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cno-inbminor · 3 years ago

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iterum vivere (childe/tartaglia)

a/n: wow, it’s been fucking forever. first genshin fic featuring childe/tartaglia!!! a very huge thank you to @suspensin for reading this over and being my rock and support, and i love her so fucking much. I couldn’t have finished this without her!

plot: reincarnation and modern/uni!au ft. afab reader!traveler with she/they pronouns x childe/tartaglia

-- in which meeting childe is a bit of a dangerous game of push and pull

wc: 12.1k; angst + fluff

warnings: DOES CONTAIN IN-GAME SPOILERS (1.5? 1.6? + story quest and idek) and NSFW MENTIONS (mdni to be safe). there’s no explicit smut but thoughts do run a bit wild here and there

EDIT: Altered ChiLumi version now posted on AO3 here!

“Haven’t we met before?”

The shine in your eyes does nothing to hide your curiosity, head even tilting a little in observation. He watches them scan his face for any recognizable features, but attempts to focus on the strange, taut string of déjà vu that pulls him toward you. In a moment of absentmindedness, he had heard a faint voice call out his name from your direction. Confusion overtook him as you weren’t looking at him, but something inside his brain said that it had to be from you. And so his feet redirected his path towards your figure in the student union building, as if on a mission.

“A fucking whale, Childe?”

Oh.

“I don’t think so…?” You trail off, curiosity now replaced by perplexed feelings. “Do we have a class together?”

I think I would’ve noticed you by now if you were.

“Ah, what’s your major?” Childe asks quickly to avoid listening to the little voice in his head.

“History and anthropology, you?”

“Economics, but I’ve taken a history course for core credits. Maybe it was then?”

“With Dr. Zhong?”

“Yes!” He snaps his fingers. Part of his brain decides to usefully function and scan his memories to see if he remembers your face or head of hair in the lecture hall then. “Last year? Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 to 11:20?”

“Actually, yeah,” you affirm in surprise. You think you would remember the relatively attractive ginger in your class, but honestly, it had all been such a blur and you were often pretty sleepy during class. Dr. Zhong didn’t quite appreciate it, but you made up for it with your exam and essay grades, as well as paying better attention in some of his other courses.

“Did you need me for anything?”

“I’d like for you to come visit and meet my family.”

He’s really not appreciating this extra voice speaking for him.

“Well…uh…” Childe stammers and looks away sheepishly, hand rubbing the back of his neck. He honestly had no reason for approaching you, and now, he just looks like a desperate idiot. Think quick, he tells himself, floundering for some shitty excuse.

“I wanted to, uh, take another history course as an elective and um, wanted to know if you had any recommendations?”

“Oh,” you blink. That’s a first. When he meets your gaze, the swirling shades of sapphire strike something deep within you. Flashes of events you can’t make out go by in the blink of an eye, but then you realize you’ve been staring for too long. Blood rushes to your cheeks because you don’t exactly want this guy to get the wrong idea from you, because how are you supposed to explain, “I’m sorry, but I think we have met before, but just a really, really long time ago, and we might’ve been more than just acquaintances because that’s what it feels like?”

“I think you’d like Teyvat Mythology,” your voice wavers on the verge of cracking. “Dr. Zhong might have a TA this time around, but Xiao’s a great teacher. Doesn’t have long, rambling anecdotes, but explains things well and gets straight to the point.”

“C-cool, I’ll look into it,” Childe replies and smiles brightly. “I’ll head out then,” jabbing a thumb over his shoulder, where he just realized he left a grouchy Scaramouche waiting by a vending machine, newly purchased Starbucks Tripleshot drink in hand. “Nice seeing you, (y/n).”

He scurries off before you both realize that you never told him your name.

“Who’s that?” Scaramouche asks, jutting his chin in your vague direction.

“Someone from my Intro to Liyuean History course last year,” Childe waves off. “Come on, let’s go before the line at the pasta bar gets too long.”

The next time you see Childe is by accident, traversing across an open field of grass that many students like to sit out on to relax with friends, sunbathe, hold events, or play casual team sports if room permits.

You had your earbuds in and were scrolling through social media when laughter rang above all other sound, causing your head to snap up and swivel around to find the source. And while it might’ve been strange to an outsider, your steps immediately slowed as you watched the man of your tiring, vivid dreams sprint in your direction, eyes pinned on a frisbee heading towards him.

He’s wearing a grey sports tank and basketball shorts, headband holding back his bangs as he makes a slight jump in the air to catch the plastic disc between his palms. His feet plant into the grass as he looks for someone to pass it to, and you watch (with embarrassment) the muscles in his throwing arm relax and tighten with practice, frisbee steadily soaring through the air in a beautiful arc towards a teammate. He then lightly jogs to get closer to his group, but then his back stiffens.

Before your instincts kick in for you to turn and bail, he looks over his shoulder and stares straight at your now stunned self.

The sole ruby earring that glints in the sunlight catches your attention, and you recall your dreams of terrifyingly dark, violet electric power, blades of water rushing toward you, and then the stomach-churning sensation of falling from great heights pours concrete into your veins—

Childe looks a little amused for having your sole focus, hand lifting up for a quick wave. And as you numbly return the greeting, your heart beats out, “Run from him.”

And so with the flight response pulsing and firing from your synapses, you abruptly speed walk away, almost breaking out into a sprint towards your dorm. You ignore his pointed, confused look, and pretend you don’t feel the two holes of imaginary fire searing into your back. It isn’t until you’re laying back in bed that you release a huge sigh of relief and pray to a deity you don’t believe in that those eyes of mirth will not haunt you tonight.

But of course, with a deity that doesn’t exist, the prayers go unanswered.

“Do you believe in any of the mythology you teach?” You ask Xiao about a few days later when you stop by his cubicle. Luckily, no one else is around for this conversation, and Xiao has always been kind enough to humor your thoughts. Granted, he might feel obligated because you had asked Dr. Zhong to be your advisor for your undergraduate Honors thesis, and Xiao was directed to be your receiver of some general questions and source of information if he wasn’t around.

A quick scan of your complexion tells Xiao everything he needs to know. Your eyes are overtaken with rumination and exhaustion, haziness clouding them as you seem to ponder over your own question. It’s not often that you ask him anything not related to your thesis or coursework.

“Perhaps there’s some sense and truth to the tales passed down,” he softly muses. “What makes you ask?”

You lift yourself to sit on the clean area next to his computer, legs slowly swaying back and forth. “It might sound crazy but...I’ve been having dreams lately. They feel too real, too natural to be anything that my mind would make up. I’ve never had the most creative imagination by any means, which is why there’s some comfort to me being a history major, but I can’t shake these.”

“So why ask me about the mythology?”

“...the Archons are there. I even dreamt that I met the Geo and Anemo Archons. And they controlled various elements, just like we were taught.”

You don’t notice that Xiao has ceased his rapid typing, fingers hovering over the keyboard before one hand removes his glasses from his face. He uses the other to rub his eyes and softly pinch the bridge of his nose before sliding the frames back on. Dark, golden amber eyes survey you as you grapple with the unfathomable possibilities of your nightly visions, at least until you shake your head in disbelief at yourself and lightly scoff.

“Who am I kidding?” You ask no one in particular. “Maybe I’ve been doing too much research and everything’s mixing together.”

“You’re ahead of schedule, if that provides any consolation.”

“Some.”

It takes Childe a grand total of one minutes and 53 seconds to sign up for Teyvat Mythology for the spring semester.

WInter in Liyue is only slightly miserable, being so close to the ocean. It’s chillier than usual on this dreary day, yet something compelled you to exit your dorm and shakily make your way to the campus coffee shop for a warm drink. Coffee, hot chocolate, you haven’t quite decided yet, but just as you let yourself bask in the warm building, familiar ginger hair and blue eyes wash away the comfort.

Or do they douse you in security?

They remind you of your recent dreams that now have shifted away from stress and violence to easygoing summer days by the oceanside, running barefoot in the sand while collecting beautifully patterned azure starconches. Sometimes, you thrust a hand towards an oversized four-leaf clover on a wooden stake with the power of wind and catch yourself in the air, soaring and looking around to find more of the little shells. Other nights, they consist of climbing steep cliffs, only to sit at the edge in the clouds with fatigue wracking through your system and marvel at the view before you.

Someone’s always with you though, ruby earring and maroon mask and cobalt blue gem hanging from the waist, sprinting with you, playfully tackling you down, pulling you up towards mountain peaks, laying their head on your shoulders, brushing their lips against your cheek--

You welcome the change of peace in those dreams, but only because they don’t leave you quite as tired the next day, as if you’d been avoiding an inescapable dark force.

Part of you wants the burning question of why this person, this man, in all his glory and brightness, affects you so fucking much when you barely even know the guy -- why looking at him sends your heart to lodge itself in your esophagus, why your lungs feel like they’re so close to being completely collapsed under the weight of his stare, why feeling like you’re trapped and caught between wanting to run towards yet away from him. It makes no sense, and you’re tired of trying to make sense of anything you don’t exactly want to remember from your dreams for some, once again, inexplicable reason.

But there’s no time to think as he quickly ambles towards you, your own feet shuffling forward to meet him in a warped reference of a distance that constitutes to “the middle” before you can stop yourself. Your shivering hasn’t quite stopped yet, and Childe seems to take notice of it.

“Pretty cold out there,” he softly states. It’s cute, the way you’re curling in on yourself to retain some warmth.

“Y-yeah, not sure why I decided I really needed something warm to drink right now,” you reply and avoid his gaze. He watches you peer over his shoulder to squint at the menu display hanging from the ceiling, seemingly contemplating on what you should get.

“How about I get yours today? My treat for your class recommendation last time.” Anything to keep you here longer. Childe doesn’t realize how much he’s missed you, which confuses him, and chooses to ignore the fact that he’d been camping himself at the study tables in the building where the history department is located in hopes of even just catching a quick glimpse of you.

“Oh, you don’t have to do that,” you immediately attempt to subvert his generous offer, hands shooting out from your jacket pockets and waving in rejection. “It was nothing.”

“Please?” Childe puts on his best puppy eyes before reaching for one of your wrists, gently tugging you to the register. “Just this once?”

You want so badly to squash the tiny flare of disappointment that erupts in your chest from the newly acquired knowledge that this was just a one time thing. Do econ majors hate to feel in debt? That they must be even with everyone, or would rather have people indebted to them than the other way around?

There’s no time to think when Childe gives the cashier his order before turning to you, and without wanting to waste anyone’s time, you rattle off your usual beverage. He’s quick in fishing out his student ID to spend some of his campus currency, shooting you a boyish grin when you pout at your half-opened wallet.

“Go take that table over there,” he says, pointing to one in the corner by some windows. “I’m gonna tell my friends to go on without me.”

“I didn’t mean to intrude or pull you away from them,” you slightly panic. The sooner you can leave, the better. Right? “You don’t need to sit with me, I was just gonna head back to my dorm.”

“I insist. Go ahead, I’ll be right there.”

Why your brain takes his orders over your own is a mystery in and of itself, because before you know it, you’re plopped down in one of the lounge seats and staring off into space, mind reeling over the last two minutes. You pretend you can’t hear the way Childe’s friends nudge his arm playfully with their shoulders, wiggling their eyebrows suggestively as Childe tries to get them to stop being nonsensical.

“You’re gonna scare them off,” he hisses at them, hands pushing at their backs so they could finally leave him to his devices.

“Not before you do!” One of them laughs and Childe groans at their antics. “All right, all right, we’ll go. They’re cute though, might steal them if you don’t make a move.”

The darkening of the aura surrounding Childe is too quick for them to fully process, not before he dampens any of their fleeting hopes with a, “Don’t even fucking think about it.”

But it disappears just as fast when his and your drinks are called out, and he gives them one last shove before retrieving your to-go cups. Childe directs all his focus towards the seat diagonally from yours as opposed to the one that’s straight across, and you’re sharply ripped away from whatever reverie you let yourself slip into.

“Thank you,” you murmur, hands cupping the drink and feeling the heat seep into your fingertips. “You really didn’t have to, it was nothing big.”

“Can you blame me for just trying to find an excuse to finally talk to you?” He asks without a skip and you can’t tell if the quickening of your heartbeat is from a looming sense of doom or excitement. Those eyes, the tiny swirls of the ocean, blue like those shells buried in the sand--

It takes three seconds too long for you to understand where he was going with in his words, and part of you feels unamused at his smooth talking. You’ve always guarded yourself against guys like Childe, devilishly handsome who know their way around language semantics, ready to pull you in and just as ready to push you away. That (possibly unfair) bias, coupled with everything else you’ve been feeling for him, sounded the alarms and set the walls up around your heart. Perhaps you need to stop wearing your heart on your sleeve, because Childe immediately retracts his forwardness.

“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I promise I’m not looking for anything in return and you don’t owe me anything, but I really did just...want to sit and talk and...get to know you?” Childe trails off a little towards the end. Your body loosens up and relaxes just a tiny bit, feeling bad for your snap judgment. Let the guy do something nice, don’t look into it too much, you tell yourself. It’s a coffee, not a five-course dinner.

You reach out a hand towards him, small smile across your lips, ready for his to join yours in a quick handshake. “I’m (y/n), senior history and anthropology double major. It’s nice to meet you.”

The pounding of your heart against your ribcage has nothing to do with the shimmering of his eyes, nothing to do with the fact that his hand fits with yours just right, and nothing to do with the fact that an eerily similar voice from your dreams whispers, “I love you.”

You learn a number of things about Tartaglia in the four hours, like his family members and their respective interests, which classes he did and didn’t enjoy taking, certain takes on Schnezhnayan politics, his own various hobbies, crazy accidents from the occasional college parties, and more. He’s a bit of an open book, probably telling you way more than any regular person would, and definitely more than anything you revealed during all this time. Everything you tell him seems surface level, nothing too deep. The walls are still there to protect you from the unexplainable, profound feelings his presence seems to elicit, and luckily, he doesn’t prod any further. Childe feels the resistance and respects it, which just adds more brownie points in your book, and you almost feel bad for having given so little in return.

“I wish we were taking Teyvat Myth together,” he sighs when walking you back to your dorm, hands stuffed in his pockets. His ruby earring catches the light from the sunset, the shade almost complimentary to the golden amber rays that streak across the sky. “Would’ve helped having a history major in there.”

“Is that all I am to you, an answer bank?” You jokingly ask, but he watches concerningly as you shoot your gaze to the ground, mindfully stepping over the cracks between concrete slabs.

“Of course not,” a gentle sincerity reaches you, giving you the confidence to make eye contact with him. “I’m sorry for making it sound like that, it wasn’t my intention. I really just meant it as a way of saying if the professor or TA ended up being a total bore, then well, having you would make it more fun.”

“I’m sure I’d bore you even more,” chuckling, speeding up to get away. You’re growing too comfortable in whatever atmosphere Childe has created, like an enclosed air bubble bobbing gently in the depths of the sea and letting the waves carry you both to whichever ends of the earth.

“Hey,” he interjects, hand reaching out to stop you with a soft yank of your wrist. There is no resisting force from you, feet stepping backward until he meets you eye to eye. It’s unfair in the way that he can render you motionless by standing just an inch from you, arms brushing with his head tilted closer to your own. “Seriously, I’m glad we did this today. Are you?”

No, because now I don’t know what to think, I don’t know who you are, I’m not any closer to figuring out why you terrify yet leave me so enamoured with you, I’m torn between punching and kissing you and--

“Yes,” you subconsciously answer, brain immediately short-circuiting to scold yourself. “I had fun.”

His grin, charming, devilish, is so so bright, bright enough to rival the Liyue sun that sits on the pier, on the edge of the ocean, bright enough to rival the love that your fraternal twin showers you with on a daily basis. You want time to stop right here because you’re almost sick of the voice settled deep within your heart that screams, “Don’t get comfortable, you must run from him!”

“Good. Let’s do this again?” And you nod, of course you do. Foolish you. “Don’t be a stranger!” He calls out as he turns on his heel and waves over his shoulder, hand raised in the air, and you’re suddenly transported to another scene, a less refined version of the Liyue Harbor, watching as the head of ginger hair with a red mask in a flashier attire of grey and maroon walks away from you and onto a roaring, magnificent ship; big, ivory sails only seen in books and museums. It’s the same gesture of “see you later”, and just before he turns, you blink, and you’re back to seeing your campus again.

But Childe does look back once, warm and content that you’re still standing there, watching over him, and he can’t help but think about when he can spend time with you again, because suddenly, it truly feels like there’s not enough of it anymore.

“Excuse me, what’s a Red Bull?”

The last thing, or person rather, you expect to see on the last day of finals for the fall semester, is a small boy who looks way too young to be here, tugging on the sleeve of your windbreaker. He’s at most eleven, ten maybe, but he has eerily similar characteristics, as well as an accent that doesn’t quite belong to most Liyue natives. Still gathering your bearings from your own perusing of the fridges that hold all the possible beverages a college student could consume, you kneel down until you’re at eye level with the child.

“Repeat that for me? Are you looking for a Red Bull, you say?”

“Yes!” He beams and holds out a student ID that most definitely doesn’t belong to him. “My brother asked me to grab him one because he was busy with something.”

Your eyes flit over to the top shelves where the aforementioned cans of caffeine are located, and definitely too high for someone of his height to reach. “I’ll grab one for you. Did he ask for a specific flavor?”

“Nope, he said regular. Thanks, you’re really nice! Do you know my brother?” He asks, waving the ID at you so you can get a better look at the name. That’s definitely a face you recognize, but the name leaves you confused.

“Yeah, um,” glance over again, “I know...Ajax…”

“He’s the best toy seller in the whole world!”

Somehow, it suits him much better than Childe or Tartaglia, and you’re not quite sure what toys have anything to do with the matter at hand. Speaking of hands, the little boy grabs yours in sheer delight. “Can you take me back to his room? I kinda forgot the directions he told me, and everything’s so big around here.”

“Sure, just let me buy something, too, and I’ll take you.”

“Okay!”

The cashier isn’t the least bit fazed by the little brunette at your side -- it’s always common for family members to come in around the end of semesters to pick up kids or visit, and being an open building with snacks and drinks and a stopping point of most tours, they’ve seen it all. You even let him pick out a bag of chips and a candy bar for himself for being so polite and not a complete menace, paying with your own campus currency.

Teucer, as you’ve learned in the last two minutes, likes to point out things and ask you questions. Luckily, you have answers to most of them and do your best to pad the time, enjoying the feeling of a tiny hand wrapped around three of your fingers. It’s sweet to any normal passerby, believing they’re witnessing an older sister doting on their little brother around the holidays, but to Childe, seeing the tender sweetness on your face as you nod along to whatever Teucer is rambling about to you, sets his heart aflame. He’s already constantly on the verge of wanting to hug and kiss you and never let go, but you haven’t made any indication that you could potentially like him back, and this is just torture.

“Look what they bought me!” Teucer shoves his rewards in Childe’s face as if he had extremely poor eyesight, and you can’t help but laugh a little as you set his Red Bull down on his desk, clutching your own preferred beverage while looking around his room. Finals must have gotten to him with the unusual lack of tidiness in the small space, some laundry strewn here and there, a couple boxes of eaten microwave dinners in the metal wire trash can, some textbooks left open and marked with more sticky notes than you’ve ever seen. You’d only been here once before to drop off some food that he desperately messaged you about, stuck doing a project that he just couldn’t step away from.

“Pretend you don’t see the mess,” Childe pleads, handing a kid tablet to his brother but holding on before Teucer can take it. “What do you say to our nice friend here for buying you these snacks?”

“Thank you!”

“It was nothing,” you shyly smile, ruffling his hair. “I enjoyed meeting you.”

“Wait, what’s your name again?”

“It’s (Y/n).”

“Okay, (y/n)! Wait…(y/n)..as in…”

Teucer trails off and gives a look to his brother, one that spells curiosity and trouble, before he grabs your hand and pulls you into a corner. Any movement Childe makes to leave his desk chair is immediately squashed by Teucer’s disapproval, and the older man is left to helplessly worry when you’re told to squat down so secrets can be whispered into your ear.

“He talks about you a lot whenever he calls home,” and you want to laugh at Tecuer’s attempt to sound as scandalous as possible. “All the time! I think he likes you, like, like like.”

Oh. Oh dear.

“What makes you say that?” You whisper back, indulging both yourself and him, yet also internally snickering at how troubled Childe looks.

“Sometimes, he video calls mama, but we’ll all sit around and talk, and whenever he’s talking about how he saw you or something, he just looks...happy. Really happy.”

The surprise on your face does nothing to settle Childe’s nerves and he’s about to start wringing his hands together. Whatever Teucer was telling you couldn’t be good, probably embarrassing, like the one time he unceremoniously fell on his ass while ice skating over a frozen lake, or when he tried fitting fifteen marshmallows in his mouth and nearly choked on them when their mother caught them in the act, or--

“I think he just thinks of me as a good friend,” you try to inform Teucer, not letting yourself get any semblance of hope. “Nothing more, nothing less.”

“If you say so,” Teucer pouts. But then he stops whispering and bounds over back to his brother, grabbing the tablet before plopping down on the half-made bed.

“Look, I was overconfident and thought I could execute a perfect single loop on the ice, but there was a rock and I lost balance and--”

“I wasn’t being told any stories about you falling on ice, but do tell me more,” you chuckle and take some joy in watching the blush spread across his cheeks. It’s easy to tell that he’s mentally berating himself for jumping to conclusions.

“Well, first off, thanks for buying him all that, and my drink, too,” he sighs. “I spoil him enough as it is.”

“I can see why it’s hard not to,” you smile knowingly. “So is it just him here? Where’s the rest of your family?”

“Funny story, he somehow managed to convince my parents to let him come here on his own as his first ever plane flight, so I had to pick him up yesterday from the airport. He’s flying back with me tomorrow.”

“And the RA?” You ask with an eyebrow raised.

“Ah...well...what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him? Speaking of, what was Teucer whispering to you about?”

There’s a pensiveness that overtakes you when you look at Teucer again, who’s happily playing some sort of game and completely oblivious to the rest of his surroundings. You won’t, can’t, take his words to heart, and will take them with a grain of salt at most.

“Nothing important. Although I did learn something new...Ajax?”

“Say my name -- fuck, say it, please--”

“I guess cat’s out of the bag,” he chuckles and looks away, absolutely unaware of the flare of heat that swirls in your stomach from the fleeting vision just now. “I came up with other nicknames as a kid to seem cooler, and they just stuck with me. Plus, the business world is full of people who just want something from you, or just a transactional relationship. I’d rather not give my real name to them, if you know what I mean.”

“That’s fair,” you nod and lean to sit on the edge of his desk. A thought pops into your head and you turn the words over in your head like a washing machine on the spin setting, teeth gnawing on the flesh of your bottom lip. If Teucer hadn’t been in the room, he would’ve been this close to kissing you.

“But if it’s worth anything,” your voice slowly, softly starts, cautious and wary of your thoughts. “I think...Ajax suits you best.”

Curse fate. Curse the legendary Archons. Curse karma and deities and spirits because all he wants to do right now is stand and tower over you, trap you between himself and his desk so you can’t escape, take those pretty lips between his until they’re bruised and swollen because of him, hear you call out his name in the throes of pleasure so he can finally replace his fantasies with tangible memories. The unnatural, magnetic pull that draws him to you is unbearable now -- he feels like he’ll lose the last tendrils of his sanity if he doesn’t do something.

You can’t stop him from slowly reaching out to grab one of your hands, lifting it towards him until he’s close enough for you to feel his breath ghost over your knuckles. It sends a shiver down your spine and blood is pounding in your ears because you can’t begin to fathom what he’s thinking about while doing this, even more so when his lips make contact with your skin and your breath hitches, stuck in your throat as he languidly peeks at you beneath his eyelashes with a heated gaze, then lowly confessing, “My name sounds best when you say it.”

Good heavens.

It’s difficult to swallow and keep your composure, especially when Teucer yells out in glee over, what you can assume, beating something in his game, and Childe drops your hand. But his dilated pupils don’t retract in the slightest, refusing to let you look away so that maybe, you can understand what he’s trying to convey to you. He’s taking the first step because he’s terrible and can’t contain his self-control anymore, pushing the ball into your court, ready for you to either play or exit into the sidelines.

When you do blink, there’s a vision of your naked body wrapped around another, limbs clinging desperately to a sturdy and panting frame. Lips, much like the ones that have seared themselves onto your knuckles, are at your neck and sucking, biting, before moving to your ear and laying filthy words into them that drive you closer to the edge. It all happens so fast that you feel you’ve just experienced whiplash, yet also feeling secondhand embarrassment at how lewd some of these thoughts have been.

You can’t stay here any longer.

“I-I have to go,” spills off your tongue before you can really think about it. The way the haze shatters in his eyes is heartbreaking in its own way, but there’s no time for you to explain. Your brain is in overdrive and eager to run, run, run. It detects danger on all fronts, but you muster out a, “H-have a good break, come find me next semester, mmk?”

And you’re out the door with inhuman speed. When the door clicks shut, only then does Teucer look up from his screen and frown at the lack of your presence. “Where’d they go?”

Chlide doesn’t seem to hear him, and Teucer has never seen his big brother look so sad and confused before.

He holds on to that last tendril of hope, because mark his words, he will find you come January.

After about a week at home, enjoying the festive time with his family and mildly unconcerned about next year’s courses because that was a problem for another day, Childe has his first, crazy, nonsensical dream.

At least, that’s what he tells himself when he snaps awake and his body aches with exhaustion. Not only are his joints in agony, he also feels like he’s sporting unforeseen bruises, which makes absolutely no sense because he hasn’t done anything that would warrant them, no matter how much he and his brothers do some rough-housing. His night of sleep was all consumed by flashes and scenes of weapon fighting, lucid enough to remember feeling his arms flex and wield bows and double-headed polearms and being cognizant of all the enemies??? surrounding him. They ranged from deranged looking monsters, floating beings with soulless masks, and large humans in electricity-padded armor, to behemoth machines in the sky that could leave you within an inch of your life thanks to a drill for a hand?!

But what’s even worse is that you seem to have managed a deal with Morpheus himself and infiltrated his dreams. You were there, too, sometimes fighting with him, sometimes against him, much to his dismay, and while it was nice, he just didn’t get it. Why the friendliness and hostility? Why was there an anger that overtook him when looking directly at you, parrying your blade and sending harmful arcs of water toward your figure?

Why did he relish the fear in your eyes when he darted towards you with electricity cracking through the air?

There’s an overwhelming sensation now to grab his phone to text you and apologize -- for what, he can’t fathom and there are no words to accurately convey what he’s thinking. “Hey, sorry for wanting to kill you in my dream :( “? Or “Sorry for being a friend but then stabbing you in the back, but then being nice to you again”?

And the only thing that really made sense was the serenity and contentment that would course through his veins as the two of you danced around on ivory sandy beaches, picking up shiny blue starconches and taking down more weird creatures; the breathlessness when you would fall back into the water and re-emerge to reconfirm his beliefs that you were one of the most beautiful humans he’d ever laid his eyes on; the love--

Hold the fuck up.

He doesn’t love you. He likes you a whole lot and he’s severely and deathly attracted to you, but he doesn’t love you. Your existence has only been made known to him for about two months, and he didn’t really start talking to you until three weeks in. So no matter how comfortable he feels with you, no matter how much he wishes that you were sleeping peacefully next to him so his nights wouldn’t feel so lonely, it was too early, too hasty, to say that he loves you.

“I’ve been wondering, why didn’t you bring them home?” His mother asks him out of nowhere during breakfast, all to add to this extremely tumultuous roller-coaster morning he’s been having. All he wants to do is eat his bowl of milk and cereal, then potentially go back to sleep before fulfilling his promise to go with his siblings to the nearby skating rink. It takes everything in him to not choke on his spoon of grains.

“Agreed, didn’t you mention they didn’t really have any family to go back to and that the move to Liyue was semi-permanent?” His father chimes in, laying a quick peck on his wife’s temple. “It’s never fun to spend the holidays alone.”

“They would’ve felt like they were intruding,” Childe replies quietly, stabbing his bowl a few times before scooping up another spoonful of cereal to his mouth. “I know we’re friends, but we haven’t known each other for that long, and maybe they’d be uncomfortable because that’s a lot honestly…”

“You don’t know until you try,” his mother sings and pats him on the shoulder. “We do have a guest room after all.”

“For them and their twin?”

“And quite a comfortable futon with enough blankets.”

Childe smiles fondly at his parents’ kindness. He can only imagine what this winter break would’ve been like now -- you and your twin floating around, trying to help out with certain chores, sitting by the fireplace and watching TV, huddled up with mugs of hot chocolate, playing board games with everyone and engaging in all the shenanigans…

Laughing. Loving. Grinning. Basking.

Handing over one of his hoodies to you as a sick way of torturing yet blessing himself for seeing how lovely you look in his clothes, standing silently in the doorway as you attempt to help out with mealtimes next to his mother, watching you run around in the backyard and dodging his siblings’ snowballs while lodging a few of your own -- how wonderful it all would be.

But he squashes it down as quickly as possible, because you escaped his grasp. You ran away from his advances temporarily and even though you gave him permission to seek you out come the spring semester, he worries that you might take it back. Something will wake up inside of you to keep him out of your heart and your life, and he’s not confident enough at this point to believe there’s a good chance you will come spend the holidays with him and his family next year.

“Maybe next year, ma,” he sends her a hesitant, yet somewhat broken purse of his lips that’s just the least bit curved. It tells her everything he’s thinking, and the quick patting of his cheek lets him know she understands.

Half an hour later, Childe finds himself curled up on his side under the sheets, phone in hand as he stares at a blinking cursor. It shouldn’t be so hard to send a text to convey his holiday greetings, because that’s all it is -- part of him is becoming desperate and aching for some interaction with you, even if it’s just a text sent back for conventional social pleasantries. He’ll take it for now, right?

