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vidavalor · 14 days ago

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Life

I got out my opera glasses and went full Mr. Harmony lip reading here and I don't think the L word of Nina's that Crowley is mouthing at the end of the above scene is love.

I think it's life.

Earlier in the season, even before The Book of Life became the central concern of Crowley's plot and he then spent the week we watched with the ideas of life vs. existence on the brain? Crowley very notably used an unusual and interesting word to refer to what we would call his and Aziraphale's life together: existence.

Even as Crowley is using lovely words to describe his and Aziraphale's life together-- that it's *melts* precious and peaceful to him💘 -- he doesn't call it a life... he calls it an existence.

Why?

Because he's Fallen. Because he's damned. Because he's a demon who has been forcibly chained to Satan for all of eternity. He's metaphorically dead, even as he's alive. He feels he cannot actually offer Aziraphale a life because he feels that he doesn't have one to give.

Being damned means to Crowley that he's never, ever going to be free from Hell because that's his punishment. Does he long for that to be different? Absolutely. Is he an optimist and does he hope that maybe, one day, somehow, someway, it might change? Yes.

Is he also trying to be realistic about the likelihood of that after spending over six thousand years with no hope of change in sight? Yes. Is he a bit afraid to hope that it might because he doesn't want to deal with the crushing disappointment of never having it, if that's how it all turns out, so he just calls his life his existence to try to make it hurt less when he likely loses it down the line? Yes.

Is that basically the same thing as a certain angel not telling Crowley about a certain cottage in the South Downs because he's not sure if they can ever have this more free life together and he wouldn't want to crush Crowley more by having him know that there could have been a house that was just openly theirs, and not a bookshop covering up an embassy covering up a secret love den, if theirs is not a happy ending and they never get to go there together? Yes.

So, Crowley feels that if he is never going to be able to be free of Hell and he's never going to be able to forgiven from Heaven, he can't really make a life of his own because there is no guarantee that he can ever keep it. He's alive. He exists and he's living an existence and, deep down, he knows it's a life but he cannot call it one because he doesn't get to fully have what the humans do, not the way he would like. It's not for people like him. He wouldn't deign to call what he and Aziraphale have a life, even if other people might, if they knew about it, see it as one, because it's not good enough for him. It's an existence, carved out of just the best they can make work. They've made as close to one as they have been able to but it's an existence to Crowley because he doesn't have a free life of his own to ask Aziraphale to share.

Even though he really gave his heart away to Aziraphale a long time ago, Crowley can't let himself be Aziraphale's fully if he's Fallen because he's stuck belonging, on paper, to Satan, like all the other demons do. It's always "too late" for him because he is of Hell.

In his mind, he might have once had a chance but he fell and now, he's fucked, and, as a result, so are he and Aziraphale as a couple. Maybe there's some slim chance where they get to be together more than this but Crowley's been living this life for six millennia now and he's doubtful that it'll happen. He's an optimist but he's not really seeing a path to anything more than what they already give one another, which is everything they can.

So, it's not a life, it's an existence... and Aziraphale knows how Crowley feels about it. When Crowley referred to his life as his existence in 2.01, what Aziraphale objected to was not the word he used but that he made it singular as part of the argument.

Aziraphale didn't argue that it was their life, not Crowley's existence... he argued that it was their existence, together.

Why? Because Aziraphale just wants to be with Crowley and he's willing to view this as whatever Crowley wants to call it and whatever he can give him and make a world together around that. He knows they both try to give one another everything they can but they both wish they had more to offer one another. Aziraphale's own need to want to give Crowley peace and safety that Aziraphale feels he cannot offer him is what drives him in 2.06 to be tempted by an offer from Heaven that might allow him to do that, even if he knows it's likely a false promise and not the way forward.

He knows that, just as he feels he doesn't have enough to offer Crowley, Crowley feels the same way about him.

In 2.01, Aziraphale already knew Crowley thought of it as an existence because he felt he didn't have much else to offer Aziraphale, as he's not surprised by the word choice. Aziraphale has been willing to meet Crowley there and use Crowley's word for it and not insist that it was a life that they were carving out together because he could understand how Crowley would feel that it was more just any and everything they could give one another within the limits of their situation. They both accept the term existence because, to them, what they already have is likely going to be all that are ever able to be and they both know that they would like to be able to offer one another more.

The if we could, I would things that they likely talk about sometimes... waking up together and having breakfast... the little cottage by the sea with the big garden... marrying each other... are always, by necessity, pretty much relegated to romantic pillow talk daydreams, rather than real plans they could make, because Armageddon and possibly of losing one another for eternity is always looming on the horizon-- and that's only if they don't get caught and killed first.

It wouldn't be much different from what they already have, except that it'd also be completely different because they'd be free.

They'd be them as they already are, just openly.

So, when Nina tries to get Crowley to define his and Aziraphale's relationship using common terms of out humans in the year 2023...

Crowley can't do it.

Even if he knows that the term she used-- partner-- is not technically incorrect for what he and Aziraphale are to one another.

By the end of the season, Crowley doesn't object to Nina using partner to describe he and Aziraphale. When she and Maggie come back to the bookshop to talk to Crowley, Nina refers to Aziraphale when she says to Crowley: "you and your partner have been messing about in our lives." Crowley doesn't argue the point. He knows it's true and that's what he and Aziraphale are. He's always known that.

The difference between the partner-themed conversation with Nina in front of the coffee shop and the one in the bookshop is that, in the time between them, this happened:

For the first time, they weren't the only ones, and they thought that if they have friends who are like them, maybe they suddenly have a chance. Maybe some things might change. At the very least, it seemed pointless to Crowley after the Gabriel and Beez reveal to keep pretending that he and Aziraphale aren't a couple and, in letting Nina's definition in the bookshop scene of Aziraphale as Crowley's partner stand without objection, Crowley was showing that he felt that Nina saying that he and Aziraphale are partners is accurate.

Crowley's earlier conversation with Nina outside Give Me Coffee is really the first time he's ever had to answer the question of him and Aziraphale honestly in ages of sneaking around and he doesn't really know how to do it. He's used to it being a secret and he's supernatural and Nina doesn't know that so he doesn't know how to explain them to someone who isn't from that world. Nina looks at them and is trying to figure out where the hidden part is coming from and she theorizes an affair because that's a logical human response. How is Crowley supposed to explain that it's that he's a demon and this is a forbidden love affair that is probably going to end in tragic separation one day to a human woman who is just like so, how long have you boffing the bookseller?

How does he say look, listen, he's my entire world but I'm not allowed to have that world? If we were human like you are, we could be openly together. If there was no Heaven and no Hell, you wouldn't be asking me why you'd never seen me before and thought Aziraphale was single until a couple of days ago because I would have met you when you opened this business and there'd be a ring on my finger that would answer a lot of these questions for you.

He can't say that Aziraphale is his partner because people who are partners are openly making a life together and he doesn't have one to give Aziraphale to share with him. Is Aziraphale his partner in the rest of the way that Nina means? Yes. It's just not a word that Crowley feels then that he can use, even if it's the most accurate one, and one that he won't object to within a matter of days, when the circumstances begin to seem like they might be changing.

Yeah, when they flirt, as they were earlier in the season, they sometimes use words that dance towards human terms for it, some more joking than others. Crowley'll sass Aziraphale with a bit of dry "yes, my king" bow and scrape; Aziraphale will use French while flirting with Crowley that circles towards calling Crowley his wife.

They know they're in love and have many different words for it-- all the words for it-- and those words are not going unexpressed. They've been lovers for thousands of years. They consider themselves each other's partner in every way but for being able to call it that. They're a couple. The yearning, imho, is from pining for the more peaceful, open life they want to give one another and have not been able to fully realize, even as they've have made a good one out of what they have been given.

...but they've spent their existence, for the most part, pretending that they are not. Not really to one another but to the world. They haven't kept it hidden from one another but they have kept it secret from most others out of fear of losing one another if they were ever caught. Crowley knows that Aziraphale is the love of his life and he'll tell him so but partner isn't something he thinks he can give him, even if that's really also the best definition of what they are.

Crowley's response is basically I don't bloody know, Nina, we're each other's entire orbit, sun, moon and stars, okay? We also could be killed if someone figures out I've been sneaking out of the bookshop before dawn for ages now. I don't know what term would work for you for that. We're in love, is that what you want to know?

This same conversation, though, pushed Crowley towards admitting to himself that he's full of shit and he and Aziraphale have been basically married for forever now. He's not ever really just been existing. Their car and their bookshop and their bloody life that they made together when they weren't looking.

Crowley is already hesitant to say that Aziraphale is his partner when he's in the street and they could be overheard and when he and Aziraphale haven't discussed how they want to handle this. The other reason why he instantly shoots it down when, in reality, Nina has, by using partner, probably hit on the single, best word to describe Crowley and Aziraphale's relationship that currently exists, is because the word partner implies something that Crowley believes in that moment that he and Aziraphale can't have.

Partners have lives together. In Crowley's mind, as much as he fantasizes about it being different, he and Aziraphale can only ever have an existence.

They are partners but they can't call themselves partners because, to do so, would be to use the word like the humans do. When the humans call someone their partner, they mean that they are openly making a life together with that person.

Nina, who is a human, has taken one look at Crowley and Aziraphale and has figured out that that is exactly what they have been doing, which throws Crowley a bit. He's not used to anyone knowing about them, let alone asking him to define it, and Nina has seen them together and her assessment is that they're a couple. Crowley is disturbed to find out that Coffee Shop Human can see through The Great Existence Charade and is forcing him to stop lying to himself.

She says this is a life that he and Aziraphale have made. She sees no difference between them and other couples she's seen and Crowley objects to this because if he and Aziraphale were truly partners, he'd have a life to give him, which Coffee Shop Human cannot understand. He won't call Aziraphale his partner even though they've been in love for six thousand years and lovers since ancient fucking Rome because Nina doesn't understand that he's of the bloody damned over here and it's existence or nothing, those are the options...

Nina has not considered Crowley's demonic angst as a factor here-- shockingly! 😂-- so, she's just like what's your deal, Ginger Goth? Bookseller comes into my shop on his own in the mornings a lot and I've never seen you before but I just saw you two flirting so easily and he says you go way back. I never knew he had a partner. You two are adorable and I want what you have, so... what is it, exactly? What's the big secret that kept me from knowing you existed until the other day? Are you married, is that it? This some secret fling?

You might notice, though, that Crowley only answers one of Nina's peppered questions directly but, in reality, he answers all of them with the one answer he gives.

He defends Aziraphale's honor and insists that they're not having an affair, which we all agree with is true. Crowley insists that Aziraphale would never be his "bit on the side", which is both saying that the idea of there being someone else for Crowley is insanity and that Aziraphale would never be a part of an affair. Crowley never actually answers Nina about whether or not he has a husband or a boyfriend-- which is an answer in and of itself. He does-- Aziraphale. Aziraphale is all the things to him that a boyfriend is and that a husband is, but those things are for people with lives and he lives an existence.

What is interesting, though, is that, in the view of Heaven/Hell, Crowley and Aziraphale actually are having an affair because, to Heaven/Hell, Crowley belongs to "his Master", Satan. Obviously, Crowley doesn't see himself that way and neither does Aziraphale and, of course, neither do we. Under no circumstances is that anything resembling a consensual or safe relationship and we don't view he and Aziraphale as an affair because of it. There are those that they've kept their relationship from, though, who would see it that way.

Nina had unintentionally hit on a little truth of the situation-- Crowley's inability to fully escape Satan is part of why he feels he is not free enough to offer Aziraphale a life over an existence. In every way that there is for him to be, he is utterly Aziraphale's, but he's damned and that's why Aziraphale is just an angel he knows, even if he's really his boyfriend and his partner and his husband and a million other things. Aziraphale is his everything.

It's just not a situation that Crowley can explain to Nina The Coffee Shop Human, who has no idea that he's damned for eternity and how that could potentially get in the way of such things like marrying the bookshop angel.

The idea that Nina thinks that his love life seems less complicated to her than her own gives him pause because if she only knew?

Crowley is sure that Aziraphale will be erased into non-existence and taken from him because he's fallen and he isn't going to be allowed to have a happy ending. That's just how this works.

So, when Nina said "you and your partner," Crowley jumped in to deny that he and Aziraphale are actually partners, despite being very much what anyone would call partners... and when Certified Human Nina said they were talking about their love lives, Crowley found himself forced to admit to himself that he has one. He has a love life because he has life.

It's because Nina says "other people's love lives." It's because she looks at Crowley and just sees another person and one who, like everyone, is entitled to make a life of his own, and it suddenly occurs to Cupid over here that maybe he might have accidentally kinda sorta gone and made himself a whole damn life while insisting he had done no such thing. Maybe because it's a whole lot easier to decide that you're damned and nothing will ever work out for you so why bother trying to claim a life for yourself? than it is to stop letting others define what you are and go claim that life you want.

Further complicating things is that, earlier on in the season, Beez led Crowley to believe that The Book of Life is actually a thing. Crowley, in The Final 15, believes that the being who is watching them through the window is The Metatron and he believes that big threat in play in that moment is that Aziraphale is at risk of being erased into non-existence by his name being taken out of The Book of Life. As he tries to use their language to tell Aziraphale this and a plan for how they can get out of it, he even refers to their life together as "our existence"-- using that word again, instead of the more accurate life.

The ironic part here is that Crowley is using it here to try to get Aziraphale to see that he believes that the threat is The Book of Life but Crowley so often has referred in the past to their life together as an existence that Aziraphale doesn't understand the wordplay.

One of the most heartbreaking moments, though, comes when Crowley abandons a line of wordplay-- and not just because it's not going to work for conveying what he wants to say. It is probably because this lovely, deceptively simple-sounding line that we can see is really anything but simple? This one that starts with "and I would like to spend--"?

It likely comes from the actual marriage proposal Crowley seems to have had in his mind for ages because, as we know, Crowley is an optimist. An optimist and a romantic and he's thought of what he'd say, if things ever somehow changed and he ever felt really free to ask Aziraphale.

This line was: "And I would like to spend my life with you."

In The Final 15, he can't do it. He can't bring himself to say it because he thinks it's already too late. It's not for him. He's fallen. He's damned. He's going to lose Aziraphale, as he's been fated to do all along because a life isn't for him, he is doomed to just exist and keep on existing for eternity.

Crowley thinks that Aziraphale is going to go with The Metatron and be erased into non-existence and Crowley will then have never known him, never made this existence that was really a life with him, and what did he expect? That the romantic, happy endings that he loves and tries to make happen for everyone else could ever be something that he could actually have for himself?

The word Crowley is mouthing in the scene with Nina isn't love. He's not just realizing he's in love with Aziraphale. He's known that for thousands of years. He's mouthing the word for the thing he has always felt he cannot have but that Nina sees that maybe he already does-- a life.

It aches right now but I think it likely that, when they get to the other side of all of this in The Finale and Crowley gets to actually do the proposal the way he'd really like to, the fact that he cut himself off in the "And I would like to spend--" line will actually make it all the better because now, when he finally does really freely ask Aziraphale for that life together? It will likely be the first time Aziraphale has ever heard Crowley call what they have already made together not Crowley's existence but their life.

#ineffable husbands #good omens #crowley #aziraphale #aziracrow #good omens meta #good omens 2 #good omens theory #crowley x aziraphale #ineffable husbands speak

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w0rmdahl · 7 months ago

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the ring girl — MM

gif ©: magnusedom, mkayoung, ayoedebiris

film: monkey man (2024)

synopsis: tiger's temple never had a ring girl, nor one as straightforward as their first would turn out to be. however, unbeknownst to anyone who'd interacted with her in the workplace, she was no mere ring girl — at least she wouldn't be by the end.

word count: 3.7k

featuring: kid, (oc) ishani, tiger

warnings: (it's monkey man be fr) strong language, misogynistic themes

a/n: pssst! this was originally just an outline for me (similar to 'the beginning' for ilyily) but i wanted to provide backstory b4 i posted anything else for MM! hope you enjoy :)

he remembered the first time he saw her; the black sheep with her head down as she entered the locker room of the arena, a meager woman compared to the grimy crowd of men housed inside. like a lamb in the lions' den — or tiger's temple, perhaps — eyes would begin to collect on the anomaly in the room and people started to further notice the oddities of the situation, including himself as he peeled off the signature monkey mask. without the latex obstructing his view kid could now see the substantial gashes and bruises along her skin, the determination in her eyes as she walked herself right up to his boss, jaw clenching once he'd noticed her.

"what the fuck are you doing here?"

"you're tiger, is that right?"

the greasy-haired man sneered. "and who the fuck are you?"

kid would slam his locker shut from his place across the room and, though he was all ready to go and rest for the night, he'd linger around to keep an eye on tiger whilst he spoke with the willful woman peering up at him through narrowed eyes.

"you need a ring girl." she said simply — matter-of-fact. "i need a job. maybe we could work something out."

tiger's face would screw up into a look of disbelief as he glanced around the audience surrounding to see the commotion, a mixed reaction from the crowd bringing his attention back to her. he'd mirror her folded arms and cocked brow before responding half as professional and twice as patronizing, utterly unsuspecting of the girls' smile that would follow.

"we don't need a ring girl."

the dark-haired woman almost chuckled. "course you do; why do you think ring girls exist?"

tiger now actually took a moment to ponder her query — the first, not the second. the second was obvious. but that was exactly why he paused; this random girl off the street was opting to be ogled at in a bad part of town just for a job. who knows, maybe it could even bring in new audience members — but his wildest ideas more focused on the limitations of her willingness. how far would she be willing to go for money?

a cagy smile would curl the boss's bitten lips before he laughed and swiped a misplaced hair behind his ear. "you..." he trailed off and shook the deceit from his thoughts, "you've got yourself a deal, there. come back tomorrow at 4 and we'll talk details."

she'd offer a mere nod before beginning to turn, halted by tiger's voice booming off the tile flooring once more. "wait! what the fuck is your name?" the woman casted her sharp gaze over her shoulder when the pseudonym left her mouth.

"ishani."

tiger would then be abandoned to stew in his suspicion about her as she exited the same way she came, leaving the room to erupt in conversations left utterly unheard by kid who'd exited out the back door as soon as ishani was out of sight. by the time he laid down with his eyes on the ceiling fan, the occurrences of the day wholly left his mind, replaced with the abrasive memories that kept his eyes open until the sun rose. and then, just like every day, he would return to the ring once more to be beaten until the crowd was happy — the only difference being the new ring girl wearing half as many clothes as when he'd last seen her and a smile that didn't convince the monkey man one bit.

the months that followed ishani's arrival took some adjusting to get used to. matches changed, payment changed, tiger changed. at first it was just getting used to a woman being in the building — especially one dressed the way ring girls did. the other men were like starved dogs in overheard conversations that had him keeping a closer eye on them — to the point that he began noticing each and every snide comment that accused of 'not belonging' and weird notes left from a 'secret admirer' on her mirror. it was all tough to stomach even for him so he couldn't begin to imagine how she felt walking home at night.

but then it was the audience that changed. sure, she was booed here and there at the beginning in favor of the actual fighting they'd come to bet on, but after a while she started gaining traction. there were men who'd come only to cheer when she stepped into the ring with that stupid sign, eagerly waiting by the back door until her shift was over to ask for her number or who to bet on next. there was even an incident where a sold-out show for two unpopular fighters was terminated early due to the absence of life in the crowd when ishani wasn't visible, but the important detail to tiger hadn't been the lack of enthusiasm for the actual fight, it was the attention and money he made without the fight.

the locker room became a slaughterhouse by the time tiger started favoring ishani. talks of how 'desirable' she was turned into how pesky she was, perverted smooches turned into arrogant scoffs, and all the while ishani remained totally uninterested in it all. she kept her head down and did what she had to do, which often entailed skimpier outfits than typical or (objectively worse) humoring the sweaty patrons for 900 rupees an hour. either way, she continuously endured the bitter tasks put forth day by day without ever making a fuss until finally, on an evening as regular as any other, she seemed to snap.

it came after an apparently tough day when she walked into the building with her hair tied in a rat's nest at the top of her head and dark circles under her eyes to emphasize the frown creased besides her nostrils. tiger had begun calling out to her as she swung open the door to her personal storage closet and, without uttering a word, slammed the door shut behind her. the peeved man would then look around to see if anyone else had witnessed this variation in her demeanor, naive to the eyes behind the monkey mask watching his every move under a microscope.

she was sour from that point on, the perpetual scornful knitting of her brows evident to anyone who cared to look from the beginning of her shift until the very end. she'd kept her mouth sewn shut the entire day even when tiger called her over before she could change and grab her stuff to leave the vile workplace — even when he'd asked her to 'have a drink' with a customer for another hour — even when said customer spilt his drink down her front. only when kid noticed the grubby hand on her thigh creeping inward did ishani finally release whatever had been caught on her tongue all day, her own drink now being thrown in his face.

"fuck off you worthless pig! keep your dirty dick in your pants and leave me the fuck alone!"

any and all conversations from lingering individuals in the vicinity would cease entirely upon hearing the howl released from the formerly well-mannered ring girl. caught in the sights of her boss and coworker for two entirely different reasons, ishani shot up from her seat to storm off from the man at the table, called after only by tiger as she made her way toward the locker rooms.

"ishani!"

she didn't even glance back at him, continuing her way out of the central arena to leave the bewildered audience behind as she disappeared into the employee-only section of the building. kid would catch himself rushing through any leftover tasks before he could go home with ishani in the forefront of his mind, holding on to the hope that he could run into her before she'd left and offer some sympathy for her day — only to find the locker room entirely empty when he grabbed his bag. with the release of a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, he'd opt instead to simply keep an eye on her tomorrow and make sure she was alright, stepping out the back door with slumped, aching shoulders.

