#all the code you didn't want to translate has been translated

[infamous-if]

✭INFAMOUS UPDATE IS HERE ✭

238K -> 457K WORDS

Please read this post before playing! It's finally here! After five months of writing and rewriting and salvaging and crying and sweating and bleeding I finally finished sort of kind of! Firstly, I want to thank you for your patience and understanding over this duration of this rewrite. It was stressful at times but I'm happy with the end result and I hope everyone else will be too :)

This will be the last chapter I release without beta testers/other sets of eyes so expect errors. I can playtest until my fingers turn blue but I'm just one person </3 I'm bound to have missed stuff.

Please let me know of errors! I tested it a few times with no problems but we know how it goes lol

IN THIS CHAPTER THREE UPDATE:

drama

mayhem

chaos

some betrayal

some surprises

just...read it lmao

PROLOGUE - CHAPTER 2 CHANGES:

**chapter two was too large of a file to upload on dd so I had to split it last minute and I uhhhh dont know how that translates in the demo but it should work lol please let me know if its wonky!**

fixed up grammatical errors and typos

expanded some scenes and added some more choices

you can now choose that your mc has "changed" in some way (drinking, no longer drinking, partier, no longer a partier, negative, positive, attached, detached, or a general default. I was asked to add an MC who "gets around" or hookups a lot but I'm still debating on whether I'll add that since there's already quite a bit lolol)

you can choose to have changed your band's genre before/after seven

TECHNICAL CHANGES:

you will be able to explicitly state your sexuality in the beginning. this was a big ask and I apologize for not doing it earlier! I wasn't good at coding when I started and I knew I always wanted to make the genders separate from MC's sexuality but I didn't know how to do that at the start :) So you can still choose the genders of the ROs for story purposes and variety. IF YOU DO NOT SEE ROMANCE OPTIONS THAT IS NOT A BUG. You simply chose a RO gender that doesn't correlate with the sexuality you chose for your MC. Having said that, if you do see a romance option available and it's not supposed to be there please let me know! That means I may have missed it coding-wise.

the stats have been all fixed! I've added all the necessary variables and such. The stat portion of the game has been updated with the appropriate pages but they're not finished. Still, the stats should be fine.

You will now have confessionals in the stat page! The feature still isn't a thing yet because I haven't come up with the confessionals lolol but you can click on it to see what it's about. Essentially, as you progress through the story you will be able to see confessionals from the cast of Infamous throughout. They disappear and appear periodically so if you miss it, THAT'S IT! You won't get a chance to see them again until MC watches an episode where it's relevant.

There is now a: Discography page, Infamous wiki, botb cast and staff page, and other characters page for organization. Those are not finished but they're there!

I changed a few stat names but their functions remain the same.

You will be able to choose how you would like to be described (masculine, feminine, neither, both).

O is officially gender-selectable.

You can set the genders of the ROs at the start or wait till you meet them.

PLAY HERE

[fireflowersims]

Sims 2 "kiosks" aka: Someone stole my code and I am not happy

Okay, I'm gonna be honest about this because it's seriously bothering me. I hesitated to say something about this for a long time because I do not want to platform that code thief. I'm also not a fan of drama, I know how stressful that is for all parties and I normally try to stay out of it. Unfortunately, this theft just keeps coming back and seriously upsetting me so I have to say something about this.

My code has been stolen. To be exact: the vendor code from Sun&Moon. To be specific: a very specific version of the Laundry mod.

And by stealing, I mean passing off someone else's work as their own and encouraging others to utilize said stolen code.

Who did it? @sissysims

Sissysims stole the vendor code, made it into a "template" and even made a tutorial telling people how to use said template to make a "kiosk". After the publication, a number of people created "kiosks" using this stolen code. Notably: @simulationprincess and @grilledcheese-aspiration. I do not blame them from thinking it is a neat concept. Because it is. That's why we built those vendors.

It is seriously upsetting though to see our work going fully uncredited and sissy-sims receiving all the credit and praise. I have tried leaving a comment under her youtube video, but she must have hidden or blocked it, as it does not show up at all. She has also disabled private messages on her Tumblr. Basically, there is no way I can get in contact with her directly. So unfortunately, I feel like this is the only way to get my message out: in public.

But how can I verify that this is stolen code?

Good question. I have recorded a little video with my proof. One-take, no editing. Should she choose to try to scrub her evidence, it will remain up.

So why am I this upset about it?

I am upset because of a variety of reasons:

Somebody is passing off my work as their own. Not only disrespecting me, mind you, but also the others who contributed to the vendor, most notably: the amazing people who translated that vendor. Yes, it is because of translations that I know that she directly stole our work. She not only stole my code, she had the nerve to steal my own words as well! I can literally see the Dutch translation that I wrote myself in there and if that isn't pissing and shitting on my head, I don't know what is

Sissysims does not know what she is doing object-creation wise. The Sun&Moon vendor code is among the easiest Sun&Moon code there is. It is simple and elegant. She decided to make it a mess requiring multiple files for some guobforsaken reason. Possibly to make it seem like it isn't straight up stolen code, who knows. Just speculating. Regardless, someone who knows what they're doing wouldn't have done what she did to that poor vendor.

Sissysims does not have the basic knowledge of how BHAVs work. The vendor code she stole uses custom globals, (something that we always clearly indicate). Naturally, she does not seem aware of this. Anyone using her "template" (read: what did she do to my darling vendor 😭) risks getting bugs because sissy-sims is incompetent and doesn't know what she's doing

Sissysims is encouraging other people to use stolen code that she herself does not understand

This is an explicit violation of the Sun&Moon policy. And also probably why she didn't bother even mentioning us. Other "edits" she has done are credited. She chose of her own free will not to bother crediting.

If she has done it to us, who is to say she won't do it to someone else in the future?

She has a fucking merch store and clearly has aspirations to earn money from her Sims videos, monetarily profiting from - among other things - the stolen code.

So what now?

If you want to create a "kiosk", please don't use that mutilated template. Just reach out to me and I can teach you how to make a vendor. It's easier and technically set up much better than sissy's poor excuse of a "template". And if it turns out the vendor doesn't do exactly what you would like it to do, then I can help you figure out how you can code something that does tick all the boxes.

If you already made one, I kindly, humbly, request you add credit. It is quite upsetting to see my work going uncredited. Or better yet: reach out as well. The offer to teach you the vendor code to make something better is also open to you. I enjoy teaching people new things if they only ask politely and are willing to learn.

If there is enough interest, I can even release an official vendor template with instructions. Simple to work with, the only requirement being proper crediting. Let me know if you'd be interested in this.

If you're sissysims:

Reconsider your choices and most importantly:

✨May you step on a LEGO brick✨

[rowdyluv]

Talk to Me - jh86

sᴜᴍᴍᴀʀʏ: jack is stressing over how y/n is bottling something up that happened at the event they attended together. but he just wants her to open up to him like she always has

ᴡᴏʀᴅ ᴄᴏᴜɴᴛ: 2k

ᴡᴀʀɴɪɴɢs: mild language, angst, fake dating, anxious themes, oblivious characters,

© property of rowdyluv ; do not copy and re-upload as your own - anywhere. do not place my work inside AI codes, do not translate.

"Quinn, man, she's just not herself," Jack said, his forehead creased with worry as he talked to his brother’s face through the phone. The bright screen cast a bluish glow on his face, making the shadows under his eyes more pronounced. “Well. She’s herself by being closed off and not telling people what’s wrong. But.”

“But…. she’s not telling you what’s wrong and that isn’t like her.” Quinn cut his younger, middle brother off.

Jack hummed in response. Relieved that Quinn at least understood that part of the situation. Quinn has known her just as long as him, so he figured calling big brother was an appropriate option for some advice.

Quinn's voice grew softer. "Jack, have you ever thought that maybe Y/n's still dealing with what went down at the charity gala? You know she isn’t actually superwoman contrary to your all’s longest running matching halloween costumes.”

Jack was quiet for a moment. Contemplating how to answer his brother’s absurd question. “Of course I have, Q. That is all I have thought about for four days now.” Jack drug one of his hands down his face and groaned in frustration. “Since when do her and I not talk to each other?”

Quinn sighs heavily on the other side of the screen, his voice thick with annoyance towards his brother’s oblivion. "Jack, you know, you can be pretty clueless sometimes.”

“What the fuck Quinn? How did this suddenly become the time to insult me?”

Quinn rolled his eyes and propped his phone up on his coffee table. He sat up, placing his elbows on his knees, looking right at Jack through the phone’s camera. "Jack, she is your best friend. You claim to know everything about her. Or that you know her best. If that is true, we wouldn’t be on the phone arguing about why she’s avoiding what happened."

Jack frowned and whispered, feeling attacked. "I do know her best.”

“And I know you both pretty damn well.” Quinn laughed. “So. I'm going to bet that she isn't avoiding the topic of the WAGs.”

“That’s the dumbest thing I’ve heard you say this month.”

“Do you want to hear what I have to say or not, dumbass?”

Jack didn't respond to him, hoping he would take the silence as an invitation.

“Alright then. If what you told me about the ‘special moment’ you two shared is true. She could be avoiding you because of that. Think about that one.

Jack’s eyes snapped to the phone, his heart racing. He felt like the air was being sucked out of the room. “What do you mean? We have shared many hugs before. Many close moments. So what I felt like I was in heaven at that moment? She didn’t but I had it for a minute. She doesn’t care?.”

“Would you listen to yourself? Many close moments, many hugs, felt like you were in heaven? What about her? What did she feel? Had you discussed being that open about your arrangement in public yet? Or did you blindside her to have your fill?”

“Quinn.. I—. I have to go. Thank you, I love you.”

“Love you too, Jacky. Good luck.”

‘Rowdy dude. I believe you fucked up.’

————————

Jack stared at the phone screen for a moment longer before hanging up. He had been pacing the length of his bedroom, his thoughts a tumultuous mess. Quinn’s words echoed in his mind, making him feel like he had missed something crucial. He took a deep breath and headed to the couch where Y/n was curled up, fast asleep. Her chest gently rose and fell with each breath, and the soft light from the nearby lamp danced across her features. Jack was not going to wake her to let her know he was running out. He grabbed a pen and paper to leave her a note.

He scribbled down a quick message, feeling his stomach knot at the thought of her finding it. "Gone to grab a few things. Be back soon. Love ya, J." He placed the note on the coffee table and grabbed his keys. The door clicked shut behind him, leaving the apartment eerily quiet.

Jack drove to the local floral shop, his mind racing with thoughts of what to say to her. The cool evening air brushed against his skin as he exited the car and walked through the quiet streets. The bell on the door jingled merrily as he stepped into the warm, fragrant oasis of color. The woman behind the counter looked up from her book, a gentle smile spreading across her face. "Can I help you find something?"

"I'm looking for some flowers," he began, his voice a bit shakier than he'd like. "I need lilies, daffodils, and some cosmos."

The woman nodded understandingly, her eyes twinkling. "Ah, sounds like you're trying to brighten someone's day," she said knowingly. "Lilies for purity, daffodils for new beginnings, and cosmos for a bit of whimsy. A lovely combination."

Jack couldn't help but chuckle nervously. "I hope so. They're for my best friend, Y/n. She's had a tough week."

The woman's smile grew as she began to gather the flowers. "Best friends are the best kind of people to have. Tell her they're for making bad days a bit brighter."

Jack nodded, his mind racing. "Could you make them into a bouquet, please?"

"Of course, dear," the woman replied warmly. "Let me wrap these up for you. They're going to make a beautiful bouquet."

Jack felt a twinge of hope as he watched her arrange the flowers. He knew that Y/n would appreciate the gesture, its who she is, and maybe, it would be the catalyst for the conversation they needed to have. He paid for the bouquet and stepped back out into the evening light, ready to get dinner and head back home.

The pizza place was a short drive away, a place they've been going to each week since she movec. It had the perfect blend of cheese and sauce that made their taste buds dance. As he walked in, the familiar smell of fresh dough and baked bread greeted him. The bell jingled over the door and the cashier looked up, recognizing him immediately. "Jack! The usual?" she asked with a knowing smile.

"Yes, please," he replied. She wasn’t necessarily picky with her food, but when it came to this pizza, she was a creature of habit. Pepperoni, ONLY just how she liked it. He watched as the pizzamaker expertly tossed the dough and spread the sauce, feeling a sense of comfort in the familiar routine.

As the pizza baked, Jack couldn’t help but recall the way Y/n's eyes lit up when she took that first bite, how she'd always save a piece for him to share. It was these little moments that made their friendship so special.

‘Friendship?’ His inner thoughts screamed and echoed and ping-ponged around his skull so loudly Jack didnt notice the cashier was trying to get attention to pay.

Jack nodded absentmindedly, pulling out his wallet. "Oh, right." He mumbling his apology and handed over the money. "Keep the change," he said, a little too eagerly, and practically bolted out the door.

The ride home was a blur. He barely noticed the scenery passing by, his thoughts consumed by Quinn's words and the weight of his own feelings. When he pulled up to the apartment complex, his heart felt heavier than the bouquet of flowers in his hand. The elevator ride to their floor was painfully slow, each ding of the passing floors a seeming to get louder and louder.

Jack's palms were slick with nerves as he unlocked the door and stepped into their shared space. The TV was playing softly in the background and the couch was now abandoned. He sat the pizza box on the coffee table.

He called out her name tentatively. The silence that followed was deafening.

With no response he peaked around the corner and down the hallway. There was a bit of light spilling out from under the crack of the door. He took a deep breath and went to knock gently, the bouquet in one hand, his heart in the other.

"Y/n? Can I come in?"

The door to her bedroom cracked open slightly, and a confused gaze met his from the other side. She had been crying again, Jack could see the redness around her eyes and the way her cheeks were still wet with tears.

His heart feels like it just had a skate ran over it.

Jack held out the bouquet, his heart hammering in his chest like a drum. "I brought these for you," he said softly, trying to keep his voice steady. "To make the bad days seem a bit brighter."

Y/n stared at the flowers, her eyes widening with surprise. She had never seen him so nervous before, not even when he was about to go on the ice for a big game. She took the bouquet from his hand, her fingers brushing against his in a way that sent a jolt through both their systems. The sweet scent of the lilies filled the space between them, mingling with the faint scent of her perfume. "Jack, they're beautiful," she murmured, her voice thick with unshed tears.

“I have something else, c’mon.”

Jack's voice was gentle, a stark contrast to the tumultuous emotions crashing through his mind. He stepped aside, allowing Y/n to enter the hallway to head towards the living room where the pizza waited. She followed him with a tentative step, the bouquet clutched to her chest like a lifeline.

When they reached the couch, Jack turned to face her, his eyes searching hers for any hint of what she might be feeling. "Look, Y/n, I know something's been bothering you, but I don’t want to push. If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s okay. But I want you to know that I'm here for you." He took a deep breath and held out his hand to her. "Will you come with me?"

“Our pizza and my favorite flowers? Did you cause a scandal in this fake relationship.” She feigned faked shock, knowing well he didnt. At least she hoped that he hadn’t.

Jack couldn't help but smile at her attempt to lighten the mood, but he knew this was another attempt to deflect attention. He nodded his head no "I just wanted to do something nice for you."

Y/n's eyes searched his, looking for a deeper meaning behind the flowers and pizza. She sighed, her shoulders dropping slightly. "Jack, I know you're worried, but I just don't know if I can talk about it yet."

Jack dropped his head. “I truly wanted to do something nice. But i will admit i had a few motives.”

“I’m afraid that telling you will change things for worse.

Jack looked at her, his eyes filled with concern. "Y/n, I promise you, I’m not going anywhere. You can tell me anything."

Y/n looked down at the bouquet in her hands, the petals brushing against her skin as if whispering secrets she was too afraid to speak aloud. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Jack, I know you're trying to help, but it's just..." She paused, her voice cracking slightly.

Jack stepped closer, his hand reaching out to comfort her. "It's okay, Y/n. Take your time."

