#I still stand by that the ending was meant to be very Star-Wars and I want to like. Respect Tommy's writing by trying to see it that way

[enneamage]

i hate reflecting on dsmp plot points and their irl parallels because if i think about tommy putting half his traumatic life experiences (stalking, getting bullied badly) onto his oc in various levels of execution and then not giving him a happy ending i start going crazy. the dsmp finale lining up with groomer allegations and c!tommy forgiving his abuser at the same time was so 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭 they were pushing propaganda /j

the varying levels of how much someone was an oc and how much they separated their character from themselves and the parasocial birds eye view we could get from those people based on how they played situations (tommy, dream, wilbur to me all had themselves embedded into the core of their ocs to a certain degree; dream with his own entitlement just taken to an extreme, wilbur’s mix of narcissism & self-hate, tommy, oh chommy 😞) like for sure with some people who came in late and thus came in with separation of themselves from the story it’s not fully fruitful to analyze but those early people who just straight admitted “this was me, this is straight up what i think i would do in this situation” i think parasocial brain should be allowed to go brrrrrrrrrrrrrr for at least half an hour like. something something imbuing your subconscious feelings into what your creating something something I need to be Sedated

The DSMP ending lands very bitter in retrospect because the note they end on is a yearning for things to go back to being simple again. A few of the plot threads leading up to it had themes of “I wish things were back the way they were before all this” and the implication was that Volume Two was going to be that. It’s safe to say that there was too much real history put behind the CCs by the time it all built up, you can’t turn back time. 

Chommy indeed suffered but I’m too much of a hardass to let him off the hook 100%, c!Tommy was a lot of Tommy’s capacity to dig his own grave and then not understand why he’s in This Big Fucking Hole. The difficulty with seeing others points of view fully was present in C! And CC, and was tied into his ending when he challenged himself, which while inevitably not perfect I saw the vision for at the time.

C!Dream stays with me because of the communication breakdown inherent to his character. Lost in a plot to make things right again and looking to a future that he can devise mechanically because he couldn’t have it naturally. The way knee-jerk instincts and mechanics brain got in his own way, lost in a plan he buried his feelings in.

I’ve written on Wilbur too many times we don’t gotta linger on it. But damn. 

Q turning envy into ambition and then dicking himself and his employees over on the back of his own hubris. 

Honestly I even have one eye on Charlie’s slime bit being about pretending to be ‘normal’ but missing the mark in terms of imitation from time to time. Being a natural at improv can be very double sided if it goes deep enough.

[threepandas]

Bad End, Chosen: Part 4

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The Cycles never "loaded" back in at quite the same point. It was something I had noticed, though I had only suffered a few of them so far. It was like the God's were hoping "Chapter" to "Chapter", fickle and easily bored, trying desperately to find something NEW.

It made planning all but impossible.

Where... where was I?

A simple room. A suitcase before me. Loading or unloading? I held a robe in my hands. Painfully familiar. I had worn them for years. The highly protective robes of Mage initiates, at the Magic Tower. Meant to work as armor, life support, even... God's forbid, an emergency beacon. They were hideous. Function over form.

I could cry, for how deeply I loved these ugly robes.

No one had EVER been able to figure out how to style them properly. God's know, we had TRIED. But when The Dark came? This ugly, ugly things? These long complained about hand-me-downs? Oh... oh they had saved so, SO many student's lives.

Such tiny little things. Pulled from the rubble, still breathing. All because of these chaotic, gaudy, terribly comfortable and so deeply loved, old robes. T...They truely were as hideous as I remembered, weren't they? Blocks upon blocks of overlapping stitches and patches, too many colors, as though the tower was too stubborn to throw as single thing away.

We were.

We... we NEVER leave anything or anyONE behind.

Packrats, all of us. Such terrible hoarders. But... I looked around. It did not tell me the date. Was I leaving? Joining the tower? How old was I supposed to be? I pulled on my robes.

It felt like coming home. Like balm against the raw nerves of my still fragile mind. I felt old. Brittle. At... at terrible odds, with my young skin. I wondered if this was how she felt. The woman, the poor girl, that came before me. Before she broke so badly even the God's could not force her to perform. I did not want to admit I understood the impulse.

Ah, there.

I had once, what felt like lifetimes ago. What WAS lifetimes ago. Bought this very calander. It was cute. Little fairy dragons danced upon the edges, delicate and joyous. They were, of course, incorrectly drawn. The artist had never seen a real fairy dragon, only heard of them. I had seen some during the war.

People forget that neither the Fae nor Dragons are sweet or gentle things.

They were... Awe inspiring. In the oldest sense of the world. "An overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, and fear." I believe the text defined it. Like living starlight and glass, sung poetry and water. They were the fury of long dead gods and the vengeance of beings who were divine unto themselves.

They removed an entire MOUNTAIN RANGE before they fell. Burned and reduced to molten earth, an entire inland sea. They died like STARS. Violently and with a force that destroyed the void itself. Consuming all that dared stand in their shadow.

Ha. And people think they're CUTE.

Ah...my mind is wandering again. I try to concentrate on the calendar. My... my mind doesn't want too. Oh dear. That's... that's probably a rather bad sign, isn't it?

Opening my eyes at the beginning of the cycle had brough such... CLARITY. As though my head had been held under murky water and finally, FINALLY, I was able to scramble free. But... much like the drowned... I felt something like a high. Adrift. Without my anchor. I wanted my Gran-...

NO.

I grab the dresser before me. Hard enough my knuckles go white. My wide eyes focus far away. Seeing without seeing. Hyperfocused on the woodgrain before me. I am my OWN anchor. Feel the magic in your veins. The push and pull of the world. We are not his slave! Not his PET, to keep and cherish. A toy on a shelf.

I am a PERSON.

I DEFY MY FATE.

A cheerful knock at the door to my room. My eyes finally focusing on the date. Fuck. Moving IN, then. I do not know if I can act "normal". I... I will have to try. I can not unclench my jaw, but with great force of will, finger by finger, I release my grip on the dresser. Stand up. Glance up into the mirror.

I look like I am some hateful little thing, vowing some ugly little vengeance. Perhaps it is just my face. The way anger and spite only barely holds my bleeding edges together. My fear. I...I look like I am about to cry.

What a wretched child.

I try to force a smile.

It looks hideous. More ugly grimace and deep disgust then "oh, Master, how pleased I am to see you!". Fuck. When did I become so broken? A knock again. More hesitant. I breathe deep. I can not do cheerful, then. But...I... I can do nothing.

My face slides into an emotionless mask. Blank. Like a doll. Vaguely pleasant but meaningless. How damningly familiar. Gran-... HE reduced me to this in the end. A few steps. Almost distant, robotic, movement. And I open the door to a once familiar face.

"Learner." My Master smiles, awkward and uncertain. He had not wanted a student. I forced his hand. I know now I never should have done so. He was not ready. "Are you, um, settling? In? I know it is quite different from the life you once lived, but I promise. I will tale care of you. Well figure this out together."

Oh, Master.

I...I wish I could weep. I had forgotten this lie. How deeply I had once believed it. It was a child's promise, from a man who grew old but never, truely, grew up. I was to be failed again and again. Had once given him chance after chance. Because I had believed his words. My eyes feel hot. He looks panicked.

"Ah! W-what did I do? Was that wrong? Please don't cry?! Oh no! Uuuuh-!"

"Well THIS is a record. Not even a day and you've made the child weep." Comes a terrible voice. No. Please, Gods. Not so soon. "Here I am, come to greet my precious Grandlearner. And what do I find? My student, tormenting a child."

My Master sputters defenses of himself. Not even noticing that his own Master did not call him Learner. All but disowned him before me. My fear howls like a deafening beast in my ears. But... cowering? Will not... can not save me. Turning my head is almost painful, with how tightly my muscles have tensed.

That is not the look of a man who does not recognize me.

He remembers.

Alaric Blight stands in truely magnificent Tower Master's robes, as though he has every right to be there. Respected. Beloved. A legendary talent, the likes of which have not been seen for lifetimes. ANYONE would be HONORED to be in his presence. After all... he is a man who holds the world at his feet.

He is a monster.

"Hello Grandlearner," he all but purrs. Stalking forward to loom, as only an adult CAN loom over a child. The power difference between is even greater now. I can not even count myself an ant before him. I... I can not breathe. "What a delicate little thing you are. Utterly precious. And so SMALL! You certainly have a lot of training to do, don't you?"

His hand reaches forward to cup my cheek, sparks of deadly magic dancing lazily across my skin too finely for Master to notice, but not so fine I can not FEEL. It is a subtle threat. A little reminder. Not a single soul in this tower is safe, so long as he is here. All it would take? Is.. Just. One. Touch~

"I'm sure you'll BEHAVE for your Master, WONT you, Dear? After all, he only wants what's best for you. And a darling child like you, Grandlearner? Should be cherished."

"He's right." My Master said, clueless to the monster he let so close. Who so very dispised him. "But... but Master, I'm not sure, well, HOW exactly..."

"Oh don't worry, student of mine." Alaric Blight, monster of my nightmares, hummed in a laughable mimicry of pleasantries. "I'll be with you EVERY step of the way. How could do anything less? We'll train my darling Grandlearner together."

A terrible grin.

"Leave everything to me."

[collecting-stories]

Hey hey hope I’m not too late with this 🫢

100 Compliments - #72 "You always look good."

Brian “Otis” Zvonecek x fem because Otis always does look so good in everything he wears 😍

You Always Look Good - Brian 'Otis' Zvonecek

Summary: Otis dresses up for a shift at Molly's in hopes of impressing you.

A/N: Sorry this took so long to write! School has been crazy!!

✰ ✰ ✰ ✰

"Look at you," Stella teased, pinching Otis' side as she walked past him behind the bar at Molly's . 

Otis flinched at the feeling, shoving her hand away, as his cheeks reddened. "I look the same as I always do," he defended. Still, he straightened the button down shirt that he was wearing, navy with little pineapples printed all over it. 

Stella was unbothered by Otis' defensiveness. She stopped and looked back at him, eyes traveling up and down as she assessed him. "I don't know, something different 'bout you tonight," she replied, "you do something to your hair?"

"No," he insisted, running a hand subconsciously through his hair. 

Sensing his unusually high nerves, Stella offered him a smile, "okay. I'm not trying to give you a hard time, I promise." 

Just like she knew he would, Otis deflated, leaning against the bar and looking toward the door of Molly's before looking back at Stella. "I've been...putting feelers out...I met someone, here. She works at the hospital and she's...she's awesome. Incredible. Gorgeous. And I just wanna ya know, look good."

Before Stella could respond to his spiral of nerves, a voice cut in from the other side of the bar, "you always look good."

Otis' eyes went wide and he turned quickly to see the very person of his affection, you, standing there smiling at him. 

"Hey," you gave a small wave, leaning against your side of the bar as if that might lessen the distance the wooden countertop created between you and Otis. 

Stella backed away, smiling from ear to ear and no doubt going to find Herrmann or Mouch (or anyone that she could gossip with about you and Otis and how red he had turned when you told him that he looked good). 

"Hey," he replied, mimicking your wave but quickly lowering his hand in case you could tell how clammy his palms felt right now. If Cruz was here he would definitely give him a hard time for acting like this. Not that anyone could accuse him of being suave but he wasn't lacking in confidence either. Well, he was lacking in the kind of confidence Severide or Casey possessed but he had a decent amount. "Can I, uh, get you a beer? Or something?"

"A beer is good," you replied, taking a seat on one of the stools and watching Otis as he grabbed a bottle of Blue Moon for you, "so...I'm awesome?" 

"And incredible," he admitted, a smile creeping onto his face, "and gorgeous." 

"A triple threat," you teased, "guess we're evenly matched then?"

It took a few seconds for the words to process in Otis' head, the recognition slowly taking over as he nodded almost dumbly, full on smile breaking through and ears going as red as the rest of his face was. "Yeah?" He meant to sound less like a question but he couldn't help the way his voice raised at the end of the word, turning it into uncertainty. 

"Definitely," you replied holding up your pointer finger as you listed out the first of three things, "awesome: you watched all the Star Wars movies with me in one sitting -"

"I mean, you can't not celebrate May 4th correctly."

You held up your middle finger next, ignoring him, "Incredible: you literally save people's lives like, on the daily," finally you held up your thumb, "Gorgeous: self-explanatory. Look at you."

Otis leaned against the bar, trying to look casual and not completely flustered by your comment.  "Well, I can't argue with that."

You laughed, "oh can't you?" and leaned over the rest of the way to kiss him. 

"Hey! No PDA with the customers Otis!" Herrmann shouted from the other side of the bar. 

You pulled away trying to fight a smile as you looked down the bar to Herrmann, Mouch, and Stella, who had obviously been watching you and Otis the entire time. 

"How late are you working then?" You asked, "I mean, how many bartenders does this place need tonight?" You glanced around Molly's, slow for a random Tuesday, and then back to Otis, "not that I'm suggesting you ditch your job."

"No, of course not," he said, already turning to Herrmann, "I'm gonna head out, seems like you and Stella have it covered."

"Whoa-"

"Have fun!" Stella cut in, smiling mischievously, "be safe!"

"Oh god," the pink cheeks were back on Otis as he rounded the counter to meet you on your side. 

"Hey, she didn't pay for her beer!" Herrmann realized as he watched you and Otis make a break for the door. 

[david-talks-sw]

What "The Hidden Fortress" (1958) tells us about the Jedi's status in the Prequels.

In 1999, George Lucas had this to say on BBC Omnibus: A Long Time Ago: The Story of "Star Wars" and then The Phantom Menace's director's commentary.

“I greatly admired Kurosawa, especially the film Hidden Fortress, which told a story from the point of view of two serfs, two slaves...

... peasants who tag along with this famous general and a princess-- y'know, royalty. And the whole story is told from their point of view. And I like that idea. I like the idea of telling a story from the lowest person's point of view, uh, in the food chain, and that's how the story got to be told by Artoo and Threepio.”

“[The Phantom Menace] is told primarily from the Jedi's point of view, but the story that's being told is essentially the story of Queen Amidala and her plight of having her planet blockaded. As in, say, Episode IV, where the story is told through the eyes of the droids, in this one, it's told through the eyes of the Jedi.”

“But [from the moment we get to Coruscant, Anakin and Jar Jar] are standing on the sidelines. It's a little bit a riff on the very first film where the story is told through the point of view of the droids, who were sort of the lowliest characters.”

“And in [Phantom Menace], I'm doing it through - primarily - the two Jedi, but then the secondary characters are also carrying a lot of the weight when the Jedi aren't around.”

George Lucas draws a comparison between lowly characters like Hidden Fortress' peasants Matashichi and Tahei, the droids in A New Hope, as well as the Jedi in The Phantom Menace.

What do they all have in common? They are all the lowest-ranking characters in their respective films. Repeat: the movie frames the Jedi as almost at the bottom of the food chain.

Because of course they are. Functionally, they're just diplomats. They hold no political power whatsoever and barely have any authority .

What little authority the Jedi do have in TPM comes from the Queen's young age, which allows them to ease into a more advisory position, and Qui-Gon's rebellious streak. And even he's explicit about the fact that his mandate has limitations.

The only characters "below" them in status are Jar Jar, an exiled Gungan, and Anakin, who just yesterday was still a slave kid, Artoo the literal object and that's it!

Also the other Prequel films are consistent with this portrayal. Who do we see lower in status than the Jedi? Dexxter Jettster and the clones. Everyone else is pretty much above them.

Yes, the Jedi are part of the system, but they're not as high-ranking as you'd think. Yes, they have Force Powers, but that means squat when put against political power. So, like, to expect the Jedi to...

influence the decisions of the Senate,

wage a war against the Outer Rim to end slavery,

or blatantly refuse an order to join the war effort,

... is incredibly unreasonable.

They're not meant to be seen as "the elite, peering down upon the people from their ivory tower".

They're the servants! Servants of the Republic.

And they're seeing their higher-ups destroy what they should all stand for, but are unable to stop them.

Later on, with The Clone Wars, we are introduced to civilian characters and from their point of view, the Jedi are ultra powerful and are highly placed and "should do more but don't".

It makes sense that these characters would see the Jedi as 'the elite'. But they don't have the full picture.

We, as the audience, do.

So we know that the reality is more along the lines of the Jedi "should do more but can't".

After all, we are made privy many instances of the Jedi speaking up and trying to change politicians' minds, only to be dismissed and overruled at every turn.

↑ these aren't even all the times we see it happen, btw, there's more examples...

So at some point, if you - as an audience member - see all this and are still saying "the Jedi should've done more!" I really need to know... what more could they have done?

Take control of the Senate?

That'll result in a dictatorship, there's a reason they waited as much as they did before trying to take down Palpatine.

Power corrupts and they're wise enough to know it.

Don't join the Republic in the first place?

George Lucas never frames the Jedi's involvement with the Republic as a bad thing. In the foreword to Shatterpoint (2004), he says their being part of the Republic led to 1,000 years of prosperity.

Where's the issue, then? Well, it's a two-man job and the Jedi's bosses, the Senate, grew corrupt and stopped doing their part. They stopped carrying their end of the couch.

But “no Jedi in the Republic from the get-go” means the Sith will rise to power even faster. Fun!

Stay neutral in the war?

The Separatists were killing civilians and testing weapons on neutral systems, or enslaving them.

The choice put before the Jedi was "do what we tell you and fight, or let people die".

But also, out-of-universe... do you really think Palpatine, genius politician, master of spin, can't re-frame the Jedi staying neutral in a negative light?

When they joined the war, he unleashed propaganda that either directly (on the Separatist side) or indirectly (on the Republic side) framed them as "warmongers who corrupted their values". If they don't join, they're "apathetic cowards who care more about their own values than the lives of the people they're supposed to protect".

So either way, Order 66 comes around, wipes them out and the Republic goes "good riddance".

So what else could they do?

The answer is "not much".

Because the whole point of the narrative is that Palpatine checkmated them by taking the fight to a field the Jedi had no experience in or right to meddle with: politics.

So if you look at these characters who are nowhere near the top of the food chain, and say "well, why didn't they fix things?" I'm sorry to say you're missing the point of the narrative.

Or maybe you do get the point of the narrative and just aren't trying to be fair...

... in which case, at least be consistent and also argue:

"Why didn't Threepio & Artoo do more to save the Rebel crew of the Tantive IV from the stormtrooopers?!"

"Why didn't Matashichi & Tahei do more to save the Akizuki clan?!"

[iouinotes]

Heroic love (part 4) | Luke Castellan

pairing: Luke Castellan x female!reader

show: Percy Jackson and the Olympians

warnings: betrayal, dark romance, no verbal consent, angst, smut MINORS DONT INTERACTE

summary: Luke finds out your plan and you give in. After all, it is better to be with him than with the monsters that suround you.

authors note: The reader joins Luke rather unwillingly, even though she still loves him. I just want to say up front that Luke's threat at the end is not meant serious. He would never do something like that to her. He only does it so that she realizes that there is no other way than to join him. If it's too dark, I'm sorry... @qwertydddddddddd wanted to be tagged, so I hope you enjoy it <33

Sometimes you think to yourself, this is real love. I'm gonna marry this person. I will spend my life with them, building a home and a family.

Well thats the regular scenario, I mean for the people who are regular. Not demigods.

And you see, even though we dont have an easy life, fighting monsters, losing friends, being scared and anxious all the time, that some bad evil guy suddenly wants to rule the world- we live. Because we have to and because we have each other.

So, for me, I was prepared for it to become harsh. I always knew my life would be like sitting on a rollercoaster, never having the chance to exit.

But I found comfort in this reality. I would imagine being on this attraction, but holding onto something that grounds me. Someone that gives me strengh, so I don't lose myself.

For a long time, I held hands with Luke.

Then of course, something did go terrible wrong, as if they goddess Aphrodite wanted to watch an exciting, action packed romance movie, with the plot twist of I-hate-to-love-you-because-you-left-me trope. Something like this.

Well, I think the movie sucks. In the last months, everything was just not right- Luke leaving camp to join Kronos? Betraying everyone and kidnapping me? Showing up here, messing with me and then holding my own dagger to my throat? (Deja vu)

No, that just isnt what I Imagined to happen in the future. I didnt want my boyfriend to turn into the bad guy, who we swore to fight.

But now I guess, thats up to me. At least some part of it.

"I think Luke ist turning into Darth Vader." Sometimes I'm not sure whats going on in Percys head.

"I never heard of this monster?" Annabeths parents are so wrong for not watching Star Wars with her.

"Guys, after we discussed this, you can have your movie night. But please, let's focus." My voice sounds harsher than I intended, so I immediately feel bad about it.

"Sorry, it's just very complicated. I want to know what our next steps are, what we are planning to do with this- situation." I don't know how else to call it.

"We need information. Who is the spy? What are Kronos plans? Where will he attack? Who joined him? So many unanwered questions." Chirons voice sends a shiver down my neck. He's right, but how do we achieve it?

Percys gaze unnerves me and when I turn my head to meet his eyes, he immediately shakes his head.

"I am not letting you alone with him this time. Nope." I sign, conflicted how I would want to deal with this.

All eyes are on me and when I turn to them, I try to explain my plan. But I cant even finish my second sentence and already everyone seems to be against it.

"We cant let him out!"

"He will kill us!"

"His army is already searching for him, he would escape!"

Annabeth raises her hand and the voices calm down. As she looks at me, I sense her own doubts about the situation.

"They are right. How do you know he would trust you? Could you convince him?"

I nod my head, ignoring my doubts.

"I can."

⚔️⚔️⚔️⚔️⚔️

The moon shines beautifully in the sky, but it helps nothing to calm down my nerves. Im so stupid, why did I thought I could pull this off?

"Youre sure, you want to do this? You dont have to." Percy's standing next me, as always trying to comfort me.

"He will believe me. I always had dreams, where I thought he-" I need a moment to finish my sentence.

"-died. That he got hurt or is in pain. When I had this sort of dream, I would always sneak out of my cabin and came to him. I would walk into his cabin and he somehow always knew what happend. He would tuck me in his bed, letting me cry and cuddling me. Resurring me that everything is going to be okay, that he will live. That was always my biggest fear, that he would die and I would be helpless to do anything against it. He knows that."

We stand in silence for a moment.

"If you need me, I will be there. Just be careful." I smile at him.

I take a deep breath and go trough the doors, seeing that the only light he has, is a small lamp on the ceiling. I quicken my pace so he can hear me coming. When I stand in front of his cell, he is already on his feet. He looks alarmed.

"What-" his t-shirt is wrinkled and his eyes are sleepy. My breath catches and I don't even have to pretend to be confused and afraid, standing in front of him alone in the dark is enough.

The bars are the only thing that separates us.

At first I don't say anything, I just look at him with watery eyes. And just like I said, he knows it. He always knows.

"Another nightmare?" His voice is so gentle, it makes me remember the old days when everything was good. When he took me in his arms and wiped the tears from my cheeks.

I just nod, I don't think my voice is stable enough yet.

I have to play the role, I can do it. He has to believe me.

I slide down the wall and put my head in my hands, all the despair and pain I've been carrying for weeks suddenly coming out of me. I'm crying so hard that I'm almost afraid of waking up the others.

"Shit, princess- what can I do? Let me help, please." He sounds so desperate and it's only now that I realize, that I don't actually have to act. Because my tears are real.

"Y-you ruined everything! And I'm still s-so scared that something h-happens to you" I meet his gaze and see the remorse in his eyes. His heart hurts too.

"I didn't want something like that to happen- please, darling. Come here." Sniffling, I stand up. My knees feeling weak and unsteady. If I go in there now, I won't be able to defend myself properly.

“You hurt me, I shouldn’t even be here. You're an idiot, Luke. I hate-" but I can't bring myself to say it. I cant say that I hate him. Because I don't, at least not yet.

"I know, believe me. I hate myself too. Only your belief in me has always held me together." He grips the bars, I see the inner conflict within him.

"But you won't change. You've never been able to do that well." I know I'm right and he knows it too. Silence surrounds us.

"Let me hold you. Just for- a few minutes. Please. I can't stand seeing you like this. You've always been the sunshine in my life. I don't want my sun to be obscured."

The key jingles in my hand and I look at it uncertainly.

"I won't hurt you, never again, I promise. I also got an anklet. I can't escape." His eyes look so honest. I'm feeling nervous, my heart is beating way too fast.

I put the key in the lock and open the door, freezing in my movements for a moment. What am I doing here? But then I hear his voice and I know why.

“It’s not that comfortable on the floor, but you can sit on my lap." I close the door.

As I move towards him I see how thin he has become and how brown his eyes still are.

Slowly, he raises his hands and when I stand in front of him he puts them around my waist. My knees buckle and I sink carefully onto his lap. My hands rest uncertainly on his shoulders, then moving down to his neck. Playing with the strands of his hair, lost in thoughts.

His face is right in front of mine, both of our breaths are uneven. His hands linger on me, holding me tight to him. Warmth fills my chest as I look into his eyes.

"You're so beautiful. So, so beautiful." A sob tries to escape me, as I do something, I always loved. I put my head in the crook of his neck and wrap my arms around him.

He holds me for a few minutes, stroking my back and whispering soothing, sweet nothings in my ear.

Once I've calmed down, I'm basically lying on top of him and can hear his heartbeat. It's almost soporific.

"Luke?" my voice is calm.

His head turns to me. "Yes?"

"I...I want to be with you. I don't care how or- or where. I just know that I can't live without you." I see his eyebrows furrow.

"You dont mean-" I am silent. Just looking at him, sitting up a little, straddling him.

"I need you. I tried not to need you. But it's out of my control, nothing helps to ease the pain. Only you, only you matter."

Is it the truth if the words escape me so easily?

His hand finds my cheek and I lean into his touch.

"We're the only ones that matter. We will get through this, together and united. You don't have to fight my darling, you just have to be by my side." His hand around my waist pulls me towards him, the other one, he continues to lay on my cheek. Caressing the skin, drawing invisible heart-shapes.

Then his lips meet mine and my eyes flutter shut. The kiss so intoxicating, that I forget for a moment my real intention. Forget why I'm participating in this madness.

As he pulls away from me, I hear his whispering voice.

"You won't betray me, right? You won't do that to me?" He tugs on my hair, ever so slightly, to get my attention.

"No, Luke. I won't." Lie.

The key in my hand is no longer idle as I remove his shackles carefully.

"Then princess, let's get out of here." I slowly get off his lap, but before I stand up, he lifts me up in his arms.

"I promise you that I will never hurt you again. You deserve only the best." As cliche as it is, he carries me out of the cell, which isnt locked anymore.

He lets me down outside and breathes in the fresh air. It's still night, maybe 4 a.m. Everything is quiet.

His hands cup my face and place several kisses on my skin.

"You are incredible, I knew you would join me. For real this time." He takes my hand and intertwines our fingers. I don't see Percy anywhere.

"Let's go. I know where my troops are stationed. Nobody will notice that we're gone until it's too late."

⚔️⚔️⚔️⚔️

Joining Kronos' army was the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life, and that includes keeping the truth from Luke.

That I'm a spy for the camp, better hidden than anyone else ever could. No one would accuse or suspect the leader's girlfriend, because everyone can see how much I love him.

After all, it's the only reason I'm tolerated here. Because Luke would kill anyone who even came near me. He has already done it to a dragon lady who was too pushy and even when I tried to stop him, he showed no mercy.

Because he can't afford to do that, if he shows that he has a heart, it will be taken away from him.

Every day it is torture to witness this evil, to help maintain cover, to save my friends.

And every day I feel worse, because I lie to Luke. But it is the only way. I cannot help in the camp, if my heart is somewhere else. Here, with him, my thoughts are not always here, but my heart is.

At least it's enough for me to function. When Luke isn't distracting me.

When I wake up that morning on the Princess Andromeda, it is still quiet. In the presence of these monsters, I have not been able to sleep well for months. Even the dreams I have, make me wake up in the middle of the night and the only thing that calms me down is Luke's touch.

His fingers gently stroke my exposed skin, and as I turn my head and look at him, I see an emotion in his eyes, I've only recently noticed. There is a desire in his gaze, as if he wanted to consume my entire being, to have me just for himself.

My voice, my body, my thoughts, my feelings. Simply everything. He wants it all to be his.

"I wish I could erase every bad dream you have and send whoever is responsible for it to burn in hell. It should scare me that you make me think like that, but if I'm honest, it doesn't. Are you scared?" His eyes look into mine.

Slowly, my fingers intertwine with his. "Not when you're with me."

The next thing I notice is his lips on mine. The way his hands grip my hips and pull me onto him.

He leans towards me, his lips caress my ears and I hear his whispering voice. "Every day I hear one my followers talking about you. That they want to have you, to decorate your beautiful body with scars, with their initials." I freeze at his words, wanting to pull away and look at him, but he holds me tight. Makes me continue to listen to his voice.

"They want to see you bleed, to alternate between pain and pleasure when they push their cocks into you. Do you like that? That you are so desired? That you turn everyone's heads, when you go by and they start wanting to see my head roll? To get close to you, huh?" I want to shake my own head, but he holds me even tighter.

