your Grace! There is no better weapon than a sword!”

“Oh? I favour the war hammer myself.” Robert smiled indulgently. “Perhaps you could show me your skills while I’m here, or perhaps test them against one of my sons.”

“Really?” Arya’s eyes shone. “I’d love to!” She paused and then quickly added. “Your Grace.”

Robert hesitated for a moment and then reached out to ruffle her hair. “She reminds me of Lyanna, Ned.” There was a trace of grief in the words, but Ned was relieved to hear it accompanied by fondness too. Robert would likely always mourn Lyanna, but he had also moved on. Robert’s gaze shifted to Lyara. “And you must be Lyara.”

“Aye, Your Grace.” Lyara met his gaze, and Ned was only mildly surprised to see that there was none of the awe in it that people usually had when they met Robert. Instead, there was only measured calm. It was as though she’d taken Robert’s measure and had been satisfied by what she saw. “It is an honour to meet the man my father calls his dearest friend.”

Robert’s lips twitched. “A wolf indeed, Ned.” Ned had mentioned in more than one of his letters that he’d always thought the wolf’s blood was thickest in Lyara. “They call you the Rose of the North. Mind explaining the title?”

Lyara’s eyes gleamed. “A rose is known for it’s beauty... and its thorns, Your Grace.”

“She’s the finest swordsman in the North!” Arya cried before Catelyn frantically moved to shush her.

“Is that so?” Robert rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “My eldest is supposed to be a prodigy for his age, as skilled a warrior as any youth. Perhaps you’d care to test his mettle.”

“Perhaps.”

Robert tossed Ned an amused glance. They were likely both thinking the same thing. A match between their House would be perfect. “Well, now that I’ve met your lot, allow me to introduce my lot.”

X X X

Edward, who had once been Diana, bit back a chuckle as another one of the Lannister guards did his best to impress Lyara Stark only to end up disarmed and face down in the mud.

“Gods,” Tyrion muttered. “That’s the fifth one already. I know Elric. He’s no Arthur Dayne, but he’s no slouch either. All that talk of her being the finest sword in the North might actually be true.”

“Well, the North has never been much given to exaggeration.” And if his suspicions were true, there was a reason none of the young men eager to impress her had gotten anywhere. It was a pity that he hadn’t managed to corner her for a private conversation, but the royal family had been pulled into a whirlwind of activity after arriving at Winterfell. “If they say she’s damn good, then she’s damn good.”

“Are you going to try your luck, nephew?” Tyrion asked. “Although you must surely be aware of what your father is thinking.”

Edward was indeed aware. If his suspicions were correct - and the more he watched Lyara fight, the more certain he grew - then this could get extremely awkward. “Even so, I’d like to test my blade against hers.”

“And it seems you may just have your chance.” Tyrion chuckled. “Best of luck.”

As Edward accepted the wooden practice sword and stepped into the arena, a pair of Lannister guards dragged the unfortunate Elric over to a nearby bench to recover.

“Don’t take her lightly,” Ser Barristan murmured as Edward passed him. “She’s good, Your Highness, amongst the best I’ve ever seen.”

“It’s a good thing, then, that I’m also amongst the best you’ve ever seen.” Edward’s lips curled up into a smile. “Wish me luck.”

Ser Barristan grinned. “Good luck.”

“Your Highness.” Lyara greeted him with a nod. Edward’s father had always insisted on no special treatment for him in the training yard. He was to be a proper warrior, not a coddled prince.

“My lady.” Edward took up his stance, vaguely aware that they had already begun to draw an audience. He was widely considered one of the finest swordsmen in the realm despite his tender age, and already the only ones who could challenge him with a blade were his uncle and Ser Barristan. “Shall we?”

“Any rules?” Lyara asked.

“Well, obviously, we won’t be fighting to the death,” Edward said as he began to circle, drawing laughter from the crowd. His sword whipped out, lightning fast, only to be parried just as quickly before a riposte forced him to lean to the side. He found his smile widening. He knew that riposte. It was one of the very first moves he’d learned from his mother in his previous life. “And fighting until first blood might be problematic since we’re using wooden weapons. I daresay, we’d have to club each other halfway into the grave.”

