#and in one unfortunate time he appears right in the middle of a 'battle' | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

hannahmanderr · 9 months ago

Text

Before we get into the chapter, a HUGE platonic smooch for @duchi-nesten who took the time to draw the Ancients from this story with bribery from me and @scarletsaphire I'm absolutely screaming over them still, they are just UGGHHH SO GOOD

From left to right is Zunje, Babel, Pele, and Kala!

Anyway, onto the chapter! It's an important one! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Everything begins. Everything ends. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jazz flinched as another wayward blast of ectoplasm exploded into the wall of the office building across the street, reducing it to little more than rubble. The battle was becoming more and more destructive as time bled on, and her nerves were really starting to get to her. She needed to get back out there and put a stop to it.

Unfortunately, there was the slight complication of her parents.

She’d tried to play dumb when Frostbite slipped up, but it had been pointless. Frostbite had been all too happy to explain that the Great One was, in fact, the ghost hero known as Danny Phantom.

Perhaps if it had just been her dad there, she would’ve been able to distract him, or figure out how to explain it away, but as luck would have it, her mom had pulled up shortly after the ghost king’s arrival.

It didn’t take them long to put two and two together. At least, that’s what she assumed.

Even more unfortunate was that her concussion had spontaneously decided to rear its ugly head, causing her to lean over and throw up in the middle of the road. Mom and Dad were far less than keen on letting her continue fighting after that. She’d protested of course, pointing out that the all-powerful ghost king was about to raze Amity Park to the ground, but they wouldn’t have any of it.

She had been forced to take shelter behind a large pile of rubble, along with her parents and Frostbite, as the battle intensified. Pariah Dark’s question about Danny had been met with a brutal attack from one of the four-armed Ancients, and the battle had progressed from there. At some point, the little lava-haired Ancient had taken over the direct combat with the ghost king, aided by the gnome and the four-armed ghost with a cloak of clouds. The last Ancient - Pandora, if Jazz remembered correctly - had engaged the black-armored knight. Sam and Tucker were still out there, somewhere, working to keep the thrall army at bay.

And that was just the fighting. Overhead, in the sky, the rip that had heralded Pariah Dark’s appearance still gaped over Amity Park. The air seemed to vibrate with its intensity; Jazz could feel it prickling at her skin, making her feel foreign in her own body. Like reality itself was beginning to fail.

In short, things were Bad-with-a-capital-B.

Jazz leaned over to peer around the rubble protecting them. “We should really be out there,” she muttered, even as her head throbbed worse.

“You’re not going anywhere, young lady,” Mom said. “Not while you’re injured.”

“I told you, I’m fine! I got it out of my system, I’m good to go.”

“I may not know many details about human biology,” Frostbite said, arching an eyebrow at Jazz, “but I have enough experience with the Great One to know that head injuries are serious in humans.”

Jazz didn’t miss how her parents winced hearing about “the Great One” and his injuries.

They hadn’t said a word about Danny - Fenton or Phantom - since Frostbite’s slip-up. It only put her that much more on edge. Sooner or later, Danny would return, and if Mom and Dad were going to flip out and shoot him on sight, she wanted to at least have the chance to warn him.

As it was, she couldn’t tell what they were thinking. Her mother’s poker face was nothing short of perfect, and her father, though he often wore his heart on his sleeve, was strangely stoic about it all. If there was one thing Jazz hated, it was not knowing things, and not knowing their thoughts on Danny was killing her.

She could only hope and pray. The fact that they weren't actively trying to gun down Frostbite was a good sign at least.

But for the time being, she pushed those thoughts away. “Believe me, I know plenty about head injuries. I wouldn’t be wanting to go back out there if I thought it was serious enough.”

“I don't think the person with the concussion should be making that judgment ,” Mom said. “You won't be going anywhere until we know you're safe.”

Jazz frowned. Was that a hint of hysteria in her voice?

Yeah, that couldn't be a good sign.

Still, her words gave Jazz an opening. “Alright, fine! Whatever! It's not like the world is ending or anything, in case you haven't noticed. Why aren't you guys out there, at least?” Maybe if she could convince them to go back to the fight, she’d have a chance to catch Danny before they saw him. Maybe she’d have a chance to warn him.

Her parents didn't answer. They exchanged a glance that Jazz couldn't read, and Dad’s shoulders sagged. He opened his mouth. “We -”

“What's going on here?”

Jazz’s eyes snapped up to see Valerie hovering just behind her parents and Frostbite; Wes clung to Valerie with his eyes screwed tightly shut. Her parents turned at the sound of Valerie’s voice, and though Jazz couldn’t see her mom’s eyes behind the red-tinted goggles, she could only imagine the look on her face.

Her dad, however, beamed widely. “The Huntress!” he exclaimed, grabbing at Mom’s arm like an overexcited child.

To her credit, Valerie avoided wincing too strongly. “Yeah, that’s… me.”

“Did you find him?” Jazz asked. She didn’t bother to hide the anxiety in her voice.

Valerie frowned, but nodded. “Yeah, but he’s… well…”

“Can we maybe have this conversation on the ground?” Wes asked shakily. Valerie responded with a roll of her eyes, practically shoving him off her. He stumbled the short distance to the ground and collapsed spread-eagle on the street. “Thanks,” he muttered.

Dad’s nose crinkled in confusion. “Uh… is this the backup you were talking about, Jazzy-pants?”

Jazz ignored him. “What do you mean? Where is he?” she asked Valerie.

“It’s okay, I’m here!” a voice called out. A moment later, Danny - as Phantom - pulled up beside Valerie. “I’m here.” Jazz’s breath caught in her throat. She had known, of course, that Danny had gone to get the Crown of Fire, but for some reason, it hadn’t crossed her mind that he would have to wear it. Granted, the crown on his head now was most definitely not on fire, but she thought the frosted look complemented him much better than fire. The way it sat on his head, and the way the cloak he wore rippled in the breeze and caught the light…

He looked regal. Like he really was a king.

It made her heart swell with pride. Her baby brother… he had come so far. She’d never doubted his leadership abilities, not really. His common sense could be… debatable at times, but her brother had a good heart. He was still young, of course, and the thought of him being a monarch had never occurred to her, but in that moment, Jazz couldn’t help but think that the role suited him.

She must have shown it on her face, because Danny caught her eye, and his hand flew up to the back of his neck. “It’s a long story…” he muttered sheepishly, his cheeks growing green.

Jazz opened her mouth to respond, but Dad stood up abruptly, cutting her off. Mentally, she kicked herself. She’d gotten so distracted by his arrival, she’d forgotten about their parents.

Danny instantly paled. Whatever he saw in Dad’s face, it couldn’t have been good. Jazz tried to stand, to intercept him, but Frostbite gently held her down. “Easy,” he rumbled quietly. “Do not act prematurely.”

Of course, she wanted to protest that, but she quickly became distracted by her father’s slow approach towards Danny. Her mother wasn’t too far behind.

Danny’s hand twisted into the cloak, and he averted his gaze. “Look,” he began shakily, “I… I get it if you hate me, and - and I… I’ll let you hunt me down or tear me apart or whatever you want, but please, you have to let me stop all this first, or there isn’t gonna be a world for you to tear me apart in. I just need to - mmph!”

Jazz squeaked and clapped her hands to her mouth as Dad lunged forward. She pushed Frostbite’s paw away to stumble to her feet. She had to get there first, had to stop him from hurting Danny -

- but her heart stuttered to a stop as Dad wrapped Danny in a tight embrace.

“Danny,” he said, his voice cracking. “We were so worried… You have no idea…”

A stunned Danny returned the hug as Mom pulled down her hood and glommed on to his other side. “You don’t… hate me?” he asked, his voice muffled by their dad’s burly form.

“Listen to me, Danny,” Mom said, peeling him out of Dad’s arms and holding him by the shoulders. She looked him firm in the eye. “No matter what you do, no matter what you are, we could never, ever hate you. Never, do you hear me?”