Y/n looked up at him, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She took a deep breath and spoke in a hushed tone. "I've been trying to ignore it, but I can't. Have you ever wanted something so terribly bad, but you’re no good for it/them. Or do they see you differently?"

Jack's heart clenched at the pain in her voice. He went to grab her hand and she pulled away. His heart plummeted “Y/n.”

“Jack. Let me say it this way. Have you ever wanted someone so badly it physically hurt?” Y/n held Jack’s gaze silently pleading he did understand.

Jack cleared his throat before he tried to speak again. “And if I said yes, would you even believe in me?”

[thefaiao]

Here's a portrait I did based on the movie Hackers (1995), which I'm posting on its own because I want to talk about this movie!

I had never watched the movie before working on this commission, but it was truly magical to watch. I've been kind of taking in what I watched over the last days and it has given me so many thoughts that I don't even know to begin. Watching without any knowledge of how the movie was received, I was shocked to learn that there is a major split in opinions about the movie, which has left me completely puzzled. How can a movie, that in my eyes is simply phenomenal, be even able to receive such negative reviews to this day?

I think the keyword here is what I used to describe the movie: magical. There is a magic circle that needs to be accepted and entered for you to truly enjoy the movie, and see how the silly sequences are a depiction of reality that is juiced up, and not a substitute of reality. If you just take the movie at face value, you won't be able to appreciate how this effect works. You'll think just because an interface is translated as two obvious HACK buttons, they can in no way actually be depicting hacking. But they are, the movie does a lot to show its appreciation and love for the scene, with accurate references to relevant books, multiple little "tricks" like phreaking and resetting the phone to call someone other than your lawyer when you get arrested. You can appreciate that effort and also how it was dressed up to resonate more with a larger audience, and keep the movie's amazing pace!

Now there are also things that maybe were taken for granted in movies of this time. The set design and costumes are fantastic, and somehow still feel fresh today. Maybe they are not realistic but they are effortlessly cool in a way I think almost no one does well nowadays. All the characters are visually strong and are immediately identifiable, on top of having great chemistry and represent a decent variety of archetypes. Despite being a movie, it communicates strongly that this world is bursting with life and character, that the game is not set, and that there is still future ahead of us. They have a scene of the main guy wearing lingerie in a dream, and the main girl joyously, sincerely smiles at the thought. That is a deep understanding of the human spirit.

Yet it kills me! It kills me that people watch this movie and think it's "terrible" or "cringy", that they don't have eyes to see how much heart it has. People have convinced themselves that reality can only exist within their brain specifically, that there is no use for magic, even in movies, even in books and games. What's the point of being smart if you just want all the answers handed to you? The abstraction is not a defect, it's a working piece.

The people who saw the world through these cold lens have removed all of the punk and empowerment that the movie champions. They boiled down the culture to just code and went on to make lame companies that serve to optimize suffering and take the people's ability to actually interface and express themselves through computers and electronics as a whole.

You can accept both the material reality and understand the purpose of abstraction and interpretation beyond furthering material gain. Perhaps the movie didn't intend to show me such a complex message, but that's what I got from it, and it gave me room to interpret it that way, allowed me to be curious.

That's all I have to say. Maybe I'm preaching to the crowd, but whatever. When you approach something, have heart! Without your heart, your head would have no blood, and your mind, no thoughts. Treasure, and use, it!

[vettelsvee]

GOODBYES ARE BITTERSWEET | Sebastian Vettel ✩₊˚.⋆PART 6: LITTLE WHITE LIES [PREVIOUS PART] [NEXT PART]

goodbyes are bittersweet masterlist | a not so secret santa project ‼️ f1 masterlist | ao3 | ask anything or let's talk!

ferrari sebastian vettel x ex gf!female reader (smau)

summary: seb just wants y/n to accept that contract, and he's going to do everything he can to make it happen. also... the sebastian vettel fandom goes wild when her ex girlfriend does her comeback

warnings: curse words, bad language. mentions of cheating. faceclaim: emma stone, hanna prater

taglist: [ @saltycomicsanimalssalad @hc-dutch @mycenterfold @simplyamberj @spitesfvl-blog @jaydaaasworld @lottalove4evelyn @zoeyjadetice2010 @jehun @ferralari @cosmoscoffeee @mcmuppet @myescapefromthislife @sleutherclaw @youre-on-your-ownkid ]

a/n: surprise, i posted again! and first smau! I've been wanting to do one of this for a long time, so i hope you like it (please tell me)! feedback (please let me now what you thought of this!) and reposts are truly appreciated. and also comment me your thoughts and theories on the story pls!

© VETTELSVEE (2024). please, do not steal, copy or translate my works. thanks for reading!

MAY 25TH 2018

JUNE 1ST 2018

ynyln just posted

ynyln moving on from him is impossible when i still see it all in my head in burning red... see you on june 15th x (more news coming soon... in july <3)

user1 omg are we having red mv? this is ALL red coded

user 2 THERE'S NO WAY SHE DID THIS ↳ user3 wait what is this about? ↳ user 2 user3 take a closer look to the pictures 😁 ↳ user4 i'm not getting it... someone explain it?

lewishamilton it's good to see you finally achieving your dreams! ❤️🙏🏿 ↳ ynyln can't wait to see you soon lew! missed you lots x

user6 she's absolutely insane for posting this pictures... i gotta love her ↳ user7 why is it with the pictures she chose to post? aren't they related to what her song says? ↳ user6 take a look at the twitter thread sebsrrari just posted!

user8 EXCUSE ME MISS YLN? WHAT DO YOU MEAN WITH THAT "SEE YOU SOON"? ↳ ynyln maybe redbullracing can give you a hint... ☺️ ↳ redbullracing ynyln, do you really want us to post certain something we have already saved? ↳ ynyln redbullracing you know i do! i don't know what are you waiting for?

user9 wait wasn't she dating sebastian vettel back in the day? it seems like she's recalling her years with him ↳ user10 i'm 110% sure that the quote goes to seb ↳ user11 and the fact that lewis has left a comment... they know i'm sure

user12 if this post has anything to do with seb... the og wag fandom is going to rise from the ashes and go WILD.

redbullracing just posted

redbullracing We are so delighted to announce that from now on we will officially become the main sponsor of our former golden girl, ynyln, who just started her career as a singer. Also... she will be joining us for the 2018 German Grand Prix next July! More details coming soon.

user1 THEY POSTED SEB AND Y/N OH MY GOD ↳ user2 is this some kind of throwback? weren't they dating a while back? 😯

user3 ok but the fact that they posted that picture makes me think maybe seb and y/n never really lost touch... could this be the start of something more than just sponsorship? ↳ user4 exactly thought this! there's definitely something more going on

user5 seb and y/n together again in 2018 does this mean they're dating again or is it just for promo? ↳ user6 probably promo... ↳ user7 or maybe they know something we don't... ↳ user8 really why posting a picture of them together when they broke up a while ago? ↳ user9 user8 WAIT THEY WERE DATING? ↳ user8 user9 yes! twitter is now full of their story, it's quite a romantic one but also bittersweet... it didn't end well according to most of people

user10 of course seb's the reason y/n's getting back in the spotlight ↳ user11 seb and y/n have way too much chemistry for you to say that ↳ user12 exactly! seeing her again after going viral without us knowing, and her being with seb again, is making me think there’s more to this story!

[weenwrites]

Can i request how Bee, Bulk, wheeljack would react with a Reader who doesn't have a bot guardian, but finds one in the rival Con of the bots said(ex: Knockout, Breakdown, Dreadwing)?

[ Please do not repost, plagiarize, or use my writing for AI! Translating my work with proper credit is acceptable, but please ask first! ]

Bumblebee

Naturally Bumblebee's distrustful of any Decepticon, and can you really blame him given all his prior experiences with the cons over the course of the war? But outside of where Knockout's loyalty lies, Bumblebee will argue that he's kidnapped and hurt humans before, he's not above torture and other unethical practices, and like a majority of the other Decepticons he's selfish. He's overall a bad influence on you, and Bumblebee will try his hardest to convince you such.

Bulkhead

A lot of people were surprised he didn't get any whiplash with the way his head practically snapped when he saw you being all buddy-buddy with Breakdown. To say that he's concerned for you would be one hell of an understatement, he's struggling to keep himself from pushing you aside from his nemesis even as you try to explain that you're friends. Bulkhead knows Breakdown in a way that you don't, he knows the ugliest, most horrific side of him that you're yet to see, but he wants to keep you as far away from him as possible before you get to see it.

Wheeljack

Dreadwing has earned his respect to some degree, and Wheeljack will give him that, but he'll still hold Dreadwing's past to him and stand starkly against the two of you being friends. He'll argue that you don't understand just how dangerous Dreadwing can be, you haven't seen the stuff he's done out on the battlefield and just how many bots he's killed. He killed Seaspray, he's nearly blown Bulkhead into a billion pieces, heck--he's lost count of how many times everyone's been met with a bomb to the back because of him. Sure he's an honorable Decepticon warrior and abides by some code of chivalry or whatever, but he's still as sneaky and deceptive as any filthy con on that ship, ergo he's not friend-material and you're just too blind to see that.

[six-eyed-samurai]

SUMMARY: Somehow Giyuu's son has disappeared somewhere - chaos ensues because there's no way he's telling you he lost your child. A/N: I'm back and I'm beaming another Giyuu fic is in town! (<<anyone who catches the song reference wins a free request of anything they want to see Domestic!Giyuu and Co doing). I really enjoyed writing Zenitsu this way because he's just so 怪叔叔 coded (for non-Chinese, 怪叔叔 roughly translates to "weird uncle" but there's not really a word for it in English, so basically a creepy relative) WARNINGS: um, too many references to other anime if you catch them (name them all to get a free scenario) SUNNY'S TAGLIST: (comment if you wanna be added or removed) @abadonkori @therabbitthatpostthings @ezekieleen @giyuusluht @bisforbuse MASTERLIST/PREVIOUS FICS

There were about three times that Giyuu can recall directly lying to your face.

The first time was when you were still pregnant with Koji and got hit by cravings in the middle of the night. Your emotions had been skyrocketing, leaving you a sulky mess when Giyuu tried to reason with you that 3 a.m. really wasn't the time to eat daifuku. It was unhealthy, he said, perfectly poker-faced. It could not, you reasoned, be because he ate them all. It could not because you had (quite fiercely) told him not to eat it and Giyuu didn't even like that particular flavour of daifuku anyway. He didn't, which was why he stopped eating about halfway through…leaving about one or two for you.

So far you hadn't found that out. Don't worry, Giyuu still feels bad for gaslighting you into thinking there were only originally two left. Definitely not six.

The second time was about the seriousness of his injuries after a tougher than usual mission before you two married. Actually it should be more of a collection of little white lies, because Giyuu never wanted to worry you and did his best to play down his injuries every time. But this time he nearly had his legs sliced off and was suffering several more crushed bones - not something he could easily hide from you, so it was a little extreme but he wrote you a letter telling you not to come because the Demon's Blood Art was infectious.

So far you hadn't found that out either. Neither did Kocho, but he almost regretted it from her million “My, my, Tomioka, it seems like everybody's avoiding you lately” though he later found out it was because you genuinely believed him and told everybody.

And the third time was today. Funny enough the lie he felt the worst about. Felt so bad he nearly chickened out and made Tanjiro tell you…if he hadn't remembered the boy couldn't tell a lie to save his life.

It was just eight words. Eight words.

“Where's Koji by the way?”

“…he's outside playing with Tanjiro and his friends.”

Eight words that made Giyuu want to bang his head against a wall and meekly apologize to you for all eternity.

Because somehow he had managed to lose his only son.

He was going to lose his ability to remain poker-faced soon as you beamed brightly at him. “That sounds fun! But I thought you all were training?”

“We took a break.” Giyuu squeezed your hand and leant down to press a kiss to your forehead. “You're supposed to be asleep anyway. Get well soon.”

“Mhm. I'm not that tired.” You roll your eyes. “Can you bring in Koji later?”

“…sure…”

He hoped he didn't look too obvious.

***

Perhaps a little backtracking would be helpful. You had recently received severe blood loss from the last mission you were sent on that landed you a stay at the Butterfly Mansion. It wasn't too bad as you got to spend a little more time with Giyuu and your new baby boy but finally Shinobu had shooed (for such a short woman she could really push people around with great force…) them both out citing you needed rest “without you making goo-goo eyes at her all the time, Tomioka. You must be such a bad influence on your child.”

To which he responded by blankly staring at her. “I don't think I'm a bad influence…”

“If you'd like to think so, Tomioka. Now scram.”

At any rate he had brought Koji out with him to training with the Kamaboko Squad as they were known. He had left the baby on a blanket on the engawa with various toys littered around to keep his attention occupied; Koji hadn't quite mastered the art of walking yet, so Giyuu was reasonably confident he would be alright, evidenced by the quick checks Giyuu would take in between swinging a sword with the boys.

Swinging a sword, honestly, would be lying as well. Giyuu couldn't fault them for wanting to play with Koji - even though for whatever reason Inosuke kept trying to give him acorns and called him every other variation of his name…ranging from “Genji”, “Koto” and “Muji”.

(The closest he got was calling him Toji, but Giyuu was still confused as to why he also added a “Fushiguro” at the end…)

“Look! The tiny Ban Ban Haori took my gift, Gonpachiro! AHAHAHAHA, YOU CAN BE MY MINION, DENJI!”

Giyuu yanked the grass blades and said acorn away from Koji’s drooling mouth. “You're not supposed to be feeding him that…spit it out, Koji, no, don't swallow!”

Not that Inosuke was listening. He was dumping even more acorns onto the ground, in fact. Thankfully Giyuu's mini-me was fancying chewing on his dad's finger a little more.

The yellow haired one wasn't much better. Zenitsu kept trying to befriend Koji…who did not want to befriend him. Whether it was because of Zenitsu’s expressions or questionable decibel volume or him calling himself “Uncle Zenitsu”, no matter how many times said slayer fawned over the baby or tried to play with him Koji’s lip would quiver, his eyes would tear up and inevitably the wailing would start.

So obviously Giyuu solved the problem by “politely” telling Zenitsu to go away.

(Later on you wouldn't understand why Zenitsu kept glowering at your husband; Giyuu would defend himself, deadpan as he said Koji did not like him therefore he should get out of his sight.)

At least someone in the group has a brain cell and experience with little kids. Of them all Giyuu trusted Tanjiro the most with his child. Koji seemed to adore the red haired boy, wanting to burrow into his lap all the time and curiously tugging at his hanafuda earrings. Hardly surprising, seeing as Tanjiro was more than happy to indulge in his uppies and not attempt to throw him in the air like Inosuke or poke him a little too harder like Zenitsu. He even put on a little puppet show for him with the scattered plushies.

Koji seemed to adore Tanjiro a little too much, actually. Giyuu decided to make them all go back to training after Koji rejected his hold for Tanjiro’s uppies.

But they ended up spending more time getting distracted over petty arguments rather than training.

The boar-head was cackling in that weird maniacal way of his. “Manjiro and Monitsu will never ever land a hit on me!!! I'm the King of the Mountains, no one will ever best me!”

Giyuu closed his eyes and sighed quietly before smacking the wooden sword upside on Inosuke's head. But-

“HUH? WHAT'D YOU SAY ABOUT ME?! IT'S NOT FAIR, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE USING TWO SWORDS! I'M GOING TO BEAT YOU UP-”

“Inosuke, again, my name is Tanjiro-”

“WHAT, TSUKISHIRO?!”

“COME HERE! I'M GOING TO KICK YOUR BUTT!”

“Zenitsu! Stop trying to eat Inosuke's head!”

“BWAHAHA! HE COULD NEVER! THE TINY ONE BITES HARDER THAN HIM!”

Too late. Sigh again.

“You're not even one yet and you're the sanest here, it seems.” Giyuu retreated to let them fight it out (it was the third time already), seating himself next to Koji, who cooed and tried to crawl onto his lap, dropping his plushy.

