#all signs pointed to yeah you can exclaim your enjoyment at the wrestling youre seeing

[powderflower]

i hate it when my dad yells at me

[whatarubberchicken]

The Bodyguard’s Tale -Chapter 3

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Chapter 3

Lance’s next excursion wasn’t any better; he somehow got it into his head that he wanted to try hunting ducat. Whatever that was. Apparently, some guy named Coran told him all about them and where to find them. However, after a full day of tromping through the Altean jungle, he and Keith didn’t find anything. And when a tired, muddy, bedraggled Keith asked Shiro about it later, the man had laughed and suggested snipe hunting instead.

He was fairly certain they were being played. So was Lance.

In retaliation, Lance convinced him to help with a little prank. Somehow, the Altean prince had gotten ahold of a couple-dozen half-feral klanmüirls. Keith, openly shaking his head and secretly snickering for the sheer brilliance of it, had the task of putting a collar on each one that clearly stated that the beast was one of 25. There were only 24 klanmüirls. Then they set them loose in the Grand Hall, just before the High Council was called into session.

Keith had never seen such mayhem.

It was glorious.

Uptight lords ran around, panicking, yelling, and trying to catch the stray animals; women were screaming shrilly as several beasts mistook their shiny jewelry for a snack—Lotor had a huge one chasing him that was sure his hair was something edible—even Shiro’s calmer efforts to corral them was hilarious in its own way.

Keith and Lance were literally unable to stand, they were laughing so hard.

Unfortunately, their fun came to an end when Allura caught them hiding behind some draperies. Keith thought for sure they were doomed, but in exchange for her silence, the princess decided to have a bit of her own fun instead.

The next day, Lance and Keith looked at each other miserably as they were forced to try on dress after dress for the princess’s amusement. (She did not, as a small mercy, make them leave her quarters in the dresses, which Keith was eternally grateful for.)

“Does this one make my butt look big?” Lance asked, looking in the mirror while his sister was off trying to find accessories for them. The apparent reasoning behind this whole fiasco was that she wanted to see how different outfits looked side-by-side.

Why she couldn’t use her own ladies….

“I don’t think you have the hips for it,” a voice by the door laughed before Keith could reply. They both whirled around to see Shiro standing there, snickering. “Or the chest!”

“What are you doing here?!” Keith hissed, attempting to cover himself with another dress. Embarrassing himself in front of his best friend was not in the job description!

“Ah, Shiro! You have those documents I needed signed?” Allura said, handing her brother some jewelry as she crossed the room to the ambassador. Keith narrowed his eyes at her. So, she’d arranged this, the scheming little—

“Right here, princess,” Shiro said cheerfully, handing her some forms. “And I—uh, love your new models.”

Keith growled and Lance freed a hand long enough to give Shiro a rude hand gesture.

“Aww, did Lotor not come with you?” Allura pouted, looking behind the ambassador. Keith gaped at her in horror. His brother? Seeing him like this?! She was EVIL!!

“Unfortunately, Prince Lotor had some pressing business to take care of,” Shiro said, grimacing. Keith snorted. Undoubtedly, his brother simply hadn’t seen how a visit to see his betrothed would benefit him and had brushed off Allura’s invitation. “He swears he’ll make it up to you later.” Shiro glanced at the two boys again, and barely hid his laughter behind his hand.

“Of course, if he’d known what was waiting for him, I’m sure he’d have come,” he added, grinning at Keith.

“Don’t you dare tell him!” Keith hissed, trying to wiggle out of his dress to go threaten Shiro properly.

“And now, Princess, I have some pressing business of my own… That’s a good color on you, Keith!”

“Shiro! Get back here!!” Keith yelled, struggling harder. He ended up stumbling around and crashing into Lance, who yelped when they went down in a pile of limbs.

“Ow, mullet-head!”

“Shut up and get off me!”

“Excuse you! You’re the one on me!” Lance shouted.

“Move your leg!”

“Hey, watch the heel! Watch the heel!!”

