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Fable - After
Pairing:Â Azriel x Reader
Summary:Â Your wings were gone. The healing process would teach you much about yourself, but it would teach Azriel, too. Does it matter, in the end?
Word count: 7k
Warnings: Angst, injury, symptoms of depression (including difficulty eating)
a/n: This is part of a mini-series and the other parts can be found in the link below. Sorry this is literally so long lol. Debating on adding another chapter to the end because I obviously have a lot to say! Also, I won't be posting an update for about a week because I'll be traveling, so I hope this long chapter holds you over. Thank you :)
Series Masterlist (all parts âĄ)
~~
You woke as the sun did. Yellow light made an imprint behind your eyelids and the grogginess that immediately followed let you know that this was not the first time you had been awake. Sleeping through the night had become a luxury not afforded to you.Â
You clenched the pillow at your cheek between your fingers and tried to pull at the loose threads of sleep that were escaping you.Â
Someone was in your room.Â
Someone was always in your room these days, but this morning, you knew it was Azriel. You could feel the whisps of his shadows making barely-there strokes along your back, and his scent was unmistakable. If it was Azriel today, they didnât expect you to talk. When they wanted you to try and speak, they sent Cassian or Mor or even Feyre on the odd occasion.Â
They didnât expect you to talk when it was Azriel.Â
You supposed everyone thought you were mad at him. Truthfully, part of you was mad at him. If he had just opened his eyes once over the last hundreds of years, he would have seen that you were right thereâthat you were more than a responsibility for him to look after. That you were a woman in love with him and he was a fool for taking so long to notice.Â
But another part of you felt that you couldnât blame him. Azriel had never had much luck in the romance department, and youâd always chalked that up to self-sabotage. He seemed to go after women he knew he couldnât have and only assumed late-night trysts with those he could, so you couldnât expect much out of him. And how was he to know that you pined after him? It wasnât as if youâd ever made any kind of move.Â
But Elain had so enamored him and you were so angry at that part. Because you had been there and he had never taken the leaps and bounds he had with her.Â
He had left you in that camp, so ready to believe your lie to appease her.Â
You were the biggest fool of all.Â
In actuality, neither of those parts mattered. There wasnât some internal strife that fought against your sleep and made you question your feelings. You werenât mad at Azriel. You werenât mad at anyone or anything. You felt empty.Â
You gave up on sleep, breathing heavily through your nose and squinting your eyes into the sun that peaked through your curtains. Your back ached, and even more, the insurmountable pressure on your chest was amplified by the bandages that wrapped around from behind you. They made it difficult to breathe.Â
No infection had set in. It had been two and a half weeks since the incident, and Madja cleared you to begin moving around a few days ago and noted that you were âout of the woods, medically.â Everyone looked relieved as if that news had changed anything. To them, you supposed it did. You would live. That was good.Â
Azriel knew you were awake, you were sure of it. You heard his chair groan as if he were leaning forward in it, and his shadows had begun to traipse around your head, weaving in and out of your hair and blocking the light from your eyes.Â
He would try to get you to eat, look at you with those pitying eyes, and apologize when you could barely sit up and hold out a plate as if you were going to eat it. You hadnât met his gaze since you woke up and there was more than just resentment behind that. There was shameâyou were so ashamed of what you had become. What you had let happen.Â
Maybe that was another reason why you felt so empty. How could Azriel even look at you as anything other than broken? When you were wholeâwhen you had your wingsâthere was an irrational part of you that considered you had a chance with the Shadowsinger if he would just see you.Â
There was nothing to see now.Â
âAre you awake?â Azriel asked, keeping his voice low in the quiet room. You nodded against the pillow, face still turned from his view. The chair groaned once again. âAre you hungry?âÂ
No head shake. It was a frequent question that you hated being asked.Â
Azrielâs footsteps were soft against your carpet. He kneeled beside your bed and attempted to catch your fleeting gaze, but you found a spot on the floor and kept it there.Â
âCan you try?â he prompted. His textured fingers brushed the hair from your eyes. âNot even at the table. Iâll have the House bring you something here.âÂ
You pressed your lips together and fought off the burning in your nose.Â
âPlease, y/n. I know youâre angry with meâI know. But please, just try to eat something.âÂ
Angry at himâanger wasnât even in your repertoire at the moment. But he sounded so desperate, as did every other member of your family, and you didnât want the let them down more than you already had. You shut your eyes and nodded, resigned.Â
You built up the strength to prop yourself up on your arms, but thatâs where you stopped. Your center of gravity had been completely ripped from you. Anytime you moved without your wings, it felt like free-falling from a mountain. Madja had offeredâseveral times since physically clearing youâto come and get you back on your feet, but the motivation wasnât there.Â
You couldnât imagine walking without the weight at your back.Â
And you had avoided every reflection known to man; seeing yourself would be too much.Â
âI have you,â Azriel encouraged, holding you at your waist as he twisted your body up. âAlmost. There we go, angelâ âhe positioned you between pillows that hadnât been on your bed beforeâ âHowâs that? Is it alright?âÂ
Humiliation felt like a hot knife. You nodded and found a spot on the bed to focus on. You could feel Azrielâs lingering gaze and he hesitated before placing a bowl of broth on a small platter before you.Â
âIs that okay?âÂ
You nodded again, biting the inside of your lip. Your back ached.Â
âDo you want me to leave?âÂ
You nodded.Â
Azriel hesitated once more, rocking back on his heels before clearing his throat and letting the door softly shut behind him. The tears came then, and you were so tired of crying.Â
~~
Azrielâs POV
Outside of your room, Azrielâs forehead was pressed against the wood of your door. The intricate carvings imprinted his right palm as he kept it pressed there as well, and Azriel had to breathe through his nose to calm himself.Â
He was at a loss.Â
He didnât blame you for not speaking to him, but you wouldnât speak to anyone. You wouldnât get out of bed unless it was Mor or Feyre lifting you for a bath and you wouldnât leave your room at all. They had all expected thisâplanned for a long healing processâbut you were so⌠lifeless.Â
Gods, he was helpless. You wouldnât even look at him.Â
Azriel clenched his jaw and tried to listen for the clink of the spoon against the bowl when a hand on his back startled him. Because that was another thingâheâd been off his game since you got hurt, completely useless as a spy.Â
âHow is she?â Cassian. Cassian was just as worried as Azriel, but Azriel was pretty sure you were looking him in the eye at least. âGet her to talk?âÂ
âNo,â Azriel breathed through a constricting throat. He turned to meet his brotherâs face. He was sure Cassian still held some resentment towards him, but heâd apologized for his outburst when you arrived at the House. Apologized, but not entirely forgiven.Â
Cassian sighed and rubbed at his jaw. âIs she at least eating?âÂ
âShe agreed to eat. I left her with some soup. She wanted me to leave.âÂ
âShe say that?âÂ
âI asked and she nodded.âÂ
Cassian kissed his teeth and curled his wings in tighter. âHave you⌠talked to her?âÂ
Azriel had to fight the urge to scoff, throwing his brother an incredulous look. âObviously I talk to her, Cassian. I donât stand in her room and motion at things.âÂ
In response, Cassian did not fight the urge to roll his eyes. âI mean actually talk to her, Azriel. About what happened. You finding her. Her lying and you not being there. I know it was one of the only missions at the camps sheâs been at without you there. That means something, no?âÂ
âI donât think she wants to talk to me at allâlet alone rehash all of that.âÂ
âAzriel,â Cassian started, stepping forward to place a hand on Azrielâs shoulder. âGive her a chance to push you away. Let her be the one to do it. If you play into this fear, it might confirm things for her, and you know her mind isnât in a good place.âÂ
Azriel winced. âI think you might be better toââÂ
âNo, Az, you. Let her eat her breakfast, give her an hour or two, and then go back in there and talk to her. Iâve already been talking to her and she wonât say a word to me. I think youâre the only person whoâs been too afraid to.âÂ
Azriel sighed and then leaned his head back until it knocked against your door. In another life, you mightâve called out and asked who was there. But there was only silence.Â
Cassian sent Azriel a look with raised brows and patted his brother twice on the shoulder before backing into the hall. He had taken four steps towards the dining room before Azriel called, âWhat did you mean then, about me being blind?âÂ
Cassian paused but didnât turn. Azriel watched his head tilt to the side and a deep sigh escaped him.Â
âShouldnât have said that,â Cassian muttered. He started walking once more. âJustâthink a little more.â
~~
Original POV
Breakfast was fine; you kept it down and that was the goal.Â
Following breakfast, you thumbed through the books Nesta had sent to you. The action was lackadaisical and without purpose. You werenât going to read them.Â
You took breaks from staring at the wall to stare out the window instead, but that only sent waves of something heavy through your chest. The skies looked so open today, with only a few clouds and endless rays of sun. Maybe if it were raining, it wouldnât hurt so much to look out the window.Â
You were being left alone far more than usual today.Â
Perhaps they had grown tired of being around a stubborn mute who refused to see the bright side of things, the âwell, with your injuries itâs a miracle youâre still alive,â talks not entirely working on you. You were sure that was true, but you didnât particularly care about the marvel it took to put you back together.Â
This miracle felt hollow.Â
As you were about to shut your eyes and drown the rest of the day in sleep, a small knock and the creak of your door stopped you. You snapped your gaze forward and quickly averted it when you recognized Azriel stepping in, his shadows preceding him and rushing you in circles.Â
You expected him to take up his post in the chair beside your bed with a simple greetingâas he had done every visit to your room in the past weeksâso when he stood at the door and spoke, confusion and anxiety filled you.Â
âUm, hello,â he began. You watched his hands fumble around each other before he cleared his throat and brought them behind his back. âI realize I havenât given you a full opportunity to be angry with me. Iâve only offered pleasantries and⌠well, moved you around. I wanted to speak to you if thatâs alright?âÂ
You fixed your gaze on the wall behind him and twisted your lips to the side in the show of a grimace.Â
âYou donât have to say anything backâunless youâd like to. It would justâCan I just sit and talk?âÂ
You had no idea why he was asking. Everyone else in the House sat in your room and talked your ear off, asking questions they wouldnât get an answer to and telling you about the happenings in town. Azriel was the only one who stayed silent and, now, was the only one to ask permission to speak.Â
Still, you slowly nodded and shifted on the pillows.Â
âDoes anything hurt?â he began, stepping forward with a hesitant hand reaching towards you. âI could fixââÂ
You shook your head. He sat in the chair.
There was a beat of silenceâuncomfortable silence, which was odd because Azriel had always been the one you felt most comfortable being quiet around.Â
When he spoke, the torture in his voice had you finally whipping around to look at his face, but his gaze was downturned.Â
âThis is my fault,â he said, strained and cracked as he clasped his hands tightly between his knees. âI know Iâve apologized to you since you woke up, but itâs never really been for that. You have to know how sorry I am, y/n. How much I wish I had just come with you. I always come with you.âÂ
The muscle in his jaw jumped. âIâI donât understand why youâd lie about Lucien going with you. Or Cassian, for that matter. I thought it was always obvious that Iâd do anything for youâthat you were more important to me than a date.âÂ
Something twisted and pulled inside of you. You were getting the devotion you so desired from him, but it was cast behind a layer of something ugly. You were more important than a dateâthen why did it hurt as he spoke the words to you?
âIâm sorry that I ever made you feel otherwise. Iâm sorry that you felt you had to lie for my benefit. But, y/n, I thought you were dead. I walked into that camp and I heard you scream, and I thoughtâI thought you were dead when I held you in my arms. There was so much blood andââÂ
Azrielâs words choked and stopped in the air. He pressed his hands in prayer over his mouth and when he looked up, he caught you in your stare. You sat paralyzed, wide-eyed, as he looked at you directly.Â
âWhy did you lie?â he asked weakly. âI would have been there. And Iâm sorry I believed you so easily, but weâve always been honest with each other. Youâve always had me.âÂ
Your chin trembled. You were tired of crying, but the irony of his words hit you with full force and your wings were gone. Your wings were gone and nothing would ever be the same again.Â
Your trembling jaw quickly morphed into the too-quick intake of breath that made your shoulders tremble as well. And then you were heaving in ugly sobs that hurt to let go of. You clutched at the blankets beneath you until your knuckles turned white.Â
Why did you lie?Â
Why did youâ
âHey, hey, Iâm sorry,â Azriel hushed. He was on the bed now. You hadnât heard the chair when he got up. âIâm sorry. Iâm sorry,â he whispered into your hair. He held you at your shoulders and pressed your face into his chest. This was the most anyone had touched you. Madja only healed with brief skims of her hands and everyone else moved you with panicked touches.
âAngel, Iâm sorry. I didnât meanââÂ
When you spokeâfor the first time as this new personâyour throat made the words unintelligible. Everything was scratchy and hoarse from misuse, but Azriel heard it. He gently pushed you back and found your eyes once more, his gaze wide and encouraging.Â
You tried again, and again, each time more coherent but also filled with the tears the Shadowsinger continued to wipe from your cheeks.Â
âI didnât mean to lie,â finally ripped from your chest. âI onlyâonlyââ You hiccuped and Azrielâs face crumpled. âI just wanted you to be happy.âÂ
Azrielâs eyes were already glassy, but when your voice finally rang in his ears, the tears fell. He pressed your face into his chest once more. This time, you brought your hands up to clench his shirt between your fingers. And, because you were already vulnerable and because this was the first time in weeks you no longer felt numb, you whispered out, âMy wings are gone,â and Azriel held you tighter.Â
~~
You woke to speaking, a voice seeming to rattle in your head. You couldnât remember falling asleep, only knowing it must have been a productive sleep because you did not feel weighed down. Your back throbbed, as it typically did after sleep, but there was no heaviness at your chest and you felt rested.Â
Another voice in the room sounded off, and you kept your eyes shut as you tried to piece together the words.Â
ââto walk. Important for her healthâtoo much timeââÂ
The voice rumbling your head then said, âShe might not be ready. We shouldnât push her.âÂ
âShe will never be ready, Azriel.â Rhysand, you deduced, the conversation in the room becoming more clear. âBut, as Madja has said, if we donât try to get her at least out of this room, sheâll be stuck in her head. Just try to get her to the balcony. Start with that.âÂ
âRhysandââÂ
âDonât Rhysand me. Itâs almost been three weeks. Her back is nearly healed. Thatâs not what weâre worried about now.âÂ
âAnd what are we worried about?â Azriel bit back. You were on his chest. Hands were on your waist.
The room lulled into a tense pause, the echo of Azrielâs near growl punctuating the silence.Â
The door opened and closed, someoneâs footfall departing.Â
âYouâve scared off our healer, Azriel,â Rhysand noted with a mock scold. Azriel let out a small scoff. âWe are all worried about her, Az. I know it feels⌠maybe like itâs you against the world, but itâs not. We need to get her up and moving. Her headspace isnât good.âÂ
Azriel shifted you in his arms. âFine.âÂ
âAnd Madja needs to come back in to change her dressings.âÂ
Your hair was moved behind your ear. âFine.âÂ
Rhysand let out a tortured sigh.Â
~~
Azrielâs POVÂ
Azriel was going to try today.Â
He said that yesterday, but yesterday, you had let him coerce you into sitting by the window instead of in bed, and you had talked to him the entire time, so he forgot to bring it up.Â
A large part of Azriel was afraid of pushing youâafraid that you would close up again and refuse to look at him. But he knew Rhys and Madja and everyone else in this House was right. You needed to start making progress. You needed to be able to live some semblance of a normal life without your wings.Â
It was strange to see you without them. The pit in his chest grew each time you moved to accommodate them. You would shift in bed or reach around to reposition the fantom limb and realization would come before the dread. Sometimes that was it for the day, you wouldnât speak anymore. Azriel would read to you when that happened.Â
You had started to talk to the rest of the circle, which Azriel was mostly glad for, but the smallest bout of protectiveness had somehow dug its way into his heart. When he would walk into your room to find you chatting with Cassian or listening to Rhys, Azriel would have to pause at the territorial feeling that temporarily consumed him. He figured it was only because you were still hurt. That would fade.Â
When he came in today, you were alone, and Azriel felt relieved. For a moment.Â
You were already awake and looked well-rested, which was detrimental to his plan of asking you while you were half asleep. You set your book down to stare up at him, and even the fact that you were reading was not lost on him.Â
You were making progress. This was part of progress.
âGood morning, y/n,â Azriel greeted, standing at the foot of your bed.Â
The action already made you nervous. You eyed the chair beside you and glanced back at him. âHi, Az.âÂ
Azrielâs lash fluttered at the sound of your voice, still so fresh after weeks of silence. You were meeker than you once sounded, unsure and small.Â
Azriel took in a breath before asking, âHowâs today?â
âToday is good,â you replied, words slow.Â
Azriel spied the remaining badges peeking out from the top of your shirt. You needed this. âI think we should walk today.âÂ
Silence consumed the room. Your lips parted as you stared at him, and Azriel immediately wanted to eat his words. Another beat of silence. And then another. He tried desperately not to shift weight between his feet lest he look antsy or unsure.Â
You blinked, twice, and then stared down at your fingers as they rested in your lap.Â
âI know it will be difficult,â Azriel tried, speaking low. âBut Iâll be here. We donât have to go far. A few steps, thatâs all Iâm asking.âÂ
You pressed your thumbnail into your palm, brows furrowed. You hadnât smiled, Azriel realized, not since before. Your tongue darted out to wet your lips before you spoke.Â
âOkay.âÂ
âOkay?â Azriel asked, bending down to catch your gaze unsuccessfully.Â
You blinked back up at him. âOkay, Iâll try.â And then, in a much lower tone, as Azriel walked to your side, you grumbled, âNot as if I could get any lower than I am now.âÂ
âWhat does that mean?â
âNothing,â you replied, reaching for his outstretched hands. âDoesnât mean anything.âÂ
Azriel decided to revisit that later. He wouldnât pass up this opening you had provided, even though his heart ached at what youâd insinuated. He held your hands in his own and leaned forward as you shifted yourself to the side, your legs hanging off the edge of the bed.Â
Already, the disorientation on your face was difficult to stomach. You swayed backward with a pinched expression and your nostrils flared in frustration, but Azriel only held your hands firm and steady.Â
âHey, itâs okay,â he comforted, allowing his thumb to brush your knuckle. âAnything hurt?â
You shook your head, your lips pressed in a tight line. Azriel forced himself into your field of vision and nodded, softly counting to three as your eyes darted quickly between both of his. As your legs straightened and Azrielâs hands held you up, you refused to break the connection. Azriel wouldnât be the one to break it.Â
You were shaky on your feet and completely unbalanced, but you were standing, and that was all Azriel could ask for. He gripped your hands tighter as your breathing deepened, the struggle evident on your face.Â
âFeel okay?â Azriel asked.Â
âNo,â you grimaced. âBut keep going,â you breathed out.Â
âOkay, okay. Start with your right. I wonât let go of you.âÂ
And you did as he asked, albeit with a small groan and a look up at the ceiling. You abandoned the frustration in favor of staring directly at your feet and white-knuckling the grip on Azrielâs hands as you swayed and brought your right foot forward. The moment you placed it down you wobbled on it and had to right yourself three times, causing one of Azrielâs hands to come around your waist.��
You gritted your teeth but continued with your left foot with some encouragement from Azriel. He stepped back with each step you took forward, his hands glued to your body to correct the mistakes from your core. You made it six steps and Azriel was elated. He let out a small, breathy laugh.Â
âYouâre incredible,â he deemed.Â
And it was so, so small, but the scoff-like laugh you offered was accompanied by a minuscule half-smile, and Azriel was over the moon. You looked up at him, a sarcastic upturn of your eyes lighting them up, and Azriel was struck then.Â
Mate.Â
Mate.Â
It was so obvious, so clear. There was never anything but this. But you.Â
You were meant to be his and he yours. Years of this pull to you, and he always thought it to be one of friendship. Heâd always loved you, always, but heâd never humored the possibility of anything more. Youâd seen him in his teen years. Gods, youâd seen him in his twenties when he was terribly full of himself without the credentials to be so.Â
And heâd seen you through the decades of your life as well.Â
But everything was so much clearer now. Heâd always been protective of you, always been the first to follow you. That was part of why this had been so devastatingâheâd let you down, left you alone. For another woman.Â
Azriel felt his stomach lurch and then something rotten was left in his mouth.Â
His mateâheâd let this happen to his mate.Â
And what had he said in the store that day? When youâd asked him what would happen if heâd found his mate?
Heâd said it wouldnât matter, that Elain was bigger than a mating bond.Â
Elain.