Before he can totally chicken out, his thumbs quickly type a, “Happy Holidays, (y/n) :)”, and it’s a little embarrassing how quickly after he hits the ‘send’ button that he tosses it over his shoulder so he’s not directly looking at it anymore. His heartbeat is too quick and he prays for no phantom vibrations or phantom sound notifications to avoid any disappointment of thinking he got a reply. It was a harmless text, yet he’s treating it like he just got assigned on a mission to go and murder someone for the first time. What will he do if you never text him back? Does that mean you really don’t want to talk to him? Are you dead in a ditch somewhere? Did you change numbers and not tell him? Did your twin get all the details and make the executive decision to block his number? Will he never get a chance to talk to you again, even if it’s about something in the Teyvat Mythology class next semester? Will you--

His shoulder screams in protest when he quickly flips himself over at the text notification sound, hands shakily unlocking his phone and opening up your conversation again. His heart rate significantly decreases, reaching back to its normal pace, especially as he reads the little words on his screen.

“Happy Holidays, Ajax ^^”

There is hope.

“You’re thinking about him, aren’t you?”

You’re huddled under the comforter of your twin’s bed, phone just peeking above the edge as you stare at it with a brightness in your eyes. For the most part, you had been sulking there, apart from meals and going back to your own room to sleep, and mentally berating yourself for the way you reacted to Childe the week before.

“He just texted me to say happy holidays,” shrugging to put on a facade of indifference. It’s stupid that you’re trying to hide your feelings from your twin of all people, who could pick apart and identify your emotions in a heartbeat. A roll of his eyes lets you know that you haven’t fooled him at all.

“So you think that whatever comment he made, which was very suggestive and indicative of clearly non-platonic feelings, was just something...friendly? Remind me again how you came to that conclusion?”

“I don’t know what I was thinking!” You whine, looking around to see if there was anything you could toss at him. “It’s just, with everything, all the dreams and stupid gut feelings, I just -- I don’t know, okay?? I can’t tell you enough how much I wish I had just kissed his stupid face and see where it goes from there.”

“Okay, gross, but don’t beat yourself up. Though...I do have a good idea on how to maybe get a good reaction out of him. You wanna go to the New Years’ celebration at Xiangling’s?”

“I think she’d threaten me with a knife if I didn’t. She wanted to go shopping at some point, too.”

“I’ll drop the overprotective brother act for one night, okay? One night, just to let this happen, and for your peace of mind.”

He does a fair amount of conspiring with Xiangling, a friend they met one time at a restaurant a couple years ago, even tagging along on the shopping trip. Together, the three of you find yourself a dress that Xiangling swears would make any person drool over you, including Childe, because at the end of the day, he was a person with the possibility of being attracted to you.

You think it’s a bit silly, but honestly, what do you have to lose at this point?

At 11:57PM on New Years’ Eve, Childe is standing outside in the freezing cold with his family, arms lifting up bags of sparklers and fireworks. They’ve driven out closer to the wild like they do every year, and everybody excitedly gets lighters ready, making sure someone’s got a clock out there that tells the seconds. As the younger kids open up the packaging and argue over which one to set off first, Childe’s phone vibrates in his coat pocket.

It’s 11:58PM when he manages to fish the device out and thank himself for buying gloves that are touch-screen friendly, excited to see that there are two texts from you, the latter reading, “Happy New Year!”. It doesn’t matter that you’re a little early, but he’s mainly intrigued by the fact a photo came before it. In his mind, you’re probably curled up with your twin brother, hopefully a selfie because wow, he misses your face.

He gets something else instead, and he is so glad that it’s dark outside and the electric lamp they have is too far away from him to draw any attention.

You have your arm around your brother’s waist and another girl’s that he doesn’t recognize, but it’s a full frontal view of your outfit, one that hugs your curves beautifully and shows more cleavage than he’s ever seen from you, sophisticated and elegant, yet fun and leaving enough to the imagination. There’s a bright smile coming from all of you, and you look like you’re at someone’s house or apartment with plenty of other people milling around in the back, but they don’t matter, not when all he can focus on is you.

Gorgeous, breathtaking, arousing, mind blowing, and gods, he wishes he could teleport to Liyue at this moment, find you, and kiss you right at midnight. Fuck the fact that he doesn’t exactly believe in superstitions like, “Kissing your significant other at midnight means you’ll last forever!” but he’s willing to take the chance with it on this night and the ones after, if he’s allowed. He tries not to think too much about pinning you against the wall and letting the world dissolve -- wants to be the one with the privilege to drag down that zipper and feel his bare skin on yours, and --

As Teucer starts yelling there’s only a minute left, he instinctively locks his phone and shoves it away out of anyone’s view. The last thing he needs is his family teasing him about ogling at your photo for a straight 50 seconds, wide-eyed and pupils on the verge of dilating, the visible breath leaving his mouth just a smudge more dense and prominent than usual.

The only thing he can do to distract himself from popping a boner in front of his parents is to join in on the countdown, making sure all the fireworks are set up correctly and grabbing a sparkler for himself. He waves it around with Tonia and promises to fulfill her wishes of taking one of those pictures right as she draws a pattern in the air. Their excitement is palpable and addicting, and even though the larger fireworks set off a few seconds after midnight hits, the nostalgia fills his lungs with fond memories and future wishes that they only continue this tradition for as long as possible, and hopefully, with you at his side.

When it’s 12:04AM, you get a picture message back of Childe bundled up in a black paletot coat, matching beanie and all, a gloved hand holding a sparkler and lips curved upwards, with a caption that says, “Happy New Year’s! See you soon :)”. You show it to Xiangling and your brother, both taking it as a win in their books, although the former does tipsily protest that there should be a better indicator of Childe’s brain breaking at how amazing you look right now. Maybe she’s prophetic, because another text chimes in and the words set you aflame, as well as suggestive whoops into your ears.

It’s a simple, “You look incredible btw”.

If you didn’t want to properly savor this moment, you would’ve found the nearest shot of the strongest liquor and tossed it back with abandon. But you want to remember the warmth in your veins that wasn’t from the alcohol or the heating, the fluttering of your heartbeat, the teeth-baring grin that you couldn’t fight off, the constant re-reading of those four words -- because they’re so different from everything you had been feeling before with him, the need for protection, the need to escape. Instead, you’d like to be in his arms right now and see for yourself how he’d look at you in this moment, and if he would take any action.

You want him to. So, so bad.

Childe spends his last week at home hating the fact that you’re just sitting around somewhere in Liyue, doing whatever you’re doing, probably doing some light preparation for your last semester of classes, and he’s not there to take advantage of all this free time and hang out with you. When classes start, it’ll be busy and hectic. You still have your thesis to finish and revise, and while that won’t eat up all your time, it’s still some that he’d want to fill in with his presence if he could. He debates whether or not he should ask for your schedule and compare it with his, maybe set up meetings every other day or propose that they all eat one meal together every day. Childe’s not quite sure of what you plan to do after graduation, as it hasn’t come up in conversation yet, but either way, he’s determined to stay in contact and make things work out. Long distance isn’t ideal, but with technology now, he’ll take it.

He feels a little bad for how excited he probably looked to be leaving home, uncharacteristic for the most part. His older siblings have already gone back to their respective homes, and it’s mainly Teucer and Tonia that worry and tear up when he starts packing his belongings. Tonia finds it unfair that Teucer got to meet you first and the latter makes sure to rub it into everyone’s faces. It’s hard for Childe to sleep on the plane because he’s thrumming with excitement, yet somehow even more nervous than usual when the plane hits small bouts of turbulence, and he doesn’t seem to relax until he sets foot back on campus.

He’s here. It’s January, and you’re physically closer to him than ever in the last two weeks.

“Found you.”

On the first day of classes, you’re sitting alone with some salad greens in a bowl, poking your fork at some scraps while you watch something on your phone, earbuds in and back towards the entrance of the canteen. It would explain the unannounced entrance of the very person who’s been at the forefront of nearly every thought in the last 96 hours, his fingers gingerly removing an earbud to surprise you as best as possible, and you startle in your seat.

Your heart kicks into overdrive when he hands you back your earbud and pulls out the seat next to you, setting his own plate of food down as he plops down in his chair. But then he says nothing afterwards, instead choosing to send you a cheeky grin before digging in. You’re left to slowly phase out of your state of shock, stuck between either running away or frantically texting your twin to come and save you even though he was off on a date with Keqing.

It’s not that you weren’t elated at the fact that Childe had done exactly as you told him last month, you just weren’t...prepared? It’s a shitty excuse and a cop out -- you’re mainly just having trouble with racking your brain to find the right words. What are you supposed to say? What should you do? Is it socially acceptable to lean over and kiss him on the cheek because that’s what you’d like to impulsively do at this very second??

“So you did,” you settle and steal a roasted potato wedge from his plate. It’s his turn to be taken by surprise, but he gets over it much quicker than you do. In fact, he spears two wedges and drops them in your bowl, smiling at you as best as he can with a mouth full of food. You give them your thanks before the silence settles in again.

“Did you have a good break?” He asks before his next bite.

“I did. You?”

“It was nice. My parents said I should’ve brought you and your twin home to spend the holidays with us. Can’t say it didn’t cross my mind before finals.”

Holy shit, what? “We couldn’t intrude like that, but that’s really nice of you guys.”

“That’s okay, there’s plenty of chances to visit later.”

You tilt your head and furrow your eyebrows. “But we graduate this semester?”

Childe challenges you with one of his own eyebrows raised. “And? Are we never gonna see each other again?”

Honestly, the possibility had occurred to you. You aren’t entirely sure of Childe’s plans after graduation, and if that meant he was staying in Liyue or going back to Snezhnaya or even moving to Inazuma or Mondstat. While people preach on and on about how lasting friendships and relationships are often formed during college, you believe it’s more common to slowly drift apart as life gets busier. And if Childe moved away, or if you did, it’d be hard to consistently keep in touch with 10 hour workdays.

The thought saddens you, regardless. You like him so much and you’re glad that he was even in your life to begin with, because as unbelievable as it sounds, seeing him was almost akin to the feeling of coming home. Amidst all your nerves, your confusion, your spiraling thoughts, something deeply sated in your heart was a comfort that you found with very few people in your life whenever in his presence.

The thought of leaving and never looking back somehow doesn’t feel new -- it’s bittersweet, but the air in your lungs feels like it’s surrendered to something, like it was to be expected.

“You can’t just leave without telling me--”

“It was last minute! I had no choice!”

“You could’ve written up a message, anything--”

“Can you imagine the position you’d be in if the message got intercepted? I wouldn’t have been safe, she’d make you come after me--”

“As if you’d be any safer in Inazuma of all places! That’s the one place I can’t easily get to!”

“I can take care of myself, Childe, I don’t need you to protect me.”

“This isn’t about me protecting you, (y/n) and -- stop walking, will you?!”

“Then what is this about?” You spin on your wheel with eyes aflame. “Why are you so angry with me? It’s normal for me to disappear for weeks at a time, why was this any different?”

“Because you could’ve died!” He yells back in despair, chest heaving. Your silence is his cue to continue. “You could’ve died and I wouldn’t have known until much later. You could’ve died and all I’d ever think about were the things I never got to say to you, and how I wish I had treated every day with you like it was our last.”

It isn’t hard to tell that you’re stunned and at a complete loss for words. Childe often hides behind facades of charm and wit, and only when he is truly weak does he choose to be this vulnerable, baring his heart for you to see.

“I only have two nightmares in this world. One, my family being harmed in any way. Two, reading in a report or hearing from an agent that you’ve been captured and killed.”

“I like to think that we will.”

His hand reaches out to lay on top of yours, giving it a quick squeeze. “Well, let’s make the most of it this semester.”

Conversation afterwards is easy, filling each other in on holiday activities. Childe speaks extensively about several family traditions and you listen with rapt attention, basking in how fond he is of all of them. Even as you both bring your dishes to the return belt and leave, he immediately offers to drive you both somewhere to get boba, noticing your reluctance to part ways. But boba shops have to close, and you both have class tomorrow morning, and you’re both finding any excuse to keep talking, even if that means sitting outside your dorm building on a nearby bench.

You eventually bid each other good night’s and see you later’s, him refusing to walk away until the heavy door locks shut behind you after you swipe your student ID, and you looking over your shoulder to watch his figure disappear into the night.

True to his intentions, Childe makes great efforts to meet you at least once a day, and he can’t get enough. Each parting from you tugs and tugs at his heart, as if there’s a high possibility you’ll never want to see him again the next day, and he wouldn’t know what to do with himself. Your twin and Childe get along well for the most part, and he even meets Xiangling on one of her shifts at her regular restaurant, who sends you a salacious wink and an eyebrow wiggle over his shoulder that nearly causes you to burst from embarrassment.

February rolls over without a hitch, even if you’re a little disappointed that Childe didn’t make a move for Valentine’s Day. Granted, you two still spent time with each other and he’s so darn physically affectionate and he bought you a carnation from the event his dorm held, but you wish you had the guts to fess up and just kiss the man.

It’ll happen some day, you tell yourself. You have time before graduation.

Two days before the end of the Friday that would signal the start of Spring Break, you wake up in a cold sweat, mind reeling and head splitting, heart so so heavy, as a connection is made between your present and your dreams. Not long after, there are tears streaming silently down your face and into your open palms placed in your lap, and you sit in shock as everything comes back to you. Memories are such treasured burdens, you realize.

For the most part, you had gotten used to the dreams, choosing to take charge of what you know and feel now with Childe over succumbing to some strange neurological premonitions. Especially in your dreams when many people’s faces were blurred over and hazy, and the only things you could rely on were voices, touch, and other physical features. You thought that maybe your mind was just playing tricks by transposing Childe’s hair onto a body that was also strikingly similar to his, but for the first time last night, you could see each defining feature on his face as clear as day.

The sight of his figure arching gracefully over yours, the water arrows that appeared out of thin air, the back that protected you from some military men, the voice that said, “Hey girlie, hold still.”

And that was when you had snapped awake to your current state.

Past the initial shock and uncontrollable tears, you soon bent over as sobs wracked your chest, overwhelmed by all the emotions and the pain the memories brought you; losing your twin, finding him to only be left with even more questions after roaming for decades and decades, meeting all your loved ones throughout Mondstat and Liyue, fighting yet falling so hard for Childe, feeling the fear when facing his Foul Legacy form, hating him for Osial, loving him, breathing heavily as the tip of your blade was pointed at his neck and his own just centimeters from yours, tendrils of water inching closer and closer--

Everything makes sense now.

When you meet your twin for lunch at the cafeteria, you pay no mind to the fact that you’re in public and hug him harder than you ever have in years. He’s already a little alarmed that your eyes seem swollen and you look like finals came two months early, but when he asks what’s wrong, all he gets is a shake of your head and nothing more than, “Just a bad nightmare. I love you, y’know that?”

“I love you too?”

“Don’t sound so unsure, now let’s go and get in line before they run out of Jueyun Chili Chicken.”

Even when you meet Xiao later in the early evening to talk about your thesis, you find yourself holding back more tears just two minutes in, reminded of his past and his own life, and he’s moderately concerned, hesitantly handing you a tissue from the corner of his desk when a stray tear escapes. “Is everything okay?” He hesitantly asks, really hoping that he didn’t do anything to make you cry.

“No,” you almost wail and sniffle while dabbing at your eyes. “Sorry, it’s just been a really long day.”

Xiao’s inquisitive gaze softens, remembering how hard undergraduate life could be sometimes. Graduate school was a whole other level, but that shouldn’t discount your own personal difficulties. Plus, in all of the year and a half that he’s known you, you’ve never broken down like this before in front of him.

“You work really hard, Xiao,” you continue, and he’s not sure where this is coming from. “You’re always so helpful and willing to work with me and answer my stupid questions and like-- you practice self-care, right?”

Xiao nods as a white lie, but it seems to comfort you. Maybe too much because you pull him in for a quick and unexpected hug, and you both decide to reschedule this meeting for tomorrow.

As per usual, you wait for Childe to join you for dinner since you finished up earlier than expected. It gives you more time to think about everyone from Mondstat -- Kaeya, Diluc, Lisa, Jean, Amber...funny to think that some things never changed as you compared their past version to the ones you know now.

“Mora for your thoughts?”

There’s a peace that warms your heart when you hear Childe’s voice, one that forces you to smile at him as he sits down next to you. “Just thinking about old friends.”

“I have to admit, I’ll be a little jealous if it’s another guy taking up more space than me in that pretty brain of yours.”

What a flirt. This man isn’t good for your heart. “Who said you had any to begin with?”

He dramatically places a hand over his heart. “You wound me, (y/n). How will I ever recover?”

“You’re ridiculous,” you snicker. Childe reaches over to pinch your cheek and you bat at him in protest. Easily, he grabs one of your hands and simply pulls you towards the food lines, knowing that you’ll stop fighting back soon.

Part of it feels strange now to feel and see his hands with no leather gloves on.

“Childe,” you start halfway through your meal, continuing after he hums back in reply. “Do you believe in reincarnation?”

He freezes briefly, but recovers so quickly that if you hadn’t been watching so closely, you wouldn’t have noticed. “I think it’s neat, the idea of having past lives. Why do you ask?”

What he really wants to ask is if you’ve been having those dreams, too; if he’s starring in your nights like you have been in his.

“Just a thought, especially since you’re taking Teyvat Myth now, too.”

“Do you...do you think if there was a past life, that we knew each other?”

There’s something about the look of content on your face before you meet his gaze -- he thinks that you know more than you’re letting on but you’re holding back for some reason. He wants to know what’s going through your brain right now, why the fondness in your eyes sends a jolt through him like he’s been searching for it all his life, if you know anything about this magnetic pull between you two.

“I like to think that we knew each other well.”

Even though the first day of your returned memories was somewhat eventful, you couldn’t help but feel yourself wanting to pull back from Childe -- at least, until you can successfully compartmentalize which emotions belonged to you past self and which ones belonged to your current mindset. You didn’t quite agree with his duties and his affiliation with the Fatui back then, even if he had his reasons that did make sense, to some degree.

The killing, the threatening, so intent on stealing Rex Lapis’s Gnosis in the name of the Tsaritsa, summoning Osial as a mean to an end -- and you definitely can’t forget how stubborn he was in not listening to your protests, so caught up in his brain that you had betrayed him and sent you plummeting to a near-death experience despite his earlier promise of no intention of killing you specifically.

Everything had been toeing a faint, thin line with Childe then. Undeniable chemistry and tension, guarding yourself for yours and Paimon’s safety, slashing at Fatui agents, whispering out pleas and affirmations of “I’m yours” while riding him, sometimes having to sneak out in the mornings…

The only thing you don’t remember is how everything ends -- maybe it’ll come back to you eventually, but for now, you think you’re okay not knowing.

If Childe still doesn’t remember anything from back then, you think it’d be unfair to spend time with him in all your conflicting emotions, even when it’s spring break, where you have so much more hours in the day to be with each other than normal. Fun plans around Liyue had been made, like a two-day one-night trip to Yaoguang Shoal, and you’re this close to cancelling on him.

But he had been looking forward to it so much, even made most of the preparations for it. Who are you to rob that joy from him when it was you who couldn’t figure out your own shit? Are you self-destructing?

Perhaps.

Before you know it, you’re sitting in the passenger seat of his car, staring out the window at the scenery. Somehow, it pleased you to see that the nature of Liyue had been carefully preserved over the many centuries despite its development into the modern age. You get lost in picking apart the differences between then and now that you don’t notice how quiet you’ve fallen and Childe looks over worriedly when you show no reaction to your favorite songs playing on the stereo.

Even when he calls your name once, twice, nothing gives as you clearly have tuned everything out. So he leaves you be until there’s about half an hour left on the drive, unable to hold back and succumbing to reach over for your hand. You startle so strongly that he almost feels bad for having done it unannounced. But what’s even more disturbing is that this isn’t really the first time.

You’ve been talking to him less, often sitting quietly and staring off into another world that he can’t seem to reach. His texts are answered less frequently and with less wit and enthusiasm, so much so that he just appreciates you still show up to see him. Each time he asks if you’re okay, you always affirm that you are. He’s had a hard time believing you, but Childe believes you’ll tell him when you’re ready, surely.

It’s a little ironic yet fateful that Childe planned to bring you here, of all places. In the past, you had spent many days and nights running around in the sand with him, fighting slimes and hilichurls and collecting starconches for him. You remember laying on a large towel next to him as you both looked up into the sky, pointing out stars and constellations while sharing endless kisses away from prying, spying eyes.

“I’m sorry, I must’ve zoned out,” you sincerely apologize.

“It’s okay, I just wanna make sure you relax while we’re here. This is supposed to be a vacation.”

“You’re right,” you agree and squeeze his hand. “Let’s make the most of it before we become adults who are too busy to have fun like this again.”

And you do. Childe rented a small beach cabin (rich boys) closer to one end of the shoreline, just big enough with two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a small kitchen with a dining table. You help him bring in your bags and some groceries bought the night before, setting them down quickly so you can peer out the window again to take in the view. Childe picked a good time, too. Although it’d be a little chilly at night, the day was still warm and mainly overcast with clouds.

“What do you say we change into our swimsuits and head down to the water?”

“Sure.”

Childe hadn’t really been expecting for you to step out in a large, casual tee and gym shorts, one shoulder exposed. He might have been hoping to see a little more skin, but his mother didn’t raise a chauvinistic pervert for a son.

The light in your eyes as you both approach the water is everything he had been missing the last few days, your excitement and joy contagious. As soon as you place everything down on the sand, you kick off your flip flops and leave him behind to step into the water, giggling at feeling the waves crash over your ankles and bring sand between your toes. Childe approaches you from behind and starts smearing sunblock on the back of your neck, to which you just grin beautifully at him in thanks and he has to fight off the desire to kiss you right then and there.

You’re too caught up in embracing the ocean afterwards to feel the shrinking distance between you two, mistaking his warmth for the general spring air. It isn’t until he’s done with your shoulders that he hands you the bottle to leave you to do the rest of your body, and when you turn to thank him, he’s much closer than you remember. His eyes are gentle, holding your gaze and almost daring you to look away first.

But if there’s one thing you can place without a shred of doubt, it is the unmistakable look of love, because you had seen it many, many times before without knowing until later what it meant.

How so incredibly lucky you were to have Childe back in your life now, loving you all the same, and with no life-threatening barriers. Fate or the Archons have given you a second chance, and you’d be damned to take it for granted.

Childe welcomes your lips against his, wasting no time to bring you into his arms so you’re pressed against him as much as possible. He can’t care for the overt public display of affection because this is everything he’s wanted for months now, waiting patiently for you to give him permission to make you his. Your lips are incredibly soft and pliant against his as you first kiss him patiently, then applying more force and desperation to taste more of him. He mirrors you, one hand cradling the back of your head and the other on your neck with a thumb extended to your jawline, teeth moving to nip at your bottom lip. It’s dangerous, the way you smile against his lips, and when he sinks his teeth in deeper before pulling back, your quiet mewl nearly drives him over the edge.

But you’re in public, and this was an amazing first kiss. You two have a beach to enjoy and a fun night planned, and now that he doesn’t have to hold back on his affections, it’ll be even better.

His lips part from yours regretfully, his eyes languidly opening to meet yours. Out of the corner of his eye, he spots a blue starconch in the sand and freezes.

It’s not that he’s never seen one before, but something clicks. You. The shore. Starconches. Starry nights. His dreams. Monsters. Gods. Fighting. So much fighting. Training. His family. Dragons. You. Falling. You falling. You fighting him. Yelling. Kissing. Loving. Chasing. Him chasing you before you disappear at a teleport waypoint that somehow you only can operate. The abyss. Your twin.

Oh, Archons.

“ -ou okay, Ajax? Ajax?”

He snaps to look at you again. How does he go about this? How does he ask?

“(Y/n)...have you ever heard of the Fatui Harbingers?”

He has to admit that it’s a bit amazing to be able to identify all the emotions that cross your complexion, from curiosity to realization to conflicted. You’re actively trying to piece everything together without revealing too much on the off-chance that you’re wrong, that Childe hasn’t regained his memories and is just asking about something from class randomly and completely out of the blue.

Wait.

“You haven’t reached that material yet in class,” you whisper, heart in your throat at the realization. Could it really be…

“I was once Tartaglia, eleventh Harbinger of the Fatui, who possessed a Delusion and used my Foul Legacy Transformation with you several times,” he murmurs back, tucking a stray tendril behind your ear. “Is it too late to apologize again for summoning an ancient god and letting you fall about five floors with no warning?”

He should’ve been prepared for you wrapping your arms around his neck, pulling him in for a tight embrace. “No, never, but I spent weeks after kicking your ass so you’ve been long forgiven.”

Childe burrows his face into your neck, breathing in your scent and basking in this moment. There was so much to talk about, but you two arguably had more time in the world than ever with nothing holding you back. There was no impending war looming over, no one on the run, no opposing forces. His silent wish for a different life with you seems to have been answered finally. If running into you had been the event to set everything in motion, he only wishes he’d done so earlier.

All that matters now is you’re here together in this plane of existence, given a chance to love again, and experience everything you couldn't before.

As written in the stars, take my soul for it is forever yours.

fin

#childe x reader #tartaglia x reader #genshin impact x reader #genshin scenarios #genshin impact scenarios #genshin imagines #childe #tartaglia #childe angst #genshin impact #genshin angst #genshin impact angst #this fic maybe took two years off my life

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hogwartsfirebolt · 4 years ago

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Hello everyone! I’m back for my (omg time flies) third yearly drarry rec list, in which I share with you my 30 favorite drarry fics I read in the year, divided in three parts. What a year 2020 was. It was challenging, scary and confusing, and it was also an amazing reading year for me, I read so, so much more than I ever had before, and I’m really excited to share these masterpieces with you! The banner art is by @dragontamerdame who is one of my favorite artists and was kind enough to let me use this beautiful piece, which you can (and totally should) reblog right here. Now, with nothing else to add and in no particular order, here’s my

FAVORITE FICS I READ IN 2020 PART ONE

1. Who we are in the shadows - @quicksilvermaid - 100k - E - What happens when you’re forced to become the very thing you despise? Ex-Auror Harry Potter, tossed out of the Ministry for something he had no control over, has been looking for a way back to his former life. When he comes across Draco Malfoy in the criminal underbelly of Wizarding London and in need of protection, Harry figures bringing him in to face the Ministry's justice is his ticket back to everything he's lost. But nothing is exactly as it seems. Not even Harry himself. And as he gets drawn further and further into Malfoy's world of honour and deception he finds himself questioning everything he thought he knew—about his childhood nemesis, the Ministry job he misses so much, and most of all, about himself. What happens when you’re forced to see that you were wrong?

THIS FIC!!! It was the first one I read in 2020, and it immediately became my favorite fic of the entire year, and one of my favorites of all time. I have since read it two more times, the entire 100k of it. There are absolutely no words to describe how amazing it is, how much it floored me to read their characterizations, their jobs and the roads life took them on to end up where they end up, the connection between them in a time when they don’t even know how to relate to anyone, their sorrow and struggles which, despite being so rooted in the magical world, are painfully human, just... wow. It’s a masterpiece. It changed the way I view their characters, forever, and I suspect I will read it many, many more times in the years to come. It’s that kind of story. If for whatever reason you haven’t read it, this is your sign to take that chance and embark on this amazing journey.

2. Every Kingdom - @thistle-verse - 7k - E - Every kingdom needs a prince. Every prince needs a good and useful knight. Draco and Harry play their parts and renegotiate some borders while they’re at it.

So, so lovely. Even though I don’t read them very often, alternate universes fascinate me so much, and I am in awe of the author for being able to pack so, so much story, so neatly into 7k words. This features a princely, lonesome Draco, a charming, golden Harry, and a blossoming love that could change everything. It’s beautiful, and I recommend it deeply.

3. The Bucket List - GallaPlacidia - 32k - Draco will die in six months if he can't get Harry Potter to fall in love with him. Since that's not going to happen, he might as well spend his last days working through his Bucket List. Tap-dancing lessons? Rock climbing? Poetry-writing? Threesomes? Cocaine? Getting to know his adorable cousin, Teddy Lupin? Draco will try them all! Feat. Cheerily pessimistic Draco, devoted bitch queen Pansy Parkinson, and a Harry who can't help but notice that something seems DIFFERENT about Draco, these days.

I’m positive that many, many of us got acquainted with GallaPlacidia’s writing this year, and I, too, fell in love with it. This story aches in the most beautiful of ways, the humor happens to be somehow light in such a difficult circumstance that it ends up hurting when you laugh, it hurts when everything is right because it’s also wrong, it aches when it’s supposed to be a happy moment and feels tender and sweet when it’s not. I can’t even imagine the challenge of writing this kind of story, and they pulled it off beautifully. It’s a lovely story, one you will take with you long after you finish it, and, personally, I think it’s a great introduction to the author’s writing.

4. halcyon days - @the-starryknight - 1.3k - T - Sleepy mornings caught while the sun rises are reserved for silly word games and soft touches and feelings.

Oh my god, the amount of tenderness in such a low wordcount made me weak in the knees. I almost couldn’t take it. Being able to convey such a deep emotional connection in a short story seems like such a daunting task, and the author makes it seem almost effortless. I guarantee that this will make you bring your hands to your chest and sigh with how lovely it is. Reading it will be the best ten minutes of your day.

5. Clouds That Veil the Midnight Moon - @drarrytrash - 37k - E - According to Harry’s personal narrative regarding the incident, he’d hooked up with Draco Malfoy for purely self-destructive reasons, or out of convenience, or by some unlucky accident. Looking at him, sprawled in the moonlight, Harry is devastated to recall that he’d hooked up with Draco Malfoy because he’s hot. Draco is a secret werewolf and Harry is doing his best and they've got criminals to catch, darn it.

Reading this, I found myself laughing out loud, nodding profusely with how freaking spot on the characterizations are. The dialogue is amazing, so hilarious and real and Harry’s inner monologue is so, so him. I love everything about this story. I have a soft spot for werewolf fic, and this one hit everything I love about it, the case is interesting and engaging, the incidental characters, the OCs, Ron and Hermione, everyone and everything is absolutely perfect and I had an absolute blast reading it. You HAVE to read this and see for yourself what I’m talking about.

