#No doubt the answer is that there was never any danger and I should trust my own nursing judgement because it was fine

[sweetdreamspootypie]

Does aanyone have any links to info describing pressure tactics (like interpersonal argument strategies) or like general info of the psychology of being pressured into bad choices during high stress situations

[eggcats]

I've been listening to the Thunder Saga, and I wonder if Zeus is also asking a question with a right and wrong answer in Thunder Bringer like I think Poseidon did in Ruthlessness. (I have a post for that, but I think Odysseus wasn't supposed to apologize, but to instead acknowledge that he should have killed Polyphemus).

Poseidon had to teach him to be ruthless.

Zeus needs to teach him to stop being so prideful.

Like, yes - Eurylochus did stage the mutiny and killed the cow. But! That was because Odysseus decided not to tell any of his men that they would need to accept 6 deaths to get home and allow them to make the choice themselves - because Odysseus couldn't handle the idea that they might refuse going past Scylla and keep him from going home.

This is even present in the song Scylla. Eurylochus is moved to confess that it was him who opened the bag of winds, but Odysseus keeps his own secrets and guilt to himself. I think none of the men even knew they were going past Scylla at all until it happened, since all Eurylochus says is "something approaches," implying he doesn't know what that something even IS.

Scylla even compares Odysseus to themselves, with his full transformation from man to monster now completed.

You hide a reason for shame You know that we are the same Leaving them feeling betrayed Breaking the bonds that you've made There is no price we won't pay We both know what it takes to survive

But if you notice, once they kill the cow, they start following Odysseus again. Hell, Eurylochus calls him captain! They follow his orders to escape! This shows that their real desire wasn't to overthrow Odysseus, but rather their anger and betrayal at not even having the option to choose to fight over sacrifice.

And honestly, this happened because Odysseus has demonstrated time and again that he will not discuss anything with his men and instead makes decisions without their input (too much pride to ever consider anyone's opinion other than his own).

In Storm, he tries to force the fleets to keep going despite Eurylochus saying that continuing would sink them all. In the same song, Odysseus also decides to go to the wind god without any discussion beforehand, and completely ignores Eurylochus's advice in Luck Runs Out about the inherent danger of going to the gods for help. In this same song, Odysseus also completely ignores the deaths of his men by Polyphemus, and instead brags about none of them dying in the war. (Once again, the pride Zeus mentions, and that Eurylochus criticizes in both Luck Runs Out and Puppeteer).

This is why Eurylochus opens the bag of winds, because Odysseus has proven he can't be trusted to tell him anything that could be important or put their lives in danger. Despite Eurylochus being his second in command, he's never treated as such. Odysseus has never once discussed something with him, taken his concerns into account, made a decision with him together, or even taken his advice. (Even cutting him off as far back as Full Speed Ahead without even considering his opinion).

Odysseus continues to ignore what Eurylochus tries to talk to him about in Puppeteer, and instead unintentionally gets all his men trapped by Circe. He then goes against Eurylochus again in the same song to confront her despite neither of them knowing if she can be defeated. All of this comes to a head when Odysseus does the same thing again in Scylla, except his decision was to intentionally let their men die for his own desires - and Eurylochus had no idea until it had already happened.

And that's why Eurylochus mutinies. He does it because he cares about his men, seemingly more than Odysseus has demonstrated he ever has.

(I'm not saying that Eurylochus has been right this whole time, and honestly I doubt Eurylochus would say the same - but Odysseus won't even listen to what he has to say, is the problem. He has too much pride).

And then Zeus arrives and proves Eurylochus right.

Zeus gives Odysseus a choice - him or his men. Forcing him to come to terms with the very same decision he made during Scylla and expose him for only caring for himself and not the men under his command.

Zeus is criticizing Odysseus and claiming that he's too full of pride to sacrifice himself to save his men. His men of which he is their captain. Of which he is their king. Zeus points this out to him explicitly, leading me to believe that he wasn't supposed to choose himself here.

I think that by taking back command after they killed the cow, Odysseus had taken responsibility for his men's actions. Except, when confronted with those same actions, he refuses to. Much like how a boss gets in trouble when their subordinates do something wrong, a captain should do the same for his crew.

Except. Odysseus doesn't. He fails the test.

And now he must have his pride taken from him again and again until he learns the lesson Zeus was teaching him. Just like he did with learning ruthlessness from Poseidon.

I think the next saga will involve him being confronted with this decision he makes here, and how it was the wrong one, and then the saga after that (perhaps with the suitors? I'm unsure how many more are planned) is when Odysseus will reprise Thunder Bringer and finally be able to return home.

[thewertsearch]

We're got a couple of assorted asks about quadrant dynamics here. Since they're all related, I'll answer them as a single post.

@galaxa-13 asked: I personally never saw Feferi being annoyed by Eridan talking about feelings with Karkat because he was only supposed to talk about them with her, but rather because he ONLY talked about them with Karkat. She had to do all the heavy lifting in their relationship by making sure he didn't commit genocide, and then didn't get to unwind with some romantic gossip. If my platonic boyfriend never talked to me, but did with others, I'd question him too. @lilietsblog asked: I never read Feferi as being jealous of Karkat in a violating relationship exclusivity / cheating on her way. I read it as a playful "why aren't you talking about stuff with me? is it because you've already talked it all out?" where Eridan was very much supposed to read between the lines and undersatnd that she just wanted him to tell her about his red crushes (awkward, that…) While I'm sure there are specific rituals trolls /only/ do with their moirails, my overall impression is that trolls normally just… don't form relationships close and trusting enough for emotional support like that. The quadrants help by making it semi-mandatory to find SOMEONE. (Also I'm actually sure that a healthy moirallegiance would be reciprocal with both partners pacifying each other, it's just the hemospectrum version of gender roles)

You may have a point. Eridan was clearly a poor moirail from the start - probably because he never actually wanted to be Feferi's moirail. To him, the quadrant was clearly just a stepping stone to matespritship, so he wasn't invested in its dynamics. Feferi's not really angry about Karkat, here - she's just a little frustrated about how one-sided their moirallegence has turned out to be.

That said, I do still believe that quadrants would work better if they were polyamorous - even if this particular scenario doesn't illustrate my point as well as I thought it did.

@morganwick asked: I mean, some would argue that placing undue emphasis on monogamy beyond what's actually healthy or natural is true of human romance as well. But part of what might be going on here is that on Alternia, it's not a good idea to let knowledge of your fears, doubts, and weaknesses spread too far, lest it mark you for culling. Best to vent to a single person who won't tell another soul. (See also how Vriska is saying things to John she wouldn't tell any other troll.) @bladekindeyewear asked: "At the end of the day, I do think moirallegiance is a good idea. I just don’t think it really works if moirails can’t be poly." What if they CAN be? People with naturally polyamorous inclinations are few and marginalized on present-day Earth, and Alternian society seems set up to STOMP OUT the marginalized. Quadrants certainly exist, but how much of their rigidity and the pervasive troll view that you only have "one true fated partner(s)" for each quadrant might just be cultural?

I think a monogamous system of moirallegence is probably all that Alternia could handle. Sustaining a polyamorous quadrant system would require a level of emotional maturity that the average troll simply isn't going to have - and, like you said, it might be dangerous to widen your circle more than is actually necessary.

I still think the trolls would benefit from such a system, though. On Alternia, it simply wasn't to be - but the Alternian Players now have the chance to build an entirely new culture. Who knows what new dynamics they might discover?

@lilietsblog asked: I don't think Hussie "jumped the gun". I think Hussie was messing around with the very idea of "what romance should be like". Trolls don't care about what gender their partners are, and have a different system of confusing rigid rules that no two people understand quite the same and that don't work out in practice that way anyway, instead. The quadrant system was never intended to be a serious worldbuilding project any more than Troll Will Smith

See, I get what you're saying - but the difference, in my opinion, is that that Troll Will Smith was a one-panel joke, whereas the quadrant system has informed our understanding of troll relationships for the entirety of Act 5. Unlike Will, quadrants have stayed relevant, and they've been critical to understanding many of the Alternians' key character moments.

That's not to say that quadrants aren't partially a joke. Frankly, I don't think any of Homestuck is entirely serious - but I do think quadrants are 'real' in the context of the story, and should be analyzed as a legitimate part of its world.

@bladekindeyewear asked: One last bout moirails-- Andrew in his asks has said that the idea behind each of the Quadrants IS supposed to match up with real human relationship and friend dynamics we already understand, making them relatable but w/ a romantic drive that isn't quite human-analogous. Trolls biologically compelled to enter them before understanding them, a challenge "particularly tortuous for young trolls" (p2393), plus the 600 hour session makes sense of Eq/Nep's relationship's drastic evolution to me.

I've always been a little skeptical about this whole 'biological drive' angle for the quadrants - mostly because there are plenty of human biological drives that are either overstated, misinterpreted, or outright fabricated.

That's not to say that the trolls don't have some sort of compulsion to seek out quadrants. If it does exist, though, I hope it slowly fades, now that the trolls have left their planet and its expectations behind.

[justauthoring]

whole wide world.

just the two of you, together, in the whole wide world. and then? it's just you.

a/n -> okay, first, i realize i am late to bcs (as always) and that this probably won't get any notes BUT i just watched 06x03 and i am DISTRAUGHT also please excuse my poor attempt of using spanish endearments :) most of them are from google, so if you guys have suggestions, let me know!

tw. -> warning for better call saul 06x03? im not sure if i should put this, but just in case.

pairing -> ignacio "nacho" varga x f!reader

"we'll get out."

"nacho—"

"no," he cuts in, stepping towards you with a sharp look in his eyes. "we—you, me, my dad... we're gonna get out. all three of us."

letting out a sigh, you shake your head, reaching across the counter to grab his hand in your own. the action seems to still nacho, even if briefly, because he's blinking and his body is easing and then he's meeting your eyes and you see the fear behind them.

"i know," you assure, voice soft and warm. there wasn't an ounce of doubt in your voice. you knew nacho meant what he said and you trusted him wholeheartedly—if he said that you'd get out, he meant it. "i'm just worried."

"it'll be fine."

"will you?"

and he pauses at that, body stilling. he takes one look at you and huffs because he can't lie; you'll see right through him. you always have. so the admittance comes with a shaky sigh, letting his head fall into his hands as he pulls away from you.

"i dunno," he breathes. "i don't know anything."

your heart breaks.

"oh, mi dulce. ignacio."

pulling away from the counter, you make your way around the island, crossing the distance over to him with ease and take him into your arms. your arm wraps around his shoulder and you tug him towards you, ignoring the small fight he gives before he eventually falls into you with a choked sob.

his face presses into the curve of your neck, arms wrapping around your waist as he grips onto you like he's afraid you'll disappear from him.

"what's wrong, cariño?"

and he shakes his head against you, shaking all whilst he does it. you've asked him this question so many times and while this is the first time he's fallen apart on you quite like this, you know the answer will remain the same.

silence.

you know nacho is involved with the cartel and that he has been for a good chunk of his life; the secret of it had been revealed pretty early on in your relationship. it wasn't ideal but you knew at his heart nacho was a good man and in the end, it hadn't been enough to sway you from him.

but something had changed these last few months. things with his father and the cartel and he's been so damn secretive about it all but in your gut you knew it was bad. you're not sure you've seen him smile in weeks or look anything but tense. even when it was just the two of you, he seemed particularly on edge of everything around him.

then he'd told you it wasn't safe for you to take transit to work anymore. when you'd questioned that, he'd refused to say anything. the next day he'd come over with a new car, just for you.

it was clear he was in danger and given the way he'd been extra protective of you lately, you figured that danger extended to you. and his father, probably.

he said he'd get you away, that he'd keep you safe, so you didn't really care all that much about being in danger. you trusted his word and you knew he'd never let anything happen to you.

you were just worried about him.

terribly.

"you have to tell me," you plead, pulling back enough to see his face. nacho blinks at the movement, forcing the tears that had welled in his eyes to disappear, effectively righting himself to alleviate any concern.

it's too late.

"ignacio, please," you beg, squeezing his shoulders, fighting him from walking away. "i just need to know you're okay. i can't go on with this worry anymore. i can't. and you won't—"

he cuts you off by pressing his lips against your own. his movement is swift, quick, catching you by surprise as he tugs you against him by your hip, the other hand moving to brush your hair back and cup your cheek. the fight leaves you the second you feel his lips press against your own, instinctively leaning into his touch as your eyes flutter shut.

and when nacho pulls back and you're breathless, he lets his forehead fall against your own and it's like it's just the two of you in the whole wide world.

"mi amor," he whispers, breath soft and husky. "everything will be okay."

the shuttering breath you've been forcing back falls out of you then, your whole body shaking with the movement as you set your hands on his chest, desperate for the feel of him.

"i promise."

-

the second you're phone rings, you're flipping it open and pressing it to your ear without even checking the contact.

"ignacio?"

"hola mi amor."

your whole body eases, slumping against the back of your chair with a flush of relief you haven't felt in days. you take a moment, before snapping yourself back to attention; "where have you been? are you okay? i've been so worried, nacho. oh, gosh... are you hurt? what's happened?"

he chuckles, but it sounds thick and strained. "so many questions, baby."

you scoff. "you had me worried."

"i'm sorry, y/n."

there's something about the way he says it that twists uncomfortably inside of you, finally taking note of how strange he's sounded since you first heard him speak. he sounds strained and coarse, and there was a tinge of something else you couldn't quite pick up on.

"ignacio," you call as the worry settles back in, falling heavy on your chest. "are you okay? where are you?"

"i'm okay," he assures but his answer is a little too quick. "i'm sorry i've been gone so long. negocio, you see?"

you nod, even if he can't see it. "will you be back soon?"

this time, his answer delays. your heart sinks.

"soon," he agrees eventually. "i'm not sure."

"oh," you let out.

"i just wanted to hear your voice. i've missed you, mi amor."

"i've missed you too, nacho," you whisper, holding your phone as tight to yourself as you can; as if that'll bring nacho back. "i can't sleep without you."

