#Mans went to his first Meeting of the Ancients and came back to there apparently being an alien

[puppetmaster13u]

I currently have two timelines for my New Ancient of Darkness Au

Timeline 1: Bruce is one of the Justice League founders, continues to do his best to hide his increasingly ghostliness with every year and avoiding Justice League Dark because he has heard stories about Constantine. It doesn't matter if Danny finds him hilarious. He's the Justice League's cryptid where his friends just think he's a little shy and Gotham is just like that.

Timeline 2: Bruce lets his anxiety and paranoia get ahold of him, especially with how he's just taken in Dick and Jason, and doesn't join the League. And straight up becomes a cryptid as Batman. Where his children become liminal far faster and the still human part of him feels so guilty while the ghostly part is giddy to have little ghostlings. There are now rumors about some sort of shadow child of Gotham, some sort of clan of creatures that the League will eventually investigate.

[radiance1]

If you asked Danny how he found himself in this situation, he wouldn't be able to give you a short answer. For you see, Danny was a Prince, heir to the throne that will never be his (and thank the Ancients for that) and an ageless being who will stay around for eons to come.

He out-lived his family, friends, entire town. Except for Vlad, that man wouldn't die so easily to something like old age, much less when his empire still stands.

Regardless.

Danny has been summoned only a handful of times, all of which were either mistakes or some mortals who wanted to summon something for shits and giggles.

He liked the last ones, they usually have pretty good food.

However, the last summon he's answered, a mistake, was done by a handful of wizards who weren't exactly happy with the results they got, so he made fun of them severely for their mistake and then their master- who was apparently watching in case things went wrong- turned him into a cat after he could a bit too... excited.

So, how did it escalate from there?

It was a simple thing, really, he encountered a few injured cats, and then nursed them back to health. Then those cats kept coming back to him, again, and again, and again, the first few times with injuries, but later they came just to be around him and chat sometime.

Then they started bringing other cats around him, skittish ones they were, not exactly keen on letting him take care of him the first few times, but just like the ones before, they soon came around to consider him as a friend of sorts.

Then that repeated, and repeated, and repeated.

Then suddenly, he found that he had acquired a family of sorts, one made of feral cats that were as chaotic as his own, previous, family was and more. It was... nice, when he realized that, that he had a place, a foothold, in the mortal world and not just as Prince of the Infinite Realms.

Although, the amount of grandpa jokes when he revealed his age- 150 is still young, he'll have you know- was something that took getting used to. But it was nice to know they were comfortable enough to call him that.

There were some special cases among his little Familia. A few of them had what this world called meta-abilities, ranging from such like superstrength, enhanced durability, super speed to things like telekinesis, teleportation, flight, etc, etc.

One of them even had the ability to separate their body parts.

He kept an eye on those that had these abilities, no doubt that multiple people would try and kidnap them for nefarious purposes. Though they were incredibly small in number, caution is best to be kept, especially in a city as dangerous as that of Gotham.

He's never really made himself known to anyone other than his little Familia and a certain cat-themed criminal. He preferred to stay in his little warehouse, watching the days pass while taking care of a few kittens here and there, sleeping, eating, managing to use that Tv and computer he stole that one time to watch whatever thing is one.

It was a very calm life, all things considered.

Of course, then came a disturbance in said life, when the apparent rival Familia's wanted to meet him for one reason or another. Helpfully supplied by the first to have join his Familia, a cat with an immortality ability that he named Kevin.

Of course, he never knew Kevin had was immortal, but seeing him die one too many times and watching him get back up was prime evidence that he had one.

Apparently, his Familia was regarded as a relatively new one in the city of crime, and the other cats that were considered 'Heads' wanted to meet him for quite some time, especially when is got as big as it did and Kevin, glorious, glorious Kevin, has been going in his place to said meetings, and this district of Gotham they occupied was considered their territory.

Danny was blissfully unaware of this until today. But he decided that Kevin, sweet, hardworking, death-defying young Kevin, can continue engaging in cat politics, he wants no part in such things and Kevin has proven himself capable of handling it!

As much as he didn't want a part in this, he was persuaded to go at least once and can then leave everything up to Kevin. So he goes there, does things, talk to other 'Heads', being very vocal in his body language about how he couldn't really care less about being there.

Of course, he had to care when he sees Batman being thrown through a nearby wall and seeing as how he's heard about him from a friend (Catwoman has made it very clear how she felt about him on numerous occasions whenever they met.), he wasn't exactly keen on seeing him being smushed into a paste, so he went ghost, pure black fur being replaced by glowing white.

And then slammed right into a battle with Bane.

Kevin he swears to the Ancients if you for some reason try to get into this fight and die again, he will treat you like a kitten for the next three weeks.

[the-anastasia]

Dark Rise Summary

Leaving this here for anyone else about to read the second book and who remembers f-all from the first one. (And since I couldn’t find a good one online.) Spoilers ahead, obvs:

Will came to London to find out who killed his mom. It was Simon’s dad, Edmund, the Earl of Sinclair. He worked on Simon’s ship and tried to subterfuge it. His mom’s old servant finds him and gives him a medallion. He was caught by Simon’s men and shackled down in one of Simon’s ships. All Simon’s men got a brand on their arm, a letter S. Tom was there that day to get the brand and his sister Violet followed him. Stewards attack the ship trying to get one of their own back from Simon - Marcus. They fight. Justice fights Tom and when they fight in the ship a crate opens and it’s the corrupted blade and it starts destroying the ship and it can kill people with a touch but Will manages to sheathe it and tells to Violet to get everyone out and she does but then comes back to help Will. Since Justice found them there on the ship he assumes they were both Simon’s prisoners and takes them to an inn and tells them the ancient history. Violet tries to go back to her family but overhears her dad saying he only kept her alive cause she and Tom are both lions and Tom needs to kill another lion to get his full powers so she sashays away. Justice takes Violet and Will to the hall of Stewards (formerly the hall of kings). He thinks Will is the blood of the lady cause of the medallion. The lady is who killed the dark king in the past. They train in the hall of stewards and the elder steward tries to get Will to reach the light inside him and bring a dead hawthorn tree back to life but he can’t. Elder Steward tells Will the dark king will be reborn and Simon is trying to bring him back. The first step is to unleash a shadow.

One night Will and Violet hear some Stewards returning from patrol and sneak out to eavesdrop. Justice and others heard where Marcus might be and went out to get him but it was a trap. James was there. In old world he was servant of light but turned and started serving the dark king. He’s called the betrayer and he is a reborn so he can use magic and almost killed them all. Will thinks they want Marcus back so desperately cause he knows how to summon a shadow. Violet says she could find out how to get him back.

They sneak out back to London and she goes to back to her family and overhears where James will be alone and when. Will goes to secretly meet Simon’s fiancée Katherine and they develop a thing. When they return to the hall they are taken and shackled. Apparently Cyprian never trusted Violet, an outsider, so he followed her. They tell her they know she’s a lion and lions fought for the dark king so she must be bad. They try to tell them they know how to get to Marcus but no one trusts them. Then surprisingly Cyprian comes to free them and sneak them out. Marcus was his brother (The high janisarry adopted them both after “losing his son”). Cyprian says if there’s even a small chance they’re telling the truth and they could get Marcus he’ll risk it.

They corner James at Robert Drakes Ivory shop. Devon the last unicorn works there. He hides his identity. They capture James and slam some anti magic shackles on him and bring him back to the hall. The stewards have a severed unicorn’s horn (Devon’s) and it compels someone to tell the truth but you gotta stab them. Will takes it and with a slow, homoerotic precision stabs James in the shoulder. They learn that the High Janissary is his real dad. He was kicked out as a child when they found out who he was. Scared and alone he found the only person willing to take him in, Simon’s dad. They learn where Marcus is being held. That Simon is looking for a powerful artifact and that a man named Gauthier had come to England with it. But then James also tells them all the truth about the cup of the Stewards. The cup is what the novitiates drink from to get their steward strength. But it’s cursed and eventually turns them into shadow. Four kings of the Hall were offered great power in exchange for a price by the dark king. 3 of them agreed and drank from the Cup. Those who drank gained extraordinary physical abilities for a time. But when their time was done they turned into shadow kings controlled by the dark king. Chaos in the hall ensues. Everyone realizes the stewards are desperate to get Marcus back cause he about to be shadow boy. They plan a full frontal assault to get him back.

Will tells Cyprian and Violet there might be another way. They sneak out and Will goes to meet up with Katherine. They kiss and a Hawthorne tree in the garden by her house blooms. Katherine freaks out and asks Will “what are you”. Her lady’s maid came out looking for her but before they parted Will tells Katherine Simon is not a good man and if you ever feel in danger come to the marsh (where the hall is) and you’ll be safe. Failing to get any useful information from Katherine the three return but Marcus had already turned and came into the hall and killed everyone. Elder Steward managed to fight him and kill him cause she was almost shadow herself at that point before dying herself. The only survivors were her two janissaries, Grace and Sarah. Janissaries fail the test and so don’t drink from the cups. They become knowledge keepers, scholars, artisans, etc.

They go to find Gauthier and James is already there. A novitiane (Emery) had freed him after they left cause he had the feels for James. They overpower and shackle him again. Apparently the mighty artifact Gauthier has is a collar that controls James. Ones its on it can never be removed. The Dark King used it to control James then had him executed so he can be reborn with him. The executioner kept the collar and it was passed down through generations to Gauthier. It’s dark power ending their family line to one sad old man hanging on to the collar. Will decides to free James and gives him the collar.

Katherine and her little sister Elizabeth do come to the hall after she overhears Simon talking about killing people. She says Simon said he needs the blood of the lady to release the shadow kings from a stone they’re trapped in and that will make the dark king return. Will realizes Simon can use the blood of his mother where she was killed so he sneaks out and goes to the place. He kills Simon’s remnants and then Simon (but not before he managed to release the shadow kings). Simon tried to kill Will with the corrupted blade but of course it didn’t work on Will cause surprise surprise he’s actually the dark king reborn. Turns out his mom had tried to kill him. Katherine and Elizabeth were her daughters who she gave away to protect them. Devon appears there and tells him he knew who he is all along and calls him my king for some reason (even though the dark king slaughtered the unicorns who were fighting with the stewards). Devon also kills his boss and friend Robert after Robert steals his horn back and gives it to him saying he knew all along. Frankly, Devon just doesn’t make any sense. Katherine apparently followed Will and overheard everything. Will tells her she’s the one who made the tree bloom and she’s the blood of the lady. They can hear two shadow kings coming for her. Will commands them back to the stone. Katherine is scared of Will. She picks up the sword to fight him but the corrupted blade kills her.

Back in the hall Elithabeth stumbles and touches the dead tree and it comes to light and they realize she’s the blood of the lady. The third shadow king is there and breaks through the hall wards. Violet tells them all to run and stays to fight the king. She defeats him with a lions shield that was hanging in the hall as a relic of the old world.

Will goes to an inn to write a letter to Katherine’s aunt and uncle who were taking care of her. James shows up there. He doesn’t know who Will actually is and tells him he’s there to follow Will. Will says “Of course you are.”

Characters:

Will Kempen - the dark king (Sacrean) reborn. Dark king gave the order to kill all his servants so they be reborn with him.

The Lady - her and dark king loved each other and she killed him.

Eleanor Kempen - Will’s mom. The Lady’s descendant. Sister Mary was killed by Simon. Also mom to Katherine and Elizabeth.

Mathew - servant who worked for Will’s mother. Gave him her medallion.

Violet - Will’s friend. Half Indian on mother’s side. Half brother Tom. Super strength. Father kept her alive so Tom could kill one like him in order to come into his power.

Simon/Lord Crenshaw - Descendent of dark king who wants to bring him back. Coat of arms: three black hounds.

Tom - Simon’s lion. Super strength. Violet’s bro.

Stewards - keepers of the last flame. And of the knowledge of the old world. Fighters for the light. Wear white.

Janissaries - those who don’t wanna be stewards or fail the tests. Wear blue.

Novitiates - training to become stewards. Wear grey.

Marcus - Steward. caught by Simon. Cyprian’s brother. Turned to shadow.

Cyprian - the book’s Draco Malfoy. Novitiate.

High janissary Jannick - Cyprian’s and Marcus’ adopted father. Biological dad to James.

Justice - Steward. Was sheildmate to Marcus.

Elder steward / Euphemia - the wisest and most powerful Stewards.

Grace and Sarah - Elder Steward’s janissaries. Grace is more put together.

Leda - Steward captain

Katherine Kent - Simon’s fiancée.

Elizabeth Kent - 10yo. Katherine’s sister.

James St. Clair - Dark kings sexy boy toy. The Betrayer reborn. Used to be on side of light before the king slapped a collar on him and used it to control him and possibly also took him to bed.

Remnants - have part of ancient dark kings inner guard’s armor. The book’s Nazgûl. All living things wither at their touch.

Valdithar - Will’s brave horsie

Devon - unicorn. Clerk of ivory merchant Robert Drake. Sometimes a runner for Simon.

Gauthier - descendant to Rathorn, who executed the betrayer.

Objects:

Magic Mirror - in which Will looks into the past and sees the lady. He finds this mirror in a warehouse by the docks. It’s never mentioned again.

Medallion - inscribed “I cannot return when I’m called to fight so I will have a child” AKA the hawthorn’s flower, The lady’s medallion. Will’s mom had it. It got passed on to him.

The corrupted blade - used to be sword of the champion, Ekthalion. Corrupted by one drop of blood of dark king. Legend has it a champion can restore it.

The final flame - atop the hall

Shield of rassalon - shield of the first lion

The hawthorn tree - The tree stone in the hall of Stewart’s used to be tree of light. The lady’s touch will bring it back to life and make it shine

Cup of the stewards - they drink from it to get strength but eventually it turns them dark. “calico del re”. That’s why they’re in pairs and have shield mates. To watch for change and kill the other when the time comes.

The shadow stone - 3/4 kings made bargain with the dark king. They got power but upon their death turned into creatures of shadow. Are trapped in the stone. Will commands two back into the stone after they’re released. One is killed by Violet.

Gold collar with rubies - controls James. Never opens once it’s on.

Quotes: “Kindness is never a mistake, somewhere in the heart it is always remembered.” Pg104 (nothing to do with the summary I just like it.)

[totkdaily]

Day 85: Attack on Gerudo Town

The attack on Gerudo Town begins. 

It's hard to keep an eye on all the gates at once, and the sand makes it hard to move quickly.

I focus on taking out the hives first - and then we mop up the remaining gibdo. Gerudo Town is safe again, for now. 

Debriefing afterwards, Riju noticed that the gibdo hives became sand when they were destroyed. She wonders if the gibdo and the sand are more connected than we thought. It's a shame she and Zelda haven't had cause to spend much time together - it's exactly the kind of observation the Princess would love. 

Now that the threat is passed, we can discuss Riju's summons. She wants to show me something down in the shelter. 

Past the rolling door below is the vibrant Gerudo community I remember. I'm glad it's surviving this much, at least. 

A young girl, Delia, immediately runs up to me - and we're told off by Lorn. She's too young to talk to Voe. Lorn does not want me here - too bad. 

I find Cara, the accessory designer. I remember the shop owner she mentions - apparently she went out for supplies and hasn't come back yet. The desert must be littered with lost people. We need to sort that sand shroud. Cara says she went to the Toruma Dunes - where there are Molduga. Great. 

Beside a strangely familiar orb, I meet Rotana, a scholar. She's working on deciphering stelae, writings on stone pillars. This one says: 

“The seven heroines who protect the Gerudo. Their secret will be expressed on six stelae.”

On the other stela she has, it says: 

“The seven heroines who protect the Gerudo. And eighth channels and guides the powers of these seven.”

Rotana says the heroines are so ancient nothing is known about them - not even if they should be worshiped as a collective or as individuals. Apparently there may even have only been one at all - or conversely, eight! Hence the eighth heroine statue in the Highlands, I suppose. 

She wants to find the other four stelae and make her name in archeology. She thinks they'll be underground. I shall look out. 

I find Riju looking at a mural surrounded by water.

“Standing back-to-back with the throne, witness red pillars across a vast sea. Unite the pillars in light to reveal the lightning stone and open the way. You who can hear my voice, come to me. I await you.”

Incredible. Words directly from the sage, preserved here. 

It sounds like I should start at the throne. But I want to explore this shelter first. 

I find one of Rotana's stelae behind some crumbling rock.

She translates it as:

“The seven heroines protect the Gerudo with the powers of heart, skill, fortitude, wisdom, flight, mobility, and compassion.”

There's a Hylian here, Jules. She warns me not to misbehave - there's already a man in jail. I miss the inconspicuousness of my Gerudo clothes…

There's a kid called Aaqlet - that's the name the guy in jail said as I went by. Poor guy, he probably just came to check on his kid. And her mum isn't here either, she's working at the secret clothes shop. Aaqlet has a map, which I should follow at some point. 