âAzriel?â Your worried tone snapped him back to the present. To the way your legs shook and your body swayed before him. He quickly scooped you up at your waist and held you close as he walked you back to the bed.Â
âThatâs enough for today,â he said, tucking you back into the bed. His hands were shaking. âDoes anything hurt?â
âAre you okay?â you asked, and when you looked at him with your wide eyes, he was so angry at himself.Â
Nothing made sense, but everything did.Â
âIâm alright,â he reassured, placing a hand on the top of your head. âWe need to take that slow. Your muscles need to be rebuilt along with your balance.âÂ
He needed to get out of this room. He needed toâ
âI promise Iâll be able to do more tomorrow. Youâll⌠come back tomorrow, right?âÂ
Something was screaming at him. His shadows. They twisted and struck his ears before coming down to rest gently at your shoulders.Â
âOf course I will.âÂ
~~
Original POV
Azriel did not come back the following day, or the day after that.Â
Mor came on the first day, a smile plastered on her concerned face. She held her hands out as Azriel did and got you to walk ten steps before exhaustion made your legs shake. She sat beside your bed and went on and on about some shop in Velaris and you laid back and listened.Â
You loved Mor, but it became hard to swallow when she was the one to walk through your door that morning.Â
The next day, it was Cassian.Â
He grinned and boasted about being the best person on the job, rounding your bed and heaving you up by your hips until you were pressed against his front. Cassian took a different approach to you relearning how to walk, placing your feet on top of his to move as he did. He was joking at first, laughter fresh in his tone, but he got serious as your brow twisted and your body swayed.Â
âYou got it,â he assured. He stepped back, his hands now just hovering over your hips as you balanced against him. âYouâre doing great.âÂ
You gripped the sleeves of his shirt. âI should know how to walk,â you said through gritted teeth. âI shouldnât have stayed in bed so long.âÂ
âYou were healing. Resting. No one expected you to hop up and be fine, y/n.âÂ
âI moped for too long. This wouldnât be so hard if I had started earlier.âÂ
âHeyââÂ
Frustration had accumulated, building since realizing that you really were only a fraction of yourself, and that was probably why Azriel hadnât come back. You clenched your teeth once more and pushed from Cassianâs body, finding the ground beneath your feet and ignoring the protest from the Illyrian before youâthe one with his wings so tightly pressed to his back that you almost could forget they were there. Almost.Â
But the action was short-lived. Cassian grappled for your waist as your body only allowed you two steps forward before you shot backward, an ache permeating down your spine as it tried to accommodate the movement.Â
âCauldron, y/n, warn a guy,â Cassian scolded, stepping you back to sit on the bed. âDid you do this with everyone or am I just special?âÂ
Frustration burned behind your eyes. You stayed silent as you scrubbed your hand down your face. You couldnât even fling yourself back against the bed as you wanted, knowing that pain would radiate down your back if you did.Â
You couldnât do anything. The extra time youâd spent with Azriel had created a false sense of⌠something you needed to let go of. He was pitying youâthat was all. You were a broken creature, and he felt responsible.Â
âWhat was that about, huh?â Cassian asked, kneeling before you and looking up below a raised brow.Â
âIâm broken,â you admitted, resolute and small. âThatâs why Azriel wonât come back, isnât it? I canât walk. Iâm not how I was. I let this happen to me. I should know how to walk.âÂ
Cassianâs tongue clicked as his head tilted to the side. âNo, y/n, youâre not broken. You didnât let anything happen to you. This is allâGods, this is all a fucking mess. But the one thing you can know is that you arenât broken. And Azrielâheâs dealing with something right now. Heâs not avoiding you because youâre broken.âÂ
You stared back at him, the empty feeling slowly creeping back into your chest. You bit the inside of your cheek and nodded when Cassian gave you an expectant look. You would act as if you believed him, and the following day, when Azriel stepped through your door, maybe it felt a bit easier to lie.Â
âDid you handle what you needed to?â you asked him, your hands cemented against his own as he guided you around your room. The words came out strained as your balance faltered.Â
Azriel took a moment before responding, âYou could say that.âÂ
âWas it Elain?â You hadnât meant to ask the question, and the bitterness in your tone was new to even you, but it came out all the same. You avoided Azrielâs gaze as it snapped to your face.Â
âSome of it,â he admitted. His eyes burned into you. You stared at your feet as you stepped. âBut only some.âÂ
âHowâs that working out for you?âÂ
âY/n.âÂ
You stepped again. And again. It was easier each day, but that also spelled a more difficult future. The further you walked, the sooner you would have to come to terms with your wings being gone. Staying in bed helped you avoid that truth.Â
You ignored Azrielâs call and stepped again.Â
âLook at me. Please.âÂ
You shifted your jaw to the side but glanced up through your lashes and gave in to his request. Azrielâs beseeching expression made you falter.Â
âI can never apologize fully for not being there that night. With Elainââ Azriel paused, wincing. âIâve been blind to whatâs important. You tried to tell me. Everyone tried to tell me. I was so caught up in a chance at happiness. It was never about Elain.âÂ
You had no reply. Your legs were shaking.Â
Azriel seemed to take a different approach. âI meant what I said beforeâthat youâre incredible. Youâve pushed yourself so hard and weâre all proud of you.âÂ
âIs that why you didnât come back when you said you would?â you asked. The tinge of bitterness remained. âBecause youâre proud of me?âÂ
âI had toây/n, there were thingsââÂ
âJust say youâve been visiting out of pity, Azriel. That would make this easier.âÂ
You gripped his hands harder as your wave of frustration made walking more difficult. You grunted slightly and Azriel took that as a sign to shift your weight from your feet, holding you to his body even as you struggled against him, even as you averted your gaze.Â
Gods, this was better when you kept your mouth shut.Â
âI do not pity you. Y/nây/n. I donât, do you hear me?âÂ
âWhy?â you stressed, pushing your hands against his chest in a futile escape attempt. âWhy, Azriel? Too busy running after Elain to make room for it?âÂ
âDonât say that. I already told youââ
âJust let me go.âÂ
âNo.â
âOh, so now you listen to me.âÂ
âY/nââÂ
âThis was already humiliating, Azriel. And then you said youâd be back and you werenât,â you accused. âYou got weird when I finally started walking and I know you only came in here because Cassian told you about yesterday.âÂ
âYesterday?â he questioned.Â
You rolled your eyes. It was so much easier to be angry than hurt. âWhen I asked about you. I know he canât keep a secret.âÂ
Azriel only shook his head. âHe hadnât told me anything. I needed a few days because Iâm the weak one. Me. I needed distance because Iâm reminded, every time I see you, that I could have prevented this. Im selfish.
âAnd Elain,â he trailed off, hazel eyes flicking between yours. âI had to tell her that Iâve been a fool. I wonât be pursuing her anymore.âÂ
Your brows furrowed. You gave up fighting against Azriel, but he kept both of your hands in a grip at his chest, his other arm locked at your lower back. This felt like a weight lifted from your chest, but it wasnât that easy. None of this was easy.Â
âWhy?âÂ
Azriel paused.Â
Something flashed across his face, indecipherable to even you, but he covered it just as quickly.
âIt wasnât supposed to be her. Iâve always known that.âÂ
More silence blanketed the room. Your earlier anger melted into a white-hot embarrassment that lingered in the pit of your stomach. Youâd never been one quick to anger. Azriel hadnât even blinked an eye.Â
âCan I help you back to your bed?â
You pressed your lips together.Â
âI want to read with you, if thatâs alright?âÂ
Your head turned down. You nodded.Â
~~Â
Azrielâs POVÂ
Azriel couldnât tell you.Â
He couldnât.Â
It was clear that no bond lit up your chest as his did, and that made sense to Azriel. Youâd been through a loss few could ever imagine. You were stuck in your head for most of the day, and then angry or numb for the rest of it. The only time you seemed to find reprieve was during conversation that had nothing to do with anything of meaning.Â
Azriel would take what he could get. So he read beside you and helped you walk and he didnât tell you that a bond connected your souls.Â
How could he even broach the subject, anyway? When he had so openly pined after another woman?Â
This was not the time.Â
You needed to focus on yourself. He would focus on you and you would focus on yourself.Â
It had been about a month since you began walking again, and two since your injury. He counted each day. On the second week of the third month, Azriel saw you in the hallway. Feyre walked alongside you as you trailed your fingers on the wall, and while it gave the air of a casual stroll, he could see his High Ladyâs hand hover behind you. While he took effortful breaths to calm his excitement, his shadows did not.Â
âAzriel, what terrible timing!â Feyre scolded, batting away the shadows as they stormed you. âI finally got her out here and you're going to knock her over with air.â
âI apologize,â he spoke, but he wasnât sorry in the slightest. Despite your unsteady gait, you lit up as his shadows swirled around you, displacing your hair and clothes as you went. And then you laughed; a small sound, but one that Azriel felt in his chest.Â
âCall them back,â you giggled. Azrielâs face warmed along with his chest. âIâm going to collapse into this wall if you donât.âÂ
âAzriel,â Feyre called, and Azriel hadnât noticed he was staring. He blinked and shook his head as if to clear it and tried to call his shadows back. And then tried again.Â
They were stuck to you.Â
âI really am trying,â he explained, taking a step closer. âThey seem attached.âÂ
âI canât imagine why,â Feyre groaned. She shot the Shadowsinger a look and wrapped her arm around your shoulder, tugging you into her side. âIdiot bats.âÂ
As the pair walked past him, his shadows still whispering along your arms, you hooked your chin over your shoulder, casting him a lingering gaze. It was odd to see your face with such clarity, no wings clouding his view. Even more odd was the uncomfortable way you walked; the leaning into Feyreâs side was more necessary than for the show.Â
The strangest thing, however, was the tug in his chest that left him breathless. Every time you looked at him, that thread in his chest tugged and yanked and begged him to get closer.Â
But this wasnât the time.Â
Maybe it wouldnât be the time for several decades.Â
Not after he let you down in such a way.Â
He would spend the rest of his life making up for that, even if you were none the wiser to the bond between you. He would protect you for the rest of your life, as he was meant to do from the beginning. That feeling, the urge, only swelled as you turned forward and continued your walk with your High Lady, Azriel still hearing the remnants of your laugh in the hall as you went.Â
A shadow broke away from your figure and lopped around his ear, reminding him that he actually did have a destination before he became so enraptured by you. It whispered to him hurriedly and Azriel had to break his gaze from your retreating back as he made his way to Rhysandâs study. Each step had him increasingly irritated; he should have been with you the day you decided to leave your room.Â
He bit back his vexation when he felt the tension in the room.Â
âAzriel. Good,â Rhysand greeted. The door swung shut. âSit. We need to talk.âÂ
âThat doesnât sound promising,â Azriel remarked, shifting his leathers as he took a wide seat on the chair across Rhysandâs desk.Â
From the couch beside him, Cassian let out a humorless chuckle. âI think youâll find this quite promising, brother.âÂ
âAs long as itâs quick. I have other things to attend to today.âÂ
Cassian sent a wry grin in Rhysandâs direction. âI told you heâd see her in the hall.â He turned back to Azriel. âPacked schedule today, Az?âÂ
âYou know better, Cassian,â Rhysand chided, the lightness in his tone betraying the scolding nature of his words.Â
âIs there an actual point to this discussion?â Azriel deadpanned.Â
âBond feeling a little loose?âÂ
Azriel threw him a dirty look. It hadnât taken a genius to recognize the change in Azriel the day the bond snapped, his heightened aggression paired with the scent of you still lingering on his clothes had Cassian immediately clocking the Shadowsinger. Heâd looked surprisedâgaurded and surprised. Rhysand looked as if heâd been the one waiting for the bond to snap, and Azriel had sent him a myriad of questions.Â
Namely: Why the hell wouldnât he tell him he thought you were his mate?Â
âDonât taunt him, Cass.âÂ
âWhereâs the fun in that?âÂ
âAre we getting to the point?â Azriel drawled. The desire to get back to you itched beneath his skin. Maybe youâd made it to the kitchen and heâd sit at the table beside you.Â
Rhysand sighed. He tapped his finger against a piece of parchment laid on the desk. âI have correspondence from the northeast camp. From the spies you have placed there.âÂ
Azriel sat up in his chair. âWhy wouldnât they speak to me directly?âÂ
âI had them turn all communication over to me. Youâre too close to this and I wouldnât have you acting rashly and putting yourself in unnecessary danger.âÂ
âThey are my spiesââÂ
âI didnât do it to undermine you, Azriel,â Rhysand interrupted, raising a hand in surrender. âYou canât tell me that if you got word her attackers were found you wouldnât immediately rush into that camp without a plan or even a weapon.âÂ
Azriel breathed hard from his nose and clenched the wooden chair arms between scarred fingers.Â
In the silence, Rhysand continued. âI wouldnât expect anything less, brother. But you understand why that was a risk I couldnât take.âÂ
âWhat did the correspondence say?â Azriel gritted out, his mood depleted of the lightness you had brought.Â
Rhysand eyed Cassian on the other side of the room before fixing his gaze on his Spymaster. âThe escaped attackers have been identified. They arenât contained, and no one even knows where they are, but we know who they are.âÂ
Fiery rage met Azrielâs soured mood.
If only he knew of the terrors that would continue to fall.Â
#azriel x reader#azriel x you#azriel x female!reader#azriel x y/n#azriel acotar#azriel shadowsinger#azriel spymaster#azriel fanfic#azriel angst#azriel#acotar#acotar fanfiction#acotar x reader
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the grid: when they admit they love you!
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featuring: Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Alex Albon, Franco Colapinto, Logan Sargeant, Daniel Riccardo, Liam Lawson, Charles LeClerc, Carlos Sainz, Arthur LeClerc, Ollie Bearman, Max Verstappen, Paul Aron, Jack Doohan.
this is 18+ so mdni please! smut in some of them!
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Oscar Piastri: fumbling and scaredÂ
You sat at the reception of McLaren, and every single day he was terrified of making a fool of himself. You were the cool, pretty receptionist heâd already gone on 3 dates with, and this Friday he was going to ask you to officially be his girlfriend. The conversation between you two flowed easily when it was just you two, but with other people there⌠he was less than smooth. Your desk mate, the other receptionist had a knack for gossip, and she was kind of scary, she he tried to steer clear of her when he could.Â
âMorning,â you smiled as he walked in the door.Â
âMorning,â he smiled back, leaning on your desk. âHow are you?â
You started signing him into the building (he âlostâ his access card months ago, aka he threw it away and didnât try to get a new one, just so he could have some reason to talk to you). âIâm good, looking forward to Friday,â you smiled. âYou?â
He beamed, grinning like a kid. âMe too.â
âOscar!â Chris (the guy who has the biggest crush on you ever) clapped a hand on his back, much too hard. âBuddy, I got you a new access-card! Now you can stop bothering the pretty lady here, right?â
âChris, itâs no bother, I do it every morning-â you tried to diffuse the situation. You didnât exactly want Osccar to have to deal with Chris, he was such an asshole. Â
âYeah, but itâs one less thing off your plate baby,â he winked at you and Oscar felt something twist in his stomach when you grimaced at the pet name.Â
âDonât call her that,â he told him. âShe has a name, itâs Y/n. Use her name.âÂ
âDude, I know you wouldnât get it, but some people date other people,â Chris chuckled like a scumbag. âAnd me and her are together, so back off.â
Oscar laughed. He actually laughed in your co-workers face. âYouâre funny, man.â
Chris laughed along. âI know right.âÂ
Oscar took the access card from him, leaned over the desk and pressed his lips to yours, like heâd done many times before, and carried on to his meetings. Chris stood there shocked, then walked back to his desk like a wounded puppy.Â
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Friday rolled around and you were both sat on his couch watching Cars, when he turned to you. âIâm sorry about Monday,â he admitted. âI know it wasnât the right thing to do and it probably made it worse but I just-â
âIt worked,â you told him. âHe hasnât spoken to me all week, but he has been trying to report you to HR for me, but every time he does I just tell them I didnât make the claim and then report Chris for being weird. It worked perfectly. Heâs such a dick,â you chuckled.Â
He watched you as you chuckled, the way your nose scrunched, the flyaway hairs on your forehead framing your face, your soft lips, you gorgeous eyes. âI love you,â he said, softly, but you looked up with wide-eyes all the same. Heâd shocked himself too. âOHmygodIamsosorryIknowitâswaytooearlyand-â
You just started laughing, literally falling into his lap. You laughed against his chest and after a moment, he joined you.Â
âYouâre such a dork,â you smiled brightly as you ran a hand through his hair, then gently caressed his cheek. âI love you too.â
He beamed. âCan I be your boyfriend?âÂ
You nodded, then kissed him gently. Cars and a pretty girl as his girlfriend? Could his Friday night get any better?Â
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Lando Norris: sweet and sincere (for once)
He watched as you walked from the edge of the water into it, splashing around with Mila. It was your first Norris family holiday, and yeah, maybe he had lied to you and told you it would just be you two to trick you into meeting his family only 5 months into your relationship. Maybe you were super mad at him to the point of barely speaking to him unless in the group. But also, maybe Lando was watching the love of his life play with his niece, and maybe he didnât care that heâ just called you that.Â
âLala!â Mila called, running up to him. âI really like Y/n, can we keep her?âÂ
You came up behind her, chuckling lightly at her statement. He stared at you for a moment. You were sunkissed (and a little sunburn on your nose), with a bright smile, wet hair and a beautiful blue swimsuit on. You looked ethereal to him. So stunningly gorgeous that he barely knew what to say.Â
âCome on kiddo, letâs grab you a snack,â you picked back up your smile and started to walk over to his sister, sitting under another umbrella with all the snacks and drinks in the world. Lando just stared at you when Mila asked. Youâd thought that him inviting you on a family holiday would mean something, you mustâve thought wrong.Â
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As dinner rolled around, the conversation flowed smoothly as the sun set on the horizon.Â
âIâm going to go for a walk on the beach front,â you told the table once meals were finished. They waved you off and off you went. The beautiful sea and stars in the sky caught your attention as your red dress flowed in the wind. It was magical, the warm air, the magnificent views, all of it. The sand beneath your feet was warming your feet and you stopped to look out on the ocean. The soothing, calm waves with the scent of salt made you smile. Youâd always loved the beach.Â
âYou look beautiful,â Landoâs voice made you jump, and you searched for him until you realised he was right beside you.Â
âThank you,â you smiled softly. He wrapped a hand around your waist and turned you to face him.Â
Heâd been quiet at dinner, too busy trying to think of how to get you to talk to him again, and how he could finally confess his love for you. It was almost overwhelming, the fact that he was in love.Â
âIâm sorry I didnât tell you that it was a family trip,â he sighed, pressing a kiss to your cheek.Â
You sighed. âIt was pretty shittyâŚâ you reminded him. âBut Iâve been having fun with them. You come from good people. Makes sense.â
He smiled brightly at your compliment and pressed his forehead against yours. âThank you for not leaving once you found out.â
You chuckled. âNo problem.â
âI adore you,â he admitted. âMore than anything. I fucking love you.â
Your eyes widened and you stood there with your jaw dropped. âHoly shit,â you cursed under your breath and he giggled.Â
âYou donât have to say it back or anything, I just wanted to tell you,â he clarified, once heâd stopped laughing.Â
You smiled at him, chuckling. âI love you too, Lando, of course I do. Even when you do stupid shit like invite me to a family holiday.âÂ
He laughed, burying his face in your neck. âI already said âIâm sorryâ!â
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George Russell: of courseâŚ
He smiled as he crossed the finish line, finally winning another race.Â
âWell done George!â his engineer cheered, congratulating him as the garage erupted into celebrations.Â
When he was finally out of the car, all interviews were over, and all that was left was to take a few team photos, he was given a moment to seek you out. Youâd hugged you at the barricade, but since then he hadnât seen you. You were busy signing things for fans, little girls who wanted to be âjust like youâ one day. You smiled and told them they would be, that their dreams of being olympic gymnasts werenât far-fetched. He smiled, wrapping his arms around you from behind. He was covered in champagne, and you groaned, making the small group of girls laugh.Â
âGeorge!â you groaned, pushing him off.
âWhat?â he smirked, pulling you back in. He pressed a soft kiss to your forehead, as the group of girls moved on with a giggle and a wave. âYou look stunning.â
âYouâre wet,â you dead-panned. âCongratulations, winner.â
He grinned. âI love you.â
You stared at him for a moment, a gentle disbelief in your eyes. âReally?â
âMore than anything.â
âNot just because you're drunk on champagne?â
âNope, I genuinely love you,â he chuckled. âSorry,â he shrugged, unapologetic.Â
You beamed, then kissed him. âI love you more.â
He shook his head. âNot possible.âÂ
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Kimi Antonelli: nervousÂ
He smiled as he opened the door to his apartment and found you on the other side.Â
âReady?â you asked, holding up a very big paint can, and some rollers. He had asked you to help him decorate his new apartment, in Monaco, and youâd thankfully agreed. You, his girlfriend / race engineer, had also just moved to Monaco, next door, in fact.
He let you in and you both began to set up the room, tarping the hardwood floors, taping off the skirting boards, and enjoying the soft music and sunny weather outside the window. You finally opened the paint and got to work. He thought you looked adorable, actually wearing paint-splattered overalls (courtesy of you repainting your entire apartment just a week ago), with a concentrated face. His eyes followed you across the room, meticulously taping every inch of the skirting board, making sure that none of the blue paint would ruin the white.Â
âWhat?â you asked, looking back at him.Â
He blushed and shook his head, finally understanding the emotions he felt for you everyday. He loved you. âNothing.â
You raised an eyebrow and walked over, wrapping your arms around his neck and pressing a kiss to his lips. âYou sure?â
He nodded, much too nervous to tell you. He looked away, pretending to be engrossed in messing with your pockets.Â
You shrugged, pressing a kiss to his cheek. âAlright,â you let go of him and walked back to the side of the room that you were working on.Â
Heâd tell you, one day.Â
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Lewis Hamilton: smooth about it
He smirked as you walked out from your bedroom, clad in one of his shirts and some tiny sleep-shorts, excited about finally sitting down to watch the movie. It had been a difficult triple-header, and he hadnât been around. But finally, the season was over, and he could invite you over to start enjoying the Christmas festivities. He loved this. He loved the casual, regular things you two did. He liked the way you cuddled up to him on the couch, he loved the way he knew youâd definitely fall asleep before the film ended, he loved you-
Oh.