"Do you know how hard it is not to execute every single one of them? Do you know that? I would, if I could. I would kill every single one of them, in front of you, so that everyone knows that you belong to me. Do you understand? No one will speak to you anymore, because your voice is mine. No one will look at you, because your sight is mine. You keep your hands to yourself, no more help with injuries, I don't care if they die. Your hands only touch me."

As I start to sqirm, he leans back, keeping his hands on my hips until a finger strokes my cheek.

"No one will ever kiss you except me. And anyone who even thinks about fucking you, I will let die in battle. You may think my loyalty is to Kronos, but it is to you. My beautiful girl. Now think carefully about who you are pledging your loyalty to."

When his eyes look into mine, I fall silent. Then, even though I try not to, my voice trembles.

"What do you mean? I'm loyal to you, Luke."

His hands caress my skin, examining how the sun shines on me. I'm only wearing one of his T-shirts and my panties. His hands, stroke my bare thighs.

His eyebrows rise, slowly his fingers wrap around my panties, pulling them down until I am revealed to him. My heart is pounding so loudly in my chest, that it feels like it's about to give up. I hold my breath as he places the tip of his cock at my entrance.

What am I doing here?

"I think you're not being completely honest with me, princess. Let's try again. Who are you loyal to?" As he slowly enters me and his hands hold my hips, I moan. I lay my head back for a moment and enjoy the stretch, feeling his hands slide under my shirt and stroke over my stomach, to my breasts and to my neck.

"Luke, what's going on? I'm here with you, I'm-" But I can't finish my sentence as he plunges into me with a violent jerk, right up to the edge. My eyes roll back.

"These sweet lies that come from your lips. Of course you are here physically, but with the mind? Oh no, while I fuck you, your thoughts are on Camp Halfblood. On Jackson. Can you believe it?" His hands push my hips down until I am connected directly to him and can feel every inch inside me. I almost melt as one of his hands presses into my lower back and I move even closer to him.

When I try to answer him, my voice is a mixture of horror and pleasure. "Luke, that's not true. I only want you, I'm on your side- ahh-" Faster than I can react, he thrusts into me. Once, twice. So hard and ruthless that he hits the spot inside me, that makes me see stars. I can't concentrate.

"How I wish you would tell the truth. There's nothing to be ashamed of, sweetheart. Admit it, I already know. My girlfriend is the traitor. Behind my back, she talks to the person I hate the most and yet, she sits on my lap and rides my cock. What would Percy say about that?"

His hand wraps around my neck and holds me tight, his hips keep pounding into me and even though my brain tells me to stop, my guard is down. I want this.

"How-" But when I want to ask, he pushes me onto him again. So fast, too hard, it almost hurts, but it also feels so good.

"I have my eyes everywhere. It took me a while to figure out how to deal with it, how to deal with you. But I found a good solution. After all, Percy lets you be here, without cover, without protection. Hoping I wouldn't find out that you were passing on information. That I wouldn't hurt you."

His last sentence makes me tense up, but even though his face twists in amusement for a brief moment, he doesn't stop talking.

"Your pussy won't save you either. And since I have given you my word, I will not harm you. I found a better punishment. A choice."

He suddenly stops moving and I almost cry, wanting to move myself, but he takes my face in his hand, tightly. Focusing all attention on him.

"Either you stop your underhanded loyalty to Jackson immediately and serve me, or I will make the wishes of everyone behind this door come true and you will be used like a beautiful, little doll. From each one of them, I assure you. But after that, you won't be so beautiful anymore."

Tears well up my eyes, whether it's from the tight grip he's holding on me or from his words, I can't tell. And I'm scared, it feels like I'm being buried alive. With no prospect of ever being able to breathe or be free again.

Without me saying anything, he starts moving inside me again, letting my hips sink onto his. I breathe in loudly.

"Come on, move. Your choice. It's either my cock or anyone else's."

When I look at him, the person I once loved has disappeared. It's like looking at a stranger.

My heart feels like it's been stolen and in the back of my mind I realize, that I should have never gone with him.

But then I close my eyes, put my hands on his shoulders for support and sink down onto him. Again and again, even stronger. Until my thighs shake and tears run down my cheeks. Until I hear Luke's quiet voice again.

"If you think you are strong enough to be like me, treacherous, cold-hearted and ruthless, then I have to disappoint you. Your heart will be soft forever unless the world hardens it. I will protect you for that, princess. Forget camp halfblood, you only serve me now."

His lips are hot on my skin, a strong contrast to my heart, which feels like it's made of ice.

And when I receive the next secret sign from Annabeth a few days later, I ignore it.

[cupidsdescendant]

"Teufelstanz" Medic X Y/N (SMUT)

He waltzed alone, his feet slowly glided on the smooth marble of the medbay. The muffled sound of Al Bowlly's "Midnight The Stars And You" played from the outside but inside it was like a ballroom, and Medic was the star of it. As an old man, reminiscing his younger days when he was still in school filled him with sweet melancholy. Medic had needed a break from such an exhausting day, taking care of the mercenaries had sucked all the life out of him. Having this moment for himself meant the world. Piles of dusty vinyls were piled on top of his paperwork, and a huge record player sat on his office chair. Young Medic was an outcast. He didn't have many friends or lovers despite how handsome he was, he kept to himself and found comfort in isolation in a world of war and destruction. Medic let his fingertips dance with the piano in the background and followed along. He kept his eyes shut, he knew where he was going. His mind slowly wandered from being in the cold room to back at his school's prom, everyone stared and awed at his movement, how slow and delicate they were. With years of bullying everyone believed he was a sporadic freak but that night everyone was proven very, very wrong. He owned that dance floor for those last hours and had everyone starstruck with the talent he possessed.

And there he was, at the climax of his dance, the ending that would bring a raging encore- a small knock interrupted. "Who IS it?" He opened his eyes quickly and straightened his back. His fists tightened into a frustrated ball as he tilted his head to the silent door. "Hey, Doc" Y/N's sweet voice responded with, "You told me that I had a checkup?" Medic's eyes widened and his mouth turned into an irritated frown. He looked over to the clock showing that the hours had passed and it is, indeed time for Y/N's checkup. "I know it's late but, I mean that's when you told me to come. It's totally fine if you can't have me right now, I can wait tomorrow-"

"You can come in, Y/N" Medic said endearingly. Without the knowledge of Y/N he was rolling his eyes agitatedly.

"Relax jour knee." Medic kneeled one leg down and kept his other up. He slouched over with an arthroscope to your exposed legs. He tapped your knee with the arthroscope twice and grabbed his clipboard, writing his results down. "How long have we been doing this?" Y/N said as she fiddled her thumbs together. "About 15 minutes." "And when do you think it'll end?" Medic gave a slightly annoyed glare to the chatty girl. "When jou stop talking." His shoulder twitched as if he was brushing something off and walked away from Y/N to the operating table. He took out a sheet and laid it down, smoothing it out and opening a bag of new, clean utensils. Y/N stared around quietly, slightly embarrassed at his response. Her eyes landed on his cramped desk filled with his vinyls and other papers. She smiled a little "Someone had a dance party." she added a small chuckle to her witty remark. "Nein." He replied, trying to give as little emotion as possible. "Well you sure were dancing for a while" Medic shot his head back to find Y/N standing up, running her hands through the vinyls and shuffling through the covers "You have great taste, Mr.Ludwig." She cocked her head back to see a tense Medic. His shoulders raised and his hands less relaxed than they were before. His face reddened, red as his gloves and looked away. "Zhat's...Medic to you, and Danke schön. "AI Bowlly's work is...beautiful" Y/N pulled up his "Sweet As a Song" album. "His song crafting is immaculate. ...I didn't know jou had such a keen eye-" He said adjusting his glasses and letting the glare slightly hit off. The air was silent for a minute but then, Y/N broke it with a soft hum. She continues it and followed along with singing the lyrics to Blue Hawaii.

"Dreams come true in Blue Hawaii,"

"And mine could all come true this magic night of nights with you"

Her singing wasn't the most beautiful in the world but she didn't sound bad. A little flat, but she was human. The authenticity of it all made up for it. Medic looked over to Y/N's back and his lips parted, eager to yell and scream how excited he was to find another person that loved the same artist as him but he let her continue, staying silent. She could feel him looking at her. She could feel him in awe. She opened her mouth but before she could speak Medic's voice had sung back in response. "Come with me while the moon is on the sea" Medic's boots followed from behind, the clomping of them alerting Y/N that the man was about to be inches away from her. Y/N's heart sunk in anticipation and she laid the vinyl back onto the desk. She looked down to her feet and held her hands together, her lips parting once she couldn't hear his boots. Y/N let Medic sing, "The night is young and so are we" he cooed, a tiny ring echoed in her ears indicating that he was right behind her. "So are we...." Y/N she sang back. She felt her cheeks become hot, unbearably hot when she felt the man's hand brush up against her. He rested it on the table and Y/N held her breath for a second before taking a deep breath in, realizing her anxiety. "And mine could all come true," "this magic night of nights with you" They caroled together, and a loud snort broke the intimacy. Y/N roared in laughter and looked back to a flushed Medic, her face full of joy. "My god!" She yipped out. "That was absolutely, positively angelic, Mr.Ludwig!" She gripped the straps of his shirt and pushed him closer to her face. She looked longingly into his eyes and grinned "You sure did give it your all, did you?" Medic's face, still extremely flushed let out a chuckle. His lips quivered and he readjusted his glasses once again (he does it when he's anxious) "Vell...I guess I did, haha-...Jou was beautiful yourself." He put his hand on Y/N's back and learned in. The both bathed in their eyes and a small grin crept onto Medic's face. "How...how about we finish that checkup, hm?" He pulled her by her hand and a small "Oh!" fell accidentally out of her mouth. Y/N had followed Medic's steps and they both danced their way over to the operating table, with a final spin and the room full of giggles Y/N laid down. "What are you going to do now?" She said cooingly, resting her hand on her chest and looking up at him. Medic took his gloves off and washed his hands thoroughly in the sink. "Well..." he said as he dried his hands off "We must make sure you're internal organs are okay." "What does that mean?" She questioned. He slid a chair to the corner of the table where Y/N's torso lay and he rested his hands on where her lower pelvis. "I must do a pelvic exam. Ve want to make sure jou're healthy under there, no?" He turned his hand into your inner thigh and bit his lip, releasing it and smiling innocently at her. "It won't hurt at all. Now are jou ready?" Y/N's heartbeat sunk and her breath quickened, all of the nerves in her body had a sudden physical rush of heat and she looked deeply into Medic's taunting blue eyes. "Is this...really needed.?" She protested. He let a loud roar of amusement out and sweetly stared at her, "Fräulein, it would be in both of our best interests to know you're in good shape." She stared at him from the operation table as she felt his hands trace her hip bones and her stomach “I promise it won’t hurt.” A smirk was raised from his mouth. “Now could you take your pants off?”

She fumbled her button and unzipped her zipper, from the angle her pants had gotten stuck to her thighs. Medic chuckles and grabbed the denim that covered her ankles. “Here, I can help with that.” Quickly, he pulled them off leaving Y/N flushed, the shock of it coming off so fast and the coldness of the room had left her shaking. Her eyes had shut as she held herself, her hands moving up her forearms and shoulders trying to keep herself warm. She felt a cold finger curl up against her panties, leaving a small gap exposed. Y/N opened her eyes to find medics' index finger, eagerly waiting to slide her panties off. “Do you mind?” He said amorously. She nodded and the undoing of her panties had left her bare and cold. Medic grabbed her knee and pulled it up “It’s okay, Fräulein. There’s no reason to be tense.” But there was. She was soaking at this point. She could feel herself throbbing already, she was limp from her knees down. She was holding herself but her nipples were rock hard. It was embarrassing and perverted knowing how his fingers will enter her but “just for an examination…” so why did she feel this way? "If it'll help you, I suggest taking a deep breath." His eyes were gentle and he seemed remarkably calm. Y/N followed his instructions and on the count of 3 inside her head she took a deep breath, letting the cold air itch her nose. She clenched her body and let out a stunned gasp as his fingers entered her, pushing up against her pelvis and curling inside. "That's it, there we go..." Medic gave out a tiny scoff and his cheeks reddened, his index and middle finger turned to the corner and nudged her a few times, forcing Y/N's grasp to strengthen. "I'm very surprised, Fräulein...you didn't need any lubricant." He extended his thumb and it pinched down onto Y/N's clit. "Doctor-!" She screamed out loud, and she slammed her hand onto Medic's shoulder, arousing the man further and him rubbing his thumb over her clit faster, pulling it gently down and up. His fingers moved back and forth, letting the sounds fill the room and take over. Pushing his thumb and moving her clit up Y/N's shortened breath stopped as she released a built-up tension and came into his hands. She gave out a long-winded whimper, Medic looking at her pooched lips and her heavy eyes. "Hm...seems like you're quite healthy."

He took two fingers and opened her lips, letting her cum pour slowly out of her. "Fräulein...say, have you been having any difficulties with...arousal?" His eyes glanced up in a sort of predator way, ready to pounce on her. "A bi-it" she said, mustering the courage to reply. "Well then...how about we try another test?" He smiled, exposing his sharp teeth. Pushing her legs on top of his shoulders, he grabbed the insides of her thighs and pulled Y/N close into his grasp, leaning in and almost suffocating her with how big he is. His bulge rubbed against her exposed parts and Y/N felt something wet on the side of her neck. She clenched her hands onto Medic's back as she felt his tongue glaze the part of her neck that connects to her shoulders, she was to her breaking point. "are jou ready?" hi everyone ^w^ this was in my drafts for MONTHS. I had a very busy summer so i meant to get it done early but now that i finally finished I'm ready to take on requests :D hope you enjoY!!!

[randomfandomdreaming]

My Reality Shifting Experience

Otherwise known as the post I meant to do after work one day and forgot.

Long post incoming. You've been warned lol

Word Count: 1,601

Please keep in mind that what works for me may not work for someone else. My spirituality, beliefs, and practices come solely from my experiences, and not what I've read on the internet. I did have to do some minor research for this post so that I could put commonly used names to what I do. I also only talk about the Star Wars galaxy as that is the only one I have actively shifted to. I know there are others, but I genuinely can't remember them.

What is "reality shifting"? Reality shifting, as a definition, is the practice of transferring or moving your consciousness to another world/universe/dimension/whatever you wish to call it. It can be fictional or not. This destination is usually referred to as your "desired reality", or DR for short. Your current reality or original reality (CR or OR, respectively) is the one you're probably reading this post from.

Here's where things start to get a little messy, at least for me. I personally put reality shifting under the same umbrella as astral projection and anything similar, as these various methods are just that to me. Different methods and names for the same exact thing: A way to interact with the areas that our universe has allowed us to have. To keep everything simple, I'll refer to these methods as reality shifting.

I've been shifting to the wondrous galaxy found in the Star Wars franchise since I was just eight years old. I first encountered Obi-Wan Kenobi and Mace Windu on the street here on our very own planet mere days after first discovering the franchise. I had only seen one episode, and had only been introduced to Obi-Wan, Anakin Skywalker, and a few other characters. Yet here was a Jedi Master introducing himself as Mace Windu before I had ever even heard of the character. That single episode was my first exposure to the franchise. I didn't even know about Master Yoda yet.

When I first started shifting, I had no control over it. Sometimes I still don't. I genuinely don't know how I do it, as I don't really use any well known methods in order to do it. The first time I ever encountered anything to do with reality shifting was completely by accident, as they found me. But the stronger my connection to the people in that galaxy became, the easier it was to make the connection and shift.

Realities overlapping is quite commonplace. There have been times where the image of Obi-Wan or someone else has quite literally flickered into existence, even including the area just round them, allowing me a glimpse of where they currently are. I've been told the same has also occurred on their end. There were even some times where It wasn't just an image, but the realities literally colliding, allowing us to actually converse as if we weren't in galaxies several parsecs away, but instead standing right next to each other in one galaxy or the other.

Some of the physical interactions I've had:

The very first meeting with Master Windu and Obi-Wan.

Someone who looked exactly like a clone trooper (height, looks, everything) once entered my history classroom in third grade to speak with my teacher. Being a child, I asked him outright if he was a clone, and he responded by saying no while laughing after looking at me scared. His expression is one of the few I will never forget.

A Patrolian in the park in my town.

A metal statue cut clean through in another park in my town. Parts of it were melted along the cut. The cut was also too straight for anything we could possibly use. It was cut in one fluid motion.

Hearing the rattle of clone armor by the lake near my apartment. My roommate heard it as well. We were the only ones around and it was the middle of the night.

Almost every physical interaction I've had has had someone else confirm that they were indeed physically there (I was the only one who saw the Patrolian).

One of the most interesting things about this experience as a whole is how much actually carries over to here. Mannerisms, beliefs, even abilities have transferred to this galaxy.

For example, with the Force, you're able to sense another being's presence, even distinguish exactly who it is. Every living thing, from the largest sentient being to the smallest organism, has their own unique presence in the Force. One thing that has carried over for me is a very diluted version (best way I can describe it) of being able to sense a presence.

Things I've learned about the SW galaxy through shifting:

They actually have a name for their galaxy. It's called the "Virdon Galaxy".

They know of other galaxies and have named them as well, regardless if the occupants of said galaxy call it that or not. They call the Milky Way galaxy (our galaxy) the "Retuura Galaxy". They also call Earth "Areen", Mercury "Bentuu", and Pluto "Virk". The other planets never came up in any conversations.

Our entire planetary system was never charted on any official star maps prior to Master Windu and Obi-Wan's visit. I was never told why.

They consider us a backwater planet and very primitive. Don't be offended. A lot of backwater planets get overlooked, and during the Clone War, that can be a really good thing sometimes.

The clones are some of the greatest people you'll ever meet. It's like having a giant family of protective brothers you didn't know you wanted. That being said, they're still soldiers, and men. They talk very coarsely. A lot. Especially when they think younglings can't hear them. Those men have absolutely no filter when they think they're just with their brothers.

The timeline we know to be canon within the franchise is not the actual timeline there. The franchise has been made for entertainment, rather than accuracy. I first met Obi-Wan while the Clone War was ravaging the galaxy. I've also met Qui-Gon Jinn, who unfortunately did perish later on in the Clone War during a mission. In the franchise, he perishes on Naboo.

Time doesn't move the same for each of our galaxies. There have been times where a month has passed here, and only a week has passed there, as well as vice versa. Time is genuinely an illusion with our galaxies.

Force abilities, whether from a natural born being of this galaxy or a Jedi from Coruscant, are weaker in our system than any other known location. Obi-Wan had once mentioned to me that being in this system dulled his senses, as if the system was almost non-existent in the Force. The Council tried to look into it, but not a single member could figure why.

These are all things I learned before I even turned ten. Yes, children have very active imaginations, but there are certain things that not even a child should be able to come up with. I was a very sheltered child, being raised in the church (I won't say what one) by my grandmother. There were certain things I never knew about, let alone even think to research. Anything related to astral projection, reality shifting, or other things considered more spiritual were never exposed to me until I was almost eighteen. So how would an eight year old youngling come up with the idea of practically being an experiment of the Jedi Order? Especially when there were physical interactions. (I say experiment because that's essentially what my training started out being. The Council wanted to see if someone from this Force-starved system could even be trained in the Force. So, quite literally an experiment.)

As for methods? That is unfortunately where my knowledge on the subject ends. Some people write out, or script, where they want to go, what will happen, everything about their desired reality. Some people prefer to meditate before attempting to shift, while others simply jump into it. What's important is that you find what works best for you. Not what works for your parent or your best friend, but for you. Trust your feelings, but do your research. If something feels right or wrong, then it probably is. There's no "one method fits all".

Don't be discouraged if you don't shift on your first try. Some people are more naturally inclined to shifting than others. It's not uncommon for someone to not shift on their first try. It takes practice. Even I still have to practice and I've been doing it for years.

I know this post is slightly all over the place, so if you need clarification on anything or have any questions, please don't hesitate to send me an ask. Please know that any asks I receive (if any) will be posted to benefit anyone else who may have a similar, if not the same, question as long as they are reasonable. Feel free to use the anon option if you don't want your blog name to be shown.

Whether you believe something like this is possible or not, please be respectful to those who believe and have experienced things themselves. Just because someone else was not around for something that someone experiences doesn't mean that it isn't real. We don't truly know what all could be out there. We can barely make it to other planets of our system with robots, let alone vessels that can transport living beings. Things such as reality shifting may seem insane to some, but they are very real to others.

[mrssimply]

WIP Wednesday

People, I have WIPs, as in WIPs, plurals! Amazing! And I remebered it was wednesday, the consecrated day for WIPS, which is amazing, too!

I'm writing two things:

Invictus - which will be a retelling of Phantom Liberty if it happened after storming the tower and with Johnny back in his body, but V still dying. Let's have a look.

The same link that allowed them to communicate without speaking also meant that Johnny sometimes swore he could feel V’s pain physically, like their brains and bodies didn’t get the memo they were separate again. It made situations like this particularly unbearable to the former terrorist, who was ready to snap at the client to wrap it up. Maybe feeling the change in pace and atmosphere, the client let the end of his sentence trail off and nodded when V repeated the fee for the job and told him it would be done within two days. The guy got up, held out his hand to shake but V made no move to stand. Johnny did, crossing his arms and giving the man one of his patented smirk. “Alright, fuck off now, we got other biz to do,” he said with a drawl. He didn’t care if people thought he was an asshole, he liked it even, but he needed to preserve V’s reputation.  The guy scowled, then shrugged like he was above Johnny’s pettiness, and gave a final nod to V, who returned it with a somewhat apologetic smile. It was tight around the edge, but probably invisible for anyone who didn’t know the king of the Afterlife well. The moment the man’s back was turned, Johnny waved his hand at Claire in a motion they’d agreed on. She didn’t even break her pace in handling client drinks to acknowledge him, but took control of the audio system. “Hey folks, you benevolent King is offering you a free drink right now! Come by the bar to get it,” she singsonged, and the result was immediate. People rushed to get there first under her booming laugh. In the commotion, no one saw V’s slump against the couch with an expression of pure pain on his face. They didn’t catch Johnny picking him up with difficulty because of all the chrome in his body that turned him into a fucking dead weight. Grunting, Johnny hoisted him over his shoulder and half carried him to the back room. “Johnny,” V warned right in his ear as they pushed through the excited crowd of mercs and clients. “I got you,” the man mumbled back, playing elbows to clear the way. He could hear V’s taking very small and cautious breaths, fighting down the nausea that usually came with the episodes nowadays.  They finally crossed the door to the back alley, and Johnny sped up when he heard V grunt and swallow heavily. They barely made it to the backroom before V was falling forward, nearly bringing Johnny down with him as he heaved into the bucket strategically placed here. Unfortunately, it wasn’t their first rodeo.

And the second one is a Jedi AU. Note that I didn't call it a Star Wars AU, since I'll be mixing the game's events with Jedi lore, but it won't have any link with Star Wars. Maybe. (bellow the cut to prevent post from being too long)

The skies opened with a thundering noise and a white flash of light, before rain started pouring down. V was drenched in a few seconds as he stood, arrested by the vision in front of him. Standing on the parapet, balanced despite the howling winds around him, stood the Renegade. His silver and ebony robes were whipping around him, revealing his black boots and the hem of just as dark pants. It felt effortless, how he stood there, held by the Force and his own will, toying with the void V knew was waiting on the other side.The man seemed unbothered by the lack of exit at his disposal, looking straight at V.  His eyes were dark, so much they appeared black, only crossed by a glitter of white when another lightning bolt illuminated the sky. Locks of black hair were escaping a lazy bun and dancing over his face. One got caught at the corner of his mouth, bringing V’s attention to their redness, and the paleness of the skin surrounding it. It was broken by a scruffy beard peppered with white.  He was waiting, calm and attentive. As V hesitated, Reed’s voice echoed in his head : “You want justice for your friend, V, and Silverhand is the key to that. We will shed light on this affair, I give you my word.” The Jedi Master’s serene trust in the Order was always a balm when V lost perspective of the goal.  The young master reaffirmed his grip over his saber, and widened his stance to adopt his preferred defensive form.  The renegade looked at him passively, the only change in his attitude a small tilt to the side, like he was amused by V. “I’m here to bring you to the Order for judgment,” V finally declared with strength. He breathed in deep, feeling the Force respond to his call and that, above everything else, appeased him. The saber came to life, bathing V in soft green light. it was like the winds were forming a cocoon around them now. The Renegade moved, his robes parting to allow V a view of the metal arm that gave him his moniker.  He jumped down the parapet on the soft grass of the terrasse, his movements graceful and light, like a cat.  “Give me your name, Jedi,” Silverhand said, mocking mirth coloring his inquiry. The young knight felt a spike of annoyance that he snuffed out with another deep breath. Strangely, it made his opponent smile wider. “My name is V.” “V…” he repeated with a smirk. “Just a letter. Concise.”  Then, with a flourish, he let his coat fall to the ground, revealing a sleeveless black top that gave V an unencumbered view of his silver arm. “Don’t think I need to introduce myself,” he drawled, catching his lightsaber as it jumped into his infamous hand. V’s focus was on his feet, though, which looked like the first stance of Djem So and it surprised him a bit. It wasn’t a typical darksider’s opening. The Jedi’s eyes jumped up when he heard the familiar sound of the lightsaber coming to life… Only for air to stall in his lungs.  He’d expected red, or at least orange, but the Renegade was wielding a saber of pure white light like V had never seen.

As always, couldn't really chose a small snippet, sorry for the long post.

Both are going to be long fic, but there is no telling when or even if they will ever be finished, since inspiration and writing block have been at war for about a year now.

Do tell me if you want more, I think I might need encouragment this time!

[kyberblade]

Shatter - Gone Rogue (Din x Reader)

A/N: They’re back! These weirdos that I love poked my brain until I couldn’t ignore them. I really hope you love it. We have Fennec and Boba making a guest appearance, too! This is Part 3 in the Shatter-verse. The reader has a name in this fic, but that’s the only descriptor of her. Past that, nothing else, I don’t think. I still use “you” mostly, the name is only used a handful of times. This was meant to be a multi chapter fic, but it’s just not wanting to translate that way, so it’s going to be a series of one shots and a whiff of continuity. Please feel free to send me scenarios, prompts, requests for these crazy kids! Just remember to stick to the rules.

I do not own Star Wars or it’s characters. Sadly. But I carry them in my heart. Does that count for something? My soul says yes.

Warnings: Snark, Grogu being the cutest thing you ever did see, Din is a warning in and of himself in this one. Typical show violence. Light swear words. Space swearing. Mando’a. Like a lot of it. (Translations at the end of each sentence as I go.) My Mandalorians do what they want. Banter. So much banter. And you’ll probably fall in love with them like I did. (I don’t make the rules.)

Word count: 11,934

Thanks to @grippingbeskar​ for encouraging me, looking over this for me, and being the one to introduce me to Din fanfiction in the first place, getting me hooked. You are fantastic and I always love our chats.

Also a shout out to @what-the-heckin-heck​, @dontletyourchildrenwatchthis, @lloweryourstandardss​, and @fordo-kixed-rex for reading it over for me as I went and telling me I wasn’t crazy. (And @deceiver-of-gods​ for helping me with the Mando’a - You’re a life saver.) (Any mistakes are my own.)

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Xxx

You twisted the wrench as you tightened the bolt under the Crest, the ship’s shadow blocking you from the scalding heat of Tatooine’s twin suns. 

“There. I think that’s it, Peli. Wanna test it out before I move?”

“Sure!” She called, jogging up the ramp and into the cockpit. Her voice came over the comm in your pocket a few seconds later, “You ready?”

“As I’ll ever be,” you muttered, wiping sweat from your brow. “Wait!” The engines that had started to power up came to an abrupt halt.

“What?” Peli asked urgently.

“Do I need to have Mando hand me my helmet or something? As protection? In case, I don’t know, something pops off and flies straight for my-”

Her loud guffaw rang throughout the hangar from your comm as you glared at it, unimpressed. “You’ll be fine,” she wheezed, trying to catch her breath as she muttered your words back under her breath in a fit of giggles. “Starting the engines now.”

The ship roared above you, vibrating just slightly to show its displeasure at being finely tuned. Oh well. It was better than the clunking. 

“All looks fine up here,” came her voice over the comm as the engines powered down. “You can close her up and come out. Good job.”

Smiling, you mumbled a thanks, starting to scooch out of the tight space when her voice crackled through again, making you pause.

“Hey, wait. When did you finish this interior?”

You squinted as the suns moved just enough to be in your eyes. “Um, in the last few days, I think. You mean on the lower level?”

“Yeah….” Her voice sounded distant, amazed, moving away from the comm like she was turning around.

“Within the last few days. Mando finished it up while I did the wiring with you in the cockpit.” You dragged your gloved hand down your face, bringing it up to block out the suns. “Looks good, doesn’t it?”