The spa and the wine bar have moved down here, so at least people are still managing to do business. 

I cross the main hall again to explore the other side - and fall down a hole! The short drop ends with a splash. There's a message in a bottle.

“It's you! At long last! You, the voe reading this letter, are the voe I was fated to meet! And I am the vai you were destined for! You must hurry and rescue me! I am locked away from the outside world! Do not worry though! I will send all of my love to you until you come and find me. Stay safe and know that we will meet soon. It is our destiny, after all! -Calyban”

Oh dear. I should just put this back in the water. But where does this tunnel go, anyway? 

A bunch of places: a house in Gerudo Town, a circular path that needed blasting open, and finally a korok panel. I ascend through the tunnel and head back to the shelter. 

I find Calyban by the large hole in the shelter floor, but she wants to be left alone. Fair enough.

Another kid, Kalani, also hides her face when I approach. I leave her be and stop at the goddess statue. 

In exchange for the four Sage's Wills I've found, I grant Tulin a stronger attack. I also get three heart containers, to hopefully make it harder to blow myself up. 

I stop in at a classroom, and find myself in use as a teaching aid. Nali is too shy to look at me - but I do have that Sheikah mask… it's not enough for her. I don't actually think I have any full-face masks - I'll have to come back. 

Past where the sand seals are hanging out, I find a room that's almost a miniature of the valley of the seven heroines.

I wonder… I've seen a  few small orbs around. This would seem to be the place for them. I wonder what happens if I find them all.

I find a buried and broken stela, and manage to blow away the sand and put it back together again.

Beyond, a much larger tunnel. The valley of silent statues. 

It's already been a long day - in fact, it's nearly over. But I want to know what's down here… 

I find Nellie, who's been exploring down here a little. She doesn't seem to think much of it though - she's heading back to the canteen. 

Let's find out for myself…

[mysticstarlightduck]

My Words Into Potions Intro!

The Event (@moon-and-seraph)

I'll be working on two WIPs this March - my goal will be to attempt to finish Enchanted Illusion's first draft and give Of Starlight and Beasts a good headstart!

Title: OF STARLIGHT AND BEASTS

Genre - High Fantasy (medieval) Adventure/Dark Fairy Tale (with a tad of romance, that's a subplot)

Summary - In an ancient enchanted kingdom, Corah, the daughter of their land's most renowned adventurer, seeks to become the best knight that has ever lived. However, after meeting a young man with strange magic and no memories lost in the woods, Corah finds herself thrust into an unexpected quest when the once-thought-dead Queen returns to enact her revenge on their peaceful kingdom - and now it falls to Corah and her mysterious new friend to prevent destruction from reaching their land, if she wants to achieve her dream to be knighted. But are things quite what they seem?

POV - Dual POV (for now?), with some occasional POVs from important side characters.

Lenght - Novel/Book

Tags/Hashtag - #wip: of starlight and beasts, #wip of starlight and beasts

WIP Soundtrack - Of Starlight and Beasts Playlist

Snippet/Excerpt -

[...] Corah climbed the sandy stone wall, expertly weaving her way up towards the broken ramparts despite the weight of her armor straining her arms. Her hands reached the ledge, and she was able to fling her leg onto the walkway, pulling the rest of her body upwards.

Taking a moment to catch her breath, she wiped the dust off of her hands onto her trousers, waiting for her friends to reach her. Arammys' sunny locks were the first to peek through the ramparts, though, in his struggle to get a grip on the stone, his hands nearly slipped - she lunged, grabbing hold of his wrist just in time, and helping him heave himself the rest of the way up.

Behind him, Eidan followed suit, pulling himself over the wall nearly effortlessly. Arammys stared at him, impressed and annoyed at the same time.

Turning around as the duo started to bicker, Corah rolled her eyes, looking down to the city below, the sprawling sea just barely visible through the white stone buildings was filled with trading ships from near and far, the sky seemingly filled with colorful flags and banners. But she knew better than to trust the city's apparent normalcy - the Crimson Queen's soldiers were already here, just waiting to catch them on the streets down below.

"We'll need to figure out another plan, it seems" She winced, sighting a suspiciously familiar hooded figure just out of the rampart's gate ahead. Her hand instinctively went to the hilt of her sword.

Just as she was about to back away, Arammys popped up beside her, not noticing the enemy just below. Corah pulled Arammys behind a pillar just in time before the person looked up, nearly spotting him. She whispered through gritted teeth, exasperated. "Do you seriously have a death wish?"

"I didn't notice that the guy was there!" Arammys replied, an indignant remark spoken through a whisper as he pulled the hood of his cloak meticulously over his head, obscuring his hair and face. He peered over the pillar, this time more carefully, onto the street below, noticing more and more of the Queen's men. "Gods, the city is really crawling with them. How are we supposed to reach the docks? They'll kill us!"

"No, they won't." Eidan broke his silence, motioning with his metallic arm for the duo to follow him, "I know a way in. But you're really not gonna like it." [...]

Title: ENCHANTED ILLUSIONS

Genre - Victorian-inspired Dark Fantasy/Mystery

Summary - The brutal war between humans and mythical creatures came to an end 100 years ago, with a peace treaty being achieved and the rival nations finally coexisting peacefully in the capital city of Ansburke. Now, however, a crooked secret organization - dubbed the Hemlock Society - seeks to plunge the city into civil war, preying on the prejudices left over from the previous centuries of warfare to feed the uneasiness between humans and Myths once more. Now, as tensions reach a boiling point, a group of misfits and outcasts must work together to thwart the Hemlock Society's dreadful plans before civil war erupts, in a race against time to save both the people of Ansburke and their own lives, as they dive deep into the world of intrigues and secrets that lay just beneath the city's perfect surface.

POV - 5 Main POVS, with occasional POVs from important side characters.

Lenght - Novel/Book Series

Tags/Hashtag - #wip: enchanted illusions, #wip enchanted illusions

WIP Soundtrack - Enchanted Illusions Playlist

Snippet/Excerpt -

Augustus and Harriet walked down the cramped alleyway, following their unexpected guide. Whilst the necromancer maintained his usual unphased composure - hands behind his back, chin held up high, relaxed smile - Harriet could not help but look over her shoulder once every few seconds. Every shadow seemed to be someone ready to jump at them, to drag them to the deepest bowels of this town and never return.

She pushed the intrusive thoughts down, scoffing at the outlandish notion. Still, the sky was unnaturally covered by smog - smoke continuously billowing from the foundries' skyscraping chimneys, mixing with the cloudy mist - and the lamplit streets were a cramped maze of shops, tents and intricate buildings, metal being the most prevalent sight. Nothing like Ansburke, she thought.

The quicker they find what they're looking for, the sooner they'll return home. And hopefully, stop this madness from unfolding. There was an unwelcome, fiery chill in the air and people bustled through the street around them. She inched closer to Augustus, their shoulders brushing - and tried to convince herself it was simply so she wouldn't get lost in this industrial maze, not to sate the pit of uneasiness that had taken hold of her chest since they reached the gates of the city. Ahead, the eccentric young man leading them whirled around.

"Alright, if ya guys wanna blend in and find out more about that scumbag of a Mayor, you'll need to get some local clothes - not that there's nothing wrong with," He gestured to their dapper attires, now slightly torn and dusty after their ordeal at the train ride, which stood out like a sore thumb when compared to the crowds around them "that, but you two scream 'Ansburke' just by existing." [...]

[terapsina]

Planet Mortis and the Padawan's Padawan - Star Wars Sabine Wren Fic

(A concept fic for Sabine time traveling to the Clone Wars and meeting a younger version of Ahsoka.)

-

ao3

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Sabine coughed, feeling like she'd just been hit by the concussive blast from a crashing dropship. Every nerve ending of her body tingled, her brain pressing against the back of her temples as if it was considering the best way to leak out of her skull.

What in all the Sith hells had just happened?

They'd been... trying to to stop Baylan Skoll from messing with some kind of Force Gods? Force Avatars? Honestly, even with Ahsoka's explanation Sabine didn't really understand anything more than the part where they really needed to make sure that the apparently insane dark Jedi didn't gain the power to alter reality to his whims.

They'd followed him into some kind of... temple? Yes. There'd been statues. One of an old man, something ancient and tired about the worn stone, beside it a statue of a younger man with a smile Sabine remembered finding unpleasantly sinister somehow. And another, half-crumbled... something. She pressed a shaking, gloved hand over her eyes, trying to remember.

Ahsoka had been fighting Skoll and Sabine had tried to help when she'd tripped over the debris from the crumbling statue, it hadn't been stone though, but... crystals? They'd started to shimmer with the pure white glow of sunlight on snow when she heard a sound. A roar of the wind? No, a woman's whisper, somehow too loud for Sabine's ears.

A fall. And then darkness. And now... she didn't know, her ears were ringing and she realized she had yet to try to open her eyes.

Pulling her hands away from her face Sabine tried to do that now. It worked. Sort of, anyway. Everything was a bit fuzzy around the edges and it was dark around her which didn't exactly help matters.

She blinked and felt a shiver run over her skin as she realized the darkness was deepening even further and despite her fall she seemed to be in open space now.

There were dark clouds above her, tightening into something more terrible than a storm - something far more unnatural - but before she had a real chance of truly working out the strangeness, her ringing ears had something new to focus on. A man's yell from only a little distance away.

"You must help her!"

Sabine rolled onto her stomach so that she could get her knees under her and look over. Maybe ten feet away there was a group of people all so preoccupied by what they were looking at to notice her intrusion.

"I cannot undo what is done," came a weighted, echoing voice from the throat of an old man whose appearance was uncomfortably familiar to Sabine. Oh, she had a bad feeling about this. "There is no hope."

"Yes, there is," the first man's voice filled with abrupt anger, "there's always hope."

There was a sudden movement and Sabine was immediately surprised she hadn't noticed the woman before, the woman lay on the ground glowing. Her hand went to the old man's face, and then briefly before her head turned away her eyes seemed to catch Sabine's - a feeling sparked, something she'd only ever felt for brief flickering moments, that sense of light and life and depth that Ahsoka and Ezra referred to as the Force, she heard that whisper again, quieter and yet still no more comprehensive - finally, the woman voicelessly pointed toward a second slumped form.

And breath caught in Sabine's chest at the sight of the teenage Togruta child wearing the markings of her-

"Master?"

Multiple eyes swung toward her, and the third man twisted around in one smooth movement taking a guarding position in front of the angry man and the seemingly unbreathing form of what certainly appeared to be a younger version of Sabine's Jedi Master. The pure glow from the woman was joined by the blue of the third man's lightsaber.

"Who are you?" the man asked, the grief that had seemed to blanket him pushed aside by the notice of her presence.

"I-" she could only open her mouth, a terrible suspicion rising at the back of her head.

"You are not meant to be here," came the echoing voice of the old man but then he seemed to sigh, age returning to his shoulders, "and yet my Daughter has brought you. So let her last acts..." he pulled up one of his arms as the man Sabine had nearly forgotten in her shock; who had just yelled at him took place between the two slumped forms. And as the younger man dropped to his knees, they lowered their arms in unison and his right hand landed over the brow of the glowing woman, even as his left one laid against the brow of the deathly still body of the child. "...be to breathe life into your friend..."

The darkness seemed to get banished - if only briefly - as the air pulsed with light encasing both bodies, brighter and brighter until between one heartbeat and the next the glow vanished entirely.

"...and hope back into the galaxy." Here the old man's unnaturally bright blue eyes landed on Sabine like the gong of a bell. Loud and final.

There was an extended moment of utter silence before a quiet cough interrupted it - it was not unlike the one Sabine had let out upon waking minutes before - and all eyes turned toward the girl who hadn't been breathing moments ago.

"What happened?" Ahsoka asked - and karking hell, it really was Ahsoka, wasn't it? - as the man who seemed to have just brought her back to life hugged her as if his life depended on it. The girl's eyes roamed around and sparked with confusion as they landed on Sabine. "And who are you?"

"Hi, Master," Sabine answered weakly, suddenly feeling very, very outside her time, "I... I'm Sabine Wren. And I think... I'm going to need some help here."

[madd-nix]

Reuniting, Better Late Than Never

Chapter 2

This fic is now on Ao3! And also, huge thanks to all the people who enjoyed chapter 1 so much! Anyway, get ready to see Lian!

Words: 2,779

Rating: PG (ask to tag)

Lian rolled along in his motorized wheelchair through the small mining city. He could no longer do as much mining as he used to, but he still loved learning about what new things others had excavated from the earth.

After having stopped to talk with Roark about some of his newest findings, Lian made his way back home. As he entered, he was greeted by his pet Archen first, who came flying directly to his lap for pets. Lian chuckled as he scratched the ancient bird's head and beneath his feathers. The little fossil pokemon had been a gift from his grandson in Unova a few years ago, and was the most physically affectionate of his three pet pokemon.

Suddenly, he felt himself being wheeled farther into the house. Lian turned around to see his Geodude pushing his wheelchair.

"Ah, thank you. I appreciate the assistance," he said with a smile. "Little Archen here had me a little distracted."

Archen let out a happy squawk, not caring that he was being called a distraction. Geodude just smiled and wheeled Lian over to the living room by the couch.

Scizor then came walking out of Lian's bedroom, yawning a bit. Apparently, she had been taking a nap. She then walked over and sat on the couch beside his chair, happy that her trainer was home. Lian smiled and rested a hand on one of her large red claws. He had had her since she was a Scyther, and even though he knew she would never have been able to evolve into a Kleavor like his old noble, he was still so happy when she evolved into the beautiful red bug type he had now.

"Are you three hungry?" Lian then asked. "It's almost lunchtime. How about we start getting some food prepared."

This got happy cries from all three pokemon. Geodude wheeled Lian into the kitchen while Scizor followed behind. From there, Lian's pokemon helped him get lunches ready for all four of them.

Lunch went along quietly, as it did everyday. They ate, Lian managed to stand enough to do a few dishes, then they all retreated back to the living room to relax.

That didn't last long though when a knock on the door disrupted the peace. Lian sighed, then wheeled himself over and opened the door. He did not expect to see two old yet familiar faces.

Ingo and Dawn both stood there at his door, with another woman standing just behind them. There was a moment of silence - or was it a few seconds? - while the three old friends stared at each other.

"...Warden Lian?" Ingo was the first to speak up.

"Oh mighty Palkia, it really is you," Lian said in amazement. "You two haven't changed a bit."

"Lian, it's so good to see that you're still alive!" Dawn exclaimed.

"How'd you guys find me?" Lian couldn't help but ask. As he spoke, he wheeled himself backwards and motioned for them to come in.

"We just talked to Rei, who's actually my great-grandpa," Dawn explained. "He said you'd be here, and then it was just a matter of asking around to find exactly where your house was."

"Heh, must be a bit weird to see us all as old folks now," Lian said with a chuckle. "And Dawn, how's it feel knowing you're Rei's great-grandkid?"

"A little weird at first, but I'm just glad he's still alive," she admitted. "Oh! And this here is my mom, Johanna. She came along with us to meet you."

Lian turned to see the woman - who did look quite a bit like Dawn now that he was actually looking at her. She smiled and waved.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you. Dawn and Ingo have told me so much about you," she said. Lian tipped his hat to her.

"Nice to meet you too, ma'am."

Lian then turned to look at Ingo, who had been surprisingly quiet so far.

"So Ingo, it's been a while." Despite the fact that Lian was now so much older than Ingo, he still couldn't help but look at the man the same way he had as a child; as an older brother of sorts who had helped him with their warden duties time and time again. After having fallen into their clan, Ingo had showed Lian nothing but kindness, and he let him act like an actual kid without feeling like he needed to prove his worth as a fellow warden to him. Lian would forever be grateful for that.

"Lian, I'm so happy you're alive," Ingo said with a slight lump in his throat. The man's eyes were glassy with tears and it seemed like he was doing everything he could to keep himself together.

Lian smiled a bit and took Ingo's hand, then pulled him down so that he could wrap his arms around his fellow warden. Ingo knelt down as best he could in front of his wheelchair and wrapped his arms around Lian, returning the embrace.

"I've missed you, old friend," Lian said as he could feel himself start to get choked up. "I'm glad mighty Palkia was able to bring us to the same space again."

Ingo just nodded against Lian's shoulder as he hugged him. He had a feeling he knew why Ingo was so strangely quiet. They both knew that now they were the only living members of the Pearl Clan. And while Lian had long since accepted this fact, Ingo was just now coming to grips with this sad reality.

