#all known fairytales living in the same universe

[ranminfan]

Lol why is Shrek trending?

[bvidzsoo]

Black Ocean

Black Ocean is a series of 8 connected oneshots happening in the same universe. Are you ready to dive in the lives of eight notorious Pirates known as Ateez?

Author: bvidzsoo

Pairing: Ateez members x female readers

Status: finished

A/N: I will start a taglist, so if you're interested, please comment on this post! Because this is a multi-chaptered series of oneshots, the female readers will be given names which will be used only if they get mentioned in a different members oneshot. You can read them as stand-alones, however, some happenings from previous oneshots will be mentioned here and there, so everything will be connected still. (divider)

1.Park Seonghwa

◆Compass of our hearts

Summary: Park Seonghwa was an orphan. The day Captain Kim found him on the shore the only thing he had with himself in the little basket was a golden compass, his mother's name craved inside it. Seonghwa cherished it dearly and worked hard to find out where he belonged to. However, as a pirate, you make a lot of enemies and you decided to make Seonghwa yours the day you stole his compass. It was your first mistake, you messed with a feared pirate. Your second mistake was not realizing that Seonghwa would find you, and take his compass back as well. (Reader is called Kim Bora in the following oneshots.)

2.Choi Jongho

◆Lullaby of the seas

Summary: Choi Jongho could be described as a dreamer; he loved folklore and fairytales. His father was a sailor and often brought his son out on the sea with himself, thus they lived off of selling fish and pearls. Jongho was well raised and always kind, a very hard-working son, therefore it came as no surprise that he accepted the job offer of a mysterious pirate when his father's house got destroyed by a storm. Jongho was quiet and didn’t bother others, did his job very well and secretly fantasized about meeting a mermaid one day. There was one tiny problem though, the seas they sailed had no mermaids in them, only vicious sirens out for the blood of unassuming pirates and sailors. (Reader is called Sunmi in the following oneshots.)

3.Choi San

◆An Imprisoned Nightingale

Summary: Choi San was everything you needed him to be. A hunter? He’d hunt down anything for you. An assassin? You wanted someone dead, he’d do it. An inside man? That information you needed; he’d bring it to you. He was a mercenary. Ruthless, fearless, uncaring, unfeeling. All he dreamed of was money and power. Everyone who heard his name feared him, people stepped aside on a busy road for him, women never approached him out of fear of being captured and then sold by him. You loved singing, despite working as a waitress, you dreamed of performing on a stage one day. Your whole life you've worked hard, knowing that one day you'll be discovered and your life would change; you'd become a performer for the wealthy. And your life did change, but instead, you became a prisoner, soon to be sold off by nobody else than Choi San. (Reader is called Im Ara in the following oneshots.)

4.Kim Hongjoong

◆The Nightfury

Summary: When Captain Kim died Hongjoong was only fifteen years old. He couldn't let his father's name go in vain, he took over the ship and became the next Captain Kim, better known as The Slayer. Everyone feared Hongjoong and his crew, Ateez. Everyone except you. You met in an Inn when you both were younger and tricked him into threatening an innocent man, and then you robbed him. You thought it was funny how such a powerful and feared man was so easy to play with, so you started your little game of sabotaging Hongjoong's affairs, unknowing that you were playing with fire. Would The Nightfury or The Slayer win once their swords clashed against each other? (Reader is called Lee Yuri in the following oneshots.)

5.Jeong Yunho

◆Irrevocable Love

Summary: Jeong Yunho was always protective of what was his. After his mother's death he stopped living a happy life, his father an alcoholic, his best friend was his only hope. The two of you had grown up together and you couldn't imagine living your life without Yunho, so when he tried to sneak onto the Pirate ship and leave without you, you were beyond hurt. Yunho only wanted to protect you, but he wasn't going anywhere without you. And so, the two of you joined Ateez on their adventures, starting your own love story at the same time. (Reader is called Bae Taeri in the following oneshots.)

6.Kang Yeosang

◆Salty tears, agog whispers

Summary: Kang Yeosang was forced to flee from his once very familiar life as he killed his father. He didn't mean to do it, but he harmed his mother and Yeosang just couldn't sit and watch anymore. You have never had an easy life. You were sold off at a young age, then bought, then sold, then bought again and sold again. It was a neverending cycle. You were just a toy for men to use and then disregard of; you wanted to disappear. And one man almost granted your wish, he killed you, or so he thought...and so did you. But an angel, a kind-hearted man, saved you from your terrible fate. You found a family, just like he did so many years ago. Yeosang was your angel. (Reader is called Jung Hana in the following oneshots.)

7.Jung Wooyoung

◆Heavy is the head that wears the crown

Summary: Jung Wooyoung was a prince. Raised to be a King one day. Except that nobody asked him if he wanted to become one, it was his duty. Wooyoung thought he'd be able to travel the world, sail out and go on adventures, however that is just not how his story was written. So, one day, when he was only thirteen years old, he decided to take the pen in his own hands and change his own story. He became a Pirate. You, you were also a princess, soon to become Queen. Your groom disappeared when the two of you were thirteen and you figured you wouldn't get married now, so there was no reason to stay at your castle and live a boring life. You ran away, living quietly and humbly. That is, until Wooyoung came stumbling through your living room door. (Reader is called Oh Haneul in the following oneshots.)

8.Song Mingi

◆Fine Line Of Our Worlds

Summary: Song Mingi didn't choose to become a Pirate, but after getting saved by the crew, he decided to stay. Nobody at home would miss him, they didn't like him much. However, he would miss his riches dearly, teeth always aching for gold and money. He was a little kleptomaniac, it's mostly why he was punished so often back at home. But here, with Ateez, he was free to do whatever and he loved the idea. You were also rich, very rich. You had ties to the royal family, but never said much about it since it was due to your mother's bloodline, who died giving birth to you. You were daddy's little girl, always getting whatever you wanted, never reprimanded for anything. But your life was boring, you were closed inside your mansion's walls all day long and the only people you could torment to have fun were your maids, who grew tired of your antics. Let's not forget the fact that you also loved stealing. It started out as a little talent of yours when you were just a child, but growing up you realized it became a very unconscious habit. And one night, Mingi seemed to come into your life just at the right moment, sweeping your off your feet, quite literally, and taking you onto a Pirate ship, your fates interlacing forever. (Reader is called Yoon Areum in the following oneshots.)

[dovesdreaming]

Marked by fate

Summary: you and Harry shared soulmarks, you were destined to be soulmates but that might be tricky when you too have a strong dislike for each other. However, when the barrier comes down and you’re reunited you see each other differently.

Requested

Masterlist

-

Soulmates. A concept that felt like a cruel joke on the Isle of the Lost. With the magic stolen and the barrier keeping everyone trapped, soulmates were nothing but a fairytale, a whisper from stories about Auradon, where life was good, perfect, and where people actually believed in destiny. But on the Isle? Destiny didn’t exist. Or at least, that’s what you had tried to tell yourself. You glanced down at the tattoo on your wrist, the thin lines forming a hook, identical to the one Harry Hook wielded. It was a symbol that bound you to him, a mark of fate that had linked the two of you since childhood. You’d known what it meant from the moment you noticed it, but instead of bringing you closer, it only fueled your rivalry. You hated the idea that you were tied to someone like Harry. The very thought was infuriating. And Harry? Well, he felt the same.

Growing up, you and Harry had been enemies. The son of Captain Hook, and you (Y/N), daughter of Rasputin, the sorcerer. Rasputin, who had nearly mastered the art of death itself. While your father was obsessed with dark magic and curses, Harry was all about chaos and control. The two of you had clashed constantly, and the rivalry between your parents only made it worse. The tattoo, the soulmark, felt like some twisted joke. For years, you and Harry pretended it didn’t exist, battling with each other whenever your paths crossed. Sometimes it was a smirk exchanged in the streets, other times it was full-on combat, using words sharper than any blade. Then, Auradon happened. You were chosen to leave the Isle, along with a few other “reformed” kids. You didn’t have much say in the matter, Ben had seen something in you, something worth redeeming. So, you left the grime and chaos of the Isle behind for Auradon’s golden shores. It felt strange at first, living somewhere so bright and peaceful. For the first time, you were free from the cutthroat world of the Isle, from its darkness and from Harry Hook.

The mark faded, barely a whisper of its former self. But that didn’t mean you’d forgotten. When the barrier came down, you could feel it. It was subtle at first, a twinge in your wrist, like a small pulse just under the skin. You stared at the hook tattoo, the one you had almost convinced yourself was a mistake, a glitch in the universe. But now, as the Isle’s barrier fell, the tattoo seemed to come alive, humming with energy. You knew what it meant. Harry was close.

For days, you tried to push it aside, to ignore the way your heart sped up whenever you walked through Auradon’s streets, knowing that somewhere out there, he could be watching you. But that wasn’t Harry’s style, he didn’t lurk in the shadows. No, if he was going to make his move, he’d do it boldly. He’d make sure you knew he was coming.

It happened on a day that started out like any other. You were walking through the bustling market, admiring the fresh air, the sound of laughter, something that was so rare on the Isle. You almost felt…normal here. But then, you felt it again. That pulse in your wrist, stronger this time. The mark felt hot, almost burning. Your breath caught in your throat. He was here.

You spun around, eyes scanning the crowd. And then you saw him. Harry Hook, leaning against a market stall like he owned the place, that cocky smirk plastered across his face. His pirate coat billowed in the breeze, and his signature hook gleamed in the sunlight. But what caught your eye wasn’t the smirk, or the hook, it was the way he was looking at you. Like he’d been waiting for this moment. “Well, well, lass” Harry drawled, pushing himself off the stall and sauntering toward you. His accent was thick, his voice low and teasing. “Fancy meetin’ you here”. Your heart was racing, but you forced yourself to stay calm, crossing your arms as he approached. “Harry”.

He stopped just a few feet away, his eyes flicking down to your wrist where the tattoo was still pulsing, glowing faintly. His own wrist bore the mark of a small, dark potion bottle, the symbol that represented your heritage, your tie to the dark magic your father once wielded. You hadn’t known what Harry’s mark looked like before, but seeing it now made your breath hitch. “You felt it, didn’t ye?” he asked, tilting his head with a wicked grin. “That’s how I found ye”. You didn’t answer, but the look in your eyes was enough. “I knew the second that barrier came down, lass. Felt it burnin’ through me veins, like fire”. He stepped closer, his eyes dark and piercing. “But I’ll admit, I didn’t think ye’d still be here. Thought ye might’ve run off, pretendin’ ye didn’t feel it too”. You scoffed, refusing to let him see how much his presence affected you. “What do you want, Harry?”.

“What do I want?” His voice was dripping with amusement. He tapped the hook against his chin, as though thinking. “Now, that’s a good question. What does a pirate want? Treasure? Power?” His gaze locked onto yours, and his smirk faltered just for a second, replaced with something more serious. “Or maybe it’s somethin’ else entirely”. You swallowed hard, feeling the tension between you. This was Harry Hook, your enemy since childhood. The one person you’d fought against, the one you had sworn you’d never let close. And yet, here he was, your soulmate. The one person fate had chosen for you, as twisted and unfair as that might be. Harry took another step forward, closing the gap between you. His voice dropped, low and almost dangerous. “I spent years hatin’ this, ye know. Hatred burned hotter than anythin’. But now?” He raised his wrist, showing the tattoo. “Now, I’m wonderin’ if there’s more to it than just hate”.

Your breath caught in your throat, but you refused to back down. “What are you saying, Harry?”. He chuckled softly, though there was no humor in his eyes. “I’m sayin’ maybe we stop runnin’ from what we are”. Your eyes widened, and for the first time, you were truly at a loss for words. There was something raw in his voice, something real that made your heart ache in ways you hadn’t expected. But could you trust him? Could you trust the boy you’d once called your enemy? “I don’t know if I can” you whispered, staring at the mark on your wrist.

Harry’s gaze softened, just for a moment. “Aye, I don’t blame ye. I don’t trust easy either. But this?” He pointed to the matching symbols on your wrists. “This doesn’t happen by accident”. You hesitated, torn between everything you knew about him and the strange, undeniable pull that connected you. The soulmark burned hotter now, urging you forward. Finally, you let out a shaky breath. “So… what now?” Harry’s smirk returned, but there was a flicker of warmth in his eyes. “Now, lass, we see where this takes us”. And with that, he extended his hand, his real hand, not the hook. You stared at it for a moment, your heart pounding in your chest. Slowly, you placed your hand in his, the connection sparking between you like lightning. And for the first time in your life, you didn’t feel like running. Maybe fate wasn’t such a cruel joke after all.

-

Thank you for reading!

[petrichorblue94]

What really shocks me is that the more tfota books I read (I count the extended universe here), the more I realise that Jude was actually incredibly lucky. The world she lived in was deadly, and not in a haha the main character is actually gonna be left unscathed because they’re the main character way.

I first realised that when I was reading about Wren. My girl was physically and psychologically tortured since she was a child in practically a very Ramsey Snow / Reek kind of way. She was permanently disfigured by her own parents’ torture methods, she was left to believe that she could escape and then captured, like a cat and mouse game. She was made to think her adoptive parents despised her and were horrified of her monstrous nature but they were really just bewitched.

Her biological mother turned out to be the most evil of them all, sacrificing her soul not once but twice.

I’m just reading the Modern fairytales but Kaye is basically every middle class child’s worst nightmare ; or at least mine).

Like Jude’s story is actually the best. Even her twin Taryn lives in a psychological horror, she married a fucked up narcissist who promised her love and respect and adventure and it turned out he just made her do drugs and get involved in orgies and he nearly fucked (and later nearly killed) her sister and Taryn killed Kim the same way her adoptive father killed her birth mother and then she raised his son alone, and then she fell in love again and the guy was turned into a tree.

I mean when you look at it on paper (pardon the book pun) my girl Jude was raised into the gentry, she was Madoc’s favourite daughter and he spent most of his free time training her to be his successor in a world ruled by Oak as king and him as regent. She has her family and they make up despite all the fucked up things do to each other. She married the high king (and it was a rare love match!!) and becomes respected and feared. She has only known the rich world of the gentry in Elfhame, whereas Wren was homeless in the real sense of the word for YEARS, and Kaye was a school drop out who was couch surfing with her singer-wannabe mum and her prospects were living with her gran, working in a gas station and then maybe getting pregnant by her former bully Kenny and living in a trailer in the middle of nowhere like her friend Janet and maybe becoming an alcoholic like her mam and doing drugs (I’m still halfway through Tithe).

Like even when she became queen with Oak by her side as king consort, Wren’s kingdom was nowhere near as rich and golden as Jude’s. There was darkness seeped into it even when the ice was gone.

Since the cruel prince is after Kaye’s books, we know she ends up becoming Roiben’s consort so it’s definitely a better life than being a teen mum living in a trailer and working in a gas station… But she’s still a chess piece in the game of politics (that Jude becomes a master of) since she was nearly killed by the undersea and Jude had to go and avenge her in the Wicked King.

Like yeah, Jude had a shitty origin story but she became golden if that makes sense. She was never truly touched by the grit and the grime of what was happening around her and to her, she just adapted, pivoted and kept winning.

And she was genuinely so in love with the world of Elfhame that you can see everything around her through the tint of her fascination. Whereas with Wren everything looks ugly and sad and with Kaye everything looks messy and confusing.

Which is why I think she’s Holly Black’s most beloved heroine. I just hope she doesn’t get killed off in the new books cause you never know 100% with Holly.

[grippingbeskar]

unearthed

chapter one - matched

warnings— canon typical violence, mentions of death, loss, injury, maybe a lil trauma

a/n— and we’re back! just over a year of having this account, and the end of season three, and i’m back where i started. thirsting after the mandalorian. i’m super excited about this one, and even though i think there will be a bit of a wait between chapters i promise its because they are going to be higher quality. also, obviously there will be smut further on (come on, it’s me. of course we are going to fuck him.) so no minors please!! hope you enjoy! big thank-you to @kyberblade for beta reading and saving me from my typos i love u.

also a psa. disregard season three for this fic. it fucked up my timeline so i’m changing it. things might be a bit all over the place, but it’s just going to be what i wanna do with it HAHAH no rhyme or reason :)

[series masterlist] [next chapter] [tag list sign up]

You stared out into the never ending darkness, interspersed by twinkling hints of far away planets, all of them seeming more and more out of reach as you were shuffled out into the hall. Flanked by guards, the view from your room disappeared from sight, replaced by the familiar, safe walls of your palace. This was your life now— being shoved towards the known and away from those giant stretches of sky you longed so much for. Your duty, you say to yourself. This was the way you had to live, destined to the confines of your pre-determined universe. It is what you were born to do.

You knew this day would come. You were, as you were constantly, incessantly reminded, the last of the royal bloodline. After your parents early death, it left you as heir and sole survivor to the throne. All of your life, you had been trained for this moment, but it was something that was always so...distant. 

You used to look forward to this time in your life, where you’d get to travel the galaxy, finally earning some of that coveted freedom all the other girls in the palace talked about. You dreamed of seeing the galaxy, being unknown on an Outer Rim planet, going wherever your heart takes you. You thought you’d have time to live. But then, within the blink of an eye, you were rushed through your coronation and left to carry the burden of commanding an entire planet. It was like a rug was ripped out from underneath you, all while someone dropped a fifty pound weight over your head, all the while chiding you for stumbling over. 

In the wake of the Empire finally falling around the galaxy, planets all around the suns were scrambling— resources were scarce, trade routes were un-secure and stability was out of reach. This was the same for you, because the future of your planet was now in your hands, and you had no idea what to make of it. 

Unfortunately for you, stability in a woman’s world came in the form of a contract. Most usually, a marriage contract.

This meant, much to your dismay, an entourage of young, hopeful (and practically brainless) men arriving on your doorstep, all popping the question in hopes of securing the new Queen's hand in marriage. Your hand. You knew your planet was important and appealing, with its natural resources, expanding economy in spite of the Empire’s devastation, and an abundance of funds for all the newest technologies with the death of two of the greatest ruling minds of the time. Any leader of even a remotely nearby planet would strike on this opportunity— you know you would, if it were someone else.

The whole idea wasn’t new, but it still made your gut twist. Your parents were lucky they had something more– real love, and a home filled with the stuff of fairytales. While you knew this was rare, it made you long for that. Knowing it was real, that a connection like that could be somewhere out there for you, but you’d never reach it because you never got the chance to try... you knew you were lucky, but it didn’t stop your heart from longing for more.  You wanted someone to show you the stars, to let you be you, and not just try to win you like a prize or a notch in their belt. 

Everyone around you said this was the smart thing to do. Choose someone— anyone who would bring you what you wanted. Your planet, as fertile as it is, is not famous for its army. That was clear during the reign of the Empire, and now the New Republic was thinning their guard posts after the war, you needed manpower. You knew it was a necessity, and you wanted to keep your people safe, but to offer yourself up like a prized mare? You were a Queen, and you were planning to be a good one, with or without a husband.