— and then, as he took in a deep breath of the fresh air on the second step, his eyes would be quicker than his mind to notice the figure in his peripheral. by the time he recognized her, ishani's attention was already on him, sitting slumped against the brick wall with a quirked brow at the lanky man on the eroding staircase.

finally, after months of mutual intrigue and accidental eye contact with the other who seemed to be watching when they weren't looking, kid and ishani would interact for the first time with a comfortable breeze between them and hushed voices under the twinkling stars.

"are you okay?" he'd asked sincerely. the wind brushed her hair from her cheeks as she replied, "yeah. all good." and yet, he could've sworn he'd noticed a glum cadence in her words.

"do you want me to call a taxi?"

"it's alright, but thank you." she produced a small smile identical to the other sad grins presented throughout the day. "just waiting for him to go home before i leave."

him — the man at the bar. kid was already leaning on his heel to turn back inside. "i can tell him to leave." he could almost see the rain clouds looming over her head begin to part as her downturned smile grew brighter, unalloyed while her shoulders straightened out.

"i'd appreciate that."

she spoke with the gratitude obvious in her sparkling eyes, and so, with the simple nod of his head, kid would then head back inside to oblige. he'd even go as far as to exit out the front door for his walk home just to make sure the perverse man didn't turn back around, all the while contemplating his limited interactions with the ring girl. unbeknownst to him, this decision would finally grace ishani with the first real smile she'd experienced in a long while, one that remained imprinted all the way home as if to remind herself how to do it.

the days following this incident would proceed as normal if not for the instances when their eyes caught from across the room once more, a different kind of smile on her lips than the one he’d grown used to. it caught him totally off guard the first time and left him utterly unsure of how to react or respond before she was whisked away by tiger to fulfill another duty in the day. however, by the second honest smile kid had become certain this wasn't just a fluke, mustering the courage and the will to push through the throbbing in his jaw as he replicated her grin. it wasn't nearly as genuine or convincing as ishani's, but it was there, and that's all that really mattered in her eyes.

day by day, little by little, kid and ishani's smile-laced glances would grow friendlier and friendlier despite their lack of communication — even getting to the point where others had begun to notice.

"making after work plans, there, kong?" cobra would snicker as he took a step closer to the beast on the other side of the ring.

"stop talking and hit me."

it wasn't until a little over two weeks after they'd spoken that ishani and the monkey man would be in contact with one another again, finding themselves interacting once more due to a complex work situation;

he was waiting against the wall of tiger’s perpetually locked office door when he’d noticed her enter the locker room — practically barging through the greasy guys with hands balled into fists as she walked right past him and up to tiger's office. she'd knock with heavy knuckles against the chipped oil paint and, after a brief pause, the door would swing open to reveal their hasty-looking employer with an astounded and somewhat irritated expression on his face.

"ishani," tiger hummed with condescension weaved in his tone "i don't suppose this could wait."

she stood her ground with a simple "no," replicating his low octave but without the distain present in her vocal cords. kid swore he could still sense it.

“alright,” their boss sighed and pulled the door open further to let her in. “grab a seat.”

before entering ishani would promptly glance over at the bloody man leaned into the wall beside her, a look of what he could only describe as sympathy creasing her features. this puzzling gesture urged him now to respond the only way he could — the only way they did — and earned her a comforting smile as she started to head inside. the minuscule flash of her grin appeared on her lips for only a second before she then disappeared from his view, completely failing to close the door behind her.

the monkey man wasted only a moment on internal debate before deciding to inch closer to the doorway and listen in, back pressed flat to the wall and eyes forward while he overheard their conversation. she must've left the door open for a reason, right?

"it's like i've told you before,” tiger spoke in an annoyed grumble “that isn't how business works, and that isn't how this is going to work — if it did work like that i'd be the richest person in the world tomorrow, but unfortunately company comes before personnel."

"all i'm asking is for you to stick to your word. i don't expect any favors. just respect."

"respect?" he asks with an exasperated thinness, a scoff caught in his throat. "respect you?"

ishani, on the other hand, is surprisingly calm despite her previous demeanor. “would you break a promise with someone you respect?” tiger finally scoffs.

“what promise, ishani? i never promise anything to anyone — especially not the ring girl with a fake name who prances around for money.”

kid can almost hear the smirk in her voice. “the ring girl whose made you an extra few thousand rupees every night? s’that the one you’re talking about? — because if so, that’s even more of a reason to keep your word.”

there is a beat before tigers response that left the eavesdropping man outside to ponder his own theories of what he was doing during this time. maybe he was pushing his tongue in his cheek to keep his big mouth from saying something he shouldn’t. maybe he was brushing his hair behind his ears as the thought of a cool and collected response. maybe —

“i don’t give hand-outs, ishani.”

on the contrary to his mulling, her answer was immediate. “that is such bullshit, man! you rig every match! how am i asking too much when you make me to stay late every night just to laugh at some sweaty guys' jokes? not to mention the other things you beg me to do. and yet i never complain and i never whine — which is why i asked you last week for my pay today. i need that money today, tiger.”

kids brows would furrow upon hearing this new information. he knew tiger did things under the table, of course, everyone did! most matches were rigged and he did ask ishani to sit with some overzealous customer just about every night, however her emphasis on other things caught his full attention, the implications nearly baring his teeth.

"i can't give you your pay tonight. best i can do is friday."

"friday?" ishani repeats, her volume raised higher than before "it's tuesday, tiger — how am i going to eat tonight? how will i wash my clothes tomorrow? what am i supposed to do until friday?"

"honestly, i don't know, but i believe you'll figure it out. now, i have somewhere to be, so i will see you tomorrow." tiger's annoyance is now outwardly apparent in his voice.

"that's it? i should just go fuck myself then?"

"if that's what you wish to call it, sure; go fuck yourself — now get out of my office."

from around the corner kid can hear a chair screeching as its legs skid against the ground before landing with a thud. then, ishani's swift but heavy footsteps, her face beet red as she exited the office in the same manner as she had arrived. and before kid even has the chance to do or say anything, tiger is peeking his head out to see who else had been looming around to speak with him.

"you come to make demands, too?"

make demands. he noted tiger's verbiage before shaking his head.

"all right, let's get this over with."

kid would almost hobble out the back door for a cigarette after his match when he’d noticed ishani already two steps ahead, mid-drag as she looked over to see who'd stumbled into her alone time. of course it was the monkey man — who else? she exhaled the smoke before speaking.

"i always feel sorry for kong. looks painful."

her voice seemed so much softer when directed at him, though maybe that was just the foreignness of them actually speaking to one another. kid took a moment to respond while restraining a wince from the shift in weight as he worked down the second step. “don't feel sorry, kong's 'the beast.'" ishani shifted to face him when he arrived at the third.

"is he, though? or is that just how he's made out to be?"

kid would have to pause once more in order to work through what she was saying — what the true meaning was hidden in the ambiguity — and more importantly what he was going to say back. he’d watch her take another drag with her eyes fixed on him, finally making it down to the final step before deciding to mirror her intentional vagueness. “does it matter by this point?”

the warm twinkle in her eyes ran cold upon hearing this response, now more of a troubled glint as she pulled her gaze from his silhouette trudging to lean against the brick. from her peripheral she could see him fishing for something in his pockets and her own free hand would subconsciously slip into hers, the other bringing the menthol back to her lips. “i think so…” she’d trail off, and for a moment, that was that.

and then he was the one to suddenly speak, his tone barely over a whisper after a long exhale of billowing smoke. “can i ask you something?”

“sure.”

“why’d you leave the door open?”

a deceitful smirk graced her lips as she took another drag in what he assumed was an act to postpone her answer. “because.” ishani hummed lowly, “i didn’t want you to think i was soft.”

this took him aback entirely. of all hypotheses he had conjured up over the last two hours to explain her varying demeanor, this was not one of them, didn't even make the list. kid's adams apple bobbed while he swallowed the hesitance in his vocal cords, her gaze returning to his just in time to catch this quirk.

"i don't."

the warmth in her eyes would return again after these words left his mouth, and though she would only smile in that sincere manner she had revealed all those days ago, it felt as though she wanted to say something; the corners of her lips twitching as her eyes flicked between his. how awfully he wished to hear it — her thoughts on his rare transparency — but ishani would remain utterly silent with the grin on her face fighting to show teeth. kid would grow timid quickly under the pressure of her gaze and silence, unintentionally prodding him to abruptly blurt out what he'd been poring over since the moment he'd left tiger's office.

“do you know ‘kings?’ the elite club in uptown mumbai?”

ishani’s brows furrowed as she shook her head. “no, i don’t think so.”

“well…” he took a breath in an attempt to navigate how to go about this, each explanation coming off worse and worse. he looked off to the skyline. “all the wealthy businessmen go there to pay for girls to laugh at their shitty jokes. if anyone could do it..."

there was a beat before her response that left kid out in the cold for the few milliseconds it took her to find what to say, the anxiety in his chest rising until an entirely unfamiliar sound eased his swirling worries, light and harmonious in the night chirping with crickets. he'd glance back over at ishani to find her restraining the giggles emitting from her throat with her pointer on her lips, eyes now looking back up at him as she smiled.

"you trying to pimp me out?"

her apparent delight would grow along with her grin as she watched his face flush with the unsure and somewhat nervous chuckles falling from his split lips. "that is what it sounds like, huh?" he'd look away to ash the dwindling cigarette between his trembling fingers "just wanna help, is all. promise."

ishani turned towards him even more now, inadvertently catching his full and undivided attention, though she simply pressed the butt of her dead cigarette into the brick. "see?" she spoke sweetly — knowingly as she took half a step toward the back door with a vivid twinkle in her eye, "kong's not as bad as people make him out to be."

and with that, she turned, filter in hand as she monitored him all the way to the back door. with her fingertips grazing the rusted handle ishani would offer one last salute towards the monkey man before finally heading back inside, leaving him alone against the brick to ponder their interactions once more. the absence of her response had his suspicion snowballing on how she'd taken the offer and, with another puff of tobacco, kid found himself accepting her subtle rejection.

— so imagine his shock the next day when he'd exited the kings' kitchen for a breath of fresh air only to find ishani doing the same.

"hey," she'd smile, a familiar glow in her gaze on the dumbfounded man "funny seeing you here."

#[ kid ]#kid ✶ ishani #dev patel #monkey man #monkey man 2024 #monkey man fanfiction #dev patel x reader #dev patel fanfic #dev patel imagines #dev patel imagine #oc community #oc creation #ocs #oc #my ocs #oc x canon

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league-of-sam · 9 months ago

Text

Don't Be Shy | Konig x Reader

Kӧnig x TF141 x AFAB!Reader

PART FOUR

Summary: Transferred against your will to a new task force to calm a troubled soldier, you felt way in over your head - especially when you came face to face with a 6'10" mountain of Austria. 18+ MINORS DNI! t.w // angst, mental health, language, violence, human trafficking, death, sexual themes/SMUT, military inaccuracies, language inaccuracies (google translate).

1 / 2 / 3 / 5

It was mission day.

Training over the last two weeks had been exhausting, but the payoff was right around the corner.

The mission was simple – get in, get the hostages, get out.

Fender had been given intel of another AQ human trafficking den on the border of Serbia, and it was KorTac’s job to get them out and get them to safety.

Simple enough, and something this task force has done a hundred times over. That didn’t stop the nerves from creeping up from within you, though. it didn't feel right, being on a mission without the 141, without your family.

How much could you truly trust the people around you?

Now you sat, clutching your rifle to your chest, surrounded by the rest of the team; all of you clad in the best tactical gear that Laswell had to offer.

You scanned the room, desperate for a glimpse of the giant man that had clouded both your heart and your brain, frowning when you came up empty.

Kӧnig had been…odd to deal with.

But you were quick to learn that that was just him. He was sweet, quiet, kind, thoughtful, fidgety. It made you like him all the more, and you were so incredibly bad at hiding it. Ghost almost had a heart attack when you admitted about your little crush, the man had to be held back by Soap, Gaz, and Price to stop him ‘coming down there to get you and shoot him’.

And people said Price was the father of the group!

After spending three hours convincing Ghost you were just fine, Kӧnig had knocked your door, ready for his next lesson. You’d made an agreement – he opened up to you, working on his issues with social interaction, and you would teach him to be a better sniper.

It worked, you thought, and you were finally breaking down some of his walls.

“If you don’t mind me asking, why are you so quiet and closed off?” You asked tentatively, putting your rifle back into its protective carrier.

“Was, how you say, bullied? As a child, I was always big, and the other children made many comments and hurt me.”

Your heart hurt hearing him say this. You were no stranger to bullies, having been picked on your entire childhood also.

“Yeah, I know the feeling.”

“You do?” he said, voice surprised.

You smiled softly, “Yeah. Kids aren’t nice. Adults are even worse. Still happens every now and then, people underestimating me or thinking I don’t deserve to be here.”

“That’s horrible.”

“It is. I can understand why you wear the hood all the time, keeps people away from something else they can use.”

“Ja.”

“I sometimes wish I had something, but Ghost always told me not to go down that road. He says it’s a hard one to come back from.”

“It is true. It’s scary, revealing yourself.”

“I’m sure it is, but it’s scary wanting to cover up, too.”

“Why would you want to?”

You frowned, looking away from him as you continued to pack your things, “Because I don’t like the way I look. Sometimes, I wish people couldn’t see me.”

He looked at you, dumbfounded, “Aber du bist so hübsch. (But you’re so pretty.)”

“What?”

He blushed, looking at his shoes, “Oh, um, you are just kind. I am sad for you.”

“I’m sad for you too, Kӧnig.” You smiled, “But it’s alright. Those people mean nothing now. I used their hate to help my anxiety, and now I’m here to help you improve yours.”

“(Y/N), I think you are helping.”

“Yeah? I think so too.”

He stepped a little closer to you, his movements stopping you in your tracks.

“Ich habe noch nie ein so schӧnes gesicht gesehen, Schatz. (I have never seen such a beautiful face, sweetheart.)” He whispered, his fingers barely touching your chin as he tipped it, making you look up at him.

Your breath was caught in your throat, heat rising to your cheeks as you melted into his touch. You reached up, your hand cupping his as it moved to your cheek.

Your heart thudded in your chest as he stepped closer to you, the other hand slipping around to rest on your waist.

Before you knew it, your body was pressed against his, the two of you searching each other’s eyes for any sign to stop.

There was none, but as soon as your fingers grazed the bottom of that damned hood, moving to lift it away, the familiar jingle of the ringtone set for Price echoed around the walls.

You fumbled, stepping back from the giant, “F-fuck…I- sorry, it’s Price I-I have to take it.”

Kӧnig released a long breath as you moved away from him, whispering to himself, “Oh, mein gott. (Oh, my God.)”

He barely paid notice to you speaking with your Captain, until something you said caught his attention, making his heart shatter.

“Yes, Price,” you laughed, “As soon as the job is done, I’ll be on my merry way.”

You were leaving?

“Yeah!” you spoke again, turning to smile at him briefly, “He’s doing well, I think he’ll be fine here. No- Captain, listen…you know what Ghost is like! It’s just a job, right? So, when I’m done, I’ll be back, promise.”

What?

‘It’? Were you talking about him like that?

Did you really think of him as nothing but a mission, something for you to fix and then leave behind once the work was done?

“I’m just a job?” he said, voice small as he watched you put your phone down.

You stood confused for a moment, until you looked back at your phone, reliving the conversation with Price.

“N-no, Kӧnig, t-that’s not what I meant by that-”

“I’m just another task for you to complete before you go leaving to your elite task force, ja?”

His voice raised with every word as he angrily collected his own things. Hurt seeped from him, and you could understand exactly why.

“I didn’t mean it like that!” you pleaded, “Yes, I was brought here to do a job, but you are not just a job to me. You’re a human being!”

“A human being you were brought here to babysit.”

“Yes! I was! But that wasn’t my fault! I didn’t fucking want to!”

Your frustration got the better of you, and you snapped. No, you didn’t want to be someone’s babysitter. You were an SAS-trained sniper, for crying out loud. But you’d seen someone in need and stayed.

And you were so glad you did.

But he didn’t see it that way, who could blame him?

“Okay, sergeant. Danke for the lesson.” He said, and he nodded to you, turning towards the exit.

“Kӧnig, please- don’t leave, I’m so sorry I didn’t mean-”

He ignored you, shaking his head as he flung the door open, the noise echoing around the shooting range. You winced, tears welling in your eyes as you watched his hulking form stalk away from you.

That’s the last he spoke to you.

It was the last you’d even seen him.

For three days.

He didn’t come to the shooting range, he hadn’t been showing up for training, and he hadn’t been eating from the canteen.

You never meant to hurt him or pry too far, but it was why you were here. To help him understand about teamwork and morale, to help him understand that not every person was out to get him. But you never meant to make him feel like he was just a job, just another assignment.

In a last ditch effort, you scanned the room again, and your heart skipped a beat as blue eyes pierced yours.

He was leaning against the concrete pillar on his left, arms crossed over his vest, hip stuck out as one of his feet rested in front of the other. Your eyes examined his frame, subconsciously licking your lips as you took in his appearance. He looked even bigger with all the gear on…even better.

Kӧnig blushed furiously under your gaze, flustered as he tore his eyes away from you to look back at his superior, who’s voice was booming around the room.

“Karma!” his voice made you jump, head snapping forward, “You will be taking primary overwatch. The snipers are to follow your command.”

“Yes, sir.” You answered.

Fuck.

“Now, the mission is simple. We will take the trucks down through the mountain pass, and there is a guard under our pay to let us pass without issue on the border. Roze.” Fender spoke, passing the baton to his second in command.

“From there, Contact Team 1 will press west, taking the building from behind. Contact Team 2 will follow after breach, collecting the hostages and running them to the van that is waiting. I will be driving that.”

“The Sniper team will head east, setting up overwatch to take out any stragglers that push through from the breach, am I clear?” Fender finished.

Several voices answered in unison, nods and encouraging looks thrown around the room between comrades.

You only squeezed your gun tighter, teeth sinking into the flesh of your lips.

KorTac was so different to 141.

The journey to missions would be silent, all of you quiet from the weight of what you were about to endure.

But not here.

People were chatting away, making jokes, making plans for the evening as if they were so certain they’d even make it home. It completely terrified you. The only thing keeping you alive was the promise you made to get back to your boys.

No wonder Kӧnig hated it here…so did you.

Somehow, the journey felt like it took forever, but no time at all at the same time. Something wasn’t right, you could feel it deep within you. Even the encouraging texts from the 141 group chat weren’t helping, despite Soap insisting that his flurry of memes was appropriate.

It wasn’t long until you were in position, the front of your body damp from the moisture in the grass surrounding you.

“Karma to Actual, Sniper team in position, waiting on count.” You spoke quietly, nodding to your team to settle.

“Copy that, Karma. Contact Team 1 is on route for your position.” Fender replied.

As soon as he said that, the sound of combat boots connecting with the ground flooded the air around you, legs wading past with guns held high on the target. Your heart skipped as you caught a flash of red and white stripes as Kӧnig moved past you.

He moved swiftly and silently, completely in his element.

Now was the time you’d see him in action; you’d see the crazy that everyone warned you about.

“In position, sir.” He spoke, his accent thick as he whispered into his comms, taking up position in front of the doors.

Moving the scope to settle on him, you peeked through, gasping as you saw he had no weapon at all on him. It was just him and his fists.

They genuinely did just use him as a human battering ram.

“On your count then, soldier.”

You watched him as he took a final breath before his voice flowed in your ear, “Eins…zwei…drei…

Einsetzen! (one…two…three…engage!)”

On cue, the splintering of wood echoed around the trees, and the popping of gunfire and the screams of women followed.

“Okay everyone, on your mark! Let’s clear the way.” You commanded.

One by one, you shot your rifle with ample precision, taking out the AQ soldiers that tried to escape the hands of Kӧnig, and the rest of Contact Team 1.

“This why they call you Karma?” Calisto’s voice sounded.

You let out a laugh, “Indeed it is.”

“Badass!”

As yours and König’s team cleaned out the AQ, contact team 2 made their way in to collect the hostages. That’s when you got the ‘all clear’ to move in, offering any aid needed to the poor victims.

You moved quickly, throwing your rifle over your shoulder as you stumbled down the hill towards the building, your team following swiftly behind you. The doors swung open, and a crowd of dirty and frightened women poured out, Roze pulling up with the van and ushering them in.

It was seemingly over, and you threw a small smile to Kӧnig as he helped one of the smaller girls out of the building. He looked back at you, holding your gaze for a moment, until screams and cries and yells of commands tore your attention away.

Running towards the group with a fully loaded semi-auto was a straggler, the last AQ soldier that had apparently been missed, and he was headed right for Kӧnig and the little girl.

You tossed your gun aside, not even taking a second to think, and ran as fast as your legs would take you towards them.

You ignored every order to stand down, every yell from Fender to fall back.

But no one was as quick as you to react.

You reached them just as the bullets started spraying, the force in which you banged into Kӧnig knocking him to the floor as you scooped the girl in your arms to shield her.

Somehow, you’d managed to save them both from the oncoming assault, but your complete disregard for your own life came to bite back at you as you screamed, a searing, burning pain shooting through your thigh as a bullet struck you.

Roze yelled, reaching for the child as you tossed her forward, falling to the ground when another bullet shot into your back.

Your vest protected you from deadly harm, but the force of the impact had you fall to your knees, landing on your front in a daze.

The rest of the team didn’t even get a chance to unload their own weapons into the enemy, as Kӧnig shot up, tears pricking his eyes as he ran at the soldier, tossing him into the air and bringing him back down over his bent knee.

