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junrenjun · 8 months ago

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but even after this, you're still everything to me

choi seungcheol x reader, formula 1 au

genre: heavy angst

wc: 5.5k

warnings: fem reader, enemies to lovers, misogyny, death threats

a/n: another request by @straykidsstanforeverandever. lot's of heavy f1 jargon and such in this. if you aren't super in tune with f1, there may some references you don't understand. read with caution. title is a lyric from the grudge by olivia rodrigo.

Imola has always been one of your least favorite tracks to drive. And after today, you never want to come near it again. Maybe you’ll fake an illness when the time comes around next season. It would be nice to let the development drivers get some real racing time and you wouldn’t have to drive this cursed track again.

A voice in your ears distracts you from the little pity party you’ve started in your brain. “Are you okay y/n?”

Your race engineer’s question reminds you that your radio is being publicized on live television right this moment. Sighing, you quickly respond, “yeah Will, I’m fine. Today’s just not my day.”

The answer is half-hearted, but the man knows better than to question you right now, when you’re being recorded. He settles with, “okay, red flags are out for you. You can hop out of the car when you’re ready.”

You don’t think you’ll ever be ready. But life is tough and Formula 1 is tougher, so you undo your belts and pull yourself out of the car. You take a minute to inspect your blown out tire, before taking your helmet off. Marshals surround you, asking if you are alright, but you brush them off. You just want to be back in your driver’s room already.

The journey back to the paddock is a painful one, both mentally and physically. Your knee is throbbing from where it hit against the side of the car on impact. You pray the cameras don’t pick up your limp. It takes all of your energy not to cry when you see the pitying expressions of the rest of the McLaren crew. Another potential win out the window, just like that.

The rest of the race passes by in a flash. Between going to medical as per your trainer’s request (the cameras did in fact pick up the limp) and changing out of your race suit, you only catch the last three laps. One of the Mercedes cars wins by practically a mile. And it’s fucking Choi Seungcheol of all people.

You have half a thought to turn the TV in your driver’s room off the second he crosses the finish line, but you don’t. You’re itching to hear whatever dumb thing he says in his interview today. The man is a walking PR nightmare.

Sure enough, the camera is chasing after him the second he steps out of the car. After a few second water break, he turns to the interviewer, who asks him, “Great win today Seungcheol. You worked your way up from 5th to 1st within a few laps today. How does that feel?”

“It feels great. I mean I couldn’t have done it without y/n’s tire of course…”

You turn the TV off, cutting him off the second he mentions your name. Slumping back even more on the couch, you throw an arm over your eyes and let out a frustrated sigh. Whatever possessed you to choose a male dominated sport?

You’re thrown out of your thoughts once again by a voice from your doorway. “At least it was kind of a compliment, eh?”

When you peek out from under your arm, Oscar is leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed. You remove your arm from your face, scooting farther down the couch and patting the spot next to you. The Aussie moves to join you.

After a few moments of silence you turn to face him. “You made it back to the paddock pretty fast.”

It’s his turn to groan this time. “I retired 7 laps from the end. Engine failure. I was in 3rd.”

You hum, wistfully. Then turn to look out the window. “Bad day to be Papaya, I guess. Think we can convince Jungwon and Pato to take our places at Imola next season? I think I have PTSD from this track now.”

Oscar simply snorts in response. For the small amount of time remaining before you have to face the nightmare that is media duty, you simply enjoy sulking together.

A little less than a week later, you’re standing on one of your all-time favorite tracks: Monaco. Your mood now is starkly different than it was at Imola. You’re practically bouncing on your heels waiting for FP1 preparations. Jungwon is by your side, instructed by your team principal to “learn from the best,” since he’ll be driving here for F2.

The kid is clearly a little nervous, but he’s endearing and a pretty decent driver, so you don’t mind. You’ve already gone over the track layout with him, giving him tips for certain corners and telling him where he can make up extra time. There’s not much feedback left to give until you see him drive in person, so you resort to small talk.

As you both walk up and down the pit lane, Seungcheol saunters up to you. You resist the urge to walk away, trying to keep a good display of sportsmanship in front of your junior driver. The Mercedes driver however, clearly does not care, because he says, “is this your replacement after the Imola incident y/n?”

Jungwon, bless his soul, looks mortified. It takes everything in you to not fire a sarcastic remark back. You’re both saved from the awkwardness by Oscar though, who steps in between you and Seungcheol. He clears his throat and tells you, “Andrea is looking for you. I’ll take Jungwon for now.”

You know Andrea is most likely not looking for you. You saw him ten minutes ago when you left the garage. Thank god for Oscar’s ability for thinking on the spot. Now you have some personal time to cool off before free practice.

Both Jungwon and Oscar watch as you jog back to the garage. The Aussie lets out a relieved sigh once you are back safely. He turns to make sure Seungcheol has walked away. Thankfully, he has.

The younger driver looks at the other quizzically. “I didn’t really realize the rivalry was actually real. I thought it was an act for the cameras.”

Pushing around a stray rock with the toe of his shoe, Oscar sighs again. “Would you believe me if I said they were teammates once?”

Jungwon’s jaw practically unhinges from his face with how far it drops. The kid is probably too young to know them in any capacity other than their rivalry. “But they hate each other…” he muses aloud.

Oscar urges the kid to keep moving along the track with a hand on his back. “Yeah, well they used to not hate each other. They were F2 teammates. It’s none of my business to tell you everything that went down but something happened that year. By the end of the championship they wouldn’t even speak to each other.”

Jungwon nods in response, but doesn’t say anything. It’s clear that Oscar won’t give up much information, so he drops the subject. But every once in a while, his mind turns back to it. What could’ve been so bad that you guys couldn’t even talk to each other as teammates? If it was some sort of on-track collision he’s sure it would’ve been talked about in the media constantly. Now he’s really going to have to find out.

And there’s no one better to consult than his own teammate, Lee Chan, who happens to be in the Mercedes Junior Driver Programme.

“You want me to do what?” he asks incredulously. “He’s my mentor, I’m not going to bring that up. Are you dumb?”

“Dude, aren't you curious too?” Jungwon questions.

Chan rolls his eyes at his teammate. “Yeah I’m curious but not curious enough to risk my spot in this program just to ask Choi Seungcheol why he has rivalry with y/n.”

“You don’t even have to ask him directly,” Jungwon tells him. “I asked Oscar about it, not y/n. Maybe you can ask George or Jeonghan about it.”

Chan throws his hands up in exasperation. “Oh even better, not only do I involve two of the biggest names in Formula 1, I involve one of their trainers and their teammates. What a genius idea!”

Jungwon covers Chan’s mouth as quickly as he can. They’re still in the paddock after all. “Dude keep it down.”

The man just stares back at the McLaren junior driver, who sighs and says, “listen, I’ll try my best to get something out of y/n too. It’s not just you doing something.”

“Yeah that’s so motivating Jungwon,” Chan says sarcastically.

“Okay, okay,” he finally lets up. “I’ll pay for all of your afterparty drinks this weekend if you figure something out.”

This is motivating enough for Chan apparently, because he reaches his hand out for Jungwon to shake. They come to an agreement and part ways, heading back to their respective hospitalities.

Chan watches in the Mercedes garage as you set the fastest lap at the very end of Q3. He knows Seungcheol is going to be pissed when he gets back. Not only did you qualify P1, but he only qualified P6. His temper is much worse when he’s mad at both himself and someone else.

Following Chan’s prediction to a tee, Seungcheol steps out the car practically fuming. He tosses his helmet at Jeonghan, who, as his trainer, is quite used to his behavior at this point and catches it. He marches right up to Toto, who is watching a replay of your final lap, and says, “she should’ve had a track limit violation at the chicane.”

Toto turns to him, surprisingly calm, and simply tells him, “She didn’t cut the corner enough to incur a limit violation.”

This is not the answer he wanted to hear, so he turns on his heel to stomp off to his driver’s room. Toto shouts at him from over his shoulder. “Take Chan with you. If you’re going to overanalyze every single mistake you made, at least someone should learn from it.”

Seungcheol whips his head back around to look at Chan, who nervously gulps. He wants to be mad at the kid, but he can’t find a reason to when he’s practically shaking like a leaf. Clearly he didn’t want to be thrown into this situation either. “C’mon,” he mutters and gestures at the junior driver to follow him.

Back in his driver’s room, he unzips his suit, tying the arms around his waist before plopping down on the couch. When he looks up, the kid is still hovering by the door. Grabbing his iPad from the table, Seungcheol gestures for him to come sit down.

But Chan hesitates. “I can leave you alone, you know? I won’t tell Toto.”

Seungcheol just rolls his eyes and gestures to the couch again. “C’mon kid. As much as I hate him right now, he’s right. You might as well learn from this and you’re already here.”

Chan makes his way to the couch rather cautiously and sits as far away as possible from the man, who is scrolling through the footage from qualifying. Without even looking over at him, Seungcheol says, “you can sit closer. I’m not going to bite.”

Not wanting to make him mad, Chan scoots a few inches closer. When he looks over at the iPad again, Seungcheol’s fingers are hovering over a video. He hasn’t clicked on it yet. He just sits there and stares at it. When Chan looks a little closer, he can make out your car in the thumbnail.

Seungcheol clears his throat, looking away for a second. And then he turns back to Chan and says, “is it…uh okay if we watch y/n’s lap first?”

The question kind of stuns him. He was expecting Seungcheol to avoid any reminder of you at all costs. Scared that his voice will betray him, he just nods.

Seungcheol clicks on the video and they watch. The video is on mute and there’s no commentary from either of them. Just silence. As the lap ends, he pauses the video and whispers, “that was a good lap.”

Chan is even more surprised now. He was expecting a frustrated sigh or any sort of mean comment. But he doesn’t get any of that. Now, Chan’s scared that it’s a setup. That he’s trying to get him to agree just to berate him for it. He doesn’t know what to say.

Seungcheol senses that he’s not going to say anything and takes it upon himself to start the conversation. “She’s always been good at Monaco. Even since the first time she drove the track.”

This has really piqued Chan’s interest. Since her first time? Seungcheol was there the first time she drove Monaco? That had to be what? F2?

And then it dawns on him. Jungwon said something about them being teammates in F2. Hoping that the information is public knowledge (it should be, practically their whole racing lives are on Wikipedia) Chan decides to ask about it. “Was that when you were teammates?” He cringes the second the words come out of his mouth. Jungwon owes him big time.

While Chan was expecting him to look angry, Seungcheol just looks at the iPad dejectedly. “Yeah. At Prema. Do you…know about that whole thing?” he asks the boy.

Jackpot. Seungcheol willingly talking about it? He’d never thought this would happen. Then Chan remembers he actually has to respond to him. “Uhm, no I don’t think so. Jungwon said you guys were more…amicable back then.”

“Jungwon’s your teammate at MP?” he asks Chan, who nods in response. Then, Seunghcheol throws a curveball at him. “You’re not attracted to him right?”

Chan sputters at the question. “What? What does this have to do with anything?” When he looks Seungcheol in the eyes he’s dead serious. So he humors him. “No, I’m not attracted to Jungwon. I’m not even gay.”

Seungcheol just nods. “Okay, good. I mean good that you’re not attracted to him. There’s nothing wrong with being gay.”

This is getting weirder by the second. Chan gives him a questioning look. Why the personal questions?

Exasperatedly, Seungcheol sighs and says, “I don’t want to tell you this if it’s too relatable. I don’t want to scare you and make you not pursue a relationship because of something that happened to me.”

Chan is finally starting to put the pieces together. Then the light bulb goes off and he shoots out of his seat. “You and y/n were together?” he practically shouts.

The older driver drags him back down to his seat and shoves a hand over his mouth. “Be quiet, would you?” Then he releases Chan and slumps back against the couch. “I wouldn’t call it together. We weren’t dating, we knew that F1 would ultimately cause heartbreak for the both of us. We were just messing around. But we were exclusive, I guess.”

Chan doesn’t say anything. He just nods and waits for him to continue. “It was stupid and we both knew it. Especially y/n. She knew that if we got caught, it would affect her career more than mine. Even if we both knew that she was a better driver than I was. This sport isn’t kind to women.”

Seungcheol looks like he might cry. It’s so different from the Seungcheol that Chan witnessed 15 minutes ago in the garage. He doesn’t know what to do. He frowns and lets the man finish his story.

“Y/n was a part of the Red Bull Junior Team at the time. She had been promised an F1 seat within 3 years if she won the championship. I was in the Mercedes Academy at the time too. So we attended a lot of F1 events together. And I was stupid enough to drag her to makeout in a hidden corner of the paddock at one of them.”

He paused, like the next part of the story would pain him to say. “A member of the press caught us. We both knew we were so screwed. He could easily out us right that second or even use it to blackmail us. Luckily Angelo from Prema was there with us that weekend and helped us negotiate with the man. Turns out this press guy is a big fucking misogynist because the final deal was that he wouldn’t out us if he could tell Christian Horner about our relationship. Said he ‘didn’t want no bitches in Formula 1.’ Prick.”

“Christian kicked her out of the junior program when he found out. He’s also a misogynist. I’m glad she didn’t end up there. He told her that he prefers people who win championships through dedication, not those who sleep to the top. But instead of being mad at him or the press guy, she was mad at me. She told me that I ruined her career. That she would never get into Formula 1 because of me. So she never spoke to me again unless it was at work.”

Chan looks at him skeptically. “But her career turned out fine.”

Seungcheol just shrugs. “Exactly.”

Chan is even more confused now. Understandably, you were upset by this whole situation. But why is Seungcheol a dick to you now? “But the whole rivalry? You seem to have started the hostility in that. Not her.”

The man sighs. “Her career turned out fine, Chan. But she continued to be mad at me.”

It’s starting to click in his brain. “So you’re mad at her because she never forgave you?” Chan asks.

All Seungcheol says is, “bingo.”

They’re interrupted by Jeonghan knocking on the door and letting the F1 driver know that he’s due in a few minutes for media duties. Seungcheol leaves Chan on his couch without another word.

“You’re buying my drinks in Barcelona too,” Chan tells Jungwon the second he opens his hotel room door.