As you sat on the throne, dismissing yet another suitor with a shake of your head, the collective group of your father’s– now your own Advisors groaned, and one walked up the steps, approaching you with a slightly bowed head.

“Your Majesty, if I may…” You resisted the urge to roll your eyes, only because you knew the watchful gaze of neighbouring planet leaders were on you.

“I have a feeling you will anyway.” He shook his head, quickly coming up the stairs to your side. He sighs, and you shrug at him. “What? He wasn’t my type, okay? If I’m going to sleep with the man, I should at least–”

“Your Majesty, this is the fourteenth potential match you have rejected. We are a coveted planet, but if you do not choose someone, we run the risk of having no options at all.” He says, looking down his nose at where you are strung lazily across your throne. He was still harbouring some of that anger from earlier, where you had refused to change into the giant mess of a gown the styling team had chosen for you. If the colour wasn’t enough– a pale puke green measurable to the blood of a Trandoshaan– the fabric was so expansive you would have drowned in it. You loved a pretty dress, but at least one that didn’t eat you whole.

“Would that be so bad?” You dropped your head back, and he shook his head, sighing again. 

“Yes— it would mean instability. We would be a target for neighbouring planets. We are strong, but not strong enough to be alone. The New Republic has already thinned their guards to a ghost number compared to four years ago. We cannot wait any longer. We are… vulnerable, without a strong army.”

“We can make allies without forcing me to marry one of them.”

“Of course, Your Majesty. We would never force you to do anything.” He says those words, but every syllable is laced with warning. You may be the last living member of your blood line, but no matter how important, and no matter how beloved by your people you are, there were some things that you couldn’t control.

The worst part was he was right. Sure, you could solidify alliances, but a marriage was a lock and key. If you picked the right one, your people would be safe for years to come, long after you were successful. After what you had seen of the Empire, what they had done here, and all over the galaxy, your people deserved safety. Freedom— whatever the cost.

Your love for your people would get you through this. In them, you saw your parents legacy, and the passion to build something greater than yourself. You would never trade this life for anything... but it didn’t mean you couldn’t have preferences. Just as you were going to justify why you rejected the man now sneering at you from the corner of the room, the doors burst open, and your attention is diverted to the messenger rushing in with a strange look on his face.

“Your Majesty, we’ve just received another request.” He calls, breathless. “I’m sorry to interrupt. It’s… I am not sure how to say this.”

The man is clearly nervous— avoiding your eye and instead staring at his feet. You rise off the throne and move to him, attempting a comforting smile and nodding at him. 

“It’s alright. Start at the beginning.”

“This request… It is unusual.” He swallows, and you laugh lightly.

“What is it this time? Don’t tell me the Hutts have thrown themselves into the mix.” You had nothing against them right now, but they were so… slimy. “Whoever it is, as long as they send a message in peace, they will be well received.”

“Well, that is the thing. They do not ask Your Majesty to receive them. They…”

“They don’t want to come here?” Already, you are breathing a sigh of relief. Anything to stop the constant parade of men flapping their money and stupid hair around.

“No, they ask that… they ask that you come to them.” He finishes, and your advisors are next to him in an instant, all attempting to speak over one another. You raise your eyebrows, surprised, but intrigued.

“That is an insult!” The man who challenged you before, known to you as Advisor Corell, spits at the messenger. “Her Majesty only receives guests— she does not travel unless there is cause.”

“Did they say anything else?” You ask, and the room goes quiet again as you step forward. The messenger looks uncomfortable, knowing there are still foreign diplomats in the room. “Everyone else, please go. You’ll be... informed of my decision later.”

The entire room exits quickly at the sound of your voice, all mumbling to themselves, probably still hurt over your rejection and blatant disinterest, but all you could care about was this new message.

“It’s alright. Go ahead.” You encourage. “What else did they say?”

“They asked for your hand, of course. They have a new King, and think the match would be beneficial to both sides.” A new King. Your mind buzzes, trying to think if you’d heard of any close planets going through a succession besides your own. Nothing comes to mind, but if he was new, at least this one would hopefully be closer to your age.

“A new King?” The messenger nods. “And he asked for me personally?”

“Ah... the message was not from him, Your Majesty. It was a hologram from a member of his court. A… Bo-Katan.” You had never heard the name before, but one of your advisors makes a noise of recognition and you spin to her.

“You know this name?” You ask Advisor Kaylen— probably your favourite member and the closest thing you have to a friend. She nods eagerly. “You’ve met them?”

“I have heard it before, but that would be impossible…” She fades off, and you turn back to the messenger. 

“This is the most interesting person I’ve heard of since this whole thing started. What’s impossible?” You watch the messenger's face twist, so you reach out and touch his shoulder, the contact surprising him and earning a disapproving hum from Advisor Corell. “You can tell me, just ignore him. I do.”

“Well, that’s just the thing. The planet they claim to come from has been long abandoned.” Advisor Kaylen was still muttering to herself, but you couldn’t focus on her anymore when the messenger finally spoke again. “They say they are calling from Mandalore, and that their new King has asked for you to be his Queen.”

“Stop asking me about that.” Din growled, stopping his swift movement through the makeshift repair station he’d been pulling together. “I’m not interested.”

“This isn’t just about you anymore.” The longer he spent with these Mandalorians, the more the thought of taking off with their precious Dark-Saber and leaving seemed appealing. “An alliance like this is exactly what we need. With all the repairs, we’ve run low in funds. We need resources— we need to outsource, and this is the fastest way to do it. She’s all but waving a flag for us.”

He never thought there would be a time when bounty hunting was the normalcy he craved— but standing surrounded by relics of his people long passed, discussing a potential marriage—he started to miss the reliable frame of the Razor Crest a little too much.

“Mandalore was built on the backs of our people. We can do it again, the same way.” Bo-Katan sighs, giving him a glare after removing her helmet. “Would you do this? Was this a part of your plan to re-take Mandalore?”

“They didn’t have a dwindling empire and economic crisis to deal with. If you do this, we can rebuild the way our ancestors wanted us to live. How we used to live. Welcome our family home. Isn’t that what you want?” He spins, taking two slow steps to face Bo-Katan, who stands with her helmet tucked under her arm. “To answer your question— yes. I would have. I was royalty once, and I know what this is like. And I would still do it. You might even make a friend in her, Din.”

“You aren’t suggesting friends.” To her credit, she doesn’t back down, just raises her eyebrows at him. “You are asking me to get married. You know what that means.”

“It’s not like that. Rulers marry for all kinds of reasons— and if she’s looking, it means she wants to take full advantage of this. It’s the smart thing to do. Her planet is powerful, but vulnerable. Their army numbers are small after the Empire’s attacks, and she needs what we can offer now the Rebellion is squaring off. Good, strong fighters. Besides, I’m sure you aren’t exactly all she hoped for, either. I wouldn’t be surprised if you hardly see her after the first few months.” Rolling her eyes, she turns back to the pile of spare parts they had dragged in from outside. “We’ve already sent a hologram inviting her here. If she accepts, you can discuss a potential alliance like adults. If you are still opposed, we’ll cancel it and try it your way. Until then, we have work to do.”

“Send another message. Say I’m no longer interested.” Din stands impossibly still, waiting for Bo-Katan to agree and leave before he lets out a long breath. Clearly, he’d misjudged how set on this idea she was.

“Just think about it, okay?” She turns and disappears from view, and he feels like he’s going to collapse under the pressure. Things were complicated enough— in the last month, he’d learnt his way of life was not the only way at all, inherited a saber he had little idea how to use, and dropped everything he knew to come back home— to Mandalore. To say he had enough on his plate was an understatement.

Truthfully, he had come back with one thing on his mind. The Way declared one could only truly be forgiven for their misdeeds in the living waters beneath the mines of Mandalore— and Din had a lot to be forgiven for. If there was anywhere he could start fresh, it was here, but before he could do that, he had to find the mines, currently buried under years worth of rubble and debris. The last thing he needed was to disgrace himself in yet another way— which is exactly what Bo-Katan and the other Mandalorian’s were suggesting.

He was not ready for this. Not in any way. He was not a ruler— not a born and bred leader, like Bo-Katan, and he’d never wanted to be. It might have made sense to an outsider, maybe. A new, untested ruler of a planet as economic as yours was bound to attract unwanted attention, and about the only thing Mandalore could offer right now was its ability to fight. It was the only thing it was known for.

He didn’t want to marry, though. Not for a political alliance. He didn’t think about it at all— not right now. He’d heard a few things about you by now— how your parents had passed suddenly, and how you were now being squashed into the same situation as he was, forced to play a role which you had no choice in being cast to. He felt as sorry for you as he did for himself, and he found his thoughts drifting to the Child.

Din looked around, exhausted at just the thought of getting this place into any form of working order. Spare parts to old ships scattered on the floor, and the room was painted in a light purple hue thanks to the reflection of the glass roof overhead. He stood, leaving the mess of a garage and walking back out towards the largest building in this city.

There were streets lined with cracked stone, several Mandalorians dragging and pulling equipment to replace the broken ones. They had been working hard— everyone had, including him, and the place was looking less and less like a war zone by the second. The sight made him feel easier. At least his home wouldn’t be rubble forever. Buildings were gaining foundations, others entirely rebuilt by hand. It had only been a month or two, and already this place was looking like he’d been told in the stories. Like home.

As he walked through them, he didn’t miss the stares of those who’d left their helmets behind, but at least that was familiar. Everyone stared, on every planet he went to, and even with the oddly shaped buildings, some spiralling high, others flat and long enough to park a few speeders in the front, he felt settled here. The cities were huge and spanned far into the horizon, too long to walk everywhere, so the Mandalorians had gone straight to work on the speeder parts, using them to zip around not only around this central city, but between other parts of the planet.

Finally, he began the walk up the steps of the castle. It was giant— bulky and boxed, rooms stacked on top of each other with seemingly no purpose. It was the most well conserved building on the planets surface, and it was what constituted as a home for Din. For now, at least. Either way, it was the safest place to keep Grogu during the day, and he would go wherever it was safest for him.

He could hear him before he saw him, loud chirps and gurgles coming from the throne room. One, giant looking chair was elevated by a few steps at the end of the room, and he saw a flip of green zip over Sasha’s unmasked head.

“Get down here, you gremlin.” She barked, but laughed at Grogu’s slightly worried face when he spun to a stop in mid air. It was then he finally noticed him, dropping to the ground and wandering over. “He’s been a little pain in my—“

“Patu!” Grogu chirps, and Din laughs roughly, bending down to pick him up. He holds him in front of his helmet, watching as his tiny hands reach out to grab his gloved wrists.

“Have you been causing trouble, Grogu?” He makes a little gurgle sound, like he always does when Din says his name, and he smiles under the helmet.

“Bo-Katan was looking for you.” Sasha says, putting her helmet back on. Most Mandalorian’s that lived around the capital did that when they spoke to him, now, even ones as high ranking as Sasha. Din doesn’t look up from Grogu’s giant eyes.

“She found me. And my answer is still no.” He hears her laugh, but when he looks up at her, she stops.

“She didn’t tell you?” Din turns to face her, letting the kid fiddle with something on his armour.

“Tell me what?” Unlike Bo-Katan, Sasha is a little afraid of him. Everyone is, especially since they had seen him fight with the DarkSaber when they first arrived on the planet. Since then, there had been a quiet fear, a commanding presence Din didn’t think he had earnt, but regardless it was there. She swallowed, tilting her helmet down to the floor. “Tell me.”

“The Queen replied. She accepted your invitation, and is expected to arrive within the week. She also implied, if the meeting goes well— she…”

“She what? What did she say?” Din had no idea why, but his heart was racing a mile a minute. Had she been insulted by the offer? Was she going to stage an attack?

“She said she would marry you.”

“You said I would what?” You shout at the group of advisors, all of whom look like they are about to scramble and run. And they should. “Who’s bright idea was it to send correspondence, with my name attached, without my go-ahead?! What the hell kind of advisor does that?!”

None of them so much as moved, except for Advisor Kaylen, who caught your eye, making a pointed look at Advisor Corell. You shook your head, and a bitter smile curled the ends of your mouth.

“I should have known. Corell. Get up.” He spluttered, stumbling to his feet as you dragged him up the dais, and forced him to his knees. “Was it you? Did you tell Mandalore I would accept their invitation?!”

He shakes his head. “I only said you would meet with them! Isn’t that what you wanted?”

“When I was ready!” You want to scream, but your embarrassment and nerves choke your throat. Yes, you were going to accept. Probably. Maybe a month from now... a few months, if you could stretch it. Not this week.

“This is a good thing! Now you get to go! To— to see the cursed land for yourself. To look upon its new ruler! I was only doing what I thought was best! They would have been insulted if we had rejected…and we’re running out of options.”

“The only one insulted here is me, that you truly believe I would buy any of the shit that comes out of your mouth.” He was on thin ice as it was, but your fathers words played in your head, and you saw the faces of your other Advisors in the corner of your eye.

Your father had selected this team of people because he trusted them, and for some reason, you did too. You didn’t know why, or how they were picked, but they were supposed to be the six people you could rely on. The six people who would challenge you, who wouldn’t blindly accept your decision like the rest of the planet. They were a tradition— to ensure the sanity of a ruler and the safety of a planet. You trusted them; or you would, eventually, but they would not overstep. Or at least, they shouldn’t.

“My father trusted you. It is that reason alone that I will let you continue to work underneath me, and forgive this lapse in judgment. But this is the one chance you will receive. I might not be my father, but you work for me now. If you choose to disobey me or do anything without me specifically telling you again, I will send you to Mandalore in my stead, and the King can have you in my place. We will see how far you make it in the ruins before he cuts you down.” They all scurry from the room, Advisor Corell not glancing back as he heads for the door after you drop him.

All that is left is Kaylen, who doesn’t need a title when it’s just you and her. She was a friend— perhaps your only one, so you only used her title around the other Advisors.

“That was exciting.” She says, and you flop down onto the cushioned throne, golden pillows softening the blow as she comes to lean on the armrest. “It’s been too long since we had some real palace gossip.”

“Well, hold on to that, because you might be shipping me off to marry a fish. He’s like a ghost— I couldn’t find anything on the King, and now I’m supposed to just…go?” You sigh, swinging your feet over the edge of the chair and letting your head fall into her lap. “This is insanity. This entire month has been suitor after suitor, none of them with armies strong enough to keep our planet safe. And now it’s like I don’t even have a... it all just happened so fast.”

“I know. You were right to reject them all. But this one is... it’s different.” You sit up, turning to face her.

“You think I should go?”

“Are you asking me as an Advisor, or as a friend?”

“Both.” The throne is huge, made for the large frame of your father, so she can slide right in next to you.

“Well, as your Advisor, Mandalore is famous for one thing— war. Sure, they have lost a tonne, but when they were at their peak, they were unstoppable. Feared throughout the galaxy. With our help, they could be that again. Even having the name attached to us would scare off any potential threats for a while. They are good fighters, they could teach our people ways we would never learn ourselves, and one day we could even be allies. Especially if this goes well.” She sits up when she speaks, and even though she’s only a few years older than you, she seems light years ahead. You understand why your father chose her.

“And as my friend?” She swings an arm over your shoulder.

“As your friend, I think you need this. I think that you haven’t changed a single thing about the palace since you have been crowned because you know once you do, this is real and your parents are gone. I think you know this is the right thing to do, but you’re scared, and you think that when you do this, you’ll finally be alone, and you hate that.” You’re thankful she’s not looking at you because you almost start crying as soon as she mentions your parents. “I think you know that this is different. That this could be a defining moment for you. For your reign. For the planet to come back after the Empire.”

“Why do you have to be right about everything?” You say tightly, and she helps you stand off the throne, leading you towards your bedroom through the maze of winding corridors.

“Just lucky. And, hey, don’t look so sad. Rumor has it he wears a very pretty beskar suit. All shiny and silver. You love shiny stuff.” She gestures at the hallways, all lined with golden and silver detailing. You nudge her on the shoulder and she laughs, peeling off before you open the door to your bedroom.

It was technically your parents room— the room you grew up in now vacated for your future offspring. You didn’t mind, using the room helped you feel a little bit closer to your parents. You remember all the times you’d climbed into bed with them, buried under the covers because you were afraid of the dark.

Kaylen was right. Corell was right, even if he was an asshole. It was selfish to not accept an offer. You hated that you couldn’t do more for your people, that all you had to offer was your arm, but if that was what you needed to do right now, you should just... suck it up. A Mandalorian, though. That was different. You knew they were feared, although scattered throughout the galaxy, and if their words were true, an entire planet of them would make you virtually impenetrable.

You couldn’t help but think about the King. Mandalorians were a confusing bunch, the few you had met, anyways. Very quiet, lethal as anything, and in your experience, solitary. Your mother had hired one years ago to collect a bounty for her, and he completed the four day job in three hours, arriving and leaving on his own, hardly talking if he didn’t have to. Why would someone like that want to be married?

Shrinking out of your outfit, you decided to try and get some sleep. If tomorrow was going to be anything like today, you’d need all the rest you could get, and for some reason, there was a racing in your heart you couldn’t settle. Maybe just nerves from the incoming visit to Mandalore tomorrow.

That had to be it. The myths, legends surrounding the cursed world— it would make anyone nervous. But it was just that. Nerves. It couldn’t be anything else.

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[minhosimthings]

Someone Older, Just a Little Bit Colder.

Summary: Yoon Y/N and Lee Minho. Perfect enemies. But when some guns and roses get mixed up with both of them, I wonder what the fates have weaved for their story.

Pairings: Fem!reader × Minho, classic Enemies to Lovers. Includes rest of Skz and other groups

Warnings: lots of violence, blood, murder, guns, swearing, mention of food, mention of dead bodies. There is a lot of violence so please do not interact if you are sensitive to these things.

A/N - I finished this finally. This took a lot of time and it is probably my longest work till date. I took inspiration from an edit I saw on Instagram. So here you go! Please enjoy this and feel free to give me feedback. I don't like some parts of the fic that much tho. Cause I was very lazy when I wrote them.

Song rec:

1: I need someone older

"No, no, no" Mournful voices were surrounding your frame. "No this can't be happening. Please Y/N!" Tears, not yours, dripped onto your skin as something red mixed with it to create a pretty little cocktail. "Fuck princess wake up! Fuck no....."

