#11 chapters until they met wow

[ariseur]

✧˖° - DESIDERIUM.

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ - featuring ; satoru gojo x fem!reader, slight hints of suguru geto x fem!reader

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ - synopsis ; “ for what is love if not brought back grief but just a little bit smaller? ” satoru wonders as he thinks about the time you got away from him, little does he know it’s eating you up inside everyday.

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ word count ; 13.7k words, 74.2k characters

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ cw ; sfw, fem!reader, fluff to angst with little comfort, canon au, not proofread, interchanging povs but for reader it’s always second person, technically need a pt2 but lmk if u guys want it, not proofread, mainly satoru x reader but hints of sashisu x reader for a while, spoilers / allusions / mentions of jjk 0 and later manga chapters ( after suguru’s left obv ), mentions and cameo from kenny later, canon character death, mentions of smoking, mentions of blood and typical canon violence, mature language, intended lowercase

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ notes ; ( request linked here !!) wow so this has been sitting in my inbox for a few months now, this was actually requested but i forgot to link it to the post so this idea was brought to us by the wonderful @skypperlegacy — sobbing in my bed writing this i hope you all enjoy. ( edit: i wrote this note on 8/24 and i’m assuming i’m posting this AFTER my birthday, so take this as a little treat for not posting for my birthday ^.^ )

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ notes (2) ; it is currently 10/26. i have not finished this yet either. what the hell is wrong with me

ᡣ𐭩ྀིྀི₊ ⊹ notes (final) ; i did it. i finished it. 11/13 oh my days i finally completed this thing. i didn’t even flesh out the full idea so lmk if you guys want more of sad pathetic gojo and reader

i. sunlit hallways in 2005

your footsteps bounce off of the walls of the hallway, sun rays ricocheting off the floor and projecting onto your body as you make your way to your classroom. your eyes zip around in every direction as you tried to scan the room numbers to try and find the one yaga had referred you to. you grimace at his booming voice replaying in your memory talking about these two boys who were supposed to help you — idiots he referred to them as. ‘strong idiots’.

you assume you’d be heading into the classroom with the most noise in it, as the sound of muffled chattering pricks your ears from beyond the sliding door of the homeroom to your left. a long exhale leaves your lips, your shoulders rolling backwards in an attempt to try and alleviate the weird pressure that settled upon them before your fingers find the little slot that allowed it to open the door, cursing yourself as a loud squeak emits from your action.

you scrunch your eyes shut in a wincing manner, taking in the silence before peeking an eye open to see two boys — which you presume were the ones that yaga had mentioned to you. both of your eyes shoot open at the sound of a small laugh, seeing a boy with spectacles and snow white hair snickering to himself while his friend shook his head at him and instead greets you with a small smile.

you clear your throat. “are you suguru geto and satoru gojo?”

they nod, the dark-haired boy scooting out of his seat to get up and properly greet you while the other lazily grins at you, the cerulean lenses of his gracing his face and framing his teasing gaze behind a deep blue. “geto,” the former gestures to himself, “and this is gojo,” his hand waves over to the seemingly brash boy who stands beside him, giving a small wave as his hands come to intertwine behind his back.

you lean forward, ducking your head as you bow out of respect for your new classmates. hair falling in front of your face, you introduce yourself quietly as you hear small shuffles emerging towards you until sheen black shoes come into your peripheral.

lifting your head up a little further, you’re met with the bright face of ‘satoru gojo’, the name striking a familiar cord within your brain. gojo, you think, as in the gojo clan? however, you don’t get to ponder on that for too long before he chuckles at your expression — clearly somewhat impressed with his appearance. either that, or you’re completely freaked out. although, gojo’s pride would only let him choose the former.

“so,” the boy, gojo, begins, “are you the little shrimp yaga-sensei told us we’d be looking after?”

you press your lips together in a soft frown, before your eyebrows furrow with the small huff that left you as geto smacks the back of his palm against his friend’s chest. “‘m not a shrimp, you know — not even that much shorter than you.”

as if to further prove his point, you get an eyeful of white hair as he leans down to meet your eyes, just barely but enough to provide the message. “yeah?” he breathed. his grin makes you nauseous, pearly whites on display and dimmed with the backlit centered illumination giving him a frontal shadow. you tilt your nose up at him before holding his own gaze, his bright ceruleans on display as you replied with a passive-aggressive, “yeah.”

geto laughs, pressing his arm against his friend’s chest to get him to back away from you, the intense scent of cypress and a deep sea breeze no longer engulfing your senses. soft snickers instead fill your ears as gojo stuffs his hands into the pant pockets of his uniform before slipping past you with a hum. geto follows in suit.

you turn your head back to the open doorway, seeing the boys make their way out before gojo turns to you once more. “you coming or what, shrimp?”

you groan under your breath and he smiles at your reaction, now no longer in your sight as he turns the corner; struggling to hold back a grin at the quick footsteps that trail behind him with a hesitant, “hold— hold on a sec! i’m not a shrimp!”

“you are too.”

“are not,” you huff.

his eyes trail up towards the ceiling for a second, tapping his chin as he feigns a long, hard thought before cracking out into another smile. “are too.”

this game continues for a while, and you almost feel bad for geto — except the little game of chicken that you and his counterpart had going on was taking up more of your attention at the moment. with his obnoxiously long legs, gojo purposefully takes wide strides to try and tease you at least a little bit, having you make more of an effort to keep up — just because you’re new doesn’t mean that you should be let off the hook so easily, he thinks.

“are too—“

“these are the dorms,” suguru interjects, his tone clearly exasperated at this point. a few minutes of walking and the poor man felt like it was hours of meaningless boredom.

your eyes follow the direction of geto’s finger over the trail of doors that lay before you. he leans his head forward, the golden sunlight capturing his face as a few strands of raven hair from his bun slip out from their ties. “my dorm’s on the very end right there,” he gestures his head to the door at the corner, “satoru’s is two down to the left.”

speaking of him, gojo slings an arm around your shoulders; keeping a firm grip even with only his bicep as you try to squirm away. “don’t worry, i’m sure yaga’ll help you in no time. by the end of the day, you’ll be lazing around in a nice bed with your feet kicked up, thinking about how you met the most beautiful man ever today,” he says to you.

“don’t you think it’s a little weird to call your friend the most beautiful man ever?”

to gojo’s horror, geto snickers from behind him.

“you’re a sassy one, aren’t you. .” he mutters under his breath, a sigh escaping him as the warmth of his arm leaves your shoulders and is instead met with the cool air conditioning of the halls, only the sun’s peeking through the windows warming you up. he takes a step near his friend, hands stuffed in his pockets once again. “well, you can always stop by whenever you do get your dorm, i’ll always be here,” he singsongs. you fake gag at his playful wink.

geto steps towards you, leaning into you as he mumbles a little too loudly ( whether that was on purpose or not remained unknown ), “don’t worry, the girls’ wing is on the other side — luckily you won’t have to see that idiot all the time.” you laugh at your eyes trail to gojo’s small pout from behind the boy, his shoulders deflating instantly once he realized he was left out.

“hey, so like, can we not bully me for today? just once?” he chimes in, tilting his head to the side a bit in question. you and geto share one last glance and laugh together before he walks ahead of you again, gojo lagging behind so you’d walk next to him as well.

he couldn’t help but glance at you, noticing how you keep your eyes trained in front of you. only occasionally flitting to the window to admire the outside scenery. it wasn’t everyday that they got a new student, and if they did, they never lasted long. despite still only being a first year, geto and gojo adapted to the harsh environments of jujutsu society — fully aware of the consequences and what it would take to save non-sorcerers. which only made gojo all the more curious as to why you were here.

“pervert, quit staring at me.”

“hey, people would pay for these eyes on them — you’re a lucky girl, today,” he explains, bumping his shoulder with yours. you glare at him. his smile doesn’t falter.

“so do all new recruits get this treatment or what?” you chide, putting a hand on your hip comfortably as you walk. he hums for a moment. “nah,”. he decides, “you’re special,” his grin only widens the more you banter, bright blue eyes mimicking yours in a sharp narrowing. you hold his gaze for a bit, before ultimately deciding it wasn’t worth it — turning your head with a low, ‘tch’ as you keep your feet moving. gojo does the same.

they walk you around the campus, showing you the track field and the direction in which the girls’ wing is, telling you to report back to them once yaga had assigned you a room, gojo urging you to invite him over one day to which geto nudges the back of his leg with his shoe. and at the end of the day you’re left with a small wave goodbye to your new classmates, smiles on their faces as they walk off back into the dorms; leaving you to roam around with the new-known information.

you look back at the stone arch of the school’s entrance, the stone pathway beneath your feet as you squint from the brightness of the sun just beyond the horizon. a perfect point of which the ground and the sky meet.

you can feel the blocks of sunlight on your chest as you take one last look at it, face softening at the sight.

gojo takes one last look behind him to check on you, seeing your frame simply stand and soak up the golden skies. his lips only quirk the slightest bit upwards, geto quirking a brow beside him only to let an amused breath out at his best friend’s infatuation. “don’t start going all mushy on me now, satoru.”

said friend turns his head back ( geto notices how he takes one last quick glance back before fully rotating his head ) and scoffs, “no way.” geto merely hums and closes his eyes, a knowing feeling growing in his stomach. “she is kinda cute, you know,” gojo mumbles — closing his eyes when geto opens his own to look at the boy dubiously.

he, too, looks back at you only to find you walking off to another section of the high school; presumably to go and talk to yaga to find out where the hell your dorm would be. he chuckles. “don’t ruin another friendship for us by going a little too far with the flirting, this time.”

the snow-haired boy stays quiet at that, creating a small lull in the conversation only filled by the clacking of shoes against pavement. the sun on the nape of his neck slowly eases up with how it lowers beyond the skyline, small beads of sweat slowly seeping back into his skin before he huffs. “can you believe the way she talked to me?” geto looks over to him once more. “‘yeah’, who does she think she is talking to us like that?” gojo makes a dumb face as he mimics you, hands on his hips momentarily as he mocks the way you stood — it was surprising how he was the one saying this.

geto snickers. “you mean the way she talked to you.”

“whatever,” his classmate responds with a yawn, being able to crack a small smile at geto’s laughs of amusement at his frustration ( or how gojo would call it, his ‘suffering’ ). “you’ll learn to like her eventually,” he chides. his friend stays quiet at that once more.

gojo tilts his head up at the darkening sky. he swears he can feel the sun on his chest, too.

ii. the way the clouds shape us

“special grade? guess satoru was wrong about you being a shrimp,” the sound of geto’s laughter fills the air, thin fingers handing you back your student id as you pocketed the small, white card back in the pocket of your uniform.

“he doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” you shake your head, placid smile painted on your lips. geto leans against the tree, careful not to ruin his sleek hair against the chipped bark. he watched as you lifted your hands up to the sky. you extend your fingers and stretch them out — watching as the light blue of the sky above you illuminates your open-faced palm and casts a shadow for the rest of your arm.

gojo wasn’t wrong, you were definitely beautiful. even geto knew it, taking in the way your hair splayed out delicately against the vibrant grass, as he could hear the distant chatter of his other two best friends making their way towards you two. you had to thank gojo for this, considering he was the found who found this little safe haven in the first place.

over the past few months ( even if you joined a little later than halfway through the actual school year ), it became quite comfortable for you to chat with these newfound friends of yours. you quickly got along with ieiri, much to gojo’s dismay as he has discovered you two make the best team against him with your sharp words towards him. he’d savor the way you’d lean in and tell him you were never really serious afterwards ( even though he was well aware of that fact, he’d like knowing you still didn’t want to really hurt his feelings ). it really felt like home when you were with them, a sanctuary only for the four of you.

with your eyes flitting closed, geto finally tears his eyes from you to gaze at the duo approaching the two of you, gojo whining about something like usual as shoko barely humored him with the little tolerance she had left; a pale cigarette hanging from between her lips.

you relish in the sun on your skin, lessened from the months before that first day you came to tokyo’s jujutsu high as you’ve adapted. you must adapt in order to survive. you realize that now, which is why you indulge in the small moments you can get — even if it’s just silence with geto or the fact that suddenly, even behind closed eyelids, the sun was gone.

allowing your lashes to flutter open, you see a familiar brunette stand above you. a combination of the sweet, earthy tones emitting from the dewy grass below you and her perfume suddenly hit your nose, surprising but definitely not unpleasant. you hummed, eyebrows furrowed.

she laughs, “eh? you two are just out here without us?”

“sigh,” you roll your eyes at gojo who audibly says the word ‘sigh’, “so inconsiderate, you two.”

geto laughs, resting his hands upon his stomach as he closes his eyes — nose twitching with the leftover pollen floating along with the soft, spring breeze down from its habitat within the trees and the plants enclosing you all.

he doesn’t exactly fall asleep, especially in such an uncomfortable position. but he makes peace with this discomfort and instead seeks refuge in his own place of serenity, only him and his thoughts ( and the quiet chatter of you and shoko ganging up on your white-haired friend ).

you exhale smoothly through your nose, a breath of fresh air leaving your lungs as you stare up at your friend, a smirk threatening to unleash itself on her face even from behind the cancer stick. “those things kill, you know,” you playfully chastise her, watching as she chuckles before crouching down.

she slips the cigarette from past her mouth, the end stained glossy and pink from that one lip product you always forget the brand of, before offering the smoke to you between her two fingers. she hums as you take the tube, the material dry against your lips. “might as well while we’re still alive and young,” she says — and the morbidity of the question no longer bothers you like it would have a few months earlier. instead, you actually chuckle at her dry delivery. you struggle not to choke with your laid back position as you hold it before letting it escape you, a hot puff of smoke emitting in the air.

“so, what’re we doing today?” a pair of lanky, slack-clad legs come into your peripheral along with a familiar mop of snowy hair before it disappears, his voice trailing off as he sits next to geto. you prop yourself up on your elbows, squinting at the sudden bright light as shoko sits beside you inside.

you crack a small smile at the feeling of her fingertips messing with the ends of your hair, shaking out the small bits of grass that got stuck in the delicate strands. gojo, however, thinks you’re smiling at him so he grins in return before your smile is soon replaced with an unsure expression — almost like you’re gonna throw up just from looking at him. he still doesn’t falter.

“what do you think we should do?” you ask after a bit, thanking ieiri under your breath as she’s done helping you primp.

“what if we go to the convenience store for a bit and get some snacks? i was thinking—“

“boringg..” shoko’s thoughts are interrupted by gojo’s loud interruption, her face immediately dropping as she looks at him. “hey, you don’t have to show off in front of your girlfriend every day, y’know,” she shoots back.

he pouts at the brunette, his shoulders deflating as his hands come up to his face to mimic a fake tear rolling down his cheek. a nervous huff escapes you as you look between her, geto, and gojo before you start, “he’s not m—“

“how about we go to the arcade in shinjuku city? they close in like,” he checks the imaginary watch on his wrist ( whether he didn’t know he had interrupted you or he didn’t want you to finish your thought was something you didn’t understand ), “two hours, i guess.”

you roll your neck around on your shoulders, sighing at the low cracks that escape your aching bones. eager for some activity, you shrug. “hate to admit it, but that might be the greatest idea gojo’s ever had.”

to that, he beams. you hear a duet of groans come from your other two friends. “aw, c’mon. don’t give into him so easily,” geto chides playfully.

“not to brag—“

“—all you do is brag, gojo—“

“—but i, personally, think i have a ton of great ideas.”

geto tips head back and laughs. you see the way his eyelids twitch and scrunch with his soft smile, outer corners crinkling as the airy sound frees itself from him. he crosses his arms. “that’s why you personally think that, im afraid ‘s not a very common opinion,” he answered calmly. gojo sulks as he looks to shoko for help. she shrugs and puffs out another cloud of smoke between the small opening she’s created on the side of her mouth.

“we can always bully him some other time, i’m bored and i’m practically losing years off of my life just listening to him,” you mutter to her — perhaps a little too loud as you see gojo’s jaw drop open from your peripheral.

geto gets up, dusting the damp pieces of grass sticking to his pants and the back of his legs before taking a big stretch. you wrap your arm around the other, extending your elbow and mimicking his motions as you let out a sigh at the feeling of weary muscles ( which you can already tell that geto and gojo will use against you when you spar ).

“why don’t we go already then?” he inquires, causing gojo to shoot up as you already start to slowly walk back to the campus entrance. shoko snorted as she shook her head, trailing behind to walk and talk with the raven-haired man. your eyes scan over the perimeter of the horizon, spotting all the grass and the vast architecture of the highschool, squinting as you look for the way you came from.

feeling the air change from behind you and the soft sounds of quick footsteps on grass, you begin. “hey shoko, do you ever—“

then you see his stupid smile.

“oh,” you say. he scoffs, almost like he’s offended that you had such a tame reaction. gojo huffs a bit, still attempting to keep up with your pace. “just ‘oh’? you aren’t excited to talk to me at all?” he groans.

you shrug. “just thought you were shoko ‘s all.”

oh, you really shouldn’t have said that. you think — because once you see the way his face splits into a grin once more, you instantly grimace. “so you are excited to talk to me.”

“never said that.”

“you didn’t have to. i’m psychic.”

“that so? what am i thinking right now, then?” you ask, finally tearing your eyes away from the ground and tilting your head at gojo; who taps his chin and pretends to think ( although, you know that there’s a seventy percent chance that whatever comes out of his mouth will be bullshit considering the way he’s struggling to hold back a smile ).

your question evokes a long hum from him as he looks up to the sky, to the right, and then back to you before he answers, “how handsome i am?” your eyes narrow a bit, one of the rare moments where satoru gojo could render you speechless.

once your mouth drops open, void of sound, gojo’s almost ready to backtrack and apologize before you finally laugh. a nice, hearty laugh that makes your chest rumble in between every breath. and if that isn’t the biggest ego booster for the boy then you’re not sure what is. he couldn’t care of you were laughing at him or with him, all he knows is that he can’t help but chuckle along with you. his chest swells with pride as you lean on the stone archway as the cacophony of giggles slows down.

you wipe the corner of your eyes, looking back at geto and ieiri as they eye you in confusion — but nonetheless give you a pity snicker in response.

“you’re hilarious, gojo — keep it up,” you finally say.

he beams boyishly at you, a warm wave of something washes over him albeit he can’t figure out what. “nice to know i still got it,” he asserted, making you give one last eye roll before you looked back at the stone steps leading to the front entrance.

you skipped forward and turned your body a bit to look at your classmates. the usual scowl on your face no longer evident anymore for it was replaced by a soft smile, one so foreign even to shoko who’s company you more or less enjoyed the most. she pursed her lips around the tobacco stick in an uncharacteristic curiosity, wondering what that fool could’ve done now to make you genuinely laugh.

“i’m gonna grab something from my dorm real quick, ‘kay?” although you were probably saying it to the group as a whole, gojo nodded eagerly as he flashed you a thumbs-up with a small, ‘okay’ as well.

he turned to shoko and geto as you rushed up the stairs and into the building, running along to the girls’ wing as they glared at him. “what?” his voice was too innocent to be gojo, just the sound of his “oblivion” made them want to facepalm. geto held a thumbs up as he mocked his friend’s earlier face while shoko have a light huff, the sound somewhere in between sounding both exasperated and entertained.

“th’hell was that?” she asked, finally stubbing the cigarette out with her shoe ( still keeping a pack on here though, you never know when you might need one. especially when you’re friends with the biggest idiot in tokyo ).

“what?” he repeated.

“nothin’,” geto shrugged, the tiny front piece he kept loose from his bun swaying as he shook his head. he shares a look with shoko that definitely throws gojo off though. he narrows his eyes at them, spectacles somewhat hiding the oceans that are his irises.

gojo crosses his arms. “you guys are just jealous that i can make a pretty lady laugh.”

“you— you don’t think . .” shoko trails off, her forehead crinkling as she looks like she’s trying to decipher something. gojo quirks a brow even though she was thinking aloud or possibly talking to geto instead — he still waits for her to finish her sentence. “what?” he repeats only to be met with a dismissive shake of the head from her.

he opens his mouth to ask what they’re talking about before he hears hasty shoes against stone and looks behind him to see you, walking back down with a small pin clasped in your hand that shimmers in the sun when you hold your hand up.

gojo’s eyes take their own route as they fly away from your palm, down your arm until it reaches your face — a fond smile written on your face like you had been claimed victorious. it made his own smile quirk back up again.

you only spare him a glance before you lope to shoko. he watches as you hand the item over to her before she takes it, a faint half-smile twitching on her lips bemusedly.

“so you can keep your bangs to the side,” you answer — even when no one has asked why you gave that pin to her. “i got it from osaka on that mission last month — thought it’d look cute on you.” geto cocks his head as he tunes out your conversation before shrugging and walking back over to gojo, hands shoved in his pockets.

he chuckles, “no need to pout, satoru.”

“i’m not pouting,” he placed a hand on his hip. unbeknownst to him, he totally was; whether it was unintentional or not. “she’s just playing favorites over here when i’m the one who so graciously invited her to start hanging out with us,” he frowns.

a laugh and a rough pat on the back from geto interrupted him from entering his soon incoming villain arc as he walked back over to you and ieiri, pulling his dramatic friend along with him. gojo’s ears perked up at your voice in the conversation once more.

“oh, you know i don’t like all those weird hair clips ‘n’ stuff—“

“don’t worry,” you lean over, brushing some of her bangs out of her face as you clip them to the side. gojo watches afar as your thin fingers work to cover the small pin with another piece of shoko’s hair, successfully getting it out of her face and concealing the pin in the process. you grin, mission accomplished.

pulling back, you watch as shoko touches her hair — smirking when she realizes how useful it’d be. she pats your head and looks at you before her eyebrows furrow; only then do you realize what she was focused on behind you.

“uh, where’s my souvenir?” your face instantly drops as you feel gojo’s chin on your shoulder, words purred dangerously low next to your ear.

“up your ass.”

“mind fetching it for me?”

“you’re disgusting—!” you push him off as he chortles, his eyes crinkling softly as bouts of laughter overtake him at your exaggerated reaction.

“we’re not gonna make it to shinjuku if you guys keep bickering like children,” you both hear geto chide. you look over to the entrance, a small smile on his face as he teases the both of you.

you scoff, stuffing your own hands in your pockets as you walk over to the dark haired man. “he started it,” you mutter.

he gasps. “nu-uh!”

“yu-huh,” you retort. he sticks his tongue out at you in retaliation whilst shoko follows you and geto in return. gojo smirks as you huff and turn around, watching as his friend bumped hips with you on the way there, making mindless conversation.

the air wasn’t so bad, the light breeze felt more refreshing than over. he looked back over at shoko’s hair in thought.

perhaps he’d have to work harder at officially getting on your good side some other time, he thinks.

iii. the taste of blue raspberry

vibrant lights and loud video game chirps wasn’t exactly gojo’s scene despite how he always presented himself; extroverted and inherently obnoxious ( although, he’d prefer to use the word ‘comfortable’ rather than obnoxious whenever you’d refer to the latter ). all he could do was trail after you and shoko, geto following him as he observed the random teens and little kids accompanied with their parents that kept the arcade flowing.

cerulean eyes follow your movements in hopes that he’ll keep track of you. that he wont lose you in this crowd. he’ll occasionally look over at shoko and geto to make sure they’re still here, too.

“so, you chose a shitty arcade spot to hangout in? such poor taste,” he leans down over you, hoping that mild jabs and soft teasing will help keep his mind off of the fact that there’s snot nosed kids running around the already narrow spaces between the machines; their flat footsteps melding together with all the loud sounds as they become synchronized with the beat of the music.

your lips twist into a sneer at the sound of him, slowly turning your head to look behind you at the boy who grinned so slyly. gojo knew exactly what he was doing.

“would you rather have yaga put us to work and sweep the dorms?” you bat your eyelashes as he only smiles further, reveling in how you play along with his little game.

“i dunnooo.. wherever you go i go, i suppose.”

“such a flirt.”

“just being honest,” he puts his hands up defensively as he walks past you to a random machine that stands stationary in front of you, untouched with whirring, vibrant lights that glow brighter when he thumbs a few tokens in the slot at the bottom. as you hear the clinking of the coin hit against the curvature inside of the machine, the snow-haired boy turns to look at you with a boyish smile as he crouches down and points a finger to the blinking button saying, ‘play now!’

you have the urge to warn him about how the game is most likely rigged. you don’t. instead your parted lips close with a huff. gojo is said to be able to do anything, you remember, he’ll learn the hard way.

“you mind getting me a slush at the machines?” he says, lanky body extending to its full height as stands upright again.

“that’s so far — and scary,” you feign a pout. realistically, you were just too lazy to walk all the way over there and back for one item.

“take suguru with you,” he tips his head up to gesture in the direction of the dark haired friend, to whom you see looking out the glass doors at all the kids who run through the place.

so there you are, walking along with geto as you huff about how gojo could have gotten the drink himself. he hums occasionally, looking around and observing the environment to try and make sure you don’t run into anything during your chatter.

“he does care about you, though. you know that right?” his fingers sift through the yen in his palm, the coins clinking around as he grabs some and puts it into the thin slot of the slushee machine.

your lips press together as you hum almost dismissively, head cocked. the cup makes a soft thud against the metal as he puts the cup inside and closes the small glass opening. the machine whirs as he clicks the blue raspberry flavor almost like it’s muscle memory — the blue button lighting up with the white kana in front of it.

“you want something?” geto asks quietly, leaning down to interrupt your analysis.

the thought makes you crack a small smile as you think for a moment before turning to face him. “do you want something?” you inquire. “i’ll pay.”

he waves you off with a soft smile. “it’s alright, i’m not much into sweets.”

you grab gojo’s cup out of the dispenser, putting a clear lid and straw in it as you grab another disposable cup. if you were going to get a slushee, you weren’t going to let geto pay for it by himself. the whirring of machine’s drink being poured almost drowns out the loud, coinciding beeps and animated sounds of the nearby screens you both hear.

“then let me buy you something when we get out of here,” you smile at him.

you fail to notice the way his face softens at you when you’re too busy grabbing the cup, licking off the excess that spills over onto your thumb as you laugh. his smile falters a bit, before he walks with you back to go get shoko and gojo.

you scoff at the sight of the white haired man smirking at the pixelated screen, pointing it out to you and geto. the two of you lean over as you heard gojo sip on the drink while you roll your eyes at the big blue kanji in bold spelling out, ‘top score: satoru gojo’.

“thought you weren’t a fan of blue raspberry,” you hear from behind you.

already, you see the man in question leaning on geto as he looks at you with a quirked brow. you look down at your cup. ah, you think, guess you did. your expression must give something away because you hear shoko amusedly huff next to you.

you shrug. “guess i just wanted to try something new.”

clearly a mistake because his smile only widens as he slings an arm around your shoulder too. “nah, you know what i’m thinking?”

“you never think.” that earns you a flick to the forehead.

he leans down. “i think i’m rubbing off on you,” he laughs.

you try to push him off of you yet he manages to let his weight relax as you struggle to keep him up, “gojo, you ass,” you mutter.

he turns to look at you, his smile looks different. feels different. “call me satoru,” he beams.

iv. ‘the star plasma vessel?’

riko amanai is a pretty girl, you think. you have no idea why she wanted to be the star plasma vessel in the first place. you weren’t there when satoru and suguru went to go meet her, instead hearing her version of the story where they practically tortured her — and knowing the boys, you’re not quite sure that she wasn’t exaggerating.

she likes you, definitely favoring you a little more than tweedle-dee and tweedle-dum, you think as you pointedly look at the pair of friends, walking ahead of you.

you look down at riko’s arm interlocked with yours and smile. “so,” you whistle, “what do you think of those two?”

her green eyes dart up to yours before looking at suguru and satoru and squinting. “they’re interesting, that’s for sure,” she mumbles. her lips twist into a sneer-like pout just at the sight of them, evoking a lighthearted chuckle from you. you fail to notice the way satoru’s head turns to look at you ever so slightly at the sound.

it makes riko grin as you playfully bump your hip with hers. satoru had never seen you so lax. maybe because the young girl was easier to handle than himself. he didn’t mind seeing you like this, but he couldn’t deny that it was pretty fun to work you up, too.

he smiles at the thought of your puffed cheeks with furrowed brows, narrowed eyes burning holes into him as he would flick your forehead for the third time in a row.

“what’s gotten you all cheesy?” he hears suguru inquire from beside him, tearing his eyes away from the stone road beneath him to look at his snow-haired friend. “eh? just thinking about stuff,” satoru replies.

suguru hums, his hand still shoved in his uniform’s pocket. “you sure it has nothing to do with—“

“a-tat-tat-tat—!” satoru waves a hand in front his friends face, holding another finger up as a gesture for him to silence. “what’d we say about sharing private stuff in public, suguru?”

“i can’t help it, some ‘gossip’ is too hot,” he shrugs.

“that does not help me—“

“what gossip are you guys talking about?” riko chimes, crossing her arms as the two of them look at her. you quirk a brow yourself.

if he’d had known better, satoru would’ve flinched at the rough hand you had smacked down on his shoulder. his eyes flickered towards you, already spotting the sly smile on your face. fuck you for being so beautiful, he thinks.

“yeah, what gossip are you guys talking back?” you press. he scoffs, waving you off as he continues walking. your lips press into a pout as you cross your arms as well, mimicking riko’s motions as you two whisper about whatever. suguru laughs at the two of you — only a few days and you guys were already twins.

sometimes the thought made your smile falter ever so slightly, knowing that you had to escort her only in a day or two was saddening. but for now, you’ll enjoy the smiles and pats on the back — knowing you’d have to part soon was only so minuscule in a world drowned in familiarity.

you intertwine your fingers with hers instead and swing your arms back and forth before you turn your head to your aforementioned friend.

“hey suguru, what do you say we show riko-chan here that little coffee shop downtown?” you ask, watching as he turns his attention away from his small flip phone’s messaging system ( as he’s most likely texting shoko and making fun of satoru in the process ) before his eyebrows raise with a soft smile.

you hear satoru huff again as his head whips around to look at you. stifling a laugh, you take in his furrowed brows and jutted lip as he sulks.