“WHY are you wearing heels, Lance?” Keith asked, completely exasperated and still tangled up on the floor in what could be considered a very compromising position.

“Hey, if I’m gonna do this, I’m gonna do it right!” The Altean prince had the nerve to pose.

“Ugh, you idiot!”

“Oh yeah? I’m not the one who—OOF!” Lance groaned. Keith winced. He’d accidently kneed the other boy in the stomach.

“Sorry.”

“You Galra, always so violent!” Lance cried dramatically, throwing a hand over his eyes for effect. “Sister-dear, did you see how he brutalized me?!”

“My poor brother,” Allura gushed, joining in the drama effortlessly. “You must be traumatized! Facial masks for both of you!!”

Lance cheered. Keith suppressed his urge to bang his head on the floor. The royal siblings were two of a kind, and a royal pain in his—

“C’mon, Keith, let’s get you exfoliated!!”

Quiznak.

………..

The next few weeks were more of the same. Lance got into more bar fights (which Keith had to step in and defend him for, even if the prince had a pretty good right hook himself) and attempted to learn how to play some sort of wind instrument (Keith chucked it out the window after the third day and claimed it must be in Lance’s messy room somewhere. Win-win for him; Lance had to clean his room, finally, and Keith was no longer subjected to the sound of a dying cat).

The best times were when Lance decided to hang out with Allura, usually studying spellcasting or playing Monsters and Mana. (Keith decided to forgive her for the dress debacle, since those few hours were the most peace he had these days. Still, he swore Lance cheated at that game, there was no way anyone could roll that many Nat 20s.)

Lance also attempted to learn how to use a sword, which Keith had to help him with. The prince was surprisingly light on his feet, but he was no match for Keith’s strength, even if he was Altean. Still, he was stubborn, and those practice matches were very enjoyable for Keith. Especially the way Lance’s eyes would sparkle every time he learned a new move or managed to land a hit….

NOPE! Nope. That was just the adrenaline talking. Keith loved the adrenaline rush. That was all.

Finally, the king and queen deemed Lance worthy of representing Altea on another world. Keith was apprehensive until he found out the mission wasn’t going to take long; it was just a festival that the locals called Clear Day. Shiro even offered to accompany them and make sure Lance didn’t get into too much trouble.

Keith regretted it the moment they touched down. So many lights and noises and smells—

“It’s a carnival,” Shiro exclaimed softly, his eyes wide. “We used to have them on Earth all the time!”

“Really?” Keith asked, interested in learning more about that part of himself. And honestly, watching Shiro was easier on his eyes than all these flashing lights….

“Hey, where’d Lance go?” Shiro suddenly asked.

Keith spun around, looking for the prince who had just been at his side.

“QUIZNAK!”

They searched for nearly an hour before they found him at the shooting games, entertaining several females with his ability to get them some cheap little stuffed animals.

“Lance!” Keith roared. “You know you’re not supposed to go off on your own!!”

Lance took one look at the rage on his face and, to Keith’s astonishment, he ran. What the quiznak?! Where did he think—?

“Get back here!” he yelled after the wayward prince, only vaguely aware of Shiro laughing behind him as he chased the other boy. Shiro could laugh, but it was going to be Keith’s ass if something happened to the prince!

Lance was darting left and right, trying to lose him in the crowd, but Keith was quicker. He tackled Lance right into a line of people. Keith pulled them both to their feet, and was about to start laying into the Altean when—

“Fine, fine, you can go first,” a bored, nasally voice said. The next thing they knew, they had been strapped into a ride and told to have a “blissfully burrowful time.”

All Keith could do was glare at Lance, which intensified when the animatronics all around them began to sing. Lance looked interested (for all of two tiks) and then he chanced a glance at his bodyguard.

“Just remember, if you kill me, you fail your mission,” he sang, grinning sheepishly.

“I remind myself that every day.”

The ride broke, right when they were in the middle of it. Keith groaned in despair and buried his face in his hands.