6. Sex Ed for Aurors - curiouslyfic - 8k - M - Some things, you need to learn on the job.

Oh my god this is so freaking good. The premise is, basically, that Harry is accidentally doused with a lust potion while in the vicinity of Draco, and suddenly wants him more than anything. I loved this take on that trope, we’re in Harry’s head, and it’s absolutely hilarious and endearing to experience the near childish glee he feels whenever Draco looks his way, when he smiles, when he feels he’s made him happy, meanwhile Draco and Ron are horrified and doing whatever they can to correct it. This is so funny and such a good time, I can’t recommend it enough! While you’re at it, you should definitely read megyal’s remix of this, which is also a blast.

7. plasticine porters with looking-glass ties - @bonesliketambourines - 15K - E - Lately, Harry thinks things don’t seem the same between him and Draco. His head is in the clouds when he thinks about what their relationship is now, and where it might be headed—he’s happy with their friendship, but he wants something else. A potions accident over a lunchtime visit to Draco’s lab (what does he get up to in there, anyway?) changes things, though, and accelerates their relationship faster than either of them had ever expected. How are they going to get through this new development together?

Atmospheric, beautifully-written and delicious. Their relationship is tender, just on the edge of something more, when they’re forced to quarantine together and face the effects of a potion that makes them see and feel things differently, which makes for the most intense, visual, gorgeous sex scene I think I’ve ever read. It’s just absolutely phenomenal.

8. i wake up falling - warmfoothills - 9k - M - Draco’s always leaving, one way or another. Harry’s usually 240 thousand miles too late.

In trying to come up with a way to summarize this story, I’m feeling the overwhelming urge to cry again, just like I did when I read it. It’s just so, so, beautiful, every single word of it aches in the best way, the longing feels deeply authentic and just, the setting and the jobs and everything is so unique and gorgeous. Every single work by this author is beyond beautiful, but especially this one is incredibly close to my heart and I think everyone should read it. It’s a gem.

9. In Every Universe - @skeptiquewrites - 27k - M - They sent Professor Harry Potter to search for Unspeakable Draco Malfoy. Draco has stolen a Firebird, an experimental magical device from the Department of Mysteries that lets you enter parallel universes as yourself. As Harry traverses from universe to universe, he begins to think Draco might be the one searching for him. A story about whether knowing what's possible makes it possible.

Stories where the characters find themselves somehow hopping from one reality to another are always so, so fascinating to me, and this one is incredibly creative and well-written, so entertaining all around. The mystery of it kept me on my toes, and every single reality was a joy to read. 10/10

10. Life goes not backward - @shealwaysreads - 8k - T - Harry still isn’t used to gifts, but this one is different. A story of coming home, finding safe ground, and the wild courage of putting down roots. Leaving one life behind isn’t always a sacrifice, and sometimes the greatest good comes from embracing the people you love.

My god, there are not enough words to describe how much this story means to me, how beautiful it is, how every single time I’ve read it, I’ve cried. Bella has undoubtedly become one of my absolute favorite writers in fandom. She has such a way with words, there is not one of her stories that hasn’t touched me, that doesn’t feel like an actual, full-length novel no matter the word count. I read so many of them this year, so many of the masterpieces she’s gifted us, but this one especially is so tender, so dear, that I ended up choosing it as my favorite of hers this year. Harry’s charactertization, the unbelievable warmth of their relationship, absolutely everything about this is gorgeous. Go read it, right now, and then binge all her other works!! You won’t regret it.

---------------------------------

Each of these fics is incredibly close to my heart and I enjoyed them immensely. In the midst of everything changing, I really found comfort and solace in the amazing works of the people of this fandom. I hope they give you the same amount of warmth and comfort they gave me, and I’m ALWAYS here to gush about any of them ❤️ Happy New Year!

#drarry #drarry fic #drarry fanfic #drarry fic rec #2020rec #ficrec #draco malfoy #harry potter #drarry rec list

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fabelyn · 2 years ago

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Dislyte: opinion after 7 days of launch

Now it’s been a week since the game has been officially out, In case someone is wondering if they should download or not, here are my takes:

PROS:

-Interesting Style and High Quality

-Has the possibility to farm while playing another node. While there’s no skip function, it does give you the possibility of doing multi-runs in the background. Basically, you start a multirun in whatever node you’re farming, and then you can minimize that multi-run and go do something else in the game, even starting another node, while it runs in the background. It’s not as good as a skip, but better than what I’ve seen most games

-Many different game modes to play with right off the bat. From the usual story mode, to arena, to tower, to a DJ thing, labyrinth etc (if you've played their other game AFK Arena you'll recognize most nodes)

-The Story Skip. When you choose to skip story, it’ll show you a text summary of what you’re skipping, so you can still know the gist of the plot. However, the fact that I discovered this means the story wasn't engaging and I chose to skip

-Auto AI is good. So far it seems I can trust the AI to auto most of the content without making stupid decisions. It knows to use special skills first and my healers heal, for example, both of which are things I had major trouble with in another recently launched game.

-Has Pity that carries over banners. It’s way too high and I almost considered it a Con, but it exists and carries over which is better than most.

CONS:

-So stingy with rewards it doesn’t feel like a Global Launch. I feel like I started this game at a random time and not just as it launched. Rewards are weak and diluted, they won’t even let you have 1 ten pull unless you play 5 days straight. Really stingy despite its high pity.

-It also feels really stingy with stamina. Usually as a new player, there’s a honeymoon period where I’m getting so much stamina by levelling up, or so many stamina potions rewards that it takes a while before I feel like I have no stamina. Not so here. They’re so stingy with it that even increasing your player level will only give you some stamina, instead of refilling the whole gauge. I constantly check the chat (because of shard dungeon, another point) and most people are literally suggesting spending gems freely and constantly on stamina, instead of saving up for rolls. In the game’s defense, however, if you do lose on a game mode, it will refund you 99% of the stamina used to enter it. Might be a minor thing, but another recently launched gacha didn’t do a refund when you lost, and I’ve come to appreciate this.

-Fodder system for levelling up. Your characters have a level cap depending on their star level (lvl 30 for 3stars, 40 for 4stars etc). To break through that cap you need to feed them a certain number of same star fodder so they breakthrough to a higher star rarity, adding an extra level of chore and grind to basic character leveling.

-Gear is not only RNG, but also has failure chance. Stats and Substats are the usual RNG annoyance. As if that weren’t bad enough, they also have a high chance of failing when upgrading.

-There’s a shard system…with RNG and an extra annoying rule. Certain units can be acquired by getting a certain number of shards through a shard dungeon. Problem is, this shard dungeon’s appearance for you is luck based; only maybe happening if you’re running a specific game mode, and which shard becomes available is also RNG. Now, other people can invite a limited number of people to come farm the dungeons that appeared for them, which would be fine except… the way to know if there’s an invite to a shard dungeon is by camping on the global chat. So you know, having to read through random chat speak “friend me!” “join my guild!” “I like pizza” etcetc constantly in the hopes a shard dungeon will appear and that it is THE shard dungeon you want. Oh, and there’s an entrance limit, so if you take even 10 seconds to click on some of the most wanted shard dungeon notices when they come… you may be locked out.

-Apparently a future merger with beta server. Right now the launch opened a new server, but the 8 months of beta server weren't wiped, and it seems that they will eventually merge both. meaning after a while you'll find yourself competing with people that had 8 months head start even if you started at launch, which is disheartening.

#Dislyte #lilith games

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butwhyduh · 4 years ago

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The maid

Part 2

Warning: attempted mugging, guns, briefly blood.

You might have worked in one of the nicest homes in all of Gotham, but your own place was much more modest. It was on the edge of the bad areas of Gotham but not quite labeled as unsafe. But then again, it’s Gotham. Is there a safe place here?

A second story walk up that had a fairly nice view of the park. If you stood in the left corner and stared just right. Okay, it was just fine but you were proud of your first roommate-free place. The Waynes paid well.

You had just gone to the grocery store and was queen of only-one-trip. So your arms were currently full. They might have been a little too full as you tried to pull out your key to the front door. You leaned a bag with your hip against the brownstone and tried to yank your key ring from your pocket. You had a distinct feeling that you weren’t alone. This made your hands shake a little and you tried harder to get at your key.

You weren’t alone.

There was approximately 2 people watching you. A mugger on the corner. His last 40 ounce drink of malt liquor was starting to wear off and he had a pounding headache from cursing out the mother of his children. How dare she try to force the brats on him on a Saturday night? He needed a few bucks because he was out of beer and he needed a cigarette. You looked like a perfect target.

The second was someone who could be even more dangerous. In black tactical pants, a black shirt with a red bat symbol, brown leather jacket, and a shiny red helmet, the Red Hood could easily be described as intimidating. And he was watching you. He’d been watching you for over a week.

Famous on the news, he had taken over part of Gotham’s underground and shook up other parts. He was known for shooting anyone who attacked children, women, or in any sexual way. If they were lucky, it was just in the kneecap. Currently Batman’s number one who-the-fuck-is-that-guy and a high priority. Was he a vigilante or a villain? All Batman knew was that the Red Hood was shaking everything up and targeting his Robin.

If it wasn’t for the bulletproof fabric that Alfred had just added to Robin’s costume, Tim Drake would be 6 feet under. As it was, he was out of commission for 2 weeks healing bruised ribs.

Red Hood watched you passively. Were you going to be fast enough to get inside before the mugger? He’d hate to have to save you. He would. You were a valuable commodity to him. You were the new maid for the Wayne Manor. If there was any way in, it was through you. The most likely weak link in security.

You dropped your keys and cursed quietly. It wasn’t quiet enough as it seemed to call the mugger to you. He started walking towards you. A box cutter in his pocket was pulled out and he yelled at you to stop. You made a sound that was somewhere between a yelp and a whimper and bent quickly to scoop up your keys. Items from your bag fell out in your haste.

Red Hood pulled out one of his backup guns. It was loaded with rubber bullets, one of the few non-lethal weapons he had. The man was almost on top of you before Jason pulled the trigger. The thug fell before he even touched you. You shrieked and looked around. You saw a flash of red on a roof top before it left. You hurried to open your door. Once in your apartment, you locked the door and put a chair in front of the door.

Over the next week, you had a really difficult time staying on task as you were barely sleeping. But seeing a certain member of the household had you hiding a smile as you worked.

You really did try to avoid Mr Timothy Drake-Wayne but he seemed to always walk down the hall that you were working in. You had long since laundered and returned his shirt. He would flash you the tiniest of smiles before continuing on his way. He was 3 years younger than you but somehow seemed worlds older.

One day you were helping Alfred cut up fruit in the kitchen. It was a calming task in the quiet room. A big plate of apples and oranges was quickly dispatched into slices.

“Hi,” Tim said suddenly beside you causing you to look up mid slice and jump.

“Shit,” you said holding your finger. You grabbed a paper towel and wrapped it up.

“I’m sorry! Is it bad?” Tim said. You held your finger over the sink to look at the cut. Blood welled quickly but it didn’t look super deep or long.

“It’s okay. It’s not too bad,” you told him. Tim dug in a drawer and pulled out a bandaid.

“Here, let me see your hand,” he said. He held your finger as he wrapped the bandage around it. You looked at his long dark eyelashes and small pieces of shiny black hair that fell in his eyes. He was certainly pretty.

“All better,” Tim said dropping your hand. You flushed at his closeness.

“Thanks,” you said looking at him. “Your shoulder, What happened?”

Tim had a large rectangular bandage over his left shoulder and you noticed a bruise under his right eye. He smiled awkwardly before gulping.

“I’ve been taking Brazilian Jui Jitsu classes and had a bit of the accident. I’m fine. Just a nasty bruise,” he said, glossing it over. “Probably should have stuck to CrossFit.”

“Maybe. Looks painful,” you said. You moved over to continue cutting fruit.

“You’re being careful when you go home, right?” He said suddenly. You looked at him confused.

“Yeah, why?”

“Just that there’s a new guy out there. Someone called the Red Hood. He’s been seen all over the city. Nobody really knows anything about him. I just- we just want to make sure you’re safe. We can provide a you with a ride home,” Tim suggested.

Yes you had heard about him. Killed drug dealers and rapists. He delivered a bag of heads to a crime family, rumors said. He had even attacked Batman and Robin a few times. Red Hood sounded terrifying. But you should be fine since you had nothing to do with any of Gotham’s underworld.

“I should be fine. But thank you, Mr Wayne,” you answered.

“Call me Tim. It wouldn’t be a hassle at all-“

“I’m fine. Thank you,” you said with finality. He nodded.

“Understood. I must get back to work. Sorry about your hand.”

“It’s okay.”

———————————

On one of your days off you decided to hit a used bookstore that was just down the road from your apartment. It was a cute little hidden gem. Books haphazardly piled on shelves to the ceiling. Tiny little rooms connected in a maze for each genre.

The bookstore was usually pretty empty and was the kinda place where you could sit and read on one of the hidden plush chairs they hide in various corners of the store. You could buy a cup of coffee from the front and spend an hour looking and reading. It was a pretty cozy place.

The prices were pretty cheap and after checking out your favorite section, you had a little stacks in one arm. In the other hand, you had a fresh iced coffee. You walked toward your favorite hidden chair in the back classics section. As you turned the corner, your coffee almost smashed into a body that quickly caught your hand and preventing the spill.

“Sorry! I wasn’t watching where I was going,” he said. You got a look of him. Tall and extremely fit. Wavy black hair and blue eyes with a little apologetic smile on his lips. He was hot as hell.

“It’s fine. I should have looked too,” you said and you both moved to the same side of the walkway. “Sorry,” you said with a smile.

“Nah, don’t be,” he said standing against the wall to let you slip by. “By the way,” he said as you squeezed past him. You stopped and looked at him.

“Can I ask your name?”

“Oh, sure,” you said before saying your name. He had a kind smile. Despite his large figure, his soft mannerisms and cozy sweater made him seem... safe.

“I’m Jason. That book in your hand is based on one of Shakespeare’s play. 12th Night. I saw a copy over here if you want to look at it,” he offered.

“Yeah, that’s interesting. You’re into classics?” You said. You watched as he reached up to grab the book from the top shelf. His sweater rose to show a strip of very tone skin.

“I’m kind of a sucker for them. The only problem is that they don’t really put out many new books,” Jason said with a shy smirk.

“That does sound like a problem,” you smiled back at him.

“I hope I’m not too forward, but can I have your number,” he asked playing with the spine of his book. You smiled and flushed. Did he really not know how hot he was? Because he acted like a nerd but looked like a snack.

“Yeah,” you said putting you number in his phone. “Then I can hit you up for more book recommendations.”

“I’d like that. I hate to go but I’ve got to get ready for work. That’s why I was in a hurry,” he admitted.

“I hope you aren’t late because of me.”

“Worth it. But I’ll be fine. See you around,” he said leaving.

“Yeah,” you called after him. Did you just give your number to an absolute 10? You had a little smile on your face for the rest of the afternoon.

#Tim drake x reader #Red Robin x reader #robin x reader #batboy x reader #the maid

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tamlinsbedroom · 3 years ago

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Chapter 17: Elrin’s Demolition

When the rogue soldier was done, he slid me off of his bed and onto the hard floor. He must have gone to sleep, because he didn’t say a word and his breathing became deep and fluid.

I couldn’t sleep that night. I only had memories of my mates, flooding my brain like a river as I lay there sobbing quietly. I had to do something…anything. Bargain with him, or something to see them again. At this rate, if this is how my life would be, I would end it myself.

❥❥❥

Morning came sooner than later, and the rogue soldier threw bread down at me, while he feasted on breakfast meats, eggs, and booze. I still didn’t know his name, that was until I heard someone come in his tent.

“Elrin,” A low voice began. “I have a note from the Spring Court.” Hope filled my chest. Tamlin and Rhysand must have figured out something to threaten him with, somehow. I tried to make myself invisible, aware of my nakedness as the low voiced soldier handed the note to the rogue soldier who was apparently named Elrin. He caught me, smirking down at my nudity. I shut my eyes tightly, hugging me knees to my chest.

I heard a growl above me and she sound of paper being crumbled as Elrin got off the bed. He strode over to me, snatching me by my hair and leading me out of the tent. Males watched me walk, not trying to hide their peering glances down. I was led into a tent, a woman sitting at a vanity. She had long, brown hair, and fair, beautiful skin.

“Rhianna,” Elrin started, “I need you to pretty her up. Put her in a gown, make her look less sickly. We have a show to put on.” He chuckled, throwing me down on the ground again as her gaze met mine.

I swore I saw a look of pity in her eyes as she surveyed me, my body brutalized and feature sunken from lack of nutrients. She walked to me, reaching a hand down to help me. I took it, hesitantly, and walked with her to the wardrobe.

“Alanna, is it?” She asked, trying to strike conversation as if the situation wasn’t awkward at all. I nodded briefly.

“Well, Alanna, first you need a bath.” She led me out to another tent that connected to hers, where a metal tub stood. It was already filled with water as I got into it.

She sat next to me, taking a sponge and soap that smelled like almonds as she washed me.

“I can help you, you know. For a favor of sorts.” She whispered, as if she was afraid other soldiers would hear. I quirked my eyebrow, signaling for her to continue.

“I hate it here. I was sold to them by my father, to act as a pretty face to gather allies for the mess that Elrin started.” She started on my hair. “I had a lover back in the Autumn court that I would secretly meet. He was a nobody, which was why my father sold me. Said it would be better to gain nobility this way versus staying in his kingdom. I want out…it’s awful here. For reasons you know of, by the looks of it.” She was referring to being taken advantage of… “I will help you return to your mates if you help get me out with you.”

“How?” I asked, genuinely curious.

“I’ll keep Elrin busy enough so that you can write to your mates. I’m in charge of gathering the postage, so I can get it sent easily.” She explained.

“How did you know of my mates?” I asked.

“Elrin has been bragging to all the other males about taking you away from two high lords. He’s so obnoxious about it, it’s hard not to hear.” She whispered that last sentence more than the other, understandably.

“Okay. It’s a deal.” I said. Tamlin and Rhys warned me about making deals with fae, but what other choice did I have?

Rhianna held out her hand for me to take, and without a second thought, I did. The bond traveled between us, marking me behind my ear. Smart, I thought. That way Elrin wouldn’t see it…

For the remainder of the time I spent with her, she dressed and dolled me up. I still didn’t know why I was, but I would find out soon.

❥❥❥

Once done, I was led out by Elrin himself. Rhianna winked at me, smiling softly. I returned the wink, trying not to stumble from being practically dragged by the male. He stopped me suddenly, grabbing my throat and pulling me to him.

“This is what’s about to happen.” He began. “Your two little mates are coming to see you. You’re to tell them that you’re being well taken care of, treated like a Queen, and that you do not wish to return.” He instructed. I almost laughed at how stupid he sounded.

“But I’m their mate. They wouldn’t believe that for a—“

“You will do as you’re told.” He snapped, his grip on my throat tightening. I gulped, nodding at him as he led me out of the camp, right into the wood.

We reached a clearing, and there stood my mates with at least 10 guards all around them. My throat swelled and tears threatened to fall when I locked eyes with them. First, Rhysand. Then, Tamlin. They looked shocked at me, probably not expecting to see me so well dressed. I looked at them with fear in my eyes, a silent plea. They understood.

“High lords, here is your female.” He gestured to me. “Well, now my female.” He chuckled. “As you can see, she is well taken care of. Happy, even.” He looked at me expectantly to play my part.

“It’s true.” I said. Trying to make my voice be as steady as possible. “He treats me like a queen. Far better than you two ever treated me.” It pained me to say it. They looked at me in faked shock, seeing right through it. “No need to worry about me anymore.”

Elrin pressed his lips to mine, biting my bottom one to make me kiss back. I did, and resisted the vomit that threatened to come out.

“No more threats, unless, of course you want to see her guts spilled beneath your noses.” Elrin casually said, picking at his nails as if he were bored.

Suddenly, Rhys’s darkness exploded. He shielded me as the soldiers around him turned into a bloody mist. Elrin snarled, using his own magic to knock Rhy’s and Tamlin down. When he did so, I noticed something shining on his neck. I looked closer, to see a red gem flashing with power. Before he could stop me, too focused on my mates, I snatched the gem from around his neck, the cord breaking. He looked at me with fury, pulling out his sword before Tamlin turned into his beastly form, part wolf and bear as he pounced on him, tearing his throat out. I shielded my eyes, stumbling into Rhysand’s chest.

I sobbed, the gem still in my hand as he held me.

“Shh. We’re here, Alanna. You’re safe now.” He pulled back. “Let’s go home—“

“Wait!” I shouted, remembering Rhianna. “There’s someone that needs help.”

I took off, heading toward her tent. She sat there, turning around in shock, looking at the gem in my hand.

“Did you—“

“Let’s go! Now’s you’re chance.” I said, grabbing her hand as I ran with her back to Rhys and Tamlin. She kept up with me, shaking her head in disbelief.

“How did you get that thing off his neck? Do you know how many before you have tried?” I shook my head, now seeing my mates before me.

I held Rhys’s hand as he winnowed all of us back to the Spring Court.

We arrived in the front door of the manor, Rhianna stunned.

“I really got out…” She mused, shaking her head as if she thought she were dreaming.

“You’re out. You’re free.” I said, hugging her.

“The bargain, it’s still open on my end.” I stopped her.

“Don’t worry about it. Tamlin’s emissary, Lucien, is from Autumn court. He can—“

“Did you say Lucien?” Her eyes widened, and Lucien came down the stairs, locking eyes with her. He nearly fell down the steps as that russet eye filled with tears, stumbling to get her in his arms.

“Rhianna…” He said, hugging her tightly. “I thought I’d never see you again…” Tamlin arched a brow. Lucien held her hand in his, turning to his high lord.

“This is Rhianna. I never told you about her because I thought…” He sighed, not wanting to finish the sentence.

“Excuse us.” He said, leading her out of the manor, arm in arm.

I sighed, unable to believe what I just had witnessed. Two lovers reuniting was almost as good as three, I thought as I looked at my high lords.

I looked at the gem in my hand, it’s power still contained. Rhys noticed, silently gesturing for me to give it to him.

“What is it?” I asked, curious.

“I’ve never seen it before. Whatever it is, it was made by dark magic. It’s how he was able to do what he did, having no actual magic of his own.” Rhys explained, taking it and vanishing it. I looked at him, shocked.

“Don’t worry. It’s in a safe place for my second, Amren, to find.” I nodded, recalling Amren from Velaris.

“Alanna darling…” Rhys picked me up, walking me upstairs, Tamlin following next to us. Silently, Tamlin undressed me, putting me in one of his shirts and a pair of Rhys’s boxers as he sighted the littering of bruises and cuts that laid beneath the dress that covered me so well.

“Rhys.” Tamlin called, his tone dark. He spun around, looking at all the marks with hate and anger in his eyes.

“We felt it…down the bond…but this, this…” He was truly at loss for words. Tears silently spilled down both sets of eyes as they kissed the marks on me, as if it healed them. Healed me.

“I am so, so sorry. This should have never even happened I am beyond—“ I pressed a finger to Rhys’s lips, shaking my head.

“I did it. It’s my fault, I left of my own free will. I thought that if I didn’t then you and all of Prythian would be in danger.” I explained, hating how stupid it sounded coming out.

Tamlin put a hand on my cheek. “It’s not your fault. You’re so selfless…so brave.” He looked at Rhysand. “Our beautiful, brave girl.” He pressed a kiss to my forehead. “No one’s going to hurt you ever again.”

My mates tucked me in, sliding in bed beside me. And though it had not been more than a couple days that I was without them, I missed them holding me close at night. I knew they would be there for me, stitching up the lingering scars.

I slept safely on their arms that night, wanting to forget everything that had happened until tomorrow.

#tamlin redemption #Rhys x Tamlin #tamlin x oc #rhysand x oc #acotar fanfiction

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spookysmujer · 4 years ago

Text

Issues, O. Diaz

Summary: Spooky and his S/O having jealousy issues at a party.

requested by: @gemini0410

warnings: Angst, semi-toxic!Oscar, f r e a k y shet 👅 (smut/18+)

A/N: Hi everyone, I finally got a new laptop!! Which means that I can post again, f i n a l l y. I’ll be working on requests that I’ve gotten nearly over a month ago, I feel so bad! This turned out more smutty more than anything, LOL. As usual, please show some love: heart it, comment, reblog, follow and turn on the notifs for when I post, thank you for requesting! And again I’m so sorry this took so long to get done.

(gif belongs to @merakiaes 🦋 miss you babes!)

It had been a long day, the ache in your shoulders prominent as you’re staring down at diagrams on the too thick stack of papers. You sigh as you blink away the tiredness. The half day shift kicked you in the ass as you’re now doing a late night study in the community college library.

The face clock creeping towards 10:45pm, you’ve been here for 2 hours trying to finish up this section that you’ve been struggling with. An exam around the corner. However, the night is still young as your boyfriend, the infamous Oscar ‘Spooky’ Diaz always says. You promised him earlier in the day that you’d stop by the usual weekend party at his place, though you said you’d show up by 8:30pm.

Where you at

Nena, hello???

Puta, don’t come by then.

I got all these other hynas anyways

You pick up your phone again, the 4th time in a half an hour span, seeing another message come through from Oscar. He has issues when people don’t stick to their word, for everything and anything, if you slip up on your promises you’re scum of the earth. That’s why he reacts the way he does, like he is now with the nonsense.

“Okay, I am all studied out and I gotta go, before he sends someone to get my ass. Thanks for studying with me, I appreciate it.” You begin to collect all your papers and stationary items which consists of far too many highlighters. “Yeah, of course no problem, whenever you need it!”

After gathering all your things and exiting the library, you send a text to Oscar that you are finally on your way, though he reads it and doesn’t reply. By this alone, you know it will be a long night ahead of you. Issues run deep between the two of you. It falls more heavy on Oscar’s side, you tend to be a bit more tame. When it comes to him, he can make it very... personal.

The music is bumping, feeling the bass of it as you step out of your car. The front lawn filled with a few people, most of them all drunk and half asleep already. You trek through the house, keeping an eye for a hot-headed Santo. The idea of a red Oscar making you laugh to yourself. After finally getting through the house to the backyard, you spot him chatting away with other santos.

One of them happens to look your way and nudges your boyfriend to which he follows his line of sight and spots you. He stares at you with a look of almost disgust. He doesn’t move from his spot for a moment, finishing his conversation and then his beer.

You sigh, walking over to the cooler to get a beer because though you aren’t much of a drinker you know how tonight will pan out, so all the help you can get to get through it.

“Why you here for?” He says, sporty the signature ‘Spooky’ look. You know how he likes to play this game.

You take a sip of the cold, bitter liquid, “Here for the party like I told you I would be.” He lets out a breathy laugh, sliding his tongue between his lips while looking down at you. “Yeah, told you not to come by since you wanna be fake. Show up by 8:30 my ass, pendeja.”

Now the tone his voice is changing, he’s looking for a fight. Though Oscar can hold his alcohol, it does boost ego more than usual. You roll your eyes, shifting your weight onto your other leg and shoving your free hand into your pants pocket.

“I told you that, yes. But I did tell you that I’d be studying after work so you know what that means too. I’m here though so let’s enjoy the night, hm?” You pull your hand out of your pocket to wrap your arm around his waist but he stops you, “Nah, you didn’t have to go out of your way to come, go. Go back to studying with your puta friends.”

And he knows exactly how to get under your skin, talking all kinds of shit.

Before you can retort back, your phone buzzes in your pocket. Your eyes still on Oscar’s, him with a sly smirk on his face. You pull your phone out and see it lighting up with your friends name, Ricardo.

That ‘Game Over’ voices play in your head as you stare down at the illuminated phone screen, you click the lock button a couple of times to end the call and you quickly shove your phone in your pocket once more.

Oscar’s eyes flick up to yours as you look back up at him, his lip twitching up. Damn it, you say to yourself. You should have ignored it and continued your pursue on your boyfriend.

When Oscar is really upset, he tends to be quiet, that’s when his thoughts are louder than his words. He stares at you for a moment more then he steps back and away from you, still no words.

“Babe.” You call out, “Oscar!” This time a little louder but he continues with his back towards you and into the house. You let out another sigh which has to be the 10th since you arrived. Heading into the house to see where he went off to, you just in time as he slips through the front door as he slams it behind him.

When you step out of the house you see him unlocking the car door of his impala. “Where are you going?” You call out to him as he slips in. You hurry over in time to catch the door with your hand before he can close it, “Let go.”

Oscar’s voice is eerily calm as he keeps his line of sight off of you and straight ahead. He is holding onto the door, waiting for you to let go. You pull it more open and stepping closer, “Where are you going?”

He scoffs at you, “You seem real interested in me now but where was all this at 8:30? Hm? Studying with that pendejo, huh? Bet you weren’t even fuckin’ studying.”

The venom in his voice begins to drip at you, his eyebrows touching at this point. The fact you were late and also it was because you were studying with a dude is fuel added to the fire.

Issues ran deep between you two, especially the jealous issues. Oscar couldn’t help but get insecure, you are a gem. He’s damaged goods and you always remind him that he is more than you thought you deserved, but moments like this one though? Only infiltrates his thoughts more.

“Oscar, Ricardo is my accounting partner. We work in pairs this semester. So yes, we were studying. And you know I was, don’t start that shit.” You explain to him to which he doesn’t immediately reply. A sign that he is trying to reason with his demons.

He pulls the keys out of the ignition, dropping his hands to his lap, “Why’d you hurry your phone away then? Hm? If he’s just this so called partner?”

Demons winning.

You cross your arms over your chest, tipping your head back and closing your eyes for a brief moment, “If you want me to pull up my roster, I can show you he is just a study partner. I did that because I knew how you would have acted, just as you are now. You’re already upset for me being late. There is no reason to think anything, I promise.”

Oscar sighs and moves to get out of the car. He stands and towers over you, looking down and staring deeply into your dark orbs. He searches them for a moment for extra confirmation that he has nothing to worry about. And as he see it in your eyes that it simply was just a study session, he begins to ease up.

“Please, let’s just drink and enjoy the night, hm?” You close the space between the two of you as he wipes his face of any physical agitation. As he does you wrap your arms around his waist, leaning the side of your face against his chest.

He wraps his arms around you, feeling you under him for a moment as he places a chaste kiss on top your head. When you let go, he looks at you with a look at only means one thing. He pushes some stray strands of hair behind your ear as his eyes begin to rake your body.