“That would be unfortunate, yes.” Lyara skipped forward, as swift and easy on her feet as a bird in flight. Her blade went high and then low before a feint to his mid-section was followed by a thrust to his exposed shoulder. Edward blocked the first two blows and then dodged the third. He was definitely grinning like an idiot now. He knew that sequence. It was a training sequence the Yun had often used to teach the importance of seeing through feints. From the faint smile on Lyara’s face, he could tell she’d noticed the ease with which he’d dealt with her attacks - as though he’d known what they would be.

Well, it was time to give her something to think about. “A point match then,” he said. “With blows pulled before contact. I think we both have the control for that.”

“Aye.”

“Then... have at thee.” Abandoning his lackadaisical stance, Edward closed the distance between them. His sword rose and fell with all the force of a sledgehammer, swift, sharp, punishing blows that were nevertheless perfectly controlled and without overextension. It was a training sequence from a Yun sword form melded with the techniques of his previous’s life’s mother. If Lyara was who he thought she was, she would recognise it in a heartbeat.

The light of recognition in her eyes made Edward’s heart soar. He’d feared he might be alone in this new world with none of his friends or family from his previous life. Yet the ease with which she parried the blows, the way she evaded the strikes she knew would be coming, it was practically confirmation. Still, he couldn’t resist pushing harder.

Diana had spent her entire life testing herself against Averia. Edward wanted to see how good Lyara really was.

X X X

“Gods,” Robert muttered as he watched Edward and Lyara fight their way around the training area. “The lad’s been holding back on us.”

Beside him, Ser Barristan was watching everything with a critical eye. Despite his calm demeanour, Robert could tell that the old knight was excited. Ever since the death of Arthur Dayne, Barristan had been acknowledged as the greatest swordsman in Westeros. Even Jaime could admit that while he was close to the older man’s equal, Barristan still held an edge. Yet the way Edward was fighting now, Robert could sense the same thing Barristan could.

He might finally have met his match, or possibly even his superior.

And the fact that Lyara was matching him blow for blow...

“She’s a wonder, Ned,” Robert said. “You’re a good swordsman, yourself, but this...”

Ned nodded sombrely. “I don’t know where she gets it, Robert. There’s no swordsman in the North her equal. It’s as if the gods themselves gave her a gift.”

“Aye.” Robert found himself smirking. “But look at the pair of them. They’re doing their best to beat each other’s heads in, but they’re having the time of their lives.”

It was true. Despite the intensity of their spar, both Edward and Lyara were smiling although the girl’s expression was more reserved. They were talking as they fought although the clatter of their wooden swords made it impossible for Robert to tell what they were saying. Still, he couldn’t help but smile. He’d hoped that Edward and Lyara might get along, but this? This was beyond his wildest expectations.

“They’re bloody flirting,” Robert said, chuckling.

Ned stared for a long moment before shaking his head. “By the gods, Robert, I think you might be right.”

Suddenly, Edward and Lyara broke apart. They were both sweating, but neither of them looked as though they wanted to stop.

“Spear,” Edward barked curtly. “Someone get us a pair of spears.”

A blunted spear was soon tossed to the prince, and Robert felt pride swell in his chest as his boy handled the weapon like he was born to it. Likewise, a spear was soon tossed to Lyara as well, and she too handled the weapon with aplomb.

“Shall we continue?” Lyara asked.

Edward’s grin was pure Baratheon. “With pleasure.”

X X X

“Did you see it?” Arya cried, tugging on Jon’s arm excitedly. “Did you see it?”

“Aye,” Jon replied, chuckling. “And I’m glad I did.” He’d always known that his sister held back when they sparred, but he’d never realised just how much until she and the prince had fought. Gods, it was like watching something out of a story or a legend. “It was a draw, though, since neither of them managed to land a decent hit.”