It took him less than five minutes to get fed up with the idiotic song and slash his way to freedom, dragging a laughing Lance behind him. The prince promised to pay for damages to the irate carny, but also pointed out that the ride had already been broken. Then Keith chimed in about how it could’ve been a trap to harm Lance’s royal person, blah-de-blah, and the worker quickly let them go with hasty apology for their troubles.

They were never coming back to Clear Day. Keith would beg Lance’s other bodyguards on his knees if he had to.

Now, they couldn’t find Shiro.

Some of the locals said something about a human being in the arm-wrestling tournament, but to get there, they had to pass the shooting games again. And of course, Lance wheedled and whined until Keith finally gave in and stopped to let him play for awhile.

It wasn’t like he was actually going to win anything… those things were totally rigged.

So, when Lance presented him with a stuffed red lion, Keith took it out of sheer disbelief—and ignored his flaming cheeks.

It was just to say sorry for that whole ride debacle. It’s not like it meant anything. Besides, they were both quickly distracted by the fact that Shiro was now the center of a cheering crowd of fans.

[btsbrutallybrokenreactions]

Unmasked by the Monster ((Halloween))

Hi, It’s me, 💛Char💛Monster! I decided to try a challenge that was issued by a fanfic community. I was quite pleased with how it turned out and thought it’d make for a interesting first post though it is a bit fluffy, it is just in time for Halloween. Enjoy?

Word Count:2133 Namjoon x SI Light Angst

“Jack O’Lantern-check, Skeleton-check, Candles…” The mumbles died on my lips as the door beeped, and then creaked open. For a few moments, there was a chorus of “Umm” as all seven of my guests breathed in the potent odor of Pumpkin Spice cookies baking in the oven.

“Charlie? Where are you?” Namjoon asked loudly over ‘The Monster Mash’ that I had blaring. Someone must have turned it down, because the music suddenly faded and everyone became more audible.

“She couldn’t have gone far,” Jin announced, making his way into the kitchen. “There’s cookies in the oven.” YAYs and YUMs followed. I fought with the smile threatening the corners of my mouth. “When can we eat them?” Jungkook inquired following close behind Jin, like a cute puppy.

My vision was limited to the slender line created by the closet door being unlatched. From my hiding spot, I couldn’t tell which of the boys checked for me in the bathroom, but someone did. Then, my target emerged into my field of vision. He wasn’t playing any attention, looking down at his phone. Now that I think about it, he was probably trying to text me.

My heart was ringing in my ears and I tried in vain to control my breathing, as I slowly let my arm emerge from the closet. Two pale, icy fingers trailed down the base of his neck.

Hoseok’s bloodcurdling scream surprised everyone, just as I had intended. Jin was clutching his chest. Jungkook must have tried to take the cookies out, because he was standing in front of the open oven, arms raised defensively above his head…sporting oven mitts. Jimin had hit the floor and Namjoon, Yoongi, and Tae all stood a little wide-eyed, frozen in the livingroom.

Jin finally laughed, breaking the spell.

“What are you supposed to be?” Tae asked excitedly approaching. I shrugged, hoping that they’d try to guess, but none of them did. 

They were more interested in my cookies and collectively moved into the kitchen, except for Namjoon. He stood in a way that blocked my view of the others, creating a slight illusion of privacy. I watched his delicate fingers extended toward me, like a leafless limb stretching toward the sun. I reminded myself that I was romanticizing even his simple actions and to stop being a creep.

He applied a gentle masculine pressure at the jointure of my neck and shoulder. His black pupils set at an awkward angle as he looked slightly down his nose at me. I had trouble meeting his gaze, because I knew that he’d consult my crystal ball eyes. I was afraid of what he’d find there and so I focused, instead, on his mouth. He moistened his plump lips with a quick flick of tongue. I felt nervous tension build in my throat.

“What’s all this about?” Really? That was all he was going to say!

“Halloween.” I croaked out, anxiety forcing my vocal cords to tighten unnaturally.

“It’s only the eighteenth.” He smirked.

