#a few bad apples ruined the bunch i fear | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

whimsywispsblog · 3 years ago

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Fault in Our Stars

Warning: PTSD, references to childhood abuse and trauma, sexual trauma and depression.

Inspired by: @vukis2

Lips quivering. Tears trailing. Body shaking from the cold and fear. Eyes widened- alarmed and frightened.

Running into the dark forest was definitely a bad idea. But what was Donna to do other than run? Run for her dear life? Run away somewhere- somewhere away from the lands infested with blood-sucking vampiric creatures that feasted on her family's blood, leaving her the youngest and the damaged for last.

Damaged. Ruined. In every sense. In every way, a woman is not to be ruined.

The hazy light of the gloomy skies shaded by the canopies of the tall and twisted brown trees lit the dark path ahead. Each step was taken carefully as the rustling of the carpet of dried leaves, and twigs below Donna's feet gave a crisp crackle, each sound making the girl turn back while tightly squeezing the arm of her ragged doll, Angie. And the sounds of the high-pitched giggles turned into ear-piercing shrieks. In the dark forests, vile creatures lurk in every corner, staggering and tottering in the shadows hunting their doomed prey. A forest lore, narrated by every village person. Or was it a forewarning left to the villagers by the unfortunate quarries who could never return to see another sunrise?

Most never knew which, but that day, Donna realised that it was the latter.

The dark forests always played with its victims' minds: most never escaped from its evil clutches, and the ones that did, they were driven to insanity by never-ending nightmares of its devilish creatures. There was no escape.

Donna stopped as she heard sudden footsteps approaching. They were fast, very fast.

'Run.' 'Run.' 'Run.' She kept commanding her body, but her legs shook and felt heavy, making the girl fall on her knees. The girl refused to turn back, and she closed her eyes. The wind was strong, pushing her backwards as if tempting her to open her eyes and see what stood behind her.

And then, the sounds of the ravens squawking, but in human tongue filled the languid air of the forests. Their crows were so frightening, so horrifying that they made poor Donna's flesh bleed and cut.

//"She the woman who made the Devil destroy the paradise for a kiss,"//

"I did not fall. I did not fall." The girl repeated the sentence over and over again, clutching Angie close to her breasts. The ravens flew around her, its sharp beaks piercing through her tender skin, its shrill squeaks hurting her sensitive ears, the pitch getting louder and louder until it started ringing in her ears. They started ripping her hair from her scalp and skinning her thighs, relishing in her decaying flesh.

The girl then let out a loud scream.

"HE PUSHED ME!"

//"No one questions the Devil, whore!"//

And with that, it was back to the eerie tranquillity of the forests.

Eyes watching. Ears listening. Tongues wetting. Stomachs growling.

She was tired. Scared. But determined to escape from the forests' demons. But would she?

Donna shook her head sideways, swallowing all her doubts. She was going to escape and start her life anew, somewhere far, far away. In lands where she was not damaged. Not cursed. But welcomed with open hearts and warm smiles. And with that, she pushed herself up, not letting her mind succumb to the dark pits of self-doubt.

The frigid air bit into the girl's tender skin through her ripped clothes and burnt her lungs while numbing her nose. The girl hugged herself, trying to keep the cold away. Lips pale, eyes swollen, hair covered in icicles, and her body covered in dried blood and mud. It seemed like the path went on forever, and the sky-kissing mountains were just an illusion.

The earthy smell after the first rainfall that loomed over the dark lands slowly faded away as a more metallic smell with burnt char took over—burning flesh. Someone or something was close.

Donna chanted words of Orison to her creator- for protection. For courage. For salvation. And if the Gods chose to cut her thread of fate, then so be it. She was ready to welcome the torment of hell that awaited her. Somewhere away from the abhorrent lands that she walked on. Was walking on. Her trembling hands tightly clasped on Angie's neck while her steps became slower and more cautious.

The girl found a rock big enough to hide behind as the smell got stronger and sounds of inhuman growls got louder. She didn't want to see them as she shut her eyes tightly, her prayers chanted at a frantic pace bobbing her head back and forth. Until. A human voice caught her attention- a voice which she regretted listening to.

"Take the fat one. That's all you will get for the night," A bunch of snarls poured out from all directions until the person finally screamed, "SHUT UP! Go find more food somewhere else!"

The sound of soft whimpers made Donna peek from behind the rock. In a wooden cage were 6 small-sized men, looking down at the creatures in fear. They were the dwarfs. On the ground was a giant dwarf that shouted for mercy, as his limbs were torn from all sides and his body ripped with the splatter of blood and his insides. Donna held back her urge to gasp, biting her tongue so hard that she felt the taste of blood in her mouth.

"Oi fish freak!" Donna's attention shifted from the mutilated remnants of the corpse to that of a man, tall and sturdy with messy, greasy grey hair covered by a hat. He wore a long brown coat that swayed with his every movement. He had a gigantic hammer in his hand, one that made the girl tremble in fear. Not only could this man control a horde of dangerous human-eating monsters, but he was also burly, judging by the size of the metallic hammer.

"Hey, moron! Yeah, you! Come here ya quim!" A blob-like grotesque creature stumbled towards the man. It looked so ugly and ghastly that Donna felt the contents of her stomach rise to her throat.

"Fry these midgets and send them to Miranda." The fish-creature bowed its entire body as if nodding to the man. The man with the hammer turned away, facing the rock as a slight smirk appeared on his face, and that scared Donna. Did he see her?

Donna pulled herself behind the rock as she breathed in heavily, hoping that he hadn't seen her. She felt something warm and wet on her shoulder, and she slowly looked up. To her horror, one of those creatures stood behind her, looking at her famished. The girl let out a loud scream, pulling Angie close to her chest. But before the creature could put its sharp rotten nails on her, its head was smashed by something, making its blood splash all over her. The girl, who was still in shock, stared at the creature's headless remains, her body trembling like a leaf and her heartbeat thudding loudly.

Suddenly, her hair was grabbed, and she was picked up like a rag doll. Her eyes stayed fixated on the mushy brown ground, but a gloved hand grabbed her face and forced her to look at the person. It was the man with a hammer.

"Mhmm...Young blood," He said, observing the girl's face. His eyes landed on her ruby-red necklace. "Scarlet, eh." The man dropped Donna, and she landed with a soft grunt. He bent down to her level, watching her closely. The girl was about to beg for grace. The sounds of painful screams made her turn towards the horrific scene. The dwarfs were set on fire, all of them hurdling close to each other, screaming into each other's bodies as if sharing their pain and death.

The man in front of her grabbed her face and made him look at her again, pulling out something from his coat. An apple. Delightfully red. He brought the fruit closer to the girl's lips. Without wasting another second, Donna grabbed the apple from his hand and bit into its scrumptious flesh, greedily and ravenously. Without chewing properly, she bit into more and more until she choked a few pieces out.

The man watched the girl eat in dark amusement. A raven perched on his shoulder, crowing in his ears, making him grimace.

"Yeah yeah, it's poisoned." He said, shooing the raven away. The girl was just halfway through her apple, but she felt dizzy and sick. It was as if the world was spinning at such a fast pace, and she felt as if she was losing control of her body. The man effortlessly put the girl on his shoulder and walked away while magically getting his hammer to fly right into his hands.

...

Donna's eyes fluttered open to the sound of people talking and the muffled mewls of a younger person, probably a girl. She felt hot, and an unusual but familiar pain tingled throughout her body, pulsating through each nerve excruciatingly. The girl tried to move her wrists, but there was something tight and sharp clamped around her wrists, restraining any movement.

Angie...Angie wasn't there in her hands. Donna bolted up, alarmed and terrified. The room she was in was quite cold, dark and damp, like the inside of a cave. It was dimly lit by the lamps on the walls. In front of her stood a woman with raven feathers unfurled behind her. To her right was the hammer-man, telling the woman about something. Between them was another chained girl with platinum blonde hair, bloodied, bruised and naked. Probably a survivor. Or a prey.

The lady with the raven feathers grabbed the blonde girl's face and lifted her up, her feet away from the ground.

"Young Rose...Fresh virgin blood," The woman mused with a slight grin, squeezing the girl, Rose's face. The woman brought her closer, taking a deep whiff of the girl's neck. "She smells delicious. Girls! Come here!" The woman shouted, and out of the shadows glided three women, giggling and jumping with their faces covered in blood. As they walked, a swarm of flies surrounded them and, out of their sleeves, fell off maggots- wet and slimy.

The raven woman threw Rose in their direction, and the poor girl fell with a loud thud. "Her blood, please." The woman ordered the three girls.

"Of course, Mother Miranda!" The girls giggled and laughed, taking Rose and throwing her to a bed of needles and kept pushing her deeper into the sharp metal, impaling the helpless girl's body. The cave echoed with the laughter of the insect-witches and the weak cries of dying Rose.

Donna watched the scene in horror and started crawling backwards until her back hit the wall. The raven lady, Mother Miranda, turned her attention to Donna, looking at her with steely darkened eyes. The woman disappeared into a murder of crows and suddenly appeared in front of the girl and kneeled down to her eye level. Her pale and cold fingers grabbed the girl's jaw and pulled her forward, observing her closely.

"What is your name, child?"

"D-Donna", The girl stuttered, shaking uncontrollably. "Donna Beneviento."

"Ah, House Beneviento! My daughters and their spawns recently ravaged their Village and families," Mother Miranda chimed, looking at the three insect-witches who kept stabbing Rose's mutilated corpse with their large metallic nails. "Young Rose was from there."

"W-Why d-do you kill?" Mother Miranda smiled at the girl as she pushed the stray strands of her hair behind her ear.

"Human fear and blood keep us alive." The woman traced her fingers across Donna's cheekbones. "We were damned by the Old Gods, the ones who were in favour of your wretched kind."

"Y-you are all m-monsters!" Donna choked out, pushing herself away from the woman's touch. Mother Miranda grabbed a fistful of the girl's hair and pulled her close, biting the girl's neck. Donna let out a piercing scream, trying to pull herself away from the woman.

"Ah, that's a first. You're not Virgin blood. Unchaste!" Miranda raised an eyebrow and looked at the girl in disgust.

//"Stained and the tarnished scent of the vile harlot"//

A tiny scar near the girl's left eye caught Miranda's attention. The woman roughly pushed her hair away and looked at Donna's blistered scar in revulsion. "And she is a cripple."

"Not a virtuous Doll, eh?" The hammer man chimed, looking at Donna in amusement, but once his eye landed on her scar, his smile dropped.

Doll...Doll...Angie! Donna gasped and looked up at the hammer man in distress. "Angie! Where is Angie, my doll?!"

"Burning." Mother Miranda replied with an indifferent expression.

"W-What? N-no! NO!" Donna screamed and shouted, trying to push herself upon Miranda, but the woman was strong. Without much effort, she slapped Donna, making the girl break down into a whimpering mess.

Angie. The only remnant of her innocence now burnt away in the heat.

"This one's of no use to me."

"But she smells so delightful!" Said one of the insect witches, sniffing her around and licking the blood of the wound where Miranda had bitten her.

"Indeed she is, child. But your Mother won't be pleased with any of you drinking impure blood," Miranda spat, looking at Donna in contempt. Donna looked down, ashamed and embarrassed at the way they kept taunting her. Just like how she was harassed in her Village for something that wasn't even her fault...

'I did not fall...I did not fall...'

"Alright then, she can be a nice play-thing for the Lycans." The hammer man said, putting his hammer on the ground and resting his weight on it.

"Fine then, Heisenberg. The girl's fate is in your hands." Mother Miranda got up, glaring at the girl.

His name is...Heisenberg? Familiar name.

The man nodded, grabbed the girl's chain. He pulled the chain sharply with a slight grunt, making the girl stumble and dragged her across the sharp stony ground. Donna let out soft mewls of pain.

"Quit your whining!" He said as he dragged her slower this time, making every inch of her skin throb, red and wet.

Sounds of metal grinding metal stirred the girl from her disturbed slumber. She wasn't sure how she slept off. She was still shackled in chains, but instead of being seated in front of a Cult family, she sat alone in a chamber, cold. And wet.

"Ah, you're up!" A loud, boisterous sound made the girl flinch lightly. She slowly tilted her head up to look at the person.

Heisenberg. Smirking and eyes glinting with mischief. He held out a water jug to the girl. Although she desperately needed it to quench her thirst and wet her dried mouth, after the poisoned apple, she was afraid.

"Relax, there's nothing in the water," Heisenberg rolled his eyes in annoyance. The girl hesitated to take the glass from him, which caused the man to groan in frustration and sipped a little of the water. "See? I am alive. It's normal water,"

Donna quickly grabbed the jug from him with trembling hands and drank the water, messily and shakily, the water running down her neck. She drank in so fast that the poor girl choked on water, coughing up some of it.

Heisenberg chuckled, sliding a plate of stale bread and some bright coloured fruit. The girl didn't wait for another second and quickly devoured the food down, juice of the squished fruit staining her skin and clothes. Heisenberg observed the girl quietly with a neutral expression. Pulling out a cigarette, he lit it up, smoking in a direction away from the girl's face.

"W-Why a-are y-you not killing m-me?" Donna's soft stutters pulled the man out of his thoughts. He rubbed his eyes as he contemplated her question, letting out a soft yawn.

"Didn't you hear what I told Miranda?" Donna nodded her head sideways, making the man sigh. "A play-thing for the beasts."

"W-Will they...k-kill me?"

"That depends." Heisenberg shrugged, walking away from the room. "Oh, and the chains will stay. " He said, closing the door behind him.

Donna pulled her legs close to her chest, tears trailing down her eyes. Her skin was bruised and bloodied, her clothes tattered, she stank, she was starved, she was tortured, and she was ruined. Too much for a lifetime.

The sound of the crow of a raven made the girl lookup. 'How did that bird get in?' The girl thought, looking at the bird baffled. The raven had red eyes and looked at the girl menacingly. It let out one more shrill crow and dove straight towards her, its sharp beak pointing at her. Donna curled into her legs and let out a whimper, too tired to scream. But the attack never happened. Instead, a laugh- malicious and vulgar- emerged. Donna looked up, and there stood the Hag.

//Broken disgusting whore! Shame on you!//

Donna didn't fight back. She stayed quiet, thinking of her time at home, back in the Village. The Hag continued with her taunts and screams, her ravens poking the girl's delicate flesh, but the girl was too tired, too lost. Too broken.

"I know," Donna whispered, fresh hot tears trailing down her cheek as she remembered the night, back in the Village, when she got the Stigma of the Fallen Maiden- The whore.

Bodies sticking together with sweat. A heavy weight on her chest crushing the delicate flesh of her breasts. Hair yanked and tugged with a few strands ripped off. Teeth biting deep into her skin, blood flowing out of it. An unbearable pain as she felt herself lose her chastity and virtue...No longer virginal and innocent. She was marked and claimed by another man.

//You are no graceful deer like a faithful virtuous maiden! You intoxicate them with your ardour! You vile demon!//

"I know," Donna whispered again, her eyes heavy and burning and swollen. She cried no more. She couldn't. There was nothing to cry for. She was forever going to be this- a whore.

"Oi Hag! Get the fuck outta here! Go teach your lessons about virtues and morality to those Demitrescu girls." It was Heisenberg. The Hag turned back at the man and laughed loudly and sharply, making both Donna and Heisenberg wince in pain. The older woman burst into raven feathers, disappearing from the room. Heisenberg turned his attention towards Donna. He took a few steps towards her until he was close enough.

"I know what happened that night," He said, looking dead into Donna's shocked eyes. How did he know? The man sat down, placing his hammer by his side and taking his hat off, running his hand through his hair.

"H-how did y-you know?" Donna asked, looking up to the man.

"Tales like these spread fast through the Village and beyond." He shrugged. Donna nodded, her eyes glued to the cold ground, observing its cracks and crevices. "You don't remember me do you?" Donna looked at the man. The name Heisenberg did ring a bell for her. But she couldn't recall from where. "Ya remember the name, Karl?"

Karl...Karl...Heisenberg...

Karl Heisenberg! Heisenberg's son!

Donna nodded her head lightly, old memories of their time together as children returning to her. It was him.

The only child in the Village who was never afraid of her or treated her differently. Every time they were together, Karl's father would forcefully pull him away, shouting and screaming and hitting him for playing with the Spawn of Demon. But that never stopped Karl from going back to her.

Until.

They turned 16. She was a woman, and he was a man. She grew beautiful, and he grew taller.

She couldn't remember much, except one night during the Village's ritual: Young women who bled for the first time.

It was in the outskirts of the woods. Young Karl and Young Donna. Sitting by the rock. Moonlight dancing on their youthful flustered faces. Karl's gentle hand on her cheek, pulling her closer. And closer. And closer. Lips just touching. So soft.

"You disgusting boy!" And after that, all she remembered was being pushed away by Karl's father, her head hitting the ground sharply. And Karl's faint cries, "Donna!"

"W-Where d-did you go after that day?" Donna asked, her hands deeply buried into the fabric of her clothes.

"Father sent me away to another Village, to live with my uncle. Cruel man- known to straighten up Wild Things. But I just ran away." He shrugged. There was a silence between the pair. But this was a comfortable one—just the sounds of their breathing, with the gentle whistle of the winds outside.

"Why here?"

"Mhmm?" Heisenberg peered at Donna, rubbing his scruff. "Ah well, like you, that useless Hag caught me. But things are fine here. I get a roof on my head, food and clothes. No whores though," He snickered but immediately stopped seeing Donna flinch at the word. "If you want to survive here, don't let that hag get to you."

"Do you have any advice on how I'll survive you?" The girl asked.

"Huh. Why do ya ask?"

"You say I am a play-thing for the Lycans. You said they might eat me."

"Ah, that. Yes, the Lycans do enjoy the company. They're just dogs." He said nonchalantly, waving his hand.

"But I don't want to stay here."

"Unfortunately, Donna, for people like you and me who are called 'wild' and 'vile', this is the only place that we get close to home." Donna looked away, feeling fresh hot tears prickling in her eyes.

"There's no 'we', Karl," The girl snapped. Karl hid his surprise at her sudden change of demeanour behind an irritated scowl. "I am everything you're not. I am not a vile whore-"

"GODDAMIT DONNA", Karl stood up, throwing away his hammer in frustration, breaking something nearby. "How long, how fucking long are you gonna keep crying about that bullshit?! It happened. You were fucked, whether you like it or not. Going around telling everyone that you aren't a whore won't change anything-"

"I know," Donna whispered, shivering from cold and fear. "Believe me, I know." The woman looked up to Karl, staring deep into his eyes. "But that doesn't make me a whore. That doesn't make me vile."

"Then you fucking accept the circumstances. It is written in our fates." Heisenberg sighed.

Donna stared at Heisenberg, pained by the helplessness that radiated off him, as the memory played in her mind.

Fate...

"Karl, your father won't let me be with you. Forget being near you. Your reputation will be tarnished because of me. The Village thinks I am cursed," Said a 15-year-old Donna. It was nighttime during one of their many midnight trysts in the woods. When the Villagers were fast asleep, and no one tried to hurt the couple.

"To hell with the Villagers and my father. They can say whatever the fuck they want, but I will have this life my way, and I will take you with me." Donna smiled softly, feeling her heart fluttering at her lover's determination and adamance to want a life with her despite all the difficulties they would face.

"But what if this is how things have to be? What if it is just...written in our stars?"

"Well then, fuck the stars. It's our lives. No one has a say in it. You choose your path and if that makes you happy, then fuck everything else. You choose your fate," He said, planting a soft peck on her cheek.

"You told me that day, we choose our fate, Karl," Heisenberg grunted, running a hand through his hair in frustration.

"Yea. I fucking did. Now, where has it got us both, hm?"

Donna stood up from her place shakily and limped towards Karl until she could feel the tug of her shackles. She was close enough. She raised a hand towards the man's face, but before she could touch him, his hand shot up and grasped hers.

"Don't", He growled, his ocean-blue eyes piercing into hers, trying to intimidate her.

"Please," She whispered, wriggling her hands a little, making the man drop his hand, letting the woman touch his face.

Donna slowly traced his scars. A story behind every one of them. Some she knew, some she did not. Karl didn't flinch as she kept caressing his rough skin with her softer, bruised fingers. He just looked at her as if searching in her for the old Donna he knew. The old Donna would dream with him about a beautiful future they would never have. He found her.

But to Donna, she never saw her old Karl. The one who dared to dream despite their doomed circumstances. He was now a broken man. A hopeless man who had seen and been through enough. A man who forgot what it was to experience bliss.

"I don't know if I will ever get to live this life with you, the way we dreamed. But...If there is still some life in you, I'd like that." Donna said, pulling her hand slowly trailing to Karl's chest, feeling the soft, slow thud of his heartbeat. With a wave of his hand, Donna's shackles broke. Karl slowly encircled his arms around her waist, gently but firmly and pulled her closer. With a hand cupping her cheek, he looked at her.

"I would have loved that. But look at me now. I am one of them." He said, his hand lingering on a cut on her cheek that she got because of him when he dragged her towards the factory. "But you. You can live on. A better life."

"I could have, but that better life that I wanted," Donna paused, breathing in as she felt her words being swallowed. "I wanted it with you."

"But I can't give that to you, Donna."

"Then give it to me here. Right here." Donna said, inching closer to Karl, feeling his hot breath on her cold damped skin. Karl pulled her close and rested his head on her forehead, closing his eyes and feeling the warmth and comfort he got from her.

"Get some rest. By tomorrow, you will be better." Karl said, pulling away from her. Donna held his hands tight, afraid to let him go. Afraid to lose him again.

"W-What do you mean?" Karl slowly loosened her grip on his hands and smiled at her softly. Picking up his hat and hammer, he walked out of the room, shutting it from outside. Donna sat down, confused and dejected. Lying down on the cold floor, the girl shut her eyes tightly and sobbed, her wails and whimpers slowly lulling her to sleep.

It was as if the ground below her was shaking. She didn't know what it was. Donna jerked awake as she felt a sudden push from below. The girl gasped, looking around. It wasn't the room where Karl had kept her. It was...smaller and more cramped and...moving?

"Ah, Lady Beneviento! You are awake!" A jovial and cheery voice pulled Donna's attention. It was a man, friendly and big.

"W-Who are you, and where am I?"

"I am the Duke, a humble merchant, and you are in my carriage. Lord Heisenberg asked me to take you to the other side of the forest."

"Karl? Karl, where is he?!" Donna asked, looking around frantically.

"He couldn't make it," Duke said apologetically. "He wants you to take that little box. That should help you earn a living, not luxurious, but enough to survive," Donna looked to her right and there it was, the box. She opened it, and inside was Karl's chain that he wore every day, some coins and some ornaments. And a small doll that resembled Angie. But prettier and newer.

"What happened back there?"

"Lady Miranda caught him trying to escape. Ah, it looks like we're here!"

"Duke. Can I go back?"

"I'd suggest you not. He wants you to stay alive, my Lady. Best you honour his wishes. Do this for him" Donna looked at the chain, tracing the engravings on it. The girl looked into the box and saw a small note in it.

Thank you for setting me free. I hope to see you in another life where we will be together, just like we dreamt.

The girl pulled the note to her chest, feeling a strange pain in her body. She felt heavy. She felt like she was breaking apart. She felt as if she couldn't breathe. Duke looked at the girl sadly. He couldn't help her, and he wasn't sure how to.

"Thank you," Donna muttered, stepping out of the carriage with the box in her hand. Ahead she saw a little Village. A chance for a new life, but one without Karl. How could she live without him?

'Best you honour his wishes. Do this for him.'

"Okay, Karl." Donna sniffed, a bittersweet smile on her face, as she walked towards the Village, her hand tightly clutching the chain. As she approached, a man, probably the gatekeeper, stopped her.

"Who are you, and state your purpose."

"Donna. Donna Heisenberg. I seek refuge in your Village. Mine was destroyed by monsters." The gatekeeper nodded and took a moment to observe her ragged state, his eyes softening as he noticed her bruises and blood.

"Alright, follow me. You can speak to his Majesty." Donna nodded, smiling softly.

A new life. A better life. For Karl.

In the woods, near the factory lay Karl Heisenberg, bloodied and stabbed on the ground. He held a glove tightly in his hand. Donna's glove. The one he pulled from her when his father forcefully separated him from Donna. Rubbing his thumb across the soft material of the glove, Karl smiled, looking up to the heavens, his vision fading away slowly.

"Thank you, Donna."

#karl heisenberg #donna beneviento #karl heisenberg x donna beneviento #DonnaBerg

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artzychic27 · 4 years ago

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Evillustrator Part Deux

These people have some nerve. Barging into the art classroom, his safe space, the only place in school where he can be himself without people looking at him weirdly. He can be loud and goofy and show his art without fear of being judged. But they just had to ruin it. By 'they' he means his classmates. Not the smart ones like Marinette, Alix, Rose, and Juleka. Yes, that sounded a little rude, but it was the truth! Ever since Lie-la came along with a big mouth full of lies, it's like the rest of the class had lost a good chunk of brain cells. He knows they're trying to be nice and accommodate for the 'disabled student', but they can't tell a con-artist when they see one!

Lila's been nothing but a thorn in the art club's side since she arrived, and all because they knew she was nothing but a lying, manipulative creature. So far, she's lied about Marinette doing a bunch of stuff she'd never do to her and almost got her expelled, Alix spray painting half of her wardrobe so Mylene, Sabrina, and Alya had to buy her more clothes with their money, Juleka cornering her in the bathroom and telling her to kill herself so the goth girl got detention she didn't deserve, and Rose stealing her lunch money which is how she afforded those cute new ballet flats and the other students had to buy Lila's lunch for her. Now it was Nathaniel's turn.

What has Lila said about him? She didn't really lie, but more like got on his bad side by suggesting he should find a new writer since Marc's work was "amateur", making little jabs at his art by saying loudly for the class to hear that her work has gotten many comic book artists' attention which then led to the class telling Lila that she should introduce them to Nathaniel. He said no, of course, since the artists were either dead or not real and they did not react well. They said he was rude, Lila was trying to help, and that's how he became one of the bullies of the classroom.

But then one morning, Lila told everyone that he stole her artwork. They were hesitant to believe her even despite believing Nathaniel was a bully since they knew he HATED art thieves with a passion, probably more than Marinette hated Hawkmoth. But when she showed them the hideously bright orange sketchbook with a crudely drawn cursive L on the cover in black sharpie and flipped through the pages slowly so the class could admire what Nathaniel realized was other artists' work he saw on Instagram that she was claiming as her own.

After seven long minutes, Lila finally stopped on a page that had the class immediately go off on Nathaniel when they recognized that it looked exactly like the art, the original art, on the school website. Alix and Marinette tried to defend him the best that they could, but the sausage-haired brat was a step ahead, saying that she sometimes brings her sketchbook to school and keeps it in her locker because she was always so nervous about what people would say about her art, and Nathaniel must've broken in, took a picture of the page, traced the art, and passed it off as his own. The class was torn, but they were leaning more towards Lila’s side because 'Why would Lila lie?'

Throughout the entire day, Nathaniel was forced to listen to the class asking if he was jealous of Lie-la's art being 'far better than his' (Her words), interrogating him to see if he stole anyone else's art, and they even had the gall to tell Mme. Bustier what Lila had told them. He missed his lunch and was instead tortured by Mme. Bustier lecturing HIM on why art theft is wrong, and that he needed to be the bigger person and apologize for stealing Lila's art. No matter how many times he explained to the woman that Lila lied, she just wouldn't listen! He had so much more respect for Marinette than he already did. She would go on and on about Mme. Bustier telling her to be an example and apologize when she was the one who was wronged. He was going to learn how to bake and make that girl some macarons. When she finally let him go, lunch was already over! Thank God Marc, the best boyfriend in the world saved him half of his sandwich and an apple. He did not apologize, and he had no intention of doing so.

The rest of the day was spent with his actual friends coming to his defense every five minutes when one of them would try and get him to apologize for stealing Lila's art. And when they weren't doing that, they were tracking down the people whose art was stolen by Lila when Mylene found the art Lila had traced on Instagram and Twitter. It's like they're her personal guard dogs. He wanted to knock some sense into them and go- what Lila inappropriately calls- 'feral-mode' on them; a nod to his bipolar disorder. Going against his instincts, he went to Mme. Bustier about what Lila had said about him being Bipolar, but she told him, 'Oh, but Lila doesn't understand your condition. It's your job to explain it to her.' ... He just wants Hawkmoth to come in here and have an Akuma pummel this woman.

Finally, the day was over, they were all gone, and he could now spend time with his friends and a real teacher without being yelled at or accused of being an art thief... For about seven minutes.

"Just apologize," Alya urged.

With a glare, Nathaniel yelled, "For the last. Damn. Time! I didn't steal any art!" Where was M. Haberkorn when you needed him?

"Then explain why Lila's art is in your sketchbook!" Kim demanded.

Lila sniffed, "Nath, if you're jealous of me, I could have-"

"Why the hell would I be jealous of you of all people?"

"Don't be so rude!"

"Why are you saying this stuff?"

"Lila didn't do anything to you!"

"Guys," Alix snapped her fingers to grab their attention and quiet them down, "Nathaniel loathes art thieves. Why would he steal someone else's art? And what would he have to gain from it? He's already the illustrator for one of the best damn comics in Paris, and he's won contests with some of his work." She shot the redhead a proud look before turning back to her classmates, "So do tell us. Why would Nathaniel steal another person's art?"

None of them could come up with an excuse. None of them except Lila just when the art club thought they had won, "Well, maybe he was just insecure," she ignored Nathaniel's offended look and continued, "I didn't want to say anything, but some students were looking at his art on the school website and said it seemed... Amateur compared to mine."

Marinette whispered to Juleka, "Oh, she did not just say the A-word."

Alix coughed into her fist, "Bullshit!"

Alya glared at the pinkette, "Stop ganging up on her!" She turns to Nathaniel, "And Nath, you need to stop being jealous of Lila just because some people prefer her art-"

"Will you shut up already?!" Nathaniel screamed, stunning his classmates at his outburst. "I am not jealous of Lila! I never will be jealous of her because there's nothing to be jealous over!”

Nathaniel let out a sigh. He didn't mean to yell, but they were all just so frustrating. He was telling the truth and they couldn't see it. They're choosing to believe a liar they've known only for a few months over someone they've known for years. They all knew Nathaniel was the resident class artist and not once has he stolen another person's art; it was a level he would never stoop to, not even if you paid or threatened him to.

"Dude, you need to chill," Nino calmly said.

"No, he doesn’t." Everyone turned to the source of the new voice and saw Marc standing at the doorway with his red pencil case. The art club students became relieved when they saw the writer. Marc was a reasonable, level-headed person who could find red flags easily. He'd talk some sense into them all and maybe their Lila nightmare would be over. During lunch, the art club explained to him why Nathaniel was missing, infuriating the green-eyed boy. Because of Rossi, his boyfriend was forced to miss lunch and endure a lecture by a teacher who should really consider pursuing a different career. "Nathaniel is not an art thief." He brushed past them and made his way over to his boyfriend before kissing his cheek.

"Marc, don't defend him just because he's your boyfriend," Mylene said. And in response, Marc rolled his eyes.

"Even if we weren't dating, I'd still defend him." He points to Nathaniel's sketchbook as if asking for permission to hold it. With a nod, Nathaniel hands Marc his sketchbook, and the writer flips through the pages until he stops on the page with the sketch that started this mess. On the page is a full-body sketch of Ladybug, running with her hair out of its pigtails and flowing through the breeze. It took all of Marinette's will-power to not blush when Nathaniel showed her and the others before posting it on the school's website. What she loved most was that she was not wearing a skin-tight bodysuit, but instead, she was wearing battle armor and actually had on shoes. Maybe she could ask Tikki for an upgrade on her current suit.