“hey, why don’t i know about any secret coffee shop downtown?”

“we had just found it walking around one day,” suguru deflects.

“and you didn’t tell me about this super-cool-top-secret-no-satoru café?”

you beam before resting your hand on his shoulder. satoru swears electricity shoots through his nerves as he turns to look at you. he wouldn’t spoil it now, but he’s seventy percent sure that this is the first time you’ve touched him without pushing him ( or as he’d like to call it, abusing him ) away.

“don’t be so jealous, satoru,” he ignores the way you call of his name makes a pit settle in his stomach. you turn to riko, “we’ll share the spot, yeah?”

“if you say so,” suguru puts his hands up in playful submission. satoru only chuckles.

your laugh synchronizes with the sounds around you, like music to satoru’s ears whilst you skip ahead with riko and scan your perimeter. everything sounds clearer now; the birds outside zipping around trees, chairs and drinks clinking, a heavy pair of distant footsteps that you can only assume is the trailing of a few people on their way to the same place.

but none of that really matters, although you’re sure everything does. all these sounds are apart of you and you’re willing to make the most of it. you walk hand in hand with riko as the boys follow in suit.

you scoff at the way satoru pulls the chair out for you before sitting himself in his own and kicking his feet up. his brow quirks cockily at the sound. “ah, so you’re only nice to me when amanai is around?”

“someone’s still gotta keep you in your place, satoru.”

“yes, ma’am,” he laughs, tipping his head back lazily as his hands fold over his chest. suguru huffs and grabs his friend’s feet before shoving them back down onto the cement. “decency, satoru?”

“ehh,” he groans, only peeking an eye at suguru before closing them again and letting his body go lax. you shake your head and laugh, watching as riko eyes him in annoyance. they’ll warm up to each other eventually, you think — and you can tell suguru feels the same.

“this is so cool—!” you chuckle at the way the young girl gleams at the intricate details of the outdoor table and the faint music playing from inside the café. her green eyes shimmer in the light, you notice; perhaps maybe just curiosity glinting in them. she’s only fourteen.

your eyes flicker around your environment yourself, hearing the mindless chatter that riko and suguru partake in about, presumably about what they’re going to do next. you squint at the distance, seeing an unusually tall man towering over a few people as he looks in your direction. your lips purse as you narrow your eyes at him further before he tilts his head up and turns away.

you watch as he walks away, his toned back all you see before you hear a mumble of your name and a tap of your foot.

you look over to see satoru, who stares at you with an indecipherable expression — something between an uncharacteristic curiosity and a standoff-ish glow. your head tilts before you look back over at the front of the café. that man is gone.

you turn back to see satoru leaning over the table with a sly smile. “penny for your thoughts?”

you shake your head and dismiss him with a weary smile and a lazy shake of your hand. “just looking around,” you say — even if you know that you can’t fool satoru gojo, his eyebrows only pinch a bit before slightly rotating his head to look behind him a bit.

“you want a sweet?” you ask, tapping his side of the table to get his attention.

had his eyes always looked so piercing, you think to yourself, as you feel something move around in your chest. rearranging itself along with the soft onomatopoeic thumps of the organ that lays inside.

he hesitates. “nah, i’ll get something on the way back later.”

“who are you and what have you done with satoru?” you chuckle. he ignores the way the usage of his given name makes him feel, the way you say it — syllables still fresh on your tongue. instead, he laughs along with you while looking over to his friend. he doesn’t know what he expected, suguru was always observant; so why was he so surprised to see him looking at the two of you with a raised brow?

you look back at riko before gasping out a small laugh at her chubby cheeks, full of food as she eats it like it’s the last meal she’ll ever have. it only makes your grin grow wider when her eyes meet yours, like a deer in headlights whilst she stops chewing. you both take a pause, even when the boys turn to look at you as well — before you burst out into bouts of laughter. riko’s giggles are muffled by the parfait that’s swelled in her cheeks but she covers her mouth with a polite hand as she tries not to choke.

your cheeks feel warm with the way they stretch to curl into a smile. suguru and satoru exchange a look before satoru smiles right along with you. it wasn’t so bad, he thinks. if amanai made you act like this then maybe he didn’t mind her as much as he thought. his foot taps against the concrete underneath the table. he can feel something wriggling around in his chest.

v. deficit

riko amanai’s beauty, no longer will it be seen as the white sheet frames her features instead, you think.

the deafening sound of applause almost takes your mind off of satoru’s expression; only coldness lies within his features, now.

your hand clutches your side, even with the greatness of the stitches that shoko had blessed your wounds with — you could almost still feel his knife in your abdomen. the stinging never seemed to go away. the clapping doesn’t help, all of your senses are occupied on trying to focus on satoru.

with the close proximity of suguru next to you, you can feel the way his hand twitches against his side while he looks at riko, or more so, the sheet that covers her. you can feel his horror, too. just a couple of days ago, she was fourteen, trotting along tokyo with you

you’re almost upset you weren’t there for her death, you weren’t there to comfort her in her last moments or save her at all. you were only there for the aftermath, the same man who you saw at the coffee shop just days prior. you look at suguru to your right — who knows what he’s gone through, you think.

and yet throughout all the booms of cheers and applause, you can hear satoru’s voice and your head whirls back to him. you almost don’t recognize it when he utters, “i screwed up, it’s not your fault.”

your hand comes up to gently rest upon your mouth in a soft gasp as your eyes try not to trail down to where riko’s shoe clad feet swing with satoru’s steps, the only part of her that’s left unsheathed from the horror of what’s underneath the cover.

his next words come out muffled yet you know you couldn’t escape them even if you tried, so close yet so far to avoidance — but you know you heard him clearly.

he calls your name, then suguru’s. “should we kill these guys?” your stomach churns, the pain in your side gets worse — your head hurts and it feels like you don’t know where you are at one point. you start to question whether anything is real at this point. he adds, “i doubt i’d feel anything about it.”

his eyes don’t dart to yours like they had the few mornings prior, before you had gone to escort the young girl. he had smiled and slapped a comforting hand on your shoulder once you explained how you had a bad feeling. you still do. you wonder if there’s any other feelings you could have, anymore.

you hear suguru’s soft mutter next to you, the applause only simmering down as you try to hyper-focus on his voice. perhaps to ground you, or perhaps you couldn’t escape it; a reminder of what this world is really like. “no,” he says. “there wouldn’t be a point.”

your vision glosses over into a blur and you go to look at the light above you, florescent and blinding. your heart hurts and you do your best not to clutch it through the fabric of your uniform, you can’t be seen like this, you think. you can’t let them see what’s happening to you.

fingers digging into your palm, you tune the rest of suguru’s voice out; even though you can feel his eyes on you regardless. instead, the pair of your own follow satoru, seeing riko’s hand, partially crusted with the leftover pool of blood that had flowed beside her head, swing lifelessly as he walks past the two of you.

your brows knit closer together as you stare at him. everything clips in and out. the noise, the cheers, suguru’s voice slowly melding into satoru’s. “no point, huh?” he huffs. “does there need to be a point?”

“of course there does,” suguru snaps back. mauve irises are nothing but void now, his eyes only fixated on the ground a few feet in front of him. “especially for jujutsu sorcerers.”

your eyes burn with the way they’ve been mindlessly gazing at the snow-haired boy, the back of his head the only thing you can catch a glimpse of behind suguru’s dark hair. it doesn’t feel like they can close, only the sheen layer of oncoming tears coating them so they don’t entirely dry out. “satoru,” you breathe — and with the way things are going, you’re surprised to see cerulean eyes turn to meet yours.

suguru doesn’t bother to look at you since he can already anticipate the crumbling feeling of guilt when he sees your expression. it doesn’t matter anyway. it almost feels like nothing does.

glossed lips don’t part like how they’d usually do, they don’t even grace you with the smallest sight of a smirk like how satoru always would. you’re not quite sure why you whisper his name, what you’ll even say. maybe a mantra that only connects the two of you, something that’ll keep you sane.

he keeps his eyes locked on you for a second more before turning his head and walking away. your hand comes to grasp at your side. the stinging comes back.

vi. pinky promises (of two)

sentimentality was a privilege in a world of jujutsu — you learned, after riko. sensitivity wasn’t trained into sorcerers, in fact, you’d say it was actually trained out of them. it wasn’t necessarily a bad thing to be sensitive. although, surrounded by the strong, tears burned hot on your skin and your hand burned even harder when they’d come up to wipe them away.

the birds outside the encapsulated feeling of the trees chirp, showcasing what once looked golden now is tainted with a dull grey that seems to gloss over everything now. your eyes feel droopy, no longer laced with sleep but with the dread that’ll come with the rest of the day.

you wonder how satoru’s doing, how shoko’s doing. how suguru’s doing. his face looks thinner, you noticed as you think back from the recollection of your faded memories from two mornings ago. he won’t go out with you as often, you wonder how badly it fucked him up. you wonder if anything will be the same again.

you run a frustrated hand through your hair, cringing at the way oil meets your fingers. you know you have to wash your hair, but you can’t bring yourself to. it almost feels like a chore, combined along with your classes and being put on your ass every time when you try to spar with satoru.

(he always says he’ll go easy on you and let you win. you huff in annoyance — he never does.)

despite all the breaths of fresh air you try to take, your lungs can never feel free of the burden that they’re tainted with. you close your eyes and savor the heat of the bark against your palm, in hopes that it’ll finally soothe the ache in your chest like how it did all those weeks ago — at the beach in okinawa.

you remember the warmth of the sand against your skin, smacking your hands together when you’d sit upright to rid your skin of the small golden flecks. you remember seeing riko and gojo splashing each other in the water as you heard kuroi and suguru’s soft voices conversation from beside you. the feeling of your hair tied, the brightness of the sun drowning your skin. it’s so vivid in your mind, you wonder if everything was all a dream, sometimes.

a raspy voice breaks your reverie as it excuses itself before you move your propped leg and look down below you. a faint smile finds its way to your lips as you see a familiar brown bob accompanied by the scent of tobacco and rose body spray.

“so distant out here,” she cranes her neck up at you with pressed lips, you internally sigh in relief at the lack of a cigarette that’s usually rested between them. a small pout forms on your lips at her extended arm, looking down at her hand and then back up at her with a cocked head. “i’d say with more to do out here, i would understand why.”

you huff. “i was brutally injured not too long ago, and this is how you treat your favorite patient, let alone favorite friend?” shoko smirks with an entertained scoff.

“i don’t see utahime around here anywhere.”

“shoko!”

she snickers as she makes her way over to the grass, the plush dirt cold against her upper thighs as she unceremoniously plops down onto it. you begrudgingly ( but not really, as the lack of social interaction practically burns your throat ) hop down from the branches of the tree, the heat finally capturing you in all of its glory as you carefully sit down next to shoko.

“always reminiscing, huh?” she asks. you can see the way she fidgets with the turtleneck of her uniform, presumably from the antsy withdrawal of her cigs. you give a small hum — whether it’s an affirmation or not, you don’t know. all you know is that it’s a noise that escapes you, now only a rare sight for the people closest to you.

your tongue tingles with the longing of verbosity. eager to say something, except the brunette beats you to it first. “i get it,” she sighs. “it’s nice to be alone out here.”

“we can’t ever be alone with those two idiots,” you remind her playfully, a chuckle managing to slip past your lips as she groans at the mention of the two familiar boys.

“how’s satoru doing?” you ask softly, plucking at the dewy grass that lay beneath you. shoko looks at you quizzically from out of the corner of her eye before closing her eyes with a snorted laugh. your heads whips around to look at her as you see her head shaking fondly.

a small, contagious huff makes it way out of you at the sight before she looks back at you, honey eyes narrowing once she realizes that you’re genuinely asking. her smile never falters, though ( which is usually a bad sign considering of the sadistic streak you’ve seen her partake in ).

“have you got it for the satoru gojo?”

you gape. “i don’t—! i just,” lips pursed, you huff and tilt your chin up with crossed arms. “the escort was a bust, just wanted to see if his ego wasn’t too hurt.”

at your brash synopsis; your ears grow hot when you realize shoko definitely doesn’t believe you — especially with the way she hunches over a fit of silent snickers.

“shut up.”

“ah, i won’t bully you,” her lips twist into a grin. “for now.”

“shoko!” you throw your head upwards while you fall back and ragdoll, your back hitting the solid dirt beneath you as you put your arms over your head, blocking the sun’s view from your eyes.

all you can feel is the ache in your stomach, even with your friend’s reversed cursed technique, you can still feel the knife that once pierced the flesh linger on. your lips twist until you hear the shuffling of weeds and dirt swipe next to you. you turn your head, lifting your arm only to see the brunette scooting closer. she pauses, “what?”

“you don’t wanna lay down with me?” you feign a pout as you look up at her on propped elbows, the corner of your lip quirking up when you see how unenthusiastic she looks with your antics.

“you can get bugs on you,” she chimes before leaning against the bark of the tree.

“it’s nature, sho.”

“some of it’s pretty gross. you ever see tortoises fuck?”

“you’re so weird,” you laugh before rolling on your back again and looking back up at the sky; eyes gazing at the sun until when you look away, you see faded, floating shapes in your trajectory. she snickers too, looking up at the sky, too.

she’s starting to get eye bags, you notice — the fold of skin forming under her eyes along with faint, darkened circles that sit right under her splayed bottom lashes. unable to blame her, you simply lay there and stare. your eyes still pick up on the way she fiddles with her thumbs placed in her lap, pale yet irritated hands a stark contrast to the darkness of her uniform.

“y’know if it’s me you want instead of gojo, you can say so,” she laughs, interrupting your analysis with how hard you were staring. but this time, you don’t say anything. nothing at all, not even a small twitch of your lips in annoyance or a giggle to her joke, you simply keep staring at me.

she barely tilts her head yet it’s enough for you to notice. she finally asks, “something you’re thinking about?”

the words sit heavy on your tongue, laced with a bitterness you could only describe as filth. “do you ever wonder what’ll happen when we’re older?”

“what do you mean?”

“look at what happened, now.”

her brows relax. “oh.”

shoko’s lips pout out a little bit as she looks off into the horizon, where the school lays dormant with only few staff occasionally walking out or a few students walking out to their drivers to participate in another assignment.

your hands feel hollow with the way they’re too weak to even ball your fists, so you swallow the pit that forms in the hollow crevice of your throat and look back up at the sky.

“we’ll be together forever, right, shoko?”

you hold out your pinky to her — and despite her scoff, she interlocks hers with yours anyways.

vii. words left unsaid, words always heard

“you think it’ll get any better?”

your turn your head to the velvet voice emerging from the shadows, tensing in your spot atop the dorm balcony as you slowly look behind you. long hair is seen first; thick, ebony silk cascading down suguru’s thin t-shirt. you can’t count how many days you’ve seen him wearing that familiar white oversized tee, you wonder if it’s become a second skin for him at this point.

you hum at his presence, turning back to the dark sky that lay before you. looking at the exterior of the school that lay in the courtyard, painted with darkness as only the soft glimmer of moonlight embraces them, embraces you.

“you act like everything will go to shit.”

“i’m not saying that,” his tone is sharp — no longer smooth as how it used to be, he sounds on edge, like the rubber band inside of his throat will snap at any moment.

you hear a few small steps shuffle closer to you whilst you turn around and lean your body forward, the metal of the railing cool against the sweat of your arms. another nightmare, geto notes; from the way your hair is still frazzled and your breaths come out heavy with few quick intervals of inhalation.

you could feel his presence beside you, the aura of tensity thickening the air as you struggled not to say anything. you could feel his eyes on you, observing you. suguru was always observant somehow — you wonder how long he had been that way before you had found out. he was a very interesting boy, you learned early on.

“i never said you did,” your lips twisted like something sour fell damp in your mouth. “you’ve just changed, suguru.”

“have you not changed also?”

closing your eyes, you hope for one more breeze to pass through — for one opportunity, for one sign that’ll release you from this energy. it doesn’t.

“suguru—”

“don’t you ever wonder how the world would be,” a pregnant pause wriggles its way into the two of you, “without curses?”

you look at him only to see violet eyes focused straight ahead of him. he doesn’t glance at you nor even breathe in your direction, his shoulders don’t seem as tense though.

you shake your head with a breathy laugh. “yeah, i guess so.”

you lean further to try and alleviate the pain in your stomach, a churning inside of your gut that gives you a bad feeling just at the thought of it. sharing a look, your heads turn toward each other in the moonlight — he looks paler, you notice. sickly.

“hasn’t everybody? or at least hasn’t every jujutsu user?” you mumble.

( you notice suguru pauses, an uncharacteristic habit that he’s slowly developed — once always so sure and witty with his remarks, now wilted with the uncertainness that’s plagued him. )

“why do we exist?” he finally says.

your eyes dart around, stomach finally squeezing at the discomfort you feel at his question; yet you laugh it off anyway.

“philosophical, are we?” you meager a forced grin, although it only falters slightly once you feel him sigh out a breathy laugh. “a human’s purpose on earth is undefined, i don’t really know the answ—“

“i mean as a jujutsu sorcerer: what is our purpose?”

“i don’t know where you’re going with this,” you finally say. suguru takes a step back and stops resting against the railing. you look down at the high drop, then back at the sky — you wouldn’t want to jump to conclusions, but you can’t help but look at him out of the corner of your peripheral.

( at your absence of an answer, he fills in the quietude for you. )

“we fight curses, right? to protect civilians?” he runs a hand through his dark hair, the sweaty strands connecting with the callouses that lie embedded his fingertips.

you swallow. “uh-huh.”

“but who’s saving us?”

your lips twist into a small pout as you try to comprehend the underlying meaning of his words, you wonder what sort of plan he’s dancing around — why he can’t share it with you. he always shared everything with you.

( your mind mainly focuses on that one blanket that he would always hog when he was over, fleece and blue with white polka dots; now faded and worn, and you’re pretty sure it has one hole in it from when satoru tried pulling it towards him at the foot of the bed. )

“curses are created from human negative energy, the shit that stirs within non-sorcerers that finally manifests itself,” he spits. you don’t move.

“i know what you saw out there. about r—”

you cut him off. the topic ends at the beat of your heart.

suguru calls your name softly, looking back at you with furrowed brows and an inquisitive look upon his face. he seems like he’s genuinely considering this, you think.

a pause ensues, and all you hear are the distant chirps of crickets that inhabit the area. suguru doesn’t, he only looks at you — his ears drowning out any other noises besides the soft breathing exerted from him. he doesn’t seem fazed, he’s thought about this for a while — regardless of your answer, even though he knows it’ll hurt him either way.

“satoru,” you mutter.

“what about him?”

“he doesn’t know?”

“the burden he carries is unlike no other, and i have a feeling we can change that.” he places a soft hand on your shoulder, the warmth of his hand spreading along your arm and only furthering your nausea. “i think you know that, too.”

you turn on your heel, feet similar to lead as it takes everything within you to turn away and head back past the glass, trying to make it back to your dorm before a deft hand catches your wrist. it’s bordering tight, but your head whips around to see him nonetheless.

“promise, right?” his other hand holds out his pinky — almost ironic in a way. you can feel your eyelids heating with the oncoming wave of tears threatening to spill. you can’t though, not now.

it takes a second or two but you apprehensively bring your hand to interlock pinkies, a childish but fond gesture the four of you had always done.

soon, he will have coffee and crepes in the street. he’ll breathe in bliss. empty his cup of its grief, for the new life he will lead — you think.

“promise.”

viii. satoru gojo - the strongest

satoru gojo often feels like he’s not as strong as he can be.

how silly is that?

goodness, to him, is adjacent to a rock flowing slowly through the rapids. he’ll float there first. although, he knows it’ll follow him — he can only hope he’ll meet you in the river, up to his knees, both hands full of something good, like silverfish wriggling for the waters.

a bright, childlike grin on his face as it meets your sheepish one, as if when he were to meet you as a child — being your friend would be worth more than being the heir of the gojo clan. his yukata dirtied and muddy from the cross contaminated water, soaked and dripping once the two of you would make it onto the small rocks. he would’ve been punished by the elders for the mess he had created, but he wonders if it would have made a difference.

he wonders, if you had been there, whether you would have made a difference.

he knows you’ve made one now.

and when he hears the news from yaga, he can’t help but clench his fists like his heart had clenched alongside it. his head pounds with blood thumping through his veins as yaga’s voice muffles.

he doesn’t remember much — he remembers being told about you and suguru, he remembers yelling, he remembers the hot tears that welled up in his lashes as he walked away. he remembers going back to your dorm room, opening your door, and feeling his gut drop at the sight of it.

satoru remembers the lingering scent of your body spray and how it engulfed your room. the small scratches satoru had carved into your desk with a pencil once he had tried tutoring you (it ended horribly and you didn’t get anything done, a smile threatens to tug at his lips at the memory).

the small notes you used to pass in class with shoko folded neatly in an organizer. he picks one up and squints at the shaky kanji of shoko’s handwriting bunched up on the page compared to the way your characters floated on the small ripped piece of paper.

‘did you do #14?’ he read shoko’s.

yours read, ‘yep’.

he could almost laugh at her last response — which read, ‘nerd.’

he wonders how you’re doing with suguru — satoru wants to believe you had no part in the massacre he had inflicted on the village but there’s no way to no for sure, all they can tell is that they found one was suguru’s buttons on the scene. his fingers run along your sheets, neat and made from the days before you had left — he feels his breathing quicken at the sight of your fluffed pillows.

(you knew you were leaving, and that part hurts the most.)

his eyes dance around the decorations of your room, littered with cheery figurines and souvenirs from past missions in shibuya or sapporo, ones you’d always have to march back into satoru’s room for because you knew he had taken at least one.

he had never told you that the only reason he did that wasn’t to be obnoxious, but so that he could pull you into his room and coax you to stay a little longer — how he’d promise you wouldn’t get into trouble with yaga if you just went out for a plate of takoyaki in the middle of the night.

when he had seen suguru in shinjuku that day, all he could think about was that he wanted to tell you — how he wanted to just see you, even if it was only a glimpse; even if you hadn’t said anything to him. he just wanted to see you.

words lingered in his brain, suguru’s request burned into his head. because he didn’t come to fight, he didn’t come with aggression. he only requested that he saw his side, too. a part of him was relieved you weren’t there with him, because he was always weak to you — it would’ve made it so much harder, he thinks.

has he always felt this way about you? feeling what way? what the fuck is he thinking? he doesn't even know.

there's a big, hot, white ball of something within him — something wiry inside of his gut that cuts and scrapes at every edge inside his intestines. satoru doesn’t know what it is but he’s never felt this way before.

but he’ll go outside, and he’ll see shoko or wave to his classmates. he’ll hear the whispers float around in the halls, overshadowing the faint sound of soft laughs he used to hear when he’d bump hips with you when you would take your daily rounds — to help with the dreams you had, you said.

satoru gojo didn’t get nightmares, he just woke up with once again another weight on his shoulders the next morning, groggy with the idea of obligations that would only pile up on him. and although satoru never dared to dream when he was asleep ( nor did he know how to dream when he was awake ), he would only pretend to so that he could roam around at night in search of you.

and when he’d find your figure, shaky breaths escaping your lungs with disheveled hair and tear stained eyes — so beautifully illuminated by the celestial pearl in the sky, the only beacon of light suspended in velvet darkness. you’d look up at the moon, perhaps with a prayer in mind, as you’d only think about what to do next.

like always, he’d sneak up behind you. only this time, he wouldn’t startle you with a playful call of your name or tap your shoulder and be on the other side to confuse you. he’d merely slip behind you in silence, leaning against the railing of the open-view gap that’d let you view the outside of the high school. he’d feel you glance at him with a wobbly bottom lip, swollen from the chewing you’d had to do just to silence your cries.

satoru wouldn’t say anything. but you knew why he was there.

(or at least, why you thought he was there.)

your head would drop low with eyes screwed shut, and only satoru could hear the quaky breath you’d take as you’d try to compose yourself. azure eyes would rake across your figure with a furrowed brow, he never understood why you were so emotional — yet he’d lay a comforting hand on your back anyway. you’d savor the warmth of his palm with only more tears building up in your lashes.

he’s strong. he has to be — whether it’s for you, for suguru, for jujutsu society; doesn’t matter. that’s neither here nor there. for now, satoru will nurse the thought of your memory until it bleeds and stains the very bed he dreams of you in — knowing he’ll awake the next morning and jolt at your absence. he’ll then wash his face, hold his head high, and walk right back outside. the hurts only scabs over for the day before he opens it up again the same night.

ix. migration

“you— what?”

“i’m going to the states.”

geto’s lips quirk into a soft pout, one you’ve gotten accustomed to for the past few years.

“how come?” he asks softly, albeit you almost frown at his tone. a sound that had come to be so comforting — it tingles at your bones in small zaps and shivers. it makes you feel terrible, but you can’t help but indulge in the feeling.

“always wanted to go,” you shrug. your eyes glance to the girls’ bedroom; the two twins suguru had found in that small village that had come to be but a large pile of ash and dismay. hand still warm from tucking the two of them in, it fills you with bitter sweetness.

his eyes linger on your face — you can tell he doesn’t believe you because he always has this tell, where his lips will shift to the side momentarily as he presses them together, almost in thought. you’re not sure you believe yourself, either.

staying in japan does nothing for you but weigh you down with the slow, imminent guilt that swells your chest from the fact that you’re stuck here. of course, it wasn’t an involuntary choice to go with suguru — you felt you had no other choice but to escape the things you had seen at the place that had hurt you most.

although, you can’t help but think about the boy who’s hair lights up the room, who’s eyes can see right through you — it’s almost unsettling how much you remember the flecks of blue and detail within them, practically painting the sky in those colored irises. often times, you’ll lie awake at night; hands folded neatly over your chest as the external stimulus of the outside world provide you with a sense of security, realness.

the expensive eau de cologne of his lingers in your nose, the almost spice of the musk permanently altering your brain that’s only triggered when you walk past advertisers outside of the store trying to sell a similar scent.

you swear your eyes don’t water, even though no one’s presence is there but yours — so there’s really nothing to swear about. you just don’t want to seem like something you’re so foreign to; vulnerability. letting the tears flow down the curve of your cheekbones. you don’t wipe your eyes for it’s the only reminder you have left that that boy exists.

so the next morning, you’ll wake up. slumped over from the thing that eats at your bones, your cursed energy being the only thing you can feel running through you.

fingertips coated with the smallest bit of dust, the leather cover of the suitcase is practically unused save for the few times you’d use it when you’d be sent to the outskirts of japan for certain missions. you almost smile at the faint memories that cloud your brain around that time; shoko’s quiet laughs while utahime and you would whine at small inconveniences on the trip. stopping by certain food stalls that weren’t available in tokyo, trying new things — it makes you miss it.

but you know you can’t go back now.

you pretend not to notice the watery eyes of nanako and mimiko once they see you walking out of the door, nor do you notice suguru watching you walk out the door all the same; the robes clinging onto his figure disfiguring him into a man you no longer knew.

the soft smile that once lied on his young face now replaced by one of feigned amicability; like a customer service smile. you’ve known him over a decade and yet it seems like the two of you’ve only been roommate faintly acquainted with each other. it makes your heart thump a little harder.

you pretend not to feel the way your throat closes up as a single tear courses down your skin; leaving a residue that coats the linear path trickling down your cheek — this time, you wipe your eyes.

x. (not so) divine intervention

tongue sticking heavy in your mouth, any form of noise that you could’ve possibly made dying on your throat. your hands feel a surge of pressure through them, fingers twitching along as the gears in your head turn.

you look different, he takes note of. your hairs parted a little different, a few inches of extra length added on as well. a smile tugs at his lips; one full of mirth and almost jocularity. you look so clean, healthy — strong. there’s potential, he realizes, as he searches suguru’s memory bank of you; your face making a constant reoccurrence throughout his mind. the day you left, you cooking for the girls next to him, you lying next to him, your tears that night.

his half-smile only grows wider.

he cocks a brow before he holds his hand up in salutations. he says your name, but it’s not how he would usually say it. it’s almost raspier, lower. your lips press together as you examine him, your eyes keep flitting back up to his head — intricate stitches wrapping around the width of his forehead.

“hey,” geto looks you up and down. “shrimp.”

tilting your head up, you roll your eyes at the nickname before continuing to walk forward. you don’t know what you expected because he follows you anyway, hands clasped together under the warmth of the sleeves of his robes.

his soft footsteps easily match your quick ones, stern and at least trying to flee. you don’t wanna look at him, whether that’s because you know you’ll crumble or because you’re so upset, you don’t know. all you know is that you can’t look at him now. even when he observes the bustling streets of and makes passing comments about the citizens of tokyo.

“i wasn’t sure that you had gotten back — how come you didn’t find me?” he asks, and you know it’s only because he’s fishing.

you spare him a glance out of your peripheral. you frown softly, it doesn’t even look like suguru anymore. paler skin, thinner cheekbones, lips now a lighter shade of pink with small cracks lining them. an angry, irritated color begins to form around his forehead where the stitches lay, the thread sunken so deep in his skin that it makes your own head hurt at the probable tightness.

you quietly exhale, but you know he can hear the shaky breath that comes along with it. “didn’t know if you were busy.”

“you know i can always manage some time for you,” he smiles bittersweetly. tilting his head up, he looks up at the tall buildings that surround you, admiring the straying leaves falling from the trees. one floats down and makes its way onto your head — your eye twitches as he plucks its off your hair before holding it up to his view.

you take your time to look at it, too. it’s starting to brown with the oncoming seasonal change, an amorphous combination of a golden crisp and veranda green.

“i’ve been meaning to ask your help with something,” he doesn’t look at you, still trained on the leaf. “only if you’re ready to be my partner in crime, again." he smiles at you, one that seems more like suguru. it’s confident and teasing, and with the way he leans a little more forward brings you memories of his old demeanor back in high school, the way him and—

you pause, because for a moment, you swear you could’ve seen a glimpse of white hair behind him. it’s almost concerning how quickly your blood runs cold at the thought. it’s not out of dissent nor is it out of a manifest of obscureness to which you’ve rendered him to.

but once you hear geto speak of his name — it’s like you crumble all over again. your hands going soft and clammy, your chest surging with an almost sort of giddiness at the thought of him again. just like a wishful coin in a pond, it’s beautiful to know that there are still glimmers of this feeling. even this deep in.