“It’s OCTOBER!” I exclaimed, sounding too shrill even to myself. I ducked away from him and joined the others in the kitchen. “Halloween is my favorite holiday, so October is my favorite month.”

“Cause of me?” Jimin narrowed his eyes and wriggled his brows. A collective eyeroll silenced him.

“Speaking of Jimin’s birthday…didn’t you just over celebrate Friday the 13th like this?” Hoseok pointed out.

“Guilty.” I admitted, poking a cookie to test the temperature, letting Jin smack the back of my hand. I wanted to claim that I’d been punished enough, remembering Friday the 13th. I had wanted to have a movie marathon with my crush, Namjoon. Of course, it didn’t work out. That’s why everyone was here now, they just didn’t know it. I know it was wrong and cruel to invite the group and only want one person’s company, but I’m a coward! I could never be that honest. Yoongi grabbed a spatula and began prying up the cookies one by one. I borrowed one of Kookie’s oven mitts and held the cookie sheet down. “So, it’s like a Halloween party?” Tae’s deep voice was too close and sent an ominous chill down my spine. I tried to remain calm. “Yeah, I guess it turned out that way.” “Aww, we could’ve dressed up or something.” He whined, obviously disappointed. “The first event!” I announced abruptly, with nothing at all planned. There were a few confused murmurs at my sudden proclamation. “Battle for this cookie.” Yoongi offered both the suggestion and the cookie. He waved it in front of the youngsters, knowing that they were just as famished as they were impulsive.

As enjoyable as the ‘Battle for Kookie’s Cookie’ was, I moved back into the livingroom with Yoongi and Namjoon. “Watch at Jin!” Namjoon giggled. He was like a kid again. I loved seeing this side of him, all of them. Jin was flapping around in there, all elbows and knees. Jimin and Hoseok were in an impromptu dirty dance off. Jungkook and Tae were arm-wrestling. I felt a bit sorry for my neighbors. “Don’t they know that they can just take the cookies?” “Shh,” Yoongi cutely put a finger up to his mouth, flashing a mischievous gummy smile. “They’ll hear you.”

“YA! Charlie, you don’t have any milk.” Jin screeched. “I’ll run get some.” I volunteered, thinking that it’d give me some time to remember some entertaining things that I had planned for us to do and had somehow conveniently forgotten. “Let me come.” “Aww!” “Owww!” “Eeehee!” The other boys all jeered playfully. “It’s ‘cause it’s dark,” He spoke in English and stressed the ‘K’, adorably. “Okay?”

Minutes later, we were out on the street. Namjoon stalked alongside me, making one step for my three. It was awkward and silent for most of the way. “Why do you like Halloween and horror movies so much? It’s just people in costumes and masks.” I shot him a quick glance, but he had his hood pulled up to avoid being recognized or perhaps hide his face from me. “I like Halloween because it gives you an excuse to be someone else. You can be a worse version of yourself…or you can be better.” I glanced over to him again. Nothing. “You…you can hide.” He stopped and turned slightly towards me. He was still obscured by the dark October night. He was just tall enough that the glow from various neon signs only hit me. “I do that all the time.” Perhaps, he sensed my question, because he thought for a moment and then continued. “Not just during promotions, but like now. In equal parts, I want to be seen and unseen. When you see us on stage and interviews,” He sighed. “sometimes…that’s not me.” I remained silent. I didn’t know what to say. This wasn’t the confession that I wanted. It wasn’t what I let myself hope for when he volunteered to come with me. “Namjoon…” I started but couldn’t speak. Instead, I let my hand rest on his shoulder. I matched his earlier action and hoped that it displayed some kind of silent solidarity. “I’m not sure if it’s a better version of myself, more polished definitely, but it could be a worse version. It happens to the others too. We’ve all talked about it at some point or another. I-I guess, I have an irrational fear that if we’re all wearing masks then nobody’s being honest anymore. I know them really well, but over time all those versions blended. I recognize them all, even the masks. That’s why I pressured everyone to come over to your place...so we could just be us for a little while.” He started walking, but I was momentarily frozen. I tried not to read his movement as rejection. “Wait! Wait up! Ar-Are you saying that you try to be yourself around me?” “I try to be myself around everyone. I don’t know when I’ll change, I just do.” “Just like a werewolf or masked killer in one of those films.” I interjected. “It’s easier at your place, no pressure.” We arrived at the convenient store and went silent. I know why I did, I was trudging through my own wild inner landscape. I let myself bathe in the bright fluorescent lights, wishing that light could shine inside me into that ethereal, figurative darkness. Tears threatened. I wanted a mask. I was upset that he felt that way, but I was so disappointed in myself. He’d just confided in me and I wanted to do the same.