“Why did I even agree to this again?” Probably because Tanjiro asked - he really was going soft.

“Bleh.”

Giyuu nodded. “You get it.”

***

Tanjiro just about jumped Giyuu when he exited the room you were in, closing the door with a twitching eye (he really can’t believe he managed to lie to you), more than ready to help his friend and mentor track down the missing child by making Giyuu go over everything again and again. “So are you SURE that was the last time you saw Koji then?”

“AHAHAHAH! I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU MANAGED TO LOSE YOUR SPAWN!” The laughter dies down as it fully hits Inosuke. “…wait, you lost Ojiro?”

“OH NO! TOMIOKA’S GOING TO GET MURDERED BY HIS WIFE!”

“I-” Giyuu short circuited. “You’re right, Agatsuma. (y/n)’s going to have my head on a platter.

“HOW CAN YOU BE SUCH A-”

“Calm down, everyone! Koji couldn’t have gotten far, he can’t walk without stumbling and he crawls most of the time, right? And since we already checked outside Koji must be inside the Butterfly Mansion!” Tanjiro patted Giyuu’s shoulder. “We’ll find him, Giyuu-san!”

“I BET I’LL BE THE FIRST TO FIND HIM!” Inosuke hollered before…leaping onto the wall and scuttling off down the hallway. “YOU’RE ALL LOSERS TO THE KING OF THE MOUNTAINS! I SHALL FIND MY MINION!”

At this point Giyuu couldn’t even be surprised. “I’m more worried about if he’s fallen down or hiding somewhere or got stuck some place or something worse.”

“It’s alright! We can ask Ms. Aoi and the Butterfly Girls to help or if they’ve seen Koji!”

“There’s no way he could’ve run off by himself anyway.”

***

“No, sorry, I don’t think any baby came into the kitchen, Tomioka-san.”

Giyuu’s shoulder slumped. “I see.”

“I’m sure you’ll find him soon, Tomioka-san, Tanjiro, Zenitsu!” The three girls that were always around piped up. “We’ll keep an eye out for him though!”

“Aw, that’s so cute of you guys!”

Giyuu let Zenitsu bask in the three girl’s praises for being so kind to help the Water Pillar look for his son and turned back to Tanjiro and Aoi, who was tapping a spoon against the table thoughtfully. “There’re lots of rooms where he could’ve hidden. Have you checked?”

“Yeah, we have, but there’s no sign of him anywhere,” Tanjiro sheepishly answered.

“How did he even disappear?”

He didn’t know it but the despairing look on his face was rather pitiful. “I don’t know. I turned around to check on him and he just wasn’t there.”

“You didn’t hear him crawl off?”

“No.”

Tanjiro suddenly interrupted. “Oh hey, Aoi! Are you making mochi now?”

“Um…yes?”

“Giyuu-san! Didn’t you say Koji likes the smell of them? Maybe he’ll come out if he smells some!”

“What kinda idea is that?” Zenitsu scoffed, before remembering every other method had failed. He deflated. “Alright, it might work.”

The girls oohed and aahed. “We’ll help!”

“That’s actually a good idea, Tanjiro. You can have some, here, and good luck! I hope you guys find him!”

Privately Giyuu thought they were treating Koji like he was a dog and not actually, you know, a human BABY perhaps…but if it worked, it worked, so he let himself be roped into the plan.

***

It did not work.

Despite the odds at this point Giyuu was convinced a demon had kidnapped his baby. Every room in the house had been investigated. All of them had literally gotten on their hands and feet, calling out and cooing out Koji’s name. Inosuke had even dropped down from the ceiling to give them all a heart attack and announce that he could not sense “Tiny Todoroki” anywhere.

Giyuu was ready to pull out his ponytail. Where on earth could his son possibly even go? Kocho’s Estate wasn’t even that large! He hadn’t even heard so much as baby babble or Koji’s crying. In fact it might be the Kamaboko Squad who would be crying if Kocho ever discovered the mess they made turning everything inside out and upside down trying to figure out where a baby could’ve crawled off into and potentially gotten stuck in. What on earth had he done to deserve this horrible state of affairs?

What had he done to Koji that would make the baby want to vanish into thin air?

Well, whatever it was, he was terribly apologetic about it.

He didn’t know it but his head was hung in repentance as Giyuu approached the door to your room. The Kamaboko Squad and the three Butterfly Girls were behind him in awkward, contrite silence. It takes a village to raise a child, maybe, but apparently it takes waaay beyond a village to FIND a child. Giyuu felt a little bad they all got stuck trying to fix his mistake, so if any backlash happened from your end - though he doubted it - he’d do his best to take the most of it.

“It’s not really your fault Koji ran off, Giyuu-san,” Tanjiro tried to say reassuringly.

“It absolutely is. I should’ve checked on him more,” Giyuu replied gloomily and on that depressing note he entered you room.

“Yuu!” You tossed aside your book and reached out your arms. He obliged, even in the painful angle he had to sit in to lie his head against your chest, but you stroking his hair was enough to make up for it. “I’m so bored here, can’t you convince Shinobu I’m fine already?”

“You nearly fell down the stairs when you felt dizzy yesterday-”

“No, I nearly fell down because the floor was wet! I’m fine, I swear!” You huff and fell back against the pillows, scratching away at Giyuu’s scalp. “Anyways, where’s Koji? I wanna see my baby.”

“Our baby.”

“Right, sorry, Yuu. Where is he?”

Darn. Giyuu had hoped you would be distracted a little longer - for something, anything, maybe a miracle to happen - before he would have to reveal the truth to you.

He groaned loudly and face planted into your blanket-covered stomach. “(y/n), lovely, please don’t be mad at me. I did my best to-”

“Try and give Koji a bath but he did such a terrible job, (y/n) dear, that I had to take over.”

Alright, Giyuu knows he was praying for something to save him, but of all things - KOCHO?!

The Insect Pillar’s smile widened viciously at the sight of Giyuu’s shocked face as she glided to your bedside, mirroring those of the Kamaboko Squad and Butterfly Girls’ outside. A freshly showered Koji, with his puffy baby hair stuck to his forehead from water, giggled in Shinobu’s arms, kicking and squealing.

“Hi, baby! Did you miss mama? Mama missed you, y’know, mhm, I know.” You took Koji into your own hold, blowing raspberries onto his stomach. “Did Yuu do a good job of taking care of you? I think so too, heh.”

I think not, Shinobu’s eyes wickedly gleamed.

I think not too…Giyuu blinked back. While you were distracted he quickly got to his feet and crossed over to the other side to pull Shinobu aside.

“Thank you.”

“That, Tomioka, was the stiffest thanks anyone has ever given me.” Shinobu covered her chuckles with an airy hand. “No need, but try not to make me cover for you again or lose your son?”

“I - I will, but where did you even find him?”

“Well, well, Tomioka, I thought you all were done for training and went outside, but instead I found him crawling off the engawa and rolling in the mud, so I had to bring him in and give him a bath. Then I saw you all running around trying to find him and figured it must’ve looked like he just disappeared to you all when he was playing in the puddle.”

Giyuu glanced back at you and Koji and quietly vowed to never lose any of you, no matter the circumstances, whether it be to demons or simply because you had wandered off due to boredom. If missing you both for just a few hours had done such a number on him, he never wanted to find out what happens if…

“…I guess I owe you one now, Kocho,” Giyuu acknowledged.

“You can start by cleaning up the mess you made of my house, Tomioka.”

***

BONUS:

You actually nearly found out about Koji’s brief disappearance earlier when a boar leapt down from the ceiling and nearly gave you a heart attack.

“AHAHAHAHA! THE KING OF THE MOUNTAINS IS BACK!”

Instinctively you jolted back and almost screamed loud enough to wake the dead if you hadn’t recognized the intruder. “Inosuke?! What - what are you - what were you doing up there?!”

The boy in question grunted, head swiveling around. “…this isn’t the right room.”

“What? What right room?”

“Gotta go, gotta look for Toru Oikawa!”

“Who?!”

[xitcantlast]

New Year’s Day

Mattheo Riddle x f!reader

Summary: Basically just a very short imagine inspired by the song New Year's Day by Taylor Swift.

Word count: 270. English is not my first language.

Divider Credit: @uzmacchiato

Mattheo knew the muggle party scene like his pocket, which surprised you. Perhaps his enthusiasm for partying in general could have given it away, but a New Year's Party in Muggle London was not on your list. It's way past midnight. The fireworks long stopped and just a few drunk people stumbled past you, some of them being girls with their heels in their hands. The pubs you passed had polaroids, glitter and hardened candle wax on the floor. The silence soon to be broken by your ongoing thought.

"I never want this moment to end" you sigh.

"Me neither darling" he answers.

You stop, slowly turning towards him. Your left hand slowly rises up to cup his cheek and while you have to stand on your tiptoes he has to bow his head down to reach you. The kiss was slow and romantic and not at all like the heated one you shared at midnight. A taxi passed and Mattheo held out his hand, causing it to stop. Apparating would've been much easier, but if you are in Muggle London, you have to act like you belong there. He opened the door for you, and you quickly slid in the backseat, him following after. You both knew that is was going to be a long way home and with the tiredness slowly taking over you, your head landed on his shoulder. Mattheo didn't nee to say anything. He just squeezed your hand three times. It was your secret code for 'I love you'. And that's the last thing you remembered in the morning.

Masterlist

Thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.

©2025 xitcantlast . Please do not translate, copy, or take credit for my work.

[late-draft]

Hello, Dema here!

First off—I have fallen desperately in love with your artworks. You have a very particular style, strong and fluid all the same, and I can't help but admire the way you draw and how you approach character design.

And talking about character design...

I saw your post about Zuko's bold design in S1 when compared to what we got in S3 and—as much as I love S3-Zuko—I completely agree with you. Something I've always loved about Zuko in S1 is just how striking he was, how much of a presence he had, even when he was being tossed around by a twelve-year-old. That being said, I love Zuko, I love him in armor and pointy shoes and with a ponytail, and I loved your alternative design for him.

What do you think about his S2 character design? How does it flow with the story beats and his overall character arc? Much has been said about the Hair-Growth-Means-Character-Growth (and I find it interesting, also, that he cut his hair again before joining the Gaang), but I'd like to know your opinion on how that translates to character design and how the decisions made in the show could be either good or bad in that regard.

Sorry about the long ask! I've just been thinking about this a lot, lately, and would like to know what you think. Hope you have a good day ❤️

AAAA Dema hii!!! I'm so happy I got a message from you, I didn't expect it!!

I'm super glad to hear, I'll wear it as a badge of honour and I must tell you that I also love your art, you wonderfully do volume and the shading done through a contrast of sharp and soft areas! Super solid anatomy too and I'd be lying if I said I didn't look up to your art!

Yess the character designs in the show actually are rather strong, I like a good balance between memorable and functional. Zuko is just *chef kiss* but, considering just how many appearance changes he goes through, some are bound to be weaker than the starting one. That said, I'm gonna go through a few of his S2 looks and make this reply long, ha!

The starting one when he ends up huddling with uncle Iroh with other poor refugees, fits extremely well for the narrative at the moment. It's actually one of my least liked looks for him, and that's great!! It's precisely how it should be, because he's also arguably at one of his two lowest moral points in the story - he basically lost almost all hope, no clear goal, nothing to fight for, he's desperate precisely because of the lack of orientation and thus his morals degrade and sink veeery low. He gets on my nerves so goddamn much in this period LMAO I want to beat him up, he looks like a recovering drug addict... annoying, entitled whiny jerk stealing food and anything shiny for his uncle, but even then he just does not cross the moral event horizon. Excellent characterization. He just looks atrocious and it's great because it fits this low point.

Next he gets the standard boyish square of a hair, no notes here...

But theeeen, he arrives at one of my favourite looks of his, and it's not just because the clothes fit him very nicely (I've seen fandom say they look too big for him which, maybe?? But it doesn't look like he's swimming in them to me) And a thing I've noticed which, maybe it was just an accident on design part but I'm not sure considering they colour coded the entire cave scene; in this part his clothes match the shape of Katara's, first one in bottom then the one in top. The collar is the same haf-circle design but I don't know, maybe there was a limited pool of clothes designs guide which they cycled through. Or, he really is meant to come close but miss Katara by a beat, like sine and cosine chasing each other.

But besides this outfit fitting the inconspicuous Earth Kingdom customer service persona, it also (perhaps inadvertently) does this VERY cool thing:

It makes his shape look closed off and guarded, supposedly non-threatening. It's most visible in his fight against Jet, whose shape is open and goes in many directions like an aggressive star. But then look at what Zuko's shape does:

When he attacks, it opens up to reveal the hidden aspect, again the aggressive star shape shows up! The same thing happens in "Zuko alone" episode but I think it's most clearly visible in this fight against Jet because here he has a direct contrast and comparing with Jet. I think this is an example where the outfit, whose similar design exists irl, overlaps with a great visual metaphor and enhances the narrative at that moment in story. He's still that combative firebender but he has to keep that aspect concealed most of the time. Plus it just looks badass as hell!!

Animators really knocked it out of the park with many frames. I think Jun was too early and missed his better hairstyle, but Katara was just in time.

I agree it's super funny how his hair in the Beach is awfully long, covers his face to an uncomfortable degree and then he apparently shortens it before joining the Gaang, insane behaviour Truly an "I'm so angry and depressed I won't show my face nor be capable of seeing anything because there's nothing nice to see in my life" look...

I guess all his appearances in S2 cover his mental states, but only one of them is extremely Extra (the tea server, doesn't even take the apron off and goes to fight) and I don't see any spot where a similar tier design could be shoved in, narratively speaking. So all in all, S2 did as much as S2 could have. More tea server arc please though, the Guru episode really feels like it skipped 800 km of plot and everything that happened in it is so crammed and pretty sus in terms of character behaviour.

[arminthada]

Compilation post of my favorite Nadao actors (Nonkul Chanon, JJ Krissanapoom, Tor Thanapob) & Bright Rapheephong giving some interview answers on why they decided to star in queer/LGBTQ+ coded series/roles, some of their takes on being in BL (Y)/Queer series.

note: if you find this post familiar, it's because i've posted this on Reddit before. reposting here for archival purposes

TOR THANAPOB

Tor Thanapob interview in April 2023 when being asked about starring in Midnight Museum (a queer-coded GMMTV series) - (translation by infinitygraph_)

Tor: I think nowadays we should stop talking about gender. It doesn't mean that I have to act with women all the time or I can't act with men at all. I feel that I have proved to everyone that, work is work, and everything is about art. Even my team who are staying with me all the time has all kind of sexualities. It's not strange if someday we want to try telling story of other sexualities that we feel that we might be able to help them telling. If you ask me if today I am like that, today I might not, but I have a chance to understand them more, so I want to do it. Q: Is it because of the spoiler that [Midnight Museum] might be a series Y (BL)? Tor: Nothing to do with it. I tell you, sincerely, it has nothing to do with the spoiler. I just want to say that you don't have to overthink about it because nothing is fixed. Actors are actors. These days there are some award shows don't divide genders into categories anymore. I think this is a great step. Actresses also don't have to act with men all the time, they can act with women. And they both being the main characters Right. Because not all the main characters from every project have to come with the word 'love'. Even if there's 'love', there're many kinds of love. It's up to the audience what kind of feeling they have. Do they feel the same as me or they even feel more than I do? Q: So that means these days you can accept the work without any limit about what you are, which genders... Everything is about the story/script-writing? Tor: Right. I admit that I was afraid before. I wasn't afraid about my image, I was afraid that I would tell the story without understanding it, because I didn't have any experience at all. But at some point I found the chance to be more open-minded, brave to act it out all the way, such as Midnight Museum...