Oscar tilts his head towards the house as he grabs your hand, you interlock fingers while he leads you into and through the busy house. You’re close trailing behind him as a few of his compas give him a boosting look.

Once the two of you make it to his room, he locks the door and pulls off his shirt in one swift movement over his head, tossing it to the side. You take a few steps back before you sit at the foot of the bed. Oscar stalks towards you and positions himself in between your legs. You gaze up at him through your lashes as he pushes his body into you. As long as the two of you have been together, you two can communicate with each other with just looks.

Your hands move up to his bare stomach, feeling his skin as they fall back down to his waist and you begin to work his belt. You pull it through the loops of his shorts and then work the button and zipper, it’s a moment of complete lust and there is no tender moments to be wasted.

He pushes his shorts and boxers down enough for his semi-hard member to slip out. You push his clothes down to his ankles to which he moves his hands behind his back to hold there. He juts his chin forward to you to give you the go. You’re biting your lip as you move your face closer to his now fully hard cock.

“No hands.”

He says barely above a whisper as you set your hands down on your thighs. You maneuver your face to be set directly in front of his girthy length, placing your lips on the tip, holding it between your lips as you gaze up at him.

The rough inhale from him and contraction of his abdomen muscles tell you that just your lips on his throbbing head alone is enough to send him into the void. You know better than to tease him in moments like this, you know when it’s no sweet kisses or lingering touches that there is no room for torturous or slow whatsoever.

Your mouth opens the more you take him, eating up ever inch of the Santo leader. It’s when his tip hits the back of your throat that you breath through your nose and swallow, your throat muscles squeezing him like a vice.

“Fuck, nena,”

Then you been your assault, bobbing your head on his member, up and down and never removing your mouth. When you get back to the tip, your swirl your tongue and suck harder as if its a yummy lolli. Giving Oscar head always gets you turned on overdrive. It’s something about the ability to make him come undone, making him come undone is a feeling that sends shocks right to your core.

Oscar is letting out soft but guttural groans, the sweat beginning to build around his body. The entire time you’ve been taking him, he’s had his arms locked behind his back but that changes when you take his entire length and into your throat, holding you it when working your throat muscles. He grabs the back on your head, pressing you into him more than you were prior.

His moans getting a pitch louder as he begins to buck his hips forward. You begin to lose your breath and getting in oxygen through your nasal cavity proves difficult as your nose is pressed up against his skin. The automatic instinct to pull back kicks in but he has you in a tight hold against him, he’s now completely fucking your throat.

You push on his thighs with your hands to give him the besides the obvious hint that you need air. As you begin to gag, he finally releases the hold on the back of your head and you pull your head up and off his cock.

“I’m about to fuckin’ bust, bebe. Go again.”

After take a few more breaths, you take his slick with your saliva cock in your hand to pump him so you are able to get a few breaths in. You guide him back into your mouth, this time pumping him along with the sucking.

You begin to moan as you do so, adding the pleasure you are creating. And the ache between your legs begin to grow, as you shift you can feel just how wet you are getting. The ache becoming too much to leave unattended. Your hand massages your clothed heat, sending you into a frenzy.

Oscar had his head tipped back and eyes closed since you started again, but when he begins to hear and feel your moans he looks down to see your free hand in your pants. The pleasure you’re creating for both him and yourself draws you close to an orgasm.

You purposely begin to gag on him and it doesn’t take too long before Oscar cums in your mouth. The release of profanities and groans sends a shock to your cunt, you double over as your hand begins to falter, the orgasm ripping through you.

After swallowing his seed, he tells you to show him that it’s all gone. He bites his lip and pulls you to stand. Oscar grabs your hand that was in your pants and brings it to his mouth, taking your fingers and sucking on them.

He wanted a taste, you got a taste of him so it only seems fitting.

Oscar jumps in the shower for a quick rinse, as you simply just change your underwear. The night a success as the two you ended up relieving the tension in a beneficial way.

“And mamas? If I find out you bail on me to study with some puto again, I promise Freeridge will be one less body and with a begging puta for my cock to which she won’t get shit for weeks.”

#Oscar Diaz #oscar spooky diaz #oscar diaz imagine #oscar diaz x y/n #oscar diaz x reader #spooky imagine #spooky x reader #spooky x y/n #omb #netflix on my block #omb imagine #on my block imagine #Los Santos #spookysmujer

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honestlyhappyharry · 3 years ago

Text

Chapter 10

The Storm

Chapter 9

Something on Tuesday morning felt off. Harry had stayed over again, much to your delight. He didn't want to overstep the boundary lines but everything was falling into place between the two of you, it was like you had gone back to your old relationship. Warm and cozy was all you could feel.

But that morning was cold. Harry's side of the bed was cold, at only 6:30. While he'd not stayed over much you still felt like it was out of character.

You tried to push it out of your head and got out of bed to pack Lily's lunch for Pre K before making her breakfast.

At the bottom of the stairs, you peeked into the lounge to see Harry hunched over on the couch, phone in hand. "Are you okay?" He popped his head up and just started, blankly.

He was a lot different from his usual morning clinginess when he wrapped himself around you, not letting you get up.

"Get out your phone," Harry told you, the tone of his voice made you do it quickly. His tone wasn't mad but upset or a little hurt. You quickly pulled out your phone from your pyjama shorts and waited for his instruction. "Go on Twitter." That sent your head racing, Twitter had always been a wild place of quick-spreading news and all you could think about was what was written about you and Harry.

Lily never crossed your mind.

Harry watched you for a few minutes while you looked through the stream of tweets. "Oh, shit." Finally, you snapped up to meet Harry's eyes again. "This is really, really bad."

"I know," Harry stated, patting the seat next to him so you sat down beside him. "It started with an article on the Daily Mail with a photo of me and Lily from last night, you know when I was carrying her to the car?" You nodded at that. "I didn't even realise anyone was there and I think it was posted after we went to bed. Then, like most things about me, it blew right up on Twitter this morning in the UK before it was morning over here. Pretty much the whole world was tweeting about it before we woke up."

"It would be good if your fans slept." You joked, trying to lighten the mood.

He chuckled a little. "It's the top trending hashtag. The press is going insane and management have flipped out. I'm not even sure what the fans are thinking, maybe mad or confused or even happy."

Harry dropped his head into his hands and left his phone on the couch beside him. It was still unlocked and you could see more tweets flooding in. If you spent the whole day reading the tweets that were already tweeted, you wouldn't finish reading them for the whole day.

Something like the was bound to happen, Lily looked exactly like Harry so it wasn't hard to put two and two together, but you thought you'd have a few more months. Especially last night because you hadn't seen anyone who even looked interested in who Harry was.

"I'm really sorry, Haz. I know that was not how you wanted it to come out and it's not how I wanted it to come out either." You told him as you wrapped your arms around him, desperately trying to console him.

"I have to do an interview on Wednesday, you know, trying to explain it all. Until then please promise me something." Harry informed you and you nodded, anything he wanted you would agree to. "Please don't look at Twitter until it's all sorted. Or Instagram." He told you and you nodded in agreement.

"Okay, but you're also on a ban." You told him, knowing people would be saying worse about you but you hardly wanted him to see all the bad things that were being said about him.

"I promise." He agreed, before getting up. "I should go, though, got lots of music stuff to do." He told you as he walked to the door, you followed and waited for him to put his shoes on.

"I'll miss you." You told him before he spun around. His hands were instantly on your waist, yours moving to his chest. He kissed your lips for a few seconds, giving you the same electric feeling you always get around him.

He smiled once he pulled away. "I'll miss you more, baby. And I'll call you later." He left you standing there, wondering how wrong it was all about to get.

You woke up on Wednesday, hoping that it was all a bad dream. The worry was almost as bad as Monday. It was made worse by the fact Harry wasn't there. However, the little voice jumping on your bed urged you to get up.

"Mummy, mummy, get up." Lily cheered as she jumped on your bed making you sigh. Sleep-ins were a rarity in your house but no matter what you were grateful to get up to the little girl.

Rolling over to face her you opened your arms so she could fall into them. You placed a kiss on her head and inhaled her smell, it was something you never wanted to forget.

"Are you excited to get your nails done?" You ask her and she nodded quickly. She had been talking about it since you told her what was happening.

"I'm getting pink, remember." She told you excitedly, it wasn't her favourite, yellow was but she was decided.

After breakfast and you both got changed, Lily was in the car with you as you drove to the nail salon. Your nerves were getting worse as you got closer but you arrived 7 minutes early, also 7 minutes before Harry's interview. Thankfully a radio interview limited the face to face contact Harry could have with an interviewer. However, it was live which meant no editing.

"Gem!" Lily said as she saw Gemma. You could tell from dinner that they had clicked. Lily loved listening to her tease Harry and their personalities were a lot alike.

"Lily!" Gemma replied as she picked her up and hugged her. They really looked a lot alike and the few baby photos you could remember of her as a child rendered them identical.

They hugged and you gave Anne a hug. "I'm so sorry about what happened with the press." She whispered and you smiled at the fact that after so much time she still cared enough to say something. It was an ode to how close Harry and Anne were.

"It sucks, but Harry's interview is in a few minutes so hopefully it'll get cleared up." You told her and she nodded. You doubted it would but a little social media cleanse was nice.

Soon after you hugged Gemma who only said, "It'll be alright," to which you nodded, knowing, in the end, it would be.

There was a little bit of resentment towards the press because you wanted to be able to tell the world on your terms.

The nail bar was nice, modern and sleek. Unlike Lily's bold neon pink, you went for a plain white which you figured looked best with summer outfits. Summer was a very exciting idea, having all that time to spend with Harry and Lily.

Once your nails were done Gemma and Anne insisted that you and Lily came with them to lunch, which you gratefully agreed to. It was an incredible feeling to be fitting back into their family after so long apart and you were thankful they were so accepting.

You could tell Anne was itching to talk to you, a more nervous silence falling over the atmosphere. As soon as you got to the restaurant and ordered Anne made Gemma take Lily to the park across the road to play. There was an odd mix of gratitude and fear you were feeling.

"Did you know the first night Harry told me that he had Lily, I was over at his place and I just started crying?" She started and you shook your head before she continued her story. "I was mad at him, so upset with the whole situation but I felt a lot of sympathy for you both. I wouldn't tell him this but you went through worse, raising her all alone which is why I was mad at Harry. I don't know all the details of your breakup but I feel for him when he was in that state." She continued while you nodded, out of all of her qualities she was so emotionally intelligent. "I wanted to talk to you, but he wouldn't let me."

"I know." You said, there was still the unresolved guilt you felt. Anne had an amazing granddaughter she hadn't met until a long time after your parents had met her. But thankfully Anne was much smarter than to be jealous. "I wish you guys had met her before now." She could tell it was the truth. "I even wish I stayed with Harry or went back to tell him or just anything that didn't lead to today."

Anne wasn't going to let you take the fall. "I've never blamed you for what you did. I still blame him for driving you away but I know how hard it was for him." It was nice to pour your heart out to someone who was so neutral despite hearing her son's grief for years.

"It's nice to have someone else to talk to about this." You smile over at her and she returns it.

"Mummy!" A small voice called and Lily came walking over, hand in hand with Gemma. They were both wearing the same famous Styles smirk.

"Hey, how was the park?" You asked her, just before your phone started ringing. Embarrassed, you pulled it out to put it on silent but your eyes glanced at the name.

Harry <3

You look around at everyone else. "It's Harry."

"Take it," Anne told you quickly. "It'll be important or he'd text." She definitely knew him very well. Gemma nodded, taking her seat next to Anne while Lily sat next to you and coloured her colouring book.

"Thanks." You smiled, answering the call as you walked away to somewhere quieter. "Hey." You spoke into the phone.

"Baby." Harry's low voice came over the phone, making a shiver come over your spine. "Did you hear my interview?" He's quick to ask.

By now you had pushed open the doors and you were standing outside. Thankfully the wind wasn't too cold on your skin. There was a little park bench near the restaurant where you sat, phone to your ear. "No, how did it go?"

"It was okay. They asked about Lils, obviously. How old she was, you know the general stuff." You could tell there was something off in his voice, something he wasn't telling you so you didn't reply until he spilt the beans. "Then there was some personal questions about what happened between me and you and why Lily was never known to anyone." He continued, getting quieter.

"Are you alright though?" Even if you didn't want to hear the answer, you had to ask.

"Yeah, I am. I think it's good the story has been set straight. It's going to be better now though and I'm excited to talk you all out without the paparazzi finding out." The air felt lighter, and if you could see yourself you'd see how much more relaxed you looked.

You nodded before realising he couldn't see you. "I mean they'll still probably going to write some terrible stories."

"Yes, and maybe don't go on social media or those celebrity gossip websites, my team is still saying they're still slamming me." His tone was an indicator he was hurt about it, which made you hurt because this whole situation was partly your fault.

"I'm sure they're slamming me too." You laugh, unreciprocated.

His pause was an acknowledgement of his agreement. "Don't want you to get upset, so please don't."

"I should go, we're having lunch." You tell him, thinking back to who you left inside.

"Yeah, how's it all going though?" He asked, still wanting to talk.

"It was really fun, we're had our nails done, we talked a bit and now we're at lunch."You tell him and you can almost see him nod.

"Ooo, anything about me?" He asked quickly, he seemed back to his normal self.

"Hmm, maybe. Is there anything else?" You asked him.

"Can I come over later? I don't really know how this works." He sighs, it made you giggle a little bit about his shyness.

You thought about it for a second before you replied. "I think it works like it used to when we didn't live together but we might as well have been." You confirmed, only imagining his smile.

"Right, so I come over, we have sex, go to sleep and then have some more sex." His crude comments made your eyes widen.

"Harry Edward Styles, I meant you can come over whenever you'd like but maybe I'll retract that." You smirked to yourself as you heard him sigh.

"Okay, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I should also go but don't forget who's name you'll be screaming tonight."

There was no point in trying to reprimand him now. "I'll see you later." You said as you ended the phone call. It made you feel warm inside, as cliché as it was, knowing you'd be the one he fell asleep next to made everything seem better.

You walked the few metres back into the restaurant and talk a seat down at the table. Quickly you realised how long you had been on the phone with Harry.

All Lily, Anne and Gemma looked up at you. "What happened?" Anne was quick to ask.

"He just wanted to talk to me about the I-N-T-E-R-V-I-E-W." You spelt out so Lily remained unaware of what was going on. Not that she seemed to be paying attention to what was going on, she was still colouring.

"Oh, did he say how it went?" Gemma pipped up. She was always curious, that was something you learnt when you dated Harry all those years ago and she was asking how everything was going. Not that you minded it.

You nodded. "He said it was good to get it all out but the media and fans are still in a bit of a frenzy so he's said no social media for me." You let out a sigh, being in mock frustration.

"He's very sweet when he's in love." Gemma didn't even realise the words she was saying until they came out, that was when your eyes widened.

"Gemma," Anne growled, stopping her from talking about how much Harry loved you with a disappointed head tilt. You found it hard to keep the thoughts from racing after that. Did Harry love you? Did you love him? Did his feeling from all those years come back? Had it been long enough?

You hoped the answer was 'yes' but your mind forced some rationalisation. When you first told Harry you loved him you had only been together for 2 months and you had almost been dating him for 3 now. Maybe it was more innocent now.

After what Gemma said, the conversation slowed down a bit but by the time lunch was over you were on top of the world. Everything finally felt like it had fallen into place.

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honesthammie · 3 years ago

Text

4th prompt part 2

The silence was appreciated as your mind wrapped up today's event. You had met your soulmate in a goddess of a woman. Everything you had discovered so far was perfect. You watched as she pulled a metal disk and metal stick from her pockets. The metal stick made a strange buzzing sound and glowed a faint orange at the tip as she hovered over the disk.

"What are you doing?" You asked after watching her in curiosity for a few moments. You would've let her continue as her face was quite the sight. Her eyes were sparkling with intent and her nose had the most adorable scrunch.

She stopped for a moment as you spoke as if thinking on what to say before continuing. "I'm scanning for any spider eggs in the building so we can take them with the other spiders to a planet of their own. A planet without civilisation but full to the brim with creatures they can eat. I think, the fam got them all. No, fam still doesn't seem right. The team does sound better!"

"A planet? What, are you some kind of alien?"

"Yes. Would that be a problem?" She asked. From the way her eyes sparkled, I believed her. Great, no wonder why she seemed so ethereal! So when I say, she's out of this world, it'd be a fact and not a flirtatious comment! For fuck sake, that's one of my best lines as well! Maybe I could use it when the time is right?

"Nope. After the discoveries of my life recently, that's actually the most believable thing. Please don't ask yet. However, those spider babies trust me. You aren't going to get them to listen without me. I spent at least a full 5 hours with them, they trust me more than you. Come on little Miss Sunshine, hop to it, the spiders won't wait forever." I spoke with confidence. I knew she knew, she needed me. That's why she followed me. "I'm (y/n) by the way"

"Great name! Love that name, was always one of my favourites. I've always fancied myself as a (y/n) but the faces never seem to fit it. I'm normally a John but I can't be now I'm a woman. Why don't you give me an alias for when I'm undercover?"

"Hmmm. I quite liked the name Alice and you certainly suit that name. Is there a name people call you when you aren't undercover. What do family call you?"

"Alice. I love that! I'm keeping Smith. Alice Smith. Perfect! Knew you'd be the one to help me. People tend to call me the Doctor. So do I for some reason. Wish I knew why."

This cute blonde alien was more mysterious the more we talked. She told me of how her ship goes in time as well as in space. She told me of the time of when she met Robin Hood with an older face and a companion named Clara. All this talk and I wasn't bothered once by it. I could listen and watch her all day as she talks about adventures she's been on. She puts all the theatrics on and waves her arms about with so much passion and her eyes show her emotions so clearly. But I also saw age. If she's older than she looks, just how old is she? Not that it bothers me, it's just, if she's like hundreds of years old, she's probably had other lovers and I don't know if plain old me can compete with that.

Sooner than we realised, we came towards a blue Police box. She clicked her fingers and waltzed right in. This must be her TARDIS. I walked inside with awe. The ship was beautiful inside. Like a gem hidden as an ore. The golden and blue lights perfectly reflected her personality.

"It's fucking massive Sunshine! Ya didn't warn me about walking into a football field! No wonder why thousands of spiders seemed no problem! Fucking hell!" I stated as my eyes scanned the room in front of me. Then I felt a little tug on my right trouser leg. I looked down and saw a little spider wanting my attention. I bent down and picked him up. He seemed happy to be held like that so I kept him in that position as I wondered towards the Doctor.

I had so many questions I wanted to know and I'm sure she has too. But now was not the time for that. We needed to get these spiders to their new home. I continued to watch the Doctor as she danced around something she called a console. She was pressing buttons and pulling levers and many more things until the ship made a strange wheezing noise and I was thrown off my feet. Thankfully I was caught by someone. I looked up and saw an oldish man.

"Hello Love! I can tell this your first time here. We all fell down when she first did that with us. You learn to find something to grab onto. I'm Graham by the way." Graham spoke gently but loudly over the noise of the ship. I couldn't help but giggle, my grandad used to call me Love too.

Then as quick as the ship started, it came to a gentle stop. I looked around and notice the same 2 people from earlier. The girl was smiling and laughing to something the boy mentioned. They must be old friends. I then noticed the Doctor walk towards the doors and open them just enough for her to check outside.

"Right (n/n). I'm calling you that as we are friends now. Go on, it's your first new planet and you care about these spiders more than we do so I think it's best if you check everything it perfect for them!" The Doctor spoke with excitement. She even clapped her hands for a moment, obviously not being able to control the surge of energy running through her.

I held the spider in my arms and the doors opened in front of me. I closed my eyes for a moment as the light blinded me temporarily. I could feel the warmth of a sun and the cool breeze the gently whipped past your face giving you the perfect cooling needed. The planet smelled sweet yet sour like Toxic waste sweets. I could hear many creatures making strange noises, some were doing a high pitched growl and some others were doing deep scream. Then there were nicer sounds like birds tweeting but in a lower key and something sounded like a piano, specifically an old ragtime piano.

I slowly opened my eyes and noticed the silver sky and its 4 suns in each direction. I noticed that the high pitched growl was from a small flying frog like creature and the deep scream was from a big rabbit- horse like creature that was just chewing the purple leaves off the metal looking trees. The bird like sound belonged to a small Robin like creature, but instead of a red chest it was a beautiful blue hue and it had silver eyes that sparkled just right. The Ragtime piano sound belonged to a dog-raccoon like creature that scampered away with its mouth full of the fallen berries that the rabbit-horse dropped from the leaves. The grass beneath was as black as ink and the pond to the right of me was a strange red colour.

"Well what do ya think? I personally think it's perfect but you seem to know these arachnids better than me so, I could be wrong, although, I'm not often" The Doctor spoke with eagerness. I noticed her looking at me as I took in the world around me. Why does this feel all too familiar to me? Why do I like the escapism of Earth? Why is this so, freeing?

I took a deep breath in. "Its perfect Doc. The spiders will love it here! They'll adapt pretty quickly I believe. The creatures are big enough to satisfy them. Although the sounds are a little off putting." I put the spider in my arms in the oddly cotton soft grass and watched as the thousands of others followed in its footsteps. Some carried the baby spiders and others carried the eggs. They had already found a cave to lay the eggs and started weaving some webs within 10 minutes.

Once I was happy with everything, I said my goodbyes and entered the strange ship once more. I could feel fresh tears sting my eyes like tiny hot needles. I get so attached so quickly and I noticed the string warm up and I checked on my soulmate, she was looking at me with an all too familiar look, the look of complete adoration. So the string tells me when her love for me evolves until we kiss? I mean, that's when it disappears for everyone else.

"This was great Sunshine! I had a ride of a lifetime, I really did. So I guess, you can drop me off home, I'm probably not wanted and I don't wanna ruin your team dynamic here."

"Why on Earth would you think that? I was actually wondering if you'd like to join us. Those spiders trusted you and having someone like you would really make the adventures more thrilling. Besides, I really like you and there's something special about you and I can't place my finger on it. I don't like not knowing things. If I drop these off home for a bit, would you mind if I ran some tests on you?"

"Really? Sure. I don't mind. I actually wanna know aswell. You see, I know what's special but I don't want to tell you in front of the others, its a bit embarrassing." I asked whilst blushing. She nodded her head and set the TARDIS coordinates to Sheffield. The Doctor promised she'd be back in a week and set the TARDIS to float in our solar system whilst she got to work on me.

We walked into what I can assume is some sort of med Bay. The walk had conversations about the last planet and how we thought the spiders would adjust. Eventually she sat me down on a white bed.

"So, you said you knew why you were special. I don't like cliffhangers so I'll give you a custard cream if you tell me." She said as she got a paper document and waited for me to speak.

"I don't know how or why but have you ever heard of the red string of fate story?" I asked, wondering how to word this without sounding weird. She nodded her head in understanding. "Well, when I turned 16, I could see everyone's red strings. The world was covered in red. I was confused at first until I read that story."

"Hmm. That is interesting because all stories have some truth to them. Some are exaggerated and some are exactly as said. Well that story is a good example of that. Thousands of years ago, there were 2 species of human, homo sapiens and homo spectrians. Spectrians were low on numbers in population as they'd spend almost all their life playing match maker. You'd know Spectrians as Cupids. However when battles and wars happened, Cupids were out of a job as everyone had to focus on the country and not themselves. This is where arranged marriages started happening and Cupids were becoming depressed. Eventually the Cupids decided to blend in with the humans and became virtually extinct. You might be the only Cupid left in the universe, other than Valentine himself." She explained it so well.

"Can Cupids see their own string?" I asked. She paused for a moment. Her eyes flickered between heartbroken and hopeful. I felt the string flicker between cold and toasty warm just like her eyes.

"No. Cupids weren't supposed to have soulmates. But I guess you are technically half human so maybe that makes sense. Do you know who your soulmate is?"

"She's amazing. She's like a Goddess. When I first saw her I immediately thought, She's too fucking perfect for someone like me. She incredibly smart too but, can be oblivious. I mean, I only met her a few hours ago and I'm fucking smitten with her. She reminds me of sunshines and rainbows. I'm just waiting for her to make a move." I told her. She looked at me for a moment, processing this new information. She smirked for a moment once she figured it out.

"Well my soulmate had me wrapped around her finger the second she jumped in front of a spider to save her life. A bold move like that normally makes me mad but, she did it so well. I haven't known her long but I can see me being by her side forever, travelling the stars. She reminds me of those stars actually. The way she sparkles in the light. I love you (y/n) with both of my hearts." She spoke softly as we slowly leaned in. When she finished, she planted her soft lips on mine and the red string was gone. Not that I noticed until an hour later when we picked the team up and held hands to announce our relationship.

Maybe dating a sunshine is exactly who I needed.

#13th doctor #thirteenth doctor x reader #female reader #13th doctor x reader #soulmate

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7-wonders · 5 years ago

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As Above, So Below Ch. 23

Summary: Your average, mundane life as a college student is flipped upside down when the man you thought you knew as your next-door neighbor turns out to be the God of the dead. When Michael lures you down to Hell, everything that you thought you knew about the world is proven wrong.

Word Count: 2512

A/N: Hi friends! I do believe that this is the last chapter for AASB. Believe me, I’m just as sad as you, but this feels like a natural conclusion. And don’t worry, there will be another “book,” but this is the end of this one. Thank you all so much for sticking with me on this journey, and for giving me so much love and support.

Soft touches on your face serve as your alarm clock this morning, your mind and body waking up to the feeling of featherlight kisses all over your skin. Fluttering your eyes open, you smile when you meet a pair of adoring blue eyes twinkling back at you. Neither of you have left Michael’s chambers for the past two days, and you have to admit that being lavished with affection by the love of your life is something that you quickly got used to. You could honestly spend an eternity in bed with Michael, which is why it’s so easy for the days to slip away. This small vacation, unfortunately, must end.

“Good morning, darling mine,” Michael mutters against your lips, making you sigh contentedly as you lazily stroke his hair.

“This is certainly better than a traditional wake-up call.”

“Then I guess I shall have to wake you up like this every day.”

“Is that a promise?” You squeal with laughter when Michael’s hand brushes up your side, accidentally tickling you.

“Absolutely.” His hand continues to trail up the length of your body, eventually landing under a pillow as he searches for something. “I have a gift for you.”

“Michael, you’ve already given me so much,” you groan, still not used to the exorbitant gifts he’s fond of giving you.

“I’d give you all the stars in the sky, if I could. Just let me spoil you, alright?” You want to at least attempt to argue this point, but Michael makes it nearly impossible when every single touch conveys his undying love for you.

“Fine. What is it?”

Sitting up in bed, you let the blankets fall to your lap as you watch Michael fiind what he’s looking for and conceal it in his hand. His fingers fall open, allowing you to see the ring that’s sitting in his palm. It’s beautiful, with diamonds encrusted along the rose gold band. The top of the ring looks almost like a flower, and a large opal sits at the center. Light glints off of the stone, making it look as if it’s reflecting rainbows at you.

“Oh, Michael,” you trail, in awe of how stunning the ring is.

“I know that wedding rings are custom for mortal unions, and I wanted you to have a piece of your heritage.” He looks at you as he holds the ring between his fingers, waiting for you to nod before he slips it on your ring finger. “Hephaestus crafted the band from hellfire, and all of the gems are from Above.”

“Both of us are represented,” you grin at the realization, tearing your eyes away from the jewelry adorning your finger to beam at Michael. “I love it so much.”

“Do you really? Because we can always redesign it, if need be.”

You stop him from continuing that thought by kissing him. “It’s perfect, and everything I could have ever wanted in a ring.”

“Nothing could be as perfect as you, but I am glad that you think it comes close.”

“I love you,” you kiss him gratefully, “despite your horrendous one-liners.”

Michael slaps a hand over his chest to feign offense. “‘Horrendous?’ I happen to think that they’re clever.”

“If that’s what you want to call it,” you tease, trailing off when Michael picks up your hand and begins to kiss the back of it before running a finger delicately around your new ring. “So...what now?”

“Elaborate for me, love.”

“When you proposed to me,”

“Which was mere days ago,” Michael interjects with a grin.

“You had mentioned that it wouldn’t be a traditional marriage or anything like that. So who decides we’re married? I’m assuming there’s no immortal justice of the peace or an Olympus records office we have to go to to fill out a marriage certificate.”

“That’s where the problem lies. Most other gods and goddesses have been married for thousands of years, or they just aren’t married at all. We’re quite the anomaly.”

You groan. “Why do we always have to be the first? Couldn’t somebody else have defeated Satan and gotten married before us?”

“I suppose all that really makes it official is Violet’s approval of our union, since she’s the goddess of marriage. However, I can’t help but feel that’s very anticlimactic, and not the sort of beginning to a marriage that you deserve.”

Although your knowledge of weddings isn’t very vast, it does allow you to come up with an idea that Michael just might approve of. “Do you know what eloping is?”

No matter how many times you’ve elaborated on the informality aspect of an elopement, Michael is endearingly (or annoyingly; you haven’t decided yet) persistent on the idea of following the traditions of mortal weddings. Thus, the garden that Michael created for you has been deemed the site for the ceremony. Madison, Zoe, and Thanatos are the only “guests” invited, although you did tell Desa that she was more than welcome to join the festivities. Violet will act as, for lack of a better word, the officiant for this affair. Michael had even tried to insist that the dress follow the white color scheme, which is ironic because he should know better than anyone that you’re not “pure” like the color symbolizes. You do settle for a cream-colored dress with a lace overlay that falls down to your ankles and forms to every curve and dip of your body.

You want nothing more than to get this over with so that you can just be married to Michael, but everyone’s extremely excited about the first wedding to be held in a few millennia. Where you would have thought your friends would back you up on Michael’s quirkiness when it comes to the ceremony that’s supposed to be impromptu, they’re more than happy to help Michael with fulfilling any of his ideas for the wedding. This includes the groom not seeing the bride prior to the marriage, which is the most difficult aspect of this whirlwind of a wedding.