“suguru?” you tilt your head back, meeting his relaxed gaze as he halts his movements.

“hm?”

“what are those?” you gesture to your own forehead, keeping your eyes locked on your head as you talk about the stitches on his own. you don’t get a reply.

after that, you don’t pay attention half-way through his explanation, stopping him again with a closer step forward as he talks about some sort of plan. really, the only thing you listen to is the small glimpses you hear of satoru’s name. he talks about something going on in shibuya, he talks about jujutsu high — and you would be lying if you said that the mention of the school didn’t make you a little sad.

you wonder what satoru’s doing, you wonder what shoko’s doing. hopefully, you’ll see them soon — even if it’s just in passing. you know nothing will be the same as it was before, but you can help but wonder what they’re doing now.

you won’t know her now — but as she puffs the remaining tobacco through the small opening of her swollen lips, shoko shakes her head and looks down at her pinky. she wonders if that promise had gone down the drain like you had. she swears she can feel the corners of her eyes dampen a little.

and you won’t know it either — but satoru can’t help but see you everywhere he looks. when he sees the first years walking back home from the mission, he trails behind them just to get the view of them lined up together; yuuji bumping hips with megumi while all he gets is a glare in return. nobara looks up on the sky and drags her feet out of boredom, spewing off mindless bits of chitchat about how she totally ‘did that’.

his neck will crane up to the horizon as his lips only recite your nothings. all he is sees is sunset, yet he’s scarred with the melancholy he carries. he’ll try to close his eyes, your hands coming up to his collarbones before you press down. until he’s bruised with incompetence; until his shame has configured the astronomical.

and satoru will smile, a slew of memories seeping back into the curves of his brain as he thinks back to those times of you — of suguru, shoko, nanami. he never stopped hurting that day, but he can’t help but smile at the sight of something begun anew.

oh well, satoru thinks — he can only wonder to what you’re doing now. something inside him hopes for a day where he’ll see you soon. he’ll wait for the day where he’ll see you soon.

𐙚 holy shit i did it

𐙚 comment to join taglist ; @kasumitenbaz @sad-darksoul @seternic @kalulakunundrum @2ukika @sugimvra

𐙚 requests are open — november thirteenth, 2024

[loftec]

Shameless DVD Commentary: None the wiser

I was tagged by a lovely anon over at @shamelessdvdcommentary to do this, thank you! Here we gooo

Which fanfic is your DVD commentary about?

The people (11 out of 20) have spoken! None the wiser

Give us some stats - (when you wrote it, word count, how long it took to finish, is it a one-shot/multi-chapter, etc)

First published: 2015-09-23 (coming up on 9 years what is time??)

Last updated: 2021-12-11 (holy heck that's... shit! I'm sorry!)

Words: 218,480 and counting

Chapters: 53/68

What was the initial inspiration for your story?

A little bit of everything, mostly I'd been reading a lot of Shameless fic at the time and really wanted to write something that was both a really quite basic diner/coffee shop AU, but The Most version of it. The slowest burn, the most diner AU. I had no ambition for people to like it but I wanted it to be Known. If anyone ever asked for a diner fic, they'd HAVE to say, well, NTW is The Most diner fic we've got. If someone asked for slow burn, people would sigh and say, WELL, this one over here is the worst, but it is very slow. And also I was inspired by Before Sunrise / Before Sunset, and working in the music industry.

If the story is written from a character’s POV, why did you choose this character?

I chose Mickey specifically because of the Concept, that Ian decides when the chapters start and end (with some exceptions) by going to the diner, but we're limited to Mickey's POV. Generally I think Mickey is easier for me to write, too, he's got a really strong voice and I like looking at the world (and Ian) through his eyes.

What was your favourite scene to write?

The whole banter/walk scene in chapter 44 when they leave the venue:

“Sure you and your lips can do whatever you set your heart to,” he says, “I believe in you.” Ian is silent, and when Mickey risks a glance in the direction of him and his non-trumpeting goddamned marvelous lips, Ian is looking at him like he’s some kind of unsolved mystery. ”What?” Mickey asks, frowning at him when Ian smiles. “Just a thought,” he says. ”You’ve been flirting with me since we first met, haven’t you?”

I had that whole back and forth leading up to the first kiss in my head for years before I got to finally got around to write it and I still love it.

How did you come up with the title?

It's from a song, one of the core songs I associate with this fic. My playlist now has 149 tracks on it, but the ones I consider "core songs" are None the wiser, Day After Tomorrow, Let's Dance, How I Made My Millions, Not Dark Yet, and Mosquitoes. I'm not sure I can explain why, but None The Wiser came on randomly when I was doing dishes and thinking about this fic I was writing, and the vibes just lined up in my head. Also I think it fits this version of Mickey I'm writing, who knows so much and has so much experience, but refuses to understand what's happening when Ian walks into his life.

Are there any little moments or references you hope readers will notice?

Oh, wow. Yeah. I always reference silly little things and I just have to hope people understand them, or tolerate them at least. I think one of my favourite bit of foreshadowing is in chapter 39 when people keep staring at Ian because they obviously recognise him, but Mickey thinks staring at Ian is a completely reasonable thing to do and is mostly just annoyed over how blatant they're being.

Was there anything you struggled to write? If so, how did you overcome this?

I am struggling right now lol, I had meticulous notes for what I wanted to happen for every single chapter up until 45, and now half of them say "they text all day" and I'm like THANKS!!! VERY HELPFUL!! Also life and writers block etc etc.

Favourite line in the story?

This is such a hard choice, so I'll just go with this one from chapter 42:

“So,” Ian says, sitting back to sweep his arms out in a wide motion, presenting his solution. “I think we should go out for breakfast sometime.”

Because to me it pinpoints the moment when Ian breaks the format, in a way? They have met outside the diner before, but only on accident, and here Ian realises that it might be a problem that they only ever hang out at Mickey's job. But metatextually, he also highlights the narrative crux they're stuck in. I don't know, is that a boring favourite line? I have many, and I grabbed the first one I saw so I wouldn't get stuck rereading the whole fic lol. Do you have a favourite line?

Did the storyline change in any way as you wrote the story?

So much, it's hard to believe because there isn't too much of a plot, but so much. My planned ending is so far from what it was when I started out, which is maybe one blessing that comes from how long it's taking me to write it, I have time to rethink things. I can't really talk about it now without spoiling the actual ending, but you better believe I will expose myself once we get to it.

If you are writing a particular trope or genre, was it your first time writing this?

I'd written fic for a different fandom ten years earlier, but nothing in this style I don't think, and this was my first time writing since I was 20 and stopped writing jrock rpf. I suppose I'm still writing about music, though!

What are you most proud about in the story? (plot, characterisation, dialogue, twist/cliffhanger, etc)

One of the things I've always wanted to do with writing for Ian and Mickey is to let them have conversations, have things in common, and be friends. Because I think they were in canon, we just never got to see it (in the first 5 seasons, careful what you wish for). Guess I'm saying I'm proud of the bants!

Are there any deleted scenes that didn’t make it to the final story?

I don't think so! I mean, maybe the last 15 chapters? I kid! They will make it!

Are there any ‘behind the scenes’ info you’d like to share - e.g. what’s going on in a characters head in a certain scene or how you came to write a certain line?

There is one line Ian says where, when I wrote it, I was like; this is the first time Ian thinks "I love you" but says something else. Cannot remember what or where right now, and I don't want to try and find it, it's late! Submit your guesses here, I might find it over the weekend if I have some time to look. Also, it's like one of those silly I love yous, one of the early ones, full of potential and feeling but perhaps lacking a bit in substance, but he thought it and I saw him thinking it!

Reading back the story now, is there anything you’d change or add?

Eh *coughs* I might already have, and I apologise. The worst part about writing something this slowly and posting the chapters as I go is that the fic isn't finished and so I feel like it's fine for me to sometimes go back and edit already published chapters. It's not right but I... will still do it. Sorry! A most embarrassing example is when, not too long ago, we discussed the layout of the diner here and I went back to the first chapter to see how I had described it, and it had changed in so many ways over the years? Small round tables?? The tables haven't been round since 2016!! So that's a very clear case of something having become canon for all the hundred little times I've thought of the tables as square while writing vs that one time in chapter one I carelessly said they were round.

Would you ever write a sequel to this story?

Yes! So many! Or maybe not a sequel, that suggests another part of equal size. But little bits of stories, yes!

If you’ve chosen your most popular story, are you surprised by the popularity?

Yes! Like I said, my only aim was to annoy my way to fandom infamy. Turns out it's so much more fun to actually connect with people and write something with someone else in mind, besides myself. I feel so lucky that so many people have connected with NTW over the years <3

Were you nervous or excited to post this story?

Mostly just excited, I think! I still am, whenever I get to post something : )

Did you have a beta or a friend who helped you as you wrote?

No, I probably should have but I have a very hard time showing things to people when they're not finished.

Ask your followers to pick a snippet (no more than 500 words) and share your thoughts about it.

Add snippets in the replies and I'll share thoughts, if you want!

Thanks for reading! <3 <3 <3

[ladykailitha]

Well Met By Moonlight Part 19

I can't believe it, there is only one more chapter to go after this one and it'll be done. I'm really sad to see this one end. But as I've said in the past, I think it potential to be something more, so I'm having a good friend of mine read the story and let me know what she thinks.

We've got a lot of reveals to get through and a lot of twists to untwist. Buckle up, because the bumpy ride is ramping up.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18

~

“Hello, Murray,” Billy said stepping out of the shadows of the woods into the small clearing. “Are you going somewhere?”

Keith hurried out of the trees to stand close to the Dominus.

“Billy!” the bald little man cried out. “Hey...so you survived. Again.”

Billy tilted his head and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m special like that. Someone’s been a bad dog. Am I going to have to get the newspaper?”

Keith giggled next to him.

Murray smiled tightly. “Uh-huh. Dog jokes. Very funny. Now if you’ll pardon me, I’ve got places to be and can’t stand to chat.”

Billy chuckled darkly and walked up to Murray. He picked the man up by shirt collar. “You think you frighten me? I have survived your little machinations twice.”

“You should be afraid of me,” Murray huffed without even batting an eyelid at Billy’s rough handling. “I’ve been pulling the strings in this town for almost two decades. You are who you are because of me.”

Billy threw back his head and laughed. “You think you gave me this unlimited power, this beautiful body, this charm? Because that’s what got me where I am today. Not you weakening this town until it was ripe for the taking. Because I could have taken out Dr. Brenner without all of that.”

Murray wriggled out of Billy’s grasp and straightened his shirt. “You’re just some washed up beach bum with delusions of grandeur.”

Billy transformed. His bat form large and imposing. His chest expanded and wings sprouted from his back. His feet and hands became clawed and terrifying. His eyes were black and his fangs extended below his lips, glinting in the low light.

Billy roared, but before he could leap at the cocky werewolf, the manticore leapt from behind Murray and straight for his throat.

Billy and the manticore fought, ripping and tearing at each other but before Keith could leap into action Murray stabbed him in the back with a yew stake.

“This was a little gift from my benefactor,” he whispered as blood pooled from Keith’s mouth. “I could only use it the once, but I think you’re perfect for its use. Don’t you?” Keith fell to ground, the yew stake evaporating like dust on the wind. “Of course you don’t.”

A small white cat appeared at Murray’s feet, entwining itself among his ankles.

Murray looked down at it. “Why are you here, Sorcha?”

The cat sìth leapt to his shoulder to watch the battle.

“Fine,” he huffed, “don’t tell me.”

Far too soon in Murray’s opinion the manticore ripped off Billy’s head clean off. The body of the Dominus slid to the ground as the manticore tossed his head behind it.

“Wow,” Murray said impressed. “That was actually grotesque.”

Sorcha jumped down and walked up to the head. She opened her mouth and inhaled. A silvery mist came out of the mouth of the corpse’s head into hers.

“It is done.”

Murray blinked at her and looked around in confusion. “What the fuck? What’s done, Sorcha?”

She ignored him and walked up to the manticore. “You have held up your end of the bargain and we will hold up ours. May the road rise up to meet you.”

“And to you as well,” the manticore growled.

“You both can talk?” Murray asked, rearing his head back in shock.

“Will you explain it to him?” Sorcha purred. “I must return home. I grow weak in this magic wasteland.”

“Of course,” the manticore grinned. “Well almost all of it.”

Sorcha chuckled. “But of course.” And then like she was mist herself, she dissolved and was gone.

“What the fuck is going on?” Murray asked in fear. This had really slowed down his getaway. Alexei was waiting for him at that drug lord’s house.

“I will explain on the way,” the manticore growled. “The alpha has scented the battle.”

Murray’s eyes went wide and he grabbed his things, moving toward path that would take him to his mate.

Once they were far enough away from the clearing the manticore spoke.

“Billy isn’t a true vampire no more than you are,” the beast growled.

“Just how does that even work?”

“There are only two ways to become a vampire,” the manticore explained. “Either have the good fortune to be born as one or be bitten. To die a painful death to never breathe again. To have unlimited power but to never reproduce or enjoy the fairer aspects of life.”

Murray’s expression twisted in disgust. “Yuck.”

The manticore chuckled. “Yes, Billy felt the same as you, but he wanted the power that came with vampirism. Weres don’t live long enough to tempt Billy Hargrove. Oh no.”

“Sounds like he was fucked,” Murray muttered, scenting the air. There was no smell or sound of anyone near them, but he couldn’t put away his unease that he was in danger.

But that didn’t make sense. The manticore was bound to him. The beast couldn’t even break a sweat without Murray telling him to. But the sense of danger only heightened with each step.

“He knew something most people in this modern age had long forgot,” the manticore said with a hint of laughter in his tone.

“Yeah, what’s that?”

“That real magic exists,” the manticore hissed gleefully. “He made a deal with Queen Titania. Serve her for one hundred years and he would be granted his wish. But Billy had no desire to actually be her slave. He managed to convince her to make him vampire first and then he’d serve her. He didn’t want to come out of the Seelie court in the year 2085 and not know anything.”

Murray shrugged. “Makes sense to me. I wouldn’t want to waste my life away in some Fairyland either.”

“Yes,” the manticore agreed. “But as soon as he got his power, he ran off to America outside of her power.”

“So she sent the cat sìth to hunt him down,” Murray guessed.

The beast nodded. “But by the time Sorcha found him he was too powerful to dislodge without some help.”

“So she enlisted you,” Murray concluded. “So what do you get out of this deal?”

The manticore merely grinned. “We’re here.”

Alexei popped his head up to the window and when he saw who it was, came running out, into Murray’s arms.

“We’re almost safe, my love,” Murray whispered. “Do you have the hostage?”

Alexei nodded. “She was too easy to catch.”

Murray chuckled. He had to give Steve props for tightening security but it’s a little hard to guard something you didn’t know could be taken.

“Go get her and bring her here,” he muttered. “I think we’re about to have company.”

Alexei nodded and trotted back to the boathouse. Murray pulled out a gun from his bag.

“Savage,” the manticore groused.

Murray chuckled. “I wouldn’t expect a beast like you to understand. You can’t change, you will always be what you are. A monster. But me? I use all the resources I have available to me. And that means guns and hostages.”

Murray grabbed the girl from Alexei’s grasp and pressed the barrel of the gun to her temple.

Then crashing out of the woods were Steve, Hopper, Jonathan, and Gareth. On Steve’s back was Tommy.

Tommy immediately leapt from Steve’s back as he suddenly transformed.

“Robin!” Steve called.

~

Once the fire had been put out and they took stock of who was wounded and who was just covered in someone else’s blood, Steve turned to find Tommy standing there, looking sheepishly at his feet.

“What are you doing here?” Steve growled. “I mean other than the obvious, spilling pack secrets.”

Tommy’s head shot up in shock. “You knew?”

“Since the town meeting.”

Tommy blinked at him a moment. “You never intended to mate with that vampire, did you?”

Steve scoffed. “It’s biologically impossible. You really should have paid more attention in school, Tommy.”

“Oh.”

He cleared his throat and then kicked at the dirt. “I actually was trying to warn Billy that they were going to attack, but I was too late.”

“Explain,” Steve growled. “And be quick.”

So Tommy explained everything. The deal he made with Billy, the information he had sold to him, and the puppet master and all his machinations.

Just then Hopper and Jonathan came tearing up to them, Gareth easily keeping pace behind them.

“Robin’s been kidnapped!” Hopper bit out, panting for breath.

Steve stood up straight. “Where would he go?”

“The clearing I spotted them in was near Lover’s Lake,” Tommy said. “Maybe they have a safe house near there.”

“Reefer Rick’s,” Hopper said gruffly. “He’s the closest thing Hawkins gets to a drug lord, but he’s got a house out there on the lake. He gets supplies air dropped on the lake and then goes out and scoops them up.”

Steve nodded. “Let’s go.” He turned to Tommy. “You’re coming with. You’re the only one who’s scented the mate. Hopper, lead the way.”

The old wolf nodded and waited for Steve to transform. Jeff helped the keeper onto Steve’s back.

“I’m going to find out what’s keeping Eddie and Wayne,” Jeff said. “They should have been here by now. We’ll all meet up at the lake.”

Steve nodded and waited until Jeff had taken flight before the three werewolves and the gwyllgi took off, heading for Lover’s Lake.

~

Robin was struggling to stay on her feet, her height far greater than that of her captor caused her to almost have to kneel to avoid being choked by him.

“If Hopper had just removed Alexei’s banishment none of this would have happened!” Murray screamed. “He didn’t do anything wrong. Those weren’t kids they were Hunters!”

“He tore them to pieces, Murray,” Hopper said, shifting into a human. He held out his hand, trying to calm him. “It doesn’t matter who they were, or what they were planning. He should have gone to his alpha told him about the Hunters. Let the alpha deal with them. But he didn’t.”

WHOOSH!

The three vampires landed deftly behind the ring of Shifters.

“It was sadistic,” Wayne said with a sneer. “They were played with. Alexei isn’t well.”

“He didn’t have a drop of blood on him!” Murray protested.

Hopper stepped forward and Murray tightened his grip on Robin. “If you take one more step, Hop, I’ll blow her god damn brains out. I swear I will. If you move, her blood will be on your hands.”

Something thrummed deep inside of Steve. That was a call back to what he had told Hopper when Eddie had to use force to get Steve to come out of the compound all the way back to when this all started.

“You sent the Hunters after me,” he said coldly.

Murray sneered. “You alphas are always the same all brute and no intelligence. Yes, I did it all you dumb mongrel!” He pulled on Robin’s hair causing her to scream in pain. “All of it! Sara’s death by having Alexei tamper with her chemo, getting Hopper on as many drugs as possible, the murder of your grandfather and parents, Hopper’s kidnapping! But still you stupid alphas refused to see the truth! Alexei had been framed!”

Then a sleek, dark brown wolf oozed out of the forest, all danger and cunning. Nancy was one of the most beautiful purebred werewolves Steve had ever laid eyes on. She was everything that humanity had ever written on the subject of werewolves. He still loved her, because how could anyone not, but god he was glad he had Eddie now.

“He hasn’t been framed, Mr. Bauman,” she said her transformation even more fluid and graceful than Hoppers. “Not in the way you think. You two don’t belong here.”

“Nancy?” Wayne asked stepping forward. “What’s going on?”

“I belong here, you witch!” Murray screamed and Hopped instinctively took a step forward.

They all watched in horror and slow motion as he pulled the trigger, the muzzle flash, and the bullet striking Robin’s temple.

Then falling harmlessly to the ground.

Robin blinked a moment. “You aren’t using silver bullets?” she asked sheepishly.

Everyone was staring at her in shock, all but Steve who was chuckling.

“I wouldn’t use something that would accidentally get me killed!” he protested. “I’m not stupid.”

Robin grinned and then leapt out of his hold, bright and golden. A bitten werewolf. She turned in the air like she was made to be a werewolf. She was stunning.

She bounded straight for Murray’s throat and the gun went flying. She tore off a necklace he had around his neck and it too went flying the other direction.

“No!” Murray screamed. “Not that! You don’t know what you’ve done!”

The scorpion on the necklace began to pulse. Then it shattered in a blinding flash of light.

Standing in its place was the manticore. In all its freaky glory. The face of a human, the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion.

The manticore stretched out its lithe body. “The cat sìth made good on their word. I will have to thank them.” He turned to the crowd. “After I eat all of you, of course. It’s been so long since I’ve had such a buffet of delights.”

But as it leapt into the air, another creature appeared in the air behind it. It too had a human face but the body of a bird.

It began to sing about being still and quiet and everyone froze. The manticore crashed to ground in a crumpled form.

The siren grabbed the manticore by the mane and lifted it up into the air. He tossed it into Lover’s Lake like a rag doll. The beast howled and snarled as it was ripped apart by...

Seals?

Blood soaked the top of the water turning it dark red. Then one of the seals stepped out of the water and pulled back the seal’s head like the hood of a cloak. It revealed a red-headed girl with bright green eyes and freckles. Next to her the siren transformed into a chubby young man with wild hair.

“Barb?!” Nancy called out in amazement just as Jeff called out, “Brian!”

~

DUN! DUN! DUHHHHH! Hehehe. Cliffhanger!

Part 20

Tag List: THIRTEEN SPOTS REMAINING

1- @mira-jadeamethyst @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @zerokrox-blog

2- @swimmingbirdrunningrock @gregre369 ​@a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @goodolefashionedloverboi

3- @fullpoetrybread @messrs-weasley @val-from-lawrence @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog

4- @bookworm0690 @littlewildflowerkitten @just-a-tiny-void @potato-of-the-lord @thelittleclare

5- @goosesister @tinyplanet95 @she-collects-smut @irregular-child @y4r3luv

6- @fairytalesreality @anaibis @papergrenade @ravenfrog @blondie1006

7- @thedragonsaunt @sadisticaltarts @kultiras @blackpanzy @disrespectedgoatman

8- @kal-ology @w1ll0wtr33 @dreamercec

[roriaa]

When Sun and Moon meet - S2 FINALE

Zuko x Fem!WaterBender!Reader Enemies to Lovers

As one of the Princesses of the Northern Water tribe, you were blessed with a gift by the moon. However you were permitted to be allowed to use the gift at all costs. From many hidden waterbending usages, the aftermath of the avatar visiting the Northern Tribe had led to your beginning journey, hiding yourself as a water bender as a princess from the Northern water tribe

Warnings: Arguing, Fighting, Betrayal, mentions of death

Masterlist

҉ * ‧͙ ⋆ ⁺ ༓ ☾ Chapter 11 - Trust to Betrayal

“What are you doing here?” I hissed. “Aren't you part of the fire nation? Couldn't they make an exception even though you were banished?” I asked but no response. “Oh so you're just going to stay quiet huh? What happened to your snappy attitude when we last met?” I shouldn't be asking such questions, knowing I wouldn't get any response from him. “I genuinely thought you came to Ba Sing Se for a change until I saw the drill in the walls with the fire nation logo. I even gave the benefit of the doubt when you were looking at Appa’s missing poster.” I stopped for a moment of realization “That's why you’re here! Once Aang comes here you and your nation can easily catch him”. I sigh in irritation “You're so annoying you know that? I don't even understand why you want the avatar so bad to the point you almost got killed. If your father really does care he wouldn't have banished you. You're lucky that Aang was the one that wanted to save you from the snow storm, the rest of us wanted you dead!” I scoffed “But of course you don't care! You only want your ‘honor’” I mocked. “Then once you go back to the fire nation you will continue with the fire nation war schemes and stand right next to your father in his horrible plans” 

“That's not my plan” Zuko finally speaks up. “Oh wow, so now you finally spoke up” I rolled my eyes. “Then what is your plan Zuko? All you fire nation people are about war and taking over everyone's happiness” “You don't know what you're talking about,” Zuko said out loud. “You said that many times to me before, but I feel like I know enough” I glared at him but sighed heavily. “But really what's the point of me trying to say anything to you.” I sat against the wall leaning my head back trying to keep my anger in check. “I wasn't the one who caused the drill in the walls of Ba Sing Se, it was Azula,” Zuko said. “Azula?” I asked, “My sister,” he answered. Ah, so the girl in the middle of the fake Kyoshi warriors was Azula. I rolled my eyes “So what? It's your sister, same tribe, same blood, same everything” 

“That's not the case…” Zuko sighed as he continued “my sister and I always had different views of everything ever since we were younger. Which led to my banishment with a scar to remind me” He touched his scar. I furrowed my eyebrows in sadness and moved closer to Zuko. “Did your sister have the same mindset as your father by any chance?” I asked softly as he nodded. “Then did you possibly have the same mindset as your mother?” Stupid question indeed.

“My mother left years ago because of the fire nation” Zuko said which made me wince at my unnecessary comment. “Sorry…” I said awkwardly. “I'm sure you’ll find your mother” I put my hand on his shoulder in encouragement. “Thanks” He gratefully said. I took my hand off of his shoulder and thought about my own mother. “My mother died from the fire nation last year, however weirdly enough I can't remember the details even though it was so recent” I shrugged stiffly. “I actually had a dream about her when you…uh hit me to the point I passed out” This turned way more awkward than it should have. Zuko stiffened and croaked out a sorry but I shrugged it off. “She told me not to give up in my dream but I'm still not sure what that means to this day…maybe she knew my sister was going to sacrifice herself to the moon spirit and to tell me not to give up…she wanted me to keep my head up high.” I sway slightly, feeling quite sad that I lost two of my loved ones in such a short period of time. “I'm sorry” Zuko said in sympathy as I shook my head. “It's not your fault…that's actually why I came to Ba Sing Se, not only for me to start new but to get revenge at the guy who killed my sister.” I said, trying to sound more confident. “The person who killed your sister was sent to the spirit world by the Avatar” Zuko said which made my eyes widened. “Oh…well that works too” I said slightly embarrassed. There was a moment of silence till I spoke up again. “Are you still planning on hunting down the Avatar…” I asked, silently praying his answer will be no. “This scar cursed me to chase the avatar forever…but lately I realized I'm free to determine my own destiny, even if I'll never be free from my mark.” Zuko turned around to face away from me. “What if you could be free from your mark?” I said which made him immediately turn around with his eyes widened. “What…?”

“In the Spirit Oasis, the water there is more enhanced which could heal your scar” I explained “When I was younger I was in major pain and no one knew my cure, so my parents took me to the spirit oasis for my moon spirit to heal me. Which is why my hair is white” I pointed to my hair. “I'm sure your scar could possibly be healed in the Spirit Oasis, I could take you there.” I leaned closer to his scar, he closed his eyes as I moved my thumb across his scar. Then I heard a crash from the other side, showing Aang, Katara and the Old man who owned the tea house. “Katara! Aang!” I said running towards them in a hug. They both hugged me back “Thank you for coming to save me” “Of course we would save you Y/N no need to thank us” Katara said as Aang nodded. “Yeah! You're our friend!” Aang added. I smiled softly “Yeah…friends” I turned around to see Zuko irritated once again. The once soft moment was replaced quite fast. “Go help your other friends” The old man said while consoling Zuko. We nodded and ran out. I was following Aang and Katara but I took one last glance at Zuko in worry.

“We gotta find Sokka and Toph,” Katara said as we were running. I heard an electrifying sound and immediately turned around. Aang blocked it with his earth bending while I used my water bending to turn into ice. I looked to see who the attacker was and it was Azula, of course. Katara moved  her water bending to get a direct attack at Azula, a wave of smoke fills the atmosphere until she comes out again. Attempting to hit us with fire, the three of us used waterbending to shield ourselves. Azula landed on a tall rock which Aang was able to break down with his earth bending. Azula landed across from me, pointing her fingers like she was going to use lightning however she didn't know who to hit. Suddenly a blast of fire landed near Aang. From the corner of my eye, I saw Zuko who hesitated on who to hit. But it didn't take long for him to make his decision, shown by using his fire bending to aim at Aang. “Y/N Go up the waterfall and get Sokka and Toph,” Katara said, blocking Azula's attacks. I nodded instantly moving towards the waterfall, dodging Azula's attacks that were specifically made towards me. I lifted myself up with my bending, looking down at the scene feeling disappointed in myself. Looking at Zuko, I once again was a fool to trust him, again. It didn't take long till I was out of the cave.

  ҉   ☾

“Appa! Momo! ” I yelled after finding them both. I had no idea where I was once I managed to get out of the cave. Luckily, I found Appa and Momo together outside. I immediately got on Appa “Yip yip, we need to get to Toph and Sokka” I said which made Appa make a sound of agreement and he started flying. Once we got near the palace, I immediately saw Toph and Sokka with the King and his bear. “Sokka! Toph!” I yelled. “Y/N!” They both yelled back. I got down from the sky bison to get eye to eye level with the two. “Are you okay? Aang got a vision of Katara asking for help for you” Sokka said. “Yeah, it was hailing a lot around the palace” Toph included. “I'm fine but Katara and Aang aren't,” I said quickly. “They’re fighting Azula and Zuko right now” I was panicking, a lot. Last thing I want is one of them dead. “Do you know where they are?” Toph asked as I nodded. “Get on, everyone” I ushered the king and his bear to get on. 

  ҉   ☾

Once we made it to the destination I got off the bison “You guys stay here, it’ll be dangerous to all come together” I said. “Then why did we all come here?” Sokka whined. “It's because Katara needed to make sure you all were safe, and it's not for long. I just have to use my waterbending to get down and to somehow get Aang and Katara up. You guys need to be here for all of us to escape” I explained as they both nodded. I made my way over towards the waterfall and took a deep breath before jumping in. Once I made it down, I saw a horrific scene. It was Katara, crying while holding Aang’s body. I immediately used a splash of water to border Katara and Aang, making sure no one touched them. Coincidentally a wave of fire was shown, the old man came out of nowhere, landing in front of Katara and Aang. “You’ve got to get out of here! I’ll hold them all as long as I can” he says to both of them, making Katara nod and carrying Aang to get out of here. “Katara!” I yelled out making her look at me in somewhat relief but I could tell she was on the verge of crying again. I pull her closer towards me and make a water platform beneath our feet, helping us up. Before we reached the top I made sure to glare at Zuko, and he saw me, glaring at him. “Just as I thought you wanted a new start” I said, making sure he heard before disappearing.

