#also i saw the rat and was like i wonder if they have a gray one and then was happy to see it had a chefs hat

[babybirbb]

i’m licherally losing my goddamn mind (x)

[writersdrug]

Ghost x Reader x Konig: I Don't Need You (Ch. 10)

<- Previous - Next ->

Summary: Thankfully, things have been resolved between you and Konig. You start to settle in more with your team, and Roze shares a few thoughts with you over a smoke. The memories are still there, but just like the winter around you, they're cold and unwelcoming. You and Konig open up to each other a bit more, more than you had ever opened up to anyone.

WARNINGS: implications of masturbation, cursing, angst (if you squint?), plot building, graphic depictions of animal torture and death (PLEASE CONSIDER ALL WARNINGS BEFORE READING THIS, I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MEDIA YOU CONSUME thank you kindly)

Notes: Yes! Hello! I exist!! I've been in a slump, and I really do apologize for that. Many of you have been very patient with me and I love and appreciate you all for it! I had to intake as much CoD literature as I could in the past few weeks to get me motivated, which helped a LOT (not to mention I discovered no fewer than ten works that currently have a hold on my heart). But it's here! I forced myself to write over half of the following chapter so that it would be less daunting to finish up. I also plan to make a wip post for yall, just to share will everyone what goes on in my rat brain.

This was edited at 3 am (god it's 4 am now, i just saw that), so if there are any grammatical or spelling errors you have my full consent to call me out on it! Please enjoy!

(sidenote, I completely didn't research how old you need to be to become a navy SEAL, so reader's age is a bit inaccurate in regards to that. pls ignore lol)

(last sidenote then you can read, does anyone have tips for customizing the layout of their fics? I see so many cool ways to style the font and cute banners and errything but I have no idea how nor what to do)

- - - -

The sky hung low with a blanket of gray. It looked like it was about to snow, although the threat was soon dismissed when noon came around and there wasn’t a single flake. The air was cold and dry, forcing me to zip my jacket up all the way and tuck my nose into the collar. I blew steady, warm breaths into my jacket and tried to soak up the heat into my bones.

It was as if the incident had never happened.

Konig and I ended up driving to the liquor store, which was a blessing, since I had run out of Yeungling (and I didn’t understand enough Turkish to converse with the clerk, nor did I have any of the appropriate money – Konig was graced with both of those necessities). We talked like there had never been a week and a half of silence between us. He talked about how he had nearly forced Ridgeback to drag me out of my room and into the common area, “… but it would have been too early for that.” He commented. That, and I would have rather died.

So life went on as normal: dreary, aside from shooting people and getting shot at. Nonetheless, it was normal, and there was a peace to be found in that.

I leaned against the building to the training room, with Roze to my left. I had intended to come out and soak up whatever natural light I could – when I saw her standing there, possibly trying to do the same, I felt the instinct to play it off as if I was just leaving the building. But she cocked her head in a greeting, and a part of me took an interest in her worry-free aura. Out of everyone, she always seemed to be the least-stressed person in the room, even in the middle of a warzone. It was the balm to my anxious mind that I never knew I needed, but gratefully stood by.

We remained together in a comfortable silence (one I would most definitely would not have been comfortable with a while ago), staring ahead, watching the indecisiveness of the brooding clouds above. I wondered what the rest of the world was doing – if they might have been as calm and carefree as us, or if they were in some kind of peril, and the horrors of it were blocked out by the clouds.

I was drawn back to the present when I heard the click click click of Roze’s lighter. I turned my head and watched as she shielded the weak flame from the wind, lighting the cigarette that hung loosely from her lips.

“You smoke?” I asked.

“Sure do.” She replied nonchalantly. “Want one?” she extended her pack of cigarettes towards me.

I glanced at the box, feeling a sour taste in my mouth.

I lay on my stomach, my muscles still twitching and shaking as I tried to even out my breaths. Ghost had tossed a thin blanket over my lower half. I hadn’t even moved from the position he had ruthlessly fucked me in – my body ached too much to even try, and my mind was still recovering from the past hour.

I watch Ghost as he reclined next to me, pushing the bottom of his mask up to place a cigarette between his lips. It was the first time I had seen any part of his face all day. He grabbed his lighter from the pocket of his pants that were discarded on the floor, lighting the end of the cigarette and inhaling. He tossed the lighter back down to the floor as he tilted his head back, exhaling a long stream of smoke. I watched it swirl in the lamplight, settling in a cloud around us. He continued puffing, staring at the wall across from the bed as I lay beside him, although I felt worlds away from him.

He'd started off the night with a mountain of stress from a mission gone sideways. Instead of the usual slow build, where he would run his hands under my shirt and kiss my lips slowly and tenderly – he had walked in and immediately demanded I remove my clothes while he began stripping out of his. I had assumed tonight was going to be a passionate one, until he threw me onto my stomach and shoved my face into the pillows. It wasn’t the first time he’d been rough with me, but it wasn’t just rough – it felt dehumanizing. An hour of constant, merciless thrusts, and a hand around my neck that restricted both my blood flow and my oxygen, and I had fallen into a state of shock.

But, in the end, I was happy to be caged in by him again.

I was happy.

He turned his eyes towards me, seeming to sense that something was off. He exhaled another puff of smoke. “Everythin’ alright?” he asked, completely void of any genuine concern.

I met his eyes with my own. I felt like I shouldn’t have to answer the question, and it stirred up a bitterness in me. But I didn’t feel like arguing with him, and I certainly didn’t want him to leave – so I nodded my head, slowly blinking my eyes. “Just tired.”

He hummed and faced the wall again. He brought one of his knees up and rested his arm against it. “Want a smoke?” he asked, still looking away.

I shook my head as much as the pillow beneath me would allow. “No.” I replied.

He sighed disappointedly. Apparently, my lack of enthusiasm after being used like an old fucktoy was irking him.

To be fair, I never spoke up about how I felt.

He grunted and rose from his position, snuffing out his cigarette in the ashtray by my bed, and picking up his clothes and pulling them on. My heart ached slightly as I watched him slide his shirt over his torso. I felt the threat of tears sting in my eyes as I wished his hands were holding me instead, keeping me warm and grounded. He pulled his jeans on and fastened them, buckling his belt rather quickly; and all while he faced away from me.

“Well, I know you probably need some alone time.” He muttered, sliding the skull attachment over his mask. “So I’ll get going. I’ll see you around.”

He grabbed his tactical vest and jacket and slung them over his shoulder. He paused by the door. “Thanks for tonight.” He mumbled, before finally leaving the room and softly closing the door behind him.

My eyes lingered on the ashtray with the half-smoked cigarette. A thin trail of smoke plumed into the air – I wanted to throw the tray across the room and shatter it. But it was Ghost’s, so I couldn’t; I couldn’t regardless, because it was a piece of him that remained with me, even when he left.

That, and the smell of smoke.

“Nah, I’m good.” I replied, facing the cold, empty base ahead of me.

“Good.” She said, pinching the cigarette and blowing a stream of smoke. “Stay that way. Did you know these bastards give you cancer?”

I chuckled into the collar of my jacket. “Do they, now?”

She hummed affirmatively, sucking another breath in through the cancerous bastard. “Who would’ve thought…”

We fell back into silence. I continued watching the stillness of the base, trying to see if the sky would follow through with its promise to fall. Now that my free time wasn’t spent holed up in my room, it somehow felt like there were fewer ways to spend it. With another mission on the horizon – a simple recon, yet dauntingly close to a heavily-guarded compound – no one was out and about when they usually were. Finding Roze outside and seemingly not worried was usual, however, and a warm sight, compared to how the rest of the team was on edge. Even Askel seemed grumpier than most days.

I hadn’t been seeking out someone to spend time with, no… that I would never do (or admit). But talking to a familiar face provided a comfort I had grown to need over the past couple of months. And, frankly, I felt like Konig might be getting tired of how much I ran to him when I craved social interaction. Though he had never said anything about it, I felt like I needed to branch out to other team members than just my Colonel. One might think I was trying to kiss his ass (I knew the accusation had already crossed Juno’s mind, but the young soldier was good at holding his tongue – when Konig was around, at least).

“You ever think about how ‘little girl’ you would react to this?” Roze asked, and I turned to face her. She had her nose scrunched, and a tinge of pink dusted over her cold cheeks. “Guns, war, no playdates or days at the beach…”

I sighed. “Probably would have cried.” I replied, allowing my freezing nose to poke over the collar of my jacket. “Especially if I had known that being a princess now adays meant spending more time worrying about becoming a hostage than anything else.”

Roze chuckled. “It’s a good thing we didn’t know then.” Her face was mostly blank, but I thought I noticed a hint of bitterness in the way her gaze landed on the ground. I watched her flick her cigarette with a bit more aggression than usual. “I would’ve tried to convince my entire family to run away to Scotland, live in hiding and pretend the rest of the world was a dream.”

“Scotland?” I asked. Soap’s cocky grin and heavy Scottish accent stirred in my mind, but it felt like nothing more than a small cloud of dust.

“Yeah – heard it’s fucking gorgeous over there.” She waved her cigarette in no particular direction. “Now, I don’t know how peaceful it is in terms of politics and war, but it’s pretty spacious. Simple, too. I feel like if I talked about throwing all my shit away and becoming a fisherman for a living, I wouldn’t get people trying to talk me out of it like I would in the States.” She took another drag, and laughed out the smoke.

“Fisherman?”

“Yeah.” She chuckled, a hardened smile gracing her lips. “I don’t know why it sounds so appealing… it just does.”

I hummed and looked back out at the compound. I wondered about Roze’s past; she had never said or done anything to indicate that it was particularly rough, as it was for the majority of us (us – I still wasn’t used to including myself, but it was becoming more of a habit each time), but the weariness in her eyes when she spoke about her younger self made me question what that girl had been through. Maybe it was just nostalgia. A yen for simpler times. Roze seemed to appreciate the simple things in life.

“You know Askel goes ice fishing?” she said suddenly.

I smiled underneath my jacket. “Seems like something he would do.”

“Every winter.” She continued. She dropped her cigarette to the floor and crushed it into the gravel. “He takes about three weeks of leave, if we’re lucky enough to get it, and goes to Norway. Sits on a frozen lake for hours a day, just waiting for a fish.”

“You make it sound like he’s never caught one.” I point out, my eyes lingering on the cigarette.

She shrugged her shoulders. “So does he. Every time I ask him what he caught, he just laughs. Says he’s never expects to get a bite.”

I closed my eyes and hummed in response. It was easy to picture the scene – Askel, sitting on a thick layer of ice, nursing the hoppy beers that he and Konig loved so much and waiting for a fish to bite. I wondered if he even bothered to reel the line in when he did catch something. Or if he even went fishing at all. Maybe he just went out there to get a sense of peace, to pretend that war and death didn’t exist.

The motion of thick, heavy snowflakes falling from the sky caught my attention. They landed on the skin of my nose, resisting the warmth for a few moments, before they eventually melted into trickles of water. A sudden gust of wind blew a flurry of them towards us, making the both of us flinch.

Maybe fishing doesn’t sound too bad.

- - - -

The shooting range was mostly silent, save for the occasional conversation between me and Konig. The lights were low, easily illuminating the gunpowder and dust swirling in the air. Konig and I stared at the paper target as we analyzed my shots. A few hit dead center, although most of them were clustered around the lower left of the bullseye. My lips were pursed into a scowl as I glared at my sub-par aim – it wasn’t typically so awful, but of course it was while Konig had been watching.

“Eh, are you sure you didn’t lie on your paperwork about being a sniper?” Konig asked as he stood behind my left shoulder, taking the target from my hands and looking at it closely. “You weren’t even ten yards from it. This is very poor marksmanship.”

I scowled in embarrassment, taking my pistol to the counter and pulling out the mag. “Rough day.” I answered bluntly as I started packing more bullets into the small compartment. It wasn’t a lie – I had barely gotten any sleep the night before. I was in the middle of a rather interesting dream involving me and Ghost, until my alarm woke me up before anything of importance happened.

“Very bad…” he mumbled to himself. I clicked my tongue in annoyance.

“Y’know…” I grumbled, loading the mag back into the gun and shoving it in my holster, “I don’t like stereotyping, but the boot really does fit you.” I walked past him and out into the hallway, not waiting for him to follow.

“Hmm?” he made an indignant noise, momentarily stuck in his spot, before he came jogging after me. “What does that mean? What stereotype?”

I chuckled. “Haven’t you ever how Germans are extremely blunt?” I asked.

“Austrian.” He retorted. “Do I need to brand that onto my face for you?”

“Wouldn’t do me much good, with the mask ‘n all.” I replied.

He laughed – rather snorted, as usual – “Ah, you’re right. Maybe I am blunt – just as much as you are defensive.”

I stopped at the end of the hall, right in front of the exit. “Defe-“ I turned on my heel to scowl at him. “I am not defensive! Where did you get that idea?!”

He stopped behind me, his eyes widening. He gestured an open palm in my direction. “This.”

I huffed, turning back around to punch the door open. The snow from earlier that day had ceased, blanketing the base in a thin layer of white. The moon seemed that much brighter against the crystalized ground, and the yellow lights scattered across the compound made parts of the snow look like sandy dunes. My nose tingled from the nip of the chilly air, and I pulled my jacket tighter around my body as the door fell shut behind me and Konig.

“Well, what am I supposed to say when you call me defensive?”

“You could agree.”

“But I don’t.”

“Which proves my point.”

I huffed in frustration, despite the smirk curling on the edges of my lips. “So, either I have to agree with you, whether I really do or don’t, or you’ve corralled me into a paradox.”

I can practically hear the gears turning in his head. “A what?”

“A paradox, like a – y’know, never mind. It’s too difficult to explain.” I let him fall in step next to me, although he was the one who needed to slow down to match my pace. “We can just agree to disagree, how’s that?”

“Agreed.” He nodded, and I chuckled. “It won’t change the fact that I’m right, you know.” He added.

I bit my lip and tried to keep my smile from growing ridiculously larger. I looked up at him and patted his shoulder – he looked down at me, and the corners of his eyes crinkled as he smiled back. A stray, reddish-brown curl poked through the side of his balaclava, and I found the miniscule detail warming my heart through the cold air. He felt real, and in this moment, too human for this kind of life.

“Why did you choose the military?” I asked, turning back to look at the ground as we walked.

He hummed. “Isn’t that every boy’s dream?”

“Well, yes – but most of the time, it never becomes more than that.” I responded.

He shoved his hands into his pockets, mimicking my own position. “I’m not really sure what made me push so much for it. I almost didn’t make it, for obvious reasons.”

I chuckled. “Size does matter, huh?”

He looked down at me with a deadpan gaze, one that I refused to meet. “It almost did, in a bad way. And I almost backed out before they could be the ones to turn me away. But, of course, they knew they would find some use for my size – so they took me in.”

“And what did they do with you?” I asked, looking back at him.

“A ‘human battering ram,’ as my superiors had so nicely called it.” He framed the description with his hands in the air, as if it had been written on a plaque. I laughed and looked back down at my feet.

“Seriously?” I asked. “So they just had you breaking down doors, and then what?”

Konig laughed with me. “Well, I still had a gun, so I was able to shoot, thank goodness. And I had a bit more gear so I wouldn’t break my bones against the doors – I still dislocated my shoulder a few times, however…” he rolled his left shoulder, as if there was still a lingering pain from how often he had thrown himself at doors. “It was actually during a period of recovery when I proved that I could still be a sniper. My shoulder was still healing, so I had to give up being a battering ram for a while. I was sat with Horangi on the side of the mountain to give him cover. Of course, he was ambushed – he had to fight the Arschgiege right when we were given the order to shoot, so I had to take position behind the gun.” I noticed that his chest was puffed out a bit from pride. “That really knocked their pants off.”

I chuckled, choosing to ignore the inaccuracy of his phrase. “Did it now?”

“It did.” He replied, then looked at the ground. “For a moment. I got a good earful for overstepping boundaries that day, but it’s what ultimately landed me here – so I’m grateful for it.”

I nodded and hummed. “What was Horangi picked for?”

Konig shrugged, his hands now back in his pockets. “He never said what he and Commander had spoken about in his office. But, even if he wasn’t chosen – I like to think we come as a package. If I go, he goes, if he doesn’t, I don’t.”

I felt my heart warm at his words. The memory of how Juno had described Konig couldn’t be farther from my mind. It almost felt like I was talking to someone I briefly crossed paths with in my youth – not a war criminal, not the bloody and stiff soldier who had stepped onto the heli after our first mission. I envied his ability to separate his work stress from the time he had in between missions.

“Why did you decide to join?” He asked, catching me off guard.

It was only fair that I opened up to him, since he was so willing to do the same. Always the one to go first, too. But I had to be careful. I didn’t want this to turn into a pity party, and I didn’t want to dig anything up that I had worked so hard to bury deep beneath my subconscious.

“I was… a weird kid. Like you.” I said, making Konig scoff and roll his eyes. “Looking back now, I hate my younger self. I was so sensitive to what people thought about me, and I just wanted to be independent and strong. I wanted to be a ‘different girl.’” I gritted out the words that left a sour taste in my mouth. “I think I just wanted attention at first – of course, when I heard how everyone said they hated how annoying teenage girls were, and how gullible and weak they were, it just – it made me change. I wanted to prove everyone wrong, it wasn’t just about being different anymore. So, as soon as I turned old enough, I enlisted. Didn’t get to Navy SEAL right away, of course… but I joined every program I was allowed in until I could submit my application.”

I sighed, then chuckled. “Thought my family would say they were proud, that I was successful, that I was doing a good job… they were just angry. Said I was throwing my life away for business that didn’t involve our country.” I opened my mouth to say more, but I ended up scoffing and closing it once again. I felt like I had shared enough.

I looked at Konig, expecting him to acknowledge what I said. “That’s how the story goes…” he would say. But, when I met his gaze, I only saw concern. His brow was creased with what I imagined was pity, and my stomach churned. It was the exact opposite of the reaction I had hoped for. I only wanted to share stories with him, and now it was… this.

“I think you made the right choices.” He said, and I looked away.

“You don’t need to make me feel better, Konig. I appreciate it, but-“

“I’m not just trying to make you feel better.” He said, his accent slightly thicker from his exasperation. “You’re good at what you do. Your parents are just probably worried for you, and they don’t know how to show it.”

I bit down on my tongue, my eyes settling on the building in front of us with a hard expression. If only.

“Maybe that’s it.” I muttered, hoping he would drop the subject. He seemed to understand, and turned to look ahead with a disappointed sigh. My heart sank the tiniest bit at the sound, and I internally scolded myself. Still a people-pleaser, apparently.

We continued walking in silence, the buzz of the lights above us mimicking the static of a communication system that had been severed in a time where it was needed most. The edge of the barracks appeared into our view, just around the corner of the arsenal sheds that stood between us and our destination. I continued to stare at the ground, pretending to watch my steps and try to not slip on the snowy asphalt. My heart twisted with each second of silence that sat thickly between us. It wasn’t technically a fight, but somehow, it felt worse. It felt like the first time I had pissed him off, the first time we had spoken to each other – and god, did I already hate myself for the way I had acted towards him during those first few weeks. I didn’t want to drive another wedge between us, not after the ones that had already been worked back out.

I exhaled heavily through my nose. “Sorry.” I mumbled quietly, but loud enough that I knew it reached his ears. “Sensitive topics.”

He flitted his eyes in my direction, but didn’t bother to move his head. He sighed, and I nearly jolted when I felt his wide hand on my upper back. It rubbed back and forth, and it took me an embarrassingly long time to realize that he was comforting me. Or, trying to, at least.

“I know.” He said, and his hand rested on my shoulder. “I’m sorry for pushing you.”

I didn’t know how to respond. I was stuck on the feeling of the roughness of his palm, which I could gleam through the fabric of my jacket. How his fingers squeezed gently and released twice. There was no hidden meaning, no forced contact or any kind of attempt to put context into the touch. It was… natural. Warm, comforting, and it spoke a thousand words that I wouldn’t have been able to stomach if he had said them. It broke past my self-hatred and walls of ‘don’t be weak’ that I would have used as my defense if he had tried to verbally convey any sort of consolation. It was the first time I didn’t feel awkward about being so close to him, let alone when he was touching me. I wondered if he did this on purpose, or if he had no idea what he was doing at all.

I let myself stand nearer to him, almost tucked under his arm. I looked up and smiled as genuinely as I could – not that it was hard for me, but because I wanted to make sure that he really knew how much I appreciated the gesture. Although, if he knew that this simple act of comfort would pierce through my outer shell, was it really necessary?