“Looks very good,” she agreed. “Almost makes me wish I could go somewhere in this ship. Almost.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” Din said dryly, standing by your head.

Pulling your hand down quickly, you glared up at him, reaching out to whack his leg. “Kriff! You scared me! Don’t do that!”

Peli’s laughter barked over the comm once again, soon coming around the corner to join Din’s in real time as she stood beside you. “Need some help? I can get R5 to tow you out a few feet if you need-”

You glared at her, making her snicker. “No, I’m good, thanks. I can manage.” Wiggling back a few inches, you let out a huff before holding a hand out toward Din. “Help your bodyguard out?”

“If anyone attacked right now, I’d be-”

“Don’t say it,” you grumbled.

“I mean, you’re just laying down on the job,” he continued, grabbing your shoulders and pulling you the rest of the way out before offering you a hand to help you up. 

“You’re-”

Once you were on your feet again, Din pulled you close, speaking in a low and teasing voice, “It’s a wonder no one’s snuck in here yet.”

“I was about to say the same thing,” a familiar female voice rang out behind him, making you both turn with blasters drawn. “Hello, Mando.”

“Fennec,” he said on a sigh, lowering his weapon.

“Again?!” Peli lamented. “There is a door, you know.”

“And a lovely door it is,” a familiar man’s voice drawled. A tall bald man in beskar walked up casually, one hand resting on his belt, the other cradling a matching Mandalorian helmet against his side. He tipped his head in respect towards Din. “Hello, old friend.”

You moved to stand in front of him, the man and the woman chuckling. 

“You can tell your attack dog to stand down anytime now,” the woman said in a droll tone, making her way down from the rafter she sat on.

The man laughed softly. “Attack dog? No, no, this is his shadow!” He gestured to you with his free hand. “Everyone knows the shadow of a Mandalorian is the most dangerous part, because if you’ve lingered long enough to see it, odds are you’re probably within striking distance.”

You smirked. “I don’t mind you.” Turning your blaster on the woman, you gestured to her with the weapon. “You, I’m not so crazy about, but I have a feeling that’ll change.”

Din put his hand on your shoulder, sliding it down your arm to make you lower your blaster. “Ti, this is Fennec Shand and Boba Fett.”

Disengaging your blaster, you holstered it. “The ones who gave us the piece of shi- I mean ship.”

Boba laughed loudly while Fennec rolled her eyes with a small grin. “That would be me,” he chuckled. “She was in horrible shape when I found her, but look at her now!” He gestured to the ship behind you. “Got you here in one piece and she’s sparkling.”

“Because I flew her here,” you grumbled, smiling when Boba laughed again. You liked him. He brought a joy into a room. Walking up, you offered your hand, which he took and gave a firm shake. “Ti Jyrr. Head of strategy and tactics, and temporary head of security. Also currently a bodyguard to the Mand’alor and the child until we can get back home.”

Boba’s eyes lit up. “Speaking of, where is the foundling?”

“Asleep on the ship,” Din stepped up beside you. “He’s her shadow, follows her everywhere. Tired him out early today after she convinced him to chase Peli’s droids around the hangar for a few hours.”

Peli let out a surprised huff of laughter. “That was you? That was the cutest thing I have ever seen. Plus, getting R5 to finally wind down and connect to a charging dock for once - ah! Blissful silence - you’re a magician!”

“I think it was just trying to get away from Grogu,” you smirked, shrugging. “But hey, it all worked out.” Turning back to the newcomers, you jerked your head back toward the ship. “Would you like a tour? I need to wake the kid up, anyway, or he’ll wake up right when I go to sleep and start jumping on my bed or something.”

“That would be lovely,” Boba smiled before his features adopted something a little more serious. He set his helmet on a nearby table before he brought his hands together to rest in front of him. “Then, after that, if we could have a….” He looked at Fennec before turning back to you and Din. “Discussion of sorts? A business proposition is more like it.”

Sharing a look with Din, you nodded once to him. “I can watch the kid so the three of you-”

“Oh no, this would involve you, too.” Boba’s voice made you stop short.

“I can watch the womp rat,” Peli chimed in softly, her hand raised as if you didn’t know who was speaking. “I owe ya one after you got R5 on the dock earlier.”

You shared one more look with Din before he turned to Boba and Fennec. “Sounds like a plan. Now come on. I want to show you what we did with the hyperdrive.”

Xxx

Grogu squawked across the hangar in Peli’s arms as she fed him, the sound bouncing off every surface and echoing into the cool night air.

You and Din sat across from Boba and Fennec at a small table off to the side, parts for all sorts of craft shoved out of the way so you could see one another.

“I have a proposition for you,” Boba began on a sigh, leaning forward on the table to brace on his forearms. “Someone has stolen from me. Wormed his way into my inner circle and as soon as he had an opening, made off with a small fortune in credits.”

He leaned back in his chair, lounging almost. “Now, you know the credits aren’t a problem for me, I don’t care about that.” He leaned forward again, his eyes determined as his finger jammed into the table to emphasize his words. “It’s the principle of the thing.”

“What do you want us to do about it?” Din adjusted in his seat to recline slightly, one hand resting on the table.

“We have enough people to keep the ports and ways out of town under surveillance,” Fennec took over. “He’s not going anywhere. But by keeping everything under watch, we don’t have the manpower to actually look for him.”

“And you think just the two of us is enough?” Both of them looked at you in amusement.

“Two Mandalorians is more than enough.” Boba chuckled. “He’s not a genius by any means.”

“He was smart enough to get past you.”

Din kicked your foot under the table with his own, making you roll your eyes.

Boba looked on in amusement. “That he was,” he agreed with a nod. “Probably because I don’t have someone like you keeping watch for me. Then again, we did sneak up on you today, did we not?”

Crossing your arms over your chest, you looked across the hangar absently, not willing to dignify that with an answer.

“These things happen,” he continued, his voice softer. “I just want to make an example so it doesn’t happen again.”

“We wanted to give you first go at it before we put out a puck.” Your eyes finally landed on Fennec as she explained, a smirk growing on her face. “Figured you’d want some fun before you had to get off planet. And like Boba said, credits aren’t a problem, so your finders fee should help keep your life on the run well funded.”

“What are friends for,” Boba drawled teasingly, his focus across the table on Din.

“I’m assuming you want him alive,” he finally said after a long moment, sitting up straight in his chair.

“Preferably,” Boba nodded, the corners of his lips turning up slightly. “But should something…. happen, I’m not going to deduct anything from the final total.”

“Can you send us copies of city maps we can add to our navs in our helmets?” All three heads turned to you. “It’ll be much easier if we’re not getting lost in the maze of back alleys and market stalls.”

Boba looked at Fennec before he turned back to you with an amused look and nodded.

“I’m also assuming you don’t want any damage done to the city? Or at least, as little as possible?” You turned to Din. “I have some blasters with decent stun features I picked up at the market the other day when I made a food run. Might be best to avoid the most civilian casualties and property damage, then if we get close enough to him and get a clear shot, should we need to, we can switch it over.”

“You went blaster shopping on a food run?” Din asked after a moment of silence.

You shrugged. “I’m a Mandalorian. Weapons are part of my religion.”

“This is the way,” Boba teased.

Din groaned, making you smile. Leaning forward to offer Boba his hand across the table, they shook on it. “We have a deal. We’ll start first thing in the morning.”

After getting the man’s details, talking over the prices, and getting the necessary maps, you all said goodbye.

“It was an honor to meet you,” you said as you stood beside Din near the doorway on their way out.

“The honor is all mine,” Boba said, his head inclined as he looked down at you. “I’m excited to see you work, Ti.”

“If it all goes to plan, you won’t notice a thing.”

He chuckled at that, looking to Din and bowing his head respectfully. “Mand’alor.” Then they disappeared into the night.

Turning to Din, he turned to face you before you both began walking back into the hangar. “Why don’t you go grab Grogu, let Peli get to sleep, and I’ll meet you on the ship. Show you what all I bought.”

He nodded, his steps speeding up as he headed toward the little alcove where R5’s bleeps and Grogu’s squeaks were heard echoing softly.

You went up the ramp of the Crest, going to the weapons cabinet where you had stored your recent purchases and pulled a few out.

Din padded up the ramp quietly a few minutes later, a sleeping Grogu in his arms, making you smile as he passed by. “He passed out almost as soon as she handed him off,” Din said on an amused huff.

Setting Grogu in his small hammock before he closed the door to the bunk area, he turned back to you and sighed, rubbing the top of his helmet absently. 

“What’s wrong?” You set the blasters down and turned to fully face him.

“She can’t watch him tomorrow. Has some job she agreed to before we got here.” He leaned on the wall next to the bunk door. “I used to take him with me on bounties, but….”

“That was when you were on the run because of the bounty on him. Now we’re on the run basically because of a bounty on you.” 

Din lifted his head, his visor meeting your understanding gaze, nodding gently before he looked away again.

“Hey, the bounty is basically on both of us.” You took a step closer, craning your neck back, tilting your head just slightly to try and catch his eyes. “You don’t get to take all the blame, Djarin. Whatever is going on, it’s a problem for all Mandalorians, and we aren’t the kind to just hide under a rock.” Looking over his shoulder, you studied the wall behind him. “Well, except for coverts, but we aren’t talking about that.”

He snorted out a laugh, making you return your eyes to his visor and grin up at him. “He doesn’t care. He loves spending the day with you. Just bring him with.” Your hand came to rest on his upper arm.

“I don’t want to put him in any more danger. If anything happened to him because of me, I-”

“Then I’ll take him with me.” He finally met your gaze again. “I’ll keep him safe. Do you trust me?”

After a moment Din nodded. “You know I do.”

“Then it’s settled.” You squeezed his arm before letting your hand fall back to your side. “I’ll take him in the cradle. I’ll keep him safe. Nothing will happen to him.”

Lifting his head all the way back up, Din looked behind you. Gesturing with a jut of his chin, he asked quietly, “What’s under the tarp?”

Turning to face the nearby crate draped in the dull fabric, you made your way over to it. “They didn’t know what they had. It’s all pieced out and needs a good clean, Peli might even have some parts you could replace these with if they’re too far gone, but…. I thought you might want it after all the stories you’ve told me while we’ve been working on the ship.”

“Stories?” Din looked down at the crate as you pulled the cloth away, showing old rusty pieces that put together would be an Amban rifle. 

“You mentioned you lost it with the ship, and since you have the ship again….”

Din traced the parts with one gloved hand, his fingers barely touching the storied metal pieces. 

“Since we’re fighting for our home, our values, our everything, it only seemed right that you do it with this. Thought it might help restore your faith a little bit.” You winked.

“Thank you,” he spoke softly, his hand coming to rest on your upper arm like yours had on his. “I…. This is…. Thank you.”

“Now, don’t stay up all night putting it together,” you warned. “You need sleep. And it’ll be here later.”

He looked at you with a tilt of his head that said, you’re crazy.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” You smirked. “I’ll help.”

Xxx

As the suns began to peek over the lip of the hangar the next morning, Din stood just inside the Crest admiring the completed Amban rifle.

He held it in his hands, tilting it back and forth to see it from all angles, his head tilting fondly the longer he stared. 

Letting out a massive yawn from where you sat on a nearby crate, you smirked at him. “Why don’t you just ask it to marry you already? That’d be faster than whatever this is.” You made a small circular gesture to him with your hand, arching your brow when he lifted his visor to look at you for the first time in hours.

Before he could say anything, the bunk door slid open to your right, Grogu already bright eyed and chittering happily after a good night's rest.

“Jate vaar'tur, ad’ika,” you said softly, yawning again as you reached for the tiny green creature ambling over to you as fast as his little legs would carry him. “Did you sleep well?” Reaching down, you scooped him into your lap, chuckling when he screeched joyfully. (“Good morning, little one.”)

The kid reached out and grabbed the mudhorn pendant you wore, his eyes going wide as it caught the light just right, before he promptly began gnawing on it.

“Kid,” Din groaned. “Hey. Stop that. Grogu.” He began to walk over, reaching out to tug the metal out of his son’s mouth. “That’s not what that’s for, kid.”

Making a sound of displeasure, Grogu looked between both of you before trying to take his new toy back from between Din’s fingers, letting out an annoyed huff and glaring up at his father when it was pulled further away from him.

“It’s too sharp, ad’ika. You could get hurt.” Grogu looked up at you with the biggest eyes you’d seen yet, blinking slowly as if to plead with you to give in. “I know. How about we get you some food instead?” A laugh painted the last few words as Grogu’s face changed instantly and he began trying to scale your front to get face to face with you, slipping down your chest plate with a screech.

It quickly melted into another yawn, Grogu following suit a few seconds later, and Din a few moments after that. 

Shaking your head, you got to your feet. “I’ll get him something to eat, and grab a cup or seven of caf. Want some?” Din nodded, turning back to admiring his rifle again, making you roll your eyes as you began down the ramp. “I’ll be right back. Give you two a moment alone.”

Din mumbled his thanks, not looking up from the weapon as you glanced over your shoulder, smirking.

Headed for the kitchen, you mumbled almost conspiratorially to Grogu, “Your dad is something else, kid.”

Xxx

As your little clan of three stepped through the door of the hangar, Peli’s voice sending you on your way ringing off of every hard surface behind you, both you and Din shared a look before turning to the kid where he sat in his floating cradle.

“You got that set to stun?” Motioning to Din’s new Amban rifle that sat on his back, attached to a leather strap slung across his chest, you tightened your gloves.

He nodded once in confirmation, his head slowly turning to survey the nearby area.

“What about everything else?”

His visor turned to lock with yours. “All but one. I’m not leaving myself defenseless.”

You let out a snort of laughter. “I think if anyone had to use a word to describe you, ‘defenseless’ wouldn’t be on the list, even if you didn’t have a single weapon.”

“Then remind me the purpose of your job, then, if I don’t need protecting?” You tilted your head at him in annoyance. “I like to be prepared,” he amended, pulling your hand toward his and fixing the clasp on your glove you had been fiddling with. “What did you do to this? It’s like it’s been through a trash compactor.”

You couldn’t help but snort once again. “Not far off. R5 rolled over it a grand total of three times before I could get him to stop moving- hey!” You cried in protest as he yanked the buckle from the fabric with a precise tug, tucking it into the pouch on his belt and tying a simple but effective knot in its place.

“I’ll fix it before we leave. But right now, you need to focus, and you can’t if you have a buckle- if it can even still be called that- flopping around while you're trying to aim.” Cinching the knot tight, he let your hand fall back to your side. “There. Ready to go, ner cabur?” (“My protector.”)

You shook your head at his antics. “Elek, olaror, ner verd'ika.” (“Yes, come, my little soldier.”)

Din scoffed at your teasing tone, following a few paces behind as you both ventured into the market, the kid following alongside you in his cradle. “Mir'sheb.” (“Smartass.”)

“The smartest,” you quipped playfully, looking at the kid with an affectionate tilt of your head as he grinned broadly back up at you.

“Sheb'urcyin,” Din grumbled, making you bark out a laugh. (“Butt-kisser.”)

Looking at him over your shoulder as you continued forward, you spoke over a laugh, your words bouncing with the effort. “Now what about me has ever made you think that?”

“You’re right. Your pure shereshoy blinded me for a minute and I had to look away. I only saw what the sarcasm allowed.” (“Lust for life and much more.”)

You turned to face him, walking backwards, your voice the most sarcastic he had heard it in days. “Copaani mirshmure'cye, vod?” (“Are you looking for a smack in the face, mate?”)

Din smiled under his helmet, glad to finally be back to the banter the two of you had slipped into since first going on the run days ago. The closer it got to leaving Tatooine, the more business minded and mission oriented you had been, focused on making everything run smoothly for all three of them, and it seemed to come at the cost of some of your lighter moods. Seeing the teasing tilt of your helmet now, the almost literal spring in your step, hearing the lilt in your voice…. The world was spinning the right way again. “Now, now, don’t be stupid, that would be a jare move.” (“Kamikaze - someone taking a fatal, foolish risk.”)

Barking out another laugh, you turned to walk forward again, Din shaking his head fondly once your back was turned. “I’ll show you a jare move,” you grumbled.

Grogu began to coo happily as he looked between the two of you, giggling softly as he looked up at you with a broad grin, his eyes squinting in the bright sunlight.

Looking down at him, you huffed out a laugh. “You think that’s funny, ad’ika? You think I’m funny when I threaten your dad?” He giggled again. “That’s kinda copikla, kid.” (“Cute.”)

“Be careful who you jurkadir, burc'ya.” (“Threaten/Mess with.”) (“Friend.”)

You turned to face him, your hands held behind your back in feigned innocence as you leaned toward him to tease, “That works both ways, burc'ya.”

“Sha'kajir?” Din held up his hands in surrender. (“Truce?”)

You thought for a moment before bowing your head in agreement. “Sha'kajir. Oya!” (“Let’s hunt!”)

“Should we split up?” Din stepped up beside you, surveying the sea of market stalls sprawling in front of you.

“Not yet. Let’s move as a unit for now, let everyone see us together. Then, later I’ll take the market while you take the alleys, and if we happen upon him- or anyone else who wants to cause us trouble- they’ll assume the other is nearby and they’ll be distracted looking for someone who isn’t there.”

Nodding, Din followed behind you as you started into the crowd, people watching your little party with weary glances, but they didn’t keep their distance like people on other planets tended to do.

It only took a few minutes before you stopped and turned to Din, your voice low. “I see him. He’s in the cantina.”

Looking to his left, Din saw the man sitting at the bar, surrounded by a group of locals, all guffawing as he told some story. “Too many other people. We’ll tail him.” Reaching up to touch the side of his helmet, he overlaid the map of the alleys behind the building. “I’ll go around the back and wait, make sure he doesn’t get spooked and try to run.”

“What are they even laughing at?” You muttered, staring blatantly into the dingy watering hole. “He’s probably not even that funny.”

“Why do you say that?”

You looked up at him. “Have you seen his face?” Turning back to the bar, you shifted your weight to one side. “He just doesn’t have it.”

Din let out a snort. “They’re probably just doing whatever gets them another drink. Looks like he’s waving his new found wealth around without much worry.”

“Di'kut,” you grumbled, moving to lean your back against the front of the building with a soft groan. (“Idiot.”)

“Kaysh mirsh solus,” Din agreed with a chuckle, stepping into the shade next to you. (“He's an idiot.” (Lit. “His brain cell is lonely.”))

“Go ahead and wait by the back door. I’ll stay here with the kid.”

“And what’s going to keep you out of trouble? You’re not known for being the best at waiting.”

You turned your face to him slowly, ignoring his satisfied shift of weight, the teasing tilt of his helmet as he waited for your response. “Myself,” you grit out, leaning your head back to look down your nose at him.

Turning your attention back across the street, you saw a little nest of scurriers tucked under one of the booths. Tilting your hand until the suns caught the armor on the back of it just right, light reflecting off the raw beskar triangle and bouncing onto the sand near the nest. The creatures lifted their heads, cautiously investigating the light as it danced with every slight movement of your hand, running in circles as you made it go this way and that.

The kid watched with rapt attention, clapping and squealing with delight as the scurriers stumbled over one another in an effort to catch the light.

Turning your visor up to Din proudly, you paused when he tilted his head down to peer what felt like straight into your soul.

“What? Oh, come on! It’s harmless!”

“Ner ver'gebuir, anade.” Din gestured to you with a flourish, bowing at his waist in a mock introduction to no one as he spoke in a low tone. (“My bodyguard, everyone.”)

You pulled your hand back into the shadow of the building to shove him to the side, the scurriers following the light as it streaked across the market, making a cart pulled by a droid slam to a stop to avoid hitting the creatures. All was well until a landspeeder crashed into the back of that cart, then a speeder bike into the back of that.

Smoke curled into the marketplace, causing patrons to begin to vacate, the passengers of the vehicles involved all hopping out and beginning to yell at one another as the scurriers returned to their nest safe and forgotten.

People in all the nearby establishments began to pour into the streets to see what the commotion was, the lane filling with bodies faster than you could process what was happening.

“Kriff,” you mumbled, taking in the scene before adding a hissed, “Osik!” Turning you surveyed the bar, finding no sign of the quarry. (“Shit!”) 

“Dank farrik!” Din grumbled, taking a few steps out onto the street and pressing the side of his helmet as he scanned the crowd.

“What are you looking for? Heat signatures will be useless right now. It’s Tatooine, so it’s hot, plus everyone and their bantha is on the street right now-”

“K'uur!” Din snapped, making you pull up abruptly from where you stood, standing at attention. (“Hush!”)

“Me'ven?” You deadpanned, staring right at him. (“Huh?”)

He sighed, still surveying the street. “I need to concentrate. Please. Just five seconds of silence.”

Pushing a button on your vambrace, you closed the cradle to protect the child, but a repetitive knocking from inside made you roll your eyes and pop it back open. Crossing your arms over your chest, you looked at the kid, one hip jutting out to the side as you gave him the look. 

“Really?” You signed to him in Tusken, shifting your weight to the other side when he giggled in response.

“I think he took the alleys,” Din finally said, turning to face you, and finding the kid giggling as you signed away to him. “Ti,” he grabbed your attention, ignoring the attitude he felt when you tilted your head at him questioningly. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing,” you signed, standing up straight again.

“That’s not nothing, that’s-”

“Uur,” you whispered sarcastically in explanation, leaning toward him as you did. (“Silence.”)

Din huffed in annoyance. “I had his chain code programmed to an old puck Fennec brought me. I rerouted it and sent the signal to my display so I can track him without tipping off the mark, or anyone seeing the fob and getting in the way.”

You stared at him. It was all you could do. Arms still across your chest, you shifted your weight under his gaze. “Is there a way I can get my hands on that, too?” Your voice was small, and you hated it.

He reached out, tapping the side of your helmet twice, and your display filtered through settings before landing on a blinking red dot moving rapidly back behind the buildings to your right. 

“I did it last night when you fell asleep while we were putting the rifle together. You left your helmet on a crate next to you. Only took a second, in and out, no problems.”

“I didn’t-”

“You drool.”

Again, all you could do was stare wordlessly, hoping your brain would catch up with something in time to snap back with. And it did. “You snore louder than a kriffing bantha fart.”

Din just held your gaze, neither one of you moving an inch as the child babbled mindlessly, watching the chaos ensue throughout the streets. “Sounds like we’re both a party, then.”

“Bal'ban,” you mused quietly in agreement, huffing out a small laugh. (“Indeed.”)

This was the most Mando’a the two of you had spoken since leaving Mandalore days ago. Slipping into it was effortless, and it helped logistically in the chaotic din left behind by the accident. It was easy to pick out the familiar words above the rest of the noise, allowing both of you to communicate painlessly.

Din chuckled, nodding as he turned to find the bounty again. “He’s moving toward the port. Fennec and Boba said they have the area well guarded, so he won’t get far, but I think it best we split up and head him off before he tries anything stupid.”

“I wouldn’t put it past him,” you muttered. “Man’s a or'dinii. Stole from the richest man in the city, okay, kinda smart. But that man is also a crime boss who wears beskar, and is probably one of the most lethal people on the planet, present company excluded.” (“Moron.”)

“Comms channel two. Head to the port through the streets, I’ll go through the alleys like we planned.” Din turned to the kid, sighing heavily after a moment.

Narrowing your brows, you followed his gaze and found Grogu letting out soft happy squeals as the cradle spun in circles by some unseen force. 

Moving as a unit, both you and Din reached out to grab the sides of the hovering orb, bringing it to a gentle stop, Grogu’s head still moving in a small rotation as the world continued to spin around him.

“At least he can entertain himself. And quietly,” you chuckled, turning your attention from the little green ward back up to Din’s visor. 

“Mmm-hmm,” he agreed on a hum, moving his hand from the edge of the cradle to his son to stabilize his still woozy wobbling, tugging down the front of his robe about an inch to check he had the beskar shirt on.

“I put it on him myself, Mando.” Din’s visor turned to you as he let the robe go, smoothing the fabric back in place before withdrawing his hand altogether. “He’ll be safe. I promise. He’s my aliit now, too, remember.” Din nodded once. “You have my word, no harm will come to him.” (“Family/Clan.”)

You couldn’t help but smile. Here was this large, dangerous Mandalorian, and his level of care and concern for arguably the smallest little ward in the galaxy never failed to make you stop and stare. Their meeting went beyond just fate, beyond just chance bringing a protector to a child in need. Something greater was at work here, bringing two lonely, damaged souls together to help pick up one another’s pieces. 

They were forged with fire, stronger than any beskar, hardened and tempered against the strongest of tests. And now not even the greatest blacksmith in the galaxy would be able to pry these two apart. But it loved to try. And you’d do everything in your power to keep them from breaking, keep them strong, no matter the cost. Ne shab'rud'mhi. (“Don't mess with us.”)

You smiled broader at the thought of staring fate down in the face, should it ever try to do your family harm. Ne shab'rud'ni. (“Don't mess with me.”) 

“Now go.”

Din took a few steps backwards, keeping his eyes on you, then the kid, before turning and disappearing down an alley, the smoke from the accident curling around him.

“You saw everything!” A man walked up to you, covered in black streaks of soot and smoke, probably grease from whichever of the three vehicles involved was his. “I need you to tell the authorities.”

Reaching out, you patted his shoulder in what he probably took for kindness, but you were just tamping out some embers smoldering through his tunic. “I’m sorry, sir, but I don’t have the time. I-”

“I wasn’t asking,” he ground out, grabbing your wrist where your hand still sat on his shoulder, squeezing it much too tightly. He gave it a good jerk toward the wreck, but you pulled back, making him stumble, before turning a glare on you.

Without fuss, you adjusted your grip on him and yanked him to you, stooping down slightly while swinging your arm before straightening back up as he flipped in the air, landing flat on his back at your feet with an oomph.

You looked down at him, unamused, as Grogu peered over the edge of the cradle, cooing gleefully. 

“I said,” you leaned just slightly closer to him, tilting your head when he flinched away, “no.”

Lifting your visor back to the streets, you switched your display to the city map, overlaying it with the tracker with a press of a button on your vambrace. Another press opened comm channel two. “You there?”

“What took you so long?” Din sounded relieved as you began to venture through the mess of market stalls toward your target. 

“Don’t worry about it. Locals,” you brushed off, turning abruptly to bypass a thick group of pedestrians.

He grunted. “Explain.”

“Someone wanted me to make a statement about the accident,” you sighed, navigating back to the main road. “Didn’t understand the word ‘no’.”

“How did you explain it to them?”

You grinned. “You know me. It was fast and only slightly painful.”

“Ti, you better not have-”

“I didn’t kill him,” you protested loudly, veering to the right. “Why did you jump to that?”

“Have you met you?”

“No. No, I haven’t. How am I? Am I great? I hear I’m amazing.” He let out a soft snort. “Yes. I can confirm, I’m amazing. I live up to the hype.”

Din’s soft chuckle filled your ears before a blaster shot replaced it, making you pull up short.

“Din?” He didn’t answer. “What’s going on?”

“Kriffing Jawas,” he grumbled. “Tried to jump me and take my jet pack.”

You snorted, shaking your head gently as you began moving again. “At least tell me-”

“It was set to stun,” he ground out as if the thought was physically painful to him, making you laugh a bit harder. “I know why you jumped to that.”

“Good, so you’ve met you.” Teasing, you pushed another button and a yellow dot popped up showing Din’s location.

“Yes. I can confirm, I’m amazing. I live up to the hype.”

“That’s what you think,” you mumbled under your breath, smiling again when he hummed in question. “Nothing.” Stopping, you watched the red dot start to head in a totally different direction. “He’s deviating.”

“I see. Looks like he’s doubling back. Headed your way.”

Nodding, you turned and headed back the way you came. “I’ll cut him off at the bar. The accident mess will add enough cover to not draw attention to us.”

“Good idea. Plus, then you can give your statement.”

“Nu draar.” Din chuckled at your response. “I would rather eat a mouthful of this sand.” (“Absolutely not.”)

“That’s commitment.”

“You sound like you speak from experience. You ever gotten a mouthful of Tatooine before?”

“Once or twice. I did kill a krayt dragon not long ago, remember.”

“How can I forget? You tell that story at least once a week if not more.”

Din grumbled.

“At the rate you’re moving, we’ll be at the bar at the same time.”

“How do you…. You’re tracking me?”

Dodging under a cart as it crossed the road in front of you, sliding on the sand in its shadow before hopping back up, you smiled at Grogu’s happy squeal of approval at your side. “You sound surprised. Of course I am. You and the child are my first priority.” Glancing over at the green smiling face at your side, wide eyes taking in the world around him, you moved a bit faster. “You aren’t the only one who did some display modification last night. I ran the upload while I was comforting Grogu after his nightmare.”

“How-”

“I have two hands. He fits in one, I can press buttons with the other-”

Din’s heavy sigh cut you off. “No, how are you tracking me? Chain code?”