"Y/N! Come down quick! You've gotta get to school!" Another day of school. How mechanical was your life. In your final year of high school, you'd have thought that your life would have sugar, spice and everything nice. But instead, you got stuck with a robotic schedule, which consisted of waking up, going to school, coming back, food time, homework, checking to see if any colleges had sent you mails and then going back to sleep. But you couldn't really complain, because you were in Jeju Island. Literally everyone here had the same robotic schedule. Well maybe except for the richest people here. Your family was what was known as the middle classes. You lived comfortably, but not too plushily and your mom and dad both had jobs. Your elder sister Jinhee and you basically raised each other and now, with Jinhee, already graduated and married (since she was seven years older than you), you were left all alone in your turquoise room, with white borders and black finishes. It wasn't the fact that you weren't happy or anything. But, as a child of the Cosmos and as a ruler of the skies and tides, you wanted to feel that feeling that people had when they would roll around in the grass, or buy flowers from a sweet old lady, or wear ridiculous nail polish with someone, keeping the stories of the stars to yourself, whenever someone asks 'what did you do last night?'. But wasn't that why fairytales existed? To tell you that getting all those things was nothing but a mere dream? A dream which you hoped would come true? Which you hoped that the universe would understand your heart's desire and grant it to you?

"Be safe alright? Got your pepper spray?" "Yes ma don't worry. Im always safe aren't I?" Your mother kissed your forehead gently before letting to walk off to school, pepper spray in hand, knife hidden up the sleeve of your blue school sweater. The road from your house to your school was one of the safest ones. It was a suburban area, with families like yours lining up the street. You had no problem walking by yourself, and casually greeting the wakening families, with their toddlers and teenagers. You felt safe here and in the rare times there was some danger, you knew you could kick their asses (flashback to that one time you thought your dad was a stranger and accidentally kicked him hard in the shin. He still doesn't forgive you for that)

"Miss Yoon. Are you walking alone your highness?" That voice. That voice was perhaps the bane of your existence (not the object of all your desires. Sue me for using Bridgerton right now). A smooth black car pulled up next to you as you were just a metre away from the school. The windows were rolled down to reveal a young boy, your age with fluffy plum brown hair, cat like eyes, a sharp nose and a smirk on his stupid face. Lee Minho. Also known as the worst person you knew. And no this wasn't an enemies to lovers scenario. It usually is but this? Yeah absolutely not. Lee Minho had been your childhood neighbour since he was six. He lived with his grandparents since he was six, with his parents being in one of the richest families of South Korea and working in Seoul. He also went to your school, which was weird considering he was basically a billionaire and still chose to go to the 'middle class' school along with his his seven friends, who coincidentally were also from the seven richest families of South Korea.

"Oh no Minho. I wasn't walking alone. I have an invisible friend that you can't see from behind those stupidly pretty eyes of yours." You threw him a glare as his smirked just increased in size. "You think my eyes are pretty?" "Oh for fucks sake. What do you want?" "Language, princess." Minho chuckled and unlocked the passenger seat door. "Get in." You let out a chuckle and said "With you? Oh no thank you. I would rather go to Hell and dance with the devil." "Oh come on princess." Minho's face only widened even more to form the face of the devil himself. "You know people who die to even touch my car. You're lucky I'm offering you to ride in it." You rolled your eyes at him. So fucking cocky for no reason. You decided that you couldn't take it anymore and just started walking with a small 'I'll see you at school Minho goodbye now.'. Minho seemed to have taken the sign as he locked his doors, rolled the windows down and sped away to school.

Finally some peace. You breathed in the September air as you watched the Magpies fly around with their mates. You always loved Magpies, courtesy to your dad always encouraging you to birdwatch whenever you were free, with the pink binoculars you had. And today, in the serene September air, it felt good, watching two birds in love fluttering around, probably having a conversation about who knows what. There was that odd feeling in your chest again, that feeling which you pretended wasn't loneliness. People never understood the difference between alone and lonely. Yes you can be alone and you can enjoy it to your fullest. Some of your friends loved to be alone, eating chocolate, reading a nice book, sitting by the rain, all of those aesthetic things those Pinterest people do. You always craved to be like that too, but you never could. And you still had to learn to accept the fact that being basic wasn't a bad thing.

"Babe your foundation isn't blended properly come here. Hasn't Mama Huh taught you anything?" Your best friend Yunjin greeted you at the stairs of your school, with her bright unicorn bag and her perfect makeup as usual. "Sorry sweetheart. I really can't focus today." Yunjin gave you a sympathetic look as she blended the foundation on your neck with her hands carefully. "Is it Lee again? I swear to God one of these days I'm gonna go and tell him that you like him and then he'll confess to you and then this can be an enemies to lovers novel where I'm the sassy, amazing best friend who saves the day." You laughed at Yunjin's rambling. "And I thought Chaer was more delusional than you." "Do I hear my name?" A pretty girl with long black hair and perhaps the greatest jawline in the world came up behind you. Lee Chaeryoung, cousin of Minho and your second best friend, also your prettiest friend (sue me she's my wif- I mean my bias) "Hey Chaer. By the way have you guys completed Mr Hong's assignment?" Yunjin groaned at your words as she pulled out a red copy from her bag and opened it to reveal her messy handwriting. "I stayed up to finish this shit. Why do we need to analyse what a curtain means in Shakespearean language? Like I don't know. It could mean the heroine wants to be at an orgy for all I know." Chaer hit Yunjin's arm as you laughed at went inside the school to go to your English class along with Yunjin. Chaeryoung stalked off in the other direction, to her biology class, as you entered the class, where Mr.Hong wasn't present yet. You always dreaded English period, not because you weren't good in the subject, but because of the seating arrangement. Yunjin would always sit at the back of the class while you were stuck in the front with Minho. You internally groaned as you walked up to your seat, where Minho and Chan were talking to each other. Chan was a good friend of yours since your mom was the head of the Jeju Island branch of his dad's buisness. Curly haired, eyes filled with stars and the most gentle behaviour ever, he came straight out of a goddamn book. You always wondered how he became friends with Minho, considering both of them were as different as chalk and cheese. But then again, they has been brought up together, by their grandparents while their parents would stay in Seoul to run buisness.

"Hey Chan. Did you get those physics notes done yesterday?" Chan greeted at you with than omnipresent smile on his face as he nodded fervently like a puppy. "Yeah I got them done! It was really hard though. I really hope Mrs.Choi is absent today. So she can't call me out on my 'mistakes'." You smiled fondly at Chan as he took his seat on your other side, while Minho toyed with a blue hairband. Your hairband. "Minho where did you get that?" He turned to look at you and gave you that smug smirk again. "Why princess? Is it yours?" You scowled as you reached forward and grabbed the hairband out of his hands and stuffed it into your bag. "Yes it is mine! I think you'd know that considering I have been looking for this ever since the playground incident from when we were seven! Oh but I think you wouldn't remember that would you? Considering you're an ajhussi." It was Minho's time to scowl now and he scrunched up his nose like an angry bunny and stuck his tongue out at you, all while mumbling "I'm only two months older you know.", As Mr.Hong entered the classrooms in his pinstriped shirt and began asking for the assignments.

The rest of the day went as normal. You went to all of your classes, had a gossip-filled lunch with Chaeryoung, Yunjin, Miyeon, Sunoo and Jake, accidentally spilt water over Sunghoon from Chemistry, and got top grades in biology as usual.

Gosh September was good. September was lovely. People don't really get why September was so comforting to you. And to be frank, you didn't get it either. But there was this aura that September had that you couldn't shake. It wasn't just all pumpkin spice lattes or orange scarfs. It was..... Something else. Something you couldn't describe. You know that feeling when you bite into an ice cream cone? It crumbles all over you, but you love that feeling, that crunch combined with the sweet ice cream inside. That's what September was.

The bell rang loudly as school got over and you went over to the the basketball court. Being captain of the girls team, you always needed to stay back after school in order to train your team. "Unnie come quick would ya!" Chaewon, the team's greatest shooter called out to you. "Im not that late today Chaewon. That's a record for me!" Chaewon rolled her eyes as she adjusted her shorts. "Y/N are we gonna discuss some tactics for next week's game then? Cause I drew a lot of shit last night and I don't want it to go to waste." Wonyoung, the team's co-captain was nudging some papers into your hands. You gave her a quick smile as you looked over all the loopy drawings she did. "Oh and girls! Please remember to get your registration documents tomorrow! I really don't want to submit them late to Coach Kim." All your teammates nodded at your words and went on to the court, where to your dismay, Minho and his team were also practicing. You were annoyed. You had booked the court for today and has specifically checked with both of your coaches and yet again, your mortal enemy was playing with his team on what was meant to be your court. "Yah Minho! Get off the fucking court. We have it booked for today!" You gave him the biggest glare that you could muster, while he simply strode up to you, ball in hand, and that stupid smile on his face. "Aww princess. You booked the court for today? Well sad because I booked it earlier. I have a signed consent form from Coach Kim too. So either you can get off the court or we can have a practice game together." You felt like blowing up the earth below his feet right now but you couldn't do anything when he showed you the piece of paper on which Coach Kim had signed specifying that the boy's team could play today. "Fine then. But a practice game? Together? Boys versus girls?" Minho simply nodded at your words as you looked back at your girl standing behind you who were currently looking like they wanted to go to war. Seeing their determination, you extended a hand forward to Minho and in a assertive tone, said, "You're on then Lee. I wanna watch your pretty little face when you lose really badly. So what's the prize then?" You regretted asking that question when you saw Minho's face turning into that evil little smirk again. His team was assembled behind him and now you were a bit scared, considering that your tallest player was the size of their shortest one. "How about........ loser has to take the winner to that nice ice cream place that just opened down the street? And it'll only be us two. You know, captain to captain." Hearing that both your team and Minho's team broke out in high pitched 'ooohs' (yes even the Bois) as if you were doing something scandalous. You had no choice but to accept so you extended you hand again as Minho gripped it with his veiny hands and shook it firmly.

Chan and Chaeryoung were sitting by the stands since neither of them played and you smiled gently at them talking and giggling so fondly. The game started with one of the assistant coaches, Jungwon, refereeing. You were more determined now than you were at last month's regional games. You had to beat Minho and he had to take you to that stupid ice cream place. "Scared princess?" Minho asked as you assembled on the half line. You didn't say anything but threw him a smirk, hoping that it would catch him off guard. "Alright, ready set. Rumble!" Jungwon blew the whistle and threw the ball up in the air as you reached forward and managed to slap it onto your side of the court, where Wonyoung caught it and swiftly passed it on to Chaewon, who was standing by the hoops. You heard Minho scolding Jeongin, who was defending Chaewon, for not blocking her properly as you high fived Wonyoung for the quick pass.The rest of the game pretty much went the same way as you kept using witty tactics while Minho kept using speed and strength, which you knew was his greatest weakness. From time to time, his shirt would fly up ever so slightly and you would get distracted for a split second by his abs (which you scolded yourself for).

"Guys can you stop now please? It's 7:30. I'm going home now and you guys should too before they shut the school gate." Jungwon finally ended the game as you looked over at the scoreboard. You had won! You hugged Chaewon tightly before striding up to a very sweaty Minho who, not even in the slightest, looked defeated. "So, Mr Lee. You owe me ice cream now." He gave you a small smile, which made your heart leap, and said "Of course your Highness. Do you wanna get changed and then we can go? Or would you like to come being all sweaty?" You scowled at him and stuck your tongue out as you made your way to the changing rooms as he shouted behind you, "Meet me at the gate!" You quickly took a shower and changed into the tshirt and yoga pants you usually brought with you to change into after a sweaty game.

"Yah are you going to take me in your dumb car?" You questioned Minho as he pulled up by the gate. Chan had taken Chaeryoung home today so you didn't have anyone to walk you home, which was a plus point (for Minho). "Yes princess. Since the ice cream place is not at a walkable distance, atleast for my feet, we are going in my dumb car. And you don't wana walk home this late Y/N. It's dangerous you know? So get the fuck in and let's go. I'm hungry." You begrudgingly got in the car, silently admiring the sleep leather seats as Minho started the engine and turned the car. "Oh and Chan hyung already informed your mom and dad. They're not gonna come home tonight cause they're busy or something so I'll drive you back if you want." You snapped your head from the flying butterfly outside the window to Minho's concentrated face as you shyly mumbled a 'thank you'.

The drive to the ice cream was long and silent. You simply stated out the window while Minho stared forward, trying not to look at the way the rays of the setting sun fell on your skin or how your hair fell in that particular way that just felt good. Do the boys usually confess first? He didn't know. No he hated you. This is absolutely not fucking happening right now. You were Yoon Y/N, captain if the girls basketball team, annoying neighbour, beautiful mortal enemy. No not beautiful. Get out of it Minho!

"Uh is this the place? Looks cute." Minho's car pulled up near a tiny cafe like building called 'Jureimi's parlor', lit up in bright pink signs. "Oh yeah. I'll just park and we can go." You got out of the car as Minho parked nearby and got out too. "Is that boba flavoured ice cream?" You pointed at a brown coloured ice cream in ghe booth. The lady at the counter smiled at you as she nodded and gave you little sample cup. You offered a bit to Minho, who shook his head and went to find a table. "Get what you want. I'll pay." You rolled your eyes at him. He had to pay anyway for losing the game so badly.

You tasted the ice cream, which tasted like heaven and decided that you wanted this. "Can I get this in a cone please? Two scoops." The lady nodded and told her co worker your order, who went to the back to make it. You noticed some pudding cups on the shelf behind the lady. "Are those puddings?" "Oh yes. They're a new addition really. It's a favourite among all the grandmas here." You pointed at the vanilla one and asked the lady to give you that one, while you handed her the money and she handed you your ice cream and the pudding cup. You strode over to Minho, who was sitting with his legs wide open at the little round table in the corner of the store. "Is that for me?" He pointed at the pudding. "No dumbass it's for the Magpies." He gave you a sarcastic smile and grabbed the pudding cup from your hands. "I only got it for you cause this boba ice cream is expensive. So stop smirking at me." He looked up at you with those cat like eyes and slightly pouted, but remained quiet as both of you savoured on the sweet, sticky food.

"Dude how slow do you eat?" You watched Minho as he has halfway through his pudding, while you had already finished your ice cream. "Just slow enough to annoy you baby." You frowned at his words. "Do not call me that ever again. It's makes me wanna vomit." You made a gagging motion as Minho just simply chuckled. "Fine then. While I finish this amazing pudding, how about we play truth or dare hm? Because our impatient princess can't wait for five seconds without doing anything." You thought for a while before finally saying yes. "Alrightly then." Minho smiled at you. "Y/N. Truth or dare?" You picked truth, which seemed like the only viable option, considering the fact that you were in a shop, and Minho said, "How's your brother?"

Your heart dropped as you heard that sentence. How did he know about that? The blue shade of the shop spun around you as you tried to focus on anything else other than what just came out of Minho's mouth. Silence. Yes silence would work. Just give him a glare and it'll be over. "Oh come on princess. We all know what happened to your brother. I just wanna hear it from you personally." Your blood turned cold as your mind kept feeding you memories of that night. That faithful night. That peace filled night. That night when the Magpies stopped singing and September ran cold once more.

"Fuck you Lee Minho." Saying that, you picked up your bag and got up, slamming the chair to the ground, behind you. The lady at the counter looked up to see you walking about the door, pushing it agressively. "No Y/N wait!" Minho knew he had fucked up now. He had never meant to hurt you like this. He had learnt from Yunjin that you were already over your brother's incident. This was just supposed to be normal mortal enemy banter. How do you still remember? He quickly pulled out some cash and slammed it on the counter to the very shocked lady as he ran out after you. You wouldn't have gotten far. After all, you had to pass the school to get to your house. Minho quickly got in his car and started the engine with a blast. You had also left your headband in the carseat. So, that was another excuse for him to chase after you. He wasn't going to lose you again. Not now. Not when he was so close.

The street was dark and cold, lit up faintly by the wavering streetlights. This wasn't September anymore. You could feel December taking all the love out of September. And as you walked upon the concrete, you could feel the Magpies talking about you. You could feel the crescent moon feeling nothing but pity for you. You could feel all the plants with their bugs, looking at you and saying, "Yoon Y/N. You fucked up again just like you always do." You shouldn't have let your anger take control. But then again, when we deal with anger so long, she never tells us that her actual name is grief. Your brother was supposed to be a closed chapter of your life, but like a faded page of an Agatha Christie novel, he lingered on in your brain. All your family had far moved on, but you loved your twin brother, older than you by 8 minutes, too much to let him go from the dusty cabinets of your brain. You tried to forget his screams on that day and that cold, hard cackling but you couldn't. You were right there. Right in front of all the destruction, when your heart broke into a million pieces. Yet how could you forget such a memory?

"Y/N!" Minho was rolling up with this car next to you as you reached your house. The magenta coloured door was locked, your parents were still out on work. "Minho just fucking leave me alone. And I mean it this time. Don't even fucking talk to me." "Yn would you listen to me? Don't go inside the house!" What was this maniac saying? You stared at his figure getting out of the car and swiftly moving across over the lawn to your figure standing at the front door. "please just don't go inside the house." You noticed some figures behind him and you realised that Chan and his friends Jisung and Changbin were also there. "Minho what the fuck are you doing?" Minho looked at with what you thought looked like an expression of pity. "Just please don't go inside the house."

No you weren't going to listen to him. Absolutely fucking not. The last time you listened to him, you ended up in a mud covered ditch. Not today. "Fuck you and fuck your fucking existence Minho! I'm not listening to one word that comes out of that stupid mouth of yours." Before Minho could stop you and before Chan called out your name, you opened the door with gusto, only to be met, not with the familiar scent of Eau de Perfume but with the stench of iron. Your world came crashing down again. Your parents. Lying dead. On the floor. Of your house. Covered in blood. You were frozen. You couldn't move. A sense of familiarity came over you. You knew this feeling. This feeling of feeling like a thousand icicles had pierced your veins. All that came to your mind was him. No this can't be September. September was his birthday! It can't be this bad. No please don't let September be bad. "Y/N. Princess are you alright?" "Min- Minho. They're- they're not. No." The tears weren't coming. This wasn't sadness this was shock. "Chan hyung can you get her out of here? Jisung call the police. Now. Y/N. Y/N what are you doing!" You had strode up to your parents' bodies. Your mom was covered in more blood than your dad. Your dad looked like he was peacefully sleeping. Your mum's head seemed bashed in. Oh god the smell of blood. That night. All that remained was that night. You were too immersed in looking at your parents, that you didn't notice the creeping black figure in front of you. "So you're their daughter are you?" That husky voice was the last thing you heard before a gun shot, Minho's voice and the thud of your body. There was something warm on your stomach. And gooey. And red. This felt nice, you thought. Dying felt nice. If only he felt like this before....

Chan and Changbin slammed the man who had stabbed you onto the wall, destroying some photo frames in the process. Jisung turned on all the lights and went over to the two other men to get a look at the stranger. Minho, on the other hand, had rushed to your side, picking you up in his arms, towel pressuring the wound on your stomach.

"No, no, no" Mournful voices were surrounding your frame. "No this can't be happening. Please Y/N!" Tears, not yours, dripped onto your skin as something red mixed with it to create a pretty little cocktail. "Fuck princess wake up! Fuck no....."