"Nathaniel always uses the same art style," Marc pointed out. "During lunch, I caught a look at some of the pages in Lila's sketchbook and noticed that she had about ten different art styles. The sketch she claims Nathaniel stole looks very similar to his usual style." Before Lila can defend herself, Marc continued, "And I also noticed that your line art is very dark."

Marinette realizes what her cousin is insinuating and adds, "He's right. Most line art is light so that when an artist makes a mistake, they can easily erase it." She smirks, "So, care to explain why your line art is so much darker compared to Nathaniel's?"

Lila stammered for a response, "I... We-well my wrist-" Before she could say anything else, Alya rested a hand on her shoulder and said, "You don't need to explain anything to them. We know your innocent." After nodding in agreement with Alya, the students headed out of the classroom. Alya pulled Lila out and didn't notice her smirking viciously at the art kids or Alix giving her double middle fingers.

With a sigh of exhaustion, Nathaniel sat down and rested his head on the table. "What is wrong with them?" he groaned. Rose patted his shoulder sympathetically, "It's okay, Nath."

Marinette shook her head, "I try to remind myself that it's not their fault; Lila's manipulating them, but it takes a lot to convince myself that."

Marc took the empty seat next to Nathaniel and brushed his bangs to the side so Nathaniel could see him. "Are you okay?" Nathaniel nodded and mumbled, "Thanks, Rainbow." With a smile, Marc kissed his forehead, slid Nathaniel's sketchbook toward him, and pulled out his journal, "Let's just enjoy the quiet while we still have it."

Juleka nodded as she grabbed her bass, "Yeah, maybe I'll just fake being sick tomorrow."

"Nope!" Alix exclaimed. "There's strength in numbers, Jules. If we all have to suffer, then so do you." Juleka responded by strumming a few cords on her bass.

The rest of the class, sans Chloe and Adrien, decided to spend the rest of their day, cool off from earlier, and cheer Lila up by getting some of André's ice cream. Poor Lila didn't have any money on her because she donated almost all of her cash to her favorite charity, one that helped children from lower-income families. Ivan, being a nice guy, paid for her cone and Lila promised she'd pay him back... Yeah, like that would ever happen. Five euros and all she got was plain vanilla because André couldn't see her being in a relationship with anyone.

"Girl, maybe he just messed up," Alya told her. "André is getting old."

Nino reluctantly nodded, "Yeah. Maybe that's it." He's been getting ice cream from André since he was five, and the man was never wrong. He predicted his first love by giving him cotton candy, peach, and blueberry ice cream, and his future love with tangerine, lemon, and raspberry. If André gives you vanilla, that's it. No love for you. 'But why would Lila end up without love?' he wondered. She's nice, charitable, always meeting exciting people. It confused him.

If Nino could hear what was going on through Lila's head, he'd take it all back. 'Stupid Marinette. Stupid Alix. Stupid Rose. Stupid Juleka. Stupid Marc. AND STUPID NATHANIEL! That idiot has some nerve going against me! Just wait, Kurtzberg. I'll ruin your reputation so bad that not even your freak boyfriend will look at you! With that spineless coward of a Principal on my side, I'll make sure no school will take you!' "Guys, this was sweet of you, but I just wanna go home," she said in a tone that contrasted her inner voice.

Alya smiled and pulled her in for a hug, not noticing the scowl on the Italian's face, "We understand. Maybe you can draw something to make you feel better."

'Yeah, I'll find a sucker on Instagram, make a few tweaks, and have you all eating out of the palm of my hand.' "Yeah," she sighed. "That always cheers me up. I'll see you all tomorrow!" She waved then headed off in the direction of her home. Then once she was out of view, she ran towards the school and threw her ice cream on the ground, not caring about the pigeon she just hit. She was not going to let that stupid redhead get away so easily. She already had a ton of sinister ideas going on in her head about what'd she'd do to Nathaniel the second she caught him alone and those art club brats aren't there to help him.

Once in the school, Lila waited around a corner for him. So that no one would suspect anything, she pretended to be texting on her phone. It took five minutes until finally, Nathaniel walked out of the classroom with his sketchbook in his hand. Lila's original plan was to jump him and drag him into an empty classroom so she could threaten him to comply with her or she’d drag his reputation through the mud, but Marc was with him. She couldn’t have witnesses, or this would never work. But then everything worked out in her favor. The idiot was too distracted by his boyfriend to notice her or that he dropped his sketchbook on the floor when trying to put it in his messenger bag.

She quickly picked up the sketchbook once they were gone, and darted for the locker room. She looked around to make sure no one was there and opened Nathaniel’s prized possession. She scowled at all of the drawings of Marinette with hearts around her. “Obviously has no taste,” she muttered scornfully then continued flipping through the pages full of drawings of Ladybug, and her frown worsened the more she looked. He should be drawing a REAL hero like Volpina. Then she found a few pages with drawings of that boyfriend of his.

“Disgusting,” she sneered, then immediately tore out the page with a drawing of the two boyfriends hugging. She aggressively threw the book to the floor and stomped on it with the dirt sole of her boot, tearing and crumpling a few pages and damaging the spine. She picked it back up and proceeded to tear out more pages before getting a cruel idea. She went into the girls’ bathroom, turned on the faucet, and dropped the sketchbook into the sink. A twisted smirk spread on her face as she watched the water turn an array of colors. Satisfied, she pulled it back out and turned off the water before leaving.

She wasn’t done just yet. She looked for Nathaniel’s locker, which was easy. All she had to do was open every locker until she found the one with photos of Marc taped inside. Lila gathered up the pages she tore out, crumpled them up, and threw them into the lockers along with Nathaniel’s ruined sketchbook. By the time he opened his locker tomorrow, the pages will be dry and everything he’s drawn will be unrecognizable. Slamming the locker door shut, Lila walked out of the locker room feeling proud of herself, but not before she added a little insult to injury and taped a sticky note with an insulting message onto Nathaniel’s locker door. Tomorrow morning, Nathaniel will learn what happens when you cross Lila Diabla Rossi.

Nathaniel was not having a great morning. He accidentally set his alarm clock for the wrong time last night and woke up and three in the morning. He couldn't go back to sleep so he decided to do some late-night sketching until he felt tired. The only problem was that he couldn't find his sketchbook. He wanted to tear his room apart and look for it, but he didn't want to risk waking up his mom and having her come in, wondering why he was up so early. So he waited until it was 7:00 am when his mom was up and getting ready for the day.

He looked all around his room but couldn't find his sketchbook anywhere. 'It could be worse,' he thought to himself. He lost his personal sketchbook and not the one he used for his and Marc's comic. Now that would be awful. But losing his personal sketchbook was just as bad and embarrassing. It still had some of the sketches he did of Marinette back when he had a crush on her and some fanart from animes he wasn't comfortable showing anyone except for Alix and Marc, who showed him some fanfiction that only he was allowed to read.

"Maybe I left it at school," Nathaniel told himself once it was pretty clear that his sketchbook was nowhere in his room. Taking a few breaths to calm down and assure himself that maybe someone found his sketchbook and took it to lost and found, he got ready for the day.

After getting showered and dressed, Nathaniel made his way downstairs to have breakfast with his mom. Hearing him walk into the kitchen, Aya looked away from the stove and greeted her son with a smile, “Morning, sweetie.” Despite Nathaniel smiling, she knew something was wrong. She could tell by the way he was clutching his messenger bag and darting his eyes around the room like he was looking for something. “Is everything alright?” she asked. When he didn’t answer, she asked, “Did something happen at school? Was it that Rossi girl?” Ever since Lila first lied about her son, Aya would always take some time out of her schedule to listen to him vent about the dreaded girl. And in Aya’s opinion, she sounded like a real nightmare in need of a spanking.

“Yeah, but she’s not what I’m upset about,” he answered. “I can’t find my sketchbook. The black one?”

Aya immediately turned off the stove and went to hug him. Nathaniel loved that sketchbook. His father got it for him when he was seven and used up all of his other sketchbooks. It was one of the things he had to remember him by. “Well, maybe it’s at school. I’m sure you’ll find it, sweetie.” Seeing him smile, Aya kissed his forehead and went back to making breakfast, “Now go sit down sweetie; the hash browns are almost done.”

With a nod, Nathaniel sat at the table and thought to himself over and over, ‘You’ll find it, you’ll find it, you’ll find it.’

When he arrived at school, Nathaniel only had fifteen minutes to look for his sketchbook until class starts. He rushed into the library where the lost and found box was stored and asked the librarian for access to it. He took Nathaniel into the break room where a large bin sat in the corner of the room between two shelves filled with items too large to go in the bin. Quickly, he sifted through or tossed aside anything that wasn't his sketchbook. Textbooks, jewelry, one shoe, pants, a purse, but no sketchbook. With a frustrated groan, he put the items he tossed back in the bin so the librarian wouldn't get on his case for messing up the break room. "Where is it?!" Once out of the library, he kicked a wall in frustration and continued to look around for his sketchbook.

He remembered walking out of the art classroom with it, so it wasn't in there. If it fell out of his bag, someone must’ve found it. But why didn’t they take it to the lost and found? Maybe they put it back in his locker. None of the lockers have locks, so if a student finds something that another student lost, they put it in that student’s locker. Maybe someone did that. He still had seven minutes left, so he ran down the stairs, moved through crowds of students in the courtyard, and went into the locker room.

Once at his locker, Nathaniel furrowed his brown in confusion when he saw the orange sticky note stuck to his locker door. He took it down and read it, “‘You deserve this.’”

Still confused and a little anxious by what the note meant, Nathaniel slowly opened his locker, expecting a bucket of paint to fall on top of him or a spring-loaded boxing glove to knock a couple of his teeth out… This was way worse. There at the bottom of his locker was a dingy black book with crispy pages like someone had poured water on it and left it to dry in his locker. He found a few crumpled pieces of paper and unfurled them. He felt like he needed to throw up. These were sketches of Marc, Marinette, and some rough sketches for comics. He realized that they were from his sketchbook and a look of dread spread across his face when he realized that the dried-up book in his locker was actually his sketchbook.

“No, no, no, no!” He quickly took it out and tried flipping through the pages to see if anything had been salvaged, but he could barely turn them without a piece breaking off due to the dry paper. He flipped to the back of his ruined sketchbook and immediately started crying. There was smudged writing that he could barely read, but he could make out what was written at the bottom, ‘Make something amazing, kid. -Dad’ He clutched the book close to his chest and slowly slid down his locker and sat on the floor where he silently cried to himself.

The butterflies fluttered around as the window opened and illuminated on Hawkmoth. He smirked cunningly when he felt a powerful wave of emotions coming from Francoise Dupont. The Akuma hotspot.

“Such feelings of rage, and even more of sorrow.” He beckons for a pure white butterfly to land in his open palm. “This poor, disturbed boy.” He covers the butterfly with his other hand and fills it with dark magic using the Miraculous. Hawkmoth uncovers the butterfly, now an Akuma, and it flutters out of the window. “Fly away my beautiful Akuma, and evilize that boy!”

The Akuma flew over the city and towards the school where its target was. It phased through the walls so no students or teachers would see it, and went into the locker room where Nathaniel was still crying. He lifted his head up at the sound of its wings flapping and with a yelp, he got up and ran around the room to avoid the Akuma. Soon, he was backed into a corner with no way out. He turned his head away from the Akuma and shut his eyes tight as the evil butterfly merged with his sketchbook and turned it pitch black. The glowing, purple Akuma symbol appeared over his face. Nathaniel gripped his hair as Hawkmoth spoke to him, “Welcome back, Evillustrator.”

“Stop it,” he cried. “Not now.”

Hawkmoth paid close attention to the emotions he was feeling right now. It was mainly anger from having his sketchbook destroyed, but he was also grieving. A feeling Hawkmoth knew all too well. He could see the Akumatized object in his head and saw the damage that had been done to it. As a fellow patron of the arts, he knew the importance of a sketchbook to an artist. But there was something special about this one. Perhaps someone he lost gifted it to him. He spoke, “But why not? I too understand the pain of losing a loved one. Let me help you.”

“You’re not going to help me.”

“But I will. That sketchbook must mean something to you. Don’t you wish to find the one responsible?”

"..." Nathaniel’s look of fear morphed into a scowl when he realized who could have done this, “Yes.”

Hawkmoth smiled, “I won’t stand in your way this time. As long as you bring me the Miraculous, you may use your powers however you please. Do we have a deal?”

“Yes, Hawkmoth.” Black mist bubbled up from his sketchbook and engulfed him. Seconds later, Evillustrator stood in place of Nathaniel with an upgraded outfit. His windswept hair is brighter and more vibrant, fading from orange to purple, to black. He had on a white v-neck tailcoat with four dark purple stripes and three circles colored red, yellow, and blue printed on, a black shirt that had darker cuffs with red, yellow, and blue buttons and a red swan neck collar, white gloves, purple pants, and red boots with a slight heel.

He lifted his right arm where his tablet was attached, tucked his repaired, dark purple sketchbook under his arm, and began drawing. Materializing out of thin air was a fake Nathaniel. With a smirk, Evillustrator handed the Akumatized object over to him and said, “You know what to do.” With a nod, fake Nathaniel opened the sketchbook to an empty page and pressed it to Evillustrator’s chest. Immediately, he disappeared in a flash of purple light. Nathaniel turned the book towards him and saw a sketch of Evillustrator motioning for him to leave. He closed the book and made his way to class.

Lila tried very hard to suppress a scowl when she saw the fake Nathaniel walking into the classroom with the sketchbook, she was so sure that she destroyed it. Was it all just a wonderful dream? No! She knew she destroyed that thing! But, wasn’t it black? She needed to destroy it so that redhead would learn his place. Before she could make her way to his and Marinette’s desk in the back, Mme. Bustier walked in, “Alright class, take your seats!”

‘Later,’ she thought to herself then went to her seat next to Alya.

Mme. Bustier began writing on the board, "Today, we'll- OW!" Out of nowhere, a baseball hit the side of her head, much to the shock of the class. She picked up the ball while rubbing the side of her head, "Where did this come from?"

Lila immediately shot her hand up and pointed to the back, "I bet it was Marinette!"

"I am way back here and it hit the side of her head!" She yelled, "If I had thrown that ball, it would have nailed her right in the back of the head!" The students on her side and the students on Lila's side got into a heated argument. Adrien tried to calmly tell Lila's side that Alix was right, but they just talked over him. Chloe, who didn't care, filed her nails. Mme. Bustier clapped her hands, trying to grab their attention, "Class, please!" They settled down, making her let out a breath of relief. "Now, Alix is right about the ball hitting me on the side," Alix shot Lila a victorious smirk. "We'll figure out who did this later, but let's just get to our lesson." She set the baseball down on her desk, eyeing it warily before turning back to the board.

Marinette rolled her eyes. It was way too early for Lila to be pulling this kind of crap. Also, where did that baseball come from? The windows aren't open, so it didn't come from outside. She turned to Nathaniel, intending to ask what he thought. None of the art club students really paid attention to Mme. Bustier's lessons since she rarely taught anything. And when she was teaching, Lila would steer the lesson over to an hour-long discussion about how she was related to some major historical figure. Marinette was pretty sure Vlad the Impaler and Catherine the Great weren't related.

Before she could say anything, she noticed him just staring at a page in his sketchbook. Just staring, not drawing. She couldn't see what he was looking at because he was holding the front cover of the book up. And what's even weirder was that he seemed to be nodding. When he saw her staring, he immediately closed his sketchbook and turned his attention to the front.

'Strange,' Marinette thought to herself then continued half-listening to the lesson.

Ten more minutes in, and Lila was telling a story about being the distant relative of some witch hunter from the Salem witch trials in the states. This allowed the art club kids to text each other on their group chat while everyone ate up whatever Lila said. But Marinette made a new group chat without Nathaniel.

Something's Up

Alix: Care 2 explain??

Rose: Is something wrong?

Juleka: You forgot Nathaniel.

Marinette: That's what this is about. There's something... Off about him today.

Alix: Oh, thank God! I thought I was the only one who noticed.

Rose: What's wrong with Nathaniel???

Alix: He's just all zoned out or something.

Marinette: I caught him nodding at his sketchbook.

Alix: I don't even recognize that one. All his sketchbooks usually have designs on them but that one is just solid purple. 🤔

Juleka: Now that you mention it... When everyone was arguing about the baseball, I noticed he didn't say or do anything. Just stared at his sketchbook.

Rose: That's odd.

Marinette: Maybe he's having an off day?

Alix: I did see him bump into the door frame when he walked into the classroom. So... Off day?

Juleka: Off day.

Rose: 👉🏻Off day👈🏻

Marinette: Off Day. Okay, Lila's wasted twenty minutes and we have two minutes left of class... Any weekend plans?

Rose: Family reunion! Can't wait!

Juleka: Luka and I are gonna watch a bunch of trashy high school movies from America. I'm interested in this one called The Outcasts.🍿🎥

Alix: Promised Jalil I'd do some nerd stuff with him.🤓

Marinette: Baking 🥐, sewing 🧵, typical day.

BRRRRIIIIIIING!

Marinette: And once again, we've learned nothing.

Alix: Ah, the glorious history of nothing.

Rose: My cousin majored in the Fundamentals of Nothing.

The students gathered their things and headed to their next class. As Nathaniel was packing, Mme. Bustier called out, "Nathaniel, can you stay for a minute?"

"Are you gonna be okay?" Marinette asked. At fake Nathaniel's nod, she left with the others, leaving him and Mme. Bustier alone.

The first thing she said was, "Nathaniel, I hope you apologized to Lila." When he didn't answer and just stared at her blankly, she sighed, "Nathaniel, I understand that you're upset."

"Upset doesn't even begin to describe how I feel, Caline!"

"But it's not Lila's fault," "Excuse me?!" "She just wants to make friends, and by antagonizing her," "You mean exposing an art thief?" "you'll be preventing her from doing so. Now, I expect you to apologize to Lila before the end of the day." "Or else, what, Caline?!"

The fake Nathaniel opened the sketchbook slightly, and immediately, a flaming arrow shot out of it and was dangerously close to hitting Mme. Bustier's foot. She looked at the redhead in shock before slowly backing away as he opened his sketchbook. "N-Nathaniel, wh-what are you- Aah!" The fake has pressed a blank page on her arm, and she disappeared with a scream. He turned the sketchbook towards him and there was Caline Bustier, now a pencil sketch hitting her fists against the paper and screaming to be let out. She was silenced by fake Nathaniel turning to the page with Evillustrator.

"Make sure there are none of those idiots left." With a nod, the fake shut the sketchbook and left just before the next class arrived.

Seventeen minutes in Mendelieve's class were spent learning about physics until the science teacher left once M. Damocles made an announcement over the PA system, telling the teachers to report to his office. That left Lila to take over and talk more and more about herself without the science teacher telling her to stay silent and pay attention. The art club was just minding their business in the group chat but listened closely when Lila started spewing lies about her famous artist uncle. They knew where this was going, and Alix got ready to fight tooth and nail for her friend. Finally, Lila brought up what happened yesterday, causing the students to give the fake Nathaniel wary looks or glares

"So," Kim said as he approached fake Nathaniel. "are you finally going to apologize for stealing Lila's art?"

Marinette huffed, "Guys, for the last time, Lila is lying! Nathaniel is not an art thief!"

"Well, let’s just see if that’s true," Alya said as she pulled out her phone to record and expose Nathaniel as an art thief. Before she could grab the sketchbook out of his hands, her phone was wiped away from existence. "MY PHONE! Where'd it go?!" Fake Nathaniel looked down at the sketchbook and smirked because he knew Evillustrator had something to do with that.

Alya continued to look for her phone, "It just disappeared out of thin air!" she exclaimed as she looked under the desk, believing she dropped it and didn't notice. "How does that just happen?!" As she and a few other students continued searching for her phone, Mme. Mendelieve walked back into class with a look of concern to replace her usually stoic face.

"Class, you wouldn't happen to know where Caline went, would you?" she asked. Everyone either shook their heads or said no. "Odd. No one can find her, When her next class went in, she was gone." She looks to the fake Nathaniel, "Nathaniel, you were the last to leave. Did she say she'd be going anywhere?" The fake looked like he was about to say something, but nothing came out. He instead shook his head. With a sigh, Mendelieve continued, "If she's not found or we don't hear from her in two hours, the school day will end early so the teachers can call the police to conduct an investigation." There were some scattered whispers. "I'm sure Caline is fine. Now, let's finish the lesson." The students who were helping Alya look for her phone comply and sit back down in their seats, but Alya kept searching for her phone, "Alya, sit down."

"But I can't find my phone," she said. "It just disappeared right out of my hand!"

"Miss Cesaire, you can try to look for it later," she said sternly. "But right now, we need to continue our lesson. Sit down." Alya reluctantly did so, and Mme. Mendleieve resumed what she was teaching the class before Damocles made his announcement. While she taught, Alix glanced over at the fake staring down at his sketchbook like Marinette said he was earlier. It was so weird. He was just staring and not doing anything. And how did Mme. Bustier just suddenly disappear without a trace?

Thirty minutes passed, and the students headed to lunch while Alya stayed behind to look for her phone with Nino helping her.

Fake Nathaniel managed to slip away from Marinette, Alix, Rose, and Juleka who were walking to the cafeteria as a group, something they did in case Lila tried anything, and he was now hiding in the locker room where Evillustrator was giving him instructions. “Kim often goes to the pool during lunch to practice,” he whispered. "Get him when he comes in." Right as he said this, the door was heard opening. The fake peered around the locker he was hiding behind and saw the athlete walking in and going to his locker. No witnesses were around. He opened the sketchbook to a blank page and sneaked over towards the athlete as he was pulling his gym bag out of his locker with some struggle.

When Kim finally managed to pull his bag out, it slipped out of his hands. The force he used flung the bag behind him, and it hit the sketchbook, making it disappear. Kim looked around to see where his bag went but only saw the fake, who shut the sketchbook before Kim could see what was on the pages. "O-oh. Hey, Nath." When he didn't answer, Kim sighed. "Silent treatment. Deserved that; I get it. Look, man I-I don't want to believe you stole Lila's art, but uh... I mean, why would Lila lie?"

"Because she's evil! Get him, now!"

"Still upset with me, huh?" He chuckled when the fake still didn't say anything.

"You have three seconds. Three."

"Again, I wanna believe you didn't do it."

"Two."

"But you and the girls have been kinda... Antagonizing her a bit?"

"One!"

The fake immediately clutched his left hand like he was in pain, getting Kim concerned. "Nath, what's wrong?!" He uncovered the fake's hand and was repulsed to find that his fingers were starting to vanish. "Oh my God!" Before he could say or do more, the fake mouthed, 'I'm sorry'. Then he opened the sketchbook and pressed the blank page to Kim's face. He disappeared with a scream. Fake Nathaniel dropped the sketchbook in favor of clutching his fingerless hand. The akumatized object was opened to the page with Evillustrator's angry glare, "Hesitate next time, and I'll erase your arm!”

The fake nodded frantically before letting out a sigh as Evillustrator drew on his tablet, making his fingers reappear. As he headed to the door, he heard a slight shuffling sound and turned around to see Myléne standing right outside the girls’ bathroom with her mouth agape.

”N-Nathaniel?” Myléne stammered as she began to slowly back away.

Fake Nathaniel approached her with the sketchbook opened to a blank page. Another silent ‘Sorry’, and Myléne was gone and trapped in the sketchbook. He flipped the pages back to Evillustrator, “Better. Now don’t stop until you have Rossi and those assholes!” The fake didn't want to do this, but he had to; it was how he was drawn. He was made to be a pawn in his creator's revenge plot, but he didn't want to do that. Evillustrator gave him the same personality he had pre-Akumatization, so this just felt wrong to him, but he couldn't go against his commands.

When fake Nathaniel nodded, Evillustrator arched an eyebrow and asked, "Can you speak?" He opened his mouth and tried to say something, but nothing came out. He shook his head. Evillustrator started drawing on his tablet, "Hold still." Fake Nathaniel's throat glowed a bright purple before dimming. "Say something."

"S... So... Some... Ting. S-something?"

"So glad I caught that. Now go!" Immediately, the fake put the sketchbook back into his messenger bag and left.

“Hey, Nath,” Marc greeted the fake as he sat down at their lunch table.

Fake Nathaniel smiled. He had his real counterpart's personality and all of his memories, so he knew exactly how to act and what to say (Now that he had a voice). “Hey, Rainbow.” He kisses Marc’s cheek and ignores the stinging sensation he’s feeling in his hand as one of his fingers is being erased. Evillustrator made him and can easily destroy him if he does something he doesn’t like. Apparently, kissing Marc is one of them.

”So, where were you?” Alix asked as she popped a grape in her mouth.

“Oh, I-I remembered that I left my locker open, and went to close it,” he fibbed.

“No point in that, Nath,” she shrugged. “Anyone can just go in and take whatever’s in a locker."

Marinette nodded in agreement, remembering her expulsion, then asked, “So, what do you guys think happened to Mme. Bustier? She couldn’t have suddenly disappeared; we all just saw her.”

Alix leaned back in her seat, uncaring, “Does it really matter? I think we could all use a break from her.” Juleka nodded, “Maybe Mendeleiev will be our substitute and actually put Lila in her place.”

”One can dream,” Rose sighed as she leaned on Juleka, making the goth girl wrap her arm around the blonde.

Juleka looked around the room. She furrowed her brow then asked, “That’s weird. Kim and Mylène aren’t here.”

”Well, Kim probably went to the pool,” Alix said as she looked for the activist. “But where’s Myléne?”

”Maybe she-“ Before Marc could finish what he was about to say, the doors slammed against the wall as Alya stormed in with Nino trailing close behind.

”Nino, a phone doesn’t just disappear like that!” she exclaimed. “There’s probably an Akuma around here!” Immediately, the cafeteria broke out into whispers about if Alya was right about the Akuma. “And Mme. Bustier suddenly disappearing? Explain that. She wouldn’t just ditch her job like that.”

”Tell it to the person doing most of her work,” Marinette muttered, making the students at the table laugh. Mme. Bustier would always force Marinette to do her work for her and say that they’re the duties of the class representative when really, the woman is just lazy to do the work herself. And when Marinette refuses, Bustier will use the ‘I’m disappointed in you’ voice until Marinette complied.

”You think this is funny?!” Lila whined. “Mme. Bustier and Myléne are missing, and it’s probably because there’s probably an Akuma loose in the school!”

Alix groaned, “Mind your own business, Rossi!” A couple of the students that were on Marinette’s side snickered. “And it’s called making light of a situation. Less negativity, fewer Akumas. You're welcome.”

”Why are you guys always so rude to me?” Alya asked before pointing to Marinette, “First you let your jealousy cloud your judgment,” then to Juleka, “you’re always telling Lila to kill herself,” Alix, “you ruined her clothes,” Rose, “you stole her money,” then Nathaniel, “and you plagiarized her art because you’re jealous of her, too! Why do you guys hate her so much?”

”Because she’s a liar,” Marc murmured. "Simple as that."

“I’m not!” Lila yelled with fake tears in her eyes that masked the glare she was sending the boy. “Why does no one believe me?!” Sabrina went to console her.

”We believe you, girl,” Alya reassured. “And we’re gonna prove you’re innocent...” Her eyes trailed to Nathaniel’s messenger bag, “Starting by proving Nathaniel did steal your art!”

Before the fake artist could react, Alya already had his messenger bag in her hands and now the akumatized sketchbook. “Lila, get your sketchbook, we’re gonna...” Her voice trailed off when she saw the moving sketches of Mme. Bustier, Kim, and Mylène, begging to be freed. The other students gathered around Alya and looked in horror at students and teacher trapped in the sketchbook.

Max pointed at the fake, “You-you’re the Akuma!”

With a sneer, he snatched the sketchbook out of Alya’s hands and pressed a blank page to Max’s face. He disappeared and was now trapped inside the sketchbook, alarming the students.

“Th-the sketchbook’s g-gotta be an Amok,” Nino stammered as he pulled Alya away from the fake. “H-he doesn’t even look like an Akuma!”

“There’s no Amok, and I’m not the Akuma.” He flips to the page with Evillustrator. “He is.” As the students stood in shock, the fake tore out the page, and it glowed a bright purple before morphing into Evillustrator, glaring menacingly at the Akuma Class.

”N-Nath?” Marc stammered as he cautiously approached his Akumatized boyfriend.

“Then who’s he?!” Alix grabbed the fake's wrist to prevent him from running and glared at him.

Evillustrator scoffed. ”He's not important.” Then, much to the fake's horror, he put the eraser to his tablet.

”No! Wait!” The fake cried as he was erased from existence, horrifying the students, Marc especially. The sketchbook dropped to the floor with a thud.

“H-how did-“

”Ask her!” He points a shaky finger at the Italian girl. “You,” he draws a lock on his tablet, “will not get away with what you did!” A couple of students, Marinette being one of them, managed to escape the cafeteria right before Multiple locks appeared on the doors, making it impossible for the others to get out unless they were crazy enough to jump out of the window.

”I-I didn’t do anything!” She lied while rubbing her eyes to look like she’s crying again. “Why are you trying to hurt me, Nathaniel?!”

”It’s Evillustrator, now!” He drew a missile on his tablet, and that same missile appeared next to him. The students ran for the doors and tried to pull the locks off, but they were too strong. “NO ONE LEAVES UNTIL SHE’S GONE!” He points his pen towards Lila, and the missile goes after her as she runs around the cafeteria screaming for help. Seeing that they weren't going to get out of this, the remaining students ducked under tables and chairs.

Ismael and Ivan ran towards Evillustrator to try and grab the pen, remembering how that was the Akumatized object last time Nathaniel was Akumatized. Quickly, he jumped out of the way, causing the two boys to collide and fall to the floor, groaning in pain. Evillustrator grabs the sketchbook off the floor and pressed a blank page on them, making the two boys disappear into the sketchbook.

Seeing that the missile was getting closer to her, Sabrina quickly got up from under a table and tackled Lila to the floor before the missile could hit her. It instead crashed into a wall, creating a massive hole that allowed the students to escape. The art club students stayed behind, though, hoping that they could calm their akumatized friend down. Evillustrator was about to run after them, but Akux grabbed his wrist.

”Nath, wait!” she pleaded while trying to not look like she’s afraid of the enraged Akuma that used to be her best friend. “Let’s just talk about this, okay? What did Lila do to you?”

Evillustrator’s glare softened as he looked into Alix's eyes. He needed to get his revenge on Lila but she was keeping him from doing that... “Forgive me, Alix.”

”What?”

Before Alix knew it, she was trapped in the sketchbook, shocking the remaining members of the art club. Marc was about to approach him, but Evillustrator held his sketchbook close to his face, making the writer back away. “Don’t make me do something I will regret, Rainbow,” he warned then ran out of the cafeteria.

Many of the students took refuge in the locker room, their main place to hide during Akuma attacks in the school. They begged Damocles for months to actually build some sort of Akuma safety shelter in the school, but it was always the same thing, 'There's not enough money in the budget.' Well, there certainly was enough for him to create a secret compartment hidden behind the wall for his Owl stuff. Thinking about how much of the money they made during fundraisers being spent by him to create those toy weapons often gave the students horrible headaches.

