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tooweirdforyou · 4 years ago

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How The OP Boys React To You Wearing Someone Else’s Jacket

A/N : hey! This is just something to make up for my lack of writing recently. Hope you enjoy!

Summary : a couple of the one piece boys react to you wearing someone else’s jacket instead of theirs. How could you? :>

includes ; Ace, Sabo, Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, law and Mihawk.

only Luffy’s ended up being a hc, the others are like super short scenarios lol. Well. Just dialogue mostly.

Luffy

Visibly confused when he notices.

Why are you wearing Law’s jacket over your shoulders? Today isn’t particularly cold, at least not for him.

He isn’t sure why, but he doesn’t like it.

Will not hesitate to confront you and ask you straight up.

“Oi, [Name]! Why are you wearing Law’s jacket?”

He has the biggest, sulky pout on his lips with his arms crossed and staring at you.

Weird thing is, Law hasn’t been around for a while so you must’ve had that jacket for quite some time if you’re wearing it.

“Luffy. It just feels warm and big on me, so I wore it. Plus, this way, I won’t forget to return it to him when we see him again!”

Luffy pouts further at your comment and sighs, clearly growing agitated the longer you wore it.

Since Luffy didn’t particularly had a jacket, he stripped off his shirt and tossed it at your face.

“Wear this instead! I don’t want you wearing Law’s jacket, you’ll smell like him!”

Zoro

Clear displeasure and irritation evident when he sees you walking out in an all too familiar jacket.

“Why the hell are you wearing that?”

Tugging on Sanji’s blazer securely, you shrug and continue what you were doing.

“It’s chilly out, and Sanji offered me his jacket. It’s warm.”

Hearing your excuse merely increased his annoyance. That chivalrous bastard.

“Well take it off. It looks horrible on you.” He bluntly comments and you roll your eyes at him. “I’m cold though!”

“Fine.”

And so, Zoro walks on over towards you and not giving a damn if he ripped the jacket as he pulls it off your body, he unties his (kimono?) and before you could react,

he is pulling you into his embrace, before tying back up with you inside and carried you over to the railing of the deck.

He plops down and sits with his back to the railing and you in his lap. “Now you won’t be cold.” He says, wrapping his arms around you and shut his eyes.

Sanji

“Hm? [Name]-chan, why are you wearing Luffy’s shirt?”

Absolutely shocked at the many thoughts running through his mind. You were wearing Luffy’s shirt,

The same one that he wears everyday?! And so, LUFFY IS WALKING AROUND SHIRTLESS BECAUSE YOU ARE WEARING HIS SHIRT?!

“Oh, I—“

“HOW DARE YOU LUFFY, YOU BASTARD! I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU, YOU STUPID RUBBER STRAW HAT!” Sanji cries out, completely lost and in tears. “HOW DARE YOU TAINT MY [NAME]-CHAN’S INNOCENCE LIKE THAT?!”

“Sanji! Relax! It’s not like that!”

You let out a breath as the chef finally relaxed, teary eyes and teardrops running down his cheeks. “*sniffles loudly* you sure?..”

“Of course I’m sure! Usopp, Luffy and I were just playing a game and I got wet. Luffy let me wear his shirt to cover myself while I changed.”

Sanji widens his eyes in realization and relaxes his shoulders, exhaling out in slight relief. “Oh.. I see..”

“Besides, I wouldn’t go for Luffy. I’d totally go for Zoro—“ before you could continue your tease, Sanji interrupts.

“YOU DUMBASS MARIMO!”

Law

“[Name]-ya. Why are you wearing that?”

Taking a second glance when you enter the room, he can feel confusion and his eyebrow twitching in irritation at the familiar sight.

“Actually, how the hell do you even have that?”

Glancing down at the large cape/jacket that had a faint smell of alcohol, metal and Kid’s common body scent, you shrug in response.

“I don’t actually know, but I found it and it’s comfortable so I’m keeping it! Eustass can find another one.”

Law rubs the bridge of his nose and heaves a heavy sigh. “Do you mind taking it off? I don’t need the smell of that metal head filling my ship.”

Obviously, he just despised seeing you in it.

Law definitely doesn’t want to be near you just to smell Kid’s scent, either.

“Whyyy, it’s comfortable and I’m feeling cold..” you whine and Law rolls his eyes. “Then take this.”

He grumbles under his breath and slips off his doctor’s coat and held it out for you, his other hand and attention focused on his paperwork.

He just wanted to see you in his jacket really, he was sure you’d look a hundred times better.

Excited, you immediately take off Kid’s coat and take Law’s, slipping it on and grin widely. “Smells just like you... and disinfectant.”

You laugh a bit and Law couldn’t help the curve of his lips at the sight of you.

You did look a lot better in his clothes.

Ace

“Baby, don’t tell me that’s still Sabo’s jacket you’re wearing..”

The fake betrayal and expression of pain and sadness lit his eyes and you felt just a pang of guilt.

“Maybe.. he offered it to me! I just came across him today and he didn’t want me to get cold.”

“Why didn’t you wear a jacket?”

Visibly sulky and pouty, and whining that you shouldn’t be wearing another man’s clothes, especially his brothers.

“I forgot! And besides, I would have taken yours but you don’t wear anything.” You hum, and Ace smirks lightly.

“Because it’s easier to get in the mood that way~” he jokes and you roll your eyes despite the giggle that slipped out.

“Besides, if you were cold, I am literally an actual body heater. Just cuddle and hug me if you’re cold!”

“Okay, okay! Let’s go and get some cuddles right now then.”

“I know another way I can warm you up instead~” Ace hums, immediately picking you up by the waist and taking you to the bedroom.

Sabo

When Sabo returns early from a small task, he finds you on the bed and in a particular someone’s jacket, confusing him.

“Hey, love. Is this Roronoa’s blazer? Why do you have it?”

You’re overjoyed seeing the blonde returning so soon, but a bit startled at his appearance and question.

“Oh, Zoro lent it to me! It was during Dressrosa, before we left after talking with his crew mates.”

“Why didn’t you just ask for mine?” Sabo pouts, frowning when he saw how adorable you looked in something that wasn’t his or technically yours.

“You were busy with explaining your backstory to them, I didn’t want to interrupt you.” You sheepishly say, seeing his pout and was quick to take off the jacket.

“But since you’re here, give me yours! It smells like you, so I want it!”

“You know I have plenty in the closet..” he mumbles, reluctantly taking his off with a sulk, hiding his secret smile. “So I’m just second choice?”

Of course, now he was just teasing you.

“Sabo!”

Mihawk

“Mi amor, tell me the reason for the red-haired’s coat around you.”

Mihawk’s expression is laced with displeasure and disappointment at the sight of it.

He is equally annoyed and irritated that you seem to have Shank’s smell lingering on you from his coat.

“When Shanks visited, he left his coat behind. It’s comfortable so I wore it.”

“Well, take it off. It’s an annoyance to see and smell. Throw it out.”

You could only sigh at Mihawk’s stern, yet toneless voice and follow his order, slipping the material off your shoulders and went to an open window.

“Wait.”

Mihawk pulls at his mini cross blade and swings twice, successfully cutting the fabric into pieces just as you released your hold on it.

“Was that necessary?..” you mumble, a slight smile and amusement playing on your face as Mihawk nods, shutting his golden eyes. “Of course.”

A/N : I was going to include Kid and Corazon but like, this was a lot already and this isn’t even that great in general, and I just wanted to post something :> hope you still like this!

Sorry if it seems rushed and not that great. I’m really out of my writing game lately. :/

#tooweirdforyou #one piece #one piece x reader #op x reader #x reader #op #one piece writing #luffy x reader #roronoa zoro x reader #zoro x reader #vinsmoke sanji x reader #trafalgar d. water law x reader #trafalgar law x reader #portgas d. ace x reader #ace x reader #one piece sabo x reader #chief of staff sabo #dracule mihawk x reader

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shiro-hatzuki · 3 years ago

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hi i've looked at es's commemorative art like 2000 times by now i want to rant about my beloved prison guard. es discussion below the cut (will probably include minor spoilers)

i find the gloves interesting in this piece. one hand is gloved and is holding a book; from various vds such as muu's vd, we know that es is into reading books about japanese law, so we can probably safely guess that the book might be related to law.

to me, this hand is like a representation of es's "prison guard" side. the glove appears to be a part of the prison guard uniform (assuming the girl on the cover of the upcoming light novel is different than es, we can see that many aspects of the uniform, including the gloves, are shared between them, confirming that this is a constant in milgram's warden uniform.)

this hand - this side of es - treats their role as both the warden and the judge of the prisoners very seriously, studying law as well as the prisoners.

but their other hand is ungloved (actually, the glove sits off to the side on the armrest of the chair), and is petting a relaxed jackalope.

for one, I FUCKING LOVE THIS IT'S SO SOFT AND CUTE AND JACKALOPE IS SUCH A CUTE BUN LOOK AT HIS LIL RESTING FACE- ahem.

anyhow, i found it incredibly endearing that es would take off their glove just to pet jackalope. like they're petting jackalope's clothes instead of his soft fur or playing with his floppy ears or anything, and while the fabric may be soft, it doesn't compare to fur, which is literally right there, available to be pet. there is no reason for es not be wearing gloves if they're just petting jackalope's clothes, yet they bothered to take off their gloves anyway just to pet jackalope's clothed back. to me, this represents a different side of es. a softer side of them in which they are not the warden, but just es.

actually, this whole piece encapsulates that latter vibe for me. this is es off from work, an es that might have been had they not been milgram's warden.

their signature cape, hat and even one of their gloves hang of the side of the chair. and that chair looks so much more comfortable than any of the strange seats they have taken, such as this one from undercover

or this seat that's been featured all over the place and they are sat in for pieces like this (from milgram's official fanart project)

or this scale from the milgram website's homepage, which must feel precarious to sit on.

(okay i did add that last one in partly as a joke but partly fr)

in fact, the only other time we've seen them sat in a comfortable-looking seat was in the beginning of "this is the milgram," when they first wake up and don't even remember who they are and don't really know that they are the warden until jackalope tells them they are.

i think how comfortable the seat is could represent just how deep into their role they are. they sit in uncomfy seats when they are working and comfy seats when they are just being 'es.'

so many other details show just how "off work" es is in the commemorative art. their soft expression instead of a hard or serious one you'll see in many other arts of them. the book being held beside their face in such a way that they can't read it. PETTING JACKALOPE I CANNOT GET OVER HOW CUTE IT IS!!!

of course, es is not completely off work here. they still are wearing some of the clothes of the warden uniform, and they are still holding the book, ready to lower it back to a good reading level and continue from where they left off. we are merely seeing a break, not them after they finished their job.

however, even with this break, i think this might provide some insight into what es might have been like if we didn't meet them as a warden. they might have been softer (and not compelled to beat up people, tho that's not guaranteed lol), and they might pet animals with caring hands, and they might like reclining in comfortable chairs while reading a book that interests them. i really like to think about what they could be if allowed to be a normal 15 yr old, and this very well could be a glimpse into that alternative es.

#this rants is also to hold me over until we hear more about the ln and/or its contents #i just really like the wardens what can i say #as much as i threaten to cook jackalope i love him too #milgram #ミルグラム #es #milgram es #jackalope #my stuff

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griffintail · 3 years ago

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Okay here’s the request I was thinking of - what if Karl, Mr. Time Travel himself, brings together all the children from all the timelines with all the different parents because his daughter from his own timeline is trapped in the Inbetween as punishment for Karl escaping to the other side, and what’s worse is that in his own timeline, the SMP members are beginning to forget she ever existed. He can’t go get her himself because the Inbetween knows all the tricks he’d pull since he was connected for such a long time. Just an idea, I’d love to see how the different readers with different parents would interact.

THIS WAS INSANE TO WRITE! It's also a lot longer than planned B) Hope you enjoy! Also! Someone tell me how the fuck I tag this XD Do I add all the parent pairings or not. Help??

The Many Faces of (Y/N)

Deals with Lost Ones Canon but this will not be canon and not everything mentioned is canon.

Warnings: Light angst, Minor Fight Scenes, Multiple Realities and Timelines, The Inbetween

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was rather quick, the process. Some fell in, some simply staggered forward, some simply stood. Yet, all confused.

One with an (F/C) bandana was the first to react, leaping onto her feet, having been one to fall, her eyes locking onto the one with a smiley mask on the side of her face, that gave the bandana wearer bad memories. The bandana brandished her sword and the mask wearer reacted with the pull of an axe.

“Who the hell are you!” She demanded to the mask.

“Who am I? Who the hell are you! Put that sword away before you hurt yourself.”

“Oh, fuck off bitch!” She snapped.

One wearing a cape pulled her sword slightly from its sheath as she looked at the two similar faces.

“Why don’t we all calm down?” The cape said.

“Not until she tells me who the fuck she is! Especially with that fucking mask!”

One in a fox jacket took a step back from the rising tension as one in a split black and white dress shifted nervously at the anger, too afraid to speak.

“Hey! Let’s calm ourselves!” A girl in a green hat stepped between the trio.

“Why the hell do you all look like me!” The bandana exclaimed.

“We all look like each other dumbass.” The cape said as she fully brought out her sword. “Now put. Your weapon. Away.”

The girl in the bandana clenched her jaw as she looked at the one in the mask, steeling herself before darting around the one in the hat and went for her.

“Fuck you!”

A girl with a tiara went to stop the girl attacking as one dressed in a pair of overalls yelped in surprise when another one wearing a L’Manberg uniform intercepted the attack. The L’Manberg uniform held a bow and shot the sword out of the bandana wearer's hand.

“Ladies, can we please use our words instead?” She asked, putting the bow on her back as she dusted her uniform off. “No need for such weapons.”

“FUCK OFF! This isn’t your problem!” The bandana wearer protested.

Tense stood between the similar-looking teenagers, all able to tell the difference between each other by only their clothing.

Karl stood, still trying to get a word in when the final girl a blue hoodie came over to him, tugging on his hoodie sleeve. He looked at her and she held a piece of blue to him smiling.

“You looked stressed. Here, have some blue. Calm yourself.”

He took the blue from her, some of his worries melting but not enough.

“Oh dear. You filled the blue. Are you alright?” She asked him.

“No, that’s why I need to talk to everyone,” Karl told her.

“Ok.” She nodded, simply walking in between the tension, everyone mildly shocked by her boldness. “Hi! I’m (Y/N). You guys look a lot like me and that’s pretty cool! But he wants to talk to us. It will make him feel better.”

She pointed at Karl and everyone still stared at her shocked for a moment before finally giving Karl their attention.

“Hello…Uh, sorry about all this. I needed help and I had nowhere else to go.” He said.

“Karl?” The mask wearer questioned, putting her axe away.

“Yes. I’m not…your Karls though.” He said as the bandana wearer picked up her sword, worrying him, but she sheathed it.

With her weapon away, the cape wearer put hers away as well as she spoke. “Our Karls?”

He nodded. “I’m Karl from my universe. This is a place outside all of our universes.”

The girl in the bandana went slightly crossed-eyed as the one in the fox jacket came forward.

“Great, magic and crap. Why are we here?” She asked.

“The thing that makes this all possible, the Inbetween, it took…it took my daughter from me as punishment. It knows all my tricks, so I needed to do something completely unpredictable, even by the Inbetween.”

“And bringing forward a bunch of…us, was your battle plan?” The L’Manberg uniform crossed her arms. “We’re the same person.”

“I mean, we’re not.” The tiara said. “Some of us immediately drew arms as some of us stayed calm or moved away. We’re all even dressed differently.”

“Wait, what’s different about our universes?” The bandana brought back to that subject.

“You all have different fathers. That’s the most defining factor I went for.” Karl said. “I couldn’t bring several of my daughter, that’d be predictable. But several of you…”

“That’s a multitude of different possibilities. We’re all bound to do something different.” Green hat nodded.

“Well, you got to be Phil’s kid, he’d only wear a hat that fucking stupid.” The bandana snorted.

“Hey!” The green hat snapped before crossing her arms. “And you must be Tommy’s, nobody has a mouth that bad.”

“Fuck you! My dad’s amazing.” She held up her nose.

“He’s my brother and he’s an idiot.” She said, the one wearing a cape and L’Manberg uniform snorting.

“You wanna go bitch!” She challenged, putting a hand on her sword handle.

“No more weapons. Let’s introduce ourselves civically.” The L’Manberg uniform said, putting a hand on Tommy’s child's shoulder. “I’m Wilbur’s child.”

“That’s ironic coming from Wilbur’s kid.” Tommy’s daughter muttered.

“What does that mean?” She frowned.

“Nothing.” The other scoffed.

“I’m Tubbo’s.” The girl in overalls stepped forward.

“I’m Fundy’s.” The fox jacket raised her hand, Tommy’s daughter snickering about a furry and getting a glare in return.

“I’m Ranboo’s.” The black and white dress piped up timidly.

“I’m Ghostbur’s!” The blue hoodie grinned, make Wilbur’s child frown.

“I’m Eret’s.” The tiara curtsied.

“I’m Techno’s.” The cape crossed her arms.

“I’m Dream’s.” The mask said last.

“Ew.” Tommy’s daughter scrunched up her nose.

“Fuck off brat.” She scoffed.

“Bitch!” The other went forward but Phil’s child grabbed the back of her shirt to stop her.

“I know all of you have different nicknames from your fathers.” Karl stepped in to stop another fight before it started. “If we used them, it would be easier to talk to each other since you’re all named (Y/N). I…I call my daughter little traveler.”

“My dad calls me little blue!” The blue hoodie smiled widely.

“My father calls me Little Blade or goddess.”

“Little angel.” The bucket hat let go of the pouting girl.

“Big (F/L)!” The girl grinned now, lying about the big part.

“Little star.”

“Little Boo or Enderman.”

“Kit.” The fox jacket answered, not saying her other names.

“Little lamb or bee, whichever you like.”

“Princess.”

The girl with the smiley mask frowned, crossing her arms slightly. She didn’t exactly want these people to call her sweetheart. She thought of nicknames, little flame, little muffin, little color, but none of those were from her dad…except one.

“Little terror.” She looked away.

“Great.” Karl nodded. “Now that you all have different names we can use, we can make a plan…I-I’ve been trying to get out of the Inbetween, stop my traveling as I was forgetting too much. It didn’t like that and took (Y/N). Now it seems everyone in my world is forgetting her…I need to get her back.”

“Where exactly is she being kept?” Star asked.

“What kind of enemies will there be?” Blade questioned.

“Is it possible to just sneak in?” Angel added.

“I don’t know exactly where she’s being kept, I just know she’s deep in the Inbetween. And, with it being a powerful entity, it can conjure any enemies it wants and can see just about anything. That’s where the unpredictable patterns come in.” Karl nodded.

“Right, well, then let’s go fuck some shit up.” (F/L) grinned.

“We can’t just run in.” Star rolled her eyes. “Raise your hands if you can fight.”

Everyone raised their hands besides Blue and Boo gave a halfhearted raise.

“What’s with you?” Star nodded at Boo.

“I just don’t like fighting unless I need to.” Boo shrugged.

“Well, you’ll need to here, and you. Why can’t you fight?” Star asked Blue.

Blue shifted a bit nervously now as (F/L) scoffed, earning Star’s attention.

“She’s fucking Ghostbur’s kid. She won’t even be able to look at a fight.” (F/L) said.

“Who the hell is Ghostbur?” Star crossed her arms now.

(F/L) opened her mouth then closed it, frowning. Star was Wilbur’s kid. Meaning, she knew Alivebur but wouldn’t know…(F/L) looked at Karl with a few others, who shifted nervously himself.

“You’re all from different time periods in the SMP, some with different courses.”

“Hold up! That’s why you’re wearing a L’Manberg uniform?!” (F/L) whipped around to Star.

“I hardly see why—”

“He…Did you see Pogtopia?”

“(F/L).” Blade warned slightly as she stepped over, seeing not only Star stiffen but Kit and Lamb as well.

“I-I did.” Star nodded.

“How’d it end?”

“(F/L),” Angel said as well now.

“No, I need to know.”

“We won. We went home, what about it?” Star crossed her arms and gripped onto them.

“Because L’Manberg is gone. Blown up, by Wilbur. Who’s now.” (F/L) pointed at Blue, who was fiddling with a piece of blue. “Ghostbur.”

“That’s…Dad would never resort to such tactics.” Star clenched her hands. “Now we have different things to discuss rather than your wild accusations.”

“Wild huh? He—” (F/L) went to continue.

She was just scared and upset with old thoughts and memories that felt like they were surrounding her. She just wanted to take her anger out and didn’t see how she upsetting others around her. Angel did though and grabbed the back of her shirt, pulling her back with enough force, making (F/L) fall on her ass.

“You’re upsetting everyone. So shut up.” She told her.

(F/L) gripped her hands but did indeed see a few unsettled and an upset face on Blue as she stared at the piece of blue in her hands.

“Where do we start?” Terror asked this time. “We have to start somewhere to look.”

“I can send all of you into the heart of it all but I can’t come with. All I can offer are notes.” Karl told them, holding out a journal, which Boo stepped forward to take.

“Because it can predict you.” Blade nodded.

“So, we’re going in there half blind?” Kit huffed.

“I don’t want to send any of you in there.” Karl defended. “But I…I have no other options past this. Please, I hate to ask this, but please help me get my little traveler back.”

(F/L) stood up and dusted herself off. “Sure, whatever, as long as I can fuck shit up.”

Blade gave her a sharp whack on the back of her head and she glared at her.

“Alright, well then…everyone willing, raise your hand.” Angel stepped forward.

Star raised her hand and following after was Terror. (F/L) and Blade raised their hands next as Blue followed suit. Kit sighed, before raising her hand as Lamb nodded raising her hand and Princess as well. Boo hesitated before raising her hand. Everyone was willing to help.

“Then we’re as ready as we’ll ever be.” Terror nodded.

“Ok, everyone, please be careful. I hope to see you soon.” Karl said as he closed his eyes before reciting a few words, creating a new portal.

The different versions of the teenager looked at each other before they each jumped in, Blue being the last as she waved a happy bye to Karl. The portal closed and Karl sighed. He hoped everyone would be alright…

All the girls stood in an empty room a few doors at their disposal, several of them resting hands on their weapons.

“Alright, where do we start?” Blade asked.

“Well, there’s no time like the present!” (F/L) said, going to a random door as Boo was looking through Karl’s book.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Lamb warned her, following quickly.

“We’ll be fine.” She opened the door and there was a normal-looking hallway. “See? Nothing to worry about. Now come on, we got shit to wreck. Treasure to possibly find.”

“How are we all the same person?” Star muttered, Lamb looking over at the others in question. “Come on.”

Everyone went to follow until Boo spoke up.

“Be careful. Karl says as soon as the Inbetween knows we’re here, it will try and trick us. Turn us around. We’re going to have to be careful.” She said as she looked at the others.

“Then let’s make as much ground as we can before it figures out.” Blade nodded.

Boo closed the book before everyone started making their way down the hall, (F/L) in front with a hand on her sword. The hallway was purely white with columns holding up the ceiling above them, a few plants held on tables but after that, there was nothing else. No doors leading anywhere.

“How do we know it doesn’t already know we’re here and we’re about to walk down this hallway endlessly?” Kit asked, frowning as she looked to Blue next to her as she just hummed happily.

“I suppose we won’t know unless we keep going.” Terror mumbled.

“Would you guys stop complaining? I have a great sense of direction and I know this is the right way.” (F/L) rolled her eyes.

It was another good five minutes of walking before they finally reached one door at the end of the hallway.

“Thank fuck.” (F/L) huffed before opening the door. “Oh, for the love of--!”

Inside was a square room with different openings. This time though, they could see inside various looking rooms.

“Where the hell do, we go?” (F/L) crossed her arms as everyone gathered into the square room.

“What happened to your great sense of direction?” Blade snorted.

“Fuck off.”

“You got anything back there, Ender?” Star looked at her.

“Not much,” Boo muttered as she flipped the page. “Just that the further we go in, the deeper we get in.”

“And Karl said his kid will be deep in.” Angel put her hands on her hips. “So, we need to go through as many rooms as possible before we’re caught.”

“So, no more five-minute hallways.” Terror smirked.

“We can still go bitch!” (F/L) threatened.

“Well, maybe we should go in the nicer-looking room,” Lamb suggested.

“No, we need one with a door close by,” Star said, looking through the various rooms, ranging from being outdoors to an actual room.

“The courtyard looks safest; we can see nothing’s there and the doors just across it.” Princess pointed out.

“Yeah, it looks like the best way.” Star nodded. “Come on.”

The group walked through the door and with ease, went into a wider hallway, following that once more down till they came to a new doorway. It was much of the same cycle, they’d go through door after door, trying to get deeper into dimensions they didn’t understand and where they had no concept of time. They didn’t do much exploring, wishing to complete the work given, though some like Kit and (F/L) were a little eager to grab anything shiny while Blue grabbed several blue things she spotted.

As they were walking down another hallway that had other corridors, that was currently leading to dead ends, Star quickly hid in one of the corridors as she was in the lead as she hissed;

“Hide!”

Everyone was quick to follow her, some in the corridor across from her and some with her, all except Blue. Terror grabbed her though and pulled her into the one across from Star. The girls all looked to see something they’ve never seen. A human figure made completely of metal, but not like armor. It was pure metal everywhere.

“Boo?” Star whispered to the girl on her side and she was frantically flipping through the book as she tried to figure out what they were looking at.

“I-I don’t know.” She whispered back.

Kit stared at the figure walking from all of them and saw a faint red glow within the metal.

“It’s blocking the next door.” (F/L) hissed to her group on the other side. “Let’s just kill it, it’s obviously a mob of…some sort.”

“And how do you want to do that?” Terror motioned to it. “It’s made of metal.”

“And redstone.” Kit muttered.

(F/L), Terror, Princess, and Blue looked at the girl. Kit took a deep breath.

“It’s running on redstone. See the faint glow? It’s being powered by it.”

“What the hell is that?” (F/L) looked at it with wide eyes as Star frowned over at the others, unable to hear what they were staying.

“You break the circuit,” Fundy told Kit as he brushed the redstone away from the piston he set up with his sword and the piston went down. “You take away the power.”

“We need it out of the way and if we break the circuit, it doesn’t have power. I got it.” Kit said before sneaking out.

Star motioned furiously in a panic to know what was going on as Kit silently came up behind the thing. Years of practice helped as she quietly pulled her sword, seeing a redstone connection on the thing’s neck exposed before she swung her sword. She froze when it turned suddenly and caught her sword, staring at her with glowing red eyes.

“Fuck.” Star hissed before coming out, bow drawn. “Kit duck!”

Kit let go of the sword and dropped before Star let an arrow fly and hit its mark where Kit had been aiming earlier. The glowing eyes faded into darkness and Kit took a deep breath but panicked as the thing came falling forward. Lamb came swooping in and pulled Kit out of the way as it crashed down with a loud thud.

“That was close.” Kit muttered.

“What the hell was that?” Blade asked.

“We needed to get past it.” (F/L) motioned as all the girls came out of their hallways. “Kit saw an opportunity and took it to help us.”

“We don’t even know what this thing is!” Star argued.

“Whatever the hell it is, it was powered by redstone.” Kit brushed herself off after Lamb helped her up. “We broke its circuit.”

“Redstone?” Terror tilted her head slightly as she looked at the thing of metal.

“I think everyone forgot.” Everyone looked at Angel. “We were spotted, so let’s go mates before the Inbetween knows where we are.”