2: Just a little bit colder

"Well well well, Mrs Yoon. How are the children?" Your mother cowered in fear as your elder sister and your dad were tied up next to the fridge in the kitchen. Your twin brother and you were in the clutches of some buff looking men. Eleven years. That's all you were. Eleven fucking years. "Mr. Wang I promise I won't leak the papers. I swear on my children. Please do not harm us." Mr. Wang or whoever he was striding up and down the carpeted room, white papers in his scarred hand. "It's ok Y/Nnie. I'm right here. It's just another November. September will come soon won't it?" Your brother, Doowon tightly held your hand and calmed you down, as your tears threatened to escape from their prison. "Mr. Wang. Please I beg you. Please do not harm me. You have the papers. What more do you want?" Mr Wang smiled at your mother. A cold smile. Shivering and undaunted. "Oh my dear Danbi. I have the papers of course, but you know how I do my work. I do not like bitches who butt their heads into everything. So I want your children to see how their mother is a little bitch." Mr Wang pulled your mother's hair as she screamed and cried out. "Hey don't do that to my mom!" Your borther screamed out as you but the hand if the man who was holding you. Both of you escaped from the clutches of the two men as Mr Wang looked on, slightly amused. "Or what little boy? You gonna beat me up?" Your brother stood his ground, not even daring to break eye contact. "Doowon get back please!" Your mum pleaded with Doowon, but he wouldn't listen. He stepped forward to Mr Wang and stepped painfully on his smooth black shoes. Mr Wang let out a cold laugh as he grabbed your brother by the neck of his shirt. "Grab the little girl too. Let her see how her twin meets with death." A man grabbed you from behind as your family pleaded and you thrashed around, trying to escape. "Let me go!" You screamed as the man took you upstairs while Mr Wang followed with your brother. You reached your bedroom door, which you shared with Doowon and Mr Wang slammed it opened pushing you and your brother inside. "Open that window, Brian." He spat at the man who grabbed you, while you and Doowon stood still. "Now boy. Come here. Come. Here. Now. Unless you want your sister harmed." Doowon looked at you and squeezed your hand before going ever to Mr Wang. And that was the last touch of your brother you had, before Mr. Wang pushed him out of the window on to the green grass below. Your screams had filled the neighborhood, scared the Magpies and threatened September to never come again. September's child,you told yourself. That's all he was. September's child, at the mercy of October.

"She'll be alright Minho. Just give her a few hours. She'll wake up." You were lying on an oak bed with grand purple bedsheets. You had a white sheet wrapped around your waist and your stomach, which stopped blood from coming out of your stab wound. Minho had taken you to his mansion outside of town, where all the sons of the mafias of Korea would hang out. Bang Chan, Seo Changbin, Hwang Hyunjin, Minho's brother Lee Felix Yongbok, Han Jisung, Kim Seungmin, Yang Jeongin and Lee Minho. Stray kids, they called themselves. Basically abandoned by their workaholic parents and brought up by relatives. "Hyung she'll be fine don't worry. Seungmin's aunt is the best surgeon in the country. She stitched Y/N up all fine." Changbin put an arm on Minho's shivering shoulder. Chan and Jisung were also there in the room, trying to comfort Minho and convince him that you would be fine. "What if she's not ok hyung? What do I tell her when she wakes up? Ho-how do I explain to her how I knew that her parents' bodies would be lying in her floor before she even got home? How do I fucking explain that?" Minho looked up at Chan with teary eyes. Chan was worried. Minho hadn't eaten or drunk water for the whole day, ever since you came out of that four hour long surgery. Never before had he seen Minho's cold face so filled with emotion. "Minho listen to me. You can explain everything to her once she wakes up. I called her sister and she'll be coming over in three days from Busan. Now please. You've got to eat something or drink water atleast. I promise you, Y/N will understand if you speak to her properly. Now come on, let's get some breakfast. It's 8 am in the morning. The boys would have woken up by now." Minho listened silently to Chan's words and simply nodded. Words weren't coming out anymore as he slowly got up from his chair and let go of your hand. Taking one last look at you, the boys left the room, all the while commanding two bodyguards to stand outside the door, making sure no one else can even come near you.

"Y/Nnie! Look what I can do!" "That wasn't a proper cartwheel Doowon, it doesn't count!" "Atleast I can do a cartwheel." "Yah don't stick your tongue out at me! Jinhee unnie! Doowon's making fun of me!"

'Do you remember? Twenty first night of September? Love was chasing the minds of pretenders.' "Happy birthday Doowon! I got a CD of your favourite song!" "Thanks Y/Nnie. Let's listen to this song on my birthday every year!"

Purple sheets? This was not your bed. Your bed had dinosaur sheets and made a rickety noise every time you moved. You noticed the white tape wrapped carefully around your waist and dared not touch it. You tried to remember what day it was and where you were as you slowly moved and leaned comfortably against the bed frame, groaning slightly as your stomach was hurting. Gosh what day was it? Was it still September? Or did October come to take you away again?

Lost in your thoughts, you looked around the room, trying to figure out whether you were still in Jeju Island or not. You noticed a drawer close to the bed. Curious, you opened the drawer, to find your phone, a bracelet and a picture of a you and Minho in your jerseys. That bracelet. It was the one which your brother had made for you. Which you hadn't seen ever since that day. And the picture was the one which was taken when you and Minho were elected captains of your basketball teams. You grabbed your phone hurriedly as you realised that this had to be Minho's house. You had to get out. Now. Your memory was coming back to you and you remembered the events that had unfolded the night before. Blood. The smell of iron. The blade of a knife. The tears of a plum brown haired boy.

You threw the sheets off of yourself and made to get up. Stupid decision, you told yourself as the moment your feet hit the floor, you fell down witha loud thud. "OUCH!" you cried out loudly, hoping that this was a soundproof house. Probably not, because five seconds later, you heard footsteps coming down to your door. The oak door swung open with a loud crash to reveal a panic stricken Minho, who had dark circles under his eyes, a worried looking Chan, who was clutching a half finished piece of toast and a very confused Seungmin, who was holding a cup of coffee in his hand. "I knew I shouldn't have left your clumsy ass alone." Minho grumbled as he made his way to you and gently lifted you up, taking care not to touch your injury. You should have probably thrashed around, but for the sake of not accidentally injuring yourself even more, you resisted, as Minho put you back on the head and flicked your forehead painfully. "Yah!" You exclaimed rubbing your forehead. "Ok first of all, where the fuck am I? Second of all, what the fuck am I doing here? Third of all, I know my parents are dead now, so what I am going to do?" You directed the last question at Chan, who scratched his hair and glanced at Seungmin, who was looking at you as if you were his hero. "You know noona, you can come stay with me if you don't wanna stay in Minho's hyung's house." Minho glared at Seungmin as Chan took him by the arm and forced him out of the room, before saying "Minho explain everything. And no I will not help you stop pouting." He slammed the door, leaving Minho and you all alone. All alone in this wood carved room. All alone to face September together. "Alright" Minho took in a deep breath. "Im going to explain everything to you princess. But you will not fucking interrupt me, got it?" You opened your mouth to fire something back at him, but you decided against it in the last moment and quietly nodded. "Alright here goes. First of all I am really sorry for bringing up your brother. I know it was an asshole move and I thought you'd have forgotten about it. Clearly you didn't so I'm sorry. Please forgive me. Second of all, yes your parents are dead. Im sorry Y/N but they are. We informed your sister, she'll come in a few days from Busan. And the reason I knew that your parents were dead and tried to stop you was because my cousin killed your parents." Pause button. Wait what?

"Minho what are you talking about? If this is some kind of joke I will seriously kill myself right here and right now." Minho looked at you with an expression of pure sympathy. "It's not a joke Y/N. You know your mom is the head of the Jeju Island branch of Chan's parents' buisness right? Well all our businesses are connected. And one day when you were a child, your mother had found some papers which proved that my family was in illegal work. My family was ready to forgive her but my cousin, Jackson, wasn't. All those papers were related to his dealings and he wasn't happy that a mere woman had found out about it. So one day, without my parent's knowledge, he found out about your family and well. I think you know the rest don't you?" Too many things. Too many things for your brain to process as it went back to that night. Mr Wang. Jackson Wang. Pretty name, you thought, as you tried to bring his face back to your memory. Scarred. That's all you remembered. Scarred face, scarred mouth, scarred hands grabbing your brother by the cuffs on his shirt. "Chan had found out first. You know him having contacts and all. And when he told me about it, there was this thing inside of me that told me that your parents were probably already dead. I know my cousin pretty well. And he isn't one for patience." "But what did my mom do now?" Minho sighed at your question. "She, she found out some more information about Jackson and she decided to step up. But we all know what happens to heroes don't we?" Your breathing had gotten more steady now and your hands had stopped shaking. Sadness wasn't arriving for you. Not yet. Was it September? Or was it because you never actually knew your mother and father? Because thinking about it, you actually never did.

"Y/N I think it's time to tell you what my parents actually do. What all the boy's parents actually do. We run an underground syndicate over the whole of South Korea. We own every piece of land in Korea. We have information about every person existing in this country. And I want to tell you that your mom was actually one of the most important people for our 'buisness'. She wasn't just some head of the Jeju Island branch. She was a personal spy for my father and mother, put here along with your dad, to spy against, uh, some people." Your head hurt even more with all the information that Minho was unloading on you. You held your head in your hands and massaged your temples gently. Minho looked slightly worried at this and nervously asked, "You ok princess? Want some breakfast?" Oh gosh his lips. "Or a doctor? You know what I'll get a doctor. Chan hyung will say no-" Those lips looked so kissable" "- but what if you don't feel well later on a faint and then you become even more sick-" Don't kiss him Y/N don't you dare. "-and then I'll have to marry you and take care of you foreve-"

Yep you couldn't keep it to yourself anymore. "I wanna kiss you." You blurted out, instantly cringing and regretting your words and Minho turned his head towards you, eyes wide and mouth slightly parted in surprise. "This is adream right? Oh shit I had too much coffee." You were surprised at his words. Wait did he dream of this in a regular basis or what? Or were in you in a coma and this was all in your head? You slightly moved in the bed and as your stomach slightly hurt, you thought, yes definetly not a coma. "Or you could just get me some breakfast? Im hungry and in pain right now." "O-oh yeah I'll just tell t-the guys to get you some. K cool bye Y/N! See you later definetly don't wanna kiss you haha bye!" You were in a state of euphoria as Minho left the room, a blushing mess. Did you just make the Lee Minho blush and stutter? Oh you could jump in joy right now. Well if you could jump. Was this wrong, you thought. Not feeling sad even though your parents had just died? Or were you too familiar with sadness, that meeting her wasn't a big deal anymore?

The door opened again after fifteen minutes to reveal a blonde- haired boy with the most prettiest eyes you've ever seen, carrying a breakfast tray, followed by a taller long haired boy, who looked like he came straight out of those anime comics you read. "Hey noona! Here's some breakfast! Are you feeling better now?" The blonde haired boy, who had a very deep voice, said in a cheery tone. You considered asking him if he was a pixie or an angel because God did he emit that vibe. That positive vibe that just made you wanna pick some flowers and braid them in someone's hair. "Oh hello there. Um thank you for the food. Im sorry if it was of any inconvenience to you." This time, the long haired boy responded instead, saying "Oh no Noona it's fine. Minho hyung would kill us, well specifically me, if, according to his words 'you felt any discomfort', so please eat up. Im Hyunjin by the way and this is Felix." "Im Y/N. Yoon Y/N. But I'm guessing you already knew that?"

"Well of course we know about you. Minho hyung doesn't stop talking to me about you." Jisung had just appeared at the door, dressed in a leather jacket with leather pants, making him look like a biker. "He literally talked to me about your favourite ice cream flavour for five house noona I'm not joking. So please would you tell him you like or something so that I can get out of this hellhole of listening to him?" You were slightly taken aback by Jisung's words and as he plopped and deflated onto the purple couch, you looked at him with a curious expression, "Oh I'm Jisung by the way. Minho's amazingly talented best friend." You heard Hyunjin mutter something along the lines of 'he forgot to add annoying'. "Um I have a lot questions that Minho didn't properly answer. May I ask them,if you don't mind?" You directed this question at Felix, who looked ecstatic at the thought of answering questions, as Hyunjin pulled up two chairs. "Yeah of course Noona! My brother is really vague so please forgive him for that." You smiled at Felix's words about Minho. "Ok first of all where are we right now?" "We're in the outskirts of Jeju Island. This is Minho's hyung's mansion. Well technically our mansion, but my parents are the ones who own it. It's really old and no one cares about it. So we carry out our, er, operations here." Seeing Felix say all that was like seeing a chick with a knife. "So do all of you have like different jobs here? Like in the books and movies?" Hyunjin chuckled at that. "Minho hyung told us you liked suspense literature. Well to answer your question, yes we do have different jobs here. Chan hyung is kind of like our leader. He basically gives all the contacts and manages our profile and connections. You know all the administration shit. Changbin hyung and this idiot over here-" He gestured towards Jisung who gasped dramatically, "-they are our muscle and also so the money work. Lix over here does all the hacking work since his parents trained him and also since he's obsessed with gaming." Felix turned red at that, "Seungmin and Jeongin are our snipers. They are really young but I mean none of us really had an actual childhood. I run the interrogation work. And Minho hyung basically does everything. He doesn't really have a designated position." The way Hyunjin said all of that in the most casual tone weirded you out. He talked as if he was talking about morning coffee, as if it completely normal and nothing suspicious. You smiled awkwardly at Hyunjin who simply stared out the window at the sunlight. "Are all of you so gorgeous over here?" You blurted out, to which Jisung choked on his own saliva, Felix blushed pink and Hyunjin blinked multiple times. "I mean unless you count Jisung out, then yeah all of us are really pretty." You laughed at Hyunjin's statement to which Jisung looked like a furious squirrel.

"Yah Yongbok, Hyunjin are you coming down?" You heard Minho shout from below. "Oh gotta go. Anyways it was nice talking to you noona! I think Minho hyung called the doctor to come in the evening, so you should probably rest up until then. Oh and-" Felix paused for a moment and pulled out a sketchpad from nowhere. "Don't tell Minho I have you this. He told me you like to draw so I sneaked this in here." With that, all of them left you in the room, with a sketchpad, your phone and September's tunes.

You wiled away the hours by drawing the room around you. You tried to draw Hyunjin, Felix, Jisung and Chan too. The house was quiet apart from the voices of whom you assumed was Jeongin and Seungmin talking very loudly. But something was distracting you. That bracelet. The bracelet lying on the bedside drawer. You knew that bracelet very well. It was the bracelet which Doowon had made for you when you were eight or so. And you hadn't ever seen it ever since that night. So what was it doing here? Minho had told you that his cousin and his family don't talk at all, so how was this bracelet here? Was Minho lying? No he wouldn't do that. Yes mortal enemy things but you didn't think this man would be crazy enough to kill. You picked up the bracelet and twirled it in your hands. It was pretty, with gold lining the thing.

You noticed something on one of the biggest pink beads of the bracelet. The bead was... Open? It had a line tracing it as if it was a Pokemon ball, ready to split at any moment to reveal your Pokemon. Curious, you dig your nails into it to open it up. After a few minutes of difficulty (and you almost giving up), you managed to open the ball up. Inside was a tiny piece of folded paper. It was so tiny indeed, that you wondered how someone had managed to fold it. You dug the paper out and unfolded its many layers of folds. This definetly wasn't there when your brother had so lovingly made it for you. The paper was faded, but still looked relatively new. There were some words on it typed out in red, black and blue. The words:.

Yoon Doowon

Birth: September 21, 2005 (Age: Unknown)

Job: Hitman, Ally, Possible heir

Status: Alive

3: Take the weight off his shoulders

'Do you remember 22st night of September? Love was chasing the minds of pretenders all while dancing the night away."

"God boss can you turn that off? It's been playing for an hour now." A stout man, dressed in tight black clothes, which fitted his muscles was sitting spread eagle on a nice blue cushion chair. Sitting in front of him on a much more bigger chair, was a man dressed elaborately in a white mink stole, a pristine white suit, with rings of all colours adorning his fingers, and a big black brooch on a golden chain stuck to his suit. "I won't turn it off until the chorus Brian. You know I love this song don't you? And you shall listen to it until your ears bleed out." Brian groaned and leaned back in his chair. "When is Mr Wang coming?" The man asked Brian. "It's possible he'll be arriving in a few minutes sir. But don't worry. I have intel that he got the job done well and good." "And the little rat? What about her?" Brian shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Well she might have gotten away. Lee's gang was there." The man threw his long hair back and threw off the stole, a frown and a red scar decorating his handsome face.

They were in a large room, an office, but it looked more like a King's throne room, where there were chairs for the ministers and wine glasses all decked with pink fluid. There was no door, but a few handing blue beads, which tinkled every now and then. "How could she have gotten away? Who did you send to kill them?" "I sent our best assassin sir." The man scoffed. "Well, clearly he wasn't the best. Does he have family?" Brian nodded in response to the question. "Good. Kill them." "Of course sir."

The blue beads tinkled as a heavily scarred man came into the room along with two bodyguards. "Mr Wang." The white draped man bowed deeply to Jackson who bowed back, only a bit. "Well well well Doowon. You did good. Your parents are dead. This deserves a toast. Shall we?" Doowon smirked at the man and got a green bottle from underneath the table. "Only the finest whiskey for you Mr Wang." Jackson chuckled coldly, taking a glass from the table and extending it forward to Doowon. "But-" Doowon said as he slowly uncorked the bottle. "I do not wish for your bodyguards to be here. You know how the Lee Family works? Even the most trusted allies can turn into back stabbers when their money is involved. " If Jackson Wang was startled, he didn't show it on his face. Instead he motioned for his guards to leave the room, who followed suit, although with a little uncertainty. Brian also left the room, leaving the two scarred men alone.

"Well then a toast. To me and you. Buisness partners." Doowon raised his glass in unison with Jackson, who drank up the whiskey quickly. "Mr Wang I have something to tell you." Jackson looked up at the younger man and waved his hand as if to say 'go on'. "First of all I just want to thank you for taking me in that night, when everyone thought I was dead. You were so ever so good with your observations to notice that I was only playing dead. And then you trained me and everything so thank you for that. And for telling me the truth about everything." Jackson simply nodded. He felt a sharp jab in his stomach and his head started to stir. Doowon was going out of focus now and in what seemed like a split second, Jackson Wang rolled off of the chair, onto the floor. Dead. "But I wanted to tell you sir." Doowon spoke to the limp body on the floor. "That I would like to take over by myself now. You're getting too old and I don't want you to interfere in my personal matters."