Jungwon gapes at him. “What? We only agreed to the afterparty,” he says as the boys walk further into the room, away from prying eyes and ears.

“Yeah well that was if I got you any information. I got you the whole fucking story, dude.” Jungwon’s eyes are as wide as saucers and he immediately starts asking about it. Chan recounts Seungcheol’s monologue to the best of his abilities.

“Holy shit, dude,” Jungwon says once he’s finished, flopping down on his bed. “It’s like the opposite of enemies to lovers.”

Chan rolls his eyes at his teammate. “It’s sad, Jungwon. Y/n lost her future job and Seungcheol at the same time. And now they can’t even be civil with each other because they’re holding grudges.”

Jungwon mulls over his words for a minute. “Maybe I’ll ask y/n about it when she’s drunk tomorrow.”

“How do you even know she’s going to be drunk tomorrow, Won?” Chan asks his teammate.

He turns to flash a cheshire grin at Chan before plainly stating, “she’s either going to podium and drink to celebrate, or she’s going to do bad and drink to mourn.”

Chan rolls his eyes once again. “Speaking of which, I’m going to bed. No matter how well I do tomorrow, you’re paying for my drinks.” He drags himself out of Jungwon’s room and down the hall to his own.

You and Oscar are sitting at a table in the far back of the club, away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the afterparty. Mingyu from Ferrari, his trainer Jungkook, Mark from Red Bull, and Chenle from Aston Martin are also gathered around. You’re enjoying the light conversation, basking in the high of your win.

Mark catches your attention after a minute of you spacing out, pointing toward the closest bar. “Isn’t that your little shadow, y/n?” When you look over you see Jungwon conversing with a blonde kid around his age.

“Yeah,” you muse. “Kind of recognize the kid he’s talking to too. Can’t put a finger on his name though.”

“That’s his teammate from F2. Lee Chan I think,” Oscar pipes up from across the table. “The kid with the otter helmet.”

A collective “ohhh,” leaves everyone at the table. “I’m going to get another drink,” you tell them. “Might bring the kids back with me.”

Mingyu snickers at you as you leave. “You can’t adopt them all, y/n!” he shouts as you leave. You flip him off behind your back.

Approaching the bar, you order another drink for yourself and saunter over to where Jungwon is standing. “Hi Wonie,” you say, catching him by surprise as you ruffle his hair a bit. You turn to acknowledge his teammate too. “Hi Chan.”

Chan points back at himself like he’s surprised you know his name. “Is your name not Chan? Oh fuck I’m too drunk for this.” you berate yourself out loud.

“Uh no ma’am, my name is Chan. Just surprised you know me, that’s all.” he says.

You giggle a little bit. “Don’t call me ma’am, it makes me feel old. You’re the kid with the otter helmet, right?”

“Yes ma’am,” he says, before correcting himself. “No, I mean, yes. Yes, I’m the kid with the otter helmet.” You can hear Jungwon cackling at his friend behind you.

You smile at him again before turning back to Jungwon. “Well I’m heading back to sit with those four dumbasses,” you say, pointing back to your table where Jungkook and Mingyu are arguing over something on Mark’s phone. “You two wanna keep me company so I don’t have to deal with them by myself the entire night?”

Jungwon lights up at the question. “Of course!” he practically shouts, and drags a begrudging Chan by the arm to follow you.

When you reach the table, you pat the empty seat next to you, gesturing for Jungwon to sit. Chan grabs the chair next to Mingyu, who messes with his hair and murmurs something about, “the otter kid.”

Jungwon seizes his opportunity ten minutes later, when Mingyu and Oscar are engrossed in a conversation with Chan, Jungkook has gone to the bathroom, and Mark and Chenle are on a video call with Mark’s boyfriend.

“I’m surprised you’re okay with Chan being here,” he says to you as quietly as possible, while still trying to be louder than the music.

Your eyebrows scrunch at the comment, clearly confused. “Why?” you ask him.

You follow his eyes as they search around the crowd. They land on Seungcheol. Still facing your rival, he says, “Chan is a Merc Junior. Seungcheol is his mentor.”

Letting your eyes wander back to Jungwon, you steel your face into something more serious. “Jungwon, just because Chan is being mentored by a driver I hate doesn’t change my opinion of him.”

“You really hate him?” Jungwon asks. “I understand you guys don’t like each other for whatever reason, but hate is a strong word, right?”

You sigh at him. “Hate is in fact a strong word Jungwon,” is all you say and you leave it at that.

After a minute of uncomfortable silence, he decides to push his luck again. “...Chan said you guys used to be really close. When you were in F2 like us.”

“Yeah,” is all you say in response. The conversation is just barely hanging on by a thread.

“I don’t want me and Chan to end up like that.” It’s kind of a low blow, he thinks, especially when you’re a little drunk, but it works. You turn to him with sad eyes and reach out to rub his hand comfortingly.

You whisper so lowly, Jungwon can barely hear it. “You won’t end up like us, Wonie. I promise.”

The near tears in your eyes have him getting emotional too. All signs are showing that Seungcheol’s story is likely true. One last test to find out. “Why not?” he asks.

The tears are getting closer to spilling over and you turn your head to blink them away. While you’re still facing away, you mumble, “your relationship isn’t like ours. At least I hope it’s not.”

Hook. Line. Sinker. Jungwon’s got it now. Seungcheol was definitely telling the truth. He feels a little guilty about prying it out of you like that, but you seem to have sobered up with the conversation. Oscar’s voice breaks both of you out of your little bubble. “Y/n, everyone is going to head back to the hotel soon. You ready?”

You nod vigorously at the man, probably to hide the fact that there are tears in your eyes. You hop off your chair, grabbing your bag and your phone. Then, you lean down to ruffle Jungwon’s hair a bit. “Goodnight Wonie. You and Chan be safe tonight please.”

After bidding everyone else goodbye in the lobby, you and Oscar take the elevator up to your floors. Oscar’s room is one floor beneath yours, so he says goodnight with a comforting hug and a congratulations on the win. As you ride the elevator up once more, you think back to your conversation with Jungwon. Next time you see Seungcheol, you need to tell him to keep his mouth shut.

The elevator doors open and you turn to head to your room. You see a familiar flash of blonde hair round the corner. What convenient timing. You pick up your pace and grab his sleeve, and he whips around with a deadly look in his eyes. It only slightly softens when he realizes it’s you. You shoot him an equally deadly look back. “You want to tell me why my mentee was asking me questions about our relationship?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” is all he says. You roll your eyes.

“Don’t play stupid Cheol. You know Jungwon and Chan are teammates. What did you tell Chan?” As much as he wants to hate you right now, his heart can’t help but skip a beat when you call him Cheol. It’s been so long since you’ve called him that.

“I didn’t tell Chan anything. Why would I tell him about anything other than racing?” he counters back.

It’s not believable enough for you, so you push. “Jungwon said something about Chan knowing we were close in F2.”

Seungcheol, tired and wanting to just go to bed, tries to pull his sleeve out of your grip, but you relent. “You can look that up on the Internet y/n. Would you please let me go to bed?”

“No Seungcheol. This concerns both of us. He was asking all the right questions. If you told Chan about us, there’s no guarantee he keeps it to himself. He clearly already told Jungwon.”

He finally frees his sleeve from your grasp. “Can we at least take this somewhere private?” he whispers. You nod and he pulls you down the hall. He’s taking you to his room, you realize and the thought makes you sick.

Once safely inside of his room, he turns back to you with a fire in his eyes. “You wouldn’t have to worry about any of this if you forgave me.” It’s not the words you were expecting to hear, but they also don’t surprise you.

You try your best to compose yourself. “You ruined my career Seungcheol. Of course I never forgave you.”

He throws his hands up in exasperation. “I clearly did not ruin your career. Look at yourself right now. You’re getting paid more than me. You’re way ahead of me in the championship. Your career is perfectly fine.” This comment starts what is basically a slightly hushed screaming match.

“I had to fight my way in and got lucky with McLaren. I had a guaranteed seat at RB and you know that.”

“You know it’s for the best that you didn’t end up there.”

“That doesn’t make it okay!”

“What was I supposed to do, y/n. I couldn’t have stopped that press guy, I couldn’t have stopped Christian from releasing you, I couldn’t have controlled any of this. But you were the one that stopped talking to me. Just because we cut things off doesn’t mean I had to deal with radio silence for the next year.”

You pause, thinking over what you’re about to tell him. “I had to.”

He crosses his arms and he straightens his posture. “Bullshit.”

“I had to because of the press guy,” you tell him, urgently.

“We took care of him, y/n,” he deadpans at you. He’s getting uncomfortable with the conversation now. He can’t sit still.

Tears well in your eyes at the thought of releasing your biggest secret to the man you once loved. “He’s your fucking superfan Seungcheol. He’s been following you since your karting days, like a creep. That’s why he found us in the paddock that day. He was following you. And when he saw us together he took it as an opportunity. He saw me as a threat to your career. He didn’t just get rid of my Red Bull seat. He threatened me for months after through phone calls and emails, saying that if he ever saw me talking to you, he would end my career for good this time.”

The tears in your eyes have finally spilled. Seungcheol’s heart breaks, both at your words and at the sight of you crying. After a minute of gaping at the revelation, he steps forward and wraps his arms around you. He rests his chin on top of your head as he lets you sob into his chest.

“He,” you stutter, “he told me that if I didn’t let you win the F2 championship, he would kill me. That’s why I crashed at Baku and didn’t podium the rest of the year.” You rest your head back against his chest and sob again, harder this time.

Seungcheol reaches up to slowly stroke the back of your head, trying to calm you down. “I’m sorry, y/n. I’m so, so sorry.”

He already knew everything was his fault, but this makes it so much worse. People were threatening to kill you because of him? Suddenly, it dawns on him. How much of an absolute dickhead he’s been. For years he’s been pretending to hate you, throwing mean comments at you, picking fights with you, all while you were trying to protect yourself. “Why did you play along?” he asks.

You don’t look up. Instead, you just let out a questioning hum into his chest.

“The rivalry,” he says. “Why did you play along with it if you didn’t really hate me?”

“It’s good for publicity” you joke. There’s the y/n he knows and loves. Loves. He hasn’t thought about you like that in a long time. Now that he knows the truth, he wants you back in his life so bad. But he knows he doesn’t deserve it.

“Is the guy still threatening you? Is that why you played along?”

You shake your head. “No. I was trying to negotiate for a bodyguard in my McLaren rookie contract and Andrea asked why. I didn’t want to tell him, but I had to. It would’ve gotten out eventually I think, had Andrea not had him arrested.”

“But why y/n? I’m still trying to understand why you didn’t tell me this. Why did you make it seem like you hated me too?”

You finally look up at him again, brave enough to make eye contact once more. “I thought it was too late to tell you. I had already lied to you, ignored you. That’s not the best way to come back into someone’s life.”

“It was for your own safety. I would’ve understood that,” he tells you softly. Your eyes are bloodshot and the area underneath them is puffy. His heart aches. This is all because of him.

You shake your head again. “I didn’t think like that at the time. And you had already brought the rivalry into the media. Of course I would be mad at you when you were talking shit about me to the press.”

It’s not a guilt trip on purpose, but it still hits him where it hurts. “Ok, y/n. I get it. I’m a dick.”

“That’s not what I’m trying to say,” you mumble, helplessly.

Silence overtakes you both. Despite the circumstances, it’s not an uncomfortable one. Just two people mulling over their thoughts. Eventually, he breaks it with a whisper of “I miss you.”

You whisper back an “I miss you too.” It’s real and genuine. You don’t say it because you feel like you have to. You say it because you want to. You hope he can pick up on that.

He does. His forehead comes to rest against yours as his hand strokes your cheek. His eyes flick to your lips and you hold your breath. As his lips find yours, you feel years of tension release. A stray tear runs down your face and he brushes it away with his thumb. He pulls away.

“Do you,” he breathes out, “do you want to try again?” All you can do is nod in response.

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asterafroditis · 5 days ago

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Hiii! I was wondering if you'd be willing to write a riddle x gn!reader? Specifically, something in which reader is part of heartslabyul, and a major rule breaker, but somehow they manage to defend themselves against riddle's collar everytime (if it's through their UM or another quick spell is up to you), so it's basically a rivalry where riddle tries to get them to follow the rules and reader just teases him constantly and riles him up. But teasing riddle is like their way of getting their attention and it's low-key working yk? Is this alright? I hope you're having a great day btw!

𐔌 . ⋮ caught red-handed .ᐟ ֹ ₊ ꒱

☓┆Riddle Rosehearts' x troublemaker gn! reader

𓏵 578 words

ᝰ.ᐟ 3rd Person POV, no pronouns used, unestablished relationship with reader, fluff

Had fun writing this so I hope it fulfills your exact request ヾ(＾-＾)ノ feel free to like, reblog, or comment!

ᝰ.ᐟ masterlist

"Rule number two hundred forty-nine," Riddle snapped, scarlet eyes blazing as he pointed an accusatory finger. "You must wear pink while feeding the flamingos! Pink, not—whatever that is!"

You glanced down at your outfit—casual Heartslabyul uniform, pristine except for the red ribbon you’d lazily looped around your wrist. Not pink, sure, but close enough in your book.

With an exaggerated sigh, you tossed a handful of pellets toward the flamingos. "Oh no, Heartslabyul’s delicate ecosystem is ruined because I’m not wearing pastel." You shot Riddle a teasing grin. "Guess you’ll have to collar me, Housewarden."

Riddle’s lips parted, undoubtedly to shout "Off with your head!"—but you were faster.

The moment the telltale glow of his magic circle flickered to life, you flicked your wand, casting a quick counterspell that fizzled out his collar like a candle in the wind.

"Too slow," you sang, spinning on your heel and strolling toward the garden path.

Riddle sputtered, clearly caught between outrage and disbelief. "Again? How do you keep—no, I refuse to let this slide! Rule-breakers will not be tolerated under my watch!"

"You say that every time, Housewarden," you called over your shoulder, "but I’m still standing here, rulebook intact."

This little dance had become routine. You’d break some ridiculous rule—like sipping lemonade with honey at 8:01 PM or daring to pick a flower on a Wednesday—and Riddle would storm over, spell at the ready, only for you to deflect it like clockwork.