Lian then looked over at Dawn, who was biting her lip and tugging at her skirt. It seemed like she was having a hard time with that fact as well. He held out an arm and motioned for Dawn to join in. It was some awkward positioning with him sitting down like this, but Dawn didn't seem to care as she quickly wrapped her arms around the two wardens.

"I'm so glad Arceus brought you both here safely," Lian said as he gave them both a tight squeeze.

Finally, after another few moments, Ingo and Dawn pulled away. Ingo wiped at a few tears with his hand, while Dawn used her sleeves to rub at her face. Lian chuckled and wiped at his own tears.

"Alright, alright, no more waterworks!" he declared. "This is a reunion! This is something to celebrate! Come and have a seat. Let's talk." He motioned to the couch, and his three guests sat down.

His pokemon, now seeing that these were friends of his, decided they wanted to get to know their new guests too. Archen quickly flew to land on Ingo's lap, while Scizor walked over to greet Dawn's mother. Geodude floated over to Dawn, who smiled and patted his head.

"What sweet pokemon you have!" Johanna complimented as she pat Scizor's claws.

"Thanks. Scizor and Geodude I found on my own here. They help me a lot around the house," Lian explained. He then looked at Ingo, who was staring almost mesmerized at Archen as he pet him.

"That Archen there is actually a little gift from my grandson over in Unova."

At this, Ingo perked up.

"Unova?"

"Aw, that's sweet that your grandson sent him to you!" Dawn gushed. "What's his name?"

"Clay. He's the ground type gym leader over in Unova," Lian said proudly. He glanced over at Ingo again. He could practically see the gears turning in the man's head now.

"Clay... that name sounds familiar..." Ingo muttered.

"Good. 'Cause my grandson pretty much thinks of you as family."

"Huh?" Dawn looked between Ingo and Lian, confused.

"My grandson called me five years ago, going off about a young man that went missing," Lian explained. "This young man was someone he considered to be like a nephew to him. When he told me who it was, I told him not to worry. It'll take a while, but that young man will return eventually."

"You knew me?" Ingo asked.

"Not directly. I never really met ya, but Clay told me all about you and your brother, ever since you two were kids."

"My brother?"

"Oh, what was it you called him in Hisui?"

"...Was it 'the man in white who looks like me'?" Dawn supplied, doing her best Ingo impression.

"Yup. That's your twin brother. Emmet's his name," Lian explained. "I actually got to talk with the guy back when you first went missing. He's still real worried about ya, but less so once I told him what was going on."

"Emmet..." Ingo's eyes filled with fresh tears as he looked from Lian to the Archen on his lap. "Yes! My brother Emmet! He even has an Archeops, which is why this little Archen felt so familiar!" He then looked back up at Lian. "Lian, is there any way I can speak to my brother? Can we call him or Clay?"

"Course. Just gimme a sec." With that, he took out his phone and pulled up Clay's number, then listened as the phone rang.

"Howdy, Gramps," Clay finally answered after a few rings.

"Clay, think you'll come over and visit your old man some time soon?" Lian asked.

"Well, I've been real busy over here," he began, "what with the gym an' all. But I'll try to make time soon. Why ya askin'?"

"There's something - or more like someone - that I think you should come see," Lian said with a smirk as he glanced over at Ingo. "And you might wanna bring over that Emmet fella."

There was a momentary silence on the other end of the line.

"...Grandad, you ain't pulling my leg, are ya?" Clay's voice shook slightly as he spoke.

"And when have I ever lied to you?" Lian asked with a slight chuckle. "Here, I think he wants to talk to you."

Lian then held out the phone to Ingo, who took it with shaking hands.

"...Clay?"

Luckily, Lian had the volume turned up on his phone fairly high and he was close enough to Ingo that he could still hear his grandson's side of the conversation.

"Ingo... is that really you?"

"It's me. I'm here in Sinnoh. I don't know how much Lian has told you, but I'm finally back on the right tracks."

"Oh, thank the dragons! That's really you! Grandad was right!" Clay's voice wavered slightly as he spoke. "I... I'm gonna get a hold o' yer brother! I'll call Grandad back once I'm with him so you two can talk. Then we're gonna head over to Sinnoh as soon as Skyla can fly us over!"

"Okay. Thank you, Clay," Ingo said as his smile grew and tears filled his eyes. "And it's so good to hear your voice again."

"It's good to hear yer voice too, son," Clay said. "I'll call ya back in a bit. Gotta go grab yer brother from work. Don't go nowhere, ya hear!"

"I won't!" Ingo chuckled a bit. "I'll talk to you soon." With that, the phone line went dead as Clay quickly hung up, presumably to run off to find Emmet. Ingo handed the phone back to Lian.

"He's going to get my brother, then they're going to come here to Sinnoh," Ingo explained with the biggest smile Lian had ever seen on him.

"I heard. You three can stay here as long as you like while we wait for Clay to call back then," Lian said.

"This is so exciting!" Dawn exclaimed. "Not only do we get to see Lian again, but Ingo, you'll get to be with your family! And you're getting your memories back!"

"You're right." Ingo then turned back to Lian. "I can't thank you enough for this. You've helped remind me of my home and where I live, and you've also helped me get in contact with my family. Thank you, Lian."

"Hey, it's what friends do," Lian said simply. "Besides, you did so much for me back when I was a kid. This is just me repaying you for all you did."

"All I did? What do you mean?" Ingo asked.

"Come on, I'm older than you and I still remember how you let me act like an actual kid," Lian chuckled. "Around everyone else, I felt like I had to be this mighty warden, even though I was just barely ten at the time. But you, you recognized that I was still too young for so much responsibility. You helped me with gathering food and offerings for Lord Kleavor, and you helped me care for my pokemon, and you let me act like a kid when I was with you. That was something I couldn't do with just anyone. I don't know what I would've done without you, Ingo."

Ingo looked at him for a moment as he took that all in, then his smile softened.

"I was just doing what I thought was right," he said humbly. "I wanted to help my fellow warden, and I wanted to make sure a child didn't have to feel like he had the world on his shoulders."

"Heh, well, because of that kindness, Clay got to hear stories of the helpful and friendly amnesiac warden that I knew as a kid. And this was before you were even born! Funny how that works out."

"You know, I can remember my grandfather, Rei, telling me similar stories when I was a little girl," Johanna added. "He told me stories about the wardens of the two clans and of the various members of the Galaxy Team, and of the 'Hero of Hisui' as he called her. I never thought that would be my own daughter someday."

Dawn beamed proudly. Ingo and Lian chuckled a bit.

"Oh, I believe another memory has returned to my station," Ingo said. "I think I can remember being a child at Clay's house with my brother. Yes, he would tell us stories about people who took care of great pokemon, and about his grandfather, the amazing warden of a long gone evolution of Scyther. He always sounded so proud when he would tell us those stories. It's incredible to know I have become part of those stories."

"Time travel sure is a tricky thing," Lian said with a nod. "But it's nice to know all these old stories have been passed on like this. In a way, all our old friends are still here as long as we remember them."

Ingo and Dawn both smiled somberly.

"You're right. Everyone we knew is still alive in our memories," Ingo said.

"Yeah, and you and Rei and Sabi are all still here. It's nice just knowing we can still talk with you three," Dawn added.

"Have you seen Sabi yet?" Lian asked.

They both shook their heads.

"We came here first, and we planned to go see Sabi in the next day or so," Ingo explained. "But if my family is coming over, I'm not sure when we'll get a chance to do that."

"I can always give her a call," Lian told him. "Or she might even already know. Her clairvoyance got stronger as she got older, y'know."

"Really? That's so cool!" Dawn exclaimed.

"Yeah, she works as a medium up in Snowpoint. I'll give her a call later and see if she can come down here when she's not busy."

"Thanks Lian! I can't wait to see her!" Dawn said.

"No problem. Now, until we get that call from Clay, did you two wanna travel down memory road with me a bit?" Lian asked. "I can show you some pictures of my family and of the rest of the Pearl Clan. I don't know how much Rei told ya, but I'm happy to share more stories."

"We'd love that! Right, Dawn?" Ingo said excitedly.

"Yeah! Here, I'll grab your photo album! Where is it?" she offered.

"The bookshelf right over there by some of my rock collection," Lian pointed to the large bookshelf that took up a whole corner of his living room. "Should be somewhere on the top shelf."

Dawn walked over to stand on her tiptoes and searched around until she grabbed the large old photo album. She eagerly brought it over to the couch and opened it. But before anyone could even say anything about any of the photos, there was a knock on the door.

"Mighty Palkia, why am I so popular today?" Lian sighed. He then turned to call out to the door. "Who is it?"

"Take a guess!" Lian knew exactly who that older woman's voice belonged to. "My clairvoyance told me you'd have some special guests. Are they still there?"

"Yup. Come on in! Door's unlocked."

[totally-not-an-awkward-okapi]

Had a particular broken nightmare.

The first part I was at the drive through for Rite Aid. I knew that the little pedestal thing you speak into was secretly being used to contain this ancient and powerful artificial intelligence. But as I tried to free it I became terrified that what if I was wrong about it? What if it wasn’t really alive? What if I was arrested right here and it didn’t even matter? What would I even do once I freed it? So I started to put the machine back together and the AI started begging that I didn’t so I just. I just ran away.

The next part of the nightmare was only sorta connected. I was in my car at night, headlights on very low. I kept coming across deer in the middle of the road but I couldn’t stop. I could slow down enough that I’d just bump them, but I was terrified that even then one would attack me.

The third part I was back in the Rite Aid. There was a meeting of some sort- 13 children with strange gifts and one of them not. Most looked normal, though one was a plant monster that clung to a wall. I couldn’t tell if I was jumping from child to child or if I was someone else, hiding among the isles. They where demonstrating their gifts. I can’t remember the first, but on the second, a green haired little girl, I followed her as she stepped into another room. I made the right choice. She spoke briefly of her background, the nation they was where she’d been born but not her parents. This nation was not kind to outsiders. She then demonstrated her ability. She caused everyone in the other room to begin to violently convulse, even the unknown people watching from outside the rite aid.

Then I became aware that dream had been a memory of a TV show pilot that had been lost. I knew it should be impossible for me to remember seeing the pilot, I wasn’t alive when it came out. But I did. I was there in the pilot. I even had brief flashes of commercials! But despite my memory lining up eerily well with those who remembered the green haired girl, apparently named Basil, from the pilot. She was apparently a fan favorite among those trying to find the pilot. In my pocket I found the tape for the pilot. It was broken, special keys constructed to fit into in ways I didn’t understand. I went to a tape repair place, but they insisted they couldn’t repair a tape that old. There was a map behind the man, showing the far away states where that might be done. But there was a man there. One who insisted he had a friend who could fix it. I was desperate. I followed him to this friend, a strange man with something metal in the back of his neck. Something one of the keys to fixing the tape fit in. He didn’t like me touching the key there. He led us past his workshop, a place where he made concrete sculptures using casts of the hands of a friend he’d only met recently. There where too many sculptures for that to be possible. But we continued into the snow, to an abandoned house he said he hadn’t been living in for ten months. There where large holes in the roof where snow fell in. He took us to an old fashioned tv, switched it on to show night footage of feral dogs swarming through the house. Something about their movements was wrong. It felt like they where they, smothering me. But he got to work fixing the tape as that played. It seemed rather simple, but he insisted after a moment that he needed another piece. A simple replacement though, he just needed to go the store. We followed him out the door, but as we stepped through we weren’t in the woods anymore. We where in the suburbs, the house surrounded by neatly manicured flowers. I had a panic attack, begging the others to notice that this was wrong, but they said it was fine and that I just needed to stay in the house. I stayed in the mud room, watching the neighbors outside. With the door open they mocked me, not over the fact I had at some point become naked but anything else. I tried to close the doors. The neighbors quickly revealed the doors couldn’t fully close. I grabbed onto the handles to the two big doors, leaning back to keep them closed. The neighbors quickly proved the windows didn’t close either. I ran away. When I stepped briefly outside to run from the mud room into the back of the house a monstrous woman grabbed at me, Snow White and utterly hairless, blacked around her long nails. I kept running.

The dream fully broke down at this point. I was on the floor in the back room, putting costumes of other cats onto a thing that wasn’t a cat begging it to put on clothes so I could put on clothes.

The children where back. The ones who came from bad places where followed by people in morph suits, their color indeterminable. I, or the child I was inhabiting, had the most of these things following me.

Desperate to do something to help us all, one of the children brought forth a syringe of milky white blood. If she drank it she could be posed by her predecessor. I was possessing someone else when I prepped it to feed to her in my childhood kitchen, only for something to break and it all to pour into the sink. We all just laughed, we’d need another take now. We pulled milk from the nearby fridge. As we pooled it in we bickered on whether we should add a little red foot dye to bring back the slightly off white color from before or if plain milk was good enough. The girl who was set on drinking was tired of doing this scene however, and grabbed it from my hand to lap out the milk.

There was an older boy then, chasing me around to make me his beloved from a past life. He had done this before.

And then I woke up! And had to write all that down immediately cause what the f-

[thebubblesareevil]

Doctor doctor!!

Danny took Kaldur to a guest as soon as he arrived and gently laid him on the bed keeping the area cool, just hoping he wasn’t doing more harm than good. It wasn’t very long before he heard the heavy footsteps of his friend.

“Greetings my king, I came as soon as I was able, are you well?” Frostbite said with a worried expression. As Frostbite enters the room fully he notices the figure on the bed “And who might this be?”

Danny gave a sheepish look to his large friend rubbing his neck “Honestly, I’m not sure. I… I went exploring through a natural portal and found him in the desert… he’s Atlantean, I’m not sure how long he was there before I arrived but I’ve been trying to keep him cooled down. I’m not really sure what to do, I haven’t had a problem with the heat in some time.” He replied nervously.

Frostbite looked at his King and smiled before turning to his patient “You’re doing just fine, in fact it would be best if you brought the temperature down a bit more, normally I would suggest submerging him in ice water but the damage to his Gils worries me. We can put a wet cloth on them to hopefully combat any dryness or possible damage.” Frostbite the turns to Danny with a soft smile “It’s been some time since you entered the human realm…” Danny stopped him “And it won’t be happening again anytime soon” Danny stated looking away “I shouldn’t have gone in the first place, the human realm made it clear what it thinks of me”

Frostbite sighs “I understand your reason, but you know I remember a few humans that bravely entered my domain in search of adventure, so I can’t say I agree.” He replied giving Danny a look. Danny smiles back “That was a long time ago”

Frostbite laughed “Not so long for this old man! Shall I have one of my healers take over here while you get some rest?”

Danny thinks for a moment before shaking his head softly “No offense big guy but your clan may be full of giant teddy bears but they are teddy bears with very sharp teeth. It’s probably for the best we don’t scare him when he wakes up.”

————-

The paths diverge once more splitting into new branches

————-

“I’ll stay with him for now, when he wakes I’ll have one of guards escort him to an Atlantean portal. They should be able to provide him with any extra care he might need” he says as he pulls up a chair “Would you mind asking Jester to bring me the books from my nightstand. Not sure how long I’ll be here might as well get some studying done before my meeting with the Thanagarions, the last thing I need is another misunderstanding about courting. One more stalker and I swear I’m going to scream!” He groans “and get this it’s not just one meeting I have to deal with oh no apparently the Thanagarion belief system has not 1, not 2, but 12 afterlife divisions, all with different leaders. Thank the ancients Ghost Writer had some books on them or I would be screwed!”

Frostbite gave a chuckle “Oh yes, I am well acquainted with the Seven Brothers and Seven Sisters and I agree you have your work cut out for you.” Frostbite turned to leave but stopped before opening the door “A bit of advice before I leave don’t let the actions of fools forge your path it will only end in ruin. We are all proud of the man you have become and so are they, there is no other ghost I would call my king” and with that he left. Soon after Jester brought his books and Danny settled in a large chair to study, waiting for his guest to wake.

——————

[noteguk]

any way you want it | kth | m

— summary; in which your best friend, Taehyung, finds out about your unsatisfying sexual experiences and decides to put an end to that track record himself. 

— contents and warnings; smut, childhood best friends, Taehyung x reader, bigdick!tae, breast play, oral (f receiving), dry grinding, dirty talk, tae has a praise kink, unprotected sex (be responsible!!), rough sex, creampie, multiple orgasms, Taehyung takes things personally but he has good intentions, this is what happens when mutual thirst gets suppressed for years of friendship 

— words; 6.6k

— author’s note; i have no idea why but this fic was so fucking hard to put down into words??? I felt mentally constipated the entire time but it’s finally here 

Taehyung wasn’t the slightest bit surprised when you called him at almost two in the morning, complaining about your newest nightmarish date and practically begging to come over. Like the good friend that he was, he made sure to tell you that you would be more than welcome to join him in his newest documentary marathon about aliens, and wondered if you could bring him some takeout on your way over there. Like the bad friend that you were, you said no. 