The students flinched when they heard Evillustrator's booming voice from the second floor of the school, “WHERE ARE YOU LILA?!” A few brave students looked out the window and saw Evillustrator erasing the walls to every classroom he passed by. “YOU’RE WEAK, YOU KNOW THAT?!” He erases the door to a storage closet, revealing two very scared students cowering at the sight of him. The students not targeted by him couldn't help but feel sorry for the Akuma. Whatever Lila did must have been awful to make Nathaniel this upset.

With a frustrated yell, Evillustrator got the two students with his sketchbook. Once they were gone, he jumped down from the second floor and into the courtyard, making the students get away from the window, hoping he didn't see them. Jean Duparc looked around to make sure everyone was safe or not doing anything to attract the Akuma. A few were nervously biting their nails or twirling their hair, others were texting their parents, and next to him, Aurore and Mireille were updating their blog, 'BugOut & CatChat'. Instead of recording Akuma battles like Alya with the Ladybug, they analyzed the akumas and gave descriptions of their powers, let the public know of the Akuma's location so they could avoid it and so Ladybug and Chat Noir couldn't find it. And just for laughs, they critiqued Hawkmoth's fashion choices for Akumas. So far, there was nothing about Evillustrator's new outfit that needed critiquing. He bumped Trouble Maker down to 2nd place on the 'Best Dressed Akuma' list.

“Come out now, or so help me, I will-!” He stepped to the side when Ladybug’s YoYo flew right past him and retracted back to the spotted heroine standing at the top of the stairs. “You’ll have to be quicker than that, you pest!”

Chat Noir dropped in next to Ladybug, “Well, what’s got him so steamed up?”

“Lila,” she groaned, making Chat roll his eyes in annoyance at the mention of the liar. He's given that girl enough chances, as Chat and as Adrien. He was done. ”Let’s get this over with.”

The two heroes ran towards Evillustrator and were already dodging giant boxing gloves, buzz saws, and pitchforks drawn by him. Ladybug threw her yoyo, which he ducked under then drew something on his tablet. A hole that Ladybug would’ve fallen into if Chat Noir hadn’t grabbed her hand in time appeared under her feet.

Evillustrator drew two more buzz saws and sent them at the heroes. Chat Noir quickly got in front of Ladybug and spun his staff, making it act like a shield that deflected the saws. One sliced through the middle of a bench, revealing Lila. He smirked, "FOUND YOU!" He threw his sketchbook at Lila, but she ran out of the way and it hit one half of the bench before coming back to him like a boomerang. Evillustrator continues throwing his sketchbook at the liar while also drawing projectiles whenever the sketchbook was out of his hands. The first round of projectiles was easily deflected by Ladybug and Chat Noir, but there were just too many on their second round. One of them gets one of Ladybug's pigtails, cutting off a few inches and making her hair look weird. Another one nicked Chat on the ankle. He whispered a curse and clutched his ankle.

With Chat Noir subdued, Ladybug had to protect both of them and deflect the rest of the projectiles while Evillustrator went after Lila. As he chased her up the stairs, Evillustrator drew a couple of darts that pinned Lila to a wall by embedding them through her clothes. As she struggled to get free, Evillustrator calmly approached her while drawing on his tablet. "Don't look so afraid Lila. You had this coming after what you did."

"I didn't do anything!" she screamed. "It's not my fault that people like my art better than your-" She's silenced by a cleaver appearing in Evillustrator's hands.

He chuckled darkly, "I am going to enjoy this." After aiming for her head, he threw the cleaver. Lila turned her head away, believing that the cleaver hitting the side of her head would be less painful than it hitting her face. She waited, but the cleaver never came, and there was a 'clank' sound. Lila opened an eye and saw that Chat Noir, being supported by Ladybug, had deflected the cleaver with his staff.

"Took you long enough!" she complained. "Get me down from here!"

Ladybug took a deep breath as she assessed the situation. She could either be a hero and save Lila, or still be a hero and rid the world of Lila... 'Fine!' She made her way over to the sausage-haired girl and slowly took out the darts, and was clearly trying to keep herself from stabbing Lila with the very sharp ends. Once the last dart was removed, Lila pushed Ladybug into Chat, making him stumble a bit and lose his composure before making a run for it.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Evillustrator yelled, enraged. He grabbed Chat's staff while the leather-clad hero was still gripping it, and flung him over the railing, making him fall and crash onto the hard courtyard floor.

"Chat!" Ladybug called out. Angered, she threw her yoyo at the Akuma, but he caught it and opened his sketchbook, much to Ladybug's horror. Before the weapon could make contact with the page, Chat's staff extended and the end hit the side of Evillustrator's face. He fell to the floor and clenched his jaw. With him down, Ladybug ran for the sketchbook, only for a glass wall to appear between her, the Akumatized object, and Evillustrator. He drew something else on his tablet, and multiple swords appeared, all pointed at Ladybug.

"Stay out of my way!" He growled. Ladybug swung all around the courtyard as the swords chased after her. Seeing that there were still some students around, she led the swords into an empty classroom and proceeded to dodge them there. Seeing Chat Noir about to vault over to him, Evillustrator drew a giant boxing glove that knocked Chat down to the floor. He was in the middle of drawing an anvil when suddenly, a gloved hand grabbed his wrist. He looked up to see who had the nerve to stop him, but his anger diminished when he saw that it was Marc. "Rainbow, what are you doing?"

"Nath, you gotta stop!" Marc pleaded as he intertwined his and Evillustrator's hands.

"You don't know what she did, Marc!" He exclaimed. "You weren't there! Now let me go!" He tried to pull his hand out of Marc's grasp, but the writer wasn't letting go. 'Rossi's getting away! I can't let her get away with this!' With some reluctance, Evillustrator raised his sketchbook and tried hard to ignore the sad look in Marc's eyes. Just as he was about to press the page to his chest, Marc was pushed to the side, and the page instead was pressed to Rose's face, making her disappear into the sketchbook.

"ROSE!" Juleka and Marc cried out.

Evillustrator hit his fist on the metal railing in anger, "DAMN IT! SEE WHAT ROSSI'S MAKING ME DO?!" Hurridly, he drew a jetpack that appeared on his back. He pointed to Chat, "If you or Ladybug get in my way again, I WILL ERASE YOU BOTH FROM EXISTENCE!" Before he took off, he noticed Alya peering from around a corner. She was recording the fight using Nino's phone. When she noticed his eyes on her, she quickly made a run for it, but Evillustrator was faster. He hoisted the journalist over his shoulder.

"You're coming with me!" he yelled. "I want you to be there when Lila finally gets what's coming to her!"

"Wh-what are you- AH!"

Evillustrator flew out of the school just as Ladybug ran out of the classroom with her pigtails missing a couple of inches, one side strand missing, and some cuts on her face. She knew Evillustrator was a dangerous Akuma. He nearly drowned her and Chat and almost killed Chloe with a buzzsaw, but this was next level brutal. Hearing a groan, she looked and saw Chat Noir slowly climbing up the stairs with a slight limp. "Chat, are you okay?"

He shook his head, "No, m'lady. He got my ankle bad."

"Ladybug, Chat Noir!" Nino called out as he and Sabrina approached the two in-pain heroes. "Are you two okay?"

Ladybug gave a nod, "Yeah, we're fine. And don't worry Nino, we'll get Alya back."

Nino let out a breath of relief before Sabrina said to Ladybug, "Hey, after you were helping Lila down, I-I saw her push you. A-and before that, she sounded so rude when you were trying to help her." Ladybug frowned at that. She's saved that girl's butt so many times, and not once has she shown any gratitude. "Are you two having a fight, or-"

"No. We're not."

"Then why-"

Chat cut Nino off, "They're not friends, okay? Never have been, never will be."

"... Lila was lying?" Sabrina whispered to herself.

"And the sun sets in the west," Juleka muttered, making Marc give her a little nudge with his elbow.

The two bespectacled students cast each other looks of disbelief. Lila was lying about being friends with Ladybug, and she pushed the heroine into Chat, knowing he was injured and trying to fight Evillustrator. If she lied about that, what else could she have lied about? Pulling them out of their thoughts was Aurore and Mireille running over to Ladybug and Chat Noir with their phones.

"Ladybug! Chat Noir!" Mireille called out. "Alya's live-streaming right now." She hands the spotted heroine her phone, and the screen showed a live stream of the Ladyblog. Alya was in an odd position with a look of clear terror on her face that she was trying to mask with a brave smile. "He-hey, viewers! So, I am..." She looks down, and her eyes bulge before she looks back at the camera, "About a hundred feet above the ground right now, and I have nothing to hold onto! B-but don't worry. I mean, I'm slung over an Akuma's shoulder like a sack of flour, but at least he's not handsy like Pharaoh." She panned the phone to Evillustrator. "Care to comment?"

Evillustrator looks to the phone with an enraged look. "Lila Rossi, if you're watching this, I will find you! Be sure of it! And I might consider letting you live if Ladybug and Chat Noir hand over their Miraculous!"

Marc felt a tear about to escape out of the corner of his eye. What did Lila do to Nathaniel?

Alya panned the phone back to her horrified face. The fear of falling from a great height didn't phase her anymore. Now she was scared of the possibility of seeing an Akuma murder someone. Finally, much to her relief, they landed on a balcony.

"Wh-what are you doing here?!" A woman yelled.

Ladybug paused the video, "Thanks, you guys." She turns to Chat, "You gonna be okay?"

Chat gives her a thumbs up, "I'll be fine." He extends his baton, ready to vault out of the school. "Let's go!"

The two heroes swing and vault out of the school and head over to where Evillustrator is, leaving Lila's former followers to awkwardly stand with her haters.

"... We tried to tell you," Marc told Nino and Sabrina after a long, uncomfortable silence.

"Evillustrator, this is going too far! Let her go!"

Evillustrator glared at the Italian woman tied up and gagged on a couch. Floating over her were about ten daggers, all of the blades sharpened to a deadly point. "Yes, spare the mother of a demon spawn," he said sarcastically. "You said that you'd stay out of my way!" He turns to Alya, who's trying to inch out of the room. "Don't. Go. Anywhere. And keep rolling! Let's see if Lila Rossi is all she claims to be."

Mme. Rossi lets out a loud muffled response. The Akuma approaches her and rips the duct tape off of her mouth, making her let out a pained yell. "What are you talking about?! What does this have to do my daughter?!"

Evillustrator gives the woman a pitiful look. It's sad how this woman doesn't know what her daughter has been up to. Well, now she'll know.

"MAMA!"

"Perfect timing," Evillustrator smirked as Lila ran up the stairs and into the living room.

"Mama, don't listen to him! He's an Akuma, and he's trying to hurt me!"

Evillustrator chuckled, "Well, that's not the whole story, is it?" He turns to Alya, still recording, "Paris, let's see how committed to her lies, Lila is. Would she put her own mother in danger just to avoid the consequences?" He approaches the scared and very confused woman. "Irene Rossi, your daughter has been claiming many things recently. Confirm a few things for me, okay?" Irene nods frantically. "Great. And if Lila tries to save face, then... I'm so sorry she's your daughter." He draws a ball and chain something on his tablet. That same one appears around Lila's ankle, preventing her from escaping. "Now, Irene. Tell us, have you ever met Prince Ali?"

Irene furrowed her brow in confusion. 'What is he talking about?' She shook her head, no. "What are you-"

"He's trying to make me look bad, mama!" Lila wailed. "Please, don't answer whatever he asks! It's a trick!"

"Damn, Lila," Evillustrator whispered. "I thought you loved your mother." He pointed to one of the daggers, and at his command, it dropped down, dangerously close to hitting Irene's shoulder and embedding itself into the couch cushion. All three women and everyone watching the Ladyblog Livestream let out horrified gasps. "This is what happens when you lie," he taunted. "So, you've never met Prince Ali? So, that would mean Lila's never worked on Go Green charities with him."

"What?!" Irene shrieked. "Prince Ali doesn't even work with Go Grene charities! He's devoted his time to helping children! Lila, what have you been telling people?"

Before the brunette has a chance to speak, Evillustrator interrupts, "Next question. Are you the descendant of a fox hero named Volpina?" Alya's jaw dropped at that question. "Did anyone in the family ever pass along a necklace with a fox-tail pendant down to Lila?"

Irene shook her head, "No! No one hasn't!" She glares at Lila, "The only family heirloom passed down is a wedding veil with the brides' names stitched on!"

"M-maybe you just didn't know about it!" Lila lied, much to Irene and Alya's shock. They saw what happened when she lied, and she's still trying to save herself. "Nonna passed the necklace down to me because she-"

"LIES!" Another dagger came very close to hitting Irene's foot. She managed to move it out of the way at the last second. "So shameful. Letting your mother face the consequences for your lies? Is there no level you won't stoop to, Lila?" When she didn't answer and instead glared at him, he asked Irene the next question, "Why wasn't Lila in school for what was it?... Three months?”

“I was told that school was closed due to an Akuma outbreak and that Ladybug and Chat Noir were too incompetent to stop them.”

”By Lila?”

”...” She nodded, ashamed, “Yes.”

Evillustrator smirked, “Well, while your daughter was relaxing at home, she’s been telling everyone that she was really in Achu with Prince Ali.” He adds, “And it takes Ladybug and Chat Noir about three hours to defeat an Akuma, so they’re not incompetent like your daughter says they are.”

Irene hung her head. How could her own flesh and blood be so deceitful? And how could she risk the life of her own mother like this?

”Aw, that’s so sweet!” Chat exclaimed as he and Ladybug landed on the balcony and made their way inside.

”Nathaniel, you’ve already exposed Lila,” Ladybug tried to reason. “Just hand over your Akuma so no one else gets hurt!”

”My name is Evillustrator!” he growled. “And that wasn’t even half the lies she’s told!” He turns to Irene, who’s gone pale learning that Lila's told more lies. “You thought those were bad? Just wait until you see what else she’s hiding.” He draws a gas mask that appears over his face and a smoke bomb that releases purple smoke all around the living room. There are some scattered coughs that decrease as the smoke clears up due to Ladybug and Chat Noir spinning their weapons. They act like fans and blow the smoke out of the window. When the room clears up, Evillustrator, Lila, and Alya are gone, but Irene still remains tied up on the couch with the daggers still above her.

“Where’d they go?” Ladybug wondered aloud before Chat went to go untie Mme. Rossi.

”Th-thank you, b-both of you,” she stammered while eyeing the still-floating daggers. “I-I am so sorry for what I th-thought of you, I’m sure you’re both-“

”Ma’am, it’s alright,” Chat told her. “Lila was the one making us look bad; you didn’t know.”

"Maledetto," Irene sighed and buried her face in her hands. “Looking back, some things Lila has been telling me did seem far-fetched. The school being closed for months, every student and teacher being akumatized, the people working for the media have been held hostage." The heroes give her unbelieving looks. "Yes. I realize how dumb it sounds now, but I'm new to these... Akumas, and Miraculous. I... I thought I could trust her."

Ladybug rested a hand on the woman's shoulder and gives her a sympathetic look, "We'll set your daughter straight, Mme. Rossi. You can be sure of it." As the woman smiled, Ladybug called her for her, "Lucky Charm!" The object that dropped down into her hands was, "A ram's horn?"

Chat Noir scratched his head in confusion, "You gonna play a little tune?"

"That's also what convinced me you two weren't capable," Irene said. "You rely on random objects to defeat an Akuma?"

Ladybug looked around the room, trying to find a way to use the Lucky Charm, "Well, they do help in battles. I just need to figure out how to use it."

"Hey!" Chat piped up, "Isn't there a Goat Miraculous?"

Ladybug recalled seeing a Goat Kwami when she was battling Kwamibuster, and she wore horn-shaped barrettes. "You're right, Chat! Go and follow Evillustrator, I'll be with you soon." With a salute, Chat was gone. Before she left, Irene told her in a low, threatening voice, "Bring her back, so I may give her the punishment she deserves."

Ladybug tensed, "Well, with what Lila's been doing, she'll probably be out of your hands and in the polices'." She left before Irene could ask what she meant, leaving the Italian woman to sulk in her living room.

'What did she do to him?!' Marc wondered over and over as he sat in the art room with Juleka, furiously writing his feelings down in his journal. Both of them needed a break from the guilty look of Juleka's classmates and decided to spend the rest of the day in the art classroom. It was so quiet without the others.'That sausage-haired jerk deserves what's coming to her!... Maybe not death.'

Juleka takes a peek over Marc's shoulder to read what he's written. Her eyes go wide when she sees the many words Marc has used to describe Lila... Well, he was right. "You feeling better?" she asked.

Marc looked up from his journal and turned to face the goth girl. "... I need worse words for her." Juleka chuckled and took the seat next to him. "I have used every curse word and insult I could think of to describe Lila, and none of them are strong enough."

Juleka pulls out a pencil, "Try this." She writes something down on the corner page of his journal and has him look at it, leaving Marc's face a crimson red. "Eh?"

"Juleka," Marc gasped. "Wh-where did you-"

"You won't believe what mom said around me," she smirked. "One of them was actually Luka's first word." Her amused expression turns sour, "I still think those words are too good for Lila, though."

"Every curse word is too good for her," Marc joked, making Juleka laugh. Cutting off their amused laughter was the sound of something hitting a window. They turned around and saw Ladybug standing on a ledge right outside the classroom. They ran over and opened the window, allowing the heroine to come inside.

"L-Ladybug, what are you doing here?" Juleka asked in awe.

"The Lucky Charm told me to come here." She turns to Marc, "I'm gonna need to borrow you for a while, Marc." The emerald-eyed boy stood, frozen in shock. Ladybug. The Ladybug wanted to borrow him! Realizing that he's just been staring at her for a while, he snapped out of his daze and nodded.

"Y-yes! Of course!"

"Smooth," Juleka whispered.

Ladybug wrapped her arm around Marc's waist and threw her yoyo out of the window. Once it wrapped around something, it pulled the two out of the classroom, leaving Juleka alone.

"... Might as well go home," she said to herself before gathering up her stuff.

Once she and Marc were on top of a roof, Ladybug moved them to hide behind an air vent, away from the public view. "Marc, what I'm about to ask you is very important, okay?" Off his nod, she pulled out a hexagonal box in front of her. "Marc Anciel, here is the Miraculous of the Goat, which grants the power of Compassion. You will use it for the greater good. Once the job is done, you will return the Miraculous to me."

Marc was speechless. He wanted to faint, scream, and jump up and down like a child on Christmas morning. Ladybug. Was asking him to assist her in saving Nathaniel... But what if he failed? Nathaniel would stay an Akuma forever, he'd fail Ladybug and Chat Noir, and-"

"Do you accept?" Ladybug asked, concerned when Marc didn't give her an immediate response like the previous heroes. "Marc, I trust you. And Nathaniel needs you."

"... I'll do it."

With a smile, Ladybug handed him the box. Marc opened it, revealing two hair clips in the shape of horns. There was a bright flash of light that had Marc shielding his eyes for a moment before looking up at the goat-like creature floating in front of him. All he could think was, 'I WANNA PET THEM SO MUCH!'

"Hi!" She greeted, "My name's Ziggy, and I'm a Kwami! It's a pleasure to meet you!" She flies around Marc, making him chuckle. "I love him already!" Ziggy squealed as she nuzzled against Marc's cheek. "Okay, to transform, you just gotta say, Ziggy, Fleece On!"

With a nod, Marc put the clips in his hair, where they turned into crescent moon-shaped clips.

"Ziggy! Fleece On!"

Ziggy flew into one of the hairclips, transforming them both back into their original design. Marc swept his hand over his face, making a black mask appear around his eyes. A golden sheep's bell appeared on his choker necklace. The magic spread from the bell and formed a white hoodie with black trumpet sleeves, white gloves with black fingertips, black pants held up by a white studded belt, and black and white combat boots. He ran his fingers through his hair, making fake goat ears appear atop his head, and his hair became an inch longer with the tips dyed white. Finally, he reached up into the air and caught a shepherd's crook that materialized in the air. He spun it around before tapping it on the ground.

Capricorn was ready!

All of Paris' citizens stood before the Eiffel Tower, eyes glued to their phones as they watched the LadyBlog live stream with anticipation. Firefighters stood all around the structure with large trampolines ready to catch someone. And at the very top of the Eiffel Tower were Alya, filming the fight between Chat Noir, Stormy Weather, and Mime, both drawn by Evillustrator, said villain plucking at a rope tied to the railing, and tied at the end of the rope was Lila, dangling thousands of feet above the ground and screaming to the top of her lungs.

"Come on, Lila," Evillustrator told her as he continued messing with the only thing keeping Lila from becoming a stain on the ground. "Make things easier for yourself, and tell everyone the truth."

"I'M NOT A LIAR!" she screeched.

Evillustrator snarled before ducking out of the way of one of Stormy Weather's lightning bolts. "You'll do anything to keep up your act, won't you?!" He drew a throwing dark on his tablet and aimed it for Lila's head. She managed to swing out of the way just in time, much to Evillustrator's frustration. He let out a sigh before saying, "Fine. Have it your way." He draws a blade on his tablet, and that same one appears in his hand.

"NO!" Chat Noir yelled before he was pinned to the floor by one of Mime's invisible objects. His staff was out of reach, and he could barely move. Stormy Weather approached him with her parasol, and zapped him with an ice blast, freezing him in place.

Hawkmoth's symbol appeared over Evillustrator's face, "Evillustrator! Forget the girl! Take Chat Noir's Miraculous! Unthaw his hand!"

"She's made my and my friends' life a living hell, and you expect me to let her GET AWAY WITH IT?!"

In his lair, Hawkmoth swayed slightly due to being overwhelmed by Evillustrator's emotions. How can one boy feel so much rage? He looked through the Akuma's eyes and saw him putting the blade close to the rope holding up his follower. Hawkmoth didn't care for Lila, but he wasn't that cruel. Plus, if she died, where else is he gonna find some selfish civilian willing to work for him and get rid of a couple of Adrien's bad influences in exchange for the hero's downfall and a modeling contract? "That's enough!"

Hawkmoth was physically restraining Evillustrator from cutting the rope. The Akuma struggled to regain control, "Why are you defending her of all people?! You got a soft side for Rossi, Hawkmoth?!" He sneered, "What is she, your follower or something?..." He gets the use of his body back and smirks when Hawkmoth says nothing. "Your silence says a lot."

Alya and the citizens watching from down below gasped. Some inexperienced model was secretly working for Hawkmoth? She was working against their beloved hero! Hawkmoth felt like he was about to pass out from the massive wave of emotions. For once, he was praying for Ladybug to show up and de-akumatize the victim. Once this was over, he needed a long break. Screw the jewelry, this headache was awful.

Evillustrator hummed, "Well, less of Hawkmoth's followers, fewer problems." He slashed the rope, and Lila plummeted to the earth with a blood-curdling scream.

"OH MY GOD!" Alya screamed as she dropped her phone.

The firefighters tried to pinpoint where she would drop, and the police stood by, ready the question the girl (If she lives). Lila was halfway to her doom. She clenched her eyes shut and waited while thinking to herself, 'I'm lucky enough to have gotten out of there without him exposing me! That pest better get here in time!' Right as she was at the second level of the tower, she suddenly stopped falling. It felt like something was hoisting her up. She opened one eye and turned her head to see who caught her. (Maybe gain some sympathy while she's at it) "Oh my goodness! Thank you so much for-"

"Cram it, Liar Rossi," Capricorn sneered as he pulled Lila away from the balcony using his crook, and set her down. He unhooked his weapon from her jacket and ran off to help Ladybug.

"HEY!" Lila screeched, throwing away her kicked puppy act. "Aren't you gonna untie me?!"

Capricorn just smirked, having no intention of helping her, and vaulted his way up to the summit of the Eiffel Tower.

Ladybug spun her YoYo, deflecting each of Evillustrator’s projectiles while occasionally using her weapon to hit the ice Chat was trapped in and free him.

”So Ladybug, tell me.” He drew a few throwing stars, “Is Lila really your best friend?”

Ladybug flung one of the projectiles into the throwing stars, making it explode on impact. “She hates me! I try to be friends with her, but she swore a vendetta on me!” She backflips away from the sketchbook before it could pull her in. “Hell, I’m pretty sure she wants me dead! When I was fighting Oni-Chan, she tricked Chat into leaving me!” At the mention of her partner, she threw her YoYo at the ice block once again, creating a few cracks along the surface. “So to answer your question, we never will be friends! Ever!”

Alya felt her hands shaking as she struggled to keep her phone up. She owed Marinette, Nathaniel, Alix, Rose, Juleka, and Marc a huge apology when or if this is all over. So far, it’s not looking good.

Ladybug threw her YoYo once more, intending to grab the sketchbook, but it instead wrapped around a sheet of flypaper. When she retracted it, Ladybug had some trouble separating the two, and just got both of her hands and weapon stuck to the paper. Evillustrator drew a ball and chain around the heroine’s ankle and calmly approached her.

”I won,” he sang as he reached his hand over to grab the earrings. Alya cut her phone off and shielded her eyes. She wanted to know the heroes' identities, but not like this.

But a second before the earrings were in his grasp, Evillustrator was whacked to the side and fell to the ground. While getting up, he watched as a figure dressed in black and white used a shepherd’s crook to break the chain connected to the 100lb ball, and the ice trapping Chat Noir. “Who are you supposed to be?!” He snarled.

He smiled, “The name’s Capricorn.”

Without saying a word, Evillustrator furiously drew a missile on his tablet that appeared and went after the heroes. While running, Ladybug finally got the flypaper off and threw her YoYo around Alya. She flung her over to the elevator and yelled, “Go!” Alya complied and quickly went inside the elevator to avoid the fight.

As he and Capricorn ran, Chat came up with an idea on how to get rid of the missile. To the new hero, he shouted, “Launch me!” With a nod, Capricorn ran ahead of Chat, got down on one knee, and locked his fingers together. Once he was close enough, Chat leaped into Capricorn’s hands, and the latter launched him into the air. Chat called out “Cataclysm!” as he went over the missile, and slid his hand across it, turning it into black ash.

”Nice one, you guys!” Ladybug commended as she rejoined the fight.

“Well, I couldn’t have done it without ewe,” he shot Capricorn double finger guns, making Ladybug roll her eyes and Capricorn stifle a laugh. Seeing Evillustrator drawing something else, Ladybug said to the new hero, “Capricorn, use your power. You can connect with Nathaniel and figure out what’s wrong!”

He nodded, “Cover me!”

Ladybug and Chat Noir ran towards Evillustrator, just as he was finished drawing three buzz saws. Chat Noir got in front of Ladybug and deflected them while she called for another Lucky Charm. It was a box of tissues. She set those to the side and went after Evillustrator, wrapping her YoYo tight around him. He kept his sketchbook clutched close to his chest and had no intention of letting go.

With him restrained, Capricorn yelled, “Connection!” And his crook was illuminated by a bright white light. He calmly approached Evillustrator, ignored his threats, and tapped his forehead with the crook. In an instant, Capricorn was no longer at the Eiffel Tower; he was at someone’s home. He looked around and recognized the place thanks to the furniture and photos framed on the wall. He was at Nathaniel’s house.

”Where’s my lil’ Leonardo?!” A playful voice called out followed by some giggling. Capricorn looked towards the door and saw a tall man with dark red hair and turquoise eyes walking in with a bright smile and a bag in his hands. Capricorn recognized the man. He’s seen his photos every time he goes over to Nathaniel’s house. It was his father, Maison Kurtzberg.

The man smiled as a child with long red hair wearing paint-splattered clothes ran into his arms. It was clear to Capricorn that the boy was Nathaniel.

”We really gotta cut your bangs, kids,” Maison laughed as he ruffled young Nathaniel’s hair, making the child laugh.

”Oh, leave him alone,” a voice Capricorn recognized as Aya’s said. “he likes how they look.” The seven-year-old nodded in agreement with his mother, making Maison chuckle.

”Well then, how are you gonna be able to see when you’re drawing in your books?” he asked.

”Oh, our little artist used up all of his sketchbooks,” Aya simpered while Maison just looked astonished.

”All ten of them?” Aya nodded. “Well then...” He hands Nathaniel over to Aya and reaches into the bag his holding, “It’s a good thing I bought this!” He pulls out a black sketchbook with a white outline of a paintbrush, pencil, and pen on the front. The young boy’s eyes gleamed under his bangs, and he made grabby motions with his hands, either to get to his dad or grab the new sketchbook.

Aya giggled and kissed her son’s forehead. “We really need to get him to talk more.”

Capricorn smiled at the scene before it faded away and transitioned to the school locker room. He looked around and saw Nathaniel, standing at his locker and frantically flipping through the torn pages of a black book. Upon closer inspection, Capricorn realized that it was Nathaniel’s sketchbook, the one his dad bought for him.

‘So that’s what Lila did,’ he thought bitterly.

When Nathaniel broke out into tears and sat down on the floor, Capricorn approached and kneeled beside him. “... Nathaniel?” He looked up at him with a tear-stained face and murmured, “I’m sorry.”

Capricorn placed his hands on Nathaniel’s shoulders, “You had every right to be mad. You-“

Nathaniel cut him off, “Took my anger out on everyone! I-I trapped my classmates, I hurt Ladybug and Chat Noir, I tried to kill Lila!” He covers his face with his hands and cries harder, “I almost hurt Marc...”

Capricorn wanted to tell him, ‘No you didn’t.’ But that would reveal himself as Marc.

”My classmates are gonna hate me even more for what I did to Lila. Don’t make me go back out there...”

“I won’t.” He moves Nathaniel’s hands out of the way and cups his face in his hands. “But you can’t stay Akumatized forever. I get why you’re upset. That sketchbook came from someone very important to you and she took it away...”

Nathaniel sighs and holds his hand against his cheek. “...”

”... If it makes you feel any better, Evillustrator exposed Lila as Hawkmoth’s partner.”

Nathaniel looks up, hopeful, “He did?”

Capricorn nodded, “You won’t have to worry about her anymore. She can’t hurt you or your friends again.”

“... The Akuma's in my sketchbook,” he said, right before the locker room faded away.

Capricorn looked around and saw that he was back at the Eiffel Tower. In front of him was a heavily crying Evillustrator, no longer bound by Ladybug’s YoYo. He slowly loosened his grip around his sketchbook and handed it over to Capricorn. The goat hero took it, turned around, and tore the book in half. The pages scattered onto the floor and morphed into the people Evillustrator trapped in the sketchbook. Finally, the Akuma fluttered out of the book.

”No more evil-doing for you, little Akuma!” Ladybug caught it with her YoYo. “Time to de-evilize! Gotcha!” Emerging from the YoYo was a pure white butterfly that fluttered up into the sky. “Bye-bye little butterfly.” She looked around for the tissue box Lucky Charm until she saw Capricorn using a handful to wipe Evillustrator’s tears away. With a smile, she took the box and tossed it into the air.

”MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!”

The tissue box burst into thousands of magic Ladybugs that flew across the city. The people released from the sketchbook were placed back on the ground, all of the damage caused by Evillustrator was fixed, Chat and Ladybug’s cuts from earlier were healed, everything erased was restored, and Lila was no longer tied up. Finally, the Akuma’s magic washed over Evillustrator, leaving Nathaniel curled in on himself.

Ladybug and Chat Noir fist bump, “Pound it.”

Chat Noir looks off to the side and notices something lying on the floor. He walks over to it and picks up Nathaniel’s repaired sketchbook. “Hey,” Nathaniel looks up and gasps when he sees his sketchbook, “this yours?” He hands it over to the redhead, who immediately takes it.