A sickening crack of bones echoed through the valley, until silence fell, and the only sound was your laboured whimpering in the grass.

Until that wasn’t heard either.

Your body went limp.

And your vision faded to black.

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sannyo-appreciation-posts · 14 days ago

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Unconnected Marketeers fun facts and trivia you probably haven't heard,

Neat trivia for everyone from Touhou 18. Sources referenced in the text.

Mike was the only Demo character to not need to suffer the "Shoplifting" cheat, because she's the first boss.

Supposedly, according to her Omake.txt, Mike came from the outside world. She was originally training to be a proper maneki-neko for Gōtoku-ji, a Buddhist temple in Tokyo, but she was bullied into leaving and didn't finish her training, she's now happily free to do what she wants.

This implies all real world maneki-neko need training to work.

Takane is the final boss of Touhou 18.5, and is presumably the only end boss to surrender immediately upon being approached, but she is mugged by a power crazed Marisa anyway and cries that she's insane.

Yamajorou have special techniques for producing large quantities of quality goods cheap. This is written in Takane's card.

Takane is totally a Phantasmal Boss. Chimata is the final boss, then you go to Nitori who is the Extra boss, then Takane is the Phantasmal Boss. See?

Sannyo is named after the Komakusa. The "queen of Japan's mountain flowers". All her Spellcards are named after different alpine Japanese flowers, and even her nons are shaped like flowers. She keeps them in her den in Lotus Eaters 29 and 30. And this, alongside her dragon folding screen was scripted by zun according to the script Mizutaki revealed. So Sannyo is occasionally drawn with alpine flowers because she's seemingly so fond of them.You can also see color patches along stage 3 implying they are highland flowers as well.

Even though she says "spoiling the taste of her tobacco " as a midstage catchphrase, she happily laughs and says her tobacco sucks in Lotus Eaters 30, so she was making a private joke to herself in Unconnected marketeers.

Hilariously, Sannyo got hit in the face with the Shanghai doll card when she was trying to talk during the demo. Art has been made of this.

Due to an error, Sannyo's clothes were constantly torn during the demo; leading to a ton of her fan art assuming that's just how she looked.

Bonus Sannyo facts, sighting in blue:

Misumaru's resting face, used for reference has probably the angriest eyebrows in all Touhou.

Misumaru makes a living of making Jewelry, Mostly beads. This is in Reimu's blank card ending.

She tried to brag to Reimu she made the Yin-Yang orbs in that ending, but Reimu was hilariously not impressed.

In Sakuya's post fight dialog with Momoyo, Misumaru shows up and gets invited to the SDM to chat with Patchouli. Sakuya expects an exposition dump, but after getting interrupted by Momoyo, she just shortens to answer Sakuya's question with a single "just don't dig that stuff up "

(If you read that exchange in text it looks like Sakuya is keeping up. But the in game faces make it clear Sakuya is confused and Misumaru is exhausted talking)

Tsukasa doesn't like getting her clothes dirty according to her 18.5 title card.

She also has had a habit of entering people's houses uninvited even before touhou 19. In Marisa's blank card ending, Tsukasa brakes into Marisa's house to tell her a bunch of stuff and Marisa complains about "Why are you in my house " basically.

In Marisa's post fight dialog with Momoyo. Marisa convinces Momoyo to let her take gems if she keeps it a secret, but Tsukasa pops up and reveals shes spying, and says Momoyo would get into trouble until she gets intimated by Momoyo.

Megumu is based on a pretty interesting god/ tengu mixup called Izuna Gongen. Hilariously this god is a tengu who stands on the back of a white fox. (I wonder who that could be?) This is because there was a either a real or possibly mythic tactic of tying a crow to a fox and setting it on fire to release into an enemy camp. It latter somehow became a god who offered "great tengu barley rice" to a village, saving them from starvation. Which is where her UM card comes from.

According to Momoyo's post fight dialog for Sanae, "Iizunamaru's always badmouthin' Moriya Shrine". She also says Megumu's a combat lover.

According to her 18.5 title card, Megumu is a "great tengu who loves festivals" this has since appeared and been acknowledged out loud in some fan skits and MMDs, .

Chimata gets bed ridden in Marisa's blank card ending. She's so traumatized by Marisa's inability to engage in basic commerce that it gives her nightmares.

(Also, even though she has unique blank card dialog getting bullied by people making fun of her card on stage 6, no English blank card run is on YouTube. So even though jokes and skits have been drawn for it in Japan, the English community probably isn't familiar with them)

Momoyo Himemushi is based on the brutal but beautiful arcade quarter eating shmup, Mushihimesama. It's bug theme is just as iconic as it's gameplay. This is also why she's got "princess" themeing.

She talks about Megumu enthusiastically in basically every route.

Weirdly for an extra stage, a different character can show up and interrupt Momoyo into having a 3 way conversation depending on who you beat her with.

(I used to assume "that was a blast" was a line she said with every character but it looks like she cuts off before saying it sometimes)

According to the drinking fight party post stage text and title card dialog for the Rainbow Dragon Cave stage in 18.5, Momoyo is a "Centipede Popular Amongst Youkai".

#touhou project #東方project #Quick facts.#unconnected marketeers #mike goutokuji #takane yamashiro #sannyo komakusa #misumaru tamatsukuri #tsukasa kudamaki #megumu iizunamaru #chimata tenkyuu #momoyo himemushi #lotus eaters #Touhou lore

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roryacker · 6 days ago

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WereGhost part 4

writing is under the cut as usual <3 couldn't force the art out, for some reason my brain won't let art on my phone happen, I've been trying for days it just ain't workin, and I have gifts to finish working on so PC is a no-go. Still! Writing!!

I do oddly feel more confident about posting things if there's art with it? Like I faked myself out trying to post this one 3 times and kept adding more thanks to that because I was like "wait no not good :("

Maybe because art's like. My thing. But screw it, if I'm getting over my anxiety I'm hitting all the weird triggers, it's a silly werewolf AU I don't think people care if one part has art or not

Simon doesn't like how Johnny smells. He was fine before, but since that morning the older man left with him in such a hurry he's smelled different. To a normal person that wouldn't matter, but werewolves aren't exactly normal folk, and smell is a very important part of their routine, Simon's especially.

Simon was familiar with Johnny's scent before- warm and herbal, a comfortable smell that Simon wasn't afraid to admit was soothing. It's probably part of why he's stuck around. Since he got back, since the anxiety and stress faded out, he's smelled different. It changed. It was faint, but there- something odd and flowery. Simon knew he didn't like it, but he wasn't entirely sure why. Maybe it's the fact it changed at all, maybe it's what it might signals, to hell if Simon knows.

Johnny, from there, starts going out more often, for longer, starting at earlier times, and the scent only gets stronger. It mixes with his original one, shifting and changing, and Simon hates it.

He especially hates it when Johnny comes home in the middle of the day, just once, and immediately gets to shoving Simon under the bed, blankets and all, muttering out something about not being prepared and needing Simon to sit still and be quiet for a while- Simon growls and snaps at his feet, though his teeth never connect, but begrudgingly does as told, ignoring the way his heart thuds in his chest and ears flatten to his skull. After a bit, cleaning up and trying to make the place look nice, it seems, sweeping fur off of the bed and floor, Johnny leaves, and Simon is left alone, confused and quite frankly tired, watching the door shut from the little space under the blanket hanging off the bed.

By the time a few minutes pass, he hears the front door open, and another voice starts up. It's not the older man, it's not Johnny, it's new and unfamiliar, soft and feminine, and Simon can feel the fur on his neck raise at the sound. Oddly, he feels threatened. He doesn't like the new voice, doesn't like the scent that follows, doesn't like how it's the scent that's been drowning out Johnny's for weeks now. But he sits there, tense and uncomfortable, listening to them talk in the sitting room. He doesn't like it, but he does it, if only so Johnny doesn't change his mind about all of this and kick Simon out after all.

It lasts for a few hours, Simon unable to fall back asleep, until he hears the door open and shut again. He thinks Johnny might have left too, but no- footsteps come up to the door, and he steps inside the bedroom, crouching down with a sigh.

"Think she likes me, Ghost. Might be the one, aye? Just have to see what to do about you, then..."

His heart sinks at the words, but doesn't reply- just growls lowly and shifts his weight, curling up further to avoid looking at the man.

"Aye, I know. Yer feelin' grumpy. Sorry."

Johnny tries to drag him out from under the bed, gripping the blankets tight, but Simon fights, of course. He can't go one day without being stubborn, especially not when he feels so personally wronged.

"Jesus, fine. Stay under there. Don't make a mess."

It continued on like that for a few days. Long, uncomfortable, grueling days, where Simon slowly began to set up a little den under the bed. It was nice and dark, so at that point it was really just instinct drawing him into it, pushing and arranging the blankets into a cozy little spot for himself. Eventually he manages to fall asleep even when Johnny has his bird over, as much as he might not like it- Johnny slides a plate of food under the bed to try and keep him from getting snappy, not that it ever works, and it becomes another routine.

Simon as tired of it the moment it began, but he tolerates it anyways, just to avoid being thrown out. His leg's mostly healed, and he knows he needs to leave, get out into the forest again, get back to his normal life.

But he doesn't want to.

He gets cooked food, he gets the warmth and comfort of soft blankets that smell pleasant- they're the only thing that don't have that new scent on them, at this point- he gets to sleep in peace without having to worry about wolfhounds scenting him out or humans coming across him, doesn't have to worry about any other predators trying to get a meal out of him, there's no hiding, there's no running, no wasted energy... but he can tell Johnny knows he's healing. He leaves the bandages on longer and comments on the progress he's made, and at this point Simon knows that if he doesn't leave on his own Johnny might just toss him out anyways.

The thought makes him uncomfortably bitter, a sour feeling that wells up in his chest and leaves him feeling nothing short of sick.

He tolerates it all for a few more days, making the most of it, and then watches intently as Johnny leaves, one morning slipping out from under the bed to watch him from the doorway as he leaves, locking the front door behind him. He loafs around for an hour or so, then shifts, standing on unsteady legs and adjusting to the feeling of being human for a bit- as close as he can get, anyways. Simon finds himself staring at a window for a long while, facing the woods.

With a sigh, he steps closer and pushes it open, and crawls out, shutting the window behind him and shifting back so he can break off into a run. He regrets it the moment he's outside, the air frigid and uncomfortable against his fur, feeling like needles against his skin, but he doesn't have much of a choice at this point. He does it himself or Johnny will do it for him, maybe throw him outside in his sleep or something. He's careful not to leave any prints, stepping lightly and never lingering in one spot too long. The beartrap that got him into this mess serves as a marker, telling him where to go, and from there it's just a matter of following old paths, and by the time night starts to fall he's found it again. His scent has faded from months of inactivity, but it's his territory all the same.

Suddenly it doesn't feel like home at all, but he reasons that it won't be come a few weeks, anyways, when the wolfhunts start again the second the town's dogs start to catch his scent, and he'll have to leave all over again. He curls up in a familiar hollow, surrounded on all sides but one so he can't be reached or found quite as easily, and falls asleep with the lingering thoughts of fleeting warmth and soft fabrics on his mind.

#WereGhost #Werewolf Ghost AU #Werewolf Ghost #cod mwii #cod #call of duty #call of duty mwii #simon ghost riley #john soap mactavish #werewolf au #werewolf #no art for this one #Writing #ghoap #soapghost #ghostsoap #modern warefare ii #AU

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one-flower-one-sword · 9 months ago

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Sending virtual hugs! 🌸

I’m wondering about your thoughts on Xie Lian and how he views Hua Cheng and the Gambling Den.

He expressed to Hua Cheng his concerns about how dangerous it is, and let it go when he understood that he and Hua Cheng have differing views on the matter.

It makes me wonder how things would have unfolded if the man who gambled to have his competitors die or give his daughter’s life and marriage if he lost, had been able to complete his bet without interruption. Like how much is Hua Cheng involved in something like that?

Would that man simply have walked away with the luck he needed to get what he wanted? I can’t see Hua Cheng actively hunting down and killing those people.

But I can see him allowing the man the luck needed to make his desires come true - so not actively engaging but not interfering with the man’s terrible decisions - kind of like with how he dealt with He Xuan.

I’m not completely sold on that thought though…😅 your thoughts?

Thank you! 🌸

And thank you for your ask! I love talking about Ghost City :3

I've thought about similar things regarding the Gambler's Den, but ultimately, I think it's on purpose that we don't find out for sure and are left to wonder. Especially since, at this point in the story, both the reader and Xie Lian are still slowly uncovering who Hua Cheng is as a person.

When we look at this scene after everything is revealed, I think it's quite clear from the mockingly derisive way he talks to him that Hua Cheng did not like that guy, and I wonder if he would even have taken that second bet if Xie Lian and the others hadn't been there - he seems to have a pretty good understanding of Lang Qianqiu's character when be talks about him with Xie Lian later, so I can see him use that second bet as a lure to make Lang Qianqiu cause a commotion. Because then Hua Cheng gets to "discover" that Xie Lian and the others are there, which means he has a reason to invite Xie Lian to Paradise Manor, which is necessary to make that whole "have them rescue 'Ming Yi' so that He Xuan's cover isn't blown" plan work.

As an aside, though of course Hua Cheng is always happy when he gets to spend time with Xie Lian, I think he must have deeply hated deceiving him like this. It speaks to how much he values his arrangement with He Xuan and how vital the information He Xuan provides is to him - which is proven when right after this, the whole Fang Xin reveal happens. Without He Xuan monitoring what's happening in heaven and relaying the information to him, Hua Cheng wouldn't have known that Xie Lian got locked inside his palace and couldn't have come to rescue him.

Back to the topic at hand though. I think it's worth looking at the actual dialog when Xie Lian and Hua Cheng discuss the den because there's so much in there:

After some hesitation, Xie Lian spoke up again. "San Lang, it may be out of line for me, but I still have to say it. That Gambler's Den of yours is incredibly dangerous. Won't it blow up in your face one day?"

A place that allowed the betting of sons and daughters and people's lives, granting wishes for others' sudden deaths - it was dreadfully sinful. Never mind a little brawl; if one day the bets got out of hand, the Heavenly Realm wouldn't be able to stay on the sidelines.

Hua Cheng gave him a look.

"Your Highness, did you ask Lang Qianqiu why he had to jump into that mess?"

Xie Lian was slightly taken aback, not quite understanding the intent of the question.

Hua Cheng continued, "I bet he must have told you that if he didn't do it, no one else would."

He was amazingly on the mark, obviously having seen through Lang Qianqiu.

"That's indeed what he said." Xie Lian admitted.

"Then I'm the complete opposite," Hua Cheng said. "If I don't control a place like this, then someone else will. I'd rather that person be me."

Xie Lian knew when to back down, and he nodded. "I understand."

It seemed, although Hua Cheng was the sentimental sort, he also cared more about control and power than Xie Lian realized.

It's fascinating that it we look at what Xie Lian actually says and thinks here, what he mainly seems to be worried about is what would happen to Hua Cheng and his friendship with Hua Cheng should Jun Wu be given reason to actively start going against him. Which is also what Xie Lian worries about during this entire mission - what will happen if it turns out Hua Cheng is involved with a heavenly official's disappearance and heaven retaliates, what will happen if he's not involved and Xie Lian has destroyed their friendship by deceiving him. It doesn't matter to Xie Lian that Hua Cheng is a Ghost King and that they're technically on opposite sides - he's decided based on his own experiences and judgment that Hua Cheng is a good person and a good friend, and he's already at this point very protective of him. Especially since he's not unaware that the heavenly realm in general and Jun Wu in particular do not share his opinion on Hua Cheng, and the political implications thereof:

Jun Wu turned around. "Tell me, what kind of extraordinary character did you engage with when you descended this time?"

Xie Lian raised his hand. "My Lord, I swear I did nothing. Just, one day by chance, I encountered an interesting young man on the road, and we spent some time together. I didn't think much of it."

Ju Wu nodded. "Chance encounter, young man, Supreme Ghost King. Xianle, surely you are aware what the consequences would be if Ming Guang was to question you further and you confessed to this in front of the other officials? No one would believe you."

"Xianle knows," Xie Lian replied woefully. "So, I'm grateful for My Lord's timely intervention. My Lord, you're not actually going to interrogate me, are you? I wouldn't collude with the Ghost Realm. These are absurd concerns."

"Naturally, I know you would not intentionally collude with the Ghost Realm," Jun Wu said.

"I'm grateful for My Lord's trust," Xie Lian replied.

Xie Lian is definitely stretching the truth here with the "I didn't think much of it" part, given that by the end of his investigation in Banyue, he damn well knew that the "interesting young man" was Supreme Ghost King Hua Cheng, and then he kept spending time with him regardless. He's very careful about protecting their friendship by downplaying it and being vague, and further than that, he's very careful about protecting Hua Cheng. We've already seen this earlier when Pei Ming was interrogating him - Xie Lian even pretended not to know who that "red-clothed young man" was because he rightfully deduced that Pei Ming would try to use Hua Cheng as a scapegoat to get Xiao Pei off the hook. Then when Pei Ming does try to pin the whole thing on Hua Cheng, Xie Lian immediately speaks up in his defense:

"General Pei, let's keep things clear and separate. Let's not talk about whether the young man I traveled with was Hua Cheng or not. At the very least, even if he was indeed Hua Cheng, that has nothing to do with what General Pei Junior has done. A Supreme Ghost King might have the worst possible name on people's tongues, but not everything can be blamed on him."

I find it very telling that the reason Xie Lian is being so carefully vague is less so he himself won't get into trouble and more that he's very aware that if Hua Cheng gets wrongfully accused, no one will question it simply because of who and what Hua Cheng is. And it's that kind of injustice and prejudice that Xie Lian will always stand up against. At this point he still completely trusts Jun Wu, but when it comes to Hua Cheng, Xie Lian not only disagrees but actively disobeys, though he's careful about how much of that he shows in front of Jun Wu:

Jun Wu shook his head. "I should not comment on the friends you make, but I will say this: Be careful of Hua Cheng."

Hearing this, Xie Lian bowed his head slightly, keeping his eyes down and saying nothing. He should've responded with "Yes, My Lord," as he should have been able to say yes with ease by that point. Yet, for some reason, he really didn't want to say that particular "yes".

Hua Cheng likewise also understands his and Xie Lian's respective positions and is careful not to endanger Xie Lian. Like here, when he explains why he put up somewhat of an act of not knowing Xie Lian because there were other heavenly officials present:

"Since gege is here, why not come in? We haven't been apart for that long, so don't be a stranger to San Lang."

At his beckoning, Xie Lian let down the beaded curtain. "Earlier in the Gambler's Den, it was San Lang who pretended not to recognize me."

Hua Cheng approached and stopped at Xie Lian's side. "Lang Qianqiu was there too, so if I didn't put on an act, I'd be giving gege trouble."

Or here when he's content to be accused of having maliciously kidnapped Xie Lian if that means Xie Lian won't be suspected of resisting his arrest and made to look guilty:

Xie Lian finally understood. Shi Qingxuan could see that Hua Cheng had no ill intent, but on the surface, they had to pretend that Hua Cheng had only barged into the Heavens to collect his due. It would prevent gossip from those how might suggest that Xie Lian had maliciously and intentionally absconded. Hua Cheng understood Shi Qingxuan's intent and had played along. However, Xie Lian didn't want to go this route.

"All right, stop acting. He only came to the Heavens to save me. San Lang had good intentions, so why conceal them?"

Hua Cheng does this to protect Xie Lian, but Xie Lian likewise wants to protect him. This has ended up quite long-winded, but I wanted to look for more evidence of why I think that Xie Lian mainly brought up the Gambler's Den because he's worried that the bets could end up endangering Hua Cheng himself.

Hua Cheng sincerely thanks Xie Lian for his concern, but makes it clear that he doesn’t quite agree, and I think it's worth looking into why that is.

I've seen Hua Cheng be described as completely amoral by fans, but I don't think that's how the text actually portrays him. He certainly can be quite critical and cynical with his views on both humans and gods, but his reasoning for establishing and keeping the den isn't "I don't care what happens there" or "I want places like this to exist for my own gain". He is, at least from his perspective and based on his experiences, simply being grimly realistic about how if he forbids these kinds of bets, the people who want to conduct them will simply move underground and do their gambling in secret. So not only will these bets happen either way, someone else will eventually take control of such a place, and Hua Cheng doesn't trust that such a person wouldn't take advantage of it.

Hua Cheng isn't amoral, he just has his own perspective on morality and justice. He's also not passive and uncaring in the face of what he perceives as wrong and unjust, but he doesn't really talk about that openly unless prompted. Like here during the Black Water arc, when they discuss the scroll with (supposedly) the names of victims of the Reverend of Empty Words:

Xie Lian turned to Hua Cheng. "San Lang, you said it's full of outrageous mistakes. How so?"

Hua Cheng scooted over to him, they were now sitting much closer than before. Hua Cheng pointed at a few names. "These are wrong."

Xie Lian looked at the names closely; all of them were known to be lawless, malevolently evil tyrants. "How do you know?"

"Because I killed them," Hua Cheng said.

Hua Cheng deeply hates people who abuse the power they wield, to the point that he personally acts against them. I think this ties in well with his reasoning about the Gambler's Den. I don't think there's anything in the text that suggests Xie Lian is upset to realize that Hua Cheng cares more about power and control than he'd thought, just surprised - until he comes to Ghost City, Xie Lian has mostly been around the very laid-back "San Lang", and this is the first time he's encountered Hua Cheng in his own territory, where he's a Ghost King ruling over the largest settlement within the ghost realm.