To be fair, the nearest takeout place was across the city from his apartment (about thirty minutes away and in a bad neighborhood), and you were already having a horrible night as it was. Besides, you refused to take part in Taehyung’s search for a high blood pressure and cholesterol levels, arguing that it wasn’t the right time to stuff his face full of hypercaloric noodles. 

But you did pity him enough to comply with his second request: a big pot of vanilla ice cream, which you were sure you’d end up consuming too. You were in a crisis.

As if to prove that the gods above were laughing at you, during the walk of shame to Taehyung’s apartment, it had started to rain (because of course it did), and your umbrella was only able to save you from the shoulders up before it crumbled and flew away from your gasp, rolling on the asphalt like a ball of dirt in a Wild West movie. By the time that you dragged yourself to his front door, you were completely soaked (and not in the way you had planned for that night to end), and about to break down crying. 

Taehyung, like the angel that he was, helped you with your heavy coat and talked you into taking a warm shower before you got sick. He took the supermarket bag from you (where the ice cream had probably already melted) and walked you to this bathroom, excusing himself so he could grab you some dry clothes — and you only saw the ones he had picked when you got out of the shower. 

With a silly smile dancing on your lips, you fumbled with the black booty shorts that Taehyung had jokingly gifted you that past Christmas — one that read “daddy’s juicy butt” in big, bold, neon pink letters over your ass — and then decided that your dignity was already dead by that point, so another kick wouldn’t hurt. Taehyung had also given you one of his favorite band shirts, which he only revealed during desperate times. 

Your heart melted with the thought of your best friend trying to comfort you, and pulled the fabric close to your face so you could take a deep inhale, drowning in his scent. It smelled of that stupid cologne that Taehyung had used ever since he hit puberty, and a bit of fabric softener. 

The two of you had an extremely close friendship, to the point that it got kind of strange at times. Ever since childhood, it was joked that you and Taehyung had been long lost soulmates — doing everything together, from going to school to laughing at the same exact jokes during movie marathons, often at the same moment and for the same amount of time. Before puberty hit (and the hormonal rage took over your first teenage years) you couldn’t remember disagreeing with him even once. You two had always been in sync. 

But the uncomfortably close part only hit after you two went to college, and your anxiety for being a virgin in a sea of starving sharks got the best of you. After long conversations, you had managed to convince Taehyung to help you learn a thing or two about the art of naked wrestling. 

Apparently it was weird to give your best friend a handjob and a blowjob for the sake of education. Go figure. 

Regardless, your friendship wasn’t affected by any of that — even if you two had agreed to never mention any of it ever again — and you could always count on Taehyung to catch you when you fell. 

Even if it was at two am on a Tuesday, after one of your nightmarish dates. 

You threw yourself on the couch next to him, hugging your knees against your chest to form a barrier between you and the divine providence that had taken you to that point. You had half-assedly dried your hair, but pools of wetness had started to build on the back of Taehyung’s shirt. 

Instead of accusing you of ruining his favorite piece of clothing, Taehyung reached for the remote and paused his documentary just as the narrator was starting to explain how hieroglyphs were actually part of an alien language. “Just tell me how bad it was,” he said, a mustache of ice cream melting over his top lip.

You took a peek at the bowl of melting vanilla on his center table, and decided that you would probably pass the desert for the night. 

You glanced at him sideways, voice coming out monotone. “You sure you want to go down that path?” 

Taehyung licked his sweet mustache off and nodded, clearly intrigued. “Yeah, hit me with it. You look like you need all the help that you can find.” 

You sighed, turning around on the couch so you were facing him — legs still against your chest. “Okay so… I went to his place...” 

“Yes…”

“And... we had dinner, talked for a bit.”

“How was the talk?” He asked. 

You shook your head, trying to kill the memories inside. “He didn’t let me say a word. He just went on and on about this new website he’s working on, and how expensive his wine glasses were.” You scoffed, angry at yourself for ignoring the clear red flags of an arrogant douchebag. That was what the desperate need for immediate human connection could do to someone, you thought. “Apparently it’s supposed to be the next Facebook or something. Or twitter. I honestly wasn’t paying much attention.”

He chuckled. “Starting off strong.” 

“That wasn’t even the main issue,” you said, lowering your forehead so it was touching your knees. You just wanted the world to end at that moment, so you wouldn’t have to go through those experiences again. “After that, we sat on his couch and started watching a movie. And you know how that goes, we started kissing, he pushed me down and got on top of me…”

“And?” He instigated. 

With a sigh, you raised your head, meeting your friend’s gaze. Taehyung thought he had never seen you look so dead inside. And he had seen a lot from you. “And he humped like… my lower abdomen for about three minutes and came in his pants.”

Taehyung cringed visibly, taking one hand to cover his mouth. “Oh, man. That’s bad.” 

You nodded, strangely relieved at his reaction. Part of you was worried that you were the evil witch in that scenario, that maybe you had done something wrong. “The worst,” you agreed. “Wanna know what else?”

“What? There’s more?”

“He didn’t even ask me if I was satisfied with whatever the hell that was.” You told him, bitterness dripping from your tongue. In the grand scheme of things, that was something silly to get mad over, but the fact that your date didn’t even have the guts to ask if you had gotten something out of that was ridiculous. “Not that I could possibly be. But it’s like he didn’t care and I was just a pillow for him to hump like a… sexually repressed religious teen, I don’t know.”

Taehyung only nodded, realizing that there wasn’t much that he could say to fix the situation. “Was he a good kisser at least?”

You sneered. “I think he was trying to crush my face with his.” You glanced at your friend, only half of his face bathed by the yellow and orange shades coming from the television. Maybe a documentary about ancient history and alien expeditions wouldn’t be so bad. Worst case scenario, it would knock you out, and you wouldn’t have to think about that mess anytime soon. “Also, too much tongue, just… the amount of saliva…”

“Got it. You can stop there.” Taehyung raised one hand, his eyes closing for a second. His palm lowered and met one of your knees, standing there in a silent attempt at consolation. “I’m sorry about your terrible date experience, dude.” 

“If you could even call it that.” You ran one hand through your hair, suddenly overtaken by a wave of anger. “God! I was just… so… ugh! Like… ughhhh!!” 

Taehyung, bless his heart, sometimes couldn’t understand the random neanderthal sounds you threw his way. “So... what?”

At last, your makeshift protection came crumbling down, and you collapsed on the couch dramatically, legs dangling off the edge. Taehyung thought that you were being possessed for exactly two seconds before you started talking again. “I did a full body shave for this night, Taehyung. Do you realize what that means?” His lips fell open, but, before he had the chance to answer, you continued. “It means that I really wanted to get railed tonight. Actually, I wanted to find a guy who actually knew what he was doing for once in my life.”

Taehyung chuckled, trying to disperse the tension in the room. “Come on, the dating pool can’t be that bad.”

“Oh, it’s bad,” you said. 

He wasn’t giving up that fast. “How bad?”

You raised your head to look him dead in the eyes, a silent threat, before finally uttering, “Try no-man-has-ever-made-me-cum bad,” and crashing your head back against the sofa. 

If you weren’t so hyper-focused on your own sexual melodrama, you would have noticed the thick silence that fell between the two of you, Taehyung’s face contorting into fifty different emotions within a few seconds. He thought that he had heard it all — from the secrets hidden in Machu Picchu to the obvious extraterrestrial influence on earthy religion — but no amount of bad documentaries could ever prepare him for that revelation. That didn’t make any sense. 

“Wait. Seriously?” He finally found his voice and managed to push his doubt out of his throat. “You’ve never had an orgasm before?”

You chuckled, humorless. “Oh no, I’ve had plenty of those. Just not from another person.” 

“How’s that possible?” he asked. 

“I ask myself that every single day.” You sighed, forcing yourself to sit back up. Taehyung was staring at you like you had just grown two extra arms, and you wondered what an amazing sex life he must’ve had for that confession to get him so confused. “Guess I’m just really bad at picking partners, who knows.”

There was a soft grunt on your throat as you fixed your position on the couch, suddenly feeling the exhaustion of your entire day piling up at once. Your gaze mindlessly traveled to the TV — a big plasma monstrosity that Taehyung had bought compulsively during a Black Friday sale — looking at a white-bearded man pointing maniacally towards a specific, round-shaped hieroglyph. You didn’t even need to hit play to know that he was making it seem like it was an UFO, but curiosity got the best of you. 

“Can you pass me the remote?” You asked, pointing at the small device that laid beyond Taehyung’s body. “I kinda wanna see what—”

“I’ve made tons of girls have orgasms,” Taehyung interrupted, looking at you like he had just clicked out of a transe.  

You laughed at his monotone voice. “I’m happy for you, Tae.” You leaned over his legs so you could finally reach the remote. “That wasn’t a jab at your masculinity, I’m sure you’re a very caring partner, and I’m sure there’s tons of guys out there that—”

“I can make you cum too, if you want.”

You had just grabbed the small piece of plastic when his sentence hit you like a smack in the face, making you drop the remote back on the couch, eyes widening. “You… what?”

He suddenly broke eye contact, taking one hand to massage the back of his neck. “Did that sound as creepy as I think it did?”

“A bit, yeah.” You forced out a light chuckle, trying to break the ice. There was no sign of mockery in his voice, and you didn’t know how to react. You could not say that the offer wasn’t tempting (you’d be lying if you claimed that you didn’t think Taehyung was attractive), but his proposal was so oddly-placed that it sounded like a joke. “What are you talking about?”

Taehyung sighed, turning his head to look at the television. “I just think it’s really unfair that no one has ever made you cum before.” 

You smiled. “That’s very nice of you, but…”

“And I want to help you with that.” He looked back at you. Oh, he was being a hundred percent serious. There was no longer a single ounce of doubt in your mind. “We’re friends, it’s not gonna be weird. We’ve done similar stuff before.”

“We were a lot younger, though.” You didn’t know why your mouth suddenly felt so dry, your fight or flight response kicking at full strength. You could tell that Taehyung was also trying to convince himself about the strangeness of the situation. “It’s gonna be kind of weird, yeah.”

“Not if we don’t make it weird,” he threw back. Was it bad that you were actually considering it? Maybe it was the piled-up exhaustion combined with the years of sexual frustration, maybe you were finally out of your mind. But you were really considering it. “I don’t wanna pressure you, alright? Just making a friendly offer. If you don’t want it, that’s fine.” 

You kind of wanted it, though. There was too much accumulated libido inside you from years and years of unsatisfying partners, and you trusted Taehyung with your entire heart. It sounded like a safe enough bet: if all went to shit and it got too awkward, you two could just stop, no hard feelings. Besides, you knew that Taehyung cared about you, which was more than you could say about all your dates in the past couple years. 

And the more you stared at him, probably looking like a deer in the headlights, the more you grew soft under his presence. At once, you were hit with desires that you had never considered before: you wanted to kiss those soft lips, wanted to know how his large hands would feel around you. You really, really wanted to know how it was to have a good sexual experience with someone, and you couldn’t think of a better candidate than your best friend. Even if you still thought it could be seen as a little bit weird. 

But you also kind of didn’t care. 

You licked your lips, finally finding your voice after a long moment of silence. “How… how would you do it?” 

Taehyung turned his head and looked at you, noticing the expectation in your eyes. “How would you want me to do it?” He asked. 

You tried to think, but your mind was completely blank. What did you want him to do? What did you like? Suddenly you weren’t sure about anything anymore. “I don’t know,” you admitted, glancing down. 

Taehyung smiled at your nervousness, one of his hands moving to your chin and tilting your head up. “How ‘bout I start by kissing you?” He questioned, gaze flickering to your parted lips. “Is that alright?” 

There were no words in your throat, so you simply nodded, closing your eyes as he leaned in. 

Taehyung’s mouth tasted of vanilla and you thought, even for a moment, that you were in paradise. The second that his tender lips met yours, your anxiety melted away, giving space to a newfound flame of desire. Taehyung kissed you softly, sensually, taking his time caressing your mouth and drowning in your heat. His hand moved to the back of your head, pressing you closer to him and leaning your head to the side so he could deepen the kiss. 

He sighed heavily into your mouth when your tongues met, his other hand moving to hold your waist. The position on the couch was kind of awkward for kissing, with the two of you sitting side by side, so it wasn’t an unwelcome surprise when Taehyung tugged you onto his lap, making you straddle him. 

The kiss was starting to get hungrier, messier, a small whimper dying in your mouth when his palms traveled down to cup your ass, pressing you down against his semi-hard cock. Taehyung sighed and groaned at the feeling of you on top of him, loving the way that your fingers played with his hair, your body so perfectly tight against his. If there was any hesitation before, it had completely vanished by that point. 

It caught you off guard when he suddenly broke off the kiss to ask you, “Do you like any pet names?”

You blinked, taken aback. “Hm? What?”

He placed a strand of your hair behind your ear. “You know, you want me to call you by something?”  

You realized that Taehyung was really taking that personal service to a different level, and you couldn’t say that you were let down by it. If any of your past partners had the dignity to ask what you liked, you wouldn’t be in that position in the first place. “I… like being called ‘baby’,” you told him. 

Taehyung smiled. “That’s cute. Baby it is.” 

Before you had a chance to respond, Taehyung’s lips were back on yours, a dreamy sigh leaving his mouth as your tongues met once again. Only a few seconds passed before he shifted his weight to lay you down, never breaking the kiss as he positioned himself between your legs, hovering over you. Taehyung started trailing a path of kisses down your neck, his large hands slithering beneath your oversized shirt and caressing the skin of your stomach. 

“Can I take this off?” He asked, tugging at your shirt. 

You agreed and, within a heartbeat, that piece of clothing was already on the floor, and Taehyung was diving in to kiss the valley of your naked breasts. You moaned timidly when one of your nipples was wrapped by his lips, his tongue coming out to play with it. Taehyung’s other hand was occupied fondling your other breast, tugging and pressing down on it, and the sensations were taking over your mind. 

“You have great tits,” Taehyung mumbled against your skin, switching to mouth your other nipple. 

“I’m glad you like them,” you teased, playing with the hair on the nape of his neck. You were letting out these cute little whimpers that were making him lose his mind. “Feels really good.” 

“Yeah?” He asked, moving back to kiss his way up your neck. His tongue was hot and heavy as it danced on your skin, and you knew that those sucks he was giving you were surely gonna leave a few marks on your flesh. But you didn’t really care. “Gonna make you feel even better, baby.” 

Your eyes fluttered shut at the pet name — it sounded heavenly when Taehyung used it with his deep, honeyed voice; his warm breath hitting your neck as he continued with his ministrations. 

He kissed his way to your cheek, placing a small pec on your lips before saying, “Can you do something for me?”

You nodded. “What is it?” 

Instead of responding right away, Taehyung’s gaze fell to your lips, and he was once again attacking them. That time, you weren’t able to hold back the whimper that you let out, your panties already glued against your core with how much he was turning you on. 

One of his hands had trailed down your exposed abdomen, teasingly playing with the hem of your shorts. You held your breath when he tugged them down, bringing your underwear with it and throwing them somewhere in the living room. Taehyung grunted loudly when his fingers slipped past your folds, digging into your heat. His brain almost short-circuited because of how wet you were. 

He broke the kiss and looked you deep in the eyes. “I want you to sit on my face, baby,” he said, and his request shot straight to your core. “Let me take care of you, okay?” 

“Are you sure?” You asked. You had never done that before.

But Taehyung wasn’t sharing your reluctance. “Yeah,” he said, voice hoarse and eyes darkened. “Wanna taste you so bad. Sit on my face, please.” 

And you didn’t need any more convincing than that. Taehyung helped you get up from the couch so he could reposition himself on it, laying flat on his back and watching as you settled yourself above him, thighs on either side of his head. The couch was the exact size for that, a little smaller and you’d have one leg dangling off the edge.

Taehyung took his hands to your thighs, running them up to your hips. His eyes were focused on your pussy, and you never felt so exposed when he started pressing you down lightly, guiding you closer to his mouth. 

You held the back of the couch for support and did as he requested, lowering yourself until Taehyung had you flat on his tongue. Your breath trembled and caught in your throat when he licked a thick stripe from your entrance to your clit, humming around the taste before doing it again. Taehyung was an expert at erasing your worries because, with a few more licks, he had you fully losing yourself in his sinful ministrations. 

It wasn’t long until you were whining out his name, your folds lazily dragging against his tongue as you started to grind on his face. “God, Taehyung!” You called out, hand coming down to tug at his hair. Taehyung grunted in satisfaction, the vibrations of his deep voice sending shockwaves through your pussy. “That’s… that’s really nice. You’re really good at this.” 