“(Y/N), are you ready?” Madison asks, knocking on the door. Glancing at yourself in the mirror, you do a quick check to make sure that everything is exactly how you want it to look.

“Yes, but I think the question is if Michael is ready?” Madison opens the door, gasping when she sees you. “Seriously, I thought the bride was supposed to be the difficult one, not the groom.”

“Oh, you look so beautiful,” Madison coos, her hands falling on your shoulders as she gazes at you. “You almost make me want to wear white.”

“The highest of compliments,” you note, grinning at her through the mirror.

“I know that I’ve known Michael a lot longer, but I swear that if he hurts you in the slightest way I will kill him multiple times, in a variety of equally painful ways, until you deem that he’s suffered enough.” It doesn’t sound like a nice thing in the slightest, but this is the closest to sentimental that Madison can get.

“That’s the sweetest thing you’ve ever said to me!” You let out a delighted shriek when Madison throws her arms around you, hugging you tightly.

“I just--I really…”

“It’s okay,” you nod. “I know, and I love you too.”

“Thank you for not making me say it,” Madison mutters into your shoulder.

“You’ll get there eventually.” You pull away from Madison’s embrace, stifling a laugh as she tries to reassume her stone-cold bitch demeanor. “How’s Michael? He hasn’t run away yet or anything?”

“If anything, we’ve had to keep him from breaking his own rule and coming in to see you.”

“Well, I guess we shouldn’t keep him waiting too much longer, then.”

Madison takes your hand, making sure she didn’t mess up your outfit before walking with you towards the garden. “Wait ten seconds after I walk out, and then you can go.”

“Why ten?”

“So that all the attention is rightfully on you,” Madison smirks, opening the doors and walking through the garden like she’s walking a catwalk at Paris Fashion Week.

Counting in your head, you try to sneak a glance at Michael before the moment comes for you to officially see each other. While you can’t see him, you do notice the beautiful job that your guests did at decorating the garden. Twinkling lights are everywhere, and the sky has been charmed with a sunset that looks as if it’s been painted up there. The flowers are in full bloom, with some of the larger plants blooming in such abundance that they create an aisle. When ten seconds pass, you take a deep breath and step outside.

You were never the type of girl to imagine your wedding growing up. In nursery school, when your classmates were playing wedding and house, you were more focused on building mini empires with Legos. As you got older and social media was factored into life, friends would have wedding Pinterest boards full of images of their idea of a “perfect” wedding. It was trivial, you believed, just girls conjuring a fantasyland. Besides, most of their weddings would be marred with ugly memories of fighting or divorce, and these ideas would just serve as a letdown.

Walking down the path to where Madison, Zoe, Thanatos, and Violet are gathered around your soon-to-be husband, you can see the appeal in the picture-perfect wedding. After all, this surely must be the affair that people have in mind when they think about their potential wedding. Seeing Michael standing mere feet away from you, exquisitely dressed in black and red with one of his expensive cloaks, is sheer perfection. He smiles when he lays his eyes on you, and you can see the breath leave his body as he gasps. You bite your lip, the intensity of his gaze spreading heat throughout your entire body.

“Hi,” you say shyly, taking his large hands as you face him.

“You’re the most divine being I’ve ever had the pleasure of laying my eyes on,” he whispers reverently, like you’re the god instead of him.

“Hey lovebirds,” Madison chimes in, “you can undress each other with your eyes after this union has been blessed.”

“I’m sure we’ll be doing a lot more than that later, but thank you Madison,” Michael smirks as your eyes widen.

“Violet?” Your voice comes out as little more than a squeak, so you clear your throat and try again. “Are you ready to start?”

Violet’s glowing as she smiles at you, obviously thriving off of the marital excitement that hangs in the air. “Well, I’m extremely honored to be the one to oversee this marriage between two souls who are very dear to my heart. Before I get to blessing this union, I understand that Michael has some words he wants to say to his bride?”

You look at Michael in surprise; as far as you were aware, this was supposed to be a quick event.

“I apologize for not telling you that I was planning this, but then you would have come up with a speech of your own, and this is supposed to be about you.” You scrunch up your nose, not wanting to ruin his moment by interjecting. “For the entirety of my existence, I have been led to believe that I wasn’t capable of loving, or of being loved. I’m the God of the Dead, and I see the very worst of humanity. If I serve as the ‘Grim Reaper,’ why should I have people who love me? It was an assumption that I fought against for a long time, but you eventually begin to believe what people constantly tell you over long periods of time.

“All I had ever known was death, anger, and darkness. But then I met you, and you immediately brought color to my world. That color may have been your colorful language as you cursed out the grocery bags you were carrying, but it was color nonetheless. From the very beginning, you’ve captivated me every time I had the pleasure of laying my eyes on you. You’re intoxicating, a drug that I’m addicted to and have no intention of quitting. Getting to know you and love you has been one of the greatest pleasures of my life, which has been very long.”

You attempt to release one of your hands from Michael’s grasp so you can wipe away the tears that you can feel flowing down your face, but Michael beats you to it and uses his thumb to get rid of the tears. “These are happy tears, I promise,” you say with a laugh upon seeing a concerned look on his face.

“Good.” He kisses the back of your hand before picking up where he left off. “I could go on about all of the different ways that I love you, and though we now have all the time in the world for me to do so, I won’t bore those who would become an unwilling audience. For now, I will say that you are not my other half, for there wasn’t just a piece of me missing without you. You are the entirety of my soul. I’m not sure how I managed to function before you, and I know for certain that I would not be able to live if I were to be without you. I absolutely adore you, (Y/N). I love you more than I ever dreamed it was possible to love another thing, and I am so utterly thrilled that you have chosen me to be yours.”

“I love you,” you say earnestly, surging forward to kiss him. When you’re stopped by a hand on your shoulder, you groan.

“Sorry, but you have to wait just a little bit longer before you can kiss your groom,” Violet says with a laugh.

“You people live to make me miserable,” you mutter.

“Well then, we better hurry this up, huh?” Violet’s eyes twinkle with mirth. “As the goddess of marriage, I, Hera, hereby bless the union between (Y/N) and my brother, Hades. May your marriage be full of love, laughter, and prosperity until the end of time.”

“Go ahead and kiss!” Zoe calls out, nearly bouncing on her toes in excitement.

Michael looks at you with a devious smirk, grabbing you before you can even begin to question what he’s scheming. He dips your body until you’re almost parallel to the ground, surging down to meet you with a searing kiss. Whoops and hollers sound from around you, but all you can focus on is the feeling of your husband pressed up against you.

“Wow,” you say breathlessly when he finally releases you, “that just might top every other kiss we’ve ever shared.”

Michael laughs heartily, the sound bringing pure joy to your heart, as he kisses you again, this time more chastely. “I love you.”

“I love you too, husband.”

Standing in the middle of your garden, newly married and basking in wedded bliss, the God of the Dead has never felt so alive.

Taglist: @brieababy @ladyrindt @nana15774 @queencocoakimmie @sammythankyou @girlycakepops @trimbooohgodplsnoooo @lichellaw @ajokeformur-ray @pastel-cloudz @ultragibbycentralworld @grim-adventures58 @dandycandy75 @dolceandchalamet @everything-is-awesomesauce @langdonslove @ccodyfern @consultingsnowqueen @readsalot73 @jimmlangdon @sloppy-little-witch-bitch26 @hplotrfan @omg-hellgirl @gallxntdean @storminmytwistedmind @venusxxlangdon @kahhlo @antichristwrites @forgetting5sos @sadsadiesworld @born-on-stgeorges-day @hecohansen31 @michaelsapostle @izuniias @grippleback-galaxy @souriemickey @lvngdvns @hecatemacbeth7 @aangrana @hexqueensupreme @hoeposey @goblackcat69 @kingbouji3 @nsainmoonchild @blakewaterxx @taytum157 @rpwithjayn @strawberry-icings @dark-mei-rose

#michael langdon #michael langdon imagine #michael langdon imagines #michael langdon x reader #american horror story #american horror story imagines #american horror story imagine #american horror story #AHS #ahs imagine #ahs imagines #ahs apocalypse #ahs apocalypse imagine #michael langdon au #hades and persephone au

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zabrak-show · 4 years ago

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The Magnificent Twin Suns

A/N: Hello, omg this is my ObiMaul Magnificent Seven Crossover Fic. what have I done?!! Please do not hate me for this. I actually worked hard on it and honestly wanted to do more character work with all of the “seven” but ultimately, only ever wanted this to be a short one shot.

This is an AU of AU’s which if you know the history of Magnificent Seven is fitting. (it’s a remake of a remake of a remake) Which is also fitting of Star Wars being that it is essentially a remake of western films that were remakes of samurai films LOL anyway, expect much OOC weirdness and just whatever I felt like, OK! There is an OC, but she is mostly just filler as are the rest of the characters beyond Kenobi and Maul.

This was heavily inspired by one of my favorite artists on here @savagesleftarm Cowboy Art of ObiMaul this art broke my brain and the aforementioned fic ensued. I hope you enjoy it and if not, go easy on me cowpokes. I am but a simple fic writer tryin to get by.

Also, because I obsessed over this for a week, here’s a playlist I made while I wrote this 😆 I made it to play on shuffle, but I’m not the boss of you, play it how you like if you like!

Warnings: Violence, Blood, Death (no major character death, but still), Curse Words, Alcohol consumption, Cigarette smoking, Angst, specifically ObiMaul Angst

Word Count: 5.7K

gif from tombstone another western gem

The desert suns blazed unrelenting into the face of a crimson zabrak with intricate obsidian tattoos accenting his hardened and chiseled features including a crown of small horns. He brought his Colt Paterson revolver over his shoulder, still hot from the kill shot performed. Another bounty successfully tracked down and bagged. A half smoked cigarette hung from the zabrak’s lips, his face scowled from the smoke and the sun. Gunpowder, cigarette smoke, and death permeated the hot air. The zabrak took one last drag from his cigarette before throwing it down into the sand next to the dead body, the butt still slowly burning until finally it ran out of tobacco and paper to ignite, puffing out into a dusty pile of ash.

The zabrak holstered his gun and roughly wrapped the dead body in a canvas tarp and strapped it to the back of his pale grey horse, Scimitar. He mounted the horse and took off down the dusty path, hoping to get to Mos Eisley before sundown. The zabrak rode fast atop Scimitar, his black leather boots digging into the horse’s sides. His black jeans and black vest collected dust and sand that flew up from the horse’s galloping.

They rode for hours, until finally the zabrak pulled back on the reigns signaling Scimitar to slow down as they entered the Mos Eisley city limits. The city was still growing, with several buildings under construction around the edge of town. The main street area was bustling with different galactic species. Some native jawas and tusken raiders milled about amongst, rodians, weequays, twi’leks, and humans. Many turned to stare at the strange zabrak. His bright golden eyes staring straight ahead, not giving any mind to the civilians around him. He rode Scimitar up to a red brick building, dismounted and tied her to the hitching rail at the front of the building.

He slung the body over his left shoulder and entered the brick building with a calm authority to his every movement, a slight limp to his gait. He dropped the body at the feet of a weequay, leather brown skin matching his long leather overcoat. The weequay’s off-white shirt unbuttoned to show much of his chest; dark dirty jeans and mud covered boots, told their own story of hard work and life on Tatooine.

“Maul!” the Weequay exclaimed with jovial comraderiere, reaching out to grab the zabrak’s shoulder.

“Hondo.” Maul responded flatly.

“Eh, Money for blood’s a peculiar business wouldn’t you say?” Hondo pressed as he peeked inside the tarp and quickly obtained the credits for Maul’s bounty. Maul grunted in response as he stashed the credits inside his vest, and made his way for the door.

Nighttime was approaching, the sky a painted medley of pinks, oranges and yellows as the suns dipped down past the horizon. Maul headed for the Mos Eisley saloon for a well needed drink and to look for his next job. He stepped into the saloon doors and headed straight for the bar.

The saloon was lively and most paid no mind to the ruby red zabrak as he sauntered into the establishment. A red Nikto sat at the piano playing a twangy melody, while animated voices and glasses clanging together filled up the saloon’s auditive atmosphere. The smell of old beer, must, and disappointment assaulted the zabrak’s nasal cavities.

“Whiskey. Neat.” Maul ordered the blue Twi’lek at the bar. She eyed Maul suspiciously and slowly made his drink and slid it down the bar to him. He took out a few credits and dropped them on the bar as he walked away to find a place to sit.

Maul limped to the back of the bar to sit in a small table by himself in the shadows. A light skinned bearded man with a brown cowboy hat, brown poncho, tan shirt and pants burst through the saloon doors, drawing the attention of most people in the saloon with his dramatic entrance. He walked up to a rodian at the bar and they had a quiet conversation, the rodian clearly uncomfortable by the man’s presence. In a flash, the rodian’s head slid off his body as a beam of blue light cut through his flesh. The man was wielding a lightsaber and the show stopping stunt had all but silenced the bar as the patrons all looked on in horror and shock.

“Jedi scum.” Maul growled quietly to himself.

The man having everyone’s attention, now spoke to the crowd.

“Greetings. I am Kenobi, a warrant officer in 3 systems and a licensed Jedi Peace Officer in 10. This rodian was a wanted criminal,” he held up a worn piece of paper with the rodian’s likeness on it. Maul squinted his bloodshot amber eyes at the man and slowly recognized who he said he was. It had been almost ten years and he almost didn’t recognize his old nemesis.

“Jedi. I have been waiting for you,” Maul spoke in a deep commanding voice as he stood and walked over to the man.

“I’m not sure I’ve made your acquaintance.” Kenobi said, barely acknowledging the zabrak.

“I am surprised you could have forgotten me so easily after I killed your boss and you left me for dead on Naboo.” Maul spat out at him.

“It is you.” Kenobi replied in astonishment now looking directly at Maul.

“You may have forgotten me, but I will NEVER forget you.” Maul bared his teeth practically growling at Kenobi, before he stopped in his tracks, hand hovering over his holstered gun. Kenobi stared into Maul’s bloodshot amber eyes with his own ice blue eyes studying the movements of the zabrak.

“I have defeated you before and I can defeat you again!” Kenobi declared, his hand on his lightsaber hilt. Kenobi ignited the lightsaber as Maul drew his gun and took several shots, Kenobi blocking each one with fast as lightning reflexes. Several patrons yelled in terror at the commotion, but the dueling men paid no mind.

“I almost didn’t recognize you, but you’re still half the man in my eyes.” Kenobi leered at the zabrak. At once, Maul jumped towards Kenobi, firing his revolver until he was out of bullets. The Jedi grabbed the zabrak mid air and threw him to the ground, straddled his chest and held his lightsaber to his neck. Maul hissed and Kenobi put his full weight on the zabrak and turned his lightsaber off. To everyone’s shock and amazement, especially Maul’s, Kenobi began laughing hysterically.

“Can I buy you a drink, old friend?” Kenobi stood up over Maul, extending his hand to help the zabrak up.

“You realize I still hate you with every fiber of my being.” Maul snarled at Kenobi as he rose back to his feet.

“Ah yes, ever dramatic as always.” Kenobi replied, putting his hand on Maul’s back and leading him to the bar. Maul growled quietly and drank with the Jedi despite his distaste for the devilishly handsome man.

“Excuse me are you bounty hunters?” a strong feminine voice rang out from behind them. Both men turned to look at the short slender human woman speaking to them. Her brown hair was pulled back into a braided bun and she wore a plain light blue dress that hugged her torso in a worn-in way.

“No, we are not for hire. Move along.” Kenobi brushed off the woman.

“I have money. It’s everything I have.” the woman pleaded her brown eyes searching both men for some acknowledgement.

“It’s not enough.” Maul grumbled and turned back to his drink.

“I’m willing to give you everything I have. Don’t you want to at least hear what the job is?” the woman rang out attempting to appeal to the two rugged men.

“There’s a village. Not far from here. Peaceful folk. Moisture farmers, just trying to get by. The Hutts are trying to take our land out from under us. Killing innocent men, women, and children in cold blood in the streets.” she stated firmly, throwing a satchel into Kenobi’s hands. He opened it and peeked inside at the credits.

“Miss, you don’t need a bounty hunter. You need an army.” Kenobi responded as he threw the bag back into the woman’s arms.

“Missus. My husband was shot dead in the street by Jabba along with several other innocent civilians.”

“So it is revenge you seek?” Maul inquired piqued with interest now.

“I seek righteousness as should we all, but I’ll take revenge.” she responded cool and stern.

“The Hutts you say?” Kenobi perked up a bit, “What’s your name Missus?”

“I’m Jade Abernathy.”

“How many folks are still at your village?” Kenobi inquired, leaning back onto the bar with his arms crossed.

“60 or so. These folks are farmers. Not fighters.” she clarified.

“And how long until Jabba returns to your village?” Maul questioned.

“He said he’d be back in 3 weeks 8 days ago.” Jade stared at them both as she spoke. Maul let out a chuckle and downed a shot of whiskey.

“Well we best get started then.” Kenobi declared. Maul almost spit out his drink at this declaration. Kenobi slapped his back,

“Relax, old friend. We will recruit some help along the way.”

“I am NOT your friend.” Maul shot back with a glare.

The next day the 3 of them rode towards a settlement to which Kenobi was privy, where an old friend would be camped out. They came up to an old sand hut and each dismounted their horses to have a look around. The smell inside the hut was putrefying and large flii buzzed around, fat from whatever death they’d been feeding on. Jade walked into a room where a decomposing body of a tusken raider slumped on the floor. She covered her face and ran out of the room gagging. A figure of a man appeared from the darkness of the hut.

“He was dead before I got here.” a deep booming voice reached out from the shadows.

“Mace is that you?” Kenobi questioned walking further into the room to try and see.

“Obi Wan?” The strange man stepped forward into the dim light. He was a tall, bald, dark skinned man wearing a tan shirt, brown vest and brown pants. The two men embraced without thought of the decomposing body next to them.

“How did you find me?” Mace questioned Kenobi.

“I acquired a tip at Mos Eisley.” the jubilant Kenobi responded. Maul stood back and rolled his eyes at the reunion.

“Jedi scum,” he mumbled under his breath.

“What’s the job?” Mace stepped back, taking a serious tone.

“Going against the Hutts to help out a farming community. Paying us everything they got.” Kenobi replied matter-of-factly.

“What are our odds?”

“It’s suicide.”

The team of three plus Jade made their way now to recruit their next team member. Another friend of Kenobi’s, who went by the name of Anakin. They entered into a small town, where a congregation of people surrounded a young togruta woman giving a show throwing knives at burlap sack dummies. She had orange skin with white markings on her face, blue and white Lekku instead of hair, and wore a maroon vest and pants. A drunk kel dor man stepped out into the area where the togruta woman was performing.

“Yes, you can hit a dummy. Where’s the real show? Hit something live.” he slurred and stumbled towards the togruta.

“Keep talking and I’ll show everyone how easy it is to take someone down.” she threatened.

“oooh I’m sure they’d all love to see it!” he declared raising his arms in a mocking gesture turning his back to her to try and gain favor from the crowd. The togruta reached for the knives stowed at her back and threw them with clean precision into the kel dor’s back immediately taking him down into a pathetic slump. The crowd gasped and cheered.

A man dressed in all black, a scar running down his fair skinned face over one eye, walked around to the crowd with a hat extended taking payment for the show.

“Anakin?” Kenobi asked as the black clad man made his way around to them.

“KENOBI?!!” the man’s blue eyes lit up and reached out to hug Kenobi, nearly spilling his hat of money, “What are you doing here? How’d you find me?”

“Well we are recruiting for a job. Who is your companion? I’m surprised to see you relinquish yourself to the sidelines like this.” Kenobi asked with a concerned look on his face.

“Oh that’s Snips, er Ahsoka. She saved my life. And I help her navigate the wild terrain of Tatooine. She goes anywhere I go.” Anakin explained.

“Well we’d be happy to have you both. We’ll need both of your skills for this job.” Kenobi smiled.

They camped out that night outside the small town where they found Anakin and Ahsoka. The night air was crisp and cool, insects buzzing while Mace built a small campfire. Maul laid out his makeshift version of a bed and propped himself up to attempt resting. Kenobi walked over to his spot and sat down next to Maul.

“I already question why I have agreed to work with the likes of you. Do not try to make it worse with meaningless banter.” Maul scoffed barely looking over at Kenobi.

“I mean no harm. I only wish to bury our past and attempt to start over.” Kenobi spoke softly and sincerely.

“Start over?” Maul ridiculed, “are you going to grow my legs back? Am I to bring Qui Gon back from the dead? We have a past Kenobi. We will never have a future. And I mean never.”

“Such a Sith.” Obi Wan laughed, “it doesn’t need to be like this. We both did what we needed to survive at the time. The war is over. Let it go.” he started to stand as he spoke and walked away from Maul, who growled at the Jedi.

“You are such a pain in my ass.” Kenobi finished while shaking his head and walking to the other side of the campfire. Maul’s eyebrow ridges furrowed in anger as he stared at the dancing firelight in front of him. His body filled with rage and wanted nothing more than to kill the despicable Jedi, consequences be damned. He could not bring himself to do it, frozen to his small patch of desert. He hated the Jedi. He hated Kenobi more than anything. Yet, he respected the Jedi’s skills and combat techniques. The handsome and charming Jedi somehow infiltrated his way into Maul’s impermeable heart and that was what really drove him mad.

Jade sat to the side of both of them and watched the whole thing go down curiously. She gnawed on a dried piece of meat, before finally lying down on the hard rocky terrain to attempt getting some rest. The fire crackled and the soft hum of voices around the fire slowly died down as everyone decided to get some rest. Obi Wan took the first watch of the night, sitting atop a ledge and looking out into the darkness.

They packed up their belongings at first light to set out to find another old acquaintance of Obi Wan’s. Jade rode next to Maul and asked him about the Sith.

“Why don’t the Sith like Jedis? It seems like ya’ll are pretty similar.” she asked innocently enough, but it made Maul gnash his teeth together before responding.

“We are nothing alike. Jedi are fools and liars. They brainwash everyone into admiring them, and for what? For the power they claim they do not desire.” He scowled and spat the words out in his deep theatrical voice. Anakin over hearing this, let out a big laugh and Maul whipped his head around to glare at the smiling young man.

“I would be careful to make too much noise, Anakin.” Maul shot back at him and looked over to Jade, “This man took out an entire tribe of Tusken Raiders.”

“They were enslaving good folks, I did what I had to do to bring justice.” Anakin shouted back.

“There were innocent women and children that died at your hand. Was that for the good of everyone? Justice is merely the construct of the current power base.” Maul’s response was cut short by Obi Wan stopping the team with a fist up in the air.

“We are being followed.” Kenobi voiced quietly while everyone reached for their weapons. They were on a path surrounded by tall rock ridges on either side of them, everyone’s eyes darting around to watch for who was following them. A slender bald pale woman walked out beyond an outcropping guiding her horse on the rocky terrain. She carried a bow and arrow, wore tattered black and red form fitting clothes and had tattoos around her eyes and mouth.

“Quite a mix of strays I see.” She declared as she sauntered over, all eyes on her.

“Ventress,” Kenobi almost sighed out the words, “What are you doing out here?”

“I should ask the lot of you the same thing.” she suggested as she looked around at everyone.

“We are on a mission to drive the Hutts out of a peaceful farming community. Care to join?” Obi Wan asked the pale woman.

“Like you even had to ask.” she smirked.

“When did you become one of the good guys?” Kenobi questioned with a look of surprise on his face.

“Don’t flatter yourself, Kenobi. I’ll take any chance I can get at tormenting you.” she winked and mounted her horse now next to Kenobi. He rolled his eyes and they rode on down the dusty path.

They arrived at an old hut tucked away off the trail and Kenobi dismounted his horse to walk up to the two Jawas milling about outside the front door. They had a short conversation in Jawaese.

“You killed the old man who lived here?!” Kenobi asked them in astonishment. Suddenly, a green lightsaber flew through the air at the 2 jawas, cutting them down where they stood and then flying back into the hand of a short wrinkled green creature wearing torn furs and leathers.

“Left me for dead, those two Jawas did.” The old creature announced as he slowly walked towards Kenobi, dried blood covering the side of his face.

“Yoda, we are assembling a crew to take down the Hutts.” Kenobi cut to the chase and explained the mission to the small wizened creature.

Once Yoda was on board, they planned their initial attack into the town. Jabba was not currently there, but he had several of his cronies watching over the town so they’d need to carefully infiltrate at first. Then it would be a matter of days to train everyone there to fight back once Jabba did show up. The dangerous appeal of the mission was now starting to set into feelings of daunt and apprehension for everyone.

The team rode toward the town with everyone’s mind full of what their mission was as soon as they got there. It was late afternoon and the suns blazed onto the team of misfits. The air was arid and smelled of horses and nervous body odor. Kenobi and Maul rode side by side leading the group. Much to Maul’s bedevilment, as his body and face tensed up at the Jedi’s presence next to him.

“Kenobi.” Maul acknowledged him finally through grit teeth.

“Maul, don’t you think this is childish to still hold onto such a grudge?” Kenobi scrutinized the zabrak.

“I am unlike you foolish Jedi, sequestering your emotions. I was cast aside, I was forgotten, but I survived. Fueled by my singular hatred for you. ” Maul snarled at the Jedi.

“And yet here you are tagging along with us; some former and current Jedis and me, the bane of your existence.” Kenobi pointed out.

“I have my reasons.” he quietly retorted back and they rode on in silence for some time.

As they neared the town, the team split up and everyone besides Obi Wan took the back way into town led by Jade who knew the shortcuts and where Jabba’s infiltrators would not be monitoring. Obi Wan rode his horse directly into the town, it felt like a ghost town. Windows shuttered and barely anyone out and about. Finally, he reached the main drag and several armed beings; humans, twi’leks, and many gamorreans stood in a line on the street. The tall blue twi’lek spoke first,

“We don’t allow weapons in town. Check them in and we’ll return them after you leave.” he stretched his hand out, his long nails glinting in the sunlight.

“Of course. I wonder why it is such fine folks as you should be armed to the teeth when no one else is?” he asked as he reached for his lightsaber to hand over.

“We are this town’s protection against any outside force that wishes to bring harm to these townspeople.” the twi’lek responded looking agitated and spitting out a wad of tobacco as he finished. Obi Wan saw Ventress signal to him from on top of the building behind the men without letting them see his acknowledgement.

“That is not the story I am told. And not the story my friends believe.” Kenobi looked past the line of armed beings and they all slowly turned around to see they were surrounded. Kenobi ignited his lightsaber and cut down the twi’lek while Ventress shot several more from the rooftop with her bow and arrow. More Gamorrean guards rushed out into the street at hearing the commotion. Mace and Anakin shot several down narrowly missing getting shot themselves by a couple guards coming in from the sides. Ahsoka threw her knives at the guards in an instant hitting them in the throats and killing them on impact. Yoda and Maul stood on opposite sides of the street taking down the rest of the guards with calculated precision. As fast as it started, it was over, the warm air overcome with gunpowder, blood, and smoke.

Jade rode in on her horse, yelling for the townsfolk to come out of hiding.

“Everyone! Come out! They are here to help us!” her voice rang out as she rode her galloping horse through town. The townsfolk cautiously came out of hiding, looking around like scurriers expecting to see a rancor or other predator. Kenobi started to walk towards the congregation of people forming when he sensed a hidden Gamorrean under the wooden stairs to the bank building. He reached down and forcefully grabbed the Gamorrean by the arm to drag him out of hiding.

“You work for Jabba?” Kenobi shook the gamorrean in his hands and he squealed in response.

“You tell your boss if he wants this town, come see me. Tell him Kenobi sent you.” He instructed the Gamorrean who grunted in response and ran off with a squeal.

“These folks have assembled to help our town.” Jade’s voice rang out to the small crowd.

“The Hutts will be back in two weeks. How can we go up against them? We are simple farmers not warriors.” a distressed voice called out from the crowd.

“We are going to train you. Sleep well tonight. It may be the last good sleep you’ll see for awhile.” Kenobi answered the disembodied voice and a murmur of nervous voices rose in the air like steam.

The townspeople assembled at dawn to start training with the team of strange warriors. Kenobi had asked them to bring all their weapons and while many showed up wielding guns, axes, and knives, some only carried shovels.

“Oh good they brought shovels. I was worried about our chances otherwise.” Maul snarked at Kenobi, who tried to ignore the zabrak, but had to turn his head and hide his soft chuckle at the jeer.

The days were split up into different lessons. Tactical planning with Kenobi, short range shooting with Anakin and Mace, long range shooting with Maul, bomb building With Yoda, bow and arrow lessons with Ventress, and finally knife wielding with Ahsoka.

The days were long and grueling. The townsfolk were not lying about not being fighters. Everyone’s patience was thin, but Kenobi couldn’t help but notice Maul’s steadfastness with the townsfolk. He was patient and kind, but not afraid to motivate them through controlled aggression.

“You have to hate what you’re shooting at!” Maul yelled out behind the line of townsfolk armed to shoot dummies.

“Maul you have quite the knack for this.” Kenobi later remarked to the zabrak.

“A knack for survival? Yes. I care nothing for these simple minded people. You must know that about me by now.” he scoffed.

“Yes, I think I am getting to know you quite well.” Kenobi raised an eyebrow and moseyed away. Maul’s already hot internal temperature went up and he felt flushed and frustrated from the small interaction.

The week went by in a flash. a day like any other, Mace rode back to town after his watch to alert everyone the Hutts were a few hours away. It was go-time. The children and others unable to fight were hidden in the basement of the general store. The shovels had proven useful after all and many of the fighters hid in trenches that had been dug to camouflage their location. There were mines and bombs set along the path to town to take down as many of the Hutt soldiers as possible before they were able to enter town. Ventress and anyone who excelled at bow and arrow or Maul’s long range shooting course were perched atop different buildings in town.

The tension in the air could be cut with a knife. Kenobi swallowed his spit and it ran slowly down his esophagus seemingly snowballing into a hardened knot of anxiety until it settled into his empty stomach like a stone. He pulled the brim of his hat down to shade his face from the sun, and looked over at Maul. The zabrak’s golden eyes soothed him in an unexpected way, a calmness washing over him like drinking a warm shot of whiskey. A little intoxicating, but just the one did not dull him too much to think and respond clearly.