Also Xie Lian doesn't know this yet, but given everything we later learn about Hua Cheng's past, I think it's quite obvious that Hua Cheng's preoccupation with the power and control he wields, as well as his contempt for those who abuse theirs, is rooted deeply in the trauma he's gone through. Control in particular is a huge thing for him for several reasons, one of the main ones being that as a child, he was repeatedly punished for things outside his control, and he internalized that pattern to the point where he now punishes himself for things outside his control, as is shown repeatedly when he decides he's failed Xie Lian in some way. But I'm going to go into more detail about this in my Hua Cheng + trauma responses meta.

Lastly, I think it's important to keep in mind that the text makes clear that even when Xie Lian and Hua Cheng disagree, rather than a point of conflict it's actually proof of how strong and healthy their relationship is. I've sometimes seen fans (not you) portray their relationship as Xie Lian being irritated with Hua Cheng's attitude towards others, having him either be somewhat grudgingly resigned to it or actively trying to change Hua Cheng's behavior. But when we actually look at the text, we realize that nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, the opposite is the case - Xie Lian is incredibly protective of him and repeatedly gets defensive when others judge and blame Hua Cheng. I'm gonna examine that in more detail in my hualian meta though, so for now, I hope this turned out a satisfying answer!

#answered asks #silver-cyn #hua cheng #xie lian #hualian #ghost city

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monayen · 8 months ago

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uhhh I dunno really but — maybe a fic of reader just walking in the forest because they r lost then getting caught in a bear trap nyen set up and uh he does something fucked up to reader, like fucks them then kills them or something? Or something heavy gore related while he fucks them.. sorryyy ahhh (I’m a damn masochist.)

The Lost Camper | Nyen

➷ Paring - Nyen x Fem!Reader [Randal's Friends / Ranfren]

➷ CWs - noncon, unsafe sex, fear play, knife play, blood kink, stabbing, sadism, fingering, violence, degradation, dacryphilla, READER DEATH

a/n - this came out to 4k words :') i know anon described a bear trap/hunting-esque situation but i felt making the reader a more cryptic-like being of the woods made a bit more sense (and easier to fit in) either way, reminder that this is DARK. there isn't a happy ending and the reader does freakin' die. (though rebirth is implied. see it how ya' do) i apologize for any mistakes as this is my longest work to date (whoop whoop) thank you for your comments and requests on both ao3 and tumblr. keeps me motivated ^^ currently working on a Randal fic and some Luther headcannons :3 inbox open as always. ANYWAYS ENOUGH

You aren't sure why you decided to hop over the Ivory household's security measures and rummage through their things while they slept. You’ve seen campers before in these woods plenty of times. Hundreds, if you kept count… but you don't.

You also don't ever interact with campers these days either. They didn’t tend to be special and they didn’t ever really get in the way. Maybe you’ll spook them by hovering around behind the greenery, sticks cracking underneath rugged boots. They don't interest you anymore beyond listening to them talk about their boring, human lives.

It doesn't make them completely irrelevant to you though, as you’ve gained a habit of sneaking onto their campsites. You steal – quite often. Well, as often as people come this deep into the woods. It's how you justify it, how else are you supposed to get canned food and new clothes? And so what if you also take a couple of books you can't read and stuffed animals whose furs mat under dirty hands. The mossy den you reside in could always use new things, even if you have no use for them.

For as long as you remember, it has been like this. A being of the woods, you’ve become a cryptic-like legend. “The Lost Camper”, you’re called. Whatever that means. You aren't sure what life is like past bark and muddy soil, clothes messy and hands rough. You were never lost, this is all you know.

Is it all so bad? So bad that humans go out of their way to tell campfire stories about your existence? The grass gives you more comfort than any sleeping bag can.

So there really wasn't any need for you to be past that fence they set up. The truth was that they were… interesting. More interesting than any other family who ventured out here. You saw as they gathered around and talked, well, two were doing most of the talking. Brothers, apparently. (despite not looking much alike)

They tagged along a couple more… characters. Notably, these two catmen that hovered around the older one of the brothers. They looked more alike, cat ears dawning their similar haircuts. You could tell them apart by their clothes – easier, their demeanors.

The blue haired one stood hunched, staring at his… ”master” talk. Immediately, you could tell he was the more timid of the two. You observed the other pinkish haired one smoke a cigarette a few steps away from the group. His eyes – eye, actually – looked low and dark. The patch on one of them leaves you to wonder what might've happened for it to be left in such a state. Catching his name from his master, “Nyen”, which made sense considering his appearance.

You must have been staring too long, because suddenly Nyen lifts his head and his sunless eye meets yours for a second. Ducking quickly behind the trees, it should have been your sign to leave, to go on your merry way of collecting berries and getting high off of mushrooms for entertainment.

But of course – you didn't. Instead, you retreated to the comfort of the conifer and stood idly. The sun set faster than you expected, any thoughts of simply leaving long gone hours ago. An eager smile spread across your face, these unique campers were asleep and you were going to rein free on their grounds. This was going to be the most fun you’ve had in ages!

As you tiptoe to their spot, you point out the odd set up. They had a truck and two tents, but only one tent actually seemed to be occupied. They also left a plethora of things outside unattended. Great for you.

Nimbly, you start pocketing random things into your large well-loved leather crossbody bag. You’ve rummaged through many people’s unattended things before, but they definitely take it to a different level. This place was filled with bizarre stuff, stuff you’ve never seen before.

Why the fuck were they carrying several wooden carvings of beavers and… birthday cake flavored “lube”... unsure what the latter was. Either way, you found it all the more entertaining to stuff these random things into your bag, giggling slightly when you pulled out a photorealistic framed drawing of a blue pony with a rainbow mane.

You were so intrigued by all these things that you didn't realize masked, narrow eyes staring at your figure past the of the darkness camp.

Nyen had been waiting for this. How stupid can you be? He saw you past the trees when the sun was still up, staring with a stable gaze – observing. Your face was shaded by the leaves, but he could see the grip you had on the tree trunk you stood behind. You looked rugged, you weren't just another camper or hitchhiker. He huffs his cigarette, more freaks. Nyen moves his eyes towards his master, clearly already stressed with the hitchhiker they had picked up hours before. Another huff.

His eyes meet yours when he decides to look up again and just as quickly – you're gone.

Once Luther hears about this, his brows furrow slightly at the idea of another thing to deal with. “Oh dear, I just can't catch a break.” Nyen waits for his master to continue.

Randal (who totally wasn't eavesdropping) perks up once he recognizes who they were talking about, “Oh! Oh! You mean the…” He pauses for dramatic effect, “The Lost Camper…” Luther twists his head to stare at his brother, “Is that the name?”

Randal nods excitedly, “I’ve read all about her! Apparently, she’s a ghost. Or like a cavewoman. Or an animal-hybrid. I actually didn't read that much.” He shrugs, “She doesn't hurt people, I think. Just swipes a few things and wonders around. Which is a little boring, would love it if something tried to kill us! AGAIN!”

Luther shakes his head and looks back at Nyen, “Hm, it’s too late now to move everything back inside…” He places a finger on his chin, “If that's true, then deal with her if she becomes a problem, alright?”

Nyen nods, “Yes sir.”

From what Randal said, he knew you would most likely lurk in the incognito of the night. So he took his stance outside the tent everyone else slept in.

He almost giddily twirls the handle of the knife, waiting and waiting. Hours pass, he doesn't have a watch but his internal clock tells him it’s around 3 am when he finally spots you. Look at you, being a problem.

Your back is faced away from him. Through the darkness, (and thanks to his skill of seeing well in the dark) he witnesses the silhouette of your thievery. Nyen can't point out exactly what you are taking but all he can imagine is his master’s upset face if he sees things are missing. The grip on his knife tightens.

He needs to wait again, wait for the perfect moment, wait to pounce . Nyen hears giggles escape your mouth – small, but he hears it. His jaw clenches. How dare you tee-hee while taking his family's very important stuff? He almost wants to lunge at you straight away, but he decides against it. Nyen wants to stab you in the throat and watch the blood splurt once you turn around. He just needs to get a bit closer…

SNAP

How irritating. Nyen just had to step on a twig.

Your reaction time is just as fast as his, darting into the dark woods with him quickly trailing behind you.

Nyen huffs to himself. He wanted to make this quick, but he certainly doesn’t mind a chase.

Holy shit, shit, shit. Thoughts race a thousand miles per hour, with your legs following right behind. You admittedly got too into it that you weren’t focusing, now you have to make a great escape.

This isn’t the first time you’ve had to run away from a camper, there was a time where a woman got spooked by you on her way to take a piss. Her scream was so loud that you immediately dashed past her, dropping the clothes you had stolen. Her husband (presumably an experienced outdoorsman) actually trekked through the woods with a shotgun for a while as you held your breath in the branches above. Ultimately, her family was gone before the sun was down.

But you aren't sure you can just avoid this one. You allow yourself to turn peek behind you and see him . The smoking catman, Nyen. The shade of the night is heavy, but you’ve adapted to see well in the dark. You’re sure he has that skill too with the way his gaze is steady, hard, and right on yo u through terrifying masked eyes. Where did his eyepatch go?

Shaky hands clutch the filled crossbody bag that jumps with your every movement. If you had to go through this, you at least want to keep the stuff.

Just tire him out, you think. It's reassuring that you know these woods like the back of your hand. You’ve tread several miles, exploring and wondering, though never finding a road. (Odd.)

Agilely weaving him past trees and fallen logs, your boots try to find leaf covered ground in an attempt to not leave visible tracks, but that would cause you to move slower – and you can't afford that. You assume with enough loops and turns, he will lose your trail.

A loud, gravelly yell can be heard behind you, “You can't run forever!” It makes your heart hammer because it's true. You aren't sure how long you’ve been running now but it feels like hours .

Periodically, you pause to catch your breath, but it isn't long before you hear his heavy steps get closer and closer, forcing the chase to start again.

It’s terrifying. You have amazing stamina. It's part of being in these woods, moving a lot. Nyen is different though, you don't think he’s stopped once. He’s a hunter, a bit slower than his prey but always behind.

Huffing, you duck under branches and jump over uneven ground with aching legs, barely catching yourself a few times. It’s strenuous to carry on like this, so close to giving out. It’s impossible to focus with this adrenaline pumping through your veins, are you going in circles? Herbage you’re so used to begin to feel like a labyrinth of ever consuming moss and vines.

Managing to keep your distance, you start to believe that maybe you’ve lost him when the echo of rushed footsteps begin to fade. There’s a wave of relief when all that can be heard is the sound of heavy panting and earth stirring underneath sore feet.

You close your eyes as you continue to move forward, wind flowing through your hair with momentum. It’s just for a second, for a moment of clarity. It's a terrible second. Your right ankle rolls horribly on a rock, making you tumble down with shriek. It reverberates past trees and you’re sure he's heard it.

He’s already closing the gap, leaves shuffling behind you. Regaining composure with gritted teeth, you come to the conclusion that he can have his damn things. It’s not worth running forever. Peeking at your quickly growing swollen ankle, you aren't sure you even could.

Finding an area where the trees thin out with patches of soft grass, you use the last of your excretion to exclaim, “Wait, wait!” Facing him finally, he stops feet away from you.

You finally get a closer look at him. His stance is still aggressive, as if you are about to take off at any moment. You see his glare filled with pure disdain, thin lips curling in a snarl. His eyes go beyond his bizarre mask, it feels like he's piercing you with them.

“Say it.” It's a husky voice that makes the anxiety in your stomach swirl. You realize you haven't been face to face with someone in… a while.

Croaking out with a strained voice, “Look, here. Have it back, I don't want it anymore.” With shaking hands, you tug the worn leather over your body and drop it onto the ground in between you two. Gulping, you scan his figure for any type of reaction.

That's when you notice a glint in his hand – a knife. Maybe it was foolish to assume he wouldn't have a weapon on him, he was chasing you after all. But it dawns on you that you don't have one.

Nyen seems to pick up on your sudden stiffening, taking a step forward. It takes everything in you to not take off, but you know it would be fruitless with a sore ankle.

“I know who you are.” You shake, “You do?” He nods slowly, “Randal told me about you. ‘The Lost Camper’, a habitual thief and urban legend. A fucking pussy too.”

A low laugh escapes his lips, he’s getting closer. “So, you think you can just get away with this?” Sweat builds even heavier on your brow and you shake your head, “No, no. I’m – I’m sorry. I didn't mean to–” He cuts you off, “You knew exactly what the fuck you were doing. You need to be dealt with. ”

Your flight instinct kicks in and despite the light injury you sustained, your feet begin to move on their own. It's not fast enough though, he lunges at you and the sudden weight causes you to fall down with a pained hiss.

There's a tackle, he's grabbing at you while you try to force yourself up under him. It’s incredibly rough, there isn't enough room to struggle around with how his weight presses you down.

You watch terribly as Nyen brings his knife up in the air. The pale moon shines on the blade, and for a second, you see the reflection of your terrified face before it stains red.

A guttural scream forces out of your mouth, making you throw your head back before it crooks back down to see crimson blood seep through your jeans down the side of your thigh.

Nyen doesn't waste time in pulling the blade back, watching how you writhe in pain. Through teary eyes, you see pure excitement spread across his shaded face. He’s enjoying this.

You can barely resist when he's forcing your thick jacket off your body – not satisfied with how the material lessens the cuts he’s adorning your body. “Don't do this…” It’s meek and pathetic, you know but you can't help it. He stands above, blood staining his hands.

“It's already happening.” It's deep and low, and you feel every drip of venom that laces his words.

You witness Nyen begin to rub the growing bulge in his tan jeans, causing your stomach to twist in a way that you're scared you may vomit out of the fear and pain. The catman groans, “Fuck… I’m going to make a mess out of you.”

Soon enough, he strips you of your worn shirt and jeans clothes. It's scary how Nyen handles you like a ragdoll, no concern for the twists and gashes your injured body has to endure.

“So this is what you were hiding under all that? Lucky me.” It’s so condescending that you grit your teeth. For any chance of keeping your dignity, an attempt of covering yourself and moving is made – but it’s met with a swift kick to your ribs that results in burning heaving.

A cold hand slips under your bra, lifting it over and groping at your chest. Whimpering, you attempt to shy away from his touch but he draws you back with an even colder tip of a blade that swipes across your skin.

Red drapes over your body like a warm blanket in contrast to the cool chill of the forest air. You can almost stare off into the starry night you are so used to while you try to regain bated breath, just for an escape.

Nyen doesn't allow this though. He flips you over roughly onto your stomach, ripping away the comforting sky from your vision. Again, you want to at least protest when he greedily spreads your legs open, hand prodding at your sensitive heat.

Shit. You don't remember the last time you ventured into anything sexual. Maybe you’d rub one out when the idea popped up, but it never really did. You’ve seen a… er– dildo (if you remember correctly what it was called) once or twice when snooping around camps. It gave you a good laugh then, but you would ultimately leave it.

Now you can feel how his hard length presses up against you. It’s an uncommon sensation, and fuck – why does it have to be big?

Cutting your underwear off, his long fingers soon dip into the heat of your pussy, pushing in and out. You gasp and tremble underneath his touch. He doesn't wait for you, curling his digits up as growing wetness coats his knuckles. It's disgustingly good, making your traitorous body clench around his fingers.

Nyen looms over you, wiping the soaked knife onto dark long sleeves, helping him keep his grip on the handle. Then, he pulls his fingers out of you, tauntingly slow to hear how you whimper pathetically. “Look at you, bitch. You're fucking dripping.” He mixes the juices with your blood, “Heh, in more ways than one.”

With unbuckled jeans, he moves fully on top of you, knees pining the sides of you down as he grunts against your soft ass. Nyen then grips your hair and pulls your head back, curving your spine into an uncomfortable position. His knife finds its way to your exposed neck.

Shaking, it nips at your skin as shallow breaths escape you. He brings himself closer . “Should I just kill you now? What do you think, slut?” Adrenaline rushes through your body, a shameful cry escapes you, “No, no! Don't– don't!”

He grinds against you, “Then beg.” Shaking your head, you respond – “Please. Please let me go, I’m sorry.” A deep sinister chuckle responds, “No, bitch.” He yanks your head back even farther. Feeling his hot breath against your face, he spits, “Beg for me to fuck you.”

Tears pool in your eyes, shutting tightly when his blade grazes hurt skin once more. His hard length prods at your entrance – waiting. With a deep breath, you whisper oh-so pathetically. “Please fuck me.” You pray it's enough.

“Better than that. C'mon, or I’ll slit your pretty little fucking throat.” He yanks your hair, pushing into your skin. You panic, fat tears streaming down your face. “No! Don't kill me! Please, please just fuck me. Please.”

Your screams turn into loud cries, echoing onto the tall trees that surround the scene. Nyen relishes in your wails, nails digging into the back of your scalp before his cock sinks into you roughly. You squirm with a loud pained gasp, you weren't close to ready for him.

His knife (thankfully) removes itself from your neck, grip on the handle still iron strong. It doesn't give you anything to distract from as he stretches you out incredibly painfully. Inch by inch, your muscles contract and try to adjust to his size – but it's not nearly enough when he begins to start to move.

“You're so fucking tight.” He lets out a sharp grunt, skin slapping against yours. “You've never fucked, haven’t you?” All you can do is cry. “Perfect.”

Forgetting the threat of his knife, he reminds you with a deep slash across your back. Pain vibrates through you, hands grip at soil and blades of grass in an attempt to stiffen the burning sensation that consumes you. Nausea festers and chokes at the back of your throat, certain that if you had eaten this morning it’d be spilling out your mouth by now.

It's an entrancing sight for Nyen, the large gash displays the crimson beautiful blood dripping down your arched back and onto your asscheeks as he slams into you. It’s a lot of blood. So much so that he feels how you physically weaken under him, fully incapacitated.

He decides to flip you back onto your back once again like the ragdoll you are. There, he can see how the light in your eyes start to dim. Red, and swollen, and tear rimmed – they stare back at him, wordlessly pleading for any type of mercy.

Nyen ignores it, choosing to grab your injured thighs and hike them over his broad shoulders, angling even deeper inside of you. Tight muscles draw him closer, grunting at the feeling of your warmth enveloping him. “Shit, you're a greedy fucking thing, aren't you?” He spits at you, grabbing your face to make sure your eyes stay on him, inches separating your faces.

You don't respond, hoarse cries and moans are all the sounds you can make. Nyen’s mask taunts you, wide eyes never leaving yours as his nails scratch at your chest and waist, marking and trailing. Nyen’s nails even have the nerve to dig into your open wounds, forcing the blood to escape even faster.

Any pleas you can muster out fall on deaf ears, and you almost wish he killed you before all this. But then it clicks that this is all just a game to him – you're simply a toy. The evil grin on his face is evident of this, he's truly enjoying watching this horrible scene come undone by his hands. The chase, the torture, your cries . It only makes his heavy cock harder and his thrusts sloppier.

Your head is woozy and your vision is getting blurry. Numbness circuits through your body, the only thing you can feel is the sensation of his cock ramming into you over and over again.

Nyen lets go of your face and chooses to grab at your bouncing tits, squeezing hard enough to create bruises. His twitching cock then rubs inside of you perfectly . A loud whine follows that causes Nyen’s jaw clench at the sudden extra pressure around his length, “Ah, hgh,– take my cum like the pathetic bitch you are,”

Stars in your vision soon mix with the stars in the night sky, you can't feel your legs anymore, neither your arms. Blood loss is getting to you – and quickly.

His body drives into yours, the sensation of gore under you squelches around against skin and dirt. Then, the knot building inside your numbing abdomen finally snaps, your breath hitches and you keen loudly – writhing around him.

Nyen soon follows, basically growling at how your pulsating pussy feverishly sucks him in and empties his balls. He rides the orgasm, fucking his cum deep inside you, and basking in the gripping release.

When he pulls out and off of you, your body limps on the ground. Overlooking, he can see how your lungs shallowly take in much needed air. Blood glistens off your cut adorned skin, and god is it a fucking beautiful sight.

He tucks his cock back into his blood soaked jeans, and he can already hear about how it's extra laundry to do now. But frankly, he doesn't care. Nyen gives you a once over, just to make sure the image of you really seeps into his brain. After well enough, he pockets his knife and walks over to the criminal leather bag that started this all.

Suddenly, a weak grip holds onto his ankle. You.

You look at him with big, lidded eyes and croak out, “Wait… wait– am I… am I going to die?” He stares back at your frightened face with his reactionless one. It's quick before he gives you a sinister smile, then he yanks his ankle out from your grasp and grabs the bag that lays beside you.

“Yeah, probably.” He then pulls a cigarette out of his back pocket and lights it, flicking hot ash onto your chest.

“You were a good fuck though, I’ll give you that.” It’s patronizing. A final tear streams down your cheek as you watch him walk into the fog of the trees without another word.

You stare at the sky once again, leaves sway above and let moonlight peek through. Your inhales seem to be getting shorter and shorter, but you don't realize. You just pay attention to the movement of the leaves and the formation of stars.

Grass picks at the back of your head, it’s soft – one of the only things you can feel besides excruciating pain. You let it be your pillow, the comfort that is ever fleeting from your grasp.

This wasn't a fate you ever expected to have, it wasn't even proper death. It all makes you want to get up and fight for yourself. To live. He wasn't going to win.

But reality sinks in when your vision fills with black spots, and you remember you're actively bleeding out, abused and hurt. Dying. It hurts to move, and the lone thought of welcoming it reverberates in your mind. It’s okay… It’s okay…

With a final breath and ringing ears, darkness finally mercifully consumes you.

To the dirt you were born, to the dirt you return to.

And to the dirt you will rise up from again.