“Right.” Star nodded. “Let’s get moving quickly.”

She took lead once again to the door and everyone followed, Kit putting a hand on (F/L)’s shoulder after she gathered her sword.

“Thanks.”

“It was a good plan.” (F/L) shrugged before the pair continued.

They all entered the room to find a wide, empty room with…

“No doors. Great, it knows we’re here.” Blade muttered.

Kit scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.

“It was always going to find us.” (F/L) said. “Now, let’s find the damn door. Boo said it would fuck with us, so there’s going to be a door.”

Everyone, but Boo who was continuing to read the little facts they had, split up into the room a few going along the walls and a few checking the floor, even Blue after some convincing. They had all had their fair share of secret rooms and knew different ways to find them.

“Karl calls that thing out there a robot,” Boo told the others as she traced a hand over Karl’s drawing. “Kit was right, it was being powered by a redstone block core. Breaking one part of the circuit shuts it down.”

Kit smiled to herself for being right as she continued to knock along the wall.

“Hey.” Princess call tapping her heel against the ground hard as she heard something hollow under the tile. “I think I found it. The tile is solid though.”

“I got it.” Terror took off her axe. “Everyone, back up.”

Everyone stepped back before Terror held her axe high then slammed it on the tile. A crack appeared and began to spider web. Terror stepped back to the group before the ground broke open into a new room.

“There could be anything down there.” Blade said gripping her sword hilt. “So, everyone be ready.”

With simultaneous nods from everyone but Boo and Blue, all the girls jumped down and landed on the floor below. The good news was they could see the door a bit a ways from their group, the bad news was the several soldiers from different eras in time that stood in front of them, outnumbering them.

“To the door!” Angel yelled before starting the sprint over, nobody arguing as they ran with her.

Now behind them, the soldiers gave a battle cry and charged. Boo put the book in her bag to pull off her shield with (F/L) and Lamb and the trio blocked arrows that came from a few archers. Star retaliated in their retreats with a few arrows of their own but the soldiers would fall to dust when her arrows would hit their marks.

“What the hell is this?!” Star shouted.

“Doesn’t matter! The door!” Blade told her.

Angel flung the door open and held it open to let everyone run in before slipping in herself and slamming it shut…the door disappearing. She took a moment to catch her breath.

“I hate this.” (F/L) muttered and Angel turned to look at a thin bridge to the next door.

“We have to go forward.” Star put her bow away.

“Fuck me.” Terror shook her head as she looked over to see nothing but Void. “Alright. Slow across. Here we go, ladies.”

Nothing happened in the room, everyone just going across the bridge slowly, one by one. There was fear the door behind them would reappear but it never did. From there, it became much of the same.

The Inbetween messed with them through every door. May it be scares of long drops or hordes of enemies they often ran from, they saw a lot, though it never discouraged them. They didn’t fear, they continued to work. They made it room from room, completed puzzle after puzzle, passed enemy after enemy. All of this was honestly nothing more than they’d seen before. Every one of them had seen their fair share of battles and traps. It was nothing more.

They all pulled their weight as well. Blade, Angel, and Terror were doing well with holding enemies off with their fighting skills. Boo was able to call out a few traps with the knowledge of the book she had made through after so many rooms. Star, Kit, Lamb, and Princess were excellent at solving puzzles. Blue was also wonderful moral support.

“We must have made it through hundreds of rooms by now.” (F/L) huffed as they came into a large white room.

“Ender only knows.” Terror muttered.

“Hey, that door is different.” Star pointed out.

It was true. Across the large room from them was a large, heavy-looking metal door.

“We have to be extremely deep in.” (F/L) reasoned. “So that’s where Traveler must be.”

“Yeah, but this is too easy. An empty room with the one door we need? It’s a trap.” Blade muttered.

“What room hasn’t been a trap?” (F/L) threw out. “Let’s go.”

She went forward and everyone shared a look before following after her carefully. Just as Blade suspected, goop moved along the floor as they took several steps in. Everyone froze, having never seen anything like this yet in the hundreds of rooms they had gone through. Weapons were drawn as the girls all lined up side by side, other than Blue and Boo, who were a step behind everyone.

This had to be the last trap before the end and they’d succeed so they could all go home.

They waited for the goop to do anything but the last thing they expected was for it to start to take human-like shapes and all girls were gripped by fear.

In front of Blade stood Quackity holding an axe with a wicked grin.

In front of Star stood Schlatt with a smirk and hands in his pockets.

In front of Angel stood Tubbo with a decree in his hand.

In front of Princess stood Dream with an axe as well.

In front of Kit stood another Dream with a crossbow.

In front of Terror stood a third Dream with his mask fully on and hands in his hoodie.

In front of Lamb stood Sapnap with a flint and steel.

In front of Boo stood Ranboo with two purple eyes.

In front of Blue stood Wilbur holding a stick of dynamite.

In front of (F/L) stood a final Dream smirking with two discs in his hand.

In front of each girl stood their worst fears.

Blade gripped onto her sword tighter as she felt smaller like she had the first time she saw Quackity as Star’s throat closed; no words available. Angel felt like the walls were closing in and she was stuck once more as Princess remembered all the meetings her father had with Dream. Kit remembered her father taking ten paces from Dream as Terror shook slightly staring at her father. Lamb heard the sounds of sparking fire as Boo saw a terrifying man looming over her and Blue heard the whispers of who her father really was.

(F/L)…(F/L) merely stared before she took a step forward and gripped onto her sword. The Dream in front of her frowned before going for a sword on his hip. (F/L) snarled before leaping forward and slashing through the Dream before he pulled his sword. The goop’s image broke as it moved back before turning into another Wilbur holding dynamite. (F/L) simply spun and sliced up. The goop turned into Tubbo in a president’s uniform and she sliced down once more.

The goop backed off a bit as (F/L) let out a breath.

“They’re not real. You’ve faced these fears before!” (F/L) told them. “It’s pulling from your past so you’re stronger now than these fears. So, FUCK ‘EM! KNOCK THEM DOWN!”

The goop in front of her turned into a dirty and beat-up Tommy and she screamed.

“FUCK YOU BASTARD!”

She struck again and it inspired the other girls. Blade rushed the Quackity, spinning out of the way of the axe, cape flying as she cut through him. Star pulled her bow with speed and fired through the Schlatt’s forehead. Angel knocked the decree out of Tubbo’s hand as she rushed him before cutting through him. Princess weaved through attacks by the Dream with elegance before striking him. Kit ducked and nimbly went past the second Dream’s arrows before managing to land a hit.

Terror gripped onto her axe before facing combat with the image of her father. Fires sprung up around Lamb as she sprinted but she managed through them before leading over one and landing her sword on its mark. Boo and Blue, however, were defenseless. Boo was taking steps back from the looming form of the enderwalked hybrid as Blue shook and held her ears as the Wilbur spoke to her as he got close to her.

“This is who I really am (Y/N), and you know it. You know everything! You remember. You can’t keep it all out!” The Wilbur mocked.

Star and Blade noticed and before the goop in front of either of them reformed they sprung into action. Star aimed her bow at the ender hybrid and fired. The hybrid teleported and then appeared in front of her. She startled before pulling another arrow and stabbing the hybrid in the side making it fall to goop. Blade rushed to the Wilbur and slashed him down before he lit the dynamite.

(F/L) just struck down a Technoblade when she heard the clashing of weapons then a scream. She looked back and saw Terror had lost to her fear. (F/L) clenched her jaw before she turned and rushed.

“SUCK THIS GREEN BOI!” (F/L) cried cutting down the Dream as he had raised his axe over Terror.

(F/L) let out heavy breaths before holding a hand out to Terror. Terror stared at her hand before taking it and (F/L) pulled her up.

“I don’t know what he did to you, but fuck him.” (F/L) told her as she looked to see both of their goop piles retreating and a few of the others’ goop as well after they struck down a few more fears.

“Thanks.” Terror muttered as Blade struck down an angry Fundy for Blue before that goop retreated.

“Whatever.” (F/L) mumbled before seeing all the goop was gone. “To the door now!”

She didn’t push though as everyone took deep breaths and regained steady footing. She’d faced the fears before but it still struck her core. Though she wouldn’t let it show. She had to be strong and it was how she helped greatly on this adventure with her determination to strike down her fears.

Blue was now clutching a piece of blue as she handed out a few pieces to the others. Everyone took one at the very least as they gathered themselves.

“Alright.” Star took out a breath. “Let’s go get Traveler.”

They all walked forward as one to the door, (F/L) tall in front. Shouldering the door open, as it was indeed heavy, they found themselves inside indeed a prison block. There were a few other strange creatures and people around in different cells but they had only one person to find. That’s where they spotted the heavily guarded cage where five guards stood armed with different weapons in front of the cage suspended in the air. Inside, on the floor, sat a girl in a multicolored hoodie similar to Karl’s.

“We found her, now what? We can’t exactly show up armed like this. They’ll get reinforcements by the hundreds if they know we made it to the end.” Kit pointed at the armed forces.

“You’re right, we need a distraction.” Star looked around.

“…Or we need someone unarmed.” (F/L) said before looking at Blue and Boo.

“Oh, you’re not serious.” Boo went slack.

“You guys aren’t a threat.” Terror reasoned. “Just enough time for the rest of us to flank them and keep them in one place.”

“I hate this,” Boo muttered. “Come on Blue. Let’s go make friends.”

Blue’s eyes lit up and grinned before rushing out, making Boo startle and race after her. The others split up and went on either side.

From the cage, Traveler looked up hearing all the talking going on below her, and stood as she saw a different version of herself in a blue hoodie and another in a black and white dress.

“Hi! I’m Blue! You want to be friends?” The blue hooded girl beamed as the black and white dress shifted nervously.

“This is all that’s left?” One of the guards laughed as they approached the two girls. “You have no weapons.”

“We-We’re not fighters,” Boo mumbled, taking the back of Blue’s hoodie to pull her back from the guard.

“Run! Get out of here!” Traveler shouted.

“One less problem to worry about then.” The approaching guard stopped and raised their weapon.

Boo stiffened as Traveler shouted shaking the bars of their cage when she went silent as an arrow pierced through the guard’s weapon and sent it crashing to the floor.

“I’ll have you find it’s not very appropriate to point a weapon at a lady.” Star notched a new arrow and pointed the bow at the guard. “Knees, now.”

One guard tried to run to get help only to find Angel in front of them with a shield.

“Hey mate.” She grinned before slamming the shield into them, knocking them out.

Blade rushed another guard and tripped them over and knocked them out with the hilt of her sword. (F/L) and Lamb corned one between them and Lamb knocked them out as well. Kit jumped on the back of the last one startling them and causing them to move forward where Princess simply tripped the guard, making them fall flat on their face, knocking them out cold. The last guard got on their knees as Star came over. She elbowed them in the back of the head and they fell over.

“I thought you were about words.” (F/L) joked.

“Fuck off child.”

“We’re the same age!!” She threw up her arms as Kit went over to the mechanism holding up Traveler’s cage.

“Who are all of you?” Traveler asked.

“You.” Most of the group answered.

“We’re you with different dads,” Boo answered more clearly.

“Really? Wow…” Traveler muttered. “Do you know where my dad is?”

“You’re in luck. He sent us. And he said you might be able to give us some sort of reward—”

Blade smacked (F/L) on the back of the head making her glare at her.

“Ignore her. He did send us to confuse the Inbetween and here we are.” Star said.

Kit let out a noise of victory before managing to lower the cage.

“Back up.” Terror instructed Traveler and she stepped back.

Terror struck the lock on the door with her axe and it shattered. Traveler came out grinning.

“Well, it’s a pleasure to meet all of you.”

They all gave various gestures of greeting before an alarm sounded. The group bunched up together, pulling out their weapons.

“We’re going to have to go through all those doors again,” Princess said.

“We might need to fight to the door.” Blade reasoned and Blue whimpered.

“No, we won’t.” Traveler told them. “Everyone, grab on to each other and someone hold onto me.”

Everyone shared a look but they had to trust themself they supposed. Star and (F/L) grabbed onto Traveler’s shoulders as everyone held onto one another. Hundreds of guards rushed to the girls as Traveler took a deep breath then closed her eyes. She mumbled words under her breath, none of the girls understood as she also made several hand gestures. Wind picked up around them, actually pushing guards back before Traveler shouted incoherent words to everyone else before clapping her hands.

A thunderous sound echoed out before everyone stumbled and fell.

“(Y/N)!” Karl shouted with delight as he rushed over and pulled his daughter into his arms. “You’re ok. You’re back!”

He laughed as he hugged her tightly as Traveler gave a tired laugh herself.

“Hey, dad. Yeah…I got us all home.”

“Thank Ender you’re ok my little traveler.” Karl let out a breath of relief before looking at the other versions of his daughter, getting up. “Thank you, all of you.”

“It was nothing.” (F/L) waved her hand. “It was easy.”

There were various eye rolls as Karl smiled at (F/L)’s statement before he stood up.

“It was a lot,” Star admitted. “But we all pulled our own weights and even Traveler saved us in the end, using something to get us right back here rather than going through those doors once more.”

Karl smiled at Traveler, who still sat on the ground, and waved her hand.

“It was nothing.” She mumbled.

“She won’t have energy for a while but I’m glad you all got out safely. I’m very proud of little traveler and all of you. And now, I’ll send you home.”

“Right, home. As weird as it is to see…well myself. I might actually miss you guys.” (F/L) admitted. “You guys are ok.”

Terror gave a snort. “Thanks (F/L). But I’ll miss all of you too. All of your personalities are kind of refreshing…”

“When are we even going to appear at our homes, Karl?” Lamb asked.

“You’ll appear a few moments after you left,” Karl answered.

“So, it will be like nothing ever happened.” Blade said.

“Will we remember?” Boo questioned.

“I…debated not letting anyone remember, even myself.” That made everyone’s eyes go wide. “But I think it would be kinder to let everyone remember that wants to.”

“Hell, yeah I want to.” (F/L) declared.

“You just can’t tell anyone about it, only your Karl’s.” Karl finished.

It weighed on a few of the group as (F/L) nodded.

“I’m fine with that.”

“I’m pretty good with secrets, so I want to remember.” Terror agreed.

“It was…an interesting experience. I don’t want to soon forget it.” Star said.

“I learned a few things I’d like to keep.” Blade nodded.

“Ah, why the hell not remember mate?” Angel shrugged.

“It wasn’t something you see every day so I wish to remember it to learn.” Princess put her hands behind her back.

“It was pretty cool at some points, so let’s remember.” Lamb declared.

“I learned a few things I could use at home so I need to remember.” Kit grinned.

“I made friends and I don’t want to forget them!” Blue smiled brightly.

“I guess if everyone else is going to remember, I’d be like my dad and be the only one to forget if I said yes to forgetting. So, I think I’ll pass on forgetting and remember.” Boo decided.

“Then, everyone can go home and they’ll remember everything they saw. You just have to keep it to yourselves and your Karl.”

“And hey, if you ever need us again. You can give us a call and we’ll kick the Inbetween’s ass!” (F/L) smirked.

Karl chuckled before nodding. “I’ll remember that. For now.”

Karl took out a book, reciting words from its pages before ten portals opened, each one leading to where each girl had last been moments before.

“Everyone go home to your families,” Karl told them.

“Well…Peace out bitches!” (F/L) saluted to them before diving into her portal with a scream and it closed.

“Ender, she’s just like Tommy,” Star muttered before giving a bow. “Goodbye.”

And she stepped through her portal and disappeared.

“Good luck.” Blade waved and left.

“Till we meet again.” Terror adjusted her mask as she went in.

“Bye friends!” Blue grinned before falling through her portal.

“To new friendships.” Angel nodded.

“To new friendships.” Kit agreed before they stepped through their separate ones.

“To new adventures.” Princess shrugged as she went through.

“My Karl better be ready for a long talk.” Lamb stepped through as Karl laughed.

“To new memories.” Boo went to step through but stopped. “Ah! Your book. Here, I added a few notes myself so you know about everything in there.”

Karl took the book from the girl in the black and white dress. The girl waved before stepping through her portal. He opened it as he sat next to his (Y/N). Inside was pristine handwriting noting down several pages of things about the Inbetween that Karl didn’t know. Alongside it was notes about the others like (F/L)’s and Blade’s different fighting styles or Princess’ elegance as she moved through enemies.

“I’m pretty cool where ever I’m from.” Traveler smiled tiredly.

Karl chuckled as he hugged her tightly and kissing the top of her head. “Yes, you are my little traveler. Let’s finally get you home…”

Karl had her and herselves to thank from her own safe return. He’d be forever grateful.

#mcyt fanfiction #mcyt reader insert #mcyt imagine #mcyt x reader #dreamsmp x reader

287 notes · View notes

archived-kin · 4 years ago

Text

you are hopelessly in love with one (1) librarian

note from kin: i’m (kinda) back baby!!!!!

i thought i’d start with something for myself to get back into the ~groove~ so i chose lisa since i love her so much

in this one you’re venti’s accompanist bard buddy and play the flute! whether or not you’re a vision-holder isn’t mentioned but i like to imagine that venti gives you an anemo vision after the two of you bond as fellow musicians (though of course you don’t know it’s him who gave you it, you basically just woke up one night after a performance and found it in your pocket)

fandom: genshin impact

character(s): gn!reader, lisa, kaeya, venti, razor

pairing(s): lisa/reader (+ some wholesome best friend venti content)

warning(s): none!

genre: fluff

“She’s so pretty,” You groan into the table. “I’m going to die.”

“You probably shouldn’t,” Kaeya replies through a mouthful of hash brown. “Your bard friends would be rather sad without their favourite Buoyant Balladeer.”

“What difference is it going to make?” You raise your head and stare at him with soulless eyes. “My life has no meaning anyway.”

“Oh, now you’re just being dramatic.” Kaeya slaps your shoulder so hard that you swear you feel your bones dislocate. “Cheer up.”

You groan, but sit up and take the hash brown he offers you anyway. “Thanks.”

“No problem,” He responds, already shoving another one into his mouth and beginning to chew.

You let out a heavy sigh and begin to nibble miserably on your own hash brown. “Sorry about all this. I probably sound like an idiot.”

“Don’t worry about it,” He reaches over and gives your hair a playful ruffle. “And you don’t sound like an idiot. Lisa’s a very beautiful lady, after all.”

You raise your head in a snap, glaring at your friend through narrow eyes. “Hey, watch it.”

“I’m uninterested, not blind. Calm down.” He flicks you in the head with a chuckle. Raising his eyes to the sky, he gives a content sigh, as if the sun that he appears to be staring directly into isn’t burning his eye. “You know, a sky like this really calls for a nice glass of dandelion wine…”

“You have beyond enough problems to deal with right now without becoming a day drinker as well,” You shoot back. “Don’t you still have a report to file about those Treasure Hoarders over in Windrise?”

“Oh, that’s taken care of,” He says dismissively, taking a sip from his cup of water. “All dealt with.”

“Careful, Mr Kaeya,” comes a familiar honey-sweet voice from somewhere behind you, and you immediately tense. “Lying is a sin.”

“Miss Lisa!” laughs your blue-haired companion as the librarian pulls up a seat at your table, leaning forward and resting her chin on a single gloved hand. It’s an innocent motion by all means, but it still makes your heart skip a beat. “So kind of you to join us. What brings you here?”

“I simply saw two familiar faces while out on a stroll,” She smiles, stealing Kaeya’s mug and taking a sip of his Wolfhook juice. “How have we all been doing?”

“I-I’m doing great,” You quickly reply as her eyes land on you, unable to form a more intelligent response under her clear green-eyed gaze.

Much better now that you’re here, you add silently as she turns her attention to Kaeya, sliding his mug back over to him with such ease that you get the impression she does this a lot.

Kaeya himself either hasn’t noticed Lisa stealing his drink or doesn’t care, since he promptly curls his fingers back around the tankard and takes a long drink without any indication that he’s noticed anything out of the norm.

“Craving some wine, but I suppose I’m fine,” He sighs, tilting his head slightly to the side and swirling the contents of his mug around. “[Name] here says I shouldn’t be drinking during daylight.”

“And [Name] is very right,” Lisa shakes her head, the little rose accessory on the end of her hat tinkling with the motion. You can’t help but silently compare the sound to the ringing of heaven’s bells. Curse your stupidly romantic heart. “You drink more than enough in the evenings.”

“Then what of you?” Kaeya counters, smirking playfully. “I know for a fact that you can drink most of Angel’s Share’s patrons under the table within a single night.”

“Perhaps so, but I spend far less nights in front of the bar than you do.”

You stare determinedly down into the bottom of your water tankard as Lisa and Kaeya continue their little back-and-forth, feeling an odd sensation tugging at the pit of your stomach. What is this? Anger? Jealousy?

Tapping your fingers agitatedly on the tabletop, you kick yourself firmly in the shin. You’re being ridiculous. Kaeya knows just how head-over-heels you are for the Witch of Purple Rose, and even if he is a sneaky little snake who swaps around the chess pieces when he thinks you’re not looking, you know that he’d never do something like… that to you. Besides, you know full well that, even if they’re close friends, they don’t harbour any romantic feelings for each other.

As the songs say, though, jealousy is a green-eyed demon that will listen to irrationality over reason any day, and so you can’t help but glare subtle holes into the side of Kaeya’s head as he continues to converse with the object of your affections as if you’re not even there.

“... I jest, I jest,” He laughs, waving his hand about as Lisa giggles into her glove. “Anyway, as I was saying to our friend here earlier - the weather’s been beautiful recently, hasn’t it?”

You raise your eyebrows at him, a signal that Kaeya clearly sees and pointedly ignores. The both of you know that the weather was far from what you had been conversing about earlier, but you’re glad that Kaeya isn’t giving you away, at the very least.

“Quite,” Lisa agrees, tossing a lock of hair out of her face in a way that knocks all the breath out of your lungs. “Pleasant weather for a stroll around Starsnatch Cliff, wouldn’t you say, [Name]?”

You jolt in your seat and heat up so abruptly that you wouldn’t be surprised if you started smoking. Kaeya sniggers not-so-subtly into his hand as you hurriedly stutter, “U-uh, yeah, totally!”

“Is that an invitation?” Kaeya raises an eyebrow with a coy smirk, and you’ve never wanted to punch him more than you do at this moment. “I’m sure [Name] would be glad to accompany you.”

“Ah, I couldn't impose myself like that,” Lisa shakes her head, and you want to cry because if only you weren’t such a coward you could tell her that she’d never be imposing on you. “Razor could do with some new scenery for his training. I might as well show him the sights.”

“How is training with your protégé going, then?” Kaeya asks. “He seems to have become quite the loyal little wolf since you first took him under your wing.”

“Oh, he’s an absolute darling,” Lisa says breezily. “He still isn’t very verbal, unfortunately, but he’s learning to communicate like a star. And he’s becoming a dab hand at using his Vision more effectively, too.”

“Sounds like you’re a wonderful teacher, then,” Kaeya compliments, then gives you a side-eyed look. “Wouldn’t you agree, [Name]?”

You nod vigorously. “Absolutely!”

“You flatter me,” Lisa sighs, “But a good teacher is nothing without a bright and willing student.”

Kaeya gives you a subtle dig in the side, and you hurriedly go to reply. “H-hey, give yourself some credit. Razor never would have been able to open up so much without you.”

“You’re too kind, darling.” She gives you a brilliant smile, and you very nearly pass out on the spot, but Kaeya helpfully keeps you conscious by stomping hard on your left foot like the little shit he is. You’ll have to get him back for that later - when your heart rate isn’t so rapid that it feels like you might just ascend to Celestia any minute now.

Lisa doesn’t stay for long after that, conversing with Kaeya for another five minutes or so while you stew in your own flustered chagrin and silently continue to freak out over just how… perfect she is. It’s honestly ridiculous. How is she even human? How are you worthy of even being in her presence?

“Well,” Kaeya says as Lisa disappears back down the street, presumably to return to her place in the office. “That went well.”

You glare at him. “You think?”

“You spoke to her, didn’t you?” He counters, grinning cheekily. “That’s a start.”

You open your mouth to give him a grumpy response, then give up and slump forward on the table again. “I hate you.”

“No, you don’t,” He hums, draining the last of his Wolfhook juice and setting the mug down with a sharp thunk. “Anyway, shouldn’t you be preparing for your performance tonight? You should probably go find your partner.”

“Our friend Kaeya is very right,” calls an all-too-familiar figure from atop a nearby roof. “You’re late.”

If it had been any other occasion, you might have jumped, but right now you’re too emotionally exhausted to do anything but let out a long, tired sigh. Ignoring Kaeya’s evil little cackle, you look up and turn to see Venti grinning down at you. “Bard.”

“Accompanist,” He imitates your monotone address, hopping down from the roof and landing softly on the pavement without so much as a click of his shoes. Flicking out his cape, he sets his hands on his hips and offers you his usual cheeky grin. “What’s got you so gloomy?”

“Nothing,” You reply, standing up and dusting off the front of your clothes. “Let’s go.”

Venti doesn’t move. He raises a single, suspiciously perfectly-shaped eyebrow, cocking his head to the side, then looks to Kaeya, who not-so-subtly mouths something at him. You pretend not to notice his obvious hand gestures in the corner of your eye.

“Ah,” Venti says suddenly, his expression taking on a mock-wise air. “Love troubles once again, I presume. Is our dear [Name] still ailed by a paralysing infatuation with one Miss Lisa?”

Kaeya claps enthusiastically, as if he isn’t the one who basically just told Venti the whole story through poorly-done charades. “Correct! I keep telling them to make a move, you know, but they’re too much of a coward.”

You aim a kick at his shin under the table that he dodges easily. “I’m not a coward! I’m just… gauging the territory.”

“You’ve been ‘gauging the territory’ for months now,” Venti whines, holding his fists in front of his chest and giving you the widest-eye look he can muster. “Come on! The eagle that never dives will never catch its prey, after all!”

“Lisa isn’t prey,” You counter. “And I’m not an eagle.”

“Hopeless is what you are,” comments Kaeya, leaning back in his chair and toying absently with a lock of his hair. “Hmmm, why don’t you write her a song? That’s your strong suit, isn’t it?”

“A song?!” You practically combust right there and then - if you’d been a Pyro Vision holder, you have no doubt that you’d have erupted into a column of flame on the spot. “No way!”

“I think that’s a splendid idea!” Venti exclaims, hopping up and down excitedly on the spot, hat threatening to fly off his head all the while. “You write the lyrics and melody, we compose the instrumental part together, and I’ll sing it for you! We’ll be an absolutely unresistable duo!”

“Easy there,” Kaeya teases, holding up a hand. “Our friend here is the one trying to win Lisa’s affections, after all.”

“Then I’ll be sure to try to direct as much of the spotlight to them as possible,” Venti replies, completely unaffected by Kaeya’s attempt to fluster him. You wish you had his coolheadedness sometimes. “C’mon, [Name], what do you say?”

“I said no!” You holler as he jumps energetically up at you like an over-excited puppy. “No way! There’s no way I’m going to just— broadcast my feelings like that!”

“You won’t be,” Kaeya explains, infuriatingly calm in the face of your explosive embarrassment. “Write the song so that only Lisa would be able to understand the true feelings behind it. It shouldn’t be difficult - you’re the master lyricist, after all.”

“Plus you have me to help as well,” Venti chimes in, holding up a single, proud finger. “The Windborne Bard himself - with me by your side, you can’t possibly fail!”