Maul nodded at Kenobi as he rode Scimitar down to the trenches, a smile creeping along his face for no one to see. He thrived in the chaos and sensing Kenobi’s nervous energy brought him a small amount of joy. He checked in with the trenches and made sure they understood their directions and to wait for the signal.

Jabba and his soldiers stood off in the horizon. Even from a great distance one could see the enormous slug-like nature of Jabba, laid out onto a big floating sled. He gave the signal and a line of soldiers on horseback ran towards the town.

“Steady, Steady.” Yoda’s voice rang out into the trenches. At last, Yoda gave the signal and shots were fired at the incoming soldiers. Once they reached the marked line of bombs Yoda pressed the lever and a giant boom deafened everyone. Horses and soldiers flew into the air in a cloud of dust and body parts. The survivors broke through the dust and ran forward into town. There was no time for anyone to think. Bullets whizzed past ears and into body parts. More bombs were set off taking down several clusters of soldiers at once.

The surviving soldiers made it into town, firefights ensuing all around. Ventress and the others on top of the building taking down soldier after soldier from their vantage point. Mace, Anakin, and Ahsoka all on foot on the street below shooting down anyone in sight. Kenobi and Maul, still on horseback, rode through the town shooting down their assailants at every chance they got. Yoda and the others from the trenches ran back into town to keep fighting as well.

If there had been only one or two waves of soldiers from Jabba, things would have been looking pretty good. Unfortunately, someone as rich as Jabba had an endless resource for anything they desired in life, including soldiers and weapons. More and more soldiers descended onto the small town. Already, many townsfolk had sacrificed their life for the cause. The foul stench of death and direness infiltrated the air of the town, quickly taken over by the smell of fire.

The General Store was set ablaze and the children were all trapped under the building. Without thinking, Maul shot his way through to the store. Inside, smoke filled his lungs and burned his eyes. The trap door to the basement had a burning beam on top of it, trapping anyone underneath it. A swift, force-ful kick and the beam was slid across the floor. Maul crouched down to lift the door and help pull up the children out of the basement. Jade had now made her way to the store to help and her and Maul led the children and others to safety outside of the burning building. They shot down several soldiers on their way as they protected their helpless herd.

Once the children were safe with Jade, Maul mounted Scimitar and rode over to Kenobi.

“We have to take down Jabba. These soldiers only fight because he pays them, if he is gone they stop fighting.” Maul did not even let Kenobi respond as he reached down and grabbed a stack of TNT from the stockpile, and galloped off on his horse.

“Maul, wait!” Kenobi finally yelled after the zabrak, now disappearing into a cloud of dust.

“You chaotic ass!” Kenobi huffed and rode after Maul. As far as Kenobi could tell, Maul’s mission was suicide and he rode to catch up with an urgency never quite felt before. His jaw was clenched, hands formed tight fists around his horse’s reins, and heels dug into the sides of his horse signaling the beast to go FAST.

Maul already had practically made it to Jabba and narrowly avoided being shot too many times to count. The bullets whistled past his ears but he was running on too much adrenaline to be stopped. He dismounted Scimitar about 50 meters from where Jabba lay out on his sled surrounded by his fiercest guards.

Maul held his hands up in the air in an act of surrender, and slowly walked towards the evil slug. Before he got halfway there, one of the overzealous guards shot Maul in the stomach. The impact of the shot stopped him in his tracks and he fell down to his knees in shock clutching his stomach. He pushed the pain aside to stick a cigarette in his mouth and fumbled with his matches. His hands wet with blood and sweat and shaking found it impossible to light the damned cigarette. Several guns were still pointed at him, but Jabba instructed them to hold off, and one of the guards was sent to light his cigarette for him as Jabba laughed at this foolish zabrak dying in front of their eyes.

Once Maul got his cigarette lit, a feverish smile curved his lips. He reached for the dynamite strapped to his back and fell face down ass up into the ground. The guards all laughed at his death and turned away from the pathetic slump of a corpse. Maul sensed when they weren’t looking, lit the end of the dynamite fuse, and threw it at Jabba’s sled before anyone had time to register what was happening.

As soon as the dynamite left his hand Maul was ripped off the ground and on top of a horse fiercely galloping away. The explosion set off narrowly behind them deafening them both.

The fight was over. The remainder of the guards and soldiers left alive ran off now that Jabba had been destroyed in the explosion. Kenobi slowed his horse’s pace and eventually stopped to assess the situation of Maul’s injuries. He gently carried Maul off the horse and into a soft patch of dried grass. Blood was spilling out of the zabrak’s midsection at an alarming rate. Kenobi ripped his shirt off to apply pressure to the wound. Maul groaned fighting off the urge to pass out from the pain and exhaustion.

“You almost got yourself killed, you fool.” Kenobi exasperated holding down on the wound.

“You know first hand how hard it is to kill me.” Maul coughed out.

“Yes, very well, you are incredibly lucky to have survived that just now.”

“Of course I survived.” Maul reached up to touch Kenobi’s face tenderly. Kenobi took his hand in his own and pressed it into his face, blood dripping down from his hand, his eyes filled with tears.

And so they saved the little town. Jade Abernathy gave them all the payment as promised and they stayed to help clean up the town and give burials to those lost in the battle. Kenobi never left Maul’s side as he recovered in the small doctor’s office in town. Eventually, the rest of the team headed out for their own separate next adventures.

Maul slipped in and out of consciousness for several days. Kenobi figured it was the first time the zabrak had actually rested in his whole troubled life. Eventually, Maul’s strength was enough to fully wake up. He immediately saw Kenobi in the corner of the room napping. Kenobi was sitting in a wooden chair, his legs propped up on a footstool and his hat covering his face.

“Kenobi!” Maul growled. The cowboy in the corner of the room slowly reached up for his hat and a relieved grin spread across his handsome face.

“Maul, I am so happy to see you have your strength back enough to be angry again!” Kenobi laughed.

Maul got out of the small bed and limped over to Kenobi with a menacing look. Kenobi stood tall to meet Maul’s fiery amber eyes attempting to cut through his watery blue gaze. Maul, now close enough to touch Kenobi, slowly leaned in to kiss Kenobi on the lips. Initially, Kenobi slightly flinched so taken aback by the act of affection. He couldn’t help the swelling of his heart, wrapped his arms around Maul’s waist and passionately kissed him back. The moment so pure and beautiful, Kenobi finally softly pushed Maul back.

“Maul, I care deeply for you. But you have got to brush your teeth.”

-.-.-.-.--.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

once again thankee sai for reading my humble writing! Please do leave a comment or heart, it warms my soul.

Tag list: @brilliantbutbatty , @maulieber , @botherbother-blog , @emissarydecksetter , @marvel-starwarsfangirl , @wolfpack-arts-industries99 , @formerly-darth-now-just-maul @mayday1284 , @justalittlecloud ,

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skiimmiilk · 4 years ago

Text

A/N: Jesus christ this is a long one :’)))

[4:21PM]

Your older brother Johnny tosses you a pile of rope, the smell of fish still rank on the twine. You winced away at the smell, tossing it to the dock.

“Come on (y/n), put some effort at least.” He groans from above you on his boat, a thin sheen of sweat covering his forehead and dripping down his bare chest. You roll your eyes at him, but pick up the pace. You and your brother ran your late father’s fishing company while your mother and your little brother ran a shop in town. You were one of the few women out at sea doing jobs that normally a man would do so you received sideways glances as you helped unload the rest of the equipment.

“Tie down the anchor (y/n)!” You hear Johnny direct you from inside the small fishing boat.

“Alright!” You answered, bending down to grab the rope. As your gaze fell to the ground, a red flash reflected into your eyes through the gaps of the deck. You rubbed your eyes, squinting through the holes again only to be met with the familiar clear waves of the ocean.

That was weird. I could’ve sworn I saw something.

“Did you tie her down?” Johnny calls you again, capturing your attention back on the task at hand.

You huffed, tying down the last rope and tugging it to confirm that the knot wouldn’t budge.

Johnny jumps down from the ship's deck, clapping your shoulder, “Good work today sis. Let’s get home before Mark burns down the house trying to help mom with dinner.”

“Oh god, let’s. We’ve already had to put out 2 fires in the kitchen this week.” You laughed with him as he reminisced about your little brother’s clumsy kitchen antics.

The sun had dipped below the horizon by the time you and Johnny reached your small cottage at the top of the hill and to both of your relief, the house was still in tact. Mark was sitting out on the porch, whittling away at a small piece of driftwood. When he heard you and Johnny’s banter, he looked up, smiling and welcoming you back.

“Took you guys long enough! Come on! Dinner’s gonna get cold.” Mark walks inside, informing your mother about your return.

You closed the door behind you as Johnny made a huge show about how delicious the food looked. It was clam chowder night, one of your mom’s specialties.

“Sit down, sit down kids. Let’s eat.” Your mom smacks Johnny’s arm, sitting down while rubbing the back of Mark’s head. She sends you a mirthful smile before pouring out bowls for everyone. The boys were quick to eat, as they always were.

“Oh, Johnny, (y/n)!” Mark looks up from his food with wide eyes, “You won’t believe what mom and I heard at the marketplace today!”

“Oh Mark, those rumors aren’t real. Just silly fisherman’s tales.” You mom chastised, already knowing what he was going to say.

“Well, (y/n) and I are fishermen so spill.” Johnny encouraged Mark to tell, to which your mom sighed, shaking her head in disbelief.

“There has been talk about the whereabouts of the missing people.” Mark said lowly, his eyes shining with excitement, “They say they were all led to the waters by something...or rather..someone.” His eyebrows wriggled mischievously.

“Someone?” You pondered out loud, “I thought they had just gotten lost at sea.” You weren’t too convinced about his theory. There weren’t even pirates in these areas to be able to kidnap people.

“But Old Man Harvey said he saw him!” Mark exclaimed, pointing at the door, “It was a mermaid!”

You burst out laughing, almost choking on your soup, “You must be joking HAHA!” You chuckle, the rest of your family following suit.

“I’m not sis!” Mark whined, “Come on, even if it wasn’t real, don’t you think that’s an interesting theory?”

“My son, your theories hold no bounds in imagination.” Your mother smiled at him, before glancing at you and then your neck, “(y/n), where’s your pendant? Did you not wear it today.”

Your face morphs in confusion as your fingers reach up to touch your empty collarbone.

The pendant in question was the one your father had gifted you after one of his trips across the sea. It was one of your last gifts from him before he died and you wore it everywhere. A panic starts to set in your expression, but you don’t let it take over.

“I must’ve left it on the boat.” You stand from your seat, the chair scraping against the wood floor loudly, “I need to find it.”

“Wait (y/n), why don’t you wait til the morning?” Johnny offers, not exactly comfortable with you to go out by yourself.

“If it fell into the ocean, I have to find it before the waves carry it too far away.” You were settled on going, grabbing your cloak to protect you against the chilly ocean breeze, “Besides, I’ve been down to the docks at this time before. I’ll be back in 10 minutes!”

Your mother tsks and waves you away, “Back in ten minutes young lady. Don’t loiter.”

“Yes mother!” You jog out the door and down to the docks.

The breeze carried your locks and your hood was blown off as you walked across the wooden docks. You walked off the boat, not finding it anywhere inside. You walked to the edge of the planks and gazed down into the clear water only to see the murky bottom, but no sign of your green pendant.

“No..I can’t possibly have lost it.” Your eyes became misty as you gave up your search for the night, turning away.

A shuffle came from behind you and a playful voice called to you, “Lost something?”

You whip your head around, startled by the deep voice. There was no one out this late, but there sat leaning on the docks was a red haired boy. His head leaned against his crossed arms, a smirk playing on his lips, as if he already knew your answer to the question.

“I was looking for my father’s pendant, but I think it’s lost forever to the sea.” You answered solemnly, walking over to him curiously.

“Little guppy, you shouldn’t be so quick to assume..” He chuckles lowly, lifting one of his arms to reveal the green pendant tangled in his fingers.

Your eyes lit up as you kneeled down next to him with relief, “that’s my father’s pendant! How did you find it?”

“It dropped into the water and I happened to be there at the right time to catch it I suppose.” He twirled the gem in his fingers.

As you watched him you began to see his features more clearly. Striking red eyes to match his red hair that dripped sea water. His top was missing which finally seemed to dawn on you as your eyes travelled below the dock. Your eyes must be deceiving you as you see his human flesh transition into a red an black tail. Each scale glittered like rubies and obsidian under the pale moonlight.

“You like what you see, little guppy?” He quirks his eyebrow up at you, amused at your silent awe.

“I apologize..” You immediately stop staring, “I’ve never met a merman before.”

“It’s alright, most humans haven’t” He chuckles, gazing at the necklace, “This is a pretty stone you have here. Where did you get it?”

“My father gave it to me.” You answered, wondering why he hadn’t given it back to you yet, “It’s very precious to me so I’m grateful that you found it and are returning it to me.”

“Ah ah-” He grins, “I never said I was going to give it back to you.”

You stand up from your crouched form, your eyebrows knit in a mixture of confusion and annoyance, “and why not?”

“I don’t feel like it.” He swishes his tail, gently stirring the water below him, “But if you accompany me, perhaps you’ll be able to change my mind.”

“My mother expects me to be home soon.” You protest.

“Then I guess you’re not seeing this pendant anytime soon, little guppy.” He moves to swim away, but you grab his forearm and pull him back.

“Wait!” Your thoughts stop at how close your face was to him when you pulled him back.

“Yes little guppy?” He raises his eyebrow, waiting for your answer.

“Where are we going?” You inquire. Hopefully, the faster you get this over with, the faster you can get back home.

Now it was his turn to pull at you, tugging your wrist under the cool waters, “Follow me and you will see.” He smiles up at you, his shark-like teeth poking from his lips.

#nct #nct u #nct 127 #nct 2020 #nct taeyong #nct imagines #nct timestamp #nct fanfic #nct fantasy #nct fantasy au #nct merman #kpop imagine #kpop timestamp #kpop #nct mark #nct johnny

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taeguboi · 5 years ago

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“She’s Mine Now” Jungkook x Reader

“A fiction in which Jungkook steals the girl from right under her lousy date’s nose”

I sort of made this concept for a fiction a bit ago and... I’m not sure this quite turned out as good as I wanted to but here goes hahahaha

Fiction Masterlist

“Cheers guys!” the singer gratefully says to his audience through the microphone, showing gratitude for the amazing response to the song the band just played.

Applause fills the room as the band put down their instruments and get ready to relax during the interval between sets.

This is a great night for the pub; the drinks sales are pouring in and the crowd ebullient for the music provided by the band who are on fire tonight.

This date however… is not.

Your best friend had inaugurated a blind date after your little drunken breakdown around a week ago as you wept about feelings of loneliness and yet how you can’t help but feel hindered in moving on from your last relationship because of your dependency on it to be happy… Additionally there were also those insecurities and irrational fears about getting yourself back out there into the world of dating which didn’t exactly help your need to develop a more positive mind set.

“Tell you what?” beamed y/f/n. “How about I set you up with a friend?”

In theory, her suggestion actually sounded like a good idea; even if the date didn’t take you anywhere beyond a meal or a drink, it could be a good practice run at interacting with unfamiliar faces, maybe even a confidence booster.

You had gotten all dressed up to the nines in your little black dress: a simple, classy look one can never go wrong with. Slimming in all the right places, the garment perfectly hugs those curves, shows a little bit off, yet leaves plenty to the imagination. Alongside this dress you donned some matching heels which give you some extra height, but no so much so as to hurt your back, your prettiest dangly silver earrings with the black sapphire gems, and the gorgeous choker your friend bought you to compliment the rest of your ensemble.

“Well, not that you need it” she corrected herself after presenting it to you as a ‘good luck’ gift.

You remember scooping it up from inside the box and looking at the choker in amazement. It glistened under the light of the sunset which seeped through her living room window and looked striking with its three rows of sparkling black gems similar in appearance to the sapphires which your earrings hold. You wondered why she felt such a gesture was necessary or if you even deserved it.

“To be honest, I bought it for myself ages ago but I’ve never worn it” y/f/n clarified following your question. “It will suit you way better anyway, especially with those earrings”

You felt grateful to have such a kind hearted friend and it was the boost of encouragement you needed to get yourself out there this evening and go for it! To say yes to life! Yes to confidence! Yes to new opportunities!...

But this night, as far as this pairing is concerned, is turning out to be a great disappointment.

Sure, the band is great and the drinks are fine, but… this guy has no personality whatsoever, or at least he doesn’t have any traits or qualities you find preferable in a love interest. All he wants to do is talk your ear off and bore you with the details about how often he hits the gym, and then there was something about motorcycles you think, not fully engaging in what this dude has to say about himself. You’ve hardly been able to get a word in edgeways about yourself.

You always affirmed in your mind that looks are not everything. You never set sky rocketing expectations that he should have rock hard washboard abs or a razor sharp jawline; you know that life isn’t a movie. You didn’t care that when you first walked into the pub this evening that you were met by a man with mousy brown hair resembling the colour of the faded mahogany floor that met your feet, nor did you judge his typical smart-casual style consisting of a white v-neck, black blazer and jeans. The personality was what always mattered to you; the one thing that always sealed the deal.

“I’m just going to nip to the toilet! I’ll be right back!” you abruptly announce whilst your date is in mid-sentence about what hair product he uses which, by the way, is just a bit too much. You figure he must have put a bit too much mousse in his hair as it produces a greasy appearance even under the dim pub lighting that hovers above your heads.

“Sorry” you quietly apologise as you come to your feet and gather your black clutch bag and your phone from the small rounded surface of the tall shabby table.

After relieving yourself in the ladies room and finding yourself alone in there, you stare into the mirror to reflect in a contemplative way, ignoring the slight smudge of eyeliner beneath the outer corner of your right eye.

There is barely anything you are enjoying about the evening. You scan your brain for all the possible excuses you could make for leaving early, but nothing seems good enough:

You can’t say you’re feeling ill because he’d only offer to walk you home and that in itself just seems like an unnecessary effort for your date who will most definitely offer to walk you home only to be rejected in any further advances he’s likely to make on you. In fact, you feel somewhat apprehensive at the idea of being alone with him although that could just be your mind speculating following on from when he placed his hand on your thigh a couple of times throughout the course of the evening.

Calling y/f/n doesn’t feel like an option. She went to so much effort in a sincere attempt to make her friend happy from hooking you up with this guy in the first place, to helping you get your makeup on point, (you never realized how good winged eyeliner on your top lids looks!) to even driving you to this pub.

Doing a runner through the beer garden and out the back gate just isn’t your style either. Rude, cowardly and insensitive; you just aren’t any of those things... You suppose you could stick this through a bit longer and get a couple of more free drinks out of this, right?

‘Jesus y/n, what have you stooped to?’ you wonder to yourself.

Pulling out one of your emergency make up wipes from being crammed inside your clutch bag, you correct the small problem that is the smudged eyeliner and promise yourself that you will try harder to stop yawning from boredom, and then ultimately chucking the used wipe in the bin of the nearest cubicle.

You stumble out of the toilets, kind of forgetting about the small step on the way down, causing you to wobble a bit as your reaction time to stop yourself from falling is a bit too slow. Your shoulder crashes into the chest of someone passing by and you instantly fill up with embarrassment, apologising profusely.

“Oh crap, I’m so sorry!” you exclaim, taking a quick glance at the stranger you knocked into, then your line of sight goes straight to your outfit as you smooth down your dress in the hope that it hadn’t raised up from your clumsy gesture.

“No worries!” the voice replies back, the man already walking into the distance and towards the garden when you look up. He gives a wave to show it’s okay, no harm caused. He looks familiar.

With a black crew neck shirt and black shorts, one would think his clothes would only blend in with his ebony hair but somehow, his appearance does feel so ordinary; his fringe is a little too long almost covering the eyes yet rather than the length weighing it down, it glides buoyantly as he turns his head. You couldn’t see the colour of his eyes but they felt warm and dark, like mocha.

The logical thinking side of your brain is clearly non-existent practically as you can’t make any guesses as to why you think you recognise him and you have to urge yourself to stop thinking so pensively. Lots of people look familiar that you’ve never met before, it’s just one of those things.

Entering the main bar room, heels clumsily clunking on the floor amidst the low chatter of the punters, you search for your date as you register he is no longer sitting at the table you left him at. You let out a small sigh, one of contentment as you jump to conclusions. However, your date spots you from the bar counter and beckons you over.

“Oh, aren’t we keeping our seats?” you inquire as he places a fresh drink in your limp hand.

“Mm-mm” he hums as if to say ‘no’. “I thought we could have one more for the road and then… move on, if you like?” he requests, raising an eyebrow half suggestively.

It is now quite obvious that this guy is more into you than you are him and a small wave of panic hits you as you struggle for a good response.

Glaring feedback from one of the guitars on stage interrupts the awkward moment as the band plug back in their instruments to do their next set. Though this noise makes many tense, it fills you with a solace; that sound means the band are back on; the band being back on makes the perfect excuse to stay.

“Oh, well whilst I wouldn’t mind saying yes to one more drink, I… I was actually really enjoying the band” you stammer, taking a sip of drink after.

“Same as last time please mate” the bartender says, requesting payment as he serves your date’s drink. A £10 note is placed in the bartender’s hand and a doubting smile is thrown your way.

“Oh, okay, sure” he replies, bringing his hand into his pocket having received some pennies. You can sense his efforts to be some smooth suave kind of guy for you tonight, one with genuine intentions, but it was only coming across minutely. Move on? And before the band have even begun their second half? Impatience, in reality, is what is coming across.

You decide to ignore that your date is probably not ecstatic with your placid response to his suggestion and you turn your focus to the live entertainment.

“Come one” you smile. “Let’s go to the front”

Your suggestion turns into command as you reach out for his non participating hand, grabbing his wrist anyway and practically dragging him there.

“One two…” the singer vocalises into the microphone to see if it’s turned on and the audience response is already bursting with positive hollers, anticipating cheering and fulfilling applause that resonates across the room.

“Alright, that’s definitely on” the singer chuckles sonorously, sweeping back his highlighted mahogany hair.

“Here’s the next song to kick the night off a little…” he continues, hyping up the first song of the second half of the evening.

The main guitar riff begins the upbeat song which everyone immediately recognises causing many more layers of commotion in the room with whistling, singing along and feet stomping. You jig along to the song a little on your own, drink in hand and clutch bag under the same arm.

Oddly, you hoped your date might have wanted to dance with you, that maybe this dude might have at least one weeny small ounce of fun in him, but nothing. Halfway through the song, you glance over your shoulder, flash him a smile as you bop along and in return he sends you a rigid smile that for a split second makes you forget about how warm it’s getting amongst the crowd.

For the rest of the song, well tell a lie, the rest of their set, your eyes remained on the band. Along came more upbeat songs through which the occasional stranger would shuffle along and have a friendly dance next to you and then move along to the next amused punter with their terrible moves from 1982. There was the odd ballad to tug on the old heart strings and get everyone really singing along in the drunken semi-emotional messes they are; sweaty men with their arms around each other as the chorus hits, booming out the lyrics, mostly right, some wrong words, some really incorrect lyrics; young girls in their groups holding their drinks in the air and letting drops of wine spill onto the carefree souls behind as they sing the words correctly; couples in corners stopping their sessions of eating face to join in as they sing to one another with endearing looks.

Following a long string of songs came a drum solo to stall during a technical difficulty with the lead guitarist’s amp and you feel a bit dim-witted for not recognising that dude from earlier who is in fact the band’s drummer, who glances at you for a moment whilst he does a drum roll and your cheeks feel rosy.

And then you blush a second time when it feels like he’s looking at you again.

And again for a third time leaving you standing there both uneasy and perplexed as you recall why, when you bumped into that person not long ago, that face looked so familiar.

You conclude it’s the paranoia from the incident earlier as you analyse when and why he was looking in your direction those last few times. He was looking around the room as he played anyway. Every good performer gives their audience eye contact. In fact, he probably wasn’t even glancing at specifically you that first time, even. You shrug it off as the solo comes to an end with a crash cymbal ringing out eliciting a wide array of applause.

This time, you find yourself unable to put your hands together to make an appreciative sound. His eyes are burning into yours, a stare so mysterious, you can’t figure out what those eyes are trying to say to you. Like an idiot you can feel your jaw dropping slightly but you haven’t the focus to close your mouth before you catch a small fly and you’re not even sure you care that he’s smirking. It isn’t until the singer jumps back on stage and in front of the drummer that you snap out of it.

“This dude is awesome, right?” you ask your date who has now finally decided to stand at your side rather than standing awkwardly behind you as you haven’t allowed him the opportunity once to grab your waist or hug you from behind.

“Yeah, I guess” he monotoned, raising a glass and taking a big chug of his drink.

“So do you know any other good places to go to ‘round here?” queries your date, daring to snake an arm around your waist, his warm breath hits your ear and the front of his blazer rubs uncomfortably on your arm. You note that this is probably the least sensual intimacy you’ve experienced as his eagerness to move on mildly unsettles you.

As you hold back the urge to scrunch up your face, you muster a reply with the intention to soften the blow for him that you’re just not feeling the connection. You’re going to play it calm and cool, and you intend to buy the next round of drinks, you know, to show that you aren’t just here for freebies.

“Uh places ‘round here?” you reiterate back just before the band begin their next song.

“1! 2! 3! 4!” the singer shouts into the mic before all the instruments kick in simultaneously to start the next song.

“To be honest, not really” you explain, raising your voice to be heard over the music and cheering. This actually isn’t a made up excuse when you tell your date this; this pub is probably one of the only pubs in town that isn’t a complete dive.

“Within about a 2 mile radius, this is probably the one and only bar without sticky floors or loos that smell like p… smell bad” you continue, correcting your language at the end of your sentence.

“Well, it doesn’t have to be a pub” he suggests, now finally making some eye contact with you. His stare is somewhat menacing but not in a totally mischievous way; it’s more of a gaze that raises suspicion, as though he might be up to something. “How about a club?” he hums with expectation. “You know, get some sick beats to dance to, do some shots, that kind of thing.”

Clubs. You really really didn’t care for them. Maybe when you were a few years younger perhaps, but there’s only so many times you can get inebriated enough to tolerate an atmosphere of needy blokes who want to spike unknowing girls’ drinks and people getting off in the corner and being forever unable to hear what any of your friends are saying.

‘Sick beats? What is this guy…’ you think to yourself.

“Hey, I’ll buy the next round, yeah?” you ask rhetorically, diverting the topic of going someplace else and slipping away from his hold as you go back to the bar to order, the queue which to your relief has become a vast one. At least in this waiting situation, something interesting will happen at the end and your patience will pay off. Probably you’ll look back on this moment as the highlight of the night.

***

“Thank you! You guys have been awesome! Good night!”

The last few chords and cymbal crashes are rung out to put an end to a brilliant evening of music eliciting once more the roars of applause and appreciation from the pub’s punters.

You’re now sitting at the bar with your date, engaging in conversation…

...Not.

So actually, you’re just sitting on the stool next to this guy, a leg which is crossed over the other swinging back and forth repeatedly whilst you hold your almost empty glass. The applause dies down once the crowd gather the band won’t be coming back for yet another encore - they already did about six extra songs in total - and the room goes back into an agglomeration of chatter and clinking of glasses.

Forever the try hard type, a part of you wants to try just one more time tonight, and forever the self-deprecating type, you begin to doubt whether you gave this guy enough of a chance or not or that perhaps it’s you not sparking enough conversation. Deep down, you kind of realise you have indeed made more than enough of an effort and played your full hand in topics only to be dismissed from most of them… but the doubt about yourself is there nonetheless.

‘Fuck it, another round’ you think to yourself.

“Excuse me!” you call out to the bartender.

“Same again for us two please!” you grin, leaning back on your stool ever slightly, lazily handing over another £10.

‘Right. Here goes. Try again.’

“So the band was on fire tonight weren’t they?” you smile to your date.

“Yeah, I suppose they were” he replies, his voice faltering a little. You can’t quite tell if or not the uncertainty in this voice is because he just finished the last sip of his drink and perhaps didn’t allow himself enough time to let it go down.

You’re quite sure now that sitting around just drinking and listening to some band all evening might not have been part of his plan; it seems this band tonight were kind of a last minute booking or maybe your date didn’t think the music would go on for so long… or something or other.

“So what kind of music do you like?” you pose, really hoping he doesn’t say anymore things that are deal breakers. You might just lose your shit and be known as that one loony girl at the pub who stormed out on her first date because the bloke she was sat with didn’t like the same music as her…

“Oh, you know, anything with a good beat, really. ‘Bit of drum and bass. Stuff that really gets the party going” he replies.

You could just facepalm right here and now if it weren’t for the two drinks you are thankful to be slid your way… So basically, he likes anything he hears in the club. Wow. Very interesting(!)

Alright, so maybe there’s something else you can talk about. There must be some common ground somewhere here, right?

“Uh, I’m just gonna nip to the men’s room… I’ll be right back” he mutters, not even allowing you the chance to reply to him.

As your date makes his way through and disappears in the crowd, you find yourself in a bit of a trance, half trying to think of something to talk about when your date returns, half contemplating standing him up and leaving.

“Sorry? Excuse me?” speaks a voice, taking you away from your thoughts “Sorry, could I just squeeze in here please?” asks a girl trying to get to the bar to order.

“Oh yeah, of course, sorry love” you reply, dismounting the stool, dragging it away a little to make room, then reaching over to the two drinks to pull them over to your new spot. You stumble a little from the lack of space to move about in and accidentally tread on someone’s shoe.

“Oh gosh, I’m so sorry” you apologise as you turn around to face the stranger whose toes you just squashed. Trying to keep hold of the stool behind you, a hand behind your back remains clutched onto one of the back bars of it and it suddenly doubles up as something to lean on as you feel yourself going weak at the knees at what feels like a deja vu type occurrence.

“We’ll have to stop bumping into each other like this or I’ll have to learn your name” he smiles; it’s the drummer from the band again.

His black hair is slightly damp from the energy he put into tonight’s gig yet he still manages to look radiant. Tall and broad shouldered with eyes that are a sensuous brown, you can’t help but admire the view in front of you. You could kick yourself for how clumsy you’ve been as the evening has progressed… have you really had that much to drink?