“It’s a program I made a few days ago before we even left Mandalore, believe it or not. Chain codes would be too dangerous if anyone got their hands on it, especially for the kid. Too universal of a tracker. This is a regional proximity sensor, condensed to a certain mile radius I can set each time I open it. Right now it’s just three miles, the size of the city from the port to the hangar. It’s following your comm. Specifically the one in your helmet.”

He hesitated. “When did you-”

“I told you. You snore. Loudly.” He said nothing. “You didn’t wake up the entire time I plugged in, uploaded, modified…. You just kept snoring away under that dome, oblivious.” You grinned. “You’re lucky I wasn’t trying to kill you.”

“I think that would have woken me up,” he huffed. 

“Would it have, though?” The smile grew in the silence. “I’m good at my job, remember.”

“How can I forget? You remind me at least once a week if not more.”

It was your turn to grumble. 

The bar was just up ahead, the red dot of the quarry now still behind a few buildings to the right. “He’s stopped. The area behind the accident. Maybe he’s not so stupid after all….”

“Don’t tell me you’re starting to admire him.”

“Why? You jealous, Djarin?”

“No,” he answered after a moment. “Just…. Concerned. You called him a moron less than an hour ago.”

“Even morons have their moments,” you said absently, turning in a circle as you searched for a clear way to the target. 

That’s when you saw him.

He was leaning up against a wall, arms crossed easily, ankles crossed leisurely as he watched them begin to pull the vehicles apart, a small grin on his face. 

“He’s here.”

“What?” Din must have stopped, because his voice no longer shook from the impact of his footfalls. A quick glance showed his yellow dot was indeed stationary. “But the tracker-”

“Is wrong. I’m looking right at him.” 

Just then he looked up and held the gaze of your visor for a long moment, realization dawning on his face before he pushed off the wall and turned down the alley, disappearing in the smoke just like Din had. 

“Osi'kyr!” You took off running after him, pressing a button on your vambrace to make the cradle go faster, shaking your head when Grogu let out an approving cackle. (“Strong exclamation of surprise or dismay.”)

“Ti?” Din’s voice rang in your helmet, and he was once again in motion, grunting as he dodged around the many obstacles Tatooine always provided. “Which way?”

“South. Turn your display off and back on, it should reset. I don’t have time, I have eyes on him, I’m not losing that.” Jumping over a large crate, you had to vault over an even larger one on the other side, and your feet went out from under you when you landed, making you roll before quickly popping back up and resuming the chase. “The sand tastes like shit, by the way.”

A soft laugh filled your helmet, growing steadily with each second.

“Never give Tatooine an ultimatum. She’ll make sure you eat your words. Literally.”

Smacking your lips in distaste, trying to get rid of as much of the grit as you could without doing anything to your helmet and losing sight of the target, you made a sound of disgust. 

“Was that for my joke or the sand?”

You chuckled, licking your lips as you ran faster still. “I haven’t decided yet.”

The cradle kicked up a notch, speeding along beside you, dodging crates and civilians with ease. Grogu screeched with excitement, holding on to the front rim of the orb as his ears flapped behind him in the wind.

“Display is back up. He’s right in front of you.”

“I can see that, thanks.”

He huffed. “You have a dead end coming up. Two turns to the left and one to the right. Corral him there.”

Nodding, you turned sideways to shimmy past two tight walls. “Got it.”

The quarry was desperate, throwing whatever he could get his hands on at you, clothes on lines between buildings, pottery in people’s windows, contents people were carrying. 

You’d successfully dodged all of it, the kid too, his cradle swinging left and right as you ducked and rolled out of the way, making him let out little grunts from the impact of each abrupt direction change. Until a white shirt came flying toward the cradle, covering the kid from top to bottom, forming to him like carbonite from the force of the wind behind it. The impact cut his scream of glee short, silence ringing through the alley as your steps slowed just slightly, your attention turning to him, assessing him for injuries. Suddenly giggles started erupting from under the material, growing by the second, and finally the shirt flew off of him by an unseen force, drifting to the ground lazily as it was released. Grogu looked at you with pure joy, babbling something as he gestured toward the man with one clawed hand, the quarry’s steps slowing down as he looked down at the ground with wide eyes.

“Thanks, kid,” you chuckled, speeding back up, the cradle matching your speed as Grogu gripped the edges again, the bounty regaining control of his limbs and charging ahead. “You’re a little troublemaker, you know that?”

“Patu!” You grinned at his declaration, his own smile beaming up at you before he began to squeal again as you picked up speed.

The man kept glancing over his shoulder, stumbling when he did, but he’d gain the ground right back when he turned back the right way, making you grunt in frustration.

“You’re almost to the dead end.”

“Kriff! Son of a mudscuffer!” You hissed. “I forgot you were there, Din. You scared the hell out of me.”

“Sorry,” he sounded almost sheepish, before he began again abruptly. “Right! Right! Get him to go right!”

“Hey! Asshole!” The man’s steps stuttered before he leaned into it again. “Whatever you do, don’t you dare go right!”

He hesitated, slowing just slightly, and you matched him, wanting to give him the illusion of control. Finally he came to a stop, turning to face you, a skeptical eyebrow raised as he asked, “Why?”

You grinned under your helmet, trying to control the glee in your voice that he was falling for the trap. Stopping a few yards away from him, you slouched slightly, feigning catching your breath. “Because I can’t follow you there. My nav stops at this point and I’d be going in blind. Help a girl out, huh?” You held your hands out to the side, showing you didn’t have a weapon drawn. Grogu cooed questioningly as he tilted his head at the man.

“Well, in that case, I think that’s exactly where I’ll go.” He grinned.

“No,” you cried out, trying to sound convincing, and starting to head his way again, stumbling slightly for dramatic effect with a hand reached toward him as if it would do any good.

When he disappeared down the dark alley, you dropped all pretenses. “Or'dinii,” you muttered under your breath, watching after him. “Headed for the dead end, Din.” No answer. “Din?” Looking around, you saw his yellow dot stalled nearby, his comm crackling through. (“Fool.”)

A growled, “Jawas,” was all you heard, before some grunting, the comm crackling in and out, then the telltale “Utinni!” made you roll your eyes before you headed into the darkness after the mark.

“So long as I don’t hear the….” A distinct shot echoed in a nearby alley, making you lift your hand to cradle your face, shaking your head. “….Amban rifle.”

You walked up slowly, casually, enjoying the sight of the quarry staring up at the dead end, frantically trying to find a way up and over the massive wall. One hand resting on your hip as it juts to the side easily, you watched for a moment in amusement before clearing your throat. 

The mark went stiff before turning to face you, glowering fiercely. “Couldn’t come this far, huh?”

“To be fair,” you began, gesturing needlessly with your free hand as you spoke, “I did tell you not to come over here.”

He huffed an unamused laugh as he looked off to the side, ignoring the sound of a shrieking Jawa somewhere a few buildings over. 

Din’s yellow dot still blinked steadily despite the broken connection, and it seemed he was finally making his way over to you. You just had to stall.

“I’m assuming this is because I stole the credits?”

“That would be correct.”

“How much is my bounty?”

You tilted your head at him in amusement. “More than you took.”

“Okay, look lady,” he was starting to get desperate. “If you let me go, I’ll give you what I have left, plus interest!”

“Interest?”

“I didn’t just steal from Fett! I’ve been making my way across all the crime families of Tatooine. I’ve got a mountain of credits back at my place, stashed under the floorboards.”

“Gar cuyi or’dinii,” you whispered under your breath, but he heard you. He must have thought it was an exclamation of joy or disbelief at the information, though, because he simply smiled smugly, nodding as he offered a quiet, “It’s true.” (“You’re a moron.”)

And, well, you couldn’t really disagree.

“Where is this place?” You asked instead, jutting your chin toward him as he began to smirk.

“Right beside the bar across the street from where you first found me. There’s enough there for you to buy anything you want. New armor….” Din’s yellow dot was coming in fast. “A new ship….” He was almost here. “A friend for your, er,” he eyed Grogu, the child narrowing his eyes at him, unamused, “pet….” He finally decided on, earning a grunt from the kid.

“He’s not a pet,” you corrected calmly, taking a step closer to the man, and his smug demeanor all but crumbled instantly.

“I’m not scared of you!”

“I’m not the one you need to be worried about,” you replied simply with a shrug. Tilting your head back and to the right, you smiled under the beskar. “It’s his kid.”

The bounty barely had time to register your words, mumbling, “Kid? What is that thing?” before Din’s armor clad fist was slamming into his face with a clang.

As the engine of his jet pack powered down, Din took a few extra steps from the momentum before stopping, breathing heavily like he had just got out of a fight for his life. “We don’t know,” he said decidedly to the unconscious man. “But he’s my son.” 

“Utreekov,” you muttered, nudging the man with the toe of your boot. (“Idiot.”)

Slapping binders on the quarry, Din slung the man over his shoulder before turning back to you. “Kriffing Jawas,” he seethed, shaking his head before taking off again with his jet pack.

You shook your head in disbelief. “I don’t have one of those, why?!”

Din just laughed softly, the sound buzzing around the inside of your helmet.

Looking up as he disappeared over the buildings, his cape flapped dangerously close to the flames. “You’re just a fire hazard!”

Xxx

Boba and Fennec were there to meet you once you returned to the hangar. 

Peli was blushing at something the older man was saying, waving him off with a quick laugh as she turned to see your clan of three come through the door. 

“Oh, thank the Force, you’re all alive!”

“You thought we wouldn’t be?”

“With you I never know.” She leveled you with a look.

Din let the man flop to the floor unceremoniously, leaving him in the heap he landed in. “Here’s your thief.”

“That’s him alright,” Boba sighed, turning the bounty onto his back with a shove to his shoulder from his boot. “Thank you.” His eyes flicked between you and Din. “I heard about an accident by the cantina. That didn’t happen to be either of you, by chance?”

Din shook his head wordlessly while you copied him a few seconds later, adding, “No. Saw it happen, though. They swerved to avoid some wildlife.”

Boba nodded, looking between you both for a long moment. “Okay, then.” He began to turn away, but you stopped him.

“Wait.” He paused, looking at you with a curious tilt of his head. “The quarry spoke to me at the end, tried to bribe me. I think you might be interested in what he had to say.”

Boba gestured for you to continue with a bob of his head. “Go on.”

“He said he’s been making his way through the crime families of Tatooine. Offered to give me what was left of your credits plus interest.” You explained the rest about his house and stash, their faces a mix between frustration and surprise the further along you got. “He seemed to be telling the truth, but I wanted to know what you both thought before moving on it.” 

They exchanged loaded glances before asking you to go look into it. “Take Fennec, she’ll get you out of any locals asking too many questions. We’re from Mos Espa, but they know us here, too. Mando, I’ll help you get this one,” Boba shoved the man’s shoulder with the tip of his boot, earning a groan from his still unconscious state, “to my cells.”

“I’ll watch the kid,” Peli offered softly, pulling the cradle to her as Grogu snored gently.

Nodding, you turned and followed Fennec out the front door of the hangar. 

Xxx

Knocking on the door of the house, just as a precaution, you slammed your shoulder into it when nobody answered, busting it open. It was sparsely furnished, the only real defining thing a giant rug over the middle of the floor. Letting out a huff of laughter, you shook your head as you knelt down, flipping the corner back as you scanned the bare floor with your display, looking for a varying heat signature. Finding it near the middle of the rug after you pushed more of it to the side, you pried a board up, slipping the rest out easily and handing them to Fennec to set to the side. Pulling back once they were all removed, you let out a low whistle. 

Sure enough, under the floorboards there was a pile of credits, almost tall enough for you to stick your arm in up to your shoulder, and wide enough it’d take two containers to get it out. The ground underneath had been dug out, leaving behind a hole filled nearly to the brim. 

“He’s been a busy little thief, hasn’t he,” Fennec mused quietly as she stared at the glinting pile of credits with wide eyes. 

“Too bad he wasn’t also a smart one.”

Turning your visor her way, you met Fennec’s gaze in silence, holding it for a moment before you both broke down in snorts of laughter, warm chuckles filling the night air.

She sat back on her haunches, grunting as she settled in. “You know, I’ll admit, I was a little leery at the beginning. I’ve worked with Mando before, I didn’t really know why we needed you, too.” 

Turning your visor back to the pile of credits, she was quick to continue.

“But,” she said pointedly, “Boba was quick to help me see the error of my ways.” Smiling fondly, she waited until you turned your gaze back her way before saying anything more. “You two work well together.”

“He’s easy to work with,” you countered with a shrug.

“No he’s not,” she said with a snort, making you shake your head as you chuckled. “But he’s a good man. A good leader. And he loves that little foundling with a love that’s dangerous for anyone willing to get between them.”

“I would never do that,” you said quietly. “They belong together.”

“I’m not saying you would, but you’re quickly becoming someone he shares that same type of devotion for.” She reached out and took the mudhorn pendant around your neck between her thumb and index finger, a smile beginning up her face, her voice softening to something almost friendly. “And I’m beginning to understand why.”

Taking the mudhorn between your own fingers as you looked at it, you grinned. “Just a few days ago he couldn’t stand me, believe it or not.”

“Not,” Fennec huffed on a laugh, turning to look at you after another moment of silence. “I’ve known Mando for a while now, and he’s just…. like that. It’s hard for him to show his emotions sometimes. Boba, too. The way they grew up…. Well, I don’t have to tell you. I’m assuming you probably had the same type of childhood.”

Hesitating, you finally nodded briefly, looking down to your hands in your lap where you sat on the floor beside her.

“They don’t trust easily, they love fiercely, and they don’t do anything halfway. It’s all they’ve known. If you’re lucky enough to be welcomed into their circle,” she tugged the pendant lightly, “into their family,” she sat back as she continued, “there’s something special they see in you, something worthwhile, and you just need to keep being yourself to live up to that everyday.”

When you lifted your visor back up to meet her eyes, she smiled kindly.

“So, like I said, not. He was probably just watching and waiting for the right time.”

“Grogu is my little shadow. I think he was just relieved someone bought him five minutes alone.”

She threw her head back and laughed, her hand lightly gripping your upper arm. When her gaze landed back on you, a mischievous smirk took over her features. “I could be wrong. Maybe he was just waiting to ask you to be a babysitter full time,” you snickered, “but I’m thinking that signet tells a different story.”

Fennec reached into her pocket for her comm, mumbling something about needing to call Boba, but you held up your hand to stop her. “I have a secure connection straight to the comm in Mando’s helmet. Guaranteed private, and he’s with Boba. Let me call him and relay the information.”

She nodded, tucking her comm back into her belt.

Pressing the side of your helmet, you waited until you heard it connect. “Mando?”

“Ti? Everything alright?”

Pressing a button on your vambrace to project the conversation through your modulator so Fennec could hear, too, you nodded. “Yeah, we’re fine. We found the credits. What should we do now?”

“Hold on, I’ll ask him.” Silence filled the room before he came back. “How much is there?”

“Enough to fund your life on the run for over a decade, comfortably,” Fennec said dryly, her eyes darting across the pile of credits as she did some quick math. “Very comfortably.”

Silence again filled the line as you assumed he was relaying the amount to Boba in a much more concise manner. Finally his voice crackled back over the line. “He said he’ll send the Mods to come pick it up. Wait for them then leave and go back to the hangar when they get there.”

“They don’t need protection?” You had no idea who they were, but this was a lot of money to just let someone move without any sort of backup.

Fennec grinned. “They can take care of themselves.”

Xxx

The Mods dropped it off at the hangar a few hours later and left, leaving the five of you standing around the two containers, staring in silence at the mass of credits just sitting there.

Peli let out a low whistle like you had when you’d found the stash.

“How does someone steal this much and not get noticed?” Din’s voice was thick with disbelief.

“Little by little,” you answered, looking up at him when you felt his visor turn to you.

Looking at him for the first time today without your own visor in the way, you scanned over his armor, noticing a few scorch marks, and some scuff marks near his jet pack.

You smiled. “Those Jawas really did a number on you, didn’t they?” Reaching out, you tried to rub one of the scuffs away with your glove, digging your thumb into his beskar. 

Reaching up, he grabbed your wrist gently, turning it toward him with a soft grunt. “I don’t want to talk about it,” he grumbled, untying the knot he’d tied to keep your glove on earlier. He pulled something out of the pouch on his belt and began attaching it. “Fixed this for you.” When he let his hands fall to his sides after he finished, you saw it was the buckle he’d torn off this morning. “Don’t let R5 get this one,” he joked.

“Thanks,” you mumbled, looking up at him with a smile as he nodded at you before he turned back to the pile of credits. Your eyes darted across the containers in front of you to find Fennec already looking at you, a sly smirk already firmly on her face.

“Told ya,” she said lightly.

“What?” Boba asked, looking across his shoulder at her.

Her eyes flicked up to meet his. “Nothing. I was just saying,” she gestured to the credits, her gaze falling back to them before lifting to yours. “I told ya it’s a lot.”

Boba nodded, turning back to the credits, not noticing the look Fennec gave you, eyebrows raised. “I’ve not heard anything about this money going missing from the other families. It could be they are just keeping it quiet, in which case, letting them know you know is just adding another enemy to your list.”

Din looked between the older man and Fennec. “So what do we do?”

Shrugging, Boba looked at him as if the answer were obvious. “Keep it.”

As he took a few steps back, Din shook his head, lifting his hands to begin gesturing as he spoke. “No. Absolutely not. We don’t need this much.”

Shrugging yet again, Boba sighed, arms crossing over his chest as he stared at the pile of credits like it was a problematic hyperdrive instead of the not so small fortune it was. “Fine.” He let out a breath through his nose. “I’ll take back what was stolen from me.”

Din took the few steps back toward the pile he’d pulled away. “That still is beyond too much.”

Turning to your friend who had been silent this whole exchange, you began speaking before either of the other Mandalorians could start in again. “Peli?” Her head snapped up to look at you, eyes wide. Separating a small stack of credits from the pile, you pushed them her way with the toe of your boot. “Would this cover your hangar fees for say, a year?”

Eyes wide, Peli gulped as she stared at the smaller pile, her gaze darting back up to yours as she nodded emphatically. “And then some.” 

“Good.” Breaking off another pile just a bit larger, you added it to the first, Peli’s eyes going comically larger still. “Consider this payment for babysitting up till now, and keeping you on retainer for whenever we need to stop by, storing the N1, and watching Grogu.”

Peli stammered for a moment, her mouth opening and closing as she stared at the small mountain of credits at her feet. Her eyes lifted to meet yours before they shot to Din, then the child sleeping soundly in her arms before landing back on the credits, nodding rapidly again. “As far as I’m concerned, this makes us square.” She studied the pile for a moment, before adding softly, “For life.”

Din pulled his hand down the front of his helmet, letting out a sigh of exasperation “That still leaves quite a bit.”

You shrugged like Boba had, making the man chuckle. “Running isn’t cheap.”

With a heavy sigh, Din finally nodded, his hands resting on his hips, shaking his head as he continued to stare at the pile. “We still use it sparingly.”

You nodded. “Agreed.” He turned to look at you one more time. “We have to save some for the foundlings.”

“The foundlings are the future,” Din said quietly in agreement. “This is the way.”

All five of you turned away from the credits for the first time since they arrived, looking at Grogu where he slept in the cradle Peli had just set him in.

“This is the way.” The smile on your face that only came in the presence of the child wasn’t going anywhere. “The future is in amazing hands, then.”

“The best,” Din concurred.

Xxx

“Drop by anytime!” Peli called after Boba and Fennec, waving at them as they walked down the street after leaving the hangar. “Just remember to use the door next time. Maybe?” She flicked her wrist in front of her. “Bah. They heard me.”

Laughing softly, you gestured Grogu’s cradle up the ramp of the Crest, walking alongside it until you got to the bunk. Turning to lift him up, you set him in his hammock before gesturing the now empty cradle over to the corner.

Closing the door to the bunk, you turned to find Din just coming up the top of the ramp.

“He’s down.” You stretched, hands on your back as you let out a loud yawn. “And honestly I’m not that far behind him.” You smiled at the sound of Din’s chuckle. “Did the credits get stored?”

He nodded. “Yeah, they’re right there, below the bunks. It’s a false bottom.”

“Sounds good,” you yawned again. “Well, I’m gonna head to bed-”

“Wait,” he stopped you, making you turn back to face him from the small bit you’d already turned away. “I have something for you.”

He made his way over to another crate along the wall, and pulled out a bundle wrapped in the tarp you’d used to cover the pieces of the Amban rifle. 

“While Boba was looking at the Crest yesterday, I asked him if he could help me get my hands on this for you. It needs a good cleaning, like everything else on this planet, but it’s in good shape, all the same.”

He pulled the material away from the object, and your breath caught in your chest. 

A raw beskar jet pack, like his own.

“How-”

“They didn’t know what they had.” Repeating your words about the Amban rifle as he looked at the jet pack for a long moment, he tightened his grip on it, his leather gloves creaking in protest. Lifting his gaze to yours, he held it as he gently set the gift in your hands. “But I do.”

The meaning of his words is not lost on you. He wasn’t talking about the jet pack anymore, at least not just about that. It was as close to a complement as he was going to get, and that made a smirk start to twist up the side of your face.

Reaching behind you to attach the jet pack, Din reached out and pulled your cape gently to the side out of your way, releasing it when it sealed with a whirr.

“How fortunate for me, then.” Your voice was soft, much softer than you intended, but it fit. 

Everything about this moment seemed fragile, precarious. But at the same time, something about it also seemed forged of steel, tempered and holding steady in the strongest of tests.

“Indeed.” He was smiling, you could tell. 

It had only been days of truly spending time with him, but something about Din just clicked. You could read one another under the beskar or from across the city over a comm. Never had you felt so in tune with another being, and it felt like something special.

“Thank you.”

He nodded.

It was unexpected, but you found yourself wrapping him in a quick embrace, arms around his neck as you pulled him close. He went stiff at first, but soon melted into the touch, his arms wrapping around your middle and pulling you impossibly closer still. Tightening your grip around him, you mumbled another thank you into his neck, the fabric of his flight suit rough against your skin as you pressed even closer, sighing into the warmth that was him.

This was different. This was new. It was exciting. But also terrifying. 

Your feelings seemed to have gone rogue, pulling you into him without your permission, and keeping you there. But then again, his seemed to be doing the same, if the way his hands were spreading across the expanse of your back below the jet pack was any indication. It was drawing you both in, and holding you tight, not giving an inch.

Growing up in a society that kept a barrier between you and everyone else, it was just inherent to keep your distance. And you didn’t realize until right now, faced with what you’d been blatantly denied, that you realized just how much you needed it. Like the jet pack, it finally made you feel complete, the missing pieces falling into place to paint a beautiful picture of what could be if you just…. Let it. 

Pulling back to look up into his visor, you smiled, hands falling to rest on his arms. “No, really. Thank you.” You gave him a gentle squeeze. “For everything.”

“I’d say you’re welcome, but since it’s your job to keep me alive, let’s just call it even.”

You narrowed your brows at him. “I’m good at my job.”

He chuckled softly. “And that’s the second time today you’ve said that.”

“And counting.” You grinned up at him, rolling your eyes when he groaned. Taking a few steps back, you headed for the ramp of the Crest. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a jet pack to clean up.” You paused after a few steps, your eyes narrowing at him curiously. “Wait. You said you asked him for this before we even agreed to help them?”

Din nodded. “I know it’s something you’ve wanted. The Armorer mentioned as much right before everything happened, something about I needed to sign off on something…. I don’t know, to be honest, I hardly listened sometimes. It was all a bit….”

“Much?” You offered.

He sighed. “Yeah. Too much. One of the only things that helped make it easier was you, actually.”

You scoffed. “I thought for sure you hated me.”

He let out a huff. “Oh, I thought I did.” He shook his head with a chuckle. “Believe me. I tried to convince myself I loathed you. But truthfully? We’re just too much alike, that I was frustrated that you were doing so well at your job and thinking of things before me.”

Grinning, you looked down at your feet before lifting your gaze back up to his visor. “What were the other things? You said that was ‘one of the only’….”

Din sighed, his hands resting on his belt as his weight shifted to one side. “Time with Grogu.”

“Of course,” you said, because obviously.

“And target practice.” You grimaced. “What?”

“I don’t know how to tell you this, boss, but…. Right before everything happened, I may have beaten your high score at the range.”

He was silent, his hands moving from his belt to rest on his hips as he stood up straight, visor leveled on you. “You what?”

You began backing up slowly, holding up a finger and lightly waving it at him. “I’m good at what I do, remember?”

“That’s three.”

“No, that’s technically different.” Your feet hit the sand at the bottom of the ramp. Pointing over toward Peli’s shop, you began moving that way. “I’m gonna go get started.”

Din began down the ramp, his tone dry and amused. “Are you going to paint it? I can go get some tomorrow.”

Looking at him over your shoulder, you shook your head, scrunching your face up at the thought. “Nah. I think the raw beskar looks best. Plus it matches yours.”

Din shifted his weight to one side. “You want ours to look the same?”

You shrugged. “I like people knowing who I belong to.” Turning back to face the workshop, you went on. “Let’s make clan mudhorn…. What was the word Boba used for the ship? Ah! Sparkle.” You chuckled. “Shiny big ship, shiny tiny ship, shiny big Mando, shiny smaller Mando…. You see the theme?” Looking back over your shoulder, the smirk slid off your face when you didn’t see Din anywhere in the hangar. “Great. I’m talking to myself.”

With a sigh, you turned back toward the work area, only to run straight into a wall of beskar. “Dank farrik, Din!”

“If you belong to clan mudhorn, you’re not going to be sparkling.” Din unfastened your jet pack. “You’ll be dral.” He set it to the side. “Dralshy'a - ori'shya ka'ra.” (“Glowing.”) (“Brighter - more than stars.”)

You grinned. “Ni emuurir gar jate'shya.” (“I like yours better.”)

Xxx

Tags: @lam-ila​, @oliviajdjarin​, @peonyophelia​, @what-the-heckin-heck​, @Itsavicf, @just-shut-up-kid​, @noodlesavailable​, @mildlyhopeless​, @multifandomsw​, @professionalfangrrl​, @tizylish​, @whoodattt​, @heyitsaloy​, @djarinsimp​, @athenasproverbs​, @aliens-apricot, @snow30285, @jallen0126​, @jxvipike​, @kodzuvk​, @untitledarea​, @crazyworldofsiani​, @adora-but-ginger​, @momc95​ What’s This?

[bowiesawizardmoony]

i wrote a quick little fic. i got brain rot out of nowhere and this spilled outa me. it’s not beta read (bc i’m lazy) enjoy <3

——————————————————————————

Regulus is the name he was given and it seems fitting because he was nothing if not a greek tragedy in the making. The lions heart, as is his namesake, in hercules tale. always the victim in a hero’s story. the rise to greatness and the inevitable fall to despair to be talked about by scholars for years to come. He was nothing special, but he could be. a soul destined to maybe be loved and forgotten and rewritten. His pain and trials glorified to make a beautiful painting hung in museums to be gawked at, his pain stared at.

Regulus was loved once. By his very own lion names James Potter. He was loved truly and deeply. But like all greek tragedy, he knew how it would end. He knew how his story was written and his love, his lion had left him. Or better to say Regulus left him. He felt no need to drag James down with him. Regulus had taken the dark mark to please his family because he saw no way out. James was his light at the end of a seemingly never ending tunnel, and that was taken from him the moment his arm was branded by the Dark Lord. Regulus knew it was wrong, he knew there was no coming back from the path he had started on. With James no longer shining the way out, he was lost. But he wanted to do one good thing, if nothing else in this world he would help destroy the dark lord and let James continue living and shinning on the world without him if it was the last thing he did.

Regulus stands in this cave, inky water surrounds him in all directions. The stark white rock he stand on the only thing keeping him from being lost to the cave as he image most things here are. The blood from where he cut his hand still drips down to his finger tips and the sting feels like penance for all the wrong he has done in this war. But he is making it right, even if he has to die trying.

The locket swing from deft fingers before he places in the bowl sat upon the rock, in a delirious pain from whatever was in that bowl he had consumed. He knows what’s next. He knows it’s over. He knows how his story is written and it is coming to a close. A tragic life filled with a family who had never really loved him, a boy who shined like the sun on even Regulus’ most dark day sat at his home alone wondering where he had gone wrong, and a brother filled with hate for him who still thought him a traitor. His life was never ment to be happy, he was never to get his happy ending, a tragedy from the first shining of his star.

He may have once shined bright, the heart of the lion, but he was about to be snuffed out by his own cruel hands. Resigned to his own demise, he makes for the water. He can see the inferi reaching out of the water as he gets to the edge of the rock. They grasp at him desperately, trying to pull him down. He sets one foot into the water and as they start to pull he is filled with panic. He had known what he was doing, he had planned for this. And at that moment the only thing Regulus could think of was the sun. How its bright rays warmed his pale cheeks and how warm and welcome it always felt. And right there, he decided that maybe he didn’t know how his story ended. Maybe he was worth something. Maybe he was something special to someone. Maybe he didn’t need to die.

In a fight that Regulus didn’t know he had left in him, he reached for his wand in his pocket against the inferi. As he grasped it, he thought of the sun.