#nyen x reader #nyen catman #nyen ranfren #ranfren #x reader #dark blog #dark content #tw noncon #tw pain #dead dove do not eat #reader death

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thelreads · 3 days ago

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After having a night to think about it, I don't like the direction this is going with Twilight being Melinda's therapist.

First because Twilight isn't a therapist. He's a spy. He's not trained in therapeutic techniques. I mean, even if he was, he shouldn't be handling the personal friend of his wife, that's a conflict of interest. But Twilight not only isn't a therapist, he has ulterior motives as an agent of WISE.

With his past therapy sessions, like with Anya's teacher, he could give advice with no ulterior motive because WISE didn't care if Anya's teacher has a happy marriage. But WISE has a very vested interest in Melinda and her marriage. How can Loid help her, if WISE is telling Twilight what he needs to do? What if Melinda tells Loid that she and her children are being abused, but WISE decides it's better to keep Melinda with Donovan as a source of information? What if WISE decides it's a better strategy to destabilize Melinda even further?

I think Loid and Sylvia would both want to help an abused mother, but I don't trust WISE's upper management. Melinda is basically a bomb that was dropped into their lap, only it's one that can be easily reprogrammed and lobbed right back into the lion's den.

This story is about war and people who do bad things that they think are right. Twilight having to grapple with seeing an abuse victim in front of him--someone who (just like his mother) is abused by her husband, someone who (JUST LIKE HIS MOTHER) has her own children she is trying to protect--and then being told that he has to manipulate her for his mission. No matter how WISE dresses it up, he will 100% be told to encourage her to stay with Donovan so they can get more info. There's no way they'd let him help her escape.

Twilight would come home to his wife and daughter and have to look Yor in the eye while knowing that her best (maybe only) friend--who Yor TRUSTED him with--is being used and manipulated by him. And even if Anya knows her Papa is a liar, if she peeks into his mind and sees him using a vulnerable Melinda for his organization's benefit... Just like Project Apple was doing to her.

I could see Yor forgiving Twilight for being an enemy spy if he manages to convince her that they're both working towards peace between the countries. But this would be a harder betrayal to swallow, post reveal.

HRGAH. I am gnawing at my arm like a wolf stuck in a bear trap.

I'm not that worried about Twilight not being a certified therapist because he has shown to actually understand his role, so he probably studied and is aware of what he can and cannot say, he might be even better than other therapists considering his observation skills.

Now the fact that Melinda might be used by WISE, now that worries me.

I feel this upcoming situation is gonna be a test of character for Twilight. He might be ordered to use Melinda to help further WISE plans to prevent war, but if he'll follow through is another thing. Hell, he might even help her and when WISE questions why he didn't manipulate her he can bullshit them about how she was too unstable and wouldn't be a trustworthy asset or how since she and Donovan don't even have a close relationship she can't provide anything useful for them. He is their best spy, they trust his judgment since he never put personal feelings before the mission so far.

I think we'll see what Twilight truly wants to fight for. It will be the same situation with Anya in the first chapter. Yeah he could've abandoned her when she got caught and went for another kid, it was the safest thing to do for the mission. But he didn't. Because he wants to protect others.

I trust him in that aspect. He has shown quite a lot of times he is not willing to hurt others for the sake of the mission. He didn't abandon Anya, he protected her from that professor who made her cry, when Donovan talked shit to Damian he subtly but decisively stood by Damian's side, and more recently, he didn't kill Yuri. Even though it was the safest course of action, even though nobody would ever know, he didn't do it.

Because it would make Yor sad.

Because he's here to save others, not hurt them.

So, I bet that he might start thinking about how he can use Melinda, but when he gets to know the state she's at, and how Yor wants to help her, he will come to his senses and do whatever he can for her.

Also, I don't think it is a conflict of interests because she's not family. She is his wife's friend, but since he himself is not her friend, he can still treat her, he just needs to keep both the professional as well as personal sides separated.

#theLreads #inbetween #SXFC108 #SPY aftertalks #ask

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radioactivepeasant · 10 months ago

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Snippets Thursday: Meddling Mar (part 2 of 2)

(Jak is back from Haven and in so much trouble)

"Gate pass."

Two words, absolutely devoid of emotion, were all it took to shatter the facade of defiance Jak had crafted. Nausea churned his stomach, and he bit down on the insides of his cheeks until he tasted blood. He'd known there would be a price to pay. But this-

With a shaking hand, Jak drew the gate pass from his pocket and silently cursed the trembling limb for betraying his weakness as he held it out for Damas to take.

Damas didn’t look at him.

"Three weeks." His voice was a little too calm. Jak could feel anger underneath the words, waiting like vipers under the sand. "You left for three weeks without a word to me, to Phobos. To anyone. And in that time the only word from you I had, I had to get secondhand from Sig."

He didn't look at Jak.

"What have you to say for yourself?"

Jak tried to swallow around the boulder in his throat and wondered why this, of every scolding or reprimand he'd ever received, terrified him beyond words. He wanted to tell Damas that he'd tried to come back the first day, only to be stopped by the force fields. He wanted to tell him how Veger had paid for signal jammers around the walls, fearing that other city-states might take advantage of Haven's compromised capitol. He wanted to beg for forgiveness. But it all fell short, didn’t it? Pathetic excuses from a pathetic excuse for a hero. A runaway. A deserter, that's what he was.

Jak’s throat closed around his words, stifling them. He swallowed, felt the muscles of his neck tense and pulse. But the panic had a stranglehold on his throat and he just couldn't.

Damas wouldn't look at him.

Damas couldn’t see.

Look at me! Please, please look at me! he silently begged.

"Haven's-" Daxter's voice squeaked into the air between them, faltering and guilty. "They...made it real easy to get in and near impossible to get out. We got caught in the lockdown, just a couple hours after we got there. It wasn’t supposed to be three weeks. It wasn’t even supposed to be three days."

"And that somehow excuses you slipping out like thieves in the night, unsanctioned and unaccompanied?" Damas demanded, finally turning his eyes to them. "Do you know how many people were searching the city and desert for you? We did not even know you had made it to Haven until Sig went back to look for you! We feared Egil had taken you!"

Jak physically took a step back. Damas looked as though he hadn't slept in days. Deep, dark circles ringed his bloodshot eyes, and his face was haggard.

I did this.

He opened and shut his mouth uselessly, then fell back on SparSign on instinct.

"I didn't think-"

"You didn't think," Damas interrupted, "Full stop. Haven is a hotbed of our enemies, Jak, and you just walked into the vipers' den. I had no idea where you were! What if you'd been injured? Or arrested? Hm? What if they’d framed you for something else and tried to kill you?"

A little confused, but afraid to further provoke the man, Jak kept his head down.

"It's never mattered before that they tried to kill me."

"Because I didn't know you were there!"

Even Damas seemed surprised by his own cracking voice.

"You run from one danger to the next like you think it doesn't matter if you live or die. It. matters. Jak. You think you're the only one who suffers if something happens to you?"

Jak cringed. He knew he wasn't. Daxter was always there. Daxter was always in danger because of him.

And he'd left Spargus down one person for three weeks, which meant someone else probably had to do his share of the work-

And Mar was alone that whole time-

Shame, hot and acidic as dark eco, burned in his gut. It reached up with long claws to pin his lungs shut.

"I- I'm sorry. I'll go. I'm sorry," he signed, utterly dejected. "But don't make our brother leave. Don't blame him or Daxter for what I did."

"Go?" Damas demanded, stepping closer, "And where, exactly, did you think you would be going?"

oh gods, he's going to make me say it. He's going to make me pronounce my own exile-!

Jak couldn’t speak. He just gestured to the gate pass resting in Damas’s clenched fist.

Shock colored the king’s eyes for an instant, softening his face into something sadder. Wearier.

"You-" he seemed to be choosing his words carefully. "You think I- I'm exiling you?"

Jak kept his eyes on the floor and twisted his fingers into his tunic.

"I understand why," he answered, short and to the point.

A strangled noise startled him enough to drag his gaze upward, meeting Damas’s eyes.

"You-!"

He inhaled sharply through his nose and shut his eyes for four seconds.

Then he stormed down the steps and caught Jak by the shoulder. Before Jak had time to think, he'd been yanked into Damas’s arms, all but crushed against his chest.

Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn't this.

"You stubborn, frustrating child-!" Damas croaked next to his ear. "Exiled?! After I spent three weeks barely knowing if you were alive, you think I would let you out of my sight?"

Jak stiffened. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. He screwed up, he got rejected until he earned some kind of redemption. That was the script life followed. He didn't have a script for this.

"Mar told us you-" Damas swallowed. Gritted his teeth. "You thought you had to lead enemies away from our walls. Alone! Have we done nothing to earn your trust, even after all this time?"

Jak couldn’t answer. He could barely move. He wanted to protest that he fought his own battles, that he didn't want his past screw-ups to come haunt his only real home. But his mind caught on Damas’s words and rang in his ears.

Mar

Mar.

He knows.

Jak’s jaw worked in silence, and his eyes darted left to meet the same panic in Daxter's eyes.

Damas pulled back and gripped Jak’s face between his hands, forcing his gaze back to him.

"Jak, I lost you once before. I cannot endure it a second time. If you will not heed caution for your own sake, then at least think of your brothers first. Think of Phobos and me."

What.

Tongue finally loosened, Jak choked on questions and only managed inquiring noises. A second time? What was Damas talking about? Why was he hugging him instead of yelling at him?

"I don't...I don't understand-" he tried to breathe around the tightness still gripping his lungs. "I don't- Mar told you?"

Damas’s eyes glimmered, the only evidence betraying how close to breaking down he truly was. "No, son," he said quietly.

The word seemed weightier than usual.

"I knew."

Jak pulled back. "You knew?! How long?!"

"In truth? The day I found you in the desert." Damas blew out a breath that was just barely shakier than it should have been. "I knew in my heart who I had found, but after two years I was afraid to believe it without proof. That proof came sixteen days ago."

Sixteen days. While Jak was gone, then. Damas had been looking for Mar before Jak had come from the past? Why? He was nothing like the Underground, so Jak couldn't imagine that he'd meant to use Mar's powers for his own gain.

Swallowing hard, he tentatively asked, "What proof?"

Damas looked away for a moment, reaching for something in one of his belt pouches.

"The results of a cheek swab when we found you. A...computer test. One that can show us the building blocks of a person's blood, and who their parents were."

He knows I'm Mar! Jak realized, and excuses and justifications crowded behind his teeth. He knows we aren't blood brothers-!

Having apparently found what he was looking for, Damas opened his hand and held it out to Jak.

An amulet of Mar, far older than the one Jak shared with his brother, lay on his open palm, and the last pieces began to click into place.

"I see you, Jak," Damas whispered. "You don't have to keep fighting alone."

"You're...you're one of us?" Jak asked, "Like, from the- the future?"

"One of you?" Damas laughed, a little brokenly. "I'm your father, you ridiculous boy!"

His father?!

In the secrecy of his heart, Jak could easily admit that he saw the man as a father-figure, if an idealized one. And as he and Mar had started to ease up and let Damas closer, he'd pretended sometimes that their relationship was more familial than mentor and student. He knew Mar thought of Damas -- and Phobos a little moreso -- as "his" grown-ups.

Had they, somewhere deep inside, remembered them? Was that bond instinctive, picking up something that had always existed? Or had they built it themselves?

Jak wanted to apologize -- for leaving, for not explaining, maybe for existing in this form and not his childhood shape -- but what came out of him was only a noise. Soft, pained. He squeezed his eyes shut as if that would help him keep his jaw clenched.

"Oh, oh-"

Damas pulled him close again, shushing him as if he were a child.

"Oh Jak."

His voice was hoarse, and full of pain.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I waited so long for proof. I should- I should have confronted you the first time I saw you using Mar's sign name."

He pressed Jak's head against his shoulder and held him tightly. "I'm- I'm sorry I made you think you might be sent away. I was- You scared me, Jak. I thought I was going to lose you before I could find out if you knew-"

Over Jak's shoulder, Damas looked down at Daxter and sighed. "Thank you," he said, "for going with him. If you say you got caught in a lockdown, I- I believe you, Daxter."

"You...do?" Daxter asked in a very small voice.

He didn't know what to feel. Relief? Confusion? A bitter envy?

"You've never given me a reason not to trust you," Damas answered simply.

Daxter swallowed twice. "So uh...does this mean you ain't mad anymore?"

Damas scoffed wetly. "No, I'm furious. But I'm so relieved that you're both safe."

He arched an eyebrow, though the stern look was softened somewhat by the tears in his eyes. "But. As the oldest, you should know better than to sneak out like that. You're as grounded as Jak is."

"Grounded?!" Daxter sputtered.

"So grounded." Damas nodded. "You two aren't- aren't getting this gate pass back for weeks."

Jak wanted to protest, to tell him all the responsibilities on his shoulders that required him to be able to go back and forth between cities. But he couldn't catch his breath long enough to form even a syllable.

He had a father. They had a father. Parents. That wanted them! All of them! But he didn't deserve it! Especially not now, after deserting the way he had!

"M- m- Mar?" he finally managed to force out.

Damas shushed him again and clicked his tongue. "He's alright. He's with your mother."

Your mother.

"I'm- I'm not...him, the right him-" Jak tried to warn Damas -- he ought to have known, he'd seen what Jak was like-

Damas’s arms trembled against his back.

"No. I don't want you to be your brother. Be you. Be my reckless, impudent, war-sage son, as you are." He gave a choked sob, wrapped partway around a chuckle, and added, "Though perhaps- perhaps so that I can sleep at night, a bit less reckless?"

#fic prompts #writing prompts #jak and daxter #dadmas #king damas #jak and daxter au #free day thursday #dadmas angst #someone finally gets through to jak about people caring about him #meddling mar #meddling mar au #jak and daxter mar

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tumblingxelian · 6 months ago

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I have to admit I'm impressed with how awful a father CRWBY made Taiyang while giving him a veneer of reasonability.

To the point that his ability to just spout off things reminds me of an Aunt and Uncle who have no idea just how badly they are painting themselves.

As in - when he makes a judgement call about how Yang lost her arm that fits it into his "Over dependence on his semblance" it's incredibly telling about him not ever actually asking anyone about what happened.

It means he never talked to Yang about it, or even you know offered because while Yang wouldn't have said everything she'd probably have said a little.

Or talked to any of the students who probably got information about what happened from Blake when she dragged Yang to safety. Which wouldn't have been much but probably included the fact that Blake was attacked by someone, Yang intervened.

Given that students presumably died when Beacon fell and that Yang was a first year student... Like by itself, Yang being alive enough for a teammate to save her is a victory.

Nevermind context of her going up against someone that fought Blake, who came back injured herself, and Adam probably did get ID as going around killing students. So the fact that Yang was vastly outclassed would have been known, you know if Taiyang asked at all about "What happenend". Or worse - he did and still blames Yang. Like what did he expect her to do - leave Blake to die? Yang got Blake enough room to run, Blake used the opportunity to get both of them out of there but Yang bought that opportunity for Blake.

Meanwhile I'm looking forward to the Belladonnas actually talking to Yang. Because I don't think it's an accident that we didn't see said interaction before we started being shown in detail the grease fire of the Xialong Rose family.

From my perspective Tai is a rather interesting execution on the archetypical father on these fronts. IE, he's not a classic bad father the way Jac is, or the classic emotionally distant husk archetype. Yet to me, he is still 100% a big problem and done a lot of harm to Ruby & Yang with lackluster parenting & 'teaching'.

As outlined here.

I think this is one of the reasons why a lot of people struggle to actually see him as flawed even when e gets basic facts wrong.

Another reason is just how much undue credit men are given by default that women have to earn. Hence lots of people shrugging off Qrow's drinking or Ozpin's manipulation, or Ironwood's authoritarianism until they couldn't anymore.

Though being more charitable, I would also note how CRWBY often play these characters against their more traditional archetypes to help offset the audiences presumptions.

For instance,

Ozpin is a mysterious headmaster of an adventurers school but he's the 'fun' headmaster who both helps the kids go on adventures but unlike certain other headmasters sends an adult escort with them.

Or Ironwood, he's a big military hard liner who wants more tech, bigger weapons and to throw his military around. But he asks about the kids, he jokes casually, he's not just some General Ripper.

& Qrow of course is the bitter veteran and mentor, who is super badass & drinks/smokes, but in contras, he's also seemingly functional, friendly and clearly has a good rapport with his nieces.

Its easy to see why people saw those aspects and were willing to ignore things like:

Ozpin sending teenagers into terrorist dens, Ironwood backstabbing his allies while making himself out to be the victim, and Qrow's blatant dependence on alcohol to function.

Cos CRWBY made them characters & not archetypes.

So when the shit hit the fan and subtext became text, subtly problematic behavior became blatantly problematic and festering problems once seen as comedic now had real weight.

I feel Tai fits the same mold, he's on the surface 'functional', he definitely cares, and even seems to do some 'fun dad' stuff. He just also as no idea how Yang's Semblance works, & was absent or otherwise none functional for so long its left deep scars on Yang having to keep the family together & Ruby outright says Yang raised her.

He's in many ways a more realistic and nuanced portrayal of a dysfunctional or toxic parent who may not obviously have issues the way an open abuser like Jac, or an absentia parent like Raven might but can still do harm.

Also excellent breakdown on how the surrounding context of the Fall of Beacon. Team RWBY are first years, Blake is an incredibly experienced combatant, Yang had been put through the ringer. Literally everything was on fire and even people like Ozpin died.

The fact the whole team made it out at all is nothing short of a miracle. But accepting that "Sometimes bad things happen" is a surrender of power, its an admission that there was nothing to be done and that is terrifying. Especially for a man whose had two of the most important people in his life vanish on him without a trace.

He wants there to be something in Yang to blame because then there is something that can be done about it. Add in his clear and overtly stated projection of Raven onto her, and hos incoherent his reads on her personality are given Yang's addressed stuff like stubbornness & strategy well before this.

& you get a parent making being dismembers in a no win situation against a more powerful opponent the victims fault while giving vague, generalist advice to feel like they're doing something.

Gosh I want them to just adore her, and her to adore the Belladonna's.

Thanks for the ask, and good luck on that essay you mentioned, remember to tag me ;)

#RWBY #Yang Xiao Long #Text Post #Ask #Do not clown on this post

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misty--nights · 6 months ago

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Episode 5, here we go! This episode is a roller coaster. It has some of the funniest gags in the series, but also some of the most heartbreaking scenes. I'm surprised at how many thoughts I had about the characters with this one.

The editing of the recap has me dying! Who decided to cut from Niko asking if Edwin wanted to kiss Monty to that shot of Charles from when Edwin was enraptured by him and then back to Edwin saying "I don't know"? I gasped when I saw that. Fantastic

Charles is leaning in for a kiss when before Crystal says they need to talk. No, my boy, someone give him a hug

I said it before in episode 4, but it's wild to me that there was apparently like no real investigation done into Brad and Hunter's deaths

The envelope with Niko's letter has the same stickers as her envelope with rent from last episode. As someone who also finds every excuse to use cute stickers, I find this amazing

For all of Maxine's glaring problems, she actually makes a pretty good librarian. Love that she greets Niko by asking if she's done with her reading. Also love that apparently Niko borrows at least some of her manga from the library (we love supporting libraries in this house)

Charles looks genuinely intrigued when Niko mentions having her own case. I really wish we had gotten to see more scenes with these two because they'd make an amazing team. Just imagine the chaos and good vibes of the two of them combined

I know the eight ball is supposed to be predicting her imminent death, but the "outlook not so good" fits really well with the outlook of the date. And it shows right after she says she's feeling lucky about her case, so, I think it applies to that as well (in a way, you could say it's predicting Maxine's death in the episode? Maybe?)

When they go to the dragon's den, Brad says people don't go there anymore because they miss him and Hunter too much, which is an interesting way to put it. Like, I understand why he'd interpret it like that, given the kind of people the two of them are, but still. It didn't click until now that that is most likely not what other students think when they imagine going to the dragon's den

Edwin looks so concerned about what a hand job is. Especially after Charles reaction, I'm dying

There is a genuine record scratch after Maxine mentions the nightshirt thing. I rarely pay attention to the background music in shows and music, so this one took me by surprise. It works really well with the scene, though, I like it

I know part of the reason this case affects Charles so much is because he's trying to tell himself he's not this terrible person because of his trauma and anger. But do you also think Brad and Hunter remind him of the guys he used to hang out with when he was alive? The ones who killed him? He looks really hurt when he tells them "you were cruel just for the shits", and I think it would make sense for him to be remembering his own friends' cruelty. Towards that other boy they were kicking and that he tried to defend, and towards Charles himself when they killed him. I think maybe in that moment he's remembering the way they laughed as they hurt him, how they cheered as he froze in the lake and tried to avoid their blows

Did they put eyeliner on Charles just so that his eyes would look all smudged every time he cries? Because it's devastating seeing him like that each time. And that hopeful smile he gets right before hugging Edwin? Ugh, my heart

Also in that scene, the way Charles nuzzles against Edwin's face during the hug, I swear!! Someone needs to give this boy like a thousand hugs right now

"I could smooth everything out again." This line breaks me knowing Crystal's backstory. Can you imagine her, letting David posses her because he promised to dull out all of this rage and hurt that have festered inside of her for years? And he does, he takes all of that and the memories and everything, but she's left trapped inside of herself, unable to do anything but watch him do as he pleases with her body. I think she should also get like a thousand hugs right away

Is Monty's ring a bird skull? Because that's adorable and very on brand

#dead boy detectives #niko sasaki #edwin payne #charles rowland #crystal palace #jenny green #maxine #brad and hunter #monty finch #monty the crow #my writing

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bengiyo · 1 year ago

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I am curious for your perspective on the way the OF creators are interacting with fans and have even admitted to editing the show based on fan reactions. It strikes me as an unusual level of interaction and capitulation, though of course TV is a live medium that is nearly always responsive to reactions to some extent. My preference is for a lot less of this kind of thing, but I know you have experience with direct interaction with media creators and have found it enhances your experience sometimes. What do you make of how these dynamics are showing up in OF and the effect it’s having on the show?