Jazz could see the tears glistening in the corners of Danny’s eyes even from where she sat. His lower lip quivered the slightest bit before he threw his arms around Mom’s shoulders. “I’m so sorry,” he said hoarsely. “I should’ve told you forever ago, but I just…”

“It’s okay, sweetie,” their mom said, rubbing circles into his back. “It’s okay. We’ll have time to… to figure it all out.”

“Yeah, assuming the world doesn’t end first,” Wes snarked from his position on the ground. Jazz shot him a heated glare.

Valerie simply looked away and folded her arms across her chest. Jazz frowned. Something clearly wasn’t sitting right with her, but…

“Wait,” Dad said, furrowing his brow, “what’s this about the world ending?”

“It’s okay,” Jazz said. “The world isn’t going to end. Danny’s going to make sure of it.” Maybe she’d have felt more sure of her words if there hadn’t been a gaping hole in the sky threatening to rip reality apart, but someone had to look on the bright side.

Their parents glanced between the two of them. “What do you mean?” Mom asked slowly.

Before either of them could answer, another wayward ectoblast flew overhead, crashing into the roof of the building right above them. Huge chunks of rubble broke off of the building and began to plummet straight towards them.

Valerie reacted quickly, pulling Wes up by his shirt collar and grabbing Jazz to drag them to safety. Danny and Frostbite reacted just as quickly by throwing up ectoplasmic shields. The rubble slammed into them, then slid off the shields and away from the rest of the group.

Valerie whipped her head towards the battle. “I think I’m… gonna go help them,” she said. She flew off before Jazz could say anything, leaving nothing but a cloud of dust in her wake.

“I need to go help too,” Danny said thickly. He stared after Valerie. “It’s… that’s what I’m supposed to do. If I can beat him, everything will go back to normal… Mostly, anyway.” His hand twitched up towards his head.

Mom whipped her head in the direction of the battle. “Him?” she asked, nodding to where Pariah Dark and the lava-haired Ancient were still fiercely fighting each other. To Jazz’s horror, the Ancient seemed to be losing ground.

“Precisely,” Frostbite said jovially. How he could manage such a tone in these circumstances was beyond Jazz. “Once the Great One is able to defeat Pariah Dark, he can assume the throne and put the Heart of the Infinite Realms at ease! It’s quite simple, really.”

“Assume the - wait!” Wes shot upright. “You’re telling me that dumb crown isn’t just some weird costume?”

Danny flushed green, and his hand flew up to the back of his neck. “I, ah… like I said, it’s a long story.” He glanced at Mom and Dad. “I’m really sorry, believe me, I wish I could’ve told you differently, and I definitely wish it wasn’t the case, but…”

Jazz watched as Mom’s gaze drifted up to the crown on Danny’s head, as if she were just now noticing it. “What throne?” she asked weakly.

“Um… it kind of maybe sort of might be… the throne of the entire Ghost Zone?” Danny replied with a sheepish grin.

Dad scratched his head. “When did this happen?”

Danny’s face grew sober again. “I don’t know. I only just found out a few hours ago myself.” His eyes flicked away from their parents, down at his feet.

A pang of sympathy struck Jazz’s heart. Sure, Danny looked the part of a king, and somehow, she had no trouble believing he was the king, despite her earlier confusion, but somehow it had escaped her that he had barely had enough time to process everything. That everything was happening so quickly.

And their parents… it had to be equally difficult for them to process. They had only just learned their son’s true identity less than an hour ago, and now they were finding out he was essentially the heir to the throne of a world full of the same beings they had once sworn to annihilate. It would be a lot for anyone.

And so it nearly brought Jazz to tears when she saw Dad fight to plaster a smile onto his face. He placed a gentle hand on Danny’s shoulder. “Hey,” he said in a tone entirely too quiet for Jack Fenton, “it’s okay. Like your mother said, we’ll have time to figure it all out.”

Danny still didn’t look up. “Yeah,” he said, barely audible. “We’ll have time.”

His tone told Jazz he didn’t believe that in the slightest.

An ear-splitting roar shattered the moment. Everyone slapped their hands over their ears. Jazz only just managed to catch a glimpse of Danny gasping and hunching in on himself, clutching at his sternum.

A wave of hot air washed over Jazz. Trembling, she peered around the rubble, only to gasp in horror at the sight of the little girl Ancient bleeding lava all over the four-armed Ancient. She was still alive - as alive as a ghost could be anyway, but it was evident even from a hundred yards away that she was fully incapacitated. Pandora still fought with the knight, but everyone else - Sam, Tucker, Valerie, the other Ancients, even the thrall army - had practically frozen in place.

The most terrifying sight of all was the evil ghost king, looming over the street, staring straight at her.

No, staring straight at Danny.

“Come and meet your fate, little Prince!” he called mockingly. His voice reverberated over the street, causing buildings to rumble ominously. “Or will you take the coward’s way out?”

For a moment, the only sound that could be heard was the humming of the rip in the sky. Jazz held her breath as Danny glanced at their parents, then gently pushed Dad’s hand off his shoulder and took to the air.

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” he called back. “Just… give me the Ring before things get worse.”

Pariah laughed, a menacing sound that sent chills down Jazz’s spine. “Why should I surrender what is rightfully mine?”

Danny's eyes flared. “That power’s not yours. It’s mine.”

Jazz blinked at the sudden shift in Danny’s tone. It was still his voice, yes, but there was something about it…

Pariah roared wordlessly again. “Never!” he snarled. “Kilaris is MINE!”

With a guttural yell, he launched himself at Danny. Jazz could’ve sworn she saw a bright white light flare from the crown on Danny’s head, just momentarily, but when she blinked, it was gone, and Danny too had charged forward. The two collided in a blinding explosion of red and green.

Mom and Dad moved to follow Danny, but Frostbite held a paw up. “No,” he said, his voice somber and heavy. “This is not a fight you can help him with. He must win this by his power alone.”

“Listen here,” Mom snapped. “I don’t care how you do it in your world, but I will not stand by and watch my son fight some impossible battle on his own! I - we are going to help him, whether you like it or not!”

“I understand.” Frostbite flinched and threw up a shield just in time to stop another huge chunk of building from crushing them all. “But though you may not be able to help him in combat, there are other ways you can help him.” He glanced at Jazz. “Keeping your daughter and his friend safe, for one.”

“Pfft. Me? Friends with Fenton? Fat chance,” Wes scoffed.

“He will be able to fight with a sound mind if you help him protect yourselves and the other humans,” Frostbite continued, ignoring Wes. “And I must go and help my colleague.”

Mom turned, watching the battle with helpless eyes. “But… Danny -”

“ - will be just fine. But we must give him a fighting chance by helping elsewhere.”

“He’s right,” Dad said quietly, taking Mom’s hand. “We have to help get Jazz out of here. It’s getting too dangerous.”

“I told you, I’m fine! I can help too!”

Another explosion rang overhead. Jazz yelped and ducked as an enormous bolt of green energy flew over her head. It came close enough that she could feel its cold aura graze the top of her scalp.

“Y-you know, on second thought, I think I’m with Yeti Man over here,” Wes muttered, cowering behind a fallen wall. Jazz had to resist the urge to roll her eyes.

Her attention, however, quickly turned back to Mom. Again, she found herself wishing she could read minds. She could see the gears turning in her mother’s head after all, but Mom’s stoic face didn’t give her true thoughts away.

Jazz hated not knowing things.

Then Mom’s jaw tightened, and Jazz’s heart fell. She knew that look. “We’re getting you two to safety,” Mom said. Then, giving Frostbite a pointed look, she added, “And then we’re coming back to help Danny.”

Frostbite closed his eyes. “You will only distract him from what he needs to do. It is not wise.”