Tor's Vogue Interview in February 2024 on Spare Me Your Mercy as another important milestone as an actor (all translation by saltymarbles on twitter)

Tor: As for Euthanasia, I’ve been interested in it just from its name. If we were to go back in time to the period of the Prime Ministerial elections last year, there was some talk regarding the laws about euthanasia. As such, I know the meaning of it but if I had to explain it, I wouldn’t dare to because I don’t know that deeply about it. Tor: Up to the day that this drama happens, the owner of this project told me he wanted to set this question before anything changed in society: ‘Actually, are humans capable of choosing their death?’. Tor: This question shot through the core of my brain and immediately, i was like: ‘I need to tell this story’. And the role that he hoped to give me also served that function too. It’s a character which sets up the question of ‘what is right?’.(t/n: "this question" likely refers to a more philosophical kind of question regarding morality which asks what does being ‘correct’ mean — what is ‘objective morality’ (if it exists)) Tor: Do the people who are really suffering have the right to ask to leave? (t/n: "leave" is just a polite way of saying die (Thai people usually don’t use directly use the word die when talking about humans, usually use a more polite way like how we say ‘passed away’ or ‘xyz has left us’) Tor: Thus I decided to play along with knowing that the timeline of Euthanasia will remain with one in a hundred (people), so I like shades of the polar opposite. If the first story is navy blue, the other will be red — not close at all.

NONKUL CHANON

Nonkul's response to the question “If you have a chance, would you consider playing in a BL series? If accepted, who do you to co-act with?” in a Facebook Q&A video in 2021

Nonkul: If that series is an interesting storyline for me, I am always open to any kind of genre. I never categorized BL series as an BL series, I just think of it as a series with another plot as part of my work. It is a normal series that can have any of the plots which I will categorize as Romantic Comedy, Drama or whatever. Thus, when I choose the BL series I want to work with, the love preference of the character does not affect my decision. If the plot of the series is interesting, of course I’m gonna do it for sure. Every work that I chose, I personally think it at least enjoyable for me. Of course, if in the future, there are BL series with plots that I find interesting, that I enjoyed the script. “Like, wow, that’s my type!”, I will definitely selected it to be my future project. A good written series is a good series. This is what I believe as an actor. For BL Series, I think I can work with everyone. I don’t think I have anyone in particular. One thing! I desire the character of that person/actor? to be close to the character in the series. At that point I will be satisfied. Sometimes, I as an actor have a chance to work with people who don't have a lot of acting experience. I will still discover something new from him as well. And there is a BL novel which I really like! [Nonkul explains the plot of his favorite BL Novel ‘Peremo’] I would prefer to choose the “heroine” role because it will be a new experience for me as an actor because it will be a new experience for me as an actor. Because basically I only play as a hero role for the main character or support character in my work, but a “heroine” role in a BL series is the only chance for me to play a character more feminine. So it is a new experience for me. [Nonkul continues raving about 'Peremo’]. But if you think that you can make [an adaptation of Peremo], please do not forget me, Nonkul! Pleaseeeeeeee, I will do my best, I promise!!! However, I’m not only fixated on this novel. I’m also open for many more BL series if there is an interesting plot.

Nonkul's response to being ask if he's worried about filming NC scenes in IFYLITA (translation by saltymarbles)

Nonkul: I have to say when I had finished reading [the novel] and it’s made me want to act (in this series). I am probably worried more about the CG because if it’s a fantasy story with time travel, if the CG isn’t good, people will feel that it’s ‘off’. Because CG is something we don’t know anything about until we see the final product. One of the reasons that I accepted this role is because for some series, when I’ve read (the script/novel) for homework, I don’t accept them because there are some scenes that are forced in just for the sake of fan service. And I’m not really into that. If it’s a natural NC scene, then I’m not bothered. I’m a person who places a lot of importance on the story in series making sense. So to me, if an NC scene is reasonable, I won’t be bothered by it. But if it seems forced, I’m not into it. It’s important to show human-ness.

Two clips of Nonkul being asked what he thinks about doing NC scenes in IFYLITA (Clip 1 and Clip 2). Nonkul said that he places great importance on the character's actions. If an NC scene is reasonable he wouldn't mind but would if it's not reasonable. For Nonkul, understanding character is very important, especially for himself as an actor. Nonkul also said previously he had rejected some BL series offers because he can feel when NC scenes are put in just for fan service, which is also a reason why Nonkul accepted to play Jom in IFYLITA is because the love scenes are natural and make sense.

JJ KRISSANAPOOM aka JAYLERR

JJ's interview in February 2024 on Spare Me Your Mercy and his chemistry with Tor (translation by saltymarbles)

JJ: The pilot of ‘Euthanasia’ has been received well since the novel has many fans already who are excited about it. JJ & Tor are similarly excited and are committed to doing their best. The chemistry between Tor & JJ need not be questioned according to JJ since they are already close with each other. The series is in the phase of pre-production currently.

One of my favorite fictional characters of ALL TIME (not just in Thai or BL series) has got to be Tangmo from Great Men Academy (2019) (the series that a lot of BL audience refused to admit it's a queer series). The character Tangmo (played by Jaylerr) was questioned by the press about his gay crush on the protagonist: "Do you think being gay affect your chance of winning the competition?" to which his reply was a stellar "Well then let me ask you something, Does being gay make my good deeds meaningless?"

This isn't the first time JJ has played a queer role, JJ has played a gay character in TWO seasons of the LGBTQ+ series Diary of Tootsies (2016 and 2017). JJ plays Gus, the love interest of the main character.

So even though many BL fans consider Spare Me Your Mercy to be JJ's "first" BL series (which I don't agree with this strict interpretation of BL series), it is definitely not his first QL (Queer Love) series nor queer-adjacent roles as shown through out his filmography.

It is also noteworthy that even during the airing of these series, JJ was already in a public relationship with his fellow actress girlfriend Thanaerng (who has also played sapphic roles). You can see that the real life relationship of JJ or Thanaerng do not influence how/what projects they take on because work is just work :D

BRIGHT RAPHEEPHONG (all translation by saltymarbles on twitter)

Bright at Mono29 Lineup event

Bright: I think that, as I’ve previously said, BL series are just like other ordinary series or movies. Like IFYLITA can be changed to be said to be more like a period drama. I feel that BL is just about two people loving each other, not about whether it’s about male-male or female-male. This series is a period drama and it’s a romantic comedy and the other series is an action drama.

Bright's Interview with LIPS Magazine

Q: What if one day, we’re sucked in by the ship? Bright: I think fans in this day and age don’t need actors to do fan service to that extent. For myself, I’ve never intended for it to be the foundation (of his work). I think it’s a matter of being partners and working together. As such, it’s somewhat good in every aspect because it’s not forcing it. But in some moments, there may some actions that may just be the result of being friends. So even if fans ship, it’s cute to me. (smiles) Q: Do you feel a sense of “newness” stepping into a full-fledged BL? Bright: I feel that BL series are another branch of acting. I don’t think of it as being a specific form of male to male communication. It’s just another type of series just like action dramas, comedy etc, it’s just another kind of role that we can play.

Bright's Interview with Praew Magazine

Q: How is it working with Nonkul? Bright: Nonkul is a person who already does a good job at his work. He does his homework and he is also good at delivering and receiving emotions when on set. It isn’t just Nonkul who is great but the other characters in this series too, this includes P’Tee, the director. We can always talk about ideas which made the work even better. If asked whether entering the scenes with Nonkul made me shy, I would say that BL series are just another branch (of acting), it is just another role. I don't think that when acting with another man, that there’s a need to feel anything. I feel that it’s just another form of work. Another thing is that our workshops were very complete. When we work together I know what level and extent I can go to, what I should do and also trying my best in how I should feel. Thus, I felt at ease working together.

Bright’s Interview with NineEntertain

Q: Are you happy to do “ship” activities like this? Bright: I feel that if there’s an opportunity with regards to being an actor, I don’t want to be stuck in ships like this. I accepted this role with the status of an actor and I want to accept various roles too. It doesn’t always need to be BL or a specific kind of series. I will have another series next year which is ordinary boy-girl relationship and not a BL series. I feel that BL series are just another category of series — not like BL series are just BL series. It’s another category like action, romcom, or drama. It’s just another category. Q: There is still the possibility of coming to act as per usual. (unclear of what the interviewer said) Bright: I feel that with every work opportunity, it’s more about the script and storyline of the work that I were to accept. For example, I accepted the role of Khun Yai in IFYLITA as i felt that it was a script that was suitable for me. I didn’t think of it as “oh it’s a BL series, I need to accept it” because to be honest, I have been contacted for various BL series but because [IFYLITA] storyline is really good, I wanted to try acting in it. Q: What is the difficulty of acting in BL as an actor? Bright: I feel like there isn’t any difference compared to regular series. I feel that when two men love each other or kiss, I don’t think of it as (me and) a man, I think of it more as each of the characters or persons. Q: Does that affect the trend of being a ship? Bright: Hmm… Actually I am not able to answer that because I feel like it depends on people’s perspectives. Because some people may prefer that (an actor) has a (onscreen) gf/bf but some people may be upset about it. I feel like the trend depends on the people’s perspectives as people have different ways of thinking (about it). I think that I am open to listening to all different opinions on this. I feel that working (in this industry), you should be able to explore different things and you should not be fixed in one thing. We need to continue moving onto the next thing. I feel that Non has his own work and I also have my own work, and other actors too have their own upcoming work. It doesn’t mean that coming to act in IFYLITA means that you stay in IFYLITA forever. Q: Some may feel that it’s sad their their ship is coming to an end and that they are gonna work with different people. Bright: Actually, there are still some upcoming pair events but as I’ve said earlier, everyone needs to continue to do their own duties as an actor. Q: What if people change their minds about shipping your ship in the future? Bright: I think it’s a normal thing. I feel that when someone (likes us), they also like our work. I feel like our fanclub likes both Yai and Jom, and they also like Bright and Non. They like the characters and that Bright and Non play these characters and they so they like us at this point. I feel like people who came to like us are also fans of other people. I feel that they are a source of encouragement for me when they like me but I am also glad if they meet someone new or support another person. I feel happy when they come to meet me and if they’re happy when they meet other (celebs), it’s a good thing for them. If there’s a new person, an older person, a regular person or a person they just met that they are happy to meet, I feel that it’s nothing to be stressed about. Let’s say a fan comes and likes me and is following my work and there’s someone new who enters and they like their work, I am glad for them to go support that other person because that person can bring happiness to the fan.

Wow, I really got carried away with this compilation but as a fan who's followed Nonkul, JJ and Tor since their Nadao days, watching them star in queer-coded series/roles like Bangrak Soi 9/1, Hormones, Diary of Tootsies, Great Men Academy... (or in Bright's case a gay character in lakorn Rivalry), I'm just so proud that they have been able to receive "BL" series script offers that they would like to take on.

I've never sat well with the difference in the treatment of the press to "BL actors" and "non-BL actors". I wish there weren't such a distinction because it feels like the notion itself holds a lot of prejudices baggage with it, to both "BL" and "non-BL" actors. To quote a friend on Reddit, "I believe most actors would feel more fulfilled if they knew their fans loved/respected them as individual artists, instead of only seeing them as one part of a unit whose value is lower when 'separated' from their official partner."

[humunanunga]

Help wanted

This could be another false alarm or another crisis averted, but if ex-staff are sounding the alarm, I should probably take it seriously. My mind hasn't even been on my personal blogs because I'm currently getting help and step-by-step tutorials for backing up utmvarchive.

I'd said before that if I were code-literate or could afford to hire someone who is, I'd've already cloned the archive off-site. But I'm not code-literate, and I can't afford to hire a web-builder, and that'd be too much to ask someone to do for free.

So what I'm asking for instead is this: if you can, I want help from the utdr community to collect/make docs saving all available credits, dates, lore and references of as many Undertale alternates as possible. If you have the time, please save as many posts and early versions by the original creators as you can.

If you're on pc, you can view the sidepages utmvarchive.tumblr.com/progress to see which alternates I've already covered (reblogged all og posts I could find, linked backups of abandoned/deleted works to docs/wikis/etc and summarized) and which ones I haven't yet. If you're on mobile, you can dm me for a link to the Google doc where I've copied over the indexes, the sidepages and all of tagged/txt (story mode).

The alternates I have links to docs saved are, according to the list at the bottom of citations, Abysstale, Birdtale (pending translation from hangul), Dusttale, Fatal_Error, Fluffytale, Inktale, Killer/Something New, Othertale, Storyshift, Ultratale/Vitaltale, Underfell, Underfresh, Underpray and Underswap. I've lost the link, but there was also a Korean wiki page I'd found with all the details about Negativetale, and my next task will be saving all the links I can to preexisting backups of other saved AU fanworks, such as Underplayer. I already put the doc in its own drive folder, and the utmvarchive doc already has a lot of tabs, so I'm thinking I'll save all those links in another doc.

I made utmvarchive last year because I didn't want the first Undertale AUs to become lost media or else simply forgotten, and I'm very grateful already for the help I'd gotten from @apyrisol, @rainbowut, @what-have-i-unleashed, @wickjump, @xxtha and all the attendees of @thevioletbanquetutmvrp, in sharing lore or sending works that I thought were scrubbed or lost to time; but I was working under the assumption I could take my time and treat this as a hobby. But if I may need to hurry, this is just too much for one user to do by myself. It's just me running the blog, hence why it's had pauses according to my own availability.

UTMV may be more niche, but I want to continue doing my part in media conservation even if my blog's future has become uncertain in recent days. Any help at all would be appreciated.

[rowdyluv]

DAY OUT

summary: in which ellen and y/n spend the day together shopping.

word count: 1.7k

warnings: use of y/n, insecurities that may be triggering,

notes: i am not proud of this part. heavily debating on re-writing it but wanted to get something out :)

© property of rowdyluv ; do not copy and re-upload as your own - anywhere. do not place my work inside AI codes, do not translate.

The sun dipped below the horizon, casting a warm, golden glow over the quiet downtown streets. Inside the car, Y/n sat unusually quiet, her gaze lost in the reflection of passing buildings and people on the window. Her thoughts swirled like leaves in the autumn wind, each one heavier than the last. Each store they had visited had been a letdown, a sea of fabric and lace that seemed to mock her rather than offer a solution to her dilemma. She had hoped that dress shopping would be an exciting adventure, a bonding experience with Jack's mom, but it had turned into a tiresome quest with no end in sight.

Ellen, noticing the weight of her silence, offered a gentle, "You okay, sweetie?"

Y/n sighed, "I don't think I'm going to find anything. Nothing seems to look right on me."

Ellen, with a knowing smile, reached over and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "You've got to be positive about it, darling. If you go in thinking that way it’s going to be even harder. You’ll be stuck on negativity."

"But it's true," Y/n protested, her voice barely above a whisper. "I've tried on so many dresses, and none of them looked right." She swallowed down the lump in her throat. “I knew if I wore any of those I would only embarrass Jack.”

Ellen's smile didn't falter. "You could wear a paper sack and Jack would still think you're the prettiest girl in the room," she said, her voice filled with the warmth of a mother's unconditional love. "Trust, my son is as smitten as a kitten with you. Has been from a young age. Learning that the two of you finally started dating was a celebration for Jim and I.” Ellen sighed.

Y/n felt guilty for lying to Ellen about her and Jack’s current relationship status but that was Jack’s provocative. If he wanted his family to be under the same impression as the public.

Ellen parked the car with a hopeful smile. "This is it," she said, pointing towards the last store on their list, a quaint little boutique nestled between a bakery and a bookstore. "I have a good feeling about this one."

Before they could even step out of the car, she turned to Y/n with a sparkle in her eyes. "Listen to me," she began, her voice filled with a gentle authority. "Jack loves you for who you are, not what you wear. But I know how much you want to look amazing for him, and I'm here to tell you that you do. In every dress you've tried on today, you've looked beautiful. It's all about finding the one that makes you feel like the beauty you are, okay honey?”

She nodded and offered up a small smile towards Ellen.

Ellen could see the doubt still lingering in her eyes, so she took a moment before they got out of the car to speak from the heart. "You know," she began, "Jack's always had a way of seeing the best in people. And you, my dear, are the best he's ever seen, even when you two were little. You're smart, kind, and you have a spark that lights up any room you walk into."