He loved you.Â
He chuckled and you looked at him confused.Â
âYou alright?âÂ
He chuckled. âAll good baby,â he nodded, pressing a soft kiss to your cheek.Â
âWhat was that about?â you questioned further, putting the remote down. He ran a hand through your hair, looking at you with all the love in the world.Â
âJust love you,â he shrugged as your jaw dropped. He chuckled, watching a million emotions run through you.Â
âYouâre such a dick!â you playfully hit him on the shoulder. âI wanted to say it first!â
He laughed and pulled you into his arms, holding you closer. âIâm sorry baby.â
You scoffed. âNo youâre not.â
He shook his head. âNo Iâm not.âÂ
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Alex Albon: oh⌠yah.Â
He sighed as he opened the door to his driverâs room. He was exhausted, another race down, another weekend closer to the end of this.Â
âHey,â you smiled.Â
His mood picked up, knowing you were there. His best friend. âHey,â he smiled, pulling you into a hug. âI didnât know you were here.â
âSurprise?â you shrugged. âI wanted to come see you.âÂ
He smiled, pressing his face into your neck inhaling the smell of your perfume, feeling much more at ease than he did before. âI thought you couldnât make it today.â
âI did, but I won't be able to be in Qatar or Abu Dhabi,â you admitted, breaking the bad news. You could feel him frown.Â
âWhy not?â
âI'm busy for the next two weeks with work. Then I have the whole couples retreat thing and then-â
âPardon? Couples retreat?â
âThis guy Iâm seeing is saying we should go, I think itâs a swinging thing though, Iâm not exactly into it. But non refundable tickets and I would like a holiday before I have to deal with our families all Christmas,â you explained with a chuckle.
His world crumpled around him. âYouâre seeing someone?â
You nodded. âYeah, heâs⌠nice,â you smiled. âDonât worry, you wonât be meeting him for a while, heâs not even my boyfriend yet-â
You stopped talking because heâd started kissing you. He hadnât really connected the dots before. He liked how close your families were, he liked being your best friend, he liked being around you all the time. He liked being the person youâd come to about things. He didnât like other people liking you. Heâd been your personal bodyguard throughout your teenage years, and he had shooed off every guy, just because he was protecting you, right? It had nothing to do with the fact that he wanted both of you to wait and be each other's first kiss, like youâd promised when you were 10.Â
Oh shit. He was in love with you.Â
He pulled back with wide-eyes. âIâm in love with you.â
You broke out into a smile. âI love you too.â
He grinned like a little kid.Â
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Franco Colapinto: shy? For once?
He froze as he heard your voice from behind. He hadnât been home in months, too busy with racing to visit. But Christmas rolled around as it always did, and so did every single family friend.Â
âFranco!â his motherâs voice rang out. âCome here!â
He turned and was met with your eyes. He felt himself blushing already.
âY/nâs here!â she cheered. You offered a small wave and a smile, which he mirrored.Â
âItâs good to see you again,â you smiled. âHappy Holidays.â
He nodded. âYou too.â
âHowâs F1 going?â
âGood, well. I like it,â he scratched the back of his neck.Â
âWell, weâve all been cheering you on from here,â you smiled. âI canât wait to see what you do next year.â
He smiled and nervously chuckled. âThank you.â
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As he watched you over the coming days, enjoying your company, even when he wasnât the centre of your attention, he found himself becoming even more shy, even more confused, and increasingly love-sick.
He just had to find a way to make himself tell you, easy, right?Â
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Logan Sargeant: idek
Yâknow how youâre told that when boys like you, theyâll bully you? Thatâs bullshit, theyâre just bullies and their parents make excuses for them.Â
You watched as Logan got into your car, getting ready to drive it, and you felt yourself tense up. Youâd never gotten along with Logan, growing up in the same racing series, only you pivoted to Indycar and he went to F1. Now he was about to drive your car. Youâd never been more nervous. You were the Indycar champion this year, the first women to do it, and you were proud. Giving your car over to Crash-Sargeant wasnât exactly your choice, but you still had hope that he could drive it.Â
You went up to him as he was about to get it, and grabbed his hand, holding him in place. âIf you fucking car my car I will cut your balls off Sargeant. Donât fuck with me, alright?â you whispered, getting close enough to feel his breath on your cheek. He smirked and nodded, ripping his hand out of your grasp.
âIâll see what I can do.â
He was already hearing wedding bells. Utterly and totally in love with you.Â
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Daniel Riccardo: nothing like a big gesture, right?
He dropped you off outside departures, a sad smile on his face. âDonât want you to go,â he sighed.
You rolled your eyes, then wrapped your arms around his neck, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek as his hands circled your waist. âWhatâre you doing today?â
âStuff for EnchantĂŠ,â he explained.Â
âThatâs why you canât come this weekend? Not up to being my WAG in Haas?â you smirked, pressing small kisses to his cheeks as you spoke.Â
âGod no, I only go there for Nico,â he smirked. âAnd youâre replacing him today.â
You rolled your eyes, letting god of him. âFuck you!â you called after you, trying to suppress a smile. He watched as you walked off, shaking your head and he thought about everything. Every night he went to sleep with you in his arms, every morning he woke up beside you, every smile he saw, every laugh he made happen, every hug or kiss he got from you. He smiled, realising the truth.Â
He loved you.Â
Therefore he ran after you, making a huge scene in the airport. When he finally made it up to you, there were 2 security guards chasing him, so he wrapped his arms around you and kissed you harshly, a bright smile on his face. âI love you,â he smiled when he pulled away.Â
âYouâre going to get fucking arrested!â you stressed, wide-eyed and shocked at his behavior.Â
âFor being in love?â
âNo, you idiot, for bypassing security and running through an airport without a ticket! Go back!â you pushed him off of you with an exasperated and amused smile.
âI love you!â he called after himself as he was taken away by the security guards.Â
âI love you too, you fucking idiot!â you scoffed. âYou have a phone, yâknow!âÂ
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Liam Lawson: will NOT speak to you at any cost
Being in love with one of his mechanics probably wasnât the greatest idea, but the heart wants what the heart wants, and his wanted you.Â
âLiam can I-?â you started, but he just walked away, his eyes glued to the floor. You followed behind him, trying again and again to get his attention, but he continued ignoring you, and you'd had enough. âFuckâs sake- Liam! Stop being such a dick! I donât know if you just donât respect me, or if you donât like me, but Iâm a mechanic on your time, and I'm asking if thereâs anything you want us to change about your car to make you more comfortable. Just answer me that simple question and I promise I wonât bother you again all weekend!âÂ
He froze on the spot. âIâm in love with you-â he blurted out, then clapped a hand over his mouth. âThe car is fine, sorry. Thanks.â
Then he walked off, leaving you in a stunned silence.Â
What the fuck had he just done?
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Charles LeClerc: weirdly calm about it
You two sat on (one of)Â his (many) yacht(s), overlooking the gorgeous Monaco bay. He had an arm around you, both of you dressed in comfortable clothes with nothing to do for the entire weekend. Oh, how he adored the off-season. You were too busy reading a book to notice the way he was looking at you. In the simple, silent moment it hit him suddenly that he was in fact, in love with you. And it didnât scare him the way previous girlfriends confessing such things to him had. It felt right, completely normal, even.Â
âDo you want anything?â you yawned.Â
âPardon?â he asked, too busy in his own world.Â
âIâm ordering food, do you want something?âÂ
âIâm alright, but let me get it,â he offered and you scoffed.
âFuck off PercvĂŠl. I can pay for my own food,â you chuckled, getting up and walking further into the boat.Â
He chuckled, watching after you.Â
Wow, he was mature. And, in love.Â
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Carlos Sainz: definitely not freaking out
âI love you,â you confessed as the two of you cosied up at the beach. It had been a brilliant holiday, the two of you actually getting to spend some time together.Â
He looked at you with wide-eyes.Â
âSorry if that was too soon, or too much. I just⌠wanted you to know. You donât have to say anything back- of course.âÂ
While you were catastrophising, he was freaking out. You loved him. You told him you loved him. Holy shit.Â
He stuttered for a moment, making you grimace. Youâd fucked it up, definitely. There was no way he felt the same, right? You were probably just a 7 month long hook-up to him, right?Â
âI love you too,â he smiled, then pressed his lips to yours.
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Arthur LeClerc: accidental
âArthur is so whipped!â his friend laughed, watching as Arthur helped you set the table for dinner. Arthur just laughed, whereas, you frowned. Did Arthur think you were too clingy? Too demanding? Too much?Â
Throughout dinner, you were pretty quiet, and you didnât even let Arthur help you clean up. You went to bed early as he entertained the guests alone, and when he came to bed, there was a pillow between either sides of your bed. He frowned.Â
âBaby,â he cooed, wrapping his arms around you and placing your head in the crook of his neck. âWhat is the problem?â
You sniffled. âItâs nothing,â you shook your head. âIâm sorry.â
He felt his heart warm when you held on to him, revelling in the fact that you would choose him to comfort you. âItâs just what-â
âPlease donât tell me you took to heart the comment Harry made?â he scoffed. You were quiet. âMy love, I love you, I like helping you, I like being there for you, I like kissing and hugging you. If he has a problem with that then he can fuck off,â he chuckled, then stopped when he realised what heâd said.Â
âYou love me?â you sniffled, raising your head to look at him.Â
He smiled. âOf course I do,â he pressed a kiss to your forehead. âAlways.âÂ
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Ollie Bearman: overwhelmedÂ
He smiled as he watched you dance on the dancefloor of the club. You looked so free and happy, smiling brightly with friends as the lights flashed and the music was loud enough to feel it in your entire body.Â
âDude, you two are so in love, itâs adorable,â Paul, his friend, pointed out.Â
âI donât- weâre not-â
âHavenât said it yet?â Paul chuckled. âYou should. I think sheâd say it back.â
Ollie nodded, trying to pretend his entire world hadnât been flipped upside down. You. Love. He wasnât in love, right? All boyfriends wanted their girlfriends beside them at all times, right? All boyfriends missed their girlfriends so much that they flew them out to every race, right?  All boyfriends had begged their girlfriends to meet his parents, and vice versa only months into getting together, right? All boyfriends felt suffocated when their girlfriends werenât around, right?Â
Oh shit, he was in love with you. He stepped outside to get some air.
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After a while of not seeing Ollie, you went outside to find him. You found him, leaning against the wall of the club, staring off into space.Â
âAlright?â you asked, gently placing a hand on his cheek.Â
He looked at you and smiled. âAlright,â he nodded, wrapping his hands around your waist.Â
âWhyâd you leave?â you asked.Â
âNeeded some air,â he admitted. It wasnât untrue.Â
âFor 30 minutes?â you questioned and he knew heâd been caught. âDid Paul say something stupid? Need me to beat him up for you?âÂ
He chuckled, pulling you closer to him. âNo, Iâm alright. I was just⌠thinking.âÂ
âDangerous pastime,â you teased and he chuckled. âWhat about?â
âYou,â he confessed.Â
âWhat about me?â
âIâm in love with you,â he answered nervously.Â
âOh yeah?â you smiled and he nodded. âGood thing I love you too.âÂ
Wow, Paul was right, for once.Â
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Max Verstappen: strange manÂ
He watched from the other side of the plane as you played chess against his mother, bright smiles on both of your faces as the game progressed. He noticed the way your nose crinkled, the way your eyes shone, the comfortable position you sat in. He thought of every moment he got to share with you, and he almost teared up thinking of the best ones. He loved you. But he wouldnât tell you, not yet.Â
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He thrust into you, euphoria so close he could almost touch it. âGood girl, he groaned, feeling your nails in his back. âTaking me so well.âÂ
You just moaned against his skin, too cockdrunk to really notice what was going on around you. Max was a 4 time world champion. Heâd done it. The first thing heâd wanted was to fuck you silly in his hotel room.
He was close, he slowed down his thrusts, much to your dismay, and slowly but firmly continued.Â
âI,â thrust. âLove,â thrust. âYou.âÂ
And he came inside you as you screamed into his shoulder, reaching your own peak. He hadnât even meant to say it, it just came out (see what I did there? đ). He stared down at you as you looked back up at him with wide eyes.Â
âYou love me?â you questioned.Â
He nodded, his mouth dry. He was trying to focus on the softness of this moment, whilst also having to deal with your tight walls around his cock. Torture.Â
âI love you too,â you smiled, flipping him over and straddling him. He groaned when he saw you on top of him and he was hard again. âLet me take care of you, yeah? My winner,â you smirked before starting to move on his cock.Â
He was in for a long night. But a long night with the woman he loved.Â
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Paul Aron: finally is a victim of humilityÂ
âPaul, just tell her!â Ralf, his brother, argued. âShe adores you, youâre in love with her, itâs alright!âÂ
âBut⌠what if she doesnât say it back?â He asked, much more insecure than he meant it to sound. He wasnât used to being unsure when it came to romance. Paul had always been the type of guy to get any girl he wanted, with you it had been different. Youâd hated his guts. He had to prove to you he was a good guy, then youâd finally gone out with him, and fast forward a year, he was trying to figure out how to tell you he loved you. Heâd only realised it last night, when you were waiting in his apartment with dinner made for the two of you for the simple reason âjust becauseâ. In that moment heâd wrapped his arms around you and kissed you to stop himself from ruining the night and confessing right then and there.Â
Ralf groaned. âYou are impossible!âÂ
When did love become so complicated?
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Jack Doohan: so not casualÂ
Jack watched as you wiped out in the waves once again, a giggle on his lips. As you resurfaced, he saw the panic in your eyes and he swam over, his body taking over before his brain could say anything.Â
âYou alright?â he called, swimming over to you. You shook your head wildly, tears forming in your eyes.Â
âM-my leg,â you whimpered out, trying to keep yourself above water. He grabbed your waist and held you bridal-style so he could swim back to shore, signalling to the lifeguards as finally got you to shore. He saw the issue when you two were out of the water, a huge gash on your left leg, so bad you could see the bone. The cracked bone.
What ensued for the next 9 hours was a flurry of an ambulance, hospital rooms, and surgery, but the only constant was Jack. he stayed there the entire time, and he was there when you woke up.Â
He breathed a sigh of relief when your eyes opened. âHey baby,â he smiled, easy as ever despite the worry heâd been under extreme stress all day. âYouâre awake.â
You nodded, taking his hand. âIâm so sorry about today-â
âDonât apologise. We all get hurt sometimes, itâs alright,â he reassured you. âPlus, itâs not like I can be mad at you.â
âWhy not?â you asked.Â
âBecause I love you,â he shrugged. Heâd realised in the 9 hours of stress that he wouldnât go to this extent for anyone else, and that he must be insane or in love (which were probably the same thing) to somehow be blindsighted into bringing you to the most dangerous part of the beach for surfing (we was persuaded by you kissing him lots) and then bringing you to the ER and staying with you the entire time. So, he chose the love one, it sounded better.Â
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the tower by the forest | lhs
part one!
pairings! sorcerer!lee heeseung x fem!reader
synopsis! the immortal sorcerer lives in a tower by the forest filled with dark creatures. he protects the surrounding villages from its dangers, and in exchange, every decade, a girl from one of the villages is chosen to live as his companion. this time, itâs you.
genre! fantasy romance, angst
content warnings! swearing and the fact this is unfinished so this is part one
word count! 11.4k
author's note! i'm scared of making this longer but i'm literally just halfway through...
Throughout your life, a girl from the villages has only been taken twice. And the first time, you were barely one year old, so it could hardly affect you in any way. The second time, however, you were eleven. At the time, you already understood what was happening and why. A girl around the age of twenty had been chosen to live with the lone and mysterious sorcerer who lived in a tower at the edge of the Forest to prolong his protection of the villages.
Nobody likes to talk about it much. How the girls are chosen, when he comes for them and what he does to them. None of that information is known. Although youâve heard that usually, once the decade passes, the girls are free to go and live as they please with a solid fortune to their name. The girl you witnessed being taken away ten years ago has been released recently, and you heard from the whispers of the other villagers that she moved to the city and is starting her own business in dressmaking.
For that very reason, every village surrounding the Forest lives in restless anticipation. Any day now, a new girl will be chosen to join the sorcerer in his tower. Ten years, she will live with him and do whatever it is that sheâs got to do to keep her family and friends safe from the darkness of the Forest.
You wish you could know how the girls are chosen to be better prepared. Itâs glaringly obvious that some villagers think you might be the next girl chosen. Youâre the perfect age for it, and apparently, there is also the fact that the girls that go to the sorcerer are usually deemed objectively beautiful or somehow talented.
Youâre not exactly talented, but youâre not that beautiful either. Youâd argue that Yeji or Chaeryong are far better choices in that regard, but somehow the eyes are still on you. Itâs strange, knowing that everyone is convinced you will be next while you canât see a single reason why. Maybe they just want to be rid of you. Although that is most certainly not the way the girls get chosen.
Everyone simply overestimates your talent with the violin and your voice. That has got to be it. Youâre not a genius nor a prodigy, you play the instrument and sing merely because you want to. Itâs a hobby, but itâs not something to make you a desirable choice for the sorcerer. And you donât want to be his choice either. Youâd rather stay in your village with your family and friends.
âY/N!â One of those friends, Jaeyun, calls after you with a grin on his lips, waving enthusiastically. âDo you have time today? Iâd like to practise together.â Because both of you play the violin. In fact, it was Jaeyun who made you fall in love with the instrument in the first place.
You smile and nod. âOf course. I always have time,â you say, although untruthfully. For Jaeyun, however, everyone makes time. He is the villageâs golden boy. Loved and adored by everyone. He can talk his way into and out of anything. Youâre sure heâs never paid for anything either because everyone is happy to give him everything for free â a gift for the beloved boy of Riverfeld.
Whenever you and Jaeyun visit the local tavern, the tab made on his name is never paid, and the owner has never even asked for it to be paid. Itâs as if his mere existence is payment enough. But you guess thatâs what happens when youâre the peopleâs happy pill.
âAwesome! Letâs go,â Jaeyun says, grabbing your hand.
You expect him to let you get your violin at home, but it isnât necessary as he has done that for you. He prepared the whole scene, already knowing you would say yes because why would you not?
âLook,â Jaeyun says, grabbing a sheet that is laid by his instrument. âSunghoon and I have been working on a new composition and I wanted to try playing it with you.â
You hum, waiting for Jaeyun to approach you. He practically sticks himself to your side with the sheet in hand, showing you the new song theyâve been working on.
Itâs a love song.Â
There are no lyrics, but as you imagine the sound of the melody, your imagination bringing it to life, you know itâs a ballad. A song of love meant for someone specific. A confession of adoration and admiration.Â
âYou think you can do this?â Jaeyun asks, solemnly looking at you.
Smiling, you nod. âOf course.â
Both of you grab your violins, sharing the singular sheet in between as you prepare. Sitting down on the ground, you settle the violin on your shoulder and rest your chin atop. A smile adorns your lips at the feeling of holding the instrument in your hands again.
âCan we?â Jaeyun asks softly, also ready. All he needs is a nod from you to lift his bow to the strings of the violin and start the melody. He acts as your guide as this is your first time playing the song.Â
It starts off slowly. A sweet melody of two people getting to know each other, growing closer and beginning to care. The tempo picks up when the two lovers begin to realise they are in love. They struggle with the fear, the melody conveying the uncertainty, until finally, they gain the courage to confess. And by the time the song is over, the two lovers are together.Â
âWe named it Only If You Say Yes,â Jaeyun grins.
âItâs beautiful, Jaeyun,â you say, fighting the growing uneasiness within your belly. Not because of the boy across from you, but a general burning feeling in your body that spreads from your chest to the rest of your body. As if itâs pumping fire instead of blood.Â
The frown that contorts your expression springs Jaeyun up to his feet, dropping by your side. âY/N? Are you okay?â he asks, and while youâd love to nod and say yes, it would be a lie. Nothing about this scorching feeling is okay.Â
You hiss and groan, grabbing onto your wrist where most of the pain begins to concentrate. It leaves your other limbs in favour of your right wrist where it burns so much you think your entire limb might melt.
The scream that escapes you is unintentional. You wanted to hold it in, but it was impossible with the pain coursing through you. Jaeyun grabs you by the shoulders, holding onto you. Confused about what is happening to you.
And as he holds you in his embrace, the pain subsides. Slowly but surely, it leaves your body the same way it entered, and you slump against the dark haired boy with your head buried in the crook of his neck.
âY/N,â he whispers softly, one arm wrapped around your waist to support you while the other moves up to cup your face. He examines you, sweat coating your forehead.Â
âMy⌠wrist,â you breathe out, and try to pull away from Jaeyun, but his grip on you is strong, and you can barely do anything without him supporting your weight. So you wait for him to look for you.
âThereâs a tattoo,â Jaeyun says, discomfited. Staring at it closer, he grabs onto your wrist. âGolden antlers,â he describes it while his fingers softly trace the pattern, and you furrow your brows, getting a look yourself.Â
Jaeyun blanches with a realisation that pains him, glancing at you. âY/N,â he mumbles, cupping both your cheeks to make you look at him. âItâs his sign.â
You both know who he is.Â
Your eyes widen. âBut⌠that canât be,â you breathe out, shaking your head vigorously. âI know everyone thought it would be me, but I didnâtâ Iâm not specialâ��
Jaeyun smiles ruefully, disagreeing with you. âClearly, youâre more special than you realise,â he says, voice low. âHeâll be paying us a visit soon, then.â
âI donât want to go,â you say quietly. But what else is there to do? If you donât go, you will put everyone you care about and other innocent souls in danger. And for what? For your own selfish reasons?