”Th-thank you,” he whispered in disbelief as he flipped through the pages. Everything was there. He furrowed his brow in confusion, “I-I thought the Miracle Cure could only repair things caused by the Akuma.”

Ladybug wasn’t sure how to answer that. Maybe the Miracle Cure could fix Akumatized objects that were previously damaged, she thought. Before Ladybug could reply, he YoYo beeped. She switched it to the phone setting and saw a LadyBlog Livestream, only Alya’s phone was pointed to the floor. Did she know she was live right now?

”Please! All it takes is a few tears, and everyone will think Hawkmoth manipulated or blackmailed me!” It was Lila.

”Did Alya plan this?” Ladybug wondered.

”Clever girl,” Chat said.

“And just wait until tomorrow. Those idiots will fall at my command and attack that asshole, Kurtzberg! Maybe I can get them to tear up his sketchbook again! No doubt Ladybug's fixed it."

Capricorn‘s grip around his weapon tightened when she said that.

She let out a fake whine, “‘Oh, Nathaniel tried to kill me! Lock him away!’ See? It’s that easy!”

“I’ll tell everyone!” Alya retorted.

”And who’s gonna believe some lousy tabloid writer?” She taunted. “One word from me, and you’ll be a social pariah like those f*g art kids!”

Ladybug wanted to punch that girl so badly... Eh, let Paris take care of her.

”What the hell did you do to her?!”

”Well, let’s see... Threatened her, told her she’d lose her friends, and succeeded. Framed her for theft, cheating, and assault. Then I got her expelled so I could have Adrien all to myself."

Chat Noir held back the bile rising in his throat.

”So, I’m gonna go on a limb here and say you’ve been lying about every single thing.”

”Took you long enough, idiot! I hope you like sitting alone tomorrow. Meanwhile, I’ll be rich from taking that dumpy bitch’s charity money, and modeling for Gabriel.”

”And meanwhile, Paris will be hunting you down.” Alya pans the phone over to her smug face. “You heard it here, Paris. Lila is working for Hawkmoth, has been tormenting students and Francoise-DuPont, stealing charity money, and she’s homophobic.”

She pans the phone towards Lila’s horrified face. “So Lila, how does it feel to be the most hated girl in France? Oh, look at that. The comments are rolling in- Wow, everyone really hates you.”

Officer Raincomprix steps in between the two girls, “Miss Césaire, we’re going to need that phone for evidence, please.”

”One minute sir,” the video pans to her face, “Babe, if you’re watching this, I’m sorry. Your phone’s with the cops now. Okay, here you go.” The screen cuts to black.

Chat Noir couldn’t help but laugh, “I love that girl!”

Ladybug ran her fingers through her hair and grinned, “It’s over! She’s gone! She’s finally gone!” She turns to Capricorn with a bright smile, “Capricorn, why don’t you take Nathaniel back home? I’ll meet up with you later.”

With a nod, the goat hero scooped up Nathaniel into his arms and leaped away. Ladybug and Chat Noir swung and vaulted off, feeling very relieved knowing that they would have to deal with Lila anymore as civilians or heroes.

Capricorn landed right outside Nathaniel’s home and gently set him down.

”Thanks,” Nathaniel said as he shyly looked down at the ground. “A-again, I am so sorry about-“

”Nathaniel, it’s fine,” Capricorn reassured him. “You weren’t in control. I’m sure everyone will understand.”

Nathaniel smiled at that, “Thanks.”

Then, without thinking, Capricorn pulled him in for a hug, which Nathaniel returned once he got over his surprise. This lasted for a few more seconds until Nathaniel said, “I- uh... I have a boyfriend.”

Capricorn mentally facepalmed. ‘You’re not Marc right now! Nathaniel is not Capricorn’s boyfriend!’ "Sorry." Awkwardly, he pulled away and the two boys looked away in embarrassment. Finally, after an uncomfortable silence, someone called out, "NATH!" It was Alix, running towards him with Rose and Juleka. The latter narrowed her eyes at the goat hero, making him tense up and worry she'll figure out he's Marc.

"Oh, shit!" Alix cursed and she engulfed Nathaniel in a bone-crushing hug. "I thought we lost you, bud!"

"We could hear everything while we were in the sketchbook," Rose piped up. "They know Lila's lying!"

"Everyone in Paris does," Juleka smiled. "A police car drove by me earlier and I saw her in the back seat."

Alix cackled, "You should have seen their faces, Nath! It was priceless! Bustier was rocking back and forth like a mental patient, Max was face-palming over and over, and Mylene? Whoa! Don't get me started-"

Rose pointed to Capricorn, "Who's this?" Alix and Juleka turned their attention to the new hero.

"Sweet!" Alix pumped her fist in the air. "A new hero! And he helped take down Rossi!"

Capricorn's elation from the compliments turned to concern when Nathaniel asked, "Wait, where's Marc? Is he okay?!" Before Capricorn could come up with an excuse, Juleka answered, "Oh, his moms called him home," she fibbed while occasionally stealing glances at Capricorn. "I was gonna go with him, but my mom needed me home for something, too. He's probably still there."

Capricorn furrowed his brow. Did Juleka know?

"Thanks, Jules!" The four of them watched him run to Marc's house. With them distracted, Capricorn took this opportunity to quickly vault away once he heard his clips beeping and go look for Ladybug.

Capricorn met with Ladybug in an alley near his house and said the de-transformation words. "Ziggy, fleece off." The goat kwami flew out from the hair clip and hovered next to Marc, nuzzling his cheek as he removed the clips.

"That was so much fun!" Ziggy squealed. "Can you call on him again one day? Pleeease?" She put her flipper-hands together and gave Ladybug dough eyes, making her and Marc laugh.

"We'll see," Ladybug giggled. She gives Ziggy a little pat on her head before pulling out the box. Marc set the clips back in and said goodbye to Ziggy before she flew back into the horn-shaped clips.

"Thank you, Marc." She tucked the box away then pulled out her yoyo, preparing to swing away. "I knew I picked the right person for the job. Now, I suggest you go make sure Nathaniel is alright."

Marc nodded, "I will."

"See you soon, Capricorn." Marc wanted to ask what she meant by that, but she was already gone. He let out an excited squeal before running to his house. He waited outside for about three minutes until he saw Nathaniel running towards him.

"Nath!" The two ran towards each other and met each other with a tight, loving embrace.

"Rainbow, I'm so sorry," Nathaniel whispered, taking an exhale before asking, "Are you okay?"

"I should be asking you that. Nath, what Lila was... It-it was fucked up." Nathaniel nodded once he got over the shock of hearing his boyfriend curse. "But she's gone, now. She can't hurt you, me, Mari, anyone anymore."

With a smile, Nathaniel kissed Marc, and he melted into it as he wrapped his arms around Nathaniel.

The next day, the art club kids walked to school together. (Marc made sure to set an alarm for Marinette) They wanted to be prepared for any random apologies from the Akuma class or any reporters swarming the schoolyard looking for Hawkmoth's latest victim. When they realized DuPont was an Akuma hotspot, news crews would always go to get an interview from the Akumatized student or teacher. So far no reporters yet, much to Nathaniel's relief, but there were a few police cars parked outside.

Around them were a few officers questioning the students and teachers as they made their way to the doors. Before they could go in, the doors swung open, and four police officers walked out, escorting Mme. Bustier and M. Damocles to the police cars. Marinette asked Nino, who walked out a second later, "Are Mme. Bustier and M. Damocles getting arrested?"

Nino shrugged, "I heard the school board decided to do an investigation when Lila mentioned missing months of school and getting you expelled without any proof. Some people from the board came, talked to them, and, uh..." He slipped off his cap and ran his hand through his hair. "I don't think we're gonna see them for a while, Mari."

Marinette couldn't help but grin at the news, "I don't have to be the class example anymore!" Nino's eyes bulged at that. "I-it's a long story. I'll tell you later."

Nino chuckled before giving the group a remorseful look, "I... I'm sorry I didn't believe you guys."

"Don't sweat it, Lahiffe," Alix said. "You guys are just too nice and naive to notice when you're being conned."

Nino furrowed his brow as he processed what she just said. After a moment of silence, he said, "Thank... You? Well, school is canceled for today and the class is going to get some ice cream. You guys in?"

"Yeah!" Alix cheered. "Let's get some ice cream and apologies!" She sat on top of the stair railing and slid down.

"There they are," Kim said, pointing to Nino arriving with the art students. The Akuma class tensed up as they approached. Some were going over their apologies in their heads while others were figuring out what to say, especially to Marinette and Nathaniel. "Alright," he took a breath, "let's do this, guys."

Before any of them could apologize, Alix spoke, "Yes, yes. You all were idiots, we're smart, you're sorry, and promise to listen to us when we say someone is lying."

"... Y-yeah. Ba-basically," Kim stammered. "But seriously, you guys, we're sorry we took Lila's side."

"We've known you guys since we were kids," Mylene remarked. "We should've known you guys couldn't have done the stuff Lila said you did."

"Yeah, you should've," Juleka muttered, making Rose nudge her girlfriend with her elbow.

Alya walked over to Marinette with a sad smile, "Any chance you guys might forgive us someday?"

Marinette smiled and pulled the girl in for a hug, "Alya, shut up. I forgive you."

The creole girl smile and wrapped her arms around Marinette, "Thanks, Mari."

"... But if this happens again, I will physically knock some sense into you all until you admit that I'm right and beg for mercy," she whispered. The students just stood there, disturbed by what the sweetest girl in class just said.

Alya slowly back away from Marinette and nervously chuckled, "Got it, girl."

"Now, Alya," Alix piped up, "guys, isn't there someone else you want to apologize to?" She gestures over to Nathaniel.

Alya wasn't sure what to say to Nathaniel. The only time they really interacted was yesterday when she accused him of stealing Lila's art. So, taking a deep breath, she said to him, "Nathaniel, I... I jumped the gun, there, I'll admit it." A few nodded along. "When I think about it, the more I realize that you'd never steal another person's art."

"I mean you went into a fifteen-minute rant during history when we were talking about some art thief," Ivan brought up. He chuckled at the memory before stopping abruptly. "Yeah... Sorry."

"I forgive you guys," Nathaniel smiled. "Just don't do that ever again or I might also knock some sense into you guys."

To change the subject, Max brought up Capricorn, and now that was all anyone could talk about. Marc blushed when some of the girls called his hero persona cute. Was he? He didn't really get a good look at his outfit. As they rambled on about the new hero, he and Nathaniel went to get some ice cream.

"So, what'd you think of Capricorn?" Marc asked.

Nathaniel hummed in thought before answering, "I like him. He really helped me out there... Plus, he's kinda cute." Marc tried to fight back a blush. "Not as cute as you, though." Marc wasn't sure how to respond to that. "He was really understanding about why I got Akumatized and he even convinced me to hand over my Akuma."

Marc feigned surprise. "Really?"

He nodded. "Do you think he'd mind if we put him in the comic?"

Marc pretended to think about it for a moment, "I don't think so."

AO3

~Taglist~

#Evillustrator #marc x nathaniel #Badass Nathaniel Kurtzberg #lila gets exposed #Goat Marc #goat miraculous #ml salt fanfic #class redemption

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phoenix-downer · 3 years ago

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Autumn Mending Chapter 2: Festivities and Memories

~4050 words. Romance, Angst, Pining, Mutual Pining, Fluff, Comfort, Healing, Making Up. For SoKai Day 2021.

Sequel to Kisses and Lies because I couldn’t just leave Sora and Kairi hanging, now could I?

Will have three chapters because the story took on a life of its own, and the actual final chapter will be the one posted on SoKai Day.

Summary: Sora and Kairi are still broken up, but with the help of old friends and Twilight Town’s autumn festival, the spark between them just might be rekindled.

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3

After her mission with Sora, Kairi had been left so confused. She’d thought, after that kiss, after that conversation, after the way Sora had looked at her, that he’d make a move. Ask to talk. Try to work things out.

But he didn’t. He was nice. He was cordial. But there was a giant wall around his heart, and no matter what she did, she couldn’t get past it.

Breaking up with him was the worst mistake of her life. She could see that now, and how she regretted it more than anything. Because it was done out of fear. She’d been scared of the future. Scared he’d leave her alone again and never come home. Not like he’d done it on purpose before, but when he told her he was planning on continuing to fight instead of going to college or settling down, a deep, awful feeling of dread had settled in her stomach.

Instead of discussing things with him, she’d talked at him and told him a bunch of things. Told him she was scared he was addicted to fighting and hopping from one world to the next. Told him she was afraid he wouldn’t ever want to settle down and start a family like she wanted to. Told him she feared he’d leave again on yet another dangerous journey and never come back this time. Told him she couldn’t live a life like that, couldn’t live a life where she never knew when her husband would be home, a life where her kids might be abandoned without any clue as to what happened to their dad and she’d be left to raise them alone.

She’d never forget the look in his eyes that night on the beach. The hurt, the pain, the agony. The begging and pleading and promising to be everything she wanted and needed, then the tears and anguish when she told him it was over. They’d both cried their hearts out, and she assumed he would never forgive her after hurting him so deeply. Especially when he ran off the next day and avoided her for months afterwards. It wasn’t until Master Yen Sid had assigned them to go on that mission together that she got to talk to him again.

How wonderful it was just to spend time with him once more. When she’d kissed him to fake out their enemies, it hadn’t been fake for her. She’d missed him so badly. Missed his smiles, his laughter, his heart. His hugs, his warmth, his kisses. His sass, his humor, his love. She wanted to talk to him about what had happened. Apologize for breaking his heart and beg for forgiveness and explain that the problem wasn’t him, no, it was her, it was always her, she was always the one making things difficult for them both—

But he’d been standoffish. He’d cut off her attempts to talk to him. Only near the end of the meal they’d shared in that food court was she able to confirm he still had feelings for her. It was his eyes that had given him away. It was always his eyes. They really were like the window to his soul, or more accurately, his heart.

So then why did he act so awkward around her afterwards? Why did he avoid her? She despaired and figured she’d blown her final chance with him. So when the cute guy who worked at the souvenir shop asked her on a date, she thought heck, why not. Why not give another guy a chance. He was nice and the date was nice, but the moment he tried to kiss her at the end of the night, she knew this was wrong. It was all so wrong.

Here she was, at the door to her parents’ house, the moon and stars shining down on her and this perfectly nice guy trying to kiss her, and all she could think about was Sora. She couldn’t get his face out of her mind, couldn’t help but wonder how he would feel if he knew this guy had almost kissed her. Couldn’t help but remember all the times he had kissed her.

Sora. It was always Sora. He would always have her heart. No matter what happened, that would never change.

“You okay?” her date asked with a frown. “I’m sorry, I should’ve asked first—”

“No, it’s not you, it’s me,” she told him. “You’ve been wonderful and tonight was wonderful, but I… I can’t go out with you again. I’m sorry.”

She’d retreated inside the house and threw herself on her bed and cried. Sora was the only one she ever wanted to kiss for the rest of her life. Wiping her eyes, she dialed his number. It just rang and rang and rang. She tried texting him. Nothing. So she called his mother.

“I’m sorry, Kairi, but you just missed him. He said he’d be leaving and wasn’t sure when he’d be back.”

Her heart sank as she thanked his mom and hung up the phone. Her timing really was awful. And if he wasn’t picking up her calls, she only had so many ways to reach him.

He avoided her attempts to contact him for the next few months until finally, finally, she got a lead. She was chatting on the phone with Olette when Olette casually mentioned that Sora would be visiting Twilight Town for the fall festival.

“Oh really?”

“Yep! Are you gonna come too? I thought you two were still broken up.”

“We are, but I think he might still have feelings for me. And, to be honest, I still have feelings for him too.”

Olette squealed. “Then you have to come!”

“Really?” Kairi asked, then chewed her lip. “You don’t think he’d be upset?” She hadn’t gone chasing after him because she wanted to give him his space. He hadn’t blocked her number, but he hadn’t responded to any of her attempts to contact him either. The message he was sending her was loud and clear: I don’t want anything to do with you right now.

“Maybe he will be,” Olette said, “but if he is, you can just apologize and leave.”

“I don’t know, I don’t want to ruin his visit,” Kairi said as she twirled a strand of hair around her finger.

“You won’t, trust me. If things get awkward, we can go do something else. I really do want to see you and hang out, you know.”

So that was how Kairi had ended up here in Twilight Town, cautiously following Olette into the gang’s old hideout. Several different emotions warred on Sora’s face as he registered her presence. Shock. Frustration. Anger. Pain. But then, when their eyes met… the hurt and anger melted into something soft and vulnerable as he stared back at her.

“Kairi?” he said, his voice far more tender than she deserved.

“Um, hey,” she said back. “Listen, I know this is really last minute and unexpected, so Olette and I can go somewhere else if this is too awkward—”

“No, it’s okay. It’s… good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you too,” she said, her voice breaking a little. They just stared at each other for a few moments until Pence cleared his throat.

“So, um, shall we?” he asked, gesturing towards the makeshift curtain.

“Let’s go,” Hayner agreed, and Sora stood. Kairi wasn’t sure what to do. Should she walk beside him? Give him his space?

But their friends made that decision for them, because soon they were walking side by side through the back streets while Hayner, Pence, and Olette continued up ahead of them. Kairi loved seeing the little lanterns strung up between buildings and the fall leaves hanging on garlands, taking in all the delicious scents lingering in the air, and feeling the magical autumn atmosphere of the town. But no amount of good vibes could bridge the gap between her and Sora.

“How have you been?” she finally asked because the awkward silence was unbearable.

“Not too bad,” he replied, and his voice was surprisingly chipper, all things considered. “I’ve been saving munny, talking to Hiro about going to San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, that kind of a thing.”

She stole a glance at him. Saving munny? Going to a university? This was a far cry from the Sora who wanted to hop from world to world with no plan for the future.

“What about you?” he asked. She couldn’t help but think he looked especially handsome today. Relaxed and casual and ready for the fall festival, and yet still put together. He always made everything look so effortless, even looking good.

“I’m still working at the crafts shop on Main Street,” she said, avoiding thoughts of how nice a hug from him would be right now. “Except for missions of course. And I’ve been thinking about going to a university too. Not sure which one though.”

He smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “I’m sure you’ll do great wherever you decide to go.”

She smiled sadly at him. That was Sora, always cheering her up and cheering her on even when he was upset. She wanted to say more, but they were at the festival now, and it was getting too loud to comfortably talk. Booth after booth lined the streets of Twilight Town, the trolley was decked out in fall leaves and decorations, and a few stages had been erected throughout the area for performances.

First up for their little group were all the food booths, which was good because Kairi’s stomach was growling and she was craving delicious festival food. Pumpkin soup with piping hot bread, warm apple pie with cold ice cream, roasted chestnuts and salty pretzels, and her favorite, apple cider to wash it all down. The non-alcoholic kind because she wanted to be fully aware of whatever happened the next several hours.

Sora got non-alcoholic apple cider too, as did Hayner, Pence, and Olette, and the five of them toasted each other. Sora’s hand shook a little when he accidentally brushed up against her hand, and their eyes met as they took their first sips of the cider. But instead of immediately looking away, his gaze lingered on her for a few more seconds.

Those few seconds made her want to hold his hand, to hug him, to apologize and explain everything that had happened—

But then the moment was over and he looked away. She ducked her head and tried not to let it get to her. Of course he was still guarded around her. Anyone would be.

The five of them enjoyed the festivities in town for a while (Hayner, Pence, and Olette even gave a rousing karaoke performance of an old classic on Twilight Town), then hopped the train to go out to one of the farms in the surrounding area. Here was where the fun would really begin: a pumpkin patch, hayrides, an apple orchard, a corn maze, cozy campfires, falling leaves…

As they walked the short distance from the station to the farm, Kairi took in the scenery around them. The pathway was lined with trees shedding their brilliant red, yellow, gold, and orange leaves, and the temperature was perfect. If she and Sora were still dating, this was the moment she would’ve grabbed his hand and leaned against his shoulder and sighed happily.

But they weren’t, so she kept her hands to herself and tried not to stare at his hands. They were so big and strong, so gentle yet firm. She always felt safe in his arms and melted at his touch.

“Alright, first up is pumpkin carving!” Pence said once they’d arrived at the farm. “So, we gotta grab our pumpkins from that patch over there, then once we’ve paid for them, the three of us always compete with each other to carve the best pumpkin, and you know what that means?”

“What?” Sora asked.

“You and Kairi are joining the competition too,” Hayner said with a grin. “No backing out!”

“You’re on,” Kairi said. She grabbed Olette’s hand, and they giggled and took off towards the pumpkin patch.

“We’ve gotta get the best ones before the boys take them,” Kairi said.

“Absolutely,” Olette replied. As they carefully scoured the pumpkins for the best-looking ones, Olette scooted closer and lowered her voice. Even though the boys were a little ways away, better safe than sorry.

“He seems happy to see you,” she said.

Kairi stole a glance at Sora. He was currently fighting Hayner and Pence off of his choice pumpkin, laughing as he swatted their hands away, and when their eyes met, she couldn’t help but smile.

“And you seem happy to see him too,” Olette added.

“It’s just nice to see his smile,” Kairi said as she examined a big orange pumpkin. Yes, this one should do nicely.

“Kairi, it’s totally obvious you’re still in love with him and he’s still in love with you! Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Kairi sighed and hoisted the pumpkin onto her hip. “It’s my fault we broke up. I’m the one who broke his heart, and he’s been avoiding me for months on end. There’s no way he still feels the same way he used to about me.”

Olette sighed as she selected a white pumpkin and stood. “Maybe not, but it’s clear he still feels something for you. Why are you denying it?”

“Because if he still loved me, he wouldn’t be pushing me away,” Kairi said, staring intently at her pumpkin like it held the answers to all her problems.

“Maybe he’s pushing you away because he does still love you. Maybe being around you just hurts too much.”

Kairi stole another glance at him. Was it possible? Was it possible he’d fled, not because he hated her, but because he still loved her? Was it possible they could fix what went wrong and make things better than ever? If only she could apologize. That was all she wanted, to apologize and ask his forgiveness. Then maybe at least they’d find peace.

Their eyes met again, and he smiled. A soft, gentle smile that reached his eyes this time, and she blushed and smiled back. Then Hayner grabbed his arm and Pence snatched his pumpkin away, and he let out a shout and chased after them, leaving her and Olette in stitches, they were laughing so hard.

When at last the pumpkin situation had been sorted, the five of them carried their pumpkins to the carving tables and got to work. Gutting the pumpkins was always messy, but the pumpkin seeds were well worth the effort. She would take those home and roast them later with oil and sea salt for a delicious snack. That taken care of, she stared at her pumpkin. What to carve? A typical Halloween creature, like a wolf or witch or bat? No, that didn’t feel right. Wait, she had the perfect idea. She grinned and began, and before long, she was etching the same drawing she’d sketched on the cave walls of the Secret Place all those years ago. On a whim she included the paopu part too because why not.

When it was time for everyone to reveal their pumpkins to each other, Pence had made a very impressive ghost, Hayner had carved a vampire, and Olette had made an adorable cat. Kairi’s nerves got the better of her when it was time to reveal her pumpkin, however, and she clammed up and said, “I’ll reveal it later, when it’s dark and everyone’s lighting their pumpkins!”

That way she’d have time to get rid of this one and do another one that wouldn’t pressure Sora or put him on the spot.

“Sora?” Hayner asked.

“Oh, um, I’ll do the same,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Alright, next on the agenda isssssss… apple picking!” Pence called out like he was announcing the Struggle Tournament. They went to the entrance of the apple orchard, where a nice old woman handed each of them a bag and a pair of scissors and told them they could keep whatever they could carry.

The best part about apple picking on Twilight Town was the experience. While Kairi did intend on filling her bag to the brim with juicy ripe apples, a big part of apple picking was eating a couple of apples first before picking more to take home. There were so many different kinds to choose from, soft plump red ones, tart crunchy green ones, golden ones with a rich flavor, sweet multicolored ones with her favorite taste… a veritable feast of delicious fruit.

When they’d gathered the first round of their bounty, the apples they would eat right then and there, they sprawled out on a picnic blanket on the grass and munched away. Kairi’s eyes traveled to Sora as they so often had today because she loved the perfect look of contentment he always got on his face when he was eating something especially delicious.

And these apples were delicious. Kairi had only plucked three so far because that was all she knew she could safely eat, but she wished her stomach were as big as her eyes. The apples were juicy and delicious and perfectly ripe, and she kept having to dab at her mouth and chin because the apples were just that good.

Once they’d had their fill and had filled their bags, they went to a special tent that would keep their goodies for them until it was time to go home. Their arms free once more, it was time for the corn maze.

“Hayner and I have already tried the one this year,” Pence said, “and let me tell you, it’s so convoluted it’s easy to get lost. Some people call it the Eighth Wonder of Twilight Town.”

“We’ll see about that,” Olette said with a smirk. “Bet I can beat your record.”

“Oh, you’re on,” Hayner said, a glint in his eye. The moment the group entered the corn maze and were surrounded by stalks, Hayner, Pence, and Olette took off, leaving Sora and Kairi behind.

“So, that’s a thing,” Sora said with a chuckle. Kairi giggled awkwardly and glanced at the sky. They probably only had about another hour of daylight left, going by the sun’s position.

“I hope we can finish this thing before dark.”

“If we work together I bet we could.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

They walked largely in silence as they tried different routes. Some were dead ends, but little by little they were making progress. And it was nice to just… be with him again. Working together on something. The silence between them wasn’t awkward the way it had been earlier today, either. It just felt safe. Comfortable. The crunch of crushed corn stalks beneath their feet was soothing, too.

Kairi wondered if now would be a good time to say something or apologize.

“Sora?” she said as they rounded a corner. One of the corn stalks brushed against his arm, and it rustled when it moved back into position.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Thank you, for letting me join you guys today. I know you didn’t really want to see me, but I’m glad you let me stay.”

He was silent for a few moments as they continued, an unreadable expression on his face. “Who says I didn’t want to see you?” he said at last. “I have to admit, it took me by surprise, but I’m glad you came.”

She fiddled with her sleeves. “I am too.”

He looked at her, the sun setting behind him, and she thought he seemed more radiant than ever. How could she have agreed to be away from him for so long? She should’ve run after him the moment he ran away from her. The first time and the second time. She’d gone after him before, why had she let her fear and shame stop her this time?

She reached for his hand. “Sora, I—”

“There you guys are!” Pence called as he burst around the corner. “Buncha slowpokes.”

Aaaaand the moment was gone. Sora ribbed on Pence for calling him a slowpoke, and soon Hayner and Olette joined them too, and together the five of them finished (or, in Hayner, Pence, and Olette’s cases, re-finished) the maze.

But as she got a little badge from the booth at the end of the maze that congratulated her on finishing, she noticed Sora was waiting for her. He must already have his badge, so maybe he wanted to talk more. The other three had gone on ahead to get them tickets for the hayride, as it was quickly getting dark.

“You should put your badge on,” she said as she joined him and they started walking towards where the hayride would start.

“Already have,” he replied, pulling back his hoodie and pointing to the badge. Twilight Town Fall Festival Corn Maze Completionist! was written on it in tiny letters, along with a photo of this year’s maze. “But you haven’t put yours on yet. Here, let me do it.”

As he gingerly lifted her shirt enough to stick the sharp part of the badge through, she wondered if he was as affected by their closeness as she was. He was focusing carefully on the badge so as not to accidentally poke her, and that meant she could take everything in. His scent, his warmth, his eyes. How she’d missed seeing him, talking to him, being with him.

“Thank you, for doing the maze with me,” she said. “It was a lot of fun.”

He smiled and met her gaze. “Yeah, it was, wasn’t it? I missed doing this kind of thing with you.”

“I did too.”

A few moments of silence lingered between them. But then he took a deep breath and said, “Kairi, what were you gonna tell me earlier? Before Pence interrupted us, I mean.”

Her mouth went dry and her palms got all sweaty. “Oh, um, I wanted to… I wanted to…”

He patiently waited, and she knew she had to do this, she had to get it all out.

“I wanted to apologize,” she finally said. “For hurting you. For breaking up with you. I never should’ve done that.”

He stared at her, his eyes wide and his mouth open. Something very vulnerable was in his expression too, and that vulnerability gave her the courage to continue.

“The way I handled it was awful too, just talking at you instead of discussing things with you. Maybe if I had, we wouldn’t have—”

“Hey, lovebirds, the hayride is about to start!” Hayner called, and her chance was gone. Or so she thought.

“We’ll be there in a sec!” Sora shouted back. “If you need to go, go on without us!” He turned his attention back to her. “This is more important.”

She nodded and fiddled with her sleeves again.

“You aren’t the only one to blame for this whole mess,” he said sadly, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “I ran away like a coward instead of talking things through with you. I was so hurt that I—”

“Last call!” Hayner yelled, and Sora sighed, irritation flashing through his eyes.

“This hayride had better be the best hayride in all the worlds,” he grumbled.

“It’s okay,” she said, “we can talk more about this later.”

He nodded. “We will. I won’t run or hide this time, I promise.”

She dared to offer her hand. “I know you won’t.”

He smiled sadly and took her hand, and as they hurried to scramble onboard the hayride together, she couldn’t help but hope that maybe, just maybe, things would be okay between the two of them. Sora didn’t let go of her hand as they settled in on one of the bales next to Hayner, Pence, and Olette, so that was a good sign. And as their guide began telling ghost stories as the tractor and wagon rattled along, she rested her head on Sora’s shoulder. He didn’t push her away, just leaned his head against hers, and his closeness made her feel so warm inside despite the chilly night air.

She hoped and wished and prayed with all her heart that after this was over, they could mend the hurt between them for good.

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crusherthedoctor · 4 years ago

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The beach trope: another one that often comes early in Sonic's quests, and this one's no different, though expectations are very mildly subverted by making it the third zone instead of the very first. (Careful Crusher, you had the audience on the edge of their seats there.)

More importantly though, it's possibly one of the most famous and celebrated level tropes in the series. Emerald Coast is undeniably iconic, Seaside Hill is just as iconic while also merging with the Green Hill setup, and Wave Ocean... is a poor man's Emerald Coast, but it's probably better than most levels in '06 by comparison, so it too is iconic, from a certain point of view. We can't forget Jungle Joyride either, even if that's mostly because we got to see the frame rate die before our very eyes.

So how do you make your interpretation stand out? How do you prevent having a Wave Ocean 2: Wave Oceaner on your hands? Well, it's actually very simple...

Creating Zone 3: Coastline Resort

3-1: Shining Shore

Remember when I said that sometimes all it takes to make an environment feel different is the time of day, or a change in weather? This is one of the first major examples of putting that philosophy into action, as compared to previous beach levels, which were usually content with taking place in the bright sunny daytime, this one takes place under a pleasant purple sunset.

This of course contrasting heavily with not only the blue sea, but also the sands, which although given a mild touch of purple courtesy of the sunset, cannot fully hide their natural shade of white.

And of course, waterfalls.

We can’t forget the waterfalls.

Despite being a true blue beach level first and foremost, there are also a few hints of plaza, further setting it apart from the Emerald Coasts and Not-Emerald Coasts of old times past. This aesthetic in particular is based heavily on the seaside town of Whitby.

No doubt Sonic would admire this place, at least when he's not forced to go deep underwater. Maybe when the adventure is over, he can come back here and have a relaxing moment with... someone. Dunno who though. I doubt Eggman would be interested, and not just because he's actually in-character. Oh well, plenty more horses in the sea.