Her eyes searched Y/n's, hoping her words would resonate. "Now, I know you're feeling down about the dresses, but let's go in there with an open mind, yes?" She offered her hand and led Y/n to the storefront entrance, her own excitement for the search not waning. The bell above the door jingled sweetly as they entered the boutique, and the scent of fresh flowers and fabric softener greeted them.

The store was a treasure trove of gowns, each one more exquisite than the last. Y/n felt the weight of her own inadequacies lift as they were greeted by a kind saleswoman who offered them individualized help. As they explained what they were looking for, the woman led them through racks of dresses, holding up each one with a hopeful smile.

Y/n's eyes scanned the rows of dresses, each one seemingly more beautiful than the last, but none of them seemed to be 'the one'. She felt her hope dwindling with every step they took, every dress that was deemed 'not quite right'. The pressure to find the perfect dress for devils event grew heavier with each passing moment.

Ellen noticed her growing discouragement and took a deep breath, her eyes scanning the store with renewed determination. "Let's try this," she said, leading Y/n to a secluded rack at the back of the store. "These are the last ones we're looking at."

Y/n's eyes fell upon a dress that was unlike any she had seen that day. It was a stunning blend of elegance and boldness, with the top half in black that flowed into a fiery red at the bottom. It was as if the dress had been painted by the very emotions she was feeling - the uncertainty of black meeting the passion of red. The irony of it being Devils colors too playing on the back burner.

Her heart skipped a beat as she whispered to Ellen, "Look at that one," pointing to the mannequin that held the captivating dress.

Ellen followed her gaze and nodded approvingly. "Ah, that's a unique choice," she murmured. "Let's see if it's available in your size."

“That’s the only one actually.” The sales rep says, having overhead the conversation. “We only received two of them and never got any more of them. A young lady came in two days ago purchased the other one for a charity event.”

Defeat tumbles into Y/n like a freight train. The unlikely chance there would only be two and the other would be purchased for a charity event too.

“But if you’re wanting a red dress, look at this one.” The sales rep says happily.

Y/n’s eyes followed over to where the sales lady had moved to, and fell upon a simple yet elegant red midi dress. It was modest yet held an undeniable charm that called to her. She walked over to it and gently touched the fabric, feeling the softness of it beneath her fingertips.

"This one," she murmured to herself.

The sales rep handed Y/n the red dress with a knowing smile, as if she had read her mind. Y/n slipped into the dressing room, her heart racing as she pulled the garment over her head. The fabric was like a second skin, hugging her in all the right places, the silky softness a comforting embrace. As she turned to look in the mirror, she gasped.

The dress was a vision of understated beauty, with a neckline that whispered sophistication and a fit that accentuated her figure without revealing too much. The way the fabric fell around her, it was as if it had been designed just for her. Y/n felt a surge of hope, the kind that lights up a room after a storm.

It was surprisingly comfortable, not a single pinch or tug. It was like the universe had conspired to put this dress in her path, a beacon of light in the sea of frills and lace she had been navigating. She stepped out of the dressing room, her cheeks flushed with excitement.

Ellen's eyes widened as she took in the transformation. The young girl she watched grow up entered the dressing room timidly but exited with confidence that exuded from her body like none other.

"Oh, honey," she breathed, "you look absolutely stunning."

Y/n twirled around, watching the fabric dance around her legs, the dress was perfect it was so right and so her it had letting out a small giggle.

The dress was simple, a compliment to her, yet it had a certain charm to it that seemed to call out to all who looked at her. It truly was, as if the universe was pulling them to this boutique for this moment.

The sales rep, a petite woman with a sharp eye for fashion, clapped her hands together in delight. "It's like it was made for you," she exclaimed. "The way it hugs your curves and makes your skin glow, it's absolutely divine!"

Y/n couldn't help but beam at the reflection in the mirror. "It is," she murmured, still in awe. “I’m sorry I’m just excited because I didn’t get to do this in high school. I feel like this my senior year moment.” She smiled.

Ellen's eyes twinkled as she stepped closer to her, wrapping her in a warm hug. "You deserve every bit of this, and more," she said, her voice thick with emotion. "Jack's going to be absolutely speechless."

She flushed at the thought of when Jack sees her in a red dress. Especially when she is repeatedly thinking about how he said ‘my girl looks good in red’ It may have been for show but it’s still something on repeat in her mind.

Y/n felt a warmth spread through her chest as she looks back at Ellen, the kind that comes from knowing you're loved and supported. She nodded, her eyes misting over. "Thank you, Ellen. For everything, for coming when my mom couldn’t, for being there when he left, for this."

Ellen squeezed her shoulder. "It's what we do for family, or hopefully our future family," she said simply, her voice thick with emotion and a smile as she hands the cashier a card.

“No wait! I can pay. Don’t do that.” Y/n argued searching her bag for her wallet.

Ellen gently took her hand and held it in hers. “Jack insisted. He wanted me to use his card for anything we buy you. And right now, this is what we are buying you.” She said with a firmness that didn’t allow room for argument.

Y/n felt tears prick the corners of her eyes as she looked at the red midi dress in the clothing bag. It was more than just a piece of clothing; it was a symbol of the love and support she had found in Jack's family, even when Jack had left for the league. "Thank you," she whispered again, her voice thick and trembling with emotion.

[holorform2009]

WARNING: body impaled mentioned, death mentioned, you died. If you are uncomfortable stop reading this.

If there is Brud!reader...

Then I will make another sprunki reader!

Which is Sky!reader!

if you're confused, I'm talking about a sprunki who had a color of sky blue, that is why his name is sky. I did a little bit of research and found out his age is actually 14 which means he is the youngest of all sprunkies out there. And I also found out that he likes to collects teddy bear, no wonder he has bear ears.

So what I'm gonna do is make another platonic yandere DC x Sky!reader.

And yes, you still have a music syndrome.

Because I never seen sky spoke in a full sentences.

So anyway!

your noise or the way you spoke to people that is none sprunki is a music box. (I search sprunki Wikipedia)

They tried to communicate you to try and understand you better but since you kept singing that noise repeatedly they do not understand you, because they thought you singing in Morse code but they were wrong.

Well that's because you have a music syndrome! And can not speak normally.

I imagined it was Tim who is trying to understand your... 'language' but then he gives up because it's not close to a Morse code.

The only person who can understand you is Richard Grayson. Why? Because he can read your body language, as your expression tells everything. Actions spoke louder actually paid it off.

But would it be funny it was John Kent who can understand your music language? Imagine when Damien tried speaking to you and you respond with a noise of a music box out if your throat, he looked at John asking for a translation. "They said 'Are you the demon spawn that Jason keeps mentioning about?' "

And what's more funny Sad? What happens if you die?

Since sky didn't make it in horror version.

This will turn into an angst.

John Kent was looking for his friend, he was worried about them. The last time he saw them was at the Toy store. He asked for Damien to help find them as his eyes was filled with tears and Damien agreed to help him. It's been one week. And you were no where to be found.

John was filled with panic, fear, and anxious. Damien tried his best to calm his best friend down as John is in the verge of breakdown. Where were you?

He asked his Father, Clark. To help them both find their friend, his father agreed and Clark asked Bruce for help too.

At this point every heroes and vigilantes are involved in finding you. Unfortunately... They failed to look for you. John can not accept that his friend Sky!reader is dead. He cried in his bed as Louis and Clark looked at each other, worried and guilt written in their face. Both of them tried to comfort their son, not successfully doing so. Because he kept crying for his friend.

Until one night, Damien called John, telling him to come and meet him at the abandoned warehouse. He wants to show him something...

John flies towards the abandoned warehouse that is given by Damien current location. When he came, he stepped closer to his best friend and was about to ask him what did he want to show him something. But stopped when he saw his missing friend impaled by four rods in their body... One rod is through the middle of their skull to their chin, one through their chest, one through their ear, and one through their left eye socket. Blood is dripping through their neck, right eye, and right ear.

He explained to John that he was on a patrol but when he heard a music box that sounded like Sky!reader, instead of a soft and high pitched melody of a music box it's sounded menacing now. He quickly followed to where the sound came from inside the abandoned warehouse only for him to stop in his track and horrified at the sight of them impaled by four rods. Their eyes make contact with Damien before their light in their eyes slowly faded.

It was too late for him to save them...

And right now, you are no longer singing that sound anymore. Because you are dead. And now... John's eyes was filled with tears as he started sobbing once more at the sight of their dead body in from of him, seeing their friend like this... Hurts him.

Rains started to pour down hard, John and Damien and their families gathered together at your funeral, saying their goodbyes and farewell for you.

It hurts them knowing that you were young when you died, you were only 14. The same age as John and Damien. Now that you are gone. He wasn't the same anymore... John is always the happy boy, always the sunshine, and now... His smile is upsidedown.

Damien tried to cheer him up. Key word: "tried to" he is not the best at comforting ok? At least he tried. He promised to John that he will find whoever murdered their friend and when he captured the murderer, he'll let John do whatever he wants to do with the murderer.

Be it, kill them, punch, laser them, do what ever he want if Damien finally captured the culprit to who ever killed their poor friend.

He will keep that promise.

He swear to his best friend he will.

[snitchcrimsonwrites]

Drawn Together-Chapter 6

Pairing: Tech x Jedi! Reader

The Bad Batch are on the run after the events on Pantora when they run into a mysterious stranger who offers them assistance. Who is this stranger, and why does it seem like they know Echo? The story will follow the events of the series once established.

Dearest reader, thank you for sticking through 5 chapters of setup. Let the relationship develop!

Well, that didn't go as smoothly as you hoped. Enjoy some downtime with Tech while the Batch lays low.

Chapter 7

Outside the windshield, stars stretch into lines as the Marauder jumps into hyperspace, the blue tunnel washing over the cabin. Hunter breaks the silence, “We’ll lay low for a while. There’s a dead moon on the Outer Rim, barely a blip on any chart. We’ve used it before.” He pauses, looking at you. “You’re welcome to stay with us, or we can drop you somewhere quiet. Your choice.”

You consider it. "I... still haven’t made up my mind. Everything down there reminded me of who I once was, but it also highlighted how much has changed.” You paused, furrowing your brow. "Also, running with a Jedi puts your team at unnecessary risk; are you sure you want that?”

With a confident smile, Hunter states, “We wouldn’t be here without you. I think that earns you a spot on the team.”

“No rush. You’ve earned time to think.” Echo responds affirming his sergeant’s sentiments.

Everyone gets comfortable as the ship travels through hyperspace, the adrenaline fading and drowsiness creeping in. The ambiance on the ship is quiet, with most of the squad either asleep or resting. A solitary overhead light casts a gentle glow over the common area. Seated alone at the table, you are surrounded by several well-worn, leather-bound journals from your pack, jotting down notes in the margin of one page while quietly murmuring in an ancient dialect. Sleep remains elusive, even in your tired state.

A soft mechanical whir signals the door opening from the cockpit. Tech steps through the threshold, looking up from his data pad, surprised. “I didn’t expect anyone else to be awake.”

You react, looking up quickly, straightening slightly, while one hand instinctively slides protectively over your notes before you realize who it is.” Oh—Tech. Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”

He shakes his head. “You didn’t. I… don’t sleep much.” He pauses when he sees the spread of texts in front of you. “Neither do you, I take it?”

“Not since Order 66. Dreams have a way of finding me when I do.”

Tech nods, quietly understanding. He walks closer, eyeing the journals curiously. “Those are… ancient. Jedi in origin? The characters seem unique?”

“Some are. Others came from fringe temples and Force-adjacent sects. I’ve been trying to translate them for years. So far, all I’ve got to show is bits and pieces, my master was obsessed with uncovering lost history.”

Tech leans slightly, scanning one of the open pages. The script is narrow, flowing, and almost musical in its form. “This… isn’t any variation of Aurebesh I know. Nor does it seem to appear in any Republic linguistic database.”

“That’s because it’s pre-Republic. It’s called Tal’reesh. Root dialect of a forgotten civilization near the Unknown Regions. Some believe they were early Force-users…long before the Jedi Order existed.”

Tech’s eyes light up with a spark of genuine interest. “Fascinating. May I?” gesturing to the table.

You nod, and he slides into the seat across from you. He picks up one of the journals carefully, thumbing through a few pages.

“These characters… they feel mathematical. Not just written, but patterned. I wonder if the language is layered, like a code?”

You sit up straighter now, surprised at his observation. “You’re the first person to notice that. I have had the same suspicion. My master believed their language embodied the Force, manifested through symbol, rhythm, and intention.”

“Like linguistic fractals…”

“Exactly,” finding solace in the mutual understanding.

Both of you fall silent, leaning over the same text. The soft hum of the ship merges with the quiet scratch of the stylus on the datapad. Eventually, you glance up at him, your expression softer now. “You know… I didn’t expect to find anyone who could keep up with this kind of work. Let alone... be interested. It wasn’t exactly popular even among Jedi.”

“Well, I don’t often find people who speak in linguistics theory and ancient dialects at the same time. It is… unexpected. But not unwelcome.”

___________

Later the next day, the Marauder exits hyperspace and lands in the center of a vast canyon beneath a pale blue sky. The moon is quiet, barren, and windless. Just craggy rocks, shallow caves, and silence. The Batch has established a temporary camp just outside the ship. A small fire flickers in a rocky alcove, illuminating their faces. Tech calibrates a portable scanner nearby, while Wrecker lies back on a blanket of gear.

Another stretch of quiet hours passes before Tech lifts his eyes from his datapad, realizing you’ve disappeared. The next time Tech finds you, you’re again seated at the common area table on board the Marauder. He steps in, eyes immediately finding yours.

“I had hoped you would be here,” he says, voice low and almost warm with familiarity.

You glance up from your notes, lips tugging into a faint smile. “Couldn’t sleep.”

“I assumed.” He steps closer, but doesn’t sit just yet. Instead, he looks over the scattered texts again. “You’ve made progress since last time,” observing some new lines of translation.

You tap the margin of one journal with a stylus. “A little. One of the root symbols here seems to repeat in ritual context…see the curve, and how it mirrors this passage from a completely different source?” You lift the journal, showing him exactly where. “ I think it might represent more than a word. A concept, maybe.”

He leans over your shoulder, studying the inked curves intently. “I’ve been thinking,” Tech says slowly, finally. “I’ve never encountered a language like this. It's as much a puzzle as it is text. I want to understand it.” He hesitates, as though the following words take a particular effort. “Would you teach me?”

You blink, not expecting that. “You want to learn Tal’reesh?”

“I do. I find the structure fascinating… plus there’s always a benefit to learning another language.. Even a dead one.”

You look at him for a long beat, then nod. “Alright. But I’ll warn you, it’s slow going.”

Tech finally sits, placing his datapad aside. “Some of the most worthwhile pursuits begin with a slower pace. That said, you might be surprised by my affinity for languages,” he finishes confidently.

You laugh, impressed by his confidence, and pass him a blank sheet and an old transcription key you compiled long ago. “Then let’s start with the basics. The root glyphs. They’re drawn, not written. Like... weaving meaning into shape.” As you speak, Tech listens with undivided focus, stylus in hand, and the night continues like this until the need for sleep calls you both.

_________________

The next morning a soft sun ascends above the rugged ridges of the deserted moon as dust dances lightly in the morning breeze. The Marauder lies quietly among the rocks, its hull shimmering in the faint light of dawn, as its crew gathers around their improvised camp, savoring their limited rations. Hunter speaks up, asking whether you have made a decision about joining them.

“Maybe I’ll stick around. At least until the next crazy idea gets one of you nearly crushed by a cave-in, or falls from ridiculous heights,” you joke.

Hunter smiles. “So… tomorrow, then?”

You laugh quietly, finally letting yourself relax a little. “ But seriously, I think I’d like to stay. With your squad. I feel this is what I’m supposed to be doing right now.”

“You’re sure?”