  ҉   ☾

All of us were able to get above from Ba Sing Se, it wasn't as happy or uplifting as it was before. Instead it was depressing and anxiety wrenching. We stared at Katara, pulling the spirit oasis water out of the bottle to heal Aang. Internally praying he will come back to life again. Once the spirit of water disappeared in Aang, Katara couldn't help but hug him even tighter, crying. I looked down in disappointment at how everything turned out and so did everyone around me. Till a glow of a familiar arrow and breath indicated he was in fact alive. Everyone smiled happily while Katara laid him down and hugged him even tighter. Thank the spirits. “The earth kingdom… has fallen” Said the earth king with his head down, in disappointment and guilt. I felt bad for him. Thinking just as he saved his kingdom, it broke down once again.

A few hours go by, the cold breeze hitting my face making my skin feel like ice. It feels nostalgic, it feels like my home…northern tribe. I looked at Katara, still holding Aang in her arms. I decided to speak up “I'm sorry Katara…” I said shakily. “What do you have to be sorry about? You saved me.” She whispered, looking towards me in worry. I shook my head “I knew about Zuko being in Ba Sing Se the whole time” I admitted. I felt everyone suck in a breath which made me internally wince. “I met him here and talked to him but I didn't do anything because…I-” My voice cracked “I thought he must have changed…if I weren't so naive then…I would have caused any of you guys trouble”. I looked down, ashamed of my actions. Katara’s hand meets mine “It's fine Y/N…I'm just happy all of us have made it out”. I look up to everyone nodding. I dropped my shoulders and continued to look across from me, the night cloudy sky…

Season 2 END

<- Back - Next ->

a/n: WOAH lots of Zuko today and betrayal lmao. BUT S2 HAS OFFICIALLY ENDED. Not 100% sure when season 3 will start up, I already started it however I have ap exams soon for school, so I wont have much time :(. But I wont be gone for a while. Make sure yall take care of yourself and have a nice day! :)

-

taglist: @luvkvni @katovano @karmaswitch @someonesmember @velvet-spider @sh3sa1dwhat @nerdisthenewcool @meiraloves2dmen @fqnfics101 @iluvme547 @leaderwon @yukihatesreoyo @heart4hees @4l3x1s @kkissaku @corpsebridenightamare @newjellis @fatkish@pbeckn26@jasminesacademia @kyo-kyo1

[tessenpai]

Kono Oto Tomare! Chapter 128.5 Scans and Rough TL

Disclaimer: Please DO NOT use this translation to make your own TL of the chapter!! The KOT TL group works very hard to give you the most accurate translation, that does as much justice to the original script as possible. This is a ROUGH translation. That means is faulty and there must be mistakes in certain places. This is just for impatient people like myself to get a grasp on what is going on in the chapter! You can REFERENCE my TL if you want to discuss the chapter but never USE it as it was your own.

Scans: (I recommend the use of an adblocker to avoid NSFW content) https://klz9.com/jxsh-kono-oto-tomare-raw-chapter-129.html

Page 1

Isaki [thoughts]: On my 27th winter

Isaki [thoughts]: My father passed away.

Side text: The story of how Chika and Isaki met...

Gen [memories]: If something were to happen to me...

Gen [memories]: Please take care of Chika.

Isaki [thoughts]: ---To me

Chika: Whatever. I don't care.

Page 2

Chika: I don't give a shit what you think of me. Not anymore.

Side text: When his grandfather died, his heart did as well---...

Isaki [thoughts]: He left only one request.

Chapter title: #ex [first light]

Page 3

Isaki [thoughts]: ....Whaaa---... No no, you can't be serious... This? You left this to me??

Gen [memories]: His eyes have been full of kindness lately.

Isaki [thoughts]: Where??

Isaki [thoughts]: Those are not the eyes of a child. Normally, it would've been impossible.

Isaki [thoughts]: Something like this... I've never even raised a child before, this is way out of my league---...

Isaki: !!

Isaki: Eh? Wai- Where are you goi--

Chika's father: Leave him!!

Isaki: Still...

Page 4

Gen [thoughts]: I leave it to you.

Isaki [thoughts]: Really, you ask too much...

Isaki [thoughts]: Wow.

Isaki: Excuse me, could borrow an umbrella?

Employee: Go ahead.

Isaki [thoughts]: He couldn't have gone too far yet but... Where should I even look for him?

Isaki [thoughts]: In a place that looks unsafe?

Page 5

Isaki [thoughts]: What should I do if he got in a fight again?

Isaki [thoughts]: There he is...

Isaki [thoughts]: For now, let's just call out to him. He will probably reject me but... Wait, if I get rejected, is there anything I can do after that? We've just met, so... The most practical thing for me to do would be to go back and call my brother.

Page 6

*No text*

Page 7

Isaki: ....Oh. Um...

Isaki: ...

Isaki: ...Do you know who I am? I'm your father's younger sister.

Isaki: Dad... Did Grandpa ever tell you about me?

Chika: ...

Isaki: About my brother... I think he's just a little bit preoccupied right now, so… maybe you should talk to him when he's a bit calmer and...

Chika: It's fine.

Chika: I really couldn't care less about that.

Page 8

Isaki: What? But...

Isaki [thoughts]: He was crying so hard just now...

Isaki [thoughts]: ...Ah.

Isaki [thoughts]: ...I see...

Isaki: You... Truly loved Grandpa.

Page 9

Isaki: I think the time Grandpa spent with you was really fun and joyful to him.

Isaki: I think you made him happy.

Isaki: For being with him until the end... Thank you.

Chika: !!

Page 10

Chika: u... ugh.

Isaki [thoughts]: ...Aaah.

Isaki [thoughts]: Can't do.

Isaki [thoughts]: I definitely

Isaki: Chika

Page 11

Isaki: Come live with me

Isaki [thoughts]: I can't leave this child alone.

Isaki [thoughts]: ---That was

Page 12

Isaki [thoughts]: The beginning for Chika and me.

Isaki: We haaave arrived! This is my humble abode--!

Isaki: The bathroom is over here--- And over there---

Isaki: Who would've thought you could do that...

Chika: What?

Isaki [thoughts]: He is surprisingly well-behaved.

Isaki: Here, this is my room---...

Sfx: Clack...

Page 13

Isaki: If you enter, I will beat you up ☆

Chika: ...

Isaki: Next up is the living room.

Isaki: And finally-- Your room!!

Sfx: Ta-daaaan

Chika: ...

Isaki: You got nothing to say about it...?

Chika: I'm fine just with a place to sleep in.

Isaki [thoughts]: I was just kidding... I planned on partitioning the living room to create a room for him but...

Isaki: ..............Whatever, I guess.

Page 14

Chika [Sfx]: Look around

Isaki: Hm? Are you looking for something?

Chika: ...I was just thinking that there aren't any kotos around here.

Isaki: Aah.

Isaki: I used to play it a little a long time ago. Now, not at all.

Isaki: My job is related to events so I sometimes get exposed to it from time to time.

Chika: Hmmmm.

Isaki: What, did you want to play the koto?

Chika: Nah, I can't play.

Isaki: Is that right? My fathe... Grandpa told me on the phone before

Isaki: "Chika played the koto!" He was so happy when he said that.

Page 15

Isaki [thoughts]: ----Ah.

Chika: ...Hmmm.

Isaki [thoughts]: His eyes light up as soon as Grandpa is mentioned

Isaki [thoughts]: That's probably his true self...

Sfx: Ruuumble

Isaki: ...Did you hear that?

Chika: ...Well, yeah.

Isaki: That's because I'm hungry. It's almost six, let's have dinner.

Isaki: What do you want to eat? We can go eat out or order delivery---

Chika: I don't need anything.

Page 16

Isaki: ...What?

Chika: Food, I mean... I'll be fine even with little food.

Isaki: What are you even saying??

Chika: It's enough if you just lend me a place to sleep.

Chika: I don't plan on coming for anything except to sleep.

Chika: Today I will also go somewhere else until night hits.

Chika: About my clothes... I would be thankful if you let me leave them here.

Isaki: I will make it.

Chika: ------Eh?

Isaki: Today, Isaki-sama, for your well-being, from the bottom of her heart, will cook for you. So eat. Until there isn't a single crumb left.

Page 17

Isaki: Right now, the only things I have in the fridge are water, alcohol, and snacks. I gotta do some shopping.

Chika: Eh? Wai-

Isaki: Ah, are you coming with me?

Chika: If there's anything you need, we can buy it.

Chika: ...Well, no ...There's really nothing.

Isaki: That so? Well, just stay at home then.

Chika: !

Chika: ...

Isaki: What, you coming then? Is there something you want?

Chika: ...There's nothing, really...

Page 18

Isaki [thoughts]: Yeaaaaaah, I don't get it.

Isaki [thoughts]: He is following me, but he is so far away.

Isaki [thoughts]: Well, you know? Of course, right? From a junior high school student's point of view, a woman around 30 years old is considered an old woman, right?. I'm sure it's embarrassing to walk around with one, right?

Isaki [thoughts]: I totally bought too much.

Isaki [thoughts]: Whatever--- It's just a 5-minute walk...

Sfx: Grap.

Page 19

Isaki [thoughts]: Oh?

Isaki [thoughts]: Ooooh...?

Isaki: Wai- At least let me carry one of those.

Chika: ...

Isaki: Hey!

Chika [Sfx]: Power walking

Isaki: Wha-!?

Isaki: Wait right there! Hey!!

Isaki: Don't ignore me!!

Isaki: Listen here!! I get that you don't want to walk with me but

Isaki: That kind of thing is still hurtful, you know!? I'm grateful you are carrying the bags, though!!

Page 20

Chika: Ah, no.

Chika: That's not... it.

Isaki: Come again?

Chika: ...Did you see how it ended up? Gramps house, I mean.

Chika: It'd better for you not to be seen around me.

Page 21

Isaki: Are you underestimating adults?

Isaki: Gramps house? Yeah, I took a good look at it with these two eyes. It was the worst among the worst.

Isaki: I think the people who did that are really shitty kids. And you're a fool for hanging out with them.

Page 22

Isaki: When I first heard about the incident, to be honest, I was super pissed with you.

Isaki: I thought it was too much trouble, I wanted nothing to do with it.

Isaki: But once I actually met you, you were only a child crying for the death of his grandpa.

Isaki: You have reflected and regretted. But you are still someone who hasn't learned how to look forward, at all.

Isaki: Don't you dare try to put yourself in front of me to try and protect me.

Page 23

Isaki: There's no way I will run from some brats who try to belittle my nephew.

Isaki: I will use my power as an adult to turn the tables on them-

Isaki: So you can rest at ease, and walk beside me. And every day, you can come home normally!!

Isaki: Do you understand!?

Page 24

Isaki: Come on, let's go.

Chika: Carrying it like this is embarrassing....

Isaki; Oh, is that so? Let go, then, and let me carry these heaaaavy bags all on my own.

Chika: Ugh...

Chika: ...

Page 25

Isaki [thoughts]: That night

Isaki [thoughts]: For the first time in several years I cooked

Isaki [thoughts]: A fucking disgusting A slightly different curry

Isaki [thoughts]: Chika did exactly as I told him.

Isaki [thoughts]: And didn't leave a single crumb.

Page 26

Isaki [thoughts]: He is more honest than I thought.

Isaki [thoughts]: And he is extremely clumsy.

Isaki [memory]: ----Eh? You don't want to go to high school and want to start working directly instead? Is there a work you are interested in?

Chika[memory]: There's nothing like that but, normally I would have to pay rent, and earn my living. I wanna pay for it.

Isaki[memory]: What, now?

Isaki[memory]: Your father will be paying for all your expenses, isn't that obvious?

Isaki[memory]: You don't want to depend on your father?

Chika[memory]: Ugh...

Isaki[memory]: Well, is not like I don't understand where you are coming from, but.

Page 27

Isaki [memory]: If there's anything you can use, use it.

Isaki[memory]: If you can rely on something or someone, do it.

Isaki[memory]: There's nothing to be embarrassed about.

Isaki[memory]: For once, forget about things like money and whatnot. Just think about what you want for yourself.

Isaki[memory]: But if after that, you still want to work, then I will support you.

Chika [thoughts]: ...What I want for myself...

Chika [thoughts]: ..............

Chika [thoughts]: I have no clue--... I don't have a hobby or any kind of special talent. Nothing.

Page 28

Chika [thoughts]: ...Truly. I really have nothing.

Chika [thoughts]: Nothing...

Gen [memory]: Chika!

Isaki [thoughts]: I'm home---

Chika [Sfx]: Stare

Isaki: Eh? What is it? You are scaring me.

Isaki: What, did you break something?

Chika: I didn't break anything.

Isaki: What is it, then?

Page 29

Chika: .....

Chika: Ther-

Chika: There's something I... Want.

Isaki: ! What is it?

Chika: ----------

Chika: Pi- picture...

Chika: I want a picture.

Chika: ....Of Gramps.

Chika: I

Chika: Don't have even one... so.

Page 30

Chika: If it's not doable, that's fine.

Isaki: Eh- no-! It's totally doable!!! Pictures, huh! I will bring them over!

Isaki: These are albums.

Chika: Are these all Gramps'?

Isaki: Well, there are also other family members in them.

Isaki: You can grab whichever picture you like.

Chika: ...Thanks

Chika [thoughts]: Oooh...

Page 31

Chika [thoughts]: Around this age, I can already tell it's Gramps.

Chika[memory]: Koto club? What's that, a club where you play koto?

Gen [memory]: Yeah. I was the founder of the Tokise Koto Club!

Page 32

Chika: ---...This.

Isaki: Hm? Ahhh, that's a picture of when the Koto Club was first founded.

Chika: ...Does this club

Chika: Still exist?

Isaki: If I remember correctly, it's still there, but----

Gen [memory]: Do you want to give it a try?

Gen [memory]: Haha, you are pretty good.

Gen [memory]: You actually seem pretty talented.

Isaki [memory]: "Chika played the koto!" He was so happy when he said that.

Page 33

Isaki: -----...

Isaki: Did you find what you want to do?

Page 34

Chika: I wonder if it's too late for me to aim to go to high school.

Isaki: Well, that depends on how much effort you put on i---

Isaki: Wait a second!! You have to submit an application form for the entrance exam! When is the deadline!? It's already December!!

Isaki: Will we make it on time?

Chika: I will go ask Tetsuki!!

Isaki: Eh? Who is Tetsuki!?

Chika: It's ok! I will make it on time!! If I tell Tetsuki, it will be fine, for sure!!

Isaki: Ok, but who is Tetsuki!!??

Chika: Uh... I

Chika: Will go to Tokise and

Chika: I will join the Koto Club Gramps created!!!

Page 35

Isaki [thoughts]: Thank you, Dad. For leaving a light for Chika.

Isaki: That's great!!

Isaki: Well then, from now on, it's full-time studying!

Chika: Starting tomorrow I will ask Tetsuki to help me study, so I will pass for sure!

Isaki: What the hell is a Tetsuki!!!???

Side text: I hope this sound reaches the heavens----...

Isaki [thoughts]: Chika won't lose sight of that light, and this time I will be right beside him.

Isaki [thoughts]: Please, look after us.

---Kono Oto Tomare! will continue in the next issue---

[doahaesunshine]

Chapter 14

Chapter WC: 2975

Tags

None

Tristen Note: Will not be queuing anything else until Friday so expect the next chapter on 11/2! Sorry!!

Master List | Prev | Next

Sometimes I feel different I don’t have a problem with not being normal But it seems as though people misunderstand me I don’t have to say everything I’m thinking I just want to be myself And not have anyone judge me.

For the next week, Jihoon had joined you on your strolls around Diamond Hall. He was there when you went to the archives, he was there when you visited Dino, oh- and he was there when you wanted to take a trip down the stream. Of course he freaked out when you said you wanted to visit the lake and refused to let you go anywhere near it.

It’s not that you didn’t like Jihoon – quite the opposite actually – you considered him a very good friend and the time you two spent together was nice. There was just this empty feeling in your chest, like something was missing.

Meeting with Jeonghan was nearly impossible. Sure, you saw Obsidian every night and had late night chats with him but it wasn’t the same. You missed the witty comebacks and snarky attitude, not to mention the kiss . 

Yeah- It was only a forehead kiss, but still…

It had to mean something, right?

Regardless of what it meant, Jeonghan was also a friend and you wanted to spend time with him but he never showed up. Maybe he freaked himself out or there were mixed messages, you didn’t know. You couldn’t even sense his emotions because you were too frazzled to focus on them. If you could just have a moment with him to talk about it, your mind would be put at ease and the overall antsy feeling would vanish.

And so you had a really wreckless idea.

Midnight, the safest time to travel, at least around the dorm. Soonyoung and Vernon would be asleep, Mingyu would be in his room at the Vitae Springs, and Jihoon would be diligently working on spellcraft. As long as you were quiet and returned home before sunrise, no one would even know you were gone.

With caution you tiptoed down the staircase, hyper aware of every little creek. Once you reached the ground level you looked both ways, a low orange light leaked out into the hallway on the left side, that was Jihoon. You continued carefully toward the front door and entered the threshold of the entryway. Exhaling softly, you grabbed for the door knob and twisted. 

A small chirp alerted you and you looked behind you to see an inquisitive Ruby staring directly at you. The little furball didn’t have a lot of expression in his face, but you could tell he was upset. You offered him a small “Sorry” and exited the building.

The midnight air was cool and welcoming but now was not the time to appreciate the fresh air. You walked along the stream toward the evergreen forest. Even if you hadn’t been there in three months, the path was ingrained in your memory.

“You know this is incredibly foolish, right?”

Eris apparated next to you, swiftly matching your pace as her paws met the ground.

“I know-” You huffed out a labored breath. “But I feel like a damn prisoner in that room. I need to get out and enjoy the wilderness alone…”

“Translate to; I want to see Jeonghan.” Eris said in a condescending tone.

You scoffed. Eris was right, but you didn’t want to admit it. The two of you barely talked about him and now that you thought about it, you never talk about him to anyone. Your pace slowed as you reached the treeline, your mind telling you to stop and think. 

“Eris, please do not laugh at what I’m about to say…”

The snow leopard gave you all of her attention, intense glare and all.

“You are right about me wanting to see Jeonghan…” You cringed at your next thoughts. “And I actually do miss him- before you say anything- I know, it has only been a week, but still… I kind of feel like I need to see him.”

“Oh wow~ You’ve gone off the deep end, Sage…”

You sighed. “I’m not kidding around, Eris!”

“Okay- alright, I understand. It’s just- I was teasing you about liking him as a joke, but now…” Eris shook her head gently. “It doesn’t matter- Where are we going, Sage?”

A genuine smile spread across your face as Eris supported your decision.

“The lake.”

Once again a nudging muzzle and soft moo disrupted Wonwoo’s precious sleep. Cosmos continued to use her nose to try and wake up her Arcanist, but all he did was gently push her away. With a grumble she jumped on top of the bed, pushing Wonwoo’s side with all of her strength until he teetered on the edge of the mattress.

As he slid off the bed, Wonwoo made no effort to stop himself from falling, crumbling with a thud. He grumbled as he collected himself. 

“What do you want, Cosmo?”

The black panther leapt gracefully from the bed and met Wonwoo at eye level. Her yellow eyes glaring into Wonwoo’s dark brown. For some reason, the pair's telepathic connection frizzled out years ago, the two becoming Man and Animal instead of Arcanist and Familiar.

“Are you hungry?”

The beast shook her head.

“Has there been a breach?”

She shook her head once more.

“Cosmos…” Wonwoo sighed as he rubbed his eyes. “Why did you wake me?”

Silently, Cosmos sauntered over to a book that had been knocked to the floor and she pushed it in his direction. Wonwoo stopped the book from going past him with a hand and lifted it to his face to read. Its cover was made of leather, a bit damaged, and definitely old. The script was too subtle and the room was too dim as he struggled to read the cover.

“Would you kindly light up the office, Cosmos?” Wonwoo requested as he retrieved his glasses from the nightstand.

The yellow of Cosmos’s eyes glimmered softly and in a second the room was slowly enveloped in warm light.

“Thank you…” Wonwoo muttered as he sat on the edge of his bed.

He put on his glasses and focused on the book in hand. There was no text on its cover, only an emboss of a lotus flower in the leather. Recognition sparked as he snapped his gaze to Cosmos.

“Where did you find this?”

“From me of course!” A jovial voice rang out from the balcony that hung over Wonwoo’s bed.

Peering upward, Wonwoo saw a head of near-white blond hair and two glowing blue eyes that reflected the light from below.

“Junhui…”

Jun slid down the ladder of the balcony and stood in front of the Archivist. “Wonwoo…” 

“How did you manage to pass the wards?” 

Jun crouched down next to Cosmos and gently patted her head. “This beauty let me in.” As he continued to stroke the black fur of the panther, a white scaled snake head poked out of his sleeve. “Howl really likes it here…”

Wonwoo glared at Cosmos, he wasn’t mad, he just would have liked to have been made aware of this visitor. “Then how did you procure this book?”

“It’s one of the only positives of living with Prismus Yoon.” Jun giggled to himself. “He’s been so preoccupied that he hasn’t been watching his things as carefully.”

“Jeonghan… preoccupied?” Wonwoo raised his brow. “For some reason I don’t feel comfortable with that information. What has been keeping him busy?”

“You should read that book-” Jun deflected the question. “It’s an… interesting read.”

With a sigh, Wonwoo opened the leather cover. A few of its pages were ripped out or the corners were singed, it had seen better days. 

The first page that was legible read;

March 20th, 1640

The Spring Equinox has welcomed us with budding flowers and beautiful green fields this morning. Which means today marks my 16th Nameday. Congratulations to me.

I did not foresee the loneliness to come since my appearance here in Imperium Septimus Decimus. I knew no one when I first arrived, but thankfully the fates gifted me a friend. He is younger than me by three years, I consider him a brother, a friend, he goes by Wonwoo.

He informed me of his Nameday, July 17th. I will remember this date so I can congratulate him as he congratulated me…

Wonwoo brushed his finger over the page, the rest of it was unreadable due to damage. He closed the journal and looked up at Junhui with slightly reddened eyes.

“Jeonghan had this in his possession?”

Jun’s usual blank expression softened as he saw the change in Wonwoo’s eyes. “Uh- Ye- yes. I don’t know where he found it though.”

“I believe I have an idea…”

You had never been to the lake this late before nor have you ever been alone. It was just as serene and beautiful as before, but there was an underlying sadness. The waters were dark and empty, no birds that were here had flown off to return to their nests. It was only you, Eris, and the night sky. 

Sitting on the rocky shore by yourself was strange, you were used to Jeonghan being next to you, teaching you, smiling at you. But now you were alone.

Eris lounged on a rock beside you and sighed as she rested her head on her paws. 

“What exactly are you doing, Sage?”  

You looked over at your familiar with apologetic eyes. “Waiting…”

“For Jeonghan…”

A drawn out sigh left you as you gazed out into the lake. You knew you were being foolish, you just didn’t want to admit it to Eris.

“Let’s just stay here for thirty more minutes.” 

“But I want to go home, Sage. We’ve already been idling here for twenty minutes and I wish to return to the plushy confines of our bed.”

“Just thirty more minutes.” You pleaded.

Eris sagged her head in defeat, not wanting to argue any more. She tried her best to get comfortable on the rock and closed her eyes to try and get some assemblance of sleep.

For the next twenty minutes you spaced out while staring out into the dark waters. You saw the occasional bat fly by or heard nightingale song from the trees. Bored, you stood and searched the ground for flat rocks, there were few that were suitable but still you collected them. Every so often you tossed one out into the water and watched it skip, aiming to get an extra skip with each throw.

After you ran out of rocks you went in search for more, Eris had dozed off and hadn’t told you to stop so you assumed it was safe to continue. 

“Jeonghan!”

A booming voice startled you as you stood by the shore of the lake. Sprinting over to Eris, you shook her paw to wake her.

“Jeonghan! I won’t allow you to ignore me!”

The voice got closer, it sounded like Archivist Jeon.

“Into the treeline, quick!” Eris spoke into your mind.

You and Eris quickly snuck to the trees, remaining as silent as possible. While squatting behind a thick trunk, you peeked out looking for the source of the voice.

Only yards away you saw a dark form, flowing clothes, long black hair, Jeonghan, walk past at a brisk pace. Archivist Jeon, wearing a light sweater and neat trousers, followed close behind. 

“Oh~ What are you going to do? Pull the leader card? Would you do that, betrayer ?” Jeonghan spoke in a teasing tone, but there was an underlying sincerity to his words. He sounded angry.

An exasperated scoff resounded from Archivist Jeon. “You’re calling me a betrayer ? After everything you did?” He quickened his pace to veer in front of Jeonghan, placing a stern hand on his chest to stop him. “You’re the reason everything descended into madness!”

Rage erupted in your chest, causing your heart to beat fast and hard. You clutched your chest as you felt the pure anger resonating off of Archivist Jeon.

Jeonghan grinned as he let the Archivist push him. “Is that how you remember it?”

Archivist Jeon released his hold on the other man, studying his face. “I-”

“Hm~” Jeonghan provoked as he leaned in. “What’s wrong, Wonwoo? Do you not remember?”

“I just-” Archivist Jeon lowered his gaze along with his voice. “Where did you get that journal?”

“It was a gift.”

Archivist Jeon snapped his attention back to Jeonghan. “I don’t believe you-”

“The real question is- How did Jun get into my room? I really need to get better locks…”

“Jeonghan…” Archivist Jeon stared daggers into the other’s eyes. “Answer the question; Where did you get the journal?”

Jeonghan laughed, breathy and hurtful. “Shouldn’t you know? Oh- wait- I’m so sorry.” Now he was raising his voice. “You were too busy turning your back on people to realize what was happening to our friend! You, Wonwoo, were too egotistical to realize what was going on! You, of all people could have stopped it-”

Before he could finish his sentence, he was shunted backward with so much force that he flew. The trajectory sent him flying into the trunk of a nearby tree and with a sickening crack, Jeonghan cried out, and ceased moving.

“Jeonghan!” You called out as you rushed out of the treeline.

Eris followed close behind, guarding you as you crashed to your knees in front of Jeonghan’s unconscious form. Archivist Jeon was startled the moment you appeared, not realizing you were listening.

He took a step forward. “Sage- I can explain-”

“Go away!” You yelled, voice thick with wrath.

Eris interjected, cutting off Archivist Jeon’s path and growling in his face, fangs on full display.

“Sage…” He pleaded as he backed away.

You didn’t want to hear it. Jeonghan was unresponsive and Archivist Jeon was the cause, nothing else mattered, you needed to make sure Jeonghan was safe. With a glare sharper than any blade, you addressed the Archivist but did not speak. Words were not needed and with a surge of strength and magic you sent your nerves, fury, sadness all toward him.

Something in Archivist Jeon’s eyes faltered, like when you’ve witnessed a horrific scene and couldn’t tear your eyes away. 

“Sage. Please…” His voice broke as he spoke, voice weak, the softest you had ever heard.

You shook your head as a singular tear ran down your face. “Just- Go…”

Archivist Jeon hesitated as he reached out, but he retreated as he saw your focus was only on Jeonghan. Without another word he left, disappearing in the darkness of the evergreen forest.

You stayed there for a moment, looking down at Jeonghan to assess the damage. He was breathing, thankfully, but wasn’t responding to any movement or sounds. 

“Eris- Help me get him up.” You asked, voice vacant but determined. 

Obediently, Eris nudged Jeonghan’s back off of the ground and, with your help, lifted him onto Eris’s back. 

“Let’s just- Let’s go back to the dorm. I can explain everything in the morning.” You held onto one of your friend’s arms to keep him from sliding off.

Noticing your distraught state, Eris said nothing and complied.

Back at the dorm, you hurried Eris through the door and rushed her up the stairs. You didn’t care if you were being disruptive and loud, Jeonghan needed a place to rest. Even though Jihoon was most likely still studying, you weren’t going to steal his room. You decided the best decision would be to have Jeonghan rest in your bed and you would manage in your chair for the night.

Eris did most of the lifting since people are surprisingly heavy when they aren’t supporting their own weight. Gently, you pulled the covers over him, not wanting to disturb him. You pushed the wingback chair in your room to the edge of the bed and sat.It wouldn’t be very comfortable but you had to deal with it.

As much as you desired to stay awake in case something happened, your eyes were heavy with sleep and you couldn’t restrain the yawn that escaped you. Slightly leaning over the bed, you laid your head next to Jeonghan’s arm and let yourself sleep.

The night was silent, dark and lonely, only the stars accompanied Wonwoo on his walk back to his office. He regretted it, attacking Jeonghan with his magic, but the rage he felt was insufferable. Lashing out was just a response to Jeonghan’s hostility though it had been a long time since the two had fought with such malice. 

The whole situation left a bitter taste in Wonwoo’s mouth and the moment he entered his office he sunk to the floor. Tears welled in his eyes and he let them fall, fighting against it was useless. Why did he resort to such brutal actions? Maybe he was still the same man he was all those years ago…

Manipulator, Tyrant, Betrayer.

He had collected many names over the years and he was starting to believe those who pushed those titles onto him. 

As he cried, head buried in his hands, Cosmos nudged her head under his arm and nuzzled into his face, trying her hardest to stop his tortuous thoughts. Wonwoo hugged his familiar tightly as he continued to weep, it was hushed and strained, like he desperately wanted to stop but the tears kept falling.