“Look—” You sink back into your seat and hunch forward, burying your face into your hands. A moment later, you raise your head again to see Venti giving you a concerned look. “I appreciate it, I really do, but… I can’t.”

“Of course you can,” Kaeya says unhelpfully, giving you a hearty slap on the back that is also unhelpful in every way. “You’ve performed all over Teyvat - this would be a small feat in comparison.”

“You aren’t helping, Master Kaeya,” Venti says, not-so-subtly elbowing Kaeya in the side. “We need to be cautious here. Like coaxing a young hatchling to fly the nest… we must take baby steps.”

“No baby steps!” You protest, leaning away as he takes a threatening step closer. “No steps at all!”

“Surely writing a subtle confessional song would be much easier than playing an intricate ballad in front of some of the most influential figures of Liyue?” Kaeya doesn’t show any signs of relenting. “Archons above, [Name], it seems that you’ve channelled all of your courage to entirely the wrong places.”

You drop your head into your hands again and glare at him through the cracks between your fingers. “Kaeya, I’d die for you any day, but for the love of the Archons, please shut up.”

He shrugs and obligingly places his finger over his lips, but you can clearly see him hiding a laugh behind it.

Venti hums, leaning over and giving your shoulder a comforting rub as you sigh miserably into your hands. “Hey, relax. I’m not going to drag you out on stage and force you to confess in song, much as I’m tempted to. If you don’t want to do it, we don’t have to.”

You ignore that middle part and choose to focus on Venti’s earnest attempt at consolation. “...thanks.”

“No need to thank me!” He winks playfully and gives your knees a firm pat. “Now come on! Confession or not, we still have a performance to practise for!”

You sigh and smile. “...sure.”

Leaving Kaeya to pay the lunch bill in retaliation for his teasing, you and Venti head off to your usual practice spot in the gardens outside the Cathedral. There’s some debate over who gets to wear the ‘Star of the Show’ Windwheel Aster pin today, but Venti relents quickly and gives you an easy win. You’re pretty sure it’s out of pity for your romantic plight, but you don’t care. The pin looks a lot nicer fastened on the lapel of your coat, anyway - the colour doesn’t match Venti’s cloak at all.

“So what’s the quota for tonight?” Venti asks, giving his lyre an absent-minded strum. “Celestial Destiny on repeat once more, I presume.”

“Shut up,” You groan, flipping open the latches of your instrument case and carefully lifting out your flute. “I’ve just been… lacking inspiration.”

“What you’ve been lacking is emotional fulfilment,” Venti sighs, reaching over and flicking you in the side of the head. “All you do is wander around Mondstadt, practise, and perform. Surely you could compose something flavourful if you had a little more excitement in your life.”

“I have excitement enough just as I am,” You bring your flute to your mouth. “Now shut up and start practising.”

Venti huffs, but begins strumming the opening chords anyway.

The two of you work your way steadily through your usual repertoire for the next hour or so. It goes smoothly as always - you’ve performed these pieces so many times that you could probably play them in your sleep - but you can’t help but feel like something is missing throughout the entire practice. Venti seems to be fully aware of it as well - rather than closing his eyes and swaying along to the music like usual, he just keeps glancing at you when he thinks you aren’t looking, wearing that frown that says ‘I know exactly what’s going on here but I don’t know if I should bring it up’.

Finally, he has enough, abruptly stopping his strumming in the middle of Early Dawn and setting his lyre down on the bench with a huff. “Alright, that’s it!”

You lower your flute and stare at him blankly as he stands and turns to glare at you, hands set firmly on his hips like a scolding parent. “You’re far too dismal! What happened to the Buoyant Balladeer? There’s no breeze in your playing at all!”

“I’m sorry if my heart is too heavy to play as light as the wind,” You retort, setting your flute back in its case. “I’m afraid I’m a little preoccupied.”

Venti looks at you with a furrowed brow as you shut the case with a harsh snap. After a moment, his voice much softer, he asks, “Are you alright?”

You hesitate for a moment. “...yes.”

He raises an eyebrow at you and doesn’t say anything else. After a pause, you groan and concede. “Alright, I’m miserable, so what? Let’s just get on with it.”

“We are most certainly not getting on with it,” He shoots back, turning to face you directly and crossing his arms stubbornly across his chest. “I can’t have my dear [Name] walking around with such a heavy heart. Come on, talk to me. What is it that weighs you down so?”

You stare at him for a long moment. He looks back at you almost unblinkingly, and try as you might to turn away and dismiss him again, there’s something about his wide green eyes that just compels you to tell the truth.

“I’m...afraid.” You say quietly. “It’s such a cliche thing to say, but I’ve really never felt this way before. I don’t… I don’t know how to deal with it.”

Venti smiles reassuringly. “There’s nothing wrong with that. First loves are always scary.”

“I understand that, but…” You bury your face in your hands and groan. “...she’s just so perfect and I’m just so me and it just feels like it’d never work out.”

“Hey, I don’t like that tone!” He scolds lightly, reaching out and flicking you in the cheek. “No talking bad about yourself. Besides, who says it’d never work out? As far as we know, your feelings are mutual.”

“I seriously doubt that,” You sigh, raising your head once again.

Venti raises an eyebrow. “Have you ever asked?”

You’re quiet for another few moments. “...no…”

“Then how do you know what her answer will be?” He asks. “Why assume that it’ll be no?”

You open your mouth to respond, but something suddenly compels you to look over to the town square. Venti goes quiet beside you as you see Lisa, standing beneath the Anemo Archon statue with Razor beside her. She seems to be explaining something to him.

Razor seems to feel your gaze almost as soon as it lands on him and his mentor. His hair bristles, and he abruptly whips around to look at you, but as soon as he sees you, he seems to relax. He lifts a gloved hand to send you a brief wave; you hesitantly return it.

He turns around and tugs on Lisa’s sleeve; she pauses and turns around to follow his pointing finger. You hold your breath as your eyes meet hers.

She raises her hand, and there’s no mistaking it - she’s smiling. An eternity seems to pass within those few seconds of eye contact, and for once your heart isn’t beating in your throat, your breaths aren’t becoming shallow and uneven, you aren’t heating up and boiling over. Instead, you feel a kind of pleasant warmth well up inside you, and you can’t help but beam and wave back.

Lisa looks at you for another moment, smiles once more, then turns around and begins walking away, gently tapping Razor’s shoulder as she goes. He glances back between you and his teacher, then turns around and follows behind her.

A long silence stretches between you and Venti.

You take a deep breath and turn to look at him, and he immediately grins. Somehow, you get the feeling that he knows what you're going to say.

“I need you to help me write a love song.”

#unedited #genshin impact #genshin impact imagines #genshin impact x reader #genshin lisa #genshin kaeya #genshin venti #genshin razor #lisa x reader #venti & reader #best friend venti we love to see it #fluff #pining #kaeya & reader #oh also I GOT VENTI Y'ALL #currently trying to build him but i'm losing my mind trying to get good vv artis :')#btw if you haven't try switching the vo language to chinese #venti and kaeya both sound great

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toomanythought · 4 years ago

Text

A critique of the magic knight captain's outfits because that's the kind of mood I'm in.

1. Charlotte

I've decided that she has the best outfit of anyone here.

She's got several colors going on, but most of them are neutral so It's ok

Blue and silver with gold accents isn't really a color scheme you can go wrong with

Could use a little more armor, but overall a rather practical look

Could stand to loose the helmet but overall not bad

10/10 something I would wear

2. Dorothy

I'm loving the energy of the pink in this one.

Honestly very pretty aesthetic

Not a lot going on, pretty much only pink w/ some black and white accents (There are two different shades of pink but that's ok because they're in separate pieces and nothing else is going on)

The green on her hat really helps make the pink less overwhelming, a great choice

Minus points because those shorts look a little bit like underwear and her boots should probably be black.

9/10 wouldn't wear it but I'd recommend a friend

3. The Vermilions:

It's pretty much the exact same outfit but Mereoleona wears it so much better.

The red and orange is kind of a bad combo, and I thought it was basic knowledge that redheads should avoid wearing red

The blue does work to cut this a bit though, so it's not as overwhelming as it could be

Kinda iffy on the pink sash. It really should match the cape by outfit laws, but I think that would put too much red in the entire thing

Fuegoleon you're pretty but that outfit really isn't doing it for you. Minus points for the lack of titty window. In the future show more skin. 6/10

Like I said, it's basically the same outfit, but Mereoleona wears it with a very different energy and manages to make it look good. I get pirate queen vibes. 8.5/10

Overall 7/10; I might wear elements of it.

4. Rill

The clothing needs a different style/cut but the colors are decent.

His cape doesn't class with his hair, and he's got the light colors well balanced with the dark

He looks like he's outgrown his pants though

Like seriously

They're a bit too short to be wearing without boots

And at least wear some socks to cover it up

Gonna give him the benefit of the doubt and say he hit a growth spirt and Walter hasn't had time to let out the hems

Shoes make me think of Tinker belle

6/10 I like the colors but he really needs different pants, and maybe shoes

5. Yami

Surprisingly not the worst but I am not without criticism.

He's got an aesthetic going that allows him to get away with a bit

As an outfit it's ok, but there's a distinct lack of professionalism going on

Sir are you really going to wear nothing but a tank top 24/7?

Also the over pant thingies make it look like he's wet himself

I like the creativity with the squad robe. No one else wears it like that

His outfit was better when he was with the Grey Deer

Can' figure out what's up with those boots

5/10. I'd never recommend wearing it but it's got a practicality to it.

6. Nozel

My dude you're rich enough to afford a stylist.

We're not even talking about the hair at this point, there are so many things that need straightened out

The ocean/teal blue he's got going on does not work with the periwinkle.

Also what's up with the pant leg cut outs. I really fail to understand the practicality of them

Why are there sandals

We are fighting people

Please wear close toed shoes

Also feathers and fur? Get it together my dude

While we're at it the feathers are kinda ugly in arrangement

3/10 I feel like someone failed to successfully merge two different outfits together.

7. Kaiser

I don't have a lot to say. It's pretty bland.

Very shapeless and fluffy

I'm honestly getting hot just looking at it

Aside from the buttons + gloves and squad robe, there's not much going on

I don't have many critiques of the squad robe. It's purple and yellow. Nothing too horrible.

5/10. Very generic and boring. Don't like at all but it's hard to come up with concrete bad things

8. Jack

Sir do you understand the purpose of clothes

It looks like an armored outfit so you get practicality points

What is up with all the leather straps

They literally serve no purpose

Please put on a proper shirt that covers your midriff

The pants/shoes combo is kinda sketchy

He needs to have either the black or the green running all the way up

Bracelets?

2/10. It's just... ugly

9. William

Sir I know your life sucks but please learn how to dress yourself. Your squad wears the uniform too and you aren't doing them any favors.

Feathers and fluff. Are you a bird dude? Is that your magic? No. It's trees. I know you like birds but you don't need to look like one

Please don't get me started on the colors

For posterity's sake I will now list every color contained within this outfit:

White

Gold

Red

Dark Red

Tan? Light gold?

Dark blue

Lighter blue (but only in one place and it's not touching the dark blue)

Purple. Because this outfit needed some more pizzazz.

White

Black

Get some pink and green and you'll be representing all the squads with ease

The style and cut is actually pretty good but the colors are beyond horrid

He tells Julius that the mask is tacky and then continues to wear it

And also match the rest of his clothing to it

He should have kept the mask as a statement piece and kept the outfit as one or two colors.

Honestly a very in character outfit because it demonstrates his inability to choose a side

3/10 I guess. I like some things about it but there's just too much going on. Bad overall outfit. Needs help desperately. Ask Mimosa. I have a feeling she realized it was bad.

#no hate i love all of them #they just make questionable decisions regarding clothing #william please sort yourself out #also fuegoleon you could be doing so much better #black clover #yami sukehiro #william vangeance #charlotte roselei #dorothy unsworth #rill boismortier #fuegoleon vermillion #mereoleona vermillion #kaiser granvorka #nozel silva #jack the ripper (bc)#cloverian clothes

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the-lady-writes-what · 4 years ago

Text

Swing

1920′s Gangster AU

You're working one night at the club, singing on stage, when you catch the eye of dangerous yet handsome man. You can't help yourself when he sweeps your off your feet for the night and shows you more pleasure than you ever imagined.

Content: one instance of hair pulling and spanking, doggie style, voyeurism (if you squint), praise, a hint of fluff

---080---

The air was choked by cigarette smoke, cheap booze, and lilac perfume. The syrupy-sweet fragrance stung the most. It was like huffing a can of hairspray that faintly smelled like flowers. You put up with the perfume and cloying cigarette smoke and a myriad of other things because of one vital thing. Money. You needed it. There was no other way to survive. In the world of bootleggers, gangsters, and smugglers, you were just a girl with a mic and love of music. You worked hard to earn your current position, starting from the bottom as one of those cigar girls parading around the club. It wasn't easy, either. If the boss hadn't just so happened to hear you singing to yourself as you helped clear out the dishes in the kitchen, you wouldn't be getting ready to go on stage.

The stage was a simple affair built with just enough space for you, a piano, and several sax and clarinet players. Your spotlights were dingy yellowish beams with only enough power to shine on one person on stage. Considering you were typically the prettiest thing on stage, the spotlight always shined on you. The curtains were still tied off either because nobody wanted to bother giving you the special entrance of a dramatically raised curtain. Besides, the curtains were little more than glorified rugs hung from the rafters. They smelled of dust and old cigar smoke, and you had to concentrate on not sneezing through your whole set.

You looked out from around the stage, but could hardly see anything through the haze of smoke. Nobody seemed to care or notice the clouds of cigarette smoke. Glasses clinked with boot-legged alcohol and laughter resounded in the air. Small tongues of the fire flickered in and out of the smoke, and another cigarette was sparked into life. You scrunched your nose up at the smell and looked down at your dress. Though it was a new number in your favorite color, you hated that it was coming home with your smelling of the club, and you couldn't afford dry cleaning. You berated yourself for not keeping it at home and wear a dress that you didn't mind smelling like cheap booze and cigar smoke. Oh well, too late now.

Your boss Toshinori complimented your 'wise' choice at the clingy chiffon that hugged your curves. He didn't say that in so many words, but you knew what he was thinking. At first, your brows furrowed at his words. Toshinori sweated up a storm and wiped his forehead with his handkerchief. When you asked what the matter was, his face turned white as a sheet. Toshinori refused to say at first, however threatening to not go on stage made him reconsider. After your boss explained the situation, you wished that you hadn't asked in the first place. Now, you were suffering from an overpopulation of butterflies in your stomach. Your eyes glued themselves to the front entrance through which Toshinori's guests of honor were supposed to arrive. Assuming they weren't being tailed by the police or a rival gang.

However, the second you thought this, you chuckled. Rival gang? Like anyone would be stupid or crazy enough to go against Shouta "Eraserhead" Aizawa and his highly competent lieutenants, Present Mic and Midnight. Most of those who tried ended up in coffins. No wonder Toshinori looked like he was ready to give up the ghost.

It was ten minutes before showtime when you heard a bustle of activity at the front entrance. From where you stood on the stage, half-hiding behind the curtain, you barely saw the doors burst open. At first, you thought it could be the coppers come to shut down the bar and start passing around silver bracelets. Your eyes were glued on the trio entering the club. The blonde on the right wore a black and silver three-piece with his jacket unbuttoned, and his white leather shoes shined. The lady on the left wore a white double-breasted suit jacket and matching skirt. Her whole outfit was designed to show off her ample chest and long legs to distract from the fact that she twirled a knife in her hands like a child's toy. But these characters held little interest to you because your eyes were fixed on the man walking in the middle.

He wore a dark gray three-piece and a black coat that hung off his shoulders like a king's royal cape. Like you, his eyes were half-hidden behind a curtain of dark hair and the shadows of a black fedora. He walked with his hands in his pockets and with the air of someone who couldn't be touched. The man owned the room, and every set of eyeballs in it. Drinking and laughter died when he entered. Toshinori appeared scurrying out of his office as if told at the last minute that they arrived. He continued to wipe his drenched forehead with his handkerchief. He directed the trio to a booth, which faced the stage directly. You watched your boss bow profusely from the waist. The trio that just entered sat too far away from you to be able to hear. Exactly how they walked in, the blonde man sat on the right, the lady on the left, and the powerful individual with the black fedora sat in between them. You couldn't stop staring.

You glanced at the woman in the middle one's left. You swore you'd seen her somewhere before, but couldn't quite place it. It's rude to stare, yet you couldn't help yourself. Your hands fisted the old velvet curtains. Were these the people Toshinori invited to the club? The woman on the left noticed you staring. Before you could retreat, she locked eyes on you and winked. A boulder fell into your stomach.

You realized just where you saw her before at the club a couple weeks ago. The woman appeared to be a chatty, flirty customer but otherwise harmless.

"That's Nemuri "Midnight" Kayama. Second lieutenant to Eraserhead."

You jumped out of your skin at the sound of your pianist, Hitoshi, talking behind you.

"W-what? Her? But I thought—"

"That Midnight was a man? Don't let her looks fool you. I heard that she once highjacked a police van and helped the convicts inside escape."

"Then, who are the other guys?" You might have been better off not knowing, yet your curiosity got the better of you.

"The one on the right is Hizashi "Present Mic" Yamada. They say he's robbed every bank from here to New York. Thing is, nobody can pin them on him despite his boasting. He's loud, but he gets the job done."

"That means," you swallowed, "The one in the middle is…"

"Yup," said Hitoshi. "That's Eraserhead. The kingpin of this city. You see that scar? That's the only thing he got after fighting off the Shigaraki group a couple years ago. The man's quirk can erase his opponent's, so long as he doesn't blink."

Your legs turned to pudding. That man, oh, how you wished you could tear your eyes away. You rubbed your thighs. Something wet made your legs stick together; you hoped you were just nervously sweating and hadn't creamed yourself only by looking at the man. He was a bit shorter than the gigantic figure newspapers made him out to be, although not by many margins. With all of that black and the dark suit, Eraserhead made an imposing—if not terrifying—figure. Despite the dark material, you could still see the defined muscle rippling beneath the clothes he wore. He hadn't yet taken off his coat and hat, and it made you wonder if he was playing on leaving soon. His lieutenants appeared to be making themselves comfortable by ordering food and drink. However, their boss seemed less inclined to follow. All he got was a bottle of whiskey and a shot glass. Eraserhead served himself after testing the brand. Testing the taste or for poison, he left it to your imagination to choose which.

"I wouldn't get close if were you, Y/N. Eraserhead's got a thing for cute little ladies like you. I wouldn't want to be on the wrong end of his affection if I wanted to play safe," said Hitoshi.

"I-I can handle myself," you replied.

Even you didn't believe a word you said.

The first set started off like any other night. You looked past Eraserhead's table, trying not to make eye contact. You decided not to look at him, but that didn't stop Eraserhead from looking at 'you.' The whole time you performed to Hitoshi's piano accompaniment, you felt eyes burning a hole into your gut. It was like staring down the barrel of a shotgun. The worse part was you didn't know when it would go off. You stumbled once or twice through the setlist. Thankfully, hardly anyone noticed thanks to the sax and piano. You scanned over the crowds and quickly passed over that table set in the middle of the club. Harder than you thought because all you wanted to do that evening was to lock eyes with that dangerous man.

By the end of your second set, you were thirsty and not necessarily for water. You managed to escape walking past Eraserhead's table and made your way to the bar. You ordered two shot glasses for yourself. The bartender, Shoto, didn't offer any remarks but got you your drinks. You downed them before the ice began to melt. The alcohol didn't do anything to alieve the weight tied to your neck. Each second you were on stage, it was harder for you to focus on 'not' looking at him. Your gaze kept getting too close to looking at him. It didn't matter if it was rude. You weren't about to get yourself mixed up with mobsters, even handsome ones.

"May I buy your next round?"

You almost did a spit take on Shoto's pristine bar counter. Slowly, you turned to find Eraserhead. He was without his great big black coat and looking far more casual than before. You swallowed past the hard lump that formed in your throat.

"I-I gotta get back to work. I'm only allowed two drinks a night while I'm working."

Eraserhead's dark brow shot upwards. Curious, he asked, "Toshinori lets you drink on the job?"

You shrugged. "Two drinks isn't enough to get me tipsy, and a spot of liquid courage now and then helps."

You almost looked at his face. Quickly, you cast your eyes down. Eraserhead takes one step towards you. His form looms over you like a shadow, and his hand reaches out. You didn't know what you were expecting, but you certainly didn't expect him to cup your chin between his finger and thumb. Eraserhead tilted your chin up. You felt his free hand lean against the back of your stool, inches from you. You could feel him looking down at you. After the pressure in your belly grew to be too much, your eyelids fluttered open.

Your face turned red as a tomato looking up at him. Up close and personal, Shouta "Eraserhead" Aizawa was much more impressive from this angle. He was a bit scruffy, but the stubble on his face made him appear more….manly? No, that wasn't quite right. Even if he shaved, you would have never mistaken him as not being so. Every movement he made screamed of power and control. Eraserhead moved like a wildcat in the jungle. You wouldn't know the predator was watching you until it was too late. No, no, his scruffy-looking face added something a bit more. He couldn't be lazy, not with the way he dressed. Without his black coat, Eraserhead's body looked bigger. You gawked at how big his arms looked this close to him.

"If you're going to stare, at least stare at my face. Some might consider you rude," said Eraserhead.

You fixed your eyes on his face at the suggestion. It was a hypnotic pull that made you look at him the way he wanted you to. Who were you to tell him no? This was especially so when the sound of his low-timber voice made your legs quake and heat pool in your lower belly. Though tired-looking, Eraserhead's gaze never left yours. It was the same pair of eyes you felt staring at you all night. Performing made it easier to forget that he'd been watching you the moment you set foot. He's why your voice cracked once or twice while you were trying not to think about him. Your stomach quivered. Eraserhead had yet to take his hand or his eyes off you. His presence was starting to become unnerving.

"What are your plans for the evening?"

"Well, uh, I have to get back on stage eventually."

"The pianist sounds competent and talented enough to carry on without you," said Eraserhead.

Before you knew it, you were being led by Eraserhead through the front entrance. Toshinori saw and tried to protest until one of Eraserhead's lieutenants, Present Mic, handed him a fat stack of cash, which quickly shut him up. Eraserhead's coat almost swallowed you as he put it on your shoulders. His hand sat at your waist, and his thumb drew infinite circles on your hip. Midnight got into the car behind Eraserhead's while you, Present Mic, and the kingpin climbed into another. Both vehicles had personal drivers while you sat in the spacious back of the limo. You were seated next to Eraserhead, obviously, and Present Mic took the seat that faced you. You wished he'd instead have taken the passenger seat up front with the driver. Eraserhead didn't make it easy for you. Not with his hand still on your waist and rubbing circles into your hip. Present Mic rolled down the windows by a little just to let out some smoke from his fresh cigarette.

You'd be content with staring at your feet if it hadn't been for Eraserhead. His hand wandered down to your thigh. Heat rushed to your face. Your eyes first snapped up to look at Present Mic, who was looking out the window and blowing clouds of smoke into the air as they drove. Then, you cautioned a glance at your host. His nonchalant mask gave you goosebumps.

"E-Eraser…"

"Even if he was paying attention," Eraserhead whispered next to your ear, "It wouldn't matter. He's not interested in young ladies. I wouldn't show off like this in front of 'em if he wasn't."

He kissed your temple. Eraserhead's hand moved no higher than the meaty part of your thigh. You could have been grateful for that if you weren't so conflicted. You wanted him to shift his hand under your chiffon dress and tease off your garters. In contrast, another part wanted to jump out of the moving vehicle out of sheer embarrassment. His thumb continued to draw circles into your skin over the fabric.

You jolted in your seat when Eraserhead's teeth grazed the lobe of your ear.

"And…call me, Shouta," he demanded.

It would be hard for you to remember that considering his name sounded so much like your coworker's at the club. Eraserhead—Shouta gripped your hip and pulled you even closer to him. With his hand on you like that made escape impossible also if you wanted to. Lips caressed the side of your neck to send goosebumps over your skin.

"S-Shouta!" You whined.

You tried not to look at the man sitting across from you who suddenly found his fingernails to be so exciting. Present Mic didn't appear interested in you. But somebody was.

A finger trailed under your dress's skirt and up your inner thigh, edging dangerously close to your undergarments. Shouta toyed with the lace trim as if you two didn't have an audience. He continued to kiss and lick the side of your neck and relishing in the warmth spreading over your face. Shouta's caresses caused you to shudder under his touch. A bead of sweat ran down your face. Shouta lapped it up with his tongue before it reached your jaw.

"I'm going to have so much fun with you, Doll Face," Shouta murmured against your ear.

Shouta kissed your neck, shoulders, and even your hands. You rubbed your thighs together to ease the need for friction between them. Present Mic seemed the least bit interested in what his boss was doing to you. In fact, he played it so nonchalantly that he insisted on talking business around you. There was nothing in the conversation that would put you in danger, but you were intelligent enough to get the gist. During the ride, Shouta stopped kissed you all over and kept his hand on your hip. The trip lasted for another half hour, you guessed before the vehicle came to a full stop. Present Mic left the car, went around, and opened the other door. Shouta helped you out because your legs wouldn't have been able to carry you on their own.

You craned your neck as you approached the mansion set before your eyes. You knew that Shouta—Eraserhead—had a lot of money; you just didn't realize how much. You walked across a gravel path leading up to a columned portico. With his hand on your lower back, Shouta leads you inside. His coat was taken up by a butler along with your shawl and hat. You followed Shouta upstairs. You were shaking head to toe in anticipation. You passed several doors before you came to the biggest one, a set of green doors plated with gold-leaf. Shouta opened it and called for a bottle of champagne to his room. You set your purse aside on a chest of drawers and sat down on the settee. Shouta made himself comfortable by removing his jacket, vest, and bowtie. When the champagne arrived, Shouta answered the door himself and handed you a glass. You sipped as he sat next to you and resumed his previous kissing activity wherever he pleased.

You had trouble holding your glass and avoiding spilling any of the expensive alcohol. You and Shouta drank until the tips of both your noses were red. You set aside your empty glass to wrap your hands behind his neck. Your lips touched his with tenderness and licked him. Shouta gave you open access to his mouth and pressed his hand on the back of your head, bringing you closer. Your soft moans were swallowed up in the kiss. Hands trailed down each other's bodies, but Shouta managed to find the buttons on the back of your dress. He popped them open one at a time. You knew he finished when you felt the warmth of the fire grazing your spine. Shouta gave you a kiss that made your head spin. He nibbled on your bottom lip, took it into his mouth, and sucked softly. When he let you go, Shouta looked at you and pinned you with a heavy-loaded gaze.

"Undress for me."

You blinked, unsure you heard him correctly. Surely a man like the infamous gangster Eraserhead would have his women and strip them too. His hand raked up the back of your neck and grabbed a fistful of your carefully curled hair. Shouta kissed the base of your throat. Looking up, he said, "Don't make me repeat myself, my dear."

Slowly, you nodded. Shouta released you and leaned into the settee. You rose from your seat and made to stand in front of him. Shouta had down half the work for you. All you had to do was pulled the straps down and let gravity do most of the work. A simple task such as that did nothing to keep your hands from shaking. Your hands trembled as you reached for the straps. One at a time, you slipped them off your shoulders. Shouta's eyes never left you and traveled downward as you dragged the dress off your body inch by inch. You shimmied it out of the way and stepped out of pooling on the floor.