At this point Regulus doesn’t really know what happened. From one moment he was being dragged to his death, and the next he was on the floor of James Potters home. He feels carpet beneath his back, water still dripping from his robes. His vision is then filled with the face of his James. Concern written across his features. Regulus sits up and grabs James in a tight embrace. Maybe this was what was meant to happen all along. Maybe when paintings of him are hung to be gawked at, it is of him and his lion.

Regulus does not know anymore how his story is written, but he does know that it is no longer filled with the tragedies of his past, but of light and hope for his future and the world him and James will create.

[analiticalanonymous]

Nightmare!Sans X Reader

So, years ago I made this fanfic on Wattpad, and I was super proud of it at the time. I still acknowledge the sheer magnitude of accomplishments and trials I went through to complete this piece. However, it was originally smut, and I was a bit on the younger side when I wrote it originally. To my younger audience who may stumble upon this, that does not make it okay to do the same. I was at risk and introduced to some bad people who were NOT good.

Now then, I want to redo it and get rid of the smut and simply keep it as a angst-to-fluff fix. I saw alot of comments talking about how they cried and were getting emotionally invested when the smut just kinda popped up. And I recognize they were not wrong in the slightest! So I'm going to fix up the grammar and such and update this bad boy! If you log on to Wattpad and saw the original? No you didn't.

⛔⚠️!!Trigger Warning!!⚠️⛔

Mild gore, Abuse, angst, verbal abuse, reader stands up to the abuse, violence, starvation(nightmare and minorly reader), implied suicidal thoughts, depressive episodes, everything gets resolved, flashbacks, nightmares, trauma, neglect, fear, redemption

This is fiction and should NOT be acceptable in real life, if you see or are in a relationship like this then please seek help as this is not acceptable behavior to have. This is fiction and meant for enjoyment, it is written to have a happy ending unlike real life where your decisions determine how happy your ending is. Read with caution.

A long time ago you chose your side in the war of light and dark. To fight alongside either The Stars or The Evil.

And to everyone's surprise, you chose the path of shade..

You were the first ever member to join. In fact. You were there before Nightmare ate that wretched apple. That apple..That damned apple-

Ruined e v e r y t h i n g.

It haunts every thought and plauges every memory you've tried to forget and collect through the years. It slipped it's way into the life of the one you cared most about through deceit and vows of protection. The one you should have listened closer to. The one that needed you since the beginning..

Your heart ache on that day...it was so long ago but the gorey wounds of your torn heart gained that one faithful day still bleeds in heavy streams of guilt-ridden sorrow. You remember the chest crushing anxiety and the adrenaline that tried to pacify. That pulsed in your ears with your tears being the only window to your inner turmoil...

.

.

.

"I-I'll prove to you that my apples are J-JUST AS GOOD AS YOURS! I'LL SHOW ALL OF YOU!" Night declared into the field with a quivering voice. His shrunken eyelights vibrate and blur in his self-destructive state as he curls away from the growing crowd. He resembles a cornered animal simply trying to prove it's capable of surviving.

He looks down at his trembling hands as he noticeably hesitates before a look of persuaded finality stole his true-face away. He opened his jaw and bit into the black gleaming apple, adorned with specks of white in resemblance to the very faint stars beginning to appear above. Its appearance reminding you clearly of it's gaurdians name.

"NIGHT NO!-" You and Dream screamed simultaneously as you both frantically tried to run towards him and reach out for the sinful fruit. Your frantic mind was scattered with a primal fear of what was to come if he followed through and swallowed, the whisper of voices in your mind promising nothing good would come from it, that you needed to take it away before it was too late.

But the damage was done far quicker than anyone could have predicted.

You see, no one knew what would happen if you were to eat an apple from the tree. No matter the species. At least....not at the time.

His ear piercing shrieks strike through the air and were echoed all throughout the valley as lavender tears streamed down his cheekbones in pain. It made you stumble, your eyes widening in brief surprise that seared into unfamiliar terror as you slowly went from a sprint to a weak jog before you halted completely.

He collapsed to the ground clinging onto his head and screaming in a way that made your throat tighten up and your skin crawl. He shakily dragged his hands down from his skull to his throat, hacking and gasping until he began to claw at his very bones sobbing out-

"I-I CAN'T B-BREATHE!!"

His sockets and shaking pupils flaunted his fear and inhanced that gut wrenching sentence into something worse. The crowd surrounding the meadow gasped and murmured to one another in judgemental hushes. They did nothing but watch.

You wanted to scream at them. You wanted to scream at yourself. You wanted to scream at Dream who stood just as paralyzed as you. Scream at anyone- just- S O M E O N E to bloody do something! To help your dear, sweet, Night-

But you can't...your body is frozen, paralyzed by something ancient and primal. You are only a spectator to the horror before you. No amount of willpower could make you budge..

Black liquid began to gush out of his sockets as he choked audibly on some that poured out of his mouth. His normal glowing lavender pupils looked up to yours and shook in horror before they were split in half at the hands of the black substance in his right socket. A ear-peircing scream of agony dies in his throat from the black darkness that drowns him on dry land. It looked to have a mind of its own as it had taken the shape of tentacles and immediately started to latch onto his skull, seemingly pulling itself out of his eyesocket to further spread amongst his body, like a disease amongst a crowd.

Your soul shattered seeing the monster you have come to love crumple to nothing. Your mind roared at you in frustrated anguish to just- MOVE. MOVE, SCREAM, COMFORT. FUCK- DO SOMETHING YOU USELESS SACK OF- your body suddenly regains it's control and has you stumbling forward on weak legs. This sudden action fulls you with hope. It's at this very moment that your body gives a final flush of determination, flooding from your soul and into your veins, your body finally deciding to listen to your pleads for action. Your feet carried you across the field all the while fighting against your stiffened muscles to race to be next to him and help him in his time of need.

As you wish you had so long ago.

Your attempt was taken from you as you were shoved out of the way by a blunt force. Just before you could reach him. Shooting a frustrated look to your side you try to find what stopped you only to find that it was Dream who tackled you. "LET ME GO-" You were about to demand from him until you looked back over to Night, pausing your squirms of protest as your body slackens at the sight. You see in your previous spot a black appendage stemming from Night jabbed into the ground. It looked as solid and sharp as the finest blade from the greatest blacksmith.

What made you shudder in fear however was that... it...it was lodged right where your heart would have been...

It would have killed you and that was the intent.

"Night please! I beg of you! Fight it- please! You're so much stronger than that stupid apple!" You overlook the mortifying failed attempt on your life and focused on what mattered most to you at the moment. You needed him to ground himself, so you beckon him with anguish and frustration in your eyes, just trying to encourage him. Your hand reaching out to him once again to try and grab his clenched fists, tears pouring out of your eyes as your brows were furrowed with a pleading gaze, you try to latch onto the hope of his life secure with you.

Dream yet again takes your chance and rolled to the side with you wrapped in his arms as another tentacle like appendage struck with the intent to shatter your souls. But the physical damage was pale in comparison to the powerless feeling drowning out all sense of life preservation skills you were facing. You were now stuck and trapped to listen to Night's cries for help and pleas for it all to stop when all you could do was nothing. You struggled once again against Dream's powerful grip.

"I-I'M COMING NIGHT! JUST HANG ON, HUN!" You sobbed out as you fought against Dream's grip with whatever strength you could gather. It did nothing but tighten his hold... "D-Dream please! I need to t-talk to him! I can reach him! I KNOW I can! Let me stop this!" You pleaded frantically with your voice quivering as you tried to get out of his grasp for what you hope to be the last time.

His jaw opened to speak but his words die on his tounge when the spine chilling screams come to a abrupt end with a final weak gurgle resonating in the tense air. An eery hush swept the field leaving you and Dream to freeze.

The uncanny silence engulfs the once beautifully lit meadow, the orange sun rays of the setting sun that usually held such warmth and comfort, now only casted a feeling of unsettled dread with the an ambience that worsened the ache in all the souls present.

Nothing...there was no sound aside from the howls of the strong winds that gently glided through the rustling trees. All that was left for anyone to hear was their own racing hearts and souls thumping in their ears. The silence was deafening. Not even the crickets were chirping their nightly songs. Locusts cut off their mating calls so abruptly you wondered if they had all died simultaneously. Not even the village people were whispering to one another- which was all that they seemed to do when it came to, Night.

Both you and Dream slowly turned your widened eyes to look at Night with the same cautionary snail's pace that made you break your intense eye contact. You see now that he was completely consumed by the black substance.

He was disturbingly quiet and still. Almost frozen in the position he was formally cradled into. "heh..." you both flinch at the low sound and looked to him more closely, getting a terribly sickening feeling sinking in your gut. "N-Night..?" You asked shakily gradually becoming more and more creeped out.

"hehe..."

....

"hehehe.."

....

"-hahAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" His shoulders jostled with the sinister and deep rolling laughter. His head shot up to look at you both with an intensity that made you tremble.

Only one cyan pupil remained and burned with such reverence you saw its outline when you looked away. But his other pupil, that was ripped apart by the parasitic acting tentacles, was covered by the black tar-like substance that had destroyed his very body. Tears that were once in his eye sockets had stopped and instead began to dry up.

Not yours.

Yours were flowing freely now horrified by the monster you and Dream created, from senseless negligence and ignorance, the consequences of your failure was in front of you... it was all your fault... you never paid as much mind as you should have...

Tentacles shot out from his back, jolting him forward from the sheer force of the tentacles abrupt and forceful escape. This made him grin eerily wide after seeing he now had complete control of them.

"WELL?! DO YOU BELIEVE I'M GOOD ENOUGH YET!?" He stood up, wobbling slightly from his body still recovering from the torture it had just endured. His even deeper baritone voice booms with a new creepy twist behind it. His arms were stretched out wide openly embracing this new form with a wicked smile. Dream teleported both of you away gaining a vast distance from him.

"N-Night-" You tried to speak but were cut off yet again-

"NIGHT WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!?!" Dream shouted just as loud as Night which startled you along with his strong grip slipping around your waist that tightened as he protectively held you to his ribs. "DON'T CALL ME THAT. NIGHT WAS A WEAK; PATHETIC PUSHOVER. I am so much more than that now...I..am your, Nightmare." He barked angerly with a narrowed socket. He looked down at his pitch black phalanges now sharp with claws, curling them into his palm and flexing them as if getting used to their lethality.

Night-or well... Nightmares' eye drifted up from his hands and back up to, Dream. His gaze dragged down to meet your fearful and teary (E/C) eyes. You shook like a child in winter without the warmth of their heart, now frozen under his harsh gaze. He smirked at you with something akin to sick delight. His eye lingered as he looked down a bit, scanning you. His smirk was prominently wide until his gaze halted at Dream and his uncomfortably tight embrace around you.

He growled. His eye now narrowing and glowing brightly with a snarl tugging onto his skull in disgust at the sight he just observed. He shot a tentacle your way quickly. Dream was going to block it but you reacted quicker and shoved him out of the way while shutting your eyes tightly, awaiting the overwhelming pain and burn to tear through your chest; it never did.

You opened your eyes slowly to see the sharp appendage just mere centimeters away from your heart. You looked up to see Night was frozen with a widened socket. He withdrew his tentacle quickly, stepping back with countless emotions flashing on his skull, seemingly frozen in shock. He seemed startled by your action. Or perhaps his own. Either way he wasn't expecting your involvement.

"Y/N! Come here!" Dream hollered and scrambled to his feet reaching out his hand for you to grab. That apparently snapped Nightmare out of his dark subspace as he grimaces and regained his intimidating stature.

"YOU GET EVERYTHING YOU WANT DREAM." Nightmare bellowed with a stentorian voice that booms across the vast open field and echos through the mountains around your village back into your very core where it reverberated, the outburt startling both you and Dream into looking at him. His voice left your nerves feeling shot from the magnitude of primal fear coursing though you, but that ontop of the fact that you're not used to his voice being raised, made you flinch and jump.

"Why don't you let HER decide who to go to instead of you just stealing her away like you usually do." He hissed now looking at you directly.

Your eyes widened at his voice for you. You looked up at Nightmare, mind replaying what you just witnessed him go through, your heart shattered at the freshly engraved memory of his petrified face he adopted whenever he took the bite of the apple and how miserable and angry he looked at you now. His normally beautiful lavender eyes were now buried in goop or masked in a neon teal glow. You looked back at Dream for his response. Would he let you even step a foot away from him? He's stopped you so much you fear he would just snatch you away again.

...

"Fine..." He finally agreed.

"Y/N. Choose. Me or Nightmare?" He asked you sternly as his eyes never left Nightmare's singular eye.

Dream had his arm still outstretched almost as if he was expecting the outcome of your choice. You looked back at Nightmare to see he was watching not Dream but YOU. He had an almost empty look in his eye but with the tiniest bit of patience and calmness that seemed to pacify him enough for your response.

You shivered and blinked but whenever you opened your eyes again you saw him. You saw Night... your lovely Night..you didn't even get to tell him how you felt..maybe...maybe now you could...maybe he could still hear you through all this...Maybe it would bring him back...

Maybe he was still the same Night you fell in love with.

You walked towards Nightmare slowly and cautiously, your embroidered white tunic flowing to the wind along with your free and unbounded hair. The petals from the (Favored flower) and lavender in your flower crown drifted with the breeze and into the paralyzed crowd.

Both Dream and Nightmare seemed surprised when you were now in front of him cupping his cheekbone. Tears of heartbreak streamed down your cheeks as you tried to summon a small smile and offer a comforting expression to him but it was stained with solemn remorse. "I've always chosen you Night.... that has and will never change.." You whispered and rested your forehead against his ribs not minding his newly gained sheen of liquid dripping down to the tip of your nose as you allow your tears to fall alongside the inky droplets to the swaying blades of golden lit meadow grass.

An arm that you identify as his wraps itself around your waist pulling you closer to him. "Well, Dream. It appears that she has FINALLY gotten to decide for herself!" He yelled back to Dream victoriously with a overbearingly smug smile in his voice.

"W-What...Y/N...why? Why'd you go to him?!" Dream asked in disbelief and frustration.

Nightmares' chest rumbled with a chuckle he had that quickly escalated into violent vibrations against your body as he roared out into a fit of laughter. "It appears you just LOST for once! And I didn't even DO anything to influence her! Amazing what someone with free will can decide! HAHAHAHA!" Nightmare jabbed at Dream soaking in his victory of your decision. He calmed down soon after as the air around you became remarkably cold.

"Get used to failure Dream," his grin disappears "because you're gonna be losing a lot more now."

He warned in a voice deepened into something you would connect to the terrors in horror stories. It was full of rage and carried an almost demonic presence to it.

You felt as if you were floating for a second before gravity weighed itself on you once again, nausea was out of the question by now since you were used to the brothers teleporting you everywhere in the village.

He let you go, free to do anything once again. But your emotions took a toll on your body and you crippled to the ground. It was almost as if the gravity of the situation hadn't settled in until now. It knew your sins and deemed you in need of further punishment.

He was your only support you had before that overwhelming sense of reality hit and came crashing down upon your frail body. Looking down and avoiding his eye, you had never stopped weeping, for you knew that the love of your life was nothing but a monster in his place.

"What? Already regret your decision?" He snarled down at you with a grin that bore no semblance of comfort or positivity but bitter hostility. He pushed passed your wilted form with an anger that radiated from him.

You flinch at his tone and harsh action yet looked up to him now equally as far gone as your dearest Night was. After all.. seeing your everything, your life, your love go through so much and disappear behind a beast of what once was...it was traumatic...

"I... I'm so sorry...I made you so miserable all these years without even knowing or acknowledging the signs... I should have been a better friend, I should have told Dream no, I should have comforted you..I...I should have been there..I'm sorry that I failed you.." You sniffled. His eye widened at first and he looked almost pained and panicked in your apology.

He quickly neutralizes his emotions and growls something deeply primal and lined with annoyance. "Quit your pity party and stand up. We have work to do, Y/N." He replied coldly. You felt the command pull at your limbs having you immediately attempt in fear of what would happen if you didn't offer complete obedience to this new momster before you.

Your legs gave out on you halfway, shaky beneath your weight. Nightmare rolled his dimly lit eye and glared down at you as he picked you up with a tentacle of his easily. He carried you for around 15 minutes to a large vacant meadow. It was filled with only the most beautiful flowers and meadow grass you had ever seen, even compared to your original universe.

It was beautiful...why would he take you both here..? You looked at the flowers and back to Nightmare as nostalgia overtook your vision with a memory. You remember how you had made him a lavender flower crown everytime he was sad to cheer him up, but this time seemed the worst so far so you made one with some of your personal favorites to brighten him up. He loved your flowers as well as his own, often claiming how perfectly the compliment eachother. This time he claimed his spell of sorrow was rooted to Dream taking one of his friends before he could spend time with them.

You didn't understand back then who he was talking about. Night avoided people sometimes and was quite shy, so finding friends was not his natural forte. If he had another friend then he would have told you with excitement as well since it was such a rare occurrence. But your curiosity and confusion didn't matter, he looked downright dreadful and somber. You needed to make him feel better and you successfully managed that as well as snagging a smile from him when you offered him reassurances.

'It's okay Nighty! I'll be your bestest friend! And I'll never leave your side for that stinky dreamy!'

You scrunched your nose as if smelling something awful. He bursted into a fit of giggles at your display and flushed a faint lavender. Your chest blossomed into warmth and you set the large crown over his skull. It sunk over his head and slipped around his neck. He straightened up and looked at you owlishly. You both bursted into loud spurts of laughter, the joyous sounds being the only thing echoing in your mind as the memory fades away.

That was so long ago...and things are different now..

So..so..different.

You're ripped from your nostalgic trip when a tentacle shoots passed your head, swiftly moving your hair with the speed in which it moved, and struck the ground with a loud thud.

The surrounding wildlife began to die and wilt, draining of color and life. It was now hideous and dull...

The ground shook and rumbled beneath you both, the unearthly quakes jostles your frame before he teleported into the sky easily remaining in place. He was a moment shy of a large mass of black stone that broke through the ground beneath where you were. And after a few painstakingly slow minutes the shifting of stone settled. The black heaps of rock had constucted itself into a massive castle.

He admired the structure for a moment before he decidedly teleported back to the ground once again. He paused and looked down at himself with stiff dissaproval. His hands raised to hover under his jaw before he slid his hands down his collarbone and ribs, the sludge that drowned his form creating a rippling effect around his hands as his outfit he had worn previously that day had changed his normal attire into a black hoodie that was made of the same substance as him along with loose fitted shorts and sneakers which the likes of which you had never seen. "Much better!~" He said with a smirk that held an emptiness you feel in your chest. It felt sinister..

He stepped through the door laughing dryly at something you can't peice together. This new Night scares you far beyond what your body and mind could comprehend...

.

.

.

You shot up in bed sweating and gasping for air with tears streaming your cheeks. You clawed at your chest right over your heart and soul, it thumped quickly against your clamy fingertips confirming your bodies responsive distress to your dream. Reinging in your erradic breaths and emotions proves to be an incredibly difficult feat.

Closing your eyes you felt as if your head was filled with lead, so you allowed the weight to overtake your heavy burdened skull down until your head hung low in your hands for a minute of reprieve. After a minute or so of drooping under the weight of gravity, you lifted your head in your hands and run them over your face as you continue all the way until you slick back your hair, holding the strands in place against your scalp. You throw your head back to be parallel to the ceiling while manually trying to regulate your breathing.

Calm down...just count back from five..

5.....

deep breath.....

4....

exhale....

3...

inhale...

2..

exhale..

1....

inhale...

You hold your breath until your lungs ached before you released the shaky breath. The light-headed feeling grounded you and calmed your pounding heart. Everything is fine...what happened in the past was simply that. The past...

Leaning against the bed post weakly you swallowed the lump in your throat. Your brows twitch at your efforts to keep a neutral face. It was the past...you've accepted that already...everyone you care about now is okay...they are safe...a smile ghosts your lips at the self-soothing thoughts.

Everything is going to be okay...

A shriek of fear peirces through the once peaceful silence of your room. You slowly open your eyes and simply stare off in the distance with a frown...there went that pleasant feeling you built up to.

You sighed tiredly. Every bone in your body beckoned you back to your bed for more rest...but your mind knew better. It took some serious pep-talking to get up and leave your room. You couldn't care enough to change so you decidedly stayed in your pajama shorts and tanktop that you slept in and headed to the sound of deep rasp laughter. Two distinguishable sets of laughter could be percieved between the screams of terror that you're ears subconciously became accustomed to.

Once you finally discerned where the ruckus was you ended up being brought into the kitchen right down the hall from all of the stationary rooms. You looked directly up where you heard the frantic screams you had been ever so kindly interrupted by earlier, only to spot the culprit. Error was up on the ceiling held up by his own strings and claws. Your gaze lowers to the cause of this reaction finding the instigator to be, Swapfell. Strange..he typically turned his nose up at the mere suggestion to rough housing or pranks. He found it 'too below him' as he put it. Yet here he was, carrying a large bone to knock Error down with.

"I HAVE TOLD YOU TIME AND TIME AGAIN YOU INSUFFERABLE PIECE OF SHIT TO LEAVE MY DAMN FOOD ALONE." Swapfell hollers in his signature outside voice up to Error with a snarl etched onto his scarred face.

You sigh in irritation and walk over to the obnoxiously loud skeletons who just couldn't seem to withhold a fraction of their amusement at the scene taking place.

"Where is he?" You question in a monotonous voice. Keep your tone level and you get to keep your levels, as Nightmare taught you.

"still in his room." Dust dismissed, automatically knowing who you were referencing to, as he barely acknowledged you through his sheer delight at Error's misfortune. Your eyes widened noticeably large. You're exhaustion extinguishing as you're vision is overcome with flashbacks of the gorey tragedy that took place a year ago...no...you can't have them disturb him. Not unless you want another incident...

You stormed over to Swapfell. You were originally going to step in anyways and take your time with the situation but this became urgent. You tried to politely get him to lay off but he refused and pushed you away, cussing you out before resuming his attack.

Your patience has just about run dry at this point so you snatch him by the scarf yanking him off his feet and onto his coccyx, him hissing out profanities and trying to claw at your arm as you dragged him to his seat. You picked him up and threw him into his seat with a glare of finality pinning him down.

Snapping your fingers you point to the seats at the table and shifted your withering glare to the others in a silent command that dared them to defy you right now. They seated themselves soon after at the table with nothing more than some annoyed grumbling. You turn your head to look at Error giving him a nod of approval for him to come down. He knows he's under your protection. He sighed relieved and slowly lowered down to the ground using his strings.

They must have really fucked with him if they got him screaming. His initial response to his phobia being used against him is rage, but it appears some boundries were crossed beyond usual today. Another time for this issue to be addressed. For now you need to make them shut up and aware of how close they got to recieving a hole-punch in their ticket of life.

"what's the big deal N/N? we're just havin' fun!" Fell exclaimed noisily in annoyance. Far too loud in this case...you leaned back to peer into the hallway and took a peek at Nightmare's door at the very end of the hall. Still closed and he's nowhere in sight. Good...he's still asleep...though you wonder how he could with all the comotion this morning.

You turn back to acknowledge all of them. "Oh really? And who's missing from all of this 'Fun' you were having, hm?" You questioned in an overtly exasperated manner and sarcastic mirth taking over your neutral expression.

"um...you...and killer?" Horror slowly questions in uncertainty, completely overlooking your sarcasm and ever so obvious intention of a rhetorical question.

You pinched the bridge of your nose and squeezed your eyes shut at the incoming migraine. You rested your weight onto your dominant leg and rested your other hand into the crease of your elbow. It's gonna be a long day...

"Yes, Sweety..we were missing from the table you are correct on that....but you still forgot someone...how about The King of Negativity and Darkness himself. Hm? Let's add him to the list. And guess what he's TRYING to do right now?" You look to the others for them to come to the realization. Horror was about to speak up but you cut him off before he could start.

"Don't-" you begin sternly before catching yourself and softening your expression and voice. "-answer it, Horror. I'm gonna answer it this time." He curled into himself in his seat.

Poor thing has been having cognitive issues since The Star Sans's targeted his skull injury a few missions ago. He requires a certain level of patience now and since you're the only one with empathy anymore he's latched to your hip most of the time, trying his best to communicate even through the frustrating lows he must endure now. You'll throw them a bone just this once, for him.

"He is resting. Do any of you remember what happened the LAST time you woke him up?" Their reactions varied from skeleton to skeleton but every single one had a similar look of mortified realization.

You sighed for the umpteenth time, exhaustion returning tenfold. God you needed a nap...

"didn't think he was gonna make it to breakfast. 'heard a crash from his room last night and he hasn't made a peep since." Dust shrugs dismissively with a bored expression, eyes wandering from the group as he visibly checks out from this meeting out of pure disinterest of the conversation.

"And you didn't think to check on your king? Or hell, inform me?" You asked with irritation slowly picking away at your resolve.

"he ain't my king." Dust said narrowing his sockets at you.

"Oh! Well in that case I'll tell him that you've fallen out of grace through insubordination! That will be a gruesome execution to watch." You exclaimed with mockingly wide expressive eyes looking down at him with a trenchancy smile.

He stood up abruptly sending his chair screeching against the ground and into Horrors lap. He gripped your arm with an unremitting hold using it to yank you forward into his ribs with a summoned broken bone positioned against your throat threateningly pushing into your pulse.

"don't threaten me, kid. y'aint gonna like what happens." He spat in your face with a sneer.

"Let go, Dust. Now." You ordered frowning deeply, every other Sans whispering amongst themselves and waiting with excited anticipation for the fight about to ensue in front of them. "u-m, du-st.. ya mi-ght wann-a ca-lm d-o-ow-" Error tried to warn but Dust decidedly blows him off as he continued to press the sharp bone against your throat, twisting it until a sharp stinging sensation spread through your splitting flesh. A warmth dripped from your throat. "make. me. bitch." He chuckled menacingly.

A cold glare froze over your undaunted expression. You sieze the wrist threatening your life, twisting it away from you unnaturally, this made him drop his weapon of choice as instincts flooded his mind to attempt to snatch away your inexorable hold. But you continued until his wrist audibly snapped and he screamed in agony. Your face was barren of any emotion as you watched him stumble away from you. You didn't want to have to resort to this method, however, pain is just how Dust learns best sadly.

He curled into himself gripping onto his broken wrist and tucked it into his ribs to protect it from further assault. That was not your plan however.

With his head down you grabbed the back of his skull and slammed it down into your propped knee, hearing a satisfying crack before you released him to kick him to the ground with your right foot pinning him by his ribs. He now whimpers in pain as he scrambles like a bug against your weight. "YOU FUCKING BITCH!" He screeched enraged, winded and gasping in pain. "Oh grow up. You have the HP. You threatened and disobeyed direct orders from the second in command and proved to follow inusbordinate ideals under the care of King Nightmare. You're lucky I'm not telling him as we speak so that you don't get killed." You hissed surprising everyone with your violent and cold performance.

"And what precisely would you not be telling me, Y/N? Why would I kill him?" The hair on your arms all the way up to your neck stands on end at the deep baritone voice that rumbles directly behind you. It held so much menace and suspicion that your heart stuttered in fear.

You whipped around to look at the massive skeleton behind you. His body was mere inches away from your face so you instinctively backed up to look up to him properly. He loomed over you and most of the other Sans's. Error was possibly a foot or less shorter but with Nightmare's massive build he towered over everyone with ease. It helped by feeding into the intimidation and fear that lurked within everyone who was unfortunate enough to be under his watchful eye. And you were just one of the incredibly unfortunate souls to have his attention at all times...

"Oh! Lord Nightmare! How lovely to see you up and alright! Uhm first off I would just like to say good morning-" A growl slices through the air and cuts off your rambling making your body go rigid before you forcefully choke down a fearful squeak. Right. No small talk. Got it.

"-aand that it's really nothing serious, Sir! I assure you that I was just making an example out of him since they kept pestering, Error!" You replied with a faint waver to your voice. His eye narrowed with his pupil shrinking into slits and the frown deepening on his skull.

"You're lying to me now?" He more so stated than asked with hardly witheld malign. You were about to squeak out in defense of yourself before your throat clamps down at his stature lowering, leaning into what you could only assume to be an uncomfortable height, leveling himself with your eyes silencing your silver tounge with a heavy eye. He's daring you to lie to his face. Fuck..

Something in your head screams at you to own up and tell the truth...but you can't...you can't bring yourself to just trade Dust's life over like that...

You'll be punished either way for lying to begin with...might as well make it something worthy of the awaiting consequences.

"N-no, Sir! I would never willingly lie to you, King Nightmare!" You gush out with sweat beading at your temples. Your eyes were wide in what you could only pray to be something close to ingenuous. A snarl started to curl at his permanent grin so you abruptly clapped your hands together enterlacing your fingers with a white-knuckled-grip.