Speaking of, what about the underwater sections? Shining Shore does have them after all, in full 3D, as opposed to making them bottomless pits in disguise. Unsurprisingly, everything's a lot more blue than purple down there, gorgeously so, but the coral reef provides its own variety of colour.

The local fishies don't seem to mind you being in their line of sight... nor do the Badniks, but probably for a different reason.

Since we're three zones in, you might have noticed by now that each zone, regardless of their overall colour scheme, has one element in at least one act that goes all rainbow with the colours than everything else. You had the flower patches in Gleaming Meadows, you had the wood barriers in Tricky Tropics with their rusting paint jobs, and now we have the coral reef in Coastline Resort... any reason for this?

Alas, the answer is a mundane one: it's just a little way of tying all the zones in Viridonia together. As this quest revolves around the mystery of the elusive Ethereal Zone, this seemingly inconsequential aspect is a way of ensuring that it will always remain at the back of your mind. It may be relatively more subtle and easy to miss than, say, a giant moon glaring down angrily at you no matter where you go on the map as it literally comes closer and closer to killing everyone, but the intention is effectively the same: the central meat of the setting and story is always present in some form, however indirect, even if the characters aren't currently discussing it.

Also, shout out to the lighthouse that helped our heroes by inadvertently blinding the pursuing mechanized orca.

You really put a dent in Heavy Gunner's strategy.

First Section (calm): Lagoony Tunes (Crash Bandicoot 2: N-Tranced) Peach Field (Mario Hoops 3-on-3)

Second Section (adrenaline): Lost Palace (Team Sonic Racing) Hang Eight (Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back)

3-2: Crazy Rapids

Being a whimsical water park, made even more whimsical to fit the video game format, this one explains itself in a lot of areas. But let's go over the finer details anyway, shall we?

As mentioned in the fic, the park has been made to fit in seamlessly with the ruins present in the area, thus creating a Good Future-esque wonderland of nature and technology in harmony. For an idea of how the ruins aesthetic would work, imagine something akin to the Sunset Beach Resort in Jamaica, particularly the long bridge and archways you can see in both of these shots:

Kind of has an Aquatic Ruin vibe, doesn’t it?

Even then, that only applies to half of the architecture, as the other half breaks up the yellow with some white, reminiscent of a certain OTHER watery location in Sonic's past...

We also have the giant fountains sprinkled around the place. There are two types of fountains to be exact, both of which may seem familiar to the attentive eye...

The difference? They're larger. MUCH larger. As in, you can actually platform your way on and around them.

As for what’s inside? It's exactly how you'd imagine it to be, albeit exaggerated even further to befit a Sonic level.

And in-tune with the beachside mood, the Chao Garden found nearby would take a page from the one in Station Square...

...with a little extra flavor of this...

...complete with miniature water slides and the like for the adorable inhabitants... the inhabitants that Eggman currently has an unexplained interest in. How do the Chao factor into his latest plan?

Heh heh, only I and those I've discussed it with in PMs know that for now.

First Section (outside): Windy and Ripply (Sonic Adventure) Ocean Palace (Sonic Heroes)

Second Section (inside): Data Select (Tee Lopes) Wii Shop Channel - Mii Channel (Super Smash Bros. Wii U)

3-3: Aquarium Gallery

Disappointed that Crazy Rapids lacked that smooth red-on-blue contrast that Aquarium Park from Sonic Colours had? Well we can’t all be in the same league as Eggman sadly, but fear not, for the similarly named Aquarium Gallery gets right in on the action, combining red walls and an overall upper class aesthetic...

...with the expected quantities of shimmering blue that comes with the aquarium setting. And with glass tanks of great size, comes great fishies to go along with them.

The black and white checkered floor would also be a must. It's a Sonic game, we gotta have a checkered pattern somewhere. It just works. /ToddCrusher

Don't worry about the living conditions for the fish here, by the way. Eggman mechanizing them aside, the people who work at the park - and those who visit it - make sure to treat all the marine life with the utmost respect and kindness. Just a shame that they're apparently not so willing to lend that same understanding to Trudy... but it does provide an early hint that despite the few genuine bad apples who are outright antagonistic towards Trudy, most of the folks ignorant to her condition are exactly that at worst: ignorant. Meaning, despite first impressions, most of them are not bad people at heart, and with a little help and persistence, it's not entirely impossible that they can eventually learn to understand and sympathise with Trudy's situation.

In other words, they have more dimension than the background characters in Sonic Boom, where they're all mostly a bunch of one-note arseholes with little redeeming qualities and don’t deserve to be saved by Sonic in the slightest.

Anyhow, eventually, after a trip through one of those sweet underwater tunnels...

...we find ourselves in the cavern area, where red is exchanged for turquoise, and there are reflected ripples galore. Since the Marble Caves in Chile already look halfway to being a Sonic level due to its unique formations, that's the best comparison I can make here.

Too blue, you might say? Well, the sunset from earlier would be poking through the holes in the wall, adding some warm to the cool once more... the giant seashells everywhere help spice it up too.

Like these, but bigger than Ken Penders’ ego.

If that’s even possible...

First Section (aquarium): Rooftop Run - Night (Sonic Unleashed) Coconut Mall (Mario Kart Wii)

Second Section (caves): Sea Shell Shenanigans (Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex) Dire, Dire Docks (Super Mario 64)

3-4: Hydro Plant

The outside structure for this place is shaped like a giant wall, which predictably brings the Hoover Dam to mind:

And that applies inside as well, at least initially. The similarities indoors come mostly from the generators, as well as the sheer size of the place.

Since it's considerably rustier however, we have darker lighting in place, with the sunset outside preventing it from being too dark inside. There’s also a copious amount of daring graffiti caused by hoodlums... or maybe Eggman, since he'd probably be the type to do that to any property that isn't his. Some of this graffiti would look very impressive...

While others would... uh...

Look, they tried, okay?

With all this graffiti, that means there’s opportunity for a generous helping of cheeky references to previous installments if you’re able to find them... and if you can understand them. To this day, the typo in “make belif reborn” has not been corrected. Absolutely disgusting.

But as the fic dictates, the further you go on, the tidier and more high tech it becomes. Simply put, this section would remind one of Aquatic Base from '06, mainly because I've always liked the idea despite its characteristically terrible level design, so why not salvage the concept and give it a second chance?

With some added flavor to make it less monotone, mind you. Like actual water sections, some green lights to break up all the blue, giant crab robot threatening to kill you... the works.

Sonic may be glad that this zone is behind him, but little does he know, it's not the only zone with intense water action around these parts. Luckily for him, that won't be for a while, so he can breathe a sigh of relief for now. Still, we know Eggman has other ways of keeping the gang on their toes...

First Section (rusty): Wily Stage 2 (Mega Man 7) Pokey Pipes (Donkey Kong Country 3)

Second Section (high tech): Ocean Base Act 1 (Sonic Advance 3) H2 Oh No (Crash Bandicoot: The Wrath of Cortex)

#Creating Viridonia #Sonic the Hedgehog #Fanfiction

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jincherie · 5 years ago

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fox rain | two

• ☽ — pairing: bts x reader • ☽ — genre: crack, fluff, angst, college/uni au • ☽ — words: 8.7k+ • ☽ — rating: sfw • ☽ — warnings: at last, it drops. tension! • ☽ — notes: things are beginning to shift!! lets get it fox rain!!!

— posted; 01.06.2019

When the love letter you wrote and submitted as an assignment is leaked to the entirety of your university, it becomes a race against time to dispel rumours and convince the seven suspected muses of the poem that they aren’t the subject before anyone realises that you are the author. Easy, right? Well… maybe not as easy as you think.

— • masterpost | prev. | two | next • —

If Hoseok is surprised at your somewhat frazzled appearance and contradicting smug smile as you enter the library with a skip in your step, he doesn’t show it. Instead, you receive a sudden and intense cross between Hoseok’s most prevalent (and your preferred) bubbly persona and that of a concerned tutee, which in this moment he very much seems to be.

“y/n, are you okay? You missed last weeks session and are super late today? Are you, like, dying?”

Blinking rapidly and halting in your steps, it takes you a moment to realise that Hoseok is holding you by the arms and looking slightly crazed. You chalk it up to concern, and reach up to ruffle his pink and purple locks before shuffling past him and plopping your belongings on the table he has picked out today.

“I’ve had a day,” you say simply, mulling over whether you want to share its events in detail with the male or not. Undoubtedly, he would be understanding about your Seokjin-related vexations, but also… you can’t reveal much at all without also in turn revealing that you’re the author of the poem. Which reminds you…

Hoseok is one of the few people listed as potential muses for the poem. Your mood sinks slightly as you recall that little tidbit, your previous joy from Seokjin getting his dues fading a little. Right, your job isn’t done yet—you can’t allow yourself to celebrate prematurely when your reputation is still at stake.

“A day?” Hoseok repeats, a note of understanding filtering into his voice. “It really be like that, huh. Well, at least you’re here now! You can count on me to cheer you up.”

You snort, turning to face him as you take a seat—it seems that his momentary ‘concerned tutee’ persona has left and now it’s the usual bubbly-seok. Again, your favourite of his usual two dispositions, so you’re not at all complaining.

“What do we have to work on today?” you skip over his exuberant utterances for the sake of beginning the tutoring session that you were already late for. No sense in prolonging its start even more, since you have another one lined up right after. Which reminds you, you need to begin mentally preparing yourself for the transition between them.

“Some worksheets!” Hoseok chirps, finally joining you at the table. “And then, if we have time, would you be able to help me with one of my assignments? History of Music is kicking my ass!”

You’re a little taken aback by how cheerful he sounds as he says that, but settle for shrugging and moving on. It’s typical Hoseok behaviour, you’re not too concerned.

“Sure, whip ‘em out.”

Hoseok quickly does just that, opening up his bag and rifling through for the sheets he needs. The silence that falls over you is brief but comfortable, though you don’t get to enjoy it much before Hoseok is speaking again. He still hasn’t found the sheets when he opens his mouth.

“So, what happened with you on Friday?” the bright-eyed male asks, turning his head to peer at you over his shoulder while he tears his bag apart looking for his worksheets. “It was a bit of a crazy day, huh? Did you hear about what happened!”

You freeze instantly, saved from having your deer-in-headlights expression expose you by Hoseok turning back to his bag to glare inside it. Panic wells in the bottom of your lungs, inching higher with each second that passes. Fuck, you kind of hoped he wasn’t going to mention it but you can feel it now— he’s totally going to bring up the poem. Fuck—

“Who am I kidding, of course you did,” Hoseok continues to chatter before you can even begin to attempt kicking your brain into gear. Each word that falls from his lips feels like a slap to the top of your head. “Everyone knows about the Moon Poem and the mystery muse and author! I haven’t been able to scroll through my feed without seeing at least a dozen posts about it. And then, then, one of my English Lit friends send me something and it turns out I was included on a list that—”

Shit, you knew it, you knew it— okay, stay calm. You have to stay calm, if your Seokjin experience earlier today taught you anything, it’s that you need to tone down your approach or they’ll know you’re the author. You think this, and understand this, and yet the next words that leave your mouth are probably the most contrary and counterproductive things you could have uttered in this situation.

“You know you’re not the muse, right?” The second you hear the words pass your own lips you wish to tear your own head off and drop-kick it into the sun. That was mean, that was so so mean what the fuck! Why did you say that! You’re panicked but you’re not heartless! “I- I mean, there’s a l-lot of people—”

“Don’t worry, I never would have dreamed it was me!” Hoseok cuts you off before you can dig the hole any deeper, having found his worksheets and since turned himself back to face you. He’s still smiling, apples of his cheeks coloured slightly, and his tone is as chirpy as ever, but you literally feel your heart drop so far to the ground it reaches the Earth’s mantle.

“I— wh—” you sputter, eyes wide— what the fuck? Such easy acquiescence after an entire day of dealing with Seokjin’s difficult ass is more than enough to throw you for a loop. The panic and sense of urgency that had been rising inside you had you so ready to persuade him he isn’t the muse, but at his reponse all you planned to say has died on your tongue and left a bad taste in your mouth. “Wh— are you sure?”

Hoseok tilts his head, smile still on his face but somewhat less bright than before. “Yes? It’s kinda unrealistic to think someone would write such a beautiful poem for, well, me.”

Completely contradictory to what you spent the entire day doing, you find yourself rushing to protest his words and soothe the painful ache in your chest that has made itself known in the midst of this conversation. “What, no! Dude, there is a reason you were listed as a suspect! A bunch of them, actually! Big starstruck eyes, the, uh, the dancing, the—”

“Didn’t you just say I wasn’t the muse?” Hoseok asks, completely bemused and bewildered.

You ignore him, even more zealous in your attempts to convince him. “And the moonshine?! That’s literally you right! That whole incident from last year with the moonshine and the shit and Professor Jee’s exotic pot plant—”

“EVEN MORE REASON why it can’t be me!” Hoseok’s entire face has erupted into a violent blush, not even his ears safe from the wave of crimson as it flushes over him. His discomfort is palpable as he rubs the back of his neck, averting his gaze. “That whole thing is so embarrassing, and the reputation it gave me… there’s no way it could warrant something as lovely as that poem.”

While an incredibly small, vain part of you is flattered by his words, you’re also terribly affronted that Hoseok seems to think so little of himself. You can’t help but feel like you’ve gone and fucked up even more by attempting to fix your other mess and in the process creating a new one. “But—”

“Hey, let’s drop it and move on, yeah?” Hoseok’s voice has lost its bubbly undertone and it’s in this moment that you know you really have fucked up. A heavy weight settles in your chest. “We don’t have much longer of the session left, and I really should try and get at least these worksheets done.”

Your heart gives a painful, pitiful throb, but you can only nod, eyes taking in the sudden slump of his shoulders and the way his lips form a potent, subconscious pout. “I… yeah, alright. What is it you need help with?”

“This one,” Hoseok brings one of the sheets from the pile before him to the space between you. At his short response and flat tone, your feeling of dread and having messed up only increases. “The lyric interpretation.”

You get to work, guiding him through the sheets one by one and expanding on the points he’s most confused with. The entire time he gives you short, few-word responses and maintains his sudden disposition shift, confirming your fears. It seems Hoseok’s second, and your least favourite, persona has come to play— you like to call it grumpy-seok. You don’t get much out of him when he’s like this, and you don’t know how to bring him out of it either. You really fucked this one up, huh. While his bubbly persona is sometimes a bit much for you, you can’t help but miss it now more than ever.

You barely had half an hour left of the session when you started the work, and you just barely manage to finish the last sheet by the time it comes to an end. The whole time, Hoseok’s mood shows no signs of improving and you’re left with a sinking feeling of regret when the alarm on your phone goes off and Hoseok immediately begins packing his things away, remarkably less enthused and sunny than when the session began. If you could, you’d go back in time just to punch yourself in the face and stop yourself from talking and ruining Hoseok’s afternoon.

You finish what you’re explaining to him about the last line you were on, watching him gather his sheets and pencils with a heavy weight in your chest. So distracted by your remorse as you are, you completely forget about the other component of the days you spend tutoring that you should be worrying about.

“y/n! I’m home!”

You freeze, head whipping up to find the source of the voice. For a brief moment your gaze is caught on the reception desk, Jungkook perched behind the counter and looking out at your next tutee as he approaches with a look of resignation. You quickly move it over, however, zeroing in on Jimin as he bounces over with a shit-eating grin. He almost doesn’t see Hoseok— giving you a few moments of false hope that the usual ritual he likes to partake in between sessions won’t occur— but then he catches him standing from the chair and slinging his bag over his shoulder and lets out a shout.

“Jung!” Jimin hollers, entirely too loud for the library. You catch sight of Jungkook slamming his head against his desk in the distance. “Prepare yourself!”

Then, exactly as you expect, the crimson-haired male throws his bag to the floor and begins the usual breakdance showdown that happens when the two of them cross between tutoring sessions. He gets several moves and a body spin in before he realises Hoseok isn’t joining him as he usually does and slows to a stop, confused.

“Thanks for the help, y/n. See you,” Hoseok says with a tired smile, bidding you farewell with a wave of his hand. He turns and departs quickly after that, leaving you and Jmin in a state of shock. You feel terrible, and are incredibly confused.

Jimin, however, seems mostly disappointed. “Aw, I wanted to play with hyung today. What crawled up his butt and died?”

There was the slightest odd note of something else in Jimin’s tone, but you don’t recognise it enough to really dwell on it. Instead, when he turns to you for an answer, you grimace and shrug. It’s the best you’ve got to offer.

“Oh well,” Jimin hums, grabbing his bag from the floor and slipping into the recently vacated seat next to you. “I’m sure he’ll snap out of his funk by the next time we see him. Anywhores, what’s on the agenda today, y/n?”

You roll your eyes at his slang but can’t bring yourself to really laugh today. Almost robotically, you run through the session and work with Jimin on whatever oddball shit he needs help with this week— he always brings the weirdest shit to your sessions, you really have no idea what his major even is. You’re so preoccupied with deciphering Hoseok’s sudden cold snap and mood change that you completely forget that Jimin was one of the people suspected as a muse as well. Convincing him that he’s not the muse is so far from on your mind it’s not even the last thing, and so you go the whole evening without so much as a peep about it.

Jimin’s hour goes fast and it isn’t long before he’s hollering a goodbye over his shoulder, rushing down the hall outside the library to meet Taehyung at the other end. The tall male was looking at you when you emerged with Jimin, so you offer him a smile before turning and going in the opposite direction. With a half-hearted wave to Jungkook, who was trying to appear as though he hadn’t been listening in on the conversation you were having with Jimin on the way out by burying his nose in a book, you make your way home, relieved that the day is over.

A small portion of your time goes towards some half-assed attempts at study, but the rest of it is dedicated to sleep and the new robo dating sim you heard some of your classmates whispering about the other day. So, overall, after the stress of the past few days it is an evening spent well.

x x

When you awaken on that fine Tuesday morning, however, the first thing you recall is the events with Hoseok from the afternoon prior and your stomach sinks with guilt once more. Usually, every other time you’ve encountered grumpy-seok he’d already been that way from the start of the session. Never before had you been the one to set him off.

As you venture onto your campus for classes, you make it today’s mission to find out exactly why Hoseok has these spells of acting so off. The more you think about it, and the more you subtly ask your friends and classmates about him, you realise that despite tutoring him for more than several months now, and his reputation across campus, there’s not actually all that much you know about him. Save for Jimin, who you’ve read between the lines to realise he knows from outside of university, there isn’t anyone else you can think of that’s close to Hoseok; and even then, you wouldn’t go to say he’s exactly close to Jimin… every time you see them together they’re bickering or dance-fighting. How the hell are you supposed to find out what is going on with him, then? You do realise this is a bit of a role reversal from yesterday when Hoseok was concerned with your odd behaviour, but you’re too preoccupied to give it the laugh it deserves.

Your Tuesday morning drama class remains uneventful and would almost be a blur if Kim Seokjin didn’t burst through the doors and waltz in as per usual. Having anticipated the theatre major’s impending entrance, your professor has long since fled the scene and as Seokjin’s eyes sweep the room in search of him to no avail, he seems almost disappointed. He huffs, standing in place, unknowingly right next to where you were practicing your lines when he burst into the room.

“He already left,” you say, leaning up so you’re right in his ear as the words come out.

Seokjin lets out a scream, shrill and piercing, and whips around with his arms in a defensive position. It brings the ghost of a cackle from the depths of your throat, especially the way he’s huffing and puffing for breath after the fright you gave him.

“You’re such a Golum,” he hisses, glaring at you with all the heat he can muster as he straightens and dusts off his shirt. His hands come to adjust the styled pink locks atop his head. You note with an amused twitch of your lips that his hair matches his hoodie today.

“And you’re a menace,” you snort, shutting the door that he left ajar from his abrupt entrance. “One of these days you’re going to scare my professor off for good and I really need him to, you know, teach me.”

“That sounds like a personal problem,” Seokjin comments, eyes scanning the crowd of your classmates for someone else to torment in your professor’s place. It seems he got all his y/n-tormenting urges out of his system yesterday. “How goes your quest by the way, Miss Author? Are you ready to confess to me yet?”

“Shut the fuck up!” Your foot meets Seokjin’s shin and he positively howls, drawing the attention of a few nearby students. You slap a hand over his goblin mouth and smile at them; they’re familiar enough with Seokjin’s bullshit that they take one look at him then turn away with an apathetic shrug. For the first and perhaps the last time ever, you’re grateful that Seokjin has always been such a dramatic ass.

“‘Ww ‘m swfwwy!” Seokjin’s voice is muffled against your palm and you freeze at the fact that you could have sworn he just apologised. You remove your hand, bewildered, and the male gives you a smug look as he rubs his shin and licks his wounds.

“Bet you thought I apologised, huh,” he snickers, long leg wobbling as he balances all of his weight on it to soothe the other. “Idiot.”

Incensed, you rear your leg back to aim another kick, at his good shin this time, and he quickly backtracks at the threat.

“No! Wait! I’ll leave, alright. I’ll leave!” Seokjin turns, limping back towards the door. “I’m going!”

You’re about to tell him not to come back when a sudden idea occurs to you, and contradictory to what you’ve spent the last few minutes doing you lurch suddenly and grab his wrist.

“Wait! I have a question.”

He jerks to a halt and nearly falls over from his wobbly knees, sending you a look that’s a cross between confusion and a glare over his shoulder. “Make up your mind do you want me to leave or not?”

You roll your eyes, releasing his wrist. “You can leave after I ask you this— meaning that if you don’t I’ll kill you.”

Seokjin nods, facing you with a funny look in his eyes that appears eerily similar to respect. “Understood. What did you want to ask?”

Perhaps you’re a little stupid to think that Seokjin would know anything that would help you, but then again… he has a big mouth and knows almost everything about everyone. He might be able to provide some insight. “Do you know Jung Hoseok?”

Seokjin’s head tilts, eyes flicking to the ceiling for a few moments as he scans his memories before he whips it back down and faces you with a wide-eyed look, excitement seeping into his tone. “Wait, you mean the Jung Hoseok?! The kid who got blackout drunk on moonshine and took a shit in Professor Jee’s exotic potted plant that time?! Life partner and soulmate to—”

You sigh, trying not to laugh at the mention of the incident. “Yeah, that Hoseok. He’s one of the people I tutor and—”

“Wait, hold up, back up for a second,” Seokjin cuts you off, looking like he’s just heard the best thing in his entire life. “You’re smart enough to tutor people?!”

Your fingers twitch with the urge to strangle him and, belatedly, you realise you haven’t had enough time since the horror of yesterday to cool down and release all those murderous urges you felt for him. Oh well, if he dies, he dies. You’re good at making things look like an accident.

“He’s one of the people I tutor but he’s been acting a bit weird, and I wanted to see if you knew him in case you knew anything that could help me,” you continue as if he hadn’t interrupted at all before sniffing and turning your back to him. “You’re kind of useless though, clearly you don’t know anything.”

Appalled at your jab, Seokjin stammers as his face reddens slightly. “Wh-wha-wh—”

“Whatever,” you huff, turning and beginning to guide him back out of the room. “You can get lost now, I have no further use for you.”

“HEY!” Seokjin yells, but doesn’t attempt to stop you pushing him out. He seems accustomed to the situation, alarmingly so. Then again, would you really be surprised if he got kicked out of places on the regular? “Don’t objectify me!”

Rolling your eyes, you proceed to forcibly escort him out of your drama room, guarding the doors once he’s safely outside. “Run along now, I’m sure you have other souls to torment and will to live to siphon.”

Seokjin sniffs at you, placing a hand on his hip after dusting his hoodie down once more. “Fine, whatever. I’m going, but it’s not because you told me to. I’m actually a very busy person.”

“As I’ve found out,” you deadpan, and he sends you a shit-eating grin at the mention of yesterday.

“Anywhores,” he says, giving you sudden whiplash to when Jimin said that very same thing yesterday. Oh, it’s a virus among idiots? “I have a jihope merch stand to tend to, so see you, Miss Golum.”

You roll your eyes, already going to shut the doors. He doesn’t attempt to stop you, but seems to remember something all of a sudden as his obnoxiously loud voice pierces the air once more.

“Also, don’t forget you owe me! I have a recital tonight! At seven! Bring the flowers and the booze and don’t forget to clap or I’ll expose your ass!”

“Go away!” you yell through the door, closing it to the sound of his cackle. A part of you is concerned at his words but the rest knows he’s just shitstirring like the little rat bastard he is.

Well. That turned out to be even less helpful than you anticipated, and you weren’t expecting all that much to begin with.

The professor returns barely a minute after you chased Seokjin out, as though he sensed the departure of demonic energy from the building and deemed it safe to return and continue teaching. The rest of your class flies by in a blur, as does the time afterwards in between this class and your next, which you spend studying and eating. Your mind is still preoccupied with thoughts about Hoseok and his mood swings by the time your writing class comes around and you meet up with Sera inside the classroom.

Thankfully, she’s too busy doing god knows what on her phone and laptop to really interrogate you during class time, but the second the clock ticks over and the professor dismisses you, she’s dragging you out to get a coffee with her before you split ways. Somewhat sullenly, you allow yourself to be dragged approximately halfway across campus for a shitty cup of coffee from her favourite place. You hate this place but not enough to refuse and ruin her chipper mood.

“We just finished one assignment and already Prof Puth is giving us another,” she laments, turning her gaze upward as the two of you stand in the line that spans several metres out of the shop. You like the lip tint she’s wearing today but know that, tragically, it’s going to end up all over her coffee cup and maybe her nose in the next few minutes. Hilariously, despite her put-together appearance, Sera is a messy drinker. Her mother even once confirmed this with a series of photos from her childhood. She’s doomed to be unable to drink anything cleanly from the womb to the tomb, it seems. No matter what it is and disregarding any and all laws of physics, any drink she has can and will end up everywhere. Maybe the reason Sera likes this place so much is because they provide a sippy cup option.

“What can I say, he can clearly tell we like to suffer.” You scratch the back of your neck, briefly weighing up whether you wanted to treat yourself with a hot chocolate or not. On the one hand, it’s going to be delicious. On the other hand, you’re incredibly poor. It’s a hard choice.

Sera huffs, hand resting on her hip as the line moves forward and the two of you shuffle with it. “Rude of him,” she remarks, squinting at the menu like she doesn’t have it memorised already. “I think I might branch out and get the chai latte today.”

“You get that every time we come here,” you snort. She smacks your arm in an automated response. The line moves and eventually the two of you get to order— well, she does. You decide to go without your hot chocolate for the sake of saving the cash.

It’s only as the two of you begin to move away from the coffee shop that Sera seems to take note of your current distracted disposition.

She takes a sip of her drink before talking, cup rim already beginning to resemble a swatch of her lip tint. “What’s on your mind, by the way? A certain poem and certain suspected muses?”

You shoot her a warning glare for mentioning it in public but let out a huff and respond nonetheless. “No, not right now. Well, kind of. I’m a bit worried for Hoseok, you know, the one I tutor? But I can’t think of who to ask to see if they know what’s going on with him.”

Sera hums, taking another generous sip of her latte. The two of you are kind of blocking the walkway but she doesn’t seem to care. Her fingers tap against the side of her takeaway cup for a moment before she angles herself more towards you, eyebrows shooting up. “Oh! You could ask that Park Jimin kid? Don’t they know each other from before University? Like high school or something?”

You felt your own brows rise at her words. How did she know this, but you didn’t, when you tutor both of them?!

“Huh,” you say simply, eyes flicking to the side as you ponder it. Well, asking Jimin is certainly a better idea than the one you had this morning to ask Seokjin. But at the same time…

“Where would I find him? Does he even go here?”

Sera shrugs, clearly unbothered since it’s not really her problem. “I don’t know, I mean… probably. You’ll just have to sniff him out. Don’t you have to talk to him anyway as part of your plan? It’ll work itself out.”

You send her a pointed frown. Simultaneously helpful and very unhelpful at the same time, as interactions with her tend to be. In a power move that comes completely unprecedented by you, Sera turns her head and tips the bottom of her cup up, sculling the rest of her chai latte in one fell swoop. It’s with a mix of horror and awe that you watch it happen, a few droplets of frothy milk escaping to dribble onto her shirt. Casualties of war.

She rips the cup away with a loud exclamation of satisfaction once done, eerily similar to when a big bulky man in pop media chugs a large mug of beer and goes ‘ahh’ afterwards. Riveting, truly. Turning to you with a remarkable amount of lip tint still on her lips, she reaches with her free hand and pats the top of your head softly.

“Anywhores,” she says, giving you whiplash for perhaps the millionth time today. “I gotta go pull an entire two-thousand word paper out of my ass, but you have fun doing whatever it is you’re gonna do. See ya, sister.”

And then she’s off, striding down the path towards wherever it is she parked her car. If you didn’t know better, you’d say she was a little… on edge today. She was acting a little nuttier than usual. You shrug, deciding to let it go. It’s probably the fact you got given another assignment today that has her so wired. She’s easily wound up, your dear Sera.

In the wake of her departure, you stand in place a few moments more, pondering her ‘advice’. Would it really be worth it, expending all the energy it would take just to locate Park Jimin to interrogate him? You weigh it up for a moment, assessing how tired you are before deciding that you’d rather nap than attempt to sniff out the crimson-haired male wherever he may be. With that in mind, you turn on your heel and begin in the direction of the bus stop.

Thankfully, it isn’t too far away. You think you might be having some sort of delayed stress response from yesterday because all of a sudden you’re super tired. Yup, you’re definitely napping as soon as you get home, assignments be damned. Perhaps you’ll have something to eat before you pass out though. You ransack your mental catalogue of the pantry at home for potential meals to consume in the near future, so involved in the task you almost miss the commotion occuring to your left, near the newly refurbished Biology Building Cafe— fondly dubbed Biol Cafe by those who know her well. You halt, finally allow the action happening in your periphery to capture your attention fully. To your complete and utter surprise, there stands one Park Jimin and Kim Taehyung— in all honesty you’re starting to think the two of them are attached at the hip at this point.

Jimin is whispering something to Taehyung as they stand, huddled, near the vending machines along the outside of the cafe. You’re much too far to overhear it but whatever it is that Jimin says, it has a gasp escaping his friend— Taehyung straightens and slaps Jimin’s arm in outrage. You can see his cheeks and the tips of his ears flushing red from here. He’s dressed in all black and loose clothing, save for a splash of colour. For a moment, your eyes catch on the source, his shoes, which sport a brief image of a big cat— leopard? tiger? you’re a blind bitch you can’t really see— and appear to be… Gucci?

You don’t even get to ponder over their authenticity before Jimin cackles loudly and reminds you exactly why you stopped in such a shocked manner in the middle of the walkway.

“You!” you announce loudly, pointing at the red-haired male and walking closer in a hurry. The two of them jump and spin around in surprise. “I need to talk to you!”

Jimin appears bewildered, and somewhat fearful, probably wondering what on earth you could want to talk to him about on one of the days that you don’t have tutoring. He slaps a hand to his chest, thick denim jacket with a woolie collar muffling the thunk. “Me?!”

You roll your eyes, close enough to see the way he looks ready to bolt. “Yes, you. Calm down, I just need to ask you something. Hello, by the way, Taehyung.”

The tall male who, admittedly, had yet to recover from your sudden approach, fumbles out a greeting of his own. You wait until he’s done to shoot him a smile, before focusing the remainder of your attention on Jimin. Alright— your brain cracks its knuckles as you prepare to pull information out of this poor soul. Hoseok really has you so concerned you don’t even realise you’re in the proximity of two other people who were on that stupid muse list. That’s a problem for you to realise later, right as you’re about to nod off to sleep at approximately 2:32AM. Nothing quite like procrastinating an unpleasant realisation.