Your silk combinations must have caught his attention as Shouta couldn't take his eyes off your undergarments. You wore a cheap waist-cincher with a built-in garter belt to hold up your stockings. You didn't move while he drank you in. After a while, Shouta nodded and gave you a sign with his hand to remove the rest. You weren't alone in this. Shouta removed his shoes, socks, shirt, spenders, etc. until he wore only his slacks. Your fingers trembled too much to unhook the cincher with much success. Shouta did the work for you, peeling the cincher away and tossing it behind the setee. His hands were on you; the second the garment fell apart from you. Shouta's fingers groped you through the thin silk, slid his hands down your legs, and rolled them off. You kicked your kitten heels off and climbed into his lap.

Shouta lifted you up, wrapping your legs around his waist, and carried you to bed. The silk combination was shifted off your body before Shouta settled you on the enormous bed. You climbed on top of the sheets, rested your head on the mountain of pillows, and pressed your legs together while you waited. You didn't have to do that for very long as Shouta followed immediately behind you. This time he was equally naked as you were. Shouta forced your legs apart and crept between them. He kissed and licked your inner thighs and left bruises to remind you of him the next time you went to take a bath.

He climbed unto his knees. By the firelight, you saw him. His body was littered with scars from bullets and knives. Some of them looked almost fatal. You reached up to touch him. You ran your hands down the length of his body before stopping at the stiff member jutting out. You wrapped your hand around him and give his cock a few experimental thrusts. The groan escaping him filled you with the confidence needed to rub him faster. You kept pumping him and watching his face contort to one of pleasure.

Then, all of a sudden, he pulled your hand away.

Shouta pinned your hand to the bed while he used his other to lift one leg and hook it around his waist. He didn't need to guide himself in. In one fell swoop, Shouta's cock was planted deep inside and nestled within your soaking walls. His hand left yours on the bed to grab your hips and pull you flush against him. His hips snapped into yours slowly and harshly. Shouta kept his tempo slow but hard to tease you. It didn't take long for him to become impatient. You squeezing his cock pushed him over the edge.

Your bodies pressed close together as Shouta moved within you. You slid along his body, breasts flush against his solid chest. Shouta bent and suckled on each nipple of yours until they were taut peaks. He playfully clapped his hands over them, slapping the skin, which was becoming slick with sweat. His teeth found your throat to leave behind purpling bruises as if to say who you belonged to. You didn't know what to do with your hands or where to put them. You longed to reach up and tug on Shouta's hair but was too afraid to take offense and stop. Instead, you voted to wrap your hands in the bedsheets and hold onto dear life. Tugging on the sheets beneath you grounded your being in reality while Shouta pounded you into the mattress.

"So tight for me, Y/N. A man could get used to this," Shouta growled and started thrusting faster and harder into you.

Sweat and other fluids mixed between your legs. You clamped around him and held on. Without pulling out, Shouta turned you on your stomach and resumed thrusting. His rough hands that killed a lot of people were yet still tender when touching you. To be sure, he wouldn't leave you without a few souvenirs to remember him by, but Shouta wasn't about hurting women. He grunted in your ear as he pressed his chest against your back. He pulled you tight against to leave no room between your bodies. You cried out in the pillows and scratched at the silken sheets.

The room, which had been warm since Shouta lit the fireplace, became unbearably hot. The air grew to be too stifling for you. Sweat poured out of your body and made you slick. Well lubricated, it made Shouta's job easier. He pushed and pulled, his hips never slowing its tattoo* against yours. The wet slap of skin against skin filled the room along with you moaning. Your sounds drowned him out, but you could still feel him rumble with every grunt against your ear. If not for all the furnishings, you would mistake yourself to be cave-people as Shouta unleashed a primeval urge to thoroughly fuck you. He was an animal between your legs; he claimed your hips with every powerful thrust.

A tight, hot coil settled in your stomach and began to tighten. With every push of Shouta inside of you, the rigid veins of his cock rubbing every secret part, you began to wail. Your walls tightened around him. When the time came, you gushed around him. Shouta was a minute behind. He pulled out beforehand. You would remember the way he groaned for the rest of your days. Shouta was an animal who just claimed his mate and was now planting the indelible mark on their body. You felt a spray of something warm and syrupy coating your skin. It took you a moment to realize that Shouta finished on your back.

Despite the mess you just made of you, Shouta leaned down, kissed the back of your neck then your cheek. He wiped the sweat from your brow. You bashfully smiled back.

"I-I haven't done that that in a while, you know. Sorry if I wasn't as experienced as you're used to," you mumbled.

One of Shouta's dark brows rose. "Why would I care about that? Did you not enjoy yourself?"

"Well, yes, but I—"

Shouta kissed you, silencing any protests you might have had. His cock slipped inside of you. You gasped at how quickly he was hard again.

"Let's make one thing clear, Doll Face. You don't get to decide if I liked it. That's what you were about to say? Some bullshit like that, right?"

His hand came down on your ass cheek. You yelped in both surprise and pain. Shouta massaged the red handprint as he slowly began to start a new rhythm

"I get to decide whether you're good and whether I want you," he grunted between thrusts, which were starting to pick up again, "And I say, I want you. Your experience with other men means shit to me. You're with me now, and my girl gets the best, understand?"

You nodded before letting the flow of his lust take over you. Shouta flipped you back over, so you looked at each other. You reached behind his neck to hold on as his pace picked up to a punishing speed.

"Don't…ever…think less of…yourself. You're fucking mine from now on, got it?" He growled.

And that was how you ended up a gangster's girlfriend.

---080---

#my hero academia #mha fanfiction #mha smut #reader fic #aizawa #shouta aizawa #gansterAU Aizawa #Eraserhead #aizawa x reader #eraserhead x reader #minors begone

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chamomileteainabuttercup · 3 years ago

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Dincobb Week Day 3 - New Experiences (SFW)

Welcome to my Dincobb Week fanfic posts! I've written stories and scenes of varying lengths and tones. For clarity I should say that most of these exist as miniature AUs of their own and have no continuity with each other or with anything else I've written about these characters, so in different pieces they may be described having different physical features, personal possessions, preferences, et cetera. (There are three exceptions which I'll note as such when they come out.) Thanks to @djarining, who helped me a lot with brainstorming and discussing my ideas!

For today I have two pieces, an SFW and an NSFW - the NSFW is scheduled to post an hour after this one.

New Experiences

Cobb keeps on saying he’s been cold before, it gets bitter cold out in the desert at night, and Din has kept on telling him that yes, that’s cold, but it’s not ice and snow cold, and if he’s going to take him on a trip he needs Cobb to trust him about the appropriate clothing.

He does need thermals, he does need thick wool socks, he does need a heavy parka, wool cap and mittens.

“What about you?” Cobb asks. “You may be wearing thermals under your suit, but I don’t see a parka.”

“I’m used to making do without one,” says Din, “but I have higher standards for you.”

“Have ‘em for yourself too, then.”

“All right then. I will.”

“Just see that you do.”

“You’re not the boss of me,” Din says, smiling inside his helmet.

“I’m the boss of everyone, they just don’t know it yet,” says Cobb with a cocky grin.

Boss or not, he’s got Din to wear a parka over his beskar, which he doesn’t altogether like to do. The shiny breastplate is for show as well as for function. A symbolic declaration of identity and values. Well, everyone can still see the helmet, and he compromised on cutting off the parka sleeves just above the elbow so his vambraces are free and functional. This is meant to be a pleasure trip, just to show Cobb a different world as a treat, but he’s still not about to go anywhere without ready access to his grappling hook, flamethrower and whistling birds. Safety first.

He lands the small ship he’s borrowed from Boba on a small, flat-topped hill overlooking a frozen lake, its edges frosted white and its heart a turquoise blue. In fact, if you’re generous with your aesthetics, the lake is sort of heart-shaped. He wonders if Cobb will notice and appreciate that. They lower the landing ramp and step outside into a brilliantly sunny day. The air out here is so cold and crisp it stings your face. Cobb actually gasps. Din gives him a few moments to walk to the bottom of the ramp, then slowly, carefully, extend one foot and put it down and feel the crunch and squish of the snow under his boot.

“What do you think?” he asks.

“It’s weird!” says Cobb enthusiastically. He sees his own breath condensing on the air and huffs out another cloud of warm mist. Then, “Ow.” He puts his mittened hand to his ear.

“You forgot to take out your earring?” Din asks.

“I was excited to see the snow,” Cobb says sheepishly. “And I love it. You gave it to me.” It’s the beskar dart tip from a whistling bird and Cobb is almost comically proud of how it looks glinting in his earlobe.

“Well, it’s gonna get real cold and I don’t want you to get frostbite. Hold still,” Din says. He pulls off his gloves, gives them to Cobb to hold and carefully removes the already chilly earring. He pulls up one of the hook-and-loop flaps of Cobb’s parka pockets, tucks the earring firmly down inside, presses it closed, then pulls Cobb’s wool cap down to cover his ears properly. “There.”

“This hat is crushing my hair,” Cobb grumps.

“A Mandalorian helmet couldn’t unpretty your hair, but you think a toque will?” Din asks, pulling his gloves back on.

“Aw, Mando, you think I’m pretty?” Cobb beams at him, more radiant than the sunshine on the snow crust.

“C’mon,” Din says, embarrassed. He does think Cobb is pretty but he has too little experience of romance to be able to say it smoothly. He grabs Cobb’s hand and pulls him along, heading down the slope towards the lake. Cobb slips and flounders and laughs. He starts to lurch forward, catches himself and throws himself backward, landing on his butt and then flopping on his back with his arms outstretched. “Come on,” says Din, with a chuckle. He reaches down and pulls Cobb up to his feet, leaving his outline in the snow.

“Hey, look at that!” says Cobb, twisting to look back. “It really takes a print, doesn’t it? Not like dry sand at all. It’s so crazy that this is water.” He scoops up a mittenful and crumbles it around.

“Try squeezing it,” says Din. Cobb squashes the snow between his palms. “See how it compacts? It’ll hold together.” He’s remembering the short period his first covert spent living someplace very like this, a little compound in the snowy woods. Unlike most covert locations, it offered both secrecy and open space for children to run and play. The snow forts they built and the snowball battles they fought were both educational for warriors in the making and tremendous fun for a motley assortment of kids in hand-me-down winter clothes and soft training helmets. The snow was the first thing that brought him out of his shell to play with the others. Up to then he had been his foster father’s shadow, dumb with sorrow, until finally the sight of them running, shouting, flinging snow had sparked his attention.

Buir had seen where he was looking as Din stood beside him holding tightly a fistful of his cape. He’d looked down at Din, his helmet impassive, nothing like his lost parents’ dark, expressive eyes and smiling, talking mouths. But there was something kind in the tilt of his head, and he gently jerked it in the direction of the romping foundlings. Buir barely spoke because his larynx had been crushed in a fight years before. Rather than speaking through the mic in his helmet, he would hold a little electrolarynx device to his throat when he really needed to speak aloud, but more often than not he used a modified sign language, finding it more convenient. That was what he told Din back then, but thinking on it now, he’s fairly sure Buir switched to relying on signing because the electrolarynx made him sound a lot like a droid, and he saw how uncomfortable that made the child he’d picked up. He didn’t need to say “Go on”; Din understood, and after hesitating a moment longer, he released his grip on the crumpled fabric and ventured out to play.

That was the day he learned to make snowballs, and it’s something he can teach Cobb now, how to press and mould the snow between cupped palms, how to roll it down the slope, picking up more and more snow as it went, turning it between the two of them to keep its shape even and rounded. It makes them both laugh just out of happiness and satisfaction. Cobb’s cheeks and nose are flushed a sweet rosy pink. His eyes are bright, their hazel colour almost gold where the sharp sunlight catches it, and he’s altogether so lovely a sight that Din is glad his face is hidden and he can stare as openly and foolishly as he wants.

Together they build a snowman where the ground flattens out; he gets an idea and labours back up the hill in the sliding snow into the ship’s hold and brings back a bucket to mould its head into a snow Mandalorian. After that success they make their way down to the lake, and after Din checks how solid the ice is, they venture out on its surface, skidding around a little. Cobb keeps grabbing hold of his hand, and although it actually makes both of them a bit less stable, Din’s happy to let him. When Din asks, “You want to try sliding?” he’s immediately game. They run and slide on foot, on knees, and on a few accidental occasions on their asses until they’re out of breath and glowing with warmth. It occurs to Din that apart from a little light Grogu-entertaining, he hasn’t really played in years. He still knows how, though. Panting and laughing, they stagger off the ice and begin making their way back up the hill, wallowing in the knee-deep snow, helping each other up by reaching down from above or by pushing from below (hands on butts). At the top they look back at their chaotic trail across the formerly perfect snowscape.

“What do you think of it now?” Din asks.

“It’s fantastic,” says Cobb. “I couldn’t have imagined what it’s really like. And there’s no one I’d rather be here with than you.” He throws his arms around Din and, to his surprise, kisses him smack-dab on the cheek of his helmet. He can’t feel it, of course, but he enjoys it symbolically, at least for a few moments until it becomes clear that Cobb’s lips are stuck to the frosty metal. He tries to pull away, gives a little muffled cry of panic and pain, and stares helplessly through the eyeslot of Din’s visor. “Hnnh!”

“Dank farrik — it’s okay, hold still. Just — okay, put your hands on the helmet, hold it, take the weight. Got it? Don’t let go or it’ll peel your lips.” He steadies it with his hands too and brings his head and shoulders down, pulling his head out of the helmet. He’s dazzled by the unfiltered bright light for a moment, then gets a proper look at Cobb, scarlet-faced and glaring with anger, confusion and embarrassment, still smooching the helmet. He has to bite his own lip hard not to laugh, but it’s not really funny, he doesn’t want Cobb to get frostbite or tear the skin off his lips. “Stay there,” he says, turns and runs up the ramp into the ship. In the tiny, cramped galley he draws a cup of lukewarm water from the tap, then rushes back, trying not to spill it. “Okay. It’s okay, just hold very still for me, got it?” Carefully, he pours water over the join between lip and metal, while Cobb breathes loud and fast through his nose. After a few moments the icy seal breaks and Cobb is able to gently, carefully peel his lips away from the helmet. They’re very red and they look like they’re sore and stinging. “You don’t look like you’re bleeding anywhere,” Din says hopefully.

Cobb cautiously runs his tongue-tip over his lips and winces. “No, but they feel raw,” he says. “Goddamn that was cold!”

“I think you’ll survive,” Din says.

“Well, sure, I’ll survive,” says Cobb. “But could you kiss ‘em better?”

It seems only fair.

#dincobweek2021 #dincobweek #dincobb week #fanfic

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crownedbyluke · 4 years ago

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Long Road Ahead (Chapter 16)

Estelle Finley has been friends with Ashton Irwin and Luke Hemmings for three years. When the boys bring her along on a jam-packed road trip to Cape Cod with the rest of the band, their adventures are just beginning. Through long hours driving, exploring cities, and hidden secrets, something more is bound to happen on this journey. How will this road trip change Estelle’s friendship with the friends she’s come to love so dearly?

Word Count: 2,527

{Chapter One} {Chapter Two} {Chapter Three} {Chapter Four}{Chapter Five} {Chapter Six} {Chapter Seven} {Chapter Eight} {Chapter Nine} {Chapter Ten} {Chapter Eleven} {Chapter Twelve} {Chapter Thirteen} {Chapter Fourteen} {Chapter Fifteen}

“Dad?” I asked, utterly shocked at the mess that was unfolding before my very eyes.

“What? No acknowledging me?” the familiar voice asked.

I looked just slightly to the left of my father, the familiar face of my brother Wesley came into view. He clearly hadn’t shaved in at least a month with his scraggly half shadow of a beard. It had been at least two years since I had seen him and now, seeing him again, made me want to scream.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

Ashton had his hand on the small of my back, trying his best to comfort me. It felt like everyone in the house was watching me, like I was living my life out on a television screen.

“You remember your betrothed,” my dad said, gesturing to the man standing behind Wes.

My heart stopped. A commitment that I had never agreed to and yet, here was my father bringing it back to haunt me. Aiden Harper. He had certainly gotten taller since we were in middle school. The likelihood of him being less of a giant idiot though was probably very small.

“Aiden,” I whispered, still in shock.

“Who the hell is he Estelle?” Luke asked, voice full of anger.

I met his eyes, finding the storm of hurt and rage swirling in them. It took everything in my body to not just run over to him. There were more eyes on us than I wanted for a conversation like that.

“Oh, I suspect she didn’t inform you. This is the man she is intended to marry in two years time,” my dad said.

Luke clenched his fist. I felt the anger radiating off of him from the stairs. Before anyone got into a fight, I stepped down from the stairs and stood between the two.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Well darling daughter, you seem to think that I can’t stop you from seeing this man child over there, so I’ve come to prove you wrong,” he said with a smile.

It was the same smile I had seen my entire life. One of manipulation and dishonesty.

“How?” I continued.

“You see, your friends here, well, they sometimes do great work at covering up their partying or their general misuse of their fame, but myself and my contacts are more clever than their publicist. I have a multitude of photos and videos of them misbehaving that would surely ruin any chance they had at making another album,” he said, the smile widening.

“You’re lying,” Ashton said from behind me.

“Oh son, you wish I was don’t you? Doubt you’d like that threesome video from your Vegas trip a year ago to get out,” my dad said, gritting his teeth.

I felt the whole room tense. This was serious and it was happening right in front of my face. There were stories of how my dad would manipulate people into what he wanted, but I had never seen it happen. Some of them felt more fabricated than reality would allow. Yet, it was reality and he was doing everything he could to stop me.

“What do you want?” I asked, biting back tears.

It was no longer a question of what I had to do. I’d do it to protect them. Ashton reached for me again, but I moved away. It was my battle now.

“You’ll be coming home with me right now. You can move into your new house in August and you’ll stay in your tiny little apartment until then. You will no longer speak to these children or be seen with them in the media. Oh and you’ll be seen with Aiden getting engaged next week,” he said.

My eyes went wide. Engaged? It meant giving away my entire life to a person who would most likely cheat on me the first chance he got.

“Elle, you don’t-”

“Fine. If I do this, you leave them alone?” I asked, cutting off Calum.

“Yes.”

“You will never threaten them or harm them?” I pressed.

“I promise,” my dad said.

“Fine. I’ll get my stuff,” I said, turning around and marching up the stairs.

The tears fell down my face as I reached the landing. I was defeated, hurt, and exhausted. All I cared about was protecting them from him. There were footsteps following after me as I opened the door to my room.

“Don’t do this,” Luke said, a waiver in his voice.

I looked up, seeing the tears in his own eyes that matched mine.

“If I don’t, you lose your dream,” I said, grabbing the clothes from the closet.

“We can fight this, make it through this,” he argued.

“No we can’t Luke! If he has that kind of stuff on Ashton, what do you think he has on you or Cal? I won’t let you guys be collateral damage!” I said.

“Little dove-”

“Don’t. Please don’t.”

I stopped, balling my fists into the pair of shorts in my hands. That nickname meant so much to me. Luke called me it for the first time after he heard me sing and then he kept using it whenever he was saying something nice or being sweet. It was just our thing. He wrapped his arms around me, taking the shorts out of my hands. His short breaths gave away the fact that he was crying too. We were so close to that happiness I wanted and it was all going away.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you too.”

He pulled away, pressing his lips against mine shortly before resting his forehead on mine.

“Don’t walk out the door,” he begged.

“I have to or else everything you worked so hard for gets ripped from you by that man and I won’t be able to live with myself if that happens,” I said.

My hands rested on his cheeks, gently running my finger against the stubble growing. This was it. My lips touched his one last time before I went back to grabbing my things.

“Bugs, you don’t have to do this on your own,” Ashton said from the doorway.

“Yes I do. You’ll do amazing on the next album,” I said, wiping at my tears.

“What am I gonna do without you?” he whimpered.

“I don’t know, but you’ll figure it out.”

He hugged me tightly, putting every last ounce of love into it.

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered, holding on so I didn’t have to let go.

“Shh, it’s okay.”

After my things were tucked into the suitcase, I gave my last round of hugs. The sound of us all walking down the stairs felt wrong. Everything was wrong. I stopped just short of the door, turning and meeting everyone’s watery eyes.

“I am so incredibly sorry for this,” I said, the weight of the apology heavy on my heart.

“Save it dear. They can watch the wedding online,” my dad said, pulling on my arm to get me moving.

“Don’t touch her!” Luke yelled.

Everyone stopped again. Things felt like they were going in slow motion.

“You might be her father, but you will never be her dad. No dad would put his children through this,” he said, voice laced with venom.

My father smiled at him, letting my arm go. Wesley took my suitcase and nudged Aiden to lead me out of the house. Luke stood there, waiting, but all my father did was smile. Aiden closed the car door after I got in, making me watch Luke stand there as we drove away. Every piece of my heart shattered as I watched him fall to his knees in tears. Timing was a bitch.

TWO MONTHS LATER

LUKE’S POV

“Luke! Come on dude!” Calum yelled from outside my room.

I had yet to leave my bed and it was already 5 PM. He came by every day to check on me and almost every day, he found me still in bed.

“Go away!” I yelled back.

Getting out of bed never felt right or even remotely okay. Since Estelle left, nothing felt right anymore. Everyday was just a different way of going through the motions, barely existing.

“You gotta get out of bed today,” Calum said, bursting through the door.

“Why? We don’t have anything to do,” I said, tucking my face into my pillows.

“Maybe, but you haven’t left the house in two months and it’s time you did,” he said, opening the curtains.

The bright sunshine of L.A. hurt my eyes. Petunia licked my face as she saw the sun. The look Calum gave me felt like one from my mom when I was younger.

“If I get up, will you leave me alone for the rest of the week?” I asked, slowly sitting up.

“Sure,” he said.

I knew he was lying from the smile on his face. My feet dragged as I went to the bathroom. Another routine of washing my face, brushing my teeth, and brushing my hair gone. When I came back out, Calum was holding up new clothes.

“Why?”

“We are going out so put on something that isn’t sweatpants,” he said.

I groaned, taking the jeans and button up from him.

“You realize I’m not bringing anyone home right?”

“Yes Luke. Just shut up and get dressed.”

Legs went through the jeans and arms went through the shirt. It was a facade as to the pain that I felt every single day I woke up and remembered I couldn’t be with my person. Calum messed with my hair and patted my back, ushering me out of the house.

“Be a good girl piggy!” I yelled before Calum closed the door.

My phone dinged.

Mentioned: @Luke5SOS when is there gonna be new music?

The muscles in my face relaxed. No tweets from her...again.

ESTELLE’S POV

The setting sun was blinding through the windows of the cafe. Everyone was going about their evenings, enjoying their coffees or teas. A familiar face tucked underneath a hoodie and a baseball hat walked in, the sun behind him making him glow like an angel.

“One black coffee please,” he said softly.

Stress from the week of teaching melted away as I listened to him. My iced vanilla latte swirled as I stirred it carefully. The chair squeaked against the tile as he sat down. I met the hazel eyes staring at me.

“Hey bugs,” he whispered, taking a sip of coffee.

“Hi there stranger,” I said, a smile slowly coming out.

“How’s life?” he asked.

“Shitty. I miss you guys,” I said.

Our hands touched, the slightest bit of relief washed over me. It felt nice to be able to see him again. The weeks we weren’t able to do this seemed to drag on longer than most. It wasn’t easy to forget about the friends I was no longer allowed to see. The moments I had made me feel more guilty than anything else. He turned his palm over, gently squeezing my hand.

“We miss you too, bugs,” he said.

I wanted so badly to ask about Luke, but knew it would hurt more than I was prepared for. Ashton squeezed again.

“He’s doing his best,” he said.

Tears welled up in my eyes. If Luke was okay then surely, I should be too.

“How are the kids?” he continued, pulling away.

“Good. They’re still excited about school and spritely,” I said with a shrug.

“And you?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Holding up. I have to be seen with Aiden once a week so I keep my distance as long as possible until our scheduled outings. He goes around sleeping with women in the off time and pretends to be the perfect fiancé in the meantime. Guess that’s life now.”

“I wish it wasn’t that way,” he said, slightly angry.

“Ash, you know I don’t have that much of a choice,” I argued.

“I know, but I hate it. I hate that you can’t come over or see us or come to shows. I hate that we have to tell everyone that we aren’t friends anymore. You’re my best friend and I have to hide you.”

“I should go,” I whispered, suddenly no longer feeling up for talking.

“Bugs, I didn’t mean to-”

“No, I should go. I’ve got grading and lesson plans,” I said, cutting him off.

Without looking, I walked out of the cafe. The pain took over once I closed my car door as it always did after seeing Ashton. The relics of the past hurt more and more and when I attempted to go back to normal or confront them, I ended up crying in my car. The amount of times I had driven past Luke’s place just to see if a light was on was ridiculous at this point. My phone screen lit up with a text, my background of me and Luke bringing on more tears.

Aida: Miss you. Drinks on Friday?

I ignored it, opting for driving home instead. The drive went by like it always did. My house was empty and lonely. Another thing that was meant to be something else. The exhaustion of the day wore on me as I collapsed into the couch cushions, sleep slowly taking over.

The pounding on my front door woke me from the nap I was taking. I groggily got up from the couch and made my way to it, peeking through the window.

“What the hell are you two doing here?” I asked, finding a very drunk Luke and Calum.

“Estelle!” Luke cheered, a giant smile on his face.

“Again, what are you doing here?” I repeated.

“I might have given your address to the Uber driver on accident,” Calum admitted.

“Get in here,” I groaned.

They shuffled inside behind me. I checked the door to see if any of the press had followed them. Calum fell onto the couch, giggling as he did so. Luke kept staring at me.

“I thought I’d never see you again,” he mumbled.

“Shush,” I said, helping him into the guest bedroom.

He giggled as I tucked him in. I put a glass of water on the side table for him in case he woke up. As I went to turn off the light, he grabbed my hand.

“I missed you little dove,” he whispered.

His eyes were sincere and it broke every piece of my heart. Luke fell asleep shortly after speaking, his face becoming relaxed and serene. It reminded me of the first time he ever stayed the night at my place. He had slept so soundly that night that he was asleep until one in the afternoon. My heart ached as I looked at him.

“He still loves you Elle,” Calum said from the doorway.

I walked towards the door, shutting off the light as I exited and closing the door behind me.

“I love him too. Now please go rest in the upstairs guest room,” I said with a sigh.

Calum stumbled his way up the stairs before closing the door. My head fell into my hands, frustration building. The morning couldn’t come fast enough.

A.N: It’s been ages and I feel horrible for leaving this on such a cliffhanger for so long, but I want to finish this story. It’s almost done. It’s mainly all written and it’s time Estelle and Luke get their story told. So here we go.

tag loves: @tommossoccer @bbycal @cakesunflower

#d writes #my writing #5sos #5sos fic #5sos fan fic #5sos au #5sos fluff #luke hemmings #luke hemmings fic #luke hemmings fluff #luke hemmings angst #ashton irwin #michael clifford #calum hood #5 seconds of summer #5 seconds of summer fic #5 seconds of summer fluff #5 seconds of summer angst

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sweeethinny · 4 years ago

Text

The Duke - Chapter 7

I know it took me a while to update, really, sorry, but it was because it was difficult to organize this chapter as I wanted. thank you so much for the comments, as always, is what motivates me to write I promise to take less this time

I hope you like it <3

AO3 | FF.NET | SIYE

read bellow the cut :)

| G.W |

‘‘I don’t think I’ve ever been this anxious.’’ Ginny comments, watching Henry move his wand and stack her suitcase with the others who are concentrated by the fireplace. ‘’I’ve never gone this far. You know, when I was little, I climbed the trees and dreamed of the day that I could go as far as I wanted.’’ She smiles from ear to ear, anxiously walking around the room, her dark green dress still a little wrinkled. She didn't even want help getting ready, she tied her hair with magic and tied the bodice as she could.