It drove him insane.

"Rule-breakers like you are the bane of Heartslabyul’s order!" he'd seethe.

But you knew better. Beneath the frustration, there was always that slight pink dusting his cheeks, the twitch of his lips when you threw a particularly cheeky remark his way.

Like now, when you stood on a stool during the evening tea party, dramatically holding up a cup of non-herbal tea.

"Breaking rule one-fifty-three!" you declared. "Herbal tea only in the evenings? Boring. I prefer black. Go on, Riddle, do your worst."

The glow of his magic circle bloomed. Your counterspell shattered it instantly.

Riddle’s eye twitched. "You’re insufferable!"

"And yet, you’re still here, chasing me like a protagonist in a romance novel," you teased, hopping down from the stool and sidling up to him. "Should I start calling you my knight in shining armor, Housewarden Rosehearts?"

The blush that spread across his cheeks was worth every detention you’d narrowly escaped.

But the thing about teasing someone like Riddle was that, eventually, the tables would turn.

One day, after you’d accidentally left a marron tart on the Unbirthday Tea Party table (rule 562, whoops), you sauntered into the lounge, fully prepared to deflect another collar.

Except Riddle was already there, arms crossed, gaze steady.

"No counterspell this time?" he asked, almost smug.

You blinked. "Huh?"

He stepped forward, eyes gleaming with something that looked suspiciously like triumph. "You've gotten predictable. I asked Trey to borrow your wand for 'inspection.' It’s currently locked in my study."

Your mouth fell open.

"Off with your head," Riddle said sweetly.

The collar snapped into place before you could even think of a comeback.

And damn it, the worst part?

He looked smugly adorable about it.

You sighed, half-exasperated, half-impressed. "Guess you finally caught me, Housewarden."

Riddle’s smile softened, just a touch. "I always do, eventually."

And maybe, just maybe, you didn’t mind so much.

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iizzeee · 9 months ago

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Guys, I am begging you. Please please please please please PLEASE do NOT vote 3rd party, or not vote at all.

I get it. I really do. Biden’s handling of Israel has been, not gonna mince words, dogshit. Abominable. Unspeakably bad.

But we cannot afford to protest like this.

We don’t need Biden as president. We do need to keep Trump out of office. And to those who respond “well, I don’t want just the lesser of two evils,” please, for the love of god, grow the fuck up.

For one, why wouldn’t you want the lesser of two evils. It is, by definition, LESS EVIL.

“Why can’t we just have no evil, why isn’t that an option.” I really wish it was. Just as much as you. But it’s not. These are our cards, and we have to play our hand to the best of our ability.

Which brings us to two.

Trump is more evil. Like, so much more evil. We’re comparing apples and oranges here guys.

I understand that a lot of you might doubt that. The largest demographic of people advocating for third party or non-votes are in the 18-26 range. New voters, with one or no elections under their belt.

So they don’t remember.

Most of us (I myself fall under this age range) don’t remember 2016. The election, that is. They don’t remember how so many people protested Hillary vs Trump by going 3rd party or writing in joke votes, because they saw the two as equally bad. And Trump won.

Half of us don’t remember the Trump presidency. We’ve heard he was a weird, bad, bigoted president, but don’t fully grasp the scope of how bad.

So off the top of my head, here are some highlights of real things Donald Trump did while he held office.

- threw toilet paper at hurricane victims like he was trying to shoot a 3-pointer

- fired the man investigating him for election fraud

- called African countries “shitholes”

- appointed members of the Supreme Court who would go on to overturn roe v wade

- stole classified documents from the white house to hide at his resort

- tried to instate a Muslim Ban

- incited a insurrection to try and keep himself in office, and maybe hang his VP if there was time

- looked directly at an eclipse. Like no glasses, full on.

- fueled covid conspiracies. Also told people to “drink bleach” to fight the virus

- withdrew us from the Paris Climate Accord

- cofefe. Remember that? What a fun, normal thing for the president to tweet at 2am.

- employed literal white supremacists

- called Nazi’s “very fine people”

- got endorsed by the KKK, and refused to condemn David Duke

And that’s just what I can remember right now.

So if you’re angry at Biden about Palestine, please please please do not think for a fucking second Trump would be better. He would almost certainly actively be worse. He would give Netanyahu the green light. If you think Biden has used a loose leash, at least it’s some kind of leash. Trump would be all in. Full chips, flying to the Middle East to send in the bombs himself.

If you’re still hesitant, consider this last plea.

Things are bad. These shouldn’t be the only two choice we have, but they are. You can’t look at the menu, which is offering either bland soup someone spit in or actual rat poison and go “could I have some steak”.

You can order the soup and live to write a one-star review on Yelp, maybe call health inspections on the restaurant or contact the owners and say “you guys know your menu has only two options and they’re both dogshit. If you don’t add more, you’ll be unemployed soon.”

Or you can order rat poison and die.

If we elect Donald Trump in the fall, we will be eating rat poison. He has repeatedly said himself to be in favor of a dictatorship. He quotes Hitler. If he is put in office, the change we all want and so critically need will not be fucking POSSIBLE. Because with Biden, it’ll be hard, and tedious, and long, and exhausting, but at least it will be goddamn possible.

So, come November, please don’t order the rat poison.

Please just eat your shitty ass soup so we can live to get really angry about it.

Please.

#gaza #usa #politics #2024 elections #trump #biden administration #joe biden #israel #social justice #election 2024

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icysnails · 1 year ago

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Hello sorry if I'm bothering you but I wanted to share one of my ideas with you. So what if the reader appeared on the Loufu and it caused a small tremor along with a large energy fluctuation so Jing Yuan went to investigate with Fu Xuan going with him and they came across an unconscious person who was not only confused when they awoke but completely exhausted, hungry and with strange markings on some parts of their body and when they got examined by a doctor it was discovered that they had an extremely large amount of strange energy within their body. (This was inspired by the first episode of Aphmau Diaries rebirth, here's the link if you don't know what I'm talking about: https://youtu.be/1Vzq1QZVtuk?si=kyIxOyJTSnTjNaMG) (if you don't want to write this that's completely alright and I wish you a good morning/afternoon or goodnight☺️)

An Unexpected Guest

A/n: Hello anon!! I’m so sorry for the late response- thank you so much for your patience! I really like this idea- I’ve heard a lot about the Aphmau series but I’ve never gotten the chance to actually watch it (^o^) I hope you have a fabulous day!!

Warnings: mentions of severe injuries/wounds + infections + unconsciousness, slight refernces to Honkai Impact 3rd (reader’s markings are implied to be honkai infections + mentions of reader fighting archangels from Hi3)

Genre: fluff

Pairing: Jing Yuan x gn!reader (PLATONIC), Fu Xuan x gn!reader (PLATONIC)

Word Count: 1.9k

All was peaceful on the Xianzhou Luofu. Beams of sunlight illuminated the vibrant blue sky, tinting everything in a warm shade of gold. Shops operated on every street, the sharp ping of bells and the shouts of shopkeepers echoed out through the streets, attracting clamoring swells of civilians in record time. Children happily played among the crowds, swept up in the rare, shopping-induced excitement of the adults. For a change, there was little distress anywhere on the ship. There was no word of the Stellaron Hunters, no new reports of people being Mara struck, and even no reports of petty crimes. The workload wasn’t too terrible for those in command of the Luofu either- Jing Yuan was able to take a long nap, and Fu Xuan was able to take a break and have some tea for the first time in weeks. Yangqing managed to squeeze in some training time too. All was well. All was normal.

But of course, in a universe as vast and random as this one, the fates wouldn’t let it stay this peaceful for long. And of course, as a general, Jing Yuan must be prepared for anything. It is one of his most basic duties to stay alert and be ready at all times. Even so, the sleeping general couldn’t help but flinch in surprise as an ear-shattering boom echoed throughout the whole ship, followed by an earthquake that managed to toss even him out of bed. Meanwhile, just as Fu Xuan was about to swallow her first sip of tea, the vigorous shaking of the floor managed to knock the teacup out of her hands. Not only did she have to watch as her favorite cup shattered to bits, but she choked on her tea as well, leaving her in a wheezing heap on the floor.

Thankfully both parties quickly recovered and ran to the windows of their respective offices to see what happened. A pillar of light shone from the Starskiff docks, along with a plume of dust that undoubtedly came from an explosion. Only a few minutes after this discovery, Fu Xuan was given orders from Jing Yuan to go inspect the crisis with him. So much for a peaceful day.

As the disoriented pair cautiously approached the docks, they saw the silhouette of a crumpled body lying in the center of the dissipating light. Jing Yuan was the first to kneel down and inspect the injured figure. After checking your pulse, it became clear that you were still alive. But just barely. You were covered in deep, razor-fine cuts, and sizeable bruises littered your legs and arms. Jing Yuan didn’t know what had happened to you, but it was clear that what went down wasn’t good. The dark circles under your eyes suggested that you had been fighting for a long time, with no rest or nutrition. Taking a step back, the general’s features morphed into an expression of deep concern. He sighed and turned to his diviner companion, who was practically bursting to comment on the situation.

“Fu Xuan… I imagine you saw this coming?”

“I, in fact… did not. For once, my divinations couldn’t pick up on… well, anything of note happening today.”

“Hm… how interesting.”

Jing Yuan cast his gaze down to you once more, trying to decide what to do next. Fu Xuan merely suffered in silence at his side, completely unsure of what to do as well. After a few moments of heavy silence, the general scooped up your beaten body in his arms and began walking back to the Exalting Sanctum. Fu Xuan stared at him for a few moments before jogging after him, urgently asking him what he was doing. Jing Yuan calmly explained that, given the strange nature of the situation, you would need to be brought in for questioning and given heavy medical attention. The diviner huffed, quietly grumbling something about incompetence before following in his wake.

Once they returned to the Exanting Sanctum, Jing Yuan called upon his tiny friend Bailu to help heal you. Having called upon her for anti-sleeping medicine many times before, Jing Yuan practically had her on speed dial in case any new problems arose. Hours upon hours passed before you were well enough to awaken, but Bailu’s work certainly did not disappoint. The gashes on your body had faded into nothingness, save for a few scars, and the herbs she used helped you recover after losing so much blood. According to Bailu, you needed much more time to rest, but by tomorrow you would be alright. However, one odd trait resisted her treatment: the glowing lines left on your stomach.

Bailu was the only one who had seen them so far. The markings were hidden by cloth and blood when you were found, so it slipped past the awareness of the general and diviner. She worriedly called them in, asking if they knew what those marks were, but she was given no answers. Perhaps the truth would reveal itself when you woke up, but for now, it was hopeless. Jing Yuan gratefully bid the exhausted healer goodbye, taking a seat by your bed afterward. Meanwhile, Fu Xuan further examined your markings. They were long, branch-like streaks of bright purple that extended towards your chest, almost like an infection. However, they didn’t seem to be getting worse, and they didn’t behave the way a bad infection would. Feeling a bit frustrated, she gave up and resorted to waiting alongside the general.

While Jing Yuan fell asleep in no time, the poor diviner was left awake and antsy. The room was dead quiet, but the anxious tapping of her foot repeatedly broke the silence. She could see the future, for god's sake! How could she have ended up so clueless in this situation?! She was so used to knowing everything, planning ahead, and having things run as they should. But now, she was at a complete loss. She didn’t know anything about those marks, or about you. And she if there was one thing she hated, it was not knowing things. In order to save her sanity from crashing and burning, she hurried out of your room to browse the Luofu’s databases for information. And oh boy, did she find what she was looking for.

The amount of information locked away in the Luofu’s archives was enough to have anyone floored- even Fu Xuan. As her gaze flickered over each document she found about body markings, she became even more astounded at what she found. The markings you had signified great power, but were also a promise of anguish and ruin. The only other person to have these marks crashed onto the ship centuries ago, in the same way you did. No one knew who they were, or why they appeared. Even after contacting other planets, it became clear that they had never been seen before. Those markings were a mystery, as well as their identity. All anyone knew was that they possessed powers akin to a god, and were classified as a severe threat.

Borderline sprinting, Fu Xuan hauled herself back to your room to tell Jing Yuan everything she found. You could bring ruin to everyone on the Luofu if what she read was true. Not to mention the fact that you were immune to her divinations– you already had an advantage against her. Maybe this was all part of your plan, maybe you had already begun to–

As she opened the door to your room, her spiral immediately stopped. To her surprise, you were awake and pleasantly chatting away with the general. You seemed… polite. Friendly, even. Once you noticed her presence, you kindly greeted her and asked how she was. Fu Xuan short-circuited at this, staring at you in sheer bewilderment. What happened to the flames and destruction she read about? What exactly was going on?! She was still very wary of you, but she mustered up the courage to respond with a terse “Hello. I'm fine”. The way you greeted her showed that you weren’t an immediate threat, so maybe she could entertain small talk with you. For now, at least.

After Fu Xuan discreetly briefed Jing Yuan on what she found, they began to question you. It was like something out of a good cop/bad cop show. The general was authoritative yet calm, and the diviner was like a defensive chihuahua. You revealed that you had been fighting off a swarm of white, bug-like creatures when you lost consciousness. All you could remember was getting hit in the stomach by one of them before blacking out. Jing Yuan gave his companion a knowing side-eye. Where you got hit was undoubtedly connected to those markings. They’d have to have Bailu examine them again once you were settled in, and testing would be necessary if you were cooperative enough.

But what were they meant to do now? They obviously couldn’t let you roam around the universe to fend for yourself, especially if those lines meant that you were uncontrollably powerful. They couldn’t keep you in captivity either though- it was inhumane, and would only make everything worse. If they wanted to give you freedom while keeping the universe safe, they would have to let you stay on the ship until they confirmed you weren’t a threat. Jing Yuan was intrigued by you- not just because you were an enigma, but because of your personality. You were kind, even in such jarring circumstances. you showed a rare kind of strength, one that pushed him to converse with you more. Besides, with the power you supposedly held, you could prove to be a useful force against the mara.

“I’m assuming you don't have anywhere to go, yes?”