“That might be what you think,” Mom said as she bent down to help Wes stand, “but he's my son. I've let him struggle alone for too long.” Her voice cracked. “I have to start… making it up to him…”

“I assure you, the Great One does not bear any ill will towards you,” Frostbite said, frowning in sympathy. “This is not the time to begin ‘making amends’, though.”

Mom opened her mouth to retort again, but Dad laid a hand on her shoulder. “C'mon, Mads. We can figure it out later. Right now, we've gotta help these two.”

It was strange seeing her father being the rational, calm one, but Jazz chalked it up to the weirdness of the day. It was the only way she could keep it all straight in her head.

Mom shot Frostbite one last hard glare before leading Wes towards the RV sitting down the road. Dad scooped Jazz up into his arms and began carrying her to the RV, much to her embarrassment.

She opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off. “Don’t you worry, Jazzy-pants!” he said. His tone was bright as always, but Jazz could tell it was at least somewhat forced. “Soon as you’re safe, we’ll get right back out there and help Danny kick some evil ghost king butt!”

Jazz bit her lip. “What about what Frostbite said? About… interfering?”

Her dad hesitated before answering. “I’m sure he’s wrong. You can’t trust a ghost, after all!” His face froze as soon as the words left his mouth. “I mean, uh, not Danny of course! He’s different.”

She didn’t quite know how to respond to that. That… was a misconception they’d have to clear up sooner or later.

As she peered over Dad’s shoulder, back towards where Danny was fighting tooth and nail against Pariah, she hoped there would actually be a sooner or later.

“Be careful, little brother,” she whispered to herself. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The thread flickered.

Clockwork frowned as he allowed it to flow across his hands and in between his fingers. This certainly was the correct timeline, he knew that without a doubt, but its flickering concerned him greatly. It had been so strong when Vlad Plamius made the decision to allow Danny the Crown, but now…

He closed his eyes as he sifted through time. Before, the future had been as clear to him as any other. Now though, he could only see up to a certain point before it was obscured behind what felt like a thick wall of mist. There was still a future there, yes, but not one he could see.

It was, in a word, unusual.

“My dear Kilaris, what are you up to?” he murmured as he let the thread of the timeline slip from his fingers and back into the broader tangle of Time. Its flicker became swallowed up by the combined glow of the cluster of timelines, but Clockwork knew it was still present.

His eyes drifted to one of his time windows. The same image of Danny exiting the portal that he had watched just an hour or so ago played out again, this time in real time. A thin trail of frost followed in his wake as he flew to meet his family. The frost shimmered briefly in the ethereal light of the rip in the sky above, leaving a silky, glowing strand, almost like -

- ah. Of course.

“Must you always be so overdramatic?” Clockwork said aloud, the semblance of a grin pulling at the corners of his mouth.

He rested his hands on top of his staff. He knew what needed to happen now.

It was only a matter of time. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fighting Pariah was nothing like it had been the first time around.

Before, Danny had been fighting in a clunky mech-suit. True, it had helped enhance his powers (until it tried to kill him), but it had made his movements equally clunky and stiff. He’d needed to adapt to the added weight and size quickly, but it still cost him when he took a few crucial hits.

This time he was not bound by any suit. He was free to move as he pleased, using the advantage of his smaller form to move with agility and speed that Pariah did not possess. He could dive in close for a punch or a kick, then turn on a dime and dart away. He wouldn’t have been able to do that in the Ecto-Skeleton.

There was also the fact that he had the help of the Ancients. True, it looked like Pele had taken some nasty hits from Pariah and would be down for the count, but the others were still going strong especially with Zunje now, keeping the Fright Knight and the thrall army at bay. He didn’t like seeing Sam and Tucker down there in the fray, so close to his own battle with Pariah, but there wasn’t much he could do about it.

And then there was the Crown. It remained secure on his head, feeding him a power that buzzed through his veins and his core, making him feel like he’d just taken six shots of espresso mixed with pure ectoplasm. It was an exhilarating feeling, one that made him wish he’d actually used the Crown when he’d had the chance, during his first fight with Pariah.

(A wish he immediately scolded himself for.)

Danny gritted his teeth as he threw up another ectoplasmic shield, this one with a thick coating of ice thanks to the power of the Crown. It helped protect him from Pariah’s elemental attacks, which ran much hotter than his own.

Ectoplasmic fire exploded across the shield, and Danny could feel its heat as it curled around the edges towards him. He had to dig his heels into the air to brace himself against the sheer force of the hit.

Pariah didn’t give him a chance to fire back. No sooner had Danny lowered his shield did he see Pariah lunging for him, fangs bared and a fiery, maniacal look in his lone eye. Danny yelped and darted to the side, just barely missing Pariah’s fist.

Danny tried to respond with his own blast of ectoplasm, the Crown’s power coursing through him, but Pariah deflected it easily with his mace. The blast ricocheted off of it and into the street. Danny gasped as it flew right over Jazz’s head, just barely missing her by a foot.

That turned out to be a mistake. He should’ve known better than to let himself get distracted. It gave Pariah the opportunity to take another swing with his mace, catching Danny in the gut and sending him crashing into the ground.

Danny gripped his stomach and swallowed down a cry. The mace’s sharp spikes were not just for decoration, it seemed; they’d dug mercilessly into his torso, leaving him with deep, ragged gashes. The fall into the street hadn’t been too kind on his ribs, either. He could already feel the Crown diverting some of its power to the injuries, trying to heal him as quickly as possible.

Pariah roared as he dove for Danny, fire exploding to life around his fist. Danny managed to roll out of the way, and Pariah’s fist slammed into the street, cracking it even more. In any other fight, Danny probably would’ve tried to make some snarky comment about how the potholes in Amity Park were already bad enough and they didn’t need more, but he was still struggling to get air back in his lungs. Not to mention he found it much harder to crack jokes in the middle of his more serious fights, mostly because he had to concentrate on not getting beaten to a pulp.

As Danny rolled, out of the corner of his eye, he saw his father scoop Jazz into his arms. Mom helped Wes up, and they ran towards the RV, which was still parked haphazardly down the road. Miraculously, it was still standing.

He could almost breathe a sigh of relief. He still didn’t know if Sam and Tucker were safe or if they were still out there fighting the skeleton army, but knowing his family (and Wes) were safe offered him a little bit of reassurance.

Focus. Do not lose sight of the goal.

Right. The Ring. He still had to get that. Somehow.

It was going to be much easier said than done. Getting it off of Pariah’s hand seemed impossible, especially with the relentless drive of the king’s attacks. Danny barely had the chance to recover and launch his own attacks, let alone come up with a plan to swipe the Ring.

He forced himself up and into the air. His cloak flared with cold energy as he allowed ice to gather in his hands. That was another advantage he had this time around - the help from his elemental core. His ice attacks were some of his strongest, and he silently thanked whatever unseen force had granted him an ice core as he loosed the energy all at once, freezing Pariah’s entire arm to the street.

You’re welcome, little Prince.

Danny almost stopped in midair. That remark definitely sent a flurry of questions flying through his head, but he had to keep his attention on Pariah. We’re not done with this, he still thought back.

Of course not. You still have much to learn.

He didn’t think the Heart meant it as a dig, but he still mentally stuck his tongue out. Even if he didn’t have time to ask questions, he could still be sassy. No one could take his sass away.

It was strange how much clearer the voice in his head seemed now that he had the Crown on. It had been clear before, but there was a new clarity to it, like when his eye doctor gave him a new prescription for his contacts. He supposed it made sense; now, he had that direct contact.

It still didn’t explain why the voice sounded like his own train of thought sometimes.

Even stranger was the feeling of the power offered to him by Kilaris. It was stronger than the power he’d had while wearing the Ecto-Skeleton, and that had probably been the time when he was the most powerful throughout the past two years. It helped that unlike the Ecto-Skeleton, the Crown did not drain him of his energy as he used it; instead, it continuously fueled him, pouring more and more power into his body, like it could never run out. It was thrilling, this feeling of endless energy. His core practically vibrated from it all.