“I spent the war following orders, watching people fight and die for a Republic. I convinced myself I was just doing my duty.” You pause, not realizing the weight of those words until they leave your lips. “But now I think I understand. Maybe I wasn’t meant to be a general. Or a scholar. Maybe I was meant to be this. Someone who doesn’t abandon the people who need help, when it counts.”

“Then you’re welcome here.”

You chuckle slightly at his sincerity. “That said… I’ve been out of practice. If I’m going to pull my weight, I need to sharpen up. Would your squad be willing to run me through some training exercises?”

Hunter chuckles lightly, turning his attention toward the others. “You hear that?”

Wrecker grins, already hopping to his feet. “Training time? I love training time!”

Echo laughs, shaking his head, “You might regret asking.”

Tech is ahead of the curve; he is already making a schedule for you on his datapad. “We’ll tailor a hybrid routine. Close quarters, blaster defense, squad coordination—perhaps a Force reaction test.”

“I’ll help too! I’ve been training with them for months now!” Omega chimes in excitedly.

“Alright then. Let’s see if this old Jedi can still keep up.”

—------------

Later in the day, the sun sits high overhead, creating elongated shadows over the rough landscape. A new array of challenges is set up: barricades, close combat areas, “training dummies”, and designated dueling circles.

“I’ve scheduled a full day of targeted drills. Each of us will focus on a core specialization. We’ll focus on combat, tactics, firearms, and reaction testing,” Tech announces, gesturing to a schedule displayed on this datapad. “First will be a hand-to-hand combat exercise with Wrecker. We’ve set up a makeshift combat area right outside camp.” He gestures to the circle off to the side of the camp, indicating it was time to begin.

After a few moments of preparation, the others form a loose circle as Wrecker steps forward into the zone, cracking his knuckles and rolling the tension from his neck. He grins widely, shaking out the muscles in his arms. “Alright, Jedi, let’s see what you’ve got.”

Echo leans over to Hunter and whispers, “What do you think? I’m a little worried the General won’t go easy on him,” as he watches you approach the makeshift ring. Hunter laughs, “It could go either way.”

You approach keeping your stance loose, hands relaxed, knees slightly bent. The height difference between you two couldn’t be more comical. Any other observers would take Wrecker in an instant and claim you a longshot, but everyone in Batch knew size didn’t necessarily matter when it came to a Jedi.

Tech signals the go-ahead, and Wrecker charges in, broad and fast his full body weight behind him. You know you can’t meet his strength head-on; instead, you sidestep, pivot, and flow around him like water, allowing him to rush past you.

Unfazed, he returns once more, swinging broadly— he misses. You crouch low as he stumbles ahead. Spotting an opportunity, you leverage his momentum to slip behind him, tapping the back of his armor with two fingers. Wrecker trips over a rock, tumbling down and hitting the ground with a resounding thud.

“Okay… didn’t see that coming, “ he grunts from the ground.

A small smile appears on Hunter’s lips. “She didn’t throw a single punch.”

“Efficient use of energy and motion. Impressive,” Tech nods approvingly adding the outcome to his report.

“That was amazing!” Omega grins, absolutely fascinated.

“Best two out of three!” Wrecker shouts, unwilling to give in. The second round plays out similarly to the first, though to Wrecker’s credit, it lasts much longer this time.

Hunter is next, prepared to spar with improvised weapons this time. He twirls a training staff in his hand as you mimic the movement, showing you're not one to shy away from a challenge.

Like Wrecker, Hunter initiates the attack, delivering precise and purposeful strikes. You respond to each hit with quick parries, your staff slicing through the air to meet his with deadly accuracy. You move with clarity, anticipation guiding your every step. A series of rapid exchanges ends with you spinning around him and knocking his staff out of position.

“Whoa…” Omega breathes out, mesmerized by both combatants’ movements. Such distinctly different styles meeting in combat. Echo leans in to reply to Omega, “Nothing more impressive than watching a Jedi in action, I’m still not used to it.”

Hunter resets, coming in harder now, but you’re quicker. You feint, duck, and finally sweep his legs in one smooth motion, knocking him flat on his back. Hunter blinks up at you from the ground, your staff only inches from his throat, and holds his hands up, signaling defeat, “Alright. That one’s yours.”

You smile and offer a hand to help him to his feet. “Good match.”

Today’s final session involved blaster target practice with Echo and Tech. They created a makeshift firing range by stacking rocks of different sizes and shapes to mimic dummy targets at various distances. Echo and Tech fire first and deliver precise fire, taking down targets effortlessly.

You stand at the line, gripping a standard DC-17. Initially, your stance is questionable. "Too cautious,” as Echo noted, and work to correct with Tech’s subtle advice. With that adjustment, you manage shots that hit center-mass. Not always bulls-eyes, but consistent enough.

“Not bad. Stay light on your feet,” Echo encourages as you round to complete the last circuit.

Tech finalizes the last inputs on the data pad, assessing the results from your previous round. “Lateral reaction time is above average. Accuracy stands at 78%. Not terrible for someone trained with a lightsaber.”

You smile, brushing sweat from your brow. “I’ll take it for now.”

You complete the last round of training, and all gather at camp as the sun sets on the deserted moon. The Batch is at ease, weary yet content. You sit next to Omega, who radiates energy from observing the training throughout the day. “You were incredible today. Especially with the staff, like, really incredible.”

“Thanks,” you smile, happy that you managed to impress the young girl, hoping it is the same for the rest of the Batch.

Hunter confirms your thoughts. “You handled yourself well across the board. You’ve got the instincts, I think you’ll fit in nicely.”

“Still say I slipped,” Wrecker grins, not admitting a fair defeat.

Tech raises a finger coming to your defense, “Statistically, it was a well-executed maneuver. You tripped.”

“Yeah, yeah…” He grumbles.

“Thanks for doing this. I appreciate that you didn’t have to,” you smile at everyone. It felt great to be part of a team again.

As the night progresses, the Batch rests by the fire as it crackles low, casting a warm glow over their tired faces. You lean back against a smooth rock, the flames flickering in your eyes as you watch the others in the firelight. A comfortable silence lingers until you decide to break it.

“So… what’s the plan? I mean, after this. What are you all hoping for?”

Hunter looks across the fire at you. The question hangs heavy in the air, and for a moment, he doesn’t answer. “I think you’ve earned an explanation. We’ve only got one goal, really. Lay low, stay alive. Try to find a way to disappear before the Empire finds us again.” He pauses, leaning forward, elbows on knees.

“But first, we’re heading to Ord Mantell. There’s a contact there. Goes by Cid. Obi-Wan Kenobi passed the name to one of our allies before he… vanished. Apparently, they used to work with Jedi, helped them off the grid during the war. Smuggling, information, jobs. We hope they have some information on a bounty hunter targeting Omega. That’s the trouble we were running from on Pantora before we met.”

He stops allowing you time to absorb that information, then continues, “Unless you have any better options?” his tone hopeful that might be the key to uncovering this mystery.

You shake your head, “My contacts wouldn’t be beneficial unless you want to sell some artifacts, and if I’m being honest, I would not want any of them knowing I’m alive…”

“As expected. Looks like we’re staying on our current objective.”

"For what it's worth any contact of Obi-Wan's should be pretty knowledgeable, it's a good start."

_____________

Nightfall settles on the outer ring moon, and most of the Batch is already asleep, except for two usual suspects. Tech ascends the ramp to the ship with quiet purpose, datapad tucked under one arm. His pace is steady—he’s come to look forward to this time, your nightly language lessons. As he rounds the corner, he pauses.

You were nestled in the corner seat, rather than your typical spot at the table, with your knees drawn up and a medbay blanket covering your legs. A soft light illuminates the space next to you while you turn a page in a worn paperback.

“No journals tonight?”

You look up, startled, and then smile sheepishly. ”Ah—sorry. I needed something lighter. It’s just a novel tonight. My brain couldn’t take any more ancient syntax.”

Tech hesitates a beat. His voice faintly drops when he responds, “I see. I had hoped we would continue the lesson on interlaced root glyphs.”

You pick up on it immediately, your smile softening.”Hey—don’t go walking out on me now. It’s a mystery novel. The fun kind, where everyone’s a suspect and no one makes sense until the last ten pages.”

You hold the book out slightly, tilting it so he can see the cover. “You’re welcome to join. I’ve only just started, but I bet we can figure out the ending faster than the author expects.”

Tech considers. Routine broken, but not unpleasantly so. After a moment, he steps forward and lowers himself onto the seat beside her.

“Well... I am statistically inclined to detect narrative inconsistencies.”

You laugh. “Perfect. You're exactly the overthinker I need for this.”

The two of you scoot in close enough to share the book, heads occasionally leaning in to read the same passage, exchanging quiet theories between page turns.

“Wait. But this character wasn’t even present at the time of the disappearance. How could he have moved the body?” Tech points out.

“Exactly! That’s what I’ve been saying since chapter six. But I’m pretty sure the author forgot their timeline.”

A few more pages, and you reach the end. You read the final paragraph aloud—and then stare at it, stunned.

“Wait. That’s it?”

Tech blinks through the confusion. “That conclusion lacks all structural cohesion. The motive is shallow, the timeline fractured, and the supposed twist contradicts three previously established alibis.”

“In other words, that was awful.” You both begin to chuckle. Initially quiet, then gradually more openly. It’s soft enough not to disturb the others, but it's that genuine, hearty laughter.

“I cannot believe we spent three nights decoding forgotten Jedi syntax, and this is what finally defeats us,” his tone full of disbelief.

You reply, laughter still on your lips. “Well, to be fair, you were the one who said it might be 'beneficial' to read more literature.”

He adjusts his goggles and leans back with a long exhale, clearly relaxed in her presence.”I withdraw the recommendation. At least where this author is concerned.”

You nudge him lightly with your shoulder. “Still… thanks for sticking around.”

“It was… surprisingly enjoyable.”

______

The Marauder is being prepared for departure. Wrecker reloads the camp crates into the cargo hold, Omega checks supplies, and you stand off to the side, assisting Tech in recalibrating a damaged sensor array on the wing.

You laugh softly at something he says. Tech isn’t entirely sure what was funny, but the sound catches him off guard. He glances at you longer than he intends to.

Across the clearing, Echo stands with Hunter, both casually observing.

“You seeing what I’m seeing?” Echo states clearly in disbelief.

“Yeah. Tech’s… smiling. That’s new.”

Echo crosses his arms, smirking slightly. “I don’t think he realizes it yet, but he’s definitely spending more time with her than with his datapads.”

Hunter raises an eyebrow. “He’s still bringing datapads to her, though.”

They chuckle as Tech reaches for a tool, but when your hands briefly touch, Tech freezes. It’s small but significant. He fumbles slightly but recovers quickly.

“There it is.”

“Yeah. He’s in trouble.”

—-----------

Tech sits at his console, ostensibly running diagnostics, but he’s only half-focused. His fingers hover over code while his mind is elsewhere. The cockpit door hisses open, and Echo leans casually against the frame.

“You okay?”

“Yes. Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?” he asks, confused at the assumption.

“Oh, no reason. Just asking why you’ve recalibrated that same sequence three times.”

Tech looks at the screen. He has recalibrated it three times. “Ah. I… may be preoccupied.”

Echo approaches and takes a seat, uninvited yet accepted. "Listen, Tech, you don’t really show your feelings openly, so I’ll be direct. It’s perfectly fine to care about someone, even in situations like this."

Tech hesitates. It’s subtle, but something in him softens.”It’s… unfamiliar. Logical processes tend to degrade when emotional input is introduced. I’ve noticed increased distraction, irregular thought patterns, occasional lapses in—”

“You like her, Tech.”

Tech blinks at him.

“And I think she likes you too. You’re allowed to let that happen. We don’t get many chances for this. You’re still you… just a version that laughs more."

There’s a pause before Tech nods slowly, almost unsure of himself for once.”I will… consider your analysis.”

“Just don’t overanalyze it so much that you miss the moment.”

[writersdrug]

Ghost x Konig x Reader: I Don't Need You (Ch. 6)

<- Previous - Next ->

Summary: You (surprisingly) get more comfortable with Kortac, and slowly let yourself connect with the team. You subconsciously tether yourself to Konig, who is more than willing to help you fit in. The pain of the past begins to fade into the back of your mind like the end of a long chapter of your life.

Additionally, Konig starts asking the hard questions - it unearths a piece of you that you'd hoped would remain buried, but you still share the memories with Konig.

Chapter warnings: Mentions of violence, mentions of rape, cursing, google translate German, shirtless Soap, very EXTREMELY watered-down mentions of sexual themes (we ain't there yet, boiis)

Notes: Sorry it took so long, I've got a lot cooking in the kitchen now and I'm hoping to pump out a lot this week!

Additionally, I've had some comments on this work not being an x Reader. First off, I never want to mislead anyone. I label this as an x Reader because Bonnie is not an OC of mine. I've seen other x Reader fics include callsigns that refer to the reader, so I assumed using Bonnie similarly would be alright. I also mentioned a name ONCE in chapter 3, "Jane Morris," which I thought to be a very generic name, and I haven't used it since and don't plan to. I have a personal preference of writing longer, chapter-by-chapter fics in first POV because it feels more natural to me than second POV. The same goes for using y/n - I like to avoid it if I can because it feels unnatural.

Again, those last two thing are a personal preference. I'm not bashing any fics that use these things at all, I enjoy both ones that do and ones that don't, and I don't enjoy one over the other. When I say one feels more natural than the other, I mean it feels more natural to write, not to read. I'm debating changing the name I used in chapter 3 to just y/n l/n to make this a true x Reader. If you still feel like I should change this to an x OC please let me know and I'll be happy to adjust the tags, titles, and descriptions. Again, I never meant to be misleading, and I hope I didn't make anyone angry. If a mistake has been made I am happy to learn from it. Thanks!

Konig had cracked the code on me. He figured out that after a case of American beers and a long drive, away from the crowd of new faces, my outer shell began to soften.

There was still a wall that I was holding up between me and everyone else, even though it was significantly smaller than usual. When Roze and Castillo approached me at breakfast, I didn’t get up and leave. And when Juno used the empty spot in the gym room right next to me, dropping his bag on the floor and giving me a cautious glance as he set up for his routine - I didn’t grab my things and move to the other end of the room. That was my first instinct, but I fought it. Instead I huffed, facing the mirror in front of me and focusing on my sets.

I’d started going to the common area more often – maybe not every night, but often enough. We’d make it a habit to play poker on the nights I did show up. I was better than most of the group, since none of them were quite used to my mannerisms yet. However, Konig and Horangi still took the lead as the winners, despite most of us arguing that they shouldn’t be allowed to play if they were going to wear their masks. The argument would eventually turn into a casual conversation – I didn’t engage in it too often. I preferred to sit and listen, using the time to slowly learn more about the team. I typically planted myself between Roze and Konig, keeping my legs crossed on the seat and nervously fiddling with my Yuengling bottle.

Although I was ashamed to admit it, Konig had become a conduit for my interactions with the rest of the team. The way he engaged with their activities, yet still managed to stay reserved, struck a chord with me. I respected the fact that it could sometimes be difficult to find him on base, and that at the same time, he was always there when I started to feel overwhelmed. I didn’t need him, no… that was a stretch. But sometimes I felt grateful that he was so eager to accompany me places – especially when he invited me to go on “perimeter checks” with him, which mostly consisted of long drives off base.

I don’t know how I had grown to appreciate him so much – maybe it was because he felt similar to me, in the way that we both needed our alone time, and with how we often found ourselves slipping out of the common area around the same time, with the original excuse being that we were tired. Half of the time, we would sit in the mess hall and talk until the early hours of the morning.

“A sniper?” I asked on one particular night, fiddling with the mouth of my beer bottle. “You’re way to big for that – no offense.”

Konig chuckled. “And that’s what they initially told me.” He took a swig of his (nasty) German beer. “But, despite being handed other opportunities, I proved them wrong. I’m sill a damn good sniper.”