We paid for the milk and started for the door. Forced into that cool autumn air, into the darkness, I clung onto him. I shouldn’t have. He put his arm around my shoulders, but he didn’t speak and this forced me to think of masks. I let my tears fall and he pretended not to notice. He didn’t panic, just folded me into a ‘parental’ hug. I cried harder because I hated that I was actually crying. “I shouldn’t have told you.” He whispered more to himself than to me. “No.” I said, pulling away from him. “No. I’m glad you told me.” He let me take a few moments to collect myself. “I’m glad that you told me. I don’t want to wear a mask around you either, but I do. All of you. I want to be better than I am for you. I want to deserve your friendship. I-I…” I took off my mask. I met his eyes, wanting to give him total transparency. “I like you. I know that were just friends and I’m fine being just friends. It’s just important that you know: I have feelings for you.” I was more frightened of his inevitable response than any Halloween ghoul, so I rambled on. “Just like you still love all the versions of your brothers. I like the man, the mask, and the monster. Every version of you that I get to see is the best. I’m glad I got to see this version.”   Wisely, he didn’t respond, just hugged me closer and started back towards the apartment, dragging me along. I waited the entire time for rejection and disgust. I was much more hideous and exposed without the mask of faithful friend to protect me. I was crying again by the time that we made it back home. When we walked through the door, everyone stopped in their tracks. They had busted out some board games in our absence, ‘The Monster Mash’ was playing again, but it was all forgotten when the boys saw my tear-stained face. “He-he broke her?” Yoongi joked in a savage, yet weak attempt to gauge the mood. “Charlie?” Jimin inquired angelically. Tae and Jungkook copied his same worried expression. “What’s wrong?” Jin asked. “What happened?” Hoseok sounded full of brotherly concern. “I’m fine. I just want to thank you all for being my friends. It’s been a true honor knowing you. I’ll always..” I sobbed, “always treasure our memories. You’ve all really let your guard down around me and shown your true selves and…” I broke free of Namjoon’s grip and moved toward the bathroom door. If I couldn’t hide behind a mask, then I had to disappear. I wasn’t courageous. It was painful to be so exposed. Suddenly, his arms locked around my waist. He caught me and forced me to stand there, stripped of my false gloss, motivations, and mawkishly naked. I was just myself and it was terrifying. It was a nightmare and only the two of us knew it. That my human weaknesses were being hauled from the depths and revealed to my Idols. “ and, I don’t deserve it! I love you guys, but the only reason that I keep inviting you over all the time is because…” He gave me a squeeze that was in no way reassuring. It must have looked like he was giving me an alternative Heimlich Maneuver or something, and there I was, coughing up the truth. “I like Namjoon!” “Oh, is that all?” Jungkook shrugged and everyone just went back to their games. They weren’t upset or surprised by my confession. I was shocked. Abruptly, I became conscious of his hot breath at my ear. He was still holding me. He hadn’t relaxed from this awkward pose. “Charlie, if we dress up this Halloween,” I gulped. “Maybe we could be a couple?” I stood there, all red and puffy, watching him bounce off on his long legs into the kitchen, to pour the milk. Tae, cheerfully danced up to me, just then. I was still frozen where Namjoon left me. He squinted his massive tiger eyes and his face contorted into an impish expression as he slid a cookie into my gaping mouth.  

Hope you liked it!