At the same time though, fear nagged at him. This was how it felt with just the Crown on. How much worse would it be once he got the Ring too? The thought sent a chill down his spine, and he found himself subconsciously beginning to suppress his core. Suppress the ceaseless power flooding into him.

Why stop the power you are meant to have?

Danny swallowed.

That’s exactly what he was afraid of.

It all passed through his mind in the few seconds it took for Pariah to begin trying to melt the ice securing him to the ground. “Why you little -!”

More ice pooled in Danny’s hands. “Sorry,” he said as he re-froze Pariah’s hand to the street. “You just looked like you needed to chill out.”

Pariah bellowed, and the ice cracked and shattered. “Impertinent child!” he sneered. “When I am in control once more -”

“Save it!” Danny fired off a round of concentrated bolts of ice in quick succession, forcing Pariah to retreat a little. “I already told you, the Heart’s not yours anymore! It hasn’t been for a long time!”

“And you dare presume it is yours?” Pariah said. He quickly gained back the ground he had lost by leaping at Danny again.

Of course, Danny easily flew out of the way. “I don’t ‘presume’ anything!” he shouted. “I already know!”

It probably wasn’t the smartest thing to say, and he really didn’t like the taste the words left in his mouth, but if he’d learned anything throughout his career as Danny Phantom, it was that his opponents got sloppy when he riled them up. Snarking at them just happened to be the easiest way to do so.

Is it truly “snark” if you speak the truth?

In spite of himself, Danny almost laughed. If you’re gonna be stuck with me, you better get used to the snark, whether it’s true or not. We come as a package deal.

He ducked out of the way of another punch. He didn’t recover quick enough; by the time he managed to turn around to face the king, an entire wall of red energy was surging at him. There wasn’t time to fly around it. It struck him with a force so strong, he was thrown back more than a hundred yards.

His ribs groaned in pain as he slammed into the concrete and skidded back a few more yards for good measure. Nausea churned in his stomach from the blow, and he had to resist the urge to lean over and throw up. All too soon, Pariah was on top of him again, swinging his mace.

Knowing there was no way he could move in time, Danny turned intangible and allowed himself to sink into the ground. He counted to three, just enough time to get his nausea under control, then called ectoplasm to his hands. With the Crown’s power, the energy’s green glow was so bright, it almost seemed white.

It wasn’t difficult to track Pariah’s hot ecto-signature underground. Danny lined himself up underneath him, then sprang from the ground. His blazing fists collided straight with Pariah’s jaw. It didn’t push Pariah back like he had hoped, but it distracted him long enough for Danny to fire his ectoplasm in one long, continuous blast.

Pariah growled under Danny’s onslaught before finally bringing up a red shield. “You truly think this will be enough to stop me?”

Danny didn’t let up. “I’ll do whatever it takes to stop a monster like you from hurting the Realms again.”

“Really now?” Pariah twisted his shield into a blast of his own. It pushed against Danny’s, and he once again had to dig his heels into the air behind him to keep from being thrown back again. “Then why don’t you?”

Danny’s heart skipped a beat, and his attack faltered for the briefest of moments. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“I think you do,” Pariah said, laughing. “I have seen you. I have seen your fears, your doubts…”

“You don’t know me at all!” Danny yelled. Frustration distracted him, and he unwillingly drew on the Crown’s power to fuel his blast. “Just ‘cause you got in my head once doesn’t mean anything!”

“Poor little Prince,” Pariah cooed mockingly, as if Danny hadn’t even spoken. “This is why you are weak. This is why you will fail to protect everything you stand for. You are nothing more than a scared child.”

Danny couldn’t stop the anger-fueled energy pouring into him and, subsequently, pouring out of his hands. The Crown was all too happy to supply it. It just responded to him too easily. It responded to his resentment of Pariah, his frustration at the tyrant king’s insinuation that he was a coward, his rage at the fact that Pariah refused to hand over what was rightfully Danny’s -

Danny screwed his eyes shut tightly. That last one, he knew it was the Crown’s influence, but he couldn’t stop it. It was all coming too hard, too fast, too strong, and it was thrilling. The power flooding through the Crown just felt so right, like maybe he really was meant to have it all along.

He wanted to throw up.

The power demanded a release. It thrummed against Danny’s skin, coursing through his core, making his green ectoblast grow brighter and brighter until it was nearly a blinding white. It would not remain bound for much longer.

And so with a guttural yell, he unleashed it.

He wasn’t entirely sure what happened - the rush of energy leaving him all at once had left him overwhelmed and disoriented - but when he opened his eyes, the whole block had a thin layer of ice covering it, sparkling in the ethereal light of the rip above. Large branches of the trees in front of the buildings had frozen and cracked off the trunks, shattering on the ground below. He could see at least one downed power line.

Pariah had fallen to the ground, into a huge crater Danny swore hadn’t been there before. Crystals of frost coated his hair and his cape. He slowly sat up, rubbing his head, clearly just as disoriented as Danny.

Danny stared at his hands in horror. Did I really do that?

The Heart didn’t answer him. He couldn’t tell if that was good or bad.

Probably bad. For him, anyway.

And in that moment, he swore to himself he’d never allow the Crown to give him that much power ever again. Never.

(No matter how right it had felt to control it.)

Pariah’s cough caught his attention. “You…” he muttered before stopping abruptly.

Danny’s breath caught in his throat as Pariah’s lone eye fell on the Crown sitting on his head. For just a brief moment, the world seemed to screech to a halt around them, and a silence filled the air, so thick it left a dusty taste in Danny’s mouth. Even the rip in the sky above seemed to pause in its yawning.

Then a fire sparked to life behind that one eye and a wave of heat crashed over Danny, nearly knocking him over. The roar Pariah let loose chilled Danny to the bone and left a whiny ringing in his ears. He didn’t even bother to try and stand his ground against a rage so strong; he simply turned and rocketed off in the other direction.

Just in the nick of time too, it seemed, as Pariah lunged after him. In an instant, a flurry - no, a storm of scarlet ectoblasts surrounded Danny. He twisted and ducked and dived and put all his flying skills to the test trying to dodge them all. It was difficult, since the blasts were all coming from behind him, but strangely enough, he felt as though he could sense them in the air as they flew at him, like he could just tell where they were without looking.

“Is that you?” he asked as he narrowly avoided yet another attack.

On the contrary. It is you, little Prince.

“That makes zero se- agghh!” A blast clipped Danny’s side, sending a flare of white hot pain up his ribcage. The blast was strong enough to send him careening off course, and he couldn’t stop himself from colliding with a building and plummeting to the street below. His head hit hard enough to cause his vision to go black.

He groaned pitifully as he laid on the road. The pain shooting through his side felt as though it was trying to burn straight through him, even in spite of the cloak and Crown’s efforts to heal him. Something sticky and wet pooled underneath the hand gripping his side.

For a minute, he just laid there, fruitlessly trying to will the pain away. Unbidden memories of being in a very similar pain in a very similar fight began to well up. He forced them back down. Not right now.

A blood-curdling scream had his eyes flying back open.

Vision half-blurry from the fall to the ground, Danny pried his head up off the street and looked. In front of him was the elementary school, surrounded by a shimmering green ghost shield. Normally, he wouldn’t have cared, since it was after school hours and the building would normally be empty, but his eyes landed on a small crowd of civilians, hovering near the inner edge of the shield and watching the battle with fear in their eyes. The scream had come from a little girl no older than six, covering her mouth in horror and pointing at him.

No, pointing behind him.

With a grunt of pain and a tremendous effort, Danny took to the sky again, wobbling in midair. Pariah’s boots slammed into the street not a second later, right where he had been laying.

This was bad. This was really getting bad. He was injured, and though the Crown and the cloak kept his energy levels high enough for the most part, he was devoting too much energy to the fight to focus any towards healing himself. Energy didn’t exactly help when it was his physical body that was damaged.