TV and Critic Background

So, I am actually the worst person to talk to if you think the creators should be quiet about their work, because I really enjoy talking to directors, producers, actors, cinematographers, and especially editors about their work. I often go to film festivals just to talk to the creators about their processes.

I've also been in the TV space a really long time, and I am used to this kind of behavior. I don't think a lot of folks who are in BL are used to being in the process of TV itself, and I think a lot of people have let the Netflix binge model inform the way they view TV. TV is not like movies. When you get a movie, you are seeing the end product of filming, editing, test screenings, re-edits, etc. TV is usually only an episode or two ahead of the viewers.

It's extremely normal for a show to respond to feedback when characters test well. The 100 did this with Jasper. He was supposed to die in the pilot when that spear entered his chest, but he tested well with audiences so they revived him.

Fun Fact: This is why Kiseki: Dear to Me didn't just move their release schedule up when episode 8 was leaked early. They probably weren't finished assembling episode 9.

I followed Sense8 through its entire development process all the way from rumors and then J. Michael Stracynski's posts about it, to the things Lana and Lily said about it, to the commentary from the cast.

I have a special hatred for Rick Behrman over Star Trek.

I absolutely hate Russel T. Davies because of Cucumber.

I bailed on Supernatural because of the way the writers condescended to us at comicon after killing Kevin.

I know some fans are upset about the idea that scenes they wanted to see got cut, but I was there for Noah Galvin opening his fucking mouth to talk shit about other actors at ABC who were playing beloved gay characters and that subsequently getting The Real O'Neals canceled. The show had a very short second season and I feel forever salty about that.

What does this mean for Jojo and Ninew and Den?

I actually think Jojo, Den, and Ninew are fine. I don't think they usually poopoo on valid reads from what I've seen, and mostly they're having fun with the fans, too. I just don't think people are used to the creators being so honest about how feedback affects the editing process.

I think this is the first time we've had a big show in a while where the creator was fairly active on socials about the show. Aof and Au are usually pretty quiet when their shows are airing, and only give small tidbits while they show is airing. Jojo is silly and likes to play with fans. Den is feisty and has a gay agenda to pursue.

Truly, I don't think Jojo and friends are that bad about anything with this show, because they're mostly just laughing and stating things that are obvious to people who pay attention to how the sausage is made.

Shipping

That being said, the biggest struggle OF is having is shipping. The FK girlies are so loud and their heavy breathing has likely influenced the way Jojo and friends decided to write Ray. The FB girlies are so into them that it's made Jojo and them dial back some of their Top content because the audience hates him so much. Only Boston and Nick feel like they've made it through the shipping gamut intact because Neo and Mark aren't bringing a bunch of preexisting shippers to the table.

Coming off of episode 10, you can see this plainly with the nasty4nasty dynamic with Boston and Nick. The emotional core of their dynamic feels true, even down to the way their moments in the store mirror their first interactions again. Boston came in for service about his phone and intentionally showed Nick something on it.

I don't think Jojo has ever had to work with multiple acting pairs that were big branded pairs prior to this, and this is only his second time really dealing with that. With Never Let Me Go, Pond and Phuwin weren't that big yet, and he wasn't threatening their ship with anything complicated. OF is challenging for people who just watch BL as fap material and have to deal with their faves not being easy people to parse.

As usual, we go back to that post that goes around all the time, thought I think the OP deleted it:

"Never ever be normal about fictional characters but please GOD be normal about the people who play them, I am begging you" -tumblr user mantorokk-writes

#answered #only friends the series #only friends meta #jojo tichakorn #ninew pinya #den panuwat #best kittisak

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melonteee · 7 months ago

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Since you brought up the OPLA den den mushi… I honestly think they’re pretty unimpressive as far as animatronics go. Both in their construction and how they’re used in the show.

Not only are the den dens far less articulate than the animatronics seen in shows of a similar caliber (see: Farscape) but they don’t even achieve the level of articulation of most hand puppets. To me it sums up what sums up how the overall production just seemed to have weird priorities; $10,000 a pop to give these snails realistic skin textures, human lips with moisture glisten, human hair, and off-putting bloodshot eyes only for those elements to be squandered on lifeless mouth flaps.

But they also just don’t work in how they’re framed by the show. In the original series, the Muppet-like simplicity of the den dens’ designs is used to help sell that the mundane whimsy, which combined with how characters treat the den dens makes their relationship with humans feel mutually beneficial. The live action though? If the “kill me” expressions weren’t enough, it’s clear that the directors treated the den dens as set props instead of living animals in the context of the world, and that bleeds into how the characters interact with them. The only characters who use den dens in the whole show are antagonists, Nami’s ear bud den dens sputter and squeal in pain after being submerged in salt water and she throws them back in the water in annoyance when they don’t work, and worst of all Garp flips his desk in a tantrum with his den den still on it where it gets smashed on the floor. Replace the den dens in any of these scenes with a carrier pigeon or a ship cat and the tone suddenly shifts into a huge “fucking YIKES.”

Which to me is a crying shame, because the prospect of seeing Muppet-esque den dens and similar creatures was kinda the only thing that piqued my interest. One Piece is absolutely a series where you should be able to visualize the characters having in-depth conversations with most Jim Hensen creations, but it feels like the show’s budget is already bursting at the seams given how this same issue is prevalent in other areas of the production. I can already tell that the existence of the den den earbuds means they’ll likely phase out the den dens at some point in favor of having characters talk into the middle distance. The Golden Den Den Mushi that triggers the Buster Call to Enies Lobby might end up being a Golden Bluetooth if the series gets that far.

Yeah it feels like the Den Den Mushis were treated so cruelly in the live action, which is just adding to the 'edginess' of the world I guess ??? And it's a shame cause when Sanji crushed the radio in water 7, Oda got someone asking if the Den Den Mushi was okay, and Oda said don't worry! The radio isn't actually the Den Den Mushi, it's just placed on it! So Oda has taken very careful care in his own world to not hurt these little snails, but it feels like the live action just shoved them in not to world build but...like you said, just as props HHH

And yeah the lifeless form of the Den Den Mushi animatronics really aren't that impressive are they, the original Den Den Mushis have little arms that flail around while they openly laugh and scream and cry. Every time a Den Den Mushi got a distress call and acted it out in the manga/anime, I remember thinking "good job little snail." But the live action Den Dens are so...nothing?? They just don't even feel like living creatures lmao

The live action Den Den Mushis feel like a good sideshow attraction where u can let people talk through it for the mouth to flap, but otherwise...why in the world spend 10k (or whatever it was) per Den Den Mushi if you could just make a hand puppet, or even include some CGI, for a LOT cheaper and have MORE movement and expression??? Like you said, the priorities of production were bizarre.

#ask #melonask #oplatalks

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n3kk1tty · 8 months ago

Text

Beasts of Santa Carla

This story includes a lot of original characters. Photos of characters and favorite scenes will be drawn. You can find their photos on the masters list along with the prologue and past chapters.

( Masterlist )

Original Characters: Yutaj , mentions of Veve, Volk

(Beasts of Santa Carla is a AU of the Lost Boys. It involves adult themes, poly relationships, and is definitely not made for the underaged. If you don't like poly content, queer representation, shipping of the boys together or heavy sexual themes and violence. This story is not meant for you and that's okay. This story is made solely for my own enjoyment and anyone else who's along for the ride. )

ℭ𝔥𝔞𝔭𝔱𝔢𝔯 5

You stare down at the mark on your wrist tracing it lightly with your finger tips. The chain tattoo a permanent reminder of the bet you had made with that foolish man. How could they barge into your life and demand you'd fall in love with them. It was a ridiculous notion to someone who had been alive for 181 years and had been treated cruelly by love. The last time you were asked to be courted was in the Victorian era when you were still young and foolish. This was a foolish endeavor in the end but at least it would keep you from being bored you thought as you stared at the sun setting. Laddie was ecstatic at the idea of you going on a date with Paul and Marko.

He had been dragging you around all day buying new shoes and makeup just for the event. You two had even gone into a fashion store in Santa Carla that served underworlders so you were able to snatch a new outfit from the current fashion trend for elves and angels. It was kinda fun running around with the child as you nervously looked at all the new things prepping for your first serious date since Queen Victoria was in power. You had plenty of wealth accumulated from the years working but you never had a reason to spend money on yourself frequently other than a passing want. So as you spoiled and taught your new little partner in crime you welcomed the change of pace with open arms nervously.

While Laddie was dragging you around Santa Carla all day playing dress up you had stopped in a witch shop after lunch. It couldn't hurt to present the pack with a courtish gift as a show of good faith and effort to this bet of romance. Though this gift was mostly for your own personal benefit. You place the carefully wrapped gift back into your pocket as you and the small Vampire walk the old steps down to the cave entrance. Laddie was running ahead excitedly with the makeup case as you swallow your nervousness and prepare for your first day of courtship. You were walking straight into the fire of the lion's den but you weren't going to be afraid. You were dead set on proving to David that this falling in love thing wouldn't happen plus you had to repay him for kissing your neck in the bath so an early wake up was for your favorite bottle blonde.

“WERE BACK! “ Laddie screams in excitement as the sun is swallowed by the sea and sleeping vampires stir. You shake your head at your trouble maker as you stand at the entrance before walking in confidently. “ I’m coming into your cave. Pardon my rudeness but I’m here for Paul and Markos date. “ You say in a reasonable tone pulling the young vampire with you to an old couch. You use the time to light up one of the barrels in the cave for lighting. Shushing the boy playfully, you ruffle his head gently .“ Laddie, it's impolite to wake people so harshly. You'll need to apologize to them when they get up, okay baby fangs. “

“ Okay big sis. I just wanted them to see your outfit I picked and the clothes I got!” You smile gently at the boy, hands caressing his chubby cheek. “ Well we don't wanna show them an incomplete look now do we. Why don't you help me put my makeup on before grumpy David ruins the surprise. “ Speaking of grumpy vampires, he was currently stammering out of his nest after Laddie's shouting had startled him awake. Following the sound of you two's hushed giggling and sweet scent wafting from the shared quarters of the cave. David stopped in his tracks as he looked at the sight of you on the couch smiling ear to ear as you walked Laddie through putting eyeshadow on your eyes.

“ Well good morning starshine did sleeping beauty enjoy his rest. I must have really tired you out for you to sleep past sunset though I guess when you don't work waking up on time doesn't matter.“ You teased David as you sensed him drawing closer. “ And I thought you'd be too scared to even enter our nest little moth. Must be bold to think I won't just keep you here while I have the chance. “ A fit of laughter bubbles out of your chest in response to the man. “ David, we are not on the same level. Plus I think I'd win our little bet quicker if you did.“ You flash your wrist at the man smirking as two blonde vampires come barreling out of the back towards you in almost comical manner.

“ A miracle must be happening Marko because there's an angel in the cave. “ Paul stretches out his arms along the back of the couch as he eyes your frame. The curly haired vampire whistles as he stalks behind David leaning against him.” Pauly I think you may be right. I do believe I see the most heavenly being in front of me now. “ You ignore them as you finish applying your eyeliner and massacre. “ You boys know damn well I'm no angel. Or do we need to go another round in the ring to prove it “ Paul Snickers as he moves in close to your ear. “ I could go all night with you in the ring. “ This comment sends shivers up your spine and a light blush to grant your face as you pinch the vampire's nose pushing him away from you.

“ No horn dog behavior In Front of Laddie. I ain't giving the birds and the bees talk today. Now shouldn't you be getting presentable for our date you so harshly fought for. You two smell like dogs. “ Marko pauses for a moment to sniff his pajama shirt before shrugging. “ Guess ocean rinse it is. “

“ Fuck no you ain't washing your ass in the ocean! What is with you hooligans and thinking that's a proper shower.” You stand up pulling the small item from your pocket looking around the room as you fume in annoyance. “ David y'all don't happen to have a door in this sink hole do you. “ A puzzled look crosses the three vampires as Dwayne comes around the corner lifting an old one up that's scribbled with graffiti. “ Princess I don't see how an old door is gonna help their odor. “ David chimes as you tug Dwayne over to a cleared wall for the door to lean against. “ If you give me a moment. I'll gladly show you your courtship gift as I seem to be the only responsible adult in this cave at the moment. “

David's eyebrow twitches at the comment but he can't chime in as Paul and Marko are currently smelling each other questioning who smells the worst. Maybe showering more frequently did need to occur. You thank Dwayne as he nods in response, a small smile to his face as your hand pats his arm. Fingers trace against a key of bone as you place it near the door knob. A keyhole appearing as everyone in the cave gathers around in amazement as unlocking can be heard before the door swings open revealing a bathroom within. “ Tada. Your very own bathroom with laundry facilities. Now for the love of all the underworlds below wash yourselves and clothes regularly like the rest of civilized society. Laddie cannot keep getting hose baths, it's getting outta hand. “

The five vampires rush in to explore as Micheal and Star inch closer in amazement. They had heard the commotion and had come to investigate only to be met with a mysterious woman opening a door against the cave wall into a futuristic bathroom. “ What is this? How is this. “ Marko says as he starts opening drawers full of things like band aids, medicine, hair styling products, and even makeup. Paul rummaged through the closet to see towels of all sizes in awe of the softness. Dwayne looks at the mirror feeling his face as he sees everyone's reflection. “ Not made of silver. Good attention to details, beautiful. “

“ It's the wonder of spacial magic. Most species utilize this now after it's founding back in the dark ages. All you need is the key to the room and anydoor you unlock with it will lead you right to this room. Even if the door is a graffitied old hotel door crudely leaning against a cave wall. “ The chaos twins rush through the other doors in the room to reveal a huge bathtub and a stone shower. Paul holds Laddie up in the mirror as they make faces and laugh something about it so sweet that a smile graces your face. “ So this and everything in here is a gift for all of us. We must be special to you. “

David looms behind you fingers tracing shapes into your back as he leans into your ear enjoying your scent. “ Laddie is special to me. And you must have not been taught proper etiquette in your lifetime as when you court someone it is polite to present gifts.” A hand snakes around your waist tugging your body against his form as he practically purrs into your ear. “ Seems a little extravagant for a simple courtship gift don't you think love. Or do you just like the idea of spoiling us. “ Your face heats up and annoyance finds its way quickly behind.

A sharp jab of your elbow gets the vampire off of you as he hunches slightly over from shock. “ It's because you feral hellions don't know how to properly wash your ass frequently. I can't even imagine how you use the bathroom or that you brush your teeth every night. Would it kill you to wash your coats you smell like old blood, body odor, and cigarettes.” You start tugging on David's cheeks as he returns the favor grabbing your horns as you two snarl at each other. One vamped out and the other hissing frustrations at the man mentioning cologne is not a bath. “Well how sweet of you to provide us the ease of this access. Maybe you should join us and take care of us sweetheart. You really seem to enjoy telling us what's proper. “

“ Oh gladly I'll whip manners into your behind. Though I think you'd like that too much , my bottle blonde. “ You and David start pushing out of the room into the cave as now you've acquired an audience in your little spat. “ Are you flirting or fighting?” Laddie says standing in the door frame. This gains a laugh from Paul and Marko as they have never seen David being treated like this. You and David freeze in your fight as your face is red as can be trying to not upset the little one.” We're definitely flirting, Laddie. We're getting along swimmingly; this is how romance works isn't it David.” David grabs your face placing an aggressive kiss to your lips, you growl back glaring at him as you press in further pulling back with a sloppy pop sound.

Your face is red as you hiss at the man a smug smirk on his face in his satisfaction. “ See, we were flirting, little man. Just some play fighting. “ You curse at the man in your native tongue high pitched clicking and chirping coming from your mouth as you growl. “ Wanna repeat that dollface didn't quite catch that. “ David's smirk grew larger as the blush on your face intensified, grabbing your wrist with your matching tattoos on full display. Marko jumps at the sight grabbing your arms holding the tats to each other. “ This totally isn't fair! We got our asses kicked for a date and you paid for a night now you have matching tattoos openly kissing and totally cosy with each other! Where's my kiss for my broken nose huh.”

Paul slides in grabbing the smaller vampires shoulder pouting himself. “ Yeah weres our kisses. We've been flirting with you all week baby.” You shrink into yourself as the three vampires circle you blush still heavily on your face. “ You two horn dogs can get kisses when you finally wash your ass! Now hurry up or we will never go on our date. “ The two run away from you laughing as you chase after them kicking at there bodies with your foot. The pair dodging haphazardly as Star and Micheal watch from the side lines both enamored by your sight. You were confident around the boys even though you were new and you didn't take shit from them something about that they liked.

They just couldn't figure out what you were as you definitely weren't a vampire nor were you human. “ If you two keep undressing me with your eyes I'm gonna catch a cold. “ Micheal and Star froze as you walk closer. Your scent was intoxicating to them and it definitely wasn't helping the hunger within them. “ We weren't meaning to stare.” Micheal said, turning away from your piercing gaze nervously. “ It's nice to finally properly meet you. I’m Star and this is Michael.” You grab Stars hand bringing it to your lips you place a kiss on her knuckles. This makes a feverish hue spread across her soft features .“ It's a pleasure to meet my sleeping beauty. Sorry our first few chats have been through pen and paper. You must be exhausted spending time with these boys all the time.”

You smile as you blatantly flirt with Star In Front of David knowing well the feeling of his jealous eyes burrowing into your back. You'd have to be stupid to not know David wanted you to treat him like this again but it's just too fun to get under his skin and knock his ego down a peg. This man was gunning for your heart and you weren't gonna make loving you easy for him but he liked this game and so did you. “ I enjoyed the letters and food you brought for me. It was kind of you to help me out when you didn't even know me. “ Star tucked her hair behind her ear as your smile grew wider the more jealousy you could feel from a certain blonde. “ Oh well of course. I don't mind spoiling a beautiful girl like yourself. I have plenty of money to provide and Laddie practically demanded breakfast before his teachings. If you don't mind I'd love to chat with you two to see how your education is going as well. “

You walk back over to the couch you were previously sitting on as Laddie opens the makeup case selecting nail polish to put on your nails. Micheal and Star follow sitting on the water fountain staring back at you as David sits in his wheelchair fuming. Dwayne lovingly pats David's shoulder before heading to do some laundry in the new washers you provided. “ Now handsome I can tell you're just dieing to ask me some questions, no need to be shy. I won't bite. “

“ Unless you want me to. “ You wink as the Micheal feels his heart skip a beat in excitement. “ Who are you. What are you. “ Your tail moves to display In Front of you spikes flailing up to be on display. “ My name is (Y/n). I don't have a human last name but I belong to the vermilion house. I am a succubus hybrid. My father is an incubus and my other father is a jorogumo making me a hybrid of an incubus and spider demon. “

“ Wait, you have two fathers. How does that even work? “ A eyebrow raises at the halfling's response, gaining a flicking of your tail from you. “ If you were reading the materials I provided in the section about Santa Carla residents you'd know succubi are a breeder species. We can bend our genders to our liking since birth and at will. “ Pheromones swirl around you before laying on the couch in front of them is you in your male form. You were bigger, more muscular, and had a deep sultry voice. “ And once we are marked and have mates. It doesn't matter if we stay in incubus or succubus with partners of the same matching gender. A simple kiss can cause a pregnancy to occur as once we are in heat cycles any shred of DNA can be used to make what humans refer to as sperm and egg cells. The beauty of a succubi is our ability to breed with almost anything; we can also produce offspring from multiple partners.”

You raised your hand transforming back into your female form as it suits you much better. “ I prefer my female form so I present it to mortals and immortals alike as female. “ Star looks on you with curiosity as David's eyes never come off of your form. “ What's those tattoos on you and David's wrist? They seem to be important for you to just now be revealing yourself to the group after hiding so much.” This question ignites a playful fire in you as make eye contact directly with David glaring back at him. “ A certain grumpy vampire thinks your whole group can win my heart. So we made a binding vow that I have to try spending time with you all in the chance we will fall in love with each other. While our little bet is going on I'll be your group's teacher and personal juice box of sorts. If he wins I become your mate permanently and obey him. If I win David gets to know the sweet defeat of being wrong and I'll know for certain love will never be possible for me. “

Pheromones swirl around you as you send them directly the vampire's way. “ But don't think I'll make it easy or that you get my blood and knowledge for free. I'm going to savor every moment getting personal and feeding off of you all. Specifically I'm savoring being a pain in David's ass till he caves and admits he can't love me. I just need one of you to say it and I'll be gone like smoke in the sky. “ David smirked evilly back at you staring you down. “ You keep trying to get under my skin but the more you deny your heart the more I'm going after it. “ Star and Micheal couldn't believe what they were hearing. You were trying to fall in love with everyone in the group because you and David made a bet. This is not what they wanted when they wanted your attention. They wanted your feelings to be genuine for them.

“ If you don't like David, why would you make a bet like that? What's stopping you from leaving and did you two not consider our feelings in the matter. “ Laddie looks up from painting your nails as he stares into Michaels, almost unnerving the poor boy. “ You can't break a binding vow Micheal. It's like breaking a pinky promise.“ The man becomes frustrated as he stands up in a huff. “ You can easily break a pinky promise. It's just as easy as getting up and leaving like we're doing now. “

“ I'd sit down if I were you. “ Your pheromones hit the pair of half vampires as their vision gets dizzy and they slump back down to sit on the cool water fountain edge. They cover their mouths as your scent was making them ravenous. They wanted to bite you, they wanted to do things to you, they craved you but your words angered Micheal like you weren't considering how he would feel about this. Just like David didn't care about how he felt about having to kill people to stay a vampire with him. “ I see you still need a little convincing Micheal that my words are true. I enjoy your feedback on the matter. I know this deal happened without your consent and that pisses you off but moving forward I promise anything between us will happen at a pace you're comfortable with. “ You stand above the brunette hooking your fingers together, you stare down into his confused longing eyes.