“Thank you, Konig.” I said.

He looked down at me and smiled. That damn smile. I wondered how much more refreshing it would be when he wasn’t wearing his mask. It was already too much for my soul to bear when it was just the crinkling in his eyes that I could see.

“Anytime, Bonnie.” He replied, patting my shoulder before tucking his hand back into his pocket. I grieved minimally at the loss of the touch, but I was happy for what it was. “And I mean it. Anytime you need to talk – or not talk, and do that empty staring that you do – just come find me.”

I quirked an eyebrow in his direction. “Anytime?” I asked amusedly.

“Mhm!” Konig replied, his eyes on the ground as he watched his steps. Then, the realization hit him, and his eyes went wide with panic. “Oh- well, eh- I guess, not anytime-“

“You gonna tell me when?” I joked, and he laughed. “You need an open/closed sign on your door.” I jogged ahead, trying to reach the door to the barracks before he did.

“How about this?” he called out, and I could hear the grin behind his mask. “I’ll nail a chalkboard to my door, and if I’m busy, I’ll draw a stick guy jerking off in his bed!”

My cheeks burned after I heard him. “No!” I shrieked, laughing nervously. “You’ll traumatize Juno!” I quickly tried to pin this on someone other than me.

“Juno, hah?” Konig teased, and I had half a mind to run into the building and leave him on the quad. “I don’t care about him. Kid needs to be traumatized.”

I laughed and threw my head back, turning the corner around the arsenal shed. “That’s not very-“

Immediately, my heart leapt into my throat, and I gasped. Konig nearly ran into my back as he skidded to a halt.

Sick, sick, what the fuck, I feel sick-

“Stimmt etwas nicht?” he asked, concerned. “What- oh, scheisse-“

We both stared at the bird on the ground. A crow from the looks of it, though it was hard to even decipher that it was a bird in the first place, due to the state it was in. Its belly had been cut open, entrails and bloody bits pulled from the abdomen and strewn to either side of the bird. Its wings were stretched to their full capacity and most likely beyond it, crushed and missing a large number of feathers. Both of the legs appeared to have been ripped off and tossed to the left of the crow. Its beak was the worst of it all: pried open, the jaw probably broken from how wide it was spread. A haunting look of terror in the crow’s red, glossy eyes made a violent shiver run up my spine.

I exhaled shakily, my eyes still glued to the horror. “Holy shit – what the-“

Konig quickly walked around me and knelt in front of the crow. I shifted to look over his shoulder, still fearfully curious, but he held a hand out behind him, urging me to stay in place. With his other hand, he pulled at one of the bird’s wings, stiff and heavy. Whether it was frozen from the cold, or this was the effects from rigor mortis, I couldn’t tell.

“How – did a fucking fox do that?!” I asked. Are there even foxes in this area? How the hell did one get on base?

“Nein.” Konig replied, still looking at the corpse. His gaze fell upon it with a sense of… familiarity, maybe? “Not a fox, no.”

“Then what? It – whatever it was didn’t even eat-“

“I’ll take care of this.” Was all Konig said. He stood up and marched past me – I was barely able to catch a glimpse of his furious expression. His eyes were hard and narrow, and as he walked away, I noticed that his shoulders were tense and his hands were balled into fists. I didn’t dare say anything to him; he almost looked the same way he did after our first mission together, except this time, his anger seemed to be directed at something, instead of just a post-mission adrenaline high.

“I’ll see you later.” He said over his shoulder. There was an obvious fury to his words, and although I knew it wasn’t intended towards me, it still made me freeze where I stood – almost as if I might anger him more simply by taking a step after him.

Whatever it is… I thought, watching him disappear into the compound, he’s sorting it out. I can take care of myself. Although, with such an abrupt and tense departure, I was at a loss on what to do next. I looked back at the bird; its terrified eyes locked onto the sky above it, frozen in its last wish to fly away from whatever horror it endured.

A shiver ran up my spine, prompting me to look away.

- - - -

Taglist: @igotmajordaddyissues @princekonig @vixionix @v3lv3tvampir3 @theoneandonlykymberlee @luvvnightingalee @dillybuggg @sun-joo @perfectus-in-morte @evilive @satakingslime @comfortless

Please let me know if you would like to be added to the taglist!

[xo-arcie]

fateful encounter

paring: Ayame Sohma x Kazuma Sohma summary: Kazuma meets someone during the parent-teacher conference that changes everything. warnings: no warnings, just gay pining word count: 2.1k+ author’s note: This is the kind of thing that lives rent free in my head and I thought I would share it. I plan on doing a Fruits Basket au about the two of them, but I have other things I need to finish. Also, I always draw Ayame blushing like a slut and thought I would show Kazuma's reaction (below). Repost from ao3, art by me! 💜

Love cannot be forced, love cannot be coaxed and teased. It comes out of the heaven, unmasked and unsought. -Pearl S. Buck

The day was waning away with the last of the students, and their parents, filtering out of the classrooms after they finished their scheduled parent-teacher conference. Kazuma, always patient, always amiable, stepped forward with his son in tow only to be halted by a storm that barreled through the hallway.

Kazuma remained at Kyo’s side, hugging a little closer to the wall to allow the mother of Yuki Sohma to push past with a sneer carved on her sharp features, the clack of her heels echoing off the linoleum. Yuki was following after her, the remorseful gray of his eyes downcast, a slouched petitance with his steps as if he was weighed down by her rude actions, though Kazuma would never hold the young man accountable for them. 

“The actions of others are never about you,” he had told Kyo years ago when he first brought the boy home. “They are only acting for themselves, never for you.”

He wondered if anyone had ever told this to Yuki. 

The mother and son entered the classroom, taking their time slot, and the door slid shut behind them, leaving Kazuma and Kyo alone to wait once again. He looked down at Kyo and was surprised by the empathy that was twisting into the scowl his son always carried–the red on his nose and cheeks clashing with the mess of his hair. Kyo was vibrating with a struggled composure, his eyes trained through the window slit on the door while every muscle ticked in his features, listening in on the rise and fall of that woman’s voice. 

She was muffled, but her arrogance still cut through, speaking over the teacher and drowning out her son. 

Kazuma followed Kyo’s line of sight to see Yuki seated at his mother’s side, wilting away with each word. The boy was stricken silent, pale and beaten, far too world-weary for someone his age. 

It pulled at his heartstrings. 

“Do you know that boy?” Kazuma asked. 

His question was soft, just a tentative touch to understand the emotions that were playing across Kyo’s face. Kazuma knew who Yuki Sohma was–everyone at the estate knew who Yuki Sohma was–but he also knew of the rivalry between his son and the rat. It was something deep seeded when he found Kyo, a foundation from centuries passed, something that festered a hatred that burned as red as his hair. 

Which was why his son’s sudden rigid posture caught him off guard. He saw how Kyo steeled his jaw and clenched his fists as he watched Yuki, but Kaziuma knew that his visceral response was a different kind of aggravation that unknowingly unearthed itself. 

To anyone else it would just seem like the continued animosity between the cat and the rat, but Kazuma knew his son, knew his kind heart beneath the fusion of guilt and rage. He could decipher the empathy that was lining Kyo’s furrowed brow, bleeding from his crimson eyes and pouring over Yuki. 

This kindness showed more often since his friendship with the girl named Tohru began, a frequency to a freshly compassion that always thrummed beneath. It was a look that called to Kazuma, alighting his savior complex, but instead he paused, wanting to understand the reaction unfolding in front of his eyes. 

He was curious to see if his son truly wished to help the boy. 

So Kazuma waited.

“He clearly does not want her to speak for him, and she does not care about anything he has to say.” Kyo was quiet, careful to knit his words together with his dawning realization, a newfound perspective on his lifelong adversary. “Yuki seems so…” 

Wounded. But Kazuma did not say this out loud; he never wanted to persuade an original thought from his son, but always allowed Kyo to come to his own conclusion and then support whatever he decided on. 

“I see now that he is not as fortunate as me,” Kyo finished, looking up at him. 

Kazuma was not expecting that train of thought and it struck him with a warmth that pooled into his chest, swelling his heart against his ribs. It confirmed the compassion he always knew existed within his son, something blossoming with Tohru, something vibrant albeit fleeting. 

But still, it returned, and it always lingered a little bit longer each time. 

Kazuma said nothing in response, but shifted closer to wrap his arm around Kyo’s shoulders, pulling him for a hug against his side. His son begrudgingly leaned into it, his embarrassment burning bright from the public display of affection despite the hallway being empty save for them. 

“Perhaps Yuki could use some help,” Kazuma offered, tucking his chin down; Kyo nodded in return, his eyes avoiding. 

He smiled as he let go of Kyo with the good intention to step forward, to go help Yuki, only to be halted yet again but this time by the grandiose entrance of a man with silver hair. 

Kazuma felt rooted, captivated by the almost ethereal beauty that the man possessed. His hair was pulled back and flowed with his steps, a determination and a grace with his gate, and the subtle sway of his slender hips that pulled Kazuma’s gaze. The man was lithe and lean, dressed in rich, burgundy fabrics that complemented his figure, his ivory complexion that was flawless and glowing, his exquisite features surely carved from marble. 

His proximity pulled the air from Kazuma’s chest as he breezed past without sparing him a look–it even had Kyo averting his eyes. A floral scent followed after from the bouquet of roses he carried, his delicate fingers wrapped around the bundled stems. 

Kazuma watched as he pulled open the door with flourish, his voice lyrical as he announced himself. 

“Greetings, all! I have finally arrived!” 

The door slid closed behind him and Kazuma mourned the barrier between. He felt in a daze from the vision, propped against the wall by the silence and emptiness the man left behind, settling over like a fog. His abstract gaze fell back to Kyo to see the familiar scowl burrowing back on his features, his eyes boring through the floor at his feet. Kazuma remained quiet, wordless, enraptured; he shifted his weight, daring to peer through the same window to try and catch another glimpse of the silver haired beauty.  

He saw that the man had forced himself between Yuki and his mother–a knight serving, bold and defending. He was squared off towards her, guarding the young man from her hateful stare with a taunting curl to his lips. 

It left Kazuma flustered. 

For as long as Kazuma remembered, romance was never something that came easily for him. He had a sweetheart while he was attending school, someone who just followed after him aimlessly and who always pressed for something more; when he did not reciprocate, they rightly moved onto someone else who would. 

It did not fare better as an adult, but Kazuma still accepted whatever set-up was managed, often encouraged by Kyo. He did not care for the meet-ups, as too often they seemed daunted, almost annoyed with the topic of his son.  

It rarely, if ever, reached a second date. 

Kazuma never minded this, though. Despite his amorous shortcomings, he was still a romantic at heart, and it was encouraged by the books that Shigure would often drop off. It gave a rose tint to his life and beyond those pages, when he noticed the slow burn between his son and Tohru, he tried to tactfully approach the subject.

Kyo scoffed at him, demanding that he keep his focus on finding someone to finally settle down with. 

“‘Love cannot be forced, love cannot be coaxed and teased,’” Kazuma began a quote which had Kyo groaning, rolling his eyes. “‘It comes out of the heaven, unmasked and unsought.’”

Kyo tsked. “What do you even mean by that?” 

“You will understand that when you are older,” he teased. 

In truth, the idea of dating, muchless to fall in love, was something that Kazuma no longer bothered himself with, but that was before this very moment when he watched the moon incarnate waltz in starlight through the school hallways with the subtle sway of his hips. 

Even with the door drawn shit, Kazuma still felt the pull of the man’s proximity through the classroom walls, and it was vibrating his bones beneath, entangling, enrapturing, pulling him out along with the tides.

Kyo noticed the immediate change. “Are you all right?” The concern in his son’s voice broke through his thoughts and Kazuma straightened himself, the blood pouring into his face. “You look…flushed.” 

In truth, his throat felt dry, clawing for the words to reply, but fortunately the door opened once again. This time it was Yuki’s mother rushing from the room, her fury red on her face and her hands shaking to smooth away the wrinkles from her blazer and skirt with her frantic steps to get away. 

Yuki was quick to follow after her, propelled by some epiphany ablaze, something that now held his shoulders higher than before. 

Kyo watched after him for a moment before he looked back up at Kazuma, his worry anew. “You can follow after him and make sure he is all right, if you want,” Kazuma suggested, though he knew that his son was not asking for permission, but for reassurance of what was plainly written on his face. 

Kyo nodded and followed after, but kept a mindful distance, leaving Kazuma alone again in the hallway. Only then did he dare to look through the now open door, his heart pounding. 

Kazuma saw the teacher who seemed drained, but sat up straight once she noticed his gaze, peering through the roses she was gifted. “Oh! I’m so sorry to keep you waiting! We can begin if you’re ready–” she pushed to stand and the silver haired man followed, turning to see who she was speaking to. 

Kazuma fell back into the trance from before, the stars swirling and blurring around him. He swallowed, his blood coursing, and he felt pinned in the doorway by the molten golden eyes that poured over him. 

“Oh my!” the silver haired man’s musical tone began, a touch of pink to his cheeks. “Did my dastardly mother’s inconsideration cause a delay in your scheduled time with this wondrous educator?” –the teacher muted her groan, burying her face back into the bouquet– “I would apologize on that woman’s behalf, but I know that she will surely repeat her ghastly behavior!” 

There was a passion with each syllable that left Kazuma entranced, pulsing with his heartbeat. “It’s all right,” he gave a sheepish smile, his cheeks staining red from the rhythmic bruising of his heart against his chest. He forced himself to look back at the teacher. “We can begin when Kyo comes back.” 

The man brightened with the name, his eyelashes fluttering with an impish smile. “Oh, oh, are you the father of Kyokichi?” 

Kazuma chuckled at the pet name, knowing already how Kyo would hate it. “Yes I am. My name is Kazuma.” 

“What a pleasure it is to meet you finally!” The man pressed closer with the same flowery scent, subtle and sweeping away the air around them. Kazuma felt his head buzzing, relishing in the sight of the pink dust on the man’s cheeks. He looked down to see his hand was offered. “I am Yuki’s brother, Ayame.” 

His touch was a welcomed contrast to the warmth and calluses of Kazuma’s palms, delicate and soft and cool, something that set his nerves alight. The simple gesture shattered whatever contentment he believed to have before meeting Ayame, splintering his insides and rushing to the surface, pushing sharp against his skin. 

Kazuma never wanted to let go of him; he wanted to cradle Ayame’s hand and run his fingertips along the lines that carved into his palm, to interlace his fingers and see how they would fit within his own. 

And Kazuma realized he found something he had not even realized had been missing. 

He surfaced from that thought, jolting back to attention. Ayame had not pulled away but was watching him carefully, coyly from beneath his long silver lashes. 

Relief washed over, hope widening Kazuma’s smile, white against his crimson features. “The pleasure is truly mine, Ayame-sama.”

Ayame’s laughter was just as lovely, just as melodic, trilling up the length of Kazuma’s spine. “None of that! You may call me Aya-chan, if you would prefer. Since your son and my brother are beginning their affinity for one another, I feel we are destined to become,” –his lips ticked upwards in the corner of his mouth– “closer acquaintances.” 

There was nothing Kazuma wanted more. 

arcie's navigation || misc. fandom masterlist

[hircines-hunter]

WIP Wednesday

tagged by wonderful @umbracirrus going to tag @madamefluffnstuff @thequeenofthewinter @bostoniangirl21 @vivifriend

@oblivions-dawn

anyways i have sibbi brain rot. im not sorry..

Crowe leaned against the rail, looking into the market. She had laid low for a couple of days. Her pockets were empty.

Her eyes went to a new nobleman who walked through the stalls. He lingered at the jewelry stall longer than the others. He had a wife or a lover. She would have to do this the hard way.

Crowe walked into the market and walked around. She trailed behind the nobleman. She walked by him, slipping her hand into his pocket and grabbing the contents. She walked a few feet before he yelled.

“Thief!”

“Fuck.” Crowe ran down the cobblestone road and made a turn towards the wooden stairs. A guard cut her off. She held her hands up.

“Turn your pockets out.”

Crowe sighed. She pulled a few pieces of jewelry and a bag of septims. She handed them to the guards.

“I guess it’s back to the prison with you. Again.” The guard grabbed her arm.

“Joy. My favorite place. With my favorite people.”

He dragged her to Mistveil Keep and into the prison. “Got Dibella in here again.”

“That’s the third time this week.”

Crowe grinned. “You know. You are my favorite people.”

“Take her to the cells.”

The guard pulled her through to the cell block.

Crowe smiled when she saw Sibbi. “It must be fate, love.”

The guard walked past Sibbi’s cell and opened the door, throwing Crowe in. “Enjoy your stay.”

Crowe looked around. She turned back to the door, which slammed in her face. “Why this cell?!” She looked around. No shadowmarks.

The guard laughed. “You’re doing your time for once, Dibella.”

Crowe sighed. She leaned against the bars. “Fuck. Fuck that bastard.” Crowe patted down on her pockets. She had a single lock pick. “Divines.”

Sibbi dragged his chair over to bars adjoined with her cell. “Well, at least you are closer now. I can enjoy the view better. Is Dibella your name? Because you certainly would rival her beauty.”

“It’s the name I use in their books. You can call me Crowe.” Crowe grabbed the wooden chair and pulled it over to the bars. “Well, I can also enjoy the view as well….” She smiled

“Why don’t I get the guards to move you here with me? You’d get a comfortable bed. Some time with me.”

Crowe hummed. “That sounds like that comes with a hefty price.”

“I think we can arrange something.” Sibbi looked her up and down. “You are certainly the looker. Why are you hanging with the rats?”

Crowe hummed. She crossed her legs, making sure the dress showed more of her thigh. “Where else is a woman on the run supposed to go? The Guild took me in with no questions.”

“Why don’t we make an arrangement?”

“I’m listening.”

“I need eyes and ears on the outside. I don’t trust these guards. And my mother and siblings hardly give me any news.”

Crowe hummed. “What’s the pay like?”

“Something can be arranged. But, you can also use my cell.”

“You are quite adorable, Sibbi.” She laughed. “I’ll take the bed and you as an incentive, but I do need funds.” She looked at her nails. They could use a new coat of paint. “I’d like to see how you’d get me in your cell though?”

“You’re not the only one with tricks.” He walked over to the bookshelf in his cell and pushed it. The shelf swung into his cell, revealing a doorway.

Crowe stared at the hole in between the cells. She smiled a bit. “You paid the guards to put me in here.” She tilted her head.

“I can get you out of here faster. Especially if you agree to work for me.”

“Seems a bit dangerous.”

“What’s life without some danger?”

Crowe arched her eyebrows and smirked. “You know. You’re right.” She stood and straightened her dress. She walked to the opening and put her hand on his chest. 

Sibbi looked at her eyes. Two different colors. Blue and gray. He leaned close and pressed his lips against hers. 

Crowe parted her lips, wrapped her arms around his neck, and turned him around. She raked her nails across his scalp as she deepened the kiss. She pulled away and pushed him into her cell. She quickly shut the bookshelf. She smiled sweetly.

Sibbi smirked and wiped his lips. “At least you taste as good as you look.” He leaned against the bars. “I guess this is the price I pay for playing with fire.” He laughed.

[great-and-small]

Hi! I hope you’re doing well. I was wondering if you could help me out? I know your primary interest is birds, and also that you’re from Florida, but you seem rather knowledgeable about all sorts of wild animals so I thought I might as well ask.

A relative of mine has been seeing a very large (4-5 feet long, maybe slightly longer) snake about once a year for the past 3-4 years, and none of us have a clue what it is. Said relative lives in Ohio, and my attempts to search “large snakes in Ohio” just lead to questionable exotic pets and searches for native snakes was bringing up smaller snakes that didn’t seem to fit the bill. My best guess was some kind of rats snake but it’s just a vague guess.

Here’s a pic for reference:

I’m also curious about the snake’s behavior. The family has a dog, and one of the adults is unemployed, so they’re outside often, yet they only see the snake once, maybe twice a year. Additionally, they live in a well-off suburban neighborhood, with little “wild” space, so I’m curious where the snake is living and what it might be eating. (Chipmunks??? Is it the reason they don’t have rats?) is this species native to the area? Or is it invasive?

Do you have any insight on any of this? No worries if you don’t, I just thought I might ask as my googling hasn’t been very successful, and I saw you post about snakes a couple of times.

Thanks for taking the time to answer, and I hope you have a lovely day/night! :)

Now that is one healthy looking snake! I believe the species that your relative has spotted here is indeed a gray ratsnake (Pantherophis spiloides). This species is native in Ohio and they can grow to be pretty large. Ratsnakes are wonderful to have around and as their name implies they make for fantastic pest control. Your relatives might have this friend to thank for keeping the numbers of rats and mice around their property to a minimum.