"How do you feel now Y/N? Better?" A pretty older woman was checking up on you. She wore a doctor's coat with the nametag 'Dr Kim' on it. She was Seungmin's aunt, the surgeon who had saved your life. "Well the pain has subsided a bit Dr.Kim. I still feel a bit dizzy every time I move, but I think I'm good now." Dr Kim warmly smiled at you as she checked your heartbeat. "Well in any case, I think you'll be fine by tomorrow. You can even walk around tomorrow if you like. But for now, just get some more sleep. I'll tell Minho and the boys not to disturb you alright?" Dr Kim gently squeezed your hand and packed up her equipment. She spoke to you as if you were her own child, with such delicate words and a comforting voice, something that your mother never gave you. "Um Dr Kim? Could you ask Minho to come up here please? If you don't mind?" "Of course honey! I'll ask him. Take care now." She gently kissed your forehead and went out the door.

"You wanted to see me?" Minho was dressed in a blue shirt, slightly open at the top and white pants. He looked so.... refined. And hot, exactly like a K drama CEO. God damn he looked delicious. Don't lick your lips. Do not lick your fucking lips Y/N. "Yeah I have some questions." Minho groaned as he shut the door and came forward to sit on the bed. "What now?" "Where did you get this bracelet?" You held up the bracelet to Minho, who looked at you, perplexed. "That's my bracelet, for your information. My mother gifted it to me. It's been in my family for centuries." Wait what now? "Minho stop fucking lying would you? My brother gave me this as a surprise gift when I was ten. And it went missing ever since the day he fucking died! So could you please tell me where the fuck you got this? Or I'm getting out of this bed and asking Chan." "Woah there princess." Minho looked at you, worried at your outburst. "Alright don't get out of bed please. I don't want you bleeding out and dying. But I'm telling the truth. This is the bracelet my mother gave me when I was twelve. It's been passed on from generation to generation in the Lee Family. It's a special bracelet, because it has these tiny chits inside the beads, telling the person who opens it who the next leader of, well, underground South Korea is going to be."

Too much information again. Number one, you could not stop staring at Minho's pretty pink lips. Number two, why did the chit inside the bead have your brother's name? And why did it say that he was alive?" "Wh-who puts the chits inside of this?" You asked Minho, carefully hiding the chit inside of your hand. "Well my uncle Wang dies. Jackson's dad. His great great great grandpa was the one who made this bracelet. So he has the right to choose the heir." "Minho I think you need to see this." You handed Minho the faded chit. He looked at it for a solid fifteen seconds before looking at you, blinking rapidly, just like how he does whenever someone surprises him. "Y/N oh fuck. Shit come on get up. Quick. I'll help you." "Wait Minho what? What happened?" You asked Minho as he gently wrapped his arms around your waist, supporting you as you slowly got out the bed, and onto your legs. "Y/N we need to get to a safer place. If- if what this chit says is true, you're in more danger than I thought." "Wait Minho stop. Would you stop for a moment? Minho- Lee Minho!" You shouted his name, which made him stop in his tracks, arms still supporting your waist, even though you could still walk fine. "Would you please explain to me what's going on?" "Come down to the hall." Minho sighed and told you. "The boys, except Chan hyung, don't know either. So I can tell them and you at the same time. It'll be easier won't it?"

You nodded, not saying anything. Your mouth was dry and words were not escaping it. Gosh September was meant to be good. Why was it so full of surprises?

"Yah Minho Hyung! Auntie told noona can't get up until tomorrow." Seungmin said to Minho as both of you cam doen the stairs. All of the boys were pin the living room, immersed in their own work. Seungmin and Jeongin were playing chess and Chan was on his laptop as usual. "Chan hyung. I think I've figured out who the Mink Thief is." Chan's head snapped from his laptop to Minho so fast, that you swore you heard a cracking sound. The other boys' attention was also now on Minho. "Are you joking or are you actually telling the truth right now?" Minho smiled at Chan's words and set you down on the couch next to Changbin gently. "No I am not joking. Look at this." He handed Chan the bracelet and the chit, which Chan twirled in his gorgeous fingers, all the while looking at it as if it was some alien substance. "Oh fucking hell. Not him?" Minho nodded at Chan's exasperated words as Chan slumped in his chair, setting his laptop down on the table. "Can anyone explain what's going on please? Minho hyung?" Felix asked. "Alright bitches-" "language Minho" "Hyung stop being so old. Alright bitches listen up. So first of all let me introduce you to a man named Yoon Doowon, also known to us as The Mink Thief, who has been sending our families threats for a long time, also know to Y/N as her dead brother." "Yah! Rude!" "Anyways, one thing that Chan hyung found out a few days ago is that The Mink Thief has been in contact with my cousin, Jackson, ever since the day of Y/N's brother's murder. Also Y/N," he paused at looked into your eyes. "Whatever I'm about to say next will probably shock you so please don't faint out of surprise." You looked at Minho with the best offended eyes you could.

Minho then continued in a much more serious voice, "Yoon Danbi, Y/N's mom has been a spy for my family ever since I was born. Her and her husband had been placed here in Jeju Island along with their only daughter Yoon Jinhee, for an important mission. But soon, people grew suspicious of how both of them would act all the time, leaving their daughter alone for such long periods of time, coming home late at deadly hours and blah blah blah. So, in order to make their family seem much more 'normal', they took in two children. Choi Doowon and Jeon Y/N." "Minho what the fuck are you saying right now." Why were there so many surprises? Was your entire life a lie? Were you adopted for some stupid mission or something? What kind of Marvel shit was this? "Yeah this is why I said, don't faint out of shock." Minho slightly chuckled as Chan looked at repramandingly. "Look yes it's true your parents aren't your real parents. But the thing is your didn't even have parents. You came straight from the orphanage. So when my family took one look at you, someone with no background information which can be traced, they thought you were perfect for this mission. I mean, think of it Y/N, haven't you ever saw your parents hiding any documents from you or getting afraid when you asked for your birth certificate whenever you needed to register for your basketball games?" Yes, when you thought about it, they did do that.

"Hyung don't you think you should have had this conversation somewhere more private?" Felix looked from your distraught face to Minho's. "We probably should have but I have shit to tell all of you too." Minho said to his younger brother. "When Doowon supposedly died that night, Jackson Wang got a new partner in crime. Doowon was probably still alive. I know that no one can survive a fall like that, but I seriously don't know how he survived. So what I'm assuming from this tiny chit here, is that Jackson probably told Doowon the truth about his true parentage and all, and then like a basic villain, Doowon wanted revenge and now Y/N's life is basically a fantasy novel." "Ain't that right?" You scoffed. "My entire fucking life is a lie. I mean is my name even Y/N? Are we just living in a hallucination? What if all humanity is meant to do is just live our boring lives until a giant space turtle comes along and kills us all?" "That would be a cool way to die." Jisung said, not even a bit surprised by your rambling. "Jisung." Chan looked at Jisung with a glare. "Alright listen up everybody. Now that the sad backstory is out the way, we need to get down to buisness. First of all we need to get Y/N somewhere safe. Well safer. So Y/N, would you be willing to go along with Jisung, Jeongin and Seungmin?" You nodded at Chan, who looked very relieved. "Great. Felix, Hyunjin, would both of you search out if Vernon's mansion is still protected and everything? " Felix and Hyunjin replied 'yes' to Chan and quickly went out the room. "Um noona we should get going. Can you walk by yourself?" Seungmin stood up and extended a hand to you, which you gratefully took and got up. "Yeah I can walk don't worry. Um where are we going?" Seungmin smiled at you, revealing his braces. "Don't worry about that. Just follow me to the car."

Fifteen minutes later, you were sitting in the back of a Bentley with Jisung, with Seungmin driving and Jeongin stared out the window, sitting quietly in the passenger seat. "You're lucky Minho hyung gave us his car noona." Jisung commented. "He never even lets us touch it. But then again, we're with you, so I guess that makes up for it." You looked at Jisung's wavy hair and thought to yourself that how can a sweet boy like him, be Minho's best friend. "Jisung, when you said Minho doesn't stop talking about me to you guys, what exactly does he talk about?" "Oh noona I could write an entire seven book Series about that " Seungmin responded instead of Jisung. "He doesn't ever stop talking about what your favourite song is, or what you wore today or how your hair falls in such a perfect way. And when we tell him to just tell you that he is pathetically in love with you, he sulks and says that he would rather kill himself." Well that was certainly surprising. "Oh we're here." Jeongin said, as the car pulled up to a massive iron gate, which had the letters C, H and V on it. What it was guarding was a massive black mansion, which looked very much like a vampire's lair, covered in vines of ivy with a statue of bat hanging out in the big yard. "Chwe Hansol. Also known as Vernon. This is his mansion. He's a good friend of Chan Hyung's and he lets us use the mansion whenever we want. It's the safest place in Jeju Island so we'll be good here noona." Jisung told you, as you stepped out of the car. The mansion looked so ethereal and as you walked into the yard through the gate, you wondered if this was the mansion which was described in the story of the vampire Carmilla. You lived and breathed for that story and you were excited at the thought of hiding in a place which looked exactly like Carmilla's mansion, where she took the blood of her lover, weeping over her body, and complaining about her death.

The boys pushed open the big dual doors of the mansion with difficulty, but not before Jisung had entered a pass code on the tiny keyboard thing which was on the right side of the door. This was indeed Carmilla's mansion, you thought as you entered the big living room, which was decked from head to toe in gold and silver. There was a magnificent chandelier hanging from the ceiling, along with busts of some vague looking people.

"Gosh this is so pretty." You said to Seungmin, who smiled and said "Wait till you see the ball room." You were about say 'theres a ball room here?' when suddenly the lights went out. "Ah fucking hell. Guys stay here with noona. I'll go and see what's wrong." You heard Jisung's voice. "I don't think you need to do that, my dear Mr.Han." you heard a cold voice, which didn't belong to any of the boys. "Who's ther-" Before Seungmin could finish his sentence, you felt a hit to your head, and you blacked out, before hearing Jisung shout, "Noona!"

"Y/Nnie. Wake up." Doowon said in a sing song voice. The boys were tightly tied up to the chairs, with cello tape around their mouths. You were also tied up to the big blue cushion chair, with Doowon, standing in front of you, wearing a red coat and that mink fur stole. He had three bodyguards with him, all buffer than Changbin, all carrying guns and all looking scary as fuck. "Y/N wake up you stupid bitch." Doowon slapped your face painfully, which made you slightly stir. "Hey don't do that she's injured!" Jisung shouted out, having managed to chew through his cello tape. Doowon looked at Jisung with a sarcastic smile and said nothing, while one of the bodyguards punched Jisung. "Doowon?" You had woken up and the surroundings were appearing more clearly now. Your stomach hurt so much and your brain was still fuzzy, except for your dead brother standing in front of you, smirking. "Oh hey Y/Nnie. You miss me?" He asked you in a cold voice you didn't recognise. Never September. This was not September's child standing in front of you. This wasn't September's child, who used to chase butterflies and gift you cute little stones, standing in front of you. "Doowon you're alive." You managed to cough out some words, along with a bit of blood. "Ahh yes I am. I assume your stupid boyfriend already told you what happened to me. So I'm going to skip over the part where I explain shit to you." He let out a cold laugh which made you flinch. "Doowon this isn't you. What are you doing?" You asked him, tears welling up in your eyes. "This isn't me? No Y/N this is me. I've been lied to my entire life and Jackson Wang told me the truth. He taught me the way to survive in our world. He's dead now by the way. Just like our 'parents'." "Doowon please. Stop this lunacy! Atleast let the boys go they haven't done anything wrong!" Doowon leaned down to your level and lifted your chin with his finger. You shivered at his cold touch. "Aww Y/N. Always so fucking innocent. Baby the boys are leverage. Soon the rest of the boys will be here and then after some introductions, I can finally rule all of South Korea." Your tears had escaped now as you looked over at the boys, who were knocked unconscious by the bodyguards. You felt like the most lowest human being on earth, when you looked at Jeongin's bleeding lip, wondering what Chan's reaction would be when he arrived here. "Brian! Go check if the doors are open please. I want them all to waltz in here and call for these pathetic boys. And then we'll hit them where they don't even know it hurts. Maybe we'll start with this one." He moved over to Jeongin. The man named Brian laughed and winked at Doowon. "I'll get the door sir." He moved out the room swiftly.

Fifteen minutes had passed. Fifteen silent minutes. This was silence which you did not enjoy. Silence was sweet in September, when only the Magpies chirped. But now, as you watched Jeongin and Seungmin slightly stir, silence became bitter. "Is Brian not coming? You!" Doowon shouted at one of the guards. "Go out and see where he is! Does it take this much time for the rascal to come back?" The guard obeyed and made to get up from his seat on a rickety wooden chair. BANG! A bullet shot went through the guards head, and as he slumped to the ground, with a pool of blood around his head, Doowon screamed and grabbed Jisung by his chin. "You! What have you done!" Jisung merely smirked at him as Doowon lay frozen there, staring at the body. "Oh for fucks sake what are both of you doing?" Doowon spat at the two remaining guards. "Go upstairs and check if the rats have entered the house already!" The guards nodded their heads fervently and went off in opposite directions, only to be met with two gunshots. The door burst open, as Minho and the remaining boys barged in.

"Doowon." Minho said coldly to Doowon, who merely smirked, trying to hide the fact that he had peed his pants a bit. "Well you found me didn't you? Good job Minho. You know Mr Wang told me how your family works. So I'm honoured that I'm actually getting to experience a member of the great Lee family trying to kill me." You were disgusted by his words. Where did your sweet Doowon go? Where did the boy whom you had cried for day and night go? "Let the boys and Y/N go. Now Doowon. And we won't have any consequences." Chan said to Doowon. He looked furious. You hadn't ever seen Chan like this. "Oh you can take the boys first and then I'll give you Y/N." Hearing that, Changbin and Hyunjin hurried forward, untied the boys, who were concious by now and supported them on their arms, as they carried them back to safety.

"Now Y/N's turn. Give her back to me Doowon and maybe you won't end up choking on your own blood tonight." Minho's voice made your heart go warm. He had nothing but cold fury in his voice. If you thought you had seen his anger on that one particular basketball match in Busan, you were mistaken.

"Now why would I do that? Sweet little Y/N is all ok tied up to his chair aren't you Y/Nnie?" He pulled your hair and kicked you hard in your stomach, which made you cough out blood. Yep, the stitches in your stomach had probably opened up. Fuck no, not now. Don't die in September. Let me wait for October. October seemed more comforting now. The Magpies had their babies in October. Im October, you could get boba on discount. In October, you could hand out with your friends whenever you want. In October, Minho would turn a year older. Wait how did you know that? Why was this room so fuzzy? Hey Minho's face. His beautiful face. It was going out of focus now. Good way to die isn't it. You hoped death came to you, wrapped in white silk and picked you up in her arms like a baby and put you in a cradle. A cradle painted orange and yellow. A cradle with Magpies on it. A cradle which loved all the months equally. But especially October. Especially October.

"Doowon, stop that! Stop fucking hurting her!" Minho screamed at Doowon. You were blacked out now and as Minho looked at your gently sleeping figure, his heart dropped to the bottom of his stomach. "And what if I don't? What will you do oh great Lee Minho? I have her in my arms and I can do anything I wa-" That was the last thing Minho heard before all he saw was Doowon's dumb face, struck with shock, bullet hole in his big head, blood staining his already red suit and his stupid mentality finally gone from this world. "Good job Minho. Now come on let's get Y/N. Guys get Jisung, Seungmin and Jeongin to the car. We'll get Y/N." Chan told the others, while Minho had already strode over to you. He hurriedly untied the ropes around your arms and legs and got you to his arms, fingers looking for your wrists, to check your pulse. Tears were coming out now. Tears he never knew would come for you. He loved you. So much. So much it was honestly pathetic. The way you scowled everytime you saw him, the way your eyes lit up whenever you got a high test score, the way you cherished December for your birthday, the way you existed. He loved everything about you. And he can't lose you. Not now. Not ever.

"Feeling good kitten?" You had woken up in Minho's house again, with Dr Kim checking your heartbeat and adjusting your blood pump. "Minho." You managed to breath out weakly, making Minho's heart drop again. He was quick to stand up and cup your face in his arms gently as tears poured out of your eyes. "Hey hey hey don't cry." He said so gently, in a tone which he never used with you. "No Y/N. Shh. I've got you. You're safe. You're safe." He hugged you gently, supporting your head with his hands as you silently sobbed into his shirt. Once you pulled away, you noticed that his shirt was wet from all the crying and that his eye bags were more prominent. "Im sorry. I'm so sorry Minho. I-I really didn't know about..... about him and I caused you all this trouble. I am so sorry." "Hey hey princess. Y/N listen to me." You looked into his eyes, which were twinkling into yours. "None of it is your fault. You hear me? None of it. If anything, I should have told you all that I know earlier but I couldn't. Because- because I- I love you Y/N." That was it. That's all it took. That's all it took, for your eyes to widen, your hands to reach up to his jaw and for your lips to meet his, in a slow dance accompanied by the melodies of the Magpies outside, celebrating that you two had finally realised your love for each other. You pulled away after what felt like a very short time, but you were running out of breath. Minho and you stared at each other for a while and then burst into giggles. "That felt nice princess. You sure you haven't kissed anyone before?" You slapped his chest playfully as you said "Yah! Don't make me think back about being your girlfriend Lee Minho." Minho's eyes lit up and he stuttered out "Girlfriend? Yep I'm in a dream someone pinch me." You rolled your eyes as you pinched him and he let out a tiny scream. "Oh stop so dramatic. How long was I out by the way? And are the boys alright?" "You were out for two days now kitten. And the boys are good. Jisung is saying he finally got his 'Wattpad best friend gets kidnapped moment' and I think Chan told Dr Kim to double his dosage of sleeping pills so now he's crashed out. And snoring loudly."

"Noona you're awake!" Felix had come into the room, well more like bounced into the room along with the rest of the boys, Seungmin sporting a cast, and Jeongin having a pink band-aid on his lip. Felix hugged you tightly while Chan hugged Minho. "Lix let her go. She needs to breath." Chan said to Felix, who had been hugging you for a long time now. "Seungmin, Jeongin are you guys ok now? I am literally so sorry." Jeongin smiled at you sweetly, his fox like eyes forming crescents and said, "We're good noona. Technically we should be asking you that question. And it's fine please don't apologise." He bowed a bit to you and as you tried to bow back, whilst sitting, Hyunjin said, to Minho "So hyung. Have you finally got your ass together and asked noona out?" Minho glared at Hyunjin as everyone else in the room laughed. "You will be getting your mouth stuffed tonight Hyunjin. And yes I have asked her out. And now she's my girlfriend." "Yah who said I was your girlfriend?" You jokingly said. "Ok I'm gonna ask Jisung out then." Minho said standing up.

Four years later

You had been living with Minho for four years now, as his live-in Girlfriend. He had introduced you to his parents, who had been nothing less that kind to you. They had first apologized profusely for the whole Doowon incident, to which you told them that you really didn't care. You had Minho with you and all of your past had slowly faded away.

And every year as October and September came, you learnt to cherish ,not the month, but the memories you made every day. You learnt to forever keep memories of you, your boyfriend, your friends and everyone around you. You learnt how to let go of grief easily.