Jaeyun sighs mournfully, hands still cupping your cheeks. âWhat am I going to do without you for ten years?â he asks himself.Â
âLive your life,â you say pragmatically, your hands grabbing his own. âItâll be fine, right? As long as it means youâll be safe.â
âY/N.â Jaeyun licks his lips, wishing there was something he could do for you to make it easier.Â
âItâll be fine,â you repeat to yourself.Â
It has to be fine.Â
It was not supposed to happen so soon.
Usually, the Forest takes about a month or more since the previous girlâs departure to choose another. But the Forest is not dallying this time, having picked its next target.
Heeseung stares at the golden tattoo on his wrist that connects him with you, not knowing who you are just yet. He will, soon, however, as once the Forest picks a girl, she has to come to him as soon as possible.
He hates doing this, if heâs being completely honest. Heâd be just fine living on his own and protecting the people, but in order to keep the darkness in check, there has to be some light. Heeseung isnât exactly a good fit for that. Which means that every ten years, a girl with the purest of souls must live near the Forest to control it. And with a carefully crafted spell from him, the Forest gets to choose that girl by itself.Â
That is the only reason he is now away from his home, riding his horse toward Riverfeld. The village where you live.
Nobody ever knows that heâs coming. He figured itâs better this way, since it stops the villagers from making a scene whenever he does arrive. He learned pretty early on, when it comes to this. He hated how awkward it was when they used to line up just to see at least the tiniest bit of his face, or when they tried to give him gifts instead of their daughters.Â
Not how it works. Unfortunately.Â
Heâd rather take the gifts, too.Â
But here he is, entering the small village almost unnoticed aside from the few glances here and there as people wonder who he is. To them, heâs a stranger, and they probably donât get many of those. He did make sure to dress as a regular traveller, so hopefully they donât suspect him much.
The tattoo on his wrist calls for its twin, and it pulls him toward the villageâs tiny square. A stage has been set up in the centre, and a girl and a boy sit there, both playing the violin together, creating a beautiful song of wistful love.Â
A concept Heeseung isnât familiar with, but he does like the sound of it. Itâs a youthful song full of hope. Asking for acceptance where it truly can be found.Â
His eyes fixate on the girl playing.Â
You.
You are smiling brightly despite knowing your fate, and you donât stop playing until the song is well and truly over. Both you and the boy stand to bow to the audience when they begin to clap and fawn over you and your talent.Â
You keep shaking your head, acting as if you deserve none of it. And the boy throws an arm around your shoulders with a grin, proud for the both of you. Another boy, taller than the other, joins and celebrates with you.
So Heeseung waits. Until everyone around you has said their praising piece to you. Until youâre well and truly alone, and the smile from your lips has dissipated the tiniest bit because you know what will eventually come. That these people who adore you will not be with you for long. That you will have to leave them.
Youâre not surprised when he approaches you as a complete stranger. Instead, you look him in the eye and face him directly. âItâs you, isnât it?â you ask, examining him from head to toe. âYouâre the sorcerer.â
It takes a second for Heeseung to recover from it. He has met many girls over the years, each different but same in spirit, and he never thought much of them. But you stand in front of him with a pensive smile, accepting what is to come. There is a beauty to you that many probably donât see. Though you are gorgeous in general, with big cheeks yet defined features, hair falling over your shoulders. One would have to be blind not to see it.
âAm I that obvious?â he asks, and you shake your head.Â
âI think itâs the tattoo,â you reply. âI can sense it. You have it too, right?â
Youâre quite clever.
Heeseung nods, and rolls up the sleeve of his cape to show you his identical tattoo. âIt connects us,â he says plainly.
You hum. A playful glint enters your gaze, and your smile grows slightly. âI thought youâd be older,â you say matter-of-factly. âYou lookââ
âHandsome?â He cuts you off because he does not like it when people say he looks young. He knows he looks young. Heâs looked the same for the past two centuries, and will continue to do so for as long as the Forest exists.
âMy age,â you finish instead. Not young, just your age. That is certainly a new way to describe what he looks like. And he decides at this very moment that he likes it the best. Yes, he can accept looking your age â whatever it actually is. âBut I suppose handsome is also a reasonable descriptor,â you add, eyeing his face.
This time, Heeseung is truly robbed of words. Whenever he arrives to take a girl to the Forest, theyâre usually afraid of him. The last thing theyâd call him is handsome. Yet here you are, standing in front of him, calm and accepting. Youâre not crying, screaming or begging to stay. You just are. (a/n: Very demure, very mindful.)
âYou should stay for a bit before we leave. My parents are making supper that could feed the whole village. It would be rude to leave before we got to taste it.â You donât wait for Heeseungâs response before you are making your way toward what he deduces is your home. Itâs humble enough, a house fit for a family of four, perhaps. But when you enter, it is filled with more than four people.
The two boys that Heeseung saw with you at the performance are both present alongside some older villagers and a girl some years younger than you. Heâs not even sure why he followed you anyway. He shouldâve stayed outside and waited for you to say your goodbyes. Thatâs usually the standard procedure for him, so why is he thoughtlessly breaking tradition all of a sudden?
âY/N! Whoâsââ
âThatâs the sorcerer,â you say nonchalantly, shrugging.
âBut whyââ
âIâm not a monster,â Heeseung speaks, facing the boy you played the violin with. âI wonât take her away without saying her goodbyes⌠and itâs Heeseung.â
âWho?â you ask.
âMe.â
âYou what?â
âHeeseung.â
âThat doesnât make sense.â
âMy name is Heeseung.â He rolls his eyes, lips in a thin line.
âOh! Well, Iâm Y/N. Then this is Jaeyun, Sunghoon, Mum, Dad, Mrs Sim, Mr Sim, Mrs Park, Mr Park and Sunghoonâs little sister.â You point at everyone respectively with a soft smile upon your features. âIâm guessing Jongseong forgot he was supposed to come?â you say more to yourself, but Jaeyun hums in agreement.
âHeâs been working on the new guitar that heâs trying to make,â he responds. âForgets he has other duties or the fact he should, you know, eat and drink and sleep to live.â
âSaid itâs for you, though,â Sunghoon mumbles, glancing at you. âHe thought heâd have enough time to finish it.â Then he throws an apprehensive glance at Heeseung.
âBut I donât play the guitar,â you reply with a pout.
âHe was going to teach youâŚâ
Look, the next words that leave Heeseungâs mouth will probably make him regret it later, but watching you with your friends is doing weird things to the organ in his chest he thought had long been forgotten. So itâs a surprise to not just you and your friends when he says: âI know how to play the guitar. If your friend will not mind it, I will allow that guitar to be sent to you.â
The way your eyes widen in sheer surprise and gratitude makes Heeseung think that maybe itâs not such a regretful action.Â
The Forest mustâve truly known what it was doing this time around. Everyone in this village seems to genuinely adore you. The purest of hearts among them all, living without the knowledge of it.
âIâm here! Iâm here! I got it!â A boy bursts through the door with a guitar in hand, and Heeseung makes the safe assumption that this is Jongseong. Even in him, Heeseung can sense a very beautiful soul through and through, though the innocence is gone.Â
It makes sense that you would surround yourself with people just as lovely as you on the inside. Whether you knew it or not.
âJJ,â you coo when he goes toward you with the instrument to hand it to you. âWhy would you do all this for me?â
âSo you remember me. Us. To come back to us.â
It occurs to Heeseung then that all three of these boys around you love you. As friends or more that is out of his field of knowledge, but the love between you is raw and just as pure and innocent as you are.Â
âI could never forget you guys.â You smile and shake your head. âAll three of you better be married and with kids by the time Iâm back, though.â
âItâs not fair,â Jaeyun says, properly looking at Heeseung. âSheâs a good person. Never done anything wrong in her life. Whyââ
âI know,â Heeseung cuts him off, shaking his head. âThatâs why.â Maybe being curt with them is not the best choice, but they wonât dare attack him.
âNothing in this life is fair,â Jongseong murmurs sagely, his eyes finding you. But you are staring at Heeseung, brow arched with curiosity.
âY/N! Boys! Come eat! Supper is done.â
Your parents did not say much when you introduced the sorcerer to them. They merely stared to assess him as if a mere look could tell them what kind of person he was. But, whatever their consensus was, they let him eat supper with you, so it was probably quite positive.
âWonât deny supper to the man who fights to protect us on a daily basis,â your mother murmured before you all sat down at the table to eat.
You enjoyed yourself for the rest of the day because Heeseung let you. He was letting you say your goodbyes before ultimately whisking you away to his tower, and you appreciated it.Â
Everything is going to be fine, you constantly remind yourself.Â
Especially as you saddle your horse with Sunghoonâs help because heâs the tallest of your friends. Jay and Jake help carry your bags and attach them to the white mare.Â
Heeseung says the ride to the tower will take a few days, which means that your mother packed enough food to last you a month. Itâs a bitter kind of goodbye, knowing that youâre leaving to protect the ones you love. You still donât really want to leave.
You never imagined yourself leaving home before. But now you have to.
âAre you ready?â Heeseung asks, his inquisitive gaze searching your expression for whatever lie you want to tell him.
And you smile, shaking your head. âNot really,â you reply honestly. âBut I have to do this, donât I?â
Heeseung blinks at you, discomfited by your transparency. âYes,â he says. âThe Forest chose you, and its decision is final.â
âThen Iâm as ready as I can be.â You purse your lips, nodding. âLetâs go.â
Heeseung is not a very chatty sorcerer. Like, you havenât known any sorcerers before him, of course, but the books usually depict them as these supernatural and immortal beings who like to have fun. Heeseung is anything but that. He is quiet and brooding. He only speaks up when itâs important, and you decided it would be better not to ask him many questions while youâre travelling lest you annoy him too much.
But by the second night of staying over at a tavern while on the road, it brings you a sense of peace. Usually, youâre not a fan of lack of communication, but with the sorcerer, it seems to be its own form of speaking and conveying what needs to be known.
You lie on the bed, reading a book provided to you by the innkeeper, biting your bottom lip as you wonder whether the sorcerer would scold you for daring to speak at him. He sits on the chair near the fireplace, merely gazing into the fire in silence.
Sighing, he turns his head ever so slightly to glance at you from the corner of his eye. âIf you have something to say, then say it,â he grumbles before his attention is snatched away by the snapping fire again.
You shift in your seat, allowing yourself to fully stare at the sorcerer. His hair is as dark as night, loosely framing his face in waves. His honey-glazed skin looks slightly darker with just the fire casting light upon him, and despite his tall frame and broad shoulders, it seems he makes himself smaller in his chair. He must be exhausted.
âCan I ask a question?â
There is silence at first as if Heeseung ponders whether to say yes or no. Then, he responds, âIsnât that already one? What stops you from asking another?â He doesnât even look at you as he speaks, and your cheeks heat up in embarrassment. âI appreciate you being considerate, but if there is something on your mind, just say it. Iâll decide whether I want to answer or not.â
Closing your book, you put it aside. You allow yourself to admire the sorcerer from afar, quite taken by his beauty. Though that is not what you need to quell your mind. âSoâŚâ you start, unsure of how to word your question. Though what you come up with is not exactly an elegant way to ask either. âWhy me?â
Youâre met with another round of silence. It almost feels like a decade of stillness, the only sounds made inside the room being your breathing and the crackling fire. But the sorcerer finally turns to you, swallowing whatever comes to his mind at first to give you a composed answer. âBecause the Forest chose you,â he says plainly. âAnd once the Forest chooses, it cannot be undone.â
âThe Forest?â You furrow your brows in confusion. âI thought you chose the girls that stay with you?â
Heeseung shakes his head. âThat is not how it works. I made the spell that chooses the girls, but ultimately, it is the Forest itself that chooses which girl must live near it.â The solemn expression in his eyes makes you stop for a moment and think about it.
The girls are taken in order for the sorcerer to protect the surrounding villages from the Forest. And now you know that the Forest chooses the girls itself at that. It makes sense, in a strange way. Because you still donât understand why you only need to live near it, for it sounds like the girls should be some sort of sacrifice to the Forest. Except you will be allowed to go back to your old life after ten years.
âThen how exactly does that work?â you ask, frowning. âIf the Forest chooses the girls, what are the specifics? And what do we do? We just live with you?â
âYes,â Heeseung answers with a sigh. Licking his lips, he glances back at the fire, then at you. âThe Forest is a dark place. In order to control it, there needs to be light. Which is when you come in,â he explains, pointing at your heart. He makes a pause, checking your expression to see whether you were still listening to him, only to find you intently staring at his face, not missing a single word that left his mouth. Clearing his throat, he continued, âI designed my spell in a way for the Forest to find the purest soul within the radius of the villages. This time, itâs you.âÂ
You purse your lips in thought. Never in your life have you thought of yourself as somebody with a pure soul, but apparently that is who you are, according to the sorcerer and his spell. Which is what got you into this situation of having to leave your childhood home and friends. Because the Forest chose you.
âWait,â you say, a thought coming to you suddenly.
âYes?â Heeseung raises his brow, watching your expression slowly change into that of distress.
âIf the Forest chose meâŚâ you start, frowning, âDoes that mean that the creatures of the Forest would be after me? Whether I am at home orââ
âYes.â The sorcerer nods in affirmation. âThat is part of the magic. The Forest is drawn to you, and therefore, it makes my job of protecting the other villages from monsters that much easier. Since all of them are, well⌠headed for the tower.â
âFor me, you mean.â
Heeseung gives a thin smile. âEven now, the Forest is already searching for you. But while we are on the way, and you are with me, you should be hidden until we reach the tower.â
âYou didnât have to tell me that,â you mumble, wondering how youâre going to fall asleep now, knowing that there are monsters specifically looking for you. Which means that, in a way, you are a sacrifice to the Forest, after all. The sorcerer just protects you and the other villages from them by killing said monsters.
âYou asked,â he says with a shrug. âNobody has ever asked before, so Iâm not sure to what extent youâre interested in the topic,â he adds.
It occurs to you then, that maybe the only reason Heeseung hasnât spoken much is because the other girls never had any interest in speaking to him due to the circumstances. Heâs being distant simply because thatâs how itâs always been for him.
âSo, what exactly am I to do at the tower, once we get there?â you ask to continue the conversation. And unlike you thought, Heeseung does not seem annoyed by your questions at all.
âWhatever you want to do,â he replies. âI have an extensive library if youâre fond of reading. I can teach you to play the guitar your friend gave you. You can choose to pick up whatever hobby you want. All you have to do is just⌠live there as if it were your home for the next ten years so I can continue to protect your real home and other villages.â
âOkay,â you say, smiling, which takes Heeseung by surprise (again). âThat sounds like a good deal, I suppose. I will miss my friends and family dearly, but I can do this.â
The Forest chose far too well, this time around, Heeseung thinks to himself and shakes his head. Heâs been doing this for centuries, and he has never met anyone quite like you.
Home.
Heeseung lets out a huge sigh of relief when he finally steps inside the tower that has been his beloved home for many, many years. You trail behind him nervously, all of your luggage already sent to your room with a single flick of his hand. Youâre not used to such magic just yet, but as time will pass, nothing will be able to surprise you later on.
Although Heeseung has still been keeping rather quiet around you, you felt more comfortable simply speaking at him because you knew he was listening. During the remainder of your travels, you told him much about your life at home and your friends. Oftentimes, if you asked a question regarding his life, you would wait for his answers even if it took him minutes to respond.
âLet me show you all the important rooms,â Heeseung says to you, the corner of his lips lifting in a smile. Heâs not sure what it is about you that makes him behave this way, but your aura seems to wear off on him, too. Heâs caught himself smiling more often than usual.
When you nod, he starts the tour with the library. You had told him you werenât that big of a fan of reading, but whenever you had the time and the mood, you liked to nestle with a good book. He also shows you the kitchen, the washing rooms, his office and your bedroom. There are more rooms within the tower, but for now, Heeseung leaves those doors closed.
âUnpack and make yourself at home,â he says, pointing at the plain room. It is not the same one as the girls before you have had, for this one is much closer to his bedroom and office. He knows he probably shouldnât have done that, but this strange feeling in his chest told him that he might need to keep a much closer eye on you than the other girls.
âOkay,â you say, nodding. âWhat will you be doing?â
âIâm going to make us supper,â Heeseung informs you.
âOh. You can cook?â you ask brightly, and the sorcerer scrunches his nose, shaking his head.
âI hope you like bread with butter.â
You blink at him, speechless. âWho doesnât like bread and butter?â You tilt your head to the side. âBut that isnât all you eat whenever youâre at the tower, is it?â
Heeseung presses his lips together. âNo?â he lies, and you narrow your eyes at him.
âYou must let me cook, then!â you claim, ready to storm past him into the kitchens rather than to unpack your things, but Heeseung places his hands on each of your arms to stop you from going anywhere.
âI donât have any ingredients for cooking,â he says, shaking his head. âUnless you are the one with magic, capable of making food out of thin air.â
âWellâŚâ You pout, looking into the sorcererâs eyes. âI do not have magic, but I know a hefty trick for getting ingredients.â You grin, aware of Heeseungâs hands still on you. âItâs called shopping.â
âYou canât leave the tower on your own,â Heeseung sighs. âItâs too dangerous. It wonât happen.â
âThen come with me,â you suggest nonchalantly, still smiling. âYou will protect me, and I will make sure we have proper supper. Did the other girls truly agree to living on plain bread and butter?â Your brow furrowed, and Heeseung shrugged.
âSometimes we had meat,â he says.
âIâm surprised they lasted ten years like this.â You shake your head in disbelief. âWe live in modern times. There is much more food to eat than just bread and butter and meat.â
âI never needed anything more,â Heeseung grumbles.
âWell, now you do,â you say finally, crossing your arms. âTomorrow, first thing in the morning, we are visiting the closest village and visiting their market for ingredients.â
âAs long as itâs not too early,â Heeseung says defeatedly.
Living with the sorcerer was much easier than you thought it would be. Even if he constantly complains about you waking him up far too early for chores such as shopping for ingredients.Â
Today, however, when you approach his door to wake him up as usual, he opens the door right in front of your nose, pushing a cloak toward you. âHere. With this, you can go to the village on your own.â
âBut⌠itâs a cloak.â You pouted, eyeing the piece of black fabric. It had a slight purple shimmer to it, however, and when the sorcerer spoke next, it confirmed your suspicions.
âItâs enchanted. To protect you from the Forest. It shouldnât be able to track you while youâre wearing it. So put it on and let me sleep.â Heeseung runs a hand through his hair.
You raise your brow at him, noticing the dark bags under his eyes. âSomeone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today,â you attempt to tease him, but he merely sighs.
âMore like someone didnât wake up in the bed because they havenât even gone to bed yet, trying to figure out the enchantment on this damned thing.â He points at the cloak indignantly. âI need my beauty sleep. I canât keep going to the market with you,â he whines.
This is the revered sorcerer who protects the people from monsters that you got to know. Heâs not any different from your friends other than the fact that heâs centuries older, yet somehow his mind seems to be stuck at a specific age â perhaps that is a thing of immortality. Because one doesnât age, their mind nor body does not develop any further.
âWell, I was never forcing you to,â you say, finally accepting the cloak from him. âBut thank you. Iâll make sure to wear this well.â
âGood.â The sorcerer nods.
âYou know you couldâve just told me to stop going to the market if you donât like it so much, right?â you ask, tilting your head to the side. âYouâre the one with power here. And Iâm the one in danger.â
Heeseung licks his lips and shrugs. âThat means youâd stop cooking, though,â he says, not keen on admitting that he prefers your meals to anything heâs had in the last several decades. âJust⌠go by yourself. And make sure to come back in one piece.â
âHow are you so sure I wonât just run away?â you keep questioning him, and he rolls his eyes this time.
âYou see this?â He grabs your wrist, pointing at the magical tattoo created by his spell. âWeâre connected, Y/N, remember? I will find you wherever you go. But it also means the Forest could do the same thing. Eventually, the enchantment on this cloak could wear out, and if you get stuck somewhere without me and something from the Forest comes for you, then youâll have nobody but yourself to blame.â
You bite your lip, nodding. Heâs certainly made his point. Not that you ever truly considered leaving on your own. You truly are not well equipped to fight monsters on your own. âI understand,â mumbling the response, you yank your wrist out of Heeseungâs grasp.
âSorry,â Heeseung sighs, rubbing his eyes leisurely. âI donât mean to be so⌠irritable. Iâm justââ
âTired,â you finish for him, offering a thin smile. âI know. And Iâm thankful for this, really.â You raise the cloak. âGet all the sleep you need, Heeseung. Iâll make sure to come back and prepare breakfast in the meantime.â
âOkay,â he says, allowing himself to grace you with the tiniest smile. Heeseung doesnât smile often, so the few times that he does, itâs a precious sight. One to be remembered for days to come.
âIâll get going now. Sleep well, Heeseung.â
As always, the market is buzzing with its early morning magic. Farmers from around the village and many other merchants have their stands prepared, beckoning anyone who shows even the smallest bit of interest in any of their wares. You always like to buy something from each to help them. Besides, the sorcererâs resources are not exactly limited the same way your familyâs used to be.