"yeah?" he laughs lightly, "neither can i."

you press your lips together and hesitate on a reply. something dark and twisted sinks in on you and it makes you feel sick but you don't know what to do about it.

you don't know if there is anything you can do about it.

there's a cut over the line and you hear nacho sigh.

"i have to go, baby."

his voice thickens and cracks at the end of it.

"oh? okay..." swallowing thickly, you blink back the tears that involuntarily well in your eyes. "but you'll be home soon, right, amorcito?"

"...y-yeah."

biting your lip, you force back the sob that threatens to break past your lips.

"you promise then?" you ask, words choked.

there's a slight rustle. "i promise."

"i love you."

a pause; one that lasts for what feels like enternity before nacho replies; "....love you too, mi amor."

and he's pulling away before you can say anything else, the line cutting as you pull your phone to glance it, watching as the call ends. the sob wreckes past your lips then and you feel you sick, your stomach tight and your hands shaking as you think about the way his voice had sounded.

it occurs to you then you won't be seeing nacho again.

despite his promise.

[ash-says]

Handling curiosity so the cat doesn't get killed:

We all have been there at least once in our life where we allowed the curiosity to get the best of us and instantly regretted the decision. Being extremely mercurial in nature it comes naturally to me. To be curious on the continuous lookout to find something that will stimulate my brain or make it go crazy obsessive.

That's how I learned the harsh way that being a curious cat might sound cute but it can cost you your life or sanity. One of my dearest friends once said something along these lines,"Some truths are better left unknown. Truth and knowledge can turn into poison when consumed carelessly."

The reason why I am talking about this is because I hardly find people discussing it.

Yet mythology has so many great examples, Pandora opening the box, Eve eating the apple it wasn't just temptation it was also laced with curiosity of what might happen?

I am listing out a few things that you should avoid pursuing under sheer curiosity to save the poor cat in you:

1) A street fight. Two people are fighting. Let them. It's not your job to be the mediator and it's irrelevant to find the reason. Until and unless there's no aggression involved mind your own damn business.

2) Spiritual stuff especially dark ones. I believe energy is both light and dark in nature if you don't know the way to alchemize it better stay away.

3) Attempting things without any prior knowledge. Especially speaking about dangerous stuff here. If you love your life better do it under professional supervision.

4) Your partner's/crush feelings towards you. Girl if he likes you. You will know. Trust me. Been there. Done that. Constant microanalysis. It's tiring. Let him be.

5) Others life. Stalking and obsessing over how a particular person is living their day to day life is literally embarrassing. Get a life, Sushma!

6) Know the red zones in a conversation. If meeting in a professional setting try to avoid personal questions. Learn to sense a person's discomfort and never push someone to answer your questions that have literally nothing to do with you.

7) Celebrities personal life. Another waste of time.

8) Do not show your curiosity for sexual acts, things,etc in front of a man. It's the easiest way to put yourself in danger. You are the target babe. Congrats!!

9) When someone tells you knowing the truth will hurt you. Let it be a secret. Don't persuade that person to tell the truth. I strongly believe when you don't control the situation the truth automatically finds its way to you (conditions applied).

10) About the stuff people say behind your back. A full proof route towards people pleasing, anxiety, self doubt etc. Don't go out of your way searching for what's cooking. The cake might turn out to be burnt. Who knows.

That's all for today's show on ash-says. Stay tuned for more illegal tricks and explosive opinions.

[royalsweetteaa]

To be claimed

Pairing: alpha!Johnny Storm x omega!reader

WARNING - the following story contains: sexual themes/tension, A/B/O verse, tiny bit angst, fluff, talks about mating/bonding, P in V sex, knotting, scenting, kissing/biting, brief fingerfucking, dirty talk, jealousy, slight possessive behavior, pet names.

Summary: Johnny wants you to bond with him but you hesitate to go through with it, - for whatever reason.

Second person POV

You and Johnny were taking a walk around the park on the weekend, spending time to unwind from an intense week. You were walking behind Susan and Richard, who were going into a discussion of where to spend their vacation this summer, which left you and Johnny to talk for yourselves about whatever was on your minds, - in this case about being claimed.

Richard and Susan were newly mated, their mating glands freshly bitten and swollen. Johnny hadn’t been able to keep his eyes off the pair since then, - admiring how his sister had taken the next step with the science nerd of the bunch.

“That could be us, you know. Claimed and bonded, just like these two lovebirds. Haven’t you ever thought about it?” Johnny asked, intertwining his fingers with yours in a tight grip.

You swallow and shy away, lowering your gaze to ignore Johnny’s blossoming bonding fever. “Of course I have..” you reply meekly. “But I think it’s too soon, don’t you think?”

Johnny narrowed an eyebrow, unsure of why you thought so. “Why would it be too soon? We’ve been together for almost two years now. We’re in love, - clearly meant for each other. I don’t see why we should wait..”

He was right. You had known each other for years and Johnny had for two years been in a committed relationship with you, leaving his bachelor lifestyle behind. He had never given a reason for you to doubt him, so why were you so hesitant?

You shrug, removing your hand from him and stalling while being unsure of what else you could say to move past the topic. You had managed to brush it off whenever Johnny brought it up, but now it seemed to be occupying his mind more than any of the previous times, and he was looking for answers.

The silence was worrying Johnny, and he stopped as his face fell when he realized there had to be a reason behind it. He reached for your hand again, and you let him take it as you faced him.

“Talk to me baby,…there’s gotta be a reason why you won’t bond with me…not to mention why you won’t let me claim you.” Johnny trailed, his tone reeking of fret. “Is there something I’m doing wrong? Am I not good enough of an alpha for you?”

Your eyes widened at Johnny’s questioning. “No! No, it’s nothing like that. I’m just…” you were thinking over the right words to use before you spoke, causing you to halt a little, “- You know bonding is a very big step, right? It means we’ll be mated for life, and…that means if you ever change your mind, we will have to remove them…which is a dangerous and painful procedure. I don’t…- I want us both to be sure about what we want before we take that step.”

“Baby,…I’ve never been more sure about anything my whole life. I want it. I’ll always and only want you. I want to be claimed by you.” Johnny stated while searching your eyes. When yours still didn’t meet his, he continued, “I know I used to have a very non-exclusive life style in the past, and I’m guessing that’s making you doubt me…that’s what this is all about, isn’t it? You’re scared I’ll go back to my old habits.”

“I…” you gave up your sentence by the first word and let out a defeated sigh. “Maybe…”

Johnny’s mouth fell shut as he held back from expressing despondency as a first response. “I get it,…it stings a little but I get it. I’ll keep proving to you that I’m all yours until you full-heartedly believe it, firefly.”

Seeing your alpha hide how upset he was through his usual toothy grin made you feel sad. The omega in you was crying for you to change your mind, - let your trust issues disappear.

Having the Human Torch as your boyfriend wasn’t the easiest with how his fan girls showed little to no respect to your relationship. It was as if you didn’t exist when you stood there, witnessing them crowd Johnny so desperately.

You weren’t angry at him for being flattered and letting his ego get stroked after being surrounded with so many admirers. He was a hero after all, and you weren’t about to get jealous of the praise he gets for being one. The only thing that bothered you was the smell of other omegas that would linger on him as they pushed themselves onto him for wanting a selfie, or when they were shooting their shot with a flirtatious pick up line with their hands all over him.

It made you incredibly jealous, even if Johnny put actual effort on pushing the omegas away. It would end up with you turning possessive. Johnny had made it clear since day one that he was only your alpha, but it wasn’t always easy to remember that with how involved he was with other people, and how the lingering omega scents gave you doubts of Johnny’s commitment.

Taking all of that into consideration, it left you feeling unsure of taking that big of a step.

“I’m sorry, Johnny…” was all you could say. You felt incredibly guilty for admitting you were scared, but Johnny was always one to reassure.

“No, no, it’s whatever.” Johnny shrugged the matter off easily. “Like I said, I get it. Hell, before we started officially dating, I used to say how I would never commit cause it wasn’t ‘my style’…fuck, how dumb I was to create that kind of reputation. I don’t think I would have gained it if you were in my life earlier, but it is what it is. I’ll wait for you, as long as you need, okay?”

You were about to speak up, - say something uplifting to make him feel better, because you knew his mood had been brought down even when he was hiding it so well. It was all too late when Richard disturbed your space, introducing the topic of their upcoming mission to Johnny.

Perhaps it’s better to lay it to rest for now, you thought.

A week passes by since that discussion, and it’s an evening of another fancy party celebrating worldwide icons, - in which of course the Fantastic 4 were mainly guested to partake.

You were dressed in your glittery blue dress, with shiny silver accessories decorating your neck and ears. Meanwhile Johnny dressed up in a dark red tux with a golden chain hanging on his neck, a perfect contrast to your appearance.

You were about to leave out to the public together, when before you could make sense of it, Johnny had pulled you back into the corner of the hallway, making you yelp at the quick and unexpected act. You had only seen a glimpse of camera flashes coming from the main entrance right across the room before you were out of sight again.

Johnny was already on you before you could question him, keeping you against the wall while he was pressing himself against you.

“Johnny, w-what are you doing?” You asked, flustered as he kept on gliding his nose along your collarbone, inhaling your scent deeply.

“Making sure I reek of your scent, and you of mine. It’ll push the omegas away from trying to hit on me.” Johnny explained, and you could feel his smirk as he hid his face by the crook of your neck.

He grinded against you and licked a stripe on your mating gland, making you shiver with ecstasy.

“Ever since the first time I caught your scent and saw you, - I was whipped. Now I don’t want anyone or anything else.” Johnny purred his confession in your ear, and it made you close your eyes while taking in his touches.

“J-Johnny…” you whined the alpha’s name, your fingers tangling in his hair as you held him equally close to you.

He snickered in response and pulled away when he thought he had gotten enough. “Sorry, I’m being a bit of a tease, aren’t I? We’ll have our fun when we get home, but the party has just started. We can’t miss out.”

You pouted, but understood that now was not the time to get down and dirty. He pulled you with him out of the corner and you were already surrounded by paparazzi and fangirls outside, though this time there weren’t nearly as much omegas jumping at him with how close he held you against his body.

The omega in you felt a sense of pride when you saw the disappointed pouts. Johnny smelled ‘taken’, - almost as if he was claimed with how he had thoroughly rubbed your scent onto him.

For the first time, you went through a party together where no opportunities arose for others to flirt with your alpha, and you felt content about that.

The night ended far too quickly, because you had enjoyed yourself so much this time. Johnny was also more enthusiastic and upbeat, and when you had asked about it he responded in the most endearing way possible.

“Cause you look so happy and carefree, firefly. Makes me feel good that my girlfriend is having a fun time at a party.”

Yet again Johnny had said something that would stick with you the entire night.

When the party had died out, and you returned to your suites, Johnny was already all over you, ready to break through the sexual tension you had going all evening.

Johnny pulled you to bed behind him, allowing you to collapse on top of him when he laid down on his back. Your dress was left on the floor, leaving you in the expensive lingerie Johnny had bought you not too long ago. Desperate kisses and love bites were exchanged non stop, keeping you almost distracted from dropping the big bomb you had wanted to share with Johnny. Almost.

As your lips finally detached for air, you stared into Johnny’s eyes, lust clouding you with heavy bonding fever.

“Johnny, I thought about what we talked about a while ago, - about bonding and…I think I’m ready.”

His eyes popped out at your proposal. “What? Like…you want to bond? Like right now?” He asked as he sat up with you still in his arms.

You nodded shyly while cupping his face. “You’re a good alpha, Johnny. You’ve proven that so many times already and yet you do so much more to further prove it. -

I want to be your omega permanently.”

Johnny’s face darkened slightly as his grip was beginning to claw on you. “Omega…if this is a prank you’re pulling on me it ain’t funny.”

You laughed at his serious pout, shaking your head to deny his claim. “I’m not, alpha. I promise.”

He grinned widely, and eagerly pulled his shirt off, revealing his unmarked mating gland as he moved his head to the side.

“Mark me first, omega.”

It stunned you how he was easily offering to have himself marked first by you, an omega. It went against tradition as alphas were typically always the first to claim under the ritual, but times have changed and you had found a wonderful alpha who was willing to go on his knees for you before you reached the ground yourself.

“Really? You’ll allow me to do that without even negotiating?” You asked for more clarification.

He smiled adoringly at you, “It’s all I want, baby. Even if you aren’t ready to be marked yourself, I want to belong to you. I’ll be your alpha before you become my omega.”

Your heart swelled at his words. Finally you had let yourself agree and trust the omega in you. He is the right one for me. He is the right alpha.

“I’m already yours,…we’ll go all the way, - together. I’m serious when I say I’m ready to be marked.” You said, and you found a comfortable position on his lap with your thighs widely spread, your butt grinding on his groin. He groaned audibly, his eyes resting as he felt your heat. The smell of your arousal was radiating, making his cock twitch with excitement.

Your lips met as you began grinding against him harder. A whine barely escaped his mouth, the sound being muffled as you barely let his lips move anywhere else from yours. His hands were holding firmly on your hips, as if to make sure you cannot escape this moment and change of your relationship. You wouldn’t want him to have second thoughts either.

His cock was fully erect, straining against the briefs of his trousers by the time your tongues danced with each other. Johnny was flushed, his cheeks red as his eyebrows knitted, showcasing his pleasure.

“Make me yours, omega…” Johnny pled, and your heart fluttered for it. You ground against him, Johnny’s leaking cock soaking through as it ultimately moistens your underwear.

You kissed him once more before you leaned on his neck where his unclaimed mating gland is, ready to be bitten by you. His breath hitched as his hands pressed more firmer around your waist, not wanting you anywhere else.

Your canines sink into his mating gland, and he whimpers as his nails dug into your flesh. You mewl in response, your arms clinging around him as you finally claim your alpha, gifting you the bond tied between the two of you. You lick his wound before giving it a kiss, and when you pull away you are met with his eyes, fully dilated.

“I can feel you…” he murmurs through a heavy breath, “I can feel your emotions through the bond…feel how badly you want to be fucked, omega…can feel how much you want my fucking knot…fuck, this is amazing..”