Snakes can be a bit more shy and elusive than some other animals, so it doesn’t surprise me they don’t see this individual too often. Rat snakes adapt to life around humans fairly well and aside from rodents they’re also happy to eat birds and eggs, as well as small lizards and amphibians. It’s in great body condition though so you can be sure this guy is eating good! If you or your neighbors happen to have a chicken coop, make sure not to use fake eggs as these can be lethal to snakes.

Thanks for sharing your snake! I really like this species (and all ratsnakes) and you have a really lovely specimen here. Wishing him many years of prowling for rats as your friendly neighborhood pest control.

[punedrr]

Here's my contribution for WIP Wednesday! Passing the torch off to @i-prefer-base-twelve and @journalnumberthree ! Excerpt from Chapter 13 of The Thesis and the Doctorate:

"

The two hour drive was just as boring as you remembered, although the scenery was nice. Traffic wasn’t too bad as you got into the city, and by the time you got checked in to your motel, it was just past noon. It was a rare sunny day in the city, so you decided to stretch your legs and go on a walk before sitting down to work on your thesis. Although the motel wasn’t in the nicest part of town, the bustling streets were still a far cry from what you’d grown used to in Gravity Falls. You had forgotten how alive everything felt here. As you walked past high-rise apartments and towering business centers, you realized just how much you’d missed it all. The movement, the people, the sounds, everything was so vibrant in a way that Gravity Falls lacked. You found yourself glad to be back, even for just a couple nights.

Stopping briefly near the mouth of an alley to check your phone, you heard an odd scratching noise. Looking around, you spotted something moving further into the alley. The noise continued as it moved closer. It’s probably just a rat. They certainly weren’t uncommon here. But you quickly realized that it was definitely not a rat. At least, not fully. It was dragging an empty can towards the alley mouth, walking backwards. That must be the noise, then. The back half looked like a rat, black and furry with a hairless pink tail and small paws. But as it came closer, there was something off about the front half. It had dark gray feathers, and the front feet were scaled like a bird’s, and it was using its beak to drag the can. It was definitely a pigeon, except that it was attached to a rat. You’d never seen anything like this before, and watched disbelievingly as it dragged the can out of the alley and then down into the sewers through a grate set into the curb. You looked around. Nobody seemed to have noticed the creature besides you. What the hell?

The only thing that might have resembled it was the hawktopus that Ford pointed out to you in Gravity Falls, which had the head and torso of a hawk but the tentacles of an octopus where the legs should have been. Except, y’know, for the fact that those were two different animals than the whatever-you-just-saw. It was a similar principle, and now that you were thinking about it, Ford had also mentioned getting carried off by a griffon that one time. Maybe the pigeon/rat was the same thing except smaller? You’d never seen any Weird creatures outside of Gravity Falls, but you knew that they existed.

You quickly walked back to your room, eager to text Ford about what you had seen. Regardless of what had happened on the porch this morning, you were sure he’d want to hear about this.

I saw something Weird in the city today.

Sure enough, there’s a response in the time it takes to set up your laptop on the motel wifi.

What was it? Were you able to get a picture?

No, unfortunately. It looked like a weird hybrid between a rat and a pigeon? Front half of a pigeon and back half of a rat. It was dragging a can into the sewers.

This time, the typing bubbles appear and disappear several times before an answer comes.

It sounds like you ran into a griffin. They don’t always appear like the ones in fairy tales. The variant you saw is quite common in bigger cities.

Huh, you wouldn’t have guessed that. Although, you suppose it makes sense. Back half of a mammal, front half of a bird. You wonder how you didn’t see them before. The same way I didn’t see gnomes until they were chasing me through the forest. Ford has told you before most people don’t see the odd things right in front of them. Before you met him, you were one of them.

I never noticed them before! Anything else I should keep an eye out for? Honestly, you’re just glad to be talking to Ford again. It feels like your friendship is finally back on stable ground again, even if your romantic feelings are still unresolved.

There are several subspecies of Lilliputtians known to inhabit elevator shafts and light rail lines, but I doubt you’ll see them unless you’re really looking. There are also of course a tribe of merpeople in the Columbia, but I’d advise you not to interact as they can be quite aggressive.

Are you speaking from experience?

Unfortunately. "

It's WIP Wednesday, my good dudes!

WIP Wednesday is here! Tagging the peeps that made the mistake of telling me they had writing in the works!

@i-prefer-base-twelve

@punedrr

@journalnumberthree

No pressure to share but I'd love to see what you have! And as always, if you see this and want to join in, please do! Consider yourself tagged by me! The banner is free to use!

Anyway, here's a little preview of Chapter 9 of Horror Vacui:

Fiddleford’s hand suddenly grabbed Ford by the wrist. His friend’s face looked startled as though he’d just witnessed something disturbing, and it was then that Ford realized he could see the damage. The old engineer’s brow furrowed as he rolled up Ford’s coat and sweater sleeve to reveal the violet pattern that made his skin look like fractured porcelain. “This is where it latched on, wasn’t it? That thing… that Neverwere creature.” It was such a simple and earnest question it took Ford a moment to properly formulate a response. It felt self-serving to focus on something so insignificant as his collection of scars (and quickly fading scars at that). His first instinct was to ignore the attention, but the look on his friend’s face made it impossible to sidestep the question. “Yeah, it, uh, its grip on this dimension was fading so it fed on me to stabilize his presence. But that’s not important right now-” “Jesus, Stanford, you nearly died! I’d say that’s pretty flippin’ important!” Fiddleford frowned, tightening his grip on Ford’s wrist for a moment before reluctantly letting go. “Does it hurt?” Ford blinked owlishly in confusion. Clearly his own discomfort or lack thereof had never crossed his mind. As far as his list of priorities went, his own physical ailments were somewhere near the bottom if included at all. A part of him wanted to snidely point out that almost dying was not dying and there was no need to make a fuss. Another part of him looked at his friend’s expression and felt something akin to shame. “No. It doesn’t hurt. I got patched up so it’s fine,” he reassured him. “Does your family know you got hurt?” Ford sighed as he pulled off his goggles and made a show of checking something in his satchel. Somehow he knew it was all going to loop back around to this. “Stanford, have you told them?” “And why would I do that?” he asked, irritation bleeding into his voice, “What would it do other than raise Stan’s blood pressure and make the kids worry? And all for nothing! I didn’t die! I’m not in any pain! I’m perfectly fine!” “Are you?” He flinched as though Fiddleford had jabbed him in the eye.  There was no reason for him not to be fine. Everything had worked out perfectly! Sure, he had about a million unanswered questions and the entire ordeal had been too terrifying to mull over for longer than ten seconds, but of course he was fine! He had to be fine! Like Stan had said, people depended on him, he couldn’t afford to fall to pieces over things that almost happened! Nevermind that his family was expecting answers from him and he was still no closer to explaining what had happened other than “Space Botulism”. Nevermind that he felt as though a door had been thrown open and Bill's corpse was clawing its way out of his grave. Nevermind that there were great cosmic forces at play all around him and his response to that was to have his friend make quaint little eyeglasses so they could see the colors of their impending doom… Don’t think about that.

[heliads]

Crows

Everyone has a symbol on their palm that somehow relates to your soulmate. You have a crow, which led to you joining the Dregs in Ketterdam. Every Dreg has a soulmate symbol that in no way relates to you- except Kaz Brekker, as no one has seen his palm at all.

masterlist

You stare at the crow inked into your palm. It stares back at you.

You hesitate for a second longer, then snap your hand shut, letting the unblinking eyes of the black bird disappear back behind your fingers. This is the price of a soulmate, of wandering too far from your home and never finding the one person you were meant to belong to. This is the price of being a canal rat, a Grisha, of being anybody still foolish enough to believe in a soulmate in the midst of all this darkness.

Soulmates may technically be real, but people only believe in them as much as they do Inej’s Saints, or anybody else’s long-held dreams. Between the wars and Shadow Folds springing up across the world, it’s getting pretty hard for anyone to find their soulmate at all. It’s supposed to be simple- one mark on each person’s palm to designate their soulmate, a mark that will disappear at the first touch of their hand on yours. Sometimes, you wonder what mark would be on your soulmate’s skin: a flame or sparking coal, maybe, for your branch of the Small Science, or a skull, for all the death that seems to shadow your path.

The crow has been on your palm for as long as you can remember, as long as anyone has ever had a soulmate. It was there when you were born, but judging by your trend in luck, it’ll probably be there until the day you die. Soulmates aren’t for girls like you, girls who flee their homes to trade a life amongst the Grisha for a death in the gray-streaked streets of Ketterdam.

You were born an Inferni, that much is true. You witnessed the Ravkan civil war, and you were there to flee it for safer tides. You weren’t sure what cruel twist of fate landed you in Ketterdam, one of the worst places for a Grisha, but you were at least able to keep your identity a secret. You’d seen what happened to the luckless Grisha trapped inside neverending indentures, and you know what tortures would await you if word of your firestarting habit got out. So, you never spoke a word, and pretended you were just another otkazat’sya traveler in need of safe harbors.

You hadn’t been wandering the canals long before your path turned into the Barrel. It wasn’t an intentional choice, just an eventual fate that you would end up in the worst part of the twisting sidestreets. There was no escaping the Barrel, not unless you were a wealthy mercher or some other lucky sap who the Saints blessed with the ability to avoid getting dragged down into the muck like everyone else. You learned the names and locations of all the gangs like everyone else: Black Tips, Dime Lions, and most notably, the Dregs.

Your breath had caught in your chest when you heard of them. They frequented the Crow Club, some were called the crows themselves, their leader had a crow on his cane. Everything seemed to point in a glaringly obvious arrow towards your soulmate mark: a crow for a crow. Where else could you have ended up?

You knew better now. You had met Kaz Brekker, the boy with the crow cane, and you knew that any chance of finding a soulmate among his crew was near impossible. You had been walking home after dark one night when you found yourself set upon by a duo of thugs. Not Dregs, possibly Dime Lions with a bone to pick, angry that the Dregs had such control over the pigeons of Fifth Harbor. They had been expecting an easy mark, somebody they could thunk over the head with a pair of brass knuckles and walk away without a scratch. They weren’t expecting you to beat them into the dust in a matter of seconds.

No matter your status or location, you were still a Grisha, and you’d been trained by Botkin long enough to be able to defend yourself. When the goons were finally laid at your feet, unconscious, you had allowed yourself a moment to smile. It was easy to feel low, a gutter rat in the canals of Ketterdam, but being able to use your fists again almost reminded you of the training halls at the Little Palace.

Enjoying this one brief memory, though, was a slip that you shouldn’t have made. When you looked up, you weren’t alone- a boy stood before you, gloved hands clasped over a crow’s head cane. You didn’t particularly know who he was, or make the connection between him and the Dregs, and moved to get out of the alleyway before he decided to make the same mistake as the thugs. He had slid his cane in front of you, fast as lightning, stopping you in your place. “I think we should speak about your future in Ketterdam.”

You were annoyed at this sudden interruption. “I think you should leave me alone.” You had retorted, using your hand to move his cane back in front of him. You had also been irritated, both by the fight and this boy’s brashness, and slipped your hand into his pocket for just a second to retrieve a newly shined pocketwatch. No one could have possibly seen it, this tiny movement, and the boy certainly didn’t, as he let you pass without another word.

You were still grumbling when you got back to the ramshackle building you called an apartment complex, and your landlady had raised an eyebrow when she saw you. “What, have you finally realized that it was a fool’s errand to come here?” She asked, and you shook your head. “No, just bothered by some guy with a crow’s head cane. Weird prop to carry around.” The woman had blanched, face suddenly seeming to age a decade in a second.

She had bustled over to you, voice low as if terrified that the boy might be able to hear her. “That’s Kaz Brekker, you fool. He runs the Dregs. Saints, he might even run this city.” She had hurried away from you then, forcing herself back to her work. Even then, you had known she was wrong. There was nothing the Saints could know about Kaz Brekker, nothing they could even hope to involve themselves in.

You had shaken the experience away, climbing up the stairs to your apartment. When you pushed open the door, however, you saw that you were not alone. The boy from earlier was back, this time leaning against the far wall. He gestured for you to close the door, which you did, albeit hesitantly. You had no idea how he got in- you had changed the locks when you first arrived at the apartment all those weeks ago, barred the windows, made it impossible for anyone except you to make their way inside. Yet here he stood, with knowledge of both where you lived and how to get there before you. It was impossible. Well, impossible for anyone except Kaz. The Barrel was his home, after all, and you doubt Dirtyhands had ever bothered to knock.

His fingers tapped the crow’s head of his cane. “I don’t think we quite finished our conversation. You could do more than just wash dishes, you know. The Dregs could always use a new member. That, and I’d like you to return what you stole from me. I’m impressed, actually. No one is that good at pickpocketing except me, and no one would try something that daring except for, well, me. I think you’d fit in nicely with my gang.”

You had folded your arms across your chest. “And I’m meant to believe that my pickpocketing was impressive enough to warrant a visit from Dirtyhands himself?” Kaz had shrugged, the movement stiff in the darkness. “You can believe whatever you want. I just want to see if you’ll take a good offer when you see one.” After a while, you had accepted, and Kaz had left, but not before whispering something in your ear. “If you steal from me again, I will cut off both of your hands. I don’t tolerate theft, not from me.”

You had heard enough threats to know that he meant good on this one. As it turned out, however, Kaz would not have to fear theft from you again. You found a home amongst the Dregs, a home you weren’t likely to give up due to the thrill of pickpocketing Kaz Brekker. You had a room at the Slat, a place at the table, a voice in the masses. It was something you weren’t willing to trade away.

Even amongst the many crows of Kaz Brekker’s gang, however, you still couldn’t let the issue of your soulmate go. You can remember one night, late into the night’s bells when you, Inej, Jesper, Matthias, and Nina had all made the journey up to Kaz’s office, slumped against chairs and floorboards and chatting the night away. Kaz was sitting at his desk, apparently doing paperwork, but you did notice that he kept coincidentally chiming into conversations even when he said he wasn’t paying attention.

At some point, Nina steered the conversation to soulmates. She held up her now blank palm, proclaiming that at some point it had held a wolf’s head. She had been terrified, she said, terrified that she would have a drüskelle or some other weirdo for a soulmate. Matthias had acted affronted at that, but if he was feeling particularly charitable he might relent and tell the gathered Crows about how he’d had a heart on his hand, and how frustrated he’d been when it had disappeared the second he’d locked Nina away on that slaver’s ship.

Nina had turned to Kaz then, intent on poking the bear and having some sort of fun that night. “So, Brekker, what’s your soulmate mark? Or do you not do that sort of zealot human thing we call soulmates?” Kaz had raised his eyebrows, looking distinctly bored. Of everyone in the room, you’re pretty sure that only you and Inej would be able to tell that he was holding back a smile.

“I’m not entirely a monster, Zenik. I do have a soulmate.” Nina had leaned forward, intent on clarification. “Then what’s the mark? We can’t just take a gander at your palm, remember? They’re hidden by your gloves.” Kaz had let his papers fall back to the desk with a thunk, turning to her with an expression laced with both exasperation and studied disinterest. “It’s a fire. A small flame. Happy?”

Nina had looked fascinated. “Beatific. I wonder what that means. An Inferni, maybe?” She wiggled her eyebrows at Kaz. “Maybe it’s supposed to show that they’re devilishly attractive. Really hot, get it?” Kaz had made a sound that was either a dry cough or his best attempt at a laugh. “Hilarious, Nina. I see why you’re a Heartrender- you could make a person want to die based on your jokes alone.”

Nina had acted affronted, making sure everybody knew that her jokes were hilarious, thank you very much, but you couldn’t help but think about the repercussions of this. What if Nina’s first guess was right, and Kaz’s soulmate was an Inferni, like you? If your tattoo was of a crow, and Kaz’s was of flames, then surely it was too much to just be a coincidence. You’d never know, anyway, because soulmate marks only disappeared on flesh to flesh contact. Kaz always wore gloves, so you’d never find out the truth. Besides, you remind yourself, the chances of this were superbly unlikely. A crow could mean anything, so could a flame. You need to stop getting your hopes up.

Despite the possibilities and impossibilities, you’ve still been running with the canal rats long enough to know that you can’t dwell forever on what might have been. You’re a Dreg now and you need to focus on that instead. When Kaz announces an upcoming settlement with the Razorgulls, yet another one of the gangs that roam the streets of Ketterdam, you’re eager for a chance at something entertaining after a long while of nothing. Kaz will meet with the leader to negotiate their way through a claim on the various pigeons coming and going from the harbors, and that will be that.

However, this is the Barrel. Negotiations are rarely easy. This is why, when Jesper arrives as Kaz’s second, he’s shunted aside to a separate room to stay out the duration of the meeting. Kaz and the leader of the Razorgulls are on the opposite side of the street in an empty courtyard, far away from any help should they need it. Kaz was prepared for this, as always, and set up a plan. Inej will shadow Jesper, making sure that he’ll have a way out if he needs it, and you’ll be shadowing Kaz himself. You’re not sure why Kaz chose you instead of his faithful Wraith, only that he rarely makes decisions based on nothing and you would do best to follow his judgement. The times he’s let you down are few and far between.

You and Inej split up, staying amongst the rooftops to avoid detection. She follows Jesper and the Razorgulls’ second into a crowded tavern, and you head towards the abandoned courtyard. Ahead of you, Kaz’s cane taps against the crooked cobblestones as he wends through desiccated hedges and marble statues severely lashed by time. The Razorgulls’ leader is waiting for him there, but you can’t follow now. Instead, you stick to the edges, climbing stairs and making your way into the empty buildings that watch over the courtyard like silent sentries.

You’re not sure what trouble you’ll be walking into, only that it will exist in some crooked form. There’s no logical reason the Razorgulls would want the seconds in another building unless they were planning something, and no reason Kaz would agree to this at all if he wasn’t sure you could have his back when he needed it. As you creep along the buildings, keeping a careful eye on the proceedings through the few broken windows, you notice that the two gang leaders have begun to speak. You can’t quite hear what they’re saying, only a few whispers here and there.

You’re just rounding a corner, ready to make your way into a neighbouring building, when the lights flash off, landing you in darkness. Instantly, you panic. Lighting is scarce here, only the moonbeams and a couple of oil lamps, but there’s no reason they should have shut down this quickly. You hear footsteps on the stairs, along with two pairs of voices: Razorgulls, discussing how important it is to stick to the shadows so Brekker can’t see them.

Your heartbeat thuds in the dark as you realize they haven’t spotted you yet. In fact, they have no idea you’re there at all. When Kaz was giving directions for the negotiations, he specifically told you to make sure that you weren’t seen, even if rival gang members showed up. If you want to go along with his plan and make sure he lives to see the end of this shoddy deal, you’ll have to stay in hiding.

This, however, is easier said than done. If the lights were on, you would be able to see the wooden beams of the floor and tell which ones would creak and which wouldn’t, which large shapes of furniture to avoid and which holes in the floorboards you should step over. A chill washes over you as you realize what you’ll have to do. You move your fingers together, quick as scraping flint against steel, and a small flame materializes at the pad of your index finger. It’s small, barely visible to anyone except you, but it’s enough to help you get out of the room before the Razorgulls notice you.

Even as the thrill of using your Grisha power after so long sends a charge of energy through your veins, you can’t help but feel uneasy. The only reason you’ve been able to survive in the Barrel and avoid unwholesome indentures is because you never used your power, not once. Even if it was necessary, this still feels bad.

You’ve found a new hiding place in the corner of the room and move to extinguish your flame now that it’s no longer useful. However, it’s been too long since you last used your powers as an Inferni, and your concentration wavers. The flame grows brighter and you start to panic, eventually clamping down your mind and forcing the fire to disappear.

The disappearance comes too late. The Razorgulls have seen some light in the shadow that wasn’t supposed to be there and are now edging your way, careful not to let you out of their sight. You have no choice but to take them down, standing over their unconscious bodies and feeling a wave of nerves crest over you. Kaz specifically said not to mess with the gangs, but you had no choice. You can only hope that this won’t ruin his plan too much.

Quietly, you step through the room and unlock a window, letting the panes move open in the wind. Now, you can hear the voices echoing up from the courtyard, and your heart sinks as you realize that things aren’t going well. The leader of the Razorgulls has revealed his ace in the hole, that he’s got guns trained on Kaz right now. Kaz just laughs, the sound as cold as rocks scraping against a ship’s hull, ready to damn a hundred men to the depths of the ocean.