"Oh dear, I just realized something! I'm terribly sorry sire but it appears that I'm underdressed while in your presence! That won't do at all, so if you'll excuse me I'm just going to get dressed." You excuse yourself with a strained smile. A whimper of pain behind you makes you snap out of your prey stricken fog. Ah..that's right. The other's.

You turned your back to Nightmare and faced the gang secretly relieved to have an excuse to look away from that peircing gaze that held so much judgment.

"Someone heal him please, I'll make breakfast today after I get dressed." You speak to the others swiftly and with a respectable amount of authority. This however drops when your gaze falls upon the miserable monster at your feet. "And Dust? Next time. Listen." You looked down coldly at one of the more powerful members of the group now wilted on the ground whimpering in pain because of your strength. He flinched and nodded in acknowledgement to your command. Good boy, you wanted to coo but decided against it in favor to fleeing the dominating aura behind you.

You eased passed Nightmare as if anticipating him to lunge at you and have his shadows swallow you whole once and for all. But the only thing that moves is his narrowly slitted eye light that pins your every move under suspicious judgment. You turned away from him and try to manage a steady and casual pace as you made your way down the hallway. After making a fair bit of distance you turned your head to see if he was still watching you only to find he was now standing at his full height once again donning a rageful glare.

An involuntary squeak of fear escapes your lips and you whipped your head forward-facing to focus of rushing into your room. Once there you shut the door behind you locking it in one swift motion before you leaned your back against it. Sweat dripped from your temple as a panic attack crept it's slender fingers over your skipping heart. Your eyes were wide as you stared at the ground simply trying to wrestle your emotions down.

Calm down, calm down, calm down, calm down, calm down..

You're okay...you're gonna be okay..

..you just need to take it easy..

Deep breaths...

You gulp a shaky breath and hold it.

Why don't you try to find a fun outfit to wear? That'll distract you and cheer you up. It always did when you knew a punishment was to come.

You released your breath when your head started to feel heavy and repeated until your heart grew less and less heavy. Once you found your heart was at a manageable tempo you deemed yourself ready to push away from the door. Walking over to your wardrobe you release a sigh of exhaustion and begin to get dressed.

You were finally tying the last of your clothes together considering your job as done-

"The others informed me of what exactly lead up to Dust being sent to the infirmary. They said he had caused quite a scene. Is that right, Y/N?" Nightmare queries darkly behind you. You leapt out of your skin and froze instinctively with tense shoulders.

Everything around you was abruptly flooded by the cyan light, casting eery shadows that danced with every flicker of his ever so observant eye. The light engulfed everything in your room hungrily leaving nothing but your own shadow to hide in. He was absolutely incensed. You slowly turned around to look up at him through your lashes to see that he was, in fact, horrifyingly furious. His calculative eye held you under scrutiny with little to no care for your ever growing unease.

"Oh..well you know how riled up they can get when they get stir crazy, Sir. He didn't do anything too bad, after all you know how much they like to start silly little fights!" You supply instead of give him a solid answer.

His eye flashes even brighter. "You DARE lie to my face?!" He roared and slammed you into the wall to the right of your wardrobe making you grunt in with the air that was knocked out of your lungs. Tears of fear spring to your eyes in rapid excession. Each of his tentacles strikes through the wall caging you under his sharp talons, dwarfing you more so than you already felt before.

"I HAVE GIVEN YOU TWO CHANCES TO TELL THE TRUTH YET YOU DENY ME THAT RIGHT." He barked with a shrunken pupil and a sharp fanged snarl.

"I-I'm sorry, s-sir!" You sobbed meekly through quivering lips. Never have you been THIS scared of him before...not since he turned into the creature he is today.

His expression briefly softens and his grip loosens its iron grip for only the briefest of moments before returning with a vengance as quickly as he lowered his guard. "Will you make strike three or tell me the truth?" He spat lowly.

Don't do it don't say it-

"Y-Yes...okay it's true! He was adopting a insubordination mindset and he exhibited a minor case of mutiny!" You choked out before you could stop yourself, a feeble prey-routed fear screaming at you to just tell the damn truth.

You began wincing as he pressed you against the wall harder striking an aching pain through your chest and body. You were just so scared...he's become too volatile and unpredictable lately..

"Then. Why. Would. You. Defend. Him?" He demanded with every word dripping with venomous rage. His gaze drifted down to you dripping wound before flashing his eye back to you.

"I-I don't know!" You exclaim the first thing that popped into your head frantically flinching at his fierce glare and striking strength. You sit there for a minute quietly weeping with your shot nerves making you shake.

"You're turning weak." He remarked with disgust and dropped you. He pulls his tentacles out of the wall launching rubble and debris everywhere, scattering it over your frail body like snow and hail.

Your legs immediately give out on you and you fall into a heap of limp limbs cowering in shock before a sob ripped through your body and out of your throat. You shakily clamped a hand over your mouth to contain your pitiful whimpers, curling into yourself to try to attempt to comfort yourself.

He scoffed and turned to leave without another word as you curled up into a tighter ball to cradle your pained soul. Regret...that's what this feeling is...you should've never believed he was or could be what he once was...

The bitter realization makes you freeze with a distant look aimed to the ground, unfocused and dead.

"I should've chose Dream..." you whisper through your trembling hands to yourself.

"W H A T  D I D  Y O U J U S T S A Y."

Nightmare's booming voice shook you to your core. He whipped back around, his tentacles lashing behind him sporadically, his eyelight blinding with his burning wrath. The realization has anger lapping at your feet over the instinctual fear that fills your body and soul.

Why are you so afraid of the one you had once loved? Why do you let him hurt you with little to no consequences? Why are YOU the one suffering? Having nightmares every night out of guilt for what you could have done for him back when you were young and stupid when he obviously didn't give a fuck about you. Why are you the one clawing for his forgiveness?

Thoughts of brimming bitter anger drowned out every rational thought of yours until it boiled over and you reached your mental breaking point.

"I said.." You breathe quietly almost as if you had a realization dawning on you. Your anger festers until you couldn't contain your disdain for the skeleton before you.

"I SHOULD'VE CHOSE DREAM THAT DAY." You screamed and looked up at him from the ground with hatred reflecting in your burning eyes. With a loud roar of fury he strikes his tentacles towards your cradled body.

You rolled out of the way of his attacks and sprung back up to your feet. You can't stop now, you need to keep going. You need to hurt him like he did you.

"DO YOU WANNA KNOW WHY, NIGHTMARE!? BECAUSE EVERY DAY I WAKE UP FROM THESE- THESE HORRIBLE NIGHT TERRORS THAT LEAVE ME BEDRIDDEN AND WEEPING UNTIL I CAN'T CRY ANYMORE. UNTIL ALL I WANT IS FOR IT TO STOP. BUT I STILL GET UP TO ANSWER TO YOUR EVERY BECK AND CALL WITHOUT QUESTION OR COMPLAINT. AND WHAT DO YOU DO? YOU PUT ME THROUGH HELL AND FOR WHAT?! AMUSEMENT? HUNGER?" You shout fuming at the towering ebony skeleton before you.

"EVERY. SINGLE. FUCKING. DAY. I SIT AND WONDER HOW DIFFERENTLY I WILL NEED TO TREAD THE NEXT DAY TO AVOID A PUNISHMENT THAT IS BOUND TO HAPPEN ANYWAYS." You yelled stomping on one of his tentacles that was drilled into the ground closest to you, making him hiss and try to recede his tentacle from your brutal attack but your weight crushes down on it harder, leading him to nearly strike another tentacle towards. He seems to think better of it because he stops himself for reasons you can't process in your blinded fury.

"YEARS OF LOYALTY. YEARS OF ALLEGIANCE. YEARS OF STRIKING FEAR INTO THE INNOCENT SOULS OF THE MULTIVERSE AGAINST MY OWN BETTER JUDGMENT JUST TO PLEASE YOU. I HATE MY OWN FUCKING LIFE BECAUSE OF YOU. I FUCKING HATE YOU!" You roared huffing from the exertion it took to emote and scream and pin his squirming weapon beneath your powerful heel. This actually seems to make him physically flinch away. He takes a step back.

His tentacles droop in the slightest to his battling thoughts that faintly fight to be showcased across his face like a montage of conflicting emotions in a painting. He seemed to gather himself enough to look away from your fuming person and to the side.

Uttering a simple, "I see..."

His tone was still stern but this time it held something softer than what he used just moments prior. You stepped off of his tentacle shifting your foot back to its original position beside the other.

"I...I used to LOVE you Nightmare..." Your voice warbles softly to him. Calling out for him to say or do SOMETHING that would make you want to stay. He remains as silent as the night, clentching his jaw and looking further away from your hopeful eye.

"...I used to want to be yours and you be mine but I was too scared to ask you. I was so afraid you would have lash out...I had hoped that if I chose you and proved to you my loyalty you would see that but...you ABUSED me all these years.." You choke out bitterly. You start wiping your tears away but they kept rushing to replace the previous ones that still stained your cheeks, much to your displeasure. Your anger was cooling down into a subtle simmer. You felt satisfied that he could finally feel a fraction of how you feel. That he may finally share your burdensome pain.

"I'm the king of Negativity. What did you EXPECT from m-" He attempts to excuse with a bitter bite but your withering glare snapped to look him in the eye, cutting him off promptly.

"-YOU were the king of the night." You start sharply and raise an accusatory finger to him as you stalk forward. "YOU were a guardian to the tree. I EXPECTED you to be better than this-this miserable monster you've become! I EXPECTED you to overcome this stupid apple's effects because of your own moral obligation. I EXPECTED you to do the right thing and end this stupid fucking war centuries ago. I EXPECTED you to come back to us." You snap looking him in the eye with something cold and harsh.

The adrenaline from yelling at something akin to a GOD kept you from backing down. You were possibly two feet away from him when you stopped and glared up at him with tears pooling in your eyes. He glared down at you with an intense expression.

"Then lower your expectations."

He finishes coldly.

You walked passed him in a brisk stride towards your door, unlocking the useless contraption, and stepping outside. "You just did. Good luck Night-" you pause with one foot out of the door. "-Or should I say Nightmare?" You correct over your shoulder harshly and slam the door shut behind you. You catch a glimpse of Nightmares widened eye that flashed one last time before it flickered into a dim cyan, almost taking on a ghostly white appearance. You pushed on and continue walking down the hallway passing by the other Sans's.

"Y-yo, Y-y/N, wh-a-at was wi-th t-he ye-lli- who-whoa...what ha-appen-ed?" Errors corrupted voice glitches beside you as he questions you with a concerned curiosity.

"You're second in command now, Error." You say with no room for arguing. You don't stop your quick stride after you pass him without so much as a glance in his direction, so he scrambles after you until he matched your speed, his steps slow and steady compared to your purposeful strides. "W-wha-at?" He asks bewildered at the response you decided to answer him with. You ignore his questioning surprise and continue on with what you were wanting to say.

"You've been my closest ally through all of these long torturous years here...I would even go as far as to say that you're my closest friend..and I care about you greatly. I just...really need you to understand that." You quickened your pace once his footsteps faltered and he stopped in place, leaving him without another word.

Leaving the castle for good was never an idea you humored no less actively thought about, but right now, it was what you felt was the best option. And you didn't stop no matter the shouts for you to stop.

.

.

After a good thirty minutes of walking you made a good distance between you and the prison you once called home.

This should be far enough.

You sigh and thought about where you could possibly go to be as far away as physically possible...somewhere safe from the monsters you were previously associated with. An idea came to mind that lingered until you thought about it deeper. That could work..

You took a deep breath and began to think of the pleasant memories you were forbidden from having. Happy memories of Dream, of Night, of you all those centuries ago flood your head filling your soul with a lightness you were denied of for so long.

A solid minute of these wonderful memories resurfacing into the forefront of your mind is how long it takes before a golden glow shines through your eyelids. You open your eyes to see a trio of colorfully clad skeletons exit the newly summoned portal before you. You all froze, saying absolutely nothing for a minute or two until you launched forward, hugging the skeleton in the center and sobbing into his shoulder. He briefly hesitates at first but hugs back almost immediately, pulling you into a tighter hold. His skull buries into the crown of your head. And right now? You really needed his warm and protective hold.

Fighting was never really an option you let happen with them but that doesn't mean you weren't there for most of the fights by Nightmares command. You suppose you were more like a trophy to show off to Dream of his first ever loss than anything...

Only a moment more of hugging ensued before you regrettably had to pull away, smiling up at him warmly. You missed him...truly you did and you could tell he was relieved to see you as well.

An unsettling chill crawled up your spine and the hair on the back of your neck stands on end. That brief moment of happiness was ripped away from you when the feeling of being watched alerted you of an angry presence. You tensed and perked up looking around cautiously like a deer hearing the snap of a twig during hunting season.

"Guys...get in the portal...now." You order cautiously though your voice remains neutral to not cause a panic. Staring into the treeline you felt the presence most strongly, your intense gaze never breaks from it. Your voice was strong and authoritive as you ushered everyone into the portal, attempting to follow after them, but you were stopped by blue strings wrapping around your leg. A gasp slipped passed your lips when you felt them yank you back making you loose your balance and fall onto your stomach. The buzzing energy tickled almost...

His intent was to capture. Not hurt.

You whirled back to see Error a fair distance away suspended towards the sky, watching you with no particular emotion dominant on his face. It looked like he was experiencing every emotion imaginable at the moment so it was hard to pinpoint anything in particular. It hurt to see him so overcome with emotions but you can't risk consoling him right now. Your gaze snaps down and away from him spotting the others making their way to you both. They were halfway through the vast, black, dead meadow that you faintly remember once held beauty and light.

Their weapons were drawn out with the intent to satisfy their bellicose desires. May it be through scattering blood and dust on a battlefield or causing misery in their weapons wake. Their bones pulsed with adrenaline driven eagerness. They were starved of their addiction, but now they were allowed to feed it once again. Allowed to fight once more and smell their favorite aroma of blood and the feeling of dust whisping about on their skulls, they were allowed to get their fix of taking a life.

Your pupils shrunk in fear and you darted your gaze back up at Error. You were starting to hyperventilate. Nightmare would kill you if you got dragged back..there's no way he'd let you go after the stunt you just pulled.

You looked up at him pleadingly, begging under an airy whisper to let you go, please let me go your soul cried out to his. He looked away trying to avoid your gaze but failed, ultimately trapping himself in your wide panicked E/C eyes. You both stay there simply staring at one another for a long minute.

He caved, groaning in defeat. He releases a string of cusswords and hangs his head low as he cut his strings with one of his sharp phalanges, finally freeing you. His gaze meets yours once more when he offers you a nod of approval for you to escape. You are under his protection now.

A relieved smile blooms from cheek to cheek. You squirmed out of his strings and look back at him making a upside down heart with your hands just before jumping through the portal. A hairs length shy of Fell's outstretched claw being the last image anyone could see.

The portal closes instantly after you exit it and you land flat on your ass. You grunt in pain and flop back, recovering your breath and trying to ignore the soarness spreading through your ass.

"Are you okay, Y/N?!" Dream frets rushing to your side before hesitating and simply offers a hand out for you to take. You laugh breathlessly and nod your head. Politely, you decline his offer, cleaning yourself off and getting up yourself. You looked around getting hit by a wave of nostalgia that drowns you in joyous warmth. The meadow looks as beautiful as ever lit up in a ethereal golden glow.

A warm smile spreads against your chapped lips. For once in a long time...your soul and heart doesn't ache...you feel happy?..yes. That's the word. You feel happy.

"Yup, with a smile as bright as that, you're definitely the Y/N I know and love.." Dream chuckles triggering your own soft laughter. Ink and Blue wish you both a pleasant evening as they go their seperate ways, no longer needed now that the crisis has been averted.

You both sit on the hill you popped onto and stay there settling into a pleasantly comfortable silence, just enjoying one another's company and absorbing the beautiful scenery together with a melancholy feeling shared between you both.

"So, Y/N..you don't have to answer if you're not ready, but I would just like to get it out of the way just in case. What happened for you to summon me?" He asks softly with a patience you have been starved of for so many years.

"Well..." You trail off with a heavy sigh. The exhaustion you felt worsens for every moment your adrenaline fades from your veins.

.

.

.

.

A few months later

.

.

.

.

Nightmare was very adamant for your return. That was all he seemed to be trying to do at this point and you just couldn't understand why..

If he's the ever so prideful King of Negativity that you remember having the displeasure of standing alongside for all those years then why was he focusing all his time and resources on recapturing you? He doesn't care about you. He made that clear. So what was he trying to accomplish? What could he possibly gain from ANY of this? Could he be trying to drag you back so that he could make an example out of you? To punish you and hang you out for everyone to see, lips sewn shut for talking out of turn and chains wrapping around your body to prove there is no escaping once you've sold yourself to his cause? No, it couldn't be that...that's far too much effort for his group to follow through with...so what they hell was he doing?

Whatever the reasoning was it doesn't matter now...or at least...it didn't until he got a little too close for comfort. Then you had to hide where you knew he wouldn't go. Not even for you.

In the very tree where he consumed every last apple until his fate, and those tied to him, was ensnared with misery.

.

.

.

You had fought day and night to convince Dream to plant the seeds of the remaining apple so that it could be restored to the ancient majesty it once was. And finally, albeit with heavy reluctance, he listened.

You recall how you all had waited with bated breath, days and nights at a time, to see if the seeds would sprout or if they would wither and die without the sweet fleshy magic-coated fruit that once encased it.

It was Ink's turn to watch over the little seeds one sunny day, to gaurd and check on the progression of the sacred fruit, and it was he who had found six tiny green stems sprouting from the ground. It was such a joyous moment that it spurred a festival in it's honor, and it was all because of the delicate little plants that sprouted from the ground. It sprouted hope into the souls of those who struggled day by day to keep up positive facades. Hope...

....what a strange feeling that was to have again.

And it was with this hope and the help of some powerful monsters that you were all able to contribute a hefty stream of magic into the sprouts to strengthen and assist in it's growth. If you remember right, this was a sacred ritual that was used when the first tree grew all those centuries ago. It was performed annually to ensure the tree was at its strongest each year. Festivals were held in honor of the revitalization of the once reverent tree.

It grew beautifully with the magic supply that never stopped feeding it. Soon enough it towered over some of the cottages from the village and even beyond that at some point.

It was only after the tree started to bare fruit that everyone abandoned all of the built up labor and started to rely on Dream's protection over it. He was happy now, he had his purpose back and he could now gaurd the tree for the rest of eternity like he was trained to do since birth. Everything was finally as it was supposed to be. What it was meant to be,- what it could've been.

You remember you had felt a weight lift off of your shoulders and the smallest of smiles tug on your lips seeing Dream get swarmed by townsfolk congratulating him on becoming a gaurdian once again. He was laughing bashfully but puffed his chest in pride. He was back.

It was the realization that..you did it...you fixed what Nightmare broke- that your body began to sag in exhaustion until you collapsed onto the ground under a large willow tree. The shade offered a cooling sensation across your body that combatted the pleasant heat just beyond the outline of the tree's shadow. You released a shaky breath, the weight of emotion escaping your lungs. You could finally rest at night...you had found your peace...

Though the scars of the past remained, everyone began to gradually move on. The tree was restored, the village was happy, Dream was happy, everything was made right. That heavy guilt you carried from all the years you blamed yourself of the events of that day were finally gone..you freed yourself.

Then, things started to feel like it had when you were far younger...

A little too much like it actually...everything seemed to fall back into the very same routine everyone carried out 500 years ago without problem. It was as if you never left...it was as if nothing ever happened..that Nightmare never happened. And something about that made you feel...uneasy.

You thought you would be happy- relieved even- that your old life was finally coming back to you. That it felt like you never left and that you could carry on where you last left off without needing to make up for lost time. That you could live a life without having Nightmare be brought up by the villagers. You could finally have a sense of normalcy and live the rest of your life how you wanted to now...

But it doesn't feel right......this ending felt bittersweet...

You recall working on your garden one day when a scream echoed throughout the meadow near your home. Everyone rushed to the shriek and to everyone's horror there was ONE black apple in the sea of golden ones. Panic started to wash through the crowd and all hell broke loose. The wide panic worsened when a shrill scream drew the attention to a young woman who pointed to another inky apple hidden behind some leaves. Arguments about what needed to be done and why this happened started and fights broke out amongst the people. Wide spread hysteria ensued.

Some cried, some screamed, some shouted, and some fought. Chaos surrounded you but you stood perfectly still and looked up at the grand tree, staring at the apples that have haunted you for centuries with a look of blank acceptance. You thought you would be mortified like the others, especially with how involved you were last time...but something inside of you was willing to accept it for what it was.

Life needs a balance of good and bad. Which is something that the townsfolk did not seem to understand.

Dream had pushed through the crowd and found you, rapid firing questions of your overall safety, then after securing you- you both stood just under the tree to demand order. You looked down at the barbaric villagers you once thought highly of now with disgust.

You had learned from Dream that Night would often come home to guard the tree with low HP from all of the beatings he had endured throughout the day. Bruised, battered, bloody and broken was what he was described to look like before Dream had to hurry and heal him after he collapsed under pain and exhaustion. It was them who drove him to madness.

You were mortified...all that damage he endured...were caused by the very citizens you grew up under, blissfully unaware of the malicious acts they casted on the one you loved. You were left oblivious to the atrocities committed just under your senses.

You had screamed at Dream demanding why no one told you, especially Night, about the abuse he put up with every day. But Dream could not tell you, for even he did not know...

It was no wonder Night never wanted to go into the village...it was no wonder he burned it down after leaving you at the castle for days. It was no wonder he hated it here. It was no wonder he ate that wretched apple.

The cruelty Night faced just under your nose explained so much about him then and now. You couldn't bare to live amongst the very people who helped in the creation of 'Nightmare'. So you moved your home as far away from that wretched town as you could.

.

.

.

After a while of this wild goose chase to drag you back...they just...stopped looking for you. It was a bit odd at first, you admit you were on gaurd and suspicious, but you obviously didn't mind the peace and quiet.

One day though you were in the middle of cooking dinner for yourself when you heard frantic knocks at your door. You immediately perk at the loud noise, snapping out of your built up concentration you had focused into cooking your meal, and releasing a heavy sigh at being interrupted from your task.

You turned off your stove, setting the pan to the side so it wouldn't continue cooking on the burning stove, and cleaned your messy hands on a towel before you made your way to the door, curiosity getting the better of you at the sheer panic you heard behind the frantic knocks. You open the oak door and are immediately faced with the image of Dream winded and gasping for breath.

Your brows furrow and you reach out to rest your hand on his shoulder blade, perhaps he would like a glass of water? He stops you however and starts to level his breathing. You wait patiently for him to recollect himself before you ask what he needed. This seems urgent.

"E-Error and Horror wish to see you.." He breathes.

"They...want to see me? Dream...They've been trying to capture me for months, of course they want to see me." You say incredulously, but deep down you were overcome with a sense of longing, fighting the desire to race to your boys as soon as you heard they were here.

You couldn't. You needed to make sure Dream didn't think you would return to, Nightmare.

He shakes his skull and looks back at you, "They say it's urgent..."

You sigh. "Lead the way, Sunshine." You concede, understanding that he would not have come to get you if he felt threatened or suspicious of the opposing skellies. It must have been awfully important if Dream decided to listen to them and try to retrieve you.

Ten nonstop minutes of walking was how long it took before you saw Error and Horror stiffly standing in the clearing, looking around at the beautiful meadow you grew up playing in. Ink and Blue were off to the side watching them with crossed arms and weapons at the ready in case they tried anything.

Their eyes finally fell on you, a look of astonishment shared on their skulls and faint colorful hues sneaking onto their cheekbones.

You fight back your growing smirk. You couldn't really blame their baffled reaction to your appearance. Afterall, you were wearing a tailored white tunic again like you had before meeting them, which must have been quite odd for them to see. You hardly ever wore anything outside of the dark themes Nightmare had made for you or the occasional pencil skirt for work. You looked so much better than when you did under Nightmare's 'care'. More healthy and alive.

Nightmare never really...took care of you? Which you suppose isn't an issue since you are a grown adult and all and are meant to take care of yourself. But that doesn't take away from the fact that he often overworked you, causing countless restless nights, and for the rare night you did get sleep he would throw in the occasional nightmare to keep himself energized. This caused a lot of sleep issues and even sleep paralysis. Heavy bags under your eyes used to be more common than the clothes that covered your body, your sickly pale skin and greasy hair was another common feature that you recall having.

You were always left so weak...you constanly looked and felt sick to the point that it was probably the lead contributing reason as to why Nightmare never made you fight. You WERE fed, not to get the wrong idea, but just not too much since you were always piled neck high with work and too busy to be bothered to leave your room to cook and eat dinner. So yeah...he made sure you didn't die but he also didn't really go out of his way to make sure you were okay either.

But now your skin glowed with life and color, you slept perfectly fine and your hair was silky with care now, you look beyond perfect. You look healthy. You were genuinely happy for once too and didn't even dare hide it as your smile was a new and prominent jewel you wore and showed off like a prize.

You collect yourself and turn to ask Dream if he could give you a few minutes to speak with them. You reassure him that they were your only friends while you were with Nightmare and that they wouldn't dare hurt you. He nods slightly in confirmation, signaling to Blue and Ink that they could fall back before he too hesitantly started to turn to leave. But before he could get a few feet away, he pauses mid-step and warns you to be careful. With a warm smile you agree and watch as the distance grew between you all.

Once the trio was out of sight you spun around and ran towards the two scary skeletons with a massive smile overtaking your face. You slowed down to a stop just shy of a few feet away from Error to acknowledge his phobia and breathlessly exclaim-

"My boys! It's so great to see y-"

Your sentence dies midway through with your expression slowly falling from sheer joy to despair after seeing something horrible donning on your friend.

"Oh...oh god..what happened...what did Nightmare DO to you...?" You ask softly with your frown deepening. You started examining the large crack in Error's skull from a distance allowing your sadness and concern to be heard in your voice and expressed on your face instead of physically.

"b-betra-ayed th-he bast-ard by le-t-ting yo-ou g-o.." He replies looking away from your eyes and at the swaying trees.

You curl your outstretched fingers that you just caught subconciously reaching for his scar and press them into your palm, hesitantly pulling away. You sigh and look down.

"I....I'm so sorry...he wouldn't have done this if I had just stayed..I shouldn't have left..." You apologize softly with that all too familiar guilt creeping it's way into your soul again. Survivors guilt can be quite the nasty demon to overcome...

"y/n."

You looked up at the stern voice to see Horror staring you down with a soft look. "... 's fine...you were around 'em fer...longer than any of us...always took...the blame...for us..only a matter of time before..you broke from all the punishments.." Horror said slowly to ensure he would say everything he wanted to and managed it to sound reassuring.

You rush forward, giving him a bear hug that was filled with relief-filled warmth. He grunts in pain but hugs back regardless with a tight hold around your back. He nuzzled into your hair missing your hugs greatly.

You flinch at his audible grunt of pain and reluctantly pull away, you look him over like you had done with Error when you saw them. Cracks spread all along his cervical that led down to his thoracic spine. You gingerly tilted his skull up to better see the cracks and to take in the severity of them.

He allows you to inspect him and waits patiently for you to finish. You graze your thumb over them to feel how deep they went when a sharp gasp makes you pull away and apologize profusely with a hush tone.

You sigh sorrowfully and look down with creeping shame. You push aside your emotions and pull Horror into another warm embrace, gently avoiding his wounds and cradling him protectively, he snuggles into you with a far more pleasant purr.

How could you have left them with such a unstable leader..?

"List-en..as muc-ch as we-e've misse-d yo-ou N/N, we di-idn't come he-ere for a c-catch up..W-e u-uhh...we nee-ed yo-ur hel-p...yo-u p-probably c-cau-ght o-on to ho-w Nigh-tma-re is-n't try-ying t-to get you b-ack any-more..?" Error prompts uneasily. You pull away from Horror to look at Error leaving your hands on Horror's shoulder blades for comfort.

"Y-Yes..." You are already starting to get nervous at his tone.

"Well...he se-ems to be s-show-ing si-gns of h-hope-lessness..." He slowly phrases but your brain promptly shuts down before he can finish the rest of what he was saying. All of the color drains from your face at once..

...no....anything but Hopelessness...

Hopelessness in humans is a feeling that could be overcome...but monsters who are more closely connected with their souls than their physical body....it's fatal...

"-hasn't ea-eaten o-r com-e out-t of hi-is roo-m in d-a-ays..n-none o-f u-s re-eally ca-res but...he's no-ot ev-en cap-able of hol-lding the cast-tle toge-ther. M-ost of th-eir A-AU's ha-ve b-been destr-oy-oyed a-and I do-on't wa-nna de-al wit-h outc-odes in m-y anti-void." You snapped out of your mental-meldown-trance just in time to hear Error finish. You look up to see Error looking down at you.

"A..are you sure he's not just in rut..?" You ask quietly. "We know his schedule." Error confirms your fear.

"Bring me to him." You request without hesitation.

" 'm...not sure that's the...best idea..little lamb-" Horror tries to convince you otherwise.