Your face grows red with everything he tells you. He smirks with the reaction he receives, and takes the opportunity to flip you over to be beneath him this time.

“I’m going to fuck you hard and make you whine around my fat cock, baby. Then when I swell, I’ll claim you, - Make you mine the way you made me yours... “

You swallowed, feeling a rush of adrenaline course through you. You were so, so ready.

His trousers are off before you can make out of the process, but he takes his time on pulling his boxers off, just to tease you as he always does. You bit your bottom lip when his erected cock came into view in front of you, your cunt couldn’t help but pulse at the sight.

You whined, “Johnny, you better pound me with your dick the next 3 seconds or I’ll go crazy -“ Cutting your sentence, a finger was shoved into your core, making you yelp out a moan.

“Greedy girl…” he murmured in your ear as he lied over you, close again. “I know you’re desperate but I’m not going anywhere, baby…I’ll make my teasing worth it for you.”

After thoroughly fingerfucking you, he slot his body closer between your thighs, aiming his length directly into your pussy.

Johnny already snaps his hips into yours and drives in balls deep with one forceful thrust. He sucks in air as he whispers, “Always so tight…so perfect for me, omega.”

He pistons into your cunt, already ripping an orgasm out of you as your pussy oozes out juice. Your eyes are rolling back as he keeps going, taking what he needs in order to reach his climax. You don’t mind him taking control at all, already craving to cum around his cock soon again with the special awaiting finale to the round.

“Alpha,…my perfect alpha…” you whispered in his ear, making him growl lowly as his canines became visible. He was incredibly tamed for being an alpha, which was unlike him as he was rather impulsive. You can’t count the many times you thought he would mark you through instinct, but he proved you wrong each time, - just like now with how he didn’t claim you right away as you had claimed him.

“Fuck! Omega, m’close…wanna claim you as I cum. Will you allow me to do that, omega? P-Please let me..” he purred his request. “Mmh, you smell so fucking good, I can’t keep myself off you, omega..” he added through a lustful groan as he kept his face buried under your neck.

“Mmh, W-Wanna be marked and knotted so bad, Johnny…ahh, - please, do it!” You pled with need.

His knot began to swell and he was left to repeatedly push in what was getting stuck inside to receive friction. With a loud growl, he sunk his teeth into your mating gland, making your whole body jolt as you howled from the sting of pleasure and pain it caused.

“Love you, omega..” he mumbled against you when he retracted his bite, licking the bruised up skin. His body steamed as he came inside, his load of hot temperature, making you really feel what was happening inside of you. He licked the skin from any blood, before giving the sensitive spot kisses. “I’ll never get enough of you. Never ever.”

You smiled. “Love you too, alpha..” you murmur back softly, rubbing your nose against his collarbone as you let yourself feel what the two of you had manifested. A deeper connection unlike any other is what you had welcomed. It felt unreal but so good, you could almost forget the stingy pain on your shoulder blade.

“Mine..you’re all mine now.” Johnny growled, almost possessively as he kept you pressed underneath him, locked together. He was more feral now, revealing his typical alpha possessiveness which was normally just an undertone whenever he was a tiny bit jealous.

Your hands tightened gently around his back, not wanting to be anywhere else but close to him at this very special moment. He kept himself inside of you even when his knot deflated, but flipped you around to have you on top of him as you cuddled. Your head laid on his chest, his purring more audible to your ears, but it was music to your ears.

You finally felt complete, and it was all thanks to Johnny, - your forever to be mate through your bond.

“Yours…”

A/N: Finally, out with some writing after what, 1 and a half month of just nothing? It feels accomplishing to say the least!

Hearts & Reblogs are always appreciated! <3

[runawaycatwalker]

Part 28. Prevaricators' Procession

< First | < Previous | Next >

Description below the cut

Astrowalker flies above a copse of trees.

Astrowalker (internally): I wish I could have said 'yes.'  But with how little I can trust any of my friends right now?  And with Mayura searching for any sign of Adrien?  I can't risk going home.

Astrowalker’s eyes widen and his mouth pulls into a long, thin grimace as Cosmobug flies up behind him and throws her yo-yo at him.

Cosmobug: YOU!

Astrowalker (internally): Oh no.

Astrowalker, wrapped tightly in yo-yo string (even his wings have been folded in on themselves and bound), hangs upside-down as Cosmobug points angrily at his face.

Astrowalker: Hello, Cosmobug.  I was trying to stay out of your way as requested, but I thought I should be on-hand in case you needed—

Cosmobug: Where. Is. Adrien?

Astrowalker: I'm not sure why you think I can answer that question...

Cosmobug: He disappears and then you appear just moments later?  I don't think that's a coincidence.

Astrowalker, still upside-down, tries to avert his gaze by looking down (which is up).

Cosmobug: Where did you hide him?

Astrowalker: I only followed you here, I am quite unfamiliar with the terrain of this place.  Unless you think I stuffed him inside my baton, I fail to see where I could have put him that was beyond your reach.

Cosmobug: You could have used Cataclysm to make a bottomless pit and dropped him in!

Astrowalker: Or Adrien might have wandered off on his own.

Cosmobug: When he was so close to going home?  Never!

Astrowalker: It wouldn't be the first time he avoided the mansion...

Cosmobug turns away and rubs her forehead in frustration.

Cosmobug: GAAAHHHH!  Talking to you is just a waste of time!  Adrien might be getting into an even worse situation with every moment that passes!  I need to switch tactics...

Cut to Cosmobug flying back to where she left Kagami, towing Astrowalker behind her as he flings around like a ragdoll.

Cosmobug: Kagami!  I need a favor: guard Catwalker while I search for Adrien.

Kagami: Are you sure Adrien is nearby?  I cannot justify staying here indefinitely to my mother.

Cosmobug: Then we'll make him carry you home while you guard him!  Better to keep him far away anyway so he can't interfere again!

Astrowalker lets out a ‘meep!’ as Cosmobug points Rolland’s knife in his face.

Cosmobug: And if Catwalker tries anything, strike swiftly.

Cut to Astrowalker flying while carrying Kagami in his arms.

Astrowalker: Let me know if you're uncomfortable.  I'll fly low and slow since it can get cold without a powered-up suit.

Kagami: What did you do to make Ladybug mad at you?

Astrowalker: Who said she was mad at me?

Close up of Kagami holding up the knife with confidence beaming.

Kagami: She authorized me to stab you repeatedly.

Astrowalker: Fair point.

Astrowalker looks away evasively.

Astrowalker: But it’s hero business.  I’m not at liberty to explain it to you.

Kagami gestures to herself nonchalantly.  Astrowalker absolutely bristles as he loses his composure.

Kagami: I’m Ryuko.  You can explain everything to me freely.

Astrowalker: You’re not supposed to reveal your secret identity!

Kagami folds her arms and looks away, annoyed that she has to justify herself.

Kagami: Shadowmoth already knows who I am.  You knowing isn’t any more dangerous.

Astrowalker: I highly doubt Ladybug would agree with that assessment.

Kagami: Ladybug herself said I was talented enough to stay a hero despite the identity issue.

Full-body shot of them flying from the side, Astrowalker looks ahead as he explains.

Astrowalker: No, I mean that if Ladybug doesn’t trust me, you shouldn’t either.

Kagami: Did you have something to do with Adrien going missing again?

Astrowalker: Ladybug seems to think so.

Kagami: Why?

Astrowalker: Proximity, mostly.  And she knows I've lied to her before, so I'm the most likely to be guilty.

Kagami: And if you're not guilty?  Not defending yourself means that Ladybug punishes you instead of the person responsible.

Astrowalker: What's done is done.  Ladybug has already made up her mind about me.  In any case, Adrien's business is his alone and we should leave it be.

Kagami points the knife at Astrowalker’s face as he tries to look innocently upwards.

Kagami: You know more than you're letting on, don't you?

Astrowalker: Wh-What gave you that idea?

Close-up of Kagami’s face as she argues.

Kagami: When I don’t want my mother to know that something matters to me, I try to convince her it means nothing.  If she believes I don't care, she won't try to interfere.  You are trying to keep people away from Adrien through your 'indifference'.

Astrowalker: Or I might just be indifferent?

Kagami closes her eyes and waves her hand dismissively.

Kagami: I suppose I won't be able to convince you to reveal your true intentions.  If you're lying to Ladybug, you're probably lying to me too.

Astrowalker looks away with regret.

Astrowalker: There may not be much I can really say, but... For whatever it's worth, I didn't kidnap Adrien.

Kagami: Of course not.  He kidnapped himself.

Astrowalker looks at Kagami in shocked confusion.  Kagami looks aside, unconcerned, as she explains.

Astrowalker: Huh?  I thought you were akumatized to hunt down whoever kidnapped him?

Kagami: The ransom message Gabriel Agreste received must have been a fake.  If Adrien had been kidnapped for ransom, he wouldn't have been left alone on a mountain.  He's clearly up to something big that he doesn't want anyone to know.

Astrowalker: But what secrets could a teen model even have to justify vanishing entirely?

Cut to the image of Kagami and Adrien in “Lies,” when Adrien cheerfully gives her a thumbs-up while she holds the lucky charm Marinette gave him behind her back.

Kagami (voiceover): I'm not sure, but Adrien is far more secretive than most people realize.  His affable demeanor hides his deceit well.  You wouldn't even know he was lying to your face unless you held contradictory proof.

Cut back to Astrowalker looking away while Kagami looks at the knife in thought.

Astrowalker: Do you hate him?  For all the lies?

Kagami: No.  I'm a liar too.  His lies just proved we weren't right for each other.  He's... too much of a people pleaser.

Astrowalker: What's so wrong with wanting to please people?

Kagami: It demonstrates a lack of mutual respect.  If he did something I might judge him for, I would rather he told me the truth so we could deal with it head-on.  Instead, he just made up easy to-swallow excuses so he could pretend his ditching me didn't have consequences.  I was willing to show him things I've never shared with anyone.  But he refused to reciprocate with his own vulnerability.

Astrowalker looks over his shoulder.

Astrowalker: What if he couldn't tell you the truth due circumstances beyond his control?  Maybe he wanted to open up, but he couldn't tell anyone what was really happening?

Kagami opens her arms to the side and Astrowalker finally meets her gaze.

Kagami: Then he should have explained what he could about the situation and asked me for privacy.

Astrowalker: Would that really have been enough to salvage your relationship?  Knowing that someone is keeping things from you can be a heavy burden all on its own.

Kagami: Maybe not.  But it would have been possible.  I might have still been disappointed to be excluded, but at least I wouldn't have been disappointed in him.

Kagami waves her hand towards Astrowalker, who looks down towards her in regretful contemplation.

Kagami: But why are you so interested in why Adrien lied to me?  Did you end up discovering the secrets Adrien kept from me?

Astrowalker: No, of course not.  But... I suppose your perspective sheds light on the trouble I've been for Ladybug.  We heroes are supposed to keep everything secret.  But there's still a limit to what I should withhold from my partner.  Even if I can't give Ladybug all the answers, I need to be more honest with her if I'm to regain her trust.

Astrowalker flies with Kagami towards the horizon.

Kagami: Assuming she doesn’t simply take back your miraculous once she gets back to Paris.

Astrowalker: Right.  There’s that.

Below is the same image as above, only without text:

[rattlyglitch]

Decisions and a Beautiful Carriage

"Lilia, do you believe this is a wise idea? I know he will be safe and I don't doubt you in any way but there are things at that school that are far more dangerous than accidentally getting hit by a spell or potion." Lilia gave a smile to Malleus before returning to packing things he deemed necessary to take to the school with him.

"I'm glad that you seem to have fallen into the role of a big brother so well. But you must trust my judgment. Silver will have to go to the school." Malleus looked like he was going to retaliate but Lilia quieted him.

"Please understand this Malleus our relationship is already strained so much and I can't bear the thought of him not thinking of me as his father. Gilen had played such a large role in half of his life. I know Silver understands I'm his father but if I haven't been there for major developmental points in his life how can he see me as such? My son needs to know his father isn't the only title that belongs to me but that I'm someone who cares and loves him far more than imaginable. I don't wish to lose my son."

Malleus couldn't do much more than agree to what Lilia had told him. Even though the older fae was turned away Malleus could hear the tears in his voice. "I understand. If you require any help then tell me." Lilia wiped his eyes before turning to Malleus. "Could you help Silver pack a bag for himself? I've helped him for the most part but he still may require some more help."

Malleus gave Lilia a nod and headed off to see Silver. He saw the boy was sitting by a bag and looking over the things he had. His clothes were packed and if anything else was needed it could no doubt be bought. Even with that though the boy still seemed like he was having a predicament. He held two toys in his hands and kept looking between them. "Are you having trouble deciding what you should take with you child of man?"

Silver jumped before looking behind him. A smile lighted his face and he dropped the two stuffed animals hurrying over to hug Malleus. "Mallie." Malleus looked down at Silver and gave him a small smile. "Up? Up?" Silver asked his hands raised towards Malleus. The fae prince carefully raised Silver and held him in his arms. "You never answered my question. Are you having trouble deciding what to bring?"

Silver who had begun to play with Malleus's hair looked at him. "Yeah. I have four wanna bring. Bat, cro-crocile. Crodile?" Silver stared at his hands trying to think of the word he wanted to say. "Crocodile?" Malleus asked. Silver nodded smiling happily once the word was said. "Fox and dragon." Malleus thought over the toys that Silver had described. "I see that is quite the predicament. You want to know something though." Silver looked up at Malleus. "What?" "I think you should take all four." Silver looked at Malleus confused. "I can' do that. That's too many."

Malleus hummed a confused look appearing on his face. "Are there any specific ones you don't wish to bring then?" Silver shrugged he didn't think he did. "I jus' know I wanna bring the dragon and bat. They're like you and Papa." Malleus gently stroked SIlver's hair. "Then why not bring those two?" Silver shook his head no. "What if they get lost?" Silver seemed a bit distressed when thinking about the possibility of losing them.