“Do you, though? Who are the men you sent up- Dirk Struik and Niels ter Avest? Your coffers may be deep, but mine are more extensive. Gentlemen, take down this man, if you please.” Your stomach twists as you realize Kaz was counting on the men you just knocked out. Without them, he’s alone with a man pointing a gun at his skull. There’s no way around this- you’re going to have to break your most cherished rule again.

You thrust your palms out in front of you, letting tendrils of flame arc out of your hands and cascade onto the leader of the Razorgulls. He twists in agony, burns appearing on his skin. He only suffers for a moment or two, however, until he becomes unconscious due to the pain. Kaz’s head jerks up, staring at you. You don’t think you’ve ever seen Kaz Brekker truly surprised, but he most certainly was not expecting this.

You don’t think there’s anything you can do except try to explain yourself. You jump down from the open window, letting your heels land lightly on the stones of the courtyard. Kaz seems frozen in place for a second, then moves forward until you’re standing only a few feet apart. Your breath comes wild in your chest. Kaz speaks after the longest of moments. “Where were the guards?”

You hold up your hands uselessly. “They saw me. I had to take them out.” Kaz’s eyes dart to your palms, faster than a sharpshooter pulling the trigger. He takes in the smoke still curling around your fingers, then the crow mark in the middle of your hand. When he speaks again, his voice has lost its icy edge. He just sounds like a boy again, young and confused.

“You never told me you were an Inferni.” You sigh. “It was a secret I needed to keep. You know what happens in the Barrel, the indentures and the tortures. If I used my powers, I would have died a long time ago.” Kaz jerks his head in a harsh nod. “I don’t blame you for surviving. We have all committed worse crimes to live” Your voice gains a confidence it didn’t have before. “Then what do you blame me for? You’re upset, anyone could tell that. If it’s not with me keeping my Grisha abilities a secret, then what is it?”

Kaz hesitates, as if pulling himself back from a yawning chasm. “Me.” You stare at him, at the indecision wracking his brow, then at the way he’s pulling at the glove at his palm. His hands almost seem to shake, like he’s still not sure that he’s doing the right thing. He pulls the glove off, inch by inch, seeming to dread every second that his hands aren’t covered by the black leather. At last, you see it- the mark on his palm, the flame sparking into being right there on his hand.

He reaches out tentatively. “I need to know.” He manages, and at last you understand. You move your own hand slowly, stopping when it’s only a few inches away from his. Kaz squares his shoulders, as if preparing to jump from another broken building, then closes the distance and lets his hand rest lightly on yours. As you watch, your soulmate tattoos shimmer for a second and then vanish, erasing from your skin as if they’d never been there at all.

Kaz lets his gaze linger on the empty skin of your palm, and then he seems to come back into himself, snatching his hand away like he’s flinching from a blow. You can see it in his eyes that he regrets this, that he can’t keep his hand there, but you understand. You can understand quite a lot from him.

Kaz’s voice is like the grating of metal. “I’m not somebody you want as a soulmate. It won’t be easy. It won’t be good.” You laugh quietly in the night. “If I wanted something easy, I would have never come to Ketterdam.” Kaz nods at this, something almost like relief in his eyes. “I’m not going anywhere.” You manage. Something almost like a smile flits across Kaz’s face. “Good. We have much to discuss.”

[0clu]

slipknot x splatoon because i feel the need to combine my interests all the time

originally i was gonna have all 12 here but i decided to keep it as the original 9 we all know and love since i hardly even know the new members.. i would have loved to have them under here tho

so basically these guys arent really an actual team (yet) but they do have scrimages with eachother. like all the time. everyone has basically the same traits and personalities as their irl human counterparts.

i went off of vibes i get from them btw

------

#0 Sid Wilson

Inkling

• he has the rat/ray tail

• most annoying skirmisher..

• inkbrush main all day

• sucks at zipcaster and corey berates him for it

• A rank isnt treating him well but he doesnt care. hes just having fun (joyful little guy he is)

• loves qr ssu and ninja squid

• you know he has the record player in his locker

• dj

#1 Joey Jordison

Octoling

• reliable frontline slayer

• if the dapple dualies has only 1 fan on earth its him.

• also plays jr and sploosh 7

• could get top 500 if he wanted to but he doesnt care much abt it

• prefers nouveau to vanilla despite its special

• still pops reefslider like its splashdown

• plays in a band

#2 Paul Gray

Inkling

• midline

• average mini splat/nautilus main

• misses the zink variant from years ago (the old bubbler)

• just your basic S ranker, good but not the best

• comes up with the wackiest comp ideas

• "what if we all used weapons with splash wall as the sub... or quad big bubbler on tc"

#4 Jim/James Root

Inkling

• anchor

• heavy splatling, ballpoint

• came from greater inkopolis (is that what they call it?)

• him moving made his rank reset from S back down to B- so now hes scared to touch ranked

• "im a backline, man... what if my teammates are fucking braindead?" ion know

• new to the group so doesnt really know these guys

• got in from a tryout session

#3 Chris Fehn

Octoling

• midline slayer

• used to be insane with the sting ray special before it got banned

• shotpro main and jet dick rider for life

• never thought abt gear building until like a year ago, its amazing how he even got to X rank running opening gambit on jet.

• pinocchio mask in his locker he sometimes wears to turf war

#5 Craig "133" Jones

???

• slayer

• wiper. lives and dies by the sword

• he just kinda popped up one day

• ...

• him talking is like a big foot sighting

• really good. like... super good... almost mick level

• everyone wonders what the hell he mained before splatanas were a thing

• well decorated locker. nice color theory

#6 Shawn Crahan

Octoling

• anchor but can be mid for faster comps

• explo is his babby. slosher is nice too

• 'they dont know i served in the octarian army'

• was basically the groups leader 24/7 until corey came

• his strongest feat is making strategic decisions and pop up plans for the team

• has been S+/X rank for yearsss

• probably responsible for some of the map callouts you hear today (ex. skipper pavilion, blackbelly skatepark)

• his locker has a dried squid corpse playing a miniature drum set inside

#7 Mick Thomson

Inkling

• as anchor as it gets

• "do you ever play anything other than 5k??" "...5k scope"

• frequent top 500 in tc and rm

• wants the original eliter 4k to make a comeback

• evil charger main #666

• will talk you to death about chargers and their history

• his locker just has a singular eliter in it

• "come into MY house, suck MY dick, call ME gay?!?" incarnate

#8 Corey Motherfuckibg Taylor

Inkling

• the most "splatlands born and raised 💀" guy ever

• aggro midline

• 💞flingza💞, stamper

• hates big swig it feels like a knock off flingza to him

• S rank isnt treating him well and he does care. bro is suffering

• some know him as "the great big mouth"

• no ass unfortunately

• shawn saw him in turf war once and immediately went and got him to join his team afterwards

• was found as a soggy flingza main but gradually learned to have great team spirit and become a good leader :D

• just kinda puts shit in his locker.

• joey says he has frontman energy

[rainydayhogwartsimagines]

hey, i was wondering if you could do a lupin x daughter!reader headcanon when he’s a pressosor in the readers 3rd year. maybe she’s friends with the golden trio and dating draco and lupin tries to attack her on the full moon when they find out ab sirius and peter pettigrew and it just progresses throughout lupin being protective if reader joins the order and maybe lupin dies saving reader in the battle of hogwarts? also please some sirius x reader moments where sirius is like a protective uncle !!

(also would you mind adding me to your taglist??)

Remus with a daughter

Best dad ever

Literally

Kindest man to you.

Absolutely adores you and makes sure you're safe

It's just the two of you though, your mother passed during childbirth

Remus blames himself but the truth was your mom just was so sick and having a child was too much

It breaks Remus' soul when he had to separate from you for the full moon so he wouldn't hurt you

It didn't help that the two parents who usually watched you while Remus was going through this were killed when you and Harry were a year old.

Sirius wanted to confront Peter but he didn't because his godchildren needed him then and there.

Sirius raised Harry alongside you and the two of you were honestly like siblings.

You called Remus "Papa" and he called you "Pup" or "Puppy"

Sirius was "Uncle Padfoot"

You two grew up in the wizarding world and stuck together

When you were finally able to go to Hogwarts it was exciting for you.

Harry met Ron and you met someone yourself

A blonde boy with silver eyes.

You barely noticed him but he certainly took notice of you.

He started teasing you in the halls when he saw you, you taking any insult he threw at you with a grain of salt

Especially once you were sorted into Gryffindor

Then came one insult about your dad

Harry had to separate you from potentially killing him.

You gradually began to dislike him more and more.

Harry began to really hate him once quidditch started too

Like strangulation was almost used

Then weird things started happening throughout Hogwarts.

Absolute bonkers shit happening around you and then

TROLL IN THE MOTHERFUCKIN DUNGEON

One thing led to another and Slytherin's house ended up having to stay with Gryffindor

You made tea to hold you over

Earl gray

And because you don't like being mad with people you made some for Draco

You sat at a table and put the mug next to him.

"What the hell is this?" Draco asked.

"Earl grey. To calm the nerves. Asshole." You said sharply.

He took it and was surprised that it didn't taste terrible

"... You know how to make tea?" He asked

"It's not hard... Plus my dad's an absolute addict to the stuff." You said.

Draco looked at you.

"Why did you bring me this?" He asked.

"I don't like being mad with people and I think we need to deal with whatever hatred you have formed against me." You said.

"I don't hate you." Draco muttered.

You rose a brow.

"You don't?" You asked.

"No. I don't." He said.

"... So why the hostility then?" You asked.

"You're a Gryffindor. And aren't you a half blood?" He asked.

"No my mum was a wizard too, you're striking out here" you said.

"was?" Draco asked.

You shifted. "Mum died after I was born... She was sick." You muttered.

Now Draco felt like an asshole.

He eased up on his constant insults but if any one else teased you he'd hex them later

Your relationship with him now was very strange

Like he was a jerk but not as big of a jerk.

Then came the end of the year.

You walked up to him and gave him your address, telling him to write to him if he felt like it

He didn't.

At first.

Then one day he found himself pacing his room debating an opening line.

Then one day when you were getting the mail from your owl you found a fancy letter.

It looked so official and it was addressed to you.

Then you saw the "M" on the side of the envelope and blinked.

Draco actually wrote to you.

You walked back into the house, this perplexed look on your face.

"Something wrong Pup?" Remus asked.

"Hmm? No... No just... Something weird is all." You muttered.

"Who's that from?" Harry asked.

"Draco." You said earning a look from him.

So you read it when you were alone and you were shocked

Like he could write

Even though this was a simple "hi how are you?" It was still so well written you felt strangely connected

You began to understand the whole romanticized idea behind letters

You and him started writing back and forth and you actually found yourself liking him.

Like. Like liking him.

Remus could tell.

You had this smile on your face every time you got a letter

Then came a very strange letter

You opened it at the breakfast table and it was a warning

"Something strange is going to happen at Hogwarts, warn Harry."

You looked up and frowned.

"Harry." You said.

"What's up?" He asked.

"Draco sent something weird... He said something's going on at Hogwarts and to warn you." You said.

"He cares what happens to me?" Harry asked.

"apparently. And he seems pretty serious about this." You said making Remus and Sirius exchange a look.

The two of you went back to school with caution

Draco was always with you, acting strangely paranoid.

Then the chamber of secrets opened

And Draco wrote to Remus himself, practically begging him "TAKE. HER. HOME."

Remus almost did but he couldn't just disrupt your life because he was anxious.

Draco never left your side, he kept close to you and the trio was noticing it

When they asked him "why are you suddenly being nice to us" he gave an answer that made you fall harder.

"Honestly, Y/n has become my best friend and I don't want to lose her by pissing her off"

So the group just kind of accepted him

Oh he'd still make comments

And Harry still bickered with him

But it was like Draco was like a brother to the group

Yeah he'd talk shit

But he obviously cared.

Things were happening around campus making Draco very paranoid that something was going to happen to you

You kept assuring him that you were being careful but he still NEVER left you or Hermione’s side

Well until the night something actually happened

You and Hermione were adamant about researching whatever was causing all of this

You spent a late night in the library with her when you arrived at an answer. 

“Basilisk!” You both gasped in unison before you heard something fall behind you. 

You had a gut feeling that it was the basilisk

“Run, I’ll stall as long as I can.” You told her

“What-- Y/n I’m not--” “Hermione, someone has to tell a teacher, that someone is you now GO!” You yelled before she nodded. 

She handed you a mirror and bolted as you got up, walking and being sure to make a lot of noise to deter the snake. 

And then you saw those eyes and everything went black

You were found a few minutes later, Hermione getting the news to Mcgonagall 

Draco was pissed.

Because he knew exactly who was behind this.

And they had a deal actually. 

A deal that was “as long as none of my friends get involved, do what you please” with Lucius

Well Lucius did not account for Draco actually liking the golden trio and you.

He couldn’t voice the problem but when Lucius came with the ministry to handle the Basilisk, the trio noticed a strange tension

Students were temporarily sent home while the problem was being handled. 

Well the ones that weren’t petrified. 

Sirius picked up Harry but Remus stayed with you in the wing

When students finally were able to return you were finally okay. 

Draco walked into the Great Hall and saw you, practically tackling you to the floor. 

The summer was odd, Draco actually spending it with (wait for it) the Weasley’s 

Harry and you both spent the first three weeks of summer with them, befriending the two legendary pranksters in the process

whilst also getting closer to Draco

Things definitely changed between the two of you

in a good way but something changed

It was the night before you were going back home and you couldn’t sleep.

You walked downstairs and sat in the doorway, looking at the stars

Draco had the same idea, sitting next to you with a blanket. 

“Couldn’t sleep?” you asked. 

“Nope.” He muttered. 

You seemed fixated on the moon.

Very fixated on it.

It was full and it seemed to almost... Make you sad?

“I wonder what dad is doing.” You muttered. 

“Well it’s like two in the morning so my guess is sleep.” Draco joked.

You tensed up and he noticed. 

“What?” Draco asked.

But then it’s like he got it on his own, figuring out what you weren’t saying.

“...Remus is a werewolf?” He asked.

You looked over shocked 

“How did--” “I just figured it out.” He said. 

You sighed turning back to the sky. 

“No one can know.” You said.

“No one will know Y/n, you have my word.” Draco said softly.

You looked at him and he moved his arm as if to say “Join me under this blanket” and you scooched closer

When your dad came to pick you up that morning he found you asleep against Draco in the doorway

He kneeled and tapped your cheek.

You yawned, realizing that it was Remus and hugged him 

Harry was staying, it was just you leaving 

Draco wrote to you as much as possible

Something changed though, the morning Remus dropped you off at the station

Remus got on the train with you

You blinked.

“Dad... I know we’re close but this is the first day of kindergarten all over again.” You said

“...Pup I’m a professor this year.” He snorted. 

Harry, who just got on the train with the Weasleys paused. 

“WHAT?”

“You’re totally riding with us.” You said excitedly

So there you were in cart with your dad, Harry, Draco, waiting for Hermione and Ron who were chasing Hermione’s cat

Draco kept giving you this cute little smile. 

You two never said anything to each other but you still exchanged this smile. 

Remus of course noticed this but said nothing 

Ron and Hermione finally showed up 

“Crookshanks did not--” “YES IT DID!” 

You all looked over 

“What’s going on?” You asked

“Ron’s rat ran off!” Hermione said

“More like your cat ate him!” Ron fired back.

“What does your pet look like so we can find him?” Remus asked

“He’s a brown rat.” “He took off the second we got close to the cart.” Hermione explained.

That raised an alarm in Remus’s brain. 

“...Ron how old is your rat?” Remus asked.

“Oh he’s old. Like twelve years old.” Ron said. 

Remus stood up and drew his wand

“Dad?” You asked. 

“Lock this door the second I leave. If you find the rat one of you come and find me.” 

You guys didn’t find the rat, however there was this strange new tension on campus.

There were a few aurors walking around, one of which was walking you and Harry to classes

That auror was (wait for this one) Sirius 

People of course were speculating that 

A: your father was a professor 

and B: The Sirius Black was escorting you out of all people around the school

See, the weird thing was that four different people were walking Harry to class.

Neither you or Harry were fully alone. 

But that wasn’t the only weird thing going on.

You and Mcgonagall seemed to be discussing something at every free moment

Two weeks into school you seemed to be taking some sort of advanced skill

Don’t get me started on the group noticing you chewing something for a solid month 

Ministry members were also talking to you

not even Harry knew what was going on

Then came the trip to Hogsmeade

You all went and for the most part it was fun

 until Harry got the bright idea to eavesdrop on a conversation

He found out everything.

Peter, the betrayal, why staff was acting odd. 

all of it. 

He didn’t say anything either, he walked out of the three broomsticks, walked over to the shrieking shack and threw up

You listened to him sob and that night was hard

Draco sat at the foot of your bed while you sighed. 

“He’s going to be okay Y/n, he has us.” He reminded. 

“I know... But still... Jesus... I can’t imagine what must be going through his head” You breathed. 

Draco put a soothing hand on your leg and you smiled 

“I’m always here Y/n... Always.” he said softly 

You both exchanged this look.

Something in you just leaned forward and he kissed you.

then you heard a small pattering noise... like rat feet

You both split apart and you grabbed your wands

“MCGONAGALL!” you yelled.

She ran in and noticed the alarm on both Draco’s face and then heard the noise.

She found the rat but it was the wrong rat.

“Maybe it is best that you sleep out in the common room like mister potter. Draco you should go back to your--” “While that killer is roaming campus, I am not leaving my best friend alone.” He said. 

Mcgonagall sighed, but understood his worry before it registered that he knew.

“You know about Pettigrew?” she asked. 

“My father doesn’t keep me completely out of the loop professor.” Draco answered

She sighed. 

but she agreed to let him stay as long as he wasn’t completely alone with you.

You two didn’t bring up the kiss at all. 

But things certainly got weirder between you two.

Both of you would get extremely flustered if you even looked in the same direction

then came the night you snuck out.

it was a full moon and you were staying in Hermione’s room due to the fact that the guys snored so fucking loud.

You snuck out, tip toeing past the sleeping boys and meeting Sirius outside of the common room.

“Are you sure you want to help?” Sirius asked quietly.

“I’m sure.” You nodded before both of you took off. 

What you didn’t realize was that Hermione followed you.

Along with the guys.

You slid down the whomping willow, walking into a room with Sirius where he gave you a talk of “be careful, avoid being in direct line of his vision and stay safe.” 

The group was hearing all of this, along with the pained groans of someone. 

“He’s turning.” Sirius noticed. 

“Did he drink his potion?” you asked. 

Sirius noticed the potion’s contents on the floor. 

“Shit.” You both said in unison before hearing the snarling

“Y/n, change, now!” Sirius said before taking on his dog form.

You took on an Animagus form.  

It was a hawk, a loud screech emerging from you as you took flight

The group watched you and Sirius basically herd Remus into a room from a door crack.

“She’s an animagus?” Ron whispered. 

“From the looks of it, yeah.” Harry muttered. 

“Remus is a werewolf?” Ron asked

“No shit sherlock.” Draco muttered. 

Then Remus had an outburst, a rat scurrying by his feet.

Sirius immediately took his human form and sprinted after it, leaving you alone with your father. 

The rat stopped at Hermione’s feet that was blocking the way out.

The group was caught. 

“What in the blazes are you doing here!?” he asked. 

Remus lunged at you, you dodging the attack

He snarled and you tried to stand your ground

“I--” Harry picked up the rat and frowned.

Remus slammed you against the wall before you took your human form

“dad, it’s me--”

Sirius used the reversal spell and sure enough it was Peter.

“You son of a--” 

Then everyone heard a scream.

Your scream.

Sirius dropped everything, sprinted back in the room before seeing you with a bite mark on your shoulder

“HARRY GET Y/N TO THE INFIRMARY NOW!”

So the group now was not only holding a wand to a fugitive, they also had a potentially dying girl with them

Draco was sprinting as fast as humanly possible with you in his arms

The rest of the group was trying to get Pettigrew to the ministry 

Sirius was trying to keep your dad from going ballistic

Two hours later you were in a bed passed out with Draco pacing

Pettigrew fucking escaped and the ministry was high tailing it after him

You, thank god, weren’t a werewolf but you were unconscious

no one could pry Draco away from you.

You unconscious for about five days

Remus was a wreck

When you woke up Draco and Remus were both asleep at the foot of the bed

You shifted and Draco’s head shot up.

“Professor she’s awake” Draco said 

Remus looked at you with tears almost bombarding his face.