“It’s y/n” you smile, now ignoring your seat completely and coolly leaning onto the bar... only to be suddenly shaken up by the return of your date as he makes you jump.

“Hey!” he exclaims. “Goodness, people really are like vultures with the seats in this place, huh?” he questions as he observes the already occupied bar stools behind you.

“Ah, just a bottle of water please my good man” the drummer requests now having the attention of the bartender who immediately gets his order.

“On the house dude; great show tonight”

“Thank you so much” replies the drummer gratefully, then facing back to you to say goodbye. “See you around y/n… the name’s Jungkook by the way” he smiles, raising the bottle in his hand as if to say ‘cheers’ as he walks away.

“You know him?” asks your date.

“Not really no” you reply “I was just a bit clumsy and trod on his foot” you laugh nervously.

“I apologised and we got chatting…” you explain, feeling the need to justify yourself for some reason.

“Y/n, I’m not going to scold you for talking to other people” he replies, stepping closer to you.

“But if there’s something you’re not telling me…” he coos, once again giving you that unpleasant shiver down your neck.

“I can help change your mind” he says suggestively - and it does absolutely nothing for you.

Not even the slightest bit of arousal?

Nope. Nothing.

Unsure of how to respond, you excuse yourself to go to the toilets once more.

“Sorry, I guess I’ve had a lot of these drinks; I need to use the ladies again” you chuckle.

***

The band load out the last few bits of equipment into their van and stop for a break from all the heavy lifting, taking in the fresh cool air that the outdoors offers. The singer, dark brown hair wavering in front of his face in the breeze, scrambles his pockets and pulls out a pouch of tobacco and rolls himself a cigarette which immediately goes noticed by the disapproving lead guitarist, Seokjin.

“Oi, Tae, I thought you’d given that shit up” Seokjin challenges, eyebrows slightly furrowed beneath his light brown fringe.

“It’s just the last of what I had left, promise” shrugs the singer with a slightly muffled voice from the filter he holds between his teeth, earning a glance of disbelief from the other three band members.

“What?” he shrugs again, brushing his hair back with his spare hand and placing the loose tobacco in the paper. “Anyway, it was a good night; I deserve it.”

“It’s alright ‘Jin” hums the drummer tunefully, placing his almost empty water bottle on the floor to take his sweaty shirt off, revealing a handsomely muscular body. He slides open a door to the back seats of the van, rummaging for his clean shirt as he continues to talk:

“I’m sure Taehyung’s more than aware that if he starts croaking like some old frog then we’ll find a replacement…”

“Ah Jungkook, quit teasing” the singer sighs with a smirk, leaning against the door of the front passenger’s seat, lighting up his cigarette. “You guys love me really,” Taehyung continues, taking an inhale after.

“Alright, sure we do” jokes the bassist, Namjoon, hands in pockets standing opposite Taehyung and next to Seokjin.

“You do” smiles Taehyung with a confident smirk.

Gathering the pool of fabric that is yet another black shirt, the drummer takes his head out from inside the car, slams the door shut, and throws the shirt over his body and poses a question. “So, we sticking around for a drink then?” he asks, picking up his bottle of water and taking a sip from it.

“‘Fraid not mate” replies Namjoon with a sigh. “Work in the morning”

“I’ll take you back mate” offers Seokjin, fumbling in his pockets for the keys. “I wouldn’t be drinking anyway so just let me know when and we’ll set off Joon”

“What time is it?” asks the bassist, looking at his wrist and showing an expression of exasperation upon realising he must have forgotten to put a watch on before tonight’s gig.

“Almost 20 minutes to midnight” Taehyung says, already able to see the time of 11:39 on his brightly lit phone he holds in front of him as he checks his social media.

“Oh shit” mumbles Namjoon. “Might have to go sooner than we thought then mate, is that alright?”

“You staying Tae?” asks Jungkook.

“Uh, yeah, sure” the singer replies, putting his phone back in his pocket and lifting himself from the car door. “Just lemme finish this and we’ll go back in, yeah?”

“Right see you guys at rehearsal in a few days” smiles Seokjin, bringing in Jungkook for a goodbye hug.

“See you soon man” adds Namjoon, reaching out for Taehyung’s hand and the two shake hands and bring each other in for a friendly pat on the back.

The guitarist and bassist hop into the van as Taehyung flicks the cigarette butt onto the concrete and he burns it by stamping on it. A couple of beeps from the van as it drives away prompt Taehyung and Jungkook to wave goodbye and they turn their backs to head inside the pub.

Finding a spare table in the corner of the room, the two boys sit themselves on two lonely chairs positioned behind a small round table, looking onto the rest of the room.

“So a bit of dutch courage and then we take our pick of the crowd this evening ‘Kook?” asks Taehyung casually, now definitely in the mood to pull after such a dynamic gig.

“I’ve already chosen mine,” Jungkook replies matter-of-factly as he spots one girl in particular walking past them. “See that girl over there? The one in the sexy dress?” he questions, pointing over at the bar where she now stands.

“You mean the one right next to that guy who appears to be her date or boyfriend?” Taehyung conversely states.

“I want her” answers Jungkook with a fairly deep hum showing an urge to go do something about it.

“Dude what the fuck? Not gonna happen” ridicules the singer. “She’s been with that guy all evening; I could see from the stage”

“Challenge accepted” Jungkook arrogantly responds, folding his arms and leaning back in his chair as he unashamedly checks out the target of his desire.

Now usually, Jungkook would look straight at all the curves on a woman, but not this time. He watches the way the girl coyly smiles at her date and Jungkook finds it super cute; though he’s barely convinced she is flashing a genuine smile at this other dude, she still looks beautiful and charming.

“20 quid says you can’t do it” Taehyung challenges, sliding a note out of his wallet and placing it on the table, now invested in the idea of making something a little more interesting happen again since the atmosphere of the bar now seems pretty anticlimactic to what he felt on stage just 20 minutes ago

“Make it 30 and we have a deal” Jungkook counters, pulling out a 10 and a 20 from his wallet and placing those on top of Taehyung's initial bet. “I plan to treat this girl to whatever she wants tonight”

“I think this gig got to your head Kook” laughs Tae not quite believing the audacity of his friend. "I mean I know that was probably one of our best but…"

“She’s totally into me” adds Jungkook as the girl from the bar glances in his direction and flashes a friendly smile.

“How could you possibly know that?”

“I’ve already spoken to her a few times… Anyway, is it a deal, or what?”

“Right then, 30 quid it is…” Taehyung agrees, sliding out an additional note from his wallet and slamming it down on top of the rest of the money to complete the sum proposed. He feels pretty confident about his side of the bet so he’s more than happy to up the ante.

Jungkook reaches out a hand to shake and Taehyung returns the gesture, taking a firm grip of the drummer’s hand and firmly shaking on it.

***

You had possibly taken a lot longer than expected in the ladies room. Partly it was that you needed to compose yourself as the alcohol was beginning to make you feel a tad dizzy but mostly it was you sitting on the loo seat in a cubicle composing a list on your phone.

Your little document didn’t have a title but the content mostly revolved around things you could possibly try to talk about and ways you could put an end to this part of the evening without seeming rude.

Family emergency…

Phone a friend to pretend to by chance be at the pub…

Ask him about his family…

Bite your tongue and ask more about the motorcycles

Grin and bear it and ask about his gym routine… but I’m still not fucking him.

“Hey sorry I took so long” you apologise, holding up your phone. “It was my mum; you know what parents can be like, even when you’re more than old enough to take care of yourself…”

Nice save y/n.

Deciding to stick this through for some bizarre reason, you pick the topics of conversation as ‘plan A’... okay it was more like plan B, C or D at this point, just in different variants of ‘plan A’ to just be yourself and talk. Maybe asking more questions about him will spark some other sort of conversation. Maybe making an effort to find out more about him is what this needs… even if the most of the first half of your date had already consisted of talking about him...

“So tell me more about this bike you’re doing up,” you begin with your best interested smile and trying to keep the conversation innocent after what was said before you made your panicked exit. “Maybe you could show me sometime” you continue, throwing yourself in the deep end a little but then wondering what is actually happening here.

‘Have I actually become that desperate that I’m forcing myself to make arrangements for another meeting with a guy I’m not even interested in?’

“Actually, it’s almost finished” replies your date with a much more confident and genuine smile than he gave you previously. “I know this great place where we could take it for a test run if you’re interested actually…”

Just as you’re about to reply, a figure comes barging between the two of you, half annoying you, half relieving you of the pressure to muster the enthusiasm to make a positive comment.

“Hey guys! Great night, huh?” booms Jungkook. “You managed to stand on anyone else’s toes yet y/n?” he grins.

“Not yet, no” you laugh.

“Good, good…” he hums, then turning his attention to the bartender. “Excuse me! 2 pints please!” he requests, pointing to one of the beer taps. “And… can I get anything for you guys?”

“Oh, you don’t have to” you tell him.

“No, I insist” he exclaims. “And another round for these two please!” to which the bartender nods.

“So I’m doing a bit of research guys… what was your favourite song this evening?”

Your date seems rather speechless which doesn’t surprise you as you could just tell from his vacant stare throughout the whole gig that he wasn’t so much as even paying the slightest bit of attention.

“My favourite song?” you ask, scanning your brain to try and pick one. “Well, I enjoyed a lot of them, so….”

And just like that, an engaging conversation is sparked. It goes from the music, to asking each other what you each do in your ordinary lives, to funny anecdotes, to current affairs in the news, and then even following on from those news stories with opinions and theories, and before you know it, you glance up at the clock behind the bar and it is already half past midnight.

Clearly, your date also takes note of the time and finally decides to speak again right in the middle of you and Jungkook laughing about the idea of what ridiculous conspiracy theories have been said about the very latest bit of breaking news.

“Oh my God, really? Some people are so ridiculous!” you laugh, unable to contain yourself, stitches forming in your ribs.

“Um, y/n, it’s probably about time we should get going…” he informs you, coming to stand next to you, placing a hand on your shoulder.

“Oh, really?” you sigh longingly. “I’m quite enjoying it here.”

“Well, it’s just that I’m getting a bit tired and I thought you might want to join me for a night cap…” he suggests, slightly pulling at your arm to coerce you into putting down your drink and leaving.

“I’m not ready to leave yet” you admit with a shrug as you look at the floor unable to look your date in the eye.

“Here you go guys” you hear the bartender speak in the background followed by the sounds of full glasses being placed next to you. You look up so that you can grab and take a sip of your fresh drink.

“But we’ve been here for hours” sighs your date in a huff, clearly annoyed at the rejection.

“Yeah, but our next round just came in” Jungkook adds, helping your case to stay put.

“I’m sorry, but no one asked you” replies your date through gritted teeth.

“Woah, woah!” you exclaim, standing up in front of him, hands raised as if to calm him down or bring the peace. “There’s no need to talk to him like that…”

“There’s no need to be talking to him at all if you ask me”

“Dude what the hell?” you ask.

“Yeah, come on mate!” whines Jungkook in view of your date from behind your shoulder.

“Don’t you ‘mate’ me!” responds your date with a fit of bad temper, slamming his glass down on the table, causing some of it to splash out over the edge. You notice a couple of heads begin to turn at the sudden commotion

“You’ve clearly been lingering around here all evening just so you can oogle over my bird”

“Sorry, your bird?” you protest loudly.

Suddenly aware of the attention the volume of your voice draws, so that’s only a couple more heads turning to look at the three of you, you take a deep breath and muster the courage to speak up.

“Who said I belong to you? This is a first date, a set up” you remind him.

“I said I wanted to stay. I’ve been enjoying it here tonight, and if you aren’t enjoying it as much, then I’m sorry - not my problem! I’m not going to leave just because of that.”

Taehyung, who had also been sat with you guys for the past quarter of an hour decided to chime in:

“Come on mate, maybe it’s time you should go” he suggests placing a hand on your date’s shoulder in attempt to calmly escort him out

“Who the fuck asked you either?” bellows your date, aggressively shrugging Taehyung off his shoulder.

“No one asked him, but I agree with what he has to say” you defend now positioning yourself between him and Tae. “Maybe it is time you should go. This clearly isn’t working out.”

Your date approaches Jungkook and goes face to face with him. If most of the pub were watching the scene unravelling before, every single person is watching now.

“This is all your fault, this” you date tells him in a threatening manner.

“Oh yeah?” challenges Jungkook, pushing his neck upwards towards your date so that they are practically butting heads. “And I don’t suppose it has anything to do with how bored this poor girl has been looking for a good portion of the evening or how you’re so desperately trying to get into her pants when clearly, she’s having none of it? Yeah, I know your type; you’re a creep only in it for the fuck…”

“So what if I am?”

The audacity of this comment from your date outrages you.

“Wow” you remark.

“Oh shut up!” he bellows, turning to face you once again. “We both know I could give you the time of your life if you went with me… what’s he got, eh?” he questions, placing both hands on your waist, making you feel super uncomfortable.

You push the creep off you and back away a step or two and towards Jungkook.

“You know, at least Jungkook was asking me about myself which was quite the refresher from talking to you! Do you really think you were winning me over with talks about how you go to the gym and how you ride about the county on some shitty bike?”

“Well maybe it’s just that you’re a frigid cow then”

“Oi! Oi!” yells Jungkook, pushing your - well, he’s not your date anymore, so - pushing this idiot away. The guy pushes him back and it briefly goes back and forth like this until Taehyung decides to pull his friend away, seemingly surprised at himself for being able to have the strength to do so.

“Oh my God! Just stop!” you demand. “Did you not for one moment consider that I might have just not been that into you?” you question, addressing the jerk who just described you in such a horrible way.

That really riled you up, you know. You refuse to be spoken to in such a demeaning way just because some dude couldn’t get his rock off with you. This won’t do. You know you’re not the problem here. Yet you feel the need to prove a point...

“Besides, would a frigid cow do this…?” you ask, pulling in Jungkook by the arm and swinging him in towards you lips crashing together.

You throw your arms around him as he eases into the intense kiss by putting his hands on your waist which, by the way, feels much nicer than when the other guy put his hands on you, and the entire crowd that was watching this movie-like scene cheer.

You can feel Jungkook positively responding to the kiss as he smiles into it so you milk it by running your fingers through his hair as he pulls you in closer. Your hands trail down to his shoulders and you take in how strong they feel giving you a great sense of security in the kiss… plus you go weak at the knees at how amazing the kiss feels; how amazing he feels as you bask in his warmth.

Jungkook’s lips are divine. He tastes like the drink he just had, yet the softness of his lips gave almost a honey like flavour, delicious to savour. You relish the way his tongue runs along your loose lips requesting entrance and you see stars as just a kiss progresses into a small make out. You have to try with all your might to pull away from him so as to not create a sickly public display of affection for the onlookers.

“Yeah, well whatever” shrugs the losing man as you glance over at him with a look that says ‘this argument is finished’ Attempting to give off an unbothered appearance, as if his ego hasn’t been dampened, he wanders to the other end of the bar and towards the first lone girl he can see.

At this point, many people have returned to chatting with the people at their own tables, low conversation stirring and restoring some of the usual ambience one would ordinarily find in a pub… the difference right now being that you’re quite certain they’re all talking about you, Jungkook and your jerk date.

For a few seconds, you watch this guy initiate conversation with her and those who are paying attention are humoured by the sight of the girl slapping him across the face and walking away, causing some to jeer ‘wahey!’

Out of sight, out of mind, you feel much calmer now as you see the guy walk out of the door.

“So, was that just for show or… can I interest you in coming to our next gig?” Jungkook questions, walking around you so that he stands in front of you.

“I’ll be a pleasure” you smile, heart fluttering at the sight of this handsome man. “Thank you”

______________________

tbh I’m not too happy with myself for how long it ended up being before the so called juicy bit but I figured it would be a wasted effort to not post it so if you got to the bottom of this post, I thank you so much for your time to read my 7.1k words of trash :P

Fiction Masterlist

#jungkook #jungkook fiction #jungkook imagines #jungkook scenarios #bts #bts fiction #bts imagines #bts scenarios #jeon jungkook #bts jungkook #jungkook fic #bts fic #jungkook fanfic #bts fanfic #jungkook fanfiction #bts fanfiction

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medea10 · 5 years ago

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Medea’s Anime/Game Superlative of 2019

Well it’s that time of the year where I look back on the animes I’ve watched and the games I played with this outdated meme quiz from 10 years ago. But I still do it for the fun of it! As usual, it doesn’t matter what year the anime or game came out. If I messed with it this year, it counts for the honors. So if it came out two years ago (which feels like forever ago), it counts. Let’s get at it!

First Fandom of 2019: The Promised Neverland

Episode 1! That’s all you need to watch to officially get hooked to this series. I jumped on this title at the beginning of the year not knowing what to expect due to Aniplex and Crunchyroll whoring this particular anime months prior. But once I saw the first episode, I was immediately hooked. It shook me to my core to watch one of the most graphic scenes to come from this year. I was captivated by Emma, Norman, and Ray’s plans in order to escape their doomed fate of becoming food for creepy demons. Each episode, I was at the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. Is Gilda in cahoots with Sister Krone? Will Don learn the truth about what really happened to Connie in episode 1? Can Ray be trusted? IS NORMAN STILL ALIVE?! Come on, I’m like really far ahead in the manga. I want to see Norman and Emma together again. I’m so happy this series is getting a second season in 2020.

Favorite Main Character of 2019: Haru from My Roommate is a Cat

It was a close call this year for main characters and normally I don’t shoot for main characters. This year I will admit that I fell in love with Chika from Kaguya-sama. Plus, I still love me some Lana from Pokemon Sun/Moon! And I finally started part III of Jojo’s, so Grandpa Joestar is just the awesome OH MY GOD that I need. However, they all lose out to a cat! Yeah, just like that one year where I picked Nyanko-sensei as my favorite main character, I’m doing it again.

I know Haru can’t actually talk back to her human, but the audience can hear what she’s really saying and it’s absolutely amusing. She was funny when she thought the word “Haru” meant food. She’s so adorable when she’s playing with whatever catches her eye. She’s got quite the personality (almost tsundere even). But I gotta admire Haru too. Before she was adopted, Haru was on the street trying her best to look out for her younger siblings. Even giving them more food scraps when she would go hungry herself. After Haru was adopted by Subaru, she eventually warmed up to him as “her human”. It was a learning experience for both as Haru didn’t know how to react to having a human care for her and Subaru has never taken care of a cat before. But Haru is a loyal kitty who loves her human. Hell, she ran away from home because she feared her human collapsed somewhere. Haru’s the greatest!

Favorite Villain of 2019:

…

…Dear God, give me the strength to pull through this one.

Princess Malty “Myne, Bitch, Whore” Melromarc (The Rising of the Shield Hero)

No, this is not me insulting her. These are all her official names. Really! In many of the animes I watched this year, the villains were pretty hit-and-miss with me. I’m in the middle of watching the elven uprise with Black Clover and didn’t want to talk about that this year. Fairy Tail’s villains are just okay. And I didn’t watch Frieza this year! So let’s talk about the ONE villain who even out-trump’s the actual villain to the series.

It only took one episode for an entire fandom to turn on one single character. A single lie that figuratively speaking threw our main protagonist Naofumi under the bus, kicked him in the nuts, shanked him, robbed him, and thrown him off a cliff. Myne did so much throughout this series. She lied about being raped. She abused her power to get what she wanted. She set up someone to fail constantly. She attempted murder on her own sister (several times) just to keep her status as first in line to the throne. And she cheats so she gets her way! It was so sickening to watch this vile woman for more than just one episode. When you created a character who was so disgusting and revolting as a secondary villain, you did something right! It’s like with Shou Tucker and Father from Full Metal Alchemist. Ask any anime fan and they’ll definitely remember Tucker over Father. Myne is this anime’s Shou Tucker! And I have to give her some credit, she is now one memorable villain. And aren’t villains usually supposed to be despised? I, Naofumi, most characters in Shield Hero after episode 21, and all of the internet can come together in agreement to say, we hate Malty, Myne, Bitch, Whore.

Final insult on the matter, she’s a cunt!

Favorite Video Game Character(s) of 2019: Piers & Marnie (Pokemon: Sword and Shield)

I knew point blank that Marnie was going to be my favorite rival in this game. I knew I was going to enjoy the antics of her yell squad (a.k.a. Team Yell) too. But I never expected to meet her brother and enjoy him too. Like in more recent games, Pokemon has given your character a total of three rivals to look out for. And while Hop is just the British version of Hau and Bede is just…a fuck-face, Marnie was someone who marched to the beat of her own drum. She recognizes a powerful foe and has a level of respect for her rival. She has her own fanbase, but isn’t totally arrogant about it. Plus, she doesn’t mind helping you out and giving an extra boost in battle. Plus that smile scene is just too adorable for words. And then there’s Piers!

First of all, I just love the design of this guy. What did I say when I first laid eyes on him? It’s like if David Bowie, Marilyn Manson, and Sid Vicious threw up on a pentagram crafted from Hot Topic gear and this dude emerges! And much like his sister, he marches to the beat of his own drum. That’s why he’s the only gym leader in Galar that doesn’t use the Dynamax method. I would have been satisfied if I only got to see him once or twice in the game. But I was blessed when Piers came to my aid to take down the Marco Cosmos thugs AND take on all the rogue Dynamax pokemon in the post-game. I’m impressed! Out of all the people they picked to help the protagonist and Hop in this adventure, it was Piers. I am ever so happy by this. I am so heavily invested in this guy that I’m already thinking of fic ideas involving him.

Favorite Game of 2019: Pokemon Masters

As much as I really do love Pokemon Sword and Shield, I gotta give it to the mobile game this year. This game not only made one of my reoccurring dreams come true, but gave it something no other Pokemon game has been able to do in over twenty years. HUMAN VOICES! The trainers, they speak! AND YOU CAN CHANGE BETWEEN ENGLISH AND JAPANESE! Do you have any idea how much of a win this is for me! I know they’ll never have Tracey Sketchit in the game, but this still rocks my world. Do you know how much I love hearing Mamoru Miyano play a dickish bad guy? Do you know how badly I need to hear Daisuke Ono on a day-to-day basis? I’m a voice queen!

I know I don’t usually like to give praise to freemium games for the mobile phones, but this game is quite nice. I mean, yeah, you really do have to save up your gems in order to (hopefully) get the 5-star trainer that’s currently advertised and the urge of wanting to open up your wallet to actually purchase gems is tantalizing. Not as fucked as Fate/Grand Order, but you get my meaning. Unlike a lot of the freemium games, this one doesn’t limit you so much to play (unless you spend fake or real money in the game). You can super train all you want and not lose stamina! Plus, I like these special sync moves between trainer and pokemon. And there’s just something about seeing all of these different trainers from all these regions together and interacting with each other. Despite never seeing a lot of this in the anime, manga, or previous games.

Favorite Het Couple of 2019: Retsuko x Haida (Aggretsuko)

In one of my baby accomplishments this year, I stopped being a tight-wad and splurged on a Netflix account. Right around the same time it becomes unpopular. Hahaha! Why does this always happen to me?

Throughout the series, we’ve watched Retsuko take chances with a lot of guys including a charming polar bear, a red panda with the brain of a pot plant, and the world’s handsomest donkey. But Retsuko has friend-zoned her workmate Haida the whole time. Meanwhile, I and pretty much like 90% of the fanbase ship the fuck out of this. Rightfully so! Haida has been admiring her from afar for so long. He tries his best to be supportive of her in the office and elsewhere. He was even nice enough to run back to the office to try and help Retsuko with the last-minute paperwork thrown at her on Christmas Eve. Hell, we watched him at his best in the season two finale helping to corner Tadano. And even though she turned him down at the end of season one, I still hold out that there’s hope. I mean, it was right after a break-up, so it was kind of the right call for Retsuko to not go out with Haida. Season three could give us this ship in the end. I know Retsuko doesn’t see Haida as boyfriend material as of now, but I have a feeling it can change.

Favorite Yuri Couple of 2019: Atsuko “Akko” Kagari x Amanda O’Neill (Little Witch Academia)

That’s right, Akko and Amanda. This is the one Yuri ship I’m leaning on more than all the other ones. I know she wasn’t involved in the infamous love-bee episode, but that still didn’t stop me from making dirty jokes whenever these two girls were together for an episode. And that’s what makes it better! Akko and Amanda’s relationship wasn’t tampered with because of a love bee, what they have is real! Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating. But whenever I see them together doing something in an episode, I can totally see them as something more. Then again, my mind is warped.

Besides, this is as close to a yuri couple as I got this year. I can’t mention the one second we got of Ymir x Historia from Attack on Titan. Yayoi and Shion didn’t get much in Psycho Pass 3. And it’s leaps and bounds better than that OTHER anime I watched with two girls. Happy Sugar Life? More like a big pile of nope!

Favorite Yaoi Couple of 2019: Mafuyu Satou x Ritsuka Uenoyama (Given)

You knew it was coming! I was rooting for these two boys since they met in episode one. And even though I had to hold it back a bit when I learned of Mafuyu’s grieving, I still hoped that one day, these two boys would defy the odds and become the sweetest couple of 2019. Was I correct? While it wasn’t as full-blown gay as Yuri on Ice, it still gave us so much.

As I mentioned, Mafuyu was in a relationship prior to meeting Uenoyama. And this one ended in heartbreak as Mafuyu’s lover dies. But meeting Uenoyama, Mafuyu was able to smile again and got to play the instrument his previous lover left behind. Mafuyu was able to shake off the sad shackles of the past and start life anew. Now is this feeling mutual? Of course! Uenoyama dealt with the worry of “will he, won’t he” and by the end of the series, the audience seems pretty satisfied with the outcome and hope for the best of these sweet boys.

Fandom That You Didn’t Expect To Get Into: Domestic Girlfriend

2019 has given me surprise amounts of incest! This year alone I wound up watching several surprise incest anime plots including Kiss x Sis, Marmalade Boy, and Eromanga Sensei. And those of you who are not on the up-take, surprise incest is primarily a love plot involving your step-sibling. But there was just something about Domestic Girlfriend that I just couldn’t shake. I couldn’t believe I binge-watched this entire series. I couldn’t believe I picked up the manga immediately after the finale. I couldn’t believe…that I didn’t despise this anime! Yeah, usually anything with even a whiff of incest, I throw in the trash and put a bullet through its head. This one, I did not.

Simple story! Boy named Natsuo fucks a random girl and also has a crush on his teacher. Natsuo’s father tells him he’s getting remarried. Then, BIG BOMBSHELL, the random girl that got fucked and his teacher are now going to be his step-sisters. Concept alone was just fifty shades of messed up. I mean, who the heck do you root for in this situation? Throughout the 12 episodes I went back and forth either rooting for Rui or Hina. And for episode, I rooted for Miu, the cute literary girl. I was so intrigued that I had to dig through the manga for more answers. But I enjoyed this trashy soap opera! I doubt it’ll get a sequel, but it was…fun for the most part. Too hot for television fun! And if that makes me trash, well call me Forky because...

Yeah, I can admit that freely now.

Fandom That Made An Unexpected Comeback: Fruits Basket

*squeals* I never thought this would come back into my life. One of my all-time favorite animes was returning with a reboot. AND IT WAS GLORIOUS! Oh sure, the first half of this series was literally a shot-for-shot remake of the original Studio Deen anime. But even that was enough to make me love every frame of it. Fruits Basket was just one of those animes that grabs you with the intriguing tale of a cursed family that changes into members of the zodiac. Then they take you on a fun ride with silly moments like Kyo and Yuki fighting each other or Ayame telling his ridiculous stories or Hatsuharu flashing some guy his junk. But then this series takes you on a detour of the most heart-wrenching stories involving heartbreak, bullying, gangs, abandonment, and hiding your true self.

This show re-introduced us to the many colorful and complex characters that exist. From the ultra-flaymboyant Ayame to the complex Ritsu! Many of these characters have severe baggage coming and going and you just wish the best for them. And seeing Tohru reach out to just about everyone in her own way, to tell them she’s there for them and she accepts them all for who they are, it just gets to you. 18 years was too long to keep this gem away from us. Welcome back Fruits Basket, we missed you.

Fandom That Inspired the Most Crack: Zombieland Saga

I know it came out last year, but I got the opportunity to finally watch it this year. And it was every bit of crazy as people told me it would be. Who would have thought mashing zombies and idol shows together would be a good idea?

Seriously! You’ve got Mamoru Miyano voicing the craziest character to date, who’s a necromancer who brings back seven girls from the dead. Puts special makeup on them to fool unsuspecting audience members! All to bring life back to the Saga prefecture. Add another layer to the WTF cake, these dead girls are all from different times including 2008, 1997, the showa period in the 1980’s…you even have one from the freakin’ 19th century! But that’s not all! These girls end up becoming an idol group singing different kinds of genres. One episode they’re head-banging to metal rock and the next IT’S A FRIGGIN’ 8 MILE RAP-BATTLE! And then you have this one girl named Yamada Tae. She doesn’t speak and usually makes weird noises throughout the entire series, but we don’t care! We freakin’ love her! And even with the oddball girl, she’s not the craziest character on here. Who needs a Best Girl category when you know the best girl is just going to be the crazy dude in the shades!

I’m absolutely cereal on this! Kotaro Tatsumi STOLE this show for his own! With his crazy antics, constant shouting random phrases every five seconds, and eccentric behavior, this made for one of the most entertaining animes I’ve ever watched.

Last Fandom of 2019: Pokemon: Sun & Moon/2019

I know I spent the greater part of Sun/Moon bashing several aspects of the series. But Sun/Moon was gradually getting better compared to its slow start. This year we’ve got some extreme character growth from some of Ash’s friends and even pokemon. I was amazed to watch episodes featuring Lana, Mallow, and even Sophocles growing. Lana up against Kyogre, Mallow’s thank you to her deceased mother, and Sophocles mastering Z-moves, all of these were great! Add to that, a Pokemon League that showed all of us up after 20 years of disbelief of Ash ever winning a competition. Where HE WON THE FUCKING COMPETITION! With the exception of one of the matches, this Pokemon League is definitely one for the history books for Ash. From his epic dog fight with Gladion, to the six-on-six with his mentor, to taking down a massive Ultra Beast, to taking on an island deity! All leading up to one of the most beautiful goodbyes and finale! Seriously, I screamed balls when I saw a pregnant Professor Burnet.