“It’s all my fault Cosmo. I should have never- I let- all those people…”

“No, Wonwoo…” A calming, nurturing voice spoke into his mind. “Don’t blame yourself. Not again…”

Wonwoo’s eyes shot open and he held Cosmos's face to look into her yellow eyes. “I heard that- I actually-” He smiled as he hugged the panther close.

Surprised but overjoyed, Cosmos leaned into the hug and cuddled with her Arcanist. 

Finally, they were whole again…

To join a tag list, please comment on the Fallin' Flower Master List!

@reiofsuns2001 @shinwonderful @starstrawb

[skzhocomments]

A Chance of Fate (Lee Know) - Chapter 4 - Blooming Feelings

Story masterlist - please consult it for the summary of the story, trigger warnings etc.

Wattpad | AO3

Chapter 3 | Chapter 5

---

Chapter 4 - Blooming Feelings

Chapter word count: 2.4k words

It’s been exactly three weeks since you met Minho and started living with him, and 19 days since you started taking daily walks with him and getting to know him. It’s also been 19 days since you noticed a feeling growing slowly from within your chest, and you truly disliked it. Not that it was unpleasant. It wasn’t. But you didn’t want to put a name to it, afraid that if you would, everything would change between you and him, and you’d end up with a broken heart. Or rather – a more broken heart.

You also started helping around at the restaurant as a server and sometimes in the kitchen if Minho had too many orders.

By now, you knew all the regulars and memorised their orders by heart.

Mr. Park would always come Monday-Friday at 6 PM sharp, just after finishing up at his job. He would always drink a glass of beer and eat Minho’s special recipe Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and on Tuesday and Thursday he’d drink 2 bottles of Soju and eat fried pork belly.

Mr. Cho would come every 2 or 3 days with his wife and eat some of Minho’s chocolate cake. He’d drink some wine, and she’d have a few cocktails, both of them leaving satisfied after each date.

You even met a few of Minho’s friends: Changbin (that you found out writes a lot of songs with Chris and Han), Seungmin (who went to the same Uni Han attends) and I.N. and his girlfriend. They would drop by, have a quick meal and chat a bit with Minho, but all of them were busy doing their own thing and wouldn’t stay for too long.

That was until tonight.

This Friday night, Minho closed up earlier, which you found unusual, especially considering that Fridays were one of the most profitable nights of the week for his business.

“My friends are coming.” He explained. “We meet here once a month to catch up. Ah, Jisung will be here too!” He smiled and started preparing different snacks and foods a few hours before their arrival.

“How many people will there be?”

“Well, there’s Chan and Olivia, Han, Changbin and Felix, I.N., his girlfriend Mary, Hyunjin, Changbin, Seungmin and Felix.”

“You counted Changbin twice!” you laughed.

“Well, he eats like two anyway!” he chuckled.

“Okay, then I’ll go ahead and set the plates for you.”

You grabbed some and started placing them on the big table Minho formed out from other tables.

After a few minutes, you placed 11 plates and 11 glasses, napkins, cutlery, and some soju bottles. You also grabbed some of the snacks Minho prepared. The table looked pretty nice, or at least adequate, you figured.

“Wow! This looks so much better than what I could’ve done! Good job, Dal-Rae!” he praised you and looked actually excited. “Everyone’s gonna be surprised by this, I never set the table or anything for these meetings. I think Jisung will be shocked.”

“Hahah, yeah. You prepare all this food and stuff, though!”

“But wait, why are there only 11 seats?”

“Well, you’re 11, right?”

“No, that’s not… right.” He replied while shaking his head disapprovingly.

“What do you mean? Chris, Olivia, Han, Changbin and Felix, I.N., Mary, Hyunjin, Seungmin, Felix and you. That’s 11.”

“Dal-Rae, we’re 12.”

“No, you’re 11. Did I count it wrong? Chris, Olivia-”

“No, dummy. You counted right. But you forgot your seat.” He ruffled your hair and grabbed another plate, placing it on the table.

“Oh- Am I… invited, though?” you asked unsure.

“What? Why wouldn’t you be-”

“SURPRISEEE!” a familiar voice shouted loudly and busted through the door.

“Jisung, what the heck?” Minho chuckled.

“Lee Know, Lee Know, Lee Know, I came to rescue you from your misery of having to set up the tab- What the fuck, man? This looks so beautiful, what? When did you learn how to manage without me?” he whined and faked a cry.

“It’s all her!” Minho pointed at you and bowed jokingly.

“Dal-Rae, just who I wanted to see! I missed you sooooo much!” he hugged you tightly.

“Don’t you text me everyday, though?” you chuckled, hugging the boy who quickly became your best friend back. “Although you didn’t even tell me you’re coming.”

“Wait, you’re texting her?” Lee Know raised an eyebrow.

“I do, but I still want to see you, Dal-Rae! I wanted to surprise you. Wow, getting big, are we?” he petted your belly and smiled, just when you felt a kick.

“Dude, don’t touch her like that-” Minho started and grabbed Han’s wrist, but was quickly interrupted.

“OMG! THE BABY JUST MOVED! THE BABY JUST HIGH FIVED ME!”

“Yeah, it keeps doing it! Especially if I lay down. If it’s a boy, it must be a future football player or something!” you chuckled.

“Or a boxer! Or maybe it’s a girl and she likes dancing!”

“Seriously? Did it… kick?” Minho asked, surprised.

“Yes!” Han exclaimed. “Oh my god, this is the most beautiful thing ever!!! What the heck. Wow. The miracle of life.”

You noticed something shift in Minho’s eyes. Jealousy? It can’t be. Curiosity? Maybe he wanted to feel the baby’s kicks too but didn’t know how to ask.

“Do you… want to…”

“No, no, I’m fine.” He quickly denied.

“Oh…” You frowned. You didn’t expect him to reject the idea so openly. Was he that uncomfortable with touching you, or was he just hesitating?

“I mean- I don’t want you to be uncomfortable-”

“I’m not! You don’t make me uncomfortable, so you can-”

“Seriously, guys? What the heck is wrong with y’all?” Han sighed and grabbed Minho’s hands and pulled him towards your belly.

You found it a bit amusing how Minho was always putting on a brave face, but now, looking at you, he seemed so unsure.

Was he really allowed to touch you? He knew Olivia hated people placing their hands all over her belly, she barely let Chan touch her, much to his dismay, so Minho never insisted, although he couldn’t deny that he was curious. And he hasn’t really had other chances to interact with pregnant people or to be close enough to someone as to ask.

For Minho, this felt… personal, in a way.

“I…”

“It’s okay.” You said and grabbed his hands that were hovering mere centimetres in front of your belly, placing them against you firmly.

His hands were cold, you noticed, and the expression on his face was expectant. Luckily for him, the baby seemed to be active today, so another kick came pretty quickly, making Minho open his mouth in shock and excitement.

“Oh! Wow!” he smiled brightly and looked into your eyes.

He was so beautiful. Of course, you’ve noticed that when you first saw him. But this? Fuck, your heart was not prepared for this.

The way he looked at you, the smile on his face, the way small creases formed around his eyes, mouth and nose, the way his cold hands felt on your warm belly…

This was too much to bear for your poor heart that was now running at 400 km/h.

The feeling came over you again, and you allowed yourself a second to wish that Minho was the father of your child instead. Then, you slapped yourself in your head and returned his smile.

Don’t be stupid, Dal-Rae.

“How’s that, Lee Know? Isn’t that great?” Han asked excitedly.

“Mhm.” He nodded happily.

“Makes me wanna have a kid too! That’s so unfair!!! Why don’t I have a girlfriend yet?” Han whined. “Dal-Rae, promise me you’re gonna make me the Godfather! Pretty please??”

“Oh! Would you want that? Like, for real?” you asked, this time you being the surprised one.

“YES!!! CAN I?”

“Dude, you’re too loud.” Minho covered Han’s mouth with his hand.

“Yeah, but isn’t it too quiet without me here?” he replied with a muffled voice, struggling to speak through Minho’s hands.

“Eww, don’t lick my hand! Gross!” Minho grimaced and let Jisung go.

“Han, I’d love it if you were my baby’s Godfather.” You replied, ignoring the small commotion and curses between the two.

“Oh my god!!! Really??? Lee Know!!! Did you hear that?? I’m gonna be the Godfather! This makes me a bit emotional.” He said, tearing up and hugging you.

“By the way, how’s Uni?” Minho asked, unimpressed.

“Wah, Dal-Rae, how are you holding up living with this asshole and his three asshole cats?”

“The cats are really nice, actually.” You replied with a chuckle.

“Hey! Just the cats? What about me?” Minho pouted, making you laugh.

“You… you are the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” You smiled and quickly corrected yourself, afraid he would misunderstand. “Both of you.”

Or rather, you were afraid he would understand.

It was true. Minho is the best thing that ever happened to you. And the fact that the “is” would soon turn into a “was” truly broke you, but you knew you couldn’t stay here forever.

It was stupid of you to get used to Minho’s presence and to depend on him so much. He was not the father of your child, so you had no right to live in your made-up fantasy that he was and that he would keep taking care of you.

After all, in less than 6 weeks, your baby would be born. Until then, you’d have to get a new job, search for a place for you two and get your life together.

How were you going to do this? You weren’t sure.

~

“Dal-Rae, I was not expecting to see you tonight! How are you?” Olivia approached you rather coldly. Although she was smiling, you could tell how forced it looked. Maybe Minho shouldn’t have invited you after all.

“I’m good, thank you. What about you? Were you busy at the shop lately?”

“Oh, yeah! Very! By the way, this is Chris, I believe you still haven’t met him yet? Chris, honey, this is Dal-Rae, the girl that came with Minho to the store the other week. Oh! Hyunjin!” she exclaimed, noticing a tall frame enter the door. She left you and Chan alone and ran over to the younger, jumping up and ruffling his hair affectionately.

“Ohhhh, yes, I remember Olivia telling me about you coming to the store. I’m Chan, or Chris, whichever you prefer. Nice to meet you!” he said, turning his attention to you.

“The pleasure is mine. I’ve heard a lot about you from Minho and especially from Han. It’s nice to finally put a face to the name.”

“Good things I hope!” he chuckled.

“Yeah, nothing to worry about.” You returned his laugh and pointed him towards the table. “You can sit down if you’d like.”

“Do you live around here? It’s pretty late, so I’m just surprised that you’d come, considering you’re pregnant and all. I remember Olivia barely had any energy to interact with others, especially at this hour. She would sleep like a log.” He chuckled and affectionately took a glance at his wife.

“She lives here.” Han came from behind you and placed his arm around your shoulder.

“Really?” Chan asked, his face forming a slight frown that you would’ve missed have you not observed him so closely. “That’s great! Uhm… will you excuse me for a moment?” he brushed over you and headed towards the kitchen.

“Don’t mind him so much, Dal-Rae. He’s just trying to look out for Lee Know. Chan can get really protective of his friends, and Minho is like a little brother to him.” Han whispered.

“I… know. But… he doesn’t have anything to worry about. It’s true that Minho is helping me, but I would never take advantage of him. I will try to move out as soon as possible, before the baby comes. I promise.”

“Wait, what? When’s that?”

“In less than 2 months, so there’s really nothing to worry about. I’ll be gone soon.”

“What do you mean?” Han frowned. “How? Where?”

“I don’t… uhm… Minho is paying me way more than he should, I’m sure, so I do have a little wiggle room…”

“Did you tell Minho about this? That you’re planning to leave…?”

You were the one to frown hearing this question. How could you tell him and burden him even more with worry?

Trying to push aside the sinking feeling in your chest, you smiled briefly and muttered a quiet “Soon” with a shake of your head.

~

“Hey, man. The food looks great.” Chan approached Minho.

“Oh, I didn’t know you'd already arrived. I’m stacking up these plates still!”

“Smells great too.”

“Thanks. I’m working on a new recipe, so you’ll be my guinea pigs tonight.” Minho chuckled.

“Listen… Olivia told me that you brought a girl back to the store…”

“Oh, yeah. Her name’s Dal-Rae. What about her? She’s here tonight if you wanna meet her.”

“I just did… she seems like a nice girl… but Minho, Han said she lives here. Is that true?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“I’m just gonna ask you this once. Are you… the father of her child?”

Right. The elephant in the room.

Lee Know sighed. “I’m sure Olivia already told you about it.”

“She did, but I want to hear it directly from you.”

“If she did, then you know the answer. No, I’m not the father of her child.”

“Then… what are you doing?”

“What am I doing?” Minho dropped everything from his hands and faced his friend.

“You know what I mean.” Chan replied sternly, frowning.

“No, I don’t.”

“Minho, don’t play dumb. Letting her stay here and eating your food? Paying hundreds of dollars for things for her?”

“What was I supposed to do then, hm? Let her go and pretend I didn’t notice she needs help? You didn’t see her when she first came in! She was full of bruises-”

“I’m sure we can find other ways to help her. We’ll contact a women’s shelter and-”

“We’ve already tried that route, smarty-pants.” Minho sneered. He was feeling irrationally angry. “And you know what happened? Nothing. There was no place for her.”

“But even so, hear me out.”

“No. I decided to help her. I can’t let her down now. Not when her due date is so close.”

“Minho-”

“Chris. I’m serious about it. She will stay here, and I will help her.”

“Why? What got you so worked up for this girl, man? You’re still young, you have time to find someone else.”

“You should know better than anyone that I don’t want someone else after what happened.”

“But still, this isn’t right for you.” Chan frowned. “I just wanna look out for you, man. If you’re doing this for her just for pity… That’s not right either.”

“That’s how it was at first, but now? I don’t know… I think I… for the first time in so long, I think…”

Minho wasn’t sure if he was able to admit that out loud, but Chan’s raised eyebrow made him confess with a sigh:

“I think I’m in love with her.”

~

Chapter 3 | Chapter 5

[expresso-bean]

The Man Out of Time [A ShadAmy and Silver Story]: Chapter 22

Pairing: Shadow the Hedgehog x Amy Rose

Description: It has been seven years of peace following the grueling war with Eggman and his army. Though it took time to rebuild what they have lost, life for the Freedom Fighters could not be better. Whether it's finding love or trying to run from their past, celebrating post-war times has been different for each of them.

All is well until a silver hedgehog comes knocking on Amy Rose's door to deliver the tragic news about an incredible force that seems to be the cause of the future's destruction.

Will anyone believe the mysterious hedgehog's cry for help? Or will he be left to fight for his future alone? Read to find out!

Warnings: None

Word Count: 2.1k

POV: Sonic the Hedgehog

!! I do not own any of the art/gifs/borders used in my chapters. All credits to the rightful owners !!

Masterlist ❀ Ch.1 ❀ Ch.2 ❀ Ch.3 ❀ Ch.4 ❀ Ch.5 ❀ Ch.6 ❀ Ch.7 ❀ Ch.8 ❀ Ch.9 ❀ Ch.10 ❀ Ch.11 ❀ Ch.12 ❀ Ch.13 ❀ Ch.14 ❀ Ch.15 ❀ Ch.16 ❀ Ch.17 ❀ Ch.18 ❀ Ch.19 ❀ Ch.20 ❀ Ch.21

Do you remember the days when you chased me? Did you cherish them like I did? Hidden behind my annoyance was someone stupid who had no idea how to show love.

And now, I see the consequences of my mistakes.

A single phrase.

Was that how much I meant to you all those years? Is that all it took to forget about me? About the love you had for me?

'Is this it? Is this some sort of cruel revenge?'

"I love Shadow."

Those three words. Three words are all it took for me to realize...

'I deserve all of this. For all the pain I put you through over the years.'

"W-what?" I mumbled unconsciously. It sounded more like a whimper, and I quickly recovered my composure before repeating myself loud enough for Amy to hear. "Wait, huh?"

"The person I love is Shadow," She finally gained the courage to look at her. Her eyes filled with love and her face pink with embarrassment. It was her confessing her love. Only, it was not for me this time around. "Shocking, right?"

"Um," I scratched the back of my neck, unsure of what to say. I came here with one goal in mind. To tell her all the things I have been suppressing. I assumed she still loved me. That I still held a place in her heart despite me being with someone else. "...I don't know what to say. This is, just, wow."

But her actions said otherwise.

Her words flowed with passion, her cheeks filled with love, and her mouth couldn't help but twist into a smile at the thought of the man she truly loves.

I've made so many mistakes throughout my adventures, but ignoring her affections for the sake of pride has to be my biggest one yet.

'Why did I let myself become so arrogant?'

"Sonic? Are you mad that it's...him?"

I stayed silent again. It was not anger I was feeling, more regret and sadness. I let everyone around me decide who I should give my love to, and I listened to keep up an image to please others. But images fade, and behind the scenes, I wanted nothing more than to be with the annoying, pink hedgehog who kept pestering me to go out with her.

'I did this to myself. I was the one being selfish and putting others' judgment over my personal feelings. I broke her heart so many times, yelled at her so many times, and rejected her so many times. After all that, why did I ever hope to think she would still be interested in me?'

"Sonic, are you okay?"

'No, this isn't about me anymore. I can't be messing with her feelings any longer. I didn't have a right then, and I don't know. The best thing I can do now is to try and make things right.'

"Me? I'm fine Ames," I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She shrieked a bit and I managed to pull out a laugh despite my depressing mood. "So, Shadow huh? He's quite the character, though. Are you sure you want...him?"

"H-hey! You don't know him like I do. He can be broody and yes, he's been patronizing in the past, but underneath all of his 'layers' he's the sweetest guy I've ever met," Amy covered her blushing face, and let out a sigh. "That and so much more."

'Ever met?' I bit my lip and then forced a smile. 'This is going to be harder than I thought.'

With as much enthusiasm I could muster, I grabbed Amy by the shoulders and squeezed her towards me. I let out an empty chuckle while she cutely shrieked beside me.

"Ah, you know I'm just teasing you Ames," I gulped as I looked down at her. Her face was still red, and she now had a small smile on her perfect lips. But I knew the blushes and smiles weren't for me. They'll forever be for someone more deserving. "You don't know how happy I am for you!"

"You are?"

"Of course, I am!" I let go of her, ruffling her pink hair. She giggled, and playfully tried to slap my hands away from her. "As long as you're happy and safe, I'm happy with anyone you choose to love."

To my surprise, Amy squealed and threw herself onto me in a big hug. She cuddled into my chest, and I felt my face heat up. Shameful as it may be, I still do enjoy her hugs, and they mean everything to me, even if they mean nothing special to her.

"You have no idea how much this means to me Sonic!"

"How much does it mean to you?"

Amy looked up, the corner of her eyes rose with her smile, and she flicked me on the nose, instinctively my eyes twitched in annoyance. 

"Did you not hear me earlier? You mean a lot to me," She once again buried her face into my chest. I could feel her warm breath near my neck. It sent chills of the pleasure I've longed from her for years. But I know better than to think like that now. "It's funny. I'm fussing so much over someone who doesn't even feel the same."

"What? You don't think he feels the same?"

"He can be difficult to read. But I can't help but feel that he doesn't even care that much about me. At least, not in the way I want him to."

For some reason, that sentence made me feel odd. I've always known Shadow had a soft spot for Amy even before Silver's reveal. It was obvious in the way he acted around her. He was calmer, kinder, and more tolerable. He appreciates her for being herself and never once have I seen him run away.

"Ames, do you even hear yourself right now?" Amy's head tilted, probably being taken aback by the sudden change in my voice. "We grew up together, we've fought together, we've won a war together! Trust me, I know you more than anyone and I could say with FULL confidence that you are a beautiful, caring, and amazing woman."

Amy's eyes sparkled with excitement with each word.  I held in my smile as I continued with my rant.

"I've seen the way he looks at you. He doesn't look at anyone else in that way. I know during the war he was sort of forced to change to our side, but it was you who kept him here with us. It was your kindness; your determination to seek the good in people that Shadow is one of our closest allies. He feels the same way about you," I sighed, looking right into her emerald eyes. They were happy and bright, my words making them hopeful. "He would be an idiot to not fall for you, Ames."

Amy's face completely flushed red, redder than the dress she was wearing at this moment. Her hands immediately went to cover her warm face, and a small, muffled whimper escaped her lips. I looked over at her, not paying much attention to her overreaction, simply going in for a side hug.

"Don't give me hope, I bet half the time he doesn't even care that I'm around."

"Amy..." My voice trailed off into a sarcastic groan. It was hard enough to try and convince her will be hard, especially without giving away any of my feelings. "Don't say that."

"That is a nice thought though, right?"

'I have to fix this...'

"Amy."

'She doesn't deserve this...' 

"Hm?"

'She doesn't deserve to feel this hopeless. To live her life believing that she isn't worthy of the love of someone else,' I wanted to sigh. I couldn't bring myself too. Not here. Not in this moment. 'Even if it isn't with me.'

"You can't be so hard on yourself." 

"With everything going on, can you seriously blame me!" Amy's eyes grew wide and she quickly covered her mouth with her hands. Her shoulders, that were once raised in tension, sank down. "Sorry, it's..." Her words muffled through her hands. I wanted to reach over and take her hand away. But my arms were too stiff. My hands seemed to be bolted down to my knees. "it's been..." 

"A lot?" 

"Yeah," She, thankfully, finally moved her hands away from her mouth. I could see she was frowning from beneath where she was hiding her lips. "And this 'thing' with Shadow makes me feel so... I don't know. Weird? Alone? Scared?" She clutched her fists in her lap again. "It's hopeless to even think about. He doesn't want me. Point and simple." 

"So what?" 

Amy paused to look at me. 

"So... what?"

"Yeah, so what if you feel that way? So what if he doesn't love you? I can give you a list a reasons why you are probably wrong," She gave me her 'look'. The look she would give me when she was annoyed. Yet, she nodded for me to keep going. "But, we'd be here all night. But just trust me and think for a second. What is Shadow doing right now?" 

"He's helping outside."

"Right! He's He's out there, helping everyone he can. Why?" 

"Because..."

"Because you asked him to. If it was anyone else, he would have said no, or worse." She nodded. I could tell even she knew that Shadow has his little moments. "He wouldn't do that if he didn't care for you," I shook my head. "No, he wouldn't do that if he didn't love you." 

She couldn't look at me. She could only clutched the fabric on of her red skirt. It wasn't until now that I noticed she hadn't once looked at me since her little outburst about feeling overwhelmed. And again to give me a look of annoyance.

"When you love someone, you oftentimes sacrifice parts of yourself for them. For me, it was putting aside my own pride to finally open myself up to loving Sally. Never in my life could I imagine myself getting married. Yet, here I am.  Wedding band and everything," I chuckled nervously as I looked at the ring on my gloved finger. It gleamed under the white light of the living room. "Shadow's sacrifice, well, him being here with us is living proof of what leaving Eggman did for him. Do you realize how crazy that is? All that hared, anger, despair. He put that aside to join us. Whatever it is you said to him, it worked."

"And me?" He voice was empty. It made me what to shudder from how devoid it sounded. "What was mine?"

"What is it that you sacrificed? It's easy to say really." I pointed to myself. "Thankfully, giving up on me led you to him," I touched her shoulder again. She felt less tense than before. "And I couldn't be happier for you. All I've wanted was to see you happy, Ames." 

"Wow." Amy's voice didn't trail. She said it so quickly that I almost didn't catch it. "I never thought of it like that before."

'Has she really have this little confidence in herself?' I almost blurted that thought out. But, I couldn't bear the thought of having to apologize to her. I haven't been the kindest person to her when it came to rejecting her. 'Maybe I will one day. Today cannot be that day.'

"I guess... you can be right," She bumped her shoulder onto mine playfully. "Who would have thought you would have been the therapeutic type?"

"Hey! I have my moments!" 

"I know," She giggled. I smiled at the sound of her light laughter. "I'm just poking fun."

Finally, she looked over at me. I could only stare into her soft emerald green eyes. I was always fond of them. The color clashed with her pink quills, sure. But I've never seen anything like them. Truly, they are uniquely hers. 

"Thanks for always being here for me, Sonic," She stood up finally, and grabbed me by my hands to pull me up to a hug. "You have no idea what it means."

'Oh. This,' As I leaned into her warmth. I could feel the fiery passion of my love for her dwindle. 'This is nice. This is all it could ever be between us. Nice.'

"Of course," I rested my hand softly on her pink quills. I stroked them softly. "Anytime you need me, Ames. I'm always here."

'Although I didn't do this entirely for you Silver, I think I owe you one. And maybe a bit more.' I secretly wiped another tear before hugging her a bit close. 'I hope you could all be truly happy one day.'

[roping-riding-wrangling]

Little Black Train

Previous Chapter

After several minutes of silence, interspersed with your father’s sniffling, he finally speaks up, “you were a fat baby. 11 pounds. Grandma Mary loved pinching those chubby little cheeks till they were bright red.”

Your response is to squeeze him tighter, encouraging him to keep going. 

“I keep thinking about what I’d do if it was us,” he says, “If you were the one I was burying tomorrow.”

Summary: Y/n and Bob look through some scrapbooks, she goes monster hunting, and trauma dumps just a bit

Words: 4k

Warnings: Fem!Newby!reader, guns, funeral, mentions of death (including matriarchal and death of a child), swearing, mentions of Jonathan's creepy stalker photos

The living room is quiet. The whole house is quiet. There is a sense of mourning that exudes the walls, as if they know there is no place for joy here. They hold a deep reverence for the boy they never met, and as far as they know, never will. 

But you know better. You know better than to hold a wake for a boy still alive, who’s false body will be lowered into the ground tomorrow. 

Its late. Too late for your dad to be awake, yet there he is. You walk into your room and he sits on the bed, holding a scrapbook of baby pictures. A scrapbook that doesn’t contain anything past age 13. You can tell he’s been crying, his cheeks are still wet and his green eyes are contrasted against the red in his sclera. 

You shift from foot to foot in the doorway. You pull at the sleeves of your jacket that you’ve yet to take off. He looks up at you and for the first time in a long time, you feel his age. His salt and pepper hair, the slight wrinkles on his face, the way he slouches from years of being hunched over a workbench. Bob Newby is by no means an old man, but he’s certainly not the young man who used to run circles around you. 

You know, though, that as he stares at you, he only sees the little girl he cradled in his arms until you fell asleep. The kid who, unlike most 5 year old girls, came home covered in mud every day inexplicably. The child who ran into his room anytime you had a nightmare or the darkness was just a little too dark. His little buddy. 

Perhaps Benny’s death and Will’s impending funeral have made you both a little more aware of each other's mortality. You sit next to him on the bed and put your arm around him and place your head on his shoulder. It reminds you of how you comforted Jonathan mere moments ago in the car. 

You look down at the page your dad has opened. It's your first birthday party. Your dad holds your tiny body aloft, rubbing his nose with yours. You each have giant grins on your faces. In the background, your mother sits. She wears a bored expression, party hat tilted atop her head. She’s admittedly very beautiful, and you’ve inherited all her ugliest flaws. You hate how much you see of her in the mirror. 

Your dad is clearly not focused on the woman who abandoned you both. He looks instead at the focus–you, always you. Your dad has done everything for you, a sacrifice that you will never dismiss. 

After several minutes of silence, interspersed with your father’s sniffling, he finally speaks up, “you were a fat baby. 11 pounds. Grandma Mary loved pinching those chubby little cheeks till they were bright red.”

Your response is to squeeze him tighter, encouraging him to keep going. 

“I keep thinking about what I’d do if it was us,” he says, “If you were the one I was burying tomorrow.”

“What would you do?” you ask

“That's the thing,” he answers, “I don’t know. I try to picture losing you and I just get so sad I can’t think. Like, my brain stops working. I think that's just how it is, though. When a parent loses their kid, they lose their function. I remember seeing you for the first time and thinking: wow, this is my purpose. So, I lose you and I lose the purpose.”

He kisses the side of your forehead. “You’re my purpose, buddy. Don’t ever forget that.”

You kiss his cheek in return. “You’re my best friend. I don’t care how lame I sound. I’m lucky you’re my dad.”

You sit and pour over the scrapbook together, sharing wet laughs until the wee hours of the morning. You’ve nodded off against your dad’s shoulder too many times and he slaps his thighs before standing up, jerking you awake. 

“Alright buddy,” he yawns, “I’m off to bed. Goodnight, love you.”

“G’night,” you say, already under the covers, “Love you too.”

–––––––––

The funeral is the next day and though you know the truth about Will’s apparent demise, it doesn’t change the fact that you are attending a funeral for a little boy. A little boy whose brother you’ve come to care for like your own sibling. You dress in a simple black dress, your dad wears a wool sweater over his dress shirt. You arrive early to the funeral, at your father’s insistence on punctuality. 

You see Jonathan and his mother, but there’s a man with them you’ve never seen before. 

Jonathan makes eye contact with you and slips away from them. You walk away from your dad, who is trapped in conversation with Mrs. Withersbee. Jonathan’s state keeps deteriorating, you notice. He looks even paler than yesterday and his eyebags are even more pronounced. You wonder if he got even an hour of sleep last night. 

“Hey,” you pull him into a hug. You’ve noticed over the past few days that he always sinks into your touch. You can feel him relax, even if just slightly. You pull away and nod at the man sitting next to his mother. “Who’s that?” you ask.

“Lonnie–my dad,” Jonathan says with a barely contained sneer. 

Your dad joins the pair of you, finally free of Mrs. Withersbee. “Jonathan?” your dad holds out his hand, which Jonathan takes in a firm handshake. “Mr. Newby.”

“I’m sorry about Will. We’re here if you guys need anything,” your dad says.

“Thanks,” Jonathan nods at him. 

You depart from Jonathan with a comforting squeeze of his shoulders. As you walk to find a spot, your eyes scan the crowd for Nancy. You spot her and recognize her brother from Dustin’s group of friends. You try to recall his name, Matt or Mason or something–you know it starts with an M. 

She doesn’t look your way, instead her eyes are practically locked onto Jonathan. Anytime you look her way during the ceremony, you can clearly follow her line of sight to the boy. An unreadable emotion is displayed on her face, or perhaps its several different emotions bubbling up to the surface. 

Your dad’s arm is heavy across your shoulders. You appreciate the extra warmth he gives you against the cold November air. 