And when Minho proposed to you, on the twenty first night of December, you learnt, you just needed someone a bit older, and a bit colder, to teach you what it meant to love a person like you'd love a month.

[fearthefluff]

Fantasy Romance Recommendations Pt.1

I'm a big fan of Fantasy Romance books but I've noticed that a lot of recommendations lists have the same books over and over again. Nothing against Sarah J Maas, Jennifer Armentrout and Holly Black, but I have read their books already and I'm looking for new suggestions. And thus, I decided to make my own little list (with help from @housebaylor and @shirewalker). Maybe it will help someone somewhere. XD ***Some of the books listed here are not Romance novels officially but all have romance and have HFN or HEA endings Fantasy Romances The Fallen Empire Trilogy by Grace Draven The Kraelian Empire has ruled with an iron fist for centuries, its grip unyielding until the power of three women, and the men devoted to them, break it.

The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden Vasya Petrovna is a young woman gifted with the Sight which allows her to see spirits who inhabits the world. The arrival of Christianity spells trouble for her and the world of the spirits at large. This story has her rebel against her fate as a woman in medieval Russia, go on a great adventure and meet amazing characters.  One of my favourite.

Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher A subversive take on Fairytales! After years of seeing her sisters suffer at the hands of an abusive prince, Marra―the shy, convent-raised, third-born daughter―has finally realized that no one is coming to their rescue. No one, except for Marra herself.

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not.  It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. Celia and Marco's beautiful story of challenges, love and magic. Beautiful haunting magic. Radiance by Grace Draven Two people brought together by the trappings of duty and politics will discover they are destined for each other, even as the powers of a hostile kingdom scheme to tear them apart. The Bird and The Sword by Amy Harmon Magic is forbidden and gifted people are sentenced to death. Lark, a voiceless young woman, has a gift she must keep hidden. The day her mother was killed, she told lark's father she wouldn’t speak again, and she told him if Lark's died, he would die too. Then she predicted the king would trade his soul and lose his son to the sky. A Fate of Wrath and Flame by K.A. Tucker Portal Fantasy! Gifted thief Romeria is transported into another world into the body of a treacherous princess. Romeria is plunged into a startling realm of opposing thrones, warring elven, and elemental magic she cannot begin to fathom. Only read the first book so far Married to Magic Trilogy by Elise Kova Shared Universe, Fantasy Romance, Stand Alone Novels About Young Women and their Unexpected Romances with Magical Men Rhapsodic by Laura Thalassa Callypso Lillis is a siren with a very big problem, one that stretches up her arm and far into her past. For the last seven years she’s been collecting a bracelet of black beads up her wrist, magical IOUs for favors she’s received. Everyone knows that if you need a favor, you go to the Bargainer and everyone knows that sooner or later he always collects. Only read the first book Promise of Darkness by Bec McMaster Princess. Tribute. Sacrifice. Is she the one prophesied to unite two warring Fae courts? Or the one bound to destroy them? If you like S.J.Maas you might like this YA Fantasy Romances Uprooted by Naomi Novik Agnieszka lives in a quiet village bordering a corrupted Wood. Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood. Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik Multiple POVs fairytale Miryem gains a reputation for being able to turn silver into gold. When an ill-advised boast draws the attention of the king of the Staryk--grim fey creatures who seem more ice than flesh--Miryem's fate, and that of two kingdoms, will be forever altered. The Girl who fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh Mina's people believe the Sea God, once their protector, now curses them with death and despair. In an attempt to appease him, each year a beautiful maiden is thrown into the sea to serve as the Sea God’s bride, in the hopes that one day the “true bride” will be chosen and end the suffering. An Enchantment of Raven by Margaret Rogerson With a flick of her paintbrush, Isobel creates stunning portraits for a dangerous set of clients: the fair folk. But when she receives her first royal patron—Rook, the autumn prince—Isobel makes a deadly mistake. She paints mortal sorrow in his eyes, a weakness that could cost him his throne, and even his life. Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson Elisabeth was raised in a magical library where dark magical grimoire are kept. She hopes to become a Warden whos job is protecting the Kingdom from their powers. Then an act of sabotage releases the library’s most dangerous grimoire. Elisabeth’s desperate intervention implicates her in the crime, and she is torn from her home to face justice in the capital. Shielded by Katlynn Flanders Hidden Princess, arranged marriage, yearning! A kingdom ravaged by war, and the princess who might be the key to saving not only those closest to her, but the kingdom itself, if she reveals the very secret that could destroy her. Half a Soul by Olivia Atwater Ever since she was cursed by a faerie, Theodora Ettings has had no sense of fear or embarrassment - a condition which makes her prone to accidental scandal. Dora hopes to be a quiet, sensible wallflower during the London Season - but when the strange, handsome and utterly uncouth Lord Sorcier discovers her condition, she is instead drawn into dangerous and peculiar faerie affairs. A Crown of Wishes by Rosha Chokshi Book 2 of a series. A captured princess and a wise prince team up and to win the Tournament of Wishes, a competition held in a mythical city where the Lord of Wealth promises a wish to the victor. ****Part 2: Urban Fantasy recs to follow.****

[torhues]

oikawa tooru.

the temperature drops low, distant howling of wind singing over the city bringing along light showers as the water droplets settled on your glass window arching all the way up to your ceiling from the floor, a soft hum drew out of oikawa’s mouth as you shuffled under the blankets, his nose burying further in the crook of your neck as a muffled laughter fell off your lips at the tickles, and a warm evening nap never felt so right before this, if that is a thing. 

“we should get up,” you mumble, arms wrapping tighter around him.

he nods, pulling you closer. “yes,”

“we have assignments to submit before midnight,” you close your eyes, wrapping your arms around him tighter, as if any space in between is forbidden. as if any space left could possibly threaten your relationship you try to pull him beyond the closest proximities the two of you could be in. 

you feel his lips brush against your temple. “yes,”

“tooru,” you pull away abruptly, hands on his shoulders before they make their way up to his cheeks, your thumbs rubbing soft circles down his cheeks as you pull him back in once again. “forget it,” 

you swear, you feel him smile against your forehead. 

“see, you want me just as much as I want you,” if you could see him, if you weren’t in his arms with your face buried in his chest, you would find yourself laughing at the triumphant smile on his face. you can picture it, though, quite clearly. in your seven months of relationship with oikawa, you know the curve his lips follow when he’s the happiest, or the way he morph into the prettiest smile in the world when he gets to hold you close, or the mischievous grin that dances on his face when you surrender, giving into his tactics of having you close to him. 

and you haven’t known him for any longer than eight months, for you started dating only thirty days after your fated meeting at orientation session. you still haven’t met his friends from highschool, the ones he adores to death and the ones who would love you as soon as they meet you. you didn’t know about his allergies up until two months ago, and you didn’t know he preferred hot chocolates over coffee and tea. it’s fine, he told you when you talked about how little you know of him, and it’s fine, you say right now, because you know the way he breathes, the way his footsteps sound, the way he smells like home. you don’t mind not knowing anything else about him right now because you feel like if he were to meet you with a face you had never seen, with a voice you have never heard before, you would recognize him right away. 

because your heart knows the rhythm his heart beats, and because every pulse echoes of him and you. 

“you should scoot closer because i’m cold,” his words get lost amidst your hair, hands pulling you closer and closer that one more pull and you’ll be on top of him, and it still wouldn’t be close enough. 

“this is the closest we can be, and—” you snicker as if you weren’t trying to do the same a few moments ago, and it’s funny how none of you want to show how deeply in love you are, yet still desperately yearning for each other as if you both are fragments of a single soul living as two. “i’m trying to get out of bed here,” 

a pause. 

oikawa takes his time admiring you, looking at you in the most lovesick way ever, as if, if lovesick was a person, it would be him. and evenings like this make you feel like time has ceased to exist because you find yourself in his arms at all the times, without change. it feels like the universe is offering you your share of fairytales and forevers because it was long due, and even if the world ends tomorrow, or even the next minute, because you wouldn’t have any regrets, for you’d be dying in the arms of your lovers, desperately happy and impossibly deep in love. 

“we should get married,” your eyes widen and his’ mirror the same expression closely, as if he didn’t expect himself to say those words like this, but there couldn’t have been a better timing. oikawa has always been a hopeless romantic, all about love and nothing about giving up. he has had his fair share of relationships, he has seen things, been through highs and lows that they offer, he has spilled tears on his pillows, has been the reason behind someone’s heartbreak and perhaps, his’ too, but oikawa has loved once. 

oikawa had first fallen in love when you spent your night listening to him talk about his likes and dislikes and if they were your own. the second time was when you cradled him in your arms when he lost an important game, crying on his shoulders as if it was a shared loss. the third time was when you told him i love you, and oikawa hasn’t stopped falling in love ever since. 

“ha-ha, funny,” your lips curve into a smile, much flattered at his proposal.

“i’m not kidding,” his hand ghosts up your waist. “i think we should get married, really,” for a second, you consider his words— to marry oikawa, because it sounds extravagant and everything that you could ever ask for right now. in those fractions of a second, you picture your married life with him, living in the same apartment, ever so close that you would no longer have to go over to each other’s places anymore, cooking together, cuddling on the sofa while watching movies, perhaps a mini him and you toddling around— a fraction of a second, and you go all the way from present to future, all the way from being afraid to commit to being knee deep in commitments with no seemingly no regrets. 

all the way from laughing at his words to actually considering them.   

“and we’re what? nineteen? yet to graduate from university and get a job?” there’s nervousness seeping through his skin from your fingertips, it’s in the way your eyes look at him with fear and hope. “we can’t get married now,” 

“i never said we have to get married now,” and his lips against yours is all you needed to snap back into reality. “i just said we should get married, be it five years later, or ten, or whenever you want,” because oikawa makes love feel like a fairytale, ever so magical and unreal that after a point, you forget how to distinguish between dreams and reality. your heart is so full of him that you can barely call it yours. as if the right person at the wrong time isn’t even something that exists because oikawa is your right person, and wrong time doesn’t make sense because every second with him feels so right. 

“and, what if i don’t want to marry you?” he doesn’t answer your question, not in words, not because he doesn’t have anything to say but because he’s thinking of something big, and before you could clarify that it was a joke, oikawa slips out his ring, the one that he got on your birthday, with its other half in your finger; and he takes your hand, slipping the ring into your finger. 

“what was that for?” 

“it’s for tell you that we’re now engaged so you cannot marry someone else,” and maybe, it’s easier for him to say it so simply, with smiles that resonate with silly intentions

so, you take out your ring and slip it into his finger, a chuckle falling off his lips when it doesn’t go all the way down because of its smaller diameter, though you could care less. “and this is for telling you that choosing someone else isn’t even an option when i have you,” because falling in love with oikawa is a process, like a trust fall into a bottomless pit with no fears because he is standing at the bottom, arms wide open. 

[i-have-dots-in-my-brain]

HETALIA NEIGHBORHOOD AU :)

I WANNA EXPAND ON THIS YES

alfred has been chased by the cops for 1: settign the forest on fire several times and 2: using a lawnmower to travel on the open roads.

francis and arthur have a rivalry where whey see who can roast each other better. they stick their heads out of their oppsoing windows and point out the other's flaws, they'vre gotten so many noise complaints for this lol)

the only way that the neighborhood knows that kiku is still alive is that every week yao drops off some fresh groceries at his door and immediately an arm pushes the door open, grabs the groceries and then dissapears back into the void.

yao orgsnises like all of events and cooks for all of them.

roderick is playing his piano at like 3 am just to freak out gilbert and alfred.

gilbert helps decorate for like all the events.

arthur has a massive garden of flowers and francis keeps stealing his roses.

alfred is one of the only neighbors that go into ivan's house and come out alive.

ivan is the chillest neighbor and will tell the neighborhood kids fairytales if they hsve the guts to talk to him (the kids who have experienced this arent scared of him anymore)

ludwig's crazy dogs are actually pretty chill.

feliciano makes a pizza for every new neighbor who moves in.

romano grows tomatos and will beat you with a broom if you steal any one of them.

alfred likes to feed the birds.

we're pretty sure alfred hasn't committed any federal crimes.

matthew lives next to kiku and just has a polar bear that the neighborhood just accepted.

matthew has ridden a moose home don't ask questions.

alfred and matthew are like the cool uncles of halloween .

matthew's house is the place you want to go to if you wanna talk about feelings.

jack just calmly takes his tarantula on a walk sometimes.

SHIP NOTES : RUSAME, FRUK, PRUCAN, SUFIN, GERITA

alfred and ivan live in the same house and have a sign on the door that says ivan and al's house :)

alfred and ivan just walked out their house with wedding rings on their fingers and the neighborhood has learned not to ask questions about that.

whenever arthur has a party francis cooks.

sweden and finland's is the house universally known as the Clubhouse bc's of all of the playdates sealand has had there (sealand's their adopted kid)

ludwig and feliciano (married) live together and the neighborhood kids comeover for feliciano's pizza and to pet ludwig's dogs.

gilbert and matthew live together and hold a sledding race during the winter together. matthew almost always wins (sweden)

KIDS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD INCLUDE :

alaska (alexei) and hawaii (alana) (human names ) rusame kids (go by nicknames : alex and lana)

peter (sealand) (sufin)

emil (iceland) (sufin)

monica (gerita kid)

YAO'S LITTLE SIBLINGS/ COUSINS:

leon wang (hk)

macau (chen wang)

 Lien wang (Nguyen)

FULL NAMES :

arthur kirkland

francis bonneyfoy

yao wang

kiku honda (wang) (little brother to yao)

Berwald Oxenstierna (sweden)

Tino Väinämöinen (finland)

gilbert beilschimidt

ludwig vargas (beilschimidt) (bros with gilbert lol)

feliciano vargas

romano vargas

matthew williams

ivan braginski jones

alfred f braginski jones

roderich edelstein?? (not sure if thats his last name)

[octoooo]

Actually now that I’ve finished Sailor Moon (90s) I can finally talk about Usagi & Mamoru.

I don’t like them together.

And I’m not sorry about it.

Their 90s relationship feels like a fairytale love story born out of obligation to their past lives & not real feelings. That’s how it came off at least.

Keep in mind how I mentioned 90s specifically, this ain’t about the manga or Crystal.

Now maybe I’m smoking crack or I simply forgot, but,,didn’t they dislike each other for the longest time? Throughout Season 1 at least, Before either of them realized they fight together as Sailor Guardian & Tuxedo Mask I mean. Usagi hated Mamoru especially when he called her “Bun Head.”

And Mamoru seemed teasing sure, but not romantically interested from their meetings on the street. Usagi was crushing on Tuxedo Mask, but she actively hoped that Mamoru wasn’t him.

And then they learned of their past relationship as Princess Serenity & Prince Endymion and?? Now it’s like “oh let’s be together! I think we’re meant to be!” It’s just,,it felt like obligation to me.

Idk maybe they fell in love off screen but like,,,why couldn’t we see it? Isn’t this their story? Shouldn’t we see the main lovers actually develop so I can feel something for them?

I cheered when Mamoru broke up with Usagi, I was like genuinely happy about that lol.

Also the 90s fucked up their age gap. Mamoru is now a college student (no given age) & Usagi is still 14 (eventually 15 in season 2 I think then 16 by the end) but like??

Kinda odd it went down like that y’know? I dunno about you but I hear “college student” and “middle schooler” I’m 💀

I’ve seen speculation that 90s Mamoru is 16 like his manga counterpart but he’s just really smart & went to college early.

Okay

Not impossible I guess,

But we don’t really have any information to assume that? In canon at least, maybe the animators came out and said something about it that I’m not aware of.

I can use Ami as a reference.

Because she’s in Usagi’s grade she’s also 14-16 and We KNOW she’s smart. She’s always top of her class & getting perfect scores, She spends her free time studying & was even offered a spot in a foreign university. She’s the smart one, it’s beaten over our heads numerous times. When she has conversations with Mamoru about topics outside her friend’s knowledge it only benefits her. Those scenes don’t do anything to show “oh Mamoru is really super duper smart to know all of this,” like it does for Ami. As an eighth grader, she wouldn’t be expected to know much about the topics Mamoru’s interested in, but she DOES because she’s SMART & we’re told this all the time.

Mamoru though?? We’re told he’s a college student. So we are to assume he just,,has to/wants to know this, meaning he IS smart. But he’s not extraordinarily smart like Ami, so I don’t think I can’t believe he’s a 16yr old who went straight to college.

Seiya & Usagi had a more developed relationship tbh.

Like, Seiya starts off not really caring for Usagi but then they like her enough to be friends, and eventually develop romantic feelings for her. Also, from their perspective Mamoru is a shitty guy so ofc he wouldn’t want Usagi to be with him. Like, as long as Seiya had known Usagi, she had cried over her “botfriend” and had absolutely zero contact with the guy. Of course they eventually learn it was because of the Shadow Galaxia but before learning that, Usagi seems hung up on some guy who does not feel the same for her, and Seiya is RIGHT THERE and they’re SO devoted.

Also Seiya didn’t want Usagi to be Sailor Moon, because that would mean that Usagi might be their enemy (can’t be beefing with the love interest now can you?) even after learning that, Seiya went to many great lengths where their affection showed through clear as day. I mean, the amount of times they took a hit for Sailor Moon or cradled her to protect her,,,,

Of course they would never end up together. Usagi was very clear about not wanting to be with anyone but Mamoru, yet Seiya kept pushing Which is yikes. But at least I got to see actual romance ? Got to see romantic feelings for Usagi from someone who genuinely cared. I can tell Usagi loves Mamoru (I think) but Mamoru is like,,,,so stiff with her. He protects her because he has to, like the other Guardians, it doesn’t feel born out of love line Seiya’s protectiveness.

Siiigh anyway I’m ready to be eaten alive by UsaMamo fans. Keep in mind this only covers the 90s anime, I have no idea how they are in the manga or Crystal as I haven’t seen much of it yet. I’ve heard it’s better in them, but I don’t wanna get my hopes up.

[phanfictioncatalogue]

Medieval AU Masterlist

A Game of Life (ao3) - Koolhotsweetloveberries

Summary: Daniel Howell, an honorable member of the King's Knighthood, does not expect much from his time at court. All changes when the court jester, Philip Lester, enters.

Bardic Inspiration (ao3) - dickiegreenleaf

Summary: Dan is a travelling bard looking for a safe place for him and his beloved horse to spend the night. Thankfully, the local tavern owner, Phil, can offer him one.

Come along (ao3) - ottertrashpalace

Summary: In medieval England, a young knight rides north, sent to serve at the court of the quiet young Duke of Lancaster.

Criminal (wattpad) - worriedpeach

Summary: Medieval AU. Daniel Howell is a nonviolent sweetheart who adores his mother and sister, living peacefully until the day the Marcella Kingdom guards show up in his home, telling him he has murdered a citizen. His penalty? Death. But that is interrupted by a supposedly extinct creature, leading the infamous criminal, Philip Lester, to save him

Forbidden (ao3) - ohhowellno

Summary: Prince Daniel is preparing to become the king it all changes when he meets a kitchen servant named Phil. As they fall in love they realize that it may not be as easy for them to be together as they thought.