"I will find them then. You must trust that even if they get lost. I will be able to find them again." Silver looked up at Malleus with awe. "Really?" Malleus gave a small nod of reassurance. "Really." Malleus set Silver down on the ground and let him walk off to where the two toys he was referring to were. Malleus did agree that they were similar to him and Lilia.

The bat was black and had dark pink on its chest and inside its ear while the dragon was black, purple, and green. Black made up most of the dragon's body but its underbelly was purple and soft green fire seemed to be coming from its mouth. The way they were made led Malleus to guess that Lilia himself had stitched them. "Do you wish for me to put them in your bag?" Silver hesitated before grabbing the dragon.

"I wanna hold onto him. That way he won't get lost. Lucy can be put away though." As Silver cuddled the dragon while Malleus guessed that 'Lucy' was the bat. "Let's go see Lilia. No doubt that the carriage will be arriving to get us soon." Silver was confused by what Malleus meant when he said carriage but took his hand and walked out to the kitchen where Liia was waiting.

"Thank you for helping him Malleus. Now Silver keep your hand on Malleus's ok? The carriage is here and I wouldn't want you getting separated from us." Silver's grip on Malleus's hand tightened. "Ok, Papa." Lilia awed at the sight while Malleus didn't seem to be affected. Silver followed quickly after Lilia and made sure Malleus followed. Malleus saw the carriage once the three of them exited the house. Silver seemed to be stopped though. "Are you scared child of man?" Malleus asked looking down at Silver.

The boy didn't seem afraid but was amazed by the horses in front of him. He let go of Malleus's hand and wandered over to one of the horses before holding his hand up to it. The horse nuzzles into his palm and lets out a breath of air causing Silver to giggle. He pet the horse for a few more minutes before returning to Malleus who lifted him up and into the carriage.

As soon as the three of them settled into the carriage they arrived at Night Raven College. Malleus found himself holding the bags that had been out into the carriage while Lilia held Silver in his arms who gripped the toy in his small hands.

"Welcome to Night Raven College Silver."

Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4

[falkarph]

COMPANION QUOTES: GALE OF WATERDEEP

rp prompts taken from the game baldur's gate 3 by larian studios. some may be slightly edited. subtle spoilers may be present. inspired by @mcflymemes 'as said by' series.

❛ a hand? anyone? ❜ ❛ you don’t happen to be a cleric by any chance, do you? a doctor? surgeon? uncannily adroit with a knitting needle? ❜ ❛ i understand i ask a lot of you with few answers in return, but in time all will be told. ❜ ❛ what is youth if not a time to be forgiven for one's transgressions? ❜ ❛ i do enjoy our conversations. ❜ ❛ all of this … it must feel like a betrayal. say the word, and we’ll part ways. ❜ ❛ a little privacy, please. ❜ ❛ you showed me just how much i have to live for. ❜ ❛ all the world's my stage and you're just a player in it. ❜ ❛ i promise i will not betray your trust. ❜ ❛ i was hoping you‘d spare me a moment. there was something rather magical i wished to show you. ❜ ❛ i said exactly what i meant. i love you. and you should never, ever doubt that. ❜ ❛ the tighter the security, the juicer the prize. ❜ ❛ you put the stars to shame. ❜ ❛ time seems so infinite when you're young … a month is an age, a year is a lifetime … it is a strange feeling, to realise how little of it one might have left. ❜ ❛ you must not deny your heart’s desire. i would not want you to. ❜ ❛ i’m not quite sure i'd consider myself parent material, plus our current lifestyle isn’t exactly what i'd call settled … ❜ ❛ i will not let you down. ❜ ❛ let’s not throw the murderous baby out with the bathwater. ❜ ❛ it’s not alright, but it’s what i’m willing to do. for you. ❜ ❛ whatever these dark powers of yours may be, they serve no purpose if you cannot control them, or yourself! ❜ ❛ i’m not sure i like the look in your eyes. what’s wrong? ❜ ❛ dangerous secrets are best shared with those who depend on you. ❜ ❛ gratitude can wait. you’re not out of the woods yet. stay focused. ❜ ❛ if the mood takes me, i’m known to try my hand at poetry. ❜ ❛ i love this time of night. there’s an almost reverent silence that accompanies the peak of darkness, when you’d almost believe the dawn will never break. ❜ ❛ i thought this place might bring me peace. i thought it might make the weight of what i must do a little lighter. now i’m not so sure. ❜ ❛ i am terrified - i will not claim otherwise. my face could scarcely conceal it even if my words sought to deny it. ❜ ❛ you must know that … you’re very special to me. ❜

[hyperactivewhore]

In your opinion who is the best mother in the TVD universe? I think it has to be Hayley. She had made a lot of mistakes, but at the end of the day, Hope has never once doubted that her mother truly and unconditionally loved and supported her. Hayley practically raised Hope by herself. All Hayley wanted is for Hope to have a normal, happy childhood. And unlike many people I don’t think she ever abandoned Hope. Yes, she sent her away to the Salvatore school - but I think that’s because she knew that Hope couldn’t live a normal life in New Orleans and she thought that the best chance of Hope having a semi normal childhood is if no one knew who she was. And in legacies, it’s said that she still visited Hope at school frequently.

Hayley Marshall without a doubt was the best mother in tvdu, especially considering the events regarding her pregnancy, daughter and her daughter's family.

Hayley loved Hope from the very beginning, don't bring up how she tried to abort Hope because that's just rubbish: she wanted to do it because it would be better for both of them, but ultimately couldn't bring herself to do it. Claiming Elijah was the first person to care about Hope is so wrong, he didn't give a damn about the fetus but what it could mean to Klaus and his fucked up family at the beginning, he only saw his niece as her own person when she was fifteen years old.

Motherhood was forced upon Hayley and she had no other choice but to accept it, Klaus and Elijah made that very clear and it sickens me how people brush over Hayley herself saying how terrified and scared she was during this period of her life. She was barely an adult, thrown into the most dangerous family to ever live just because she happened to carry a baby and was killed twice because of that same family.

Saying Hayley was a bad mother is crazy, she loved Hope and put her above everyone almost always (I won't praise her for this, though, loving your child is the bare minium a decent parent should do) even if it was above people she cared about. People always bring up how she "stole" Hope in season two to try to put her in a bad light and it's embarrassing every time.

Was it a dangerous and risky choice? Obviously, yes, but Klaus, the father of her daughter, was jeopardizing Hope at the time with his paranoia and refusal to trust his family, and at the time everyone believed he had killed Aiden, a member of Hayley's pack, of course she would panick and run away with their kid. It was wrong nonetheless because she was putting in danger her whole pack, her husband, her daughter and herself, but I'll never blame her for it considering how much shit she went through only because of the Mikaelson.

Like Klaus, Hayley was scared too and this is often "forgotten" by the fandom: like him, she never had any good parent, but this didn't make her stop talking to Hope suddenly. The fandom often justifies Klaus abandoning Hope because he had daddy issues and because of The Hollow, but was it that hard to write letters, answer her phone calls? He ghosted his own daughter when she was nine because she saw him murdering someone, but somehow Klaus is the better parent in tvdu and the one Hope loved the most. Make it make sense.

Caroline was away too from her daughters, but she didn't ghost them the way Klaus did. Hayley was co-leading New Orleans, a whole city full of supernatural creatures, but she didn't abandon Hope either: as you said, Josie herself said she used to come to Mystic Falls frequently just for her daughter. Sending Hope away to school after nearly dying and losing her father was too soon, and while Legacies made everything they could to make these women look like bad mothers (Hope being basically depressed as a child, wanting to belong into the Saltzman family, her line in season three "my mom and dad will come back for me" - though I'm not sure if it should consider it proof, considering it was a weird Star Wars episode -, Lizzie feeling neglected by her mother, etc) they simply weren't.

Caroline and Hayley were both forced to be mothers and both proved to be better than everyone in the series. People should start criticizing the actual bad parents in this show instead of them.

[calliesmemes]

RANDOM DIALOGUE PROMPTS, ACT II

ASSORTED QUOTES FOUND IN FILMS, TELEVISIONS, MUSIC, AND LITERATURE.

CHANGE gendered words as needed.

SPECIFY muse for multimuses.

“   A great force is asleep in you. ”

“   All I ever think about is you. ”

“   All I ever wanted was to know what to do. ”

“   Am I a good man? ”

“   Are you going to kill me? ”

“   Becoming the villain isn’t the answer. ”

“   Can you prove it to me? ”

“   Did you really think that I would ever let you go? ”

“   Do you regret taking the vow? ”

“   It was like a switch was flipped. ”

“   Fear cuts deeper than swords ”

“   Forgiveness is different from absolution. ”

“   Have I explained away any part of my guilt? ”

“   Help me. Remind me why I am here. ”

“   How many have died because of my actions? ”

“   How often will you repent? ”

“   How strange this is! What is the meaning of it? ”

“   I appreciate your concern. ”

“   I am beyond repentance. ”

“   I am destroying myself so other people can’t. ”

“   I am doing no injury to anybody but myself. ”

“   I am nothing if not merciful. ”

“   I am so glad to see you! ”

“   I believe you are perfectly right. ”

“   I can’t help but give in. ”

“   I cannot agree with you there. ”

“   I doubt I will be pleasant company. ”

“   I doubt everything, even my doubt. ”

“   I feel as though I have been living a long, long time. ”

“   I fought so hard to free you… ”

“   I have betrayed everyone and everything I know. ”

“   I have survived, but I have not been spared. ”

“   I have this grief and I don’t know why. ”

“   I will do whatever you ask. ”

“   I will not be a caged bird. I will fly free. ”

“   I played my part in the plan. ”

“   I pledge myself to your teachings. ”

“   I’m like a collection of paradoxes. ”

“   I’m sorry you were not truly loved and that it made you cruel. ”

“   I’m not too gone to be healed, am I? ”

“   I'm not everything I want to be, but I'm more than I was, and I'm still learning. ”

“   I’m restless and harsh and hopeless. ”

“   I’ll do all that I can to make things right. ”

“   If I cannot be loved, I must be feared. ”

“   Is everyone in danger as long as I’m alive? ”

“   Is this fair? Is this just? ”

“   Is this what you wanted? ”

“   It ends as it began. ”

“   It would be impossible, I know. ”

“   It’s not my fault — I’m not to blame! ”

“   It’s been a long time since I’ve been me. ”

“   I’ve started this storm; gotta stop it somehow ”

“   Money can only give happiness where there is nothing else to give it. ”

“   My intentions were not always wrong. ”

“   None of this is your fault. It’s me and my head. ”

“   No harm will come to you! ”

“   Life is full of tough choices. ”

“   Please remove your blade from my throat. ”

“   Pity comes too late! ”

“   Save me from these evil deeds. ”

“   Sorry is not enough. Sometimes you actually have to change. ”

“   That behavior is quite inexcusable. ”

“   The end justifies the means. ”

“   The path of hate is a dangerous track. ”

“   This can only end one way. ”

“   This is why you never should’ve left. ”

“   There’s a revolution coming. ”

“   There’s trouble for all when there’s trouble for one. ”

“   They are not to be trusted. ”

“   What do you mean? ”

“   What is this fighting all about? ”

“   Where were you when I was still kind? ”

“   Why are they all trying to make me into a saint? ”

“   Why can’t you see me? ”

“   Would you like to punish those who wronged you? ”

“   You can’t trust a single thing I say. ”

“   You can’t run from this! ”

“   You changed me. You should remember me. ”

“   You did not mean to be cruel. That does not mean that you were kind. ”

“   You don’t have to make a sound. ”

“   You have been loyal to a greater cause. ”

“   You know what’s best for me. ”

“   You were born for this. ”

“   You’ll always be a slave. ”

“   Your offer is meaningless. ”

“   You’re the one that I need. ”

“   You’re not as brave as you may seem. ”

“   You’ve gone too far! ”

[bluethepineapple]

If Harry had told Ron and Hermione about Snape's Worst Memory, what would their reaction have been?

Sorry for the delay anon! Here are my thoughts!

RON:

I think he will come swinging in defense of James and his friends - but especially James. Not only does he heavily dislike Snape in general, Ron also responds most keenly to Harry's emotional state. He will sense almost immediately just how bothered Harry is by seeing his father act in such a manner, and he will move to comfort him by arguing for why James did what he did and how Snape may have deserved it anyway.

Ron's sense of justice is also very relationship-driven and immediate. Minus the obviously immoral things, he has to see and know the person themself and their plight before it moves him, especially if he starts from a position of dislike. The fact that he doesn't see the memory at all is important then. It means that that bullied Snape is not actually a reality for him, only a hypothetical. All the misery he has had to endure because of him would color his judgment, and he would give that (along with Harry's distress over his father) more weight than a far-off story.

You add the fact that Snape called Lily "mudblood" even after her attempts to help him and it would mean he would come swinging in favor of James.

HERMIONE:

Hermione is a bit more complicated. Her first concern would be (like in canon) that Harry no longer has occlumency lessons. She is a pragmatist and is a problem-solver before she is a caretaker. Not having any more occlumency lessons would be what would strike her as the bigger priority because this leaves Harry vulnerable, and she understood far earlier than he did how dangerous those visions are.

On the memory itself, James's actions would horrify her. Her sense of justice is such that the sheer violence of the attack and Snape's helplessness would make an impression on her. Her sense for power imbalances is strong, and she never fails to advocate for the weaker party when called to question. In this case, her personal feelings for Snape (which are complicated in their own right with or without this memory) are immaterial in her judgment. He is very obviously the victim in this scenario, and she would feel for him.

I do think though that she would sense Harry's discomfort, and she would try to comfort him. But Hermione is a bad liar and cannot hide her feelings well. Her silences would be loud, and Harry would, nonetheless, interpret them correctly as her judgment over his father.

On the use of mudblood, I don't think she would be all that surprised tbh. She already knows that he was a Death Eater, so his bigotry wouldn't be all that shocking to her I don't think. It would certainly not be enough to overcome the fact that he is currently fighting against Voldemort on their side and that Dumbledore trusts him wholeheartedly. She would honor this change, and she wouldn't hesitate to remind Harry and Ron of this should it come to that.