“Jing Yuan, just what are you thinkin–”

“We would be happy to house you on the Xianzhou Luofu for a while. There’s more we would like to ask you about… and, I have a feeling you’ve got a myriad of interesting stories to tell.”

After a moment of contemplation, you wearily accepted. The offer was very generous- besides, what other options did you have? You had no recorded identity in this world and no way of knowing what dangers awaited you. Heading out on your own was a death wish. Besides, your conversation with the general had been nice, and his pink-haired friend was entertaining. Here, you didn’t feel threatened. Jing Yuan seemed like a kind man, and it had been a while since someone had listened to you so attentively. You couldn’t help but be drawn to the diviner beside him as well. She might have been openly suspicious of you, but you couldn’t blame her. Her grumpy, yet determined way of going about things was amusing, and you could tell that there was a softer side to her behind her defensiveness. It was admirable how well she held herself together despite the chaotic nature of your arrival.

It would take a lot of time to process all that had happened to you in the last 24 hours (along with a lot of therapy), but at least you had two allies to fall back on now. It was probably a poor choice to trust them so quickly, but the energy they exuded was welcoming– you could tell they were good people. Maybe the universe brought you to them for a reason. It was far-fetched, but if you were going to end up in a completely foreign world, who better to take you in than two of the ship’s leaders? As you fell asleep that night, long after the two of them had left, you attempted to prepare yourself for the next few weeks. The rest of your journey might end up being hell, but you had a feeling that will the help of the general and diviner, everything might just turn out okay.

#honkai star rail x reader #hsr x reader #fluff #honkai star rail #jing yuan x reader #fu xuan x reader #jing yuan fluff #fu xuan fluff #hsr x reader fluff #honkai star rail x reader fluff #platonic #reader insert

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pursuitseternal · 8 months ago

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“An Afternoon in the Park” with 🦇 Batstarion in this special update to “Antics of the Newly Ascended”

Ascended Astarion x Female Tav | T | 1.7 K

Summary: without their Rogue and his consort, Halsin and Shadowheart wait for Gale to come back from scouting out a Bhaalist ambush in Bloomridge Park. Fortunately, to pass the time, a pair of bats seem to join them, flying around and… engaging in some unusual behavior for this time of day, according to the Druid.

CW: bat sex, a bit of voyeurism kinda not really, “David Attenborough” Halsin commenting on Nature, yes the nature facts about bats are true, Gale sucks at recon, and Astarion is a smug bastard and a freak

A/N: for Batstarion week’s wild card day. Even though Antics is x reader, this update shifts to 3rd person for narrative purpose. In the Antics world, only Gale and Karlach know Astarion’s ‘other’ form. Until now. Enjoy my offering!

Ao3 link | Masterlist | My Ko-fi

“Bloomridge park is a curious place for a Bhaalist ambush,” Shadowheart commented, irritated and annoyed.

“Gale was sure he would find them. To think that murderous cultists could abuse the natural beauty of a park,” Halsin shifted his massive weight on his massive legs. “No one speaks for the trees in this city. There is so little space, so little greenery to soothe the soul. It’s small wonder everyone is in a foul mood.”

Shadowheart tapped her toe on the ground, impatient. “This is what we get for sending the Wizard to do the sneaking. That bloody Ascendant Rogue. He might have a palace he wants to inspect and a consort or whatever he wants to fuck in it, but dammit we need our party.” She gave a dramatically offended sigh. “We never should have agreed to give those two the evening off. I wonder what depraved, vampiric horrors they will get into.” Her outburst made Halsin’s scarred face twist in a warm grin.

His warm chuckle was probably too loud for even this public setting, and it made Shadowheart glare up at him. The Druid just shook his head. “It is typical of nature, when one head of the pack is supplanted by the next, the new predator in power will mark his territory and mate profusely. It is not different for Astarion,” he commented, always so sage in tone and smiling. As if he’s seen everything in this world.

“Please don’t call Astarion a predator to his face… or imply he’s a new alpha or something…” Shadowheart grimaced. “His ego has already grown too inflated to fit his pea-sized, smoothed brain. He already acts like the Elfsong is his palace, don’t add to that Halsin.”

Halsin only chuckled harder, putting his massive, tanned hand on the oak tree they both stood beneath at the edge of the city park. “It is remarkable how nature runs its course, even through the filth and contamination of the city. Seasons change, animals rut, and so life continues.”

Something darted over their heads. Two somethings. A streak of white and a smear of cool grey. They chittered loudly, swarming up the oak tree to cling their hooked fingers and toes into the bark. Ears twitching, wings folded, they seemed to chit at one another, squeaks from the grey and high pitched purrs from the white.

Instantly they caught the Druid’s attention. “See, not even the stain of the city can stop nature…. Although, these two do seem to behave rather curious. This white one… he seems strangely large for a bat and… strangely talkative.” The Druid moved closer to the tree, making the grey bat scamper higher in the tree, flying almost out of sight to hide far above their heads.

With a flap of his wings, the white animal was not far behind, landing on top of the other. Toes curled around toes, wings wrapped around her small furry body.

A chorus of two-toned chitters flitted from above their heads, and Shadowheart audibly gagged. “Oh that is disgusting. I have no need to hear or see that sort of… intimacy.” She almost puked on the last word.

Halsin just laughed. “Like I said, nature will always find a way.” He paused, a look more perplexed than before twisting his scarred smiling face. “It’s just this way of nature is most curious. Bats shouldn’t be out quite so early… nor is this typical for their mating season.” His thick, bushy brows furrowed. “Perhaps the corruption of the city is altering their natural courses…”

The bats then flew apart, circling the tree. Grey and white blurs passing over their heads noisily. “That white male seems bent on keeping his mate in this tree…”

Shadowheart scoffed incredulously. “Or just over our heads to annoy us,” she sassed. “Perhaps he’s just starved for the attention and requires an audience.”

“I’m not sure bats have that big an ego or a bent towards voyeurism,” Halsin chortled, watching with approval as the bats hung on another branch. “You’ll notice that the bats actually engage in a little foreplay. It’s not unusual for the male to… ahem… clean the female before coupling to ensure they are clean of a rival's sperm and…” he smirked sideways at the Cleric, “to warm the female up for another round when they are in heat.”

Shadowheart’s brows shot under her bangs. “Bats sound like better lovers than most people,” she scoffed, looking up to see the bats doing just as the Druid described.

They seemed so… into it, she noticed with a frown on her lips. Squinting, she watched them, a mess of fur and squeaks and chitters all hidden behind two large white wings. It lasted maybe two minutes before they stilled, a long pink tongue cleaning the face of the little grey bat that hung against him.

The warm smile on Halsin’s face made her roll her eyes so far back in her skull, they could have stuck there. “Where is Gale? For fucks sake, we shouldn’t have let the Wizard attempt to be the sneaky one.” She kept complaining, picking at the ends of her hair strands that had come loose from her braid.

That grey bat rushed right past her, almost buzzing the hair on her head as it zipped up the park path in the direction of the walls at the edge of the gardens. “Hey…” Shadowheart narrowed her eyes, “aren’t those the walls to Cazador’s Palace?” Suddenly, suspicion sank into her gut, just as Gale came down the path, winded and sweaty from the evening heat.

“Whoo,” he panted. “Okay, scouting isn’t technically my area of expertise, but I’m…” he placed a hand on his chest, wincing as he sucked in breath after breath. “Sorry, it took a bit to hustle around the whole park before the invisibility spell wore off.” He swallowed loudly. “I’m sure the great Ascendant would have been faster…”

“And considerably less winded,” Shadowheart grumbled under her breath as she crossed her arms over her plate-armored chest.

“Curious that,” Gale started to lecture, still winded and gasping like a fish out of water, “Astarion can’t get winded… he doesn’t need wind… or air…” he let out a long sigh, folding over with hands on knees.

Halsin beat him on the back a few times to help him clear his lungs.

“Right,” Gale finally swallowed and straightened. “While you two were busy enjoying the scenery…”

“Actually we were enjoying nature, yes,” Halsin chuckled warmly. “A lovely pair of bats must be in full heat, which is strange this time of year. What unique colors they were too, a brilliant while and sterling grey…”

A pause of… recognition fell on the Wizard. An incredulous look dawned on Gale, jaw hanging slack. “You’re kidding me,” he gaped. “Here? Just… out in the open?”

“Yes,” Halsin glanced up into the tree again. “Most rigorous and enthusiastic I would say.”

“Disgusting,” the Cleric added as she faked wrenching, tongue out as she gagged.

Gale buried his hands in his face, muttering something to himself about ‘when he gets his hands on those two horny idiots’ and ‘they couldn’t keep it in their pants… or fur… for one night…’ But before he could spiral into a whirlpool of disgust and secrets, he took a breath. “No matter,” he forced his voice steady. “I’ve counted four Bhaalist assassins in the center of the Park….”

“Six, actually…”

Oh, that sassy purr, that confidence in honey tones interrupted from behind them as Astarion strolled into the middle of the group, their fearless leader right behind him, blushing and red and unable to make eye contact with the lot of them.

“Well,” Gale squared his shoulders as he rounded on the vampire, “and just how could you be so certain?” His brown eyes glinting with suspicious mischief, his brows cocked haphazardly as he returned Astarion’s cool, sauntering stare. “It’s not like you were here? Not like you were just… flying around to get a bird’s eye view or anything….”

“Oh no, of course not,” he crooned, picking invisible dirt off the cuff of his armor. “Maybe you should be grateful we’ve decided to end our evening early. Seems you’re more pitiful at reconnaissance than even I thought possible.” He shifted his body to let Tav into the circle, her face still beet red. “Isn’t that right, darling?”

Gale gave her a scolding, humored look, the kind that said, ‘You should know better….’

Astarion leaned his face into Gale’s line of sight, narrowing his eyes. “Something to say… Gale? Or are we going to murder a bunch of murder cultists?”

Halsin looked at Shadowheart, then at the tree, then with a low hum in his throat, he looked to Gale and Astairon staring at one another. “Tav, just how did you enjoy your… evening with our Rogue?”

“Fine,” she grinned her own fanged smile. “We just figured you needed a bigger party to flush out the Cultists. They are very well hidden, almost impossible to see if not from above….”

She snapped her mouth shut and blushed again.

Gale just shook his head and laughed. “Oh, not so sneaky Rogue,” he teased Astarion who gave Tav the cheekiest, most devilish leer, one dripping with conceit and self satisfaction.

“Oh… by my Lady’s name,” Shadowheart covered her eyes as she gagged again. “The bats… those fucking bats…”

Halsin gave a noise of realization, a wry smile on his face.

“I told him we needed to help survey for the ambush,” Tav muttered.

“And I said, only if she didn’t get caught,” Astarion’s sultry smirk melted with his love, his fingers lifting her chin as she placed an adoring kiss on his full and smiling lips. “It’s not my fault you’re a bunch of freaks who can’t keep their eyes to themselves…”

Shadowheart turned her back, ponytail whipping her own shoulders. “I think I’m going to be sick…”

“For the record,” Gale grinned and wagged his finger in Astarion’s face. “I’m not the one who let out your cute, fluffy little secret, O Mighty Ascendant.”

Astarion scrunched up his nose and grabbed his daggers. “Take out your disgust out on some murder cultists, everyone. Let’s turn someone inside out, shall we?”

Before they dispersed into the Park, the Druid gave one more chuckle. “It is rather fluffy and cute for a wild form to shift into,” Halsin chimed in with sage tones in his deep voice.

#batstarion #batstarionweek2024 #ascended astarion #astarion x f!tav #astarion x female tav #bg3 astarion #bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #bg3 fanfiction #bg3 fic #astarion

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kakujis · 1 year ago

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happy birthday, keisuke!

synopsis: you celebrate keisuke's day with toman.

warnings: gn!reader, swearing, this is fluffy and gross, yn can't bake for shit (me), not proofread, and that should be it!

ft: baji keisuke x reader, 1.2k

network: @enchantedforest-network

a/n: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE LOML!!!!!!! i set aside my hw and all to get this finished hehe. it's still the 2nd in my area, but ik it's the 3rd elsewhere! i tried to keep it short and simple this time!! i won't get sappy or anything but i truly love baji so much!! happy birthday, kei, hope its a good one. ♡

with the amount of staring you’ve been doing, you must as well be losing your vision, the words on the screen blurred and hazy. you’ve scrolled through the ingredient and instruction list an obscene amount of times, and yet… things seem to always turn out like this.

“i’ve got no fucking clue what i’m doing!” you huff, but the silver haired man besides you simply laughs in reply. “mitsuya, why does my cake look like one of y’all rolled it over with your motorbikes?”

“to be honest,” he starts, snickering as he inspects it, “i have no idea. i mean, you followed the recipe and all didn’t you?”

you nod, sadly staring at another failed attempt. he decides to take a piece and taste it, throwing it into his mouth, chewing with an unreadable expression.

“it’s not like it’s inedible, it’s miles better than your first attempt. it’s just a little dry and crumbly…” mitsuya says, brow furrowing, “alright, honestly, it’s pretty bad.”

you sigh loudly, picking it up and throwing it into the trash, “i told you we should’ve gotten him a cake from the store!” all your attempts have been moot. instead of a fluffy and moist cake, it’s always flat and dry even with mitsuya’s help.

kazutora pops his head into the kitchen at that moment, “i can run really fast if you want me to.”

you shake your head, “...no. don’t… do that.” you point to your forehead, signaling him of the decorations stuck on his.

he shrugs, pulling off a stray streamer, and walking in before he’s jumping up to sit on the counter.“how are we gonna have a birthday party with no cake?”

you frown, whining, “man, i don’t know. mitsuya, what do we do?”

he glances over at the clock, mouth pressed in a line, before he answers. “you could always stick a candle into his soba noodles, we've got tons of those.”

“we are doomed.” you state, sighing as you slump against the counter. “sorry kei…”

even though you know, deep down, that keisuke baji could give less than two shits about a cake, you really wanted to surprise him. you did the same for him on white day, all those years back in highschool when you finally confessed. he accepted it, shitty chocolate and all, as you hid your burnt bandaged fingers behind your back. he never mentioned it, but you assume he knew, when instead of kissing your lips, he dragged your hands out from behind you and kissed your them while your heart almost sprang out of your chest.