“Y/n, I’m so sorr--” “Dad it’s okay. I knew what I was getting into, I almost expected it.” you stated.

Remus was still very hesitant to even look at you

Summer was spent at the Weasleys, Draco again being present for it.

neither of you still talked about the kiss and it was driving both of you crazy

You both were 10x more jumpier around each other

Draco was so scared he was losing you as a friend 

So Fred gave him some advice because he knew you liked him.

“dude. Just hit on her. Let her know you’re still interested-- fucking show that you care!” Fred said. 

“But what if it fails--” “It won’t!” 

So Draco started being smooth as hell

You were reaching for a glass and he stood so close to you and grabbed it for you

You almost dropped the glass the second it was in your grasp

You’d be so focused on something, look over and see Draco staring and literally fuck it up within seconds. 

He lends you his jacket, all the time

You love it but are too chicken to admit that you do though

And then came the tournament

Draco left about three days before the tournament

He left you his jacket though

but you all ended up going 

As you were walking to the portkey Cedric seemed to have his sights set on you

Fred and George had to literally stand between you because they did NOT want Cedric making moves 

Course, all the boy was interested in was friendship though and you knew that because you knew he liked Cho

You thought that Draco wasn’t going to be there but you were pleasantly surprised.

Well, until you saw his father

and you realized what jacket you were wearing in front of him

You were a fumbling mess, stuttering over your words

However Lucius is a civil man and assured you it was fine (while also giving a look to Draco)

Let’s just say Lucius wasn’t exactly thrilled with his son’s choice

You were practically shaking when you were in your seat and eventually just sat near concessions.

Cedric found you and calmed you down, you thanking him

For the most part you enjoyed the game after you calmed down

You had to listen to Ron’s big speech on Krum afterwards though and you were rolling your eyes

Draco met you guys back in the tent

“Y/n, are you alright? I noticed you looked really pale when you left.” He asked

“Your father is terrifying.” You said before hearing what you thought was a scream of celebration

You took a long sip of water before Arthur ran in. 

“Everyone, grab your things, we need to leave.” He said

“What’s going on?” You asked 

The sense of alarm on Arthur’s face made everyone worried. 

Draco immediately pulled you close to him, neither of you letting go when you got to safety.

“Are you alright?” Cedric asked.

Draco immediately seemed jealous

“I’m okay Ced, don’t worry. I’m more worried for Harry.” You muttered looking over at the boy.

“Wait... Draco, where’s your dad?” Hermione asked.

He frowned, looking around the camp grounds to see no trace of his father. 

“....Don’t tell me he’s--” “I don’t know. He stopped keeping me in the loop after our second year.” He muttered.

“....Why?” You asked. 

Draco seemed so tense because of that one little question.

“I think he had something to do with the chamber of secrets.” Draco said

“What?” The group asked in unison.

“he carried around this black journal, I don’t know if you remember that girl from Slytherin, Pansy? We’re friends with her family and I think he snuck it into her luggage or something. Either way when the ministry found her she was unconscious and the journal was on the ground next to her.” Draco explained

Everyone was shocked. 

“Your father almost killed a student!?” Ron whisper shouted

“I didn’t know, it wasn’t until last year that I started piecing shit together man!” Draco whispered

“Are you insane-- you have to be” “Ron calm down” Hermione whispered

“He almost got someone killed!” Ron said

“Draco is not his father!” You snapped. 

Everyone was surprised by your reaction, especially Draco

You sighed and looked away, looking at the scene in front of you 

That’s when a flash of green light practically blinded you and there it was

the dark mark

Draco grabbed your hand, staring at it with a frown. 

“Do you think he’s--” “I don’t know.” Draco whispered

You all went back to the Burrow, Molly mortified that her adoptive sons  (and daughter) went through that

Remus was also there, for the first time in months he hugged you. 

“I thought the worst.” He muttered.

“I’m okay papa.” You whispered.

You all were cautious when you went back to school

Cedric was happy you were okay, Cho was too

Cedric was also talking to you more, mainly because you had crossed paths multiple times at campus.

Believe or not, you were actually really good friends.

Draco still was having no luck in asking you out

Fred and George witnessed him nearly lose his mind during the first few hours of school because you touched his hand

He went from smooth to a nervous wreck.

Then the introduction dinner started

And everything was odd.

You watched the Beauxbatons dance with ease

You watched Durmstrang march forward

You listened to Ron’s squeal when he saw Viktor Krum

And then a Durmstrang boy seemed to immediately take a liking to you

Which made Draco want to stab him

You seemed completely oblivious to the guy’s flirting though

You all found out about the goblet of fire

Draco actually was considering joining the competition but you seemed to have a negative reaction to it.

Then they announced the age restriction on it and everyone but you seemed to hate the idea of that.

Then Harry ended up getting roped into it and you were arguing 24/7 with the ministry workers on why he was involved 

Then mad eye moody assured you that he’d be fine. 

Mad eye moody freaked you out.

Seriously, he seemed awfully fixated on you and Harry

Draco hated seeing you with that Durmstrang boy.

Seriously.

He was always there, smiling at you, laughing at something you said.

Draco was over all in a sour mood when he was around

You didn’t mind Nikolai but you needed a break so you found yourself sitting at the lake

A blonde French girl sat next to you

It was Fleur

she didn’t always like being in the center of attention and needed a break

So the two of you became close friends

She taught you French, you taught her English

You and her became very close, Draco taking notice of your friend

not in a romantic way. Actually, she noticed his interest was not with her

No, she knew he was in love with you just by the way he looked at you

“So how long have you and Draco been... seeing each other?” Fleur asked.

“Oh we aren’t... Dating.” You muttered, throwing a pebble into the water

“Really? He looks at you as if he was in love, I just figured--” “He doesn’t--... Does he?” You asked.

“Oh my goodness does he, he seems completely head over heels.” She said.

So then you started thinking about this more and more. 

something was clearly bugging you and Draco could tell

It was that damn dance class

Draco and you were paired up and you seemed so distracted.

“Y/n?” Draco asked.

“Hmm? Oh sorry.” You muttered.

“Are you alright?” He asked, the glint of concern in his eyes

“Yeah, I’m fine...” you said

You two were dancing great actually, smiling and laughing before you noticed it

the loving look that Fleur was talking about

“Draco I need you to be 100% honest with me.” you began

he nodded

“Do you love me?” you asked. 

Draco froze as did Fred and George who were listening. 

Draco swallowed hard. 

“I-I” He stuttered. 

“Draco?” You asked.

“...Yes.” he answered

You didn’t hesitate in kissing him

You simply yanked his tie, pulling him to you and you just...

kissed him

He kind of locked in place for a minute and Fred groaned. 

“KISS HER YOU GIT!” George said.

finally his shock subsided and he put his arms around your waist. 

he kissed you back and boom

you two were dating

You both were so in love and it was nice for the friend group to see you so happy. 

You two were inseparable and of course Fred and George took full credit

The second challenge came along

You were all sitting on the docks when you noticed missing people that didn’t make sense

Cho wasn’t present for her own boyfriend

Ron wasn’t there either

and neither was Gabrielle.

You frowned, walking over to her 

“Fleur, where’s Gabi?” You asked. 

“She’s not with the girls?” She asked. 

You shook your head and she frowned.

“Fleur, what was this challenge?” You asked. 

“...retrieving... something...” she said before both of you realized what was going on.

“Y/n?” Draco asked. 

Fleur’s pale face combined with your shocked expression concerned him

“Love what’s wrong?” He asked. 

“They’re down there.” you whispered. 

Draco frowned. 

“....Are you sure?” he asked.

“Hermione would never miss this.” you muttered.

The contestants had to line up and you frowned, watching them all jump in

You noticed Neville give Harry Gillyweed 

You sat and waited, seeing Krum come up first with Hermione.

You ran over, seeing her cough .

“Are you alright?” you asked. 

“I’m fine, have you seen Ronald?” she asked. 

“He wasn’t down there?” you asked. 

“I...Don’t know, I couldn’t see.” She said.

Cedric came up with Cho and you looked over. 

Finally, Harry came up with Ron

You were relieved when they showed up

But anxiety filled you back up when Fleur came back empty handed.

“The mermaids, I-I couldn’t get her back--” 

You looked over 

“Neville, hand me the rest of the Gillyweed.” you said 

He handed it to you and you took off your shirt. 

“Y/n, what the hell are you doing!?” Draco asked. 

“Saving my friend..” you said before jumping into the water

Draco nearly went in after you but Moody stopped him.

“If she’s in danger, we’ll know.” He said

Soon, you popped out of the water with Gabrielle and Fleur sprinted over.

You were cold, naturally

Draco was just happy to have you back, wrapping you in a towel.

the ministry was pissed with your involvement now, but because you were a Hogwarts student points were given to Cedric and Harry.

Durmstrang insisted that that was bullshit and that points should've been docked but uh...

Dumbledore rlly said "No fucks given"

So that good old Yule ball.

You didn't really plan on going but Ginny AND Hermione insisted.

As far as Draco knew, he was aware it wasn't your scene but didn't get the memo that his friends were dragging his girlfriend to the dance.

His plan was to show up for looks, raid the cookies, leave, sneak to you and just spend time with you.

So imagine that boy's shock watching you walk Hermione down the stairs looking beautiful.

He just was there really to make his parents happy by keeping up appearances, but now that you were there it was a reason to stay.

You and him couldn't take your eyes off each other.

You did dip out pretty quick once things got loud but you also raided the snacks, sitting on the steps.

You laughed at some silly little joke he told you.

He smiled, brushing the hair out of your eyes

"Draco..." You said.

"Hmm?" He hummed.

"do you ever consider a future... With me?" you asked.

He smiled, kissing your knuckles.

"All the time my love." He replied.

"Like what?" you asked.

"Well I know that I want us to live in a nice house... And I'd like a dog." he said.

You laughed, making him raise a brow

"My uncle is a dog, my father is pretty damn close to one, aren't you aggravated with all the canines?" you asked, making him smile.

"I've always found basset hounds to be adorable, sue me." He said.

You laughed harder.

"What is with you?" he asked.

"It's hard to imagine you with a dog like-like a basset hound! A great Dane, maybe but a small little basset hound is amusing!" You said.

He shook his head with a smile.

"One day I hope that we grow old together... Maybe have children if it doesn't make you uncomfortable... Our son's name would be Charles... Our daughter would be named Violet." He finally said.

You blinked, feeling this beautifully intense emotion of love.

"Draco I love you." You said.

He smiled, kissing you. "I love you too."

And you almost kissed again until you heard shouting from Ron and then Hermione.

"I have to handle these morons, I'm sorry." You told him.

"Go. I'll see if I can talk sense into Ron." He nodded.

So the night ended with you comforting Hermione and Draco bitching at Ron for not seeing what was SO CLEARLY IN FRONT OF HIM.

The final trial began, Ron of course having tension with Hermione

You had this bad feeling.

Draco could tell too.

"What's wrong?" Draco asked.

"I just... It feels off. Something about this. It feels off." You said.

And then it began.

As players returned back to the start you started asking questions.

And then Fleur said something.

"When I turned a corner, I swear I could hear a rat!"

Your heart dropped and you BOLTED to the ministry workers, BEGGING them to pull the rest of the students out.

Their exact words were "We can't just do that based on a 'paranoid whim'."

And then it happened.

Harry and Cedric came back.

Only one of them wasn't alive.

You sprinted down to them, pulling Cedric's chest to your ear, praying you heard something.

The silence in his chest was so loud.

You let out this pained cry that alerted the crowd something was wrong.

You and Harry were both dragged back to Moody's office

You had this feeling again.

Uneasy, like something was wrong.

As Moody talked, you kept noticing the weird tongue thing he was doing.

As he revealed more and more... It made sense.

"You put Harry's name in the Goblet of fire!" You realized, Harry looking over shocked at your accusation.

He was searching frantically for something.

You didn't even dare to reach for your wand.

You knew he'd kill you in a instant

"For a girl so caught up in a ridiculous romance, you catch on quick, Lupin." He said.

"Harry won because I made it so. He ended up in that graveyard because it was meant to be so and now the deed is done." He told you, leaning close to your face.

He walked to the cabinet looking at you and Harry.

"Imagine the reward I'd get for finally silencing the great Potter. The girl... Well the girl would just be a plus." He chuckled, whipping out his wand.

"EXPELLIAMUS!" was shouted.

You and Harry backed to the wall, hearts pounding.

"Are you alright?" you asked him.

He nodded "You?" He asked.

"Yeah." You breathed.

Dumbledore, Mcgonagall and Snape all joined you, Snape pouring something in Moody's mouth.

The truth was revealed.

Moody was actually not Moody, in fact, he was Barty Crouch Jr.

And the real Moody was what was in the mysterious chest he kept in the office.

Once you and Harry were released, you both went to the common room where the group was waiting.

You hugged Draco.

You explained everything, deeply unsettling the group.

"do you know what this means?" Ron asked.

You watched the fire in the fireplace with a blank stare

"War."

The banners of Cedric went up.

Harry felt too much guilt keeping the prize money.

So he gave it to Fred and George for their business.

You seemed very depressed over the summer

You hardly left your room.

Then something happened.

Draco showed up at your house in the middle of the night.

"What in Merlin's beard are you doing here, it's four in the morning?" Remus asked.

"I need a place to stay sir." He said.

a family meeting was called.

Naturally everyone was half awake until Draco explained what was going on.

Not only did Draco confirm your suspicions of his father being a death eater. He was allowing Voldemort to stay with them.

Draco saw him enter, apparently said he was going for a walk and then just... Took off.

Remus, while reluctant to let his daughter's boyfriend to stay in the same house as them, allowed it.

You all told the Weasleys of course

Once the school year began, Sirius made a attempt to alert the ministry of "hi, guess what, the guy we all feared would come back is in fact back... And staying at the Malfoy manor"

This was waved off.

Remus tried.

waved off.

ARTHUR TRIED

waved off.

Once you got to school, something odd was going on.

there was a ministry worker there

As a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher

and everyone was claiming that Cedric's death was a accident.

This. Made. You. Livid.

You and Harry were both pissed that actual magic was no longer being practiced

"Don't you think we should actually PRACTICE the magic, especially now that 'You know who' is back?" you asked.

"He. Is. not. back."

You glared.

"You're fucking joking right?" You asked.

By this point you were UNBELIEVABLY fed up with everything.

Weeks of refusing to acknowledge the death of Cedric or the many warnings of a war brewing made you no longer care.

"You are saying this in a class room with two children who has been attacked multiple times by his followers-" "Miss Lupin, be quiet please." "one of which SHOULD'VE died, his parents, DID die." Miss Lupin, sit. Down." "Another student's parents were tortured to a point where they can't even speak and he's aware of what's really going on!" "Miss Lupin I will not be spoken to like this-" "You might be terrified of even acknowledging what is happening, but it won't stop the fact that it is." " Miss Lupin-" "How in the hell do you think Cedric ended up dead!?" "WHAT HAPPENED TO CEDRIC WAS AN ACCIDENT!" "BULLSHIT!"

You of course got detention.

And that's when you discovered how truly crazy this woman was.

When you came back, you immediately told Mcgonagall what she did.

She did what protocol suggested.

She asked the ministry to remove her.

and basically got a "no❤️"

Dumbledore was AWOL and it was clear that this was going to be a LONG year.

Rules kept being added, lessons were being ignored

So you and Harry started the next "Dumbledore's army."

You used this 'room of requirement' a student showed you.

She was sweet actually

kind of on the hippy side but you liked her.

Draco and you both felt so tired of this woman.

Draco knew that if he just asked his parents they might do something.

But probably at a high cost.

You told him not to do anything.

"Why? Y/n, you've been injured by this woman. Harry's been injured. We've contacted everyone we know in the ministry, nothing's been DONE!" he asked.

"I have full confidence in Dumbledore." You said simply.

He didn't get that one at all but when along with it anyway.

FINALLY it reached a new point.

You were pissed, Cho revealed where the Room of Requirement was.

So you finally wrote to your dad.

"Dad. I might not finish school. Sincerely, your loving daughter."

Fred and George noticed your anger and decided to help you direct it somewhere.

They showed you a plan.

You agreed and explained it to Draco.

He was sad you wouldn't be graduating with him.

But he handed you a matchbox, kissed your head and told you to go to town.

and so you did

You set off fireworks with them and Draco smiled.

Once the three of you finished the handiwork you watched it all explode together.

"Regret any of this?" Fred asked.

You smiled at the boy.

"Never Freddie."

And so you left Hogwarts, the three of you opening up the shop.

Remus wasn't too happy with your... Unethical way of handling Umbridge.

But he was proud.

Then came a day when Bill came into the shop saying he met someone.

He would mention little things about this charming blonde girl he met

apparently English wasn't her first language so she spoke with an accent.

When you asked the name you nearly died

it was Fleur!

Your dad came in the shop one day asking all of you to close early and that it was an emergency.

you all went with him, you going to a house you had only stayed in once in your life, shortly after James and Lily died.

It was Sirius' parents' house.

The real moody was there, as were all of the Weasleys and Draco.

then there was this girl with pink hair.

You'd notice the look your dad would give her, making you realize he liked her.

You all joined the Order that night and would report back to them pretty regularly.

Then came a meeting where Draco came back.

He and Remus had been discussing something.

And Draco agreed to something

You were working in the shop one day

Draco came in and he said he had to speak with you

You sat there and listened to him

"The Order thinks we need a spy." He said

"What is Moody cooking up over there?" you asked.

"The only one with an opening is me Y/n." He said

You froze.

"No. No, tell me you didn't-"

"as far as my family knows, me and you have broken up-"

"Draco that is too dangerous, why the fuck would you ever agree to do something like this?" You asked.

"Because I want a future with you Y/n... And this is a war we have to fight." He said.

You accepted the situation but hated all of this.

And then Harry had a vision.

Something was wrong, Arthur was in danger

So you all went to the Ministry

Turns out he was right.

You ended up saving Arthur's life.

Then there was another vision

Sirius was in danger.

So you all went.

This was one of the worst decisions to make

You all went, finding out why Death eaters were there

A prophecy

you guys beat them to the punch however...

Which led to death eaters running after all of you

You all ended up in a battle, your dad, Tonks and Sirius coming to you all.

You fought as strong as you could, actually packing a real punch

and then it happened.

You all thought you were in the clear

"AVADA KADAVRA!"

Sirius stumbled back.

Your eyes widened as you bolted away from Ginny and Remus held Harry as he screamed

Then Voldemort came

you felt true terror

Then....

Dumbledore resurfaced

The Death Eaters took off

You all grieved the loss of Sirius.

You were right there... You should've done... Something.

Draco finally managed to sneak off and tell you that something WORSE was brewing

An attack on Dumbledore

So you all warned him

He didn't have much of a reaction to finding this out, which didn't completely shock you, the man was one of the most powerful wizards , he had a lot of enemies

To Voldemort, that was what was standing in his way.

You all started training more, though you still felt this depression due to the inability to see Draco or the inability to be at Hogwarts. \

However your father's new girlfriend always seemed to check on you.

You loved her, she had this sense of humor you just seemed to vibe with

Your dad referred to you two as his girls

finally one day Remus came by the shop.

He was rambling a lot about something changing and fiddling with something in his pocket

"Dad." you sighed

"And if you have any problems with Nymphadora-"

"Dad."

"I really want to hear them because your opinion matters-"

"You're proposing to her, aren't you?" You asked.

He paused but nodded.

"I'm so happy for you two dad." You said, sincerely.

He smiled and hugged you "Thank you pup"

So the two got married, you and Harry being the witnesses to it

Not long after the wedding though, Tonks kept getting sick

Remus was TERRIFIED he did something

You however noticed a series of patterns

Foods that Tonks used to love she now hated, she craved some off putting things and then it hit you

You pulled her into another room

"You're pregnant." You told her

"No, no I can't be- Oh my god I'm pregnant."

"you're WHAT!?" Remus asked, walking in at precisely the wrong time

"Uh.." "Sur...prise?" you said confused.

Your dad handled it real weird.

He was panicked at first

BABY PROOFED EVERYTHING around the Order

then he sat down with a calculator and was pricing things just saying "Oh god."

then he finally said he was happy

You started getting this feeling though

this feeling of being watched

Draco was visiting less and less and you figured maybe that's why you felt weird.

Then something happened.

Harry and Draco came back to the Order one day, both looking sick to their stomachs

"Love... Are you alright?" You asked Draco

He was shaking, Harry just looked shocked

Remus came in, looking at the boys.

"So it is true." He muttered.