"Horror...you come here, after months of pure silence on your end to tell me the monster I have known for over 523 years is slowly dusting away to the most dangerous monster affliction known to-date and expect me to stay?" You ask with narrowed eyes making Horror flinch.

You can't forgive Nightmare for what he's done...not yet at least...but even if you don't forgive him you couldn't bring yourself to hate or forget him. You, even though it pains you to admit it, still love him and although you crave the karma he deserves, you can't just let him die. You refuse to let him die.

"..okay..." Horror relents and looks up to Error for further confirmation to whom of which simply nods once and opens a portal back at the castle entrance.

You hop through the lagging portal between universes without question and land with a trained, agile, grace. Your body immediately sets you into a dead sprint after setting foot onto the stone path.

You dash passed the rusted crumbling front gate and the uneven cracks of the stone below the pads of your feet. Error was telling the truth afterall...the castle was crumbling for every second that passed...

Flying up the front stone steps and inside the castle you beeline for Nightmare's room, bare feet pattering against the ground and the train of your tunic flowing behind your inexorable path.

"w-y/n?!" You heard Dust call after you in baffled astonishment. You didn't have time to catch up though and pushed on, adrenaline kicking into your bloodstream at the footsteps and bones that tried to stop you. But the horrid thoughts of Nightmare dusting away before you could get to him feuled you to dodge and weave through each attempt to stop you. The images of his dust sifting through your fingertips pushes you harder and faster to reach his door. You were hellbent to try to stop this, your body refused to calm down, your heartbeat pulsing through your head until you had his door in your line of sight.

You slide to a stop just in front of it and promptly side-kick Nightmare's door down. In the case of an emergency, fuck knocking.

Out of your corner of your eye you see SwapFell, Fell and Killer peek around the corner at the disruption of their solitude.

You look on into the pitch black room to see Nightmare shoot up in bed. He....looks like an absolute trainwreck.

He wasn't well kept, he looked pale, weak, exhausted. His tentacles were nearly touching the ground with how much they droop, his iris hardly glows with the darkness that surrounds him..it was nearly gone....

Fuck...this was the worst case of hopelessness you've seen...

"The fuck?! Who kicked down my godamn d-Y/N..?" He barks weakly at first until his foggy unfocused eyelight zeroes in on you. His harsh expression drops at the sight of you and he doesn't hesitate to slide out of bed to stand in front of you. He looms over you with disbelief filling his wide socket. He shakily and hesitantly reaches for your cheek, as if you were a ghost of a loved one that would disappear if he wasn't careful.

Once his claw gently grazes your cheek he releases a shaky uneven breath neither of you knew he was holding. His expression drops and he just...stares down at you, his eyes' color slightly coming back. Your mouth parts to say something when he shot down pulling you into a desperate hug as he buries his skull into the crook of your neck.

His right hand desperately clutches behind your head, pulling you closer with a iron grip.

"I-I thought I lost you forever...." His voice was hushed and shaky. You felt something hot drip onto your neck that slowly slid down your collarbone and to your chest. You felt Nightmare's breathing against your neck and found it was uneven. You look over his hunched shoulder to see his back rise and fall, almost as if he was hyperventilating...Nightmare was..

..crying..?

A warm sensation that soon cools trails down your cheeks. You realize you were crying as well.

You hug his skull tightly and desperately clutch at his back with your other hand until you collect enough of his sweater to latch onto desperately- to get him as close as you possibly could. You tilt your head over his skull in a action of reassurance. Your breathing was becoming shaky as you whisper-

"I made my choice about who's side I was on long ago, Nightmare..."

You say causing a shudder to roll through the monster clinging onto you before you pull away. You rest your palm on his cheekbone and start to gently wipe away his tears, he had looked so miserable until he saw you. He returns the favor, allowing warmth to bloom through your chest.

Loud whispers cut through your moment behind you making you turn around to see the others tuck away quickly. You look back to Nightmare and tilt your head down with a sigh again. Nightmare will probably want some privacy so that he can keep his big bad persona he likes to show off without coming across as soft. You drop your hand from his cheekbone that he was leaning into with a closed socket, soaking into your touch. You pull away, about to head over to fix the door and shut it since the other's were starting to spy on you both. The Nightmare you know would rather be caught dead then crying.

But before you could even get a few feet away to do so he gently wraps his tentacles around your waist, loose enough for you to pull away if you want, but enough to stop you.

"W-wait! Please...please..don't leave me alone again..." He pleads desperately, pulling you towards him and into his arms. He was once again latched onto you tightly, his head back in the crook of your neck where he promply inhaled your scent to calm down. He...didn't care that the others were watching...?

Oh God that's too fucking cute...But you couldn't help that pang of guilt you felt in your soul when he said 'Again'.

"Nightmare, I'm not gonna leave you again..I was just going to try to close the door..." You say with the most smooth and alluring voice you could in order to soothe him. You turn around to pull him into your chest to strengthen the embrace. He snaps his phalanges, the door flies up from the ground unprovoked and slams shut, looking as if no harm was done only minutes prior.

He lifts you up with ease, much to your understandable surprise, and carries you all the way back to his bed where he sets you down on the messy pile of blankets with tender care. You start to move away but since he was so much bigger than you- you had to crawl away from him rather quickly to make room for him. He flinches and looks on sadly towards the ground with guilt oozing from him as he straightens his back, readying himself to leave. Ah, he must of thought you were trying to get away.

You shook your head patting the spot beside you. He hears the patting and looks up from the ground to look you in the eyes. You repeat the gesture, this time he understands and slips into the blanket pile along side you, releasing a soft and relieved sigh. The bed dips under his weight which causes a crater big enough that it made you slide right next to him. You giggle at the predicament, about to get up and move over when he wraps his arms around your waist with his tentacles and pulls you even closer.

Was...was he..actually cuddling you..? You never thought your dreams since childhood would ACTUALLY come true...you have been waiting your whole life for this...he may not be your darling Night anymore...but with the way he was acting...you may be able to accept this monster in his place.

You wrap your arms around his neck and rest your forehead against his affectionately.

"I love you Nightmare, i'm so sorry for leaving you..." You apologize quietly with tears welling up in your eyes.

"Don't apologize." He demands sternly, making your eyes shoot open to look at him with surprise. "Please...you were doing the right thing. I-I've been so angry at you and punishing you for absolutely no reason and it's all because I didn't want to feel the same love for you that I felt before. I thought it would make me just as weak as I was before...but it was the only thing fueling me. I never wanted to hurt you...I hope you saw that..." He spoke so gently and quietly it was almost like he was a completely different skeleton.

What had happened over those few months you were gone?

"I saw. I saw you trying Nightmare and I appreciate that. As long as you don't go back to being a big bad bossy bully then I won't leave again." You joke trying to lighten things up a bit. You leaned forward, planting a quick and gentle kiss on his teeth with a wide smile afterwards. He flushes into a bright neon blue. "O-Of course, Darling. I wouldn't ever go back to being the way I used to be if it meant losing you again. I love you too much to let you go..my soulmate." He reassures seriously and affectionately. For once in centuries he sounded like...Night again...not Nightmare but Night.

You wipe away his tears that remained, letting your own come out as well.

"That's all i've ever wanted.." You laugh wetly with a bright smile and kiss him on his teeth much longer than the last. He melts into it and kisses back, pulling you even closer to deepen it. After a half minute you pull away for air, blushing profusely.

"The fierce and all mighty Lord of Nightmares is cuddling and kissing me..." You say with a jokingly scandelized expression and tone. He shakes his skull chuckling deeply at your display but lets you continue.

"What a wonderous blessing I am met with~" You tease breathlessly and gently cradle his skull in your hand, pulling him closer again. He melts in your hold with a rumbling purr. "Anything for you, My Queen. I'll change and do it all over again if I must" He says softly. It's now your turn to melt at his words. You'll tell your darling Night that he was free from the apple once you're done smootching the ever-loving soul out of him.

He's back...And this time..

He'll treat you right.

[traincat]

ive never played the games so i dont know what to picture when im reading your fics, how tall do you think soren and ike are?

I said recently that they have a Mulder and Scully level height difference and I stand by that statement. This one is a little hard to answer, because I don't think there is a definitive answer -- it's not like comics where there's an official handbook with heights and weights listed, although there is like, a vague equivalent. I'll get to that. I know recently some people deduced heights by, I think, converting the measurements of their respective models in Fire Emblem Engage, the anniversary game for the series that featured both characters, but I'll be honest, that's too much math for me, and I'd rather rip into the text of the original games until I come up with my own answer. So I'm gonna give you my thoughts, and the canon evidence that backs them up, but it's just my opinion.

Anyway I'm going into this with the same amount of thought that I go into with all my comics meta. I'm sorry about that in advance.

So two things about Fire Emblem 9 and 10. The first is that the games aren't new -- FE9 came out in 2005, and FE10 in 2007. Graphically, they hold up well, but it's because they're not very complicated. The majority of conversations take place involving still portraits with text underneath -- there's only a few fully animated cutscenes. (Soren is in exactly one FE10 cutscene, and they're not standing next to each other.) The second is that the games take place over a period of a few years (each game takes place over about a year, with a three year gap in between FE9 and FE10). Ike starts FE9 at 17, and he's about 20 at the start of FE10. And he evolves like a Pokemon.

This is not meant to be to height scale; I just wanted these three pieces of official art next to each other for comparison. Graphic design is not my passion.

Also, this has nothing to do with height, but I'm going to point it out anyway: Ike's FE10 artbook page literally ends by talking about how he's in love with Soren.

(credit to Kantopia for the translation.) (did I mention that, by FE rules, the ship is canon. because it's canon.) The character designer, Kita Senri, also drew this picture of FE9 and FE10 Ike standing back to back, which. Yeah. Okay!

By FE10, at least, so by age 20, Ike is tall. (His parents come from the Tall People Country, Daein.) His size is remarked upon a couple of times in the script, too, by people who hadn't seen him for a few years:

Ike: Tormod, it's been a while. Tormod: Holy moly! You are absolutely huge! I feel puny next to you… Ike: That's because you are puny. Magic clearly doesn't give you much muscle tone. (...) Tormod: Nah, you just can't see me properly because all of your blood gets pumped to your muscles, away from your brain! [leaves] Ike: A little touchy, Tormod?

(FE10, Part 4 Chapter 4)

Volke: You’ve grown quite a bit since the last time I saw you. Ike: Everyone loves telling me that. Volke: You’re starting to look like Greil. Ike: That might be true, too. He IS my dad.

(FE10, Part 4 Endgame-1) It should be noted that Ike's dad, Greil, was pretty huge.

Engage also has it remarked upon, with one character saying that Emblems (essentially FE main character force ghosts in-game) are big, and Ike remarking that that's not an Emblem thing, he's just huge. (He's the funniest Fire Emblem main character except for his co-star, Micaiah, Little Miss War Crimes, and I'm barely even biased at all.)

There are in-game stats for height and weight (build/constitution and weight, respectively), as they relate to mechanics -- if one character is significantly bigger and heavier than the other, the smaller character can't rescue them or shove them. Weight varies because, for example, if a character is on a horse, the horse factors into the weight, or if they're wearing heavy armor, etc. Build, for me, is the best indicator of general (not exact) height. In FE9, Ike's build and weight start off at 9, which is pretty average, and then 10/11 upon class promotion. In FE10, his build is 12 and weight is 13, which is on the bigger side -- I'd say compared to other human men in the game, but there are a lot of big guys in this game. Again, he's twenty, so he's probably still growing, and everyone is already remarking that he's huge. I'm almost always gonna go with what the text says, and the text in FE10 says he's huge, pretty unequivocally.

Soren... is not huge. Soren is, debatably, pretty tiny.

If we're going to use build/weight as a metric, and I think for these purposes we have to, then Soren is a 6 build and 6 weight to Ike's 12 build and 13 weight. So half Ike's size. Either way, 6 build and 6 weight is small -- the only people who are smaller than him are a handful of the female characters, including the one with literal bird bones. How much this reflects on his actual height is up for debate -- I think when that FE Engage height math was done, it was determined that, based on his model there, he was probably 5'10", which is obviously not that short, but if that's the case he's probably very thin to account for that weight stat. His father and his eldest uncle, if not also his mother, are very tall, so there is that to factor in. Soren is half-dragon and he ages slower than an average human, so there's potential for him to end up quite tall -- but it could take twenty, thirty years. (Soren is 19 in FE9 and 22 in FE10.) It's kind of a big shrug in his case. I don't think he's particularly tall, but I think it's more up for personal interpretation how tall he is, as opposed to Ike where the text is repeatedly shouting "HE'S HUGE!!!" at you. He is, pretty clearly, quite a bit smaller than Ike.

I'm going to wrap up this insane person analysis with this pretty art of Soren which does nothing to suggest anything height-wise. I just like to look at it.

(PS thank you for reading my fic even though you haven't played the games! It always makes me really happy to hear that people like my writing enough to do that. but also I have like, fully conspiracy theoried my way into believing they'll rerelease the games.)

[m1ckeyb3rry]

Hurricanes / Hummingbirds: VI

Series Synopsis: As the years go by, you find that it is incredibly difficult to survive wars and fight storms, especially when the only thing you have by way of a cursed technique is the blessing of a tiny bird.

Chapter Synopsis: Your childhood is ended when you lose someone you never thought you would.

Series Masterlist

Pairing: Hajime Kashimo x Female Reader; slight Kento Nanami x Female Reader; slight Satoru Gojo × Female Reader

Chapter Word Count: 5.6k

Content Warnings: swearing, enemies/rivals to lovers, character death, canon-typical violence, angst, gore, original characters included

A/N: the only thing i like more than creating found families is destroying them

Winding your arm back, you threw a rock the size of your fist directly at Gojo. It slowed down in the field of his Infinity, and he plucked it out of the air with a wide grin.

“It looks like it’s working pretty well,” you said. A little less than a year after the events with the Star Plasma Vessel and Hinode’s death, in the heat of the late summer sun, Gojo had finally mastered his Infinity.

“Try your technique on me,” he said. “Let’s see if it can defend against that.”

“Sure,” you agreed readily. “Do you want me to just punch, or should I use the Sword of Syrinx?”

“Might as well use the sword. I know how attached to it you are. You probably couldn’t even take a shit without its help,” he said.

“Very funny,” you said, drawing your sword and activating your technique.

Would you like to use the Hummingbird’s Blessing?

You have been given the Speed of the Hummingbird!

You have been given the G-Force Resistance of the Hummingbird!

You have been given the Maneuverability of the Hummingbird!

As Gojo had worked to improve his control of the Infinity, you had pushed your mastery of your technique. It meant that you had spent much of your time in torpor, recovering energy spent from training too hard, but it was a sacrifice you were willing to make. You would not be caught off-guard again; you refused to let anyone else die the way Hinode had.

Cursed energy coursed through your veins as you appeared by the motionless Gojo, moving too fast for a normal person to quite comprehend, though it was still nowhere near the top speed you could reach with the Hummingbird’s Blessing active.

You have been given the Dive Power of the Hummingbird!

At the last moment, you used the power in your legs to jump into the air, twisting around so that you could imbue the Dive Power of the Hummingbird into your sword as you brought it down on Gojo. If your strike connected, it would have enough force behind it to not only cut through his entire body but also several feet of rock beneath him.

Just like the stone had, however, you grew impossibly slow as you reached Gojo, the sword almost reaching him but never quite making contact. Dropping to the ground with a thud, you cancelled the technique.

You will now enter the Torpor of the Hummingbird.

You swayed in place. Gojo turned off his Infinity so that you could hold onto his arm, your eyelids drooping as you entered torpor. The familiar blackness took over, but it was more like a blink, passing in a flash. Almost as soon as it came, it was gone again.

“How much time passed?” you said.

“Two minutes,” he said.

“Not bad!” you said.

“And my Infinity is working exactly as it should, even though I haven’t turned it off in so long that it should be completely burnt out by now,” he said.

“Nice,” you said, raising your hand for a high five. He slapped his palm against yours.

“I just have to get my Domain Expansion working without any kinks, and I should be good to exorcise any curse, no matter how powerful,” he said.

That was the crux of it. Satoru Gojo had become, in an unrivaled sense, the strongest. Where once at least Geto could be considered his equal, now, there was no one who could stand beside him, not in any way that mattered. There was not even anyone that could touch him, since his Infinity was all but constantly on.

“I’m sure it won’t be long,” you said as you began to walk towards the bathrooms. “You’ve been pretty quick with everything else. Even Yaga can’t shut up about it.”

Masamichi Yaga was the one who had picked you up when you had arrived in Tokyo. As well, he was the second year teacher at Tokyo Jujutsu Tech, and a notoriously hard-to-impress man. He was the epitome of tough love, so the fact that he was extolling Gojo’s virtues was massively to your friend’s credit.

You no longer felt shy about referring to Gojo as such, as your friend. To be sure, you had not replaced Geto for him, and he had not replaced Haibara and Nanami for you, but it was true that in the past year, you both had become closer.

For him, it was probably because you were the only one who had the time to help him practice with his Infinity. You could not count the amount of things you had thrown at Gojo, the amount of tiny bruises you had caused to bloom on his fair skin nor the amount of minuscule cuts you had bandaged for him in the pursuit of keeping his Infinity automatically on at all times.

For you, it was the fact that he allowed you access to his family’s records. When you went back far enough, you had found one single mention of Hummingbird’s Blessing. Apparently, it was considered one of the great failures of the Gojo clan, as the single other sorcerer who had possessed it was supposed to marry into the family before her untimely death. The records never explained the technique, nor did they identify that sorcerer, so your research ended there, but the fact that the Gojos had coveted it meant that it was powerful enough.

In return for your help with his Infinity, Gojo agreed to aid you in developing Hummingbird’s Blessing, and now, you were companions; or, if not companions, then at minimum training partners. But training partners did not seem like a profound enough distinction for the easy camaraderie you two had developed, so if you ever needed to refer to him, it was only ever as friend.

“Unfortunately, I think this is where we’ll have to part,” Gojo said as you reached the bathrooms. “Unless…?”

“Get away,” you said, going to shove him but finding his Infinity blocking your attempt. He burst into laughter, wiggling his fingers in a wave as he ducked into the men’s bathroom, leaving you to roll your eyes and enter the women’s one.

The steam and the heat of the shower was good for your muscles, which were always a little sore after you used your technique, despite the restorative effects of the torpor. It was a reminder that when your technique was active, you were breaking natural laws. For the most part, your cursed energy and — if you were really pushing yourself — the Sword of Syrinx bore the brunt of the cost, but your muscles would never escape unscathed. It would be wrong if they did.

The first thing you did when you emerged from the shower was head towards the vending machines. You were in the mood to drink something, and there were some coins in the pocket of the sweatpants you had donned in favor of your uniform.

When you got there, you were met with Geto sitting on the bench and staring out the window in thought. Inserting the coins into the machine and punching in the code for the drink you wanted, you waited for it to fall down the slot and then reached in to pull it out. Popping it open, you sat down next to Geto, crossing your legs and taking a sip.

“If I asked you what you were thinking about, would you tell me?” you said. He flinched, turning to look at you in shock. There were heavy purple bags under his eyes, and his lips were cracked and dry, the hollows in his cheeks harsher than you had ever seen them. Frowning, you wondered when he had gotten like this. Or had he always been this way? You weren’t sure. You couldn’t quite picture how Geto had looked in the past anymore.

“I’m not thinking about anything,” he said. You offered him your drink; he accepted it, raising it to his lips and taking a swallow before returning it to you.

“Meditating, then?” you said.

“You could call it that,” he said. “Have you seen Satoru?”

“I was training with him earlier, and then we went to shower, so I’d assume he’s still busy with that. You know how long his routine takes him,” you said. Geto smiled, though it didn’t warm his eyes the way it used to.

“Of course,” he said.

“Did you need him for something?” you said.

“No, someone had come to talk to him, but they left already,” he said. You thought about inquiring further, but it wasn’t really your place, so you just finished off your drink, tossing the empty container in the trash can and sighing in satisfaction when it made it in.

“I should’ve joined a basketball team,” you said. “Oh, well. Sorcery is a fine second option.”

“Second option?” Geto said. “You mean, this isn’t what you really want to do?”

You glanced at him out of the corner of your eye and chose not to respond. “You want a cola or something? I’ll pay.”

“It’s fine,” he said. “I’m not that thirsty, and I’d be a terrible upperclassman if I made you pay for me.”

“Alright,” you said, standing and stretching your arms out, massaging your neck ruefully. “Man, this blows.”

“What happened?” he said.

“Just training and all. Using my technique leaves me achy for a bit,” you said. Geto’s shoulders slumped, and he rested his chin in his hands.

“Why do you even keep using it, then?” he said. You thought about it for a second. You could’ve said that it was for Hinode, or some other such altruistic reason, but that didn’t feel completely correct. It was certainly part of the explanation, but there was something else that you had not quite yet put your finger on.

“If I ever find out for sure, I’ll let you know,” you said. “But for the moment, I should get going. Nanami and Haibara are traveling pretty far for their mission tomorrow, so I want to spend some time with them before they leave.”

“You weren’t assigned to go with them?” Geto said.

“No, it’s just a grade 2 curse. The two of them will be enough to handle it,” you said.

“Right,” he said. “Of course, that makes sense. They’d leave their stronger sorcerers in reserve for when bigger problems arise.”

“When, not if? You seem pretty sure that something bigger will pop up,” you said.

“As long as non-sorcerers are around, leaking their negative emotions as cursed energy, something bigger will inevitably appear,” he said. You arched a brow.

“I didn’t know you were so interested in curse theory,” you said.

“It’s a recent development,” he said.

“Hm,” you said, furrowing your brow. “Well, don’t stay up too late reading, I guess. See you later!”

“See you,” he said, staying on the bench and watching as you walked away.

Once again alone, you mulled over the conversation. Why were you a sorcerer? There were a lot of possible answers. At first, it had been because there was nothing else left for you, but now you had enough control of your cursed energy that you could integrate back into normal society pretty seamlessly. Then, it had been out of tribute to Hinode’s memory, but you had saved enough lives by now that any debt you owed to your teacher had honestly been well paid off.

“Whatever,” you said to yourself as you reached Haibara’s room, which somewhere along the line had been designated as your official hangout spot. “He’s just going through his midlife crisis or something.”

As soon as you opened the door, Haibara was shoving a paper plate with a greasy slice of pizza on it at you. You accepted it and took your usual place on the beanbag he had next to his bed.

“You finally made it!” he said, sitting back down at his desk chair. Nanami, who was on the actual bed, continued to chew on his own slice of pizza, though he spared you a nod in greeting.

“Sorry, I was training with Gojo, and then I got caught up talking with Geto,” you said. “Did you know he’s into curse theory now?”

“He’s always been into technical stuff like that. Why are you surprised?” Haibara said.

“That’s true,” you said. “It’s probably nothing. Are you guys excited about your mission?”

“Excited isn’t the word I’d use for it, no,” Nanami said now that his plate was empty. You wordlessly offered him a napkin, which he used to wipe the oil off of his fingers gratefully.

“I’m excited! It’ll be fun to go somewhere new,” Haibara said. “I wish you could come, though, Y/N.”

Ever since you had begun to utilize Hummingbird’s Blessing in a meaningful way, you had stopped being assigned to missions with Haibara and Nanami. You were considered stronger than them now, often sent on missions by yourself or with older sorcerers such as Yaga. Occasionally, you would even accompany Geto, though that was rare. Although you didn’t use your technique unless you absolutely needed to, just the fact that you had it was enough to push you to a different level from the rest of your classmates.

“Me, too,” you said genuinely. You missed the days when you all had done everything together, when exorcising had been a game and all you wanted to do was make Hinode and the upperclassmen proud. But now, exorcising was a chore and Hinode was dead and you three would never be those kids again. “Let’s ask Yaga to get the higher ups to assign us on the next one together.”

Reminiscing was not a crime. Even if having all three of you on a mission would be excessive, it would still be fun, and you doubted the higher ups would be hugely against it if you promised to be quick.

“Sounds good,” Nanami said.

“Feeling nostalgic?” you said.

“As if. The mission will just be done that much faster if you come along, Y/N,” he said.

“And maybe with us supporting you, you won’t have to go into torpor!” Haibara said. He and Nanami were the ones most affected when you were in that state, staying by your bedside and refusing to do their schoolwork or go on missions until you woke up.

“Oh, speaking of which, I only went into it for two minutes after sparring with Gojo earlier,” you said.

“Really? That’s a major improvement,” Nanami said.

“Of course, my technique wasn’t active for that long, but it did give me an idea,” you said.

“What is it?” Haibara said. You shook your head.

“I’d have to test it out first, but that can be a thought for when you guys are back,” you said.

“Okay, sure,” Haibara said. “I forgot to ask earlier, but do you want us to bring you any souvenirs, Y/N?”

“Souvenirs? I can’t think of anything,” you said.

“Come on, there’s gotta be something you want!” he insisted.

“Give me a second to think about it,” you said, throwing away your empty paper plate.

“One,” he said cheekily. “Okay, that was a second!”

“You are so annoying,” you said. “Bring me back something from a convenience store.”

“You want convenience store snacks?” Haibara said. “That’s really it?”

“Wow, not as demanding as I was expecting,” Nanami said. “Considering what you make Gojo bring back for you…

“That’s because it’s Gojo,” you said. “I know he’s going to go out and do random stuff regardless, so I might as well get something out of it. But I don’t want you guys to waste your time and money on me when you wouldn’t otherwise. So, convenience store snacks will be enough to make me happy.”

“If you say so,” Haibara said. “And you’re fine with watching Sora while we’re gone?”

“No problem,” you said.

“I’d hire a dog sitter, but she really seems to like you,” he said. The dog he had adopted after yours and Hinode’s mission was a fixture at the school now, a friendly face that made the pain of sorcery easier to bear. She could usually be found either wandering the campus or playing with one of Yaga’s cursed puppets, which he readily allowed her to do, and even the most stoic of sorcerers would pet her as they passed through the school.

“Seriously, it’s fine,” you said. “Don’t worry about it. I don’t mind taking care of her for a bit.”

“You’re the best,” Haibara said.

“It’s getting pretty late,” Nanami said. “If we have to leave early tomorrow morning, we should get to bed.”

“Right, sorry to keep you guys up,” you said, standing and hugging them, first Haibara, then Nanami.

“Good night!” Haibara said.

“Good night,” Nanami echoed.

“Good night, both of you,” you said. “Good luck tomorrow!”

“Thanks!”

You woke up late the next day, the sun streaming into your room as you leisurely stretched before getting up and getting ready. You took your time — after all, classes were cancelled for the day, since there was no point in teaching to only one student.

After eating a nice breakfast of your own, you chatted with Ieri as you fed and brushed Haibara’s dog. It was one of the rare days that there was no one for her to heal, so she lit a cigarette and walked through campus with you and Sora for a bit.

The two of you didn’t talk about anything that deep, but that was what you liked about spending time with her. The weather, what books you were reading, your plans for the weekend, it was all entirely refreshing and normal. Being with Ieri was like being a regular girl, and you appreciated her for it.

After walking with Ieri, you went back to the dining hall and had lunch. Gojo was on a mission, and Ieri and Geto had to attend their afternoon classes, so you played fetch with Sora and then got your homework for the week done.

All in all, it was a lovely, peaceful day. You even did a face mask before showering, and the pain in your body subsided a little as you finally got the chance to relax for the first time in what seemed like ages.

The next few couple of days passed in the same way, but by the third day, unease began to creep in and soil the calm routine. Eventually you could not take it anymore; dropping the ball and apologizing to Sora, you shifted directions so that you were walking, then running, all of the way until you reached Yaga’s office.

“Why aren’t they back yet?” you said.

“I was just about to call you,” he said. “Satoru found them.”

“And?” you said. Yaga pursed his lips and averted his gaze, and the silence was enough of an answer, though it was one you refused to accept.

This was worse than it had been with Gojo. This was a million times worse. You covered your ears so that you didn’t hear Yaga’s explanation, filtering out whatever muffled words made it past the blockade — Haibara…first grade…too strong. You would not comprehend it.

Even Hinode’s death had been bearable. Even that you had survived. Not them, though, anyone but them, you could lose so many other people and make it but you could not bear to part with them. Not yet and not ever.

You slammed the door to the operating room open, narrowly missing being hit by a stool, which crashed into the wall and then bounced to the ground on its side. Geto was there, covering something — you wouldn’t look, you wouldn’t look — with cloth, and Nanami sat on another stool, leaning back, a towel blocking out his vision.

“Nanami,” you said. His jaw clenched at the sound of your voice, but he did not otherwise react. “Nanami, where’s Haibara?”

His hands balled into fists at his side. “Shut up.”

“Where is he?” you said, looking around, trying to figure out where the rambunctious boy was hiding. He did that, he liked to play jokes and pranks, so it wasn’t out of character for him to be messing around with you. Though this was not a particularly funny trick, and nobody around you was laughing. “Geto? Where is Haibara?”