He moaned in response, closing his eyes at your words. Taehyung was eating you out like his mouth was made for it, like he was starving for your taste and you were all that he could think about. He licked you from your entrance to your clit, playing with your sensitive spots and enjoying the tremors of pleasure that ran through your thighs, his hands locked tight around your hips. You sobbed and cried over him, making special effort to keep your legs steady as you rocked yourself on his tongue. 

It was only when he decided to suck on your clit that you realized how absurdly close you were. You clenched your teeth and whined out, yanking his hair harder. “Do that again, please,” you asked and Taehyung, like the good friend that he was, was quick to comply. Taehyung wrapped his mouth around your clit in a way that had you trembling over him, licking and sucking on your sensitive nub like his life depended on it. “Fuck, that’s so good, Tae. Feels so good…” 

He moaned again, more desperate this time, and some part of your mind understood the pattern that he was presenting you: Taehyung really, really liked your compliments. And you had no problem giving away any more of them. 

“You’re licking me so well, Tae, you’re gonna make me cum like this,” you told him,  meaning every word you said. Taehyung was a Greek god beneath you, staring up at you with those dark, focused eyes as if he dared you to cum on his tongue. “God! You’re so good for me.”

And then your praises ran thin, because your mind was gravitating somewhere else — seeking for the high that was dangerously close. It was only when Taehyung started toying with your entrance, brushing two of his fingers on it, that you came undone, crying out his name like it was a personal prayer. 

There was a smirk on your mouth as you came down, a flooding relief that overtook you. You never thought that you could come so hard in your life, especially when it depended on another person, and you were so, so happy to be wrong that you could cry. 

With shaky legs, you removed yourself from Taehyung’s face, straddling his lap and watching as his lips glistened with your arousal. His pink tongue came out to lick them, a hum on his throat as he took in your fucked-out expression. 

“You did so well, baby,” he said, placing one of his hands on your waist. “Come here.” 

Obedient, you leaned in and sighed as his mouth met yours. This time, Taehyung didn’t wait to eagerly insert his tongue inside your mouth, making you taste yourself on him. 

He pulled away leisurely, his voice hoarse. “Can you taste how sweet you are?” He asked. “I loved making you cum on my tongue, baby. You looked so pretty.” 

Taehyung breathed out, planting kisses on your neck, one hand trailing down to squeeze your ass. You whined at his tight grip and pressed yourself down on him, feeling his hard cock poking out against the fabric of his sweats. 

Taehyung groaned at the stimulation, pressing down on your asscheek again. You rolled your hips on top of him, wincing in sensitivity as his member brushed your clit. “Loved your pussy so much, baby,” he continued, sounding like he was lost in a daydream, “I can’t wait to be inside you. Bet you’d be so tight for my cock, hm?” 

“Yeah,” you managed to speak. Even if you had just reached your orgasm, you were still aching to feel something inside you. You wanted Taehyung more than you could understand. “I want you to fuck me, Tae, please.” 

He breathed out, his hands tightening around your flesh as you rolled your pussy against his cock once again. Taehyung looked like he was one heartbeat away from completely losing his self control, and hearing you beg for him to fuck you wasn’t doing him any favors. “Gonna need to lie down for me, baby,” he asked. 

With a few more shifts on the couch, Taehyung had you beneath him once again, your legs open for him as he removed his shirt and pants. It wasn’t long before his cock sprung free from its confinement, standing erect. You licked your lips at the lustful sight, pussy clenching in anticipation as you took him in — Taehyung was big. Bigger than anyone you’ve ever had, that’s for sure; long and thick and already leaking for you. 

You would’ve cried out in need if he didn’t interrupt you. “What are you looking at?” Taehyung asked, the ghost of a smile creeping up on his lips. 

Your stare oscillated toward his own. “That’s why you have such a good track record, your cock is huge.” You bit your lip, thinking about how good he would feel inside you. You didn’t know how it was possible, but you were pretty sure the last time you’ve seen his cock — back in the dark ages of your freshman year of college — it wasn’t as big as that. Or maybe you just didn’t have anything to compare it to. 

“Hey, I just used my tongue on you, don’t ignore my efforts,” Taehyung teased, wrapping one of his hands around his member so he could pump himself a few times. The playful atmosphere swiftly shifted back, and, when he spoke up again, his voice was deeper. “You think you can take it?” 

“Yeah, I can,” you said. You couldn’t be sure, but you were sure going to try. 

Taehyung hummed, moving a bit closer so he could brush his tip against your pussy, coating it with your wetness. You closed your eyes in expectation, knowing that you’d love the stretch he would give you. 

“You want it?” He asked, a touch of desperation covering his words. Taehyung was nearing his breaking point, and the fluttering of your pussy on his cock was making him go insane. “Want my cock inside your tight little cunt, baby?” 

You nodded, frantic. The brushing of his thick tip on your hole was becoming too much, your walls clenching around nothing, seeking for something to fill you up. “Yes, fuck, I want it so bad.” 

“Are you tight for me, baby?” He was trying to prolong that moment for as much as he could, keep the pretty face you made when you pleaded for him to fuck you burned in the back of his head. Making you cum once was a victory he would take forever, but making you cum around his cock might as well be his life’s biggest achievement. “Ready for me to fuck you?” 

You cried out when he started pressing himself inside you, guiding his crown inside your pussy, then stopping. “Yes, Tae, just put it all in, please,” you whined, hands fumbling for support on his broad shoulders. Taehyung already had you clenching around nothing, you didn’t know what else he wanted from you. “Please, please, fuck me.” 

Taehyung chuckled, looking down at where you two met. He was only human, and his self control was short lived. “Since you asked so nicely…” 

Your back arched off the sofa as you felt the delicious drag of his large cock inside you, opening you up gradually, taking its time before filling you up to the brim. You gasped and sobbed at the overwhelming feeling, nails digging on the skin of his back as Taehyung groaned besides your ear. 

“Fuck, that’s so good.” He let out a shaky breath, and you swore you never heard his voice get so husky before. “I just slipped right in. You’re so fucking wet.” 

Your mind was an apocalypse of confused thoughts and forgotten exclamations, eyes fluttering shut as you dove into the sensation of Taehyung inside you — his hips angling backwards, tilting up just enough so he could move himself away from you core, only to come slamming back inside. The stretch of his cock was amazing, it was making you drunk, and all that you could think about was how much pleasure it was giving you. 

“So-So big—“ you muttered, half aware that the words actually left your lips. 

“How do you like it, uh?” Taehyung asked, his voice dripping sin and hunger. You could tell that he, too, was getting carried away by the feeling, his hips rutting themselves against you at a lazy pace. “Gonna give it to you any way you want it, baby.” 

You bit your lip, a small moan leaving your mouth when Taehyung leaned closer to you, distributing hot kisses on your neck. You swore you’d be happy if you died then. “I like it rough,” you answered. 

He groaned, apparently satisfied with your response. “Whatever you want.” 

Taehyung got to his knees on the couch, deciding to put one foot on the ground for support, his hands raising your hips to help him reach even deeper inside you. Faster than your brain could compute, the shallow, lazy pace he had sat was being replaced with a harsh, fast pumping that made you cry out his name, eyes closing in sheer bliss. 

“Tae! Yes, yes, just like that,” you sobbed, running one hand through your hair. You felt like your body was floating, every cell of your body overheating with the amazing pleasure that Taehyung was giving you. You never had someone fucking you so hard, his cock pistoning inside you, your body bobbing up and down on the couch. 

Taehyung’s eyes were glued to the bouncing of your breasts as he continued to fuck you, a deep groan leaving his chest. “That’s it, take it,” he moaned out, quickening his pace even more. Your eyes rolled to the back of your head, mouth opening in a silent scream.  “Gonna make you cum so hard around my cock, baby. Gonna fuck you until you cry. Want that?” 

“Yes, yes, please,” you moaned. “Feels so good, Tae.” 

“You like my cock, baby? Like it filling you up?” He asked and you could only nod pathetically, your entire body too fucked out to even respond. “F-fuck, your pussy is so good. Tell me that you love my cock.” 

“I love your cock,” you whined, feeling like a complete hot mess under his thrusts. “I — fuck! — I love your cock so much, Tae, it’s so big.” 

Your words motivated him to fuck you even harder, his member hitting even deeper inside you. Taehyung was getting lost in the stretch of your pussy around him, the glorious sounds you were making, the lust that coated your face every time you called out his name. 

“Shit, I don’t know how anyone could look at you like this and not want to see that pretty face cum.” He was breathing out hard, grunting every time your cunt tightened around him. Taehyung wanted to see you like that forever, taking his cock like a good girl, creaming all over him and begging to do it again. You were wrapping around him so perfectly, taking all of him so well, that he didn’t think he’d manage to move on from that anytime soon. “So fucking hot.”

Taehyung chased after your high like a starving man looking for food, experimentally changing the angle and force of his thrusts to see what would get the best reaction out of you. At last, after a pathetically loud cry from your part after he raised your legs up, it seemed as if he had found it. “I bet you’d be so tight cumming around my cock, baby,” he was thinking out loud at that point, trying to make sense of the pretty sounds and expressions you were giving him so eagerly. He wanted nothing more than to see you cum — it was personal at that point. “I wanna feel you cum around me, baby. Wanna feel it so bad.” 

“I’m c-close.” Your nails dug into his shoulders, eyes closing tightly. There was a light heat in your cheeks and sweat on your forehead that was making Taehyung wonder if you were the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. “You’re so good, T-Tae, you’re fucking me so well…” 

Taehyung thought that he could cum right then and there, pushed over the edge with those sweet words alone. He loved being good to you, loved making you feel things that no one else managed to before. He was intoxicated by that sense of superiority, drowning in your praise. He wished that he could fuck you forever. 

“Cream my cock, baby, come on,” he pushed you on, his words hanging somewhere between an order and a breathless plea. You were getting so tight around him that it was making him crazy, your wetness coating his cock and dripping down between your legs like his own personal brand of aphrodisiac. “You can do it, come on. I wanna see you cum so bad.” 

You smiled at him, a cute, fucked-out smirk that made Taehyung go to heaven and back. “So good for me, Tae, you’re so big,” you said, your voice so needy and high-pitched. Your orgasm was looming over you, pressing down on your lower body and making you see stars. It was only a matter of time before Taehyung got you crying out his name, back arching off the couch and mouth falling open in delirium. “Tae! Fuck! Don’t stop, please, I’m gonna—“ 

But your warning came a second too late, because you were already spasming around his length, body shaking as Taehyung thrusted hard inside you. Just as expected, you were absolutely fucking gorgeous when you came — all quivering lips and rolling eyes —, and Taehyung was beyond satisfied to know that he was the only one who saw that pretty face of yours. 

“That’s it, baby, fuck.” Taehyung was starting to feel his own high approaching, called by the delicious tightening and releasing of your pussy around him. His thrusts were messy and harsh; his sweaty hair falling over his eyes like a cascade. “Can I cum inside you, baby? Can I fuck you full of my cum?”

You noticed the desperation in his tone and, with the throbbing of his member inside you, you knew that he wasn’t far. “Yes, please,” you said. “You were so good for me, Tae, you can cum wherever you want.” 

And it was that final taste of praise that pushed Taehyung over his limit; waves upon waves of cum filling you up as he rode out his high. “God— fuck!” He cried out, drunk on the feeling of your walls milking the last drops of cum out of his cock. A few lazy pumps later, and he was collapsing on top of you with a mumbled, “F-Fuck.” 

There was an instant of silence after his orgasm, the quietude only filled by Taehyung’s heavy breathing. You took one hand to his head, caressing the strands as a smile blossomed on your lips. “Well, I believe you now,” you said playfully. “I’m sure you made a bunch of girls orgasm.” 

Taehyung chuckled, breathless. “Thank you, I try,” he said, looking up at you. The darkness in his gaze was gone, and it was just your best friend staring back at you. “You alright?”

“I’m great,” you admitted. You never felt so good in your life. “You?”

“Fantastic, thanks for asking.” He leaned back so he could sit up, running one hand through his disheveled hair before saying, “I’m gonna grab you a towel, hang on.” 

Taehyung left you for a couple minutes before coming back to clean you up, tenderly wiping away the mess you two had created. After he was done, he discarded the towel on the floor and crawled back to rest on your chest once again. 

There was a comforting quietude that floated in the atmosphere, only filled by the muffled buzzing of his freezer and the vague sound of raindrops drumming on the window. You didn’t really know how to deal with that entire situation, didn’t know how things would stay between the two of you. But, at that point, you made the decision to keep those worries for the following morning and, instead, just enjoy his warmth radiating all around you. 

The glorious silence, at last, was broken when Taehyung started mumbling against your breasts.  “Hey, ___?” He called. 

“Yeah?”

“How many dates have you been on?”

You hummed, thinking for a moment. “Ever?”

Taehyung made a clicking sound with his tongue. “I don’t know, like, this past year.”

“Uh… like… five or six? I think?” You answered, looking down to meet his gaze. You knew that wicked expression very well. “Why?”

He smiled. “Because we have a lot of shitty dates to make up for.”

[dmwrites]

“Well, if you are feeling uneasy about your alliance with your soulmate, why don’t you two go be useful and find the enchanter. You can keep your stuff here, Etho, and we can always get an extra bed. But I have a house to build, and I don’t want you doofuses in the way.” Bdubs stood in the doorway of the white mid-century house, hands on his hips. Etho looked at Impulse and then back at Bdubs, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, if my darling says so, I’m happy to do it.” Impulse chuckled, laid back as ever. He brushed past Bdubs to pick up a few things in the house. Etho grabbed Bdubs’ arm to keep him from following.

“Really? Me and him? Exploring the deep dark? Together?” Etho muttered to him. “Curious choice.” Bdubs said nothing, but wrenched his arm out of Etho’s grasp and walked inside. Etho followed.

“Okay, Etho, you’re on your yellow life, so you especially have to be careful.” Impulse was rushing around the little and messy storage area, pulling various bits out and piling them on the floor. “The warden is attracted to noise, so what we need is just that. Do you think you could make a redstone noise machine in the dark in mere seconds?” He fiddled with a few bits of redstone and put the device on the floor. Bdubs, apparently bored of the conversation, had already walked away, so Etho resigned himself to paying attention.

“Hmm, dunno. In the dark?” If Impulse had to build this machine, it might give Etho a pretty good running head start if the warden came their way. “You better hold on to that stuff. You’re the redstone genius.” Impulse beamed at that. He’s so easy, Etho thought.

All packed for their trip, Etho and Impulse called for Bdubs. The builder emerged, holding two paper sacks. “Alright, don’t laugh, but I made you both some snacks. Good luck on your trip.”

“Thank you Bdubs!” Etho pulled Bdubs into a hug, definitely for too long. But Bdubs hugged him right back, and that was reward enough.

“Etho, I’ll meet you outside, yeah?” Impulse gave Etho a look. “Wanna say goodbye.”

“If you die you’ll both just respawn in your bed. It’s not like we’re going off to war.” Etho muttered, but he went outside to wait, definitely not jealous at all.

“Alright Etho, it’s you and me now, buddy!” Impulse put a hand on his shoulder after a few minutes. “Let’s do this thing!”

Impulse lead the way to the deep dark, all casual chats and silly jokes. Now, Etho decided, would be the perfect time to plant some seeds of doubt.

“You know, it almost seemed like Bdubs wanted you out of the house. Like he’s getting tired of you.” Etho commented, ducking under a mineshaft beam.

Impulse chuckled. “Oh, well, I mean, we’ve been inseparable since we found each other, so I don’t blame him at all. We all need a little me time.” There was no heat in his voice, no insecurities shining in his body language. Impulse spoke with a casual confidence that Etho couldn’t quite call foolish.

“You’ve really been joined at the hip ever since you found out, haven’t you?” Etho asked.

Impulse didn’t answer for a moment, checking his compass and a map he’d brought. “We gotta do some digging, I think.” He muttered more to himself, and pulled out a pickaxe. “Yeah, basically joined at the hip all the time. It’s crazy, I found out he was my soulmate and now whenever he’s far away I feel like part of my heart is missing too. Why, is that not how you and Joel are?” Impulse kept mining down, more concentrated on his task, voice innocent.

Etho felt a thrill of anger at his words. “No, not exactly. It must be different for each pair.” He didn’t mention the red-hot jealousy he felt when Bdubs announced his love for Impulse for the first time, or how much he’d been trying to get Bdubs to run away with him, just like old times.

“I guess that makes sense, explains the whole Cleo-Scott-Pearl-Martyn thing.” Impulse murmured. He mined through a block and a musty wind flew up to ruffle their hair. They had found the ancient city. “Don’t worry, man, you’ll find love one day.”

“Yeah… one day.” Etho muttered.

They decided to eat the snacks from Bdubs before going down into the ancient city. With legs dangling and swinging over a yawning edge, the two sat in the mined-out spot in the cave ceiling and ate. They both got bread and cheese as a snack. Etho noticed a note on top of his food and pulled a torch close to read it.