I huffed. “Nah, you should be happy you got promoted to Colonel; you’re lucky, you get to avoid being in the trenches – at least, as much as the rest of us.”

“Lucky? No…” Konig said, shaking his head. “I do not like being a Colonel. I’d much rather be doing the dirty work of soldiers than writing these stupid reports.” He slapped a large hand over the manilla folder that sat on the table next to his beer. “It keeps my head busy, and I don’t have to listen to myself think.”

I nodded while sipping my beer. “I completely get that – If I’m not actively doing something with my hands, my brain gets too loud. Like – like there’s a mini me in my head, and the only way to drown her out is by physically doing something. Anything, really.”

Konig laughed – almost a snort – “‘A mini you’. I like that, that’s good.”

I huffed a laugh through my nose, turning my head to hide the smirk on my face. Despite being a large, brutish man, he had a youthful essence about him. It was hidden deep beneath the thick exterior of a war-hardened soldier. But, every now and again, it rose to the surface, touching a part of my soul I hadn’t allowed to be seen in a long time.

I pushed my stack of bills into the middle of the table. “All in.” I said nonchalantly.

Gaz narrowed his eyes, leaning back in his chair and looking down his nose at me. “You’re bloody stupid…”

“Or really smart.” I retorted. I folded my arms over my chest, not wavering under his intimidating gaze.

It was unbearably hot in the room – whether that was from the tension of the game or the broken air conditioner (Price eternally insisted it would be fixed, “… by next week…”), I didn’t know. I was donned in my sweatpants and sports bra, Gaz was in a wife beater and sweats, Ghost was covered head to toe in a sweatshirt and jeans (one could ever rarely catch him wearing anything less), and Soap… well, Soap was Soap. Completely shirtless, with only a pair of gym shorts on. Typical for him to be so shameless.

Ghost looked at his cards, his jaw clearly tense underneath his mask. He wasn’t very good at hiding his unlucky hand – it was almost like he wasn’t even trying. Which was a possibility.

“Fucking hell… I fold.” He tossed his hand onto the table, revealing his sour bunch of cards. He walked to the fridge and cursed under his breath, rummaging through the contents.

“Jesus, you’re a load of dry shite.” Soap commented, leaning against the wall adjacent to Ghost. “You could’ve at least tried to intimidate ‘em.”

“You could try shutting your fucking mouth, alright?” Ghost snapped back. Soap raised his hands defensively, leaving Ghost by the fridge.

He flopped onto the couch near me and Gaz. “Miserable sap…”

I did my best to tune out their bickering. I stared down Gaz, tapping my fingers on the edges of my cards. I was relying on the river card – I had a chance at a four-of-a-kind, praying the last card on the table would be another seven.. It was risky, and Gaz was probably right in calling me stupid. But I was never one to back down from a challenge. I craved the thrill of it. Most of the time, I ended up getting lucky.

Gaz chewed his lip. He cocked an eyebrow, slowly pushing all of his cash to the middle of the table. “Call.” He said.

And I heard it – the telltale sign of his bluff. A fraction of a second where his voice had waivered, followed by him grinding his jaw. I knew I had it in the bag.

I was savoring the moment of triumph, watching Gaz stare at his cards, when I felt a hand on my back. I nearly spun around and yelled at whoever touched me, until I saw a gloved hand place a Yuengling bottle to my right, the lid already popped off. I faltered, staring at the bottle, feeling the hand on my back rubbing a thumb back and forth over my spine.

I glanced behind me, looking up to meet Ghost’s eyes. He was looking down at me with an empty gaze. His eyebrows twitched for a brief moment as he continued rubbing his thumb over the skin of my back.

I knew what he was suggesting. What he was asking. Put a woman on a compound with broken, touch-starved men, and eventually one of them will succumb to the temptation. Even so, I was shocked that it was Ghost. I would say he was showing a weakness here, no matter what he decided to call this – it was an admission that he needed something – something from me, specifically – which I never thought would happen.

He continued staring at me for another few moments, waiting for an answer. Keeping my eyes locked on him, I took the bottle and drank; my reply. He gave the tiniest nod, walking away and sitting down next to Soap – who was shuffling the remaining deck of cards, eyes narrowed at Gaz. He knew he was bluffing too.

I turned back to Gaz, smirking as he revealed the river card.

“You ever think about what you would say to those kids now?” I asked, tapping my beer bottle. “The ones who bullied you.”

Konig hummed. “Mm… not really. I don’t hold too much resentment.”

I chuckled. “If only we could all be a saint.”

“Well, it all happened so long ago.” Konig tried to justify himself. “We were only kids, bored and trying to stay on the surface. They just wanted to look tough so that no one would pick on them. Of course, I wouldn’t understand that as a kid. Maybe then, I would have admired what I’ve become, and I would have wanted to boast about it. But now that I am a Colonel – Ich habe besseres zu tun.”

I sarcastically rolled my eyes. “And that means?”

“Ehh…” he groaned, squinting his eyes. “How is it said… ‘I have bigger fishes to cook.’”

I sputtered, turning my head and laughing. Konig glared at me. “Gibt es ein Problem?” he asked, which I sort of understood. He sounded irritated, that much I could tell.

“No, Konig…” I said, standing up and giving him a pat on the shoulder as I walked by. “Just keep up the English lessons, ok?”

He scowled. “Verpiss dich… Start learning German and maybe I will.” He retorted, and I waved at him dismissively from behind my back.

I stuck my head into the fridge, grabbing a Yuengling and one of Konig’s beers. I walked back and placed them both next to him. Like instinct, he took each one and hooked their lid onto the edge of the table, then smacked the side of his hand down on the tops, sending the lid clattering to the ground. He opened my beer and handed it to me, then repeated the process with his, before reaching down and collecting the lids. He added them to the pile, totaling six beer lids so far.

If someone had shown me this image a year ago – Konig and I, sitting up late into the night, chatting like we’d known each other for decades… not to mention the fact that I was so unusually open with him… I would have been insulted. I would have laughed. No one would have been able to convince me that I would become so attached to anyone else after what had happened with the 141. Yet, all of this felt so natural. It was beyond how I felt that Konig and I were kindred spirits… it really did feel like I’d known him before. Maybe, he reminded me of a part of myself that I tried to bury away.

Or, maybe, I was just submitting to loneliness and trying to justify how quickly I clung to the first available soul. That was also an embarrassing possibility, one that I would rather not admit to.

“I have a question for you.” Konig’s voice and the clink of his beer bottle on the table brought me back to reality.

“I might have an answer.” I replied.

He looked off to the side, perhaps wondering whether or not he really wanted to ask the question. “Who did you kill? And why?”

Just like that, I felt the walls being built right back to where I had them. Bonding time’s over. Back to square one.

His inquiry caught me off guard. I froze, my bottle hovering in the air before I could take a sip, my eyes glued to the table. Just the mention of the incident brought the painful memories up to the surface, like claws scraping at the dirt, digging up the deepest roots.

“Lots of people.” I said, deflecting. I took a swig of my beer.

“You know what I mean.” He scoffed. “Why did you end up in military prison?” He leaned over the table – clearly not planning on letting the topic go.

I sucked my teeth, staring at him defiantly – moments ago, it was pleasant talking to him. Now, I was fighting back the urge to leave him at the table and go to my dorm. I felt ambushed at how he had changed the subject so abruptly. Like he had been waiting for me to carelessly stumble into the trap, and now he was watching me snarl from within it.

He leaned back with a sigh. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to. I just thought we were getting somewhere here.”

“Oh?” I said dryly, cocking an eyebrow. “’Getting somewhere?’ What’s that sup-“

“Hey, it’s ok.” He raised his hands defensively. “I get it. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.” His words were forgiving, but his eyes said something else – I knew what he was thinking.

Weak.

I gave him a hateful stare. Fucker know how to play his cards.

“I killed a sergeant.” I admitted. “My lieutenant’s right-hand man.”

That got Konig’s attention. He leaned forward again, putting his bottle off to the side. “Why?” he asked again.

I inhaled deeply, then exhaled, as I leaned back in my chair. My eyes fell to the floor as I forced myself to recall the memories. “In Egypt, a while back. Don’t ask when because I won’t tell you.” I warned Konig, and he huffed – but obliged.

I continued. “We were going in to retrieve a hostile target. Everyone was jumpy – me included. It was dark, and we didn’t know what to expect. After the hostiles started to engage, we were scattered. I got stuck in one tower, so I went upstairs to try and make a foxhole.”

I paused. It was now my own hands, covered in dirt, clawing at the roots of the memory. Each word I said was painful, yet somehow felt overshared. Like I was trying to get Konig to pity me. Except I wasn’t – I just wanted him to listen.

And that’s exactly what he did. No comforting shoulder pat, no soothing words… he just listened. He knew that if he stepped on the wrong spot, it would break my openness, like a branch breaking under his foot would disturb the silence of the woods.

“The sergeant – ‘Flare’ – he was up there, too. I thought we’d had the same idea, but… holy fuck…” I ran a hand down my face, feeling my heartbeat grow faster. “At first, I didn’t know what he was doing, I just heard him making those sounds and I thought he’d been hit, but… he was taking advantage of this – this woman – and with her kids right fucking there… she was probably just trying to hide, to hide them, she had to be so fucking scared… he didn’t even stop when I found him, I don’t know if he even heard me screaming at him.”

I paused, almost waiting for Konig to say or do something, but he remained silent. Despite my eyes never leaving the floor, I could see his blue ones watching me carefully. Concerned, patient, and calm.

“I didn’t know what else to do.” I said, my voice faltering the slightest bit. “So I shot him. In the head.” I unintentionally shivered. “Probably traumatized that poor woman and her kids, but… quick decisions aren’t the best ones.”

I ended my rant with a heavy sip of my beer. Konig continued watching me with wary eyes, which I ignored. I didn’t need consolation, or sympathy, or whatever he might try to offer. Somehow, he seemed to understand that.

“I would have done the same thing.” He commented.

Would you?

After a moment, he exhaled. “I don’t understand… I’d say you were in the right. Why did they put you in prison for that?”

I chewed my lip. “There was… some speculation, that I was jealous of his position. We’d been close throughout my time with the team, and when he got the promotion to second-in-command, I was a bit envious at first. People thought I was taking my anger out on him in what seemed like the perfect opportunity to lie.” I took another sip. “But I was happy for him. He worked hard, and he deserved it. But then the pressure got to him – Lieutenant was always depending on him for too much, and Flare couldn’t handle the responsibility. If he slipped up, it was a lot worse than if one of the rest of us did. I guess… the pressure is what got him in the end. Made him crazy in the end. He didn’t have any morals anymore.”

More silence. It felt uncomfortably loud – Konig’s stare seemed to make my head ring, making me fidget and bounce my knee. I wanted to snap at him. What are you looking at? Why are you asking so many fucking questions? But I was able to keep my anger at bay, justifying the situation by assuming his questions were fueled by nothing more than curiosity.

I figured I had said enough for the night, and finished off the rest of my beer. I slapped my leg, the telltale sign that I was getting ready to turn in.

Konig ignored it, or seemed to not notice. “Why did you kill him?” he asked.

I narrowed my eyes in confusion. “Why did I? What do you mean?”

“Why kill him? Why not just… disable him for the moment, and let your commander deal with him later?”

I opened my mouth to speak, but my voice was a second too late. “Again… in the heat of the moment, you don’t make distinctions like that. You think: ‘shoot,’ or ‘don’t shoot.’ And shooting him was the choice I made.”

Konig’s gaze became scrutinous. He knew I was lying about something… he was hellbent on figuring out what.

He’s going to have to wait a long damn time.

“Goodnight, Konig.” I said flatly. I collected my bottles, getting up from the table. With a clang, I tossed them into the bin by the exit, walking down the hall and leaving Konig sitting alone in the mess hall. I feel tears stinging my eyes, but that’s all they did. It’s all just water under the bridge, y/n. Get it together. You’re alright.

-----

Taglist: @igotmajordaddyissues @princekonig @vixionix

[signfromeywa]

AUNGIA TA EYWA (A SIGNS FROM EYWA)

Chapter 01: A difficult start️

Description:

Anastasia Novak is a behavioural scientist tasked with socializing a captive Na'vi on behalf of the RDA. The longer she works with the Na'vi and the closer she gets to him, the more she has to rethink everything she thought she knew and redefine her morals and values. Can she just carry on like this, or will she follow her heart?

Content: Rating +18, Avatar fanfiction, human x Na'vi ship, Na'vi captured

Characters: Human OCs: Anastasia Novak, Steven Turner, Patra// Na'vi OCs: Ean'tu,

Word Count: 4379

⊹˚₊‧─────────────────────────────‧₊˚⊹

❗️English is not my native language! I apologize very much if it reads a bit bumpy here and there.

I'm a German author and this is the first time I've tried to translate a story I'm working on into English and upload it. I still hope you enjoy it.❗

An automatic heavy iron door opened with a hydraulic sound. As it opened, it disappeared into the wall on both sides, revealing a young woman. 

" Mam, please raise your arms." Two guards approached her, both armed and in uniform. One of them stepped up to her. 

She raised her arms uncertainly. She didn't want to cause any trouble or complications. It was her first day at work and she wanted to make a good impression. 

The man picked up a hand-sized scanner and ran it along her body at a distance to scan her for metal parts and weapons. Since everything was inconspicuous, he nodded to his colleague. 

"All right, please go straight out to the airlock at the back. They're already expecting you." He pointed to a much smaller metal door in the distance next to a window. Behind it stood a man who seemed to be busy with something. 

"Thank you very much." The young woman made her way out and the guards resumed their positions. Her heart was pounding in her chest. On the one hand, this was her big chance, but on the other, she was terrified of doing something wrong. It would ruin her once and for all. 

When she reached the airlock door, the man behind the window looked up and noticed her. Then he disappeared from her field of vision and shortly afterwards a beep sounded, whereupon a light came on and the door opened. Behind it stood a man: very inconspicuous, white coat, files in his hand and dark circles under his eyes.

"Miss Novak I presume?" He examined her with his tired eyes. The man seemed overworked or had simply not slept well for many nights, or even too little. 

"Yeah, right." She walked through the door and held out her hand to greet him. He didn't seem to notice, as he turned away and went back to looking at his papers.

"Follow me Miss Novak." He simply walked off and, somewhat irritated, she stumbled after him. "I'm honestly surprised. You're a petite woman and yet you signed up for this job."

She blinked in surprise. "Excuse me?" 

He stopped and looked at her over his shoulder. "But you do know what you signed up for, don't you?" 

"Yes, of course I do. The job description was clear." 

"Hmm..." He started walking again. "We'll see how you do. After all, we work with the highest security measures and technology. So we can assume that nothing will happen to you. But you should still be careful."

What kind of strange conversation was that? Was the guy trying to scare her? Or was he seriously worried? In any case, canceling was no longer an option. She hadn't flown here for three years only to go home again. No way. She was just right for the job. So far, every animal had been trained and tamed by her, and it would be no different here. She shouldn't let these statements unsettle her in the first place. She was the best in her field and that was exactly why she had got the job. 

They stopped together in front of another door with a keypad next to it. He entered the required code and the door opened to let them both in.

"This is the team's workplace, so it's yours too. Apart from the enclosure, of course." He pointed into the room. It had no windows, was made entirely out of metal and was artificially lit with white light. Two desks stood in one corner, close to a large filing cabinet with countless files. A few of them were spread out on the desks as if someone was still writing on them and a few more were stacked in boxes next to them. "You'll have a lot of paperwork," commented the man who still hadn't introduced himself. 

"Over here is the plant's equipment. Everything important is controlled from here, but you don't have to worry about that." He pointed to another corner with a huge control panel. With lots of switches and buttons, none of which the young woman understood.

"Keep moving, over here." They went through another door at the end. This led into a smaller room with a window through which you could see into another area. The employee led her to the window and looked through it with her. 