‘’I’m glad you managed to convince them, Miss.’’ Henry smiles at her, wearing the black uniform and maintaining the most serious tone he can, even though he also looks excited. ‘’I’ve never gone this far, either.’’

‘’We still have hours, hours, until we go.’’ Ginny watched the auror, a smile on her lips taking over her freckled face. ‘’We could fly! If my father agreed to take me to the Dueling Ball, then I can fly!’’ She comments as if she were a ten year old child asking for the cookie that is in the jar on top of the cupboard.

‘‘Sorry, Miss, but the shed is still locked.’’ Henry smiled awkwardly, shrugging. ‘’But we can go to the greenhouse, we haven’t been there in a while.’’

‘‘I don’t want to go to the greenhouse.’’ Ginny sat down on the mustard-yellow armchair that her mother insisted on keeping in the living room, even though it didn't match the rest of the decor. ‘’Can we do something else? Can we go to the city?’’ She didn’t even like going to the city, but if it meant leaving home, she would be accepting. Ginny just wanted time to pass as quickly as possible. ‘’Can we do anything? I just don’t want to sit.’’

‘’Your mom asked you to train the dance.‘’

‘’Nooo,’’ She stood up, approaching Henry and looking him deep in the emerald green eyes, she could almost see the reflection of herself in his round glasses. ''Let's do something fun ... You can take me somewhere fun, can't you?'' Henry sighed, looking quickly at the bags on the floor, then at the clock where he pointed out that everyone - apart from Ginny - was out of the house, and finally for her.

‘’We have to go back before everyone else,’’ Her eyes widened as she jumped in place and smiled like she hasn't smiled in days, locked up inside the house. ''And you must promise me that you will obey me.'' Ginny laughed, throwing her arms around Henry as if it were the most natural thing, hugging him tightly and feeling his chest tighten with intimate contact. He had never even touched her shoulders.

‘‘I promise.’’ Ginny stood on tiptoe, fearless enough to kiss him on the cheek flushed with shame. ‘’I’m going to get my hat!’’ And then she leapt out of the room, running up the stairs like a child who had won the cookie, almost screaming with joy.

It has been a difficult few days, locked up at home and barely able to go to the garden itself, without being escorted by Henry or one of her brothers. Her name had returned to the tabloids, but now, they said it was all a lie on the part of her family, to create fame. They went so far as to accuse her of being psychotic mad, and that respectable ladies should stay away from her. Some women even removed her mother's name from their guest lists for afternoon tea.

Ginny still didn't know how the family was still invited to the Dueling Party, but something told her that Mrs. Potter understood what it was like to have her name in the tabloids with several lies made up about her.

She also didn't know why she was so excited. Something inside her made her think that the party could be good after all, living a week in a completely different house and with new places to explore. If no one danced with her, at least she would have new gardens and new libraries to visit.

Putting on her hat and gloves, not even bothering to look in the mirror to check her clothes or put on more perfume, just running down the stairs again, almost tripping over her dress, but being held tightly by Henry, who was waiting patiently for her.

‘’Calm, Miss.’’ He smiled, and something inside Ginny burned and trembled, like that night when she dreamed that he kissed her. ‘’If you get hurt, you won’t be able to travel or go out to the city. ’’

‘‘I’m sorry, I’m looking forward to it.’’ She running her hand over her dress and waiting for him to give the orders to know where they would go. ‘’Should I get my cape?’’

‘’Of course, we don’t want anyone to recognize you, and there are always eyes everywhere.’’ Ginny didn’t think his over-care was stupid, not after the attack and having spent days locked up Ginny would even put on a wig if that meant leaving the house and seeing daylight, smelling new smells and seeing people besides her family.

[...]

‘’This is incredible.’’ She smiled, almost standing up so she could see even more of that man sitting on the stage below, concentrating on playing the piano, while ten women wearing white and black clothes, danced perfectly and synchronously around. They stood on tiptoe, rolled, jumped, and never seemed to lose their balance, always in the rhythm of the music.

That was their first stop, at least that's what Henry said. They Apparated into the middle of Muggle London, which Ginny had seen less than twice in her life, and then rode in a carriage to that huge building from which very loud classical music came, and some people entered. There were several columns, a huge staircase - the biggest one Ginny had ever seen - and several pictures that didn't move, scattered all over the place.

No one looked at her, except for the man in the suit at the door, no one even seemed to pay attention to her, which was a divine sensation, to say the least.

Henry managed to get them up to the top floor, entering a mezzanine that had the walls covered in a wine red velvet that reminded her a lot of the color of the dress that Fleur wore at one of the balls she went to, and that the wizarding world spent weeks talking about every little detail of the piece and how the woman was one of the most beautiful in the night. There were chairs, too, and a parapet that kept them from falling over to where the dancers and the man playing the piano were.

‘’What’s the name of that?’’ She whispered, unable to take her eyes off how the skirts of those women were static and round, and how they tiptoed with frightening ease.

''Ballet. It's just a rehearsal, the presentation is always done at night... They are rehearsing Romeo and Juliet.'' Ginny almost couldn't resist the temptation to look away from the women when she felt his hand next to hers on the arms of the chair, but maybe not even Henry noticed how their fingers were almost touching, and how close they were now too, given the fact that they needed to whisper to each other.

His scent flooded Ginny inside, something that reminded her of fresh herbs and male soap. Her chest heated up, her hands tingling as if something was out of control inside her, which Ginny believed was her lack of human interaction in recent years, and it suddenly became difficult to breathe with Henry so close, so hot it seemed to burn her shoulder where they touched, and so overwhelming that it seemed that every key on the piano that was played on stage resonated inside her head as if all her demons decided to dance to the beat of a racing heart.

‘’It’s a beautiful piece, too bad it’s a tragic story.’’ He kept talking, the women down there dancing at an even faster pace, which made Ginny more euphoric. ‘’I don’t know if there’s a version in the wizarding world for this, but if you want,’’ And this time, Henry actually put his big palm over her hand, squeezing it lightly and smiling gently at Ginny. ‘’I can lend you. I have the book stored in my stuff. I brought it as a reminder of my mother.’’

The woman did not understand how they went from almost never touching, to that stage. She didn't understand what it was that shone in his green eyes, let alone her fast beats, disagreeing with the now calm music.

She had already read several books to know that if it were described in a love story, it would be the prelude that the romance between the couple was emerging; racing heart, inappropriate thoughts that invaded her mind - did Henry kiss as well as he kissed her in the dreams that tormented her the last few nights? - and a feeling of numbness that made her almost unable to think. If that were a love story, Ginny was smiling like an idiot for the book and would feel as flustered as the protagonist.

But Ginny Weasley had no chance of having her own love story. Not when her entire reputation was destroyed by people who tried to kill her, and men who never accepted that her, a madwoman without a hopeful future, says no. There were no love stories for a woman like her, who, unlike Fleur, Hermione, and all the other women who had a line of men waiting for her, was abandoned at the back of the room like a long-forgotten widow.

She allowed herself to feel just one more second of that feeling that burned in her stomach, before blinking and turning her eyes to the dancers, pulling her hand back to her own lap and trying not to pay attention to the pain that seemed to plague her chest now more still.

‘’Thank you, it would be amazing, I’m sure we don’t have it in our library.’’ She sighed, steadying her hands so that the magic that seemed to burn her fingertips would cease.

The rehearsal continued and she and Henry remained silent for the rest of the time, just admiring the dancers and the pianist, from time to time she would glance at him just to catch him looking at her fingers, covered by the white gloves, resting in her lap. It was kind of silly that they still tingled, but Ginny made a point of ignoring it, for her own good.

When everything went quiet a few minutes later and people on stage started to talk, they got up to leave, still in silence and avoiding contact as if the two had some contagious disease.

Before they could walk out into that hall full of photos and trophies, a tall, dark-haired man appeared in front of them, wearing all-black robes like the ones she saw some men wearing at dances, with a snake badge that Ginny did not recognize for being from no family. But Henry seemed to recognize it, mainly because he put his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him in a few seconds.

''Put your head down and don't say anything.'' Henry's voice sounded in her mind, and Ginny followed the orders without thinking twice, feeling the tingling again at her fingertips, but now, it wasn't something that seemed happiness. In fact, it was the same feeling she had felt before being attacked in the park.

Something burned inside her and an acidic taste took over her mouth, while her survival instinct made her magic swirl inside her chest and seem close to exploding. But never really getting to do it.

‘’Good afternoon, Sir.’’ Henry speaks, but his voice is louder and thicker than usual. Ginny just pretends to fix the wrinkles in her dress, avoiding as much as possible to look at the coat with the snake again, trying to remember where she had already seen one like that.

‘’Good afternoon,’’ the male voice responds, taking a step to the side and letting them pass, even though she feels that for the first time in the hour they’ve been out of the house, they were being watched. ''Beautiful wife.'' Only then does she notice the delicate ring on her left finger, and Ginny knows it's just an illusion, but can't help but be surprised for a few seconds, before returning to normal and continuing to keep her eyes down.

''Thank you,'' but Henry doesn't move, and before she can understand what's going on, a cold shiver runs up and down her body, even causing her eyes to close to the weird sensation, before finally being pulled away by Henry.

‘’What was that?’’ Ginny whispers, feeling the air return to her lungs as soon as they step on the street in front of the theater, the afternoon light flooding them, as well as the sounds of a London that never seems to stop.

‘’I don’t know, but that man was a wizard.’’ Henry hasn’t released her yet, walking with her as fast as he can down the street, towards something Ginny has no idea what it is. ‘’And not a good one.’’

''What do you mean?'' They walk into an old library, a lady smiles at them as if she's never seen anything like it, and Henry directs them to one of the most hidden sections, then lets go of Ginny, and the shiver runs through her again, but this time, it's like she fell into a volcano. Was it that hot?

‘’He was a Death Eater.’’ Henry speaks in alarm, his hands running through his messy hair naturally, pulling on the strands as he leans on the shelf behind him, closing his eyes and sighing.

‘’Sorry.’’ Ginny asks, embarrassed and still a little moved by the latest events. A death eater! She had only known two in her life, and her father always said that she shouldn't want to be in the presence of another a third time. ‘’I put us at risk again.’’

‘’Don’t say that,’’ The man seems to allow himself to roll his eyes, taking his glasses off his face so he can wipe the lenses, as if he wants to buy time to process the ideas. ‘’You liked the rehearsal, and it’s a pity that you can’t see the whole performance, but at least we left the house.’’ He shrugged, then suggested. ‘’We have less than an hour yet, if you want to… do something.’’

''Aren't you going to demand that we go back to my house?'' Ginny's eyes flashed, the thought of being able to spend more time outside, lit her up like a hundred thousand lit wands towards her.

‘’Well, we’re already here, right? We can venture a little further. That wizard didn't recognize you, or me.’’

‘’How are you sure about this?’’ Henry shrugged.

‘’Something tells me that no. The ring was pretty convincing as well.’’ His cheeks burned, but his green eyes held steady on those of Ginny, who also felt her cheeks warm up. ‘‘Forgive me for that, Miss, but it was necessary.’’

‘’Oh, don’t worry,’’ Ginny meant he could have kissed her to convince the man, and even then, she wouldn’t care. ''You were fast.''

‘’A quality that I acquired working for you, Miss. You never know when I'm going to have to do a non-verbal spell and protect us,'' Henry whispered, moving a little closer to her and making her feel that whirlwind of emotion again, before turning away and resting his back on the bookshelf. ‘’But we’ll have to be careful if we stay here. We can go to more reserved places, that no wizard would visit. ’’

‘’How you know so much about the Muggle world, if I may ask?’’

‘’I worked for a few years with the Muggles, Miss.’’ He smiled simply, lifting his shoulders. ''Shall we go?'' Henry took her arm, as he sometimes did - in rare exceptions - and Ginny nodded, ignoring her belly being mistreated by the thousand bats that flapped their wings inside, and followed him for a walk through London Muggle, as if it were very natural for everyday life, to walk arm in arm with a handsome man as they strolled.

She knew that she needed to enjoy that moment with all her heart, as she probably wouldn't have many more, and for the next few hours, Ginny would pretend that she was not a ruined woman and without a very hopeful future.

| ? |

‘‘She isn’t a normal witch.’’ The man sitting at the end of the table looked up at the woman on his right, looking a little desperate at the blood dripping from the body hanging on the table. ‘’I’ve seen her up close, her magic… it’s scary.’’

‘’Scary? Is a 23 year old girl scary?’’ He rolled his eyes, looking again at the photo of the redhead in front of him, dressed in a long blue dress and looking bored, sitting on one of the chairs at the party. ''Who is he?''

‘’Her bodyguard. One of Robards best aurors, I heard.’’ Another man, this time on the left, replied, not even seeming to care when the blood of that filthy woman dripped near his hand.

''A scary witch and one of the best aurors... What a great pair '' His humorless laugh echoed through the dining room, his finger running over the photo of the redhead and then that of the man who was dressed in the black uniform, proudly displaying the coat of arms of the Ministry and Aurors. ‘’Kill them. Don't waste any more time and hit him first.'’ He smiled, looking at the woman’s lifeless body, hanging from ropes that went from the ceiling to a few meters above the table, her dying hand falling near the frightened woman’s plate. ‘’They’re going to the Dukes ’party,’ Looking down, he watched all his followers there, ready to do anything he assigned them. ‘’Kill them too.’’

| H.F |

‘’Why are we going to go in a carriage?’’ Ginny asked as they waited in the living room, she perched on the window like a child, watching the three magic carriages posing in the gardens, the thestrals waiting patiently to fly back into the sky.

‘’It’s safer, and it would be too tumultuous to use the Flu or Apparate, we would end up overloading the flow and maybe some people would end up stopping at different places. Furthermore, the exact location of the Dukes' country house is unknown for security reasons.’’ Henry replied, standing near the door so he could escort the family when he was called, ready for the most important job of his life.

Robards had warned him to escort the whole family as safely as possible, even sending two other Aurors to travel together in the other two carriages, to avoid any surprises, since the protection around the house had been removed so that the Thestral could enter and leave with ease.

He would obviously stay with Ginny, escorting her at all hours, especially now, still a little affected by the presence of the Death Eater they encountered.

If he were alone, Henry would probably have followed the man and tried to find out some new information about the possible attack that Voldemort was planning, but with Ginny at his side, all he had to do was move on, but always with his eyes open to any stranger to follow or look at them.

The bewitched ring had already disappeared from her finger, but Henry thanked himself for having remembered the spell in time, happy that he managed to protect her. Of course, they shouldn't have even gone to the theater in the first place, but Henry thought the sparkle in her eyes and the smile on her face for all the hours they spent together had been worth it.

Ginny deserved a few hours of a 'normal' life, without a thousand eyes judging her and commenting on her every step.

‘’Do you know where it is? You told me the road is long.’’ She looked over her shoulder, her hair tightly tied in a complicated hairstyle that unfortunately left the red hair hidden in a bun. Ginny had also changed the dress, wore a much more elegant one and that Henry knew had cost a very high price, as well as some others that she would wear during the week ahead. The purple color looked great on her - like all the others, Henry suspected - and the white and silver details made her shine.

"I was allowed to know only as a security measure, in case we need to escape in a hurry, but I had to swear with my own life that I wouldn't tell anyone." He clasped his hands behind his body almost automatically, vaguely remembering the light pain he had felt. Ginny's brown eyes bulged, and she jumped off the couch, hurriedly walking over to him, holding out her gloved hand as if asking to see the mark.

‘’You… why?’’ Henry reached out, feeling warm and electrified when her delicate fingers touched his palm, his chest feeling like it wanted to explode with the gesture.

It was almost distressing that he felt so… sick when she touched him. It always seemed like something inside him was stirring, and Henry was ready to die.

‘’For your safety, of course.’’ He would do anything to guarantee that she would be okay, he thought.

‘’This is eternal.’’ Ginny looked at him, brown irises shining toward him like the caramel candies that the elves make every Thursday afternoon, and Henry always eats.

‘‘I will hardly have another opportunity to go to the Dukes’ house, Miss, so it won’t bother me, I promise.’’ Henry smiled, politely pulling his hand away from hers, his palm feeling like it was on fire. ‘’Now, let’s see… I’ll have to go talk to your father, but another Auror will be taking care of your safety until we need to go, okay?’’

‘’Why can I never go with you? You will talk about me.’’ With her chin up and her eyes defiantly staring at him, Ginny raised her eyebrows, looking a lot like when he met her.

‘‘I don’t think your dad approves, Miss.’’ He wanted to laugh, but he kept his face straight and his hands were behind him, as the label said. ‘’We’re just going to go over the protocol, it’s pretty boring and you won’t miss anything very fun, I promise.’’ As if in sync, he hears a knock on the door, and Thomas, the other Auror, bowed to Ginny. ‘‘Please forgive me for having to leave you,’’ Henry did the same, despite not remembering the last time he bowed to her - not being in public. ‘’But you will be in good hands.’’

‘’I don’t believe that much,’’ she whispered, making a face. ''But that's what I have.'' With that, Henry withdrew from the room, waving to Thomas, who kept an unfriendly scowl, and making his way to the office on the third floor of the house, where Arthur was waiting for him.

Henry wanted to think that when he got there, he wouldn't have to listen to the same conversation that Robards had passed on to him and the other Aurors, but it was almost possible that Arthur would repeat the speech about taking care of Ginny and, as much as the Duke and Duchess were good people, keep an eye out for any strangers. Deep down, Henry knew that it was only Arthur father's concern that made the man say something Henry had already heard from the boss, but he couldn't even imagine what it must be like to know that his daughter is being threatened with death.

''Excuse me,'' He opened the door, entering after confirmation from Arthur, who was sitting in the usual chair, shuffling some papers, which Henry suspected was the letter the Duke had sent him a few days ago, reassuring the man about security. ‘’Did you call me, Sir?’’

''Of course, of course, sit down, my man.'' Unlike Mrs Weasley, Arthur was much more affectionate with Henry, respecting the limits of the hierarchy, of course, but still not taking some rules very seriously. His wife treated him very well, but Henry felt that the woman harbored a little dislike for him, but it may not be something directed at who he was, but the work he did in Ginny's life. Again, Henry would never be able to imagine the pain of needing his youngest daughter to be escorted, for fear that someone will kill her. ‘’I call you here to talk about something…’’

‘‘Say sir.’’ The man sighed, running a hand over his red hair that seemed to fall more each day.

‘’I found a good husband for my daughter.’’ Henry swallowed, happy that he managed to keep his face serious, but feeling out of breath in his lungs. ‘’He’ll be at the party, and I need you to watch him for me. If he’s respectable, he will marry her as soon as we get back.’’

Henry's tongue seemed to burn with unspoken words, like; will you marry your daughter to someone she doesn't even know? Your daughter is not an animal to be sold. Does she even know that? Will I have to leave her? But the man took a deep breath, clasped his hands on his knees, and continued to stare at the boss in front of him.

‘’I’ve already had him track down and everything is clean, but I need you to see the way he’s going to behave next to Ginny. My daughter does not deserve a man of arguable morals at her side.’’ Henry nodded, still a little dizzy. ‘’Furthermore, Mr Potter also knows him and has guaranteed that his family will more than approve the bond, as they need allies if they want to fight against You-Know-Who.’’

''I'm sure yes.’’

"And Ginny is an excellent witch, you know that yourself, the last two years she has perfected her art of dueling and the control of magic perfectly, so it will make a lot of difference for the family." Ginny hadn't improved her magic and control, to marry a weakling who needs a woman to defend himself. She needed someone to keep her safe enough, so she no longer had to worry about staying alive. The woman was barely 24 years old, and seemed to duel and defend herself as an Auror with over 30 years of service.

She definitely shouldn't marry someone who couldn't provide her with the least amount of security, so that her biggest concern would be that tomorrow the weather would be good enough to fly.

‘‘Sir, excuse the question, but does she know him?’’

‘’Oh, no, no, she’ll meet him at the ball.’’ Arthur assured him, pouring some Firewhiskey into two glasses that were already there on the table, but Henry denied it when the glass slid towards him.

‘’Thank you, sir, but I think I need to be sober for the trip.’’

‘’You’re a good man, Mr. Figg, an Auror of respect.’’ Arthur smiled at him, bringing the drink to his lips and then closing his eyes, as if he had headaches. ‘’This situation,’’ The cheeks almost automatically turn red with the liquid ingested. ‘’It has driven me almost crazy... Mr Potter organizing this party again called attention to the things that happened between our families.’’

‘’The kidnapping of the Potter boy?’’ Arthur nodded.

‘’But not only that, Mr Figg, actually, I wish it were just that… But the king has been pushing me too.’’

‘’The king?’’ If Henry had never even met the Dukes, the King was the last person he dreamed of seeing.

‘’Yes, Dumbledore has.. has been reminding me and James of something that connected our families for a long time.’’ Arthur drank some more, seeming to gain liquid courage to continue. ‘’A prophecy that made all this happen… ’’ Henry waited for him to continue, barely knowing what to say in the face of it. "It said that.. That two kids would be born 10 days, 10 hours and 10 minutes apart, and that they would be the only ones, with the wedding bond, to kill You-Know-Who." The man sighed, and Henry noticed that he was looking at the picture of Ginny on the wall, dressed in a light pink dress, and with a mouth dirty with blackberries. ‘’Are you aware of what it is like to look at your little girl, so small, and think that she is destined to kill one of the greatest wizards that ever existed? That if she doesn't do that... ’’

‘’If she doesn’t?’’ Henry insisted, thinking he was never under so much stress as he was at that time.

‘’She will die.’’ Then Arthur was silent, watching little Ginny laugh and hide her dirty hands behind her back, looking away, as if he wanted to get into the photo. ‘’Die like Harry Potter died.’’

‘‘I’m sorry, sir, but I thought the Dukes had said it was just a lie.’’

‘’No, James just doesn’t want to accept the idea, but Dumbledore believes that the boy will not have survived until now. The prophet who predicted this, was clear in saying that the farther the soul mates got, the weaker they would be, and the more likely they would end up being taken by You-Know-Who. After Harry disappeared, she was consulted by the king, who thought it pertinent to warn us now that she made it clear that if the boy had indeed survived, he would have died at the age of 20 or 21, and would not have passed that age. ’’

''Why that?''

‘’Because he would have spent a long time away from the protections that the soul mate and prophecy govern him. It was at that same age that Ginny was attacked. On her 21st birthday.’’ The man denied, closing his eyes again. ‘’Dumbledore insisted that I marry her once and for all, so that she is safe about marriage protections. It’s not much, but it’s much more than we can offer.’’

‘‘Do you believe in this prophecy?’’ Arthur laughed humorlessly, opening his blue eyes towards Henry.

‘’Harry Potter was never found, was he?’’

[...]

''Miss, I beg you to wait for me, then go inside the carriage,'' Henry asked, feeling an irritating headache, redoing the security spell around the carriage that Ginny would travel in, just as Thomas and Joe did with the other two.

The Weasleys were all talking behind the Aurors, eagerly waiting to board. Ginny was the happiest of all, barely stopping in place as she chatted excitedly with Ron about what she imagined they would do during the week they would be away from home, looking much happier than Henry remembered seeing her.

But at the same time that he was happy that she was happy, Henry remembered her conversation with Mr Weasley, and how desperate he looked. Ginny was getting married. Ginny could die.

Damn Harry Potter, who arrested her in that fate.

‘’All done, come on in, Miss.’’ Henry signaled to her, interrupting the conversation between the brothers, and smiling apologetically at them.

‘’Thank you, Mr Figg.’’ She jumped into the vehicle, followed by Ron, the twins, and lastly, Henry. As soon as he closed the door, and touched the magic coin that was the point of communication with Thomas and Joe, the carriage began to move and leave the floor. ''This is so exciting!'' Ginny opened the window curtains, and Henry even thought about asking her to close, as it was safer and prevented anyone from seeing her inside, but there were so many charms around them, that he thought it was okay to let her have fun for just a few minutes.

There were two benches, facing each other, the twins and Ron were in front of him and Ginny, and everyone seemed to marvel at the view of the property from above, much higher than they normally went with the brooms.

‘’How long to wait, Mr Figg?’’ Ron asked, still looking out the window, before he got tired and closed the curtain.

‘‘I think two or, at most, three hours. Thestrals are fast animals, they tend not to linger.’’

‘’Do you see them?’’ It was Fred who asked this time, and Henry nodded.

‘’He has seen death several times.’’ Ginny spoke before Henry was able, as if to say the obvious. ‘’Almost all Aurors have seen someone die, and if they haven’t, they’re not doing their job in the right field, because in the midst of wars, it’s impossible not to witness it.’’

‘’You shouldn’t know about that.’’ Ron pointed out.

‘’But I know, because I ask him. What else would we talk about? One hour this matter would come up, Mr Figg has been with me since I was 21.’’

‘’Miss Weasley doesn’t know any macabre details, only that I’ve seen death.’’ He lied, thinking that her brothers shouldn’t know that Henry once described how a man’s eyes were pulled out of his face. ‘’I would never give that kind of detail.’’

‘’Besides, Ron, I think I’m better able to hear about it than you are, because although I remember, when you first saw blood, you passed out.’’

Henry did not listen very much to the conversation between the siblings, looking at the small window beside him, and watching the clouds.

If Ginny married, he would be forced to walk away from her and never work with her again, even if her husband asked for a security guard, Henry would no longer be assigned to work. His contract, of course, said that when she signed her name on the wedding paper, he would automatically be disqualified as her personal security guard, and for some reason, it saddened him.

Henry had spent so much of his life alone, without many friends besides his mother and the boy who took piano lessons with her, without much vision for a profitable future. As soon as he was able to join the aurors, he imagined that he would prosper and be more social, but soon it proved much more difficult than expected. When you worked with arresting, killing and looking for murderers, there was not much time and energy left to make friends and date, and most guys didn't want to be friends with the same guy who helped him carry the body of a dead child in a confrontation.

It turned out that he just stayed at home, reading some book or the record of someone wanted, making theories and trying to think of a plan for the next day. Always trying to stay alive, even though it seemed to get more difficult with each passing day.

He had been so sorry for Robards when he told him about Ginny. The girl had lost control of her magic and now in addition to being threatened with death, she suffered public retaliation. Henry understood, at least in part, the pain she was suffering, as he felt the same thing when he saw someone dying in front of him for the first time - a colleague - and also lost control of the magic.

It had been traumatic, and Henry almost took his own life when memories of Cedric's icy white body fell in front of him. That had been the closest to a friend he’d had in years, and even though they had only known each other for a few months, the man tried to stop the Death Eater who raised his wand for Henry.

He understood what it was like not to be able to control even the wand in his hand, feeling his body tremble and his chest warm with magic, even looking like the spells would come out of his fingertips. He was desperate to say the least, and Henry sympathized with Ginny before he even met her.

A woman shouldn't feel as out of control as he had, a few weeks before he met her.

And now, he was going to see his best friend - and the woman who moved his poor heart - marry a guy who wouldn't even bring her so much security, and all Henry could do is nod, bow, and leave.