And now there was the fact that he had a slew of people behind him, huddling underneath a ghost shield. True, it would protect them from Pariah, and it would protect them from stray blasts, but rubble could easily go flying in, or someone could step out of the protected radius. It was too dangerous to keep the battle this close to them.

(Not to mention he saw more than one cell phone out and recording, and that definitely set him on edge.)

He tried to dart away from the shield, but Pariah managed to snag his collar as he whizzed by. He gagged and his hands flew up to his throat.

“A coward!” Pariah cackled. “That is who you are! Fleeing from the battle? Fleeing from those under your protection?” He threw Danny into yet another building. “And Kilaris dares deem you worthy?”

“So you admit it,” Danny coughed. His hand gripped his side again. “That the Heart wants me over you.” Not that he was crazy keen on that fact.

Pariah’s face morphed into a dark frown. “The Heart’s opinion is worthless!” he snapped. “It is I who controls Kilaris! Its will bends to me!”

In spite of the pain and every instinct telling him not to, Danny shot Pariah a cocky, albeit weak, grin. “Bet.”

He had to keep from laughing at the stunned look on Pariah’s face. It was clearly not the response he had been expecting to his declaration, and the fact that Danny had been able to catch him off guard that badly was priceless.

The humor didn’t last long, though. In the blink of an eye, Pariah was charging at him again. This time, Danny anticipated it enough to be able to phase back through the building. He emerged at the ground level, underneath Pariah, who was still looking for him.

Danny moved to leap up once more, but his ribs screamed in protest. He hissed as he tried to keep from doubling over.

The cloak’s interior had to be sub-zero at this point, it was working overtime. Another layer of frost was beginning to glaze over it. The Crown too grew colder on his head, feeding pulse after pulse of energy into him.

You have been holding back, little Prince. The power has the capability to heal you and aid you in battle simultaneously, but you must let go of your fears if you are to use its true potential.

Danny didn’t answer. He was too distracted barely dodging Pariah’s mace and firing up a barrage of ice at him to do so.

There was also the little fact that he didn’t want to answer. He didn’t want to… couldn’t acknowledge…

Yet he couldn’t deny just how badly his core wanted it. The memory of how that power had felt just those few minutes ago burned through his head, and his core jumped in earnest.

He gritted his teeth and forced his core to quiet. It would be fine.

It had to be.

As soon as the ice left his hands, though, he collapsed in on himself once more, clutching his bleeding side. It was long enough of a distraction for Pariah to slam his feet into the street, causing enough of a quake to knock Danny off his feet and to the ground.

Okay, so maybe it wouldn't be so fine.

Pariah swung his mace down again, and Danny responded with a green shield. It was too hasty, not properly formed, and it shattered underneath the force. Danny yelped and tried to roll away, but the mace still clipped his back, tearing open the skin there.

Yeah, definitely not so fine.

The temptation to give in and let the Crown flood him once more was growing by the minute. Danny didn't know how long he could sustain himself with all these injuries, let alone how he could win the fight and take the Ring. His core ached to be filled by the Heart's power. He knew that if he let it happen, it would almost guarantee his victory.

But his eye caught the ghost shield behind him, where the crowd of civilians stood watching him with horror painted on their faces. He remembered just how badly he had destroyed the block over when he'd let the Crown's power overwhelm him, and his stomach flipped. No way could he put his people in that sort of danger.

You can control it, little Prince. You are more than capable.

Again, Danny didn't respond. The battle consumed too much of his focus. Gasping against the flare of hot pain, he took to the air once more to avoid yet another swing of Pariah’s mace. It missed him by a hair. He raised his hands once more to answer with an attack of his own, and -

“Danny!”

It was instinct. He turned his head at the sound of his mother calling his name.

It was the worst mistake he could’ve made.

He met his mom’s eyes for just a moment, but it was a moment enough for Pariah to make his move. Danny didn’t register the heat moving behind him until it was too late. He turned around just in time to see Pariah’s hand flying towards him.

Reflexively, he turned intangible in the nick of time. Pariah’s hand sailed harmlessly through his head and out the other side. His tangibility returned, and he reached out to return the attack.

It wasn’t until an emptiness unlike any other hit him like a brick wall that he realized it hadn’t been him Pariah had been gunning for.

Danny immediately dropped to his knees and doubled over in pain as his core cried out. Just like at Vlad’s, his core felt like it had been ripped straight from his chest and drained of all its energy. Cold air surrounded him as his cloak flared to life, trying desperately to compensate for the lost energy. The only sound was his frantically pulsing heart in his ears, and he couldn’t catch his breath enough to shout.

It hurt. Ancients, it hurt.

And unlike at Vlad’s, the emptiness pressed on.

Danny managed to look up as panic bubbled to the surface. His stomach only churned worse when he saw Pariah standing in front of him with a wild grin, holding the Crown that had been sitting on Danny’s head.

“You should’ve surrendered when you had the chance, little Prince,” he said.

Danny tried to respond, but couldn’t. It was too much. The void inside him felt like it was about to swallow him whole, just like the void above was threatening to swallow Amity Park.

Please, he begged in a fit of desperation, help me!

The Heart didn’t respond.

“It cannot help you now, child,” Pariah Dark laughed, as if he had read Danny’s mind. “Not when it is finally back in the hands of its true master.”

And as Pariah laughed once more and raised the Crown to put it on his head, Danny lifted a feeble hand towards him, trying to call up his ice, his ectoplasm, his anything, anything that could stop him. He couldn’t feel his power, he couldn’t feel his core, he couldn’t feel his Heart -

Pariah roared in pain. Danny’s head snapped up to see him drop a steaming Crown. It landed on the street with a loud clatter as Pariah held his also-steaming hand close to his chest.

“You!” he bellowed, glaring daggers at the Crown. “You will yield! That power is MINE!”

Danny ignored him. He had zeroed in on the Crown and begun to drag himself toward it. Somewhere in the back of his head, he realized he probably looked absolutely ridiculous right now, and it pained him to think about how badly he wanted - needed to get the Crown back, but he didn’t care.

He couldn’t tell if he was simply imagining it, but he could almost feel a little tendril of power, reaching out to him, trying to hook into his core, trying to pull him closer.

Pariah roared again, and Danny had to retreat back into the cooling comfort of his cloak as a wall of heat crashed into him. “No!” he snarled. “If you will not bow to me, then you will have no one!” With a shout that shook Danny to his bones, Pariah snatched the Ring from his finger and threw it down next to the Crown with such force that it formed a little crater.

Danny’s heart began to pound even faster. This was it. This was his chance. He just had to move -

But he never made it. Pariah unleashed a terrible scream, and then hot, red energy poured from his hands.

Straight onto the Crown and the Ring.

If losing the Crown had hurt, Pariah’s attack on it was excruciating. Danny gripped his head and his core, unsure if he was the one screaming or if it was someone else or if he was just imagining it.

“Stop!” he managed to gasp. “You - hurting…”

But Pariah paid him no mind. Instead, he yelled louder, and another barrage of energy slammed into the Crown and Ring. Danny reacted as though he had been the one to get hit, falling to his stomach and crying out soundlessly.

He could barely see the Crown and Ring through Pariah’s onslaught, but when he finally gathered the strength to lift his head and look, his entire being froze.

A crack appeared in the Crown.

And now he was sure he wasn’t imagining the scream of pain because it definitely had to be him with how his core cracked too, and there was definitely another voice screaming in harmony with his and Ancients, of course it would be screaming, with the way Pariah -

“I am the power of the Realms!” Pariah roared, and another crack appeared in the Crown.

Danny reached out one last time, but he knew it was fruitless. There was no way…

Danny cried out.

The Crown and Ring cried out.

Kilaris cried out.