âNo sorcerer today, Miss?â asks the farmer whose wares youâre eyeing. Heâs an older man with grey streaks in his hair, and you remember him mainly because heâs always been the nicest to Heeseung out of all the villagers. While the others treat him with distrust and fear, this man has been nothing but respectful.Â
âUnfortunately, he chose not to make the trip.â You give a thin smile, shaking your head. âBut I plan to make a nice breakfast for him. So, what would you say are your best products today?â
âThe sweet potatoes.â A new voice joins the conversation. A boy probably around your age steps into your view, grinning from you to the farmer. âTheyâve been growing really well this season.â
âI see,â you hum, examining the newcomer. His big eyes and warm smile are incredibly inviting, and you hope you will see him more often from now on. âIâll take five, then.â
âGreat choice,â the boy says cheerfully, immediately getting to work. âIâm Taehyun, by the way. Are you the new girl living with the sorcerer? Itâs a bit novel for us that youâre here since they used to always stay at the tower.â
You smile, making a noncommittal noise. âIâm Y/N. And I think this is new for everyone involved.â
âIâm glad youâre here. It would be a waste for someone so pretty to rot away at the tower,â Taehyun claims, handing you a bag of the best sweet potatoes that he could pick in their batch.
âStop flirting with the customers, son,â the elder farmer scolds, glancing between you and Taehyun.
Your cheeks burn due to the unexpected compliment. While you are used to your friends telling you that youâre pretty, itâs quite different when it comes from someone you donât know. âItâs okay, sir. Thank you.â
Taehyun grins, his doe eyes lighting up. âDo you need any more help? I want to ask you some things,â he says, and you turn to his father with furrowed brows.
âWhat aboutââ
âDonât worry, Miss. Iâm not that old.â He chuckles, letting Taehyun do whatever he wants. âBesides, you were always curious why I donât regard the sorcerer with the same apprehensiveness as the others, no?â
You blink at the man. âI suppose yes, but how is thatââ
âI have magic,â Taehyun answers simply. âItâs nothing quite grand like the sorcererâs, but I have it. Look.â Lifting up a sweet potato, Taehyun makes it float in the air, just above his hand. Then, with a snap of his fingers, the potato vanishes and appears back in its original box.
âWoah. Thatâs still impressive,â you say. âIsnât it rare, still? To have magic.â
âI think so. But apparently, I wasnât powerful enough to be allowed to study about it more in the capital.â
âOh, Iâm sorry.â You pout, but Taehyun shakes his head.
âDonât be. I learned all I needed to know on my own. And now I get to help my parents with the farm, and donât have to leave them.â Taehyun smiles, sharing a fond look with his father.Â
âThat is admirable.â You nod, your affection growing for the boy in front of you with every passing second. Besides, youâre possibly going to see him more often, so why not make a new friend?
âSo would you like any help? I can carry a lot on my own.â Taehyun speaks proudly, and you giggle, watching him flexing his arms the tiniest bit just to show off.
âIf it is okay with your father that I steal you for myself, then I wouldnât mind another hand, since Heeseung decided to miss out today,â you agree, your heart swelling at the sight of Taheyunâs toothy smile.
âCompletely okay,â the farmer says, shaking his head amusedly.
âSo, what are you looking for?â Taehyun claps his hands, plastering himself to your side. âI can recommend all the best stands for everything.â
âThat would be lovely, thank you so much.â
âItâs no problem, Y/N. Iâm really just trying to spend the most time possible with you.â
You giggle again, taken aback by the boyâs frankness. âIâm not that special, you know?â
âAnd yet youâre all I want to see.â Taehyunâs lines are smooth, making your face feel hotter than the sun. âCome on, would you like to know where to get the best bread around here?â
And so you follow.Â
Maybe you shouldnât have let Taehyun help you all the way back to the tower, but he was so insistent. You couldnât tell him no. Especially with his large deer eyes. They almost reminded you of Heeseungâs.Â
Almost.
Until he stands in the kitchen, looking well-rested, glaring at Taehyunâs figure. To him, heâs a complete stranger in his home, and you invited him in without asking for permission.
âWhat is this?â he asks, pointing at Taehyun who has been diligently helping you put all your newly acquired items away. He intended to stay in his study until youâd call for him, but then he heard laughter bouncing off the walls of the tower, and it filled him with dread. âI let you out by yourself once, and you bring a stranger to my home?â
âTechnically, itâs also my home for the next ten years,â you argue, shaking your head. âAnd Taehyun is very sweet.â Smiling at him, Taehyun gives you a grateful nod.
âJust because you think someone is sweet, doesnât mean itâs still not dangerous to let a stranger into the Tower.â Heeseung scoffs, running a hand through his hair. âDo you realise how dangerous that is? Maybe I shouldnât let you go out anymoreâŚâ he speaks to himself, but you and Taehyun can hear him perfectly well.
âYou canât be serious. Just because the other girls were fine staying inside, Iâm most definitely not going to be,â you say, putting your foot down.
âIt would be for your own good,â the sorcerer says matter-of-factly.
âMy good, or your benefit?â You raise a brow at him. Heeseungâs face contorts in anger for the briefest of moments before he schools his expression, staring you down.
âMy benefit? You think any of this is beneficial to me?â he asks you calmly, but itâs somehow more terrifying than if he had exploded with fury. âI have been fighting whatever creatures come outside of the forest for centuries, and I donât even know why, or why I have to. How in the world could that be beneficial to me?â The question is aimed at you, but itâs clear that it is rhetorical â something he has long given up on finding the answer to.
If you werenât furious with the sorcerer, you wouldâve empathised with him, but all you could hear in your head right now was his threat to keep you locked away in his tower by the forest. âSorry, I misspoke,â you correct yourself, frowning. âI just meant that youâre the reason why I even have to be here.â
âYou think I enjoy that?â Heeseung tilts his head, glaring at you this time. âFine! Whatever. You are free to leave of your own free will, Y/N. Since youâre, oh, so fine without me.â He says, looking at Taehyun this time. A different emotion flashes in his eyes as he presses his lips tightly together. âIâm sure he would love to protect you anyway,â Heeseung scoffs and runs a hand over his face.Â
Your face falls as you glance at Taehyun and then look back at Heeseung. âWhat do you mean?â
âY/Nââ Taehyun attempts to speak, but Heeseung only laughs. Itâs such a deprived sound it almost scares you.
âAre you telling me you donât know that the person you brought here is currently the youngest Sorcerer General? That he works for the capital as one of the most powerful sorcerers aside from me?âÂ
âWhat?â This time, you turn to Taehyun fully. âBut you saidâ did you lie to me?â you ask softly, and as Taehyun apologetically stares down at his feet, licking his lips, you know that he, in fact, did lie to you. âWas the farmer truly your father?â
âYes! Yes, he was!â Taehyun exclaims immediately, shutting his eyes close tightly before meeting yours again. âThatâs why I came to the village. Because he told me that Heeseung has been coming there with you⌠so the capital sent me.â
âOh.â You step away from Taehyun, not knowing how to feel. âBut you still lied to me.â
âY/N, Iâm sorryâ I just didnât want to scare you offââ
âSo you made up a whole lie about how you were helping at the family farm with your magic?â you scoff, shaking your head.
âYou shouldâve been honest with her.â Heeseung chuckles, rolling his eyes. âY/N is the most honest person Iâve ever met, so the truth would have hardly scared her off.â
You look at the sorcerer, surprised to hear those words leave his mouth. Youâre never sure what exactly he thinks of you, but somehow, knowing that he considers you an honest person warms your heart. He certainly mustâve met many liars in his lifetime. And Taehyun is clearly one of them.
âYes. So whatever you or the capital want from me, or from Heeseung, just leave us alone. Let them know heâs doing his job just fine.â
âIs he, though?â Taehyun questions, staring at you. âHe did let you out of his sight this morning.â
âI have protections placed on me,â you claim, but Taehyun laughs dryly.
âIf you mean that flimsy scuffed cloak, then I doubt it was powerful enough to protect you from a monster that wants to directly attack you,â he says, unimpressed. âSo, Iâd dare say he should do his job better.â
âYou littleââ
âDonât.â You sigh tiredly, stepping in front of Taehyun. âI can sense animosity between the two of you, but Iâm not willing to hear it. Iâm sorry, Heeseung, I see your point, Iâve made a mistake.â
âYou donât need to apologise to him, of all people,â Taehyun says from behind you, and you turn to face him, meeting his big eyes with a blank stare.
âWhatever your problem is with Heeseung, I donât care. You lied to me, and I donât appreciate it. The last thing you get to do is insult Heeseung under his roof.â You place your hands on your hips, frowning. âEither be nice, or stay quiet.â
Taehyun clenches his hands into fists, glaring back at Heeseung. But he gives in, sighing in defeat. âHeâs not just the reason you have to be living in this tower for the next ten years, you know?â He tells you quietly, enough for Heeseung not to hear. âHeâs also the reason the Forest is as dangerous as it is. Thatâs why heâs the only one tasked with fighting it. So donât think heâs being honest with you either.â
Colour drains from your face as you listen to him. This time, youâre certain it is the truth because of the graveness in Taehyunâs voice. Though you donât understand why heâs being secretive about it. Why doesnât he say it directly even to Heeseung?
Shaking his head, Taehyun moves to leave. âIf you ever need help, let me know. Iâll be around, making sure that Heeseung is doing his job well.â
âDickhead,â the taller sorcerer murmurs under his breath even before Taehyun departs entirely, possibly having heard him. But he didnât react in any way, simply leaving you alone with Heeseung once again.
You look at Heeseung, not knowing what to think of him now. Though when he smiles at you as if nothing happened, you want to forget Taehyunâs harrowing words.
âDo you need any help with breakfast? I can fry eggs.â
Despite Taehyunâs words, you continued going to the market on your own. You noticed a deer following you around whenever you did so, and you assumed it was another one of Heeseungâs protective precautions to keep you away from danger.
Whenever you come across Taehyun now, he has this distinct look on his face of sharing a secret with you that Heeseung doesnât know about. Of course, you didnât tell him. How could you relay such information onto him, not knowing how heâd take it? How would one react to finding out they are the reason so many lives are in danger?
âAh, crap!â you curse under your breath after what feels like the millionth time of failing to strike the correct chord on the guitar from Jongseong. It shouldnât be difficult considering your expertise with the violin, but youâre struggling regardless.Â
You close your eyes, knowing itâs probably because you canât focus. You keep thinking back to Taehyunâs words and how itâs somehow his fault that the forest is dangerous. Which also means he is the reason why youâre in danger, and why the forest wants to take you. Though you donât know how, or what it means.
âDo you plan to torture the poor instrument for long?â Heeseung, as if hearing your thoughts, appears in the music room with a soft, amused smile playing on his lips.
âSorry,â you say instantly, looking up at him. âI simply canât seem to figure it out.â
âAllow me.â Heeseung steps closer to you, outstretching his hand to take the guitar.
You let him, watching him nestle next to you on the small sofa that you had chosen for practice. With a smile, he begins playing a song that both sounds foreign and familiar to you. The melody begins merrily, yet as it goes on, the song turns into a mixture of fury and betrayal. A tale that strikes to the very core of your heart, leaving you breathless.Â
âWhat song was that?â you ask once the sorcerer is finished.Â
âI donât know,â he replies honestly. âItâs just been on my mind for a whileâŚâ Heeseung tries to hide his confusion, but not even he knew that these emotions have been festering within him.
âHere.â He hands the guitar back to you.Â
Accepting it, you let the instrument sit on your lap while Heeseung moves to kneel on the ground in front of you. Heâs tall enough to still be at eye level with you, and you startle when his fingers brush against your hand.Â
âSorry, allow me,â he says quietly, taking your hand in his and placing your fingers on the strings of the guitar. âIâm going to teach you some basic chords first, so you donât torture the guitar at random.â
You blink at him, not sure how to react. With the sorcerer this close to you, itâs hard to process anything, let alone his words. All you can hear is intense buzzing in your ears, and the storm within your heart.Â
Gulping, you nod carefully. Heeseung smiles, guiding your fingers along the strings to show you each chord, making sure that you understand everything perfectly.Â
It becomes easier when you know the chords. Now that you can connect each sound to what you already know, it doesnât seem as difficult anymore. With a grin, you find yourself playing the very melody Jaeyun and Sunghoon composed, and it makes you miss home â though in a good way.
Being here means they are safe. That is what matters most.Â
âYouâre a natural,â Heeseung says, but the proud feeling is gone within moments.
He makes an expression unfamiliar to you as his eyes roam the music room, and you wonder what he is thinking. He abruptly stands up instead, walking toward the window with a frown.
âStay here,â he commands, closing the window. You shouldnât be surprised when he disappears as fast as he appeared, but it hurts the tiniest bit.
You watch him head to the forest from your closed window, wishing for him to have told you that he had sensed danger and needed to leave instead of departing almost without a word.Â
After hours had passed, you considered running to the village over to find Taehyun so heâd help you find Heeseung somewhere inside the Forest. But as you open the door of the Tower, Heeseung comes stumbling through the entrance, collapsing on the floor with blood splattered all over his clothes.Â
âHeeseung!â You cry out, going to examine him and his wounds instantly. He groans when you turn him to his back, and you notice a large bite from what you can only assume was an oversized wolf on his shoulder. âWhat happened?â you mumble.Â
âYour music,â Heeseung whispers. âItâsââ
âNo, shh.â Putting your hand over his mouth, you shut him up. âI need to treat your wounds first. Then you can explain yourself,â you say, heart pounding in your ears.Â
Heeseung is an immortal sorcerer. This is probably not as severe as it looks to him, but it doesnât change the fact that it worries you. That you are worried for him.
From the kitchen, you grab a dittany solution and a piece of cloth to wash the wound with, before finding a kit for wound-treating in the bathroom.
Your hands shake while you tear Heeseungâs tunic off of him for better access to the wound. It allows you to see not only his toned chest and stomach, but also the many scars that tatter his honey-coloured skin.Â
Pouring the solution over his shoulder, you ignore the hiss he lets out, grateful that he isnât fighting you.Â
You do your best to wash the bleeding wound before dressing and wrapping it in bandages. See, being close to three boys of your age gave you some expertise in treating wounds, but it had never been this severe before. It was never a large bite from a monster of the Forest.Â
âI need to get you to your room,â you say weakly, wrapping your arm around Heeseungâs torso. âCan you move?âÂ
The sorcerer doesnât respond with words, but he doesnât let you use all your strength to carry him around either. While most of his weight is still on your shoulders as he drapes his arm over your shoulders, he does his best to walk on his own.Â
You never complained about the stairs in the Tower before, but today is the day when they seem to be your absolute doom. Luckily, Heeseungâs bedroom is not too far up.Â
Huffing and puffing by the time you reach the door to Heeseungâs room, youâre happy to find relief in opening the door that leads into a large bedroom with⌠almost nothing inside. Sure, there are some books and a desk, but other than a bed, the room is painfully empty and plain.
You have no time to question it. Instead, you lead Heeseung toward his bed, helping him lie down. But when you want to leave him to rest, he grabs your wrist, not letting you go.
âHeeseung, you need to rest.â
âDonât leave,â he says, shaking his head. âStay, please.â
âHeeseungââ
âI need you here.â
âThatâsââ
Heeseung, with what strength he has left, pulls you toward him onto the bed. You fall on top of his chest with a yelp, and you seem to be the only one bothered about it. Especially when the sorcerer wraps his arms around you, refusing to let go of you.
âItâs you the Forest wants. He wonât let you go. I canât protect you if youâre not with me,â he rambles into your hair, strangely frantic. Though you write it off as a side-effect of his injury.
âHe canât have you, Eunjin. Please donât leave me. Youâre my heart.â
Eunjin.
Whoâs Eunjin?
When Heeseung wakes up, itâs in a cold sweat. The room spins in his vision, and when it finally settles on the open window, he can only feel a strange sense of emptiness.Â
Attempting to move is a terrible idea. Heeseung groans in pain, hand reaching for the bandaged shoulder that you treated. The wound is still fresh, but you made sure to keep it from getting infected.Â
His recollection of yesterdayâs events is blurry, but he does remember you helping him to his room and him asking you to stay. So finding his room cold and empty without your presence hurts. Not that he would admit such a thing out loud.Â
Heeseung is supposed to be the aloof, mysterious and brooding sorcerer from the Tower, yet youâve made him smile more times than he can count in the past months that he fears more than usual for your safety.Â
He always managed to keep a professional relationship with the other women during his time as Keeper of the Forest, one could say, because keeping distance between himself and people who didnât want to be here was never hard. However, it proves to be difficult with you. Especially when you act like you actually enjoy his company rather than him being a nuisance in your corner.Â
You enter Heeseungâs room without knocking. Though in your defence, you did not expect him to be awake just yet. Breakfast is clutched in your hands, ready to be served to Heeseung on an actual silver platter.Â
âOh. Good morning,â you say softly with a tiny smile. âAre you feeling alright?â
The sigh of relief that leaves Heeseungâs lips at the sight of you and the knowledge of your safety is unfamiliar to him. Obviously, he has always worried for the women staying with him, but never this much. Not when he is the one who got hurt.Â
Besides, they never brought him breakfast to bed either. In fact, nobody has ever done that, as far as Heeseung is aware. So maybe the way his heart begs to jump out of his chest when you approach him is an entirely reasonable reaction.Â
âI could be better,â Heeseung replies quickly, when he notices a frown forming on your lips because he was quiet for too long. âYou didnât have to do all this,â he says.Â
âBut you got hurt.â You shake your head in disapproval. âI feel like this is the least I can do,â you sigh, running a hand through your hair.Â
A sigh of defeat leaves your lips. One that Heeseung is familiar with as he has felt powerlessness many times before. But the last thing you are is powerless. You donât even know it, but the reason Heeseung had to leave yesterday was specifically because youâre too powerful.
Your music is its own kind of magic, and unfortunately, it lures the creatures of the Forest directly to you. But Heeseung canât tell you that. Music is an important part of your life, and heâs willing to fight whatever comes for you rather than disappoint you or make you upset.Â
There is also this underlying feeling of having come across this kind of magic before. It was from⌠he cannot not remember who had the magic or when exactly in his life he came across it. Yet he knows itâs important. This person who wielded this magic meant something. Whoever they were.Â
âAll I need from you is to be safe,â Heeseung says almost too intimately, surprising even himself. Your lips part in shock as you stare at him, hands tightly gripping onto the tray with breakfast.Â
Gulping, you nod. âI am safe.âÂ
You dare moving closer to Heeseung, offering the freshly made breakfast to him with a timid smile, which he accepts gratefully. It isnât just the tea you prepared that makes him feel warm inside.Â
âPlease, rest now. I promise not to leave the Tower while you recover,â you reassure the sorcerer.
âBut how will youââ
âI wrote to Taehyun,â you reply, and Heeseung hates the pang of jealousy he feels within his heart at the mention of the other sorcerer. âI know heâs been keeping an eye on us, so it was easy to contact him and ask for a small favour.â
âYou mean turning him into a delivery man?â Heeseung's brow raises, and you shrug.
âItâs the least he can do.â
Heeseung snorts, amusement filling his bones. Of course, you would be the one to reduce a Sorcerer General of a large army to something as measly as a delivery man.Â
And the best part about it? Taehyun is going to do it.
âThank you,â you say to Taehyun when he enters the Tower with bags of ingredients. Since Heeseung got hurt, you plan to make a large lunch and dinner to help him recover faster.Â
âNo problem.â The man shrugs. âYou had something to ask me?â he adds, since your request for groceries was not the only one you made in your message to him.Â
Pursing your lips, you nod. Leading Taehyun into the kitchen to put away the food, you think of the best way to form your question. Though the base is simple: you want to know more about Heeseung. Things that not even he knows, it seems.Â
âOh.â He chuckles in understanding. âYou want to know what I meant before.â Looking at you, his brows furrow. âWhy the sudden interest? Did something happen?â
You shake your head. âI just want to know what you meant by it,â you argue. âHow can the Forest be Heeseungâs fault only?â
âItâs simple, isnât it?â Taehyun answers with a question of his own. âItâs a curse that heâs not aware of because the curse itself makes him forget. He doesnât know it himself, but heâs far older than two centuries.â
âHe is?â
Taehyun nods. âI donât know that much myself, but his history is something sorcerers study in the capital. Itâs just that all the details are very blurry and every book that mentions him is merely a different interpretation of what could have happened rather than what truly did happen.
âA detail that remains the same, however, is that there used to be seven of them. Seven Sorcerer Guardians who protected a princess of the Old Kingdom. She was a powerful priestess and her magic was beyond anyoneâs understanding, so she created these seven sorcerers who helped her as her power grew. But she died alongside them in a war that destroyed the Old Kingdom, and unlike her, the seven sorcerers were reborn in a completely new world with magic that likely came from the princess.