“What did you want to ask…?” Jimin seems slightly apprehensive still, and you’re a little tempted to smack him. Have you not spent the past few months building up trust and friendship between the two of you?? What a fake friend.

You let out a huff, pondering for a moment before just deciding to be blunt. “It’s about Hoseok. Do you know why he’s in such a funky mood lately?”

You swear you see something indecipherable flick through Jimin’s gaze for a moment before he’s shrugging, expression twisting into that usual one that someone does when they don’t know the answer to a question being asked, lips pouting.

“Uh, not really. He kind of just gets like that sometimes, I guess…” the male shifts almost imperceptibly, seemingly somewhat uncomfortable. You wouldn’t be able to tell if it weren’t for the way he fiddles with his fingers and turns his eyes to the side, reaching a hand up to scratch the back of his neck. “Everyone has their funks, he’ll probably come out of it soon.”

You squint at him, for some reason feeling like he knows a little more than he’s letting on. “Are you sure? It seems kind of different this time—”

“He’s probably just going through menopause or something,” Jimin cuts you off, shrugging. You think you hear Taehyung choke on a laugh beside you but ignore it in favour of giving Jimin an incredulous look. He continues without the need for you to prompt him. “Isn’t that a thing with you English major folk? Y’all moody as fuck lol.”

Did he just say ‘lol’ out loud? Furthermore, did he just imply you were an English major? The nerve of this bastard—

“You—!”

Taehyung delivers a subtle punch to Jimin’s bicep before you can continue, making you pause at the sharp yelp he lets out. He sends Taehyung a glare but does whatever the other male seems to want, changing course with his conversation. “Anywhores, I had a genius idea recently and since you’re here I need your opinion. I’m thinking I might dye my pubic hairs to match my hair? What do you think, y/n— do girls think it’s sexy? Should I do it?”

He’s completely serious as he asks you, and perhaps that’s why you’re so absolutely dumbfounded into silence as you are. You stand there for several long seconds, simply staring at him as the words sink in, before you finally feel the life force of your last remaining brain cell blink and die out.

“I’m so sorry,” you say, without an ounce of effort put towards sounding even the slightest bit convincing. “I just remembered I forgot to feed my goldfish, I— I have to go, right now, immediately. “

Then you turn and you leave, barely remembering to give Taehyung a wave for being the only person you’ve talked to today that hasn’t diminished your will to live further than it already had been. As you walk away, you hear Jimin protesting loudly behind you.

“Wait— y/n, wait! Should I do it?! Y/N?! WAIT—!”

On God, why do you even bother.

x x x x x

Needless to say, your life has not known peace ever, but especially not since friday last week— and this isn’t helped in the slightest by the events of the following days. After the somewhat-wreck that was yesterday, that being your usual Tuesday, you went home and gave yourself a nap like you deserved. You’d ended up arriving home with less answers than you had when you set out, and that was kind of depressing so you’d slept to escape the reality.

By the time the next day, Wednesday, has passed mostly in a blur and the time has arrived for your tutoring sessions, you are less than prepared but somewhat determined to get your answers from Hoseok. Even so, despite your apparent lack of forethought and preparation, you do what you do best and attempt to bullshit it.

Surprisingly, Hoseok is late today. As the minutes pass by you can’t help but become more and more bewildered— Hoseok has literally never been late to a session before, and on more than one occasion has happily boasted his early-rising early-arriving tendencies. As though he senses your current unsettled state, Jungkook, from his perch behind the library reception, attempts to mollify your worries by offering some of the donut you’d walked in on him stuffing into his mouth. Touched but also a little grossed out, you smile and refuse, but make sure to thank him. He deflates a little, ears pink and cheeks still full of doughnut he hadn’t gotten to chewing just yet, but nods in understanding— the image is oddly reminiscent of a rabbit or hamster munching away and the thought nearly makes your arteries burst from the sheer cute factor alone.

It’s almost fifteen minutes into the session when Hoseok finally bursts through the doors, looking absolutely exhausted and most definitely worse for wear. He has a fresh set of bags beneath his eyes and from that in combination with the deeply inset frown lines between his brows, you hazard a guess that he’s remained in his Mood ever since your Monday session.

“Nice of you to show up,” you joke as he arrives at the table, your jab perhaps a little in poor taste. What can you say, apparently you’re not that great at interacting with people after all. At the blank look he gives you, you hurry to continue. “Also… are you alright, dude? You kind of look like shit.”

Surprisingly, he cracks the barest hint of a smile at that. Hoseok flops into his seat with a huff, settling for a moment before he goes about pulling his things from his bag. The smile was gone before you could blink, and now he simply looks like a cross between tired and cranky. Tanky? Crired? One of those two, or perhaps neither. Nothing rings quite as well as hangry, except you don’t know if the look you’re registering is hunger or repressed rage of some sort.

“I’ve just had a lot of work to do, that’s all.” He scrubs a hand over his face, raking it through his hair and leaving it sitting oddly atop his head. It kind of looks like a crest, the way he’s managed to make it sit by accident. “I have some big English papers I need to get done and it’s taking a fair while to do them.”

Your eyes rake over his features, taking in the stress and discomfort that seems to be rolling off of him in waves. “I can always help, if you need? You know, that’s kind of what I’m here for—”

“No, I don’t need your help for this,” he snaps, and the coldness of his response visibly takes you aback for a second. He glimpses up and catches the brief expression of hurt on your face, his own shifting into one of regret in response. He lets out a sigh.

“Sorry,” he mumbles, averting his gaze. “I’m just… I want to be able to do this one on my own. Sorry.”

“It’s ok,” you say, voice coming out a little smaller than intended. You attempt a smile, thoughts a bit of a mess while you try and focus on his features for any hint of what he’s thinking. “Was there, uh… was there anything you did need my help with?”

You can tell Hoseok feels terrible for snapping at you, it’s apparent in the remorseful glint hiding in his gaze, but you also gather that he’s a bit too far in his mood to be able to snap out of it on his own at this rate. He seems to be even grumpier than on Monday, and you can only wonder what on earth happened since then to compound his poor mood so much. You’re a little hurt by his behaviour, of course, but to be honest you mostly feel a little bad for him.

Hoseok takes a moment to close his eyes and take a deep breath, before nodding and going to pull out whatever it is that requires your assistance. Once it’s out, the two of you then spend the rest of the session working through it.

Surprisingly, he packs up and darts off before your alarm even goes off at the end of his session, so when Jimin finally arrives its to an empty table and a very confused you. Hoseok had left too quickly for you to really adjust to it, so when Jimin turns to you with big confused eyes seeking an explanation, you don’t really have anything for him. A strange expression crosses Jimin’s features at that, but you don’t get the chance to question him before he plops down and begins talking your ear off about what he wants to go through today.

You just hope that on Friday Hoseok will finally be back to his chipper self and out of this funky mood.

x x x x

Unfortunately for you, it seems the universe is not quite ready to give you a break just yet.

When Hoseok arrives for his session on Friday, the air he carries with him feels so tense and emotionally charged you can almost taste it. You’re kind of really worried— especially since he seems a little crazed with the way he attempts to smile at you despite the angry aura you’re picking up.

“Are you… okay?” Is the first thing to leave your mouth upon seeing him, your brows drawn together in concern.

Hoseok smiles at you but it really looks like he’s just gritting his teeth. Are his eyes watering? Oh, God, is he about to have an emotional breakdown right in front of you?! Holy shit, you’re not qualified for this Oh God—

“I’m fine!” he says, taking his bag off his shoulder and sitting down, almost robotically. Your concern only increases when you watch him bump the tender part of his ankle bone against the chair leg and his jaw clenches even more. You feel like he’s about to explode any minute now and you’re not really sure where to place your feet to avoid the landmine. “I’ve had a fantastic day!”

You wonder if perhaps he’s actually had the opposite but is trying to speak some good luck into existence. That’s fine, you get that. Respect. Still, you’re concerned. “Th... That’s good. How did your English papers go?”

At the mention of the assessments he’d been working on last time, the male’s eye twitches just barely. He attempts to hide it by flashing you a strained smile. It makes him look a little.... unhinged.

“I finished them,” he says, somewhat ominously. “I have another to do, but it’s not due for a while so I haven’t touched it yet.”

“It be like that,” you say, scrambling for how else to fill the conversational gap on your end. Hoseok finally locates the work he needs to do today, and slaps it onto the table a little more forcibly than usual. You flinch, and he sends you an apologetic smile.

The two of you begin work, tension still in the air but thankfully not so much between you. In all honesty, if this is how Hoseok is when he’s cranky at something, there’s no way in hell you ever want to be on the receiving end of it. You wouldn’t be able to breathe— the tension in the air alone would be so suffocating!

You’re so busy trying to maintain a somewhat amicable energy during the session that, not the first time, you completely forget that you have another one scheduled right after with someone who just so happens to be a bit of a trigger for Hoseok, unbeknownst to you. Perhaps the reason you don’t worry about it is because a part of you thinks Hoseok is just going to leave early like last time, and the two of them won’t interact. And you aren’t wrong; that’s exactly what Hoseok plans to do. Except, neither of you are really aware that Jimin is taking measures too.

“Can I write something for this, instead?” Hoseok asks, pointing to a line towards the middle of the set of lyrics. “I feel like this one is a little stiff.”

You nod, pointing to the line above it, “Yeah, just make sure it ties in with the one above it like the original does. I think it flows well when it does that.”

Hoseok nods, taking in your advice, and puts his pencil to paper to begin scribbling out the line he was thinking. It’s still ten minutes before the end of the session, and around five before he intends to flee the scene, so it takes both of you by complete and utter surprise when the library doors suddenly burst open and bang against the wall loudly.

“Hey!” A cry of protest comes from the reception, but the cause of the disturbance is waltzing into the room with something akin to tunnel vision so the flustered receptionist, sadly, goes very much unnoticed. Poor Jungkook.

“Jung!” Jimin bellows, walking in like he’s 6’4 instead of 5’8. “We meet again!”

At the sound of Jimin’s voice, Hoseok shoots so ramrod straight and stiff that for a moment you’re genuinely worried his spine might snap from all the tension in his body. He doesn’t turn around, keeping his back to the approaching male— males, you should say. You didn’t see him at first, but you notice now that Taehyung is trailing into the library behind Jimin at a slower pace. He shoots you a smile that is nothing short of apologetic, and immediately your stomach sinks in dread. Oh no.

To his credit, Hoseok seems intent on ignoring the shorter male, returning his hand to the paper and attempting to continue writing his line. Jimin either doesn’t take notice or doesn’t care. He strides closer and puffs out his chest, announcing dramatically.

“Prepare yourself for battle, fiend!” Jimin then swoops his hand to point at Hoseok, something indecipherable playing in his eyes. “You evaded the breakdance showdown last time, but this time y—”

Hoseok’s grip on the pencil doubles, making the lead tip snap against paper and fly off. You sit, alarmed but unable to make yourself interfere. Oh, God.

Hoseok’s voice is surprisingly calmer than you anticipate when he speaks, but it has a certain bite to it that you’ve never heard or once imagined would come from Hoseok’s mouth. “I’m not dancing with you again, Jimin.”

It’s simple, what he said, and to you seems to have a very superficial meaning— but it seems to have a profound impact on both of them. Jimin recoils, mouth dropping open slightly as his bravado falters and a flash of hurt flickers across his face. You see Taehyung take a step closer, hand hovering slightly extended as though he’s prepared to comfort the shorter male— but why, you wonder? What exactly is the important subtext to this situation that you seem to be missing? You feel incredibly out of the loop, drowning in the tension flooding the air but unable to surface and make yourself stop whatever is happening in its tracks. You just wanted to hold a tutoring session in peace, damn it.

“You’ve danced with me before, hyung.” Jimin’s voice possesses a slight waver, his eyebrows drawn together slightly. You think he’s talking about all the other times Hoseok has partaken in the ridiculous breakdance showdowns they have in between sessions, but for some reason… a part of you feels as though he’s talking about something else. “Why stop all of a sudden?”

You can almost sense the writhing plethora of emotions bubbling just beneath the surface in Hoseok as he straightens, still not looking at the younger male. A cocktail of too many things to name swims in his eyes as he speaks, voice sharp.

“Because I’m not a child, Jimin. Those stupid dance showdowns— they’re childish. When will you stop entertaining impossible dreams like a little kid?”

The absolute hurt that flashes across Jimin’s face makes your heart sink, before it twists into anger and you see his fists clench by his sides. Taehyung takes another step closer to his friend, hand going to his sleeve as he glances between the two males, and you almost expect Jimin to wrench his arm out of his hold in a show of anger, but he keeps it there.

“You think I’m being childish? I’m having fun, hyung. But I guess you forgot how to do that the second you sent in that application, huh.” Jimin seethes, bristling at how Hoseok remains in place, jaw clenched and gaze still averted. “Look at me. Aren’t you ashamed? Or maybe you’re fine— moving on is easy for assholes like you, right?”

At the furious note in Jimin’s command, Hoseok’s head finally jerks over to face him, and the first thing his eyes fall upon is the way Taehyung and Jimin hover close to each other, the taller male’s hand still on Jimin’s arm. This, it seems, is what finally makes Hoseok snap and break. He wrenches from the seat, standing to face the shorter male completely.

“Oh you’d know all about moving on, wouldn’t you?” he spits, slamming his few loose sheets into his bag, uncaring for the condition they end up in. You flinch at the action, watching the mess unfolding before you with wide eyes. “Leaving others in the dirt and moving on like they never meant anything to you in the first place. It’s familiar, right? I guess the people who used to mean something to you don’t matter when you find a shiny, new toy to play with though, do they?”

The shocking amount of venom that drips from his words has both you and the other two males rooted in place in surprise and shock, Taehyung standing with wide eyes behind Jimin— apparently Jimin hadn’t expected the older male to snap like that, and in all honesty you hadn’t either. Almost all of your interactions with Hoseok, save with those this week and a few others, had seen him nothing short of bright, bubbly, and an absolute joy to be around.

The second the words finish leaving his mouth, Hoseok stiffens— you catch sight of a look that crosses his face, resembling something between regret, guilt, and pain. It’s gone as soon as it came and he turns on his heel without another word, leaving you without another opportunity to glance at his features. In the silence that follows his words, his footsteps echo particularly loud, and the three of you are left in a stupor as he leaves the library completely, disappearing out the door and around the corner.

It takes a moment for you to rip your gaze from the doorway, eyes flicking about— it seems you’ve garnered the attention of some of the nearby tables. When they see you’re looking at them, they hastily turn back around and pretend to work. Your eyes flick to the other two males involved in the mess that just went down, and you feel your heart sink to your feet, taking your stomach with it on the way down.

Jimin remains staring at the doorway where Hoseok disappeared, body tense but the fight having left. You think you see his eyes glistening slightly as he jerks out of his stupor and goes to follow Hoseok, but an arm that shoots out to bar his middle prevents him from doing so. Surprised, he jerks to face the owner.

“Don’t,” Taehyung says, voice soft. He looks a little guilty himself, but you have absolutely no idea why. “Let him go. Besides, you need to let off some steam yourself.”

Something in his words manages to get the remaining tension holding Jimin’s muscles hostage to flee, allowing him to sag in place slightly. A slight smile tugs his lips as he looks to Taehyung.

“What do you have in mind this time, more illegal and indecent acts?”

Taehyung snorts, saying something else in response to the shorter male, but you sort of tune out at this point. You’re still in a state of shock, and really… are quite unsure how to proceed, and what to do.

That whole thing that just happened… that wasn’t your fault, was it? You did set Hoseok off into that mood on Monday, but it seems… like whatever just made him go off was something he’d bottled up for a while about some other part of his life. You can only hope it wasn’t your fault. But still, it doesn’t change the fact that right now—

You don’t really have any idea what to do at all.

— • masterpost | prev. | two | next • —

{pls let us know what u think!! who do u think is the muse of the poem? who do u think will be endgame?? who do u WANT to be endgame?? let us know!! thank u for reading!!}

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kenjiro-s · 5 years ago

Text

Behind Crystal Waterfalls

Akiyasu Kurahashi x Kagemaru

The cave was filled with the soft sound of rumbling water and Kagemaru rolled his shoulders back under his cool kimono. He was losing precious hours of sleep to deal with this so he hoped it worked out.

Judging by the several voices he could identify, his Sentinels had done their job well. The quiet Tengu twins who walked on both his sides had delivered their reports in short clipped tone and he was glad he had put his hair up in a ponytail when he’d woken up that afternoon. Things were going to get messy.

The three men hung from hooks in the stone ceiling, all tied up and fully restricted, and it took the one near him a moment to register the new presence in the cavern. Kagemaru looked them over.

The one closest to him looked…familiar but he couldn’t place the face. Not that it mattered. Now, who was the leader…

- Who, the fuck, are you ? Did your pimp send you here as an apology for attacking us ? ‘Cause I’m down for that.

The other two men kept silent. His question answered, Kagemaru allowed his claws to extend, hand still curled in the folds of his clothes. He still paused to check himself, making sure he looked exactly how he was supposed to. Loose obi, kimono open up one leg…Nothing out of the ordinary.

The leader had called him a prostitute. Kagemaru sighed, tapping his lip with his folded fan. A civil adult man would not be offended by the remark, especially with the image he had been crafting so carefully. Too bad for those three that he wasn’t exactly civil, then.

- I could ask the same thing. – He stepped around the bodies hanging from the ceiling, almost smiling at their struggle to spin in the ropes and keep him within their sight. Cute. They tried to keep some of the power in the room. How very naïve. – Because see, you were caught poaching in an already claimed territory.

The men went silent. He allowed them to look at each other, obviously trying to communicate without words. It might have been impressive if they didn’t sway gently like cocoons with every movement.

- I want to talk to your boss. – Ah, so it wasn’t “master” anymore, was it ? Kagemaru snapped the fan open, letting the air curl around his hair. Three pairs of eyes followed him around like feral hounds and it would be pathetic if…No, actually, it was pathetic. They were definitely a sad excuse for criminals. He shook his head.

- You are. – Their expressions froze for a heartbeat. They looked at each other again.

- I’m talking about the owner of the filthy den by the theathre. – Filthy ? The excuse for a human being dared to call one of his establishments “filthy” ? He kept his face placid and his little smile on, but inside was calculating which patch of skin was the most sensitive to pain.

- That would be, as I already said, me. – Kagemaru made sure his fan was moving slowly and barely moving his hair. – How can I help you, gentlemen ?

- You. – Kagemaru raised an eyebrow in response. – Fuck off and get me your boss. Now.

That was rude even for him. He remembered Akiyasu calling that one soldier he’d probably disemboweled “vulgar” and how disgusted he’d sounded. The man in front of him had to be happy he himself wasn’t that easily offended.

- If you would like to do business in the Entertainment Quarter, you should show some respect. Otherwise, well, there has been a serious wraith problem in the Capital recently. You never know where they will pop out from. And who will end up another statistic.

- Are you threatening me, you little…

He could see the cogs turn…turn…turn…and click. The leader’s lip curled up in disgust and he huffed a breath out. – Oh, I’ve heard of you. You’re that demon, right ? The one who takes his clothes off and then chews through gullible teens’ throats. A blooddrinking slut.

- Do you think you are helping your case ? Because form my point of view…

- My brother will have you and your pack of rabid yokai put down like the mangy mutts you are.

Kagemaru could hear the heavy silence from behind. His Sentinels would never react to such a lame insult but he wasn’t so noble. He only liked to pretend he was.

- Your brother ? – The man spat on the ground. What was with lowlifes and spitting recently ? Akiyasu had said the same, that one of the soldiers had spat on him. Such a disgusting habit. He hadn’t managed to hit his pretty new kimono so that was good, at least.

- He will have you decapitated on the city square. Yokai were supposed to be killed off years ago and a public execution will definitely list the spirits of the people.

- Tell me something. – He folded his paper fan again. – How did you think this was going to work ? You and your men escaping form here ?

The leader swayed a little more in the rope, glaring at him. Kagemaru simply dragged his fan down the man’s throat, watching his Adam’s apple bob as the swallowed. He could almost taste…

Fear. Behind the insults and bravado the man was afraid. And so were his subordinates. Terror. Good.

He smiled. Wave of terror washed upon him and he relished in it. He’d thought about letting the waterfall wash their insides down the river but the filthy mouth of the ringleader and their shared fear was making him want to play a little.

- You know what ? I am feeling generous. Just to show you that I am open to discussions and negotiation. And always willing to let such young entrepreneurs as you to thrive in my city. Of course, you would have to show me you are willing to work for me, but I am willing to make amends. What do you say ?

- What I’d say ? – Kagemaru cocked a hip and noted with mild repulsion that the men’s eyes still went up and down his bare leg. How very simpleminded. Those were the kind of people Saotome would probably stumble upon out of sheer bad luck and then her Ayakashi would rip them apart. Hm, now that was an idea. Make them be somewhere where the stupid little girl would be…Two birds with one stone. But the leader wasn’t finished yet. – I’d rather slit my own throat than to work for a whore spider. How’s that for an answer, Jorōgumo ?

He didn’t sigh. Not this time. He would have let them go with a good scare. He would have. Considering how tired he was, he really didn’t want to bother. But the “whore spider” comment…Kagemaru had a thing for that specific name for his race and it really, really ticked him wrong. “Whore spider”…This, added to the prostitute implication, made him think they had a certain opinion about him that he didn’t feel too good about.

So he just walked around the wriggling bodies, letting a claw graze each and every man. Usually, he would go for a flashy and painful spot but he had done what he’d had in mind and now just wanted to go and sleep. So, quick incisions on their forearms, where the ropes had bunched up their sleeves it was and he was done.

- If you seek a healer, hmm… - Kagemaru looked at his bare wrist. – Within the next half an hour you might manage to keep all your vital organs in a working condition and have almost normal lives. I’d hurry, though, the venom works quickly. Untie them.

The last one was directed to the pair of Tengu by the door.

- The reason I am letting you go is because I value power. Which you don’t have. And killing you would honestly be such a mess. Not worth it. So here are the conditions. Pack your rubbish and your useless little guards, and leave the Capital. No harm, no foul. I forget about you, you forget about me. Do we have a deal ?

- Fuck you, demon ! – He shook his head.

- Twenty four hours starting now. If you haven’t left by the end of the countdown, we would talk again. Oh, and I would really look for a healer now, if I were you. That thing will liquefy your insides.

And then he turned, stepping out of the cavern, trusting his Sentinels to untie the men. That could have gone better, he guessed. Maybe. He just needed rest.

A few hours of no sleep later, he was buried in a pile of paperwork that was leaning dangerously to one side on his desk when something crinkling dropped on the formal letter he was reading. Jumping back and almost impaling the newcomer’s eyeball on his pencil, he caught himself on time and dropped back in the chair. He was usually all about teasing Akiyasu because the man was just way too stuck up to bypass, but today he had way too much work and also was sure the three morons from earlier would not pack up and leave like the good boys he’d pretended they were. No, he was sure they would stick around, try to wreak havoc and then he would have to pull out their spleens through their ears.

- Boss. Fancy seeing you here. – Not. He was in his office right across from the opera and it was almost time for the performances for the evening to start. He didn’t have much time before the whole quarter echoed with music and laughter, and he really wanted to catch up on the papers at least a little.

- Saotome’s awaken another Ayakashi bond. – Kagemaru waited, hand holding the fountain pen in a loose grip above the paper. And, kept waiting. And more ?

- Cool…? – Akiyasu narrow his eyes behind his glasses. Honestly, Kagemaru knew he had to show some kind of empathy to his current kind-of-boss, but he couldn’t find it in him. Not when the little sewer rat’s words rang in his head.

- Cool ? You understand this could ruin all of our plans, right ? Are you thinking about that ? Can you even comprehend how serious this is and how much it can mess everything up ?

Was he ? Obviously not, judging by what people seemed to think. He was apparently just a pretty little arm candy, not capable of a single coherent thought. Smoothing down his silk kimono, he spun the pencil around his fingers, silently gloating at how Akiyasu’s eyes followed the movement. Easy. Too easy. And he was supposed to be the dumb one ?

- This might come as a huge surprise, Onmiyoji-san, but I am fully capable of using long words and doing complicated calculations in my head. So, yes. I can, in fact, think about that. I know it clashes with your opinion of how all yokai are a little more than rabid beasts walking on two legs, occasionally, but it is a fact.

Akiyasu just frowned at him.

- Whoever you’re talking about, it’s definitely not me. So if you can focus on the problem on hand, that would be…

- Actually, no. – He hadn’t realised he’s stood up. – I can’t focus on the problem on hand. And based on everyone’s opinion of me and my kind, I don’t have to. Right ? All I need to do is smile prettily and be the lapdog and decoration of a bigger, stronger, more masculine man. Or am I wrong ? Boss.

Akiyasu kept frowning, hands loose at his sides.

- I have literally never said any of that. What’s wrong with you today ? Anyway, as I said, Saotome is doing whatever she thinks would help her, so I wanted to ask you of you have someone trusted we can get to keep an eye on her while she’s at school.

Kagemaru carefully put his pen by the stack of papers on his desk, keeping them perfectly parallel.

- As you might notice, if you tried for a moment to pay any attention to anything outside of your little revenge plot, I am busy. Responsibilities, you know. Some of us have to work for our food.

- Listen, Spider… - And then he froze. Good. Kagemaru exhaled and lowered himself back in his chair. Akiyasu, standing completely still, had his eyes glued to his own hand on the desk where Maelstrom was slowly moving a leg and seemingly not in a hurry to move. – Call it back.

- Call her back ? Why ? You seem to be perfectly fine talking to spiders, don’t tell me a pretty little girl like her is scaring you.

- What…is…she ? – He was catching up fast. Kagemaru propped his chin on his hand, feeling Tempest settle on his shoulder. Akiyasu had the decency not to flinch at the sight of the second tarantula.

- Poecilotheria metallica. Ornamental tree spiders, if you think the actual name is too complicated for you, what’s with all the syllables. Beautiful, aren’t they ?

Akiyasu, on the other hand, seemed to reach some kind of conclusion. Lowering himself slowly, he squatted in front of the desk without moving his hand and looked at Maelstrom, checking her out from as many angles as he could without disturbing her.

- Definitely. Is she a pet ? – He also appeared to be trying to check all the corners of the room for more tarantulas. Cute how he thought he would see them if they really tried to hide.

- They all are. – The cogs turned. Turned. Turned….and stopped.

- How many…do you have ?

- Twelve. – Oh, that was going to be fun. Maelstrom was completely still and Akiyasu had gotten bolder, nose almost touching her brilliant blue body. Only, Kagemaru hadn’t mentioned one little detail about the breed. And since he knew his spiders…

A human, even with supernatural sight and reactions, would have a hard time seeing a Poecilotheria metallica move and register it. And Akiyasu hadn’t been expecting it. Which was why when Maelstrom jumped and made contact, the other man dropped like a rock on his ass and scrambled back. Only, he couldn’t really escape since the spider was hanging tight. To his cheek. And then he raised his hand…

- If you slap her, I’m cutting the arm at the elbow. – Akiyasu froze, eyes wide and glasses askew. Across the entire room, silver webs glittered in the dying daylight, reflecting the sun like razorblades. Around Akiyasu’s wrists, silk glittered like water, blood beading and dripping down. He could feel it colour the web, soft little vibrations making him taste his victory in the still air. It slid down his throat like ash and he dropped the webs, feeling Maelstrom scurry to her hole on his bookshelf.

Akiyasu sat on the floor a breath longer and then got up, dropping his sleeves down, seemingly not caring about the red dripping from his fingers.

- So, are you in or not ? – Kagemaru paused by his desk, hand almost reaching for the ornate fountain pen on the desk.

- And what can I be of help with, boss ? – He chose to lean backwards on the wooden surface instead, cocking his head and crossing his arms. Akiyasu shook his hand a little, dripping more blood on his handwoven rug and pushed his glasses up his nose.

- I need someone who can pass for human completely. Saotome’s been taking her two-tailed yokai with her to her college recently and with all the bonded demons awakening, I want to keep a closer eye on her. I also know you employ all kinds of individuals and that if you want to, you can have someone watch her.

Kagemaru twisted his lips in distaste. He employed all kinds of individuals, huh ? Now what, he was valuable for something other than his looks ? He replayed the conversation.

- Why would they need to pass fully for a human ? I thought you didn’t teach her to read energies.

Akiyasu shook his head with a disgusted frown.

- It’s one of the lecturers. I suspect he’s not human and he seems to be really fond of Saotome. I wouldn’t want him to notice something.

- Are you actually hinting you want me to go ? – Akiyasu looked up from pulling his sleeve which was starting to stick to his bleeding arm.

- I don’t want them to attract attention. If it were you, the professor will try to get in your pants in about three seconds.

- You got a problem with that ? – Now the other man crossed his arms again, face cold.

- I have a problem with you actively trying to ruin my plans, yes. Definitely. What, did someone burn a warehouse of opium of yours or something ?

Kagemaru raised an eyebrow. He’d heard enough of another famous and rather vulgar expression to recognise purposeful evasion. But Akiyasu was like that, wasn’t he ? Proper all the way…until he reached the point where it clashed with his plans.

Still. He huffed in annoyance, getting up to pull out his emergency bottle of almond liquor. It was that kind of a day. Raising the heavy bottle, he didn’t bother looking over at Akiyasu. The man should have been used to his bad habits already.

- Some kid and his gang of useless lowlifes were selling dirty stock outside of the theatre by the planetarium. Two of my clients are in the hospital with life threatening sepsis and one of them lost an eye.

Akiyasu blinked. Well. Someone was surprised. Because he cared enough for his business to keep track of every little thing or because he actually got that involved ?

- Someone dared to try to sell something stronger than artificial and fully nonworking vitamin C on your territory ? – The other man pulled on his sleeve again, frowning at the way it kept sticking with blood. – Are then suicidally dumb or just suicidal ? – At his expression, Akiyasu pushed his glasses up his nose. – What ? Everyone knows of you and how you don’t leave witnesses unless it’s good for your business. I am just wondering which clan they are from so I would know who not to talk to about future plans. Kids these days, honestly…

- Washijo. – The other man just waited. – The moron on top is his grandson. – He shook his head, taking a big swallow from the bottle again. – Let’s see if they manage to find a healer fast enough to stop their bones from melting in their bodies.

- You poisoned them ? – Kagemaru shrugged with one shoulder.

- I don’t take it lightly when people try to kill my clients. I also don’t take it lightly when people call me a “whore” and imply I sell my affections by the hour to the highest bidder.

- You also have all the doctors in the Capital on payroll. They are probably dead already. – Akiyasu rubbed his eyes. – That man will come here and bring war.

Human were supposed to be empathetic, weren’t they ? Because he would expect that comment from his mother but not from the man who was claiming to fight for justice. Oh, he knew Akiyasu was rotten to the core, one didn’t go that far with a pure heart. One also didn’t learn to suck cock like that in two tries after being a virgin but that was a different matter. Point in case, that had been cold even for the one who had befriended a gullible girl just to sacrifice her and her friends on the altar of pointless revenge.