(Tangentially, OotP is crucially the year she spends advocating for Kreacher, even as he called her a mudblood as much as he could. For as much as this is a slur against her, she does not react very strongly to it (Harry and Ron often has more violent reactions to this word being used against her). She is not yet at a point where "mudblood" feels quite so personal or frightening. The oppression she experiences is not quite integrated to her psyche. I don't think this changes much - I doubt her reaction to Snape would change all that much even if she did take it more personally - but it is worth noting where her feelings on "mudblood" are at this point in time.)

CONCLUSION:

Basically, Ron's approach to justice is very relational and emotional while Hermione's is much more cerebral and big-picture. Ron's feelings about Snape and his desire to comfort Harry would lead him while Hermione would set her (and Harry's) feelings aside to look at the situation more objectively.

Hope this answers your question anon!

[celestiall0tus]

Into Another World - Foxes

Table of Contents

            Gateways in the sitting room between worlds lit up. Portals spun and people emerged from them all in various fox-themed outfits. They all exchanged cautious glances as they sized one another up until Vixen took a long drag from her false cigarette.

            “How curious. Other little kits. Never thought I’d see others,” Vixen purred.

            “How is this even possible?” Of Virtue and Sin Kagami demanded.

            Vixen shrugged as she sauntered over to the ring of couches. “Why worry? Well, you can. I’m going to relax, maybe see about making myself a drink so I can better enjoy the show. Perhaps a martini? I wonder if this place has what I need.”

            Prismatic lights swirled next to Vixen and created a martini. Vixen cooed and took it while the others stared in disbelief. Vixen casually took a sip and sat down.

            “Could I… could I get one too?” Kagami coughed.

            Prismatic lights swirled and created another martini. Kagami took it and sat next to Vixen.

            “My, quite the change of heart, kit,” Vixen cooed.

            “There doesn’t seem to be any immediate danger. Besides, it may not be the worst idea to share a drink with a fox like yourself,” Kagami admitted with a slight blush.

            Vixen chuckled and took another sip. “Come, little kits. No point standing around. Where’s the fun in that?”

            The others shrugged and joined Vixen and Kagami while All That Remained Volpina lingered behind.

            “Are you insane? We’re all deception. How can we even trust each other?” All That Remained Volpina demanded.

            Miraculous AU Volpina snickered. “Seems like a little kit hasn’t learned her lesson yet.”

            “Wait, what lesson is that?” Masetro asked.

            “Nothing is ever true. Even if we were to tell each other the truth, we’d doubt, even if it was true, we’d think it false. Thus is the paradox of deception and honesty. What is true? What is false? And to those questions we will never have the answers to,” Rapture Lila explained.

            “That’s stupid,” All That Remained Volpina hissed.

            “And the point of Trixx made all the more true,” Rena said.

            “I’m confused. How are we supposed to know what to believe then?” Fantastic Fox asked.

            “You don’t. You doubt everything, as you should. Never believe in everything. You’ll be played for a fool time and time again,” Absolution Volpina warned.

            “Better to be the cunning trickster than the gullible fool,” Void muttered.

            “Ugh! I’m bored! Can we talk about anything else?” Finesse demanded.

            “Uh, maybe a little about ourselves?” Fennec suggested.

            “Oh, yes! I would love to hear about you all. Especially the other mes,” Court of Miracles Lila cooed.

            “Then allow me to go first. I’m the dreaded Volpina, fox demon of Venice. Be warned to all who travel at night for she’ll steal your daughters to sacrifice them to her unholy father. Oh, the tales they spun. I only stole away a few daughters, but I never sacrificed them. Though they were often praying to their God in my presence,” Miraculous AU Volpina snickered.

            Vixen snorted. “Quite the menace you are.”

            “Oh, you flatter me. That was only when I needed to whet my appetite for flesh. I usually spent my time terrorizing big business, politicians, and petty bullies. I stole their secrets and would ruin their reputation for the people.”

            “Quite the noble cause, kit. What led you along that path?”

            “Trixx, of course. He taught me to keep the light in my heart. It was also because of him I learned to see the lies and deceptions of everyone around me. It annoyed me seeing those who thought they were bigger, better, ravenous pick on the kind fools. Especially when I occasionally fell in their sights. So, I repaid them with fear.”

            “What about Marinette? Have you made her pay for what she’s done to us?” All That Remained Volpina demanded.

            “Marinette? Oh! You mean Bugaboo! She’s hardly done anything to me. More the other way around. More than anything, I would like to tap that ass, but she’s not interested,” Miraculous AU Volpina said.

            All That Remained Volpina curled her lips. “How could you want to do that? She’s evil!”

            “Hardly. She’s a savior,” Absolution Volpina remarked.

            “Savior? How can you say that? She ruined my life! I never did anything to her, but she ruined everything! My lies weren’t hurting her, but she took it all personally and ruined me. Now I’ll ruin her!” All That Remained Volpina yowled.

            “Sounds like, how do they say it? A skill issue?” Court of Miracles Lila cooed.

            “Excuse me?” All That Remained Volpina hissed.

            “I’m just saying. If you can’t even lie well enough that one person sees through all your bullshit, you don’t seem worthy to be a fox. You aren’t even worthy of being a Lila,” Court of Miracles Lila pointed out.

            “Oh yeah? What about the other Lilas? What about the rest of you?” All That Remained Volpina demanded.

            “I work with my Marinette, our Ladybug. It is only with her that we can find salvation. Until she comes to save us, I work in the shadows protecting the people from the crazy butterfly woman we fight,” Absolution Volpina said.

            “I could give a rat’s ass about my Marinette and her Highborn privileged ass. Especially when I’ve been given a chance to become more thanks to Velze. I plan to embody all that is deception, all that is Trixx, and rise to become one of the elites. Then I can put my plan into motion,” Court of Miracles Lila said.

            “I’m supposed to be seducing my Marinette. My mother would like to have the royal family in our pocket. I was just going to mess around and fuck with people, but I’ve considered trying to sleep with her myself. I mean, why not?” Rapture Lila commented.

            “I wouldn’t blame you. She’s an absolute freak in the sheets. Or not. She’s not shy about where,” Finesse cooed.

            “You’re with your Marinette, pretty boy? Lucky!” Miraculous AU Volpina pouted.

            “Oh yeah. Sure, I’m lying to be with her, but it’s worth it if I can lay claim to what is rightfully mine,” Finesse boasted.

            “Enough! I’ve had it! Don’t talk about my cousin like that!” Void roared.

            “Wait, cousin? Bridgette?” Miraculous AU Volpina asked.

            “Damn right, and I’m done listening to this. It was passable listening to the girls, but I won’t tolerate a sleazeball boy talk about her like she’s his property. She is her own person! Fuck, my little Mar-Mar doesn’t even like boys!”

            “Oh, she doesn’t? Well, if you’d like, I can change that for you. I’m sure I can turn any Marinette straight,” Finesse boasted.

            Void snarled and grabbed Finesse’s throat. “That’s it. Time to take out the fucking trash.”

            Finesse yelped as Void lifted him up. A portal opened at the edge of the room. She tossed him through it, and he was gone.

            “Take out the other trash!” Miraculous AU Volpina yelled as she pointed to All That Remained Volpina.

            Void nodded as she grabbed All That Remained Volpina’s cloak and threw her through the portal. She shook herself off as the portal closed and she took a seat.

            “Finally! Can you believe there are foxes like that? Ugh. Disgusting. My condolences, Trixx,” Miraculous AU Volpina remarked.

            “Indeed. Now, let’s see. How about you, red fox? Tell us about yourself,” Vixen cooed.

            “Me? Oh, there’s not much to my story. We’re currently in a game that the kwamis play. Trixx approached me and gave me a way to be free. Both from my captors and to be myself,” Fantastic Fox admitted.

            “Captors? What happened?” Vixen asked.

            “Oh, just, I was out with friends and got super embarrassed. I ran off and a monster attack came. I was with Adrien, and we tried to run, but was cornered by Felix, who is under Colt’s complete control. He captured us and as someone, at the time, with no powers or anything, I was trapped. Now I keep up the illusion that I’m still trapped, when I’m actually free,” Fantastic Fox explained.

            “Oh! So, what plan do you have? What’s the lead up to your trick?” Miraculous AU Volpina asked.

            “Well, I want to get Felix to fall completely for me. I’m thinking maybe I can get him to muster some will to fight against Colt and assist us. It hasn’t been hard since Felix is already smitten with me. Though I do feel bad at times for tricking him like this. He’s very handsome and has a good heart, but, you know,” Fantastic Fox said.

            “Sounds like you do care for him more than you thought,” Vixen commented.

            “No! I mean, yes? I don’t know. I like him, but I also like Nath-,… I mean, Familiaris, but-!”

            “Wait! Nathan? As in, Nathaniel?” Miraculous AU Volpina asked.

            “W-what? No! No, not at-!”

            “Oh. My. Gosh! Sleuthy? Marc? It’s you!”

            “M-marc? No, I’m not-!”

            “Oh, it is you! It is you! I’d recognize you anywhere. Shame you spend your time chasing after an oblivious redhead like him.”

            “You too? Do all Marcs do this?” Court of Miracles Lila asked.

            “Not mine. Granted when I see him, he’s usually being ridden by the boss like a horse all while he howls like a bitch in heat,” Kagami commented.

            “What?” Fennec yelled.

            Fantastic Fox’s face turned beet red. “O-oh? Who… who is your boss?”

            Kagami created an illusionary image of a memory of her boss, Luka Couffaine. Maestro and Fantastic Fox’s jaw dropped, Rapture Lila catcalled, while Rena and Void raised their brows.

            “Is that… Luka?” Maestro asked.

            “Indeed. He’s my boss, only because he has the black cat. It makes him one that you don’t want to cross, and the one that everyone wants,” Kagami answered.

            “Everyone? Really?” Fennec challenged.

            “Well, of course. Look at that man. He’s gorgeous! Well, not as sexy as the Luka I know, but this one is a solid 10,” Rapture Lila cooed.

            “He looks like a little bitch,” Void hissed.

            “He is,” Kagami agreed.

            “Do you seek his company as well, kit?” Vixen asked.

            “No, but I’ve seen all the places his dick has been, and I don’t want to partake. My eyes are set on a different prize. A challenge to secure, but one I’m confident I’ll win,” Kagami declared.

            “Oh, yeah? Who would that be?” Miraculous AU Volpina cooed.

            Kagami changed the illusion to Of Virtue and Sin Juleka. Miraculous AU Volpina’s jaw dropped, Rapture Lila catcalled, and Vixen whistled.

            “She’s quite the beauty. Is no one pursuing her too?” Vixen asked.

            “No. She’s the boss’s sister. He warned us all that he’d kill any of us without hesitation should we lay even a finger on her. As such, no one goes near her, except for me.”

            “Hot damn! She has been well endowed with beauty!” Rapture Lila praised.

            “Where can I get one of those?” Miraculous AU Volpina asked.

            “Can we please not talk about my sister that way?” Maestro asked.

            “Sister? You’re a Luka?” Kagami asked.

            “I… yes. What of it?”

            “You look pathetic.”

            “Hey! I like it. Besides, Trixx doesn’t mind. He likes it too.”

            “How did you end up with such a kwami?”

            “I found him with Barkk when I was out with my boyfriend.”

            “Ugh, boring! Hey, you! You’ve been quiet,” Rapture Lila said.

            “Not much to say. I enjoy watching over talking. But I am soulbound with Trixx. My soul has been bound to him throughout the lives I have lived. Whenever I live, we will find each other,” Rena explained.

            “Woah! That’s so cool!” Miraculous AU Volpina yelled.

            Rena shrugged.

            Miraculous AU Volpina hummed. “What about you, short, dark, and scary?”

            “I’m cursed with deception. All my life, even if I spoke true, no one would believe me. Well, the foolish believed me. I was set to be the ladybug after making a deal for my Mar-Mar, but that changed when Tikki wanted Mar-Mar over me. Trixx made a new deal that he’d give up Mar-Mar, but he wanted me. So, a bargain was struck,” Void explained.

            “That’s sounds rough. I don’t think I could handle such a curse myself,” Vixen commented.

            “It was… is not easy, but you learn to just live with it,” Void muttered.

            “Well, this got depressing. You, fennec fox looking shrimp, what about you?” Miraculous AU Volpina yapped.

            “Me? Uh, not much to say. I’m an artist and was given my miraculous by Bloody Bug,” Fennec answered.

            “Ugh! Boring! And what about you? You gonna sip on that martini all day, or you gonna share something with the class?” Miraculous AU Voplina snapped.

            Vixen chuckled. She finished her drink and stood. She sauntered over to an open space around the couches. The room shifted and gave her a stage and mic. She smiled and took her place.

            “I have no tales of heroics. No villains to befell. No holds to land or tangible power. I have lived a simple life pursuing a passion that has left its own legacy. One I impart on you all,” Vixen announced.

            Vixen took the mic and sang. She used the power of illusions to create a phantom band to back up her vocals. Everyone turned and watched her perform, enraptured by her display. She grinned and used her powers again to spin illusions into scenes she sang about.

            Maestro’s eyes lit up as he listened closely. He caught onto the melody and joined her illusionary band with his own illusions. Vixen smiled softly and welcomed him to her stage. They worked in tandem as they put on a concert for everyone and took turns singing whatever came to their minds. They switched up along to romantic ballads, swing, jazz, heartbreak, and everything in between. They finished and took a bow while everyone gave an uproarious applause.

            “Encore!” Kagami called.

            “Yeah, encore!” Miraculous AU Volpina yelled.

            “Encore! Encore! Encore!” Rapture Lila added.

            Vixen chuckled. “Well, little kit, what do you say? Do we give them another show?”

            Maestro beamed. “Yeah!”

            “Alright, my darling foxes! One more number!”

            Everyone cheered as Vixen and Maestro started up again. Miraculous AU Volpina, Rapture Lila, and Court of Miracles Lila added their own illusions as they bopped along. Absolution Volpina, Void, and Rena leaned back and listened. Kagami’s eyes were glued to Vixen. Maestro invited Fantastic Fox to dance with him, and Fantastic Fox joined him. Fennec grumbled and watched Fantastic Fox and Maestro dance. Fennec’s eyes glued to them until Maestro dipped Fantastic Fox and kissed him.