"You have a wonderful view of the enclosure from here." His gaze wandered vigilantly from right to left, as if he was looking for something. "You can't see it just now. It often hides in the treetops." He was probably talking about the animal she was supposed to look after. She had already seen a picture of the creature in the job advertisement, which had not come to her by coincidence, but through a special contact. Her eyes wandered along the tree. 

"Oh, don't bother. You can't see through the dense leaves from here." He turned around. "Here we have the monitors from the cameras we've installed all over the enclosure, so we can usually keep an eye on it... but it doesn't seem to be visible through them right now. So it really will be in the tree."

A man came in through the door. He was also wearing a white coat and sat bluntly on the chair in front of the monitors with his cup, without saying anything.

"This is Mr. Gonzales, he takes care of the surveillance in shifts. Then we have three mechanics for the enclosure and two people who look after the switchgear over there. So you don't need to worry about that. Just let us know if you want to know anything." 

The young woman nodded and looked at her counterpart with her brown eyes. 

"Oh yes, I'm Mr. Turner. I'd like to welcome you. Let's hope you can hold out here. That beast in there is giving us a hard time. It would be good if you could get it under control."

"Doctor Anastasia Novak, a pleasure. I'll be fine. I've managed to tame all the beasts so far. Don't worry about it." For the first time, Ana smiled. Her colleague seemed a little plump, but he probably didn't mean it unkindly.

"The facility is attached to the main building. The boss likes to come by and take a look at Sky," Mr. Turner said.

"I understand that. But he doesn't go into the enclosure?" 

"He was there once, with a guard. Sky bit the guard's ear off. Since then, he's been wearing an electronic collar and the boss doesn't go in anymore." He looked at Ana. "That's what you're here now for. You're supposed to work with Sky and socialize it to humans." 

"Sky seems really aggressive. It's a male, isn't it?" 

"Yes, but to us it's just an alien. I don't care if it's female or male. I've seen that thing attack our people. If you ask me, it's highly dangerous and just aggressive. I don't think you can get it to get used to humans," he said.

Ana crossed her arms "Any animal can be trained. But I can understand why you're skeptical. Are there any other safety measures apart from the collar?" 

"Someone is always in the control room. From here, a sleeping drug can be released via its collar if it can no longer be held. You have to go through two locks if you want to enter the enclosure. We also have automatic shooting systems that can detect and shoot the target at any time, whether it's sleeping arrows or live ammunition." 

Ana was amazed, but she knew it was necessary. A three-metre animal could certainly do bad things to a person and if she was really going to go in there to work with the animal, her safety had to be guaranteed. Mr. Turner had certainly been able to convince her of that.

She turned back to the window and looked into the enclosure. "Are there any medical records?" 

"Yes, I'll show you the files in a moment. There's not that much in them, though." He stood by her and looked now too. 

"I'll at least be able to file my psychological report there. That would be a start. I'd also like to go straight into the enclosure, is that possible?" Ana looked at Mr. Turner expectantly.

"Yes, that will work. I'll get your equipment ready straight away and inform the shift on duty. Then we'll watch your back from up here," Mr. Turner confirmed. 

"All right, let's get going! I need something to write on, would that be possible?" 

"Come with me." He went ahead into the other room to the desks to get a clipboard and paper. "Will that be enough?"

Ana took the pen from the table and clipped it to the board as well. "Yes, here we go."

Gradually, she could feel her heart beating faster. It wasn't the first alien she'd had to tame. But she could remember exactly what the job advertisement had said. Big, strong, fast. It was said to be somewhat predatory and very aggressive. Ana didn't think she had ever looked after such a violent animal. But she also saw it as a chance to prove once again that she was the best at her job. It was a challenge she wanted to take on and she wasn't just doing it for that reason. She loved all life, other species and animals. All life has its place, you just had to learn to understand it. You could live in harmony with everything, she was sure of that. The dog was the best example. Or the cat. If you found out more about the species and their way of communicating, then you could respond to them and come to an understanding. It would be no different here. She was sure of that. There was always a way.

Her colleague had guided Ana to the airlock door that led into the enclosure. "Here, put on the mask. The enclosure has the atmosphere of the moon, which is necessary for the animal. So you will have to wear the mask at all times when you enter." 

Ana took the mask and put it on. By now, she didn't need any help, as she had already been shown how to wear them a few times on the way here. It was also very easy. A short hiss confirmed that the mask was on properly.

"Good, I'll open the airlock door now. Go inside and wait until the pressure has equalized and the enclosure door opens. I'll have a view of you in the control room upstairs." He opened the door, which only opened with the ID card he had on his coat.

As the scanner light turned green, the airlock door opened, revealing a small room that resembled a larger elevator. Ana entered cautiously and startled when the heavy airlock door closed behind her. There was a small beep and then it started to hiss. The airlock had started to equalize pressure. When the hissing stopped, it beeped again. A light turned green. Ana's heart was now beating up to her neck. She knew she was safe, but she was still excited. After all, she was now entering a predator's enclosure unarmed. It had already proved often enough what it was capable of. 

The sluice door to the enclosure opened to reveal an artificially created natural enclosure. The ground was earthy and covered with grass here and there, bushes had been planted and at the end was an incredibly tall tree. Only now, from down here, could she see how high the treetop was. So high that the ceiling had to be extended and there was now a dome above the tree. But it wasn't made of glass. It was lighting in the form of huge spotlights on the ceiling that imitated the natural light from outside.

"Are the plants real?" she asked Mr. Turner over the radio.

"Yes, they're all real. We have extra staff in here for the flora. They're all real plants from the moon. To recreate the animal's natural habitat," he confirmed.

"So much effort," she marveled. 

"It had to be done. The first enclosure wasn't natural enough and the animal became very weak and ill. Then the boss had this enclosure built straight away." 

"He must really like Sky." Ana slowly stepped into the enclosure and looked around. "Have you spotted Sky on the cameras yet?" 

"No, nothing yet. But stay alert, the beast is damn good at sneaking up on you," warned Mr. Turner.

"Yes, thanks, I'll keep looking around." Ana walked on. The enclosure was surprisingly well maintained and had beautiful flora. It was hard to believe what the boss had taken on himself to make his pet feel at home. Keeping an alien as a pet wasn't easy. Only the rich could afford it. Ana was happy with a simple cat to snuggle up with in the evening. She walked slowly towards the big tree. Her colleague had said that it often stayed here. Maybe she would be able to see it. As she got closer and her gaze wandered over the tree, she spotted something in the branches higher up. It looked like branches tied together and seemed to be hanging from something similar to a plant.

She took out her clipboard and started to draw it. She had never seen anything like it and found it fascinating. "Mr. Turner, do you know what that tied branch is hanging from the tree? What did you hang it for?" 

"We didn't hang anything. It must be new. But it's not ours, at least I don't think so. I'll ask the staff later." 

"Thank you." Ana walked on. But it was unlikely this far up. How could people from the team have got there? It was several meters from the ground, among the branches and leaves. How unusual. 

Then she reached the tree and looked up at it. It was unbelievably huge, not even two full-grown people could have reached around the trunk. 

"How big is the tree?" she asked over the radio.

"Phew... it should be something like 47 meters," was the answer she got.

Ana was amazed. A tree that big was something rare on Earth and would mean that it was a very old tree. Would the growth behavior of the plants be different here? She cautiously placed a hand on the bark. 

Then she heard a branch crack and looked up, startled, but it was too late. All she could see was something large and blue pouncing on her and throwing her to the ground. Frightened and startled, she screamed and the clipboard fell out of her hand and landed at some distance on the earthy ground next to her.

Above her was that animal. Sky! Despite her panic, she recognized it from the photo she had seen. This was the animal she was supposed to tame. Only now that it was so close above her did she realize how big three meters were. But she didn't have time to think about that. She could hardly breathe. Sky had pushed her to the ground and placed his hand on her chest. He really was extremely strong.

Gasping for breath, she looked into the dark blue face. Deep red eyes glared at her. His face was contorted into a snarl and his ears were pinned back. It bared its pointed fangs in anger. She grabbed the animal's wrist, but Sky was stronger. 

"Mr...Turner..." she stammered choked and hoped he would hear the radio. 

Nothing came at first, but then: "Oh shit!" The first electric shock came immediately. Ana got the electric shock from the touch. Shit, that was painful. Her body spasmed under the brief electric shock. But it was enough. The animal had retreated in fright. But it was not in a peaceful mood. Sky crouched in front of her. He hissed at her and his tail whipped back and forth anxiously. 

"Get away from there!" she heard Mr. Turner's panicked voice over the radio.

Her limbs still aching, she picked herself up and tried to get away. Sky jumped towards her again. He was clearly not done with her yet. Ana had invaded his territory. She had been careless. But before the animal reached her, the electricity on the collar was activated once more. This time it wasn't a short shock, but a continuous stream. Sky slumped to the ground and writhed as he screamed. He was clearly in pain, but Ana knew it was her only chance to get away. She stood up and took a quick look at Sky before running off. Suddenly Sky's eyes snapped open despite the pain and their gazes met. 

Shit! None of this was right! What was happening here was wrong and she knew it. Animals shouldn't be tortured like this. A single electric shock or two would have been enough. But to let it suffer like this was not okay.

"Mr. Turner! Turn off the power, damn it. That's enough!" she radioed nervously as she stood anxiously away from the animal. 

"Are you crazy?! Get away from there! There's no way I'm turning off the power." 

"POWER OFF! NOW!" Ana shouted into the radio and looked angrily up at the window where she knew Mr. Turner could see her. 

After a moment's hesitation, the power went out and Sky went limp. "Shit! You must be crazy. Come out of there now!" 

"I'm here to get to know him, not traumatize him." Ana's words sounded harsh. She was annoyed. She certainly wasn't an animal abuser. She never had to use such educational measures before. She had just felt for herself how painful this fucking electricity was. It was not okay to expose the animal to this pain for so long.

Anyway, it was over now and Sky didn't move. He must have been exhausted from the pain. It was the perfect opportunity to get to safety. But that wasn't what Ana was here for. Running away wouldn't help her if she wanted to tame the animal. 

For now, Sky was exhausted. So exhausted that he would certainly not attack her again so quickly. This was a good opportunity to get closer to the animal. She approached cautiously. Just a few steps. Sky turned his head to the side, exhausted, and scrutinized her with his reddish eyes. He watched her closely. 

Ana ducked slightly and held out her hands. "It's all right... everything's fine," she said in a soft voice and continued to approach Sky. This time the animal didn't move. It just looked at her and it almost seemed like it was letting Ana. Why was it okay for her to go over to it now? The animal's tail lay still and its ears were no longer laid back. Only its watchful gaze told her that Sky probably wanted to say: "I'm keeping a close eye on you, I don't trust you completely yet."

She knelt down on the floor next to him. Admittedly, she was terrified. Now she had seen for herself what the animal was capable of. It was dangerous, but it also took courage to tame an animal. 

"Shit! What are you doing, Miss Novak? You'd better get away from there. The animal attacked you earlier. That's dangerous!" Mr. Turner was clearly very upset. His voice was shaking so nervously that Ana could hear it through the radio. 

"Yes, it is dangerous. But I have to start getting him used to me straight away, otherwise it will only get worse. You can't show any weakness," she explained in an equally nervous voice. Although she had tried to sound confident. 

Slowly, she reached out her hand to Sky, and just before she could touch his head, his ear twitched nervously. She paused briefly and waited to see what signals Sky gave her. The animal, however, also seemed to be waiting. Right now, he didn't see Ana as a threat. 

"Calm down, I don't mean you any harm," Ana said gently in a low voice to reassure it. Then she put her hand on its head and stroked it gently. Sky moved shortly afterwards.

"Miss Novak!" Mr. Turners sounded worried.

"It's all right, don't do anything. It's all right." Under no circumstances should he switch on the power now, Sky was behaving quite peacefully. There was no trace of aggression and Ana was surprised that he had changed his behavior so much. What had triggered it? Had it been the punishment? Was it afraid of being punished again? But that didn't make sense, animals don't actually learn the concept that quickly, unless they've often tortured it with electricity like that. The thought made her angry. That wasn't acceptable. 

Sky had sat up and sat in front of her. He still seemed exhausted. But his mind was awake and Sky looked at Ana warily. It wasn't friendly towards her, but it wasn't hostile either. It was more observant. 

Ana gently held out her hand so that Sky could sniff it. "It's all right, big guy, just relax." She smiled at him. 

Sky really was an extraordinarily beautiful creature. He had something human about him despite his predator-like features. The skin had a beautiful pattern and the eyes were a great color. The unique disorder of pigmentation that ran across his face and part of his shoulder also added to his beauty.

To Ana's surprise, Sky not only leaned forward to sniff her hand, but placed his hand in hers. The hand was much bigger than hers and very warm. Was Sky's species a primate? He acted very humanoid as he looked at her and held her hand. He certainly seemed smart. His nose, eyes and ears reminded her a lot of a cat or panther. Very curious. She would get some documents to find out more about the species. She hadn't gotten much information. Only the rough reports from the tabloids on Earth. But who knows how much of it was correct. News was not known for accuracy and scientific precision. 

"What's the name of his species again, Mr. Turner?" The word had completely slipped her mind.

"Na'vi is the name of these beasts," he said much more calmly now.

That's right, that was their name. The Na'vi were widespread on Pandora and known for their ferocity, which led to them attacking the bases of the drilling companies and killing the workers. In general, people told each other about the dangerous flora and fauna of Pandora, and the voices even got all the way to Earth. Even though there was a lot of publicity about traveling to Pandora to work for the RDA. The payment was good, but you were also far away from home. Ana had made it to Pandora and was now really sitting opposite of one of those dangerous Na'vis. At that moment, however, Sky was completely calm. 

Ana sat down too. Sky was so much taller than she was. It was impressive but also intimidating. Where should she start? Talking would not help the animal, body language was the most effective and the right charisma. She was no enemy of Sky, quite the opposite. She wanted to help him fit in and allow the helping presence of humans. 

Gently, she also reached out her other hand to him and he grabbed it, then something strange happened. Sky turned her wrist so that her palm was facing him and brought her fingertips to his chest, where she assumed his heart was.

"irayo..." she heard from Sky. 

Ana's eyes widened. What kind of sound, what kind of gesture had that been? It seemed so human, the way he was looking at her, touching her. Had he been trying to communicate with her? Or had it just been a sound? She didn't understand any of this. She looked into the Na'vis' watchful eyes and he looked into hers. 

It was completely silent. She was very still and breathing evenly. Somehow she had a strange connection to the animal. Sky was special. 

"Are you okay down there?" It was Mr. Turner's voice through the radio. 

Ana averted her eyes to look up at the window, it was quite small from down here, she could barely make out anything, but knew her colleague was standing up there keeping a close eye on her. 

"Yes, I'm fine. Everything's ok down here," she assured him, slightly confused, and then felt Sky let go of her hands. She turned her head back in his direction as he had already stood up and returned to the tree in a crouching position, partly on all fours and partly on his hind legs.

He seemed more insecure and dismissive again. He was clearly afraid of the radio message. "It's all right Sky, it's all right." Ana made a placating gesture with her hands and stood up as well. However, she had no intention of following the Na'vi. It had been enough excitement for today. She should let the animal have its space; after all, she didn't want things to escalate again. 

Besides, she urgently needed to gather herself now. She had gained so many new impressions and so many questions had now arisen in her mind. As soon as she was back at her desk, she would get permission to contact a research facility. She needed to find out more about the Na'vi and their behavior patterns if she wanted to avoid incidents like this in the future. 

Sky shouldn't have to suffer through the collar anymore. This stupid electricity hurt like hell, even if Ana only had it for a second. In future, it would be nice if Sky didn't need a collar like that at all. That would be Ana's goal.

Slowly she walked backwards to get safely away from the animal and Sky watched her closely. When he realized that she really wanted to leave, he swung himself onto a branch to withdraw. He probably wanted to get back to his hiding place in the tree. 

When Ana was far enough away, she turned around, collected her clipboard and made her way to the airlock. The doors opened as soon as she arrived and let her through.