- And ? – Akiyasu stared back for a moment before turning on his heels and leaving in a flurry of robes. – Hey ! Come back, you…

- I got a ceremony in the shrine tonight and have to prepare. Don’t bother coming over, it’s a private event. – Kagemaru knew his mouth was hanging open. He’d never been disregarded with such little care. People begged for his attention and that one human thought that just because their goals aligned for one very narrow period of time, he could just order him around…

Private event. He felt silk bite into his fingers, the thin white threads drowning the room in reflections. Private event. Akiyasu Kurahashi, the shrine priest who was so high above the calls of the flesh it had taken Kagemaru months of chase to get him naked on his back in his office in the opera, and the man was entertaining company like nobody’s business. Probably that was why he’d been distracted recently, and when he went along with his teasing, he went all the way fast and easy. Because he wanted to be done and go to his lover pure and calm.

And the only person he had shown more interest recently was…

Kagemaru was going to have Saotome kicked out of the city, dishonoured and broken, left with nothing but her own fragile mind. If she was the one stealing his one access point to Onmiyoji power, he would take her father and her powers, her bonded yokai and her career. Her beauty. If the bitch dared to spoil his plans, he would show her why Jorōgumo had some of the nastiest reputation from all yokai. People didn’t just cross him and get out unscathed.

But that would have to wait a few hours. He signed the letter to the Inugami who ran the underground hospital right beneath the lake. The man going and checking the unfortunate souls who had taken the contaminated opium was all he could do for them at that point. He sincerely hoped the venom would kill them. Because if they came back…

Now. Work. Smile, sing, dance, be pretty. Don’t think of Akiyasu and Saotome losing their clothes on the moonlit meadow behind the shrine or he would find her and take her pretty eyes out. The night was just starting.

Just as the sun was rising, he stumbled in his flat above the biggest restaurant in the Capital. He needed to wash off his make up…right now. He could feel it itch and burn his eyes and cake on the strands of hair sticking to his face.

Oyama, the officer who’d come on the scene, hadn’t even had the decency to look surprised. The bastard.

The man who’d bled out on the floor, on the other hand, wouldn’t look surprised anymore. Ever. His nice kimono was dripping with blood, his sleeve was ripped and the place where the absolute piece of shit had bitten him was turning a disgusting black colour. The dead man probably had some kind of contagious disease and that was why his arm was going blue and purple.

- Tatsuomi said he’s never seen such an accurate stab wound in his entire career.

Kagemaru paused, kimono dropping to the floor while he blinked the black all over his face away. What was Akiyasu doing there ? Was his mysterious lover such a bad lay he had to come here to scratch his itch at five in the morning ? Also, Tatsuomi…

- He deserved it. – He heard a sigh. With his webs spread all over the flat, he would feel every breath, step and heartbeat so it wasn’t a surprise when Akiyasu stopped right in front of him. What he didn’t expect was the hand on his chin raising his face.

- I never said he didn’t. Tatsu also said he had more than enough witnesses and that he was only surprised the guards didn’t break that guy’s spine. Apparently, you were faster. Stop rubbing, here…

The wet cloth rubbed on his cheek and he tried to pull away but Akiyasu held on. He really, really wanted to put a blade through the man’s trachea but he was too tired. The beast had sneaked his hand under his clothes while slobbering all over his hand, bitten down when he’d tried to get his hand off without breaking it and then punched him in the face. He’d died half a minute later, bleeding out from a neat and accurate would in the temple.

- Get out. I am not in the mood for you.

- Do the words “Déjà vu” ring a bell ? – Oh, he was so going to burn his shrine to the ground, consequences be damned. He was absolutely doing it.

- Don’t make me call my Sentinels.

- You won’t. I have news about Washijo’s clan. – He what ?

Kagemaru kept silent, enduring the rubbing that was carefully taking his make up off first from his face and then from where it had stuck to his hair.

- I went to have a chat about their bad practices and how the gods frown upon young men selling drugs to unsuspecting citizens. Only, Washijo himself told me they would never set a foot in the Capital ever again. Something about the Jorōgumo who owns the city. They even warned me against said yokai. Apparently, he is a monster enough to make even the most dangerous hunters think twice. So they are moving out.

Oh. So the venom had worked. Good. He really didn’t want to deal with the rat who ran the clan. He had standards, after all. Still.

- What were you really doing there ? – Akiyasu was quiet for a moment.

- I didn’t want them to think that going to a shrine and cleansing their blades would help with the specific yokai they had a personal issue with. People who come and pray for endless power are so annoying…I still set the city wards to activate if they don’t leave within the time period you gave them. Which means in about… - Akiyasu paused. – An hour and a half.

Wards to blanket the whole Capital ? That was…Kagemaru frowned while the other man kept cleaning his neck and shoulders from any leftover make up. That was a complicated spell. Especially since there were other shrines with powerful priests, even if one didn’t count the endless number of Ayakashi that roamed around. The sheer power and intricacy such a spell would require…

- When ?

- When ? – Akiyasu pulled a cotton yukata on his shoulders. – Last night. Took me a while with my father’s books being locked in the militia’s archives. Doesn’t matter, now all we have to do it wait. Either way, they are not coming back.

#ayakashi #ayakashi romance reborn #akiyasu kurahashi #akiyasu #akiyasu ayakashi #ayakashi kagemaru #kagemaru #fanfiction #oneshot

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astoxh-kai-askoph-blog · 5 years ago

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Injury Lawyer Albany Georgia

You need to select the best attorney in Albany GA . The one that recognizes the regulation the very best as well as one that has experience managing your type of instance. Those things claim even more concerning that attorney's advertising and marketing ability than their real skill, expertise and knowledge.

The Most Effective Means to Locate an Albany GA Lawyer is by Word of Mouth or asking your friends for references.

Talk with people you know who have collaborated with attorneys prior to as well as speak with those legal representatives. Talk to any type of attorneys that you have actually dealt with in the past. Even if they do not manage accident they likely can lead you to a lawyer that they understand that does operate in injury and that they feel does their work well. In talking with all these different lawyers you might see that a specific name is stated by a few attorneys. That name is most likely worth seeking.

You can also check the documents of lawyers you talk with via organizations like the Better Business Bureau. You can also discover websites with customer reviews of attorneys and also see whether on not a certain legal representative gets on great terms with their clients and if clients like their work.

Choosing an Albany GA Personal Injury Attorney

When you trim your listing to the names, as well as companies of the lawyers that you want to be stood for by you now have to set up an appointment. Several attorneys will certainly provide you your very first appointment without charging you, however others may charge a consulting cost. Paying that fee is your option, yet you should consult with more than one lawyer to obtain a feel for just how strong your case is. Additionally search for out each attorney's background in handling situations like your own and a concept of how much time managing the situation would certainly take. Keep in mind to ask about expense and how repayment would certainly be taken care of.

If you or a person near you has actually endured a severe personal injury after that you may be eligible for settlement. There are regulations in position to secure your rights. Keeping that in mind, you would certainly be a good idea to search for personal injury attorneys to aid represent you. Now remember as you look that there are lots of misconceptions in regard to these attorneys. Don't let them maintain you from obtaining the help you require.

When the majority of people think of working with Albany GA personal injury attorneys, they envision lawyers resting at their desk counting money. Since that's the stereotype-lawyers desire money and they want lots of it. And sure, that may be the case for some PI attorneys. Yet definitely not every one of them. By doing a bit of research study, you're sure to come throughout a legal representative who appreciates greater than just money. A lawyer who has actually constructed his practice on treating individuals the method he 'd wish to be dealt with. As well as to make points less complicated on you, he'll supply a free first assessment. This will aid build trust, as well as ensure you have a case worth moving forward on.

Terrified you're most likely to work with a legal representative and also never be able to find him? When you employ trustworthy accident lawyers, you do not need to manage the red tape. There's no dodging phone calls via secretaries and also voicemails. They'll make themselves available to you to address all your inquiries and issues. Nevertheless, your Albany GA PI attorney is like your guardian, right?

Fear of losing employment should not keep you from attempting to get settlement. Your employer can not hold it versus you. You're acting well within your rights by contacting Albany GA accident attorneys. So do not let scare strategies and scare tactics cheat you out of your rightful negotiation.

The probabilities of you reaching a reasonable settlement by yourself are very low. You might too go play the lottery game while you go to it. The reality is, if you assume somebody else needs to be held accountable for your injury, you require to get an attorney in your corner. Only after that can you be certain that you'll get to the settlement you need.

Significant circumstances call for specialization. So no, not simply any type of attorney will certainly do. You need to be searching for accident attorneys that concentrate on instances such as yours. You do not want a jack of all trades. You want the best lawyer about your particular issue. So as you browse through lawyers, maintain this in mind.

When you find the appropriate legal representative, you will certainly have a person on call all set to help you at a minute's notice. So get the payment you deserve and also begin exploring accident lawyers today.

It's obvious that personal injury lawyers have a poor online reputation in our culture. We have all listened to the stereotypes and also jokes regarding those "ambulance chasing" lawyers: that we benefit from vulnerable people for our very own individual gain, that we chase ambulances looking for our next payday, which we will certainly do any type of shady or underhanded action in order to get paid.

These stereotypes are not just incorrect, yet they are damaging to our legal system. The lawful system is what individuals must look to in their time of requirement. As well as reality be informed, the huge bulk of injury attorneys help their customers get the compensation they are entitled to. People that are harmed in an automobile crash, injury, or harmed by a defective product count on accident attorneys each day.

In addition, the adverse stereotypes come from attorney advertisements themselves. A number of these ads make it seem that attorneys are cash starving and that they encourage individuals that they need an attorney to recoup numerous bucks in also the most pedestrian of injury accident situations. Likewise, it seems the clients are judged by their settlement quantity, and not as an individual. Nonetheless, these money starving attorneys are the minority. A lot of personal injury lawyers do not treat their clients as meal tickets.

Not just do Albany GA injury attorneys help their customers in their time of requirement, yet their work makes certain that individuals reside in a secure setting and also culture. Irresponsible corporations as well as people are mindful that they might be called for to pay civil damages if they determine not to act fairly and safely. Injury attorneys are additionally responsible for guaranteeing that neighborhood, state, as well as government security laws and regulations exist to safeguard the general public at large. These laws were passed in response to harmful irresponsible behavior and also they guarantee that people stay healthy and balanced and risk-free when using items that are developed and produced to be safe.

I can see why individuals believe the worst regarding personal injury lawyers because adverse stereotypes are all over them. Absolutely the attorneys do not help themselves and all it takes is "one poor apple ruins the whole bunch." However, while you usually find out about the unethical attorney who took their customer's money in the news, you almost NEVER read about any one of the positive points lawyers provide for their clients-including functioning pro bono for causes the lawyers count on or decreasing their charges to ensure that their customers receive all the justice they are entitled to. While it is true that some injury lawyers are greedy as well as egocentric, the vast bulk really appreciate their customer's rights as well as are strong supporters for their customers.

Of course what is usually overlooked is that the key push behind these negative stereotypes are firms and also insurer that want to use these poor public images to their benefit. They try to state that injury legal representatives as well as their customers are the villains attempting to take advantage of a suit lotto game, as well as the lawyers are attempting to take advantage of their client's bad luck. Nevertheless, it takes a great deal of hard work as well as dedication to do what we do and numerous attorneys chose to collaborate with injured individuals in Albany GA due to the fact that they intend to help individuals.

There might be a time in everybody's life when they are faced with a scenario that they will take into consideration employing an injury attorney. Keep in mind that there are many injury lawyers out there that will certainly deal with difficult for you. You are not, and also must not be just an additional number or paycheck for your lawyers.You are an individual with your own concerns and wishes regarding your instance. You deserve to be treated with respect by an accident legal representative that values having you as a client.

The most awaited thing after any crash is the insurance claim of compensation you make to cover the loss - certainly just in cases where it is applicable. The procedure involving the case is typically time-consuming and also a lot of lawsuits occur versus adjusting the amount of the case, which is even reduced to an extent. If you desire to stay clear of these scenarios, it is much better to designate an accident lawyer who would take the responsibility on your behalf to recover the quantity of claim as high as feasible.

An Albany GA accident attorney might aid you today after a mishap has taken place on an emergency situation basis. Normally, the attorney might bill virtually 40% of what is recovered from the insurance claim or you can pay the lawyer a charge that is been determined in between the two of you, beforehand. There is a situation where you can seek for the specialist assistance of a lawyer however as a civil service which is not implied to be charged at all yet still the attorney charges, a much minimal amount from individuals that come for aid.

So prior to you select any kind of attorney to take your instance, be prepared with a survey which would certainly pick the fate of selecting the attorney. If you do not receive adequate solutions, you might turn down the individual and also ask for another attorney for interview.

Things to check from an Albany GA personal injury lawyer:

You must check the qualifications and accomplishments of the accident attorney as well as supply the lawyer with all the information you have relating to the accident or personal injury. These 2 areas should be plainly scrutinized prior to designating the person.

As you are the person who would be preserving the lawyer for the task, you have the liberty of asking concern in regard to the trustworthiness of the personal injury lawyer. According to the feedback supplied by the lawyer, you require to make a decision whether he is capable enough to obtain you the case. In case of an incorrect choice there will certainly be a lot of added sufferings apart from the charges of the attorney that you will certainly have to compensate.

You can inquire about the number of instances the Albany Georgia personal injury lawyer has actually thus far been associated with and also the variety of favorable outcomes amongst them. If the answer is positive, you would have the ability to establish some trust on your lawyer.

#Albany GA lawyer #Albany GA attorney #Albany GA law firm #Albany GA personal injury lawyer #personal injury law firm Albany GA

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vantemei · 7 years ago

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taehyung sighs as he enters his apartment, throwing his bag to land somewhere hopefully not hazardous and pulling his belt off to throw it in the same direction. as much as he loves working his dream job, modeling is not as easy as it seems. his limbs ache from holding awkward poses all day and his stomach growls with hunger from not having time to eat. on that thought taehyung drags himself to his kitchen, discarding his pants along the way so he's left in his black briefs and the silk button up he got to keep after the shoot. it's a nice off white color that goes well with his current grey hair as the stylist had pointed out. the pattering of small feet on the hardwood floor draws taehyung's attention and he smiles tiredly as yeontan comes dashing down the hallway, small puppy making a straight line to where taehyung is now crouched down to welcome the small pup.

"tan ah, i'm home. did you miss me?" it's an obvious question because the minute yeontan is in taehyung's arms he's jumping up and licking at his face and yipping happily. it makes taehyung laugh with fondness and he feels a little lighter already but he wants to cry when he opens his fridge. a head of lettuce, a tub of kimchi, a sad apple that sits bruised in the back of the second shelf, and a nearly empty jug of milk is what greets him and taehyung remembers the grocery shopping trip he blew off yesterday to get boba with jimin.

his mouth suddenly tastes like boba and bitterness and taehyung sighs heavily, too tired to work up the tears he feels stinging his eyes from frustration. "tan ah, you daddy is a fool." taehyung pouts at the puppy in his arms and yeontan yips and licks his nose, drawing another fond giggle.

his bare feet pad over the plush carpet to his bedroom and he barely strips off his shirt before he's falling onto his silk sheets, tension leaking out of his body in waves as he rolls to the middle and let's himself be enveloped by the sweet embrace of sleep, smiling as he feels his puppy wiggling himself under taehyung's arm to curl up against his chest.

an hour or two later taehyung jolts awake suddenly and sits up groggily, rubbing his eyes and looking around to try and see what woke him up. his curtains aren't drawn in his room (or anywhere else in the apartment for that matter, he much prefers natural light over artificial) and the golden ray's of the evening sun filter in through the window. yeontan still sleeps soundly beside him and taehyung idly runs a hand through his fur.

a sudden thump makes taehyung jump and his eyes go wide, suddenly very awake as he looks at where his door is cracked very slightly. he can't see his living room from the crack because of the small hallway where his bedroom is but that's definitely where the sound is coming from.

slowly getting to his feet taehyung's eyes flicker across his room. on his left draped across his closet door is his dressing gown, a gift from gucci, and on his right on the wall is his aesthetically pleasing realistic samurai sword he bought undercover at an anime convention.

another thud from the living room and taehyung jolts, grabbing the sword and pushing silently into his hallway. there's a voice mumbling something and what sounds like a muffled curse or two paired with a few more noises of someone moving stuff around.

fear chills taehyung's blood despite the warm summer breeze and taehyung bites his lip, terrified. he doesn't want to die, he has so much to do. he's hasn't been to the louvre yet! he's never been in love! jimin still owes him twenty thousand won for the time he bet taehyung to eat a ball of wasabi. yeontan still needs him!

summoning all the courage he can and sending off a last minute prayer that jimin makes sure gucci sponsors his funeral, taehyung jumps around the corner with a vicious battle cry, sword held high and ready.

when jeon jeongguk signed up to be a fireman he signed up for a life of saving lives and helping people. sometimes that does mean being the heroic man who runs into a burning building and comes out carrying a sixty year old woman and her cat but sometimes it also means doing routine fire alarm check up and being shouted at by a man in his thirties who thinks he's a government spy putting a camera in his house to spy on him. those days feel significantly less heroic but someone has to do them and jeongguk is really bad at kai bai bo.

it's a nicer complex in gangnam today which means instead of a hallway full of doors, jeongguk takes the elevator up and presses the entry code for each floor. the lower five floors have multiple apartments and as the floors go up the bigger the apartments get and the less there are per floor until the top floor that is a single apartment. most of the people jeongguk has had to deal with today have been at least politely hospitable, leaving him be to do his job and offering the rare drink.

"hello, this is the fire department. i'm here for a routine fire alarm check up, is anyone home?" jeongguk buzzes the intercom in the elevator for the last floor. it's on the highest floor so the person who lives here must make a lot. another stuck up rich person. jeongguk sighs at the thought and waits a few more minutes, trying twice more before giving up and pressing the nine digit security code into the panel in the elevator thinking the tenant must be out.

the elevator doors open into a massive room, floor to ceiling window surrounding it and the apartment is nice. it looks like more than jeongguk could afford in his life and it's decorated beautifully. the kitchen is modern and neat with white marble counter tops and an open layout. the living room is spread out with a massive tv in the wall. the living room itself looks like it's the same size as jeongguk's entire one bedroom apartment and he can't help but be amazed. far to his left is a small gated area with a bunch of small toys in it and a little bed. the gate comes up about to a little under jeongguk's knee so it's must be for a small dog.

there are various paintings on the walls and jeongguk only recognizes one of them as van gogh's almond blossoms but they're all beautiful. maybe it's an art dealer that lives here?

jeongguk shakes himself out of his marveling and makes his way to the kitchen. the kitchen is just next to the elevator and against one of the only walls that isn't a window. the fire alarm is about a third of the way up the wall and jeongguk is once again taken aback at how high the ceiling is. it must be five meters high at least.

there's a bag that's looks a bit out of place with the cleanliness of the rest of the apartment and jeongguk glances at the lion on it he recognizes vaguely as gucci. he picks the bag up and places it on the counter, out of his way as he sets the step ladder he's had to carry around all day against the wall and climbs up to begin fiddling with the alarm.

a few minutes go by of him working peacefully. there are three alarms in the apartment that he knows of. two by the kitchen and one in the hallway. jeongguk is halfway through finishing the second one when it happens.

there's a sudden scream and jeongguk whips around only to be faced with a man in briefs wielding a sword. jeongguk screams and he jerks, stool suddenly wobbly beneath him and he's falling, back slamming into the ground and air rushing out of his lungs.

"oh my god! i'm so sorry!"

jeongguk gasps for air with wide eyes as a face suddenly appears above him. honey gold skin and wide amber eyes swim into focus followed by cloud soft grey hair and plump cherry stained lips. jeongguk's feels his breath knocked out of him again, this time for a different reason.

"i though you were a sasaeng or a burgler! i'm so sorry! i didn't mean to make you fall! i mean i did but that's because i thought you were gonna steal my stuff or kidnap me! oh god im so sorry! are you ok?!"

jeongguk just gapes dumbly, mouth opening and closing like a fish as he tries to remember how to speak but he can't think of anything but the way the beauty in front of him sounds like his voice was a thunderstorm dipped in chocolate and jeongguk felt like he was drowning.

"oh my god you have brain damage don't you- i've ruined your life! i can't believe i-" the beauty looks over jeongguk's head, presumably for injuries and jeongguk suddenly remembers the mostly naked state of said beauty and can't stop himself before his eyes are wandering down. he looks like he takes bathes in honey is all jeongguk can think as he scans over his toned but slim figure, choking when his eyes come to rest on the golden barbells running through dusty pink nipples.

"ok ok you wait here and i'll get dressed and i'll get you some ice!" the beauty is gone before jeongguk can even gather himself to form a single word and no he does not stare at the way his ass moves as he disappears down the hallway ('goddamn what a snack').

by the time the beauty is back, this time dressed in black sweatpants with a red black and white snake down the left leg and loose cream button up that shows his collarbones, jeongguk has managed to make his way to the unfairly comfortable couch in the living room where he gapes just as lamely as he did on the floor as he holds the back of his head.

the beauty passes the cold pack he grabbed to jeongguk and takes a seat beside him biting his lower lip in worry.

"i'm so sorry about this, i didn't know anyone from the fire department was coming today and i thought you were a sasaeng who managed to get in. do you need me to take you to the hospital? how are you feeling?"

"i-i'm ok i just- i was surprised by the sword," jeongguk finally manages to choke out and the beauty flushes. jeongguk feel's like he's looking at the eighth wonder of the world.

"ah that. i don't really have an explanation for that? i just grabbed the first thing i saw?"

"a sword?"

beauty shrugs. "i have hobbies."

this draws a laugh out of jeongguk and the beauty looks relieved to hear it, smiling in relief.

"i'm jeon jeongguk, i'm a fireman- i guess you can tell from the shirt," the black shirt he's wearing with his jeans that says 'SEOUL FIRE DEPARTMENT' in big white letters. wow jeongguk, smooth. "i came here to check you fire alarms and make sure they're working."

"oh my god i haven't even introduced myself yet. i'm kim taehyung i'm sorry i almost attacked you with a sword." jeongguk laughs again and this time the beauty, taehyung, joins him. his laugh is just as amazing as his blush was. jeongguk's heart skips a beat.

"are you sure you feel oka- OH MY GOD!" jeongguk barely processes the horrified look on taehyung's face before his head is grabbed, gently, and pulled forward. "jeongguk-ssi you're bleeding! oh my god we need to go to the hospital!"

there's a sudden small bark and they both jolt, taehyung releasing jeongguk's head to crouch down and pick up the small dog that appeared by their feet.

"tan ah, i'm sorry baby, daddy's gotta go again ok? be a good boy for me until i'm home," taehyung presses a kiss to the puppy's head and jeongguk tries not to faint as taehyung's words hit him full force, a blush taking over his face until it must resemble gochujang.

"let me grab my keys and i'll drive you, i'm so sorry about this jeongguk-ssi." taehyung sets the puppy down in the play area jeongguk notices earlier and he dashes down the hallyway again, reappearing with a leather wallet he slips in his back pocket with his keys, dialing his phone in one hand while he helps jeongguk stand with the other.

now that they're moving jeongguk is suddenly more aware of the feeling of wetness sliding down the back of his skull and how suddenly dizzy he feels, grunting in surprise as the elevator doors open and he topples forward. strong arms wrap around his waist before he can fall more than a couple centimeters and jeongguk is pulled into a strong chest, one arm still around his waist and the other now holding a phone against taehyung's ear.

"jin-hyung! are you working today.....i need help......no i'm fine but i accidentally attacked this really hot fireman with a sword- no! that is not a euphemism!"

jeongguk giggles a little drunkenly and leans his head on taehyung's shoulder, the one his arm is over, inhaling the scent of eucalyptus and chai with a ditzy smile.

"no hyung, seriously i think he has a concussion, he's bleeding!.......yes.....yes....ok, thank you so much hyung i owe you! we'll be there in fifteen minutes."

taehyung hangs up the call and looks worriedly over at jeongguk. he seems ok aside from the dizzy look on his face and the blood that has now begun to drip down his forehead. taehyung yelps and brings his sleeve up to wipe at it, any idea of a stain not even concerning him.

they make it through through the lobby and to garage relatively easily with taehyung supporting a solid amount of jeongguk's weight before he's sitting him down on the curb and telling him to 'wait here, don't move!'. jeongguk doesn't think he could do much moving anyway, his head is really starting to throb.

jeongguk doesn't even take a second glance at the car that pulls up next to him until taehyung is by his side and helping him into it and jeongguk openly gapes as he's ushered into the black porsche. he doesn't remember much after that. he can hazily recall getting to the hospital and being helped onto a gurney but the next time he wakes up he's greeted again by wide amber eyes and the most beautiful man in the world.

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undermoonlitsky · 6 years ago

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Because it’s November, I wanna drop my favorite story I’ve ever written because it’s still relevant.

Mockingbirds

The day was as it should be; quiet and bright, but still cold and restless. Multicolored leaves littered the streets, creating a scene any artist would relish in. Mockingbirds were still singing in the trees. The air tasted similar to that of syrup and smelt of freshly cut wood. The sun hung low in the day, despite still being fairly early. The clouds were swollen with rain, and hung over houses threatening to burst. Once Anne arrived at the house, she was flooded with memories from her childhood. Things like Christmas and movie nights, reminded her of the happy childhood she was given. The door opened before she even knocked, and before she could utter a word she was hit by the force of three long awaited hugs. Her two sisters and even her older brother met her at door. Their screams momentarily deafened her. That only lasted for a second before they began looking behind her. “Where is he?” Belle, the youngest, and most kind and optimistic of the children, inquired. “You said he was cute.” Eve, the eldest and most categorizing of the bunch, strained her neck to catch what her little sister brought with her. “I want to make sure he’s good enough,” Gabe the only boy among the few, and Anne’s twin. Anne felt her heart quiver with the breeze, and she smiled in a nervous fashion, “He went out to get the butter that Ma needed.” She didn’t know how to tell them, so she ignored the subject, “Are you guys going to let me in?” “Oh, Anne, we’ve missed you.” Behind the offspring, came the creator. Jezebel, their mother was a stout and round mother of the four. She had ruled the house with a heavy, but very lenient hand. She usually meant well, and there were no harsh words anyone could say about her. Next came her father, Cain, looking like most fathers do; tired with a splash of love in his eyes. He was stronger than anyone of them, but sometimes weak in spirit. Anne ran into embrace the two, hoping they had forgotten. Of course, they didn’t “Where’s this boy of yours.” Ma said. “He’s not hiding, is he?” Dad said. “He went out to get that butter you needed, Ma.” “What a sweet kid. Now come on, help me cook. You’re the best cook out of all of them.” The kitchen was modest, as was their life. They were humble people, with kind upbringings. They meant well, and no one had many harsh words about them. They spent their days going to church, helping out at the schools, feeding the homeless, and whatever they had time for. They finished the food relatively fast, and were finished setting the table, before the butter had arrived. Belle had complained about the Christmas music. Eve ate the cranberry sauce, even though Ma said she wasn’t allowed. Gabe and Dad watched the food more than they watched the game. It all seemed perfect. When the doorbell rang, Anne’s heart dropped. She had almost forgotten about him, but she didn’t forget to run. She got to the door, a moment before the rest of them did. Before they could see him. Maybe, she thought, maybe this wouldn’t be so tragic. Maybe there was hope for him. Tobias looked up at the door innocently. He held the butter in his hands like it was a gift to Jesus himself. She looked at him, how naive she had been. He looked so different from them. How had she not seen it before. Not just his pale skin, but his dopey smile, his inability to fake anything, his voice, his actions. No, they would not accept him. He seemed to notice this in her face, “They don’t know.” “I didn’t think it would be that bad,” The door swings open without another word. And there’s no more hiding. At this moment Anne remembers all the bad things that happened in this house; the fighting, the ridicule and embarrassment, unappreciation, Christmas and Thanksgiving. She remembered the fear, the same fear she’s feeling now. She looks up into their eyes. How happy they had been moments ago. Anne realized then that it was fake. All of it, their enthusiasm to meet him, their happiness for her, and mostly the open arms they were going to greet him with. What a charade they had pulled. “This is Tobias,” she looked back at him, and saw the yearning for acceptance in his eyes. “Oh.” Belle, was already sizing him up. Without a word, she imagined what type of person he was. Behind her, Gabe grunted, as if to show dominance. “Why don’t you come inside,” It was becoming clear how this night would go. Eve had already run in to tell Cain and Jezebel the “news”. She came back only to tell us that dinner was on the table, and it was time to eat. Tobias made a joke about butter, but no one laughed, not even him. Anne clenched his hand, hoping to give and receive support. Ma dropped her spoon, and raised her hand to her mouth. Dad dropped his head, and lowered his expectations. Only Ma tried to feign her disappointment, “You must be one who, uh, stole Anne’s heart.” “Yes, it’s so nice to meet you Mrs.Odieux” His hand reaches out to shake hers, but she passes him, pretending not to notice him, and puts down the mashed potatoes. They avoided him like a deadly disease. Like they would combust into flames if they touched him. The grace was said, but instead of the jolly, hand holding family, they became solemn and isolated. The first question fell out of Eve’s mouth, “Where did you meet Anne?” He hesitated, surprised someone was talking to him, “Well, when I used to work at our local coffee shop, she-” “So, you don’t have a real job?” Cain feigned innocence. “Here we go,” Anne muttered. “Well, at the time, I guess not, but now, I’m working full time at a law firm.” “So, you’re a lawyer?” Gabe took his turn up to bat. “Yes” “I hate lawyers.” Dad bluntly said “Dad!” “What Anne? They are liars and money hungry. They have no respect for-” “With all due respect sir, I am a defender of innocents. I am a defender of those who want to be innocent. I do it not for the money, but the freedom of others.” “Don’t forget murderers,” Jezebel nodded, not looking at anyone, “You also defend murderers.” There was a moment of silence, as if they had given up. No, as if Anne had given up. Tobias still had hope. The next round started with Belle, “So, how many girls have you dated?” “Belle, you’ve got to be kidding me!” “It’s okay, in my high school life until now, I’ve dated six girls.” “And were any of them…?” “Black? No.” Ma gasps a little. “It’s not a dirty word, Ma.” Anne can barely eat. She wants to leave, go home with him, and never return. And finally, Gabe breaks the wall, “What are your intentions with my sister?” Everyone puts down their forks to hear Tobias’ answer. Anne almost chokes, and begins drinking water as a result. “I plan to marry her.” Ma cried. Belle prayed. Gabe walked away. Eve gasped. Dad yelled. Anne choked. Tobias beamed with confidence. “Not if I have any say!” Cain jumped from the table. “Why?!” Tobias proceeded to do the same thing. “Because... Because…” “Because I’m white? What if I was black? Then would there be a problem?” “No! If you were any other race, there wouldn’t be an issue!” Finally, the truth. “Dad!” Anne too rose from the table, “That’s enough. All of you.” “Listen here, and listen well. You will get out of my house-” “Dad!” “You will never see my daughter again. You will no longer put these demonic thoughts in her head-” “I’m putting demonic thoughts in her head? Don’t you see what you’re doing? You’re denying me the chance at anything, because of what my ancestors did?” “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree,” At this point Gabe had returned. “You will be no better,” Belle had stopped praying. “You could never be good enough,” Eve had come out of shock. “You will ruin her,” Ma had stopped crying. “Tobias?” Anne had stopped caring what they thought, “Let’s go.” “This isn’t right you know!” And Tobias had given up hope. “Don’t bother coming back for Christmas!” Anne didn’t know who yelled it. They all sounded like one body now. Snuffing out light and crushing hope. They had not meant well, and they had many harsh words to say. They saw the world through clouded eyes, and refused to hear clearly. They spoke with death kissed tongues and needle infested voices. Their eyes no longer lit up with joy. No, they had not meant well.