"What's going on?" You asked.

"....Dumbledore he's.... He's dead."

This felt like such a shock.

One of the most powerful people... Gone

Just like that.

"Who killed him?" You asked

"S...Snape."

Your heart dropped.

the whole wizarding world now grieved

You all felt so.. Weird.

Then... You got a letter

Fleur asked an odd question

"Will you be my bridesmaid"

You happened to be drinking coffee and reading this next to the boys

"BILL PROPOSED!?" you asked

Fred and George both looked up

"HE DID WHAT!?"

So that's how you all found out.

Then your lil bro was born!

Teddy!

Then there was a slight... Problem

Harry was going to be attacked

So seven people devised a plan, drinking polyjuice potion to avoid having harry killed

Fred, George, Fleur, Bill, Ron and Hermione all drank the potion

You stayed with Molly and Ginny

When your father came back he was pissed.

Someone in the Order betrayed them.

And then came George

Who was now missing an ear

Oh no

You all helped nurse him back to health

then when he was lucid he said the iconic lines of

"I'm holey"

You and Fred rolled your eyes but were glad he was safe

Then... The next days came

The prime minister of the wizarding world showed up

He had things of Dumbledore to give to all of you

and he gave you all a quest

to destroy some horcruxes

You all went to a wedding

Fleur and Bill! WOOHOO!

Draco of course went

He loved seeing you again

"I've missed you." You whispered to him at a table.

"I've missed you too." He said.

He smiled, watching the happy couple dance.

"...Do you think we'll have something like that?" You asked

"Well for one we're not getting married in a tent." he said making you laugh

then all hell just seemed to break lose

The wedding turned into Harry, you and Hermione all going on the run

Hermione of course came prepared

You all went to some random shop and devised a plan

You all got attacked (they failed)

You all went back to Grimmauld Place, figuring clues had to be there

you ended up sleeping there, finding Sirius's room.

You found his old things... His leather jacket being right on a chair

"Take it." Harry told you.

"But Harry you-" "You always loved that thing growing up... I'll take his lighter." He told you

Then you had a thought

"Wait, what were the initials in the book?" You asked

"RAB"

then it clicked with both of you

Sirius didn't mention his home life to you guys, but he did talk about his little brother

Regulus Arcturus Black

You found this little locket in his room

And then you met that creepy ass house elf

Then you had to go to the ministry

Oh god.

You all snuck in

and there was Umbridge.

You stood there in a court room

and you learned that that feeling of being watched was more than valid.

You, your families... They were all being watched by the bitch in pink.

before they started to figure out what was going on and saving a woman in the process

Then others started chasing you and next thing your ass knew, you were in the woods

You all made a attempt to destroy the locket

it failed.

you all had to walk

for days

then Ron got jealous

Then he took off on his own

You all had to keep going

Hermione was noticeably more sad

"how do you do it Y/n?" she asked

"Do what?" you asked

"fight so hard without him next to you." She asked

You sighed

"I have to keep going Hermione. If we want any shot at a future... We need to keep going." You said

"...Right." She nodded

"Plus, I found that binge drinking helps." You added making her snort

After days of traveling you found clues that led you all to a grave yard in a place that felt vaguely familiar.

You found a grave with a symbol on it

But that's not what made this familiar

"Harry-"

You looked up and saw him at a grave

you and Hermione walked over to see James and Lily's headstone.

You conjured a lily to place while Hermione put a wreathe on it

You all ended up in a house with an old woman.

Well an old woman that ended up being a snake

A literal snake

So you bolted.

Then you ended up on the road

AGAIN.

While you were asleep, Harry managed to find the sword of Gryffindor

...And RON!

So you broke the horcrux

you all made up but now you needed to figure out what to do next

After more traveling you ended up with Luna's dad

Mans was cryptic

and then you were all attacked

you all took off in the woods, magic was in fact used to hurt harry but only enough to conceal his identity

you ended up in the malfoy manor.

Draco's face dropped once you were put in front of him

"Y'know.. I bet the girl will have answers." Bellatrix suggested.

"Which one? There's two." Lucius said, staring at you

"...Lover girl here, who's been makin' eyes at your boy." she said.

His heart pounded in his ears as you were handed over to Bellatrix.

Harry shot a look to Draco and he had to bite his tongue

"So... pretty pretty girl" She began

you swallowed hard, looking at Draco.

"What did you take. Hmm? From the vault?" She asked

You shook your head.

"I wasn't with them-" "LIAR!" She yelled making you jump.

"Last chance. What did you take-" "I don't know--" she pinned you to the floor, winding you.

"WHAT DID YOU TAKE!?" "NOTHING!"

and then she started the torture.

You let out bloocurdling screams, begging for her to stop Draco having to look away, he was on the verge of tears

Then the group managed to escape.

As the group prepared to fight and you were shaking from...everthing, you all heard this metal squeak

You looked up to see

Dobby?

Draco looked at him, then you, then as the chandelier fell, he grabbed you, ran to Harry and you all apparated out of there

You all were safe

...Until Dobby stumbled forward.

And then Draco caught him

"D-Dobby is sorry Master Draco.." He muttered

Draco let tears fall

"You will die, a free elf Dobby." He told him.

"Dobby... Is..Free" were the last words of Dobby

You and Harry buried him, you feeling this intense guilt

"This isn't going to be the last person we bury, will it?" you asked.

"...No." Harry muttered.

Hermione went through her bag, pulling out your jacket.

You put it on, holding your wrist in pain

"What did she write?" Ron asked.

"...Blood Traitor." you muttered.

Draco pulled you to him, kissing your head

"I should've reacted-" "You could have died." you said.

he hugged you tightly, you sobbing into his chest

You were so tired.

and this wasn't even halfway done.

Well after a few days of rest they all asked what Bellatrix wanted to know

You told them it was something about a vault

The group decided to investigate said vault.

You told them you weren't joining them

Neither was Draco.

Instead you stayed with Bill and Fleur, away from everything

Fleur noticed you being so... Out of it

She sat next to you in a chair

"What's on your mind?" She asked

"Was that how they felt?" You muttered.

"What?" Bill asked, looking up from a book as Draco washed dished

"Neville's parents. Was... What I went through... That terror... Was that how they felt?" You asked.

Draco stopped what he was doing and hugged you.

Draco never stopped feeling that guilt

You and Draco took a break after the events at the manor from the Order.

Your time however came when the battle started.

Everyone showed up, first years were evacuated,

Shit was going to hit the fan.

So you all buckled up

You wore Sirius's jacket, standing next to your dad and Draco

you held Draco's hand, watching McGonagall's force field slowly break.

"THEY'RE COMING!" Ginny shouted, sprinting down the bridge with her group.

You all fought, screams around you as you sprinted down halls to find Fred and George

"Fred!" You called.

"BEHIND YOU!" He yelled, Draco blasting a rock away from you.

"Fucking trolls!" Draco coughed.

Fred and George never left your side after that.

You looked around the battlefield and frowned.

"Where's dad?" You asked

Draco looked to the twins.

You all took off again, before seeing your dad and Tonks

relief washed over you seeing him

and then

A spell was fired behind him, the entire area collapsing

Draco took your hand, sprinting away as you watched the area collapse where your father was.

When you were safe, you fell to the ground.

"We- we have to go back" You whimpered

"We can't Y/n..." Fred said.

"We-we have to--" You sobbed into George's chest, him holding you

they were gone...

Your dad

Tonks...

Gone.

Draco looked around, hearing students yell

"We're not safe here darling, we have to go" He said

you nodded, but were still crying

Fred and George met back up with you in the infirmary, before seeing something gut wrenching

Percy was dead.

The whole family grieved, Ron sobbing into Hermione's shoulder, Ginny hugging you

Fred and George felt like the worst people on earth especially after Arthur mentioned something

Percy, stuck up, hard ass Percy's last words

was a joke.

You and Draco stayed near the infirmary, guarding the son of a bitch with your lives

you saw Hermione and Ron, both with Harry.

You ran over, looking at them

"How many more are there?" You asked.

"One. I don't even know what it is." Ron huffed.

Harry said nothing, hugging you tightly.

"You and I may not be related by blood. But we are family." He mumbled in your ear

You originally assumed his sincerity came from the fact you were surrounded by war

And then it hit you

Harry could read Voldemort's mind

Harry could read Nagini's mind

Harry could speak Parseltongue

He ran off before you could speak

"No... no no no--"

"What's wrong?" Draco asked.

"Harry's the last horcrux." You said, your voice breaking.

Everyone froze as they realized what had to happen

It didn't help either when the battle just seemed to stop

and they saw Hagrid holding someone.

Ginny let out a cry that nearly broke you

Fred and George out their hands on your shoulders as you sobbed

You lost...

You all... You were doomed from the start, you all lost

And then... they asked you all to pick sides

Draco's family motioned for him to come but he didn't move an inch from your side

But then something unexpected happened....

You walked forward.

"...This is quite unexpected miss Lupin. But I'm sure there's a place for you--"

"I’d like to say something." you said, looking at him.

"I don't care that Harry's gone. People die everyday, my dad. My stepmom. My friends. My family. My brother now has to live in a world where he doesn't have his parents. So I don't care that Harry is gone. Because he’s still with us…in here. So is my dad, Tonks, Cedric…all of them. They didn’t die in vain! I won't fucking let them. I refuse to let them. But you will, because you’re wrong. Harry’s heart did beat for us. For all of us! It’s not over!” you told the dark Lord.

Draco gripped his wand ready to counter whatever spell was about to be fired

And then something very very surprising happened

Harry was alive.

Intense relief washed over him before you snatched his wand back from Lucius and threw it to him

Lucius had the last straw with you

so he started to attack you

what he didn't account for was you having serious strength before you socked him in the jaw

Draco and you took off before you saw flashes of red and green

You watched as Harry overpowered Voldemort, destroying him once and for all.

You did it.

You hugged him, along with Draco, Hermione and the Weasleys

Harry broke the elder wand, doing away with it so no one would have a chance to use it for evil ever again

You went to sleep, finally feeling safe.

You felt empty though, having to come home to your house now without your dad or Tonks

Andromeda was staying with Teddy, sure not to wake you

When you woke up that morning you could smell something specific.

Your dad's pancakes.

you bolted up, sprinting to the kitchen to see

Draco

Disappointment coursed through you and he turned around, hugging you

"I'm so sorry." Draco whispered.

You whimpered and let the tears fall before

"Tell me you didn't burn the one thing I left you in charge of."

You turned around, Remus standing there.

"DAD!" you screamed, hugging him

He winced but hugged back.

"Oh! Hello, this is a strange start to a morning." Tonks said before you yanked her into a hug

Turns out a few of the Slytherins were around the campus on their brooms as Sentry's for Mcgonagall.

When the collapse took place, they saved them from any lethal damage

A few cracked ribs and a collapsed lung? Yes, but at least they were alive.

You all had a proper funeral for Sirius.

You, Fred and George all completed your time in Hogwarts.

Once you did, you became healer, but something WILD happened on graduation day

You smiled, looking at your family.

Draco cleared his throat, standing next to you.

"hi there stranger." you said, earning a chuckle.

"can we talk, I do have a question to ask." he said.

You nodded, turning to him.

"You remember the future we wanted together?" He asked.

"Kids, a small house and the dog? Yes, I remember." You said.

"what if I had a plan to make it happen?" He asked.

"...what?"

"Y/n, what if... we got married?" he asked.

Your mind imploded

"YES YOU FUCKING MORON!" you said, hugging him.

So you two ended up getting married.

You ended up having a son and the basset hound your husband just had to have.

Buddy was the dog's name

Scorpius was your son's name.

One day you were doing the dishes when Scorpius came up to you

"mummy, I have a question." he said.

"What is it dear?" You asked.

"My teachers mentioned you left hogwarts in your fifth year. What happened?" He asked.

You smiled.

"Well my little lad... That's quite a story."

Taglist: @amhyeah @newtaholic-staygold @bbeauttyybbx @fleurho @yodeadxss @mariah-can-dream

[prvtocol]

mercysought​ ( V. ) —

Sounded far too rich for her blood, if she was, to be honest. Too rich (or not rich enough?) for a lot of folk in NC. She didn’t know much about the upper crust of the city spent their days but she doubted any of them had ever seen a horse in their lives unless they left the city proper which many didn’t. Then again, it wasn’t like it came up in conversation often.

   “What? We callin’ bettin’ a sport now?” she snorts, watching as a security detail starts slowly moving from one of the corners of the house to the next. It wasn’t Clarence, so her attention turns once more to Vezely with a grin “Or did you actually ride? Don’t get me wrong, I’ve never even seen a horse in real life.”

Again, like she said, rich people’s sport. Vivian was rich, but not in that kinda capital as her mom usually said.

   “Yeah, I don’t know ‘bout that, if I had somethin’ to say about the richest of fuckers around they wouldn’t spend their time doin’ that.” like she knew what she was talkin’ about but talkin’ about something she knew very little about with undue confidence was almost her middle name at that point. In any case, most of the houses she broke into said at least something about people’s interests and hats usually wasn’t in the menu “Maybe pickin’ poor fuckers off the street and throwing them in a ring to watch them fight for half an ennie, but horses?” maybe if they were rich, rich enough to fly away from this place? But if they were why would they choose to live in NC full-time?

Perhaps even rich fucks could have the same bug that Viv did and made her return: NC made her feel like she was someone, even if it meant being someone in a gutter “That’s too classy, too rich for this city, I think.”

Sight shifts to where this V’s eyes divert. A roaming security detail making her skittish, she wonders. “Last I checked, poker’s considered a sport and that includes betting on both sides. ‘Ganic horses just switched for cards. One’s a bit more exciting to watch in my opinion.” Shoulders half-shrug, a frown pursing her lip before it’s chased away with another hit off her French brand cigarette.

“But nah, didn’t race the gates. We owned a few horses, or sponsored more like it.” Talk about a child’s treat, going to the stables to pet their long noses and feed them apples while dad chatted with the jockeys. Never gave it much thought as anything out of the ordinary but she knows it is. Never saw a horse, the merc confirms. Yeah, this shit hole city probably doesn’t have much more than sewer rats and mangy street cats. 

“You talkin’ about ancient Romans now? Now they knew entertainment. Used to throw animals in the ring to fight their slaves. Savage fuckers.” She smirks, vapid gray eyes turning to stare across the deck. Probably best to neglect mentioning gramps was knighted by the queen less she really twists this one’s image of the illustrious Landry clan.

“Yeah, it’s all that old world, new world, old rich, new rich shit. Night City is a little too new to get it. Tradition, that’s also what it is.” Another shrug. “Your head swimming? You gotta see all this wealth,” cigarette is held out to point at the lush grounds that surround them, “And you must think, where the hell am I?”

[scepterno]

These are my thoughts on Carmen Sandiego season 4, which are a mix of a long time, passionate viewer, and someone who works on the show. Remember, I’m just a person and fan, just like you, so don’t regard my thoughts as canon or absolute!!!!

-this season. was so much fun. and so much work. im so happy it turned out so beautiful?? we definitely found our footing after season 3 and improved a lot. there were tons of new animators in s3 and those 5 eps were kind of like the testing ground. im so proud of us.

-dash. haber. i love you. im so happy i got to animate neal’s send-off. he’s my favorite boy. mime bomb, too! i got to animate most of his scenes this season again!

-roby. my little baby boy.... oh how i love you. the cgi wasnt nearly complete by the time i left the show so i didnt get to see him in 3d action until final!!!!! most of what i saw were storyboards, key frames, and 2d animation. i got to draw him a few times in the mountains ep!!!! his camera work was STUNNING and so intense i was so in awe. i love my little roby. you may have been a somehwat useless plot but i still love you. 

-jeantonio. cringe gays taking cringe selfies. gotta love em.

-chase. julia. carmen. ugh. chasulia is so real. the way chase has grown... so respectful... such himbo.... when he went in to hug jules and they ended up on a fist bump? sigh. they bond over their shared love/inspiration of carmen

-GRAY. AM. CRACKLE. boy. i love you. you kind of suck, ratting out all of your friends just for one girl, but i love you, white boy wonder. ultimate simp, almost as big of a simp as ivy (we’ll get to that later). there was a line that they cut that im so glad they did (i cant say what it was) but it really improved the finale and his last scene. i am so thankful for that.

-speaking of the finale, there were so many changes to the script i think???? since i last animated on it?? which im thankful for. it really flows much better together in the finale product. i was on the edge of my seat AND I KNEW WHAT HAPPENED!!! i animated tons of that finale!!! thats how good it was!!!!

-player. ANGEEEEEEEEEEEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i got to do most of his school shots, and i made him as cute as i possibly could. i hope you enjoyed the wee baby.

-zack and ivy. man. i feel like they got the short end of the stick. im disappointed carmen preached so much about found family but the moment she got the location of her real mother she dipped with only a note as goodbye. seriously, carm? couldnt even say goodbye in person to the two people who followed you around the globe and saved your life multiple times? they looked up to you so much. ivy was your biggest supporter. 

-shadowsan. i cant remember. did they include his coffee date with the chief in the final version? i dont feel like going back and looking. im just assuming they did because i remember it was mentioned?? i would have liked him to also say goodbye. thank zack and ivy for watching out for his little black sheep. but, meh, he’s always been the type to leave without saying anything.

-overall, im so happy with how this season turned out. wow. im so proud of the crew. im so thankful i got to work on one of my favorite cartoons of all time. they took me in as their biggest fan and let me be a part of the family. part of team red. for that im forever thankful. carmen sandiego will forever be in my heart as my first animation job, the olive branch being extended to a nerdy young 19 year old superfan.

-thank you all for watching!

[castelleve]

Every now and then, Ambrus checked in on this little homeless woman he’d known since young. A woman who refused to give her name, instead calling herself ‘Neophyte’.  Every time he offered shelter, she refused, staunchly stating that she was looking for the Moon Goddess. Perhaps it wasn’t so surprising, after all, that she sought the comforts of a werewolf. 

Despite the protest of anything permanent, she did often accept his invitations to hotel rooms, bars and restaurants. A place to eat, sleep and (reluctantly) wash herself. And today was one of those instances, where the two gladly entered the room he paid for for the night with three bags of take out.

“So, Nock, how have things been lately?” he asked, sitting down on the bouncy tanned bed with two bags of the food in his hands. The spring mattress made a loud squeak under his weight, earning a giggle from Nocturne, who plopped herself down on the adjacent bed. 

She placed her bag on the small nightstand between the two, pulling a burger out and taking a bite of it. “Well,” she started, though the noise was muffled from the half chewed food in her mouth. It was an act someone else might find rude, but Ambrus only saw it as... well, very Nocturne. “Augusta’s been a cunt lately. She’s my friend and I love her, but she is really bossy!” 

Well, that was a lie. She held no love in her heart for Augusta - her use, maybe, but not Augusta. While her connections were marvelous, they also held her back. And her personality left much to be desired. She refused to be the figurehead for the organization that was her idea, all for the sake of her ’reputation’. 

“Other than that, I’ve been doing ok. I found a dead rat the other day.”

“Wouldn’t you... find one of those every day?” Wasn’t she homeless?

“Not every day! What about you, though? How’s your life been, Bri-bri?”

The hulking werewolf popped some fries in his mouth and shook his head. ”Same old, same old, had to get rid of a couple corpses for this vampire prick. Can’t complain too much, though, food is food and all.” He couldn’t help but roll his eyes, however, at the memory of Enoch’s bossy demeanor. One day that facade of his was going to melt away, and he was going to deserve everything he got when he did. 

Not that Ambrus was any better of a person, but at least he didn’t lie for a living. His prey knew exactly what was coming for them when he came. 

Nocturne remained silent, and Ambrus knew it was a prompting for him to continue.

“...Don’t worry, Nock, it’s nothing too serious. Just some asshole that thinks he’s worth more than he actually is.” A shrug of his broad shoulders. “He’s even got this whole schtick - some traveling priest,” he started mockingly. “Who gives people ‘blessings from god’ - if they pay him. And then he doesn’t even let them keep whatever the fuck he gives them, he just kills them. I dunno how no one’s caught onto the scam yet.”

Her head cocked to the side, and he could see a scheme forming behind those gray, stormy eyes.

“Can he actually do it? Grant blessings, I mean.” 

Brown eyes glanced at her, the messy food on her hands and face, and he wondered what could she possibly need from someone like that. She didn’t seem the type to be looking for a blessing... 

“Kind of. As far as I know, he doesn’t really call on the Christian God for his magic, if you’re picking up what I’m putting down.” Maybe it wasn’t obvious to those in his so-called ‘flock’, but their precious bishop was quite obviously a witch. Or had connections to them. Either way, Enoch was a scammer and heretic through and through. 