âNobody knows where the other six sorcerers are. Theyâre likely alive and well, but weâre not sure where they are nor who they are. But Heeseung⌠The power he wields now is only a sliver of what he had two centuries ago due to a curse of an unknown origin to us all. And the speculation is that the power that he lacks is now what makes the Forest what it is.â
âWhich is why heâs the only one fighting itâŚâ you finish for Taehyun, and he hums.Â
âIâm not saying heâs a monster or anything. Itâs just that there is so much we donât know about him.â
âI understand.â You nod. âThank you for telling me.â
âWhere is he anyway? Are you alright?â Taehyun worries for you, and you chuckle. âDo you need anything else?â
âIâm fine, donât worry. But Heeseung got hurt last night, so I donât want to leave him here all alone.â
âHeâd be fine,â Taehyun scoffs. âWe heal faster than normal people. Immortality and all that.â He continues to help you put things away in silence for barely a minute before speaking again. âYouâre different from the other women Heeseung has protected in the past,â he claims.Â
Biting the inside of your cheek, you glance at Taehyun. âAm I?â
âSomething is different about you.â Taehyun nods. âYour aura is so much more⌠itâs stronger. Like⌠I think you have magic, Y/N.â
âWhat? No.â You shake your head in denial. âHow could I have magic? Am I not way past the age for finding that out?â
âMagic manifests in many ways, Y/N. Yours could be so subtle nobody ever noticed, but it is there. Itâs strong, just not⌠obvious,â Taehyun disagrees with you.
âBut then⌠why wouldnât Heeseung tell me that?â
âWhy would he tell you that?â Taehyun counters. âI think heâs scared, Y/N. The Forest behaves differently than it used to. It no longer searches anywhere. Itâs dormant.â
âBut Heeseung fought some creatures yesterday.â
âBecause something called them forth. I monitored the Forestâs activity, and it was like⌠they found what they were looking for last night.â
âWaitâŚâ you pause, staring at Taehyun. âIf you were monitoring the Forest, why didnât you help Heeseung?â
âItâs not in my jurisdiction.â
âBullshit,â you spit, shaking your head. âYou couldâve prevented his injury.â
âHeâll be fine, Y/N.â
âBut heâs not fine now!â you counter, shaking your head. âHe was partly delirious yesterday and⌠he called me Eunjin.â
Taehyunâs face turns grave at the mention of the name. âEunjinâs dead,â he says with a deadpan.
âYeah? I figured,â you scoff. There are many things you could guess based on what Heeseung said last night. But you did not like the way it made you feel.Â
âEunjin was different from the other women Heeseung has protected,â Taehyun sighs, offering an explanation in an attempt to quell your indignation. âShe was a sorceress studying in the capital before, you know, the mark.â Taehyun points at the one you have on your wrist.
âAnd she died? I never heard of anyone dyingââ
âIt was covered up well,â Taehyun says. âBesides, we donât really know if she died. All we know is that she went into the Forest on her own and never came back. Heeseung searched for her, I think, but she disappeared.â A frown settles on Taehyunâs lips, and you study him with your head tilted to the side.Â
âSheâs the reason you donât like Heeseung,â you say matter-of-factly.
Taehyun chuckles, shaking his head. âThat obvious, huh?â he asks, running a hand through his hair. âEunjin was my best friend in the capital; we studied together. She was⌠stronger than me.â
âOh. Iâm sorry,â you say, moving toward Taehyun with uncertain steps. Not that long ago, you were still upset with him, but now you want to comfort him somehow. The way he looks at you, with big sad eyes, you canât resist the urge to take his hand in yours and offer a warm smile.Â
âYou really need to be careful around him.â Taehyun looks at you solemnly, covering your hand in his. âEunjin wanted to go into the Forest because of him. Please, donât make the same mistake.â
âI wonât.â You canât promise that.Â
Taehyun smiles ruefully. âWhoâs the liar now, huh?â He clearly wants to say something else, perhaps a wish that should not be spoken aloud, but he doesnât get the chance.
âY/N, I think my wound started healingââ Heeseung walks into the kitchen, watching you jump away from Taehyun, yanking your hand out of his grip. Confused, Heeseung glances between you and Taehyun.Â
âWoah, thatâ that is great news!â you exclaim hastily, a large grin breaking across your lips as you pretend not to have learned about Heeseungâs past.Â
âSee, I told you heâd be fine,â Taehyun adds lamely in an attempt to resume the conversation.
âItâs a relief.â You nod. âDo you need anything, Heeseung? More food? Water? Tea? Coffee?â
âIâm fine, thanks.â Heeseung gives you a weird look. He knows youâre hiding something, but doesnât press the issue with Taehyun right next to you.
âYou do realise youâre not his maid, right?â Taehyun raises his brow at you.Â
âTaehyunââ
âWould you prefer it if she was yours?â Heeseung challenges in turn.Â
âSheâs not property to give out like that.â Taehyun glares at the other sorcerer.Â
âStop talking about me like Iâm not here,â you say firmly, fixing both men with a stern stare. Itâs especially pointed at Taehyun because of the conversation you two shared literally moments ago. âI know you two have issues, but do not make me a ball the two of you get to kick around to prove a point.âÂ
This gets both sorcerers to look at you, their expressions turning apologetic.
âIâm my own person, and I can do whatever I want. If I want to offer Heeseung a cup of tea then I can do that,â you say, looking at Taehyun. They seem to look regretful now, realising that their words may have been hurtful toward you, when that is the last thing they intended. âI think itâll be better if you leave now, Taehyun.â
âY/N, Iâmââ
âIâll walk you out.â
tags: @moonpri @addictedtohobi @superbbananananana @strayy_kidz
#enhypen#enhypen fic#enhypen imagines#enhypen fanfiction#enhypen fluff#enhypen angst#enhypen x reader#heeseung x reader#lee heeseung x reader#lee heeseung fic#heeseung fic#heeseung imagines#heeseung angst#heeseung au#lee heeseung#heeseung#enhypen heeseung x reader#enhypen heeseung#haia writes
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My thing about Veth potentially venturing into polyamory is that I do think everyone involved would be perfectly fine with it and happy to help her experiment, and I think that no matter how they do it, it would not fix her. This isn't to say that she wouldn't get any benefit out of trying! It's just to say that it's not a solution to her actual problem, because I genuinely don't think the problem is that she's lacking any one thing that would make her life complete.
Fundamentally, I think Veth struggles with the idea that there will come a point at which she has to settle. Not in a bad way, just in the sense that she is one person with one life and she will have to live within those bounds. Because the thing is, I don't really think her issue ends at struggling to "have it all"; to an extent she does! She is a good parent, even if her kid is a little rebellious; her marriage is supportive (and has fun sex); she gets to go off to save the world with Yeza's blessing on occasion, when the world needs saving. She doesn't have all of these things all the time, but... that's not really a flaw, that's just a fact of life.
But she started out her adult life settling to an extentâeven if she loved Yeza and loved being Luc's mom, she did the safe thing that was expected of her. The goblin attack and everything that transpired after shoved her out of that life, but in retrospect, to an extent it likely feels that that pushed her to find something more that she wouldn't have had otherwise. Being pushed to her limit under the worst conditions made her better, stronger, braver, and at the end of it she found that she could have both her original life and much of her new lifeâso why wouldn't she then wonder if further experiences of that ilk could do the same?
Crucially, she has not actually run up against a hard limit yet, and as such she hasn't had reason to believe that there is a point at which she has to stop and recognize that there isn't more for her to find. When she was drinking more heavily during missions, even when it caused the death of herself or others, there were no long-term consequences. And the thing is, I'm not saying that she should face that kind of major consequence, but she seems as though she is scared to accept that maybe she could be happy if she stopped before she does.
I'm also not suggesting that she should stop experimenting or trying new thingsâthe Luxon knows I am not one to talk in that realmâbut I do think she is searching for novelty not because that would make her happy, but because she doesn't believe that she has the capacity to know what would make her happy. She was unaware that polyamory was even an option, so think of what else she might not be aware of! She doesn't have perfect knowledge of the world, after all, so how can she trust that she's found what she really wants? So yeah, she could fuck someone else, and it might even be an enjoyable experience that she didn't know was missing! But that only prolongs the question of what else she might be missing.
I think that deep down, she's terrified that if she doesn't keep pushing until that external hard limit, she will end up with regrets later, and simultaneously she is resentful that her friends all seem to have reached a point where they are largely content with what they have, because she wants them to have everything. She wants herself to have everything. And she has not yet allowed herself to come to terms with the fact that only she can determine when the everything of what she already has is enough, and anything else is the cherry on top.
#but also she should still try polyamory. because it'd be very funny.#I just think she should corner essek with a knife after sleeping with caleb like 'SURELY YOU WEREN'T ACTUALLY OKAY WITH THAT YOU LIAR'#(because she still feels guilty and unsatisfied and she couldn't possibly be the one keeping herself from being content. nosiree lmao.)#but in all seriousness hilariously I think she should talk to essek about it cuz I think he would actually relate most lmao#and he does seem to be doing well with it! like he's living within the bounds of what will keep him alive sure#but he's also doing so in such a way that's like#I can't have my cake and eat it too but I can be content eating the cake#like look. as an essek girlie. do you think I do not relate lmao. BUT the important point is that it really is up to you#you can do what you want forever! but you also have to live with that.#critical role#cr spoilers#cr meta#veth brenatto
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I think Max will either retire or move to Ferrari in 2027
OUR LESBIAN FERRARI PROPHET SAYS SO? DROP THE TIMELINE
Okay okay anon walk with me.
So I think Lewis is Ready for Retirement. I think he would've retired at Mercedes, eighth championship be damned, if Mercedes had just given him an ambassador contract so he could've used his position and his brand for the causes he wants to dedicate the second half of his life to. As is, Mercedes refused to give him that contract (which, I could go on for AGES about how blindly ridiculous that is and is a clear marker of how far this sport still has to go re: racism)âbut Ferrari did.
However, to be a Ferrari ambassador, a 2+1 year race contract accompanies it. Obviously this is a good move for Lewis anyway since it's looking like Ferrari will be one of the quickest teams moving into 2025 and Lewis must have some information on how they might nail the regulation change come 2026, but, and this may be controversial. Charles Leclerc is an established driver at Ferrari, the absolute darling of the tifosi (I mean, he's the second most important person in Italy after the literal pope), and most importantly he's a driver that has not yet hit his ceiling. Now, this is where I tread carefully, but I believe that Lewis, in comparison, is past his prime. Sure, he pulled off an incredible drive at Silverstone this year but he has not been able to match Georgeâand George I believe is currently at a lower level than Charles. I have a sneaking suspicion that Charles is, well, going to walk all over Lewis next year. And if Lewis truly has only moved for the sake of the ambassador contract, he'll break the racing contract after 2 years.
Okay but Ollie is supposedly lined up for that Ferrari seat, and Ferrari NEED an order of succession, so who says that Max will take it?
Red Bull Racing is falling apart at the seams (sorry RB fans). Christian Horner is a power-hungry [REDACTED] who will bring the whole team down with him. The Thai side have never really cared about the Formula 1 team (and I know from Sources, backed Christian Horner in this whole fiasco which is why CH wasn't fired). Newey is gone, I'm sure other key figures will get pinched in the next couple of years, Max has kept everything together for pure skill this past year but the writing is on the wall. I'm going to hold everyone's hands when I say this, but I don't think Red Bull are winning either championships next year....
However, for as much as Max loves to talk about it, I don't think he's actually ready for retirement. I also don't think he'll be the type of guy to retire on a low. Max's contract is until 2028, but he can break it if he drops to P3 in the championship, which, I think there's a non-zero chance of happening in 2026 especially under new regulations/brand new engines.
So Ferrari are likely going to nail the new regs, Max doesn't want to retire on a low, and it looks like Ferrari shopping for a driver and Max wanting to leave Red Bull will line up within roughly the same window.
There's also a couple of sentimental reasons I want to point to. Max (as much as he tries to deny it) is a victim of the old Red Bull Golden Boy curse of being a Ferrari fan. I mean, he literally grew up in the Schumacher era, with his father being friends with Schumacher. He's stated multiple times how if he can't hear the Dutch anthem on the podium he'd like to hear the Italian one. I suspect deep down, he's much more of a tifoso than any of us realise.
There's also the Charles Leclerc of it all. Now really walk with me here because this is tenuous and yes is coming from a known Lestappie (tomato tomato) but isn't really a Lestappen argument.
Charles throughout his entire career has been obsessed with measuring himself up against those who are considered the "best of the best" and showing that he can beat them. He ate Seb alive, he'll likely do the same with Lewis. But both of these are drivers past their primes, at the very end of their lifespans. Charles has still yet to prove he can go toe to toe with a great at their prime and win.
Charles is, literally obsessed, with comparing himself to Max in interviews. Now (RIGHTLY SO) we Lestappies all point and laugh and call him a little obsessed but there's a very real publicity reason he wants to insist to everyone how him and Max were on each other's level in kartingâpeople will subconsciously start to associate Charles as being on Max's level even if he hasn't proven it with championships. It's a very calculated move by Charles, and one I haven't seen many people discuss. Charles wants his name and Max's to be said in the same sentence because it validates Charles' own skill.
But Charles doesn't want to be known as Max's equal, not really, what he really wants is to be considered better than Max. And if he can't do that through number of championships, he can do it by putting the two of them in equal machinery. I think Charles will actually push Ferrari into trying to sign Max, because this is the way he can cement himself firmly as one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time.
So I think a perfect storm of these combination of different factors will result in a Max to Ferrari move in 2027. Obviously all pure speculation, but drawing everything together, I'd give it maybe a 50% chance (providing Ferrari actually do come together which, Forza).
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I'M QUITTING + MY VOID STATE SUCCESS STORY
Hello guys, it's been a long time since i have posted something or in general be active here which was mostly because of personal reasons (just focusing on myself), although one of them had to do with our community.
I personally joined loatumblr at the middle of 2022 (from a previous anonymous account i had) but i started posting much later. Back then, the community was at it's peak ngl. The bloggers and the way they explained stuff was honestly, at least for me, so helpful and enjoyable. After the end of 2023 - beginning of 2024 this community started dying. I really didn't like this since I loved scrolling through specific blogs and reading their posts. I tried to post some stuff to give a little bit of life in there and i guess it did help a little.
Quick note; Please don't get me wrong, i'm not saying that the current posts and blogs running right now suck.. what i'm saying is that this community used to be way more alive back then.
One of the reasons why this happened is because people applied and got what they wanted. So they logged off tumblr. When I realised that, I decided to seriously focus on loa and start applying myself. And i ended up manifesting some good stuff, and I was good with it. Although, after some time, i decided that i wanted to manifest a completely new life from scratch, which it was what i wanted to do from the first time i joined tumblr but i ditched that thought and ended up changing some stuff about my current life.
My goal back then was to enter the void state (which im pretty sure it was 95% of the people in here goal too), but i didn't understand it properly so i couldn't 'enter'. I ended up ditching it and manifested without it. But after some point, i did my research and fully understood the void state or better, pure consciousness. If you go through my blog, you won't see much stuff about pure consciousness because i choose to not talk about it in here. The way it is treated it loatumblr just pisses me off. If you post a void success story, people will immediately run to you and ask you basic stuff like 'how did u do it?' when all the information needed about it is already posted. People tend to see it as something 'huge' and believe they can't succeed in it which is bs. If you do a little bit of research on pure consciousness you will understand how simple it is. Although, even if the 'void state' is seem like something that people overcomplete this doesn't mean that you can not use it. What i'm saying is that there are some people who really dislike the concept of it and will recommend u not to try it. Look, everyone has their different opinions and beliefs but if you want to manifest your dream life in the void state, go ahead. After all, it found you for a reason.
So coming back to my experience, since it was always my 'dream' to manifest my dream life in the void state, i decided to do it now. I'm pretty good at lucid dreaming (i've been lucid dreaming 3 years now) i decided to tap into my pure consciousness during a lucid dream. So i did my usual routine, had a lucid dream in which i closed my eyes and found myself floating in a void. I affirmed that i have lucid dreams everynight and then i got out. I did this 4 days ago, and i have had around 3-4 lucid dreams every single night, without doing any practise at all. Also, i have been scripting my entire dream life and i'm preparing myself to finally experience it. I have decided to make a looottt of big changes but two of them are the 'biggest' for me; numb.1 i will manifest that i will completely forget about my current life (i will also not remember anything about the law, for personal reasons) and numb.2 i will go back in time around 30 years ago (again for personal reasons). I mentioned this to make it clear to you that i won't be able to post my 'success story' after manifesting it, since i will not remember anything about me manifesting stuff and also even if i did, i wouldn't be able to post it since i will not have access to tumblr or current technology in general. So my success story is this one. This days, when i find the right time for me, i will have a lucid dream as usual and tap into my pure consciousness again which from there, i will finally manifest the life of my dreams. So that's my final post you will see from me. I hope you all never give up and get what you want because trust me it's worth it and all this found u for a reason. If you really want it and you stay consistent, then it's all yours. My words can not describe the way i feel right now, knowing that i have my dream life right in front of me and i can just grab it and give it to myself anytime, after this big journey. Goodbye everyone :)
#success story#void success#loa success#goodbye#loa#law of assumption#loassumption#assume and persist#void state#manifestation#manifesting
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travelers helper AU where is the reason why S/O is oblivious to all the men liking her is because every single time she showed an interested in a hot guy. They turned out to be gay, so sheâs convinced herself that all of the men are gay and possibly even dating each other. (Couples she thinks are real are Alhaitham x Kaveh Cyno x Tinari Zongli x Childe Kaeya x Venti Nuvilet x woirthslie ) and I watched their reactions to finding out that she thinks theyâre all gay
Ok this idea is funny xD But to anyone who like those ships, pls don't take it as some kind of hate towards those ships or something. --------- The guys are devastated after learning you think that they are into... each other. All of them wondering where did they make a mistake? Kaveh found it ridiculous, him and Alhaitham?! He wondered if you think so because they live in the same house? But there are many people who are friends and share homes⌠You even invite all your friends to live in your Teapot!! He really couldn't understand from where this idea came from⌠Is it because they bicker so much? But it didn't make sense to him!! Kaveh was anxious⌠do you not see him as a man or something? He is overthinking this whole thing. At this point he is debating whenever to show you his plans of the house he wants to make for you both in future.
Alhaitham was more clam about it, analyzing from where this idea may come. It's not like he and Kaveh were affectionate to each other and he couldn't recal any moment that could make you think like that about them. He will state that, no, he is not interested in Kaveh in such way (or anyone else, both guys and girls, that are not you) And yet you still say "That's okay! I won't judge! I will support whoever you love!" At this point Alhaitham may confess his feeling to you but the problem is that there is always someone by your sideâŚif not Aether then other guys. And the worst thing is Kaveh always appears too, making the misunderstanding even worse.
Cyno at first thought this is some kind of joke. But after seeing that you're not joking he was bewildered. Why would you think so? "You two sometimes look like parents of Collei" Parents? But when they were in Mondstadt he was sure you heard how he and Tighnari bickered who would be the 'older brother'⌠right? Cyno was silent. Trying to come up with something that will make you believe him that he is interested in you. Because whenever he would say that, you would be "ah Cyno! Please don't joke like that!" he would never joke about things like this... The General Mahamatra for now tries to avoid talking to Tighnari when you are closeâŚ
Tighnari only furrowed his brows. Him and Cyno? Big nope!! Just imagining that he would hear more jokes from Cyno if they were together already gives him a headache. The Forest Ranger was getting more and more irritated that you for some reason don't want to accept when he says that there is nothing between him and Cyno. So he started to approach this in different way. Thankfully Cyno already was avoiding him when you are close. So he can now start to be even bolder with his affections towards you. If you still refuse to believe that he is attracted to you, then you may expect to hear a confession soon.
Zhongli asked you if you can repeat yourself. Oh? Him and Childe together? In romantic relationship? Zhongli was thinking where this came fromâŚIs it because he often uses Childe's mora to buy things?But that was only that⌠and that Childe often bothers him so they could spar. Ah. Maybe this was the reason, maybe you think that 'sparings' are something different. Humans are truly interesting. He will ask you why you think so, patiently listening to your explanation. He is amused by this.
Childe laughed, but after seeing you are not laughing he stopped and said "Wait...are you serious?" He will say that there is nothing between them, even says that he prefers girls (to hint that he likes you) but you responded with "It's okay! You don't have to hide it! I accept you and I'm sure your family will accept this as well!" You're cuteâŚ. but why don't you want to believe him?! Should he shower you with more gifts? It would be better to invite you for a date but with Aether being around it's not that easyâŚ.
Kaeya was amused, but he didn't expect that you will think that Venti is his boyfriend. One part of him wanted to joke about it but other part was worried that you will take it too seriously and he will lose his chances with you. The cavalry captain doesn't worry about it too much. He will simply tell you that you're wrong and he will continue showering you with affections.
Venti was a bit hurt by this. Were his love songs and poems dedicated to you not enough? Or maybe this is your way to tell him that you're not interested in him? He can't really understand this⌠he never was affectionate to anyone else like he is towards you. But after learning he is not the only one that you think is into guys, he felt relieved. At least you didn't think that he and that block head are into each other.
Neuvillette was confused by this. There are already many things that he can't understand about humans. But he was sure that you will realize that he is trying to court you⌠not the Duke of the Fortress of Meropide⌠After that for some days it was raining in Fontaine. He decided to tell Furina about it, hoping for some advice in this situation. But she only started to laugh. After she calmed down she promised to help him to clear this misunderstanding.
Wriothesley already knew how oblivious you are but he never expected that you might be this oblivious. He will say that there is nothing like this between him and the Iudex and if you still insist about that then wellâŚif there will be a chance for you two to be alone you can expect him to kabedon you, making you look into his eyes and he won't let you go till you stop thinking that he is interested in anyone that is not you.