“who’s doomed?” you hear a loud yet comforting voice coming from the hallway. you look up to see draken, smiling ear to ear as he holds a cake box.

“draken!” the three of you giddily call in unison and he smiles wider.

mikey isn’t far behind him, peeking out to say, “there’s no way you guys thought we were gonna eat a cake they made right? it’s literally y/n, we would’ve died. i think baji almost did when he ate your confession chocolate.”

“i’m going to ignore that for now.♡︎” you chime, keeping the strained smile on your face.

“you guys are so mean to my protégé.” mitsuya chides, giving you a pat on the back. “anyway, we’re running out of time before he gets home, let’s finish this up.”

you all nod and run off to your places, with you cleaning up the kitchen, and yourself, as best you can before you head out to the living room. the decorations are strung up nicely, courtesy of emma and hina, although takemichi, chifuyu, and pah definitely tried their best. you’re a little nervous, heart fluttering, as the lights dim and everyone crouches in place.

you wait a few moments, eyes adjusting to the now darkened room as you catch a wave from chifuyu right before the front door slams open. equally as loud as the slam shut, baji talks to his mom on the phone.

“yeah ma, i just got home. thanks for hangin’ with me today. huh? oh yeah, i’ve got plans with the guys tonight…” he mutters, phone pressed up against one shoulder as he kicks his shoes off. “unfortunately, its just the guys, said they couldn’t get off work early enough..” he trails off, a solemn expression on his face and you bite back the urge to laugh.

“alright, love you ma, talk to you later.” he says as he hangs up, placing his book bag onto the floor. as he hits the lights, you all pop up out of place.

“happy birthday, baji!” you cheer out in unison. it’s an explosion of streamers, confetti, and colors with some of you using party poppers and some of you using the blowers.

he jumps while breaking out in a shit-eating grin, his pearly canine teeth in full view. his eyes scan the room til they fall onto you, the excitement sparked behind them clear as he immediately makes his way over to you.

“no fuckin’ way,” he laughs, throwing his arms around you, before peppering kisses on your cheeks. “should’ve known you were a liar.”

you hug him back, but pull off slightly, when you suddenly feel the heavy eyes of everyone around you. “o-okay keisuke, that’s enough.”

he presses a final kiss to your forehead before turns and glares, “huh? you guys got a problem with this?”

mikey glares back, “yeah. i do.”

baji releases you, walking over to “square up” with mikey. the two of them bickering about the importance of everyone showing up, but also, a significant other is important too, and besides, “i was about to greet everyone, it’s not my fault you can’t find a date.”

“here we go,” draken sighs, before sliding onto the couch. “emma, can you get me something to drink?”

you shrug, settling in next to kazutora who’s excitedly bringing out the games for the night. the rest of the party goes well, the laughter bouncing off the walls of your shared apartment. it’s a nice little life you’ve got with baji so far. while he studies his ass off in school, your work is good enough to support the both of you. it’s cozy, it’s everything you’ve wanted.

as the night winds down and everyone clears out, you find yourself cleaning up. you tell keisuke not to worry about it, “it’s your night, i’ll finish up here.” but he tsks you away, shoving littered plastic forks and plates into a bag anyway. he finds you in the kitchen later on, washing a few trays that were used to set the food out.

he snakes his arms around your waist, breath tickling your ear as he asks, “so where’s my cake?”

“huh?” you giggle, turning off the sink. “what are you talking about? we ate it all earlier?”

“no, not that one.” he grins, his pretty hair falling over your shoulder. “the one mikey told me you made.”

you freeze, that little shit. “uh… honestly, we threw them away. even with mitsu’s help, i couldn’t make you anythin’ good.”

“well, that’s no good.” he hums for a bit, before spinning you around, a devious smile on his face.

“kei?” you ask, but you’re interrupted by his lips on yours.

“guess i gotta settle for somethin’ even sweeter.” he murmurs, before his hands are cupping your cheeks as he kisses you again and again.

“you’re so fucking cheesy.” you giggle in between kisses, hands naturally coming around his waist. “happy birthday, keisuke.♡︎”

#tokyo revengers x reader #tokyo revengers fluff #baji keisuke x reader #baji keisuke fluff #baji keisuke x yn #baji keisuke x you #tokyo revengers x you #tokyo revengers x yn #pibby writing

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vexieeeee · 5 months ago

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Nerissa Ravencroft - Dare

Pairing: Nerissa Ravencroft x Female Reader

Fandom: Hololive EN

Requested by: Anonymous

Request: nerissa rizzing the fem reader pls<3 (suggestive and fluff maybe)

Summary: Seeing how nervous their best friend was about her crush on you, Shiori and Mococo decided to push her a little by giving her a small dare.

A/N: Thanks for requesting <3 Okay and listen, in my head Nerissa is a blushy gf for her girl so she's not exactly fully frizzing her up-

3rd's POV

"HUH?"

Out of all the things that Nerissa could've heard from Shiori that night she definitely wasn't expecting something like that.

"You heard me. I dare you to make a move on Y/N tonight" Shiori beamed at her innocently. Nerissa's heart sped up at that as she looked at Shiori dumbfounded. The girl always said a lot of random and questionable things but this was just... too unexpected Nerissa would say - especially since she wasn't sure how the girl knew about her feelings for you.

If she knew did that meant that you also knew?

The thought suddenly occurred to her and it scared her for a bit.

"Rissa you listening?" Shiori took her away from her thoughts to look at her, Mococo was sitting next to her also smiling mischievously. It was rare to see her without her sister and honestly maybe that's good because if she was here then Nerissa would be in worst trouble. Shiori was still a big threat though.

"I do but make a move? That sounds like pushy and desperate guys trying to get a girl" She sighed as she watched you talking with Raora without any clue what was happening not far from you. Shiori snorted "I mean, desperate kinda suits the situation. You're not as sneaky as you think you are Rissa" Shiori laughed at her embarrassed expression.

It was true that she had problems hiding her infatuation with you and at this point probably everyone knew, well everyone except for you of course which was lucky in her mind.

"Well anyways, you lost a bet during our collab a week ago and I finally thought of a dare so you have no choice" Shiori smirked while Mococo nodded excitedly beside her. Nerissa only sighed as she looked at you once again, all her confidence disappearing but honestly, she really did had no choice. So slowly but surely she stood up and made her way over to you.

You immediately noticed her from the corner of your eye and greeted her with a big smile "Rissa, are you enjoying the party?" God she could melt right in the spot. It was hard to mutter any word when you looked at her like that. Raora watched the whole thing for a minute before laughing and making up some excuse to leave but not without petting Nerissa on her back.

"Are you okay?" A simple question like that made her even more nervous which was unlikely her. You moved closer to her to inspect her better and it caused her to jump back a little. A little surprised at first, you laughed at her reaction "Rissa you really okay? You seem different than usual" Nodding awkwardly she coughed a little.

"Yeah yeah, I just.. was wondering if you had time tomorrow maybe? I know this restaurant and I was thinking that maybe you uh.. wanted to check it out? Together? Just us two I mean..." Nerissa managed to get out nervously. She felt embarrassed of how she acted, normally she isn't that clumsy with her words but you really did had a way with her.

"Sure, text me the details?" You smiled brightly at her and all the stress left Nerissa's body at once, she nodded happily "Okay I'll text you the details then. Gonna go back to-" before she could finish her sentence, she was cut off by you grabbing her hand and pulling her closer.

"Wait maybe... you want to stay and talk more?"

Nerissa.exe has stopped working.

#vex writes #hololive x reader #nerissa ravencroft x reader #nerissa ravencroft

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tetrainspection6 · 2 years ago

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7 Most Common Product Compliance Issues and How to Prevent Them

Product compliance is vital to manufacturing, buying, importing, and selling goods. It is essential to ensure that your products adhere to regulatory requirements not only for legal reasons but also to protect the well-being of end consumers and maintain your brand’s reputation. Manufacturers, buyers, importers, and brands must know common compliance issues when importing products into countries like Europe, the USA, or Saudi Arabia.

1. Inadequate or Incorrect Labeling

Labeling is crucial in product compliance, as it conveys important information such as warnings, symbols, instructions for use, and product origin. Non-compliant or inaccurate labels can result in fines, product recalls, and damage your brand’s reputation. To ensure accurate and compliant labeling, follow these practical steps:

Research and understand local regulations:

Familiarize yourself with the specific labeling requirements for each target market by consulting local regulations and standards. This will help you avoid costly mistakes and ensure your product’s compliance.

Collaborate with suppliers and designers:

Work closely with your suppliers and design team to create compliant labels that meet the requirements. Communication is key to ensuring all parties understand the importance of accurate and compliant labeling.

Test label durability:

It’s essential to ensure important information remains legible throughout the product’s life cycle. Conduct durability tests on labels to ensure they can withstand various conditions, such as exposure to moisture, sunlight, and wear and tear.

2. Non-Compliant Materials and Chemicals

Utilizing restricted or hazardous materials in your products may result in severe compliance challenges. It’s essential to adhere to international regulations and guidelines that govern the use of specific substances, such as lead, phthalates, and formaldehyde, to avoid potential penalties and reputational damage.

To optimize your approach to materials and chemicals compliance, consider the following strategies:

Research and understand relevant regulations:

Familiarize yourself with pertinent legislation, such as the European Union’s Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) and Restriction of Hazardous Substances or RoHS compliance, as well as the United States Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). Keeping abreast of these regulations will help you stay informed about any updates or changes.

Prioritize the use of compliant materials:

Actively seek out and select materials that meet the necessary regulatory standards. Make compliance a key factor in your decision-making process when choosing materials and suppliers.

Engage with reliable and trusted suppliers:

Establish partnerships with reputable suppliers who consistently commit to meeting regulatory requirements. They should be transparent about their practices, allowing you to verify their compliance with relevant laws.

Implement regular supply chain audits:

Schedule routine quality control audits of your supply chain to ensure ongoing material and chemical restrictions adherence. This proactive approach will help you identify potential quality issues before they escalate, minimizing non-compliance risk.

Educate and train your staff:

Equip your team with the knowledge and skills necessary to maintain compliance by providing regular training on relevant regulations and best practices. This investment will empower your employees to make informed decisions and uphold your company’s commitment to safe and responsible material use.

3. Failure to Meet Safety Standards

Enhancing Product Safety: A Comprehensive Guide to Compliance with International Standards

To protect consumers and maintain market access, ensuring your products comply with international safety standards such as the CE marking in Europe, UL listing in the USA, or SASO conformity in Saudi Arabia is crucial. Non-compliant products risk legal repercussions, recalls, and loss of market access. Here, we provide a comprehensive guide to help you navigate the complexities of product safety compliance.

Research and Understand Relevant Safety Standards:

Begin by thoroughly researching your product’s and target market’s appropriate safety standards. Familiarize yourself with the requirements and guidelines set forth by regulatory bodies, such as the European Union, the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, or the Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization. By understanding these requirements, you can make informed decisions about product design and manufacturing processes.

Develop and Implement a Comprehensive Quality Management System (QMS):

A well-designed QMS is essential for maintaining consistent product quality and ensuring compliance with safety standards. Implement a QMS focusing on continual improvement, emphasizing risk management, documentation, and corrective actions. This will help your organization identify and address potential issues before they escalate into more significant problems.

Collaborate with Accredited Third-Party Testing Labs:

Partner with reputable, accredited third-party testing labs to verify that your products meet the required safety and performance standards. Regular product testing and certification ensure your products consistently adhere to the specified regulations. In addition, third-party certification adds credibility to your brand and assures consumers, retailers, and regulatory authorities.

Train and Educate Your Workforce:

Empower your employees with the knowledge and skills required to maintain compliance with safety standards. Provide comprehensive training and education programs covering relevant regulations, internal QMS procedures, and best practices. An informed and skilled workforce ensures consistent product quality and compliance.

Keep Up-to-Date with Regulatory Changes:

Regulations and safety standards are subject to change over time. Stay informed about updates and revisions to ensure that your products remain compliant. Establish a system for monitoring and reviewing regulatory changes, and revise your QMS, product design, and manufacturing processes as needed.

4. Non-Compliant Packaging

Packaging plays a crucial role in product compliance, providing protection and information and contributing to a product’s overall sustainability. Common packaging compliance issues include incorrect dimensions, insufficient protection, and the use of non-compliant materials.

To achieve compliant packaging:

Consult local regulations for packaging requirements specific to your product and target market.

Work with experienced packaging suppliers that understand compliance requirements and can provide appropriate solutions.

Consider the environmental impact of your packaging and opt for sustainable materials whenever possible.

Packaging Inspection is an essential aspect of product compliance, as it safeguards the product, conveys critical information, and plays a vital role in its overall sustainability. To help you ensure that your packaging meets all requirements, we’ve outlined key steps to achieve compliant packaging that delivers value to you and your customers. This guide is designed to be NLP-friendly, making it accessible to a wide audience.

Provide Clear and Accurate Information: Ensure that your packaging communicates all required information, such as product ingredients, warnings, or usage instructions, clearly and concisely. This helps maintain compliance, fosters customer trust, and enhances the user experience.

Understand Local Regulations: Regulations vary based on product type, location, and industry. Staying informed on these regulations will help you avoid common compliance issues such as incorrect dimensions, insufficient protection, or using non-compliant materials.

Embrace Sustainability: Incorporate eco-friendly materials and practices into your packaging design whenever possible. This contributes to your product’s overall sustainability and appeals to environmentally-conscious consumers. Sustainable packaging materials can include recycled, biodegradable, or compostable options, depending on your product’s needs and the preferences of your target market

Regularly Review and Update: Compliance requirements can change over time. Stay up-to-date on any updates or amendments to local regulations, and be prepared to adjust your packaging accordingly. This proactive approach will help you maintain compliance and minimize any disruptions to your business.

5. Intellectual Property Infringements

Respecting intellectual property rights, such as patents, trademarks, and copyrights, is essential for maintaining a lawful and ethical business. Infringements can lead to legal disputes, financial penalties, and damage to your brand’s reputation.

To avoid IP issues:

Conduct thorough research before developing or sourcing a new product to ensure it does not infringe on existing intellectual property.