She stared at him for a moment, thinking. Thinking about Augusta’s request, her reputation... She knew the Patrons of the Moon needed a strong leader - Augusta - but an attractive figurehead to draw people in...

“Is he hot?”

“...I mean. He thinks he is.” The man was on the shorter side of average, spectacled, with the dorkiest haircut he could possibly have. At least... in Ambruss’s opinion. He wasn’t exactly scrawny, but that was the only good point the wolf could give the anemic looking fellow. 

“That’s good enough!” Nocturne chirped, placing her food to the side and standing. “What’s his name?”

“Uh.. I don’t know his real name, but he goes by Enoch.”

She nodded at that. Enoch, a bishop... Father Enoch? She would have to ask around tomorrow. “Alright then! I’ll be right back, I’m gonna take a shower.”

Brows rose in surprise and suspicion. Nocturne detested water with a passion... “A’ight, go get clean you little mud bug.” He just hoped she wouldn’t get too involved with this guy.

He was bad news. 

[ladyloki76]

You’ve Got To Be Kitten Me!

The idea had been brewing at the back of his head for quite some time now. At first he worried that she wouldn’t take it well. Close herself off from the bit of affection she had slowly allowed through. She was a work in progress, but she tried; and that was all that mattered to him. She tried. So he thought perhaps a present was in order.

They had a little cabin on Midgard, deep in the woods of Norway. It was about as far as one could get from New Asgard and still be in the same country. Things were still new, after all.

They were both rather crap at blending in in a town. So this cabin was perfect for them. They used magic for almost everything, and Loki had never felt so free. Still, he did go into town to pick up things once every few weeks. Fresh pastries from a bakery they both loved, books from a used bookshop that he loved and candy for Sylvie. And while Sylvie loved candy, that wasn’t exactly the present he was looking for.

There was a farm supply store there as well, Loki had bought some apple tree saplings there in the spring. He didn’t need to go there for anything in particular, but he figured it helped to keep up appearances, so to speak. He wandered the aisles, looking at the interesting bits and bobs, trying to think of a good present when a little ‘mew’ caught his attention. He kept walking, trying to ignore the little ‘mew-mew’ that was getting more and more plaintive. Finally he felt the tiniest tug on his pants leg. He stopped carefully before looking down. The littlest gray Norwegian Forest Kitten looked up at him, ‘MEW!’

There was a warm chuckle behind him. “It seems the last of Frigga’s kittens has chosen ye.”

The color drained from his face at the old man’s words; his mother’s name would always hold power over him.

“F-Frigga you say?” He swallowed, leaning down to pet the curious kitten. “It’s a good name, strong.” He nodded absently, continuing to pet the now purring kitten.

“Aye, my granddaughter seemed ta think so. Big into mythology that one, been begging my daughter and son-in-law ta move them ta New Asgard.” He chuckled fondly. “Fancies herself a modern day Valkyrie.”

Loki listened politely, still petting the little kitten.

“Ah, don’t mind me, yammering on ‘bout my family.” The old man chuckled. “That’s the last of Frigga’s kittens an we retired her from breedin’, she’s to be a pampered Queen now.”

Loki grimaced as the tiny kitten began to climb his leg, little razor claws digging in as he inched his way ever higher.

The old man chuckled, “M’ Lars, by the way, owner of this shop.”

Loki nodded, “Luka-“

“Friggason, aye, I remember when ye bought them apple trees last spring. How’re they doin’?”

Loki was so rarely caught off guard, he simply nodded. He looked down and gently plucked the kitten from his leg and cradled it in his arms. He swallowed before looking back up at the old man. “You have a sharp memory, Sir, and the trees are doing well, I hope to see some blossoms again next spring, I know it will take several years for them to bear fruit.”

Lars nodded. “Aye, ye have chickens & a few goats out there too, right?”

Loki tried to hide his smile, Lars knew damn good & well he had chickens and goats. He bought supplies for them from time to time. And rat traps once, more for appearance’s sake than anything.

“Why don’ ye take Frigga an her last babe there. We’ve been callin’ him ‘Loki’ on account as he was the smallest, but the most mischievous one in tha litter. Smart as whip, wouldn’t be surprised if he could learn voice commands.”

Loki blinked in shock, looking down at the kitten in his arms. “Loki?” He whispered, little Loki looked up at him and mewed happily.

“Aye, winter’ll be coming sooner than ye think, Frigga will keep the rats and mice outta yer little barn.” Lars nodded happily, as if it was settled.

Loki nodded, holding the kitten securely to his chest. He smiled slowly, “I think that sounds like a wonderful idea Sir, I was just trying to think of a gift for my,” he paused briefly, “girlfriend.” He flushed.

Lars grinned, “What young lady could resist a mama cat and her wee babe? Let me go in the back, Frigga’s in the office, where he’s supposed to be, by the way.” He winked at the kitten who just mewed back. “I told ye he was smart as a whip.”

Loki nodded, smiling like a fool and not bothering to tell him HIS young lady might take offense to him coming home with two new pets. But she did enjoy spending time with the goats and even the hens, gathering eggs every morning.

Soon Lars was helping him load Frigga’s carrier into the backseat of the small electric car he owned. It was more like a small dog carrier, due to how large Norwegian Forest Cats were. Still, you could hear Loki’s indignant mews from inside the carrier as well. Along with the two cats, Lars gave him a litter box & some litter, and a bag of the food Frigga was used to. Also her vet records were all up to date as she had just been spayed. Loki thanked him profusely and made a mental note to make some good fortune come his way, and perhaps a visit from a Valkyrie for his granddaughter.

The shadows were growing long when he finally pulled in front of the small cabin they called home. Sylvie stood from where she had been sitting on the porch steps, clearly waiting for him.”I was beginning to wonder what had happened to you? Thought maybe you hightailed it to greener pastures, not that it would have mattered to me.” She shrugged, as if it mattered not to her.

Loki took her hand, squeezing it gently. “Forgive my lateness, I ended up talking to Lars for quite some time.”

“Lars who owns the farm supply store?” She asked, her nose scrunched up.

“You knew his name was Lars?”

“Well of course I did, I do pay attention to people.” She stuck her tongue out.

Loki chuckled. “Well, my observant little vixen, Lars has given us a gift.” He lifted the carrier out and brought it to the porch. “Meet Frigga and Loki.” He opened the carrier and Frigga stepped out, regal as any Queen; Loki scrambled out, his eyes wide and saw the drawstring of Sylvie’s hoodie and sprang at her face.

Somehow she managed to catch the kitten before he landed on her and she held him out at arm’s length looking at him in shock.

“Darling…are you alright? I know I didn’t—“

She looked at Loki, her expression horrified. “Is he another one of US?!”

Loki couldn’t help the laugher that escaped from him. He tucked her hair back behind her ear. “No, Darling. They’re just cats.”

Frigga fixed Loki with a look that would have made him uncomfortable, had he been looking at the cat. She curled up against Loki as he and Sylvie played with the kitten. This was a good family.

[dontwakeme-causeimdreaming]

SPOILERS: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

So I know when Suzanne Collins announced she was releasing a prequel to the Hunger Games, there was a lot of backlash that the main character was President Snow. I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed TBOSAS and have a lot of thoughts about it. (Bear with me this will be really long)

x

x

x

x

x

x

x

1. My first thought: Tigris? Like ~the~ Tigris from Mockingjay? They seem so close what happened between them to make Tigris willing to betray her family to Squad 451... obviously she was fired as a stylist for being too altered, but is there more?

2. I find it interesting that some of the improvements to The Hunger Games were Snow’s idea, like the betting and the providing the tributes food to make a better show

3. It’s absolutely horrible to see that the tributes were treated so inhumanely (Kept in the Monkey House at the zoo, starved, and given a veterinarian rather than doctor) but it’s also haunting to see the desensitization that eventually came along when it became more like a sport than senseless revenge in the Capitol. At least the Capitol children saw the problem in the 10th Games compared to the 74th

4. Reaper apologizing for having to kill the other tributes (188) is such a stark contrast to how Cato and Clove relish in killing when Katniss is in the 74th Games, which shows how well President Snow (or perhaps Dr. Gaul) did his/her job in turning the districts’s enemy into the other districts before the Capitol

5. It’s also interesting how Snow’s tribute (FROM DISTRICT 12) won the games because Snow bent the rules and relied on cleverness much in the way Katniss (obviously also from District 12) won her games

6. I LOVE that Lucy Gray wrote the Hanging Tree it must’ve been so haunting for Snow to hear when the propo of Katniss singing aired

7. The similarities between Lucy Gray and Katniss!!!

-Both have a younger relative they take care of

-Only females victors from 12

-Won by using cunning intelligence (Lucy Gray with the poison, Katniss with the berries)

-Singing the Meadow Song and the Hanging Tree

-Swimming in the lake

-Both consider running off the escape from 12 and survive in the woods

8. Snow defies the capitol (handkerchief in the snake tank) just like Katniss (the nightlock berries) to help win the games

9. “Some people call them swamp potatoes, but I like katniss better. Has a nice ring to it” (436) oh Lucy Gray! I know Katniss is a plant but it’s so fun seeing the name casually mentioned in the prequel not as a heroine but just as an ordinary name. Little does Snow know, a girl named after that plant is going to be his downfall

10. “What if this was his life: rising whenever, catching his food for the day, and hanging out with Lucy Gray by the lake? Who needed wealth and success and power when they had love?” (438) contrasted with “He [Corionlanus] imagined a group of people in wild animal furs scraping out existence in a cave somewhere. He supposed such a thing could happen, but that life would be a big step down from even the districts. Barely human” (395)

-It’s no wonder Coriolanus wants to marry a woman he detests (516) if loving Lucy Gray made him consider living in conditions he called “barely human”

11. I love Snow’s disdain for the mockingjays obviously because Katniss becomes ~the Mockingjay~, but I also love how Snow hates them because they represent a failure to the capitol, an “unauthorized co-opting [of] Capitol technology” (439), showing that the Capitol is not as necessary as they would believe (which Katniss as the Mockingjay emphasizes in the future when she dismantled the Capitol)

-“Coriolanus felt sure he’d just spotted his first mockingjay, and he disliked the thing on sight” (352)

-“He [Coriolanus] didn’t mind the jabberjays so much — they seemed rather interesting from a military standpoint— but something about the mockingjays repelled him” (417)

12. Do you think Sejanus knew that Snow betrayed him when he mouths Coryo? (470) For his sake, I hope he didn’t so that he could die feeling as though he still had a best friend rather than add more sorrow to his death

13. “Was the goal of survival further survival and nothing more?” (495) —> “but at least he would ensure survival for survival’s sake” (516)

-This reminds me of Gale’s rants in the woods when he and Katniss are hunting, how they’re surviving but not living, and that it’s a cause for rebellion and uprising

-It’s interesting to see Snow’s mindset change, from when he considered survival as the only virtue in his life when he and Lucy Gray were about to run off compared to when he decides he is capable of becoming the president and ensuring survival

-When Snow decides to ensure survival, it seems more as though ensuring the survival of the oppression to maintain his power rather than save humanity, as he claims. He, too, had scorned the idea of surviving to survive earlier (495), so why should he want the people in the districts to survive just to survive? Certainly not for humanity

14. Even the person who created The Hunger Games — Dean Highbottom — thinks they’re awful (515)

15. “Snow had been the ruination of them both” (516) 

-Even though Snow doesn’t know what happened to Lucy Gray that day in the woods, I would assume she died because in the Hunger Games novel, “Then he reads the list of past District 12 victors. In seventy-four years, we have had only two. Only one is still alive” (THG, 19). Obviously the victor still alive is Haymitch.

-Although, perhaps she starved because music became outlawed with the arrival of the new mayor.

-I find it interesting that District 12 even knew there was more than one victor seeing as Dr. Gaul destroyed all evidence of the 10th Games.

16. Snow hates the idea of women selling their bodies in exchange for things  they need to survive, as he sees it as losing all dignity, (like when he feels disgust at the line in Lucy Gray’s song from her interview on page 175), but then he makes the victors sell themselves once he’s president

17. It’s interesting to see the effect that Dr. Gaul has on Snow, because obviously her teaching is what made Coriolanus’s mindset change

-He calls her a lunatic (114) and agrees with Tigris when she calls Dr. Gaul sadistic (125) and felt horrified at the way Marcus’s body was displayed once caught (206), but he still says that he’ll continue the Hunger Games when he’s the president (516)

-He felt guilty murdering Bobbin (248), but in his reign as the president he was responsible for hundreds of deaths (which he never denied but did not seem to feel guilty for either in Mockingjay)

18. President Snow is known to poison his enemies to maintain his control, so I liked seeing him poison his first victim — Dean Highbottom — with rat poison (517). 

[tallstars-rewrite]

Chapter 42

chapter list / previous / next

Jake was a bit nervous leaving Talltail curled in on himself in the Thunderpath tunnel. Talltail luckily didn’t appear significantly burned, but a sharp stone had left a jagged gash in his front leg that may have been singed with embers as well. Jake didn’t know how bad it was. He wasn’t experienced enough with this sort of thing to know, up until then the house cat hadn’t been used to injuries worse than a couple claw scratches. What was it that Talltail had mentioned being good for infection? To stop bleeding? Could Jake possibly apply a clan cat’s gift for healing remedies? Oh why hadn’t he paid closer attention when Talltail talked about his medicine cat friends magic plants?

Lets see, gold-something…? Merry gold was it? What did that look like again? Well, it had to be golden colored, surely. He scanned one side of the surrounding forest, then the other. Ok, there were no golden plants around. Jake had never even bothered learning all the names of plants, they all looked the same, they were just plants for star's sake, how was he meant to tell them apart? 

There were some yellow flowers that grew outside his home, but he didn’t really want the housefolk to see him right now. His paws felt suddenly heavy with a sharp flash of sadness as thoughts of Dusty and Cris flitted across his mind. He shook his head. Nope, not now, now wasn’t the time to wrestle with the heavy weight of that loss. In a small way, despite the predicament he was in with Talltail, he was relieved to have something he could do to take his mind off it. Something other than wandering alone in that far too empty house… It would never feel the same again without Dusty. 

Maybe that’s another sign that this is where I'm meant to be right now...Now if only I could find a more helpful sign to point me in the direction of merry-golds.

Feeling hopelessly lost and overwhelmed by the plants and trees that all looked identical and green and useless, there was no choice but to do what he always did when he didn’t know what path to take. Just follow his gut. ...Not that that had done him much good recently other than get him into trouble, and run straight into a bunch of very rude “ShadowClan” kits with an apparent blood-lust.

But that was just one time, what were the odds of it turning out that badly again? Jake was absolutely not about to let something as small as “having absolutely no idea where he was or what he was doing” stop him from helping a cat that he cared for. So, with that newfound surge of (possibly undeserved) confidence, Jake took a breath and closed his eyes and focused. Which direction felt right? 

...Right...? Yes, ‘right’ seems like a good direction. So, right he went.

 One of his front paws stung horribly where he’d trodden on an ember the night before. He never thought fire would be so painful. No wonder Talltail had feared it so much when Jake first showed him his fireplace. He chased the stinging away from his mind, now was not the time to start fretting over a little pain. He would not think about it, he would only think about golden flowers, and how everything would be ok as soon as he found them. 

A sharp scent hit the roof of his mouth and made his lips curl. It was familiar, though he couldn’t place his paw on what it was exactly. A looming sense of danger flooded through him from nose to tail tip, making his bright ginger fur bristle. He didn’t have time to search through his memory before his question was answered for him. A russet red muzzle poked its way out of the bushes. 

By the stars, you can’t be serious…

It was a fox. A familiar fox at that, like the one he’d pathetically swiped at before running for cover several days before. A fox investigating the remains of a forest fire for unsuspecting prey without cover. It blinked at him curiously with hungry amber-ish eyes. Jake didn’t know any better how to deal with a fox now then he did then. But he was also hyper aware of how close he still was to the tunnel, and how easy cat scent would be to track back. 

It was a stupid thing he was about to do, and he knew that, but louder then his instincts to run up the nearest tree was an overwhelming flare of anger at this predator. There was no way, after everything he’d been through, that something like this could ruin everything now. The fox took another step towards him, it’s eyes alight like a kitten eyeing a helpless baby bird. 

Jake puffed up all his orange fur and screeched at the fox as loud and as fiercely as he could. “Listen here you dung-breathed flea-brained rat-faced bastard, I have had a really bad last couple days and I am not letting you go anyway near that Thunderpath or anywhere near me! You think you're tough? I’m not scared of you! I dare you to come closer!” 

Jake lashed out a paw, yowling and spitting, and the fox looked taken aback at how this very much alone cat was not acting at all as it should. It seemed puzzled as to how it should go about hunting something that it wasn’t chasing. Jake lashed out again and caught it on the tip of the nose. The fox yelped and snapped at Jake, who barely jumped out of the way before raising both his unsheathed paws up, claws flashing in the early morning light. The fox wasn’t really so much taller than him. It snapped again and caught Jake on the shoulder. It tried to shake him and Jake twisted around in its jaws, hoping his skin wouldn’t tear, and bit it hard on the snout just below it’s eye and stuck his claws above its other eye, sinking them in as deep as he could manage. The fox, now facing the prospect of blinding itself, flung Jake to the side. The house cat saw stars as his head cracked against a tree and he landed with a thump in a pile of wet charred leaves, but he was back on his paws and hissing just as fast, driven solely by adrenaline which was thankfully staving off the worst of pain. His instincts warned him well enough to not show any sign that he was hurt. 

“Try it again! You don’t scare me!” he screamed.

 The fox took a step back, perhaps deciding at last that cat prey really wasn’t worth this much trouble. Letting out one last angry yowl, Jake lunged forward and the predator jumped back and loped away into the bushes to search out prey with duller claws. Jake slowly sat back on his haunches and licked the new wound in his shoulder. It was bleeding more than he thought and his head was spinning. He was dizzy and suddenly aware of how much he hurt now that the adrenaline was wearing off. He sat with his head pressed against his forepaws for a while, trying to convince himself to get up again. 

Flowers. Golden flowers. You need to find those flowers. If they aren’t here, maybe in the twoleg gardens? But what if I pick up the wrong ones? There are so many yellow flowers! I’m hopeless!

While crouched on the ground, he thought he heard the sound of a fox's yelp followed by a furious yowl somewhere off in the woods, but he was still dizzy and couldn’t even be sure whether or not he imagined it. If that fox decided to come back, he really would be in trouble. But there was a new scent that warned another animal was nearby again. This scent was distinctly not fox. Jake shot his head up and got to his paws, trying not to sway. What else was going to go wrong today?

It seemed to come from nowhere, a once again familiar and unpleasant muddy taste, similar to a dead rat's fur. The taste that clung to those ShadowClan brutes. He froze in his tracks and whipped around, his greatest fear was realized in the pair of fierce orange eyes narrowed at him from a raised gnarled root. He hadn’t even heard the cat approach, but there she was, hunched with one eye squinted. She was big and stormy gray with long messy fur that could certainly use a good grooming. Deep scars that warned of experience from many past battles were carved into her face and pelt, striking through the tufted murky fur. The way she hunched over and her long, faintly yellowed teeth that stuck out of her mouth at a funny angle made her seem old at first, but looking closer showed there was no out of place silver of age. No, she was much younger than he’d originally thought, but there was an aged look to her hard fire colored eyes that felt wise beyond her apparent years.

 Jake fought the urge to shrink away as she studied him closely. He stood frozen, his fur still standing on end as he tried to think what to do. Taking a peaceful approach hadn’t worked out so well last time he ran into these cats… Try to run? He wasn’t very fast even on a good day, and in his condition, he’d be caught easily. Could he threaten her like he had the fox? There is no way a cat like that is going to be threatened by me! But if she attacked him now, he would attack back if he had to. Nothing would stop him from getting back to Talltail, no matter how battle trained this clan cat was. 

But her fur didn’t bristle with aggression, in fact, she hardly moved at all. She looked like she was sunning herself, unconcerned and blinking calmly at him. When Jake thought he could not handle the tension a second longer, she finally spoke in a steady raspy voice.

“You look lost, kittypet. A puny chewed up wad of fur like you is pretty easy prey for a fox. Or so I would have thought. ‘Looked like you had some kind of death wish, picking a fight like that.” She grinned, showing her long front teeth more clearly. “It won’t be bothering us again by the way, but I suspect you have greater things to worry about.”