Gods, Men, Kings. (ao3) - metal_arm_metal_shield

Summary: Prince Daniel had grown up in a palace; surrounded by wealth, with a life of glory laid before him

He had never known want.

Until his eyes beheld Philip.

He could have everything he ever wanted, except for him.

i fall for the same face every time (ao3) - zsunsetz

Summary: In every universe, in every lifetime, in every world, he promises that he will love him.

Kiss From a Rose (ao3) - Nefertiti1052 (Succubusphan)

Summary: Phil is a hawker trading from town to town and looking for an adventure, but when he is caught out in a storm, a beautiful stranger becomes his only hope.

Legends of the Light of Heart (ao3) - serendipnpipity

Summary: Once upon a time, when the land was still ruled by kings and queens, there lived a young prince named Daniel, heir to a dying land...

names of collision in the dark (ao3) - Anonymous

Summary: Of enemy kingdoms, Prince Dan and Prince Phil meet one fateful night, leading to a surprising friendship that evolves into something more. As the looming threat of a major battle grows stronger, both princes grapple with their roles and the burdens of leadership, all while their growing bond forces them to confront their own kingdoms’ expectations and the possibility of peace in the chaos.

(aka the dan and phil royal au fic they wrote for the gaming channel but taken seriously)

October 19, 1209 (ao3) - yikesola

Summary: Phil had almost made it into town and was starting to feel relief. He had met no trouble, no roving bands, nothing to pull him from his way, for the nearly 20 mile journey from his parent’s village to Manchester.

A fic about bravery and wants.

of damsels, knights, and fairytale endings (ao3) - artbabe

Summary: Phil is a shy baker's apprentice in a little village that is quartering knights on their way to a great battle. He catches the eye of Sir Howell, a handsome knight whom he may never see again.

Outlawed (ao3) - aphroditegf

Summary: Desperate to prove himself as a knight, Sir Phil Lester captures a criminal he finds at the scene of a burning village, and tasks himself with taking this mysterious outlaw Dan to the capital.

Prince... oh my prince (ao3) - ReallyPham

Summary: Rich girls don't marry poor boys.

But can rich boys marry poor boys?

Royal Love (wattpad) - PhanOnIce

Summary: Taking place in Medieval Times, Prince Daniel falls in love with his servant Philip and is determined to make their relationship work.

the ladyknight dan fic (ao3) - baroquen

Summary: It's 1138, and Civil War is stirring in England. In the North, rumors of a Scottish invasion have begun to spread. Dan is a knight whose disguise as a man has recently fallen to pieces. Phil is the odd daughter of a country lord. They fall in love. This is a story about some of those things.

thought of you often (ao3) - jestbee

Summary: On Daniel's twenty first birthday, a man walks into his banquet hall that he hasn't seen in years.

[armpirate]

Kalla | Choi San || Chapter 20

MASTERLIST Previous || Next

Pairings: CEO!San x fem!reader

Genre: smut, angst, fluff, strangers to lovers.

Warnings: dom!San, sub!reader, voyeourism, use of sex toys, bondage, dirty talk, BDSM, exhibitionism, rough sex.

Summary: She was surprised by how fast her life went from the perfect fairytale to the destructive mess it had turned into. Dealing with a cheater ex boyfriend, having to move out to a different place because the house she lived in belonged to that man she once dreamed of spending the rest of her life with, while continuously being underappreciated at work... It was as if life was telling her to stop dreaming big, to go back to her small town, Bibury, and help her parents run the small farm her family had owned for decades.

At least until she received a call from her friend.

A sudden vacancy as an assistant showed up on one of her friend's system, having her being encouraged to take that big step and apply for it. She had no hopes for it. Mainly because she didn't have any experience on the field, and she didn't comply with most of the requirements that were added on the offer -and which most of them sounded ridiculous and exaggerated for the position, making her wonder who was the freak who needed so many guidelines in order to hire someone to pick up the phone and schedule events. 

Although that hotel she'd be working on was much more than anything she could've come up with. 

Choi San wasn't someone easy to deal with. After his previous assistant presented his resignation letter on his desk, he felt forced to start the whole selection process again -after merely two months. 

Sure that he was being way too strict, enough to find that anyone who applied for the position wasn't enough, he asked one of his friends to be in charge of the interviews and the selection of the most adequate candidate. 

Little did he know Wooyoung would hire the imperfectly perfect candidate for him, sure that she'd help him in many ways other than just in dealing with the responsibilities of his position. 

A new challenge will come their way as soon as she steps inside the hotel. 

Y/n will have to learn how to mold onto him and deal with all his small habits and requirements, and San will find himself trying to open up and let out all those same things that turned him into the person he was. 

The more she digs in Kalla and all of its secrets and exciting corners, the deeper she'll dive into San's heart and soul... Although, maybe, she won't be able to take it. 

Kalla opens its doors to you, sharing the vast amount of filthy and erotic plans it offers, and that you can join with a partner... Or maybe just by yourself. 

Hope you enjoy your stay.

Chapter duration: 17 minutes

Her blood froze when seeing Mingi and Seonghwa standing next to each other while they looked at them with their mouths open. San could only sigh, while closing his eyes in the most pissed off way he could, while Y/n tried to explain the situation with the dumbest excuse she could -although she only ended up moving her lips without making a sound, because no ideas came up to back them up.

—Hey, Hwa —she greeted her roommate—. Min... Mingi? —she squinted her eyes, pretending not to recognize him— Wow, is it you? I really... didn't... Wow, what are you doing here?

—We just finished having dinner at the place next door. Mingi was asking for some good bulgogi —Seonghwa explained.

—Yeah. We were hanging out and I was hungry. What about you? And, um, San?

That smirk... The little he had known him, San knew it meant bad news.

—Do you know him? —Seonghwa asked in a whisper.

—He's our boss —he explained.

—Oh... oh —his eyes opened wide at the realization—. This is an interesting development.

Y/n had to fight the urge to face palm herself, at the same time she got ready to fight the universe for involving her in such a weird situation.

—We went out for dinner. It's been a long day—San answered, poking his hands inside his pockets while his face moved up—. We just wanted to discuss some issues.

—Looks like it ended on a good note —Seonghwa mumbled, keeping his giggles low.

—It was a rough day, and it ended on a nice evening —Y/n explained—. We just ran into each other right after work.

—I had no idea you two were seeing each other —Mingi's head tilted at the contradiction—. Well, I knew. But I thought I was making shit up.

—It's... not exactly like that —San rushed to explain, clearing his throat—. We were just enjoying each other's company.

—Seems like you were enjoying it quite a bit —Seonghwa teased again.

Trying to stop him from making another comment, she gave him a playful shove. She could almost see San's desperation building up with each comment he made.

—Alright, that's enough teasing for one night. We'll catch up later, okay?

—No, we'll catch up right after you kiss again to say goodbye —Seonghwa answered.

—Yeah, and I'm definitely staying a bit more —Mingi assured her, walking next to their common friend.

Y/n just wanted to throw something at them by the way they keep giggling while looking at them, acting as if they were teenagers catching two people from the same class holding hands.

—I'm starting to think I was too soft with him the other day —San mumbled, tilting his head.

Although there was something positive behind all that teasing, and behind being caught: at least he knew Mingi would stay out of his way when it came to Y/n. At least it worked to leave clear something he wasn't able to admit through words, and even less in the workplace.

—Yeah, I'll have to agree —she twisted her lips, finally smiling when her eyes fell back on him—. Thanks for tonight.

—Thank you for tonight —he rushed to turn it upside down.

Y/n was the one who dragged him out of the office, and the one who cheered him up when he needed it the most. He was most definitely the one who was thankful for her.

Just as he stepped away after bowing for one last time with a bread smile that showed off his dimples, a figure emerged from the shadows, walking with purpose towards Y/n was soon as she was alone.

Her smile suddenly dropped, and her heart sank when she recognized the figure approaching her from afar. It was the first time she had seen such a dark and angry expression on Andy.

—What the hell is going on here?

—Excuse me? —she lifted her eyebrows, parting her lips surprised.

—Are you fucking someone else?

—You really have the balls to confront me about starting my life after breaking up, when you didn't even wait to end things with me to get someone in our bed —she barked back.

—Is he the reason why you don't want to come back? —he approached her— We've been together for four fucking years.

—Four years that you ruined —she squinted her eyes—. Can you leave? Or do I have to call the police?

—We've just broken up and you're already screwing someone else?

Her eyes rolled at that question. He for sure did sound like a broken record, replaying his only argument to get back at her for something that she didn't do wrong.

—Andy, I really don't have the energy to do this right now —she calmly said.

As soon as she attempted to leave, his hand wrapped around her elbow to stop her, forcing her to turn back to him.

—Y/n, babe. Let's talk. I messed it up...

—Shit you did —she tried to let go—. Get off me.

—Is he better than me?

That question almost made her cackle on his face. Was San better than him? She didn't even need longer than three seconds for the answer to come through her head with all the valid reasons. In a matter of a few hours, he had her desperately begging to reach her high, while with Andrew the closest she got to that was when he finally learned where her clit was. And, leaving sex aside, San at least made things clear for her since the very beginning. It was unbelievable how she perceived more loyalty from him than a person she shared her life with for four years.

—To the point of acting like a slut for a ching chong's tiny dick?

She looked at him fast, unable to believe he had just said that. Andrew had a long history of being an asshole as soon as he felt annoyed or cornered, but never to the point of slut shaming her and using a slur to defend himself.

—At least I know how to use it —she heard San's voice next to her—. It's a bit sad you have to use dick sizes and ethnicities to make a point though.

San got on his car, looking through his phone to make sure there were no pending messages or emails he forgot to work on while spending some time with Y/n, only to glance one last time where she supposedly was -just to confirm she finally got inside her place- and find her being bothered by the same man who flew kilometers away just to be a pain in the ass for her

Andy smirked, letting out a light scoff before he let go of her arm, able to confront the taller man ahead of him.

—She's my girlfriend —Andy reminded him.

—No, she's not —he sighed—. That's why she doesn't owe you any explanations —San stepped closer to him—. And if I hear you disrespecting her that way again, I'll make sure to break your jaw so you think twice before you speak. Did I make myself understood?

—So this is why you've been ignoring me? —Andy scoffed, turning to her again— For this Jackie Chan?

San's eyes narrowed, his protective instincts kicking in when he went back to addressing her. He stepped beside Y/n, meeting Andy's glare head-on.

—She asked you to leave. I suggest you listen to her and stop talking to her.

—And who the hell are you to tell me what to do? This is between me and her —he confronted San again.

—Andy, please. Just go —Y/n tried to convince him, looking at him over San's shoulder.

But instead of stepping back, he went on with his act, his fists clenched on his sides. San moved in front of Y/n, hiding her body behind his back even more, his posture calm but ready.

—She doesn't want to talk to you. Respect that and walk away.

—You think you can just swoop in and take what's mine?

His hand moved fast against San, having Y/n covering her eyes with both of her hands while she waited for the collison, but her boss moved faster. His hand trapped Andy's wrist, twisting his arm easily.

—She's not an object. She's a person, and she's made her choice.

—You don't know anything about us!

—I know you're a pathetic loser, who took advantage of someone's trust and love and now you're crawling back because no one wants to be with you after seeing the scumbag you are —abruptly, he let go of his wrist, almost making Andy stumble.

He was cold and serious, making sure her ex-boyfriend knew he meant what he was saying. He wasn't going to hear any person disrespect someone else, and get away with it so easily.

Before San could react, Andy threw a punch, hitting San square in the jaw. San staggered back, his hand instinctively going to his face. Y/n gasped, stepping forward to place herself between the two men.

Among all the insanity, their eyes instantly met when San turned to her to make sure she was alright. Her heart squeezed again after a second, when Andrew moved again, taking the chance as soon as San was distracted to land a fist on his jaw before he could completely turn to her.

—Andrew, stop! This is insane!

San straightened up, wiping a small trickle of blood from his lip. He looked at Andy, with eyes filled with determination rather than anger.

—I'm not going to fight you —he shrugged.

—Stay out of this, man —breathing heavily, his anger was still simmering—. This is between me and her.

—No. There's nothing to fucking discuss between us —she let out frustrated—. You need to leave. Now. Get on the first plane to London and get off my fucking face.

Andy looked at her, his face a mixture of anger and hurt, nodding at her words while his tongue poked his cheek. He took a step back, his eyes flicking between San and Y/n as if he was hesitating for the next move.

—This isn't over —he threatened, lowering his voice—. And you... you're going to regret this —he pointed at San.

Her breath was shaky, yet her first reaction was turning to San to check on his face after her ex boyfriend punched him.

—Are you okay? —her knees were slightly flexed, trying to see something from a different perspective—. I'm so sorry he did that.

His jaw twisted, allowing him to feel pain exactly where Andy punched him.

—I'm fine. It's just a bruise. Are you alright?

His eyes were so intimidating, yet so protective at the same time, that Y/n's stare went blank while she could only nod.

—I'm okay —she managed to say after getting back to herself—. I'm just... I'm so sorry you got involved in this.

—It's not your fault your boyfriend is crazy.

They stood in the quiet street, the intensity of the moment gradually fading. While she looked at him, gratitude grew deeper in her eyes.

—Thank you, San. For everything.

—You don't have to thank me. I'd do it again in a heartbeat —he assured her.

His heartbeat turned faster when she stepped even closer, looking deeper into the small red mark on the right side of his face, unconsciously making him move back.

—You should get some ice on that bruise —her tongue clicked after that sentence—. Come up, I'll get you something for it.

—It's okay. I'll take care of it back at home.

But Y/n didn't let him insist for much longer, dedicating one death glare at him.

—You need to put ice on it before it gets worse. And you'll probably forget when you get home —she insisted.

—Okay, okay. II guess I can go up and put some ice on it before I leave.

San smiled to himself as soon as she turned around to guide him, appreciating her concern. Their fingers were intertwined as they entered her apartment building together, with him just letting her take him whenever she pleased.

—Come on in. Let's get some ice for that bruise —she guided him, stepping inside her apartment after typing the passcode.

As they took off their shoes to walk around the house without them, they both could hear the cackles in the living room.

—Hey, Y/n. Can you ask your boss to give me a free room for next weekend? I'll be needing a good time off.

Seonghwa's voice slowly turned lower as he was aware of the taller man that was walking right behind Y/n, bowing again to the two men already inside the house.

—Well, well, well. Look who's back. And with a battle scar, no less —Mingi let out with a smirk.

—What happened? Did you two have a wild night out? —Seonghwa gasped dramatically— I swear, we only left you alone for five minutes. Have some decorum.

—Very funny —Y/n rolled her eyes—. Andy showed up again and things got... tense.

—Again? —he asked, clearly worried.

—Tense? Looks like San here got a souvenir —Mingi joked again.

He was certainly having the time of his life that night.

—Just a minor disagreement. Nothing to worry about —he tried to ease up the situation.

—A disagreement with fists, apparently. You really know how to show a girl a good time, San —Mingi winked at him.

—Alright, enough with the jokes.

—You know, it's kind of romantic in a weird way —Mingi continued—. The knight in shining armor comes to the rescue and gets a bruise for his trouble.

—I can see it now —Seonghwa played along—. Modern Love Story. How a Punch led to Romance.

—So, San, does this mean you're her official bodyguard now? Or is this just a one-time deal? —her head threw back at Mingi's comment.

—Mingi, seriously, give him a break —Y/n groaned.

—Sorry, this is just too funny to let it slide.

—You know what else is funny? —San answered immediately after— I'll still be your boss tomorrow —he was the one smiling funny then, while Mingi's expression turned a bit more serious.

Ignoring Mingi's change in attitude, Seonghwa looked at Y/n again.

—Was it your ex boyfriend again? Shall we call the police?

—I'm sure he'll give up after what happened tonight —she shrugged. 

—And if he doesn't? You come and go alone all the time. You got away today because San was with you, but in any other circumstance...

—Hwa, let's leave it there —she interrupted him—. Do we have ice?

—Yeah, in the freezer —he murmured, pointing to the kitchen.

She headed to the kitchen, rummaging through the freezer for an ice pack, while San stood waiting in the middle of the living room, with both Mingi and Seonghwa eyeing him up and down from the couch.

—Let's go for a towel, and go to my room —she suggested when she joined him again.

With a nod, San just let her lead the way, walking in front of him while glancing a warning look at her friends so they wouldn't let out a comment.

—I'll go for a towel —she announced to him, leaving the ice pack over her bed—. You can wait here.

He could've just left, insisting that he wanted to go home, but he didn't want to. He wanted to roam around her room, eye up some of the small details that screamed that room was hers, while letting that stupid smile show up in his face again.

Messy. Not only for some of the accessories she didn't manage to take with her, but how some books on her shelves were piled one over the other, while some were placed vertically.

Familiar. She had a fair amount of pictures over one of the shelves, under the wrongly placed books. Some with two older people, that he thought would be her parents, that also appeared in some other pictures with a younger couple and a kid Y/n was carrying, and another one hugging to her leg. He also saw several pictures with some other women around her age, which he assumed were her friends back in London.

He couldn't help but smile at how bright and happy she looked in each one of those pictures.

Loyal. He managed to spot one picture where she appeared with one of those women again, and Y/n looked way younger, probably from high school.

San had to highlight the familiar adjective when he spotted a drawing, probably from one of the kids she appeared in the picture with.

Athlete and creative. Lower on the rack, he spotted some skating medals, and next to it a diploma that congratulated her position in an annual craft workshop.

—Spotted anything interesting? —she teased him, stepping back inside the room.

—I did, actually —he nodded—. A gold medalist?

—That was like... —her eyes went to the back of her head, trying to remember how long it had been— six years ago. I had a pretty awful injury, and had to retire.

San's hand moved away from the medal, and his playful smile dropped when she mentioned that. He suddenly felt bad for even asking about it.

—That's awful.

—Not really —she shrugged—. Fortunately, it was before I could even think of dedicating fully to it. It was tough, but it could've been worse.

—Have you ever skated since then? —he wondered, stepping towards her.

—Hmm no. I even threw away my ice skates —after wrapping the towel around the ice pack, she motioned him to sit on the edge of the table—. Some things are better off in the past —she mumbled.

His eyes turned soft with her words and her sad expression, completely omitting how cold the towel felt on his jaw as she pressed it against him.

—What? —she giggled, avoiding his eyes to focus on his lips and how they slightly curved up.

—Nothing.

But he kept looking at her, admiring each one of her features while all of her attention was on him. It surprised him how he was able to recognize she wanted to speak by the way she bit her lower lip.

—That hotel was always your plan A? —she asked, trying to follow the flow of the conversation.

San couldn't remember what his main plan was before he threw himself on a flight to the United Kingdom. He spent so much time thinking how it'd be to see his mother, that he completely forgot about himself.