And then

Kilaris

s h a

t t

e r e

#danny phantom #danny fenton #ghost king danny #fanfic #danny phantom fanfic #hannah writes #supernova #jazz fenton #pariah dark #i have no clue what else to tag this

61 notes · View notes

host-club-hq · 2 years ago

Text

Indeed: ~This... is Our Ouran Fair~

➼ pairing: kyoya ootori x reader

➼ summary: there's no easy way to say this... but you and tamaki seem to be leaving the host club for good. just like that, you're gone. that is, until a certain pair steps in and declares what they've been feeling all along...

➼ word count: 17.5k

➼ what to expect: "Not like this, y/n."

➼ warnings: heavy angst

➼ chapter navigation

➼ talk to my characters!

➼ thank you all for your support through this whole journey! there will be an announcement post after this at some point to express more thanks and announce some things :) please enjoy! i spent a long time thinking this chapter through

As your chest aches with dread, your feet carry you one step at a time. Just an hour or so after Tamaki's heartbreaking announcement, as you all needed time to collect yourselves after such devastation.

But now, like the absolutely horrible person you are, you're about to drop another devastation on someone else. At least, you hope he'll be devastated. Wait, that came out the wrong way. You mean... you hope he'll miss you.

You had even contemplated leaving without telling anyone. Sweeping it all under the carpet and hoping they don't look underneath. You then decided that it would be cruel, regardless of how you felt about it.

Kyoya insisted that you make an appearance at his estate to tell him your news as you were all so rudely interrupted by Tamaki's world-changing announcement. You truly insisted that it wasn't a big deal and that you should both just return home and let Tamaki's news sink in.

But that wouldn't suffice, of course. Kyoya wants- no, needs to hear what you have to say to him. And... as much as you hate to admit it, even to yourself, you agree. He needs to.

So here you are, where you've been standing motionless for at least seven minutes, standing at Kyoya's estate's front door. You're having an internal battle, your expressions matching your thoughts.

Just as you and your mind are arguing, Kyoya's sister strides along past the front door, spotting you in the window that outlines the door and peers outside. Fuyumi stops in her tracks, tilting her head curiously. Then, without another thought, she pulls open the door and greets you.

You nearly scream, instead settling for a quiet gasp when she appears before you suddenly. She smiles nonetheless, "y/n, what are you doing out here? Are you here for Kyoya?" She opens the door just a bit more to reveal her body.

Are you? Are you here for Kyoya? Should you just turn around and leave, apologizing for the inconvenience and act like nothing's happened? Like nothing's wrong? You should. You should go; you should go right now-

"I think so."

Fuyumi's brows crease. She steps aside despite her confusion, "Come on inside; I believe he's expecting you." She nods toward the entry hall of their estate.

You really wish he wasn't expecting you. With all of your heart, you want this to be a dream, and you're only here to spend time with Kyoya in the comfort of his own home. But, unfortunately, you bear the burden of news to share. And this is only the first step.

It's like you've never been here before. The walls suddenly feel like they're towering above you, and you feel so tiny under the vast ceilings. It's like the first time you ever stepped foot inside his estate- the fateful year of middle school when you met him.

Fuyumi watches you carefully, taking note of your tensed frame as you step inside, glancing back and forth anxiously.

"I'll go get him. Can I get you anything while you wait?"

Her offer startles you. You shake your head, "No, thank you. I'm alright."

Fuyumi can practically see the gears working in your head. She knows you've got something terribly strenuous on your mind. Only time will tell what that is. Maybe that's why you're here to see her baby brother.

"I'll go find Kyoya." You want to stop her. You want to reach out; don't. Leave me time to sprint out the door and back to my car, maybe to drive it off a cliff somewhere.

This is how you know you should not be allowed behind a wheel until this entire ordeal is over... maybe you'll call your driver after this.

Fuyumi returns shortly; your nerves spike, "He's in his room. He'd like you to come to him if you wouldn't mind."

No. He should come to retrieve you. You can't trust yourself even to make it to his room. What if you manage to slip past Fuyumi and leave?

"Sure thing." You nod, offering her a smile as you clutch onto the strap of your purse, brushing past her in the direction of Kyoya's room.

You've made it. You've made it to his door. It's, like, half of the first step of your process, but it's half. That's more than nothing. You're congratulating yourself on the little things for now. You're hoping that'll make things easier in the long run.

You knock thrice, inhaling deeply and exhaling in the same manner. Finally, you hear his voice beckoning you inside.

You do as you're told, twisting the door open and peeking inside to find Kyoya working away on his laptop. He glances up as you enter, shutting it instantly.

"How are you feeling?" He inquires genuinely.

The concern in his tone makes your heart pulse. You sigh, "I could be better. What about you?"

"Likewise. But... we don't have to talk about that right now. Come, sit." He makes space for you on his pristinely white sofa.

And you do, sitting cautiously on the opposite side of the sofa, placing your purse beside you and chewing your lip.

"What're you doing all the way over there?" Kyoya chuckles, patting a seat much closer to him.

Please, don't do that. Your actions betray your mind, gently scooting closer to him and an acceptable distance.

"What is it that you wanted to tell me? Looked like it'd been bothering you all day."

Kyoya vaguely notices that he's doing most of the talking... something very unusual for your dynamic. Something must genuinely be bothering you. Whatever it is, he hopes you trust him enough to let him console you.

"Right, um..." You might bite off your lip from how hard you’re chewing it.

"I don't really know how to start this conversation." You admit, at last, exhaling heavily.

Kyoya nods, "That's alright; take your time." He assures. Although, at your hesitation, doubt is starting to envelop the deepest corners of his own mind. What could it possibly be that's making this so difficult for you?

You nod to yourself, eyes cast to the nearly blinding white of his sofa. You can't bear to look him in the eye, "My father... when he came to the fair today..."

Just at that, Kyoya scowls. His gaze darkens. Has he done something more to you? Have you come here seeking refuge from him? He urges you to continue wordlessly.

"He made it quite clear that he still doesn't approve of my relationships with all of you... especially ours." You still can't encourage yourself to bring your eyes up to his.

"Okay..." That's not a surprise at all. Kyoya's known for a long time that your father disapproves of the shenanigans that go on in Music Room #3. Honestly, he himself disapproves of them sometimes. His own father disapproves of them as well.

"So... he called me today."

Kyoya nods, creasing his brow, "What did he say?"

A beat of deafening silence passes the both of you by. Just the thought of saying it out loud brings tears to your eyes, and you frown.

"y/n, you can tell me. Whatever it is, I'm sure that-"

"I'm moving."

That's not what he expected you to say. In fact, that's worse than what he expected you to say. He expected you to tell him that your father disapproves of your relationship and sent you here to end it. But, you would both find a way around it to see each other. That's what he was expecting you to tell him.

Kyoya knows the answer to his question deeply in his soul, "... where are you moving?"

You lament your answer, brow creasing as your face contorts with the effort of holding back a cry, "London."

That's about as far away from Japan as possible, but Kyoya suspects that's on purpose. His expression darkens.

"When?"

Nothing but a whisper, "Soon… really soon."

Now you and his best friend have abandoned him. Just like that, you both got up and left without another thought about it.

"Isn't there any way you could-?"

"No," You choke, "My father made it very clear that it's absolute."

Kyoya knows... oh, how he knows it's not your fault. Of course, it's not yours, but he can't help the frustration that bubbles up inside his chest, and it takes everything within him to keep from exploding.

"Well, what about your debt to the club?"

Your eyes finally manage to land on his face, blinking with bewilderment, "My... debt?" You exhale breathily. The word almost feels foreign.

Holding back each and every emotion that dares enter his body, Kyoya nods, keeping a straight, unfazed expression, "You still haven't paid it back, you know."

You furrow your brows, "What does that have to do with anything?" You straighten a bit. Blinking, you wipe at budding tears.