Jake eventually let out the breath he was holding. At this point he was more exhausted and exasperated than afraid. “Are you going to try and kill me too?” 

To his immense relief, the molly shook her head, a rumbling purr of laughter escaping her throat. “No, I couldn’t be bothered. But my clanmates may feel different. They are rather tense right now. You didn’t even notice the scent lines, did you?”

He hadn’t, but he’d been rather distracted.

 “I haven’t time for scent lines!” he argued. “And if you’re gonna be nice enough not to kill me, I just need some merry gold I think, and uh….cobweb, I don’t know what that plant looks like though...you wouldn’t happen to know, would you m’am? I’m in a big hurry and I promise I'll get out of your fur as soon as I can.”

“Cobweb isn’t a plant, it’s just spider's web.”

“Oh...literal spider web? I thought it was a weird plant name...Look, I just want to help my friend before anything else happens, you see--”

“Yes, I know. Don’t worry, he hasn’t moved from beneath the Thunderpath.”

Jake felt himself bristle again. How did she know where Talltail was? Who else knew? I shouldn't have left him alone!

“Relax kittypet," she purred, clearly sensing his immediate panic. "I have no war with your companion. Quite the opposite in fact. Running into me was quite good luck on your part.”

“I was just following my gut. I didn’t know where else to go. I know that sounds silly...”

She shrugged. “I do a similar thing sometimes. But when you're a medicine cat, you call it following the signs of StarClan. Mind you, that doesn’t mean it’s always a good idea. But sometimes it works out for the best. The name’s Ratfang by the way.”

“Ratfang? That doesn’t sound like a very nice name,” he said before he thought better of it.

Her thankfully amused purr rattled strangely in her throat. “I have little use for vanity.” Ratfang got up and stretched casually, her frighteningly long hooked claws sinking into the bark of the root she perched on. “Anyway, I have what you need. Trust me, you’ll make a mess of things if you try to do this on your own. Let's get going then, shall we?”

Jake was stunned. “Wait--you… you really want to help me? How did you know what I needed?”

Ratfang stared deeply into his eyes, suddenly looking very serious. “Why, I know everything, kittypet. My StarClan given powers show me clear visions of the future.”

Jake stared at her in wonder. “Wow...really? You can really see the future that clearly?”

Ratfang broke her composure and laughed. “Of course not!  I’m just messing with you. Imagine StarClan making anything clear. If only my job were that easy! I simply scented strange cats around our territory before sunrise and thought I would investigate. I tracked you to the tunnel earlier, saw you both looked a mess, and went to fetch what I figured you’d need. It’s part of the medicine cats code to help injured cats, even if they aren’t from my clan.”

Jake was a little embarrassed that he’d been so keen on protecting Talltail yet he hadn’t noticed some cat had already apparently found their hiding place. However, that also meant if the ShadowClan cat meant to hurt them, she could have easily done so already.

 “Well, I really do appreciate it.” He hastily dipped his head to her. “My name's Jake by the way, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Ratfang bent to pick up a large leaf stuffed with sharp smelling plants that had been folded neatly between her forepaws, then she leaped off the gnarled root and began back down the path from where Jake had come without pausing. Her response was muffled through the bundle she now carried. “Well Jake, I hope meeting you will be a pleasure as well. But we will have to see.”

chapter list / previous / next

[shinsoukokuvalentine]

What the Water Gave Us

Hi all! Time for a fic! This one was part of a zine and can also be found on Ao3. Warning for graphic depictions of violence.

-

The screaming. The screaming wakes him, shrill and agonized.

Ryuunosuke’s eyes shoot open, and in one swift motion, he jerks upright in bed and tosses his thin sheet to the side, chest shaking as if he had just experienced a nightmare.

But the nightmare’s claws remain deep in his mind, for he can still hear the screaming. It cries out again, very real and very loud, echoing from the cove. It almost seems to call to him, and shivers travel down Ryuu’s spine every time it splits the night. He’s never heard someone scream like that.

Swiftly reaching into his nearby chest, Ryuu grabs his clothes before even making it completely out of bed. He rushes through his motions, the screams piercing his ears, hurrying him as he throws on his trousers and boots.

The bright moon guides his path. He runs out the door of the mill, plain and modest, leaning a bit in its old age. He runs down the trail, through the thick pine forest, nightingales ceasing their calls in fright as he darts past their trees. He runs, and the screams grow louder, drawing him closer.

He reaches the cove as his heart, pounding in his ears, nearly drowns out those screams. Squinting, he looks down to the small, rocky beach, encircled by high cliffs. With the moon’s aid, he can barely see a figure writhing in the sand.

Ryuu wastes no time in running down the stairs carved into the cliffside. The screams compel him, even in their wild dissonance, begging for him, pleading for him.

Soon Ryuu can only see the figure. He has eyes for nothing else, charging straight towards the hurting man, the glass-shattering cries. He feels ready to give his life for-!

He stops. The illusion breaks as the man’s struggles slow and his screams die down. His voice quiets, dropping the spell, trading his cries for dry rasps and gurgles as he coughs up blood.

And Ryuu’s once-enraptured gaze quickly becomes one of pure malice.

“You,” he snarls.

The siren stares up at him with its mouth hanging open and its body convulsing. Ryuu instantly sees the source of its pain: a harpoon embedded deep in its side, fresh blood still flowing from the wound, turning the sand dark and wet beneath it. The siren’s scaled tail lashes, glittering like hundreds of opals, and its wide eyes stay fixated on Ryuu, deep purple and vibrant gold. It gasps for air. Ryuu scowls.

“You picked the wrong man to come to your rescue,” he snaps. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t wait here and watch you die.”

The siren only stares, twitches. It whimpers, possibly the only noise it can make, a far cry from its seductive song or its calls for aid. Ryuu scoffs.

“You’re pathetic,” he says. “Your song has haunted my dreams for months, and this is how you choose to show your face again?”

Its wide eyes reflect the moon, its choppy hair shines in the silver light. And it stares. It wheezes, it trembles, blood drips out of the corner of its pink lips, and it stares.

With a growl, Ryuu reaches down, scooping the monster into his arms in one motion.

“I swore to kill you, siren,” he snaps. “Not some fool with a harpoon.”

The siren’s eyes close as Ryuu carries it home, harpoon and all, holding it close even as its blood begins to stain his clothes. Its tail drags on the ground as he walks.

-

When they first met, Atsushi hadn’t eaten a human in moons.

His stomach growled as he stared up at the ship from the ocean floor. The bland taste of the fish in his hands still lingered on his tongue, its blood dissipating into the water around him, its dull scent unappealing even in his hunger.

Flashing lights to his right drew his eye, and floating there, Dazai raised one eyebrow.

“If you hate it that much, why keep eating it?” He asked, the bioluminescent stripes along his tail lighting up in patterns so he could “speak” underwater. Atsushi’s shoulders sagged a small bit, relaxing at the familiar presence, sinking deeper in shame.

“Because I don’t have to promise it anything to catch it,” he flashed back, dim lights flickering among his scales, an aquatic equivalent to mumbling. “Have you ever considered how bad that sounds? Seducing someone just to kill and eat them?”

Dazai, ignoring him, swam closer. His dark hair flowed around his face as he moved past Atsushi, and he looked at the ship above with growing hunger in his eyes, his scales lighting up to say, “I wonder how many humans it holds.”

Atsushi shrugged, continuing to nibble on his fish. It tasted like coral and sand ground into a paste.

“Wanna look with me?”

Dazai’s lights drew Atsushi’s attention once again. He stared at him, at the eager but cunning glint in his smirk, the way his tail wagged slightly. And Atsushi sighed, the gills on his neck ruffling.

“Just one look,” he flashed back. Dazai grinned and darted upwards, with Atsushi following in his wake. He left his half-eaten fish behind.

Their heads only barely broke the surface. The ship’s hull creaked as they looked up from its side, careful to stay in the shadow cast by the sails. Dazai’s eyes immediately resembled angelfish; large, bright, and flashing like diamonds.

“Atsushi,” he whispered, staring straight at the ship. “Those flags.”

Following his gaze, Atsushi saw them too; black flags, marked with a skull and crossbones.

“Pirates,” he breathed. Dazai nodded, but his following smile almost appeared giddy.

“Do you know what this means, Atsushi?”

Atsushi only stared forward. He watched the men on the ship, those he could see, scrambling back and forth like rats. Even with sea salt filling the air, he could still catch their scent when he opened his mouth.

“With the pirates around, less ships have been coming to the island,” Dazai said. Atsushi could see him from the corner of his eye, looking back and forth between him and the ship. “Less ships, less humans, less food.”

Atsushi closed his mouth when it began to water. Despite the fish in his stomach, it still growled when he began to imagine biting into a human again, its blood dripping down his chin, its bones crunching in his jaws.

He clenched his fists as if that could silence those thoughts.

“We wreck this ship,” Dazai murmured, “the humans - the food - will come back.”

Atsushi shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. He could still smell them.

“We don’t have to eat humans,” he stammered. His body quaked when he heard Dazai’s low chuckle.

“Oh, but Atsushi,” he said, “you really want to.”

Atsushi’s eyes snapped open, his gaze whipped upwards to the ship again, and he breathed in their scent. His stomach growled again, louder.

“When was the last time you used your song?” Dazai asked. Sympathy oozed from his words as he cooed, “When was the last time you tasted human meat?”

Atsushi said nothing, eyes darting from man to man, as if tearing his gaze away from one would make him less hungry for the next.

“Why fight your instincts?”

Suddenly Atsushi’s eyes stopped. They stared, fixated on one man, unwavering. The man stared back.

He looked over the prow of the ship at the sirens. His mouth hung open, his white shirt billowed in the wind like sails. His gray eyes, like storms over the ocean, bored into Atsushi while his black hair danced around his face. They seemed to stare at each other for moons.

Then the pirate screamed.

“SIRENS!” Rang his warning cry. Atsushi’s song filled the air before the pirate even finished.

The next few minutes happened in a blur, whirling past Atsushi’s head in a song-filled bloodbath. He only remembered Dazai joining his melody, lending his voice, causing men to tumble into the sea as if begging to be devoured. He remembered the ship crashing into the rocks, splinters flying, more men screaming. He remembered many of them dying by his fangs.

He remembered the taste of man. Sun-hardened skin squished between his teeth, hiding large, juicy muscles beneath it, their bones and organs bursting with flavor in his mouth.

But none of them were him.

When his high finally fell, like a wave building to its peak only to break, he stared at the remains of his meals. He couldn’t fathom eating so much, but he felt full for the first time in a long while.

Even so, he was hit with the realization that his prize had escaped; the man he had truly wanted, the man who had raised Atsushi’s song from his throat. He was not among the dead, the loose body parts floating in the water like shark bait. Atsushi couldn’t smell his blood.

“Didn’t know you had it in you, Atsushi,” Dazai flashed his scales, beaming as he gnawed on a leftover bone, picking it clean.

But Atsushi only looked up at the surface again, watching the wreckage sink. The sky above had begun to turn dark.

His heart pounded, his stomach ached; his prize was still out there.

Their attacks increased in number. It became Atsushi’s addiction; eating whatever humans he could whenever the craving arose, although they could only satisfy him temporarily. None of them were him, and his cravings all but consumed him.

“Hello? Earth to Atsushi.”

Atsushi jumped a little when Dazai’s hand clapped onto his shoulder. The other siren grinned, rubbing his thumb on the fabric of his stolen tunic.

“We’re not here to think about him tonight, okay?” He said. “You’re relaxing if I have to force you.”

Atsushi nodded, faking a smile for him. His insides felt as if they were tearing themselves apart, collapsing inwards, but he smiled.

“And you like this place?” He asked as his eyes began to dart around. The humans walking around the port city each smelled delicious, and he had to resist opening his mouth, tasting the air for their scent. The days when he resisted eating their meat seemed years ago.

But none of them gave the pair of sirens a second glance, not when they looked completely human, even though Atsushi still wobbled on his new legs. A siren’s shapeshifting abilities could only provide the form, not the skill.

“Trust me,” Dazai said, holding onto his wrist to drag Atsushi’s tottering body alongside him. “Travelers pass through this town all the time. No one will bat an eye at this tavern.”

Atsushi’s lips flattened into a tense line, but he only nodded as Dazai pulled him into the inn. The sign above the door, reading “The Bucking Seahorse,” swung back and forth in the evening breeze.

Warm light filled the tavern, lit by a fire at the left wall and candles hanging from the balcony above. Tables sat scattered around the ground-level floor, with various townspeople and seafarers clustered around them, some laughing and grunting, others keeping quiet.

“You haven’t tasted human ale yet,” chuckled Dazai, pulling Atsushi to a table near the fireplace. “You’re in for a treat tonight, Atsushi.”

Silent, Atsushi could only nod. He let Dazai order, trying to ignore how his stomach growled, how the scent of humans filled his lungs until it nearly stifled him. When his tankard arrived, he chose to drink instead of breathe.

He couldn’t be sure how much he drank. It tasted vile at first, yet the more he downed, the better the ale tasted. It poured into his head and overpowered every feeling except a strange, warm buzz, spreading numbness from his fingers and up his limbs. It felt like drowning and breathing deeply all at once.

And for a moment, he forgot.

Then, like a bell ringing all around his head, he remembered when he smelled that scent once again.

Immediately his senses were flooded. He opened his mouth, breathing it, sure of it over the scent of alcohol and tobacco.

“What’s wrong?”

He heard Dazai’s voice, but he didn’t respond. The noises of the tavern filled his ears, loud and boisterous, growing rowdier and the night grew longer and the tankards emptied. Atsushi only stood and looked towards the door, eyes struggling to focus.

It was him. Atsushi could pick that dark hair out of a crowd, his storm-like eyes from a sea of gray.

He seemed paler than before as he walked forward, into the tavern, his hair pulled back in a small ponytail, his white-tipped bangs still hanging around his face. Eyes traveling, distaste pricked at his expression, his lips in a frown.

He bumped directly into Atsushi. Either because he hadn’t been looking where he was going, or because Atsushi’s body moved without his consent and he stepped in front of him. The man snarled.

“What do you think you’re-?!” He began to snap, immediately grabbing Atsushi’s shirt, but he stopped when he saw his face. Just like before, he stared.

Despite the ruckus of the tavern around them, everything seemed to silence. Atsushi could finally see his face up close, with his fair skin and pale, thin lips. Atsushi’s lungs held his breath captive.

Then the man’s features darkened. His brow furrowed, his lips turned downwards in a deep scowl, and hatred like Atsushi had never seen flared in his eyes.

“You,” he snarled like a wild dog.

Atsushi’s hands seemed to move on their own. They settled on the man’s cheeks, stroking them. They felt softer than sea moss.

And before the man could sputter out another word, Atsushi’s voice filled the space between them.

His mouth formed words, notes, a song spilling from him before he understood its meaning, and  

the man’s eyes and body began to relax. His expression softened, almost melting in Atsushi’s hands. A smile even formed on his ever-so-slightly parted lips.

Atsushi reveled in it. He wanted him to keep smiling, to stay content in his touch, in his song. The look in his eyes almost seemed hypnotic, unfocused and turning upwards.

“Atsushi!”

Though he still sang, Atsushi turned ever so slightly to Dazai, who stared at him and grabbed onto his shoulder.

“What are you doing?!” He hissed.

Atsushi couldn’t answer without breaking his song. But as he looked back at the man’s face, to his own hands, he could see the scales forming on his skin, watched as his claws grew longer.

“Your transformation’s breaking,” Dazai snapped.

Atsushi could feel his breath hitch. His song faltered. In that split second, he saw everyone else in the tavern watching him with that same vacant look on their faces. Each of them had fallen under the spell of his song.

But he didn’t stop. If anything, his voice grew louder. He just wanted to watch his one human, watch the contentment and happiness on his face. Atsushi’s voice alone seemed to cause shudders of pleasure all throughout his body.

Atsushi’s mouth began to water again. He opened his jaws wide, fangs extending as his transformation shed off his body like dead skin. The trousers he had been wearing fell to the ground as his legs turned back into his long tail, and he leaned forward even though he struggled to stand, bringing his mouth to his human’s neck.

He jumped when the gunshot rang through the air. His voice broke, his song ending abruptly as he tore his gaze from his human and to the door where armed guards suddenly stood, guns in their hands..

“I TOLD YOU I HEARD A SIREN!” One of them shouted at the man directly beside him, wax filling their ears to block out Atsushi’s song.

Paralysis shot through Atsushi’s body like a lightning bolt. His human began to stir, Atsushi’s spell wearing off as he looked directly into the barrel of a gun.

Dazai scooped him into his arms and ran before the bullet flew through the air, bursting from the gun with a deafening bang. Atsushi covered his ears as Dazai jumped out the nearest open window, landing in the alley, tumbling to the ground.

“I can’t leave you alone for a minute, eh?” He huffed as he sprang to his feet, hurtling onto the cobblestone road. Atsushi clung to his neck like a hatchling.

People in the street began to scream, shouting and pointing at Atsushi as Dazai darted past them, Atsushi’s tail failing.

“THEY’RE RUNNING AWAY!”

Heart pounding, Atsushi looked behind them. He watched as the guards burst back out of the  tavern, their boots pounding on the cobblestone street, their bullets flying past the sirens’ ears.

“We just have to make it to the ocean,” grunted Dazai, scrambling in and out of alleyways to avoid the guards’ bullets. Atsushi could only nod, panic and confusion and dizziness overwhelming his body, flooding his head. He couldn’t taste anything but ale, couldn’t smell anything but his human.

They wound around paths, the smell and roar of the ocean growing nearer, yet still too far. The world seemed to spin around Atsushi, blurring in front of his eyes.

Then he could see it. Dark, glittering in the moonlight. Dazai gave a small, strained smile before a cry of pain split the air.

Dazai stumbled. His lips turned downward in a grimace, but he still hobbled out onto a pier, gripping Atsushi to his chest. The scent of siren blood began to spill from him.

Atsushi didn’t have the chance to see where he had been shot. Before he could even ask, Dazai tottered off the pier and into the ocean.

The cold water slammed into Atsushi, petrifying him. He could only see bubbles, could only hear the roar of the ocean, could only see tinges of red in the water. His head seemed to spin in circles.

He gasped when he broke the surface, looking around frantically.

“DAZAI!” He shouted, eyes darting back and forth. Nothing rose from the water.

One glance behind himself, and he saw they had been followed. The guards ran out onto the pier, pointing their guns at the water, shouting orders to the nearby ships.

“FIRE ON THE SIRENS!”

Atsushi dove back under the surface, darting back and forth. His blurred vision trailed behind him as panic rose in his throat like bile.

“Dazai!” His scales flashed.

That had been his mistake.

Pain suddenly flared up from his side. He screamed, bubbles pouring out of his mouth. The smell of his own blood mingled with Dazai’s.

He thrashed, whipping around to the harpoon buried in his side. Instinctively, he sunk his teeth into the rope, tearing into it easily before it could pull him back to its ship.

He could hear his own heartbeat now. Blood trailed behind him. He only thought of swimming, of swimming far away from the gunshots and guards and ships.

He swam until the pain overwhelmed him. His body fell still, feeling as if fire flared from both of his harpoon wounds, piercing beneath his ribs and out of his back. Only the tide moved him as he cried out, a sound absorbed by the sea.

He only knew he had washed ashore when he could clearly hear his own screams.

He wove his song into his cries. Perhaps instinctively, perhaps desperately; he couldn’t be sure.

He couldn’t tell how much time had passed. He simply blinked, and the sky changed, the stars moved. Blackouts washed over him with the frequency of the sea, rushing over and off his body, stinging his side with every salty wave.

Atsushi’s voice slowly gave out. Rasps and choked noises replaced his screams, and his wide eyes stared upwards. Dreams began to pile on top of him, dreams of seeing his human, of hearing his voice.

He stared upwards at him. Even if this were a dream, Atsushi only wanted to see his face, to imagine him standing close once more. He gasped for air when he meant to speak to his illusion, remembering the low tones of his voice in a faroff mumble.

Everything grew dark again as warmth wrapped around Atsushi. His head rolled back, the pain overwhelming his body until it enveloped him, pulling him down into itself. But at the same time, he thought he felt himself lifting into the air, something like arms holding him tight.

If only his human would truly hold him that tenderly, thought Atsushi as he could no longer keep his eyes open. Maybe that’s all he had wanted.

Maybe if he lived, he could fix things, he mused as his cruel dream carried him away, taunting him with his human’s voice, his touch. Maybe they could just be happy together. Maybe his human would forgive him.

Atsushi smiled sadly as darkness overcame him. Dreams could be cruel.