            Fennec’s eyes widened and his jaw dropped. Fantastic Fox was shocked for a moment before he returned the kiss. Miraculous AU Volpina, Rapture Lila, and Court of Miracles Lila all catcalled and whistled.

            “Get some, boys!” Rapture Lila called.

            “Don’t be shy. Show some tongue!” Miraculous AU Volpina goaded.

            “Don’t encourage all that!” Fennec yelled.

            “Why not? They seem to be reciprocating. What’s the issue?” Rena asked.

            “Yeah, why? You jealous?” Miraculous AU Volpina challenged.

            “No! I just… I’ve seen enough. I’m leaving!” Fennec declared.

            A portal opened on a wall near Fennec. He approached it, looked back at Maestro and Fantastic Fox, before he stepped through it.

            “He was so jealous,” Miraculous AU Volpina cooed.

            “Totally,” the Lilas said.

            Vixen chuckled as she watched the boys. They shared a final kiss before reality set in and Maestro pulled Fantastic Fox up.

            “S-sorry about that. I… I got a little caught up in the moment,” Maestro admitted.

            “No! I mean, no need to apologize. I… it was very romantic,” Fantastic Fox said.

            Maestro smiled and took Fantastic Fox’s hand. “Only the best for you.”

            Fantastic Fox’s eyes lit up. He smiled, hugged Maestro, and kissed him. Miraculous AU Volpina and the pair of Lilas catcalled and whistled again. Vixen sighed and shook her head. She stepped off the stage and headed towards a portal that opened up.

            “Wait! Where are you going?” Kagami called.

            “This has been fun, but this old girl can’t perform quite like I used to. I need to rest, but this was fun. Farewell, everyone. And, kit? Good luck in your hunt,” Vixen cooed.

            Kagami stood and rushed over to Vixen, but she stepped through the portal. Kagami halted and uttered every curse under the sun. Absolution Volpina, Void, and Rena all stood and left through their own portals. Maestro and Fantastic Fox shared a pair of long goodbyes before they went their separate ways.

            Volpina and the pair of Lilas stood. They all went through their own portals, leaving Kagami alone. Kagami sighed before she left too.

Patreon || Discord || Ko-Fi

[ga-yuu]

Kurama and Ibuki Sequel Preview

A Karasu Tengu that doesn't understand humans and an Oni who laughs and plays with humans.

A former adopted child and an adoptive parent----but their relationship is broken.

Ibuki: "You're the one who gave the oracle, Yoshino."

Ibuki: "It seems that I will need your help in the upcoming battle...."

Ibuki: "Will the Shrine Maiden of the Underworld give any kind of reward to the man chosen as a hero?"

Kurama: "Are you still prepared to throw yourself into the fray again?"

Kurama: "If you want to run away with your tail between your legs, do it now."

Kurama: "If I see you trembling like a fool on the battlefield, I'll kill you first before I kill the corpses."

The dangerous demons play with me and I was swallowed up in the vortex of battle.

The three of us, were not on the same page.

.........

Yoshino: "Ibuki...I trusted you."

Ibuki: "I know. And I told you that your trust in me feels surprisingly good."

Ibuki: "So much so that...."

Ibuki: "I want to tear it into shreds and trample on them."

A haunting instinct that is too strong for me, a human being to resist, and...

.............

Kurama: "...You're useful in your own way, but you're more interesting than a lot of people lying around."

Kurama: "So I allowed you to call me by my name and I remembered yours. That should be enough."

Kurama: "Why would you be happy or sad over the lives of helpless human soldiers who are of no use to you?"

Yoshino: "....After all, there is a difference between demons and humans."

Kurama: "You're right."

A barrier of race looms between us.

............

Then....

Ibuki: "Life is just a long, long time to pass before you die anyways."

Ibuki: "If I end up being bad here, that's fine with me."

Ibuki: "We'll just dance and play till the end, right? Kurama."

Kurama: "Is playing important? More important than your own life and soul-----"

Kurama: "You never take it seriously....the way you are right now is so irritating that I want to kill you."

Their relationship began to change when Ibuki was cursed for defending me.

Yoshino: "Are you worried about Ibuki?"

Kurama: "Not really. But if Ibuki is willing to give up then...."

Kurama: "I will drag the caster out and forcibly sew this man's soul to this world."

Ibuki: "Kurama."

Kurama: "And then, I will lead you by the hand."

Ibuki: "So that's it after all."

Ibuki: "Well, as you can see, I'm a dependable demon. I'm not that weak for my adopted chick to worry about me."

------Going through the fluctuating emotions.

The end of my heart trembles with emotions for the first time-----

Kurama: "Yoshino. You must only worry about me."

Kurama: "Your eyes...only needs to look at me."

Yoshino: "Ngh....."

Ibuki: "Good for you, Yoshino."

Yoshino: "W-Why?"

Ibuki: "You've managed to tame a powerful demon, is what I would have said, but..."

Ibuki: "You managed yourself in being a favorite toy...."

Ibuki: "For Kurama and even...for me."

............

We face our trials with our own thoughts and feelings.

Kurama: "You are strong. I will not allow you to doubt my word."

Kurama: "Don't ever again undermine the spark of life that I have recognized in you."

By embracing different strengths----our hearts connect.

Yoshino: "W-Why did you kiss me...."

Kurama: "Because you cry."

Yoshino: "That's not an answer!"

Kurama: "I don't know what answers you're looking for."

Kurama: "If there's an answer. It's probably because your tears make me so happy."

Kurama: "I want to see more. Your crying face, your not crying face....everything."

..............

Ibuki: "I thought you said you don't want to be held by someone you didn't like. Don't tell me your heart is already broken?"

Yoshino: "No.."

Yoshino: "Because I love Ibuki...I'm not afraid even if you hold me to push me away." (are we doing this again?)

Ibuki: "Ngh...."

Yoshino: "Ibuki....Mm.."

He can live alone. But surely cannot laugh alone.

Faced with despair, the heat we shared changes him....

Ibuki: "I'll admit it. This game is mine to lose."

Ibuki: "You don't have to be alone."

...........

At the end of our wounded love story, we learn...

That love is stronger than death.

Kurama: "I think this new day I'm living with you is beautiful."

Kurama: "Don't forget. You taught me that heart."

.............

Ibuki: "Are you happy just to watch me? Come here."

Ibuki: "I will love you extravagantly with everything I have."

One where two sweetly prodigal destinies run together.

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Devotional Hours Within the Bible

by J.R. Miller

Joshua the High Priest (Zechariah 3:1-10)

Zechariah was a contemporary of Haggai. His prophetic career seems to have been brief. His mission was that of an encourager. The people in trying to rebuild Jerusalem had become greatly discouraged. A deep depression had settled on them. Zechariah sought to kindle hope in their hearts and to induce them to undertake the work of building. In visions which are interpreted by the angel, the prophet gives his message.

Our passage gives one of the visions. “He showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of Jehovah, and Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary.” This is a strange picture the high priest in his place before God, and Satan standing beside him. We understand at once that Satan is not there for any friendly purpose. He is never anywhere for a friendly purpose in behalf of a godly man, or for the good of the world. No matter in what guise Satan appears, or what his profession may be his real object is always sinister and wicked.

Probably if we could see spirits with these eyes of ours we should many times behold pictures like this good people in good places with good intent and Satan standing at their right hand. When we go to church, Satan no doubt keeps near us or has some of his messengers near us, not because he enjoys going to church, nor because he likes to be with us but because he has some evil design on us. He is always our adversary, whatever he may profess to be never our friend .

Life is full of insidious dangers. Ofttimes when we think we are safest we are in the greatest peril. Many of our gravest dangers are unsuspected, because they hide in the sunshine of our sweetest blessings. Prosperity has its perils, which are worse in many cases than what we dread so in adversity or misfortune. Disease is more apt to lurk in a soft, dreamy atmosphere, balmy and pleasant than in the sharp, chill, wintry air of January. More demons hide in luxurious conditions, than in circumstances of hardship and honest poverty. So it is in spiritual things. Living in a church would not keep the devil away from one’s ear. The minister in his pulpit or at the communion table is not sheltered from the assaults of Satan, the adversary. When the priest and the prophet stand before God, Satan always stands beside them!

While Satan was standing beside Joshua, so was the angel of Jehovah. That counteracted the danger. Satan could not harm the godly priest, while the Lord was taking care of him. Satan will no doubt follow us wherever we go, even intruding himself into the holiest places. But if we are where duty calls us or leads us we know that God is beside us as well as Satan, and that no harm can come to us so long as we trust in Him and are faithful and obedient. If in the picture Satan alone stood, unseen, beside God’s priest it would be full of alarm, for no mortal is a match for Satan. But while the Lord also is present there is a safe shelter into which the imperiled soul may flee. “God is our refuge … a very present help in trouble!” “The name of the Lord is a strong tower ; the righteous runs into it, and is safe!”

The best way we can answer those who would harm us is to let God answer for us. “And the LORD said to Satan: I, the LORD, reject your accusations, Satan. Yes, the LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebukes you.” The Lord is the friend of His people and will not stand by inactive, when Satan is plotting against any one of them. He is the defender especially of the defenseless.

This characteristic of the divine love is revealed in all parts of the Scriptures. God is the God of the weak. In the Mosaic laws, definite provision was made for the widow and the orphan. Something was to be left for them, when the harvests were gathered. The poor were put under special protection, to shield them from the oppression of the rich and the strong. Every child of God is an object of peculiar divine care. The weakest of them all is as safe in God’s keeping, even amid the greatest dangers as safe as if they were already in heaven!

In a great flood in one of the rivers of the West, some men in a skiff saw an infant’s cradle floating in the middle of the wide, turbulent river, and, rowing to it, found in it a little baby sleeping sweetly, in quiet peace, wrapped warm and dry in its blankets. No harm had come to the child in the wild torrent. Just so does God hold His little ones in the midst of earth’s wildest dangers. No harm can come to one of them while nestling in His bosom.

The form of the rebuke here suggests that we may safely leave our defense in the Lord’s hands when Satan assails us and when anyone would do us harm.

It is probable that Joshua did not see his adversary standing beside him, and did not see the Lord nor hear His word of rebuke to Satan. This suggests that many a time when we are not aware of our danger the Lord has saved us from it by His own hand, delivering us from the hand of the adversary. The only true safety for us is in trusting in God, for ofttimes we do not know when danger is near; and if we have not God to care for us we must perish! True faith is simply doing our duty and letting Christ look after the keeping of our life.

“Is not this a brand plucked out of the fire?” A “brand” is a piece of wood, charred, almost burned up but then snatched out of the fire. Though so nearly destroyed, it yet has wood in it and may be capable of noble uses. A “brand plucked out of the fire” may seem hopeless yet it may have in it the possibilities of great usefulness and beauty.

This “remnant” of returned Jews was only a brand plucked from the fire of captivity but it was not dead, and under God’s gentle culture it would become a nation and be great and strong. We know well what did become of this brand the Messiah, and at length Christianity. We ought never to despise nor despair of any life that has immortality in it.

The vision was suggestive. “Take off his filthy garments.” This was an acted parable. We may read a good deal of gospel teaching into it and yet not wrest the Scripture. The filthy garments were a true picture of Joshua’s moral condition in the eyes of the Lord God. The “adversary” meant to prove that the high priest was not a holy man. The Lord did not question this charge. But He commanded those who stood by to take off those filthy garments, saying then to Joshua, “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you!” So the change of clothing meant more than just that. It was a picture of what the redemption of Christ does for all those who trust Him as Savior. It finds them clad in filthy garments. Satan stands by and accuses them. “They are not holy,” he says; “not worthy of heaven or everlasting life. Look at their sins!” Very true in one sense. None are holy none are worthy of heaven. But Jesus died for sinners. He made an atonement for sin. He put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And He comes and strips off the filthy garments of the flesh, and clothes those who believe on Him in the beautiful clothing of righteousness. He says, “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you!”

The parable is continued: “So they put a clean priestly turban on his head and dressed him in new clothes.” They put upon him the priestly dress. The mitre had a gold plate across the forehead, with the inscription, “Holiness to the Lord.” This indicated the sacred character of him who wore it set apart for God. It also signified that he on whose brow the words were shining, was a forgiven man unworthy in himself but cleansed and accepted. The garments were also priestly garments, beautiful and clean.

Christ’s redeemed ones are a “kingdom of priests.” When we are received by Him we are clad in priestly turban and new apparel. We are to be holy. Every Christian life should be a transfigured life. Forgiveness means cleansing. The putting away of sins means not merely acquittal, the remission of penalty. It is the putting away of sin itself out of the life. This wonderful result is accomplished by the entrance into the heart of the Holy Spirit, who, making His dwelling place there, transforms the whole being .

A promise of honor and power is given: “If you follow my ways and obey my requirements, then you will be given authority over my Temple and its courtyards. I will let you walk in and out of my presence along with these others standing here.” The way to rise to higher places is to be faithful in the humbler places in which our lot is cast. All promotion depends upon faithfulness. Unless we do well the smaller things which God gives us to do He will not entrust greater things to us. The man who was faithful and diligent in the use of his two talents saw the two become four, and found himself put in trust also with new responsibilities.

We are specially concerned with the lesson that faithfulness in the common duties of the passing days is the most important thing of life with us. We need not seek promotion, nor think of honor or reward; we should desire and strive only to be true and loyal to God and to the duty He gives. Doing this, He will lead us step by step into the larger service or greater usefulness as He may find us ready.

The words take a prophetic turn. “I will bring forth, my servant the Branch .” Just then the Jewish nation was like the mere stump of a tree which had been cut down. There was no beauty and but little sign of life. The glory of David’s days had failed. The nation was now in captivity. A few of the people had returned to their own old land, and there was a feeble effort made to renew the old national and religious life. But all this seemed very small and unpromising. It did not appear to human eyes that the ancient glory could ever be seen again. Yet here is a promise that out of this mere stump should come a “Branch,” a shoot, which should grow into great luxuriousness of life, far surpassing the splendor of the original tree which once had been so noble and so fruitful. We know how this promise was fulfilled in Jesus Christ, who came of this lowly stock, and whose life and glory now fills earth and heaven.