“ How about our first lesson, handsome? I show you what a binding vow is. “ You hold a piece of gum up between you as blood encircles your intertwined pinkies. “ Micheal I pinky promise I'll give you this piece of gum. “ A red line forms on your fingers as you pull away from him flashing the gum. “ And what will not giving me the gum do. I don't see the importance of this red line you've put on my finger.” You place your finger In Front of him as you pop the gum in your mouth biting down. Suddenly and violently your finger is absolutely obliterated right before his eyes like it had been pierced and smashed all at the same time. You winced as your blood sprayed the two in the face Micheal looked in horror at your mangled finger he just helped destroy.

“ People with power have a hard time doing what they promise unless something is on the line for them. So the heavens made binding vows. If a party breaks the vow depending how serious the vows deal is, say like falling in love. The more the punishment will be. “ You smile at the man as your blood flows back to you and with a sickening pop and twisting your pinky is back to it was before flesh healing before his eyes. “ And what's gonna happen if you don't follow David's bet or he doesn't follow it either. “ The blonde smiles behind his cigarette as he takes a long drag staring his favorite halfling down. “We will probably turn into inside out porcupines. “

You place a hand on Michael's head ruffling it a bit as the boy looks pale. “ Don't look so pale baby face. One may start thinking you care about us. It's best not to think about the deal in general. It only involves me and David playing a game of chicken. You can love me, hate me, I don't mind, I just hope we can at least be friendly for you and Laddie's sake. I’m only here because I'm bored and y'all are cute.” A soaking wet Paul suddenly lifts you in the air as a towel is tied loosely around his waste twirling you around as you squirm at the sudden wetness. “ I knew you couldn't stay away from our group's good looks. Us vampires are irresistible.” David rushes to help hold up Paul's towels as Laddie tries pulling you off of his older brother, you kicking and squealing in protest.

The tension in the cave has disappeared completely as the scene of you three. Star leaned against Michaels arm gently looking at the commotion and sharing a look with the boy. With just your presence you lightened the group up, especially the tension between David and the two. It wasn't a fight about if David actually cared what they wanted and it wasn't another night of being pressured by their companion to join them in eternity. It was just the group back to how it used to be before Michael, it was fun. It was intoxicating to be back in this peace. With David too busy with you that took the heat off the halfling's and to say they weren't planning to use you was a lie. They had planned to accept your blood and become day walkers and get themselves free from having to eat humans. They just didn't know how but with you not afraid of David and him currently at risk of becoming a porcupine they could relax.

They had a hard time standing up to him. He was controlling and sometimes forceful with what he thought was best for people he loved. It made it hard to hate him as he never did anything to the group outta malice but instead twisted devotion. You get tired of wiggling against the naked wet man as you let out a high pitch whistle which makes Laddie stop in his wake, eyes turning yellow and vamping out. Before anyone could process what is happening you give the child one command. “ Double team.” Laddie jumps up grabbing Paul's arm on you before he jumps swinging his whole body weight like a battering ram against Paul's leg knocking the vampire over. You place your legs on the ground in a stance grabbing Paul's arm before you use the momentum to fling him over your shoulder and onto the couch. David looks down in his hands where Paul's towel is and he instinctively drops it to cover Laddie's eyes.

He may have succeeded at saving Laddie's eyes but definitely not Star or Michael who got full front seats to Paul's show. “ How the fuck did you teach Laddie to do that. “ Paul says as he's flopped over upside down on the couch still on display as Star and Micheal are covering their eyes but laughing a bit at the display. Marko and Dwayne come out of the bathroom to the scene on the couch. The poor silent vampire almost drops the laundry basket while Marko starts laughing so hard he flops onto the floor. You grab the towel tossing it over Paul's unintentionally spread eagle as you let out a wolf whistle admiring his barness.

“ Guess you are a shower not a grower. “ Paul blushes a bit smiling with a wink before he gets off the couch. A fuming Dwayne hands him his freshly cleaned clothes before slapping his ass back into the bathroom. “ I leave to do laundry and you guys get into whatever the hell that was. “ You smirk at the man as David let's go of Laddie's face patting the kid on the back for the excellent leg sweep. “ In fairness you let the tall lanky blonde escape the bathroom unnoticed. Paul hasn't exactly been the one to think sometimes.” Dwayne grumbles at David but is just glad the chaos is subdued for now. “ I was busy keeping Marko from mixing all the soaps into one to use on his head. “

“ I would have smelt like the Ultimate soap. “ Dwayne shakes his head before you chime in. “You'll absolutely destroy your curls doing that. Also I got you stuff for your curls. Why is your hair still wet?. “ Marko innocently smiles up at you before blinking a bit tilting his head. “ I just let my hair air dry. “ Of fucking course he did. You shake your head. You will absolutely not stand by and let him do that to his beautiful curls. As a woman with a cousin who you've helped take care of her hair since y'all were small, you are appalled at this blasphemy. Grabbing the man from the floor you usher him into the bathroom, having Dwayne find you a stool or chair. “Laddie, can you bring me the products over there? Marko who has been taking care of your curls for you. “

Star stands in the doorway watching you gently looking the vampire over. “ Well Star was giving me help for a little bit but she's been pissed at us so I've been just doing it the way I used to. “ The girl looks away, ashamed as you shoot her a questioning look. “ And what would Star be mad at y'all for. “ Marko hums to himself looking over his shoulder to make sure David wasn't nearby to make a fuss. You get the picture and bring Star in the room shutting the door so no one could snoop on your impromptu therapy session. If you were gonna be around these vampires all the time you would put up with no drama from this. “ Ever since Micheal came she decided she doesn't wanna be a vampire with us anymore. Her and Micheal won't feed and for a while so wasn't Laddie. It was kinda scary, their energy dropped and they started feeling sick.“

As you put product in the man's hair you make note of the girl's uncomfort as she holds onto Laddie. “ If you don't wanna talk about it sweetheart with me around, you don't have to be here. Though I think it's important as a pack, you talk about your problems calmly. Why don't you wanna feed or be a vampire?. “ You pulse calming pheromones into the room as you don't look at her, letting her decide if she wants to talk or not. “ We miss the sun. We don't want to kill people to survive. You guys are used to it but we aren't and I don't think I ever will. “ You look in the mirror staring at the beautiful girl shaking your head.

“ And your solution was to starve yourself till you found a way to not be one? Star I know that it's not any of y'all's fault for not understanding your own people's society or diseases and such. That is a job your sire was supposed to do.” You pause to grab the brush to start forming curl clumps in Markos hair as you go back to work. “ But starving yourself halfing or not. You'll eventually cause insanity to yourself. When vampires aren't able to feed on human blood or demons for a long while even if it's just a cup of it every six months they risk getting a disease called madness. You'll become worse than an animal. An uncontrollable ravenous beast who won't stop killing till you're put down.“ Star looks worried as she looks down at Laddie, coming to realize the severity of what she had been doing to him when she had him refuse to feed. “ But we've been eating alot of protein and animals since you gave us those books. We should be fine. We've been doing better. “

“ Sorry to break it to you. But that's only a temporary solution especially for halfling's. You'll have to choose eventually and going back to human ain't really a thing that happens after becoming a vampire. It's an incurable disease.” Star shakes her head, panic lacing her words as Marko shifts his eyes to the side, not able to look at her. “ But the comics said. That if you destroy the sire you'll return to a human. “ Paul hears this from behind the door in the bathroom he was changing in and your hands immediately stop. You go stiff understanding exactly what she's implying.

“ And you believed a comic book written by mortals of vampiric knowledge they've been taught through grape vine encounters. Do you understand what you just implied? The level of treason you'd face killing your own kind in this town.” You put down the brush and in an instance you're grabbing her face looking her dead in the eyes as Star's face turns to panic tears threatening to spill but only the people in this pocket of space can hear her whimpers. Your eyes soften, unable to stand the look on her face. “ Star. If you kill any underworlders in this town you'll be hanged from the peers and executed in the worst way possible. Any humans caught killing underworlders in this town would also be killed the same and have been. That book is wrong and will only bring you downfall. It will harm you and everyone you love with statements like that. “

Marko snarls from the chair pissed at what he has heard and so does Paul but before either can say anything or move your glaring them down. “ You two listen to me now and listen good. I don't care if you've known me for a lifetime or a few weeks or a few fucking hours. Any of you two start a fight in this room right now I'll sure as fuck finish it. Now y'all three need to sit your asses down and fucking talk it out. This discussion is not leaving this room. “ Laddie runs from Star holding onto your legs as tears pool in his eyes. Your hand falls to his head as he whimpers into your leg. “ Why can't all of you go back to liking each other? Why does everyone always fight now? “ The boy shakes scared of another brawl about to break out. He hated when the pack fought and ever since Micheal came that's all they ever did. No one had time for him anymore until you showed up and here they were ready to fight again.

The three vampires look down at the boy. Was this what they were doing to him? Was this what all there back and forth had done to their little unit. Star used to smoke with Paul all the time and watch the night sky over the ocean. Marko and her used to make homemade jewelry for their outfits and they would help take care of animals together. Now look at them. They were at eachothers throats all the time and their relationship had soured to the point of not talking to each other. All of them were too selfish to think about Laddie's feelings in this. That's how he got away that night. That's how he ended up a day walker because everyone in the pack forgot about him or the care for each other and just worried about their selfish wants. Your tongue clicked in annoyance.

“ You are all being stupid and selfish. “ The three look at you in shock. “ Someone had to say it. Paul and Marko you two are dumb for not listening to your pack members' worries and concerns. Star your stupid for thinking a comic book gave truthful information and that murder was a solution to not wanting to commit murder.” You grab Paul and Markos' faces , shaking them side to side. “ Which by the way news flash only these fuckers are some of the vampires who still enjoy hunting. There's a ton of vampires who don't kill you guys are just too ignorant of your own freaking species society. Do you know how much blood banks make by tricking humans into donating blood for money willingly. All you have to do is go to one and tell them you're a vampire they will sell you blood at a discount.”

The three faces are in shock as you rant at them like a mother scolding kids who just fought over a toy for nothing. “ Star if you wanna walk in the sun drink my fucking blood, eat my flesh, you can even suck my blood like a juice box every night. You don't have to go commiting murder, or doing something stupid just to get your ass sunburned. You don't even have to ever drink a drop of human blood. I’m sorry I can't make you human but I'll be your willing supply of food as long as you'll have me. Just stop hurting the people who care about you and you two fuckers need to learn to push your feelings to the side and talk it out.“ Stars face explodes into blush as she stutters at your proposal. You come closer to her flexing your chest up at her making her head spin as you get closer determination on your face.

Paul can't help but laugh at the scene as it looks like your two seconds from giving Star a gay heart attack. Marko begins to chuckle as well as you continue to push yourself forward into Star so stupidly determined you're not even noticing your two seconds from motor boating the girl like an angry tiny bird puffing it's chest. “ And what's so funny huh! Can't you see we're having a moment. “ You look at the boys as Star buries her face in her hands, turning away from you. The boys now even further in a laughter fit at the scene causing Laddie to look up at them in confusion. “ She's totally been eyeing your tits all night and now your shoving them in her face telling her to eat you. “ Paul chokes out from laughter as he slumps onto Markos shoulder.

“ I mean I'm sure Star has been thinking of eating you in other ways. '' Marko pokes fun at the female vampire, the laughter replacing all the negative energy in the room and it feels like the relationship is being patched even if just a little. “ Shut up you two. Geez. Don't you have a date to go on. Shouldn't you be getting ready. “ Star punches Marko lightly as she picks up the diffuser, finishing up Markos hair for you. Laddie starts grabbing makeup staring up at Paul with sparkles in his eyes while the tall vampire immediately understands the assignment. You and the young boy get to work with Laddie putting on makeup with your assistance and you styling Paul's hair.

It had been quiet, too quiet. David had left to put his actual clothes on and to try and fail at flirting with Micheal again who had been giving him the cold shoulder. Dwayne could sense the mischief in the air as well, as they were sure no one left the cave. That meant that four people of the crew could be up to no good in that bathroom as it was entirely too quiet. As they open the bathroom door they don't even get a chance to react. All they hear is your voice saying “God said let there be light!” And then what can only be described as a mini flamethrower In Front of them as Laddie squeals in amazement on the counter. Paul and Marko are going ballistic in chaos at the flame and Star is looking on in shock and awe.

“WHAT THE FUCK WERE YOU DOING IN THE BATHROOM. “ All five of you are sitting on the couch as Dwayne is spraying the bathroom with air freshener to get rid of the smoking hair spray scent as David chews you out for your pyromania stunt. “ Laddie asked what flammable ment on the hair spray. “ Paul says, rubbing the back of his neck. “ So (Y/n) had a lighter and she is responsible. “ Marko says, looking at the floor, not daring to look at his pissed off mate. “ And you two just went along with that! Laddie was in there !” David's voice is serious as he glares at you and Star down, her squirming in her spot while you confidently lean against the couch, legs spread out almost in a defiant stance.

“Yep” You reply putting emphasis on the end with a popping of your lips making the blonde glare down at you. He keeps making eye contact with you, getting closer as you blankly stare back, flipping your lighter around between your fingers. The man grumbles for you to explain yourself. “ If you had to know Laddie is more of a visual learner and kids will do stupid shit all the time why not do it with responsible precautions. I was holding the can and lighter plus the room has air conditioning and fire precautions in place. Anyone who could get hurt was standing behind me and well if I got my ass lit on fire I can just Heal myself up. So really you're blowing a fuse for nothing fussy fangs. “ David grabs your face roughly pulling you closer to him as his facial expression morphs vampiric and his tone low and threatening.

“ Just because you can heal yourself doesn't mean I want any of you hurt. You may not care about your body but I do. Now cut the shit and take this seriously. “ You look him in the eyes as you place a kiss on the tip of his nose laughing in his face as he looks confused and a little flustered at the display. “ Aw. David cares about my well being, how cute! You know David you're really hot when you try acting all angry with me.” Grabbing his face forward you place several kisses to his face as David is stunned and taken aback at the sudden affection. It's like the man is short circuiting as you've been not the least bit affectionate since yesterday and have been antagonizing him the whole time you've been around him.

With one last aggressive kiss to his cheek later and his face stained with blush, confusion, and lipstick. You pop up off the couch grabbing Paul and Marko in a rush while you walk back to the door against the wall pulling a paper out from your bra. “ Well it's been fun flirting with you Sweethearts but me and these chaotic boys have a whole night of mischief ahead of us. I'm just afraid there's not enough of me to go around for the night. “ You bite your finger drawing blood as you throw the paper to the door with blood on it. This causes the paper to turn black and dissolve into the door , demonic eyes and flesh taking it over as you fling the door open to a bustling market place beyond it.

Before David can protest and make it to the door you've already pushed the pair inside as you are closing it on the man winking to him you blow him one last kiss. “ You really shouldn't scold me In Front of the kid David. You know how much it turns me on” Just as he reaches the door it slams shut returning immediately to normal the paper And blood having disappeared as soon as it was shut. The man aggressively opens the door only to find the bathroom once again in there while a confused Dwayne and Micheal enter back in the cave after getting the bikes set up. Not only had you succeeded in flipping David's anger into extreme lust but now you had blue balled the man as well.

He didn't know whether he enjoyed this game with you or not sometimes. All David knew is the next time he saw you, you were definitely gonna have to take care of his needs.

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

The night market was bustling with all sorts of underworlders and heavenly alike. Stores lined with demonic, angelic, and human goods while people walked by in swarms. It momentarily distracted the boys while you were bent over against the wall trying to catch your breath from what you had just done. You weren't thinking, fuck you weren't even processing what had occured till you placed that finale kiss. You absolutely did not want to acknowledge that you had not only kissed David affectionately or that you were actually aroused by his care for you. But you got such a rush of energy and excitement that you peppered that man's face like you were seasoning him with your affection.

The worst part is you weren't thinking when you did it. It all happened on instinct after that man lit your heart ablaze with the statement he was scolding you because he was worried of you getting hurt. It was dumb. It was a poor move on your choice and you were faking it till you made it trying to deny something in your heart was touched. If this was a dating sim that man just scored a point and you practically had stars in your eyes when those words came out his mouth. Though luckily you were good at bluffing for the most part and was able to run off before you could meet the consequences of your actions.

Paul and Marko are in awe at the site before them. They had been transported to a world they had never seen before and it was busting with life and creatures like them. It was like walking straight through a story book and damn they were hooked. Marko freezes before patting his body down slowly coming to realize not only was he not wearing his favorite jacket but neither was Paul as they didn't even have time before they were pushed out the door to snag them. “ Fuck our wallets are back at home.” The pair turn around to the stone wall you're leaning against to see the door completely gone. “ Oh shit. How do we get back. “ Paul says also coming down from his shock to recognize he also had no wallet on him.

Your head shoots up as you pray they don't make a comment on what had just happened instead hoping to get this date started and far away from what just transpired. You grab their arms leading through the crowd as you smile cheerfully. “ Don't worry about it! I have a copy of the bathroom key so if we use that we can enter straight back through that door. But let's not worry about that now. I don't know about you boys but I'm starving!” The boys are confused but they quickly forget about it as they enjoy the feeling of your arm intertwined with theirs. “ How are we gonna pay for food though? This doesn't seem like the place dining and dashing will go over well. “ Marko says, making note of the angry looking demons guarding their stalls and shops with pride.

“ Don't worry sillies. I’m paying tonight! My treat. I did kinda wanna apologize for breaking your nose Marko and almost crushing you with my ass Paul when we dropped out the sky. “ Paul smiles down at you cheekily as you strut along the streets. “ I think that would be my preferred method of leaving this world. “ The blondes laugh in unison as you smile gently back at them. “ I did wanna set some rules though you absolutely have to follow here. The night market is between the planes of existence so it's in a neutral zone. It's a lawless land held together by a code of sorts. Don't steal anything. Respect the staff. And if you start fights keep them outside the shops. “

As you say this you three witness a ghoul coming out in a bucket dismembered as an angry Harpy places him outside their store. A swarm of demonic children running up to it begin rummaging and eating through the pile of viscera. “ If not, you'll end up like that guy. Some necromancer will revive you but hope you have enough deadmans coins to keep yourself from slavery. This isn't really the place your money will be worth much anyway. The hells and heavens share a currency unlike the earth realm. “ Paul turns his head looking down to see a small devil child rooting through his back pocket. “ Hey! Scram kid!” The kid flashes his teeth at Paul in a huge smile before running off with his friends.

This prompts you to reach into your bra pulling a black card out. “ That is why I have bags of holding sewn into my bra. An old succubi stage trick we borrowed from clowns. “ Marko takes the chance to peek in your bra's pocket as you show him the strange bag glowing with items inside. “ That's awesome babe! What things can you fit in there!” You laugh as you walk into a shop showing him the pocket attached to your skirt as well. “ Well my bra I mostly use to hold makeup, money, or my lighter. If I wanna hold objects from our shopping trip I need to be able to put them in there without flashing my tits to everyone here. So I had my spare clipped into my skirt. “

You feel yourself tugged closer to the tall man's body as he whispers in your ear gaining a blush from you. “ Guess we will have to make sure not to undress you till we get home. “ You laugh pushing his face away as he licks your hand in retaliation. “ Well if it ain't my favorite regular! Where have you been (Y/n), I was worried you were gonna get thinner on me. “ In Front of you is a tall Yeti woman standing at the restaurant's entryway, her white hair tied back by a bandanna. You raise your arms up and happily allow the 8ft woman to lift you up swinging you like a limp cat as she greets you. The boys looked shocked as the woman let's you go patting your head with her huge hands like you were a child.

“ This would be my favorite place to eat in all the realms. This tall Yeti woman is my unofficial official godmother. “ The yeti woman proudly stands straight as she ushers you to a booth seat by the kitchen. “ How do you have an unofficial official godmother? “ Marko questions as he looks over the menu that's in a different language, you motion for one in English to the tall woman. “ Her father and aunt have come here since wee and small. They grow up in Yutajs shop, find mates, bring mates here, have babies, babies come here. Father gets drunk with newborn strapped to chest declaring me godmother. I am proud godmother. (Y/n) Where is Veve or wolf boy. Why bring vampires? “

You laugh as the boys try to decipher the image of an infant you strapped to your birth father's chest while drunk thinking of the implications of a parent doing such a thing. “ God mama meet two of the boys who are courting me. I figured for our first official date there would be no other shop who's food could compare to yours. “ The woman pauses before lowering herself down to the boy's eyes glaring daggers at them as she looks them up and down. Paul and Marko feel intimidated by her height alone but her bulging muscles and huge clever on her side also don't help. “ Tiny one. Last time courtship go horribly wrong. You sure these boys don't hurt you. God mama will gut them like fish if single hair is misplaced on your head. “

Paul audibly gulps as the yeti reaches for her clever before you grab the boys hands smiling at her. “ Don't worry about me, Yutaj. These boys are sweet, good boys. If you'd believe it they challenged me in combat for my hand in courtship and won. They are very strong. “ The woman gets closer before clapping her hands loudly. “ Aw! Proper yeti courtship! Lucky girl. You all must drink eat and be strong. I be right back!” The boys relax in their seats as they glance at the menus but back up to you. They could sense and see the past courtship comment made you uneasy for a second which worried them as the short time they known you, you hadn't ever cracked under the pressure.