The casket is lowered into the ground. It's a very sobering moment as you realize that even if they aren’t dead, very soon you could be at Will’s real funeral. Or Barbara’s, or Eleven’s. You glance at the other teens. It could be they’re funeral too. They’re a year younger than you and though it's not a huge gap, but you still feel protective of them. 

After the ceremony, you slip away from your dad and grab Nancy’s hand. She lets you guide her silently to Jonathan’s car. He’s waiting for you with a piece of paper. 

You and Nancy come up on either side of him as he shows it to you. The three of you sit down on the ground. “It's a map,” he begins his explanation, “This is for sure where we know it’s been.”

Nancy looks impressed at his collection of the information. Both of you’d assumed that this would be something to be done as a group. Your eyes dart between the map, Jonathan and Nancy. You wonder if this is part of the reason he got so little sleep or if he had done this because he couldn’t sleep.

You look back at the map. There are three Xes on it. 

“So that's…” Nancy trails off

“Steve’s house, where Will’s bike was found, my house,” Jonathan says, pointing at each X

“Huh,” you say, “they're all really close. And look how close Will’s bike was to Benny’s?”

“Exactly,” Jonathan says, “It's all within a mile or something. Whatever this thing is, it’s not traveling far.”

“You wanna go out there?” Nancy asks.

“We might not find anything,” Jonathan says.

“I found something,” she responds.

“We have to try.” you say

“And if we find this thing, then what?” Nancy says

Jonathan responds resolutely, “We kill it.”

You and Nancy look at each other, a question in both of your heads: kill it with what?

Jonathan is already standing and offers a hand to Nancy who takes it, who then in turn helps you up from the ground. The two of you follow behind Jonathan as he leads you to a car you don’t recognize. 

“Cover me,” he says before squatting down and unlocking the door with a knife. You and Nancy huddle around the boy, looking around to make sure no one sees you. 

“Are you crazy?” you ask 

He doesn’t answer you, just opens the door and begins on the glove compartment.

“Who’s car is this anyway?” you ask again.

“Lonnie’s” he answers. 

“Oh.”

He opens the glovebox and pulls out a gun. Nancy looks at and scoffs, “Are you serious?”

“What?” Jonathan says, “You wanna find this thing and take another photo of it? Yell at it?”

“This is a terrible idea,” she says.

“Jonathan’s right. We need to get rid of this thing. This,” you gesture to the gun, “is our best chance.”

“We could tell someone.” she glances warily at the gun. 

“Who would believe us?”

Nancy looks up at Jonathan, trying to convince him, “Your mom would.”

“She’s been through enough,” he argues. 

“But–”

“Nancy,” you grab her arm, “do you really want to bring more people in on this? This thing’s dangerous. The less people involved, the better.”

She bites her lip, thinking it over. You and Jonathan look at each other, then back at her. 

“Okay.” she says.

–––––

In the car, your dad talks again about the AV club. “Scott–Mr. Clarke–was telling me that the ham shack caught on fire. Totally random, just burst into flames.”

“It wasn’t a prank or anything?” you ask.

“Nope. Just poof! Melted.”

“Weird.”

–––––

At home, you search through the shed for something to fight against a life-threatening monster with. Your dad doesn't have any traditional weapons around, but you do find a big pipe that could come in handy. You don’t want Jonathan to be the only one armed. You throw the pipe into your trunk, then go back inside. Your dad is on the phone in his office–where all the tools are. 

You slink inside and he raises an eyebrow at you. You mouth “Screwdriver” to him. He opens a drawer and you come around to pick one out. You find the biggest one you can and give him a kiss on the cheek. Outside his office, you stick the screwdriver in your jacket pocket. You grab your bag and keys and jump into your truck.

After popping a Beatles cassette into the tape deck, you drive to the address Nancy gave you. It's not too far from where you live, but most definitely in the nicer part of town. 

You pull up and Steve is outside talking to his girlfriend. You can’t see him, but her face is strained, awkward. 

“Nancy!” you call out to her, “C’mon!”

“Sorry Steve, I gotta go.”

She runs to your car and throws the bat she’s holding in the bed of the truck. 

“What’d he want?” you ask, driving away.

Nancy drags a hand down her face. “I don’t know…he wanted to see a movie, but obviously…”

“You can’t,” you finish for her.

“Even if I could…I don’t know if I want to,” she says.

“Oh?” you say. 

“Its just…He was such a dick the other day. He got mad at me when I went to the police about Barb. He freaked out because he was gonna get in trouble with his parents for having a party–drinking and stuff. Barb is missing and all he cared about was that he was gonna be in trouble with mommy and daddy. And I know he’s a good guy, he apologized–just now– but I don’t know. It still stings.”

“Jesus.”

“Yeah. whatever, we have bigger things to worry about.”

“Yeah…have you ever shot a gun before?” you ask, genuinely curious about the girl.

“I’ve never even held one.” she laughs, “You?”

“No. Benny was gonna teach me after I graduated, take me hunting and everything.” you say.

“You were really close with him, huh?”

“Yeah. He was a family friend for ages. He actually helped me get this,” you gesture to the truck, “piece of shit up and running.” 

Almost as if to spite you, the truck makes a groaning noise.

“Is that normal?” Nancy asks nervously.

“Oh that,” the grumbling stops, “It happens sometimes. Don’t worry about it.”

“Right…” she says.

You pull off the road and drive into the grass at the edge of the woods. Hoisting yourself up on the bed of the truck, you grab the pipe and the baseball bat, tossing the latter to Nancy. 

“Nice catch,” you say.

The two of you walk to the clearing that Jonathan described. He’s already there, shooting at glass bottles–and missing terribly.

“Do you think he knows he’s supposed to aim for the cans?” Nancy says to you, loud enough for him to hear it. 

“You see the spaces in between the cans,” he retorts, “I’m aiming for those, actually.”

“Then you’re a perfect shot.” you say, setting down your stuff. 

Jonathan looks to Nancy, who is already standing right next to him. “You ever shot a gun before?” he asks. You and Nancy look at each other and laugh at having just had the exact same conversation. Jonathan looks between the two of you, perplexed. 

“Sorry,” Nancy says between giggling, “No, have you met my parents?”

Jonathan looks to you and you shake your head no. 

“Yeah, I haven’t shot one since I was ten,” Jonathan says, “My dad took me hunting on my birthday. Made me kill a rabbit.”

“A rabbit?” Nancy says. 

“Yeah. I guess he thought it would make me more of a man or something. I cried for a week.”

You picture a ten year old Jonathan crying while holding a gun, standing over a dead rabbit. It makes sense that he would cry over killing something so small and defenseless. He’s intensely protective, so of course he wouldn’t want to hurt something that isn’t doing any harm.

“Your dad sounds like a peach.” you say sarcastically. 

“Yeah,” he scoffs, “I think he and my mother loved each other at some point, but I wasn’t around for that part.”

Nancy holds out her hand and Jonathan hands the gun to her. She aims and lets out a breath. “I don’t think my parents ever loved each other.” she says.

“There must’ve been some reason they married each other.” Jonathan says and she rolls her eyes. “My mom was young. My dad was older, but he had a cushy job, money, came from a good family. So they bought a nice house at the end of a cul-de-sac and started their nuclear family.”

“Screw that.” Jonathan huffs.

“Yeah,” she closes one eye, “Screw that.”

She squeezes the trigger and hits the can dead on. 

“Woah!” you gasp.

She blushes and offers you the gun, which you take. It's oddly heavy in your hands. You line up in front of a can and square yourself up. 

“I uh, I never really knew my mom,” you say, raising the gun, “She died a few years ago. What's crazy is I didn’t even know her family existed, but they all acted like I was the prodigal son. The truck is her old shitbox. They insisted I take it. Her husband has two lincolns.”

“Oh.” Nancy says.

You can remember every little detail of her funeral. Her husband–tall, graying hair, and dark brown eyes. He had wrinkles around his eyes and wore half moon eyeglasses. Her son looked like the perfect combination of the two of them. Though he’s younger, he stood at eye level with you. You would have balked at the similarities between the two of you, if you’d cared. He smirked as her husband pressed the keys into your hand and insisted that she would have wanted it, that you deserve it. 

The months that followed that interaction were filled with painstaking labor and frequent stops at the auto shop. Benny taught you everything you could ever know about taking care of a car’s engine, but the radio was all your dad. The damn thing had a tape jammed in it and your dad spent an entire day sitting in the hot Indiana sun, carefully fiddling with the radio, not just getting it to work, but also getting the tape out in one piece.

It was almost sunset when he got it to work, you were replacing the serpentine belt and heard his triumphant laugh, then the voice of Woody Guthrie sing, “You silken bar-room ladies, dressed in your worldly pride. You’ve got to ride that little black train thats coming in tonight.” You both cheered as the song played. 

The irony of that moment just now hits you, and you have to hold back a laugh as you realize that possibly the last song your mother heard was a song about the inescapability of death.

You suck in a breath and squeeze the trigger. The kickback surprises you with its power, for how small the weapon is. You don’t hit the can, instead the bullet lodges itself in the stump it rests upon. 

“You better hang on to this,” you hand Nancy the gun, “You’re clearly the best shot.”

Again she blushes under the praise. You grab the pipe and Jonathan grabs the bat. The three of you stand at the edge of the woods. They seem so daunting, especially knowing what's in there. 

“Onwards?” you say to the others.

“Onwards,” they respond in unison.

––––

You’ve been walking in circles for over an hour and haven’t found anything. You walk a few paces ahead of the others, occasionally hitting at the ground with your pipe. You turn around and walk backwards while facing the two younger teens. “Have you guys seen anything yet?”

“No,” Jonathan says. 

You turn back around and walk further ahead. 

“You never said what I was saying,” Nancy tells Jonathan. 

“What?” he says what you’re thinking. 

“Yesterday, you said I was saying something and that’s why you took my picture,” says Nancy. 

You cringe, remembering the invasive photos of the girl. 

“Oh, uh. I don’t know” Jonathan explais “I guess I saw this girl, trying to be someone else. But for that moment…it was like you were alone, or you thought you were. And, you know, you could just be yourself.”

Apparently Nancy disagrees because she says, “That is such bullshit.” “What?” Jonathan stammers.

You don’t hear their footsteps anymore, so you turn around to see them stopped and facing each other. 

“I am not trying to be someone else. Just because I’m dating Steve and you don’t like him–”

“You know what? Forget it, I just thought it was a good picture.”

Jonathan walks past you, Nancy hot on his heels. 

“He’s actually a good guy,” She yells at him, “the other day, with the camera he’s not like that at all…he was just being protective.”

You can't help but wonder when Nancy had changed her mind and forgiven Steve–or if it was a ruse for the sake of fighting with Jonathan.

“Yeah, thats one word for it,” Jonathan scoffs. 

“Oh and I guess what you did was okay?” she retorts

“I never said that,” he yells over his shoulder.

Nancy pushes on the topic, “He had every right to be pissed–” 

“Does that mean I have to like him?”

“No.”

They huff at each other for a moment. You can clearly pick up on some tension between them–romantic or otherwise. Jonathan takes a breath and picks his next words carefully, “Listen. Don’t take it personally. I don’t like most people. He’s in the vast majority.”

Nancy doesn’t let the conversation end there. It's like she wants to fight. “You know, I was actually starting to think that you were okay. I was thinking ‘Jonathan Byers: maybe he’s not the pretentious creep everyone says he is.”

That gets Jonathan riled up again, “I was just starting to think you were okay. I was thinking ‘Nancy Wheeler: Maybe she’s not just the same suburban girl who thinks she’s rebelling by doing exactly what every other suburban girl does, until that phase passes and they marry some boring one-time jock who now works sales and they’ll live out a perfectly boring little life at the end of some cul-de-sac. Exactly like their parents, who they thought were so depressing. But now hey, they get it’”

“Jonathan!” you yell at him and chase after him as he storms away. Nancy follows behind you and the three of you walk in silence. You stand in the middle of the two, a buffer. For hours, you explore the area from Jonathan’s map. You walk well past sunset and each pull flashlights from your bags. The forest is ten times creepier at night. It's a new moon, so the only light comes from the flashlights you carry. Every crunch of a leaf or snap of a twig nearly gives you whiplash from how hard you swing your head. 

A low whimper sounds to your right and you turn your head immediately. Nancy stops, having also heard the noise. 

“Are you tired?” Jonathan mocks but you hold up your hand. “Shut up,” you say. 

“What?” he asks, offended.

“Shut up!” you whisper-yell at him.

Nancy looks over to you, then off in the distance “I think its over–” 

The noise comes again, louder this time. “There!” She shouts and begins walking towards the sound. You and Jonathan trail after her to find an injured deer. 

“Oh god,” you say.

“Its been hit by a car,” Nancy says, kneeling down, “we can’t just leave it.”

The doe whimpers again and Nancy holds the gun out as if to shoot it, her hand shaking and lip quivering. Jonathan gently says to her, “I’ll do it.”

“I thought you said…” she trails off.

“I’m not nine anymore.” he states and takes the gun from her. 

The three of you stand and Nancy turns to you, facing away from the doe. You pull an arm around her and she grips your jacket, seeking comfort in you. Shielding herself from the reality the deer has to face. 

You close your eyes in anticipation, but are no gunshots to be heard, only a dragging sound. You open your eyes to see the doe being pulled into the darkness. You lean closer to see a trail of blood left behind. “What was that?” you ask no one in particular. 

You follow the trail through the trees. No one dares to say a word until the trail ends. But there is no deer and no monster at the end. It just…stops. 

“Where’d it go?” Nancy says.

“I don’t know,” Jonathan answers, his gun up, “do you see any more blood?”

You shine your flashlight all over the ground but find nothing, “Not here.”

The three of you split up to cover more ground. You point your flashlight all over, but find nothing. No blood, no bones. It's like the deer disappeared completely. 

“Y/n!” you hear Nancy yell from afar, “Jonathan!” You turn around and head towards where you heard her. You shine your light towards where she is, but there’s nothing there. Suddenly a scream resounds. You run hard, your legs burning. You push past it, never dropping your pace. You hear Jonathan yell her name from farther away. You call out to her too, practically willing her to appear. 

The scream doesn’t leave your mind. It’s blood-curdling, heart-stopping. You keep running, but trip over something and crash face first into something hard. Pushing yourself up, you try to blink off the dizziness. Looking down, you see a rock right where your forehead landed. You turn to see your foot is caught in and your heart drops when you see Nancy’s bag on the ground. You hurriedly untangle yourself and push yourself up. Jonathan nearly knocks you into the ground again as he barrels forward. 

“Where is she?” he looks at you, eyes pleading.

“I don’t know.” you say “Nancy!”

“Nancy!”

All you hear is a scream in response. 

Taglist: @ucannotcompare

[veemunson86]

Mrs munson

Chapter 5. Was so tired when I wrote this, I'm gonna start a little section of the mastlist with little in detail extras of the moments at random. Also send in some requests you'd like to see for this series!!

Masterlist

⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘⫘

Ever since the day he met your girl, Eddie was never the same again. It amazed you how great he was with her, and how much she adored him.

It was rough at first, having her break from her routine now that he lived with the two of you, but it was an adjustment you all worked on together.

It was hard explaining a cover story to prove he was really innocent, nobody could ever know what really happened. Everyone knew of what happened to Jason, and it was Steve's idea, to tell everyone Jason went out of control and he was the one responsible for chrissys death, wnd couldn't cope with what he did, and spiraled out, attacked Lucas before the events after. And surprisingly, everyone believed it. It meant alot to finally have his name cleared.

The hardest part was trying to find a way to explain to everyone who thought he was dead, that he was alive. So you did what you should have done from the beginning, you told the truth.  The only people who knew of his death were the hellfire guys, and the party's parents, you told the parents that was the safest thing for eddie until his name was cleared, and you told his friends the truth. You didn't sugar coat anything, and they took it very well, just haply to have their friend back. They had all become uncles to Amelia, and she grew to love them all.

You woke one morning to start your new routine.  You sat up, before being dragged back down my Eddie. He groaned tiredly" 5 more minutes.' He mumbled sleepily. " babe it's already 9." You giggled softly. Every morning was like this now, and you wouldn't have it any other way. You were about to agree until you heard babbling coming from your daughters nursery . "I'll get her." He said eagerly, jumping out of bed and running to the nursery, coming back with you're happy girl. She gave you a big toothy grin, now having 2 on the top row. "Goodmoring my sweet girl ' you kissed her cheek. She squealed and kicked her chubby little legs. " ready for today little flower girl?" Eddie asked in a cutesy baby voice. Ah yes, your wedding. Now, like everything in Hawkins, it would be a bit different, not a big wedding.  You planned a small get together in a beautiful outside area in the middle of town, and then a small after party at your home.

"You're gonna look so cute in your little dress aren't you sweetie?" He asked, kissing her cheeks. She cooed and looked up her dad with a wide smile. " what time do we have to be there again?" He asked, bouncing Amelia in his arms,  causing her to coo " 11. So we have like a hour and a half to get ready, then we will leave at 10:30 to head there." You said smiling. "And are you sure you don't want me to wear a tux? I will if you want me to." He said smiling. You smiled "I want you to wear what you want. I'm not wearing a big fancy dress, it's just a quick ceremony and then we have the party, so we should be comfy." You said kissing his cheek.

You both decided to dress your style, so he wore black jeans, black boots, a long-sleeved led zeppelin shirt, and his vest. You wore shorts, a Metallica t shirt, and a red leather jacket, and high heeled black boots.

Although you wore that same outfit every other week in school, it was the first he'd seen since he'd been back, so when you walked down his jaw dropped. You blushed as he stood at the end of the hall with wide eyes and a open mouth." You look... wow.." you giggled "thank you, you look very wow too" you smiled and kissed him softly, which he returned. "She ready?' You asked as you saw Amelia in her stroller. Eddie picked her out the cutest outfit which had a matching diaper cover. It was a pink flowery dress with matching pink bows, as he did her hair in little curly pigtails. "Oh she is adorable!" You got out your camera and snapped a few pictures.

*because I'm not about to type out the whole ceremony, skip to the end*

Steve was thrilled when you and Eddie asked him to be the one to marry you both. He finished and let you guys go in with vows " you may now kiss the bride.' He smiled and everyone cheered, you laughing as Eddie picked you up, your legs around his waist as he kissed you. "Ready to go party Mrs munson?" Mrs munson.. it had such a ring to it. "Let's do it Mr munson." You said before kissing him again. He set you down "alright everyone, party at the munson house !"

----------

If you'd like to see the wedding after party, I will Have a little section of the masterlist with extra moments and little thoughts soon!!

Tags:

[redrydersrequiem]

The Raven and the Vampire

Chapter 3

updated 11/21/25 warning long chapter

anything purple is inner monologe

“So, Elara, how are you liking forks?” Jessica asks from her side of the table, trying to bring the conversation and attention back to the group instead of the Cullens.

“Oh, it's very interesting now. I like it a lot more than I thought I would.

“ Why did you and your family move here, if you don’t mind us asking?

“It’s fine, Angela. I didn’t move with my immediate family. My parents are very busy and have to move around for their jobs. I didn't want to move continuously during school, so when my uncle got positioned here for his job, I stayed with them until my parents moved around.”

I'm not technically lying; I tell my story to the group. I mean, my parents are busy; they are royalty. However, I can’t say to a group of Midgardian teenagers. I'm 800-plus years old and only in Forks to look for my soulmate. 

“I do miss them, though, and my baby brothers.”

“You have siblings?”

“Yes, they were just born, so they still have to be with my mum, who goes with my father everywhere.”

“What are their names?” 

I begin to say Narfi and Vali, but remember those aren't Midgardian names, “Their names are Vance and Nate, their twins.”

“Aww, that’s so cute. Babies are adorable,” Jessica gushes.

The bell rings, and I quickly return to the Cullens' table, but they have all vanished. They are pretty fast, aren’t they? This is just another clue to the puzzle. I’ll have to ask Lucas later if he has any ideas. 

“Oh crap, guys, lunch is over; what class do you have next, elara.”

“ I have art, AP foreign language, and then AP history.”

“ I have journalism next, but art is right next to it. I'll walk with you.”

“Thanks, Angela.”

Walking with Angela was okay; she seemed nice and very smart. The classroom was again in shades of white but did have pops of color from the artwork hanging all around. Setting down your stuff and waiting for the teacher, a familiar figure bounces up and sets down. 

“Your name is Elara, right? It's nice to meet you, I’m Alice. Alice Cullen, it's lovely to meet you,” she says, shaking my hand.

“You as well,” I respond. As I shake her hand, I notice how cold she is. It’s unusual because even I can tell she’s cold. 

“Wow, your hands are freezing.”

“Oh, yeah, you know what they say: cold hands, warm heart.”

“I agree.”

“You know, I can already tell we’ll be great friends. I hope everything comes together for you.”

“Oh, thanks! I hope we become friends, too.”

Just as we finish that conversation, the teacher starts the lesson. I find myself glancing back and forth between the canvas in front of me and Alice, trying not to stare at her for the entire class. The mystery surrounding her is too strong to ignore. So, I decided to use my other senses, just like Aunt Sif always said: When you can’t use your eyes, use your other senses.

Slowing my breathing, I close my eyes and wait. I can hear all the heartbeats in the room and the air filling their lungs—except one coming from the space right next to me.

Looking at Alice, I see her moving and blinking as she works on her sketch. Now that’s interesting; what on earth are the Cullens? There hasn't been a species or being I've met yet, that doesn't have some sort of bodily anatomy that can be detected. 

“So, Elara, how old are you?” Alice asks, noticing that I've been watching her.

“I’m 853 as of October 13th,” I reply with a playful grin.

“What?” 

“Sorry, I was joking. I'm 18.”

“Oh, you're the same age as some of my siblings.”

“Yeah, I saw all of you at lunch. I'm sorry that some people at the table were discussing your family. I’m sure that’s not a good feeling.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine. They’ve talked about us since we moved here.”

“Well, based on what they said, you have an amazing family.”

“Thank you. I can tell you're lovely, too. You’re going to make someone very happy someday.”

“Why, thank you! That’s sweet.” Just then, the bell rings, cutting me off.

“Have a nice next class, Elara. I think you’ll enjoy it.”

Before I can respond, she’s gone—much faster than any ordinary human.

As I walk to my last class of the day, I ponder the clues to the puzzle. Cold skin—my magic reacted to them, but they were unaware it came from me. Alice didn’t have a heartbeat, but I hadn’t checked the others yet, so I couldn't be sure if it was just her. They seemed quick, which made my mind race as I entered the room. Suddenly, my aesir started yelling at me. 

Looking up, the first thing I noticed was him. The very air around him seemed to shimmer. 

“Ah, Miss Mani, I presume. I'm Mr. Wright. Welcome to AP History. Please take a seat over by Mr. Hale. Mr. Hale, please raise your hand so she knows where to go.”

Jaspers pov

I did as I was asked, trying to mask the internal crisis. God, Edward wanted to kill Bella upon meeting her, and I wanted to kill everyone most of the time, and now the new girl is being sent right into the lion's den, damn my luck. I didn't want to breathe or move, but as she got closer, her presence washed over me. A cooling breath of air in the never-ending smell of the other students' blood. It was incredible how her whole being captured me, and it was in that instance I knew she was my mate. 

Elaras pov

I was raised in a noble court and have over 800 years of speaking experience. Yet, I cannot utter a word while sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with my soulmate. I’m not even paying attention to the teacher’s ramblings; my mind is consumed by the subtle details I notice about him. The golden color of his hair, the slope of his nose, and the way one curl brushes above his right eye captivate me. Speaking of his eyes, they are the most beautiful ember color I’ve ever seen. The plaid blue shirt he’s wearing fits him perfectly. Oh, for the love of the gods, just say something to him!

“Um, hi,”

“Hello.”

“Im Elara”

“Jasper Hale, a pleasure to meet you, Darlin”

Darlin is officially my new favorite word, especially in that beautiful accent.

“ Are you enjoying forks?”

“It’s starting to grow on me.”

“I think I can understand that.”

You exchange notes and make small talk for the rest of the class before the dreaded bell rings, signaling your departure from him.

“I guess I'll see you tomorrow?” I almost don’t want to part from him, but I know now isn’t the time for us, but it is a start

“Of course, see you tomorrow, darlin'.”

Busting through the front door, I call for Mila and Lucas. I have to share all my experiences with them. I have to call Mom and Dad. I have to…….

“Goddess Elara, is that you banging around out there.” I hear coming from the kitchen, cutting off my inner turmoil. 

“Yes, Mila, but I have a good cause. Where’s Lucas? I need to speak to him, as well.”

“I'm right here, princess; how was your first day of school? ' Lucas asks as he steps out of the study.

“I found them; I found my soulmate.”

“That's terrific news, my lady!”

“Isn’t it? It’s just um.”

“I sense a but coming.” 

“You’re correct, Mila. That’s why I need you and Lucas. From everything I’ve observed today, him and his are not human.”

"Before we delve into all that, why don't you start by telling us their name?"

"Oh, yes. Sorry! His name is Jasper. Jasper Hale."

"What a lovely and strong name."

"I would prefer to focus more on the non-human aspect."

" Lucas."

“I'm sorry, Mila, but the princess's safety is my first concern. I promised her father and, more importantly, the Allfather.”

“Yes, and we shall let you complete your duty, continue, little one.”

“ I observed that they don’t have heartbeats and seem very fast. Alice, Jasper's sister, was also cold and colder than any human should be.”

“Hmmmmm, by any chance, did they seem inhumanly beautiful?

“Yes, actually, they did stand out more than the other children.”

“What about their eyes?”

“My soulmate had beautiful ember, almost yellow eyes while his family had varying shades to almost deep brown/black.”

“Then I believe I know what they may be, my lady.” 

“You do.”

“Yes, Midgardians have a legend of an inhuman species that survives on the blood of other sentient beings. While many believe these stories to be just that, the being is real. Here, the local tribe calls them the cold ones,”

“Local tribe?”

“Yes, there is a tribe here of children of Fenrir.”

“Oh, wolf shifters, Amazing. I remember reading about them as a child. I'm glad they are still around.

“Yes, they are. Many of them have taken on the charge of maintaining peace 

and protecting the humans from the cold ones.”

“Why must they protect the humans?”

“Cold ones, while intelligent, would be overcome by their darker tendencies and slaughter full villages. The packs are some creatures capable of defeating a cold one, so they took on the role of protectors for their packs and the humans in their territories. From what you’ve told me, your soulmate and his family seem to be the other end of that spectrum.”

“What do you mean?”

“ Well, most cold ones, when changed, their eyes hold the color of blood, mainly if they feed off humans. But with your soulmate having gold-colored eyes, it would seem he and his family are, in a way….vegetarian vampires,

“Meaning?

“Meaning they don’t prey on humans but animals instead.”

“Amazing, what else do you know of their species.’

“Well, the good thing is they are a long-lived race; they do not age from when they are turned.”

“Perfect. I won't have to worry about outliving them and the aging we could figure out later, but that is so far away.”

“The cold ones can also have gifts.”

“They have aesir?”

“No, my lady, not Asgardian aesir; it's a special form that we don’t know much about; all I know is that they can have abilities from telepathy to elemental manipulation. From my understanding, it all depends on their lives before they are turned, and even then, not every vampire has a gift.”

“Interesting, Mom and dad will be impressed.”

“Elara, dear, when you contact them, please tell them we’ve finished the house preparations so they can send over your pet.

“Mila, you're the best; Aurelius will love the woods here.”

“Yes, I'm sure that ball of mischief you call a pet will be so happy.”

“Oh, Lucas, it'll be fine. Relius stays in snake form most of the time. Those are common in Midgard. 

“Indeed, smaller varieties of snakes are, but the offspring of Jormungandr. I doubt the residents would view a practical dragon as anything other than the harmless creature you claim to be.

For starters, Lucus and Aurelius are a he, not an it. Secondly, you have to let that accidental paralysis incident go—it was almost 100 years ago. He was after a mouse; he didn't mean to bite your foot. Thirdly, he's just a baby.

Whatever you say, princess, just keep him in line is all I ask.

I will, and. Besides, think of it this way: he can help you protect me.”

“Whatever you say, dear princess, whatever you say.”

Cullens pov

The following day at school, the Cullens gathered around their sleek cars, a familiar scene that had become part of their routine. However, this time, there was a palpable sense of anticipation, a stark contrast to their usual reluctance about slipping back into their high school identities for another tedious day. Instead of the usual banter and quiet sighs, they stood together with a collective focus, eagerly awaiting the arrival of the new girl that had already impacted their world.”

“Jasper, are you sure it's her you felt the connection to?”

“Yes, I’m sure. She’s the only one around that I don’t feel the urge to kill.”  Her presence alone feels like a cool blanket covering the aching heat in his throat. Not that he’d admit that to his siblings yet.

“Well, everyone, how do we think we should handle this.?” Alice asks the group surrounding her 

“ Last time we got involved with a human, it didn’t go well, Sorry Bella.”

“No offense taken Rue.”

“I haven’t seen anything in our futures that suggests she’s a danger, and I still haven't been able to see hers either; everything is covered in light when I try.”

“It's ok, Alice, thanks for trying. 

“No problem, Jas. And besides, everyone, this could finally be Jasper's chance to have the happiness he deserves. I'm not going to let you all ruin that for him.”

Jasper smiles, thankful for the pixie he called a friend and a sister. 

“I think we should get to know her, and if she is a danger, we'll speak to Carlisle and go from there,” Rue states to the group. 

“ Exactly, and besides, I've already introduced myself to her; I know she'll be a wonderful addition to our family.”

“Just make sure you respect her boundaries, babe.”

“Rue, I'm offended; I greatly respect boundaries.” Rue shakes her head along with the rest of the Cullens  

“Sure you do, sweety. Come on, the bells about to ring. I wouldn’t want to miss another glorious day of high school.

Elaras pov

Watching the Cullens enter the school, I feel a smile spread as I lean against the purple jeep Lucas suggested I drive instead of my bike. I can see them all once again watching me from around their cars. 