Prosperity would follow: “In that day each of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and fig tree, declares the LORD Almighty.” This is a picture of peace under the vine and under the fig-tree. It suggests quiet and security, joy and gladness. The gospel brings peace!

[fluentmoviequoter]

to being ghosts.

Chapter 2 - Ghosts of the Night

Chapter Warnings: angst with a tiny sliver of fluff, fem!reader getting to know Victor & crew, mentions of death and executions, incorrect depictions of hacking, more world-building (this is additional story foundation, the plot picks up in ch. 3). 5.8k+ words.

The plane lands in San Francisco in the middle of the night. As the witching hour approaches, you remember what Daniels said a few hours ago.

“Vale is mine.”

Your entire plan relies on Victor, and though you doubt Daniels would be able to kill him or harm Victor in any way, you still prefer to operate with caution. Moving slowly and quietly through the dark, you feel like a ghost as you slip by unannounced, leaving the plane and your partner behind. You must find Victor first, or the world falls to men like Daniels, and the New World Charter gets precisely what they want.

Victor Vale won’t be easy to find, that you know. Even with one of his companions telling you which city they’re in, you don't know where to look first. With only a few hours until sunrise, you skirt around San Francisco, the dark metropolis symbolizing what once was and a harbinger of what is to come.

✯✯✯✯✯

“I’m leaving,” Victor announces, though Mitch is the only one awake to hear him.

“Call if you need help,” Mitch replies.

“The absence of functioning cell towers should make that easy.”

“You’re smart, find a carrier pigeon or something.”

Victor rolls his eyes, stopping with his hand on the doorknob.

“If I don’t come back-“

“You will,” Mitch interjects.

“If I don’t come back, take care of Sydney and Dol.”

Mitch turns slowly, his face somber as he nods. “I will, Vic. But don’t make me prove it.”

“I’ll do my best.”

The door closes behind Victor’s trench coat, and Mitch swears California has never been so cold.

✯✯✯✯✯

San Francisco is huge, and though you know what you’re looking for, it’s not easy to find a ghost town in the middle of the woods in the dead of night. With each passing minute, your hope dwindles; the question of what will happen if you fail to find Victor has numerous answers, and none of them are good. Stopping behind a thick tree line, you take a few deep breaths. 

East.

The idea isn’t your own, like a ghost directing you towards fellow ghosts. You go east, even though you know that if you are wrong, you are running straight toward the danger you are trying to eradicate. Maybe, just maybe, things get better from here.

Your chuckle at the overly hopeful thought breaks through the darkness.

✯✯✯✯✯

“Where’s Vic?” Sydney asks, rubbing her eyes.

“He went out for a few minutes. What are you doing awake?” Mitch replies.

Sydney shrugs, her fingers grazing Dol’s head as she looks away. Mitch knows she’s avoiding answering the question for some reason but also knows Victor has a better chance of convincing her to talk.

“Is he coming back?”

Mitch remembers Victor’s words about what to tell Sydney: Not a word more than we have to.

“Of course he is,” Mitch answers. “He made a promise to protect you, right? Then he’ll be back.”

“Did you tell him what he wanted to know, about the agent you talked to?”

 “We didn’t talk. But, no, I didn’t.”

“What if Victor finds them, and- and hurts them before they can help us?”

Mitch sighs, turning back toward the window. “It’s a risk we have to take. I can tell Victor everything about her but trusting her is his decision.”

“Her?” Sydney asks, a smile growing on her face. “We’re doomed.”

✯✯✯✯✯

You approach a suburb of San Francisco after a long night of walking, and it looks like it was abandoned long before the riots. Walking down the small area previously called “Main Street,” though it’s more of a main building, you doubt anyone else would choose to wait here.

A small collection of houses is barely visible in the distance, and the minutes tick by, closer to sunrise than you realize. Maybe you could rest for a bit before starting your search anew. As you move toward the first house, you pull your NWA badge from your pocket, staring at it and wishing it was different. With your focus on the badge, you don’t notice anything in your path until you run into something.

Or someone you realize as you look up.

“Don’t move,” he says darkly, his pale eyes and blond hair contrasting his dark clothing. “You’re NWA?”

“You’re Victor Vale,” you breathe out.

Furrowing your brows, you wonder how you know that and then ask yourself if you’re right.

“You know my name. What’s yours?”

“I- how do I know your name?”

“Tell me how you found me. You have less than a minute before you can’t say anything.”

“I am just trying to help.”

“That’s not an answer,” Victor says through his teeth. “Why are you here?”

You say your name with your hands raised, your badge still in your right hand. Victor sees it, and combined with your name, he remembers something he was never supposed to know.

2 Days Ago

If Mitch isn’t willing to give him the answers and information he needs, Victor will find it himself. Mitch’s unchanging insistence that this NWA agent he communicated with is trustworthy and can help them makes Victor curious. There is no surefire way to know if someone is good, but if Mitch is convinced, there has to be evidence. Or so Victor hopes.

Pulling Mitch’s laptop from the counter, Victor sits in the dark and types in the password. He scoffs at Mitch’s failure to maintain decent cyber security as the documents on the desktop load.

Opening the NWA file, Victor narrows his eyes as he scans the document. It looks normal enough to him, though one name is formatted differently. Yours.

Present Day

After you say your name, you suddenly feel like it’s easier to breathe, a barely-there pain vanishing as Victor realizes who you are. If you didn’t know his name before, that would be all the evidence you needed to identify him as the NWA’s most wanted EO.

“Why?” Victor demands, pulling you from your thoughts. “Why are EOs worth risking your ordinary, perfect little life? What makes us worthy of treason and getting yourself killed?”

You nod as he speaks, his voice as dark as the forest behind him.

“It’s not about what happens to me, it never has been,” you answer carefully but honestly. “EOs aren’t so different, and you know it. Just because you can do something that scares people like Smoak doesn’t mean you deserve to die or live in constant fear and hiding. I would do anything for good people, including EOs, no matter what the government says or does to me.”

“That’s the what, not the why.”

“Because this isn’t freedom, Mr. Vale. This is just another dictator taking out what he is scared of, anything different than him. He’s no different than Hitler, any of the others. And someone has to do something; I can’t sit on the sidelines and watch innocent people be murdered because they died and came back a little different. It’s not right, and if I can make a difference, why shouldn’t I?”

Victor drops his eyes, gazing at your badge before inquiring, “Why me?”

“You’re the most wanted EO. But I will protect you and your friends however I can.”

At the mention of his ‘friends,’ Victor has to decide if he can trust you. He can take you out with a thought, but taking you near Mitch and Sydney is a greater decision, and one that he cannot make lightly. 

You toss your badge on the ground at his feet. “I didn’t want this position. If I could have walked away, I would have, but I couldn’t. Not when I know that my job was putting me in the place to help, to get EOs out of the line of fire. There is a chance to get the world back from the New World Charter; tell me you see that.”

Victor takes a deep breath, his chest rising and falling as he considers your words and actions. You seem genuine, but part of Victor thinks this could still be a trap. So, he gives you an out.

“If you do this,” he begins slowly, “turn your back on all of them – on your country – for us, there is no going back. You will be a ghost.”

Your lips twitch up, the beginning of a smile. “I’ve been a ghost for years, but it’s finally time to do something with that invisibility.”

Victor nods. “If you’re sure. There’s a house about a mile from here where we’ve been waiting. For you, presumably.”

“I’m honored,” you reply, walking beside him. “This makes you a ghost, too, then?”

Victor hums.

“So, I’m in good company,” you muse. “Do you have a ghost name? I know it’s cliché, but can I be Casper?”

Sighing, Victor wonders what it’s like to be able to trust people and show who you really are.

✯✯✯✯✯

The earliest rays of light have just begun to shine over the horizon, turning the inside of the Gulfstream an orange hue. Daniels blinks his eyes open, waking quickly when he remembers where he is and why. Somewhere outside the window beside him, Victor Vale and his EO companions are hiding.

He calls your name, standing when there is no reply. After walking through the plane and failing to find you, Daniels curses and kicks the table beside the laptop you used to track Vale.

“Stupid girl,” he mutters, snatching the computer from the floor and failing to unlock it.

Concerned about what he will say when Smoak checks in, he sticks to his original plan: as far as anyone needs to know, he left to search for Vale and protect you, safe on the plane. Valiance is the best cover for narcissism, he decides. That concern makes way for anger quickly, though, and he abandons the laptop to open the plane’s door.

San Francisco looks different in the light, a deserted metropolis filled with what was lost in the transition to the New World. Daniels doesn’t see the symbolism, of course, too determined to find you and the EO trash you seem to want to protect.

✯✯✯✯✯

Victor is silent as he leads you through the woods, only glancing at you when he switches his path. You can tell he is reluctant, an internal battle occurring in his mind. He has no reason to trust you, though you are glad he is. No matter how long it takes, you will show him that you meant every word and will fight until your last breath.

“I’ll do whatever you want, anything you want,” you offer quietly. “But I can’t do this alone. Saving the rest of the EOs and taking down the New World Charter won’t be easy.”

You receive no reply, chewing the inside of your lip as you watch the ghost beside you. Victor is good, deep down, and you hope he can see that you are too.

A small house, likely a winter retreat or something of the kind, appears in a small thicket. Victor stops you, an arm extended in front of your chest as he turns toward you.

“You show me the smallest sign that you lied about who you are or why you’re here, or if I start thinking this was a trap… I will not hesitate to kill you,” Victor threatens, his voice even and serious.

“I understand. This is your life, and I know that I have to earn your trust. Like I said, I’ll do whatever you need me to do. Blindfold me, make me wait somewhere else, whatever you want. Your cautiousness is your privilege, and I know the risk I’m running if I misstep.”

Victor grumbles something under his breath before leading you to the door. He stops with his hand on the doorknob, his shoulders tensing before he gestures for you to enter first.

As you walk before him, you think about how you never felt this safe in front of Daniels. With him, you were concerned about getting a bullet in the back, but Victor’s presence behind you is a blanket of safety.

“Hey,” Mitch says, adding your name with a smile. “Thanks for coming.”

At your confused look, he adds, “I saw your picture. You’ll be glad to know the pictures have been scrubbed from most downloads.”

“Not yours, though, you’re better than that,” you deduce.

“You get it,” Mitch jokes.

A young girl stands in the doorway, looking between you and Victor as she clings to a large black dog. You recognize her from the file, the suspected EO that you knew you’d give your life to protect. Seeing her reinforces your belief that even without knowing her name, you would do everything and then more to keep her away from the NWA and safe.

Victor nods, a silent acknowledgment that everything is okay for now.

“I’m Sydney,” she says, stepping toward you.

You introduce yourself, offering your hand to shake. After Sydney releases it, the dog licks your hand.

“Nice to meet you too,” you say, kneeling to pet him. “I didn’t know you had a dog.”

“Dol,” Sydney tells you.

“You didn’t know?” Mitch repeats.

“The file listed two associates, just descriptions of you and Sydney, but apparently no one else was lucky enough to meet Dol here.”

As they arrange themselves around you, you can see they have been living a relatively normal life in this house, and you hate what you must do next.

“You’re all going to have to stay inside for now,” you tell them.

Victor’s unimpressed look alerts you that you’ll have to convince them it is more dangerous out there than they realize. Alone in this little pocket of domesticity, they are likely unaware of the degree of the assault targeting EOs across the world.

“I- I lost an EO a while back,” you admit. “Since I was assigned to Task O, I made sure to find them before my partner and send them somewhere safe. Then I would fake their deaths.”

“I told you!” Sydney interjects, looking at Victor. “There was too much life. The faked deaths were creating a rift in how much life I could sense.”

You glance at Victor with your eyebrows raised. He tilts his head to the side, a tiny movement.

“Sydney can raise the dead,” he tells you.

Your eyes widen as you look back at Sydney. “Whoa.”

She nods, pleased with your impressed reaction. “There’s connections, points that you have to pull together, and a few weeks ago I started sensing that there were more than there should have been. But if the world thought that the EOs were dead, but weren’t, I guess that explains it.”

“Continue,” Victor demands, gesturing for Sydney to pipe down.

“Okay, so I was hiding them, essentially, and lying to my partner. But there was this one EO that he got to first. When he radioed that he’d killed him, I didn’t know what to do. I thought that it was hopeless, that for every one I saved, the NWA would kill two or three more. But he had an EO partner, a guy called Rock. I managed to find Rock and keep him from taking out the entire city before I sent him to a safe place.”

“You have no way of knowing if those EOs ever made it where you sent them,” Victor argues. “For all you know, they’re all gone.”

“They’re not,” Sydney interjects. “I wouldn’t be able to feel them if that were true.”

“My point is, it may still be four versus the world. That’s not a plausible fight. If those EOs aren’t where you sent them, changed their minds, whatever, you’re right back where you started.”

“Not entirely true,” you whisper. “I didn’t have you on my side then.”

Sydney moves closer to Mitch, both convinced by your guilt at losing an EO. 

“Please just listen to my idea. Give me one chance and if you still think it’s hopeless or impossible, I will leave,” you beg. “Please.”

Victor thinks he can handle whatever comes his way, and he can protect Mitch and Sydney without your help. But, as he looks at them, he decides to give you a chance. What harm can a chance do?

✯✯✯✯✯

Daniels completes a grid search of downtown San Francisco, the empty cityscape more reminiscent of a post-apocalyptic world than the lies the New World Charter is spreading about the coming changes. At the end of the first day since you abandoned your partner, Daniels uses his government-provided satellite phone to call Director Smoak.

“Smoak,” he answers.

“Director Smoak, this is Agent Daniels. My partner and I are in San Francisco to locate Victor Vale,” he explains.

“Very well. How are you doing?”

“All due respect, sir, but I didn’t trust her to join this fight. She seemed put off by your warnings about him as well, so I’ve taken point on this, and she is working from the plane.”