You don't recognize Kyoya from the way he's avoiding your gaze. You don't detect the warm, soft personality that he truly has underneath all of those layers of a cold, icy exterior. Instead, you're only met with his side profile.

"You can't repay your debt if you leave, and you know what happens if you break our agreement." Kyoya adjusts his glasses, causing the glare from the light above to hide his tired, miserable eyes.

He's grasping at straws. He's grasping at you. Maybe, if he can hold on to a little bit of pride, a little bit of hope... you might stay. You'll hate him. Oh, God, you'll probably hate him for the rest of your lives... but despite that heartbreaking fact, you'll still be here.

"What?" You're completely and utterly rendered baffled in disbelief. Tell me you don't mean it.

"You heard me."

You flinch at his words, placing a hand over your heart. You had honestly thought he'd forgotten entirely about that wretched debt you owed him. Clearly not. You feel small enough to be that middle schooler sitting in the very same position years ago. You remember the horrible nightmares that moment gave you for months. You have a sinking feeling that they'll start up again for the same reason.

"So if I leave... you're going to hold up your end of the agreement...? You're going to go to the media?" You gasp, grasping at your purse beside you. You need to hear it one more time. You need to hear it come from his mouth and reach your ears.

"Of course. That's what happens when you don't hold up your end of the deal, isn't it?" Kyoya crosses his legs firmly, folding his hands atop his knees.

"Aren't... aren't we past that?" You shift away from him. You don't feel familiar in his presence; you don't feel comfortable. You don't feel... safe.

This isn't someone you know. This isn't the man that kissed you in that abandoned church in Karuizawa. This isn't the man whose arms you've spent countless nights in, simply enjoying his presence. This isn't the man that swept you off your feet and had you falling head over heels for years.

This is... the little boy who initiated this debt in the first place.

You stand to your feet, jaw grown slack and agape, glaring down at Kyoya on the sofa.

"You're really threatening me? After all we've been through?!" You sputter.

Kyoya's eyes narrow, challenging you with a growing fury in his irises.

You're really leaving me? After all we've been through?

☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁

“And, y/n, I hope you intend to place that order for that tea our guests have requested?”

“Of course. I always do as you command, don’t I, Mr. Ootori?”

...

“Well, my appreciation is immeasurable, good sir.”

“Not to worry, my lady, the pleasure is all mine.”

...

“Ah, I see even a proper lady like yourself can’t resist the Hitachiin brothers.”

“No! Not at all… they’re just so…" “… sculpted.”

...

“Because Mommy was keeping a secret from Daddy.”

“Whatever. Why does everyone insist on referring to us like we’re husband and wife?”

...

“It is amusing to watch them question themselves, isn’t it?”

“Indeed, it is.”

...

“I wouldn’t have hit him that hard,”

“Well, I’m here to ensure you don’t hit him at all.”

...

“I think it’s about time I learn how to swim, huh? That might be a good idea…”

“A good idea indeed, y/n.”

...

“I just… I didn’t know who I could tell.”

“I’m here to listen.”

...

“When will the teasing ever end?”

“Probably never. You’ll never get rid of me.”

...

“You sound like a common servant.”

“… Is that any way to talk to the person with the knife?”

...

“Even so… I have just the slightest feeling that everything will work out just fine.”

“Oh? And what makes you say that?”

...

“Do whatever you’d like; I don’t mind.”

“Ew, no. This Kyoya is far too chipper. We’ll talk when my Kyoya is back.”

...

“I miss her.”

“I know you do.”

...

“Come on, Kyoya. Please?”

“… there will be some conditions.”

...

“Not too far to stay away, hm?”

“Unfortunately not.”

...

“You just kissed me.”

"I think I did."

...

“You go to all this trouble, acting like you’re a perfect twat when…” “When being a sweet guy is quite natural for you… it seems counterintuitive.”

“That’s a very intriguing notion in its own way…”

...

“Kyoya… would it be wrong to punch a child?”

“Let’s not have any threats of child abuse on our hands.”

...

“Kyoya? B-but- the picture, you made me get rid of it, how did you-”

“I’ll explain that later, but right now, we have much more pressing matters to deal with.”

...

“You’re so full of yourself, you know?"

"It’s healthy to be a little full of yourself-“

...

"Hm, maybe these aren't applied correctly."

"Get your hands out of my mouth!"

...

"Here, hold this."

"A-are you just going to leave me with this?"

...

"Better?"

"Much."

...

"You would?"

"Of course, it would be my pleasure."

...

"Just trust me."

"Alright, I trust you."

☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁

If you were to wipe a stray tear now, you fear you'll look weak. You can't risk that now.

"S-so, let me get this straight. I either have to stay and ruin my father's career in London or leave and ruin my father's career as a whole. How the hell does that work, Kyoya?! It's a catch-22 situation; I suffer either way! Why do you want me to suffer?" You point to yourself with a certain desperation, leaving Kyoya's chest aching incredibly painfully.

Kyoya isn't sure he can handle the conflict within himself. He wants to pull you in with an insatiable hunger, kiss your trembling lips, and tell you that everything's going to be alright. That the both of you will find a way.

But... his passion is turning to fury so fast that he can't tell it was any other emotion before. He's angry with you for leaving, but he knows full well that it's ultimately no fault of yours... which makes him all the more enraged at your father for doing this to you.

But most of all, he's angry with himself. Angry with himself for never telling you everything he wanted to. Angry with himself for making you cry like you are now. He never wants to be the cause of this expression across your features. Disbelief, hurt, and hatred.

Nonetheless, you know the expression, 'blinded by anger.'

Kyoya stands to tower over you, fingers curled into his palms as fists, "Why do you care what happens to him, anyway? He's a bastard to you."

You gasp indignantly, "Kyoya, he is my father! He's family! I know he's trying, I-I know he loves me... he just has a difficult time showing it." You're not only trying your hardest to convince Kyoya at this point but yourself as well.

Kyoya can sympathize. Strong emotions are challenging to express or show, especially when they overwhelm each sense to the point that you feel as though you're simply going to burst.

You cross your arms, your following statement going straight for the jugular, "Not like it's anything you'd understand."

It hits the target's bullseye, and Kyoya knows precisely what you mean. You've been so patient with him, and that word that makes everything just so different. It's too much different. It's not like you've said it yourself yet... but it's so painfully obvious how you would fall to your knees at his command.

And it hits his limit. He squints his eyes shut tightly with the sudden urge to hurl himself over the edge of a bottomless pit and fall until the end of time. At least, that's how he feels.

"You have until the end of the fair to decide your fate."

Your features soften from absolute indignation to pure astonishment. Your throat constricts so tightly that you fear you might suffocate right here in his room. And part of you wants to... pass out and have absolutely no recollection of any of the events that have transpired today.

"I... I thought we were past this. I thought you'd forgotten!" You can't help that your words come out as a desperate cry.

Clearly, you were wrong.

"I thought you'd changed." Barely a whisper. And what's worse, you'd even begun to believe that it was your doing that changed him.

And you did. You changed him so intensely. But when fight or flight kicks in, many flight tactics include regression: returning to a previous state.

And Kyoya's previous state is a cold, icy wall that protects his heart from the oncoming attacks that may or may not be approaching.

"... I think we need to rethink this relationship, Kyoya."

One lonely bullet pierces through feet of thick ice and hits the softest spot within Kyoya's being. He wants to yell, scream, cry out in anguish, but he can't bring himself to do anything more than stand motionless, speechless.

It can't be this easy... to sever such a strong bond formed by patience and trust... to merely break it with one weak moment of selfishness.

Your words even manage to soften his expression, making his chest heave as if there isn't enough oxygen in the room.

Hold me tight, don't let me go. Hold me safely in your arms so that I don't have to face reality.

"... maybe we should, then."

You feel your heart shatter so abruptly that you must physically step away from him, staggering backward as you stare in disbelief at his side profile.

Don't do this. Call me on my bluff, don't let me walk out that door and regret it for the rest of my life.