And my high continues with the new continuation of Pokemon 2019 (yeah, still the name). First of all, praise Arceus the animation has improved! Secondly, I am fully digging Ash and Gou traveling together. In answer to your question, yes I’m already shipping the hell out of them. Third, having these boys travel all around the pokemon world has given me so much hope in the world. The boys are going to be traveling the pokemon world revisitng old places including Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Kalos. I know I was disappointed in Ash not soley traveling to Galar and having Pikachu wear a Sherlock Holmes hat, but this I can’t cast to the side.

…

And yes, I support Ash x Gou like a beast!

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grigori77 · 4 years ago

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Summer 2020′s Movies - My Top Ten Favourite Films (Part 2)

10. BODY CAM – in the face of the current pandemic, viral outbreak cinema has become worryingly prescient lately, but as COVID led to civil unrest there were a couple of films in this summer that REALLY seemed to me to put their finger on the pulse of another particularly shitty zeitgeist. Admittedly this one highlights a problem that’s been around for a good while, but it came along at just the right time to gain particularly strong resonance, filtering its message into the most reliable form of allegorical social commentary – horror. The vengeful ghost trope has become pretty familiar over the past decade or so, but by marrying it with the corrupt cop thriller veteran horror screenwriter Nicholas McCarthy (The Pact) has given it a nice fresh spin, and the end result was, for me, a real winner. Mary J. Blige plays troubled LAPD cop Renee Lomito-Smith, back on the beat after an extended hiatus following a particularly harrowing incident, just as fellow officers from her own precinct begin to die violent deaths under mysterious circumstances, and the only clues are weird, haunting camera footage that only Renee and her new partner, rookie Danny Holledge (Paper Towns and Death Note’s Natt Wolff), manage to see before it inexplicable wipes itself. Something supernatural is stalking the City of Angels at night, and it’s got a serious grudge against local cops as the increasingly disturbing investigation slowly brings an act of horrific police brutality to light, until Renee no longer knows who in her department she can trust. This is one of the most insidious scare-fests I’ve enjoyed so far this year, sophomore director Malik Vitthal (Imperial Dreams) weaving an effective atmosphere of pregnant dread and wire-taut suspense while delivering some impressively hair-raising shocks (the stunning minimart sequence is the film’s undeniable highlight), while the ghostly threat is cleverly thought-out and skilfully brought to “life”. Blige delivers another top-drawer performance, giving Renee a winning combination of wounded fragility and steely resolve that makes for a particularly compelling hero, while Wolff invests Danny with skittish uncertainty and vulnerability in one of his strongest performances to date, and Dexter star David Zayas brings interesting moral complexity to the role of their put-upon superior, Sergeant Kesper. In these times of heightened social awareness, when the police’s star has become particularly tarnished as unnecessary force, racial profiling and cover-ups have become major hot-button topics, the power and relevance of this particular slice of horror cinema cannot be denied.

9. BLOOD QUANTUM – it certainly has been a great year for horror, and for most of the summer this was the genre leader, a compellingly fresh take on the zombie outbreak genre with a killer hook. Canadian writer-director Jeff Barnaby (Rhymes for Young Ghouls) has always clung close to his Native American roots, and he brings strong social relevance to the intriguing early 80s Canadian setting as a really nasty zombie virus wreaks havoc in the Red Crow Indian Reservation and its neighbouring town. It soon becomes clear, however, that members of the local tribe are immune to the infection, a revelation with far-reaching consequences as the outbreak rages unchecked and society begins to crumble. Barnaby pulls off some impressive world-building and creates a compellingly grungy post-apocalyptic vibe as the story progresses, while the zombies themselves are a visceral, scuzzy bunch, and there’s plenty of cracking set-pieces and suitably full-blooded kills to keep the gore-hounds happy, while the horror has real intelligence behind it, the script posing interesting questions and delivering some uncomfortable answers. The characters, meanwhile, are a well-drawn, complex bunch, no black-and-white saviours among them, any one of them capable of some pretty inhuman horrors when the chips are down, and the cast, an interesting mix of seasoned talent and unknowns, all excel in their roles – Michale Greyeyes (Fear the Walking Dead) and Forrest Goodluck (The Revenant) are the closest things the film has to real heroes, the former a fallible everyman as Traylor, the small-town sheriff who’s just trying to do right by his family, the latter unsure of himself as his son, put-upon teenage father-to-be Joseph; meanwhile, Olivia Scriven is tough but vulnerable as his pregnant white girlfriend Charlie, Stonehorse Lone Goeman is a grizzled badass as tough-as-nails tribal elder Gisigu, and Kiowa Gordon (probably best known for playing a werewolf in the Twilight movies) really goes to the dark side as Joseph’s delinquent half-brother Lysol, while there’s a memorably subtle turn from Dead Man’s Gary Farmer as unpredictable loner Moon. This is definitely one of the year’s darkest films – by and large playing the horror straight, it tightens the screws as the situation grows steadily worse, and almost makes a virtue of wallowing in its hopeless tone – but there’s a fatalistic charm to all the bleakness, even in the downbeat yet tentatively hopeful climax, while it’s hard to deny the ruthless efficiency of the violence on display. This certainly isn’t a horror movie for everyone, but those with a strong stomach and relatively hard heart will find much to enjoy here. Jeff Barnaby is definitely gonna be one to watch in the future …

8. PALM SPRINGS – the summer’s comedy highlight kind of snuck in under the radar, becoming something of an on-demand secret weapon with all the cinemas closed, and it definitely deserves its swiftly growing cult status. You certainly can’t possibly believe it’s the feature debut of director Max Barbakow, who shows the kind of sharp-witted, steady-handed control of his craft that’s usually the province of far more experienced talents … then again, much of the credit must surely go to seasoned TV comedy writer Andy Siara (Lodge 49), for whom this has been a real labour of love he’s been tending since his film student days. Certainly all that care, nurture and attention to detail is up there on the screen, the exceptional script singing its irresistible siren song from the start and providing fertile ground for its promising new director to spread his own creative wings. The premise may be instantly familiar – playing like a latter-day Saturday Night Live take on Groundhog Day (Siara admits it was a major influence), it follows the misadventures of Sarah (How I Met Your Mother’s Cristin Miliota), the black sheep maid of honour at her sweet little sister Tala’s (Riverdale’s Camila Mendes) wedding to seemingly perfect hunk Abe (Supergirl’s Superman, Tyler Hoechlin), as she finds herself repeating the same high-stress day over and over again after being trapped in a mysterious cosmic time-loop along with slacker misanthrope Nyles (Brooklyn Nine Nine megastar Andy Samberg), who’s been stuck in this same situation for MUCH longer – but in Barbakow and Siara’s hands it feels fresh and intriguing, and goes in some surprising new directions before the well-worn central premise can outstay its welcome. It certainly doesn’t hurt that the cast are uniformly excellent – Miliota is certainly the pounding emotional heart of the film, effortlessly lovable as she flounders against her lot, then learns to accept the unique possibilities it presents, before finally resolving to find a way out, while Samberg has rarely been THIS GOOD, truly endearing in his sardonic apathy as it becomes clear he’s been stuck like this for CENTURIES, and they make an enjoyably fiery couple with snipey chemistry to burn; meanwhile there’s top-notch support from Mendes and Hoechlin, The OC’s Peter Gallagher as Sarah and Tala’s straight-laced father, the ever-reliable Dale Dickey, a thoroughly adorable turn from Jena Freidman and, most notably, a full-blooded scene-stealing performance from the mighty J.K. Simmonds as Roy, Nyles’ nemesis, who he inadvertently trapped in the loop before Sarah and is, understandably, none too happy about it. This really is an absolute laugh-riot, today’s more post-modern sense of humour allowing the central pair (and their occasional enemy) to indulge in even more extreme consequence-free craziness than Bill Murray ever got away with back in the day, but like all the best comedies there’s also a strong emotional foundation under the humour, leading us to really care about these people and what happens to them, while the story throws moments of true heartfelt power at us, particularly in the deeply cathartic climax. Ultimately this was one of the summer’s biggest surprises, a solid gold gem that I can’t recommend enough.

7. THE LAST DAYS OF AMERICAN CRIME – the summer’s other heavyweight Zeitgeist fondler is a deeply satirical chunk of speculative dystopian sci-fi clearly intended as a cinematic indictment of Trump’s broken America, but it became far more potent and prescient in these … ahem … troubled times. Adapted by screenwriter Karl Gadjusek (Oblivion, Stranger Things, The King’s Man) from the graphic novel by Rick Remender and Greg Tocchini for underrated schlock-action cinema director Olivier Megaton (Transporter 3, Colombiana, the last two Taken films), this Netflix original feature seemed like a fun way to kill a cinema-deprived Saturday night in the middle of the Lockdown, but ultimately proved to have a lot more substance than expected. It’s powered by an intriguing premise – in a nearly lawless 2024, the US government is one week away from implementing a nationwide synaptic blocker signal called the API (American Peace Initiative) which will prevent the public from being able to commit any kind of crime – and focuses on a strikingly colourful bunch of outlaw antiheroes with an audacious agenda – prodigious Detroit bank robber Bricke (Édgar Ramiréz) is enlisted by Kevin Cash (Funny Games and Hannibal’s Michael Carmen Pitt), a wayward scion of local crime family the Dumois, and his hacker fiancée Shelby Dupree (Material Girl’s Anna Brewster) to pull off what’s destined to be the last great crime in American history, a daring raid on the night of the signal to steal over a billion dollars from the Motor City’s “money factory” and then escape across the border into Canada. From this deceptively simple premise a sprawling action epic was born, carried along by a razor sharp, twisty script and Megaton’s typically hyperbolic, showy auteur directing style and significant skill at crafting thrillingly explosive set-pieces, while the cast consistently deliver quality performances. Ramiréz has long been one of those actors I really love to watch, a gruff, quietly intense alpha male whose subtle understatement hides deep reserves of emotional intensity, while Dupree takes a character who could have been a thinly-drawn femme fetale and invests her with strong personal drive and steely resolve, and there’s strong support from Neil Blomkampf regulars Sharlto Copley and Brandon Auret as, respectively, emasculated beat cop Sawyer and brutal Mob enforcer Lonnie French, as well as a nearly unrecognisable Patrick Bergin as local kingpin (and Kevin’s father) Rossi Dumois; the film is roundly stolen, however, by Pitt, a phenomenal actor I’ve always thought we just don’t see enough of, here portraying a spectacularly sleazy, unpredictable force of nature who clearly has his own dark agenda, but whom we ultimately can’t help rooting for even as he stabs us in the back. This is a cracking film, a dark and dangerous thriller of rare style and compulsive verve that I happily consider to be Megaton’s best film to date BY FAR – needless to say it was a major hit for Netflix when it dropped, clearly resonating with its audience given what’s STILL going on in the real world, and while it may have been roundly panned in reviews I think, like some of the platform’s other more glossy Original hits (Bright springs to mind), it’s destined for a major critical reappraisal and inevitable cult status before too long …

6. HAMILTON – arriving just as Black Lives Matter reached fever-pitch levels, this feature presentation of the runaway Broadway musical smash-hit could not have been better timed. Shot over three nights during the show’s 2016 run with the original cast and cut together with specially created “setup shots”, it’s an immersive experience that at once puts you right in amongst the audience (at times almost a character themselves, never seen but DEFINITELY heard) but also lets you experience the action up close. And what action – it’s an incredible show, a thoroughly fascinating piece of work that reads like something very staid and proper on paper (an all-encompassing biographical account of the life and times of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton) but, in execution, becomes something very different and EXTREMELY vital. The execution certainly couldn’t be further from the usual period biopic fare this kind of historical subject matter usually gets (although in the face of recent top-notch revisionist takes like Marie Antoinette, The Great and Tesla it’s not SO surprising), while the cast is not at all what you’d expect – with very few notable exceptions the cast is almost entirely people of colour, despite the fact that the real life individuals they’re playing were all very white indeed. That said, every single one of them is an absolute revelation – the show’s writer-composer Lin-Manuel Miranda (already riding high on the success of In the Heights) carries the central role of Hamilton with effortless charm and raw star power, Leslie Odom Jr. (Smash, Murder On the Orient Express) is duplicitously complex as his constant nemesis Aaron Burr, Christopher Jackson (In the Heights, Moana, Bull) oozes integrity and nobility as his mentor and friend George Washington, Phillipa Soo is sweet and classy as his wife Eliza while Renée Elise Goldsberry (The Immortal Life of Henrietta Jacks, Altered Carbon) is fiery and statuesque as her sister Angelica Schuyler (the one who got away), and Jonathan Groff (Mindhunter) consistently steals every scene he’s in as fiendish yet childish fan favourite King George III; ultimately, however, the show (and the film) belongs to veritable powerhouse Daveed Diggs (Blindspotting, TV’s Snowpiercer) in a spectacular duel role, starting subtly but gaining scene-stealing momentum as French Revolutionary Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette, before EXPLODING onto the stage in the second half as indomitable eventual American President Thomas Jefferson. Not having seen the stage show, I was taken completely by surprise by this, revelling in its revisionist genius and offbeat, quirky hip-hop charm, spellbound by the skilful ease with which is takes the sometimes quite dull historical fact and skews it into something consistently entertaining and absorbing, transported by the catchy earworm musical numbers and thoroughly tickled by the delightfully cheeky sense of humour strung throughout (at least when I wasn’t having my heart broken by moments of raw dramatic power). Altogether it’s a pretty unique cinematic experience I wish I could have actually gotten to see on the big screen, and one I’ve consistently recommended to all my friends, even the ones who don’t usually like musicals. As far as I’m concerned it doesn’t need a proper Les Misérables style screen adaptation – this is about as perfect a presentation as the show could possibly hope for.

5. SPUTNIK – the summer’s horror highlight (despite SERIOUSLY tough competition) is a guaranteed sleeper hit that I almost totally missed, stumbling across the trailer one day on YouTube and being completely bowled over by its potential, prompting me to hunt it down by any means necessary. The feature debut of Russian director Egor Abramenko, this first contact sci-fi chiller is about as far from E.T. as it’s possible to get, sharing some of the same DNA as Carpenter’s The Thing but proudly carving its own path with consummate skill and definitely signalling great things to come from its brand new helmer and relative unknown screenwriters Oleg Malovichko and Andrei Zolotarev. Oksana Akinshina (probably best known in the West for her powerful climactic cameo in The Bourne Supremacy) is the beating heart of the film as neurophysiologist Tatyana Yuryevna Klimova, brought in to aid in the investigation in the Russian wilderness circa 1983 after an orbital research mission goes horribly wrong. One of the cosmonauts dies horribly, while the other, Konstantin (The Duelist’s Pyotr Fyodorov) seems unharmed, but it quickly becomes clear that he’s now playing host to something decidedly extraterrestrial and potentially terrifying, and as Tatyana becomes more deeply embroiled in her assignment she comes to realise that her superiors, particularly mysterious Red Army project leader Colonel Semiradov (The PyraMMMid’s Fyodor Bondarchuk), have far darker plans for Konstantin and his new “friend” than she could ever imagine. This is about as dark, intense and nightmarish as this particular sub-genre gets, a magnificently icky body horror that slowly builds its tension as we’re gradually exposed to the various truths and the awful gravity of the situation slowly reveals itself, punctuated by skilfully executed shocks and some particularly horrifying moments when the evils inflicted by the humans in charge prove to be far worse than anything the alien can do, while the ridiculously talented writers have a field day pulling the rug out from under us again and again, never going for the obvious twist and keeping us guessing right to the devastating ending, while the beautifully crafted digital creature effects are nothing short of astonishing and thoroughly creepy. Akinshina dominates the film with her unbridled grace, vulnerability and integrity, the relationship that develops between Tatyana and Konstantin (Fyodorov delivering a beautifully understated turn belying deep inner turmoil) feeling realistically earned as it goes from tentatively wary to ultimately, tragically bittersweet, while Bondarchuk invests the Colonel with a subtly nuanced air of tarnished authority and restrained brutality that makes him one of my top screen villains for the year. Guaranteed to go down as one of 2020’s great sleeper hits, I can’t speak of this film highly enough – it’s a genuine revelation, an instant classic for whom I’ll sing its praises for the remainder of the year and beyond, and I wish utmost success to all the creative talents involved in the future. The Invisible Man still rules the roost in the year’s horror stakes, but this runs a VERY close second …

4. GREYHOUND – when the cinemas closed back in March, the fate of many of the major summer blockbusters we’d been looking forward to was thrown into terrible doubt. Some were pushed back to more amenable dates in the autumn or winter, others knocked back a whole year to fill summer slots for 2021, but more than a few simply dropped off the radar entirely with the terrible words “postponed until further notice” stamped on them, and I lamented them all, this one in particular. It hung in there longer than some, stubbornly holding onto its June release slot for as long as possible, but eventually it gave up the ghost too … but thanks to Apple TV+, not for long, ultimately releasing less than a month later than intended. Thankfully the final film was worth the fuss, a taut World War II suspense thriller that’s all killer, no filler – set during the infamous Battle of the Atlantic, it portrays the constant life-or-death struggle faced by the Allied warships assigned to escort the transport convoys as they crossed the ocean, defending their charges from German U-boats. Adapted from C.S. Forester’s famous 1955 novel The Good Shepherd by Tom Hanks and directed by Aaron Schneider (Get Low), the narrative focuses on the crew of the escort leader, American destroyer USS Fletcher, codenamed Greyhound, and in particular its captain, Commander Ernest Krause (Hanks), a career sailor serving his first command. As they cross “the Pit”, the most dangerous mid stretch of the journey where they spend days without air-cover, they find themselves shadowed by “the Wolf Pack”, a particularly cunning group of German subs that begin to pick away at the convoy’s stragglers. Faced with daunting odds, a dwindling supply of vital depth-charges and a ruthless, persistent enemy, Krause must make hard choices to bring his ships home safe … jumping into the thick of the action within the first ten minutes and maintaining that tension for the remainder of its trim 90-minute run, this is screen suspense par excellence, a sleek textbook example of how to craft a compelling big screen knuckle-whitener with zero fat and maximum reward, delivering a series of desperate naval scraps packed with hide-and-seek intensity, heart-in-mouth near-misses and fist-in-air cathartic payoffs by the bucket-load. Hanks is subtly magnificent, the calm centre of the narrative storm as a supposed newcomer to this battle arena who could have been BORN for it, bringing to mind the similarly unflappable turn he delivered in Captain Phillips and certainly not suffering by comparison; by and large he’s the focus point, but other crew members do make strong (if sometimes quite brief) impressions, particularly Stephen Graham as Krause’s reliably seasoned XO, Lt. Commander Charlie Cole, The Magnificent Seven’s Manuel Garcia-Rulfo and Just Mercy’s Rob Morgan, while Elisabeth Shue does a lot with a very small part in brief flashbacks as Krause’s fiancée Evelyn. Relentless, powerful, exhilarating and thoroughly unforgettable, this was one of the true action highlights of the summer, and one hell of a war flick. I’m so glad it made the cut for the season …

3. PROJECT POWER – with Marvel and DC pushing their tent-pole titles back into late autumn in the face of COVID, the usual superhero antics we’ve come to expect over the main blockbuster season were pretty thin on the ground, leading us to find our geeky fan thrills elsewhere. Unfortunately, pickings were frustratingly slim – Korean comic book actioner Gundala was entertaining but workmanlike, while Thor AU-take Mortal was underwhelming despite strong direction from Troll Hunter’s André Øvredal, and I’ve already made my feelings clear on the frustration of The New Mutants – thank the Gods, then, for Netflix, once again riding to the rescue with this enjoyably offbeat super-thriller, which takes an intriguing central premise and really runs with it. New designer drug Power has hit the streets of New Orleans, able to give anyone who takes it a superpower for five minutes … the only problem is, until you try it, you won’t know what your own unique talent is – for some, it could mean five minutes of invisibility, or insane levels of super-strength, but other powers can be potentially lethal, the really unlucky buggers just blowing up on the spot. Robin (The Hate U Give’s Dominique Fishback) is a teenage Power-pusher with dreams of becoming a rap star, dealing the pills so she can help her diabetic mum; Frank Shaver (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is one of her customers, an NOPD detective who uses his power of near invulnerability to even the playing field when powered crims cause a disturbance. Their lives are turned upside down when Art (Jamie Foxx) arrives in town – he’s a seriously badass ex-soldier determined to hunt down the source of Power by any means necessary, and he’s not above tearing the Big Easy apart to do it. This is a fun, gleefully infectious rollercoaster that doesn’t take itself too seriously, revelling in the anarchic potential of its premise and crafting some suitably OTT effects-driven chaos brought to pleasingly visceral fruition by its skilfully inventive director, Ariel Schulman (Catfish, Nerve, Viral), while Mattson Tomlin (the screenwriter of next year’s incendiary DCEU headline act The Batman) takes his script in some very interesting directions and poses some fascinating questions about what Power’s TRULY capable of. Gordon-Levitt and Fishback are both brilliant, the latter particularly impressing in what’s sure to be a major breakthrough role for her, and the friendship their characters share is pretty adorable, while Foxx really is a force to be reckoned with, pretty chill even when he’s in deep shit but fully capable of turning into a bona fide killing machine at the flip of a switch, and there’s strong support from Westworld’s Rodrigo Santoro as Biggie, Power’s delightfully oily kingpin, Courtney B. Vance as Frank’s by-the-book superior, Captain Crane, Amy Landecker as Gardner, the morally bankrupt CIA spook responsible for the drug’s production, and Machine Gun Kelly as Newt, a Power dealer whose explosive pyrotechnic “gift” really isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Exciting, inventive, frequently amusing and infectiously likeable, this was some of the most uncomplicated “cinematic” fun I had this summer. Not bad for something which I’m sure was originally destined to become one of the season’s B-list features …

2. THE OLD GUARD – Netflix’s undisputable TOP OFFERING of the summer came damn close to bagging the whole season, and I can’t help thinking that even if some of the stiffer competition had still been present it may well have still finished this high. Gina Prince-Blythewood (Love & Basketball, the Secret Life of Bees) directs comics legend Greg Rucka’s adaptation of his own popular title with uncanny skill and laser-focused visual flair considering there’s nothing on her previous CV to suggest she’d be THIS good at mounting a stomping good ultraviolent action thriller, ushering in this thoroughly engrossing tale of four ancient, invulnerable immortal warriors – Andy AKA Andromache of Scythia (Charlize Theron), Booker AKA Sebastian de Livre (Matthias Schoenaerts), Joe AKA Yusuf Al-Kaysani (Wolf’s Marwan Kenzari) and Nicky AKA Niccolo di Ginova (Trust’s Luca Marinelli) – who’ve been around forever, hiring out their services as mercenaries for righteous causes while jealously guarding their identities for fear of horrific experimentation and exploitation should their true natures ever be discovered. Their anonymity is threatened, however, when they’re uncovered by former CIA operative James Copley (Chiwetel Ejiofor), working for the decidedly dodgy pharmaceutical conglomerate run by sociopathic billionaire Steven Merrick (Harry Melling, formerly Dudley in the Harry Potter movies), who want to capture these immortals so they can patent whatever it is that makes them keep on ticking … just as a fifth immortal, US Marine Nile Freeman (If Beale Street Could Talk’s KiKi Layne), awakens after being “killed” on deployment in Afghanistan. The supporting players are excellent, particularly Ejiofor, smart and driven but ultimately principled and deeply conflicted about what he’s doing, even if he does have the best of intentions, and Melling, the kind of loathsome, reptilian scumbag you just love to hate, but the film REALLY DOES belong to the Old Guard themselves – Schoenaerts is a master brooder, spot-on casting as the group’s relative newcomer, only immortal since the Napoleonic Wars but clearly one seriously old soul who’s already VERY tired of the lifestyle, while Joe and Nicky (who met on opposing sides of the Crusades) are simply ADORABLE, an unapologetically matter-of-fact gay couple who are sweet, sassy and incredibly kind, the absolute emotional heart of the film; it’s the ladies, however, that are most memorable here. Layne is exceptional, investing Nile with a steely intensity that puts her in good stead as her new existence threatens to overwhelm her and MORE THAN qualified to bust heads alongside her elders … but it’s ancient Greek warrior Andy who steals the film, Theron building on the astounding work she did in Atomic Blonde to prove, once and for all, that there’s no woman on Earth who looks better kicking arse than her (as Booker puts it, “that woman has forgotten more ways to kill than entire armies will ever learn”); in her hands, Andy truly is a goddess of death, tough as tungsten alloy and unflappable even in the face of hell itself, but underneath it all she hides a heart as big as any of her friends’. They’re an impossibly lovable bunch and you feel you could follow them on another TEN adventures like this one, which is just as well, because Prince-Blythewood and Rucka certainly put them through their paces here – the drama is high (but frequently laced with a gentle, knowing sense of humour, particularly whenever Joe and Nicky are onscreen), as are the stakes, and the frequent action sequences are top-notch, executed with rare skill and bone-crunching zest, but also ALWAYS in service to the story. Altogether this is an astounding film, a genuine victory for its makers and, it seems, for Netflix themselves – it’s become one of the platform’s biggest hits to date, earning well-deserved critical acclaim and great respect and genuine geek love from the fanbase at large. After this, a sequel is not only inevitable, it’s ESSENTIAL …

1. TENET – granted, the streaming platforms (particularly Netflix and Amazon) certainly did save our cinematic summer, but I’m still IMMEASURABLY glad that the season’s ultimate top-spot winner was one I got to experience on THE BIG SCREEN. You gotta hand it to Christopher Nolan, he sure hung in there, stubbornly determined that his latest cinematic masterpiece WOULD be released in cinemas in the summer (albeit ultimately landing JUST inside the line in the final week of August), and it was worth all the fuss because, for me, this was THE PERFECT MOVIE for me to get return to cinemas with. I mean, okay, in the end it WASN’T the FIRST new movie I saw after the reopening, that honour went to Unhinged, but THIS was my first real Saturday night out big screen EXPERIENCE since March. Needless to say, Nolan didn’t disappoint this time any more than he has on any of his consistently spectacular previous releases, delivering another twisted, mind-boggling headfuck of a full-blooded experiential sensory overload that comes perilously close to toppling his long-standing auteur-peak, Inception (itself second only by fractions to The Dark Knight as far as I’m concerned). To say much at all about the plot would give away major spoilers – personally I’d recommend just going in as cold as possible, indeed you really should just stop reading this right now and just GO SEE IT. Still with us? Okay … the VERY abridged version is that it’s about a secret war being waged between the present and the future by people capable of “inverting” time in substances, objects, people, whatever, into which the Protagonist (BlacKkKlansman’s John David Washington), an unnamed CIA agent, has been dispatched in order to prevent a potential coming apocalypse. Washington is once again on top form, crafting a robust and compelling morally complex heroic lead who’s just as comfortable negotiating the minefields of black market intrigue as he is breaking into places or dispatching heavies, Kenneth Branagh delivers one of his most interesting and memorable performances in years as brutal Russian oligarch Andrei Sator, a genuinely nasty piece of work who may be the year’s very best screen villain, Elizabeth Debicki (The Night Manager, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Widows) brings strength, poise and wounded integrity to the role of Sator’s estranged wife, Kat, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson gets to use his own accent for once as tough-as-nails British Intelligence officer Ives, while there are brief but consistently notable supporting turns and cameos from Martin Donovan, Yesterday’s HImesh Patel, Dirk Gently’s Fiona Dourif and, of course, Nolan’s good luck charm, Michael Caine. The cast’s biggest surprise, however, is Robert Pattinson, truly a revelation in what has to be, HANDS DOWN, his best role to date, Neil, the Protagonist’s mysterious handler – he’s by turns cheeky, slick, duplicitous and thoroughly badass, delivering an enjoyably multi-layered, chameleonic performance which proves what I’ve long maintained, that the former Twilight star is actually a fucking amazing actor, and on the basis of this, even without that amazing new teaser trailer making the rounds, I think the debate about whether or not he’s the right choice for the new Batman is now academic. As we’ve come to expect from Nolan, this is a TRUE tour-de-force experience, a visual masterpiece and an endlessly engrossing head-scratcher, Nolan’s screenplay bringing in some seriously big ideas and throwing us some major narrative knots and loopholes, constantly wrong-footing the viewer while also setting up truly revelatory payoffs from seemingly low-key, unimportant beginnings – this is a film you need to be awake and attentive for or you could miss something pretty vital. The action sequences are, as ever, second to none, some of the year’s very best set-pieces coming thick and fast and executed with some of the most accomplished skill in the business, while Nolan-regular cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema (Interstellar and Dunkirk, as well as the heady likes of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, SPECTRE and Ad Astra) once again shows he’s one of the best camera-wizards in the business today by delivering some truly mesmerising visuals. Notably, Nolan’s other regular collaborator, composer Hans Zimmer, is absent here (although he has good reason, currently working on his dream project, the fast-approaching screen adaptation of Dune), but Ludwig Göransson (best known for his regular collaborations with Ryan Coogler on the likes of Fruitvale Station, Creed and Black Panther, as well as truly awesome work on The Mandalorian) makes for a fine replacement, crafting an intriguingly internalised, post-modern musical landscape that thrums and pulses in time with the story and emotions of the characters rather than the action itself. Interestingly it’s on the subject of sound that some of the film’s rare detractions have been levelled, and I can see some of the points – the soundtrack mix is an all-encompassing thing, and there are times when the dialogue can be overwhelmed, but in Nolan’s defence as a film this is a heady, immersive experience, something you really need to concentrate on, so these potential flaws are easily forgiven. As a piece of filmmaking art, this is another flawless wonder from one of the true masters of the craft working in cinema today, but it’s art with palpable substance, a rewarding whole that really HAS TO BE experienced on the big screen. So put your snobbery at post-lockdown restrictions aside for the moment and get yourself down to your nearest cinema so you can experience it for yourself. You won’t be disappointed. Right now, this is my movie of the year, and with only one possible exception, I really don’t see that changing …

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