“An understandable and commendable leadership choice on your part, Agent Daniels. Keep me updated.”

Daniels ends the call and begins wondering how he will explain your death. After your treacherous actions, defying a direct order, he doesn’t plan to give you a chance to explain yourself. 

Victor Vale, however, could take the blame. He may be able to put people in pain by seeing them, but can he take an entire army on at once?

Daniels smiles to himself as his plan comes together. A ticket is in his future, regardless of what happens to you.

✯✯✯✯✯

Throughout the first two days in the safe house with Victor, Sydney, Mitch, and Dol, you get to know each of them better. 

“Wait,” Victor calls as you follow Sydney to bed. “A moment?”

Sydney disappears down the hall, and you turn toward Victor. The movement is a bit too sudden, and he mumbles, “Don’t.”

You stop, laying your hands across your stomach where he can see them. “Sorry.”

Victor watches you closely as he steps back. “What did you do before the NWA?”

“I was a police officer. Apparently I had promise, and when the department was shut down, the NWA decided that my record was worthy of attention.”

Victor’s jaw tightens at the mention of the New World, and you duck your chin.

“What was so great about your record?”

“I- honestly, I don’t know. I made a few arrests, but for the most part, I wasn’t an exemplary cop. I did it for the people, which you’d think would make me a terrible choice.”

“If you’d said no?”

You interlace your fingers together, and Victor watches your every move, prepared to drop you if you move too suddenly or make an unwarranted comment.

“There’s a place, it’s called the Canada Region by most people. It’s where they send agents who don’t agree with the ideals or ignore their orders. No one ever comes back from the Canada Region.”

“So, you risk your life for people you want to see taken down.”

“I know it sounds stupid, and maybe it is, but it seems like a chance to do something that makes it all better. Hopeless dreaming, perhaps, but at least I tried, even if I fail.”

“Failing isn’t the worst part of how that would end.”

“Save one life, and it’s worth mine,” you argue, shrugging.

Victor shakes his head, clearly thinking you’re wrong or unfounded in your beliefs. He doesn’t say anything though, as he leads you to your new bedroom.

“Night, Casper,” he mutters, so low you can barely hear it. “Be careful.”

Coming from anyone else, you’d question their motives in telling you to be careful as you go to sleep, but from Victor Vale, it’s both a necessary sentiment and a warning.

✯✯✯✯✯

When Victor walks into the kitchen, he stops when he sees you and Sydney sitting together. Sydney clearly likes you, even though you’ve only known each other for a few days. Victor assumes it has something to do with having another girl around; he’s never been one for making friends easily, regardless of what they have in common.

“What’s it like now, on the other side of where we hide?” Sydney asks you.

Victor hasn’t told you he and Mitch are keeping things from Sydney, only telling her one side of the truth, but you seem to know.

“It’s not great. A lot of cities were evacuated, but people found new places to live and they’re doing the best they can,” you answer, telling her some of the truth. “If you want to hear cool stories though, I’ve got a lot of fictional book knowledge and childhood stories,” you add.

Dol climbs onto the couch beside you, yet another resident who trusts you, as you tell Sydney about your favorite book and the world it depicts. As you distract Sydney, Victor grows more convinced that you are on the right side of this fight, even if you’re using a bad thing to get into the fight.

✯✯✯✯✯

Victor’s hand wraps around your bicep, tugging you into his room as you try to walk by.

“Tell me about Task O,” he requests, his hand slowly falling from your arm.

You take a shaky breath as you begin to answer, ready to tell the whole truth, no matter how ugly it is, how bad it makes you look, or what Victor decides to do to you when he learns what your fellow agents are doing to people like him.

“Task O is for all things ordinary, as I’m sure you know. At its simplest level, the task force is supposed to track down EOs and eliminate them. The director, Smoak, is over the whole NWA and he has a vicious vendetta against ExtraOrdinaries. My, uh, my partner Agent Daniels is really close with Smoak.”

“Still a boys’ club,” Victor says, causing you to smile before you begin talking again.

“Yeah, it is. Daniels doesn’t like me, doubts me and undermines me constantly, but he’s also the reason I was assigned to Task O. He pulled some strings to get himself on the team, and since I was his partner, I got roped into it too.”

Victor catches your use of was in referring to your partner, yet another point in your favor.

“EOs are being treated like criminals, but NWA agents are judge, jury, and executioner. No questions asked before they’re taken out, and anyone lost in the crossfire is collateral damage in getting the world back to normal.”

“I thought everyone wanted to be special.”

“Well, that’s just because you were never ordinary, were you?”

You smile as you focus on Victor rather than Task O for a moment. He’s nicer than he seemed at first, though he still threatens to kill you every once in a while.

“I just- I still don’t understand how you ended up in the NWA, let alone such an elite task force,” Victor explains.

Your smile falls. “I was young- I am young, and I think they saw someone who went through the police academy and could be easily indoctrinated. The NWA changes people at a fundamental level, like brainwashing. And Daniels was a sniper in the Army, with more awards than any one person should have, so when he saw a young woman who could shoot and do the job, and wouldn’t mind him taking the credit, he picked me.”

Victor’s eyes widen when he notices the tears running over your cheeks as you lower your voice to admit, “I thought about leaving, just running as far as I could when they told me that I was going to have to kill innocent EOs. Getting pulled into the NWA, handpicked by one of their best assets was terrible, but that first meeting felt like the end of everything I wanted to get back.”

Victor has never been good at comforting people, but he lays his hand on your shoulder and reminds you, “It was for a reason. No matter what you did or thought you’d have to do to survive, you did it for a good reason, and look how much progress you’ve made.”

Your tears slow as you relax under Victor’s touch. “Thank you.”

As you back out of his room, you see something change in Victor’s eyes: he’s starting to trust you, he’s more civil and trusting around you, and he’s the tiniest bit open, telling you about his past.

“Wait,” you call, stepping back in. “You didn’t correct me. I implied that all EOs are innocent and you didn’t say anything.”

Victor tilts his head as he says, “I thought you went to the police academy. ‘Innocent until proven guilty’ ring a bell?”

“That’s not how you used to operate.”

“You said it yourself, we’re ghosts now, and we have the privilege of hindsight. Doing good wasn’t necessarily an option before, not for people like me.”

“And now?”

“Let’s just say I’ve got your back, as long as you give me reasons to.”

“Victor. Thank you, and sorry for prying.”

“Trading answers for answers is only fair.”

“So, you’ll tell me about midnight now?” you ask hopefully.

Victor waits until you’ve stepped back over the threshold to close the door as he says, “Not a chance.”

✯✯✯✯✯

Nearly a week with Victor has changed you. You’re not as scared anymore, though you do have moments where you think you hear gunshots or Daniels asking if you did your job. Being a ghost and being haunted aren’t strictly connected, and you hope the haunting feeling doesn’t follow you into the fight or the old world as you try to revive it.

Daniels is miles away, slowly moving outside of San Francisco, though you don’t know where he is or how long you have as you fall asleep. In your dreams, he’s closing in much quicker than in reality. Tonight’s nightmare, though, ends differently than the others.

---

Standing in the living room with Sydney, everything is normal, good even. And part of you knows not to trust it, but the other part is desperate to hold onto any happiness you can find. 

“What is that?” Sydney asks, moments before the door is kicked in.

Daniels steps inside, dragging Sydney away from you as he threatens to kill her the instant you move. Victor and Mitch rush in, freezing as Daniels points the gun at Sydney.

“What did you do?” Victor demands, looking at you with dark eyes.

You feel a bolt of pain shoot down your spine as you answer, “Nothing, nothing, I promise. I don’t know how he found us.”

“’Us,’” Daniels repeats. “Cute. Vale, over here now or the girl is no more.”

Victor takes three long steps across the room, keeping his eyes on you as Daniels nudges his knees to make him fall to the ground.

“Mitch,” you whisper, praying for someone to do something.

“He can’t help you. He’s dying tonight too,” Daniels says, summoning Mitch over.

You can’t move, can’t scream. The only thing you do is cry and fall to your knees as Daniels does his job, quick executions. Victor fills you with pain as he distracts himself from the bloody scene beside him.

“And the ticket,” Daniels says happily before pulling the trigger.

---

You scream, panting and crying as you sit up in your bed. Flinching, you notice someone lurking in the open doorway.

“You’re okay,” Victor promises, stepping inside. “It was just a dream.”

Reaching out, you grab Victor’s arm, and he allows you to touch his wrist, shaking as you locate his pulse point. He doesn’t know what to say to calm you down, so he sits on the bed beside you and thinks.

“When I was in college, I was pre-med,” he begins, hoping to distract you like you do with Sydney. “We had this big project where we had to pick a thesis, and my roommate and I were arguing over who had the better idea.”

You lean closer to Victor, aware that Eli wrote about EOs or started to, but interested in hearing Victor’s side of the story.

“I chose adrenal responses, fight or flight. My professor was impressed, and every bit of research I did made me more interested in the different types of responses. There’s an article that I think about a lot that argued there was one more: fight, flight, or freeze. It wasn’t widely accepted, but I think it’s a valid idea.”

“So, you were a nerd?” you ask with a chuckle.

Victor turns toward you, glad to see you look more like yourself.

“I prefer the term academically motivated,” he replies.

“That’s the same thing.”

Victor shrugs, letting you continue running your fingers over his wrist, though the touch burns after too long without feeling another’s skin on his.

“Thank you,” you whisper. “Would- Victor, would you use your power on a good person to do a better thing?”

Victor finds the question odd and its implications odder. He keeps his eyes on your hand as he answers, “I guess. Depends on the person and the situation, I suppose.”

You nod, hoping that if the need arises, he will be willing to use his powers on everyone standing in his way, even if you find yourself on the wrong side. Victor has more experience with fights like this, but if the time comes that you ask him to remove you from the array, you can only hope that he will do it without hesitation.

“Why do you ask?” Victor inquires.

“Just a question I’ve been wondering about. Thanks for calming me down and for trusting me. At least a little.”

Your fingers slide off Victor’s wrist, and the burning sensation makes way for a deep cold to settle over him at the loss of your touch. He doesn’t answer as he stands and moves to your door. You’re sure that he would do it again, though, and that he’s a much better man, a better ghost than he lets people see.

✯✯✯✯✯

Sydney seems very attached to you. You can see that she cares about and likes you, happy to spend time with you and talk to you. In return, you try to be kind and compassionate toward her, as open and honest as you can, and unknowingly act like a big sister or mother figure. Mitch is the only one who has noticed how easily Sydney attached herself to you and Victor, adopting you as her stand-in mom and dad without your knowledge.

Before you came along, Sydney’s safe place was Victor, but now it is both Victor and you. Victor is surprised that he doesn’t mind sharing the responsibility; he watches you with Sydney, and it’s clear that you mean every word you say, even what you said when you first met, and in every quiet, private moment since then.

In the quiet weeks of getting to know one another, you’ve inserted yourself into Victor’s dysfunctional family, and no one wants to return to a hidden life without you.

As the other powerless companion, Mitch trusts you, as well, though he never felt he had a reason not to. He was the one who found you and advocated for you to Victor, so your trust is readily returned.

“Which police department did you work for?” Mitch asks, interrupting your conversation with Sydney.

“Why? Wanna hack it?” you chirp happily.

He nods, and you excuse yourself from Sydney’s side to join him at the table. Security is nearly nonexistent after the department’s closure and the government’s dissolution, so you get him in quickly and help him navigate the records he is searching for.

“What are you planning to use these for?” you ask.

“To help,” Mitch answers, blunt and cryptic.

“Good talk, thanks for the informative answer,” you reply.

“I found something else you may want to see,” he adds, turning to look at you. “It’s up to you, but I found Daniels’ Army records. The original documents without any redactions.”

You freeze, pressing your lips together as you consider your options. They’re guaranteed to be graphic and full of confirmed kills, but they could give you an insight into how Daniels thinks and operates. He will be coming for you and the people you care about, so though the decision is hard, you make it quickly.

“I want to see them. How bad are they?”

Mitch tilts his head, enough of an answer that you take a deep breath to ready yourself. As he turns the screen toward you, he lays a hand on your shoulder when you move forward to view the images.

“His first name is Brian,” you read. “I didn’t know that.”

“There’s a lot of information there he probably doesn’t want you to know.”

“Then we should use it.”

✯✯✯✯✯

Victor shows the most change from the time you met him. 

“Vic, do you ever wish you had killed Eli earlier?” you ask, flipping through a random magazine you found in a closet.

“Yes,” he answers quickly, without a second thought about confiding in you or exposing his thoughts and secrets. “All the time. Would have saved a lot of trouble, and more lives. Can you help with this?”

You stand, walking to his side and looking at the weapons lying before him. “I found them in the shed outside, but these were all disassembled.”

“This is field stripped,” you say, picking up a pistol. “That’s a tactical training move. Whoever this was knew what they were doing.”

“Can you put them back together?”

Looking through the pieces, you nod. “Assuming all the pieces are here, absolutely.”

You smile at Victor’s willingness to trust you to help with something small, though impactful. As you clip pieces back together, reassembling the weapons quickly, you know that Victor trusts you and that you made the right decision in finding him and recruiting him to your side.

“You know, I thought that meeting you was going to go one of three ways,” you admit.

“How else would it have ended?”

“Well, you would reluctantly trust me and join my plan, not trust me and ignore me, or recognize me as an NWA agent and kill me without a word.”

“I did recognize you as an agent,” he tells you. “I figured I could still take you out after hearing what you had to say.”

You laugh, the first genuine sign of happiness you’ve shown in a long time. “Would have made it more enjoyable too.”

“Maybe,” Victor agrees, turning away from you to hide his reaction to your pleased laugh.

“Being a ghost is starting to grow on me,” you say. “I don’t want to get my hopes up too high or anything, but to me… I think being ghosts gives us a better advantage than anything else. We’re invisible, underestimated, and most people don’t even believe in us.”

Victor reaches around you, his arm brushing you back as he adds, “And when the time is right for us, we show them who we really are and what we’re capable of.”