—In a sense, I guess it was —he grinned.

—How did you come up with that idea?

—I have a pretty good imagination —he smirked, winking at her.

Y/n could only roll her eyes, before a chuckle left her lips.

—Have you just rolled your eyes at me?

—Yeah, so? —her lips puckered, while she bent forward to leave their lips centimeters away— What are you going to do about it?

—I bet you'd love for me to tie you up again, with your ass up in the air this time, to fulfill that fantasy of me spanking it raw —her thick gulped was the affirmation he needed—. Kitten, too many emotions for today —his fingers pinched her chin—. Take it easy. Besides, I'll rather go for a better punishment.

—You aren't going to tell me which one?

—And give you time to prepare for it? Nope.

His lips trapped her in a short yet possessive kiss, before San got up from the bed.

—See you tomorrow —one last kiss was laid on her forehead, before he made the difficult decision of leaving her place.

Despite the events of the night, it was the first time he was going back home while fighting a smile from forming on his face. Y/n just made everything way too easy, their connection was insane, and the sexual attraction between them was off the charts.

He was sure there was nothing that ruin his day. Although, obviously, he underestimated the power his father had, and how easy it was for him to make his mood change in a matter of seconds.

The happy sound from his door as he opened it was only a mask of what was awaiting for him inside: his father sitting on his couch, looking at his phone, while one leg was crossed over the other.

—I heard you had some trouble today. Thought I'd come see the damage for myself.

San felt a mix of anger and exhaustion wash over him. His father and his comments were the last thing he needed that night.

—You heard? How? You have people spying on me now? —San asked, remaining calm as he stepped inside the house after taking off his shoes.

—Word gets around —his father snorted—. You can't expect to get punched in the face without people talking.

San's eyes narrow, his frustration boiling over.

—I'm wondering when it became your business.

—When you start getting into fights and causing scenes.

San's jaw tightened, his anger bubbling to the surface.

—You're one to talk about causing scenes... Do I have to remind you why you're lonely? Why mom left you?

—Don't you dare bring your mother into this —his father's eyes flashed with anger—. She's gone, and it's because she was too selfish to think about us.

—No. She left because you drove her away with your constant criticism and control. And now you're trying to do the same to me.

—I'm trying to make sure you don't ruin everything we have left —he got up to face his son, his posture rigid—. You think it's easy keeping this family together?

—Keeping this family together? you? —San's frustration was reaching its peak— You've done nothing but tear it apart. I'm the one who's been paying the bills, covering your debts, and making sure we have a roof over our heads. You've done nothing but drag me down.

—Watch your mouth, San. You have no idea what you're talking about.

—I know exactly what I'm talking about. I've been carrying you ever since Mom left —he sighed.

—That's everything I am, right? A burden.

There he was coming with the victim card.

—Cut the show. What do you want? Why are you here? Because I doubt knowing your son got punched had you rushing to visit me.

—I only came here to spend some time with you, and make sure you're okay —he shook his head—. And all I get in exchange is getting treated like shit.

—Just say you have nowhere to stay tonight —San cut him off.

—I won't tolerate you insulting me, I won't allow this from you.

San couldn't help but roll his eyes at the way his father dramatically made his way out of his house, knowing damn well he was the only one regretting getting out of that house that night.

That'd never change. It was as if his father had a radar to know when he was doing alright to show up and ruin his mood. 

Taglist: @brown88

[adarkrainbow]

Spooky season fairytales (4)

This series of posts is supposed to be about movies and a few television series, but given it is about dark, spooky, creepy or eerie fairytale-inspired works, I am bound to explore some non-movie pieces. More specifically three works.

The Book of Lost Things

I talked previously about my great love for this 2006 book. John Connolly had already proven his talent at making teenage fantasy mixed with dark comedy (not to say burlesque horror) with his series of "Samuel Johnson" series, but with this book he also left his mark within the world of fairytales. Dark fairytales.

There is still a bit of humor and comedy in this book - but not much. One chapter maybe. The rest is dark, creepy, sad, disturbing... but also very touching, very poetic and very beautiful. "The Book of Lost Things" tells the story of David, a young boy living a hard life in 1930s England. He had to live with the long sickness and death of his mother, he cannot stand his stepmother and her new baby, his father is away from home due to his work involving him with the nascent World War II, the threat of said war forces the family to move to a remote countryside house with a tragic past... And David thinks he is going insane because strange things are happening. He can hear books talk for example, and a strange shadowy "crooked man" keeps appearing at the corner of his eye...

The culmination of these supernatural events results in David entering the world of fairytales, a gigantic forest filled with knights and princesses and talking animals and dwarfs and witches... Except that it is a world where fairytales went wrong. Very wrong. It is a dreadful and horrifying world where all the grimmness and terror of the original tales are played at full force, and David only has one hope to return home: find the good king's magical "Book of Lost Things"...

This book deals with a lot of serious topics - which is what makes it at the same time hard and beautiful of a read. It is a book that doesn't just twist fairytales for the sake of it (though there is a perverse game about reinterpreting the folktales in the most shocking ways). But it does so to help us, and David, explore themes such as grief, disease, war, the loss of the people you love, the desire to return to a nostalgic past... It is a great book.

(And how come I just learn TODAY upon writing these lines that Connolly just RELEASED A SEQUEL! 13 YEARS AFTER THE ORIGINAL! I'm going to buy this for Halloween)

Dimension 20: Neverafter

"Dimension 20" is a web-series by the team of CollegeHumor. In the same way as "Critical Role", "Dimension 20" is a D&D role-playing show, with each season following a campaign where the members of CollegeHumor, using their talent as stand-up and improv comedians, make their reole-playing adventure as entertaining and engaging as possible for the viewer.

Each season has a different theme, setting and universe, and the season known as "Neverafter" is, as you can guess, the "dark fairytale" season. Neverafter takes place in the world of fairytales and nursery rhymes - but things are starting to... be wrong. Happy endings go missing. Gruesome deaths spoil the magical happiness. The peace of the kingdoms is troubled by monsters popping out left and right. Armies are rising up. A storm is coming. The Time of Shadows falls on what was supposed to be a "happy ever after", and in this upcoming chaos, a group of travelers gather together to try to survive... Before discovering a cabal of manipulative fairies, tyrannical lords, creepy princesses, ancient witches and other abstract monsters trying to deal with world-threatening troubles, plunging a simple dark fantasy tale into a cosmic horror epic...

In 20 episodes, the campaign depicts the adventures of six characters. Princess Rosamund du Prix - the Sleeping Beauty princess, who had to free herself from her thorns when her prince failed to come, and is now searching for him. Ylfa Snorgelsson, Little Red Riding Hood, whose fairytale went off to a very traumatic end and left some of the wolf inside of her... Prince Gerard of Greenleigh, the prince from the "Frog Prince", who is now returning to being a frog as the love of his wife wanes... Puss in Boots, forced to return at being a scheming and scamming scoundrel after his kingdom and master were destroyed by giants... Timothy "Mother" Goose, an old man who inherited a magical book after the death of his son Jack and is haunted by a terrifying black gander... And Pinocchio, the magical puppet-boy, now a warlock who uses as a staff his own broken nose and whose patron is a disembodied and mysterious "mother" figure...

Little Nightmares

Ah, Little Nightmares... Who hasn't heard of this groundbreaking video game that marked 2017 with its unique, eerie story?

A little girl in a yellow raincoat wakes up in the dark and humid depths of some sort of industrial area, near the corpse of a hanged man... She wanders with a little light throughout pipes and cells, infested with deadly vermin, filled with the remnants of the presence of other children, overseen by mechanical eyes turning flesh into stone... And soon she discovers herself inside a nightmarish, impossible structure inhabited by child-killing giants, deformed monsters that are out to get her.

Little Nightmares is primarily an attempt at capturing and translating into a video game primal childhood fears and the type of nightmares a little kid can have. It is about a small, helpless child, confronting monsters that are grotesque caricatures of adulthood, in a world too big for her and designed to destroy her... But Little Nightmares also take a strong inspiration from traditional fairytales, making the video game a dark fairytale epic. I don't think it will be a spoiler by now due to the game's huge success but...

... A little girl exploring a dark and haunted supernatural world. A blind giant looking around for his victim using his other senses. A pair of monstrous cooks killing and preparing children for the gargantuan and repulsive feast of obese clients. An intense focus on food and hunger and cannibalism. Helpful little gnomes straight out of a children's fairy book. A beautiful but evil sorceress with a special relationship towards mirror, antagonizing the female protagonist while having some maternal untertones towards her... What if the evil queen of Snow-White was the head of a restaurant for ogres? And no need to add that the games has strong Del Toro tones evoking his fairy-related movies (Pan's Labyrinth, Hellboy II), while also disturbingly twisting the Ghibli movie style, making this the horror version of "Spirited Away".

The game received an acclaimed sequel, but I couldn't see very obvious fairytale tones in this one, much more focused on a dystopian feeling and ambiance.

[merlincersei]

Merlin BBC UK TV Show - Opinion Piece Part 09 - The Little Mermaid v/s Merlin

Thank you all for to the wonderful response I received on my post here :

The same friend and I ended up discussing the show in even greater detail.

Whilst my friend was more receptive to the "progressive sub-text" within the show his major issue was what he called a fairy tale treatment of a gritty story.

I retorted that fairy tales have universal appeal and often contain in them morals and lessons which lend to a more complex narrative upon further inspection.

As our talks went on, I could not help but find narrative overlaps between the 2008 Merlin TV Series and Hans Christian Andersen's The Little Mermaid fairy tale published during 1830's.

So I felt that it could become a Tumblr post.

PLEASE DONT CONFUSE THIS WITH THE DISNEY ANIMATED AND LIVE ACTION FILMS !!!!

Here is my attempt to outline the similarities between our protagonists and the themes.

Raised by single parents

Merlin was raised by Hunith whereas the Mermaid was raised by

the Sea King.

They both feel alienated

The Mermaid feels alone while living in the ocean forever trying to

connect with the world around her.

Merlin also feels like he didn’t belong in the village he lived in.

They both leave their childhood homes

Merlin leaves Ealdor and goes to Camelot whereas the Mermaid

leaves the underwater sea and goes to the Prince's kingdom

They end up saving the life of their soul-mate upon their initial interaction

Merlin saves Arthur's life in Season 1 Episode 1 whereas the

Mermaid saves the Prince from drowning when his ship catches

fire.

They have longer life span than their soul-mate

Merlin is an immortal whereas Arthur's death has been foretold.

The Mermaid is told by her grandmother that she could live for

300 years whereas humans live for a shorter time.

Their soul-mate is unaware of their true identity

Arthur is unaware of Merlin's magic till the very last episode

similarly the Prince is unaware of the Mermaid's identity.

They give up their identity for their soul-mate

Merlin despite being a powerful sorcerer becomes Arthur's servant

whereas the Mermaid gives up being a princess and becomes

human.

They prioritize their soul-mate ahead of themselves

Merlin convinces Arthur not to legalize magic as he thinks this

will save Arthur's life, even though his own circumstances would

change for the better.

The Mermaid does not kill the prince even though it would save her

own life in the end.

The story ends in death.

Arthur dies in Merlin's arms.

The Mermaid dies heartbroken with her body turning to foam.

Queer themes

I have already outlined magic being a methaphor in my post here:

The Little Mermaid's queer themes can be read in the article here:

Silence as a theme of repression

The Mermaid is literally silenced by the Sea Witch in order to fit into heterosexual human society.

Merlin chooses to remain silent despite seeing the injustice and persecution of queer magical creatures around him. If Merlin had expressed himself he would be arrested or even put to death. 

Sea Witch and Morgana

The Sea Witch is an antagonist in the The Little Mermaid and Morgana is the chief antagonist in the Merlin series.

In popular mythology there was a Sea Witch named Morgana who was a main contributor in luring sailors to their deaths.

I thought this was a remarkable coincidence when researching this topic

[misscoolisback123]

Cinderella 2015 is the best live action Disney princess movie

Here's why:

Storytelling: This live action remake didn't feel like a remake of the animated movie. There was some stuff here and there, but it felt like it was another adaptation of the fairytale. Both movies were adapted from the 17th century fairytale by Charles Perrault. His version is the version that is universally well known. This is the version with the fairy godmother, the glass slippers, and the stroke of midnight. The animated version is a retelling of it, while the 2015 version of it feels more like it follows along with the fairytale. Some references from the animated movie are obviously the characters. They were subtle, and that's a good thing.

There were the scenes with her pink dress. In the animated movie, the mice create her dress from her mother's old patterns as this is what she wanted. In the 2015 version, they worked together with Cinderella. When her dress was ripped by the step sisters, it wasn't overly dramatic like in the animated movie. But she was still sad none the less. The overall tone wasn't a radfem or terf take on Cinderella. This was made during a time when radfems were rejecting Disney princesses and femininity.

Costumes: The costumes in the 2015 version of Cinderella were completely different from the animated movie. Cinderella's maid dress was the dress she wore when she first met the Tremaine family. The step sisters' costumes were made to look like the animated movie, but with a unique twist. The outfits for Lady Tremaine were awesome! Even her casual outfits were great. Like the animated ball gown, the 2015 Cinderella ball gown is iconic in its own way. They both have a timeless feel to them, as is the standard for Disney princess dresses and outfits. Prince Kitt had a very handsome and distinguished color palette. Speaking of color palettes

Set Design and Color Palette: The sets and color palettes for the 2015 version of Cinderella were beautiful. They didn't feel like a copy of the sets from the animated movie. The colors for the costumes were different as well. Especially her ball gown. Like Rapunzel, people forget that in the animated movie, her ball gown was silver. But people are used to seeing her in a blue dress. But even so, the 2015 ball gown was obviously much different. Even Kingdom Hearts portrayed her with her silver gown. Disney, at the time, decided not to give into the edgelords who have only read the bastardized Grimms version, and instead, they listened to the original author. The Tremaine house or what used her father's house feels like a whimsical country home. The castle felt like a dream. Even the castle garden was beautiful! The overall design of it all was truly magical.

No Girlboss feminism: As we all know, Girlboss feminism was just terrible. Intersectional feminism is now trending. This is the better version of feminism. With the upcoming Snow White remake, it's going to fail for a multitude of reasons. Disney princesses are badass in their own right. No, Rapunzel is not a Girlboss. Her goal was to see the lanterns. Even during her adventure, she didn't treat anyone terribly. In 2015 and even now, people are tired of Disney princess shaming. Especially now. Whereas in 2015, it was perfectly fine to dunk on them.

Not Dark: I previously stated that the movie felt like it was another adaptation of the Charles Perrault fairytale. His version isn't dark. In fact, a lot of the original fairytales of Disney movies weren't actually dark. The Brothers Grimm only collected them and made their own changes. I read some of them in high school, and they didn't seem very dark to me. Maleficent in my IMHO did the whole dark fairytale theme right. Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz original stories don't seem dark to me either. Once Upon a Time sort of did this as well, but it felt right. Even Emerald City on NBC did the same thing as well. The original fairytale of Beauty and the Beast doesn't feel dark as well. But with the live action version of Beauty and the Beast, Disney caved into the edgelords. Beauty And The Beast is my first favorite Disney princess movie, and I wanted to like it, but I just couldn't. It felt like a complete rip off of its animated counterpart. Tangled is my second favorite Disney princess movie, and I would hate to see it become a live action remake. Even the original fairytale of Rapunzel doesn't feel dark like the others.

Someone on reddit said that a majority of the fairytales created into movies by Disney were basically Disneyfied until the Grimms got their hands on them. No, Charles Perrault is not responsible for making Cinderella lame as he was the actual author. The only reason why people say this is because it's not dark and edgy. Making dark fairytale themed pieces of media is fine as long as it's not trying to claim that classic fairytales were originally dark. Along with shitting on the Disney versions.

[justsomerandomfanfic]

What 10 Books Can You Not Live Without?

A Deal with the Elf King by Elise Kova; Published in 2020, this is a fantasy romance story about a human girl who is married to the Elf King. I love this story and literally can not put it down! I've read it about four times now since I got it in December last year. It's also amazing since it is loosely based on the mythology of Persephone and Hades! (Even with the whole enemies-to-lovers trope!)

Beauty by Robin McKinley; Published in 1978, this is a retelling of the original story of Beauty And The Beast, with a twist! (Obviously the genre is fantasy romance as well). Basically, the daughter of a wealthy merchant, Honour, also known as Beauty, is the youngest of three daughters. It goes along with the original story of Beauty And The Beast, but with a few changes, and honestly it's the best retelling I've ever read.

The New Year's Party by R.L. Stine; Published in 1995, this book is part of the Fear Street Series of R.L. Stine's and I first read this back in 2014. Like all of Stine's books, this is a horror/thriller, with dashes of romance and murder, how lovely! Here's a bit from the back of the book: "P.J. wasn't supposed to die. It was just a practical joke, no big deal. But P.J. had a bad heart." I truly recommend this but beware, you're in for a scare.

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins; This series was Published in 2003 - 2007, and is about a boy named Gregor who has to save his baby sister, Boots, after she falls down an old air duct grate in the basement of his apartment building. Similar to Alice In Wonderland, they both fall into a subterranean world called the Underland. I love this series and highly recommend it if you love fantasy, mystery, and adventure with a splash of romance.

Long Live the Pumpkin Queen by Shea Ernshaw; Published in 2022, this is the story about what happened after the events of Nightmare Before Christmas. Basically, Sally's a bit overwhelmed about her new title as Pumpkin Queen.

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani; Published from 2013 to 2020, this story is a fantasy, fairytale, romance, with adventure and mystery. I haven't read the full series yet, but I've read the first two out of nine. Basically, every four years, two children are kidnapped and taken to the School for Good and Evil. Where they would be trained to be good and bad. I loved the first book because of the slight twist.

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux; Published in English in 1911, this is the story about an Opera House that is presumed to be haunted by an Opera Ghost, also know as the Phantom of the Opera. Since the making of this book/story, there have been 33 films from 1916 - 2014. It's a wonderful story, and film, though through the years they have changed it a bit.

Cruella (Disney Live Action Novelization + Photo Insert) by Elizabeth Rudnick; This is just the novelization of the 2021 Disney live action movie, Cruella.

Deadpool: Paws: A Novel of the Marvel Universe by Stefan Petrucha; Published in 2018, in the words of Deadpool, "... This book is about puppies. Puppies that turn into big nasty monsters. And then I gotta kill 'em. Thing is, I like killing people -- the ones that deserve it, anyway -- but even I won't kill puppies. No way. So that's what we call a character dilemma..."

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood by Oliver Bowden; This was Published in 2010, based off of the Multiplatinum Video Games from Ubisoft; Assassin's Creed. This is book 2 of 9, about the beginning of Ezio and his journey of becoming an Assassin. I've read this book twice, and finished it in the same day. That's how good it is.

Reblog with the 10 books you can't live without!