Come back safe

-Bdubs

Etho smiled and put the note in his pocket. He looked over at Impulse, who also seemed to have a Bdubs note. Etho couldn’t read it from where he sat, but it was a lot longer then his own. Impulse smiled and folded the note up, putting it in his pocket. As he did so, Etho caught sight of the gleam of a golden band on his finger. Wedding ring. Something white hot shot through him.

“So the newlyweds nickname isn’t just in name, huh.” Etho asked, hoping his voice wasn’t shaking. How had he never seen this before? Did Bdubs have a ring on too and he’d never noticed?

Impulse looked down at the ring and smiled. “Yeah, we just kind of said hey might as well, you know. Bdubs keeps his on a chain under his shirt. It seems like almost too much, right? But it works for us. A reminder. Because, like, whatever happens, even if we break up or something-” and here Impulse paused for a moment, looking right at Etho, “it’s a good reminder that it’s not just one person’s life we have to lose.”

“What would you do if he left?” Etho knew he was pushing it, that he should strike in quieter ways, but that look from Impulse was too much, too pointed.

Impulse shrugged. “I don’t like to think about it. I’d like to think that love can last. But if he decides to leave, I guess I’ll just continue to fight for him. Keep him alive. I said I’d love him for better or for worse. And I keep my promises.” Impulse stood up and gathered a few things they’d scattered around. “Now, let’s go sneaking around, shall we?”

Etho wished he could hate Impulse. It would be so much easier to see him as weak and stupid, a hopeless romantic who could do nothing to stop Etho from taking Bdubs from him. Oh, if only it could be that easy. The rest of the trip was a blur, with wardens coming out of the ground and the heady buzz of enchanting in his veins. But Impulse was always there, a steady voice in the darkness. It was comforting, knowing that he was always looking out for him. He helped Etho escape the city with his life intact.

And as Etho walked back to his own home with Joel, a realization hit him. Impulse was brave and smart, a man who loved Bdubs with his whole being. Impulse was probably in that stupid house, kissing Bdubs all over his face to make him smile. They’d probably swap gossipy stories and go to bed in each other’s arms.

And Etho hated him for it.

[ihaveatheoryonthat]

The More They Stay The Same

Note: This is unfinished and I likely won’t be returning to it. It jumps around and is littered with placeholders/notes. If that’s a dealbreaker for you, you’re better off skipping this.

--

A very, very long time ago, Emmet and Ingo picked their names. Emmet picked something he liked to say: something simple and pleasant to the ear in contrast to what he was leaving behind. His brother wouldn’t be rushed—not that Emmet would ever push him in such an important matter-- and only came back with a decision after several days and false starts.

Warden Ingo, Emmet had been informed, was credited with running the first competitive battle facility in ancient Sinnoh centuries prior. He was a fierce battler, whose hard won mark of approval became highly sought after, and combined with his dedication to the six-Pokemon format, was thought to have paved the way for the modern Pokemon League.

Emmet hadn’t needed his brother to sell him on the name. If he’d finally found the right one, perfect! He didn’t give Ingo’s namesake much thought after that moment.

And it couldn’t have been the furthest thing from his mind when his brother disappeared.

--

He began with the general history of competitive battling-- it was likely how Ingo, at 12 years old, had been introduced to the man. Sure enough, he found the exact same trivia his brother had recited half a lifetime ago: competitive battler, marks for defeating him, rigid team structure. Apparently the man personally ‘conducted’ another battle format, wherein the challenger would select a single Pokemon and he would meet it with one of his own; most villagers, still new to their partnerships with Pokemon, couldn’t hold up in a 6v6 match, but the limited scope made it more accessible to them.

It was called the Path of Solitude, and Emmet felt the beginnings of laughter well up in his chest.

The majority of information he found online was strictly about Warden Ingo’s impact on modern battling; there was a token allusion to something called the Pearl Clan and a Noble Pokemon, but none of the articles he looked into went further in depth. Fine. He had a departure point, and that was all he needed.

The Pearl Clan, he found in relatively short order, was one of Hisui’s founding tribes; the Nobles were Pokemon thought to have been blessed by ‘Almighty Sinnoh’, and were honored as such under the care of a Warden.

And the more he looked, the more he found-- on paper, if not in a digital format. Most, if not all, information on the man referred to at-the-time-current events; the Warden, originally an outsider, had been rescued by the Pearl Clan with nothing more than the clothes on his back and a name. He had little past to speak of. It was his nearly unheard of handle on Pokemon that earned him the Lady Sneasler’s favor and his title, in spite of the Clan’s misgivings.

But that mistrust only lasted so long. Records of letters with pockmarks and talon holes represented an incomplete correspondence between the Warden and a younger clan member in the Fieldlands, who trusted the newcomer enough to vent his concerns and frustrations. There were tightly-bound scrolls, recovered from a campsite on Mount Coronet, detailing how to craft poison remedies and smelling salts, signed with the smudged footprint of a Bibarel. Scraps of paper, weathered from exposure to the elements, depicted one half of a passive aggressive argument between The Warden Melli and, supposedly, his counterpart in the Coronet Highlands; the contents were near illegible, and it was only the importance granted to the original writer’s title that preserved it for so long. Some people believed they saw the word ‘torch’ crop up within the smudged text.

That much seemed to hold water. It was an established fact that the Pearl Clan’s representative took traversal of the mountain’s caves very seriously. While he could navigate them in the dark, ‘a passengers’ safety came first’.

It was at that point that Emmet allowed the first hysterical wheeze to escape him.

And when he traveled to the Canalave Archives, he completely lost his shit.

He snickered to himself on the building’s steps, having been politely asked to leave the premises until he got a hold of his volume. Historically, that wasn’t Emmet’s struggle, but he would pick up the slack for the time being.

Through his gleeful shaking, he tapped a Xtransceiver message to those back in Unova, followed by the picture he’d hastily snapped before being kicked out.

He’d come all this way on the word of a student deep in the throes of a research paper, who’d dealt extensively with the writings of Clan Leader Irida. They’d helpfully noted down the journal pages he might find relevant, but Emmet hadn’t afforded most of them a single look.

A gift from the Almighty Palkia and Dialga, said the entry he’d bothered with, Relinquished with the same grace he was granted to us. We were blessed to welcome him into our space, and to walk with him to his own.

The entry had, at one point, been accompanied by an old-style photograph. It had since been removed, so as to preserve both records, and stored in a more suitable part of the archive. Nobody had begrudged Emmet’s access request, but the [hasty] photo he took-- though lacking a flash-- had been frowned upon.

Its quality was poor; the original was already low-resolution and stained with age, so he was working with a challenge to begin with. The lighting and his [haste] didn’t do him any favors, either, but the important part was visible.

[It’s a celebratory/commemorative photo at the studio before they leave. I think Akari’s already absent. It’s mostly Pearl Clan, with a couple of Diamond in there (Arezu due to proximity, maybe Adaman, of course Melli) and a few Galaxy folk. Mostly thinking Zisu. Also Sneasler, obviously. Ingo’s attention isn’t on the cameraman. It’s on something off-camera, where the tiniest flash of white is visible.]

Emmet thought he’d contained the worst of his [amusement], but another bubble of laughter escaped him, and he didn’t fight it.

Why would he? Things were going to be just fine.

---

(A long, long time after the photograph was taken, but not so long after they settled comfortably home, Emmet did find a way to inflict his amusement on his brother.

“I have good news pertaining to your namesake.” He said, and waited patiently as Ingo considered it.

“...was something discovered in the time I was gone? All surviving records indicated that he lived hundreds of years-- oh.” And at the abrupt silence, Emmet knew he had him, “Oh no.”

Though the severe angle of his mouth didn’t betray him, there was laughter in Ingo’s voice, barely contained. When Emmet braced himself against his twin, making no effort to hide his delight, Ingo cracked.

Despite his mirth, Emmet had no choice but to thank the old Warden. Twice, now, he’d brought his brother home.)

[chemicalpink]

Young Gods ❈ KNJ, JJK

❈ Pairing: Namjoon x Reader x Jungkook

❈ Genre: smut, f2l kinda, but also s2l, fantasy!au, fluff if you squint, gods!au, wizard/witch!au

➛ Part of the Namkook Moonrise Masquerade hosted by @jamaisjoons

❈ Rating: 18+

❈ Wordcount: 4.2k

❈ Warnings: it is jungkook centric, it does have a somewhat heavy plot, double penetrative sex, magical sex, teasing, slightest corruption kink.

❈ Summary: Legend has it that if you were to walk all the way up to Hallasan, and if the land is welcoming enough, you should be able to see the most beautiful lake where it is rumoured to home the most powerful being the world has ever had the pleasure to meet, so when young warlock Jungkook starts having trouble with his magic, who could blame him for travelling all the way there in hopes of finding answers only to be met with the hottest man he’s ever seen. and really,  who could blame him for fostering the biggest crush on him without saying a word for ages? that is, until y/n, a long lost friend of Namjoon shows up. so really, who is he to blame if he lets the two greatest beings in existence use him for their pleasure?

❈A/N: SHE'S HERE. GOD THIS TOOK A WHILE. Please enjoy! ALSO, banner by @jamaisjoons, I do believe the only thing that keep me writing this was the banner lol. Do tell your thoughts on this bad baby, I was heading towards a larger fic but I didn't have time yet magical au is most definitely there for future fics.

The first time Jungkook realised just how powerful he was, he was fifteen years old, although his mother can recall him being around four and being able to master a potion that most common-born non-royal witches could only hope to get mediocre at once trained at their young twenties. Of course, his magic had soon become taboo around the village, having to hide himself behind years of his father’s training, his lineage a bit closer to royalty, not quite, but just enough for his son’s magic to pass as his own. If his customers notice how better his spell jars or potions get once Jungkook turns eighteen, they sure don’t comment on it. Not that they would be able to tell that the family was hiding a master of the magical arts that could rival the country’s most powerful witch in the blink of an eye. Those were just rumours going around, as far as the Jeon’s were concerned.

“Son, I believe it is about time you get some proper practice on your magic” his father mentioned bypassing one Sunday night as they both locked up the store. He turned to hi, somewhat confused.

“Look if this is about Seojun noona’s elixir being more powerful than it usually is I swear it was a rightful mixture, my trial was right beside her actual one and she entered the shop sooner and-”

His dad shakes a hand dismissively at him, rounding the counter into the small storage room, coming back in sight with a leather-bound book in between his hands, calloused fingers roaming the antique-looking pages “I am not quite sure how much truth an old man like your grandfather could hold, but it wouldn’t hurt to try” he turned the yellowing book towards him, fast and almost undescribable scribbles decorating the paper as he squinted down at it, his father handling the energy in it to make the content quite literally come to life, a storytelling spell all too familiar to him from his young age.

“Dad, you know I absolutely love bedtime stories, but I’d say I’m quite a bit too old now for-” before he can even think about finishing the sentence, a mountain comes into view, alive straight from the book’s pages, standing tall and proud dressed in green, almost touching the sky, a magical aura surrounding it, one that he could even feel just by looking at it “What’s that?”

“The old man used to tell me stories about an ancient being, the most powerful of them all, living on top of Hallasan” the pages turn by themselves, the image changing to a faceless man, standing almost as tall and proud as the mountain itself, performing all types of magic, some of them Jungkook himself hadn’t even heard of “Legend says he was outcasted by royalty in fear of revolution, wouldn’t even be alive if it weren’t for he is a child of Earth herself”

“I-I don’t think I’m following”

His father sighs loudly before his magic shuts the book closed, all magic gone on a whim “Jungkook, whatever this man was, if my father was right and he really did exist, you might be like him”

“But-but I was born of both you and mum” he couldn’t quite yet fathom the extension of his own magic, much less think about the probability of being more powerful than any other being that had walked the Earth in millennia. Even if the man was real, would he even be alive still? If he was as powerful as he was presumed to be, would he even take Jungkook under his wing? What if he wasn’t as lucky as the man from the book and word got out and his life was endangered?

“Jungkook just think about it, you might be a child of the Earth”

“What if I don’t want to be” he couldn’t quite face his father, feeling his own heartbreak as the older man deflated. Jungkook knew that perhaps his dad had entertained the idea of his only son being a creature out of a legendary book, could feel how proud it would make him, for Jungkook to be a hero, make history with the power he presumably held within, yet he couldn’t help but feel like a small child again, afraid at the uncertainty that the future could hold. “I- I’m good with just running the shop and helping you and mother out with stuff”

His father sighed before placing a gentle hand on his shoulders, a small act that made him feel even more like a child, one getting subtly scolded by his parents as they prepare him for his inevitable future. “Jungkook-ah, your mother and I- all we really want for you is to live your own life”

His ears perk up, gaze facing forward as he catches his mother standing with her arms crossed over her body, the softest motherly look on her face “And if that means for my baby to go find himself at some faraway place, then so be it” she comes to join his father by his side, both of them bracing each other as the thought of their child growing up simmers down on them. “We just want you to grow up to your full potential Kookie”

.-.-

It had taken quite some convincing for him to completely make up his mind, the negging looks from his father as he helped around the shop, the longing yet scolding gaze his mother held over dinner until he found himself preparing a small bag for the long trip– almost burning inside his mind the map contained in his grandfather’s grimoire from the many times he had read over what he once thought to be a legend out of a children’s storybook.

The trip itself wasn’t as difficult as it was troublesome, having to hike up the highest mountain in the land, the difficult part–if the Jeon’s memories were anything to go by– was having the Hallassan land spirit to like you enough to show itself, even a step further to have the legendary witch to show his home.

For quite some time Jungkook entertained the idea of the immense possibilities on how the wizard could look, every possible image popping up in his head some variation of a wrinkly old man hunched over himself, staff in hand and he couldn’t help but laugh soundly at it, picturing himself getting nagged at by such a figure, perhaps he would end up looking like one of those old scholars that came to his village from time to time. But how wrong was he.

It took him three days, two cold sleepless nights in the woods and running in circles for at least two hours in the nothingness that was the top of the mountain for the valley to show up right where he had started to venture– he could almost hear the forest spirits snickering at him. He really tried to be angry at it, almost went back down just out of spite, yet the clearing before him had him doing a double-take, the space was bright and clear, none of the trees from before on sight, the small dipping in the middle of it leading to a sort of entrance– this was what he came for.

Jungkook had been raised better than what he found himself doing– walking into a stranger’s house uninvited. Was it really uninvited if after knocking for a few minutes the door opened on its own?

He walks inside, small steps, unsure of himself, his past resolve crumbling down completely as he walks further in where he listens to a hushed voice coming from his left, a mop of silvery hair turned away from him, green warm clothes cradling the figure, Jungkook entertains the idea of an old man still, yet not so much hunched over himself if the deep hushed voice and the hair colour was anything to go by. “...Now where did I last see-”

"Hello-"

"Oh! great timing! the pay is where it always is" broad shoulders are still facing him as the man moved around, a couple of won bills on the counter where he had waved his hand dismissively, not even bothering to turn around, for a legendary creature perhaps leaving his home door open was a recurrent thing, what with the whole clearing hidden from the public eye and all.

"Oh I'm not-" he had tried to make himself knows as definitely not the person he was expecting yet the man kept mumbling to himself, apparently in deep thought at whatever it was

""—So then if we are able to move this around we should -" he had started moving around the room, still not facing Jungkook directly, just pointing to places around the spacious room as his free hand busied itself with picking books from the humongous shelf against the wall

"I'm- uh" his hands couldn’t be still, grasping at the bag over his shoulder, knuckles almost white as he clears his throat "I'm not-"

"Did you forget where-" the man turns around and Jungkook feels whatever little poise he had gained leave him in the spot, right in front of him is the most legendary creature in existence, recorded alive for millennia, a god in more ways than one, no old man in sight but the prettiest human he had laid eyes on, fierce sight set on him awkwardly hanging at the entrance as the man keeps blinking at him "uh"

He bows down almost instinctively, 90 degrees, hair falling onto his eyes as he does so "Mister sir- uh keeper of Hallasan"

"You aren't Soobin"

"Uh.. no I'm not"

The man doesn’t even flinch at the information of a stranger setting a foot inside his house, deep voice calm as ever as he asks "How did you even get in?"

"Uh the door was open" he points to the door in a futile attempt for it to not make it seem like he was the weirdo picking locks or something at a magical creature’s home

"No it wasn't" he moves to the door in the most graciously way he has ever seen someone do it, almost gliding across the floor, eyes never leave him except for the brief second where his hand tries the doorknob "huh it was. Weird"

It took the man less than a minute after his initial shock to turn to Jungkook and invite him in, a pair of teacups resting against the table as they seated parallel to each other, him crossing his legs in a nonchalant manner as Jungkook couldn’t stop fidgeting in his seat– he certainly never thought he could come this far.