Henry sighed, closing the curtain and realizing that the argument between the brothers had stopped. ‘’Do you think the transfiguration festival will take place?’’ George asked - Henry knew how to differentiate them, no matter how difficult it was.

‘’Sure, it’s a tradition,’’ Ron said, running a hand through the red hair so characteristic of the family. ‘’I trained all week, I want to show that I’m good.’’

‘’Hmmm, is it because of Miss Granger?’’ Ginny winked at her brother in front of her, a smirk on her lips. ''Oh, Mr Weasley, you are so good at transfiguration spells, please marry me.'' She spoke of what should be an imitation of the Miss in question, the back of her hand on her forehead dramatically, and the other, stretched out towards Ron, who had red cheeks like curtains.

‘’She doesn't talk like that, you idiot.’’

''Hey. Women don't like men who treat their sister badly,’’ Fred warned him, punching Ron in the arm. ‘’And neither are the brothers!’’

‘’Women like polite men, who take her for a walk and treat her politely.’’ Ginny raised an eyebrow, arms crossed under her chest as if she could duel with her brother right there. Ron rolled his eyes.

‘’I treat her with respect... And what would you know about it? As far as I know, Mom didn't tell me about anyone taking you for walks.'' Ron looked sorry for saying that the next moment, but before he could apologize, or whatever, Ginny seemed to bristle like a wildcat.

''Because I'm a woman, you imbecile, and unlike the three of you, my head doesn't work just to think about when I'm going to sleep with someone.'' The three in front of her opened their eyes wide, and Henry almost laughed, but he thought they were too far from the ground to risk being thrown from the carriage. ''What's it? Now, after all, will you think I don't know about that? Oh, please, that's why the three of you are single, you very much doubt a woman's intelligence.’’

[...]

As soon as they landed on the floor, Henry felt the headache bothering him again, especially the scar on his forehead, the one that was always covered by his hair. After making sure it was safe, he got out of the carriage and undid the necessary protections for Ginny, Fred, George and Ron to get off too, and as much as he closed his fists around his wand, relaxed his shoulders, and took a deep breath, he still felt that tightness in his chest and burning on his forehead, which had bothered him since they started approaching the village where the house was.

It was much more than he ever thought he would have the honor of entering; it was a bigger mansion than any he had ever seen. There were more windows than he could count, large columns surrounded by rose vines, the stone-clad house was much better cared for than any he had ever known. The garden was very well maintained, with trees well over 100 years old, and flowers perfectly pruned. There were even statues, like the ones he had seen in a Marquis' house, but unlike that of the man, it was not just one, but several scattered around the garden in a way that looked beautiful and made sense. Some waved at them, and others just continued in their poses, were very well made and almost made him think that they looked like humans covered in plaster.

It was like going to an enchanted place, which brought an immense sense of peace and something even familiar, as if Henry had already been there before. What was silly, he knew.

As soon as they were ready, the Aurors followed the family to the front door, the path was long and well defined, separated from the rest of the garden, with bushes decorating the sides of the small road, and as far as he could see, the Dukes were waiting for them, wearing neutral and elegant clothes.

Henry hadn't been prepared to meet the Dukes in person, and he guessed it was nervousness that made him feel a strange urge to cry or run, as if something stopped him from breathing fully and made his knees look weak. He never imagined performing for such important people.

Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were the first to greet, bowing first and then giving hugs and smiles, then the children, who just bowed one by one as the rule dictated and spoke a few words, and finally, the Aurors.

The Duke and Duchess looked at Henry as if they recognized him - perhaps Arthur had shown them his identification as Auror, where there was a photo. The Duchess had red hair that was darker and shorter than the Weasleys', and green eyes that looked like big, shiny emeralds in her thin and pale face. The Duke was almost the opposite of her, tall, with skin that was darker and tanned than his wife's, black hair and cropped but still a little messy, and dark eyes.

The clothes looked of great quality, much more than he could buy in his life. The thick fabrics covered them without any wrinkles, and the Potter Family crest, carved in gold, was proudly displayed.

Something inside Henry burned even harder, and as if his memory tried to remember where he had seen them - probably, in a newspaper in the past few weeks, which had several pictures of the two - his head hurt a lot. He wouldn't show weakness in front of them, so he just closed his eyes and bowed completely, swallowing the desire that had arisen.

‘’Mr, Mrs Potter, it is a pleasure to meet you.’’ Henry said as soon as his turn came, much closer to the two, who didn’t seem very comfortable with the situation. Perhaps it was the fact that it was the first party they had been throwing in years, and after what Henry had heard from Arthur, he couldn't imagine that the Dukes were happy knowing that their son was probably really dead. ‘’My name is Henry Figg.’’

#hinny #harry X ginny #hinny au!#soulbound #Harry Potter #jily lives #Ginny Weasley #regency era

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goldenkamuyhunting · 4 years ago

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I’m gonna ramble a little about... OGATA HYAKUNOSUKE NENDOROID PROTOTYPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Before I’ll start talking about how cool he is I’ll answer to the question that’s apparently haunting all the Sugimoto fans and that’s ‘Why Ogata is released before Sugimoto?’

Well, truth is Sugimoto might not even be released.

Goodsmile is specialized in girls and, to promote the first series of the anime they released Asirpa which is based on her anime version, not on her manga version.

Ogata was released because fans requested for him so much he got a spot in the 6 most requested characters. When I say 6 most requested characters, I don’t mean, among the Golden Kamuy characters, I mean among all the characters possible, characters from anime, manga, video games, American comics, Chinese donghua, virtual youtubers, vocaloids, Disney characters, movie characters and who knows what else as Goodsmile can and had released Nendo for characters from all these sources. If you think at it, it’s quite a feat.

Sugimoto wasn’t among the 6 most requested characters, we actually don’t know how many had requested him or if he had been requested at all so, before asking why he’s not released ask yourself ‘did I showed my support and requested for him when Goodsmile asked for requests?’ because if you hadn’t done it back then, maybe it’s time you’ll do now.

It would be great to have more Golden Kamuy Nendo, not just Sugi but also Shiraishi and Kiroranke and Koito and so on. but you need to vote for them, otherwise Goodsmile might not consider making them.

Also, did you show your support to ‘Golden Kamuy’ characters by buying Asirpa? Are you planning to continue showing your support by buying Ogata?

If they do not sell well it’s unlikely Goodsmile will continue producing characters from that series.

Now... Ogata Nendo.

I think it’s no secret I’ve made my own custom made Ogata Nendo, using Katsuki Yuri’s hair and Tanya Degurechaff’s body.

A Twitter user instead used a mix of Katsuki Yuri and Otabek Altin’s hair and Nikkari Aoe’s body, customizing everything much more than I did so as to get an even better result.

But our efforts can’t even get close to the awesomeness of the prototype model.

Everyone, enjoy Ogata!

His pose mimics the one on the image used to announce him (it’s not a given, sometimes they change it), although, as you can see, now he has a nose (it’s actually pretty common not to draw it on ).

The pose is also likely inspired by this image, only without the scarf.

The hair, being sculpted purposedly for him and not just being adapted from the one of another nendo are a perfect copy of his hairstile. In the prototype that rebellious strand of hair of his seems to be detachable. It might be that they won’t make it as such in the definitive model or that it’ll stay as such, allowing for more posing.

They sculpted his face giving him a very Ogata grin, with the left corner of his mouth turning more up which gives him a more confident and smug expression.

The cape is sculpted in one piece (“Attack on Titans”’ capes are sculpted in more pieces). As the right side is clearly more pulled up than the left to allow the arm to be positioned as such, it’s possible this means the definitive version will include 2 capes to suit different positions.

From what I can see the cape is well sculpted, with folds and the tiny buttons that close it. I wonder if the definitive version will include an hood pulled up head part (it’s one of the things I nagged Gooodsmile for in my requests for him).

Now... body. There are carefully sculpted foldings in his gaiters and in the jacket, giving it a beautiful look but what I like the most is that it seems it can be parted at waist level.

It’s not a given, Tanya’s for example can be parted and the same is sadly also true for Asirpa.

Why this is a good thing?

Because it opens up to the possibility they’ll include a sitting part so that you can switch Ogata’s lower half with it and have him sit down to do the citatap scene... or snipe someone while sitting down (another thing I nagged Goodsmile for...).

Honestly I was really offput by how Asirpa couldn’t sit down and make citatap, especially considering all the poses Goodsmile gave her had her seated in Golden Kamuy...

...so I would be delighted if Ogata couls sit down and either make citatap or shoot (I think I’ll go nag Goodsmile some more about it after I finish writing this).

Another thing relevant is they gave him the ammunition puches and the bayonet.

They seem detachable (which is also not a given), sometimes they’re sculpted as a single piece with the clothes.

This is both good and not so good as Asirpa’s knife and Menomakiri had the bad habit to ‘detach themselves’ if I’m not careful handling her, so I hope they made the puch and the bayonet better attached.

On a sidenote I also hope Ogata can hold the bayonet (yes, I nagged Goodsmile for this too... is there a thing I didn’t nag them for?)

By the way, I genuinely doubt the Nendo will include Ogata’s army hat and his older haircut.

Anyway, continuing to talk about the body, the arms seems to be made with two pieces. If this is keep this would allow for greater mobility and more posing (only Asirpa’s right arm could be split in 2 pieces sadly...)

Ogata’s feet are obviously smaller than Asirpa has he doesn’t wear the same large boots she wears, which means it will be likely impossible for his Nendo version to stay up without a support.

The arm peg is shown to attach behind his back so it will clearly have a longer peg that can go through the cape and his back, same as Asirpa.

Differently from Asirpa Ogata doesn’t have a lot of expressions, so I expect him to have only 3 faceplates (Asirpa has 5).

I’ll figure the other 2 might be either a serious expression or a fighting expression (which is usually done by having the character with his mouth open, shouting something) and I would love if he could have the closed eyes citatap expression but that’s just me.

I do wonder if he’ll come with a background sheet and which they will include as a bonus if you preorder him from Goodsmile (for Asirpa it was just another background sheet).

On a personal note I also really, really hope Goodsmile will release an expansion set for Asirpa, to allow her to have citatap, use her arrows and maybe have a cute mini Retar but I guess this might be asking too much.

Still, I recomment every fan to show your support by buying Asirpa and Ogata (you will probably be able to pre-order him once the prototype gets approved and they give him a paint work) and request for more Golden Kamuy Nendo.

Showing Goodsmile how Asirpa and Ogata sell well and that there’s interest for more Golden Kamuy Nendo is our only way to see more Golden Kamuy characters to be released.

Who knows, maybe even Re-ment will get interested and will release a Meiji Hokkaido set. We’ll see. Anyway, if you can buy them.

Those little Nendo guys need all our love.

#Golden Kamuy #Ogata Hyakunosuke #Nendoroid #Asirpa #Sugimoto Saichi #Golden Kamuy Nendoroids

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amphtaminedreams · 4 years ago

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Spring/Summer & Haute Couture Week 2021: Whoops, I’ve Missed a Loooot

Hi to anyone reading,

Where TF has the time gone!?

After experiencing the longest January of all time (when your birthday is right after New Year, you get that between Boxing Day before NYE slump like a couple of weeks after everyone else), February has gone by in, like, 5 minutes and already we’re well into the throes of the F/W 2021 collection presentations. Meanwhile, I’m here like! Surprise! Here are my reviews of the S/S 2021 collections if anybody still cares! I mean I’m mashing it up with corresponding haute couture week reviews to fool everyone into thinking that doing it so many months later was intentional and it was totally working right up until this sentence, right?

In all fairness, I originally thought that I wasn’t going to bother reviewing S/S21 because it seemed kinda redundant given the circumstances and I wasn’t keen on the idea of collections being showcased via photo sets which is the route so many brands chose to (understandably) go down. Buuuut, the more I saw of what designers had put out there, the more I was tempted to put this post together and now here I am. The fact that designers are even able to churn pieces out during a pandemic when I’m out here like 0__0 no thoughts, head empty...it’s impressive to say the least, especially the way so many used the circumstances to inform their designs. In a way, it would be a disservice not to do a post on the season, and yeah it’s late, but given that it we are actually about to enter spring and the shows are kind of the deciders of what’s going to be “in” and “out”, they’re more relevant than ever. With plans for our way out of lockdown materialising-now is the perfect time to add that I don’t want ANYONE suddenly developing selective amnesia over how our government has failed us now that Boris has announced when the clubs COULD reopen-let this post serve as a roundup of every bit of inspiration available for our spring fits. I also want to use this opportunity to disclose how irritated I am at myself for starting the previous fashion week reviews post by declaring I was going to work through the designers in chronological order when I meant fucking alphabetical because I now can’t go back and change that. So this time, let me start properly. I’m going to be reviewing the collections in ALPHABETICAL order. Now that’s out the way, let’s do it. First, Acne:

It’s so great to start on a high, it really is, and fortunately Acne is reliably good. It’s still got that deconstructed, minimalist feel that the brand is known for but for the summer season; we can see creative director Jonny Johansson and his team moving away from the heavier pieces we saw last time round, away from upcycled bohemian curtains and towards a breezier, more season appropriate aesthetic, boujee kaftans and swimwear rebelliously hacked up and artfully rearranged, and it feels correct. The net pieces, the beachy colour palette, the oil spill-esque print (though this represents an intruder of the marine ecosystem, as a print I loveee it and 100% want more!) and the accessories, reminiscent of shells, coral and anything else you might find on the seabed, give me a hipster mermaid washed ashore vibe which completely fits with that rugged, mysterious sense of Nordic folklore references and adventure the brand has established as its foundation. If it’s a nod to some kind of new age cult that Johansson was going for, which apparently is the case, I’m guessing said cult worship sea goddesses and perform pagan rituals on the beach by moonlight, and though indoctrination doesn’t sound at all inviting, it's a party compared to scientology.

The chiffon trousers here are actually chic and seeing them styled under a blazer makes me realise done right they CAN be more than just a PrettyLittleThing summer sale piece, so I’ll store that away for outfit inspo when the time to get rid of some layers comes around. The glasses, too, are very Gucci. Flip flops with socks I don’t think I can ever come round to but-

Whilst it was a favourite of mine last season and it sticks to that same bohemian vibe with a lot of the elements I love, Ferretti lacks a little oomph this time round; it’s more stripped back, neutral, easy-going, and it is lovely, but for those same reasons it doesn’t grab my attention as much as the past couple of collections have. If you’re an influencer wanting to shoot a Joshua Tree desert lookbook this is sublime, but compared to the flair I saw in their last winter show, for example, there’s something lacking.

I’m very glad to see neutral coloured boiler suits on the runway, however; I snagged myself one off Depop the other week so I might be unintentionally ahead of the curve for once! The crochet detail dresses are nice too but very much remind me of past Zimmerman collections, or an Ermanno Scervino grab for the most high street friendly parts of Erdem SS2020, something along those lines. What I’m trying to say is that it’s definitely been there done that, even by Ferretti themselves and not in a continuity kinda way, in a kinda…this is basic and pretty so we know it will sell kinda way.

Eurgh, I wanna be one of these Alessandra Rich girls so bad.

I end up repeating myself every single time because I always love her collections but really, this is what a high fashion novice thinks Chanel is. Alessandra Rich outsold. As much as her dresses have looked amazing on people like Kate Middleton and January Jones, I’m just waiting for one of the modern it-girls to take the nostalgia-tinged femininity of her pieces and put some kind of daring, street-style twist on it; if that doesn’t happen I’ll gladly take 5 minutes of fame so I can do it before fading back into obscurity. Let me fulfil my modern first lady fantasy, reenact the croquet scene from Heathers, drape myself on a chaise lounge whilst smoking with a cigarette holder, and then throw me back into the trash where I belong. I can die happy. Also, can we once again appreciate how much more iconic the Alessandra Rich two piece made the already moment Dakota Johnson singlehandedly brought down the Ellen dynasty?

Dakota knew exactly what she was gonna do and the energy that she was gonna channel when she wore that piece and I admire it. Alessandra Rich, if nothing else, will go down as a key moment in pop culture history, and you know what? It’s what she deserves.

Whilst I do wish she’d branch out a little and try and get back in touch with the dark drama of old McQueen collections now and again, Sarah Burton has made a very recognisable Alexander McQueen silhouette and it’s beautiful; this season is gorgeous as always. A leather biker and tulle affair that’s perfect for a grunge ballet, it’s easy to avoid lamenting the excitement and theatrics of old collections when Sarah creates such consistently sophisticated pieces. Stunning.

Now, a quick haute couture detour with Alexandre Vauthier:

Compared to other haute couture collections, this is pretty toned down and by appearances alone (I know haute couture is more about meeting technical requirements more than anything else but there is a level of grandiose you expect to see) is more like a RTW collection than its counterparts. That being the case, I don’t have a huge amount to say about this one, though I do really like it-the ruched metallic boots especially. The Studio 54 vibes and the glam rock influences are clear and a lot of these pieces could definitely make it into Lady Gaga’s AHS Hotel wardrobe which is a compliment of the highest order, so there ya go. Plus, if a collection IS gonna be presented through stills, a format like this is preferable to some of the others I’m gonna talk about. There may be more exciting ways of doing it but simple allows us to see the clothes properly and at the end of the day, that’s what I care about the most!

Heading back to good ole’ RTW, we have Altuzarra; I wasn’t hugely keen on their last collection but this is definitely a step up for me and justifies keeping them on my radar. Though in some ways this seems like less of a summer collection and more of a late winter/early spring transitional one on the basis it can’t seem to decide which temperature its catering to, there’s a lot to like: a colour palette that reminds me of a Dion Lee collection, harnesses evocative of those sprinkled throughout the last few Alexander McQueen shows, and more of the utility wear trend that I’m still very much into nicely contrasted against lighter, airier pieces for an overall fresh, modern vibe. The interpretive dancewear style pieces are interesting and the woven platform sandals are the shoe of the summer but the white shirt with the cape incorporated is definitely the high point of this show and I absolutely adore it.

Anna Sui was actually pretty cute this time round. Her pieces have always been kooky, but in the past a little too lairy and occasionally cheap-looking for me. This collection, however, is kooky in more of a Melanie Martinez styled baby doll kinda way, as opposed to in an eccentric Bjork loving aunt whose idea of heaven is an all-must-go Primark sale kinda way (I know some people are going to vehemently disagree with my aesthetic preference there) and I love that. There seems to be a lot more creative direction going on, a much clearer vision of what Sui wanted to achieve, and yes a few of the looks went a bit too hard on the cookie cutter vibes but on the whole, they were more edited than usual; it seems Sui actually paid attention to the “take one thing off before you leave the house” rule this time. The staging is the perfect compliment to the doily style bucket hats and the sandals paired with frilly socks, and really adds to the whimsy of the collection, and as a whole, it really reminds me a lot of the way my mum would dress me as a toddler but styled up for a grown adult. Cute AF.

Armani RTW I was pleasantly surprised by, considering I don’t usually rate it. It’s a cool, androgynous take on retro shapes and styles that’s simultaneously fit for the hustle and bustle of the modern world. Strong 2021 Peggy Olsen vibes, and a bit muted Lacoste-I can 100% imagine Elisabeth Moss as Peggy swanning around in one of those huge minimalist houses with the floor to ceiling windows after a long day at work, though we’ll switch the cigarette for a vape because...you know...welcome to the future. And sure, maybe the vision is slightly influenced by THAT scene from Us, but whatever. As for the men’s wear, if I have to look through an endless gallery of straight white men in plain ass suits every time I do some kind of red carpet fashion review, I at least hope they’re wearing Armani. I need me some impeccable tailoring to soften the blow.

I do wonder, however, how the clothes would look on plus size models. I feel like it’s a collection that’s very catered to a person who is straight up and down, and it feels like a bit of an easy cop out not to have any kind of versatility. Say what you want about Christian Siriano but he caters to all body types very well.

I actually quite liked Armani’s haute couture collection too; the pops of colour and the intricate embroidery give me what I’ll later talk about missing from Valentino haute couture. There were still some of the frumpier pieces that I usually associate Armani with but also a lot of Great Gatsby-esque looks that I really enjoyed.

Returning to RTW, Ashish was amazing. I LOVE that there’s always some kind of unique print (this time round, kitschy illustrations) and whilst a whole maxi swan print dress may not be the most wearable for the majority of us, Ashish Gupta does bold and innovative really well. There were a few boring striped pieces in there but I adore the one shouldered butterfly print dress and I NEED that Hail Satan jumper; it reminds me a lot of something by sustainable fashion brand Minga, which is one of my absolute fave websites to buy from when I’m treating myself to some new clothes.

Azarro’s haute couture collection is full of supreme awards show afterparty fits, and I was shook to find out that Olivier Theyskens is the brand’s creative director! My newfound obsession with his pieces really had me like :O when I realised he was behind Azarro too. I loved their collection last time round, though this I’m finding a bit harder to give much analysis on because of the way it’s shot; whilst it could be a YSL perfume Vogue ad, which is obviously far from a bad thing, it comes at the cost of lacking visual clarity. That being said, from what I can see, Theyskens once again masterfully channels the wardrobe of the effortlessly cool, messy haired, smudged eye make up rock ‘n roll girl, and I think that’s someone we all want to be.

Balenciaga RTW was an interesting one for me-on first inspection, I was kinda disappointed. Without the usual drama of the bold, exaggerated silhouettes and the theatrical production of their shows, I felt it was missing a bit of the magic I’ve come to expect from them. The streetwear elements infused throughout, a departure from their typical pieces, was very hit and miss; the shearling slip-ons in particular were not my thing at all. I’d be admiring some beautiful gothic dress and then my eyes would slide down and see those monstrosities and it would bring the whole thing down a notch or two, despite bad shoes being something I can typically overlook if I otherwise enjoy the rest of the outfit. My initial conclusion: that the Balenciaga Myrtle Snow would choose as her last words this collection.

However, upon re-evaluation when typing this post up properly and knowing what to expect, I like the collection a lot. I’m getting a bit of a Seoul streetwear vibe from it, and I can appreciate that although it is a lot more trend focussed, it’s got an edgy, daring quality to it, with a lot of androgynous, utility wear elements on show. I loveee the Balenciaga chokers too and in my wildest dreams would get my hands on one before it goes the way of the Gucci belt and gets overdone and flaunted by social media influencers as a show of wealth to the point of tackiness.

At Balmain the sculpted body armour made a comeback but on this occasion, not in a way that I liked, and there war far too many neons for my taste too. No matter how many times it rears its ugly head, I find it hard to get on board because as a colour palette I can’t help but associate with Claire’s Accessories circa 2007-it has to be SO well done to avoid looking cheap, imo, and these Balmain pieces weren’t good enough for me to go against that gut aversion. A collection with 100+ looks isn’t usually a good sign and expecting Olivier Rousteing to achieve the impossible and manage to do both quality and quantity is a recipe for disaster; it’s a shame because his last collection was so original and yet this one feels like a cheaper looking rip off of other brands. It was just a bawdy display of 80s overkill IMO and if I can only find 8 outfits to include out of 100 that’s clearly not a good sign.

Bottega Veneta is a brand that the high fashion side of the internet loves that I can never 100% get on board with; I get it, they’re behind the gorgeous square toed heels, but other than that none of their collections have ever really wowed me. The chunky knitted pieces are very Miu Miu style futuristic grandma chic and as someone on the cusp of being either a millennial or gen Z (depending on which website you visit) it’s got me outfit planning for my retirement years. Utilising so much wool for a summer collection, however, seems like a choice because can you IMAGINE wearing a heavy knit in blazing sun; I almost didn’t include the collection to be honest but then every so often something really cute came long, and one of the signature crisp, classic BV pieces would be done well and so I felt I had to. Am I missing something given all the hype here? IDK tbh.

Burberry? Meh. You could also call this collection how many ways can I do a trench coat, with results of differing quality; occasionally the mix match of styles worked and I saw the deconstructed outerwear concept that Ricardo Tisci was presumably trying to go for, though it can’t come as much of a surprise that the combination of a trench, denim and leather jacket was mostly just messy and came off as a last ditch attempt to make the classic coat more interesting by just chucking other fabrics at it and seeing what stuck.

One thing I will say is that there were some really sick prints going on-the snakes in particular-and it was those prints that were really the saving grace of the collection; as I said with regards to Ashish, I like it when you can tell a brand has gone out of their way to experiment with patterns and actually incorporate illustration and graphic design into their pieces. Prints notwithstanding, though, it wasn’t a memorable collection and I really can’t wait for the day we put this whole multiple denim jean waistband trend to bed once and for all; in the wise words of Regina George “stop drying to make multiple waist bands happen. They’re not going to happen.”.

Carolina Herrera was just as I expected. Whilst Wes Gordon was a little more daring with the structure of the pieces than usual, you can still he’s still committed to designing for the wealthy, modestly dressed socialite (yes I’m talking about Tinsley Mortimer and yes, I have recently become obsessed with Real Housewives) and her insatiable need to collect more charity gala gowns than she’ll ever possibly have opportunities to wear in her time on this earth. Sounds like a great life, sure, but it’s not like it gets my heart racing when I see the looks on the runway. The most memorable piece for sure was double breasted blazer w the asymmetric ruffle; I haven’t seen anything like it in a RTW collection in recent memory.

Now onto the fucking train wreck that was Celine RTW.

It’s not even bad for a runway fashion show, it’s just like…straight-up bad. Like Hedi Slimane went back in time to 2013, took a bunch of models into my local Topshop (and I have to clarify my local Topshop rather than the flagship Oxford Circus store-RIP-because to do the same in the latter would produce far better results), picked up some cheap basics, switched the lights off, and then, finally, dressed them in the dark. There’s very few positive comments I can make so I’m just going to move on.

Chanel RTW I actually didn’t hate as much this season; maybe it’s because coming from Celine, my standards are like, on the floor, but it’s slightly better than usual. Whilst most of it was same old same old, the opening 10 or so looks and then from 40 onwards were alright. The colour contrast pieces were classic Chanel in a good way, that is to say somewhat modernised and appealing to a younger clientele as opposed to the elderly women who still see a boucle jacket as the height of fashion. The mini chiffon capes were also cute, and if it weren’t for COVID putting pause on everything I can see the Chanel headband being duped ad infinitum.

The worst part of the collection was without a doubt the pieces with the neon logo print, which I wish I could erase from my mind. At this point, with Virginie Viard seemingly refusing to make any attempt to reinvent the brand, Chanel is best when it’s subtle; that way it appeals to those regular customers who rely on the prestige of the garment and the new generation of consumers who are further branching out into experimenting with their personal style and want a quality base. But who I ask are these tacky ass pieces aimed at? Because though it appears to be an attempt to infuse a kind of youthful spirit into Chanel, it is very out of touch with what gen Z actually like, and I can’t imagine any rich old white ladies buying them either. Big shoulder shrug.

Whilst I tend to find Chanel’s haute couture collections a bit better than their RTW, this is probably on par. Still rather meh and frumpy at times, but there were some pretty, whimsical pieces in there that were definitely elevated by the staging which, I must say, was very dreamy. I’ve enjoyed the last couple of haute couture shows a lot more (the one with the library set was v cool), which were comparatively restrained with the frivolous details and the chintz, so this seems a step back. The dresses with the 50s Audrey Hepburn for Miss Dior style silhouette are lovely but obviously, as per the reference, nothing new.