#shining-nebula2000#answered#ask box#Traveler's little helper#Genshin Impact x Reader#Thanks for the ask!#Have a nice day/night#My stuff#Traveler's little helper What If#Kaveh x Reader#Alhaitham x Reader#Cyno x Reader#Tighnari x Reader#Zhongli x Reader#Childe x Reader#Kaeya x Reader#Venti x Reader#Neuvillette x Reader#Wriothesley x Reader
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Okay I want to talk about this wider scale because I also hate that trope where a woman says she doesn't want to have kids and then ends up having them anyway but a lot of y'all are taking your dislike of that trope and applying it to characters who it doesn't apply to. Hermione gave no indication throughout the series that she had any particular opposition to getting married and having kids, the only reason katniss Everdeen didn't want to have kids it's because of the world she lived in, these women are not examples of that trope it's actually kind of sexist that people act like them pursuing that path somehow ruins all of the things they do and accomplish. It's not like Hermione is forced into being a sad little housewife she becomes minister of magic for Fuck sake. So many of these people complain about the trope because they don't want women being defined by their husband and children and then turn around and define a woman by her husband and children, it's bizarre.
Also Ron is the perfect partner for Hermione, dramione stans love to claim that Draco is better for her because he challenges her intellectually (which like not sure where they got that idea there's very little indication that Draco is an intellectual) and can do lots of stuff for her because of his family's money but that's not what Hermione needs, she canonically has a job that challenges her intellectually, Ron is perfect for her because he'll be the sort of steady supportive partner that'll be a soft place to land when things get crazy. Also Ron isn't stupid, the man was basically a chess master at the age of 12 the idea that he's too dumb for Hermione is laughable at best
I hate that Hermione gets shackled with Ron which absolutely KILLS all the storytelling potential for her romantically.
Mainly because the romance just wasn't any good imo. There's also the glaring fact that Hermione just outshines Ron as a character.
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Introducing the Tartaros Devils to Your Plushies
The Tartaros Devils deciding to show up to your room for sex end up getting met with you deciding to sit down and show them all your plushies!!
Notes: mildly sexual content, nothing too crazy. Gender neutral reader!
Find Mammon's and others reactions here !
Bimet
He doesn't exactly see the appeal. They clearly weren't anything expensive. Just cheap stuffed creatures. What they could they possibly offer that he couldn't offer tenfold and then some?
Don't clock him on being jealous because you cherish your plushies so deeply, or do clock him on it if you wanna work him up even worse.
He glares your plushies are you introduce them. Not only are they taking up his valuable time that he was meant to spend sleeping with you, they're taking up your attention too. And they aren't even a valuable object!! At least in his eyes.
He voices his thoughts, he can't help himself. Call him out. Tease him a little. It's fine, Mammon would do the same.
Unfortunately unlike with Mammon he can and will cut you off. With a kiss or pushing you against the wall or something else along those lines.
Point is you can call it out but it changes nothing. Bimet still gets what he wants in the end. Just tease him more afterwards it's fine.
Yeah, he's not really taking in. Well. Any information about your plushies but it's fine! You can always just repeat the lesson later!
Valefor
Well, aren't you just the cutest little thing for him? Absolutely adorable.
He can't help but entertain this. He'll let you ramble on for as long as you want.
Of course, there is something in it for him. And he does make this clear to you from go.
The longer you keep talking for, the longer he gets to fuck you for. The times are definitely not equal to the amount of length you end up talking for, he's just making up shit as he goes along.
You know this, but what are you gonna do? Protest? Good luck that's gonna add more time for him !
That being said he's also making it worse by squishing your cheeks while you're talking, but he just can't help himself!
Either way, he knows this is gonna end in sex. And you also know this is gonna end in sex. Prepare to be completely exhausted and ready to pass out by the time he's done with you.
That being said, he definitely memorized everything you tell him about your plushies. Of course he'd do that for you.
Eligos
On one hand, he loves how excited you are and how cute you look while rambling on about your plushies. It makes him so so happy to see how happy you are!!!
On the other hand, he's supposed to be the cutest thing in this room and supposed to be getting all the attention. What the hell.
Why is your focus not entirely on him and instead these plush objects you adore so much?
He gets pouty and kinda jealous pretty fast! I can't even lie. He will require your attention soon.
Because of the way he is, he's not exactly memorizing a lot of what you tell him, but he is happy that you have something you love so much.
However, you also need to love him that much!! So you better get ready to focus all your attention on him!!!
Suddenly he remembers the exact reason why he came to you, and he will be getting the attention he craves so much after all.
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NEIGHBORHOOD
HOTTIE
pairing: nicholas a. chavez x black!fem!reader
cw: fluff and smut (18+ mdni)
hotneighbor!nicholas that just moved in next door to you. you heard from your neighborhood girlfriends that he was living alone, single, and utterly fuckable.
hotneighbor!nicholas who you curiously watch through the blinds of your window to see what the hype is all about. itâs definitely all true: your new neighbor was foine.
hotneighbor!nicholas whose muscles would flex as you observe him lugging the largest boxes of things he needed to unpack in such scorching weather. your thighs clench at the sight of the veins protruding on his arms. you didnât miss the stains of perspiration forming on his pristine white tank top that outlined the toned muscles of his abdomen.
hotneighbor!nicholas who would stop whatever heâs doing when he sees you coming by with two glasses of homemade lemonade. he could use a break. plus, he thought you were a sight for sore eyes with that orange sundress, glowing melanated skin, healthy natural hair, and full glossed lips. you lived right next door, so it was only fair for him to take up your welcoming offer.
hotneighbor!nicholas who you find to be so charming. he loves the lemonade and your company. you both exchange basic information about yourselves, but he doesnât miss the opportunity to throw some game. âif iâd known my neighbor wouldâve been so beautiful, i wouldâve moved a lot sooner.â he finds it cute at how bashful you get when he compliments you.
hotneighbor!nicholas who obviously asks for your number for âneighborlyâ reasons. you happily give it to him because itâs not everyday someone would this hot was putting the moves on you like this.
hotneighbor!nicholas who subtly watches the rhythm of your hips sway beneath that sundress after you bid him a farewell, so he could continue unpacking. he wanted to talk to you longer. he wasnât sure how, but he wants to get close to you as possible, as soon as possible. if you catch my drift.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâd send you good morning and good night texts or heâd just simply check on you. youâd tease that it should be the other way around because heâs the new neighbor and you should be the one making him feel welcome. heâd be such a flirt. you can make me feel welcome in many other ways. đ
hotneighbor!nicholas who you see taking daily jogs through the neighborhood early in the morning when you go out to get your mail. he wears nothing, but basketball shorts, a cross necklace, and some sneakers. you melt as the sweat of body leaves a heavenly shine on his tanned skin. heâs so built, so fit, so thick. god, the things youâd do have him on top of you right now.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâd ask if you like to take a jog/walk with him whenever you were available. you werenât the exercising type, but there was no harm in it because you wanted to spend time with him anyway, so why the hell not? on those occasions, youâd get to know each other better. youâd wear a sports bra and shorts that nicholas would find to be ravishing on you, but heâd think youâll look better without them.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâd help you out with various tasks like gardening. he had a green thumb, so he was a huge help to you when you wanted to plant some fresh strawberries. you love to watch him till, dig, sow seeds, and water the fruit, so it would grow to be the reddest, ripest strawberries for picking, washing, and eating.
hotneighbor!nicholas who you invite over to your house to make treats such as strawberry shortcakes or just to dip them in chocolate sauce while streaming a show on hulu or netflix. heâd use his thumb to swipe away any whipped cream or chocolate from the corner of your lip then suck it right off in front of you while holding his intense brown gaze with yours.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâd watch you from his bedroom window as youâd strip your clothes before going into the bathroom to shower. he couldnât see your actual naked body, but heâd see the shadow of your nude silhouette outlining the shape of your breasts, the erected point of your nipples, and the curve of your hips and ass. it gets him rock hard every time and heâd have to take care of it himself.
hotneighbor!nicholas who you watch practice throwing a football in his backyard shirtless. his arms are massive. you imagine what it would feel like having them secured around your waist. he couldâve went to the pros, no question, but youâre lucky that you get to see this up close and personal instead of a loud, crowded stadium.
hotneighbor!nicholas who you go to for help when your car wouldnât start. you didnât mean to interrupt him as he was looking like a greek god while bench pressing what seemed to be a weight of 150-60 lbs. he doesnât mind helping you because he knows the basics, so he comes over promptly with some tools to see whatâs under the hood. you spectate as he meticulously rummages and moves within the car.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâs so focused in finding the root of the issue. his brows are furrowed and he tucks his bottom lip between his teeth while his hands move like clockwork. you notice a piece of hair fall from in front of his face and he attempts to blow it out the way, but to no avail. you take it upon yourself to brush it back. he feels the lingering touch of your palm through his scalp, his mind already going to the gutter.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâd ask for you to get your car keys after heâd find the solution and close the hood. he instructs you to get in the car and start it now. once you comply, the engine is purring like normal. feeling grateful, you sing your praises to him. âletâs see you have a green thumb and youâre a skilled mechanic. is there anything else your hands are good for?â you ask, crossing your arms. heâd give you a playful lopsided smirk with a flirtatious glint within his eyes, âthey could do a couple thingsâthatâs if youâre willing to find out.â he knew exactly what he was doing.
hotneighbor!nicholas who you invite over for dinner to repay him for fixing your car. you werenât sure if youâd see this as a date, but you still wanted to make a good impression. you do your hygiene and youâd put on a black square necked top with a long black, floral slitted skirt around your waist. you prepare a spread of your speciality dishes and bring out your best wine.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâs a gentleman that shows up at your front door with flowers. he cleans up nice with a black button up thatâs slightly unbuttoned to show off his signature gold cross necklace with some leviâs, dress shoes, and a rolli on his wrist. damn! you graciously take the flowers and giving him a brief hug. it was short-lived, but inhaling his clean, musky scent while he places his large palm against the slightly exposed small of your back had you feening.
hotneighbor!nicholas that enjoys every single thing that youâve cooked for him. heâs so content in the meal, he informs you that when he settles down he hopes to have a wife that looks and cooks just as good as you. hopefully, you were picking up what he was putting down.
hotneighbor!nicholas who genuinely enjoys your company, your smile, your laughter, your humility, your confidence, your wit, your intelligence, your humor, your insight, your passion, your kindness, your empathy, your honesty, and your absolute everything.
hotneighbor!nicholas who tells you heâs now craving for dessert. oblivious to what he actually meant, you tell them thereâs some leftover strawberries and chocolate sauce in the fridge, so you go to retrieve the items and go to prepare them on the counter with your back turned to him.
hotneighbor!nicholas who gets up from his seat at the table and saunters over to you to slide his large hands around your waist. a smirk rises on his lips as soon as you freeze from his touch. he bring his lips against your ear to whisper, âiâm craving something sweeter than that, doll.â heâd pull you in closer, so that the plushness of your ass would meet his hardened arousal.
hotneighbor!nicholas who peppers fiery kisses all around your neck. when you whimper out his name, it drives him to push aside whatever was in front of you on the counter. he turns your body to face him completely before hoisting you up on top, so that his lips could finally be attached to yours in a fervent kiss. your arms instantly wrap your his broad shoulders as he brings your legs around his hips while your tongues desperately swirl around another. you both had been waiting for this moment for weeks on end.
hotneighbor!nicholas who slides between the slit of your skirt to spread your thighs wider, so that he could rut his hips up against yours like an animal in heat. âyou see what you fuckinâ do to me?â he rasped whenever his growing, stiff girth came in contact with your already damp center.
hotneighbor!nicholas who easily slips his hands beneath your skirt. his fingertips fidgeting with the waistband of your panties. he wants to dive straight in, but he wonât go further unless you verbally give him the green light. to him, you may be this sexy piece of ass that deserves some good dick thrown your way, but also youâre worthy of respect towards your boundaries in your house. heâs just being a good neighbor.
hotneighbor!nicholas who once he has your consent, deliberately slides your soaking underwear off for his thumb to instantly reward your clit with pressured circles. he chuckles as you beg him to delve his fingers inside of you. âdamn, have a little patience, baby. mâgonna take care of you.â
hotneighbor!nicholas who wastes no time to slip his index inside just to stretch you out a little before his middle joins in the party. his thumb is still doing circles around your clit as his fingers curl and bump against the gushiness of your wet walls. with each moan of his name escaping your mouth, he gains in speed.
hotneighbor!nicholas whoâs a bonafide munch. he takes his fingers away and kneels down with his head right in front of your awaiting, wet pussy. he demands that you look at him as his tongue takes a deliberate lick against your dripping slit. your hands grasp onto his head for dear life as he makes out with your pussy. his tongue may move in varying speeds and shapes around your clit. it drives you crazy when he hums while shaking his head side to side rapidly to go as deep as possible while he gets you to your high. âah, fuck, this pussy is the best thing thatâs ever happend to meâwant you to cum all over my face, baby. câmon, give it to me.â
hotneighbor!nicholas who continues to remove the rest of your clothes until youâre completely bare. he stares, mesmerized because youâre more beautiful than he could ever imagine. you reciprocate the praise after you help him out of his clothes. he finds it so sexy of how crazy you are for him. you even make the man flush with red.
hotneighbor!nicholas who already has a condom ready, but youâre on the pill and you want to feel all of him, so you let him know heâs good to go.
hotneighbor!nicholas who shudders in ecstasy as he fills you up inch by inch until his tip mingled with the edge of your cervix. he gives you a moment to properly adjust to his size before he begins to give you the immaculate strokes of his skilled hips.
hotneighbor!nicholas who has the stamina of a sexually starved madman as you go for many rounds in different parts of your house. the counter, sofa, your bed, and lastly the shower. he takes you in different positions and angles that no man has ever done with you before and heâs made you cum first each time. he could go all night, but he sees that from being so fucked out and overstimulated, he decided it was time for some proper aftercare and a goodnightâs sleep in the nude. he was by far, the best fuck youâve ever had. what are good neighbors for?
#black reader#black girl#nicholas chavez#nicholas alexander chavez#nicholas chavez x black reader#nicholas chavez x reader#nicholas alexander chavez smut#nicholas alexander chavez fluff#nicholas alexander chavez headcanons#hot neighbor#x black reader#nicholas chavez x y/n#nicholas chavez x female reader#nicholas chavez imagine#nicholas chavez x black y/n#nicholas chavez fanfiction
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Small Talk (Jason Todd x Reader, Pt 2 of 3)
(Pt 1)
Premise: Jason worries that you're just putting up with him out of a misguided sense of pity.
Jason seems about ready to dip into fight or flight mode. Though youâd be surprised if flight mode even exists in his dictionary, perhaps it only applies to the dangers of expressing emotions rather than actual physical threats.
âOkayâŚâ you begin slowly, mulling over your words so as to not spook him off, âWell to start off. No, I donât pity youâ.
He only frowns at that, crossing his arms around his torso tighter in response. Alright, canât say you were all too surprised by that. Trust doesnât seem to come naturally to the guy.
You take a breath before looking him in the eye, âJason, I like you. I like spending time with you. I like what we have⌠is that so hard to believe?â
Jason averts his gaze in response, seemingly unable to face you. âI-I donât knowâ he grumbles, a frustrated exhale escaping his lips.
âI donât know what you see in me. I guess I'd rather tear down whatever halo effect youâve got going on right now, rather than waiting for you to realise what you're getting yourself into, and walking out at a later pointâ. At least the former offers him some false sense of control, he gets to strip down the facade and push you away on his terms.
âSo you think Iâm going to just up and leave the day I see the ârealâ you?â you have to bite back a scoff at his reasoning, but insecurities can take any form, and the fear of abandonment always seems to be the front runner in his case.
You shake your head as you counter him, âJason respectfully, there was no point at which I thought you were putting up a prince charming act, youâve never really made much effort to hide your broodinessâ.
In fact, you've always appreciated how he never put up a front, his frank personality being one of the first traits that drew you in.
He bristles at your comment, but you can see some of the tension leaving his body as he uncrosses his arms.
âHey! I can turn up the charm when I want toâ.
You raise an eyebrow in response, thatâs a shoddy defense at best.
You decide against bringing up the time he set the fire alarm off attempting to cook spaghetti for the two of you, or that other time he picked up flowers for you only to get into a scuffle on the way home, leaving you with five broken stems (but 3 petals stubbornly clung on, so they still counted as flowers according to him). No, nowâs not the time to bruise his ego.
You sigh, deciding to try a more direct approach instead.
âWhatâs this really about Jason? Have I said or done something to make you feel this way?â
The genuine question coupled with the gentle tone of your voice further disarms him. He huffs a breath as he looks away.
âNoâŚI just- I donât know why you put up with me at timesâ.
You could feel the weight of his words even though they were spoken under his breath. Put up with what exactly? His sudden disappearances? His injuries? The bouts of sour moods? He doesnât even know. But he can only imagine the combination to be unpleasant.
You reach for his hand, which is currently bunched up into a fist by his side before continuing âJason⌠I love what we have. I mean, I know youâve got your bad days, but youâve never taken them out on me...â
You take a deep breath feeling somewhat hesitant about your next words, but knowing they need to be said.
âLook, I donât know much about your past, and frankly I donât need to, I enjoy what we have right now⌠But it seems like youâve been let down plenty of times before, and those fears are being projected onto us".
He stiffens, confronted with the truth he barely lets himself think about. Instead of facing it head on, he chooses to deflect.
âThat doesnât seem like enough of a reason for you to stick aroundâ
He may be trying to sidetrack the conversation, but youâre done beating around the bush. You need him to know heâs enough, more than enough. That youâre happy with him and not just putting up with him for the sake of it.
âDoes it bother you? That I like you just the way you are?âÂ
He hunches over at your words, choosing to face the muted television screen instead of you.
âNot bother⌠I guess itâs a bit hard to believe. I mean I know Iâm quite the looker and have a wicked sense of humourâ he says dryly, though you donât miss his attempt at biting back a snicker, âBut man do I come with a lot of baggageâ he concludes with a self depreciating groan.
You shake your head as you scoot closer to him on the couch, âWill you give yourself some grace for once? It doesn't seem like you were dealt the best hand in lifeâ you retort, feeling defensive on his behalf.
âYouâre trying to make sense of it all, youâre trying to do whatâs right. Shouldn't that count for something? Donât discount your effortsâÂ
He shakes his head as he turns to face you, conflict colouring his features.
âBut isnât it exhausting to keep up with (Name)? I canât exactly offer stability- Hell, I canât even say trouble finds me, I actively go seek it... I mean, I donât even know what my futureâs gonna look like, let alone what our future will look likeâ.Â
Why stay when you can go seek out something more secure, more certain?
That question remained unsaid. Maybe he was being a coward, but part of him didnât want to probe for answers he was not ready to hear.
âJason, Iâm not going give up what we have now because of a pessimistic âwhat ifâ future that may never come to be⌠You make me happy. Youâre so good to me. I wish you could see thatâ.
Feelings of sadness and frustration settle within you at his incessant attempts to downplay himself. Downplay what he means to you.
You spend a moment wracking your brain, trying to conjure up the magic words that will get through to him. Considering which memories you can point to as evidence for your case, what traits of his you can highlight in your defence. But so many moments flit through your mind, warm memories playing over like a cinema reel, you donât even know which to choose from.Â
That itself is enough proof thatâs thereâs plenty of reason to stay right here, by his side.
Now it was just a matter of getting him to see the same.
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Initially thought of writing this in 2 parts but 1am big brain energy has given me enough ideas for a pt 3.
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Sims In Bloom: Generation 2 Pt. 94 (The Body in Brindleton Bay)
cw: dead body and a blood puddle, discolored / shadowed by the lighting, just to be less graphic tbh. For that reason I also don't zoom in on the body that closely, but text mentions who it is and there's no trick! That is who it is, even without a close-up!
Conrad met his young, eager partner, Zion Spangler, at the docks. His last partner, Josephine, had stuck around a few years longer than planned, but she was so close to retirement she deferred almost all her field work to Conrad and Zion. The sergeant liked the newly-minted detective's ambition and his instinct, and they approached the crime scene with caution.
A body laid at the edge of the pier in a pool of blood, already slightly washed away by the heavy, wet coastal snow of Brindleton Bay.
"The owners of the Salty Paw said someone knocked on their door about a body by their patio tables, but everyone was inside because of the cold and no one saw anything," explained Zion.
"Did you find any clues at the scene?"
"None. The snow washed away every footprint and fingerprint we might possibly find."
Zion got down on his knees to brush through the snow surrounding the body in search of clues. But Conrad took one look at the victim and knew exactly who they needed to look for. "Any ID on him?"
"Everything. Even his money. Vic's name is Jameson Bower."
No it wasn't. Not really. "Run that name through the database back at the station. Make sure he doesn't have any aliases, check his record."
Conrad could have offered to do it himself to cover his tracks. But he wanted to mentor Zion to be as good a detective as he could be, and he knew what the body of Jimmy Stefano represented. Surveying the grisly scene, his heart raced.
When Conrad backed out of the search for Rafa, Ximena called his bluff. This was his jurisdiction. He couldn't ignore a dead body connected to the cartel in Brindleton Bay. He didn't know whether Ximena wanted to hurt the cartel or bring him down, but she wouldn't let him walk away.