Seek advice from legal experts or intellectual property attorneys if you have concerns about potential infringement.

6. Insufficient Documentation and Record-Keeping

Effective documentation and record-keeping are crucial in showcasing your dedication to meeting regulatory requirements. Common pitfalls in documentation include incomplete or missing certificates, test reports, or declarations. Here’s how you should arrange your documents and record keeping.

Create a comprehensive inventory of essential documents: Compile a detailed list of required documents for each product, target market, and regulatory authority. This will streamline the process of gathering and organizing the necessary paperwork for product compliance.

Utilize a centralized document management system (DMS): Implement a DMS to efficiently store, monitor, and update all compliance-related documents in a single location. This will improve the organization and ensure easy access to vital information when needed.

Stay informed about evolving regulations: Regularly monitor changes in regulations and promptly update your documentation to stay in line with the latest requirements. Staying well-informed will help you maintain an accurate and up-to-date document repository.

Establish a systematic review process: Implement a routine review procedure to verify the accuracy and completeness of your documentation. This proactive approach will help identify gaps or discrepancies before they become significant issues.

7. Inadequate Quality Control and Inspection

Quality control and inspection play a crucial role in ensuring product compliance. Poor production processes and consistent product quality can lead to non-compliant products entering the market.

To establish effective quality control and inspection:

Implement strict quality control measures throughout the production process, including raw material inspection, in-process inspection, and final product inspection.

Conduct regular factory audits to assess your suppliers’ capabilities and adherence to compliance requirements.

Partner with reputable inspection companies to independently assess your products and processes.

How Tetra Inspection Can Ensure Product Compliance

Global brands trust Tetra Inspection for comprehensive product compliance services. Through our years of experience, we help reduce the risk of non-compliance and associated penalties while streamlining compliance processes for our clients. We ensure products meet safety, quality, and performance standards through meticulous product inspection services. Our hands-on factory audit is designed for early identification and correction of non-compliance issues, preventing costly recalls and brand damage.

Our compliance consulting services guide through complex regulatory frameworks, as our team of experts stays current on regulation changes and best practices.

By collaborating with us at Tetra Inspection, you can make your compliance processes more efficient and cost-effective. For more visit https://tetrainspection.com/

#3rd party inspection #3rd party inspection china

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spark-hearts2 · 28 days ago

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How would someone in the circus be able to get their hands on Caine’s code? I just want to see all the notes left to Caine’s code from over the years of development to be honest

YOU WANT TO DECOMPILE CAINE??!!

Though, if we wanted to talk about how that would really work, you would be unable to read Caine's code without a 3rd party program(how easy that would be depends on the language). That stuff isn't meant to be accessible to the player so it's not like you could get into it from within the game. There is no right click to inspect element here, at best all you could get is a custom error code.

But Caine could give you access to some files to read. Would he? Probably not. But honestly you would just find a bunch of notes either explaining what/how something works or the developers crying over how shit their code is but how it still technically works so they have to go with it.

#ask #answer #thanks for the ask!#tadc caine #the amazing digital circus #therapy but it's just zooble interrogating caine #I LOVE WORLD BUILDING #But the world building is just actual computer science #lmao

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newtknewit · 5 months ago

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calanthe looks pretty cool, you have more info about her?

Calanthe is a surviving basilisk adopted by Hunter and Willow in my WIP NextGen AU! Here's some quick information before I delve into that whole backstory: Name: Calanthe Species: Basilisk Pronouns: He/her Age: Roughly 14-16 Tracks: Potions and Plants primarily She was accidentally uncovered when Darius led a search party to clear out the old Emperor's Coven laboratory in search of lost information that they could record (with Hunter as a guide, since he knew where the labs were, and the basilisks were too afraid to go anywhere near the area). To everyone's surprise, Belos incubated another batch of basilisks after the first ones had escaped, but died before they could hatch. In the incubation process, without the proper care they needed, all other eggs died except for one: Calanthe. Hunter was the first to discover Calanthe, after being hit with intense memories of the lab and hallucinating. At least he thought he was hallucinating when a vision of himself appeared, turns out it was a basilisk moulding into his form. When he realised this was a physical being, he freaked out at first. Then he saw the black-rimmed blue eyes. The basilisk had imprinted on him, taking on his form as they may typically do as babies. It turned back into a small yellow python-patterned basilisk with blue eyes and light brown hair, to which Hunter and the group had taken it to the Healing Coven for inspection, and later Hunter and Willow had adopted the basilisk since 1. no one else could, and 2. it had already imprinted on them. In this AU, alongside primarily being a palisman carver, Hunter secondarily works with Darius to protect the Boiling Isles' children, creating better safety laws for all and putting more protection in place for the young ones. At the time he discovered and adopted Calanthe, Hunter would've probably been around 25 and was taking part as a student in a school that retaught important life lessons to those who didn't get to learn them. After finishing up with these classes, he transitioned to parenting schools in order to do his best for Calanthe. Willow is living the dream of leading the Emerald Entrails into constant victories, and reassures Hunter that he doesn't need to go to these schools, but he insists, as he absolutely despises the idea of becoming similar to Belos in any way. -Which Willow is actually quite proud of and inspired by.

Thanks to Willow and Hunter, Calanthe gets to live a perfectly normal and happy life, being able to embrace his basilisk side while being treated with the same love and normalcy that every child deserves. Calanthe has changed her appearance many times throughout her life, and still does till this very day, switching it up every now and then when she gets bored. Her primary/favourite appearance is taking inspiration from Willow's fringe, Hunter's face, and a mix between both of their body shapes. This is still a heavy WIP! However, some characters I am planning to add are: Luz + Amity's kids Boscha's child, possibly nonverbal Adrien Graye's neglected/forgotten daughter A Grudgby Team + Captain + Giving IV (now called Ivy) and III (now called Trip) more development and depth (the two basilisks seen in Watching and Dreaming) + King getting a MASSIVE growthspurt There will still be much more to come, once the ideas finally start to pop into my head. Hope this clears up some things! I'm happy you like her design, though it is still a WIP, such as everything else. I am still working on my Cinderkin AU too, in which I might make a 3rd AU combining these two for funsies at some point. It'd be sick to design Calanthe with Cinderkin features! :D

#the owl house #toh #the owl house au #toh au #toh nextgen #next generation #fankid #huntlow

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memphisnovels · 24 days ago

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Evermore

Chapter 40. Paint the town red

Previous chapter

Masterlist

This is a pretty long chapter but it's important to set the scene of what is to come <3

Thank you for reading :)

pairing: Pietro Maximoff x OFC

warnings: Canon-typical violence, death, mentions of blood etc., guns.

The tip of my finger traced along the wall as I wandered down the empty hallway. Chatter echoed from downstairs, the gentle hum of classical music intertwining with the sound. On the wall across from the banister sat an array of framed pictures, the smiling face of a young boy filled one of the frames, the other showed him sitting in front of a man and a woman. I looked at the picture for a long while; confusion seeping into my every muscle. Where was I? The answer evaded me as I looked around the room. Laughter chorused downstairs, reminding me that there was a party going on beneath my feet. I furrowed my eyebrows, but then I looked down at my hands that were covered in crimson. The man from the pictures... I glanced back toward the closed door further down the hallway, blood marking the handle. My gaze moved back to the family portraits hanging before me. It felt as though my whole body sunk; I remembered now.

I felt frozen to the ground, my limbs were a deadweight and there was a lump in my throat that I couldn’t manage to swallow. I looked back down at my hands. My feet moved without me realizing it, bringing me a step or two closer to the room I’d just left. Suddenly, another person emerged through the door, a head of blonde hair pulled back into two braids appeared.

Yelena.

My head was starting to hurt now, without thinking I pressed my fingertips to my temples, leaving red along my face. I closed my eyes tightly. “What the hell is wrong with you?” She pulled my hands away from my face to inspect the mess. I shook my head in an attempt to lessen the growing ache. Red flickered across my vision before speckling away. She pressed a hand to my shoulder, shoving me into the small washroom across the hall. With gloved hands, she turned the faucet on and pulled my own underneath, quickly scrubbing the evidence from me. When my hands were no longer covered in blood, she used a damp cloth to dab the remnants from my face. “Nadia.” She repeated for what might have been the 3rd time. “What are you doing? We need to leave, now!” I didn’t respond as she pulled me by my arm. When we were out of the house, stumbling through the expanse of trees behind it, I stopped, pulling my arm away from her. “Nadia?!”

“He asked me to stop…” I muttered, my voice barely audible.

Yelena’s eyes narrowed as she assessed me. “What are you talking about?”

“He cried.” The lump in my throat only grew larger, the ache in my head worsened. “He asked me to stop.” I repeated.

“Yes, I was there.” She shrugged at me, glancing around in search of the words. “He’s not the first to cry, why is it distressing to you now?”

The red flickered across my eyes again, for the first time in years it didn’t bathe everything in its nefarious glow. I blinked, confused by the words I was speaking. “He begged me to spare him… and I-I couldn’t. I couldn’t stop.” I recalled the way my hands had moved, how fluid they were, how easy the movements had been, like breathing. He’d pleaded with me over and over again, I had heard him, but my hands kept moving, I hadn’t been in control. The air was coming faster than I could swallow it, the moment of clarity that engulfed me was paralyzing. She took ahold of my hands then, pulling me further into the trees.

“Nadia, that was the mission, why would you have stopped just because he asked you to. You completed the mission, it’s done.”

She looked at me right in the eyes and underneath the icy indifference I saw a hint of distress and something almost gentle in her gaze. Yelena squeezed my hands tightly, opening and closing her mouth before saying. “I don’t understand why you’re upset.”

And then the moment ended; the red returned just as quickly as it left, and then I didn’t understand either.

I turned the key to the motorcycle, silencing the engine, allowing the thumping of my heart to fill my ears instead. The building that sat before me was mostly unassuming, worn down with age and corroded by weather. When I slipped from the bike, I adjusted the leather gloves that covered my hands, electing to leave my helmet on as I approached the apartment complex. The hallways were sordid, even more so than the outside of the building. Little sound filled the space, save for the quiet hum of chatter and televisions filtering through the doors I passed. Yet, the sound of my footsteps was thunderous to my ears. I stopped before the door that was at the very end of the hallway, pausing momentarily to glance over my shoulder, ensuring there was no one loitering in the hall. When I found it empty, I pulled the helmet from my head, placing it silently by the door and moving to crouch beside it at eye level with the lock. I checked the hallway a final time before sliding the two metallic tools from my back pocket and slotting them into the door. With practiced precision, I manipulated the lock until I heard the telltale clicking sound.

“I know you are there.”

The first sound of her voice had my heart picking up all over again, a white-hot searing feeling filled my gut as I stared hard at the wooden door before me, as if I could see her on the other side.

“Yes. I know that you know.”

She scoffed. “So, why are you out there sneaking around.”

I pushed the door open to find the entryway completely empty. My movements were quick and nimble, I was silent on my feet; moving with the shadows as I slipped into the apartment. “Because I do not know who you will be.”

“Well, now I’m just hurt. Come on Nadia, I know you have a fancy new life now, but we used to be friends, remember?”

I swallowed heavily. “Of course, I know it is you, Yelena.” I slid the gun from the back of my jeans, holding it tightly between my hands. “What I don’t know, is which you it will be.” I slipped around the wall quickly, scanning the living room to find it also empty. Perhaps it was the way the air in the room shifted that gave her away or the aged floorboards beneath our feet. “Maybe it is you who does not remember me. You still think you can sneak up on me?” I turned swiftly, catching her by the wrist before she could strike and forcing her arm to slam back into the wall, so she’d lose her grip on the small push knife in her hand. She groaned in frustration as it clattered to the ground, stomping on my foot so that she could maneuver out of my hold. She punched me hard in the stomach causing me to double over but I was quick to retaliate, ducking under the next hit she threw and slamming the base of my gun into the side. Just before I cleared her, she caught my arm, pulling me back to grab me from behind and causing me to drop my gun in the scuffle. I immediately dropped my center of gravity and flipped her over my head, sending her tumbling through the glass door separating the kitchen from the living area. She was back in my space within a second, shoving me hard in the shoulders, I slapped her hands away, narrowing my eyes. “Stop it.” I snapped but she ignored my words.

In a split second, Yelena grabbed the back of my head and pulled it down, driving her knee up in a controlled motion toward my stomach. I twisted to the side, catching her knee before it connected, then swept my leg toward her standing foot in retaliation.

She hopped over the sweep, but that allowed me to close the gap and grab her wrist in an attempt to pull her into a wrist lock. She reacted instantly, rotated her wrist upward, to break my grip, then used her free hand to grasp my shoulder and slam me backward on top of the counter, creating a large dent in the cupboards and even snapping one of the doors off its hinges. I gritted my teeth to stave of the wince of pain and kicked her away from me, sliding down from the bench and trapping her arm when she attempted to strike me once more. Our movements were fluent, almost graceful, two forces who somehow still knew each other’s rhythm like a familiar dance, even after all this time.

For a moment, we struggled, locked in a grapple, both of us huffing with utter irritation. “Stop fucking fighting me!” I groaned. “Yelena.” I added, a little quieter, looking her right in the eyes. She looked the same, maybe a little older but still the way I remember. She hesitated for a moment, holding my gaze, her lips downturned. I searched her eyes for something, anything that held feeling. Anything that could show me she was actually Yelena and not an unfeeling soldier. It was in the way her eyebrows furrowed slightly and the green of her eyes darkened that I found my proof. There, in that very familiar gaze, the one that had haunted me for years, I saw pain, some anger that had always been there, and what I thought might have been betrayal. The thought made me very aware of the sickening feeling that had been blooming in my stomach the whole way here.

It was like that split second never even happened as she turned her head and bit me on the arm so hard that I was sure she’d drawn blood. The sting had me reeling back and gave her time to bring her free hand up into an open palm strike toward my face. I dodged smoothly, but the movement caused me to lose my grip. She immediately followed with a low, sweeping kick aimed at my shin. This time, she connected, and I staggered.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Yelena mocked, stepping back with a smug look. “Did that sting?”

I rolled my eyes. “Fuck you.”