“Is that your mate?” Aurelius asks from his disguised position on my head 

“Yes, the blonde with the curly hair; the rest are his family.”

“They seem different.”

“They are their vampires.”

“Vampires, huh? How very, very interesting.”

I smile at my pet as I eye the Cullens looking at me. Most of them, i.e., Emmet, Alice, and Jasper have smiles on their faces, while the others look somewhat grim. It’s almost like they are suspicious of me. All I can do is smile, knowing they won't be able to see through the glamor i have unless I want them to.

Yet they are suspicious of me; hmmmm, we'll just have to see who figures it out first.

I brush the loose strands of my hair and remind Aurelius to be good as I make my way onto the brick building.

The morning was off to a good start when I spotted Alice while walking to my next class. She was in the hallway with her girlfriend Rue and their sister Rosalie. I decided to wait for the rushing crowd of students to thin out before making my way over. Alice noticed me and greeted me with a big smile, enthusiastically gesturing for me to come closer to them. 

“Elara, good morning.”

“Morning, Alice.”

“Let me introduce you, this is my girlfriend Rue and my older sister Rosalie,” 

“It’s nice to meet both of you.”

“It’s nice to meet you. Alice wouldn’t stop talking about you yesterday after art. It's almost like I already know you. Rose says hi, hun. Don’t be so stiff.” rue says, nudging the blonde with her elbow. 

“No, it's fine. She doesn’t have to say anything if she doesn’t want to.”

No, that's not it. Sorry, I was just thinking. Hello, my name is Rosalie. It's nice to meet you. I assume you received everyone's whole tour yesterday.

“Yeah, it was so much fun. Especially all the staring and whispering.”

“ I can understand it was the same when we started school here.”

“At least you all have each other. It seems like you’re a very tight-knit family.”  

“Yeah, we can be.”

“Elara, I’m so excited! You have to sit with us at lunch today and meet everyone. I’m sure we’ll all become fast friends.”  

“Sure, Alice. I would love that, but only if everyone is comfortable. I’ve only really talked to you and Jasper a little.”

“Oh no, everyone would be just fine. I'll make sure of it. Now I'll see you at lunch. I'll wait for you by the front door. Come on, rue, we have science class. “ the brunette says, grabbing her girlfriend's hand and dragging her down the hallway.

“Oh joy, bye, elara,” Rue replies, her whole body slumping with disdain at the upcoming class. I simply laugh, waving after her. Rosalie stands beside me, smiling lightly at her sibling's behavior. 

“What about you, Rosalie?”

“I have math with Emmet next, but I guess I'll see you at lunch.”

As the blond strides away, I turn and head towards my next class, anticipation bubbling within me—a lunch date with the mysterious Cullen family. I can't wait. 

Jaspers pov 

“You did what? Alice, what the hell?”

“Oh, calm down, Jasper; this is the perfect opportunity to introduce her to our family formally.”

“Have you met our family? Look what happened when Edward met Bella; we're still dealing with that. I'm not going to let my mate get hurt.”

“Jasper, calm down. Nothing will happen to Elara.”

“How do you know? She's a shield like Bella?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say she’s necessarily a shield. Like I said earlier, I've seen glimpses of her in your and our future, but it's like she’s surrounded by bright light every time I see her. Almost like she's silenced in a way.”

“That still doesn’t mean she won't be hurt by me or anyone else.”

“Jasper, you can’t live your life in fear, or you won't live at all. I want you to be happy, and I know she’s what will make you happy. Now pull yourself together, soldier; she's joining us for lunch, " Alice says sternly before hopping off to her class. I remain seated under the bleachers, preparing for the storm ahead. I wish more now than ever that Edward is mistaken about his eternal damnation theory because I could use hope.

Elaras pov 

The bells ring loudly, momentarily drowning out the steady rhythm of my heart. Alright, Elara, you've got this. You are an 853-year-old princess of Asgard, skilled in the mystic arts and combat since childhood. A group of Midgardian vampire teenagers is easy for you.  Pep talk done; I head into the lunch room and immediately see Alice bounding up to me.

“There you are, girly, right this way, and don’t worry, only Edward bites, but you can just ignore him. The rest of us do most of the time.”

Slipping her arm through mine, I have no choice but to follow her as the cafeteria watches. It’s just like a court function back home. I keep my head high and walk forward until the table comes into view, and there he is—gorgeous curls and all. 

“Here she is, everyone!” Alice exclaims as she introduces everyone. “Elara, you’ve already met my better half, Rue. " You wave and smile at Rue, which she copies. 

“Next to her is Bella Swan. I don’t know if you have officially met.”

“We haven't Hello Bella”

“Hi elara”

“The brooding one beside her is her boyfriend and our brother Edward.” He just nods, which is fine with me, as I reciprocate.

“Hey, don’t forget about me; I want to say hi too.”

“Yeah yeah, emmet, hold your horses. Elara, this is emmet, the loud one of the group.”

“Don’t you mean the fun one of the group?”

“No, I mean loud.” 

“Hahaha, hi emmet, it's nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, Elara. I have to say your bike was sick the first day. We'll have to talk.”

“You bet.”

“Like you know anything about motorcycles.”

“Hey babe, that’s not nice. I'm a wealth of knowledge.”

“If you want to talk about cars and bikes, I’m the one to talk to. Emmets more tech than anything.”

“Yeah, All the shiny surfaces attract him,” Edward adds, mocking his brother.

“Hey!”

Laughter filled the air, a warm and infectious sound that wrapped around us like a cozy blanket. A wave of tranquility washed over me as I listened, and I could sense a shift among them. It was as if a small crack had formed in the defenses they had built up in their lives, allowing a glimpse of 

vulnerability and connection to shine through.

“And last but not least is Jasper, who I've been told you've met before,” Alice comments as she pushes me toward the empty chair beside him. 

The slight blush that enveloped my checks didn’t go unnoticed by the others, but thankfully, no one commented.

“Hey, darling! It’s wonderful to see you again,” Jasper exclaimed, his eyes lighting up warmly.

“It’s great to see you too, Jasper,” I replied, my smile matching his.

Emmett, always the jokester, dramatically threw his hands in the air and said, “ Get a room! We're trying to have a conversation here, you two…” His voice was filled with laughter, and I could only stare in disbelief as Jasper shot him an irritated glare.

“Anyway, Elara, how’s the rain treating you?” he asked, shifting the conversation.

“I enjoy the rain; it brings me comfort," I replied,

“Wow, the complete opposite of Bella, huh? Hahaha!” Emmett chuckled, his laughter infectious. The group shared a quiet laugh, though I could feel the heat of irritation rising in Bella as she shot Emmett an annoyed glare.

“I was told you were new last year, Bella. Where did you move from?” I asked, genuinely interested.

“I came from Phoenix, Arizona,” Bella responded, her tone casual yet hinting at a deeper story behind the move.

“What’s it like there?” Elara inquired, eager to learn more.“It's mostly like a hot and dry desert, so moving here was a big change.”

“uhh, I don't think I could do it there. I'm not good with extreme heat.”

“Yeah, it does get hot there, but you get used to it just like here. I was iffy about it initially, but now it's grown on me.” She hugs Edwards's arm, and they both stare at each other with apparent love in their eyes.

“Get a room, you two,” Rue says, echoing emmets earlier exaggeration. 

“So, Elara, tell us about yourself,” Alice prompted, leaning forward with interest.

Elara smiled softly, her eyes glimmering with excitement and nervousness. “Well, I moved here with my aunt and uncle a few weeks ago.”

“Why did you move? If you don’t mind my asking,” Alice continued, her curiosity piqued.

“Oh no, it’s perfectly fine!” Elara assured her. My parents' jobs required them to travel often to distant places, so it was becoming difficult for me to settle down. I decided to come here to finish school in one place instead of constantly moving from city to city.” The cover story I came up with easily spilled from my lips.

Alice nodded sympathetically, her expression understanding. “I can imagine how challenging that must be. It must be tough to be the new kid constantly; I can only imagine how it feels to start over multiple times a year.”

I shrugged slightly, “I don’t mind it as much as you might think.”

Intrigued,  Rose tilted her head and asked, “Are you an only child?”

“No, actually,” Elara replied, her expression brightening. “I have two new baby brothers named Vance and Nate. They’re just a few months old, and the family dynamics have certainly changed with them around!” I chuckled, pulling my phone out to show the latest picture I had of the boys 

“Aw, they are so cute; I'm sure you miss them,” Alice states. 

“I do, but it's okay. I know they are being well taken care of, and besides, my pet takes up more time than he should, so I'm never really that lonely. 

“Oh, you have a pet; what animal are they?”  Alice asks from her seat next to Rue 

“He's an albino ball python.” 

“You have a pet snake? Bella asks incredulously. 

“Yes, I know the general population doesn't like them, but I found him as a child, and he has been with me since. He's smart, almost mischievously so. I say, showing Bella the various photos I have 

“Hey!!!!” I can hear Aurelius complain through our bond. 

“He's almost crystal-like; those pretty scales look like thousands of diamonds.

Though Bella sits in aww, I can feel the others stiffen slightly. Hmm 

“Let's change the subject, elara. What’s your favorite class so far.?” emmet asks once again, breaking the tension. 

“I would have to say history so far.”

“Oh, that's your class with Jasper, right?”

“Alice!” Jasper scolds her silently as he sees the blush form on my cheeks. 

“Yes, that is the class I have with Jasper, who has been nothing short of a gentleman to me since he got saddled with me being his desk partner.”

“That’s how my momma raised me, true Southern hospitality.”

“I'm glad it's an attractive feature.”

Alice suddenly Interrupts the staring between Jasper and I

“Hey Elara, you wouldn’t happen to have any plans next weekend, do you?”

“Nope”

“Then you should come to port A with all of us girls; I think we would all love for you to become a friend.”

“I would love that.”

“Hooray, okay, here's my phone number, and we'll finalize all the details.” Exchanging numbers with Alice feels mundane; she even whispered she'd give me the other's numbers later, only if I wanted them. 

The rest of lunch is filled with general small talk and some munching, with Bella and I being the only ones eating at the table. All too soon, the bell echoes in the room, signaling the end of the lunch period. 

“Oh shoot, there's the bell right when the conversation was getting good, to”

“It’s ok, Alice. Maybe Elara would like to sit with us again,” Jasper asks, showing his beautiful smile. 

“Of course I will. Besides Alice, you and I have the next class together; we can continue talking there.” 

“Perfect, then let's go.” She hops up quickly, kissing Rue on the cheek before taking my arm in hers to start walking to our class 

“Bye, Elara; I'll see you in the last period.” Jasper manages before emmet slings his arm around him in a half-choke with a giant smile on his face. 

“Yeah, Elara, he’ll see your last period,” Laughs emmet as he drags Jasper off. 

“Bye, Jasper.” you wave after them just in time to see him look back and give a final kilowatt smile. 

Walking to my car after school, Aurelius warns me my mate is approaching quickly. 

“Hey elara”

“Hey Jasper”

“I wanted to say sorry about lunch. 

“Why?” 

“I just didn't want you to feel pressured about anything. I know Alice can be pushy sometimes.”

“It was perfect, Jasper. Besides, I needed an excuse to get closer to you anyway. 

He smiles at this. “Would you be up for a date this weekend if that's the case? 

“Absolutely” 

“Good, I got your number from Alice. I'll call you later, okay? 

“Okay”

“Good, be safe getting home, darlin.”  He says, giving me a kilowatt smile as he walks back to the group. I can see Emmett and Edward giving him a hard time. Emmett even screams out "Bye Elara" to further embarrass his brother,  several heads turning at the sound. I smile, laughing at the boy as I wave off the group before stepping into my car and driving off.

Saturday rolls around, and I meet Jasper and the location he sent me. It was the entrance of a nature preserve. Arriving early, nervous yet excited, the gentle breeze plays with my red hair as my heart races at the thought of seeing him. Moments later, he arrives—tousled blond hair and a disarming smile that makes my stomach flutter. He's dressed casually yet stylishly, wearing a fitted navy shirt and dark jeans. With a light jacket thrown over,

“Hey there,” he greeted, his voice warm and inviting.

 “Hi!” she replied, trying to contain her excitement. 

“I’m glad you could make it.” 

He gestured for my hand and placed it on his as we started along the flower-lined path. The sweet fragrance of blooms surrounded us as we exchanged stories about our experiences growing up, though we both had to negate certain aspects. We made each other laugh with anecdotes that revealed our personalities. 

Our first stop was an outdoor café, where we ordered hot teas and a small assortment of breakfast pastries to share. Laughter filled the air between us as we played the card games they had scattered about, playfully competing to see who could win the most rounds. 

After that, the park had a horse rental that Jasper suggested, stating he had grown up around horses. Having had the same experience, I readily agreed. The mare I chose was a beautiful paint horse, who, unlike my mount at home, was bread-for-speed; this one was bred for a gentle temperament. Jasper chose a deep brown male with a beautiful dark mane. That seemed a perfect companion for Jasper.

Quickly, we saddled up, and off we went, the wind and mist rushing past us. I always felt so free riding my horse. It was my family's favorite pastime; my father disliked flying. (Bad experiences and all that.) It was exhilarating—just living in the moment, exploring hidden nooks of the park, stopping now and then to admire a picturesque view or take silly selfies together. 

As twilight descended, we found a quiet spot by a small pond, where the water mirrored the colors of the sunset—sitting side by side on a large rock as the horse grazed nearby.  Everything felt so easy around Jasper. Natural as if we had been with each other forever. Before I knew it, the sun began setting. We took the horses back and started walking back to the cafe and exiting, darkness enveloping the park. Jasper reached for my hand, bringing it softly. Our fingers intertwined as warmth spread through me, a blend of excitement and comfort.

 The atmosphere grew more intimate as stars began to twinkle overhead. He turned to me, his expression severe yet soft.

 “I’ve enjoyed today. You’re not like anyone I’ve met before.” 

I felt my cheeks flush. “I could say the same about you, cowboy. This has been amazing.” 

“I know we haven't known each other long, but I love you, elara.

“I love you too, Jasper.”

Then would you be willing to be mine, darlin?.” he said, searching her eyes for a response. 

“Of course, cowboy,” I replied, smiling brightly. 

They lingered a little longer in the moment, sharing glances before he leaned in and kissed me softly, a sweet, tentative kiss that sent butterflies swirling in my stomach. I could tell he was worried about tightening his arms around me, thinking I was a fragile human, but soon, it passed as he gathered me fully in his arms, our chests brushing as the kiss deepened.

The world around seemed to fade, leaving just the two of us under the starlit sky—a perfect ending to a beautiful date.

The remainder of the week spent with the Cullens was fantastic. Each meal was better than the last, and their laughter and engaging conversations warmed my heart. Each sibling was unique, yet they were intertwined in a familial embrace that was hard to resist. I was over the moon with the progress I was making now that I was officially with Jasper. I stayed by his side, slowly becoming part of the group, though I could tell they were still holding back.

It was not surprising, considering their family's secret. I wouldn't tell anyone if I were in their position. I was in that situation myself, but hopefully, soon, I would be able to share everything with them and with them. I just had to make sure they would accept it all.

It’s finally the following Sunday, and I'm ready to experience Midgardian shopping and meet my mate's parents, even though I'm slightly nervous. Arriving at the house, I momentarily admire its beauty, with its all-glass walls and natural light, before walking up to the front door. I go to knock when the door flies open to reveal a smiling Alice. 

“Oh, elara, I'm so happy you're here.” 

Alice practically pulls me through the house to the kitchen, where the smell of cookies wafts. Behind the kitchen island, a beautiful woman stands; she reminds me of Grandma Frigga, the grace, strength, and kindness radiating off her in the same waves as her beautiful chestnut hair. This must be Esme Cullen, their mom.

“Esme, look who’s here.”

“Oh, hello there, dear. How great to finally meet you. The children haven’t stopped talking about you.”

She crosses over to you and pulls you into a quick Hug.

“Oh, thank you. It's wonderful to meet you, too, and I must say it smells amazing here.”

“Oh, thank you, dear; I'm making cookies for Carlisle's colleges at the hospital.

“Did I hear my name?” A sweet, honeyed voice calls as the head of the family walks up to his wife, embracing her from behind.

“You did, but now that you're here, introduce yourself to the children's new friend.

“Ahh, you must be Elara Mani,” Carlisle greets as he reaches out to shake hands. 

“That would be me, sir.”

“Well, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm glad the kids have all made a new friend.

“It's my pleasure. 

“ I hear you girls are going up to Port Arthur to shop 

“Yes, sir. Alice graciously invited me along. I’ve never been up there, so I'm sure it will be exciting. 

“Oh course it will elara well go to all my favorite stores and find the perfect outfits. 

“What about us, Alice?”

“Oh, there you two are. Where's Bella? Did she skip again.?”

“Yeah, she’s with Edward today. ;)

“Oh, are they that couple?” I ask 

“Yes, they are a girl! But Rose can’t say much; she and Emmet are about the same.

“Oh please, rue, like you and Alice aren't. “

I won't say we aren’t. I love my little pixie pie.” Rue rushes over to Alice to kiss her cheek and squeeze her

“Ok, whatever, elara, we're gonna go in my  car instead of Alice because, trust me, you don’t want Alice to drive.”

“I heard that Rose,’

“Good, you were supposed to. Come on”

As the girls all say their goodbyes and walk away, I can’t help but turn back to again say goodbye to Carlisle and Esme, 

“Thank you so much; it was terrific to meet you both.

“You too, dear.”

“Yes, don’t let those girls bully you into anything you don’t want to do. We thought poor Bella would never go with them again.”

“I'll keep that in mind, Dr.Cullen.” 

“You can just call me Carlisle. I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again.

“I hope so.”

Honking from the garage signals my retreat from the loving matriarchs to the hyper vampire waiting for me in the garage. 

Esme and Carlisle’s pov 

Watching the young girl leave, I turn to my beautiful wife. 

“So that's Jasper's mate.

“Yes, and I can already tell she'll be a fantastic mate for him. I’ve never seen him smile as much as he has this past week. He’s finally coming out of that scared shell of his.

“I agree, dear, and all the others seem to like her. I hope Rose stays so open with her and we don’t have another repeat of Bella.

“I believe she will. Elara has a unique air about her, and I’m sure good things will come to our family.” 

Taking one last look at the directions the girls went, I silently agreed with my wife as I pulled her into my side.

Elaras pov 

The red BMW drives down the street, top-down, and music blasting. The wind flows through my hair as Rose expertly drives into town. All I can hear is the occasional signing from Rue beside me as Alice and Rose go on about Alice’s driving skills. After five minutes, we all pulled into a shopping district, and the day began.

We go to shop after shop, and I now have no doubt that these girls are inhuman. We’ve blown through so many stores, and it's almost shocking. But the fun and light conversation between all of us keeps driving me. Finally, we stopped at the food court. They all get a smoothie, and I find whatever seems most appetizing here. 

“So Elara, tell us how it's going with Jasper. Have you done anything yet.?”

Spitting out my drink, I can only mimic a fish caught above water as everyone else slightly laughs at my expression. 

“Alice, subtel much.”

“Oh, Rose, I know you wanted to ask. So Elara tells us.”

“Is this appropriate, considering he’s your brother?”

“I mean, he is our brother, but I can tell there is a connection between you, too. Finally, it's nice to pick at him about relationship stuff.”

“Of course.” 

“What it is! None of us have seen him smile so much in a long time.”

“Rues right, you’ve truly had an amazing effect on him.” 

“What can I say?” I say, shrugging my shoulders and downing my smoothie.

“Aww, she's embarrassed.”  Rue smacks Alice’s shoulder at the sound.

“Stop it; go on, elara.” 

“He is incredibly kind-hearted and has a beautiful sense of humor that always makes me smile. He is brilliant; I think he knows more about history than our teacher does. (which is evident since he was around during that period). Beyond that, he embodies the qualities of a true gentleman—always respectful and thoughtful in his actions, which is a big bonus; my father taught me I shouldn't accept less since I was little ( you know, being royalty and all)  He's truly everything I have ever dreamed of in a partner. (Thank Odin, since he's my soulmate)

“Aww, that's adorable. I’ve got to tell you that he thinks the same. 

“Alice, for god's sake, stop.” 

“No, Rose. I want my brother and our friend to be together. I know they will be happy, Elara. I want you and Jasper to live happily ever after; it's the least I can do for my future sister. 

“Future sister, huh? " I ask even though I'm glad Alice is so gun-ho. It's honestly entertaining watching the others try to reel in her enthusiasm. 

“Alice, they just started dating. They're not about to get married. Reel it in a little!!!” Rose scolds the girl again as she pouts and clings to my arm. I just laugh, shielding her from the others, calling her my future sister-in-law, and perking the girl back up.

Sticking her tongue out at Rosalie triumphantly, she stands, whisking us away from the food court to continue the shopping extravaganza.

The air is light, and I only think of how I hope this peace remains. With all of our secrets yet to be revealed, so much could go wrong, but at this moment, we are simply four girls living in the moment.

[tsukiyadori]

wow.

... Just wow.

I've written about Kemutai Hanashi before a bit in my Anime-Planet List: Queerplatonic Vibes

And something imo essentially queerplatonic (if you know that word) is the entire series' hook and tagline:

Different to lovers, friends or family. Still, by your side is the right place.

The whole title is already a glorious metaphor. And this theme has been in and out recurringly from the beginning of the series.

But up until chapter 11, it was just vague impressions, their thoughts, discomfort, feeling a gap that can't be filled by words.

And then comes chapter 12.

Takeda gets invited by Hinako for a chat, for a drink (and some ice cream) and they do exactly that: Have a conversation.

And it doesn't take long until the inevitable question arises, once the conversation mentions Arita, who was going to be mentioned given Takeda and him have moved in together and they are part of each other's lives:

Do you really live together?

Hm?

Arita-kun, I've met him the other day in the shop. He was keeping watch over Alice.

Aah, right, he mentioned something like that.

It's going great, is it?

Great? Rather than great or so... it's just normal. We're just doing normal.

... I was surprised, you know. When I first heard about your living together.

Were you?

Of course. Even if you are former classmates it's not like you were close.

Just what is truly behind that turn of events?

'What'... We're just enjoying ourselves. Thought it would be nice being alongside each other. That's all there is to it.

Haaaa (sigh)

Eh? Is that somehow not ok?

No. I already thought as much from Arita's account, but… So, there's really nothing else between you?

Else?

Basically, something like romance or so

Me and Arita?

… Right. I get it. That's enough. (holds hand on head)

You were one like that.

Eh…?

(some ice parfait getting served by the waitress momentarily stalls the conversation and Hinako gets busy taking pics with her phone until Takeda resumes the conversation.)

Is it that strange?

… no well, it's not like such a way of living is completely impossible, Just…

Just

Right

It's just hard to imagine that you would go as far when you aren't lovers, I think

(she looks him in the face)

… Say. I've just mentioned that Arita hasn't been at his parent's home. [It was previously about how it's far away]

Yes?

You know. Isn't that because it's difficult for him to return?

Eh?

This is just a guess, but… Don't you think there is a chance that he finds it difficult to talk about you and him?

Eh? No.

But he did tell them he's living with me.

I don't mean that.

I mean, what relationship he has with you.

Or so

something like that.

Wouldn't he be asked about it after all?

Things like that

For example, if I was his parent, if I heard that my son, who lives away alone, suddenly starts living with a man, I wouldn't exactly blame him, but I think I would genuinely want to ask questions. What happened, or what are your plans for the future, or so. What the other person is to you. For example.

Takeda, are you able to explain it, when people ask you?

Explain.

(he thinks back on a previous encounter he had in a supermarket.)

… you know. I thought this before, but is this something you need to explain to people? I don't particularly…

… For me, it's things being explained with words is comfortable… or more like, smooth, I think.

Just as an example

If one was to see you and me together eating desserts, probably a lot of people would think "Those two, they're a couple".

Huh?

As I said, you wouldn't know the truth if you were those people who don't know you well.

But, just like that with just looking a bit, they can match things to concepts they know and be with it, as long as it's nothing unnatural.

By doing so, they don't have to ask "why?"

With human relationships, as long as you are alive, I think it's more convenient to be able to explain something.

All the more, if it's a strange one.

People will want to investigate the things they don't understand.

Is it not ok… to not be able to explain? To just not understand?

Who knows… Maybe it's really fine with just that.

Just

There are people who are in distress when you come upon something they don't understand.

And opposite of them

there are people who feel pain when they aren't understood.

All the more, when it's someone you know well. For example, like family.

Things of unknown nature are scary.

Being thought of as something of unknown nature is scary.

More than anything

you yourself not knowing what you yourself are

is scary.

Are you like that as well, Hinako-san?

Something that's fine for you, Takeda,

doesn't have to be fine for anyone else.

(The phone rings)

[The conversation wraps up there, as Arita messaged Takeda asking him to run an errand. They walk away from the café together a bit and chit chat random small talk.]

Takeda

Hm?

I said all that, but you moved in together after thinking it though properly, did you.

Yeah

I see… then it's fine.

I'm sorry.

Even I think it's a bad habit of mine. Thinking about what I'd think myself and getting stuck on it.

I was being meddlesome.

No. I've always liked that bit about you since forever.

…

Ouch! Hey, you didn't have to hit me

Shut up! Go home already!

This series was already excellent with how it treads onto their relationship in delicate, subtle manners. But there was always something in there: It's not like they aren't thinking about it. But they are very much dodging it. Arita, of more introspective nature, is further down the lane with his admitting to himself that it's not that he isn't hiding it or ashamed of it or anything, but there's just this gap in words that he doesn't know how to fill, because he is well aware that what he and Takeda hold is different from what people usually think about "friends". (Chapter 3)

Takeda meanwhile feels discomfort, but can't exactly put a finger on it. And he does not actually want to label it. And as he repeatedly asks. Is that not okay? Basically: Is that wrong? Is that not allowed?

This conversation is absolutely excellent. Because Hinako does not answer this question in a simple yes/no way. At first, it may seem dodgy, but she eventually does add her actual own conclusion to it, that it's completely fine if they had thought things through and came to the decision. But the focus for the conversation prior is more at pointing things out to Takeda - almost warning him - as she knows since childhood, and to her he is a bit of a simpleton who doesn't think too complicated about these matters (to the point she almost gets headaches). And it's just such a beautifully concise way of outlining why words - labels - are useful, and moreover how the lack of it may be dangerous.

So, first thing I thought about this chapter:

Wow. Just wow.

Second thing: Damn, I needed this a few years earlier. It would have saved me some 2-3 weeks of brooding over the subject. (Which probably is still relatively little time wasted comparatively) I was right there asking those same questions Takeda is asking here. After years long of not wanting - or not knowing the words - to label anything and being fine with that myself with not explaining things or explaining things in my own words that didn't match common understanding of the words (much like Takeda again) it gradually ceased working. Because, no. You actually are not allowed to not explain yourself before the vast majority of people, if you actually want to interact with them. I was (am) also right there being angry about not understanding and getting explanations for things 'normal', especially as I am always pressed to explain myself.

Also look at those visuals, so simple, but powerfully subtle with all the facial expressions, sentences chopped up with little pauses displayed by the bubbles where Hinako is trying to find the tactful words and especially those pointed uses of black there: Hinako's drink. That panel with the smoke and her talking about "scary". (One meaning of kemutai from the title is smokey.) That lingering discomfort to fear that is oozing over to Takeda. That smartphone that displays his connection with Arita is black right after for a moment. The entire sky in that last page. Takeda's having his back to it, but now he's walking right into it. This conversation with Hinako may as well be the starting line for him and by extention Arita that they realize, they can't run from talking about it forever.

It's a bit funny to read this now, because I happened over that word, queerplatonic, which is looking pretty much like that word they are struggling to find, and it makes me feel like wanting to just throw over so they have something. But I also only know about this word for 2 years at best as of now, which is not long at all. And it's fuzzy and vague as hell (which is kinda its point I guess) and it took me a good while to get my head around it, even just a bit. On top of it it's anything but spread, so its usefulness is very limited, so much that I haven't even once used it in the flesh and blood IRL, where I'm not able to immediately throw google results over so that the links do the explaining for me.

The quintessential theme of this series hits home a lot, but also, just like The Case Files of Jeweler Richard which comes along and has the protagonist say that even after years and learning multiple languages he is unable to encapsulate what he's feeling in any words - their gaze is moving a bit backwards, retrospective. They have already met, they have something (even if it's maybe still developing) and then struggle to put it into words.

And that makes it all an explanation, as this chapter calls it. But more than anything, I think, it's actually a justification.

And while it's utterly precious that there are works now talking about this in such a beautiful and concise way, capturing all the confusion about being lost, I just find myself like.

I have come to see the need of ways to talk about this. I'm there to collect words and examples as much as I can find. But somehow I don't really want to justify myself. Or explain myself after the fact. But talk about it before it. (I do get it easier to spin a narrative over something that actually is and can be actively show than it is to make a plot out of the difficultiy of searching something you can't properly grasp in the first place. And even the former is already such a tall task that it has very very little amounts of attempts at undertaking.)

And this quote:

More than anything you yourself not knowing what you yourself are is scary.

... is thankfully, something I was spared of more than not, quite similar to Takeda. But just as Hinako points out, because I was fine with that it means naught for anyone else. And if you want a connections and relationships out of all things, it goes beyond just yourself. If someone like me, in all the idiosyncratic ways that be, wants to connect to people, I think understanding and acceptance is paramount. Like how I'm also aroace, among other things, but I'm not actually against having a relationship - it will however have to look very different from the common idea of one. If I ever wanted to begin something, I think I'd need to be able to explain myself and my expectations before it happens.

Not as a justification, but only an explanation, a feeble chance for getting to the starting line.

I think Hinako did that wonderfully. Without even having to outright answer Takeda's question of "Are you like that as well?"

Note: The series has no official nor fantranslation in English. It did get nominated for the Tsugi ni Kuru Manga Award 2022's web category and freshly licensed in France.