He'd all but asked for this when he agreed to meet her in this very spot months earlier, hoping he could get her to disappear by giving her what she wanted, helping her brother in the process. But Ximena hated to go quietly, and if he'd ignored her she wouldn't have let him be, either. It probably always would have come to this, but that didn't make it any easier to swallow.
He called Heather to check in. "Did you get to your parents'?"
"We're fine, Conrad. Lavender's asleep again and I'm just hanging out with Sammy." She tilted the camera on her phone to show off River and Cass' infant son, quietly drinking from a bottle. "Is the body related to the cartel?"
"It is."
"What are you going to tell your boss?"
"The truth."
"You could lose your job for sneaking around."
"Wouldn't I deserve it? I had to come clean to you first, and now it's time to come clean to everyone else."
"Conrad, I love you," she said. "I'm so mad at you for lying to me that I don't even know what else to say right now, but I need to be mad at you in one piece. We can talk more if you make it here this weekend."
"I love you, too." Zion called him then to return to the precinct. "I have to go."
As much as it burned to leave their conversation on that note, Ximena had forced his hand. If he didn't come clean to his coworkers and his boss, he'd lose his job. He might, anyway, but he couldn't move in shadows anymore.
With the scene documented and cleared and the body moved to the morgue, Conrad and Zion returned to the station. They worked through the night, and by morning it was obvious the victim was Jimmy Stefano, a low-level member of Los Tigres de Selva, one of the most violent cartels in Simlandia. "Do you think it's a new turf war?"
Conrad shook his head. "I don't think Los Tigres has operated out of Brindleton Bay for years."
Zion cocked his brow in confusion. "Well, what stopped them? They operate just fine out of everywhere else."
"They don't need Brindleton Bay when they've got hold of the ports in San Myshuno," he said, but his attention turned when their captain arrived. The man barely said hello, immediately shutting himself inside his office. Conrad didn't know if it was just that he'd had to come to work on a Saturday, or this specific case, but he had to come clean.
He knocked on the door. With a look, the captain waved him inside. "Sargent, you look tired." He laughed as if he'd made a joke.
"Been a long night."
The captain's expression changed. "Go ahead and shut the door, Sargent."
Conrad sat with an anxious expression, knees together, eyes down like he was about to be reprimanded in grade school. "About the docks victim, sir. I knew him."
The captain nodded plainly. "I read your file when I took over. But you're not the first cop who turned toward the law when they could have easily gone the other way."
"The thing is, I've been working a case under the table for a while now. I found Jimmy Stefano and filed a report against Ximena Bonilla."
"After everything done to bail you out and send you through the academy, you thought it was a good idea to investigate the cartel runner you once dated? For what reason?"
"She found my address, scared my fiancee. Ximena told me her brother was missing, and he and I were close. He was so young, and I wanted to help him."
"You didn't want to help San Myshuno PD? Ximena Bonilla's brother is a wanted man..."
"I would have told him to turn himself in and work a plea," he insisted. "My old precinct would look good, and I hoped Rafa could turn his life around with a little encouragement from someone other than his sister."
"Are you still in touch?"
"No, sir. I told her two days ago I was done searching for Rafa because I thought she was trying to trick me into investigating the cartel. Blocked her number. After the body showed up I tried the number I had but it's been disconnected."
"So she's the prime suspect."
"I think she might've figured out Jimmy talked to me and she wanted to get rid of him. If she didn't kill Jimmy herself - and she might have - I think she ordered the hit to draw me into an investigation against the cartel that could get me killed and endanger my family."
"Do you think she's working with Los Tigres?"
Conrad shrugged. "I don't know. I did a bit of digging and it looks like the cartel itself might be in a bit of disarray. Power vacuum after the murder of one of their higher ups (go on Frida!), so a turf war seems unlikely. I think the safest way to do this is to treat Ximena like a lone wolf. The cartel's not even supposed to be operating in Brindleton Bay these days."
"Since George Brindleton pulled his guys from the ports, they could have moved back in."
Conrad's stomach flipped. "George Brindleton?"
"George Brindleton lost his boats, but he didn't lose his security business. Pulled his men just before he left for Sulani. Said he was cutting costs at the port during the dead season, but I think he's just trying to remind us how important he is after his son went to prison. We upped patrol to try to deal with the lack of security down there, but his guys don't abide by any constitutional rights...I don't admit this outside these walls, but Brindleton's ports have always run better under private security."
"Was this before or after the restraining order I took out on him for Heather and the kids?"
The captain excused Conrad to think, soon calling him back with Zion and another officer who typically dealt with the press. "This is the plan. Our suspect is Ximena Bonilla, but we don't announce it. We look for her, or her brother, and no one else. We say the investigation is ongoing until we've found one or both of them. And Spangler, you're taking point on this one."
"Why me? Gordon's the sergeant."
"Gordon's too close to this one. I want him focused on looking for Rafa Bonilla, not Ximena, but he'll cooperate with you and help behind the scenes. She might try to reach out to him, and if she does, you'll be the first to know. And if you're not, he's a suspect, too." They nodded with understanding. "And Gordon? No more bullshit under the table or I'll put you on leave and find a way not to pay you."
Having worked through the night, Conrad relinquished his files to his mentee, but he left the precinct with a sense of unease. He still had a job, and he could still search for Rafa without needing to hide anything from his coworkers, but while Ximena was unaccounted for he would scarcely be able to relax.
After a nap in the break room, Conrad prepared to drive to Henford-on-Bagley and face his fiancee. ->
<- Previous Chapter | Gen 2 Start | Gen 1 Summary | Gen 1 Start
NOTE: I reinstalled TOOL to place the body. The blood isn't placed underneath the victim properly, but I was working at the edge of what was visible in a fully zoomed out screen, and for my second ever placement of a build/buy item and first ever placement of the teleporter off a lot in-game, I'm happy enough with the fact it looks like he bled out from the knees. 𤡠Maybe he did, I don't know, I didn't get detailed about the condition of the body because it doesn't advance the plot. Who and why is more important than how.
WCIF Poses & CC? @simmerianne93's Injured poses pack #1, which is a great set - so cinematic. One of the injured poses has the victim with eyes closed and looks a little like EA's curled-up death animation to me, and that's the one I used. And Blood on the Floor from the There Will Be Blood set by Lore from SimsRebelCreators. Several swatches (including red!) and different spatter patterns if you need some blood for your storytelling!
#sims 4#sims 4 gameplay#sims 4 screenshots#sims 4 legacy#sims in bloom#ts4#ts4 gameplay#ts4 legacy#ts4 screenshots#sims 4 story#ts4 story#legacy challenge#sims legacy#ts4 legacy challenge#gen 2#brindleton bay
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I think people think about LitRPGs backwards. It's not that the LitRPG formula makes bad stories palatable - it's the opposite. The LitRPG formula isn't appealing at all. The structure of a LitRPG guides writers to write stories that are legitimately better on a structural level than what they could otherwise write. LitRPG has a reputation for terrible writing because writers who are extremely bad can use the structure of LitRPG to write stories that actually work, which end up getting talked about. The same writers writing romance novels would never be talked about because they would be unreadable.
Consider Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, an all-around high quality book written by a talented author. Something that has always bothered me about Chamber of Secrets is the climax, Harry's fight against the Basilisk.
We have not been given any indication up to this point that Harry is capable of killing a Basilisk with a sword. In fact, the only skills Harry has been learning up to this point revolve around magic, which he does not use in the climax. His special ability to talk to snakes, which has been key to the plot up to this point, also does not come into play except to get him into the Chamber. Harry's emotional journey has not led him to a violent place, so his decision to kill another creature in a bloody and brutal fashion has no emotional significance to him. The Basilisk doesn't even bear Harry any ill-will, it's just attacking people because Voldemort told it to. The killing of the Basilisk is unprecedented, and would not be any more expected or meaningful if it happened at the beginning of the book than it is at the end.
I would argue that this is a problem, story-wise. The climax of a story should have something to do with the events leading up to it. The hero should use the lessons of the preceding parts of the story to overcome the challenge. This from a genuinely talented author, mind you, so my point is that this is an easy mistake to make.
It's also a really common mistake. Most action-packed climaxes in most stories are like this. Hollywood movies and genre novels love to end on some kind of violent action. It's widely understood that the end of a story is supposed to have a climax, so a lot of writers will put an action scene at the end of their story without connecting it to the rest of the plot in a thematic or emotional way.
If you make this mistake in a LitRPG, it's extremely obvious. If Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was a LitRPG, then the fact that Harry never kills anything with a melee weapon until the climax would be a glaring plot hole that could not be overlooked. Either JK would have to include a bunch of scenes in which Harry chops the heads off various other magical creatures, or she would have to reconsider how the Basilisk dies.
But now that Harry has to kill a bunch of other magical creatures with a magic sword, we're forced to consider the thematic implications of that. One way or another, Harry is now the kind of person who kills magical beasts with swords, which means the killing Basilisk is now forced by the constraints of the genre to become the conclusion of a long series of thematically related events.
The repetition inherent in a LitRPG forces the author to have recurring themes and to tie those themes into the overarching narrative whether they like it or not.
But once you have those recurring themes, once you've confronted them, you might as well convert the story into a better genre. And I say this as someone who likes LitRPGs.
This is all just scratching the surface of the ways LitRPGs force writers to write better. I just picked one example, but I could go on.
For another example, in other action-heavy fiction you will often see situations reverse themselves for no particular reason. The villain is the clear favorite to win the boxing match, presumably because he's a better boxer. But then in a surprise reversal the hero wins instead. In a good story there will be some kind of reason for this reversal (often emotional), but a bad story will just go through the beats because that's what you're supposed to do in this kind of movie. The music will swell, the hero will look up into the camera, and then the hero will win even though nothing has actually changed since we were informed that the villain was the favorite to win.
You literally cannot do this in a LitRPG. The quantification of everything means that something must change between the villain seeming to have the upper hand and the hero's ultimate victory. This doesn't automatically mean something emotionally relevant, but nobody said that all LitRPG is good. The point is that the structure of the narrative prevents you from accidentally skipping this step and papering it over with swelling dramatic music.
LitRPG where the protagonist's game system is very clearly from a game with a 20-minute day-night cycle, and whose gamification of hunger, thirst, and sleep just wreaks havoc on his personal and professional life.
Just kidding, litRPG protagonists don't have personal or professional lives.
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I realized that I've never addressed the elephant in Lucanis's room, also known as his romance plot, as a "Had been delusional about him for months before release" individual, so here's a surprisingly long rant/summary of how I felt about it in the process of playing the game.
As a Rook de Riva player, I obviously loved "Coffee with the Crows": we met Illario, joked about haha three Crows talking about nothing, talked business, Rook and Lucanis had a nice moment getting to know each other better outside of being teammates, Rook de Riva's background was acknowledged again, it really felt like a nice bonding moment, right?
Thennn a whole lot of nothing happens during any of the conversations between them, huh. Lucanis doesn't acknowledge flirting, which is fine, take your time bud, you'll get there; you keep pushing being supportive, he ignores you, you deal with his personal stuff for him one (1) time, and in my case he then proceeds to ignore Rook for 10+ hours of pure game time while busy talking to Neve at every opportunity until I finally get one (1) dialogue option to "express romantic interest in Lucanis".
And let me express my honest innermost feelings on the matter:
Not only did it feel like Lucanis genuinely couldn't care less about Rook even as a friend, it also felt like Rook was forcing Lucanis into something he simply wasn't interested in and that we were just getting in the way of his relationship with Neve. It was genuinely unpleasant to experience in a videogame that is supposed to be wish fulfillment and whatnot, and let me tell you, it was especially jarring because Dragon Age games also have a tendency of occasionally making you feel like the most special little protagonist known to Thedas, at the very least to your companions who you're supposedly building bonds with.
I loved hangout events in this game, too, I was so happy to just have these conversations about whatever with companions, have these little one-on-one moments with them that genuinely felt like walks with friends (especially with my bro my bestie my homie Davrin), and with Lucanis it started and ended with the coffee date. His fears and doubts about Rook later are never addressed, and lol lmao even, yeah, why would they be, when it feels like he barely acknowledges Rook exists outside of accompanying him to deal with his problems, none of which need Rook there? There's no reason outside of gameplay for him to ask Rook and not, say, his favorite Neve he talks about everything to? Somehow a lot of times when I hoped for any sort of dialogue with him, I was met with him talking about something very personal like his current feelings about Illario to Neve, like, isn't Rook supposed to know anything about anything, or are we just his convenient weird coworker he sometimes asks favours from?
We persevere though and keep supporting Lucanis, and can you take a wild guess what was waiting for me after like 40 hours of the game and after the infamous "kabedon assassin style" scene? Yeah bro, Lucanis just happened to talk to Neve. I wish I was making this shit up. My coping strategy was to come up with an entire jealousy subplot for my Rook because if I have to feel like I'm in the shittiest unrequited situationship of a triangular shape, I might as well do it on my own terms, right? It feels petty and stupid because as a player I like Neve, too, she's one of the coolest (no pun intended) characters, but as Rook, and Rook de Riva making an obvious choice especially? Yeah, let's just say this relationship fucking sucked for a while.
So after many trials and tribulations we're finally back with Inner Demons, and yeah, Neve is there again, I couldn't even give a shit at that point, and I'll be real here, the locking in didn't feel like we went through angsty slowburn or that we earned Lucanis' trust. Remember DA2's Fenris situation? Because I suddenly did, and surely one of many, many Neve banters I had to eavesdrop on could be sacrificed to have one or two banters that acknowledged Lucanis's anything towards Rook at all?
Also, Spite? Spite seemingly likes Rook more than Lucanis does. In between "It's so over" and "We're so back" in the Fade Ossuary it feels like somehow Rook gets more bonding time with Spite, which is kinda crazy to me.
We are so back though! As I mentioned, I was a "delusional before release" individual, I am perfectly capable of filling the gaps and extrapolating meaning from implications, and here's where one of the most infuriating things is: the rest of the romance is good, too! I can write whatever the hell I want between the beginning and the end of it, but like, why should I? How should I go about it, when in my game I was under the impression that Lucanis would rather just spend time with anyone other than Rook for seemingly no reason in particular, because there's simply nothing there? The fact that none of my pre-release ideas or comics even necessarily contradict anything about Lucanis or his romance as it is now is more telling than impressive honestly.
So where do I land with this exactly? Well, mostly in the glorious Fanon Land where I've been making my silly comics the whole time anyway. The highs are high, I love what they did at the end and how stable, protective and devoted Lucanis is, but the lows made me salty as shit and I wish I didn't have to feel that way to begin with. I wish I didn't have to connect the dots and joke about how badly Lucanis sucks at this and "Let's go girl give us nothing." And yes, I know about writer lay-offs, rewrites, restarts, etc etc, and it's a miracle that this game came out at all, but it hardly matters when you're just trying to do the good old datesim part of a Dragon Age game and end up feeling like a third wheel while trying very hard to get anything out of the character you're interested in.
#rookanis#lucanis x rook#lucanis dellamorte#lucanis romance#datv spoilers#datv critical#rant#long post#datv#dav#dragon age
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It has been a bit over a month since the first time I watched Dead Boy Detectives and I now have watched it from start to finish four times. Oops. I don't know how that happenedâI certainly wasn't prepared for this level of love for a series.
Since I haven't really been in any fandoms or tumblr in, like... ten years or whatever, I wanted to write about why I fell in love with Dead Boy Detectives when I saw the series for the first time. I don't know if anyone's interested in reading a long-ish post, but in case you are, buckle up because this is going to be pure love and positivity from start to finish. It's mainly about Edwin and Charles, though.
I started watching the show without any background information and never having seen the Sandman either. I rotate streaming services and it was Netflix's turn. I read queer fiction quite a lot and watch queer movies and series as a hobby, and remembered someone mentioning Dead Boy Detectives.
The beginning on the series was intriguing enough already, but it was during this scene that I knew I was going to watch the entire thing:
This leads me to the reason I love the series so much: the carrying force of the story is the love Edwin and Charles have for each other, be it platonic or romantic. I'm a sucker for themes like found family and being loved as your authentic self because that's something I crave. I have always been more or less lonely because of social anxiety and struggling with social situations. Perhaps that's why stories containing those themes have such a profound effect on me each time.
Of course, the way the series combines elements of horror and comedy with heartwarming and wholesome sweetness is delightfully refreshing in itself. Dead Boy Detectives kept me glued to the screen so that I finished it in a day the first time I watched it. However, the characters are what makes the show so brilliant. I think the cast in general is phenomenal, but it's the love between Edwin and Charles that I felt most while watching.
This obviously is where I have to praise George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri for their acting. I think it's largely thanks to them that I love Edwin and Charles so much. Their characters' chemistry and the fond way Edwin and Charles interact with each other in the series is something I felt viscerally right from the beginning. It's obviously ingrained in the overall plot, but the love can also be felt in the smallest gestures. How many shows do you have where your favorite character dying is one of your favorite moments in the series because it's so sweet? (I'm sure you can deduce my favorite character from this...)
Personally, I also think that George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri's acting is particularly spellbinding during the moments their characters break down and show raw emotion. In an odd way the characters' suffering is what makes episodes like The Case of the Devlin House and The Case of the Very Long Stairway so brilliant. The characters' emotions during their most vulnerable moments are so tangible.
I know there has been talk about how season two would look like if the series was revived, and honestly, I think there's one crucial thing that should be kept as it is or the entire thing would be ruined: the carrying force of the show being that Edwin and Charles are willing to do anything to not to get separated.
I can't see any universe where someone becomes more important to the two main characters than what they're to each other. Charles says that Edwin is the only person he'd go to Hell for. We know how Edwin feels. The love is there already. If either of them had a long-lasting romance with someone else, the love interest would get two with the price of one. Equally important? Wellâpossibly. Love isn't finite. More important? Never.
I'd like to see Edwin and Charles get together, though. They're like an old married couple already and I can't imagine them being together with anyone else in the long run. At least the first season left things open enough for interpretation, with the cancellation and all.
Last but not least, it's a bit crazy that I only saw the show for the first time a bit over a month ago and was ready to splurge on a cameo. It was my birthday during the gameoden week and I got a birthday message! It was very sweet and has cheered me up ever since. I'm not sharing it here because I feel it's a bit personal with my birthday and all, but I loved it.
In case you ended up reading all this, thanks for reading my love letter for the show and the characters and the actors!
#dead boy detectives#dbda#save dead boy detectives#edwin payne#charles rowland#george rexstrew#jayden revri#this series has me in a chokehold
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I really don't care for the "true alpha" thing, and there are plenty of other people's posts about why, but I can't stop thinking about what it does to Scott and his character.
like, seasons one and two he's constantly fighting for NO ONE to be murdered, because he believes that you can't justify it and it's wrong. fair enough. this insistence places him at odds with people he might otherwise get along with, solidifying him as an underdog. even his alliance with Derek is tenuous, as Derek sees murder as necessary to keep people safe and Scott doesn't. but BECAUSE he's an underdog he has to work with the people around him and convince them why they shouldn't kill, he isn't powerful enough to stand on his own.
but in the later seasons.... he doesn't have that??
as the true alpha, his power hinges on him not killing people. while it would be unreasonable to say that his former stance is completely GONE, pessimistic fans (like me, hello hi how's your day) can make the case that he doesn't kill because he would be less powerful if he did, at least in part. it COMPLETELY cuts the teeth off his moral argument, which sucks because the show still has at least twelve more moral arguments left.
hes also completely LOST the underdog angle. he and Derek are finally chill, thankfully, but he's suddenly the most powerful cool guy in the area, the first of his kind in years, with super special powers just for him. about a season before he lost a fight with a guy who had been a werewolf for all of two seconds. and you know how before he had to convince other people to join his side and work with his plan? yeah no now he can just yell at them and they'll do whatever he says, magic rules.
No matter how you feel about season one and two Scott, it's undeniable that he is fighting an uphill battle that just kind of plateaus as of Season Three. and I love season three, but I feel like, if it did happen, it should have been closer to the end of the show
(And for all the talk about the McCall pack being weird and unconventional, they still fall in that same power structure that EVERY PACK EVER falls into. I think it would be more interesting if they didn't and their pack is even MORE of a mess to werewolves. take, for instance, the underlying subplot of seasons 1-3 that Beacon Hills doesn't have an alpha (at least a good one sorry Derek) and is there for ripe for the taking. a big reason that Derek wanted Scott in his pack was that he didn't want to be seen as weak or targeted by hunters, even other werewolves. they don't get along but they HAVE TO or else they straight up DIE. But then in 3A they suddenly have an alpha (at least a good one sorry AGAIN Derek) and that plotline is dropped. they're still being hunted, but that anxiety about being a good enough pack is gone. which is weird, right? wouldn't you want to increase that tension?
imagine if they didn't actually HAVE an alpha. They still consider each other pack, but that's not good enough for anyone but them. especially at the start of season four? no alpha, their former alpha has gone MISSING, they haven't told anyone, they have to go get him but every second any of them is away the more their town is in danger, and oh FUCK our former alpha is a TEENAGER NOW?? AND NOW HES BASICALLY NOT WVEN A WEREWOLF??? not only having to deal with the mercenaries and Kate but also other werewolves trying to nudge into their territory?)
#scott mccall#teen wolf#i want to like scott. and i do! I just think that the true alpha thing is OBJECTIVELY a bad choice for his character#stiles stilinski#derek hale#sterek#mieczyslaw stiles stilinski#mccall pack#anti scott mccall i guess#true alpha nonsense
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