She came at me again, this time using a combination of quick punches—one aimed at my torso, then a low kick at my leg, followed by an elbow strike toward my head. I blocked the punch with my forearm, sidestepped the kick, and brought both arms up to shield against the elbow strike. “You’re so fucking annoying.” She muttered.

“You’ve gotten shitter at this,” I taunted, irked by her continual attacks. I used her momentum against her, stepping into Yelena and grabbing her elbow to twist it around behind her back, forcing her to bend forward. She pushed herself to stand at full height before throwing her head backward to headbutt me, the force caused me to see nothing but white momentarily. The distraction was long enough for her to tackle me around the waist, knocking the wind out of me as my back hit the wall. She attempted to punch me again, but I caught her arm and mirrored the open palm strike she’d tried to hit me with before. Evading that attack cost her the balance she’d previously had, allowing me to throw her off of me.

Before I could move to my feet, she struck me, hard. I fell onto my backside, making a noise of irritation before swiftly moving my body and swinging my legs to wrap them around her. The chokehold I restrained her with felt like second nature. “I don’t want to fucking fight you, Yelena.”

“That’s too bad.” She managed to get out, swinging her arm around to lock her fingers around my ponytail and yank it forward, a sharp pain shooting through my scalp.

“What are you 12-years old?” She only pulled harder. “Let go!”

She pulled yet again. “You’ve become a pathetic, goody-two-shoes avenger and you really think I’d cede to you?”

I huffed again, reaching behind me to grasp the fabric of the curtain, pulling hard until it tore from the rod and then I wrapped it around her neck. I’d admit maybe that was childish of me, but she had started it. She grasped at the fabric, though one hand remained grasping my hair fervently. Somehow, she managed to slip from under my arm, twisting to face me and pull me in closer, wrapping the extra side of the curtain around my neck. I pulled the curtain tighter, restricting her airflow further and trying to distance myself but she had an unbreakable grip on it. “Перемирие?” Truce? I muttered when I became lightheaded. Another few moments and a little more tightening of the fabric had her hand finally yielding, followed by air filling my lungs once more, prompting me to immediately let go of the fabric and of her. Both of us fell to our backs beside each other, tired and breathing a little unevenly.

“Why’d you even send me that fucking cake if all you wanted was to beat the shit out of me?”

Yelena looked over at me then. “You really have no idea what’s been going on, do you?”

A new voice entering the room had my head whipping around. “Why am I not surprised that you two are already fighting?” In the doorway to the apartment, leaning casually against the doorframe was Natasha.

“What is going on?” I asked, sitting up and looking back over at the blonde woman next to me.

She stood with an exasperated sigh. “I wasn’t expecting either of you to actually show up. I thought you’d go to each other and sort this all out amongst yourselves.” Yelena spoke as she began to walk off down the hallway. I grabbed the gun I’d dropped earlier, stowing it in the back of my pants.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Natasha and I both followed her into the bedroom she entered. “I’m not here trying to be your friend, but you need to tell me what that is.” Nat held up a roll of glowing red vials.

“It’s a synthetic gas. The counteragent to chemical subjugation. The gas immunizes the brain’s neuropathways from external manipulation.”

My eyes narrowed at that. A counteragent to chemical conditioning? “Maybe in English next time?”

“Это противоядие от контроля над разумом.” It’s an antidote to mind control.

I swallowed heavily, considering what I’d read in the logbook that Zemo had given to me.

Natasha huffed. “Real mature.”

“Why don’t you guys take it to one of your super-scientist friends? They can explain it to you. Tony Stark, maybe?”

I snorted, moving past the two women to scan the clothes on the rack, hoping to find something to change into. “We’re not exactly sympatico right now, so…”

“Great. Perfect timing.” Yelena spoke sarcastically. “Where’s an Avenger when you need one?”

Natasha’s head whipped around at that. “I don’t wanna be here and I’m guessing Nadia doesn’t either. We’re on the run. You could’ve gotten us killed.”

“Well, what was I supposed to do? You��re the only superhero people that I know. That was the whole reason I sent it to you.” She looked at me then. “I only sent you the Tippaleipä because I thought it’d get your attention, not make you come here. I kept checking the news, expecting to see Captain America bringing down the Red Room.”

I immediately looked at Natasha when those words registered. It suddenly felt like my head was underwater, physically I was there but my mind was a million miles away.

“What? Taking down the Red Room? What are you talking about? It’s been gone for years. Dreykov’s dead. I killed him.”

Yelena left the room, heading back toward the kitchen. “You don’t actually believe that do you?” I trailed behind Natasha, hanging off of every word that was spoken.

“Dreykov’s dead. It took almost destroying the entire city just to get to him.”

We stopped at the island bench, and I picked up one of the glowing vials, investigating it cautiously. “If you’re so sure, then tell me what happened. Tell me exactly.” Yelena added.

“Clint Barton and I rigged bombs. Killing Dreykov was the final step in my defection to S.H.I.E.L.D.”

Yelena’s eyebrows rose. “Simple as that?”

“Yeah, sure, ‘simple.’ That’s what I’d call imploding a five-story building and then shooting it out with the Hungarian Special Forces. Took 10 days in hiding before we could even get out of Budapest.”

“And you checked the body? Confirmed the kill?” It was my voice that filled the room before I’d even had the chance to fully understand what I was asking.

Nat met my eyes then. “There was no body left to check.”

“You’re forgetting Dreykov’s daughter.”

Natasha’s face shifted and I opened my mouth to speak but before I could there were loud footsteps over the ceiling in the living room, followed by an explosion and the ceiling crumbling down to the floor. Without hesitation, I grabbed the red samples and slammed Yelena back against the wall to avoid the impending gunfire. Before we could move the front door was kicked in and two more lasers entered the apartment. The three of us slipped from the kitchen quickly, but not before Yelena could trigger the bombs that were evidently rigged throughout. The distraction allowed us to escape after a minor scuffle with the two widows that had entered through the front. Gunfire echoed around us as we ran down the corridors, there were multiple other Widows stationed around the building, all intent on taking us out.

“I’m really enjoying Budapest so far.” I retorted sarcastically. “Where are we trying to get to?”

“Motorbike, east side of the building,” Yelena called back to me.

I veered off toward a window, prompting the other two to follow me out onto the rooftops so we could cut across the building faster. From my peripheral vision I could see one of the Widows right on our tail. All three of us grabbed onto a thick pipe, pulling the bolt and kicking off the side of the roof to make it fall. The girl leaped from the roof to grab hold of the structure but caught me instead causing me to lose my grip and for both of us to fall. I heard Natasha shout my name, but I was already falling through the air. By some stroke of luck, I found purchase on the side of one of the buildings, my other arm flung out to catch the Widow mid-air. When I caught her wrist I tightened my grip on the building, attempting to help her up but she unsheathed a knife and swung toward me. As frantically as I tried to hold on, the momentum of her movement caused her to slip through my fingers.

“No!” I shouted, watching her fall toward the damp ground multiple stories beneath us. When I finally managed to climb down Natasha was close behind, stopping on the other side of the injured girl. I put both of my hands up as the widow glared at me. “I’m not going to hurt you. Just let me help.” The pulled beneath my feet rippled as I took a few steps closer. Pain was written across her face as she lifted her arm to aim at me, the ring of red surrounding her wrist lighting up. I braced to feel the shock of the Widow’s byte, but it never came.

“I don’t want to do this.” She cried, her arm beginning to falter.

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “You don’t have to do anything… What are you doing?”

Her arm turned inward, fist now moving toward her own face. “He’s making me.”

Before I could get another word out the shot echoed through my ears and her body fell limp against the ground. I froze in place, unable to think straight as I stared down at the young girl. I knelt down beside her; she looked younger than me. Half of her face was charred black from the force of the shock, her eyes were still open, gazing lifelessly at me.

“Believe me now?” Yelena’s voice barely registered in my ears as I continued staring down at the girl.

It was Natasha who spoke next. “How many others are there?”

“Enough.”

I let my fingertips move gently over the girl’s eyelids, pushing them closed and letting my hand linger for a moment. My stomach churned, my head spinning at the implications. It wasn’t over, it had never been over. Obolensky’s words echoed in my head then.

“The next batch of girls.”

He’d told me right to my face, smug about the fact that after all these years Dreykov was still here. The figure that plagued my nightmares still lurked in the darkness, stealing other girls’ lives just as he’d stolen mine. It had been right in front of me and yet I’d just let it go, chosen to believe it was over. How selfish I’d been to allow myself this blissful ignorance.

It wasn’t until Natasha’s hand pressed over my shoulder, her voice urging me to hurry up that I fully came to. My body became fluid again as I stood and followed her and Yelena out toward the bikes.

“I’ve got my own,” I muttered, quickly jumping on and skidding down the alley, both women hot on my tail, followed by a large war truck that pummeled through the other motorbike and anything else in its path.

I fell back behind Nat and Yelena, swerving to drive beside the widow who was trailing us on another bike. She revved her engine, tilting her head toward me momentarily before looking straight ahead. The wind whipped around me as I kicked out at her. She swerved to avoid me before turning hastily back toward me to ram me with the side of her bike. I used the proximity to my advantage, knocking her kickstand down before veering away quickly. Sparks flickered up from the road as the metal dragged along it, throwing off the bike’s balance and causing it to spin out and throw the girl from the seat onto the hood of a passing car that quickly halted. A glance over my shoulder reassured me that the girl was okay as she slowly stood back up. I could see Natasha signaling me from further up the road as her and Yelena approached a parked car.

“Seriously?” I asked as Yelena pulled a gun on the driver, prompting him to swiftly move out of the seat and away from us.

“You can’t just steal a guy’s car,” Natasha added.

Yelena shrugged. “So, you want me to chase him down and un-steal it?” she retorted as we climbed into the car, Nat in the driver’s seat. She put the car into gear swiftly, moving to reverse out of the awkward parking situation we were in. When she adjusted the rearview mirror, I saw another widow quickly approaching from behind. “Okay. Any time now, please.”

“Shut up,” Nat grunted, flooring it down the road to evade the gunfire raining down from the persistent war machine behind us.

I muttered a string of Russian curses, sliding down in the seat as the back window shattered. Yelena did the same in the passenger seat. “Okay, you got a plan, or shall I just stay duck-and-cover?”

“Yeah, my plan was to drive us away.”

“I’m not going to lie; that’s a shit plan.” I retorted, pulling the gun from the back of my jeans and moving to kneel on the seat, using the headrests for balance as I aimed toward the tires of the motorbike. The car swerved aggressively to the right causing me to slam into the door and fall back on the seat. Yelena threw her door open, causing it to be ripped off after colliding with a pole. The hunk of metal skidded down the road, swiftly taking out the final girl on the bike who glared after us. “Really? You couldn’t have let me handle that?” I groaned, sitting upright again.

“You’re welcome.” The blonde woman spoke, glaring over her shoulder at me before catching sight of something behind us. “Ah, shit, he’s back.” She nodded toward the tank once again encroaching on us. It destroyed every car on the road that stood between us and from the top rose a suited figure that pulled out a bow and glowing red arrow to aim at us.

“Put your seatbelts on,” Nat spoke firmly, no room for argument in her tone.

Yelena and I both complied but not without first taunting her about her motherly tone. The light-hearted atmosphere was short-lived however, as an explosion sounded from beneath us just before the car was thrown skyward, flipping over and then crashing back down to the earth. My body was thrown back and forth, whiplash slicing through my shoulders as I was slammed back into the seat again and again while the car ping-ponged between other vehicles and infrastructure. When the movement finally ceased my head was pounding and it took me several long moments to realize that I was upside down. I clicked the release on my seatbelt, falling to the ceiling that was covered in shattered glass. Natasha pulled me out through the broken window, both of us reaching back in to help a bleeding Yelena out. She immediately began trying to tie a tourniquet around her arm to tamp the blood flow, but Natasha stopped her. “Not yet, trust me.”

A glance back showed the masked man descending the stairs into the subway behind us. Without a second thought, he began running through the crowds of people, jumping up onto the center of the escalator and sliding down it. I pushed both women ahead of me down, causing the three of us to tumble off of the belt, narrowly avoiding the shield that went soaring through the air toward our heads. I helped Yelena up again and we both followed after Nat further into the train station. Climbing up into the air shaft that the red-headed woman opened for us. I watched as the man in the suit wandered toward his shield, before diverting courses, following the trail of Yelena’s blood and the handprint that had been left on top of the grate when we fell from the escalator. He ripped the metal grate up, jumping into the tunnel revealed by it.

Natasha glanced at Yelena briefly, asking her if she was okay.

“Yeah. Great plan. I love the part where I almost bled to death.” She responded, securing some fabric around her arm to stop the steady flow of blood.

“This is cozy,” I murmured, leaning back against the metal behind me.

“Barton and I spent two days hiding out up here.”

It was Yelena who responded to that, surveying the close quarters. “That must have been fun.”

I ignored that retort, staring out at the open tunnel when the suited man disappeared. “Who the hell is that guy?

“Dreykov’s special project. He can mimic anyone he’s ever seen. It’s like fighting a mirror. Dreykov only deploys him for top-priority missions.”

“This doesn’t make any sense,” Natasha said.

“Well, the truth rarely makes sense when you omit key details.”

I looked toward the redhead that Yelena was now glaring at. Feeling as though I was missing some crucial part of this argument. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“She didn’t say one word about Dreykov’s daughter,” Yelena spoke before addressing Natasha. “You killed her.”

“I had to. I needed her to lead me to Dreykov.” Natasha looked away then. “His daughter was collateral damage. I needed her to be sure.”

“And here you are, not so sure.”

A heavy sigh fell from Nat’s lips. “I needed out.”

That much I understood completely. The Red Room changes your perception of right and wrong. It all gets so muddy after a while that it seems like any means can be justified by any cause. I looked at the blonde woman who’d barely met my eyes since I’d first seen her again. She was my friend, had been since the beginning. Yet, in the end, when freedom was looking me dead in the eyes, I left her behind.

Any means.

The sun was setting by the time the three of us made it out of the city. The afternoon turned the sky a dusky orange color that was almost beautiful enough to distract from the ache in my muscles.