Onto something much more exciting, we have Charlotte Knowles’ RTW collection, whose work has made her one to watch. I’m not as huge a fan of this as her last instalment, but Knowles’ (who I recently found out only just graduated from Central Saint Martins, making her achievements all the more impressive) continues to create clothes for a girl far cooler than myself; I know, that wouldn’t be hard, but we’re talking like, miles cooler. One of those women who can literally pull anything off and immediately make you want to try it yourself even though 9 times out of 10 that would be a bad idea-I could probably take, like, one piece and make it work but anything more would most likely just be me embarrassing myself. You wouldn’t think San Fransisco psychedelic summer of love motifs would mesh with futuristic Mad Max style biker vibes but Charlotte and her partner Alexandre Arsenault make it sexy AF, like a combo that was always meant to be. They are a dream team.

And lastly for this post, we have another collection I really liked: Chloe. Sadly Natacha Ramsay-Levi’s last collection for the brand, she truly went out on a high note, with a reliably gorgeous iteration of her sophisticated take on bohemian style. Who now, will we look to when we want to cosplay as one of the Jessas from Girls of the world? When we want to pretend we’re a rich, party girl socialite backpacking across Western Europe (along the foothills of Mount Tibidabo…) on a commissioned trip to “find herself” for the fashion magazine column she’s writing, whilst we’re actually on a budget family holiday in Spain? When we can’t decide if we’re dressing like a modern day Rachel Green or Phoebe Buffay and say fuck it, I’m gonna do both? I mean sure, I could never afford Chloe anyway and sure, I’m interested to see what Gabriela Hearst can do with the brand, which despite its loveliness is quite predictable, but it’s definitely sad to see Ramsay-Levi go when she has become a reliable source of elegance and class each season. She brings a quietly confident brand of femininity to the fashion world where the high profile design houses are increasingly dominated by men who are sometimes too focussed on being bold and brash enough to be hailed as the newest design visionary, and I have huge respect for that. She will be missed.

Now it feels right to end the post here, given that I just finished with a kind of dramatic memoriam for a woman who is very much still alive and given that I would really be playing with fire by trying to push Tumblr’s edit post feature any further, so I’ll wrap it up for now. In part 2, which will hopefully be out over the next couple of weeks, we’ll be looking at a surprisingly strong haute couture collection from (can’t believe I’m about to say this) Maria Grazia as well as some of my faves, Etro, Dion Lee, Gucci, and of course Iris Van Herpen’s haute couture. In the meantime, I’m hoping to get a post out on my favourite sustainable clothing brands and to shoot my take on the “what I would wear sat front row at X” video trend that’s been going around lately on TikTok and Instagram reels, which I know I am kinda late to the party with.

I’m also looking at starting “photo dump” posts where I basically just substitute what I would be putting on my Instagram feed as photo posts on here, all the way back to when I first started my fashion Instagram account. I know this is hardly a hot take, but Instagram has really gone to shit, and once I’ve moved all my photos from there to here, I’m probably going to be deleting my account and just keep my private personal one. I’m sick of the endless scrolling past photos of people edited to the point of being unrecognisable and of seeing faces that all conform to that exact same Eurocentric beauty standard with the exact same surgical procedures to the point that even I, as a thin, white cis girl feel disgusting (so god knows how others without my privilege feel) because I don’t have a fucking fox eye lift or whatever it is that internet famous surgeons are telling us we need for our faces to fit the “golden ratio” at the moment. I am OVERRR all the promoted posts from people who preach social awareness and equality and authenticity and kindness making money off promoting companies that rely on slave labour rather than those who make me feel uplifted and inspired. And I am VERY MUCH done with scrolling through share for share and like for like pages because I am embarrassed by the fact that my likes don’t match up to my follower count since that must mean that NOBODY LIKES ME AND EVERYONE HATES MY FACE, right!? Even though I’d like to think that mentality was something I grew out of a long time ago. Instagram, much like Facebook before it (which is no surprise since the latter now owns the former), has just become another cesspit of an app which exists solely to convince you to buy new clothes and follow the latest filler trend and blow money on holidays you can’t afford to convince everyone you’re living the good life. Like many others, I have finally come to the conclusion that the way Instagram operates now is nothing but detrimental to my wellbeing. So, all that being said, I’m moving my feed over here, to a place where I can just arrange my silly little photos into silly little collages and not care if I’m shouting into the void by doing so because they’re just a screenshot of my life that I can look back on in however many years time and think Oh, Cool! That’s What I Was Interested In Back Then! That Outfit is Timeless! Or That One Was a HUGE FUCKING MISTAKE! Because I do love the creative element of Instagram, turning your feed into a collage, picking out which colours compliment each other, posting your favourite art and your outfits and the makeup looks you’re proud of, the beautiful sights you’ve seen-I just hate how unbridled capitalism and unrealistic social expectations have once again destroyed a good thing, and caused it to stray so far from its original vision of connecting people. Here, I don’t care if I get 0 interactions on those kinds of posts, because I am putting stuff out there I am proud of that expresses who I am and that interests me, and when I put a lot of hard ass work into something that’s actually important or that benefits others in some way as opposed to indulging my own vanity, it does get some circulation and I hope that it does make a positive difference, regardless of how small. I hope it doesn’t bother anyone too much seeing my initial photo dump posts on their dashboard as I try and catch up to where I am now; you’ll probs see a mini influx of 2015 fashion and I’m sorry about that! But I don’t *think* it will be too long until I’m up to date and then the photo dump posts will be much less regular.

Anyway, sorry about the Instagram rant there at the end! If you read all the way til the end, this is a huuuuge thank you! I hope you enjoyed the post and I will get the next one out ASAP, potentially with a few posts in between. As always, feel free to inbox me if there’s anything you wanted to talk about or suggest and make sure you stay safe. There may finally be some light at the end of the tunnel:D

With a cautious dose of optimism, and the acknowledgement that I will most likely regret saying this: bring on June the 21st UK gals!

Lauren x

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faithylilac · 3 years ago

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The Party Party Part 6

So... there was a bit of a situation... a very bad situation. Not a terrible situation, Faithy and Echo are doing quite lovely.

“Well we wouldn’t have been in this mess if I was the party leader!” Dax shouted at the shorter god. She simply huffed and started tapping her foot.

“Well I didn’t see you throwing any ideas around!” She looked around the dark cave they were in, double checking for a way out. “You twat” she said off handedly.

Dax’s eyes widen, sure what he said was rude... but not to deserve that.

What happened between the two residential celestial beings?

There they were, five papers spread across the floor, each with a different task. Cj explained that they decided to pick up side jobs to do on the way to wedding. Ash and Jo had realized they would be a week early if they went straight there, so this was a perfect idea.

Faithy just shrugged her shoulders. She wasn’t party leader anymore so if anything happened, it wasn’t her fault.

“Wait which one is first on the list?” Dax finally decided to pipe in, as he knew he was free of compasses.

Carter held up their’s proudly, “we’re going after this thing called the uh....” he quickly flipped the paper around to read, “Mortem Spera... I don’t know if I said that right.”

“What is it exactly?” Ash asked. Carter read some more and shrugged. Apparently no information on it... weird.

Carter on the other hand, was having a tougher time that the two gods. Both of Ash’s and Jo’s cloaks were ripped to shreds. So their ears were out and the open, reminding Carter plenty of what they truly were.... Nyah Nyah kawaii anime cat people.

Jo had on a large hat, thank Gjhar feiiled, but her tail was sticking out. Ash on the other hand was a free cat boy, disgusting...

Carter was scurrying to look for a blind fold, make it out of anything... But there was hinderance to that plan.

“So Carter... Do you like oranges?”

Carter pulled all of his mental strength to not freak out that this cat girl was speaking to him. He took a deep breath and shut his eyes tight. “Why?” Jo just blinked at him. “I don’t want to answer that” carter continued. “I swear it’s not a deez nuts joke.” Jo replied. Carter kinda just roll his eyes but not, being that they are closed. “Kinda... but that’s so random— I’m confused.”

Jo giggle, “I just wanted to know if you liked oranges.” She replied. “I don’t hate oranges.”

“Anyway, I guess you can ask questions about me, or I can ask more about you— whatever you are more comfortable with.”

Carter shrugged, walking past her to pick up something he spotted once he opened his eyes. It was a clothe that was sticking out of rubble. “Uhhhh...” The nymph examined the clothe, it was embroidered with strange writing and lots of stars.

“Ash, you’ve studied a few ancient languages right?” Jo looked over him to find him staring at a large tapestry on the other part of the cave.

“No, where did you get that idea?” He asked. Jo just shrugged, “I didn’t know if you did, was just trying my luck.”

Carter brought over his clothe to compare the writing. It seemed to be the same letters, but slightly different... maybe it was handwriting? Ash looked over at Carter’s finding but they jumped away from him, trying to keep some distance.

“Oh shoot I forgot.” Ash said, flattening the ears on his head. Carter frowned and took a deep breath and inched back toward the bard. “Take this hurry up!” Carter shoves it at him and scurries farther away.

“Ok I guess.” Ash went back to the tapestry, trying to figure out the reoccurring letters.

Jo scooted closer to carter and smiled widely. “So... what happened with cats that caused you to be terrified so much?” She asked sweetly. Carter pauses. “Uhhhh....”

Earlier....

“Ok, everyone stick together. The shop keeper says there’s major stress at the entrance of the cave.” Cj explained as she examined the map that they bought from a gift shop. It was a old mine that housed crystals, but now it’s a tourist attraction.

The whole surrounding town was super old and and had a temple for just about every religion in the land. Even Gjhar feiiled.... Faithy kept her cloak on put away any loose jewelry. The main temple was up north, so as they traveled that way, more and more of them were more common.

But I’ll stop there. The shop keeper said someone covered in dragon scales came through the shop with a large box and went straight into the caves. He seemed like he was running for someone, so whatever was in the box seemed important.

As they ventured in the unconsciously huddled into three separate groups, Faithy and Echo on the left, Carter, Jo, and Ash on the right, and Dax and Cj in the middle.

Definitely unrelated though, Echo was tracing a wall painting with it’s finger and the mountain started shaking. “WHO DECIDED TOUCHING SOMETHING WAS A GOOD IDEA?!?” Ash screamed. “IT WAS CJ” Dax yelled back.

Like it was an action movie or something, rubble came tumbling down and separated the party.

“Ok whatever. Can you use your plants to get us out of here?” Dax asked he traced the walls of the cave.

Cj’s face read “oh duh” but as she went to feel the walls for roots or anything else she frowned. “No good. If I call them I have no idea what it’ll do to integrity of the cave.”

Dax huffed, frail mortals had to be so... frail. Sure the two of them would survive, but his favorite humanoids definitely wouldn’t.

A whistling noise echoed through the tunnel and they taking a fighting stance. Dax signaled her was going further in and Cj followed. They walk around a corner to see a green light emerging from further in.

“You got a few more millennias to live, I’ll go ahead.” Dax said dramaticly. Cj rolls her eyes and crosses her arms. “Like someone would be able to kill, much less defeat a Chaos god.”

Dax slapped a hand on either side of his face and acted surprised.

“To think you’d have so much faith in me!”

Cj just punched his arm, “that would be Faithy, not you.”

“Can I help you two?” A voice from behind them caused them to scream and Dax jumped into the smaller God’s arms.

Even though she was a goddess, she didn’t have supernatural strength of any nature. So her small frame was having trouble keeping him up.

It was a very very very very very very very old person. Now, Cj and Dax had no room to talk, but they had a better skincare routine.

Dax jumped out of Cj’s arms suddenly and her arms flung upwards in a very fast motion, knocking her down in the process. Dax helped her up and they readjust themselves.

“Are you the reason I heard some rumbling?” He asked as he shown his blue lantern around.

A sweat ran down CJ’s back.

“Actually, it was a lizard thing.” Dax spoke up. Cj looked at him with audacity. He had just blamed her for touching the thing she shouldn’t have, causing the mountain to come down on them. So he knew....

The old person simply nodded, “ah well, it’ll take them some time to dig that out. It earns the nearby too much money from tourist to let it stay caved in.” He explained. “Now, why don’t we talk for a bit? I’ll pour some tea.”

They reluctantly follow him into his little cave house. Well it was a small cave room, what’s the term for that? Google isn’t very helpful because all it’s wanting to do is give me tips for a man cave layout.

“So what brings you into an empty crystal cave? You seem more like adventurers than tourist.”

Back to Carter and the cats.

“Oh yeah... cats.” Carter looked away, trying to avoid the question.

Jo sighed and took a step back. “Ok it’s ok, you don’t have to answer that.”

Carter sighed in relief and turned straight around. “But how did you learn to be so swag?”

Carter paused and slowly turned back to them and was about to answer when Ash interrupted.

“OK GUYS! The thing we’re are after is a weapon!” He then broke his instrument and tore off a part of his cape to make a proper torch. Now you might be wondering how they could see without a torch. Ash and Jo could see enough not to bump into anything and Carter could tell where the general area of something is. That piece of clothe was just pure luck.

“Jo can you light this?” He asked her. She nodded and snapped her fingers to start a flame and lit it like a birthday candle.

“How did you do that? I don’t think archers can do that.” Carter said in confusion. She laughed and pointed at her hat. “I can change my class depending on my hat. Not that I have any control of it... if kinda just happens and I can’t ever remember what hat goes with what, we kinda just got lucky.”

Carter blinked slowly. The hat made no sense and there was so no sense of making sense of the thing.

“Guys look!” Ash held up the torch near the tapestry to show the words formed a picture of a weapon. There were also stars scattered around it.

“How do you even know that’s the thing we’re looking for? It could just be something relating to something else?” Jo asked.

“Carter give me the flier.” Ash asked sticking his hand out. Carter scrambled around to remember where he stuffed it, “it’s on your belt of daggers.” Ash said. He grabs it and hands it to the cat boy.

Ash holds it up and looks for any similarity between the flier and the tapestry. “Well thats only convenient.” He said. Jo and Carter look over his shoulder and the weird drawing on the flier almost matches the tapestry.

“It’s missing the words that make up the weapon.” Jo pointed out. Now that was very apparent to Carter and Ash but ummm.... Jo is nice and is explaining what’s going on for you sweet Reader-Chan!

(Aughh that took thirty years off my life. I feel like I’m writing on Wattpad again)

But every single star was present. “Wow I feel smart for figuring this out.” Ash said proudly.

“Do they make a pattern?” Carter asked. Ash shoved the flier at him and started kicking random rocks until one fell apart. He picked it up and grabbed the flier back from carter and plopped down.

He used the fragile rock as chalk and connected each start. “Oooh smart.” Jo added.

There were five large stars and a few smaller stars scattered as well. When Ash connected them all together it looked like a deformed turkey.

“Surely that’s not right.” Ash quickly dusted off the flier and connected only the large stars. “Ok tell me if I’m wrong, but does this look like a straying path?” He pointed out.

It started at one point, split into three, then back to another. “Oh yeah I can see that.” Jo replied.

“Maybe we were going to split up anyway and the rubble just sped it up.” Ash purposed.

“I still don’t see how this has anything to with the Mortem Spera“ Carter replied. Ash thought on his question for a minute but shrugged. “Most of these stupid quest have no reason to link up together the way they do.” The cat boy replied.

“Wait, that means we should be able to meet back up with the others then.” Jo replied. Ash quickly rips the tapestry off the wall and rolls it up. “I don’t know if this will be helpful, but it’s worth a shot.” They then head off the find the others.

“So these star forgers are immortal?” Cj asked before taking another sip of tea. The elder nodded.

“The only thing known to strike down one of these beings is something called the Mortem Spera.” He replied, drinking some of his own tea.

The two gods looked at each other, remembering that was thing they were hired to receive.

“But hear my warning. No mortal has managed to get their hands on it, and if they did they would surely meet their end.” He added.

“So who wielded it?” Dax spoke up. Dax did not have tea, he was drinking black coffee. Not that the old man had coffee, he made it himself— French press and everything.

The old man fell silent and put down his cup. “I don’t know the answer to that question. My theory was a dying god.” Interesting, interesting cool story bro.

“But I don’t actually know that. But I don’t think too much about the subject.”

“Well thank you for your time, but we need to find our friends.” Cj announced and pulled Dax up with her.

“Thank you for humoring me, you young folk have fun.” He said as he was went back to drinking tea.

Cj and Dax scurried out and proceeded further into the cave. “I’m sorry I don’t think he knows what’s he’s talking about.” Dax said.

“How so?” Cj replied. The older god sighed. “As long as I’ve lived, I would have at least heard about a dying god THAT desperate to live. Sure some seek out the fountain of youth, but trying to kill something like a star forger.”

Cj thought on it and nodded, “he did seem like he belonged in a loony bin.”

They then turned another corner to find... Faithy and Echo having a tea party?

She had on a fake crown and Echo had on a fake mustache and top hat. But this wasn’t your average tea party, it was the real thing. With delicate dishes, a tower of Pastries, and Gjhar feiiled forbid... a white lace table clothe.

“Is this what you’ve been doing this whole time?” Cj asked, not that she was one to ask.

“We ran into this lovely dwarf who owns a restaurant in here and we’ve been waiting on the rest of you.” Faithy explained before drinking out of her cup with her pinkie at ninety degrees.

Dax and Cj looked at them confused, “how did you know we were coming this way?” Cj asked.

“Ahh... so the shop owner was telling us that the cave coming down on itself was just a illusion.” Echo replied.

Cj flops down onto the ground and leaves an indention around herself.

“Yeah the whole thing is tourist trap role playing adventure. At the end they trick you into trading a sack of gold for a wooden spear.” Faith added.

“That does explain why it didn’t get any darker when the rocks blocked the entrance.” Dax replied.

Cj shot up from her Cj shaped hole in the floor and started screaming incoherently. She then stop and narrowed her eyes at Dax. “You’re a Chaos god and you couldn’t sense an illusion?”

Dax just shrugged. “I’m a chaos god, everything I do is legit. I have no use for mortal’s artificial magic.” He said with disgust. “That and I wasn’t thinking about it.”

Then. A loud thundering noise echoed through the cave, causing everyone to get up and put up their guard. But here comes ash carrying a stupidly large tapestry and Jo carrying Carter like a baby. How were they making so much noise????

“Ok good, we all found each other and someone isn’t trying to get through rocks like an idiot.” Ash said in relief.

“How did you know about the illusion?” Cj asked. Ash raised his eyebrow, “what illusion? The freaking flier made a map. It’s stupid simple but it works I guess.” He replied.

So... this was so freaking long.

And color coding is a pain

Never again

Ever

I hate everything

Masterlist

Figure out who everyone is, I dare you

#saveethanchanfromsoup #the party party #friendfiction #original story #cottage core goddess might fight chaos god???#garfield #red herring #don’t trust old people #cat boys

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adverb-slut · 4 years ago

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The Purgatory Hall Boys Are Bad at Road Trips (Fanfiction)

I just *clutches chest* really love the boys at Purgatory Hall and felt they needed more spotlight so here they are being big dummies on the road. Oh, I also posted this on AO3 here.

Title:

The Purgatory Hall Boys Are Bad at Road Trips

Summary:

On a R.A.D-sanctioned road trip to the Caverns of Degeneracy, the Purgatory Hall boys prove that they have just as many brain cells as the demon brothers (read: none).

Genre:

Humor/Fluff/Slice of Life

Rating:

Word Count:

6870

Hour 0

Our story begins just outside the gates of Purgatory Hall, where two of its three non-native Devildom residents stood near a rather expensive-looking, immaculately-maintained vehicle.

The short, prone-to-fits-of-righteous-anger one yanked behind him a wagon, which was piled high with duffel and overnight bags, all made of a stiff white and gold fabric straight from the Celestial Realm.

The other, older man, who never left home without a mysterious smile and his magic wand, too, tugged the handle of his own luggage—although his was a wheeled backpack which sagged due to the weight of the approximately seven-hundred souvenir keychains from around the Human World that he had clipped onto it.

The pair were waiting for their third friend—who, in every sense of the word, was an angel—as together they were planning to embark upon a new R.A.D tradition, which the Demon Prince Diavolo had appropriately christened—Our Annual Road Trip to the Caverns of Degeneracy (A.R.T C.D for short). The Caverns of Degeneracy were on the far outskirts of the Devildom, over six-hundred-and-sixty-six miles away from the R.A.D campus, and yet, for some asinine reason, Diavolo had decided that they were the perfect spot for hosting the academy’s yearly Bleeding Hearts Festival.

(Many of the Student Council Officers and faculty had wagered that the Demon Prince had just wanted an excuse to take a road trip—a phenomenon he had recently been introduced to through one of Leviathan’s video games.)

Diavolo himself planned for his personal driver to ferry him and his butler, Barbatos, up to the Caverns a day early so he could begin preparations for the festival and encouraged all students to find their own means of transportation in order to get to the event on time.

The R.A.D Student Council Officers—all of whom resided in the House of Lamentation—had decided to pile themselves into Asmodeus’ tour bus (he had bought it specifically because once he became a famous DevilTuber, he would need it to do meet-and-greets with his fans and also because it had a “bear-y adorable design”) and drive down together.

As the Purgatory Hall boys had no modes of transportation to call their own, Lucifer had graciously allowed them to borrow Mammon’s Demonio 666 Lexura (fits had ensued à la the secondborn but were ignored), which both Luke and Solomon now hovered around.

However, as Solomon poked and prodded the vehicle, commenting admiringly under his breath at the paint job, the young angel peered nervously at the sorcerer’s backpack.

He cleared his throat, bent on sounding as polite as possible—but failing miserably—and said, “Solomon, er—are you the one who’s bringing our road trip snacks?” He followed this with a silent please say no, please say no, Father please let him say no.

Solomon raised an eyebrow. “I thought you were bringing them.”

Luke dropped the handle of his wagon. “No! I would’ve made some snacks if I had the time but I was helping those,” he gagged, “wretched demon brothers pack using some low-level Celestial Realm magic.”

“Oh, that’s right,” Solomon said, snapping his fingers. “I just remembered that I volunteered to make the snacks, but Simeon heard and immediately offered to do it for me. Then he sent me on a bunch of errands to buy groceries, but it felt more like he was trying to get me out of the kitchen.” He laughed at the last part and shook his head because there was no way that such a criminally calm angel like Simeon would be that underhanded.

“No!” wailed Luke, yanking his hat off and clutching it to his chest in despair. “Don’t you know what this means?”

“It means you don’t like Simeon’s cooking as much as you let on,” decided the sorcerer with a smile at Luke’s theatrical display.

Luke shook his head so vigorously that Solomon had to hold in a laugh based on how much the angel looked like a chihuahua shaking itself dry. “For trips, Simeon only makes the most nutritious, most energizing food.” He screwed up his face in disgust as he seethed, “The most disgusting food.”

“The stuff Simeon cooks for dinner isn’t particularly unhealthy and you seem to like that just fine,” pointed out Solomon.

Luke frowned. “Yes, b—but I’m talking about real healthy stuff here, so we’ll all have lots of energy throughout the trip! L—like entire salads squished between two pieces of bread and ‘yummy morsels’ of banana slices dipped in cashew butter and drizzled with mung bean and coconut water paste!” He gestured toward himself. “Look at me, Solomon! I was made for jam-filled pastries and perfectly-iced cakes! No—not,” he shuddered, “health foods.”

“You’re serious? He’s really going to bring that kind of stuff?” Solomon’s eyes widened. “I guess I should’ve given in to my gut intuition and made some pork pies as backup snacks. ‘Snackups,’ if you will.”

Luke could feel bile rising up his throat at the thought of Solomon’s cooking. “Er—no, I don’t think that would’ve been necessary!” He spotted a figure exiting Purgatory Hall. “Oh, look, there’s Simeon, now; we can just ask him what snacks he brought.”

“And then burn them,” finished Solomon.

The younger angel gave a scandalized gasp at the comment as Solomon nodded at Simeon, who walked closer to the pair.

A lone celestial blue suitcase trailed behind the elder angel as he beamed at his traveling companions. “Is everyone ready?” Before waiting for an answer, he turned toward Luke with a gaze that was almost motherly in nature. “And has everyone gone to the bathroom? We only have a day to drive to the Caverns of Degeneracy and I want to see some of the Devildom sights along the way. I even brought an instant camera to take pictures.”

He pulled out from his cape pocket said camera and an enormous stack of printed DevilmapQuest directions and began to rifle through them, trying to decide which of the landmarks and tourist destinations he wanted to visit most.

“S—Simeon! Why did you have to stare at me when you asked if we all went to the bathroom? I may be young, but I at least know that I should go to the bathroom before long car rides!” He then blushed and handed Solomon his wagon handle. “A—and that being said, I—I have to go to the bathroom.”

As he ran inside, Solomon peered over Simeon’s shoulder at the map sheets and laughed. “You know, most of these directions are online.”

“I know, I know,” admitted the older angel. “But reading the directions off of a D.D.D requires knowing how to operate one, and you know I’m not too good at that.”

Solomon smiled and said, “That’s fine, then. We three will take turns driving and meanwhile, one of the two who aren’t behind the wheel will navigate.”

��Haha, you’re aware Luke can’t drive, right?” asked Simeon, turning to give Solomon a look that cautiously strode the line between tolerant and what-the-fuck-is-wrong-with-you.

“Well, I guess he’ll be the one giving directions, then,” replied Solomon, without missing a beat. He couldn’t help but silently add he’ll be doing that, either way.

As Simeon continued to sort through the DevilmapQuest papers and double-check all the items packed in the messenger bag slung across his shoulder, Solomon began to load everyone’s luggage into Mammon’s car. He couldn’t help but envision himself playing Tetris as he carefully arranged in the trunk the seven blocky bags that the group had among them—six of which belonged to Luke, who packed as if he were planning to change his clothes at least twelve times a day.

His own backpack—and Simeon’s messenger bag—would be staying with the trio in the cabin space of the car. He hadn’t felt the need to pack nearly as many outfits as Luke and most of his bag consisted of medical supplies, while Simeon’s was supposed to be filled to the brim with road trip snacks.

Speaking of snacks, Solomon felt his mouth turn dry as he mulled over the healthy monstrosities that Luke believed the older angel had created in place of actually palatable food. He turned to Simeon. “Er, Simeon—what’s on the menu in terms of snackage?”

“‘Snackage?’” Simeon laughed. He pat his messenger bag and said, “Let’s see, well, whenever I go on long trips, I try to make foods that provide a lot of energy, since we’re going to need it—especially you and I, as we’ll be driving. Here, I made dried, salted edamame and roasted chickpea trail mix, almond-butter-and-white-bean-stuffed dried dates, and oatmeal-honey-sesame-black-bean balls with dried pineapple, coconut, and avocado.”

Solomon did not like how many times Simeon had mentioned “beans,” for as far as he was concerned, road trip food was junk food exclusively. He took a deep breath and carefully twisted his mouth into a smile. “That sounds well … delicious. Ten out of ten.”

“Excellent. Now, where is Luke?” Simeon peered behind them toward Purgatory Hall, where a munchkin of a silhouette now appeared. “Ah, there he is.” He tossed Solomon the keyring Mammon had tearfully given him the day before. “Mind starting the car?”

Solomon nodded and after examining the gaudy charms that adorned Mammon’s keys, he clicked open the car and stepped toward the driver’s seat door. “I’ll take the first shift. It’ll take us fifteen hours of sheer driving to get to the Caverns of Degeneracy, so we’ll take three-hour turns.”

As Solomon yanked the car door open, something tumbled out of the front seat. He jumped back, and Simeon and Luke rushed toward the commotion.

“M—Mammon? What are you doing here?” exclaimed Luke.

Simeon laughed, his brows furrowing in confusion. “Hoping to hitch a ride?”