[oillydiya]

Things Between Us | Cillian Murphy x OC

Chapter 11 : Clear the air

Talk: Sorry for the delay in updating I've been swamped with adventures at Hogwarts. Note: This chapter might be a bit shorter, forgive my brevity. I promise to bring you more of our journey without delay.

Sansa had been busy exploring the gallery for her much-anticipated final art exhibition happening next week. After wrapping up her quick chat with the gallery representative, she made her way back to the apartment.

The elevator dinged open, and she stepped into the apartment space.

"I'm back," she called out to him. She spotted Cillian lounging by the sofa, absorbed in something on the screen.

"What's up?" she queried.

He swiveled towards her, his face breaking into a warm smile. "How'd it go? Do you like the gallery?"

"It was amazing. Roomy, can fit a crowd, super reachable. Thanks a ton. But what are you getting into?" she asked, driven by curiosity. Instead of replying, Cillian walked up, scooped her up, and sat her on the bar.

"What's the plan here?" Sansa chuckled, thrown off yet amused by his antics. Cillian responded with a playful tap on her nose, making her laugh at his teasing.

"Two weeks ago, I met a woman. She walked into a restaurant in total disarray, laden with things, looking utterly chaotic. And she just sat down next to my table,"  he reminisced, hands gently framing her face.

"I think she was pretty cute until some dude tried his luck. She wasn’t having any of it."

"Wow! She sounds interesting! I think she's pretty unique for being able to sleep in the middle of a restaurant without caring about who's watching. And I felt absolutely great when she stopped her friend from taking pictures of me, saying it was too intrusive. She's so adorable for that. It's something most people often forget - respecting others' privacy."

"I love when her started making that little kitten sound, begging her friend in the middle of the restaurant. It was so cute, I couldn’t take my eyes off her -- her friend was right when she said others should see how adorable she is. Especially when she was talking to the cheeseburger, she looked so cute and quirky."

Sansa burst into laughter, "I must have seemed so crazy then."

Cillian laughed, "Seriously! When she started singing, her voice enchanted everything around, making it impossible for me to stop thinking about her. I wanted to know who she was, what she did, where she lived --  and just like that, luck was on my side when you needed someone to give feedback on your art. It let me dive deeper into knowing her - she's really one of a kind, he paused, playfully pinching Sansa's cheek.

"All my buddies were dying for her contact info, but no way. I wanted it all to myself. Yeah, I'm kinda greedy like that!"

She laughed at his boldness.

"When she was like, 'How about we meet at her apartment?' I literally yelled out loud in the coffee shop. It was my ticket to getting to know her even better. The more we chatted and got to know each other, the more I just wanted to hang out with her!"

"That kiss? Totally not an accident. I meant to do it," he said, raising an eyebrow with a cheeky grin.

Sansa's eyes widened in surprise... "You're nuts! I was freaking out, worried you'd think I was flirting too hard," she said, playfully smacking his shoulder.

"Who could resist? You're drop-dead gorgeous," he replied, cool as a cucumber.

Before Cillian continued, pouring his heart out, "I really liked that kiss of her, awkward as it might have seemed, like she was about to choke at any moment." She doubled over laughing at his description because it sounded like the worst kiss ever.

"To be honest, I swore under my breath countless times whenever I saw her. Seriously, she's just stunning, perfect in every way."

"When she told me she never had sex before, it drove me wild. I had to remind myself to stop right there because she was too innocent for me. But when she looked at me with those eyes and asked if I could teach her, I lost all control. I just couldn't resist anymore," he explained, softly touching her face. "That turned out to be the best sex I've had in ten years. I'm crazy about her and feel so lucky to have found her and to be with her right now."

"Sansa! Meeting you at that restaurant might have been coincidence, but falling in love with you was completely intentional."

"I'm sorry for the last few days, for upsetting you. I've realized I really don't want to lose you. Please forgive me, Sansa," he said, feeling guilty, while lovingly holding her hand against his cheek.

"I promise, I won't make you sad, and this isn't just about having sex for a while. I want to be in a relationship with you. Let's be together, okay?"

In that moment, Sansa felt overflowing. She looked into the eyes of the man in front of her, Cillian! His words felt like magic, making her believe everything he said. She had forgotten all the sadness from the past few days, even forgetting that he was married!

"I stopped being mad at you since I saw your face last night," she replied before pulling him in for a kiss.

'I'm hopelessly falling in love with him!' Sansa thought to herself.

[yujinniw]

MIDNIGHT RAIN — KTR | 03-perfect image

2:11 am, it was cold and rainy surprisingly in the summer. I felt everything crushing down on me. If it was work, family, scandals? It was just too much, I and lots of others are not machines, we cannot do everything perfectly like they want us to. But the only thing I can do is smile and act as if nothing has ever happened, Even if I try there will be so many shits that I don't want other's to handle because of me.

So here I am, finding it amusing how such a big tourist attraction could feel so empty for once. But damn FOR ONCE MAN thank you rain! It was nice taking all that fresh air in, feeling the warm breeze hitting my skin was not too fun but hey it is the summer, unless you live in the UK or something.

I was just minding my own business until, I saw this dude coming closer to where I was. His hair was messy, kinda looked like he just got up from a nightmare, Yikes. But I couldn't see his face, he was wearing a mask. '....masks of course, the people with the hottest hair always wear a mask.' I thought to myself 'How am I supposed to know if you're really hot or not..'

'Should I go talk to him?' 'No chae miyeon, privacy.' I slapped myself to reality. But I think it was kinda too loud considering how he suddenly turned his head my direction. 'great. JUST GREAT.' All those thoughts were gone as soon as I heard a tired voice saying; "Are you okay?" I tilted my head up to looked at him 'SHIT. what am I supposed to reply with. Yea yea I'm fine, no you looked like you fell down from heaven itself. okay.... why was that even an option.'

"Yea, just thought there was a mosquito." WOW such a great answer congratulations. He just nodded before sitting down beside me 'FUCK HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO ACT MORE NORMAL NOW YOU'RE NEXT TO ME.' hold up. act I can act FOR FUCK SAKES.

"Why are you awake and up here so late." He asked me before I could... "Just needed some fresh air. what about you?" "Needed to clear my mind." same bitch, same. "If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" He asked, which caught me off guard "Oh I do mind." WHAT THE HECK! NO NO THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!! "Oh... sorry then" he responded while scratching the nape of his neck. Miyeon Chae, This is the result of your action take responsibility

"Depends on what you're going to do with them," "Keep it to yourself? Sell it on the black market. I don't know." I retorted back. Should I tell him my real name? should I lie? Decision making should not be anywhere near me.. BUT back to reality, He chuckled at my words and responded with "Yes... I will sell it on the black market. Now give me your name." "Woww such a creep..." OMG WHAT IF HE IS A CREEP.

"No actually, do you mind if I get your name?" Right... my name... "Miyeon, Chae Miyeon" I said holding my hand out to his "As in the Actor? Or a normal person" Hah.. this bitch. " Don't know whatever you think I guess." He laugh while shaking my hand. "Kim Taerae."

If I'm being honest, His hand was huge. Would probably have me flying from one slap with that hand. But then I looked back to what he said was his name, Kim Taerae. I looked up to meet his covered face. Gorgeous eyes babes. But the hair, face shaped and hand. did match the description of the ZB1 Kim Taerae.

Eyes widened when I come back to my senses that this gorgeous looking dude right here, who still has my hand in his. Could actually be Kim Taerae Zerobaseone.. I took my hand away " I should probably get going..." "It was nice meeting you." I said quickly before running to my car. yes I drove here...

"I'm done for."

sypnosis : One of the many famous actress was spotted at a park holding hands with their boyfriend, which was rumored to be Chae Miyeon, and Kim Taerae of Zerobaseone.

a/n: Really feeling like writing today woke up at 4 am and decided yk what I'm going to write the whole of chapter 3😖 ANYWAYSSS THEY MET or did they ykyk😶

donate to the poor | masterlist | ahah..

tag-list: @sparklingsjy, @xinxinyy,@wtfhyuck

[smollangrycat]

Drown, Prt 10

(Avatar: WOW Oc)

Prt:1 Prt:2 Prt:3 Prt:4 Prt:5 Prt:6(I) Prt:6(II) Prt:7 Pt8(I) Pt8(II) Pt8(III) Prt:9 Prt:10 Prt:11

Quick Note - Hi Luvs! I’m so sorry about the long wait - Exams are currently kicking my ass, I hope your enjoy this Chapter!! Sadly I have to say there’s a note at the end, sorry!! 😅💕

Avatar: WOW spoilers. 

I would also like to give a massive thanks to all the love you guys have shown my fics, it truly makes my day!!

Summary

(During Avatar: WOW) Alue’k is terrified of water, so what happened when some Metkayina boys think it would be funny to drag her into the sea and leave her.

Warnings

Just fluff

Crying?

If you think anything else needs to be added leave a comment. 

———————————————

Silence.

Total silence … and quiet rage.

The eldest sully had faced many things in his life time, loosing his legs, loosing his brother, being shipped to a completely different planet, nearly dying to protect his new way of life, the stress of parenthood. However nothing could have prepared him for what he was told.

“They tried to drown me.”

Jake couldn’t believe what he’d just heard, someone almost took his child from him. His eye twitched slightly as he processed this new information and to say he was angry would be to drastically downplay the situation.

Hell, to say he felt rage would be a fucking understatement.

What Jake felt, he didn’t even think there was a name for. Some one had tried to take his child from him, tried to kill his baby girl. His sweet, funny and happy baby girl who only ever wanted to make others laugh. 

Jake hadn’t  notices that his inner thoughts had made him miss Alue’k quiet request. 

Neteyam caught on that his dad had managed to miss his sisters question so he gently pushed it forward by placing a hand on his fathers shoulder. When Hake met his eldest eyes he was directed to look once again at Alue’k.

Neteyam - Dad?

Jake once again made eye contact with his daughter fully listing to whatever she had to say. An alarmed look covered his face as he waited for his daughter to say something. 

He held  her tight in his arms, eyes wide and alert. Alue’k quietly chuckled to herself, he looked like what humans called an “Owl”. She had read about them in books Norm had given to her, the man could never say no to “puppy dog eyes” as he called it.

The young girl cuddled closer into his arms trying her best to match her breathing to his. Alue’k had always struggles white the idea of being small, always arguing against it. However, now? She couldn’t deny how small she really was, wrapped in her fathers arms. This is the safest she thinks she’s ever felt.

Alue’k - Can we go home?

Her voice was quiet and hoarse, like sand paper. 

It mad Jake wince. Nodding his head he cupped Alue’ks face, cradling it softly. A gentle smile covered his face as his eyes softened, how could he let this happen? 

He was meant to be the protecter… . How had he become so wrapped up in adapting to his new life that he missed his daughter struggling. Hell, we’re all of his children struggling and he was just blind to it?

Jake - Sure thing baby girl, we’ll go home yeah? We’ll go home, your mamas waiting up for you.

Alue’k sniffles nodding her head in agreement. She held on tight to Jake as he stood up and started to make his way to their marui pod, carrying Alue’k close to his chest. 

That was until an all too familiar feeling of teeth sinking into his calf’s made him stop. Jake stared down at the viper wolf who had never rlly shook the habit of nipping at his calf’s. He looked at his daughter who was reaching down towards the viper wolf, sighing gently he leaned down slightly making it easier for the young girl to pick up her friend.

Tonôwa cooed happily as he laid comfortably on Alue’k, the girl in questions smiles as she scratched under his chin making him purr. Her attention was captured by another however as someone started to frantically call her name.

They voice was quickly identified as Neytiri.

Aleu’k flailed a bit trying to get out of Jakes arms. Jake steadied himself before taking the hint and letting the girl down, he helped her regain her balance but before she could even properly settle on her feet she took of sprinting towards her mom. 

Alue’k - Mama!

Alue’k - Mama!

Her voice grew desperate as she pushed herself to run faster.

Tonôwa still in her arms (not enjoying the very rocky journey).

Neytiri ran faster than she ever thought was possible, she legs burned by the time she reached her precious daughter. When they finally crashed into each other, the force of it brought them both to there knees. Neytiri wrapped her arms around Alue’k, eyes watering out of relief that her daughter was safe.

After a few moments of just being held by Neytiri, Jake joined followed closely by Neteyam and Lo’ak. The all huddled around the girl and pulled each other in. This is the family she almost gave up, at this moment she didn’t believe she could ever forgive herself for that.

Their peace was soon interrupted by screaming, Alue’k braced herself as two bodies came crashing into the Sully family huddle.

Tuk and Kiri.

Kiri cupped her face, resting her forehead on hers while saying a quiet prayer of thanks to Eawa. Tuk just sobbed, wrapping her arms around her sisters waist and begging her never to leave again.

Alue’k had a lot of mixed emotion at the moment: She felt sad, angry, guilty just to name a few. However, right now, there’s no other place she would be then wrapped in her family’s arms.

——————————

Hey Luvs! I’m so sorry but I’m going to have to take a break, just until my exam are over. I hope you all understand!! However, I’m gunna miss all of you for the next few weeks, just remember to look after yourselves and be as happy as you can!!! 💕💕💕🥹

——————————

Tag List

@mxyz-nex

@inutheangeleeangle

@abbersreads

@mashiromochi

@carolinemacher

@octavias-next-meat-bite

@sophiexoxo-lollol 

@ksata

@just-another-queer-writer

@quietshyashlyn19

@kitkat27

[shatteredvioletnuzlocke]

Chapter 11: Olive Harvest Tournament

Patch couldn’t tell what kept them up that night. Was it the pressure to win? Their constant need for productivity? Tamarind’s snoring? Suffice it to say, on the morning of the Olive Harvest Festival, Patch spared no time sleeping in.

As the sun rose, larger crowds joined to visit the bustling village in its festivities. The streets were more decorative than they were before. Olive-shaped balloons were tied to each lamp post. The doors of cottages were adorned with wreathes made from olive leaves and branches. 

Patch and Sage walked among the crowd, searching for the booth to enter the tournament.

   “Do you think all these people are entering the tournament too?” Patch wondered.

“I’m not sure,” Sage answered, “Tournaments only allow for twenty-four participants, so we better hurry.”

Oh man I hope I’m not to late! The Harvest Tournament was offering $15,000 P to the winner, and Patch owed 10,000 P to the village in property damage. Sage had already loaned them the first 2,000 P, but they have to pay her back at some point.

Finally, the two trainers found a tent with a Pokeball logo. A woman sat at the desk, collecting names on a clipboard. 

“Are you both here for the tournament?” The woman asked adjusting her glasses. 

“Yes,” Sage spoke for the both of them. 

The Tournament Volunteer eyed Patch, “Are you the one who broke our orchard trees? 

The hair on the back of their neck stood up, they almost felt violated, “You… know who I am?”

“I was told you might be entering,” she playfully smiled, “Let’s get you signed in. Name?” 

“Patch Callune,” Patch replied.

“Where ya from?” 

“Nacrene City, Unova!”

“Ah nice,” the volunteer said, jotting every word, “How many Pokemon will you be using? We have a 500 P fee per Pokemon.”

Aw man, there’s always a catch, Patch rolled their eyes. I can’t afford to pay for my whole team when I’m already low on cash. I have to use Tamarind… but using one Pokemon is too risky! The clock in their head was ticking forward, it was almost as if there was a bomb strapped to their chest. Who else, who else? Kombucha? Too stubborn! Flumpfy? I don’t know how well electric types do against bug types! Maybe a poison type will give me a bigger advantage?

“Mx. who are you battling with?” The woman tapped her finger on the wooden table. 

“Tamarind and Arturo!” Patch exclaimed as an imaginary timer went off, “My Fuecoco and Shroodle,” they clarified. 

They went ahead and handed the lady half of what Sage gave them in cash. In return, she handed Patch a large sticker labeled 15. They peeled the sticker off the wrapper and stuck it on their aquamarine shirt for all to see. 

“Go to the corral at the right end of the street, and wait with the other trainers,” the volunteer shooed them away. 

Patch followed her instructions and located the large. It wasn’t hard to miss, given little more than a dozen trainers were waiting inside. Some already had their Pokemon out to warm up, as Sage predicted most of them were bug types such as Venonats and Heracrosses. One trainer even had a Scyther sharpening its blade-like arms to presumably slice the competition. 

I have a fire type, Patch reminded themselves, I’ll be fine.

The corral was wide enough to fix eight small battlefields for the Pokemon to fight on. Patch wondered if it was normally used for holding majestic horse Pokemon. At the end of the corral, a stage had been set up with speakers and a banner in the correlating olive green shade. It read 37th Annual Cortondo Olive Harvest Tournament, Sponsored by Pasterie Soapberry and The Cortondo Gym. 

This village has a Gym?! Back in Unova, Gyms were expensive to manage. Only the largest cities were able to receive proper funding to keep their Gyms afloat. Perhaps Cortondo’s olive trade paid off more than met the eye. Now Patch had more of a reason to win, otherwise, the village would go bankrupt. 

It wasn’t long until Sage caught up with them, he was labeled as 4. 

“Wow, great turnout,” Sage commented on the other trainers, “I’m glad I caught that Fletchling yesterday when I did, I wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“Aren’t you nervous?” Patch gulped, “Some of these guys look tough!”

“A little bit,” Sage admitted, “But don’t let them intimidate you, some Pokemon aren’t as tough as they look.” 

I sure hope so…

After a while, a women in a flowy dress walked onto the stage and adjusted the microphone stand to meet her height. As she tapped the microphone three times it echoed of the speakers and everyone’s attention was placed on her. 

“Buenos Dias, and welcome everyone to our 37th annual tournament!” the lady announced.

She received a polite round of applause and cheering from the twenty-four participants awaiting for the tournament to kick off.

“First, and foremost I want to thank our Gym leader, Katy Soapberry, for sponsoring this event!” the announcer read off her clipboard. 

The aforementioned Katy entered the stage. She had a chubby yet curvy build with ivory, pale skin. She fashioned a chocolate-colored chef’s outfit, with a minty green ponytail sticking out of her hat.

“Thank you,” she said sweetly as the microphone elevated her southern charm, “I wish all of you luck in this year's tournament, and may this year’s winner triumph!”

“Without any further delay,” The announcer flipped to a new page, “We shall begin the primary rounds, each round will consist of three emlimnary rotations where you will only move on to the next round after victory in battle. An assigned referee will supervise you under League standards, so don’t try anything risky!”

Thats smart, Patch thought. They saw a person dressed in the same volunteer uniform standing at each court. 

She began to list the first groups, “May Trainers one through eight make their way to their respective courts!”

“That’s me, I better go!” Sage chimed in.

“Good luck,” Patch wished.  

Patch stood on the sidelines with the rest of the trainers, while Sage stood at the court on the farthest right. They could barely see if the battle had even commenced or if their friend was winning. 

Sage is way better than me, maybe just as good as Nemona… Patch could just picture Sage as Paldea’s next Champion rank trainer. That would make them a friend to two champions. 

The battle court in front of them had a white Squawkabilly gliding away from the blades of the ferocious Scyther. 

“Use X-Scissor!” their trainer commanded. 

The large mantis swung their blades with precision which the Sqwawkabilly was unable to dodge. It reminded Patch of their defeat yesterday, and the loss soon to come. Even with a fire type I don’t stand a chance…

The onlooking referee held a flag toward the Scyther declaring him the winner. Please don’t make me fight that.

“Hiya!” Sage startled their highly strung friend, “Good news, I passed!” 

Sage’s Fletchling, Scorch, perched on his shoulder. Their feathery, gray down remained unscathed. 

“Oh good,” Patch congratulated, “I knew you would!”

Once the last pair concluded their battle it was time for the next rotation of trainers, “May trainers nine through sixteen make their way to their assigned courts?!”

This was it, their moment was finally upon them and they could not feel more unprepared.

“Go on that’s you!” Sage encouraged them, “Don’t worry you’ll be fine!” 

Patch strode out to the courts with referees calling out to their respective trainers.

“Trainer twelve, Report to court A!”

“Where are you fourteen?!” 

“Number nine! Can I get number nine?! Vominose, number nine!”

A referee with a shaven stubble called to them, “Fifteen, over here!”

Patch marched up to their court before they were declared to be disqualified. To their surprise they recognized their opponent, it was the cranky biscuit vendor! He scowled at the anxious trainer, it was clear that Patch wasn’t forgiven.

“Get to it, Wheatley!” The old man threw his Pokeball. 

Out of the Pokeball, a large Fidough appeared and Patch was instantly smitten. Aw man why did have to be something so cute! Snap out of it Patch! It’s a fairy type… I still have a type advantage!

Patch retrieved Arturo’s Pokeball from their bag, making sure it had the right markings. “Go, Arturo!” They launched it into the air.

Arturo popped out, “Shree, shrew!” he squeaked.

“Battle begin!” the referee waved his flags.

Patch was quick to call the first attack, “Arturo, use Acid Spray!” 

The cranky old man followed suit, “Counter with Fairy Wind!”

“Bowww!” The Fidough summoned a sugary gust of wind.

As Arturo spat his attack at the dog, the acid was blown back toward him and burned into the ground at the dog. The odor of it filled the air with putrid, overwhelming fumes. 

Patch covered their nose, “Try again, with bite!”

“Shrooo!” The shrew launched himself in the air with open jaws. 

This time he landed a hit on the Fidough’s pillowy, soft body. Granted, he was small enough to shake off. But now a purple bite mark was present on their opponent's neck, and Patch almost felt guilty. I hope I won't get in trouble for that!

“Focus, Wheatley!” the old man complained, “Use, Mud Slap!”

Oh Arceus! “Dodge it, quick!” They ordered. 

 With each splash mud, Arturo effortlessly scampered away from being hit. Nice speed!

They decided to use Arturo’s energy to their advantage, “Now, Fury Swipes!” 

A pair of white glowing detracted from the Shroodle’s nubby little paws. He swiped at his opponent heavily landing more than one hit.

“Use Covet!” the old man hollered. 

However, Fidough didn’t follow his order and only panted with a huff.

The referee spoke, “Fidough is exhausted to battle!” he held a flag toward Patch, “Shroodle is the winner! Victory goes to Trainer Fifteen!” 

Patch stood awestruck, they won! They won an official battle! “Arturo!” they wiped a tear from their eye, “You did it!”

“Shroo Shroo!” Arturo squeaked back, hopping into his trainer’s arms. 

As the old man sprayed his Fidough with a potion they heard him murmur, “Keep it on a leash!”

That must be his answer to everything, Patch jokingly thought.

…

After the third rotation concluded their battles, sixteen trainers remained. But Patch knew it was only the beginning, their next opponent would be their real battle. 

The next round was split into four groups of four trainers battling at a time. This time Sage and Patch were called up together, thankfully fighting separate people. To their surprise, their opponent was the same Scyther trainer from before, the one they feared the most. 

The Scyther had an exoskeleton the color of wild grass. Its ivory blades were dented at the tip of its past battles. Meanwhile, its cream-colored wings were clean from any wounds. Despite it being a bug type it had a vicious, reptilian head that struck fear into Patch’s delicate heart.

Their trainer was not much better, he was a slender man with long brunette hair and a scar treading across his face. His posture was gangly and slouched. To Patch, this would be a horrific battle. To their opponent, it was another Wednesday.   

  Without any hesitation Patch called out Tamarind, hoping the light of his embers would guide them through the dark path ahead of them.

As soon as the referee lashed their flags, Patch attempted to declare “Use Emb-

“Dieter, Air slash!” The opponent interrupted.

In a flash the mantis beated it’s wings into the air and created glowing discs from swiping their scythes. 

Oh man that’s not good! “Tamarind, use Disarming voice!”

“Fueyye!” Tamarind chanted a honeyed pitch and unleashed an array of soundwaves. 

Alas, a disarming voice couldn’t penetrate through the air slashes, and the Fuecoco was hit. He slid down the court with his nails scratching against the surface.

“Tamarind,” Patch knelt to their Pokemon, “Are you okay?” 

Tamarind didn’t turn to face his trainer, instead, he marched back into his fighting position, “Fuey!” he growled. 

Patch readjusted themselves, putting full faith in their starter, “Okay..” they pushed their hat out of their eyes, “Use em-”

The gangly man cut them off once again “Use slash!”

The Scyther flew towards Tamarind and raised his blade. Then it dawned on Patch, He’s interrupting me on purpose! He knows that Scyther is weak to fire! 

“Tamarind, bite its arm!” Patch retorted.

Thankfully the Fuecoco was quick enough to grab the blade with his jaws as it came toward him. The mantis tried to shake him off but Tamarind latched onto them like a lock. 

Realizing they took both the Pokemon and trainer off guard Patch took the upper hand, “Use ember!” They finally proclaimed. 

Hanging by the edge, Tamarind unhooked his jaw to sputter a surprise flame. Now the Scyther’s blade-like membrane had a charred rip. Patch couldn’t tell if this was against the League's rules, but the referee didn’t comment or even seem surprised. Less than their opponent was.

They went on while they were still ahead, “Tamarind use-

“Wait until, number eight gives a command!” The referee finally stepped in, “Will you continue?”

The trainer’s posture was more crooked than before, “I-I…” He whimpered, “I will not…” He recalled his Scyther instantly.

“Victory goes to fifteen!” The referee raised a flag in their honor.

Patch couldn’t process the outcome. Of course, bug types were vulnerable to fire but their opponent was quick to withdraw as soon as a flame was lit. Did it only take one super-effective attack to win a fight? If they kept going would the Scyther become a pile of ash? What mattered was that they met the league’s standards. But Patch would keep Tamarind far away from any water Pokemon. 

…

With each new round, the number of trainers shrank, until Patch had to face one more challenger and fate saved the worst for last.

“We’ve gotten quite the interesting match-up folks,” the announcer declared, “Our last remaining challengers came a long way both figuratively and literally!”

Patch tried to focus on why they were fighting in the tournament in the first place. Just one more battle, and I get my prize money. It would all go fast but not in their favor.

“Number fifteen’s from Nacrene City, Unova, and a Uva academy Student,” the Announcer hyped them up, “They are in a a severe amount of debt, so please give it up for Patch Callune!” 

They muffled out the loud applause with the comforting texture of their hat. They walked toward a larger battle-court made just for them. Former participates and festival stood around them, expecting Patch to win.  

“Next up, a trainer also hailing from Unova in Icarius City and a Student of Naranja, please give it up for… Sage Winchell!” The Announcer riled the crowd up. 

Sage entered the court, holding his cane with both hands. He was clearly bothered by the crowd gawking at him and yet when he looked at Patch he smiled in solace. As if he found comfort in the battle. 

I’ve been lucky to make it this far, let’s hope my luck doesn’t run out! 

The referee stood at the sidelines, “Challengers choose your Pokemon!” 

Patch threw Tamarind’s Pokeball onto the court, and the fire croc came out yawning. Please don’t be to exhausted to fight, I need you!

Sage followed with their Pokeball, and his shinx appeared, placing his opponent in a frenzy. Damn, I should have chosen Arturo! Why didn’t I teach Tamarind any ground-type moves?! Patch stared fearfully at the shinx’s bristling fur. I’ve made Zia surrender before maybe I could do it again?

 “Zia use Thundershock!” Sage raised his cane.

Oh fuck we’re starting now! “Tamarind use… Round Voice!”

Tamarind turned his head toward Patch confused.

“UH DISARMING VOICE! I MEANT-” 

Before they could finish their command a thin bolt of static struck the the Fuecoco’s hyde.

Luckily, enough he followed through, “FUEY!” he sang agonizingly with sharp soundwaves. 

It kept the Shinx in place, but also irritated Sage. “Thunder Shock, again!” He raised his voice against the volume. 

Zia shook off another bolt as soon as Tamarind ended his song. The Fuecoco didn’t seem all too phased by the electric attacks. 

“Try Round!” Patch told their Pokemon.

“Use bite!” Sage followed up. 

“Maur!” Zia lunged with sharpened teeth and went right for the Fuecoco’s throat.

Crap, Patch worried remembering their battle yesterday, I should have seen this coming!

As the little Shinx sank her teeth into the Fuecoco’s scales, he began to cry out in agony, “Fuey- fuey co,” his voice became shriveled, “FUEY,” he choked out a large ember.

Zia was caught in the smoldering flame, taking damage but her voltage spared her pelt from sustaining any scars. The Shinx fell backward releasing the fire croc from her grasp. Patch was compelled to give Tamarind a potion after that nasty blow, but they realized Sage would do the same. Now was a better time than ever to make the first move.

“Tamarind use Disarming Voice!” Patch shouted.

“Fuey-eyye aye ay!” The fire croc warbled, his voice still scratchy from the bite to his throat.

Maybe he needed that potion after all?! Tamarind’s soundwaves were misshapen but raw with power. It was enough to keep Zia from coming any closer. 

After that, the two Pokemon were out of breath, equally as exhausted. Only the referee had the authority to claim the victor. Patch prayed for Tamarind to keep standing, heavily regretting the gamble they made to keep fighting.

Finally, at that moment, Zia collapsed to the ground. Immediately the referee raised a flag in Patch’s honorary victory.

“And it looks like our runner up is Patch of Nacrene City!” The announcer declared.

The sound of cheering faded out as the supposed “winner” retreated deep within the confines of their mind. I won… a whole tournament. All by myself… well almost… my team did most of the work.

They felt nudge by their side, “Way to go, Buddy,” Sage congratulated them with Zia in his arms, “You did a great job!”

Zia was panting heavily and Patch felt a little remorseful, “Is she okay?” 

“She’s not hurt, she just needs a potion,” Sage explained.

Potion! I almost forgot! Patch tended to Tamarind immediately, who was barely keeping his balance. They spritzed him down with a potion for a job well done.

“Fueyyy,” He slowly smiled. 

Proud of you big guy!

“Just you wait folks, the excitement isn’t done yet!” The announcer exclaimed over the speaker.

Not over, but I just won the tournament and all the prize money! What more could be left?

“Our tournament will conclude with one final round! Tomorrow, our remaining challenger will face our very own Gym leader for the cash prize!”  

“I’m going to what?!” Patch demandly asked the woman with applauding canceling out their voice .

Of course there was a catch.