“So what can I do for you, Jeon Jungkook?” if he absolutely preened at the way that his name sounded in the stranger’s mouth, that was certainly something only for him to know.

The words died right on his tongue. There were certainly a lot of things the beautiful man seating across from him could do, none of them necessarily involving what he had initially come for, yet as the words take meaning inside his mind, he seems to short circuit yet again “I uh- you know- you know my name?”

He smiles a big smile, eyes crinkling into crescents, dimples showing and a heat simmering inside Jungkook’s belly “I know a lot of things, Jungkook” he stares off into space “Social skills are rusty, but they come back after getting a good look at you” Jungkook’s eyes must widen at the implication of his words. Could he read minds? Could he take a look into souls? “Just general stuff about you, don’t worry about it”

The man could definitely read minds.

Blink if you’re hearing this. The man blinks and Jungkook feels like fleeing. Wait. Everyone blinks, stupid. Perhaps some other time.

He somehow finds his voice, remembering the lingering question, the sole reason for him to be there “Mister Hallasan keeper, sir”

“Namjoon is fine”

“Mister Namjoon-ssi”

“Namjoon hyung”

Jungkook is sure this time his brain shortcircuits for real, for this complete stranger. Namjoon he corrects himself, to give him permission to call him so affectionately after only a few minutes of knowing him. After technically breaking- not breaking into his home.

Smile if you’re reading my mind. Namjoon smiles, something doesn’t sit right with him, he could very well be reading his mind, or simply smiling out of politeness at the extended silence Jungkook had caused, again. I’m onto you Mister Hallasan Keeper. Namjoon just smiles more fondly at him.

Jungkook goes on explaining his situation, from his rapid magic learning to being unable to wield his magic, to his father even suggesting that he could have been born from the Earth herself, just like Namjoon did all those millennia ago. The blond man restricts himself to listen to Jungkook speak, gaining a serious pose when he drops the reason for his visit, asking him for help. Jungkook’s almost sure he will deny it as he goes on to explain how his last magical apprentice had been there almost sixty years ago, going on about how he is pretty much a loner, no reason more than a brief excuse of being an outcast for practice differences with the village where Jungkook comes from, giving it a few seconds of thought before he accepts to have Jungkook under his wing, going as far as to give him a spare bedroom to sleep in along with the longest set of rules he had ever heard of.

Months with Namjoon look something more or less like this: waking up at 6 am sharp– something Jungkook had never done in his life, the first few times he had woken up later than that, it was almost impossible to know where his teacher had gone to. Have a rundown on the day’s activities and breakfast until 7. Jungkook was in charge of gardening on the 30-minute window of Namjoon harvesting for the spells he was due to make for the day. An hour of light reading– he knew better than to comment on how a thousand pages book was most definitely not light reading, but he did it anyway. He would then shadow Namjoon on whatever mystical task he had to do for the day before finishing up with him running basic high-level training with Namjoon’s guidance in the clearing– Namjoon had said that the Hallasan spirit would keep him safe and sound if he were to screw up, although so far all the spirit and her friends in the forest had done was laugh at his mistakes.

Five months in it, the whole routine came as second nature, he couldn’t even picture a day without Namjoon on it, not that there was anyone else that could pick up on the energy shift within it, Jungkook had learnt a lot from his teacher, not only in the magic department but about him as a person, couldn’t hide the lingering eyes, the curious touches of skin, every bit of information about Namjoon expanding that fondness feeling inside his heart, Namjoon was a man of habit, a powerful one at that, yet all those millennia living couldn’t hide the fact that Jungkook could see right through him, a lonely soul, as powerful as none other, yet so inherently say. Not even the whole power in the universe could keep him away from his own greatest danger: himself.

If you can read minds, kiss me. The kiss never came so perhaps Namjoon could never even read minds in the first place.

Now here’s the thing, Jungkook might be a mess when it comes to magic, but not so much at hiding his feelings, at least the best he could, Namjoon was as intelligent as men come and he had yet to notice. Namjoon’s friend that just happens to show up on a particularly lazy day– his teacher had said his magic tends to run out from time to time and would rather rest it; perhaps not so much.

Jeon Jungkook is a weak man. A weak man for beautiful things, like Namjoon, or you. Who just happened to walk inside Namjoon’s home like you owned the place– could he count it as his home too yet?

He could feel his heart wanting to leap out of him as soon as you introduced yourself, and perhaps he was imagining the way your eyes grazed over his figure before going to tease Namjoon, not that he stopped having heart eyes for the man when you walked in, he had enough heart eyes for the both of you, even if he had to keep them to himself. You were easier to warm up to than Namjoon if it was anything to go by, smoothly falling into conversation after you three had sat down for tea, walking up to Namjoon’s massive library, picking out books from their shelves as you asked him about his upbringings.

“The Jeon family? Oh, dearest, your grandfather was as good as wizards come” his brain cuts short as soon as the words leave your mouth, just how exactly could you have known the old man? The old wizard was presumably thrown out of the royal house for being unfit for ruling over the land. You playfully push your elbow against Namjoon “And I say this while knowing Joonie”

The blond man groans at your teasing.

“You-you knew my grandpa?”

“Yeh, such a shame he decided to be a mortal” Your initial interest seems to diminish as you turn to face the books yet again, a particular red cover catching your attention.

“What”

Jungkook faintly hears Namjoon standing up from his chair to try and get in between his conversation with you, although all he hears seems to come as if the voices were kept under cotton inside his ears “Y/N you’re overwhelming the kid”

For such a calm and collected posture, he had maintained not only while learning with Namjoon but back at home too, hearing such a word coming out of him really tips the glass “I’m not a kid! Why is everyone always treating me like a child!” surely it did seem rather childish to have an outburst like that, yet his mind couldn’t help but reel in all those other times in his stay where Namjoon had dismissed him from helping, saying it was a rather complicated spell you should wait this one out Jungkook. Or something along the lines of when you get stronger. It did seem the type of things one would say to their petulant child.

“Jungkook waits” Namjoon groans as he retreats to his assigned room, you can’t help the softness inside you at the way that strong independent loner Namjoon reacts to his apprentice being pissed off, certainly a first.

“You pissed off the kid” your remark isn’t that much well digested as Namjoon throws a dagger-like glare your way, groaning as he throws his head back against the couch

“Why am I parenting again?”

You shrug your shoulders as you offer him a tight lip smile, you had heard a lot about Jungkook even before you had walked inside the wizard’s home, like a reader of a slow-burning love story, you knew that ‘parenting’ was most definitely not the dynamic in his relationship with the younger, not with the way Namjoon had described the little mannerisms of his apprentice, or the way that he described his figure as the strongest back I’ve ever seen with such a tiny waist when he sent you a letter asking you to visit him.

The thing with the dynamic you had with Namjoon had been one going on for hundreds of years, feeding off of the magic that only such powerful creatures like you and him could conjure, effective yet dependent as when either of you two was in dire need of a boost, you would have to pay him a visit to work your magic. Jungkook hadn’t appeared after his little outburst, probably hidden in his room, taking only a few minutes of Namjoon glancing expectantly at the place where the younger had disappeared before you dragged him towards his room in an all too practised manner.

The whole environment was always on the calm side whenever you two get to it, something along the lines of strictly business, yet an undeniable connection between the two. Namjoon had you against his door, a dimly lit lamp on his desk, strong hands holding you in place at your waist as he leaned down to connect both of your mouths, eyes fluttering shut as he did so. Your hands found themselves tangled in his blond tousled hair in no time as he deepened the kiss, moving the both of you towards the bed as magic started glowing dimly within you two, connecting and feeding off of the spark of the situation, magic so profound and delicate that only immortal beings could hope to master. Namjoon placed himself against his elbows as you straddled his hips, your figure teasingly humping his growing bulge inside his pants as his breath started to become ragged, his own magic reaching forward to yours, just the way his lips chased yours. Yet there was only so much ominous Namjoon could handle. His hands were quick to undress both of you in between hot caresses and messy kisses as both of your bodies seem to move on their own accord, the magic itself doing the most out of the tantric experience, moans slowly but surely filling up the room as Namjoon positioned the tip of his hard cock on your entrance, teasing your folds for a few seconds before you settled on top of him in a familiar manner, sinking down on him as he throws his head back, letting out a groan. You are almost sure Jungkook could hear you both, yet your mind so clouded you wouldn’t have given it a second thought with Namjoon’s cock filling you up so nicely as you moved up and down on his length, that is until out of the corner of your eye you catch the casted shadow outside the dimly lit room.

"Your puppy is outside," You say as you stop moving on him, not quite removing yourself from the situation, yet you feel the magic in the room flickering faintly as if going dormant.

"What" Namjoon’s eyes are surprised as he lets reality sink in, his magic safely sated from the small act

"The kid that has an obvious crush on both you and me?” you state matter of factly as Namjoon’s jaw goes slack “He's watching us from behind the door"

As if on cue, there’s a rustling behind the door, feet rapidly resounding against the floor "No I'm not!"

Namjoon sighs loudly "JK just come in, I know this might seem.." the door opens and you could swear Jungkook’s eyes are about to leave his skull at the image he’s present with "weird"

"incredibly hot," they say at the same time, rendering both of them speechless

"huh kid's horny" you start removing yourself from Namjoon’s cock as your magic starts tingling, now reaching out for the younger "i like it"

"Y/N please"

You gesture by raising your hands as if surrendering, yet you know just how the night had taken a turn, willing to satiate your magic’s needs “He doesn’t like your PG training, let me handle this”

Jungkook is still sporting his Bambi eyes as he feels himself pulled into the room, closing the door softly behind him as he can only stare at you as you make your way towards him, lips ghosting over his “So tell me Jungkookie” your hand trails down to bring him closer to your naked body, taking his hand in yours and guiding it to your ass “Just how much are you willing to render of yourself for me and Joon?”

“All of me”

Jeon Jungkook might as well had been an erotic wizard like yourself if by the way he manhandles you and surrenders you to Namjoon like a loyal apprentice would to his master was anything to go by. Namjoon’s stare alone has the young man pliant as he caresses tan skin under his fingers, achingly curious as the youngest takes turns to kiss the eldest and yourself, Namjoon’s fingers playing with his nipples, your own hands working his length to life after your magic had completely undressed him, feeling both your and Namjoon’s magic reaching for Jungkook’s in a way you didn’t know was possible. A few kisses and lingering touches in, minds clouded with lust, kissing noises and moans taking over the space, Jungkook takes no time in positioning you on top of him, back to his chest as his length stretches you deliciously, long fingers playing with your clit as his own legs separate your thighs as if offering you up to his master, Namjoon looking like a man starved as he positions himself against Jungkook’s cock, his tip meeting no resistance as he glides in and nestles next to Jungkook, stretching you like no other time you could fathom, groans and ragged breaths of the men under and above you working you to your own climax, babbled words coming out of the youngest’s lips along with a promise of becoming yet another young god under your spell.

[lumosinlove]

Well, this got longer than I thought it would, so I’ll have to publish in a few parts as I write...

But Happy Birthday, Finn, my favorite :)

Find it here on Ao3

~

Of Silence And Slow Time

part i of iii

~

New York City, 1920

~

Everyone told Finn that the statue looked like him, that he simply must go and see it.

“Really, Finn,” his older brother Alex said. “It’s the eyes, the face, it’s the mouth. It’s uncanny.”

Finn had just looked over Alex and the man and woman he seemed to always have at his side ever since the war ended. Natalie, a nurse whom he’d met in France, and Kasey a Canadian from another unit—they’d ended up in the hospital together.

“It’s in France,” Finn said flatly. “I know you’re forgetting about it all, but I’m not exactly keen on going back there. It took me ages to get home.”

It had taken everything for him to get home.

Alex, to Finn’s relief, nodded at Natalie and Kasey to go get themselves a drink at the bar down the street, told them that he’d meet them there. Finn stared down at the book open and unseeing in his lap. He wasn’t even sure what he was reading, on that he wanted to. His mind didn’t seem to follow him just right these days. Cars became bombs sometimes. Sleep was all dreams.

Alex sat beside him on their parents’ old sofa.

“Fish,” Alex said softly, and moved his hand slow, where Finn could see it, before resting it gently around his shoulders. “You can’t sit here all day. That’s not going to help you, and I know you don’t like it. You’ve never sat still like this.”

“I’m not going back to France.”

“It’s Paris,” Alex said, and gently flipped Finn’s wrist over to reveal the tiny globe his friend Jackson had dotted there with a needle and ink. “You’ve always wanted…don’t let this war stop you any longer.”

Finn stared down at the reminder he’d asked his friend for, ink permanent black. He’d never been farther than New England before the war. Paris, he’d always thought, gazing at his collection of books. Rome. Athens, Barcelona—

Finn swallowed hard. “Looks just like me, huh?”

Alex’s grin was enough to pull one out of Finn, just slightly. “It was bizarre.” Alex squeezed his shoulders. “I’ll even meet you there later if you want, once we’re through with Canada.”

Finn sent a wary glance towards where Natalie and Kasey had left.

Alex raised an eyebrow. “You’d like them. And, who knows who you’ll meet over there. We ran into all sorts of people, people like you’ve never seen. It’s why—” Alex broke off slightly, and looked after the nurse and soldier, too. Finn blinked at the nervous bob of his throat, and then his smile. “There are all sorts of love and art in this world of ours. I know it feels like it’s all war, I felt that too, but it’s not. Please let me help you see that.”

Finn rubbed a thumb over his tattoo, and closed his book.

Everything felt like war. He was so tired of it he thought he’d be crushed.

He looked up at his brother. “I don’t have much money.”

Alex just grinned and slapped him on the back, then pulled him into a tight embrace.

~

Finn arrived in Paris with a lump in his throat. He stumbled through half-French greetings and requests to his taxi, who looked at him sourly and turned out to have dropped him off four streets away from his hotel—maybe on purpose. Maybe because it was barely six in the morning.

Finn was annoyed at first, and then he began to walk.

Paris’ cobblestones were like those in the West Village, only they weren’t. There were glimpses of his home in the uneven tread of his feet, but these stones were darker, as if soaked with more time and more place. It calmed him, while the brief glance towards France’s rolling hills had sent him back to his cabin on the rocky ship, shaking and gasping for air. He’d barely eaten during the entire journey besides forcing down the occasional breakfast sludge, and his legs had wobbled so fiercely upon stepping back onto land, he’d had to sit down.

Finn paused now, closing his eyes and leaning against the nearest building. He’d been so stupid the first time, decked out in his new uniform, eyes on the war like it was some prize to be won. The comfort waned with his scattering mind and Finn tried to draw a steady breath in. The lump in his throat only grew tighter and he squeezed the handle of his small suitcase.

“Monsieur?” came a voice, spilled over with concern.

Finn’s eyes flashed open and he pushed himself straight, blinking through the pale morning light. There was a boy standing there, around his age, with bright blond hair and worried blue eyes. He was tall, with a neat white apron tied around his hips.

“Ça va?” the boy took a hesitant step forward. His eyes glanced towards Finn’s suitcase, and he nodded in realization, then spoke in accented English. “Are you all right?”

Finn looked behind the boy to see the cafe, slowly opening, from which he must have come. There was an abandoned stack of chairs he was putting out for the day, and his apron had an embroidered name at one corner, Finn realized, that matched the sign above.

Le Lion.

“Yes,” Finn breathed, but found himself unable to speak louder. “I’m fine.”

The boy just shook his head, and gestured behind him. “Non. You must sit down. S’il vous plaît. Please.”

Finn didn’t know how to refuse him.

A few minutes later, he found himself stationed at one of the cafe’s tables with a steaming pot of coffee in front of him, a croissant, and a plate of softly scrambled eggs.

“You look like you need more than butter and bread,” the boy had said, wiping strong looking hands on his apron. “You are from America?”

Finn nodded. He had been worried he would be able to stomach the food after the boy went through so much trouble, but upon his first bite of eggs, he felt ravenous.

“Yes,” Finn nodded, brushing his hands off from croissant crumbs. “Sorry, yes,” he held out his hand. “Finn.”

“Leo,” the boy smiled, and took his hand. “It is a pleasure.”

Finn found himself returning that smile with one that, for the first time in a long time, felt like his own. He tried to put coins into Leo’s hand when it was all over, but Leo simply waved him off and said he hoped to see Finn again.

~

The Louvre was more than Finn could have imagined. It was like walking across the ocean floor, new rarities at every corner. And, of course, there was the matter of the statue. Alex had said it would be with all the other works from ancient Greece. He didn’t have trouble following the signs to the correct gallery, walking through the white marble hallways. When he did reach the Greek galleries, his first thought was that the perfectly white statues nearly blended in with everything else, at least until he found a plaque that said it had all been painted once. Finn smiled to himself. Maybe his apparent stony doppelgänger had had red hair, too.