“So, the Red Room is still active… Where is it?” I looked at Yelena as I spoke.

She shrugged, holding open the door to the small convenience store we were standing in front of. “I have no idea. He moves location constantly. And every Widow is sedated on entry and exit for maximum security.”

“I’m just finding it hard to believe that he could stay off our radar,” Natasha added.

“Well, it’s not smart to attack an Avenger if you want to stay hidden. I mean, the clue is in the name. Dreykov kills either of you, one of the big ones comes to avenge you.”

That caused both Nat and I to take pause, glancing over at Yelena who scanned over the medicine shelf. “Wait, what are the big ones?” Nat asked.

“Well, I doubt the god from space has to take an ibuprofen after a fight.”

“It’s a good point.” I sighed, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge and taking the painkillers from her hand to read the packaging.

Her next question paralyzed me. “Where did you think I was all this time?”

It wasn’t that I hadn’t thought about it, in fact, that thought had plagued me nearly constantly when I first got out. It still lived in my mind now, though, as time went on it had quietened to a small voice in the back of my head. The fact was, as terrible and cold as it sounds, when I thought the Red Room was no longer operating, I believed that Yelena had been buried along with it. I’d hoped differently; hoped that she’d found a world outside of it. I wondered if that was my assumption because it made sense, or because it was what I’d needed to believe to go on knowing that I couldn’t get her out.

“I thought that you got out and were living a normal life,” Natasha answered before I was able to think of something to say.

“And you just never made contact again?”

Nat didn’t look at her. “Honestly, I thought you didn’t wanna see me.”

Yelena scoffed at that, even to me it sounded like a cop-out. “Bullshit. You just didn’t want your baby sister to tag along, whilst you saved the world with the cool kids.”

“You weren’t really my sister.” Natasha’s words were harsh, I knew they’d hurt Yelena, just like they were just self-preserving.

I put the ibuprofen on the counter with my water, handing the man behind the counter the cash to cover it.

“And the Avengers aren’t really your family.” That word had me cracking open the bottle and throwing back some painkillers in order to stave off the splitting headache that I could feel looming over my temples. “Why do you always do that thing? The thing you do when you’re fighting. The… Like, the…” Yelena crouched down with one leg stretched and flicked her hair back over her head theatrically. “This thing that you do when you whip your hair when you’re fighting with the arm and the hair. And you do, like, a fighting pose.” I swallowed down the laughter bubbling in my throat at her very accurate depiction of Natasha. “It’s a… It’s a fighting pose. You’re a total poser.”

“I’m not a poser.” The red-head argued.

“Oh, come on. I mean, they’re great poses, but it does look like you think everyone’s looking at you, like, all the time.”

Natasha did not look amused in the slightest. “All that time that I spent posing, I was trying to actually do something good to make up for all the pain and suffering that we caused. Trying to be more than just a trained killer.”

I grabbed a magazine from the rack and flashed it to the cashier before handing him another bill, figuring I was going to need something to keep busy with if the bickering was going to continue. Natasha’s words evidently struck a chord in Yelena, it was evident in the minuscule twitch of her expression, though maybe it was so recognizable because the words caused a twinge of pain in my own heart too.

“Well, then you were fooling yourself because pain and suffering is every day, and we are all still a trained killer.” She gestured at the three of us before continuing. “Except I’m not the one that’s on the cover of a magazine. I’m not the killer that little girls call their hero.” With that, she walked past us and out of the store.

Natasha looked at me, eyes narrowed as I bit back a grin. “What, you too?”

I put my hands up defensively. “You do kind of do that. The…” I flipped my hair back and she sighed exasperatedly at me.

“Oh, shut up.”

…

The three of us sat on a picnic bench, Natasha and Yelena sitting on opposite sides while I sat at the head of the table beside them. Tensions were a little less high now that the sun had long set and night was blanketing us. I swirled the beer in my bottle, glancing at Yelena over the rim.

“That counteragent gas, it was synthesized in secret by an older widow from Melina’s generation. I was on a mission to retrieve it, and she exposed me, and I killed the widow that freed me.”

“Did you have a choice?” I closed my eyes when I heard Natasha’s tone. She didn’t understand, not fully.

Yelena’s eyes narrowed. “What you experienced was psychological conditioning. I’m talking about chemically altering brain functions. They’re two completely different things. You’re fully conscious, but you don’t know which part is you. I’m still not sure.” She looked at me then, her face was blank yet still I felt the plea behind it. Have my back.

I swallowed heavily. “It was different after you left.” My eyes found Natasha’s. “Dreykov was paranoid, concerned that you were able to defect, to disobey. He took extra measures to make sure it wouldn’t happen again.”

Natasha was silenced by this. Looking down at her hands momentarily before nodding slowly. “Is that all there is left?” She nodded toward the bag that held the red vials.

Yelena hummed, nodding. “It’s the only thing that can stop Dreykov and his network of Widows. He takes more every day. Children who don’t have anyone to protect them. Just like us when we were small. Maybe one in 20 survives the training and becomes a Widow. The rest, he kills. To him, we are just things. Weapons with no face that he can just throw away. Because there is always more. And no one’s even looking for him, thanks to Natasha and Alexei.”

“Alexei?” I asked.

Natasha and Yelena chuckled dryly. “Dad.”

Movement in my peripheral vision caught my attention, I looked over to see a man drop a set of keys into a cabinet beside a black car. My eyes remained on him as my mind wandered. Stowed away in my pocket was the letter Pietro had written to me; I hadn’t made it past the first line. Couldn’t bring myself to read the rest of the words he’d had for me. Eventually, I excused myself from the conversation with Natasha and Yelena, needing a moment to myself. I leaned against the back wall of the garage, encapsulated by the inky blue-black on the night. The balmy wind whistled past me, a welcome relief as I tipped my head back and breathed deeply; a steadying breath.

I held the letter so tightly in my hands that it crinkled at the sides. My stomach churned as I stared down at it, unsure whether or not I wanted to read it. To be honest, I knew I wanted to, needed to; the truth was I wasn’t sure I was ready to hear his detestation of me all over again. The first time was more than enough. I felt nauseous at the thought. I could still picture the look on his face so clearly it was as though he was here now, disappointed in me all over again. I pressed a hand to my chest as if I could still feel the heat of Tony’s beam hitting me. With that thought I stowed the letter back in my pocket.

All eyes were on me as I rejoined the table, necking the rest of my beer and leaning back in my chair once more.

“Where are you guys gonna go?”

I shrugged, dragging my hand down my face.

Yelena was the first to answer her verbally. “I don’t know. I don’t really have anywhere to go back to, so I guess anywhere.”

Natasha gazed between the two of us, taking a sip from her drink and I immediately recognized that little sparkle in her eyes.

I shook my head. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what?” The redhead asked, feigning innocence.

Yelena laughed. “You’re going to give some big hero speech; I can feel it.”

“Speeches aren’t really my thing.” I bit back my smile, awaiting what I knew was coming. “It was more like an invitation.”

I sighed, sharing a look with Yelena as she responded. “To go to the Red Room and kill Dreykov?”

Nat nodded. “Yeah.”

“Even though the Red Room is impossible to find and Dreykov is too slippery to kill?”

“Yeah.”

I braced my arms over my knees, unwittingly leaning in. “That sounds like a shitload of work,” I spoke.

“Yup.” Yelena and Natasha both nodded now, the latter glancing at me again. “Could be fun, though.”

It was Yelena who responded. “Yup.”

“I saw where he put the keys.” Her eyes trailed over to me; one eyebrow rose.

“No. Do not look at me like that. You always do this; you start talking and you get me interested and then I can’t stop thinking about it. We just agreed that it is nearly impossible.” Neither woman before me so much as flinched. “Oh, for fucks sake, top drawer, green cabinet.”

Natasha and Yelena both cheered and clinked their bottles against mine as I huffed and leaned back in my seat.

This seemed like a monumentally crap idea. Although, realistically, I was on board from the moment I realized that the Red Room was still functioning.

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fountainpenguin · 10 months ago

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"No one lives forever~ Let's have a party; there's a full moon in the sky! It's the hour of the wolf and I don't wanna die..." (x)

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New Dog's Life chapter today! ~ 3rd Life series fan-season

Chapter 35 - “Incendiary (BigB, Skizz, Etho, Scott)”

❤️ Read on AO3

💛 Start from Chapter 1

💚 More Pixels Imperfect fics

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BigB visits a tipsy Scar. Skizz does paperwork. Etho sobs on the floor. Scott gets something to eat.

(First 1,000 words under the cut)

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T-rated descriptions of BigB discussing cuddles with Ren

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bigbst4tz2 - Moth (Ex-Illusioner)

Status: Increasingly concerned

City inspector, private investigator, and town crier

🖤 🧡 💚

This is getting intense. It's pinching at his hearts. I need a better observation post. Thank Beef for the card shop, though- and its rooftop bar. It's not exactly a night of snuggling and macaroni, but Pearl's whisper over comm gave him a good excuse to duck out. He likes Ren. But Ren's… a lot. It's charming to see him playing with the young fox hybrids. Jimmy's presence helped soak some energy too; it's easier, see, to handle Ren in small doses or with a bigger group. But it's nice to stretch. He needs time with his own thoughts now and then.

BigB lands in a fwump of wings. Not many people are up here tonight. Yeah, card games don't tend to be an instinct programmed into mob behavior. This place will be busier come new moon night. Three people sit at the barstools, talking to someone that BigB barely glanced at. They look heavily modded. No full moon pulls for them. Scar's here too. After what he glimpsed when Scar was on the floor with Scott, he'd be more surprised if he wasn't. Didn't Martyn crash through his roof? Yikes.

"Mind if I join you?" he asks over his shoulder. Scar looks up. He's drinking alone tonight. Again, don't blame him. Heavier than usual for him, isn't it? Raw binary code sparkles in his shot glass. Scar's eyes glint off-green, all dim and hazy. His soul traits haven't sprung up, though his form seems to be a little loose around the shoulders.

"Hello, BigB! No, not at all- pull up a seat if you'd like. What's the word on the streets these days?"

BigB's antennae twitch forward. He climbs on top of a short block stack at the edge of the roof- the corner spot where the fence post railing connects. Yeah, this will work. It's easier to sit on than the posts themselves and he gets a decent view of Headquarters. Scar's just two tables over, within prox chat distance. BigB gets himself situated, flapping out his wings. He cracks open the eyespots to soak in as much area as he can. "Well… Impulse and Tango got some farms approved. They're only authorized to run it for short periods of time and they're on trial to prove they can follow through with the ethics requirements, but we might get renewable iron rolling in pretty soon. Dude, that would be a game-changer."

"Oh, really?" Scar takes another sip of his drink. His vex wings flutter at his shoulders. BigB doesn't need to turn around to see that. "You know, I've always wondered why we have glowing iron golems in this dimension, but not glowing iron. It really makes you think. What a quad- quandary."

"Hmm… I guess because it's a programmed drop, not a literal part of their body."

"True!"

What a day. One of the longest ones he's experienced in a while, seeing as he had check-in work in the morning, a full two weeks of recording, and city inspection work when he went offline. BigB yawns, thrumming his wings. But Pearl asked him to keep an eye on Scott, and Scott's definitely up to something. He snuck out a window. This should be interesting.

"BigB?"

"What?"

"Do you think Grian would like me more if I was a worm?"

He rolls one of his eyespots, trying not to show expression otherwise. "I'm sure Grian likes you fine." If this is some jab at soulmates and Double Life, it's not one he's up for tonight. Though that thought does wiggle beneath his exoskeleton and bite at every heart.

I bet Ren would like me more if I were a giant world-eating worm.

Maybe he would've been into that in a way he wasn't into a soft and fluffy moth who loitered in the corners of his eyes, following instructions instead of bossing him around. And as he thinks that, he pinches his brow and rubs up and down. Ren checked every box when they were soulmates. He flirted and flounced and nuzzled while living at Box…

… but Ren's into things that BigB was never going to be able to give him, like fangs and drool and razor-sharp claws. He embraced the roleplay. Pretended there was something there. They were cuddling shirtless every night. Even carroting sometimes, foreheads pressed and mouths soft as they huffed against each other's necks. Hands sliding, fingers tracing spiracles they could both feel, even though they were only legitimate on BigB's skin. Arms wrapped around each other. Backs arched as they whispered and chased that little lip of lust and trust.

"Oh no," Scar says softly, mostly to his drink. "He might not recognize me if I'm a worm. Do you think Cub still would?" Cub loves me, Scar adds in his mind. BigB can hear that, like he can hear everything, because of the way Scar's throat constricts on individual words. It's subtle, but he can. Because BigB always listens, and he picks up everything.

He flicks an antenna, but otherwise ignores this, lost in his own thoughts and the cold hand resting on his face. It's almost not fair, you know… how everyone in Double Life got paired with someone they could learn to love. Maybe had loved in the past. And he and Ren had golden history, twirling around each other like a moth chasing flames in 3rd Life and Last Life too.

But loving Ren is a loser's game from the start, if you aren't someone like Martyn who was born with spiny wings and lashing tail and fangs and drool and claws. Ren's a performer and very good when guiding partners through a rush of carrots, but he was never going to fall in love with BigB the way BigB tried to fall in love with him.

It's not like he didn't try. He cuddled too. He responded with what felt like enthusiasm every time Ren pulled him in, licking his cheeks and running hands down his sides. Pulling him down on the bed and into his arms. Day after day, week after week, he mirrored the motions and fell in love. Even when he knew it wasn't real. When he lay his head on Ren's rising, falling chest and gazed up at his sleepy, bristle-covered face.

Ren's such a rugged and handsome man, honestly. He loves working in the dirt. Maybe it's a dog thing. Maybe he just likes plants and tiny creatures in the soil. He's got the muscles of someone who rolls huge boulders aside just to take a peek at ants and worms. Maybe a fungus.

And he's beautiful, and he loves so much, and it's all too much sometimes (because it isn't real). So with wings whispering at his back… BigB rested his cheek and curled his fingers, biting bare skin, and asked him for the truth.

"If I mod in some ears and fangs and maybe a tail, would that do something for you?"

[Full chapter on AO3 - Link at top]

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