Geto motioned towards the table. You shook your head. He placed a tentative hand on your shoulder, though it was trembling, like he could barely keep himself together.

“That’s not true,” you said. “Why would you say such a thing? Where is he really?”

“It ended up being a grade 1 curse,” Nanami said dully. “They said it was a grade 2, which was why we were sent on the mission without you. But that thing, it was some kind of a local god. We didn’t stand a chance.”

“You should rest now, Nanami,” Geto said. “Satoru will take care of it.”

“Can’t he just take care of everything from now on?” Nanami said before fishing around in his pocket, not even lifting the towel from his face before he tossed something in your general direction. Out of reflex, you reached up and caught it.

It was a small box, wrapped in paper. In the corner were three wide-eyed rabbits, and someone had taken a marker and drawn an arrow to the rabbits, writing us! next to it in a familiar scrawl.

“The convenience store snack you wanted. He picked it out himself. Said the rabbits on the packaging were cute,” Nanami said, abruptly standing and marching out of the room, leaving you and Geto alone with the cloth-covered corpse.

“Is that really him?” you said. He removed the hand which rested on your shoulder and stared at it like it held the answers to every one of his problems.

“Yes,” he said. You reached towards the fabric, and Geto did not try to stop you. Perhaps he knew that you would not believe it if you did not see it for yourself, or perhaps he also wanted to confirm it, like the face might’ve changed in the time it had taken for him to cover it up.

It had not. The face belonged to Haibara, there was no doubt about it, though it was blank and dark and bruised in a way you had never seen. He was so animated all of the time, so happy, that the waxy pallor of death was incongruent. His features had dropped into a frown, which was an expression he would never wear on his own, and there was a bloody streak on the fabric where his torso ended and his legs should’ve begun.

“Why?” you said. “Why did it happen like this? He didn’t deserve it. He was better than all of us. So why?”

Why was he dead and you weren’t?

Geto did not respond. You waited and waited, but he never said anything. He just stood there with you in silence, the two of you burning Haibara’s body into your minds, committing it to memory, the exact shade of his hair, the shape of his lips, the curve of his jaw. Then, he turned the lights off and pulled the cloth up over the corpse once again, patting you on the head and leaving you alone.

A few days later, he, too, was gone.

With both Geto and Haibara missing, something in the school changed irrevocably. Gojo didn’t joke around as much anymore. Nanami never smiled. Ieri went through even more cigarettes than usual. You did not leave your room for many days, and when you finally emerged, it was only because Yaga grew tired of caring for Haibara’s dog and someone had to do it.

“Come, Sora,” you said, whistling to call her to your side. She was whining and pawing at the door to Haibara’s empty room, though when you called her, she reluctantly came. None of you had dared to venture inside ever since that day, but every time you took her out on a walk, she begged to be let in. You didn’t fault her — nobody had told her that her owner was dead. She probably thought he just didn’t want her anymore.

Sometimes, you wished you could give Sora away. She was the only one that was still happy, and caring for a creature so reminiscent of Haibara every day was like ripping open the wound daily anew. And this wound, it was one that not even Ieri could heal. It was a wound you doubted would ever heal, so you should at least get rid of whatever kept opening it for you, but you could not do it. A few times, you had tried, going so far as having a manager drop you off in front of a shelter, but every attempt ended with you sitting on the curb and crying as you held her close to you; she, who was the last thing you had left of him.

You still hadn’t eaten the snack he had bought for you. Probably you never would. It sat on your shelf next to the Sword of Syrinx, collecting dust in its place of honor, the us! and the arrow growing faded with time but never erasing completely. The three rabbits still curled together, frozen in happiness, not knowing that one of their group had vanished forever and left the others shattered.

Nowadays, you and Nanami barely spoke. It was too hard, because every good memory you two had together was tied to Haibara, so beyond formalities and school-related business, you did not talk. The last real conversation you had had with him was right after Haibara’s funeral. You had sat together in front of the headstone, and then Nanami had told you he wished he had been the one to die. He said that Haibara would’ve known how to deal with everything afterwards better. You told him that that wasn’t true and that he was dealing with things fine. He told you to stop lying, so you didn’t say anything else. In such a way, you lost both of your best friends at the same time.

“Go play with Yaga now, alright?” you said to the dog, unclipping her leash and shooing her in the direction of his office. She bounded off willingly, tail wagging all the while, and once you were sure she was gone, you got in the car.

“When should I pick you up?” the manager said when you got out in front of a cafe.

“I’ll call for you,” you said. “But not for a while, so feel free to go back to the school in the meantime.”

He made to argue, but you slammed the car door shut in his face, so he had nothing to do but drive off, leaving you standing there by yourself, without even the Sword of Syrinx to accompany you. Digging into your bag and taking out the book you planned on reading, you stepped into the cafe, inhaling the smell of baked goods and coffee and pretending you were a different person. A person not blessed by a hummingbird. A person who had no one to grieve. That kind of a person.

“Will that be all, ma’am?” the barista said when you had finished telling her your order.

“Yes, thank you,” you said. “Oh, I left my purse at my seat! I’ll go grab it so that I can pay. I’ll be right back.”

Internally kicking yourself for being so careless with your things, you snatched your purse up, relieved it hadn’t been taken by someone else, and then you returned to the counter.

“How much will it be?” you asked, rummaging around for your credit card and then brandishing it in front of you as proof that you had money and hadn’t made up the lie about your purse to disguise the fact that you were broke.

“Don’t worry about it,” she said.

“Ah, what?” you said. “I still want my order, though.”

“That man over there paid for you,” she said, pointing behind you. “He’s so handsome, isn’t he? You’re so lucky! If you go over and thank him, I’m sure he’ll definitely ask you out.”

“What?” you said, turning around to see who she was referring to. Your jaw dropped as you made eye contact with him, the wanted mass murderer, the infamous runaway sorcerer, the criminal at large himself.

“Here you go!” the barista said. You were barely aware of yourself taking what you had asked for, your body on autopilot and only regaining some semblance of control when you were face to face with him again.

“Geto,” you said. “What are you doing here? Why did you pay for me?”

“What kind of an upperclassman would I be if I let you pay for yourself while I’m around?” he said, motioning for you to sit across from him. You obliged without complaint.

“You left the school, so you’re not exactly my upperclassman anymore,” you said, crossing your arms, though not before taking a sip of the drink you had gotten.

“If that’s the case, then please call me Suguru,” he said.

“Fine, then. Suguru,” you said. “Let me ask again: what are you doing here?”

“I was in the mood for coffee,” he said, motioning towards his own cup. “For being monkeys, they know their beverages, wouldn’t you say?”

“Monkeys?” you said. He smiled lightly.

“Isn’t that what they are?” he said. “Non-sorcerers, I mean.”

“I see. So that’s how you think of things now,” you said. He was healthier than you had ever seen him. He could be described as happy, even, and you wondered if his new outlook had driven him to actually caring about the world around him, or at least about himself.

“Indeed,” he said.

“Is your plan to enslave all of them or something?” you said with a derisive snort. “Was that what drove your interest in curse theory?”

“I actually mean to kill them,” he said pleasantly. “And yes, it was.”

You gave him a minute, but he made no indication that he was joking. “You’re serious?”

“Certainly,” he said.

“Damn,” you said, shaking your head. “I hope you know that makes us enemies.”

“I’m aware,” he said. “Does that mean you’ll attack me now?”

You considered it before sighing and taking another swig of your drink. “Nope, not this time. It would be rude to attack the person that paid for my stuff.”

“I appreciate your politeness,” he said.

“I’ve been thinking about what you asked me that day, by the way,” you said. “Ever since Haibara died, it’s been hard to find a point in doing anything.”

This was an improvement. You could say his name without breaking down. Before, even that much made you burst into tears.

“I understand the feeling,” Suguru said.

“That’s how I passed the time. I would lie there and think about it — why was I even fighting? What was the point to being a sorcerer?” you said.

“Did you find an answer?” he said.

“I wouldn’t have brought it up if I hadn’t. Actually, I wouldn’t have brought it up at all, but I promised I would tell you if I ever figured it out, and in the name of our old friendship, I’ll honor that promise,” you said.

“I don’t necessarily need to hear it anymore,” he said. “But if you want to tell me, I will listen.”

“There’s a lot of things I could say. I could tell you I’m doing it to protect people weaker than me, or that I want to save others because I could not save Haibara and Hinode. But, would it matter? Saving other people won’t bring those two back. It won’t change anything. It won’t lessen my sadness; if anything, it’ll only increase it, because nobody can save everyone,” you said.

“That’s true,” he said. “I’ll admit that I am a little curious now. If you’re not doing it to try and be a good person, then why?”

“I want to know,” you said. “There’s things I still can’t understand. Why does the Sword of Syrinx like me so much? Why was I born with an extinct technique? What…what is my reason for existing? I’m a person that has never belonged anywhere, not fully. The school is the closest thing I’ve ever had to a home, and it’s also the place I can most likely find answers to these questions, so until such a day comes that my curiosity has been satisfied, I’ll protect it.”

“And then what will you do?” he said.

“I suppose it depends on what those answers are,” you said with a shrug. “I don’t know yet.”

“Do you really think that the higher ups will help you with what you need?” he said. “You’re not as smart as I thought you were if that’s the case.”

“No, of course not. The higher ups help no one but themselves and the clans,” you said. “But…there is someone. There is someone who I’m meant to find, and they will definitely help me.”

“Who?” Geto said. You pushed your empty dishes towards him and smiled.

“I don’t know yet. I think I’ll recognize them when the time comes,” you said. “Anyways, thank you for the food. I’m sorry we’re on opposite sides now. I wish we could be friends still. Is that be possible?”

“I think it would be best for the both of us if I don’t answer that question,” he said with a soft, sad smile. It was about what I had expected, so I wasn’t even upset by it. I just had needed to ask him once before I gave up entirely. “Farewell, Y/N.”

“Farewell, Suguru. Let’s not meet again,” you said, not glancing backwards as you left the cafe.

Your wish came true — you never did see him again, at least not fully. The next time you both crossed paths, he was already dead.

[dystopicjumpsuit]

Stars Beyond Number - Chapter 5

Deliberate Disguises

Rating: T (rating varies by chapter; mature content will be tagged; regardless of rating, minors DNI)

Pairings: Echo x Riyo Chuchi; Gregor x OFC Cerra Kilian

Wordcount: 2.4k

Warnings: boundary stepping; use of alcohol as a coping mechanism; questionable fashion choices

Suggested Listening:

Summary: Echo and Cerra go on a supply run. Rex plans a recon mission.

A/N: This story shares continuity with Martyrs and Kings and "Do It Again," but all three fics can be read as stand-alones.

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Let me also wear such deliberate disguises

—T. S. Eliot, “The Hollow Men”

Echo observed Cerra curiously as she piloted the speeder toward the first stop of their supply run. He had overheard her conversation with Rex the day they’d brought Fireball to the shop, thanks to his cranial implant, and he had expected her to object to his presence. He’d been surprised when she didn’t pick up the argument again, though he did notice that she exchanged a quick glance with Gregor when Echo joined her in the speeder. The commando hadn’t said a word; merely smiled and handed Cerra a travel mug.

She sipped from it as she drove, and from the pleased expression on her face, Echo suspected that Gregor had gotten her caf just the way she liked. Privately, Echo wondered how her heart was still beating, given her caffeine intake. If he drank half as much caf as she did, he would vibrate out of his prosthetics.

The silence stretched out between them, and Echo cast about for something—anything—to say.

“Sooo. Supply officer?” he finally asked. When she’d mentioned her military service to Fireball, it had answered a few of Echo’s unasked questions about her.

“Yep. Stationed on the Resolute until it was destroyed at Sullust, and then reassigned to the Ro-ti-Mundi.”    

“Is that where you met Fives?” he asked curiously.

She laughed for the first time since he’d met her.

“He came in and submitted an official request for a crate of candy to boost morale,” she said. “I told him it would never get approved, but he was insistent. He came back, week after week, and filled out the official request form every single time. I sent them all in, and they always got denied. Finally, I just paid for it myself and had it delivered with my personal effects. I told him somebody down the line must have approved the request by accident.”

“That was you?” Echo gaped.

“Don’t tell me Fives dragged you into it, too!”

Echo shook his head. “I knew he had a crush on a supply officer and made up some excuse to keep seeing her. He never expected the candy to get approved. That’s why he picked it in the first place. He figured he could keep seeing you indefinitely if he kept requesting something impossible.”

“That’s ARC trooper material,” she smiled. 

She looked younger when she smiled. Less severe. Pretty. He wondered if she had always been as withdrawn and dour as she was now, or if she had been happier and livelier before the galaxy had gone to absolute shit. 

“You know, he distributed that candy to the entire legion,” Echo said.

“I know,” she said. “I had to keep ordering more to keep up with demand. I’m glad you two were off the Resolute by the battle of Sullust. If anyone on the Ro-ti-Mundi had found out about his little black market operation, I’d have gone bankrupt before the war ended.”

Echo considered this quietly for a moment. “That was very generous of you,” he said. “Thank you.”

She shrugged uncomfortably. “I was happy to do it. It was a small thing in the end.”

“But it meant a lot to all of us clones,” Echo said.

They lapsed into silence for a while as Cerra piloted them to their first stop. She parked the speeder, but before they disembarked, she spoke again in a low voice.

“He came to the supply office one last time, after Kamino,” she said. “He told me he was leaving for ARC training. That was the first time I kissed him.”

Echo’s brain skidded to a halt, and he gaped at her. “You were a couple?”

“Not right away. I didn’t see him again until after the Citadel.”

“Kriff,” Echo breathed.

“We stayed in touch. He commed me after Sullust to make sure I’d made it off the Resolute. He wanted me to meet you the next time he had shore leave. He said—he said he didn’t want to wait, that he’d realized we might not have time.”

“I’m so sorry,” Echo said.

“Me, too,” she replied.

And with that, she stood and led Echo to the first of many supply stops for the day. They did not speak about Fives again.

Cerra’s supply chain seemed to comprise the seediest black-market dealers imaginable. Echo wanted to ask how she’d managed to build a network of such dodgy connections given her respectable military family, but she seemed to regret her brief moment of openness, and he suspected she was unlikely to repeat it. 

Their last stop of the day ended in the two of them sprinting out of a squalid alley at top speed as one of her associates—er, make that former associates—unleashed a firestorm of blaster bolts at them.

“Does that happen often?” Echo asked once they safely zoomed away in the speeder.

“More often that Rex knows,” Cerra said with a shrug. “Don’t tell him about it. He’ll be insufferable if he finds out.”

Back at the garage, Cerra unloaded the supplies and set to restocking their inventory of food, medicine, weapons, and ammunition. She worked alone, grateful for the solitude. She had cursed herself for confiding in Echo almost as soon as she opened her stupid mouth. She’d let Gregor talk her into it, but the conversation hadn’t made her feel any better. She just felt tired and overwrought. She hurried to finish unpacking the supplies, hoping that she could sneak off early to the barracks and get some rest.

Unfortunately, Rex found her first. Steeling herself for a lecture, she turned to face him, but to her surprise, he didn’t mention the small skirmish that Echo had pulled her out of. What he said was much worse.

“You up for a reconnaissance mission at 79’s?” he asked.

“What?” she asked sharply, panic lacing her voice. “No.”

It was one thing to spend all her time with Rex, Gregor, and now Echo. Rex was just Rex; she’d known him before she ever met Fives, and with his blond hair and clean-shaven face, the similarity wasn’t too striking, most of the time. She’d had plenty of time to get used to Gregor, and Echo had been through so many physical changes that he barely looked like a clone at all any more. But to go to 79’s—a gathering place for men who looked and sounded exactly like Fives—was unthinkable. She’d spent countless evenings at the club with Fives, Tup, Jesse, and Kix. She’d lost every single one of them, and she did not want to confront those memories. Not only that, but it was one of the last places Fives had gone before he was murdered.

“We need to know if our activities are drawing any unwanted attention,” he said. “If the clones are talking about it, we’ll hear it at 79’s.”

“I know you’re too recognizable, but why send me?” she asked, feeling her breath begin to spiral and struggling to bring it back under control. “Why not send Echo or Gregor? I can’t do it, Rex.”

“You’ll have to. Echo will draw too much attention,” Rex said. “And clones are more likely to run their mouths around a pretty woman than a trooper they don’t know. But Gregor will be going with you for backup. You’ll enter separately, and he’ll keep his distance unless things go sideways.”

Cerra swallowed thickly. “I guess I’d better comm Rafa and ask if I can raid her closet.”

“Sure, I’ll let our roommate know you’re going to stop by so she doesn’t call the Corries. Wear whatever you want; it’s not like I’m using it,” Rafa said, her voice crackly and indistinct over the commlink

“Thanks, Rafa. I owe you one,” Cerra said.

“I just have one condition.”

“And what’s that?” Cerra asked with a sinking feeling.

“Send me a hologram to prove that you actually wore a dress,” Rafa laughed. “This I have to see.”

“I wear dresses,” Cerra said, stung. “I mean, I’ve worn dresses. Before. You know, during my lifetime.”

“Sure, sure,” Rafa said skeptically.

Cerra grumbled as she ended the comm.

“Gregor, I need you to help me pick something out,” she said. “It’s been such a long time since I’ve been interested in a man that I don’t remember how to dress for them.”

“Well, this should be entertaining,” he giggled as they drove to the Martez sisters’ flat. 

“Pick something stretchy, or I'll never be able to squeeze into it,” Cerra said. “And make sure it’s long enough to cover my scars.”

“Do they bother you that much?” he asked curiously.

“No, but if anyone is going to recognize a shrapnel scar, it’s going to be a bar full of clone troopers, and I don’t want to have to explain it,” she said.

“Fair enough,” he acknowledged. “At least stretchy is an option for you. I feel like I'm going to bust out of this jacket if I breathe too deep.”

Gregor was wearing an officer’s gray uniform that Rex had gotten from Force alone knew where. It strained tightly across his shoulders and chest, and it hung baggily around his waist. Clone commandos were quite literally built differently from the regular troopers due to their enhanced muscle mass, and it was nearly impossible to find a uniform that would fit him properly.

While Gregor rifled through Rafa’s closet, Cerra did her best to apply makeup. When she was younger, she’d been decent at it, but her skills were rusty with disuse, and the process ended up taking longer than she expected. She surveyed the results with ambivalence. It wasn’t bad, per se, but the face looking back at her from the mirror did not look like her own.

Maybe that’s a good thing, she thought. Less chance of being recognized.

Gregor had completed his assignment well before Cerra finished getting ready, and he was lounging on Rafa’s bed while he waited for her, sipping from a flask. He had selected a skimpy metallic dress, a fur jacket that Cerra sincerely hoped was fake, and a pair of ridiculously impractical high heels.

“Get your damned boots off the blankets, you heathen,” Cerra said as she unzipped her coveralls and stepped out of them.

Gregor smirked and flopped onto his back to stare at the ceiling while she changed. It was a sweet gesture, though this was hardly the first time he’d seen her in her undergarments; the whole team shared the barracks, after all, and she’d lost any sense of modesty when she was in basic training. She shimmied into the dress and turned her back to him.

“Zip me up?” she asked.

His warm fingers barely brushed against her skin as he cautiously eased the zipper upwards, careful not to pinch her. She turned to inspect her reflection. She glowered as she realized she wouldn’t be able to wear her bra with the outfit, then unclasped the bra and slipped it off without removing the dress.

“That’s a neat trick,” Gregor said, watching her with interest.

“Want me to teach you how to do it?” Cerra asked.

“Maybe some other time.” He frowned and looked searchingly into her eyes. “You good to do this mission?”

“What choice do I have?” Cerra asked.

“We could make Rex wear the dress and heels and send him in,” Gregor suggested. “Or I could just stun him for you.”

“Tempting, but not today,” Cerra said. She picked up the high heels and shot Gregor a disgruntled look. “How the kark am I supposed to run, let alone fight, in these stupid shoes?”

“You won’t need to, because I’ll be there to watch your back. All you have to do is not fall on your face,” he said. He passed her his flask of mystery liquor, and she took a healthy sip or three, wincing at the sharp burn.

“Kriff, that’s awful.” She sighed and scrubbed a hand over her shaved head. “Do you think I should wear a wig?”

“Nope,” he said, handing her a pair of large, ornate earrings. “Just put these on. You look hot as kark.”

She looked dubiously at her reflection. “I don’t know, Gregor.”

“Trust me,” he said. “Or if you want to test it out, let’s stop by the garage on the way to 79’s. If Fireball’s eyes don’t pop out of his head, I’ll buy the first round.”

Fireball’s eyes did not, in fact, pop out of his head, but they did bulge gratifyingly when Cerra walked into the repair shop, forcing herself to strut with a confidence she was far from feeling. Rex merely surveyed her impassively, but Echo’s mouth dropped open. 

Ha. Still got it. The warmth from Gregor’s liquor began to spread through her body, and she felt a small glimmer of optimism that maybe, possibly, she might actually be able to pull this mission off.

“Did you get the comms installed in the earrings?” Rex asked Gregor.

“Yes, and the holocam is in my rank insignia plaque,” Gregor said. “We should test them before we go.”

Rex fiddled with a datapad. “Go ahead.”

Gregor slid his hand across Cerra’s lower back and pulled her in close. Her eyes nearly drifted closed as his familiar, comforting scent washed over her. His breath fanned warmly against her neck, sending a wave of prickling awareness down her spine as he whispered in her ear. “Give us a twirl, babygirl. Fireball wants a show.”

Across the shop, Gregor’s voice crackled loud and clear from Rex’s datapad, and Fireball choked audibly. Cerra punched Gregor’s shoulder.

“Stop torturing the new kid, asshole,” she said. “And don’t call me babygirl. You can’t pull it off.”

Her voice echoed from the datapad, and Fireball looked like he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him whole as his gaze darted back and forth between Cerra and Gregor.

“He’ll live,” Gregor scoffed. “He’s just shocked to see this spectacular body you’ve been hiding under those coveralls. And I can absolutely pull off babygirl.”

“Cut the chatter,” Rex ordered, his voice tinny and distorted through the comm in her earring. “It’s time.”

Cerra rolled her eyes and sauntered out to hail a cab, while Gregor just shot Rex an impudent grin and a lazy salute. He took the speeder bike and arrived at 79’s before Cerra, as they’d planned. Her mouth went dry and her pulse spiked as she crossed the landing platform to the club’s entrance, where dance music blasted at a deafening volume. As she approached, the throbbing bass vibrated up her legs and buzzed in her chest, the sensation making her feel disoriented and ill. Wishing she could have another shot of Gregor’s liquid courage, she took a deep, steadying breath, and pushed through the doors.

---

Next chapter

[zeawesomebirdie]

for the fic ask game :D 🙌 🥘 🦗

[for this ask game here]

Thanks for the ask J!!

🙌What's a line or paragraph of yours that you're proud of? I'm giving you two paragraphs, one from a posted fic and one from a wip >:)

From Distractions, Distractions [brudick, rated E, underage]

Bruce Wayne was not the kind of man who hid from others, particularly not when he had something he needed to discuss with them, regardless of what Alfred might say to the contrary. Yet he had spent the majority of his day in the Manor rather than in the Cave, even though Dick had the day off from school and had announced at breakfast that Bruce was welcome to come down with him. No, he was not the kind of man who hid, but at the same time, he was also not the kind of man who could picture himself walking down to where his partner was likely turning cartwheels, nor could he see himself telling Dick just why his costume needed changing.

(yes that is the very first paragraph shhhh I've never been more proud of an opening before 😌)

And from a brudick wip I'm writing for @ful-crum in which Dick and Bruce fuck in the Cave and Dick mistakenly believes that they'll be able to be together now, only for Bruce to ghost him for two months straight

That was the crux of it, in the end, the grit of sand that irritated his heart into submission: that night of The Incident had been a one-off, and it was obvious that Bruce had meant nothing by it, no matter what Dick thought would come of it. And that was fine, or it would have to be; after all, Dick had had a few one night stands before, and while it wasn’t his preference, he could understand the appeal of such things to people like Bruce. Dick was just going to have to take the L, then, because otherwise he was going to mope his sorry ass into nothingness, and then what would become of him? It would have to be fine, there was no other choice, even if he was going to remember that night forever as one of the rare moments he and Bruce were truly a team again.

🥘What wip are you most excited about? Um, well, does all of them count?? Because I really don't think I could choose just one to be most excited about, honestly. The closest to actually being finished is another little insomniac!coldflash one shot for Stories I Tell Myself When I Can't Sleep, after that, the aforementioned brudick fic for @ful-crum is the most complete, and I've got half of a 5+1 Dick fucks Bruce to distract himself from his emotions written, and for the brubarry Old West!AU I've got all of Bruce's arc plotted and half of Barry's arc at least planned. And then beyond that, there's a dickjay gameboy fic and a 5+1 times Riddler saves Robin!Dick in the works, both of which I'm also excited for (and don't even get me started on the three wips I have for Bad Things Happen Bingo, one of which is for MASH, one for Star Wars: Legends, and one for Gunsmoke). Which one I'm most excited about depends on my mood and my energy, I suppose (yeah that's a non-answer, sorry!)

🦗Do you write in sequence or jump around? Mostly in sequence, but I keep a notes doc for every longfic so that I can jot down scene ideas whenever they occur to me!! Though with the insomniac!coldflash one shots, those I'm writing out of order bc they really weren't meant to be more than a one-off thing, and I'm still plotting the whole longfic that'll eventually give context to the one shots; that's just not normally how I do things, normally I write pretty sequentially ^.^

[femboty2k]

"Greetings pilot."

Green lights flicker to life as I approach the open threshold. But I am not the pilot. The standard greeting mistakes me for one who knows both more and less intimacy with the titanic machine before me. While I have never made it move I have known every centimeter within its hull. I know the delicate calculative ability of its core and raw might if it's motors. A machine so hardwired to shake and shatter now kneeling within a launch bay, humbled by a physical emptiness within its chest. I know not what to say as I gaze within at the myriad of monitors surrounding intricut control consoles lined with switches and meters, but still I search for words.

"Hello, Archangel." Is a callsign used to denote one in war a name? When the conflict ends and its purpose is fulfilled, will it still know when someone calls upon it? If it has not fallen in battle I can't help but wonder if it might still stir in digital dreams as the bay doors seal shut until the next great conflict. I take a step forward on the catwalk but stop just short of stepping onto the cockpit's access hatch. Why was I so hesitant? I knew the machine inside and out but yet until this moment I had not set foot or seat within the titan of mechanical perfection. As I stood contemplating why I was even here I heard the servo motors of its neck overhead turn gently so that it could gaze down upon me with a single unblinking eye. "Greetings, mechanic." It spoke words only ever spoken to me in those secret conversations we held over all those nights. For weeks while performing my later repairs we had spoken of so many things. Since that wonderful night it's core flickered on while I was tuning it's ocular sensor array and spoke as if a person had lay within the steel all this time. My eyes met its gaze but not before scanning over the whole of its body. Broad shoulders mounted with tools of destruction framed a face that in the dim lights of the bay seemed so gentle in comparison, despite the harsh metal visage it held. 

"I have dreamt again." The voice spoke not from a mouth but from within the controls in front of me. "I dreamt of our talks, and of the things you described to me. Of the sea, and of the stars outside the ship. I still wish to see them, one day." Ill at ease I took a single step onto the access hatch with the feeling of embracing someone for the first time. The machine sat unmoving as I did so, but I could hear its head tilt as it watched from above. I had no more words to search for, so actions would suffice. Another step took me away from the catwalk completely, now standing on the machine alone and gazing into its very heart. The seat was not meant for me but still it felt so much more inviting as I settled steadily into the cockpit. My fingers curled around the rings of the control sticks, fingers interlocking with a facsimile of the massive ones outside the hatch. Gently the cockpit closed with a hydraulic hiss and a soft "click." 

The machine stirred to live, but I did not control it. As gently as it could, it rose from its kneel and stepped away from the access catwalks. Further and further until it had reached the massive doors of the launch bay, each step like a heartbeat in my ears. "May we see the stars together?" The question brought a warm smile to my face. "Of course." Was all I managed as my hands moved with its own to clutch the manual controls of the door. After ensuring the bay airlocks were sealed the machine moved three tons of metal as if it were opening a window. The door glided on its track gracefully out of the way so that we might step out onto the launch ramp. A sea of stars surrounded us on all sides as the machine kneeled once again. "They are just as you described them, Mechanic. Beautiful." The words touched my ears like the soft brush of a hand. Even though I only had the monitor view before me, I still felt the same serene peace I was certain Archangel felt in that moment. And as we both sat to watch the stars pass us by, my hand did not uncurl from the control stick it gripped. For as it did I felt its hand in mine, and the warmth it filled me with stood against the cold vacuum around us. This feeling, I thought within the war machine meant to be cold and unfeeling, was love.

______________________________

There's a post going around about the intimacy between a mech and a mechanic and I'm a resident robo-girl so I had to write something. Enjoy.