Solomon had to swallow his smile when he saw the almost-comical tears that ran down Mammon’s face. “Did your brothers leave you behind?”

“N— no! They’d never leave without me, The Great Mammon!” Mammon hastily wiped his nose before sprawling his hands over his Demonio 666 Lexura. “I just couldn’t fathom leavin’ my beloved baby for so long! I had to say goodbye!”

“Speaking of saying goodbye, you do know that Asmo’s bus already left a few minutes ago, right?” asked Simeon. “I caught a glimpse of them before I came out here and they were already on the road.”

Mammon’s face paled. “Wh—what? They wouldn’t! Wait—of course, they would! Those bastards!” He immediately turned into his demon form, planted a kiss on his car’s hood, and sped off into the horizon.

“I suddenly understand what the term ‘speed demon’ means,” commented Luke as he watched Mammon’s quickly disappearing form.

“I sure hope he manages to catch up to them,” Solomon said, rubbing his chin. “Anyway, everyone, pile in. It’s time to get this show on the road.”

Hour 1

After they had driven well out of the bounds of R.A.D’s campus, Solomon announced, “All right—first item on the agenda—”

Luke raised his hand from the back passenger seat as he strained against his seatbelt. “—What’s an ‘agenda?’”

“Oh. An agenda is basically a list of things we have to do,” explained Solomon.

Simeon’s eyes widened in concern. “I didn’t know we had an agenda.”

Solomon nodded gravely. “Oh, yes—an unwritten road trip one. And the first thing on it is picking some tunes.”

Again, Luke raised his hand. “I have a suggestion! I have a suggestion!” From the pocket of his shorts, he drew out a CD case labeled 1001 Hymns to Praise Him. “This album is my personal favorite.”

Solomon began coughing violently in attempts to cover his laughter, while Simeon smiled and took the CD from him. “That’s a great idea, Luke, but how about we play this when I drive, and when Solomon drives, he’ll pick the music.”

The sorcerer handed Simeon his D.D.D, keeping his eyes on the road as he instructed, “Here, go to my Akutify account and play my Travel playlist. Hope you guys don’t mind that I managed to export my entire Spotify account onto Akutify, so we’re going to be listening to Human World songs for now.”

It took Simeon seven tries to carry out Solomon’s orders, but before long, “I Want It That Way” by the Backstreet Boys blared through the state-of-the-art stereo system of the Demonio 666 Lexura.

Luke was silent for a few moments before he innocently asked, “I don’t understand, Solomon. What do they want ‘that way?’”

Solomon shook his head. “I’ve been trying to figure that out for years.”

Hour 2

It didn’t take very long for Simeon to discover the first location on his list of places to visit along their trip.

“The Maw of Beelzebub,” Simeon breathed, taking in their dark, ashy surroundings from the passenger seat. “I’ve seen it in pictures when I researched for TSL, but I never fathomed I’d get to see it in person.”

Luke pouted as Simeon exited the vehicle. “Don’t tell me we’re going to see those dumb demon brothers.”

“Nope,” Solomon said, unbuckling Luke from his seat, despite the vehement protests from the little angel. “The Maw of Beelzebub is a chain of three volcanoes, actually. The two smaller ones that form the ‘eyes of Beelzebub’ are active, but the huge, massive one that we’re going to walk across by way of that bridge,” he pointed to a shaky overpass that was suspended over a volcano crater a thousand miles wide, “is dormant. However, you can still see the enormous pool of lava bubbling inside. Tourists like to drop things down into it—and of course, it disappears into the molten lava—which is why it’s named after Beel because no matter what you feed him, he’s still hungry as if he’s never eaten.”

“Remind me again, then, why we’re walking across it?” Luke asked as the trio wandered over to the entrance of the precarious bridge.

Simeon looked at him curiously. “Don’t you think it’s exhilarating, Luke? To be so close to something so much bigger and powerful and dangerous than yourself?”

The younger angel pondered that for a moment before deciding, “Father is so much bigger and powerful and dangerous than me. I think that’s enough.”

Simeon laughed. “So it is.” He wiggled his fingers under Luke’s hat to rumple his hair. “But let’s go see it, anyway.”

Hour 3

“Psst,” Luke hissed, “Simeon.” The elder angel seemed to be too enthralled by the latest song in Solomon’s playlist, “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction, to hear him, so Luke reached out to poke his shoulder.

If he wasn’t strapped to his seat by his seatbelt, Simeon would’ve jumped about fifty feet in surprise. “Ah, you startled me, Luke. Did you need something?”

Luke adamantly refused to meet Simeon’s eyes as he flushed and muttered, “I have to go.”

“Don’t worry, Luke—there’s no shame in needing to go to the bathroom,” assured Simeon.

“There is when you just went ten minutes ago,” mumbled Solomon under his breath, but he swerved into a gas station, nonetheless. “I guess we’re due for a tank refill, anyway.”

Simeon put up his hand. “You paid for the gas last time—let me do it, especially since Mammon left explicit instructions that his car is supposed to be ‘fed’ premium gas only.”

Solomon grinned cheekily. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He followed Luke, who had already gone into the gas station convenience store. “I guess I’ll just have a look around, then.”

However, before he got more than a few feet into the store, he heard someone whisper-screaming his name.

“Psst! Solomon! Over here! Behind the candy stand!”

He followed the voice, only to find that it belonged to Luke, who was very much not in the bathroom and rather ripping open a packet of fruit snacks.

“Whoa, I didn’t know you had it in you to employ the much-loved five-finger-discount,” Solomon said, nodding appreciatively. “Considering you’re an angel and all.”

Luke stared at him with blank eyes. “I don’t know what that means, but these were in my pocket from earlier!” He motioned for Solomon to come closer and poured a few of the gummies into his hand. “This is my last pouch—eat them fast. They might be our last bit of yummy food before we have to eat Simeon’s nightmares.”

Solomon bobbed his head, before dumping the fruit snacks into his mouth all at once, savoring their sweet taste. He gestured toward Luke. “Do you always keep those on you?”

The angel’s offended gasp could be heard by all the demons in the convenience store. “I’m a ten-year-old, Solomon! Of course, I keep fruit snacks in my pocket!”

Hour 4

It wasn’t that Simeon was a bad driver. It was just that driving in the Devildom (and the Human World) was very different from driving in the Celestial Realm.

Here, in uncontrolled intersections, it wasn’t customary to say “hello” to the drivers rolling to a stop in all directions. Even stranger, the traffic lights weren’t celestial blue, gold, and white, but rather red, green, and yellow!

Luke, who had discovered a “2020 Devildom Rules of the Road” manual crumpled inside one of the cupholders, was forced to bark instructions at the eldest angel, all while offering condescending commentary on how imbecilic the rules of driving in the Devildom were.

“Simeon! Listen to this! In the Devildom, you have to obey the posted speed limits, or else you’ll get in trouble!” realized Luke.

“Wait—you don’t have speed limits in the Celestial Realm?” Solomon asked.

Luke replied smugly, “No, because angels have the sense to know how fast they should or shouldn’t be driving.”

“Wow, that’s honestly impressive.” Solomon grimaced as Simeon ran through another red light. “Remember, if the light is red, then you have to stop.”

Simeon offered an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I’m so used to remembering that blue means ‘stop.’”

Solomon slunk low in his seat, knowing better than to rile up the angel, who was rumored to have a feisty side when he got angry. “I just hope the police or whatever they have here don’t catch us for breaking so many traffic laws.”

“What’s a ‘police?’” asked Luke.

“Oh, you know … people who are supposed to make people follow the laws and stuff,” replied Solomon. His eyes widened. “Do you not have a police force in the Celestial Realm?”

“The Celestial Realm is a perfect world, Solomon,” answered Simeon. “We don’t need police.”

Hour 6

Solomon didn’t know that he could get sick of songs. Sure, he got tired of the “Despacito” remix after the first dozen times it was played on the radio—but he meant real music.

“Amazing Grace” in particular.

Luke’s favorite album, 1001 Hymns to Praise Him, really should’ve been called 1001 Ways An Angelic Choir Can Sing “Amazing Grace” because Solomon swore about ninety percent of the songs on the album were just renditions of the classic hymn sung by different groups of angels.

And this seemed to bother neither of his driving companions, who crooned along to the choir in heavenly tones—it seemed to be a prerequisite for angels to be divine singers—without missing a beat.

He hadn’t even known all the words to “Amazing Grace,” but now he could recite all six verses on demand. He fought the urge to smash the “eject” button on the CD player, but he worried that Luke would throw a fit or Simeon would look at him with a stare so full of disappointment that Solomon would be willing to throw himself off a bridge just to rid himself of its gaze.

But one could only hear the line “amazing grace, how sweet the sound,” so many times.

He had to do something.

“Hey! I have an idea!” Solomon chirped. “Let’s make up our own song!”

He had to fight the urge to smack himself upside the head. Why did he say that? He had no ideas for potential song lyrics!

“I like that!” Luke pursed his lips, deep in thought. “Here, let’s have the first lines go like this: ‘Father, You are all that I need!’”

Simeon used one hand to snap out the beat, and continued, “‘Father, listen to my creed!’”

Solomon sighed.

He did not know if this was any better.

Hour 8

“Luke, wake up. We’re here.” Solomon couldn’t help but layer on the desperation thick as he shook the younger angel awake, despite the fact that they were in no danger whatsoever.

Luke shot up, trying very hard to hide the fact that he had been drooling all over his shoulder. He rubbed his sleep-filled eyes. “What? Did we beat all the other demons here? Are the Caverns of Degeneracy as hideous as I imagined?”

Solomon unbuckled Luke’s seatbelt and dragged him out of the car. He snickered, saying, “We’re not at the Caverns, yet.” He gestured toward their surroundings, which now consisted of precarious cliffs and rocky crags instead of the open road of the Devildom.

Simeon stood a few feet ahead of them and turned around, spreading his arms wide in wonder. “Welcome to Sinner Falls!”

Luke stared at the dark stone formations. “I don’t see any waterfalls.”

“That’s because Sinner Falls isn’t a waterfall,” Solomon explained. “You probably better know it as ‘the Abyss—’”

“‘The Abyss? ’ Why didn’t you say so?” Luke exclaimed, his eyes glittering excitedly. “The place where demons are tortured for a thousand years during the Millenium has always been one of my dream places to visit!”

Simeon smiled, a little taken aback by the younger angel’s enthusiasm. “If we’re lucky, we might get to see Abaddon, Angel of the Abyss. He’s supposed to be guarding the canyon up ahead.”

“If we see him, do you think he’ll let me call him ‘Abba?’” teased Solomon, even though the remark earned him a kick in the shin and a “He most certainly will not! How dare you even say such a thing about one of the most high-ranking angels!” from Luke.

“Careful now, Solomon,” Simeon warned, as the trio walked toward the deep canyon amongst the cliffs. As far as anyone could tell, there was no end to the inky, suffocating blackness that was visible when looking down into it. He pointed into the canyon. “This is the Abyss—er, Sinner Falls. Us angels cannot pass this invisible barrier—” he pressed his hand out to the ledge of the canyon, only for it to smash against some kind of unseen wall, “—but any human or demon who falls down into it falls for eternity, never to come back to the surface.”

Luke beamed. “That must be why it’s called ‘Sinner Falls!’ Because most humans and all demons are sinners!” Despite this, he grabbed Solomon’s hand to prevent him from wandering too close to Sinner Falls’ ledge (as he was wont to do), because, despite their bickering and mutual pestering, Luke had a soft spot for the sorcerer.

Simeon followed in suit and intertwined his fingers with Solomon as the trio looked down into the great Abyss, wondering if any of their demon friends would be among the many thrown into it one day.

Hour 9

Simeon rifled through his messenger bag, intent on looking for something to eat. He had made sure to pack plenty of goodies and was pleased as to how nutritious the snacks he’d made had turned out. He scooped a handful of edamame and chickpea trail mix into his hand and turned to Luke, who was hunched over a map in the back passenger seat.

“You haven’t eaten anything in over eight hours; aren’t you hungry?” Simeon offered him the bag of trail mix.

Luke gulped, as he beamed and shook his head. “N—no, no! I’m okay!”

Simeon shrugged and held out the bag toward Solomon, who was driving. “Do you want some? I can pour it into your mouth if you want, so you don’t have to take your eyes off the road.”

“As titillating as that sounds,” said the sorcerer, “I’m afraid I’m not hungry at the moment.”

“I guess that’s more for me, then.” Simeon poured more of the trail mix into his palm, but before he could eat any of it, he heard a strange sound.

It was a low rumble, but very, very loud.

It almost sounded like … stomachs growling?

He whirled to face Luke and Solomon and scratched his head in confusion. “Are you two sure you’re not hungry?”

When the pair shook their heads furiously, Simeon raised an eyebrow. He yanked out from his bag the stuffed dried dates and the oatmeal-honey-sesame-black-bean balls. “So … you two wouldn’t mind if I ate all of the snacks?”

“Yeah, sure, go nuts, Simeon,” Solomon assured. He winced as his and Luke’s stomaches rumbled in unison. “You wouldn’t actually have any nuts in that bag o’ treats, would you? Preferably of the chocolate-covered variety?”

“The dates have almond butter stuffed inside them,” pointed out Luke helpfully, although his expression was less-than-enthused.

Simeon raised his other eyebrow. Clearly the pair were hungry but refusing food. What kind of rebellious spirit had gotten into them? Didn’t they know that food was essential to oh, survival? His left eye twitched as he felt a black miasma of rage cover him. “If you two don’t eat, I’m turning this car around. That’s a promise.”

Solomon exchanged nervous glances with Luke at the normally calm angel’s outburst. “Angry Simeon is scary,” he whimpered.

“If you don’t eat, you’ll see just how scary I can be,” promised Simeon with a smile that bordered downright terrifying. He plopped an oatmeal-honey-sesame-black-bean ball into Solomon’s mouth and handed a stuffed date to Luke. “Now, eat your snacks.”

He definitely didn’t miss Luke’s grumpy, “Yes, mother.”

Hour 11

“Solomon, I hate to complain—” which earned a snort from the sorcerer, as Luke continued, “but do you really have to play that now?” He gestured toward the sound system, which, now that it was Simeon’s turn to drive, blared 1001 Hymns to Praise Him. “Seven Lyres is my favorite orchestra and their take on ‘Amazing Grace’ is simply the best!”

Solomon, who had purposely pulled out a reed pipe from his backpack in an effort to drown out the nine thousandth chorus of “Amazing Grace,” sighed and put it down. He knew he wasn’t an expert in playing the reed pipe—in fact, this was the first time he’d ever seen the instrument, but the racket was so soothing.

“Where did you even get that from, anyway?” asked Simeon.

“Found it in my backpack. I didn’t pack it, but considering there was a note attached to it that said ‘Blow,’ I think Asmo put it there as some kind of visual innuendo.” Solomon shrugged. “Now seemed like as good a time as any to play it.”

Luke tapped his chin thoughtfully. “What’s an ‘innuendo?’”

“Something you’re not allowed to make until you’re much older,” replied Simeon sternly.

Luke seemed satisfied with the answer and held out his palm toward Solomon. “May I try?”

Solomon handed the reed pipe over and cocked his head. “You know how to play?”

He received his answer when Luke gestured for him to lower the stereo volume (which Solomon did with immense pleasure) and began to carefully place his fingers over the openings and gently blow into the instrument.

The young angel played masterfully and Solomon would’ve given him a standing ovation if it weren’t for one tiny thing.

“Why don’t you play a different song besides ‘Amazing Grace?’” he suggested.

Luke furrowed his brows. “It’s the only thing I know how to play!”

Hour 12

“I don’t like this place, Simeon,” Luke mumbled, yanking his hat over his eyes. “It looks like something straight from the End Times.”

He, of course, was referring to the town at which’s city limits they stood in front of. It was one of the last tourist spots that Simeon had wanted to visit, and it was renowned for being one of the Devildom’s most haunted ghost towns.

Solomon nodded. “I’m with the Chihuahua. I’m super excited for the end of the world, and even I’m not getting a good feeling from whatever-this-place-is-called.”

“Deathblow Beggar’s Pass,” answered Simeon, ogling the city entrance sign gleefully. “They say it’s the most haunted district in all of the Devildom.” He took a step onto the creaky wooden path that led into the town. “It’s been evacuated for centuries and now, even most demons are petrified to go inside.”

Luke gripped Simeon’s cape so tight, his knuckles turned white. “Then why do you want to visit this place?”

“Don’t worry, Luke,” the older angel said (avoiding the question, which the young angel noticed), laughing, as he tousled Luke’s hair under his hat. “I’ll make sure none of the scary ghosts come near you.”

Luke’s eyes widened. “Sc—scary ghosts?” He cleared his throat when he realized how incredibly uncourageous he sounded. “I—I mean I’m not scared of any g—g—ghosts!”

Solomon and Simeon shared a secret smile at the angel’s feigned bravery, and instead of teasing him, Solomon turned to Luke very seriously. “I strictly deal with demons, not ghosts. How about you do me a favor and sit on my shoulders to be my lookout in case any of those ghosts try to pull anything?”

“W—well if you need my help, I’m definitely willing to offer it!” Luke blushed as he climbed onto Solomon’s shoulders. “It’s my duty as an angel to help humans, after all!”

“That’s the ‘spirit,’” Solomon said. He laughed when he saw the angels’ unamused faces. “Get it? ‘Cause we’re walking into a ghost town?”

Simeon laughed stiffly as to not hurt the sorcerer’s feelings before straightening his posture and looking ahead. He channeled his inner fantasy writer as he declared, “Get ready, everyone! We must put aside our doubts and fears as we charge forward into Deathblow Beggar’s Pass, where no creature has exited without releasing screams that could curdle the blood of the Demon Lord! We might not be of this world, but we certainly can brave its most terrifying sites!”

It would have been a very heroic speech if it weren’t for the fact that not five minutes after the trio entered the city limits, Solomon and Simeon sprinted out, with Luke wailing loudly.

“That was the worst ever!” the little angel blubbered, yanking Solomon’s hair.

The sorcerer didn’t even have enough energy to flinch as he panted, “What in the name of all things unholy was that?”

There was nothing but fear in Simeon’s eyes as he doubled over, trying to catch his breath. “We should’ve known the saloon bathroom stalls wouldn’t be empty.” He gagged. “I never want to see millennia-old demon penis again.”

Hour 15

“Simeon, are we there yet ?” asked Luke for the twenty-first time in the hour.

The other angel sighed. “Almost, Luke. Just a few more minutes.”

“Don’t you have the map?” Solomon pointed out as he honked the horn in irritation at a slow driver ahead of him. “Shouldn’t you know where we are?”

Luke fussed with the multitude of papers that were stacked on his lap. “I only have the stuff for Simeon’s places.” His eyes opened wide in realization. “Wait—how do you guys know where to drive if my maps don’t lead to the Caverns of Degeneracy?”

“Diavolo said as long as we travel along Route 666 until we see the sign markers, we should have no problem getting there,” explained Simeon. He peered ahead and squinted at one of the upcoming signs. “And look—that sign says that the Caverns of Degeneracy are ten miles up ahead.”

“I hope we’re the first ones there,” said Luke. “It’ll be nice to see all the looks on those dumb demons’ faces when we get there before them.”

Solomon pursed his lips. “Speaking of those ‘dumb demons,’ I wonder if they’re all right. We haven’t heard from them since we left Purgatory Hall.”

“I’m sure they’re fine,” Simeon assured. He let out a laugh as he continued, “Assuming they haven’t killed each other already. It must be hard having all seven of them cooped up in one small space.”

“We can only hope,” said Luke solemnly. He paused for a moment as he shimmied as far as his seatbelt would allow him and peered over Solomon’s shoulder to look at what was going on in the front seats. He pointed at the gear shift. “What does ‘D’ mean?”

“I’m not supposed to say that word in front of you,” answered Solomon as Simeon simultaneously replied, “Drive.”

“Oh. What does ‘R’ mean, then?”

Simeon replied, “Reverse,” before Solomon could say anything.

At the elder angel’s preemptive glare, Solomon widened his eyes and innocently said, “I was going to say ‘reverse,’ as in ‘Uno Reverse Card.’’”

Luke turned toward the dashboard. “What’s ‘E?’”

“I feel if I say ‘Evanescence,’ Simeon is going to yell at me, so I’ll just go with ‘empty,’” pouted Solomon.

“Empty what?”

“Gas.”

“So … since that line-thingy is almost at ‘E,’ that means we’re nearly out of gas?”

“Yep.”

Simeon turned around to cover Luke’s ears at Solomon’s next sentence: “Holy shit—we’re almost out of gas!”

The older angel’s eyes promised murder as he stared at the sorcerer, before directing his stare to the fuel gauge. “We’re running on fumes.”

“We need to refuel, stat. Simeon, grab my D.D.D and look up the nearest gas station,” directed Solomon. “I always forget that Mammon’s car is a gas-guzzler.”

“What should I do, Solomon?” asked Luke, eagerly awaiting orders like a baby soldier.

The sorcerer nodded, deadly serious. “Sit there and be cute.”

Luke pouted as Simeon—with surprising speed—brought up a log of the nearest gas stations on Solomon’s D.D.D. “There should be a station three miles ahead.”

Solomon frowned as he analyzed their fuel gauge. “I’m not sure we’ll make it.”

“We have to!” cried Luke. “How will we ever beat those demons if we don’t even make it to the Caverns of Degeneracy?”

“We’ll have to trust that Mammon’s baby is strong enough to get us to the gas station, then.” Solomon stroked the dashboard as if trying to offer the vehicle some kind of encouragement.

And as the car’s fuel began to peter out, Simeon and Luke began to cheer in chorus, “You can do it, Mammon’s car!” while Solomon exclaimed, “You’re a fierce, strong woman who doesn’t need any man to tell you that your fuel gauge is empty!”

After an eternity (okay, it was more like five minutes), the Demonio 666 Lexura finally eked it’s way to the first pump at a Demobil gas station.

As the engine sputtered out, the trio let out a cheer, and Solomon and Simeon shared a hug in the front seat.

“Thank Father we made it!” exclaimed Luke as he unbuckled his seatbelt and exited the car. He pat Mammon’s car. “Also, thank you for getting us here, even if you belong to the scummiest demon in the Devildom.”

Solomon grinned and turned to Simeon. “You spotted the gas bill last time, so I’ll do it now.”

“Are you sure?” asked Simeon. “My TSL royalties are huge, even after I’ve tithed my ten percent. I’ve got no problem paying.”

“Nah, it’s fine—you can go stretch your legs.” With that, Solomon exited the car and began to work the gas pump.

Simeon nodded and together with Luke, walked toward the attached Demobil convenience store. By the entrance stood a higher-level demon, who appeared to be selling bouquets of fresh flowers.

The vendor, who had noticed the pair exit Mammon’s car and had seen Solomon get up to pump the gas, called to Simeon, “Flower for your Mister?” He gestured toward the white-haired sorcerer.

Luke gasped, absolutely scandalized, and huffed, “Simeon would never settle for a human!” while Simeon chuckled, replying, “I’m sorry, he’s not my ‘Mister,’ but I’ll take a bouquet, anyway.”

After exchanging Grimm for the flowers, Simeon and Luke strolled back to the Demonio 666 Lexura, where Solomon was just closing the fuel tank.

“Simeon bought you flowers!” announced Luke.

The angel nodded as he handed the sunny bouquet to Solomon. “It matches your wand.”

“How did you know gerberas are my favorite?” laughed Solomon. “These are great—thank you.” As they all piled back into the car, he carefully arranged the flowers in one of the cupholders and beamed, because God, sometimes the angel was so nice.

The group drove in silence for a few moments before Luke commented, “I didn’t know gerberas smelled like … salt?”

Simeon sniffed the air. “I think that’s the sea. After all, the Caverns of Degeneracy are right along the beach.”

Just as the angel spoke the words, Solomon pulled right into a parking lot that was situated right next to miles and miles of black sand.

Luke cheered, kicking his feet at Solomon’s seat excitedly. “Yay! We’re here!”

Their road trip had finally come to an end.

Destination

After wandering the beach for a few moments, the trio eventually found themselves at the mouth of the Caverns of Degeneracy, which turned out to be several huge caves filled with glowing pastel stalactites and stalagmites. Hellfireflies twinkled in the air, while friendly gentlemanbugs strolled about the cavern floor. Some kind of glittering pink moss had been used to adorn the walls with the words, “R.A.D Bleeding Hearts Festival 2020.”

In the middle of it all stood Diavolo, who was discussing the festival decorations with Barbatos.

As soon as he saw the Demon Prince, Luke raced up and, bobbing uncontrollably, asked, “Are we first? Are we first?”

Diavolo let out a hearty laugh. “Welcome you three! And first for what, Luke?”

Solomon sauntered up and answered, “To arrive.”

“Luke’s been very anxious to know if we’re the first ones here at the festival,” elaborated Simeon, placing his hand on the younger angel’s shoulder.

“You make it seem like it was a competition to get here first—which, yes, you three are,” said Diavolo. His eyes lit up. “That’s an excellent idea, though! Next year, we’ll make the R.A.D C.D a contest to see can make it to the Caverns the fastest! First place will get a coupon for teatime with me!”

Luke wrinkled his nose. “Teatime with you? That sounds—”

“Incredibly fun,” cut in Simeon smoothly. He turned to Diavolo. “Have you gotten any word from those seven demon brothers?”

Diavolo grimaced. “It seems that they’ll be late. Beelzebub ate all their road trip snacks immediately as he entered Asmodeus’ tour bus, so they had to stop for food at every fast food restaurant they could find because he still wasn’t satisfied, Belphegor kept falling asleep at the wheel, and Mammon got so many speeding violations and every time the police showed up, Asmodeus tried to seduce his way out of their ticket, which only earned them more fines and lectures from Lucifer. It’s comic-con season, so of course, Leviathan had to stop at every convention center along the way, and unsurprisingly, Satan’s road rage forced him to get into out-of-car fights with every driver he encountered when he was at the wheel.” He sighed. “They managed to turn a fifteen-hour trip into a twenty-two hour one.”

Solomon smiled as he said, “I guess we should’ve expected that.” His grin grew even wider as he gestured toward his traveling companions. “Meanwhile, we did all fifteen-hours of driving—courtesy of me bending the speeding rules quite a bit when there was no traffic— and saw some of the sights of the Devildom along the way.”

“Oooh, did you manage to get any pictures?” asked Diavolo with an excited gleam in his eye. “I always want to travel around the Devildom but never get the chance.”

Simeon nodded as he pulled out from his messenger bag some of the pictures he had asked fellow tourists to snap with his instant camera. He handed them one by one to Diavolo and beamed at the goofy scenes.

The first one was from when they stopped at the Maw of Beelzebub: Solomon teasingly dangled Luke’s hat over the bridge’s railing while the young angel cried and stomped on the sorcerer’s foot in retaliation. Simeon, meanwhile, tried to rescue Luke’s hat.

The second photo showcased Solomon sitting at the ledge of Sinner Falls with his feet swinging over the bottomless canyon. Luke and Simeon posed obnoxiously as if they were going to fall into the Abyss, even though as angels, they were unable to.

The final picture was the only one he had from Deathblow Beggar’s Pass, and it was of the trio crouched in front of the sign that spelled “Enjoy your stay at Deathblow Beggar’s Pass!”

Diavolo examined the images wistfully. He sighed as he handed the photos back to Simeon. “You three looked as if you made some fun memories.”

The angels and the sorcerer exchanged contented glances and chorused, “We most certainly did.”

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