Imagining Alex and his long stride in these halls was easy. And it was quiet here, and distracting, which let Finn close his eyes for a moment, inhaling the scent of old stone, like a church, or a river’s bank.

When he opened them, he had found it. He was staring into his own face. His eyes were blank. He reached up to feel the shape of his own jaw as he looked at the statue’s, on display in the way the head was slightly turned, jaw set, brow low, as if in focus. Finn blinked, pulled out of the daze of seeing it, and his eyes landed on the museum card beside it. There was a word in ancient Greek, said to have been carved more visibly into the bust’s base. Future, it translated to. Thought to be made in the name of a God, though he may be lost now. There is no other surviving work by this artist.

Finn looked back at the eyes, so much like his own he could have seen brown there in the blank irises, and thought about when this strange statue had been carved. He’d always loved the way ancient Greece was sometimes described in poetry. It had gotten him through many long nights in the trenches. Serene, warm, and with nothing to do but lounge in the olive groves. Working the land and coming home at sundown to wine and honey and spiced meat. He’d longed for it. He longed for it still, this simple-seeming past.

The next thing he felt was warm wind. He smelled salt water.

The museum melted around him and his shoes slipped into sand before disappearing entirely.

~

Finn turned around to the sound of someone shouting, worried it was at him, only to find a brunette boy storming towards him—then past him—a foreign language continuing to fly off of his tongue. But more importantly, the boy was dressed in a simple garment of white cloth that left his strong, tanned legs and arms completely bare, and his feet were sandaled. Finn reached down to smooth his suit, only to find it gone, as well, replaced with a similar getup. He stared down at his bare skin, so pale in the bright sunlight.

And then the foreign language morphed, like a scratched record, and became English to his ears.

“—I’m telling you, Leo, I won’t go. Not without you.”

Leo?

And there the blond boy was, sitting in the shade of low trees at the edge of the beach. He was holding some sort of musical instrument, plucking at its strings almost sadly, head bowed.

“You have to,” Leo replied. “The oath says—“

He stopped mid-sentence, having looked up and spotted Finn. It made the brunette turn, and then Finn’s back was in the sand and there was a thin, rough blade at his throat.

Green eyes bore down into his own, a growl ripping from the boy’s throat. “Spartan.”

Finn choked out a breath, his hand going around the boy’s wrist. “No—no.”

“Logan,” came Leo’s voice, and then the knife’s pressure was released, pulled back by Leo, but the boy—Logan—was still sitting firmly on Finn’s hips. Finn felt his entire body flush with the sheer lack of fabric between them, but Logan didn’t seem to either mind or notice.

“I’m not a—Spartan,” Finn managed. “What the hell, I…” He looked to his left, at the sparkling waves lapping there, and then to the two boys looming above him. “Where am I?”

That made both of them freeze, the knife twitching in Logan’s hand.

“Ithaca,” Leo offered timidly, then glanced out at sea, as if that was where Finn had come from. Finn just stared at him.

He was the boy from the cafe. He was sure of it. His blue eyes filled with the same concern as they had on that early morning cobblestone street.

“Are you all right?” Leo asked.

“He is a spy,” Logan said, and went for him again.

Finn was ready this time. He knocked a leg around Logan’s waist, putting him on his back, and then rolled away from him and to his feet, knife in hand. He raised it for the two of them to see and then tossed it a little ways down the beach. “I’m not a spy. I…I’m just lost.”

It was true. In more ways than he’d even thought before.

“Please,” he managed more quietly.

He watched Leo and Logan exchange a look, unsure of what it meant, until Logan turned on his heel and Leo gestured for Finn to follow.

~

“Are you at war?” Finn asked he was led through the city streets. It had been a hot walk up a long road built into a steep hill, all the way up to what Finn assumed was the inner city and acropolis. Water ran along the side of the street—no doubt with sewage—and they crossed via stepping stones, pressing themselves against the walls whenever carts rattled by—carts filled with men with shields and swords or spears.

Logan, who brought up the rear behind him, having retrieved his knife, scoffed. “Aren’t we always?”

“And where are you taking me?”

“Where we take any question we can’t answer,” Leo said from in front of him, golden hair gleaming. “Pascal.”

[turtles-allthewaydown]

Rating: M Words: 54,740 (complete!) Warnings: physical, sexual, and emotional abuse; sexual assault related injuries; nonconsensual incest; past transactional & underage sex; past childhood sexual abuse; discussion of forced marriage/pregnancy and related dubious consent; pregnancy loss/infanticide; discussion of past attempted suicide; canon-typical violence and gore

Something (or someone) has killed the Viscount de Lettenhove and is picking off his heirs. Convinced to intervene by a cryptic message, Jaskier takes Geralt back to his childhood home. Now they have to untangle an ancient prophesy, forbidden magic, secrets and sibling rivalries to solve the murders before it's Jaskier's turn on the chopping block.

The first rule went like this: there are certain things nobles are not supposed to speak of.

It's a sunny day, warm and still, when a man in blue and gold livery approaches them on the road. He's coming the same way, but he's on horseback and they're both on foot so he catches up quickly. There's probably a family crest on his uniform somewhere, but he's dusty from the road and it doesn't matter much anyway. Geralt doesn't pay enough attention to the many noble families of the Continent to be able to identify anyone other than the ruling families and a few that he had regular contact with. It's unlikely this messenger came from one of them. Jaskier knows these sorts of things, though, and he looks to him to see if he knows. Jaskier's jaw is clenched tight.

"You're the White Wolf," the messenger says as he catches up. He slows his horse to walk in step with Roach. "We heard you were in Maribor, how fortunate to meet you on the road."

Geralt glances at the rotting kikimore strapped to Roach's back and sighs.

"Yes. Fortunate."

"The witcher is busy, can't take any contracts now, so sorry, goodbye," Jaskier says all at once. He ignores the look Geralt shoots him.

"But my lady-" the man starts to protest.

"My apologies to your lady, but I'm afraid there's nothing to be done. It's witcher code, can't accept a new contract until the last is paid. Sorry."

There is no such thing as witcher code, and Jaskier knows it.

"Then I will accompany you to town," the messenger says nobly.

"There's really no need."

Still the messenger rides alongside, sweating in his uniform. Geralt watches a muscle in Jaskier's jaw work. He doesn't know what's going on, exactly, but he has traveled with Jaskier long enough to trust his instincts about people. He takes Jaskier's arm and pulls him close to whisper in his ear.

"What's the matter?"

Jaskier opens and closes his mouth, finally whispering, "I can't tell you."

That frustrates him, but he sets it aside for the moment. He can demand a full explanation later. For now his attention is on rebuffing their unwanted chaperone.

"Tell your lady I'm not interested," he says, hoping it's the right call. Jaskier seems pleased, anyway.

"But Master Witcher-" the man protests.

"No," he says firmly.

"You heard the man," Jaskier says, a colorful echo at his side. "Get lost."

"I can't, I have my orders," the apparently quite loyal messenger protests. "Take pity."

Geralt growls. He didn't like people who won't take no for an answer.

"Hold on, Geralt." Jaskier softens, just a little. "I know this man's mistress. She's a cruel woman, and does not take kindly to being disobeyed." Well, that explains why Jaskier doesn't want to have anything to do with her, then. "What's your name?"

"Florian, sir," the messenger answers.

"Florian. If you follow us to Maribor, regardless of whether we take the contract, would that satisfy your orders?"

"I believe so."

"Then that is what you will do." Jaskier nods as if it's decided. Geralt supposes it is, at that.

"Thank you, sir, you're very kind, mister…?"

"I think I should like to travel in the quiet if I were you, Florian."

Keep Reading

[solena2]

So.

Tommy isn’t Theseus. Every time I see Techno’s analogy about Tommy being Theseus brought up I’m filled with endless rage and I’ve DECIDED!

That it’s about time I explained just why it’s so objectively incorrect.

-

First: a bit of backstory on Theseus, because I doubt many of you actually know much about him beyond what Techno said in his “so you want to be a hero” speech, which left out a lot of relevant details.

Theseus was a demigod with two fathers and one mother. His fathers were king Aegeus of Athens and the sea god Poseidon, and his mother was Aethra, Aegeus’ wife. Aethra raised Theseus on her own, far from Athens to avoid him being assassinated.

Aegeus left him nothing but a sword with the Athenian crest and a pair of sandals, buried under a rock so no one else could get them.

When Theseus came of age, he took the sword and sandals and headed up to Athens, slaying various monsters along the way. (It pains me to abbreviate it that much, but Techno left out everything before the Minotaur so it won’t help me much in debunking his analogy.)

Once he got to Athens, he met up with his dad, chased out his stepmom Medea, (yes, that Medea) and killed some people. Then comes the relevant part.

Crete had won a war against Athens a while back, and because of this, every seven years Athens was forced to send 14 tributes to be killed by the Minotaur. (Yes, this inspired the Hunger Games)

Theseus decided he’d volunteer and kill the Minotaur, thus ending the tribute system for good and getting one over on Athens. He promised his dad that if he won, he’d come back in a ship with white sails, as opposed to the standard mourning black that signified the death of the tributes.

So he went to Crete, met king Minos and his daughters Ariadne and Phaedra, and got sent into the labyrinth. Ariadne gave him a magic ball of string that kept him from getting lost, allowing him to find the Minotaur and then safely get out afterwards, providing he could kill it.

He killed it, led his other 13 tributes out, and sailed back home. On the way, Athena told him to leave Ariadne stranded on a tiny island in the middle of the ocean, so he immediately did so, because Theseus was an asshole.

He got home, his dad committed suicide because Theseus forgot the white sails and his dad assumed he’d died, Theseus became king and married Phaedra, and then the fun began, because again, Theseus was an asshole.

First, he cheated on Phaedra with Hippolyta, queen of the Amazons, so she left and took the kids. Next, he and his other asshole friend Pirithous decided to kidnap themselves some new wives. Theseus decided on Helen of Troy, who was a child at the time, and Pirithous decided on Persephone, which resulted in both him and Theseus getting stuck in the Underworld for a while due to pissing off Hades.

Once he got back up, he killed his son for fucking his wife, which is messed up on many levels, and then left Athens because his people were rightfully not super okay with that.

Then he goes and meets Lycomedes, who throws him off a cliff.

-

Next, let’s talk about Techno’s speech a bit.

He starts off by accusing Tommy of being a power hungry dictator (paraphrased), before asking him if he wants to be a hero.

Then, he provides what is apparently the archetypal example of heroism, something often associated with selflessness, kindness, and generally giving at least one singular solitary fuck about other people.

Theseus! Heroic hero who does heroic things, like, uhhh *checks notes* cheating on his wife, kidnapping children with plans to forcefully marry them, leaving people alone on tiny islands with no supplies, killing his kid, etc. etc...

So we’re off to a great start.

Then, he gives a short summary of Theseus’ life and times! He skips the first part of his life completely, which is hilarious to me because it’s the only time Theseus ever did anything actually heroic or selfless, and gets straight to the meat!

“Let me tell you a story, Tommy. A story of a man called Theseus. His country was in danger, he sent himself forward! Into enemy lines. He slayed the Minotaur! And saved his city. You know what they did to him, Tommy? They exiled him. He died in disgrace, despised by his people. That’s what happens to heroes, Tommy.”

-Technoblade

So first off, he doesn’t mention... really anything other than the Minotaur and the exile, which is leaving out a lot of relevant details, like why Theseus was exiled. (You know, killing his son in cold blood?)

Second, he doesn’t give details in general. Not that he should’ve given a full telling, or anything, but I’m always surprised by the shortness of this speech when I go back and listen to it. He pretty much just gives the barest bones of an argument and expects his audience to take it at face value. (Which they do, but it’s still bad practice)

From the more accurate (if still brief) summary if Theseus’ life I’ve just given, I’m sure you can see why this might be more than a bit dubious, as an analogy. Given cc!Technoblade is literally an English major, and doubtless knows significantly more about the myth than I do, I’d imagine this was never intended to be taken at face value.

Over and over again, c!Techno proves himself to be an unreliable narrator, and over and over again, the fandom at large takes his word as gospel.

-

Now, as far as a more in depth argument for Tommy as Theseus goes, I will attempt to debunk that as well, because there are some genuinely good points to be made.

First of all, most people make Dream out to be the Minotaur. Given the time this speech was made, I imagine Schlatt was the intended target of that, but with latter events in mind, Dream does make much more sense.

I’d say this is honestly pretty fair, but I don’t think Tommy takes the role of Theseus in that narrative. I’d argue he’s much more analogous to the role of Ariadne, giving the tools required to defeat Dream but ultimately not doing so through his own power, but because someone chose to take those tools and make use of them. This also provides the very interesting characterization of Punz as Theseus, which is an incredibly unique take that I hope some a Punz enthusiast does something with, because I don’t know enough about his lore to make a good analysis on that.

The idea of Schlatt as the Minotaur, as was probably intended by Techno at the time, makes much more sense, though I still think other characters fit the role better. Firstly, Schlatt wasn’t killed, he died of a heart attack, and if someone had killed him I think it’s more likely to have been Wilbur or Techno who did it than Tommy, as Tommy was still very hopeful and idealistic at the time, at least compared to his character now. You could posit Tommy as Ariadne again in this situation, given he was the one to mastermind the final charge, and though I think Tommy as Ariadne is an idea that’s worth further exploration, I’d say Fundy futs the Ariadne role here much better, with him giving the spy’s diary before being effectively shunned and left out in the cold by both Pogtopia and Manburg, much like Ariadne was abandoned in the original myth.

I’d posit the Theseus in this scenario as Techno, Wilbur, or possibly Philza, as they were the ones to actually kill things in the 16th, though Techno and Wilbur’s killings were more in the metaphorical sense, taking the second life of L’manburg.

As for the exile, Tommy exile was alike to that of Theseus only in concept. Both were sent from their kingdoms for a crime, resulting in a falling out with someone close to them, and had a precarious relationship with heights while they were gone, but that’s about where the similarities end and even then they’re superficial.

First of all, Tommy’s exile was far more because Dream was looking for an excuse to do it than because briefing actually means anything on the SMP, given how Dream had been griefing bases and blaming Tommy for it for a while before it went down. (Fun fact, Bad and Skeppy were going to burn one of his discs over this, but one of them got sick so they had to cancel the stream.)

Theseus’ exile, on the other hand, was entirely deserved, especially when you consider how serious a crime killing family was in Ancient Greek culture. It was pretty much the biggest no-no in existence, and I’m almost surprised he wasn’t just straight up executed for it.

Second, Tommy’s falling out with Tubbo was almost entirely due to outside forces, (Dream) rather than because anything Tommy had done. Though Tommy’s cavalierness towards the trial and attempts to threaten Dream with Spirit doubtless didn’t help things, Dream surrounding L’manburg in obsidian walls and threatening them to exile Tommy was entirely his own choice, and not something that can be pinned on Tommy, no matter what the apologists may say.

Meanwhile, Theseus’ falling out with Phaedra had begun long before his exile with him cheating on her. Him killing his son was merely the last in a long line of dominos to completely destroy their relationship.

Last, Tommy nearly killing himself is very different from Theseus being pushed off a cliff. Tommy’s near suicide was the direct result of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of c!Dream for what was canonically, I believe, several months? (Correct me if I’m wrong on that one.) Tommy almost jumping off a pillar because he was deliberately isolated from his support systems is nothing like Theseus being killed because he was a cocky asshole who thought he was god.

-

So that’s why I don’t think Tommy is anything like Theseus, and why I’m filled with endless rage by the completely uncritical acceptance of this parallel, but it’s not the whole reason it pisses me off.

It also pisses me off because, as stated earlier, cc!Techno is an English major. He knew what he was doing with this. The fandom’s insistence on refusing to acknowledge his character as an unreliable narrator is, in my opinion, acting as a massive kneecap to what could be a great analysis of how he thinks.

Specifically: why does c!Technoblade think Tommy is like Theseus?

Of all the Greek heroes to pick, why that one? Was it just the tantalizing opportunity to parallel Schlatt with a horned monster, or was it because c!Techno has some genuine in-character reason to think this myth specifically applies to Tommy.

Now, we all know people in the SMP have a habit of analogizing Wilbur and Tommy. The assumption Tommy wanted to be president, the belief that Tommy nominated Tubbo directly, the belief that he was intentionally deceiving Techno about Pogtopia’s intentions regarding Manburg... all of these stem from Wilbur. There are more cases of this, of course, but several analyses have been done in the subject already, and this is long enough without more padding.

So why does Techno think Tommy is Theseus? Well, it’s simple, isn’t it?

Wilbur is Theseus.

To be continued, because this is already too long and my brain hurts.