“Well, I think she won,” Arya proclaimed. “Maybe they’ll have a rematch.”

Jon thought of the light he’d seen in both their eyes when they’d been fighting. Oh, they’d have a rematch. It was like they’d been waiting their whole lives to meet each other and were overjoyed to finally meet. “We’ll see.” He ruffled Arya’s hair. “Did you see my match?”

Arya nodded. “You fought Ser Barristan!”

“I lost.” Jon shook his head in wonder. The knight was every bit the legend people said he was.

“But he complimented you. He said you fought well and everything,” Arya replied. “And I don’t think he would have lied. He didn’t seem like the type of person to lie.”

“No, no, he didn’t.” The words were still warm in Jon’s heart. To be praised by a man like Ser Barristan! And his father had squeezed his shoulder and complimented him on his fine showing as he’d left the sparring arena.

“And Robb didn’t do too badly either,” Arya said. “Not that he won.”

“He was fighting Ser Jaime,” Jon said. “Robb’s good, but Ser Jaime might be the second-best swordsman in the realm behind Ser Barristan.” Or behind his sister and Prince Edwards, Jon thought. “Still, he did well. Ser Jaime seemed to think so, anyway.”

“Well, I can’t wait to fight the king.” Arya folded her arms across her chest. “You, Robb, and Lyara have all gotten to show off. I’d like a chane to show what I can do.”

“Try not to kill him,” Jon japed. “He’s father’s friend and a good ruler, by all accounts.”

“I’ll be merciful,” Arya said before lowering her voice. “I do hope he takes it easy on me.”

The king had sparred a few bouts himself. Jon had been shocked not just by the raw strength the king possessed, but his speed. No man that large and that strong should be able to move so swiftly. It was clear, too, that he was pulling his blows. Had he struck with anything even close to his full strength, then even the padded, wooden war hammer he’d wielded would have crushed his opponents in a single blow.

Jon had heard tales of how Robert had struck down Prince Rhaegar during the Battle of the Trident. Seeing the man in action, it was easy to imagine the Targaryen going down beneath a storm of blows from the Baratheon’s mighty hammer.

“Of course, he will, Arya. You’ve seen him around the others. He’s not cruel. Why, he even agreed to spar Bran, and he handled him as kindly as father does.”

Bran, of course, had been starstruck at the thought of sparring the king, and Robert had humoured him, offering words of advice and encouraging the lad to do his best before ending the bout with a simple disarm.

“Look.” Arya huffed and pointed. “They’re talking again.”

Jon followed her gaze and bit back a chuckle. Arya was so used to having their sister’s attention that he wasn’t surprised she was a bit put out at the amount of talking Lyara and the prince had done. It was like they were old friends catching up after a long time apart or something. Yet from the expression on his sister’s face and the warmth in her gaze, it was clear the pair were truly getting along.

Jon smiled. He’d always worried that his fierce, wise sister might struggle to find a man who could appreciate her. Yet everything he’d heard about the prince suggested that he might be precisely such a man. More than anything, he wanted her to be happy. Yet, he would keep a close eye, as would Robb. If the prince were to do anything untoward, well, they’d have to step in. But if he proved to be an honourable man who would make their sister happy? Well, they’d welcome him... after a bit of threatening, of course.

X X X

Author’s Notes

You asked for more, so here it is.

Uh oh. People are really getting the wrong impression. Just wait until Edward and Lyara realise what they’ve done. It was also nice writing this version of Robert who is really the king he could have been rather than the king he ended up being. More intrigue to follow. Perhaps a peek into the Sealord’s court or what’s going on Beyond the Wall.

If you’re interested in my thoughts on writing and other topics, you can find those here.

I also write original fiction, which you can find on Amazon here or on Audible here.

#final rose #game of thrones #fanfiction #diana yun farron #averia yun farron #robert baratheon #ned stark #jon snow #arya stark #barristan selmy

9 notes · View notes