“ Something bothering you sweetness? She mentioned you were hurt before. Do you wanna explain that to us? If not, you don't have to, okay?” Paul says grabbing your hand gently massaging circles into your palm as your leg bounces under the table anxiously. Marko slides in next to your side placing a hand on your shoulder massaging it as well. “ We just wanna know so we don't do anything to upset you when you're around okay. “ You look at them as you sigh a bit fiddling with fabric draping from your collar. “ This is only the second time I've been in courtship before. Courtship for succubi is a little more serious than just dating like humans due as matting is permanent for us. Let's just say the last one ended with some oni losing his eye and me spending the next 100 plus years running away from him and what happened. “

Marko tightens his fist in anger not knowing if he should push you further as your mood seems to be souring. They wanted to know you more. Know what brought you pain, what made you you. You had lived a life longer then there's and you know so much but it seems like you're keeping your cards close to your heart. They are staring at you and you know it. You don't want pity, you don't wanna be the victim forever. You just wanted to move on and this courtship was the first huge move you made in a long long time towards finding a sense of normalcy. You had settled in Santa Carla fifty years ago and was just now settled without being hunted down and hassled. You had friends, you had community, and you now were slightly comfortable at trying for love again. This was your opportunity to at least try to get a happy ending and stop living in the past. You sigh slumping back in the seat pushing them away.

“ For starters, thank you for the comfort but I don't wanna be touched when talking about it. I appreciate y'all trying to win me over. I really do. Just I stopped believing in love or any romance after what happened. Once you get your power taken away from you like that. You just never stop feeling powerless. No matter how much you get stronger, run away, or deny what happened.” You pause, taking a deep breath scratching your claws at your neck. Your foot thumps against the ground wondering if you should sour the night like this. Was it really their job to put up with your trauma? It happened ages ago. Why couldn't you just drop it. You hadn't seen that guy in over 60 years. “ Take your time. We are just here to spend time getting to know you. And if this is something you feel like we should know (Y/n) then feel free to let us know. “

Paul's words almost brought tears to your eyes with just how gentle they were treating you. They were strangers to you and they were treating you with such care right now. It was almost a complete contrast to how you had interacted with them before. “ When I was younger me and my cousin would sneak out of the underworld where we lived to explore the human world around the shrine my dads worked at. We eventually made friends with this oni boy who lived in the mountains around the temple. We all three grew up together and he would always tell me I'd be his wife when we were older. Of course I never did take it as seriously as I should have. “ A waiter comes with some water and you order appetizers while you try making it through this hard discussion. But a part of you knew maybe talking about it could help you let go of some of the pain it was causing you.

“ Well when I had my succubi urges finally kick in at eighteen we quickly discovered my hunger was much stronger then what one person could provide. I didn't know how serious he was about me being his wife, or how jealous he could be. When he found out I started feeding at brothels to keep myself alive after pre-saved essence stopped working, let's just say I found out the hard way how obsessed he was. “ This was painful to admit it was like a dam broke inside you. The words were flowing out of you like a nonstop ribbon and the more you tried to stop it the more came out as images of that haunting night flooded your brain. Part of you wished you could blame the two for mind manipulating you to be so open but truthfully it's just because you felt safe in the moment. You let out a laugh trying to stop yourself from breaking as you had no clue why you were being so open but it felt so right.

“ The only reason I got away that night unmarked was because I was able to claw his eye out before he had me completely pinned. These collars aren't full proof, a strong enough person can get through them and that was proven. Everytime he finds where I am without fail he shows up trying to force me to be his. He followed me halfway around all the realms, slaughtered anyone who was even slightly close to me, and has tried everything he can to get his hands on me. The only reason he hasn't succeeded is because I’m fast and constantly evolving to keep up with his endless pursuit.“ You reach in your bra pulling out a hand rolled joint with your red herbs in it gulping in the calming smoke as you could feel your anger bubbling. Trying hard to cope from your information dumping as the boys stair in a mix of sadness and anger. “ So if you wanna do something to avoid triggering me just don't try and fuck with my neck or collar. I'm happy y'all want to go the low and slow route but I think if you ever tried to get my collar off I'd kill you all before I even had a conscious second to think what I was doing. I'm that broken from this nonstop nightmare I've had to endure just because some fucker loved me. Now I don't wanna talk anymore about this depressing shit on our date. I've ruined the night enough. “

You look down at the table as the waiter comes with your food asking if you'd like anything else. You dismiss him stating you're not as hungry as you thought you were, sipping your water as you dare not to look at them. The table is silent as the boys contemplate the information they were given. Brewing in anger at the hard life you must have had just trying to keep away from that bastard. It was no wonder why you were being so push and pull with the group. You were trying to break past that trauma but it seemed like it was easier said than done. Marko takes the straws from him and Paul's drink as he fits them to his fangs. You two look up at the curly blonde only to try and choke back a laugh as Marko stares at you declaring very seriously he was not a vampire but a walrus now.

“ What's wrong (Y/n) can you not love me in my new found Walrus-ness. My fangs can not dare pierce your gorgeous flesh as my tusks are too long. Behold them in their glory. “ The man trys to take a drink of his water but can't get the cup closer to his mouth, choosing to instead try and fail smacking his mouth to it. Your mood lightens as you begin to giggle and chuckle as he keeps attempting to drink with the straws in his mouth insisting he is infact a walrus. “ Hey! That was my straw you jerk. You're getting your spit on it.“ Paul tries reaching across the table to retrieve it from his mates mouth only to have his hands batted away furiously. “ This isn't a straw, these are my tusks! How dare you try to take my walrus pride from me.” Your face turns red from trying to hold in laughter as the two bicker and fight across the table slapping each other's hands away before the straws fall out coated in saliva.

“ Oh no! My tusks!” Marko pouts as Paul scrunches his face at them deciding he doesn't want his straw back after all, trying to wipe Markos spit back on him. This causes you to completely break into a fit of laughter at their attempt to cheer you up. These boys were nothing but dorks after all and had done their best to cheer you up. You fall onto Markos shoulder giggling as you try reaching for the food at the table deciding that tonight's going to be fun no matter the hiccups as long as you were with these two. The pair join in your laughter and you spend the rest of the time in the restaurant enjoying stuffing yourselves full before your next adventure of the night.

When it's finally time for you to pay and leave, Yutaj comes running from the back with a drink for you. “ What is this?” You look down at the mysterious thick pink liquid in the small shot glass as the Yeti woman proudly smiles. She pats your back harshly telling you to drink quickly before it gets cold. Raising an eyebrow but not one to turn down a free drink you down it as the boys watch. “ Tis fertility drink. Must be strong for marriage and child birth. “ You almost choke as the tall woman states this and the boys bust into laughter as your face goes bright red. “ WERE NOT MATES YET! Jesus Yutaj are you trying to ship me off to the wedding bells already! “ The tall woman laughs ruffling your head in her hands. “ God mama, just happy to see tiny one finally smiling again. Good husbands make you smile and laugh for rest of your days. I approve of these two, must bring others for God mamas judgement though. I good sense of character.“

You leave the restaurant with the boys teasing you calling you their tomato faced bride placing kisses to your forehead as you elbow them in the sides making your way to the arcade. You three spend some time exploring the game floors and looking at all the stuff to do before you start hoping onto machines eagerly. Paul and Marko become extremely competitive at the racing games hurling insults and trying to rile each other up while you keep eyeing the cute stuffed animals in the claw machines behind you. You three start racking up tickets in a huge pile as you play through game floor after game floor enjoying your time filled with competitive banter and light flirting. You show your skills off in pacman, street fighter, and waca-mole. You are able to effortlessly defeat Paul and Markos score while they do better in other games. Marko being way better at frogger, shooting games, and skeeze ball while Paul kicks both your asses in racing games, air hockey, and basketball.

By the time y'all make it to the prize counter you're holding a pile as tall as you. Paul uses his share to snag a gaming console on the top shelf for the pack to enjoy at home while you use your tickets to try and get things for the others. Marko noticed you had been eyeing all the stuffed animals in the machines but you never stopped to get one for yourself. You hadn't even used your tickets on yourself at the prize counter. So while you and Paul are laughing shoveling your items into your bag of holding talking about how much everyone will enjoy the stuff you got them Marko turns to the biggest stuffed animal he can find.

“ Hey babe what did you get?” Paul says looking up to see a bear that was almost Markos height staring back. It was black with red eyes and had horns and a tail. The only way he knew his mate was behind it was Markos curls just barely sticking out from the top. “Tada! For our tomato bride a big stuffed animal that you can cuddle when we aren't around to help you sleep. “ You stare at the bear and the two blondes as your eyes almost sparkle looking at the big thing. You had eyed it earlier but didn't want to seem childish for wanting soft things. Tears pricked your eyes as your face flushed, emotions hitting you strongly. Without thinking you tackled both the bear and Marko to the ground as you feverishly squeezed the life outta the bear rubbing your face on its softness. When you pulled away your smile was from ear to ear as your tail swayed in excitement.

“ I love it Marko! I’m gonna name him brownie batter and he's gonna go on my bed when I get home. “ Markos stares at your face as his heart flutters in his chest. In this moment it felt like the world stopped and there was nothing but you and him. He swore to himself he would do anything to make you smile like this more often as his gaze softened on you. “ I’m glad you love it sweetheart . You know your face is the most beautiful when you smile like that.” His hand gently scooped against your face as he felt the warmth radiating off from your body. The air between you was electric as your gazes met and before you could think you placed a soft kiss to his lips.

Soft and plump lips pressed gently to glossed ones in a feathery embrace. When you pulled back your brain was light and fuzzy as you felt on cloud nine. Before you could think you were being hosted off the ground by the taller blonde who excitedly peppered both your cheeks with kisses and praise squealing about how cute you and Marko were but he wanted some sugar too. Marko gladly obliged, kissing his mate back with passion as you froze in place. The pair stopped to look at you wondering if maybe this was too much. You shyly scooped Paul's face down to yours as you gently kissed his lips. He let you guide the pace and with a quick soft moment of affection you pulled away before hiding your face in your bear refusing to talk to the either as steam came out your head.

“ I need a drink!” You shouted quickly turning from the pair darting away towards the nearest bar as they gladly skipped behind you allowing you your space to process what happened. When you three did finally find a joint to hit up for some liquor it was a struggle to get your new plush friend tucked away into your skirt pocket. Just as the last of his plush limbs tucked into your skirt your attention was pulled to the crowd at a table cheering with thunderous roars and chants. You three weasel into the crowd staring down at what was going on and at the table sat a dwarf, red oni, and orc. Your heart caught in your chest for a second but relaxed instantly as you knew that wasn’t your one eyed harasser.

“ What are y'all doing?” Paul asks the demon imp next to him who points at the wall where the most breathtaking electric guitar that Paul had ever seen stood hanging. “ There having a drinking contest for that guitar there. It's a one of a kind handcrafted instrument from Lucifer himself. Shit sucks, these three losers probably gonna win it”. Marko made note of Paul's staring instantly, agreeing with his mate how cool the instrument was and deciding if it was a drinking game he'd gladly win to gift his tall man that awesome instrument. “ Is the game free to join in?” The imp looks at him like he's crazy before a wicked smile appears on his face. “ Fuck yeah anyone crazy enough can join!” The crowd cheers as Marko sits down at the table filled with shot glasses stacked in all sorts of manners and succubi and imps bringing out shots on platters.

You finally snap out of it to realize one of your crazy bastards was at the table. You push close to lean down in Markos ear as he makes motions hyping the crowd up while Paul cheers him on as well. “ What do you think your doing!?” You whisper in his ear as the others smirk at him. “ I won you that teddy bear now I'm winning Pauly that guitar.” The blonde smiles at you as the glasses of alcohol are dishes out to opponents. “ Yeah I can tell that. But you do know what this game is and who your opponents are right?” The blonde is still innocently smiling at you as you take that as a definite no. “ They are playing devil's towers. You all have to drink the same alcohol proof level and stack the shot glasses ontop of eachother. Those are the three most alcohol tolerant species known to the realms and you're a cocky vampire.”

Marko quirks an eyebrow at you as he takes a shot of the liquor he was handed, it burns his throat momentarily with a slight sweetness coating his mouth, he knocks it back quickly before definitely putting the glass on the table before you. “ What's got you worried babe I'll be fine. I drink plenty enough. And besides, the rules seem simple. “ You can feel your annoyance grow as you step back allowing this man to learn his lesson the hard way as you pull Paul in close. “ I bet three shots in and you're carrying the drunk bastard home. I ain't giving no one piggy back rides tonight in these heels.“ Paul rubs your back looking down at you as Marko takes a second shot stacking it, the crowd cheering in response. “ Why's that hun. It looks like he's just shooting back a cloudy liquor, can't be that bad. “ You turn to the table counting down after Markos third shot before both you and Paul hear a loud thump followed by a babbling vampire and the three demonic men laughing at him.

“ Because that's definitely 200 proof shots he's taking.” Paul's face goes white as he retrieves an extremely drunk Marko who's about to puke as you shake your head in disappointment. “ That's what that sissy vampire gets for trying to drink with us real men. “ The oni chokes out as the other two men laugh with him in agreement. “ Hey sweetheart! Why don't you take a ride on something bigger then a tooth pick tonight. How much you cost for a night anyway whore.” The man reaches to try and fondly your ass as Paul instantly vamps out giving a nasty growl to the men, Marko growling as well through his stupor. You pat their shoulders reminding them they can't start fights here and that it's fine as your spiked tail smacks the drunkard's hand away. Paul softens a bit as he kisses Markos head beginning to walk away as you follow. All of a sudden a shot glass hits the back of Paul's head making you turn with a stare to the table of degenerates.

“ I ment to hit the little succubi slut but hitting the fruit bat there's even better. Running like a bunch of cowards. “ That was the last straw. You could put up with being degraded and treated like nothing but an object. But you'd be damned before you let anyone hurt these men who have done nothing but been nice to you all night and respected your boundaries. “ Actually Paul. You and Marko take a seat. I'm getting you that guitar baby. Mama has some trash to take out first though. “ The crowd cheers as you sit down at the table, a smile with so much ill intent behind it even the gods would be afraid plastered to your face. “Darlin, could you put fruit syrup in my shots? I prefer to actually enjoy my drinks. If you don't mind, are there any limitations to how someone can stack the shot glasses?. “

The imp woman smiles at you as she explains the rules to you. Last one standing with their tower still up and not boozed out wins. If your tower topples, you're out. If you pass out from alcohol or tap out you lose. You puke or get up from the table, you're out. You can use any ability to stack the glasses but you can't glue them in place. The woman smiles as you kindly thank her twisting your neck side to side with a sickening crunch. “ So the fruit bats whore gonna win them their honor back. Can't wait for when you get too drunk to make it home girlie. We will see if your little boy toys can keep you safe. “ The Red Oni smiles at you showing his yellowed teeth with a malicious tint in his eyes as you stop yourself from impaling him right there and then.

As soon as the tray comes out you down three shots right In Front of the men beginning your tower with confidence. “ Oh excuse me should I be going slow for you limp dicked fucks. I know how the senior citizens have a hard time keeping up.” The three growl slamming three shots in quickly behind you as it's changed from a slow paced game to a race to keep up. As the men take shot after shot trying to follow you knocking one after the other you pause to slit your wrist in front of them as blood oozes on the table. “ What the fuck are you doing!” The dwarven man stairs in horror as a giggle escapes your mouth. The blood bubbles and moves before a swarm of leaf cutter ants start to pull themselves out of the rusty pool. You knock back another glass as you pass the shot glass to your writhing black pile. Your little buddies take the glass and gently stack it in a stable position on your tower.

“ Sorry my hands just get so tired from having to stack these glasses. Having my ants do it is so much easier.” The dwarf makes a face at the pile turning away to try and not puke. The orc gets upset waving down the servers in a rush. “ Is this really fucking allowed!? Doesn't that count as someone else stacking the glasses for her!” The imp woman smiles evilly as she places more fruity shots In Front of you. “ Not at all. They obviously came from her blood so they are part of her. Would you like to fold sir? There is no rules against the matter. “ The man gets furious and before he can think his leg bumps the table knocking down his roughly stacked tower. “ Aw what the fuck!?” The bar keepers drag the orc out the bar cussing and fussing, tossing him in the alley like trash. The other two stare at you as you lazily down shot after shot. Making your tower quickly hit fifty. The dwarf keeps trying to avoid staring at the ants as they gingerly stack the glasses in a stable manner.

“ What's the matter? Don't like bugs, dwarven boy?” The man stares at you in horror as you open your mouth, centipedes, beetles, and worms wiggling in a furious frenzy before you slam your teeth down with a sick crunch in front of him. Blood oozing from your mouth in a sloppy display. This causes the man's stomach to flip as he runs from the table trying to make it out before he vomits. Paul is a little freaked from the display as well but impressed with how quickly you are knocking out shots and opponents. Your poker face was strong as you funneled shots down your throat like a conveyor belt. It was the rare occasion you were happy your father had taught you his drunken ways. If this man knew who your father was you were sure the whole bar would shudder at even the utter of his name. Devkar of The Vermillion clan.

In his younger days he traveled the globe bar hopping from country to country; relm to relm drinking whole communities dry while sleeping with any man who was even slightly feminine. Devkar would start fights and leave a wake of destruction wherever he went in his storm of chaos. It honestly surprised everyone he ever settled down and had a kid, let alone with only one partner. You knew your dad's dirty tricks and you were putting them to good use with the abilities he had given you. Your father was a master healer and had learned every healing magic he could get his hands on for one sole purpose. He'd use his ability to continuously heal his liver so he could out drink even gods. You weren't that dedicated as he was but flesh manipulation was your specialty so while it appeared you were drinking the shots you were actually funneling them into a makeshift organic bottle inside your torso right now.

The ants were made when you were mostly sober so they could keep doing their task while you attempted to keep the alcohol from hitting your bloodstream as much as possible. This meant you had to have complete focus on what you were doing as the drunker you got the more difficult it would be to keep this little trick going. “ Your little bug trick ain't gonna work on me little bitch. “ The oni man slurred as he was starting to show effects of being dangerously intoxicated making it difficult for him to stack his glasses in an effective manner. Your plan was working perfectly. You may not be as strong as your opponents but in a war strength wasn't always the winner. You had great knowledge of many different species from working frequently with customers and knowing what could make them break was pushing you in favor of winning.

Orcs were clumsy, big, and easy to anger. Making the orc knock over his tower in an angered state was the easiest way to defeat him. Dwarfs were strong drinkers and huge eaters but none of their cultures recipes ever included bugs instead usually involving meats and cheeses. So You had made a bet that you'd have to get the dwarf to vomit to win against him and you were right. Usually it unnerves non insect based creatures the idea of having live squirming insects in their mouth so your trick worked in flipping his stomach. Now for your last obstacle was the Oni. These fuckers could drink a lot but there was one biological trick to knock them out you learned from your father. Make them drink quicker then their muscles can burn or process out the alcohol and keep them talking so they don't notice before the huge amount of alcohol infused blood slams straight into their brain. This way they wouldn't notice and slow down preventing you from getting them too drunk to continue.

You smirked as you took your 70th shot as the man struggled to keep his eyes focused and hands from shaking as he hurled insults at you. You leaned against your palm making a gun shaped hand jester at the man. “ Bang!” The oni collapsed face first into the shot glasses as the crowd exploded into cheers. You let your ants return to your body as you stood up confidently grabbing the guitar before you looked at the imps and succubi for permission. Obviously this man had been treating them like shit before you got here so while he was passed out you'd do this one thing for your fellow service workers that they probably wanted to do to him all night. You transform your leg into an armored thorned boot as you stand over the collapsed giant.

Paul, Marko and the crowd cheered in joy as you repeatedly slammed your thorned foot into this man's crotch. Blood went everywhere as the crowd went crazy with patriots and staff alike singing praise for the abuse after you dish out sick blow after blow crunching visceral hitting the floor in a wet hot pile. When you finally do decide to stop, the man finally starts groaning in his drunken sleep as you are sure he will never get to reproduce unless he pays someone a pretty penny to fix him up down stairs. Though you are sure he's gonna be black listed from the night market after making enemies with almost everyone in this bar. You hand the boys the guitar and key home as you go use the bathroom to empty the liquor out of your torso as it starts leaking into your bloodstream. Unable to keep it together anymore, once you and the boys make it out of the line of sight of the bar you collapse face first as your body instinctively relaxes. All the liquor hits you at once and now you are too drunk to even stand let alone comprehend the following events.

Paul stares in shock as Marko bursts into a fit of drunken giggling, joining the curly blonde as you talk incoherently in a drunken babble. “ Oh sweethearts. What are we gonna do with you too? Time to get your drunken butts to bed. “ Paul gently smiles as he scoops you up in a piggy back as Marko hooks his hand to Paul's belt loop. The night ends with two giggling demons clinging to each other in a hazy bubble of joy and alcohol as Paul gently guides you into the nest in the cave whispering his praise for you both just as the others get home in time for the drunken chaos to begin.

Else were an abused drunk oni stands before a throne of skulls as his king stares down at him in disgust. Behind the man is your portrait in a golden frame. The drunkard in a fit of rage points to the painting shouting. “ THAT'S THE WHORE WHO DID THIS TO ME! THAT VAMPIRE DICK SUCKING BITCH-” Before the man can even utter another breathe the king crushes his skull in an instant blood and brain matter shooting out as everyone bows in fear before him. “ How dare you defile my bride with your filthy words and presence. You will pay with your life for tainting her light with your existence.“ The man turns to the painting staring at your faded image in a passion. “ Soon my goddess. You've returned to me again.“

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