Sorry it’s so long, have a nice day

#long #story #november #short story #racism #no such thing as reverse racism #yeet #have a great day #how are you #read #long reads #long story #please read #hi

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cinnamon-pigeon · 7 years ago

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pre-rewrite: chapter 3

Saving the older versions of rewritten chapters of After the Bust! Predominantly for my own later reference, but also if anyone wants to see :)

What changed: Took out a lot of exposition that ended up feeling kind out of place. I started writing this with a pretty half-baked (to be generous) characterization of King Dice and although the exposition was helpful to me to flesh out his character, it wasn’t necessary where it was.

To Dice’s surprise, it was Cuphead who brought him dinner, unaccompanied by his brother or the Elder Kettle. The boy set down a tray holding a bowl of soup and two cartons of apple juice in front of King Dice, then grabbed a carton of juice from the tray and retreated to sit in a chair in the corner of the room.

Remembering the tea that had been prepared for him earlier, Dice inspected the bowl of soup closely before taking a bite. It looked like some kind of chicken and wild rice soup, speckled with carrots and celery. The carrots were a little undercooked, and the creamy broth was a little less seasoned than he would have liked, but it was nonetheless quite tasty. His stomach growled, reminding him that he couldn't remember the last time he had a proper meal.

“Can I ask you a question?” Cuphead spoke up suddenly. The boy’s voice had an edge of unnecessary force, as if he had been waiting for the right opportunity to speak.

“I'm certainly not in a position to stop you,” Dice responded pointedly.

“What happened ? I mean, really.” Cuphead leaned against the edge of his seat. “Mugs thinks we busted you up like this, and he just tried real hard to forget, but I’d remember... that. ” Dice tried his best not to grimace as Cuphead gestured in his direction.

To stall, Dice carefully tore open the carton of apple juice and took a long, slow drink. He wasn't sure what advantages or disadvantages would come from Cuphead knowing that he had gotten into a fight with the Devil. If he was going along with the idea that he was suddenly free from his soul contract with the Devil, then it should follow that he no longer had powers to defend himself.

In the end, it was a mixture of exhaustion and indifference got to Dice. “What d’you think happened?” he responded with a sigh.

Cuphead tilted his head, and stared at him with wide, curious eyes. “The Devil wasn’t happy with you,” he said finally. “We beat him up pretty bad, too, though, so…”

Right on the nose--the kid wasn’t quite as clueless as he looked. Dice snorted. “It’s the Devil , Cup,” he said. “I’ll give ya credit where it’s due, you did a hell of a job with those debtors and the Devil himself. But don’t go thinking that it’s ever gonna happen again.”

The boy looked reproachfully at Dice, then directed his face towards the floorboards. Dice paused, remembering the Elder Kettle’s warning words about being indebted to the cup brothers. Perhaps now wasn’t the right time for him to lash out about how unlikely the whole situation was.

Before he could speak, though, Cuphead broke the silence. “So, what are you gonna do, once you get better?” He asked, kicking at the floor idly. “Are ya gonna go back to the Devil’s Casino?”

The earnestness in his tone caught Dice off-guard. He hadn’t had the time or capacity to think much about what was going to happen next, and the mere suggestion of a future beyond his next few weeks of recovery twisted a knot in his stomach that made it difficult to breathe. The Devil’s Casino had been his pride and joy, his lifeblood; though he had been the one to walk away, he still hadn’t come to terms with losing it.

“Don’t go back to working for the Devil,” Cuphead interjected suddenly. “You know what he called you? His ‘good-for-nothing lackey’. It’d be an awful shame for you to go running back there when you’re finally free now.”

The resolve in the boy’s words was unwavering. Completely disarmed, Dice stared into his bowl of soup. It occurred to him that his dinner was getting cold, and he shoved a spoonful into his mouth.

Get a load of this guy , he thought, numbly stirring his spoon through the soup. Mugman, the younger brother, seemed sweet and legitimately concerned for Dice’s well-being, but there was something about Cuphead’s bluntness that made him feel unnerved. It was blatantly out of line, the way that he was being spoken to. Any other day, he wouldn't have taken such blunt advice from a kid while lying down.

The stabbing pain in his chest reminded him that, in the current circumstances, he didn't have any other options.

The Devil’s abuse was nothing new to him--he had worked at the Casino for years, after all, long enough to make his share of mistakes and see his boss on many a bad day--but he had always been able to dismiss the mistreatment, because it happened behind closed doors. On occasion, one of the casino’s staff would overhear the Devil lashing out at Dice, but they always had the good sense not to ever mention the incident. Dice had always been a bit of an outsider amongst the staff of the Devil’s Casino--while most of them were a fun-loving bunch who had long since accepted their lot in life, Dice had always been aloof, and made no secret of the fact that he saw himself as above them because of his cunning and ambition. Most of the employees who worked at the casino had been around long enough to watch his unexpected rise from a simple blackjack dealer to the casino manager and hand of the Devil, and he relished the look of fear in his former co-workers’ eyes as they watched his power continue to grow. Even if the Devil’s position over him was wrought iron and absolute, there was no question that Dice was his right-hand man, and that gave him the strength to withstand even the worst of the Devil. He was good at what he did, dammit, and he was a grown man, not a child looking for a handout for being good.

The look on Cuphead’s face, more concerned than spiteful, twisted the knife further into Dice’s chest. He didn't want pity from a kid.

“Mister, um, King Dice?” Dice didn't realize that he was taking so long to respond until Cuphead jumped in. For the first time, Dice heard a note of hesitation in Cuphead’s voice. The look on the kid’s wide eyes was like that of a deer in the headlights of a steam train. The conversation had certainly taken a turn into territory that Cuphead had neither expected nor prepared for. Dice was surprised to feel a twinge of empathy as he looked at the boy’s face. It was only a few days ago that the kid had the scare of a lifetime, traveling the Inkwell Isles to collect debts and brawl against fully-grown opponents who were imbued with the Devil’s powers. Cuphead and his kid brother had won, sure, but it was bound to leave a pretty nasty scar on their psychology.

And he was responsible. For the first time, Dice thought of what he had done and felt a sickening wave of regret.

Cuphead was clearly beginning to panic at Dice’s sudden wave of emotion. He ground his heels into the ground and wrung his white-gloved hands together. “Erm…” the boy muttered.

Dice leaned back into his pillow, turning his face towards the ceiling. “Yeah?”

Cuphead appeared to be thinking very hard for a moment, before a slightly devious grin crossed his face. “The Baroness made us a cake, for...um, you know.” He tactlessly avoided mentioning his deal with the Devil.

Well, that was out of left field. Dice’s eyebrows furrowed. “Baroness von Bon Bon? I've heard of her,” he responded.

“Yeah, she made us a cake,” Cuphead responded with a nod. “Mugman and the Elder Kettle left to get some stuff from the emporium. The Elder Kettle said no dessert tonight, but do you think…maybe...you want some?”

Dice regarded the kid with amusement. “What’s in it for you?” he asked wryly. It occurred to him that Cuphead was trying to cheer him up under the guise of childish antics, and he appreciated the gesture enough to play along.

Cuphead couldn't contain a soft giggle. “Well, the Elder Kettle can’t be mad if I brought the cake to make you feel better. But gee, it would be rude to just eat it in front of me without offering me any...”

Dice smiled knowingly. “Alright,” he said. “You know, some cake sounds just swell.”

⚀

Dice or no Dice, the Devil would have to start rebuilding the Devil’s Casino at some point. He was almost back to full health, though he knew that, without the souls of the Inkwell Isle debtors, his powers wouldn't quite be what he remembered them to be.

The ruins of his casino were more depressing than he remembered it, from the time he had come to the overworked to confront Dice. He lit a cigar, puffing slowly as he made his way around the destroyed casino floor, surveying the damage.

He half-expected to see Dice amongst the rubble, restored to full strength and wearing his favorite lilac suit, playing idly with his favorite deck of magic aces. ‘ I’m on it, Boss,’ Dice would say. ‘ People are gonna be as dumb as they were before, don’t worry ‘bout that. In no time at all, we’ll have robbed them blind twice over, eh, Boss?’

Dice’s arrogant and sycophantic “Devil’s right-hand man” schtick used to annoy the Devil to no end. It annoyed him even more because he knew Dice was too hard-headed to understand that, in the grand scheme of eternity, the life and death of little Caleb Dice would mean very little to Satan himself.

What annoyed him the most was that how he was finding himself wishing Dice were here right now. Dice had always been just useful enough to think he had some value to the Devil, and just annoying enough for the Devil to wish that he didn’t. Dice really was a spectacular casino manager, and shockingly adept at swindling people out of their souls; it eventually reached the point where the Devil granted Dice the power to sign the soul contracts as his proxy, since it was becoming so cumbersome to deal with each case individually. Dice had been right about the casino, too--after he was promoted to manager, the aesthetic upgrades that he gave the casino had been good for business. Looking around at the ornately detailed red carpet, the ballroom-style ceiling, the polished wood furnishings that practically glowed even in the dim light of the casino--the whole thing screamed King Dice .

The Devil hissed with frustration and clambered over a card table that had been crushed underneath a chandelier.

Although nobody was speaking about it out loud, news that the King had left the Devil’s Casino spread like wildfire through the rest of the staff. Although nobody dared ask him about what would happen to Dice, from what his minions were reporting, it seemed to be the general consensus that Dice was going to be captured, tortured, and maybe have his head mounted on the wall of the Devil’s Casino.

It was kind of tempting, considering the mess that Dice had left in his wake. But the Devil knew that would never work if he wanted to preserve a chance at winning souls again. Dice was a well-known, if not entirely well-loved, figure to the Inkwell Isles, and killing him off would be a sure way to ensure that nobody with an ounce of common sense would come within a mile of the Devil’s Casino ever again. Image was important, Dice had been the one to teach him that--there was a reason that he had never sent anyone to collect on the soul contracts until the cup boys begged him for a way out of their own debts.

The staff of the casino were also deeply reluctant to see their boss be, as they whispered about in hushed tones, torn limb from limb by a beast form of the Devil. They were too terrified to do much of anything right now, cut off from the overworld and without a leader, but who knows what might happen when Dice returned? The beating he had taken from Cuphead and Mugman had been bad enough to make the Devil think twice about taking on a fight that he wasn't absolutely certain he could handle.

Something would have to be done, that much was certain. For now, though, he needed to rebuild the Casino. With his minions to keep a careful eye on the staff of the casino, he could do that much without Dice.

The Devil paced aimlessly as he thought, and was surprised to find that he had led himself to Dice’s suite above the Casino. The room was orderly and ornate, just like everything about Dice. A purple robe was draped over the duvet, and a few purple jackets, the ones that Dice insisted on wearing at all times during work, were hung on the door frame.

The room still smelled faintly like Dice. It was odd, how a place could smell so distinctly like someone, so strongly that it felt like the person was there. Standing in the empty room, the Devil could almost hear Dice’s haughty laugh. Dice always smelled like tobacco and mints and that expensive cologne he insisted on having sent to him, even though it was entirely impractical. In Dice’s presence, the Devil always hated the smell of that cologne. Like Dice himself, it was sleazy and unnecessarily pompous and had all the subtlety of being hit in the face with a baseball bat.

The Devil heaved a sigh and curled up on Dice’s violet duvet, resting his head on the robe that lay there, patiently waiting for its owner to return home. Sunlight streamed in past the maroon drapes, making the room comfortably warm.

He didn't miss King Dice, the Devil thought to himself, as he closed his eyes and let the warm overworld sunlight lull him to sleep. He’d just been through a lot lately, and he needed some rest…

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rainsonata · 7 years ago

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Beyond the Fog

Fandom/Pairing: Elsword; hints of DBrMM (Doom Bringer x Mastermind) Rating: T Word Count: 4,444

Summary: With minimal magic and an arsenal of spell cards and potions, being an alchemist in a world where demons and monsters run amok is less than ideal. Mastermind learns that going on adventure sometimes means kicking and screaming because growing scales on your face and looking like an overgrown lizard is an anomaly. Dragon AU where MM and DBr are dragon human hybrids.

Christmas fic for @un-amused-forever

Being an alchemist in Feita was different than being in Velder. There were no narrow stalls with fresh paint on the signs and hundreds of potential customers passing by. Feita had flimsy tents they set up on business days if one hoped make money and prayed for a busy day. In a place where it had only recently become known for its tall tales of demons and angered spirits, many of Add’s customers came in two flavors: the curious archeologists and the stupid adventurers.

Archeologists dropped by to restock potions and were good customers because they listened to his advice on where to go to find the best stall for equipment and where to avoid demons. They were a chatty bunch, but they shared their findings to him and kept him awake with their outlandish stories that were likely exaggerated for entertainment purposes. Adventurers made up a bigger bulk of his income, but that was because they kept ignoring his warnings and getting into trouble by getting injured on repeats. Soldiers from Velder, nobodies from faraway places, they all had something stuck between their thick skulls.

A tall man dressed in dark colors approached his tent. The clothes he wore looked out of place in the mass of earthly toned fabrics settlers and soldiers wore when he had a coat that hung over his shoulders like a cape. He had two belts where a ring of keys hung from there and tight pants that couldn’t be comfortable. What was he doing here?

“Hello,” Add masked his curiosity with a professional tone. “What can I do for you?”

He rubbed his chin. “You’re the local alchemist, right?”

The ponytailed man sighed and pointed at the sign on his tent with the word ‘Alchemy’ in block letters. “Yeah, I live nearby,” Add said with a tight smile. He could handle this oaf’s innocent questions.

The stranger must have some confidence to wear such a form fitting shirt in a chilly region. Must be from the capital city, he mused. Add stopped himself from gasping when the man extended his arm to reveal black bars wrapped around his wrist. Up close, he could see that the bars were made of smaller markings lined together, shiny like black scales.

“I want something that makes me stronger,” the man said. “You have any of that?”

From the way he dressed and held himself, this man was another adventurer wanting to test his strength. Potions related to strength were one of the most common type requested. Add signaled the man to wait and checked under the table to grab a stamina potion to hand to the other.

“I’m afraid I’m out of them,” Add said. “They’re the first to go and they won’t be in stock for a few days.” Not until he went to restock alchemy ingredients and brew a new batch. It could take longer if he failed to mix it properly.

“What about this?” He held up the stamina potion.

“They’re good substitutes to increase your defense,” Add explained. “They can’t replace strength, but they good for strenuous work and battles.”

They were popular with workers who did demanding jobs like the archeologists or the merchants who transported goods back and forth between Feita and the major cities nearby. Not many adventurers have shown interest in that, so Add was surprised when the man accepted it with a smile.

“That will do,” he nodded in deep thought. “Will the strength potion be here if I come back later?”

The air the man gave reminded Add of the cocky Velder knights, the ones who trained all day but probably never stepped into a battlefield. In all this dreary weather, what was he happy for? He walked with no fear and showed no remorse at the stares he earned for his unusual white hair. The man was comfortable in his own skin and it made Add envious.

Add shrugged, “Give or take. It’s your decision if you want to wait for it. I’m sure there are other places that offer the same thing as I do.”

The man grinned, “Thanks for the potion!” He handed the change to Add and waited for him to count them out before accepting them.

“What are you here for?” Add asked, “Did the ghost stories interest you?”

The man turned pale at the mention of ghosts and gulped, “No. There have been rumors about a white-tailed demon giving people problems.”

Add frowned. That one? It had come up many times since he first moved to Feita, but now that the man mentioned it, the stories have become more frequent over time. It was hard to tell the facts from the exaggeration, or if such a demon existed at all, but all the rumors held one consistency. The beast was white and it appeared close to the mountains on foggy mornings.

“Chasing a rumor isn’t a good idea,” Add said.

“I want to catch a glimpse of it,” the man disagreed. “Well, I better get going on. I wouldn’t want to take up your time when you have other customers to think about!”

“Hey!” Add groaned when the man left the tent to disappear outside.

He covered his face in frustration. It wasn’t his responsibility if his customers did stupid stuff with his products, but that didn’t mean he could stop worrying about it sometimes. The alchemist leaned his head against his chair. He wondered how long would it take before that fool came back bandaged limbs and in need for elixirs to heal whatever damage was inflicted onto him, rumored demon or not.

His favorite thing about going through his day were the morning strolls. The woods surrounding the cottage he lived in smelled of wild flowers and plants, some of them requiring magic to flourish properly. Many of them were exclusive to the region. With enough knowledge and experience, a skilled alchemist could brew potions and elixirs worth a fortune. Add wasn’t there yet, but what he knew was enough to make money to be comfortable. Besides, it wasn’t expensive to live where most people wouldn’t choose to venture in.

Where the red rocks and dry breeze of the desert ended become a maze of thick trees and fog where Feita sat. Days away from the capital city, the small settlement was abundant in old temples and the weeds grew over the cracks of the abandoned places of worship. It was popular for archaeologists to stop by to investigate the many ruins and for merchants to take advantage of that by pricing their products at higher prices for profit. Add was one of them.

Brushing his feet past the dewy grass the next morning, Add was bundled in layers of clothes. From the bottom of the stems, he picked up a bundle of tiny purple flowers he found in the ground with white gloves. The wild apples he spotted from the trees overhead could be used for soups and jams. If he had any left over, he could sell them to merchants in exchange for alchemy material to make new batches of potions.

Placing the flowers into a woven basket, Add left it sitting on the ground to reach for the apples on his tiptoes. His long white jacket sleeves slide down to expose lilac colored markings decorating his arms. They glimmered like gemstones scattered on his pale skin when Add smoothed them over with one hand after dropping the apples into the basket. They were on his hands and the rest of his body, but he made sure to keep them out of view with layers of clothes.

Add dropped his arms to grab the basket, turning around to check for anyone. There was no one around, but that didn’t stop the alchemist from being cautious. It was already bad enough getting stares from people because of the unusual color of his hair. White wasn’t unnatural, but it wasn’t common either. He scratched the markings around his neck and grimaced when he felt the small bumps, like flat pebbles.

The trek back to his cottage wasn’t a long one, a brisk walk with only the occasional songbirds flying south for the upcoming winter. Not many people wanted to live where he was because of the uneven roads and the frequent erosions caused by demons. He picked up an additional bundle of weed and wild plants he found from the bushes and tucked them into his basket. Today was his day off, so he was in no rush on heading back. There was still time to make breakfast if he returned before noon before setting up the equipment to begin making potions to sell the next day.

There was a low hiss when he heard something rustling in the bushes from behind. He narrowed his eyes and slid his body down to the floor, hugging his basket when dark shadows emerged from the woods. Glitter monsters covered in blood red armor and wielding primitive looking weapons appeared.

They groaned when Add summoned icicles forming from water droplets on the trees to rain down on them, pinning them to the sides. He took his chance and ran the opposite to where he saw them, not wanting to be followed back to the cottage. The nearest settlement was miles away from where he lived.

More demons appeared when he ran. They were just as weak as the wave from before, but there were too many for him to take them down all at once. His vision blurred when he tried keeping up with them and using the spell cards from his inventory to keep them at bay. Explosions erupted from the palm of his hands as the cards summoned a monster to fight beside him. He was going to run out of magic if he wasn’t careful.

Even with the spell cards and spare potions in hand, it wasn’t enough to clear a path for him to sprint away to the nearest human settlement. There wasn’t time for his mind to process when one of the demons charged at him with a dagger to slash across his stomach. Add cried and fell over, losing his breath as blood seeped through his pristine jacket.

A black cloud of smoke poofed beside Add, he turned to see that his summon was destroyed by the hoard of demons. He pulled out more spell cards from his back pocket to summon allies to fend them off, all of them weak monsters that barely held themselves against the enemies. The alchemist grabbed the apples from his basket and tossed them at the demons too, covering them in thin layers of ice to add a tough texture.

Pinching where it bled, he clenched his teeth as he drew out a small dagger from his belt and held it up against the mob drawing in closer at the scent of blood. His hand shook and almost dropped his weapon when he closed his eyes in pain. His blood felt hot, but his skin was icy cold. Add ripped his soiled jacket off, scratch marks and markings covering his arms glowed when he let out an inhuman scream.

A man named Lusa was dressed in a fluffy black coat looked up when he heard a deafening roar pierce through the woods. The trees picked up a strong gust of wind coming from the area towards the mountains, the furthest away from town. It couldn’t be an upcoming thunderstorm if the wind flew the opposite direction to the rest of the wind.

Demons with fractured bones had their limbs sprawled into awkward angles, hanging over trees and littering the floor with their mouths wide opened. They were freshly killed if their black blood hasn’t dried for their bodies to crumble into dust. A few demons were still breathing when the man went to investigate. The sloppy cuts that killed them was done by an inexperienced fighter. Lusa looked up when he heard the roar again.

Ice shot from the ground, consuming the loose dirt and snapping tree trunks. Demons scurried out from beneath the cracks before getting splintered fallen trees and debris. The man ducked when the sky sprinkled with hail and hid himself under a demon corpse to avoid getting hit.

On a block of ice was a white dragon lying down with its head resting in between its arms, snarling at him when the man approached it. It had thin leathery wings stretched across with a lilac colored membrane and a long white mane running down its slender neck. A demon squeaked when it failed to escape its eyes when the dragon grabbed it and crushed it with its claws.

“Hey, what are you doing here making a mess?” Lusa shouted at the overgrown lizard and pointed at the corpses on the floor. “You see that? That’s all you.”

If he didn’t stop this thing, it was going to ruin the forest and everyone living here. Didn’t the alchemist say he lived nearby?

The dragon looked at him unimpressed and growled at him, moving its tail impatiently. It was taller than a house and could crush trees when it crawled on its fours, flapping its wings to pick up wind when Lusa proved himself to be too fast for it. He threw himself onto the dragon and pointed at its neck with a dagger.

It hissed when he stabbed it, turning its head around and slammed him against the floor. Lusa hugged his head and lowered his head, wrestling to keep the damn lizard down with the strength he had. The dragon snorted at his feeble efforts and breathed into him, ice forming around his coat and solidifying the collar.

Lusa withdrawn his hand and slugged the dragon in the face, “That’s my coat, asshole!”

The dragon pulled its head back from getting punched in the face, shaking its head and glaring at him. There was something familiar about the way it looked at him judgmentally, like it was better than him. First it was trying to wreck people’s homes and now it destroyed his jacket? Well, he wasn’t going to have any of that!

Lusa pulled out his arms to show off the markings on his wrists glowing as everything around him grew smaller. His clothes melted away as wings sprouted out from his spine with the rest of his body growing to become a black dragon with purple outlines covered in jagged scales. As he transformed, his weight became overbearing on the smaller white dragon, slithering away when Lusa tried to pin it down.

He spread his wings to launch himself into the air when the dragon breathed ice again, diving back down to attack. The other flicked its tail at him, pulling him down and crashing to shove a bunch of trees down. Lusa wrestled for control when he noticed the bloodied wound across the dragon’s stomach. He coated his body with electricity to form an armor and pinned down the dragon to send shocks to paralyze it from movement.

It choked the dragon from opening its mouth and gagged, coughing out nothing before it passed out with Lusa standing over it. Light blinded him as the dragon glowed before fading away to uncover a man lying on the ground with his white hair tangled in the grass. His chest was still rising with each breath when Lusa checked the unconscious man and recognized him.

Fuck. He almost killed the local alchemist.

In a flash of light, Lusa transformed back into his human form and ran over to check on the bleeding alchemist. The wounds weren’t too deep, but how long had he been fighting with those injuries? It was unsafe to leave him like this, so Lusa did what he could and used the last bit of water he had in his water canteen to clean the man’s injuries and tore off a bit of his jacket to bandage the wounds he could find. It wasn’t professionally done, but it should hold until he could bring him to town to the nearest healer.

Lusa was careful in moving the injured man, bending his legs and putting him into a sitting potion. The alchemist’s position was adjusted so his chest was against his back and pulled the arms over his shoulder so he could piggyback ride him.

Local alchemist revealed with draconic origins, Lusa gave an empty laugh at the imagined headline.

So there wasn’t a white tailed demon. No wonder the alchemist chose to live in such a desolated area with minimal human contact. With that condition, he was an oddity at best and an exotic animal biding its time for slavery at worse. Dragon human hybrids were a rarity after all.

It was not the first time Add woke up after what felt like a long nap. He didn’t wake up immediately. His mind surfaced and drifted away again in what felt like every few minutes. He barely registered the pain straining from his muscles when he stretched in a restless sleep. It didn’t feel like he rested at all when he opened his eyes to an unfamiliar room.

His mind was foggy. It was that uneasy feeling of Deja vu he experienced when he realized he couldn’t remember what was the last thing he did before passing out. Was it still morning? It was dark out with the sun dipping under the horizon when he peeked out through the window at his bedside. The only reason why he knew it was going to be night time was because he smelled dinner coming from outside his room.

Pain shot through his body when he twisted his body to look for a clock for the time, 5:17. The clothes he wore didn’t belong to him either, a size too large where he could see the bandages peeking out through the short sleeves on his arms. Most of them were minor injuries, but most of the pain was at his stomach. The bandage wrap in that area looked like it needed to be replaced with a big blot of blood starting to seep through.

His clothes were dried and folded on an empty chair placed beside his bed, cleaned by magic if there were any indications by the lack of blood stains. There was also a black coat and a purple shirt that didn’t belong to him. Add looked up to find their owner sleeping in a chair opposite to him.

It was the customer from yesterday! He rested his head on the armrest, snoring when Add leaned over to see that he was injured through the dim room. The man had no shirt on with bandages wrapped around his arms and shoulder pads with one big one slapped on his forehead. His white hair swept over the right side of his face, his eyes fluttered open when turned on the lights at his nightstand.

“Hey, you’re awake.” The man said with relief, “You were out like a light since noon.”

“What happened to me?” Add searched for his memories.

His legs were numb when he pushed his legs to the side of the bed to touch the wood floor with his bare feet to face the man. It was hard not to forget this customer when he dressed like he was part of the mafia rather than visiting Feita’s ruins. What was he doing here in the same room as him? With all those bandages, the man looked like he was ambushed by a lizardman.

Oh no… not again.

The man asked with a strange look in his eyes, “What are you doing making a ruckus in the mountains with powers you can’t control?”

Shit. How much did he see? Add panicked inside, searching for an escape route, or somewhere to run. Did the man find him injured like this or did he see more? The man was a dragon too if he had those same markings on his arms. Maybe he already figured out what Add was before he even transformed. He pondered for questions, unaware of the stares he was earning from the other.

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about,” Add played dumb with a stiff smile, treating him as any other customers who ever tried to pry through his personal life whenever they became too curious. Something told him that the other was as stubborn as he looked if he was still in the area after a few days.

He said. “How much control do you have over that form?”

It suddenly became too hot for Add and he wished someone would open the windows so he could breathe out the stuffiness the room was giving him. The alchemist gulped and gave the man a curt answer.

“I have no control over what happens after I close my eyes.” He narrowed his eyes, “What’s a dragon like you doing here? Still looking for that imaginary demon?”

The man sighed, “That white-tailed demon was you. You’re no demon, you’re the same as me.”

He lived far away from most humans for this reason: to avoid these questions. With no humans nearby, the worse damage he could inflict were on demons around the mountains and maybe wandering cattle if they was stupid enough to get lost. Is that why this man was here? To check out this so-called rumor and see him make a fool of himself?

“What do you want from me?” Add bit his lips, “As you said, I have no control. I’m no use to you.”

The man scratched the back of his head, “You don’t remember what happened to you?”

“No,” Add was getting tired of this conversation already.

“Well, I found you bleeding,” he said. “I stepped in to stop you from hurting yourself more so I could bring you to a healer.”

So that’s where they were, Add understood. That made sense. He didn’t appreciate visiting healers after he acquired this...curse and instead relied on his own medicine and remedies to take care of himself. He covered the markings on his arms with sudden self-consciousness and gritted his teeth.

As if he read his mind, he said, “I told the healer those were tattoos if you were wondering. Am I scaring you?” The man dropped the stern look to replace it with a gentler expression, “I promise I’m not here to hurt you. I just want to know why you’re like this.”

Add gulped, “Not that it matters since there’s no way to lift the curse.”

“Curse?” The man was confused.

He laughed with no humor, “I was a fool and tried returning a baby dragon back to its mother when it cursed me. I guess the feelings weren’t mutual.”

The dragon was the size of a house cat, a little one that mewled when he picked it up to bring it inside when he found it alone. What was he thinking trying to play dragon tamer and taking care of it like a household pet? He wasn’t even aware of being cursed until it was too late when he one day woke up to a forest fire. He moved away to avoid everyone when he was still an alchemist in training.

“I can’t say I know anything about curses, but I can help you learn to control that form if you want.” The man introduced himself with an extended hand, “You can call me Lusa.”

Controlling his form did sound appealing, but how was he supposed to do that if he wasn’t even conscious during those moments? It was beyond his imagination to wonder how anyone could be trained to control another side of themselves like that.

Add stared at the man, but accepted the offer and shook. It was a tight handshake, he could trace the calluses on the other’s hand. He mumbled, “I’m Add.”

“Add,” he repeated his name and grinned. “This is going to be some adventure.”

“I’m not leaving Feita,” Add said.

“I’m not asking you to,” he shook his head. “This is actually a good place to start since almost no one lives here. Didn’t you know that the best adventures can be at home? I can’t promise you instant results, but we can try for a few weeks and see if it works.”

“Are you doing all this for the potions?” Add couldn’t stop himself from sneering, his mindset still one of a merchant. Old habits die hard. He didn’t have a lot of friends here, so socializing outside of work was an oddity for him.

Lusa rolled his eyes, “You have some ego to think your potions are worth that much.”

Add glared, “What happened to ‘I’ll come back in a few days to check’?”

“All right, I want to help because I don’t see a lot of people like me.” He admitted, “It makes me happy to meet someone like you, even if you’re cursed.”

Add didn’t respond. It sounded too good to be true. What kind of person bothered to make the effort to pin him down to snap him out of that state, take him to a healer, and then claim he was going to help him? He thought it was logical to be wary when weighing his options. However, with the destruction he caused when transformed, it was worrying on how long he could live like this until authorities or other adventurers would start tracking him for causing too much damage. Living in a cage or becoming the Velder army’s training dummy wasn’t something he wanted to deal with either.

He drew out a breath, “If you try anything funny, I want you to know that I have studied under a certified alchemist and know all the different things that could kill a dragon.”

Lusa snorted, “I’m glad you trust me so much. Just remember that the same stuff can kill you too if you eat or inhale it.”

“As I’m very aware of,” Add said with a serious expression.

Despite the threats, Lusa beamed and laughed when he gave him a questioning look. His cheeriness when the healer came by to give them dinner made it hard to stay wary when he kept asking Add questions about being an alchemist and living in Feita. The other was apparently from Velder and was excited to move to a place where there was more room for him to roam without an army chasing after him.

Talking to Lusa reminded him of life before he was cursed, when he had friends to talk to. Was this something he wanted? If learning to control himself meant talking to someone kind like Lusa, maybe it wasn’t a bad deal.

#elsword #eltag #Add (Elsword)#DBrMM #MMLP #Mastermind #Lunatic Psyker #mywriting #my writing #Elsword fanfiction #you know what this was fun I should write aus more often #if we have dragon people like perkisas and denif #I wonder why we don't get more dragon characters or even one as a playable character #I always wanted to write about MM as an alchemist #LP would probably be a blacksmith and Esper would be the treasure hunter #but I can see MM as TH and Esper as alchemist too bc of the medicine he took as TTr #Addcest

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