Walking through the door and around the corner wouldn't have been so hard if you hadn't spotted the lone tear sliding down his cheek.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Fuyumi nearly stumbles as you storm past her, an absolute river cascading from your eyes as you throw open the front door and disappear. She doesn't even have a chance to call out to you.

She blinks disorientedly, glancing between where you disappeared and the direction of her brother's room. Then, as quietly as she can, she tiptoes down the hall and to his door, left ajar after your quick exit. She senses no movement inside, but Kyoya is definitely still there. The lack of life inside makes her anxious.

"Kyoya...?" She pushes his door open slowly, cautiously, and finds him seated on his sofa, unmoving. He's facing the window behind him, his arm propped on the back of the sofa and his legs elevated up on the seat. The light from outside merely outlines his silhouette, but Fuyumi can sense the tension that lingers.

"What happened? Where did y/n go?" Fuyumi glances back where you disappeared and takes a few more steps into the room.

A few more strides closer, she notices stray tears spilling from the corners of his eyes, but his expression remains emotionless. She nearly gasps.

"We broke up."

"Oh." Fuyumi lowers her voice.

He moves a hand from the sofa to rub over his mouth and chin as if he were thinking about something, considering something. He blinks; more tears. Fuyumi sits beside him, peering over his shoulder as his back is to her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" She knows the answer. But, patiently, she awaits his response.

"No." It's soft, almost inaudible.

Fuyumi nods to herself, "Do you want a hug?"

Kyoya places his feet flat on the floor, turning to look back at her with a wrecked expression, "Yes."

Fuyumi wastes no time pulling him in for a tender embrace, first removing his glasses and placing them haphazardly elsewhere. One arm around his back and the other at the nape of his neck. Kyoya tightly shuts his eyes, his arms desperately clinging around her torso as he buries his tear-stained face into the junction between her shoulder and neck.

After a few silent moments, Kyoya inhales profoundly and exhales in quiet, trembling, breathy sobs. His body shakes, and his chest heaves. Tears spill over Fuyumi's neck and slide down her back, dampening her blouse, but she couldn't care in the slightest.

Fuyumi hushes him like she would a child, stroking through his hair comfortingly as he clings to her. He might be larger than her in a physical sense, but she'll always be there to hold him when he feels so incredibly small that he might disappear.

They stay like that until they lose track of time. Kyoya never speaks a word; remains silent. Fuyumi can feel every unspoken word in every tear.

She'll hold him as long as he wants.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Arriving home feels less dreadful than it usually does. You've let all of your tears stream during the drive home, your cheeks now slightly red and your nose tinted the same color. You shut your front door behind you, immediately greeted by your father.

"y/n, there you are. Set the table for dinner; I have a friend joining us tonight."

You nod indifferently, "Yes, sir." Then, you hang your purse to unpack later and stride straight for the kitchen.

"I said now- oh." Your father blinks confusedly as you breeze past him without complaint or refusal. He assumed he was going to have to fight you on this.

He watches quietly as you gather plates, setting them at one end of the extensive dining table, "Just one friend?" You inquire quietly, setting a place for them beside your father's plate.

"Yes..." He responds absently, observing skeptically as you move out seamlessly.

"Why are you so obedient all of a sudden?" He asks bluntly, narrowing his eyes to you.

"Aren't I supposed to be?" You seem to have forgone the will to argue with your father day in and day out. Instead, you formally arrange the silverware and elegantly folded napkins at each place setting.

"You are..." But you're not usually.

You finish fairly quickly, folding your hands in front of you and peering up at your father, "Do you need me for anything else?"

This is the most servant-like you've ever acted since he started treating you like one. He feels entirely uncomfortable asking his own daughter for anything all of a sudden.

"No, that's all. Just be on time for dinner."

You nod, "I'll be in my room then." Stepping past him, you aim to disappear around the corner when your father takes a sudden interest in your attitude.

"Did something happen with Ootori?" He can't think of any other explanation for your behavior. It was Ootori that made you the way that you are, caused you to be so often upbeat, and seems to have been the reason that you fought him every step of the way.

Your feet come together, and you remain still in the hallway, back turned to your father and unmoving as you allow his question to ring deafeningly loudly in your ears.

Barely moving a muscle, "I am no longer with Kyoya." Your tone is, somehow, stable when you inform him of the events that have just recently transpired.

Your father nods, quickly realizing that you're not facing him, "I see." He furrows his brow, confirming his suspicions. He should feel elated that you have separated, but why does it weigh on his heart and make his chest ache so?

"Will that be all?" You repeat, eyes darting to the left in hopes of catching a glimpse of him without turning your head.

"Yes, go on then."

"Yes, sir."

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Pulling the sleeves of your simple black dress down to your wrists on your way to the dining room, you catch wind of two voices. One is unmistakably your father's... the other belongs to woman that you do not recognize.

You lift your head, mentally-prepared polite smile erased completely as you gawk at your father's aforementioned friend joining the two of you for dinner.

If you were to analyze her character thematically from looks alone, you would peg her as a strict primary school teacher that all of the students pretended to adore but truthfully loathed entirely. While conventionally attractive and relatively young-looking, she looks as though she can tame a hoard of rowdy teenagers with one stern glance.

Her sleek, starkly black locks of hair are tied neatly and tightly into a bun. The color of her hair matches her modestly flattering dress. It seems as though you have all dressed for attending a funeral- only you seem to think that the theme is appropriate.

By the way your father kisses her knuckles, your stomach lurches. He isn't known to flatter any lady with such a gesture.

Something is going on. Who is this woman?

As if reading your thoughts, "y/n, this is Ito, Sara. You may call her Ms. Ito."

"Or mother, if you prefer." Her voice is teasing, but you wouldn't dare laugh. Your father does, though.

Your breath hitches. At the thought of calling a woman by a term you hold so dear, your blood practically boils underneath your skin. You even begin to feel quite flushed.

Although it may be hard to believe, this is the first time that your father has brought home a lady friend with whom he seems to be... romantically involved. If he ever has been involved with anyone after your mother died at all, he's never brought them home before, at least not while you've been home.

"Hm." Sara's eyes rake over your stiff figure, arms crossed. When she approaches you, you cringe as she reaches out and tilts your chin up to meet her eyes with her long, gaunt fingers with short, clean fingernails. Her gaze bores into your very soul. Your jaw clenches visibly, the muscles working painfully hard as your feel entirely disgusted by her touch. Your posture straightens, and you fold your arms behind your back, gaze narrowing back just as maliciously.

"Aren't you a cute little thing? Well-groomed, too." She tilts her head, and you catch a glimpse of the eyeliner that compliments her dark irises. She blinks once, twice, and straightens. You notice the handbag looped over her arm as she adjusts it.

"You're a second year in high school?" She muses, looking for an answer.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Which school are you going to attend in London?"

It takes you longer than you would like to answer, letting go of a breath stuck in your throat at the painful reminder.

"I'm not sure yet, Ms. Ito."

Sara is quick to notice that you have chosen not to refer to her as your mother. She nearly grins. You clearly have some sort of unresolved attachment to your late parent.

"And you attended Ouran Academy?"

Your father seems to have mentioned quite a few things to her about you. Odd...

"Yes." You nod curtly. You feel as though you're being interviewed for a prestigious employment position.

"And you are involved with an Ootori family member? You know, that's quite a feat. I hear they're difficult."

A huff of air through your nose, a gentle shake of your head, "We have recently split. I'm no longer involved with Kyoya Ootori."

Sara pouts with an exaggerated, jut lip, "Oh, well, that's too bad. Must have been quite recent; your father and I were discussing you two just the other day!"

Now you realize her aim. Her eyes are set on you, dragon-shaped with an intent to aggravate and tease.

"Today, in fact. We split today." If you play her game, you'll let her know that you're not one to submit easily.

"Oh, wow, you must be feeling a little down. But, you know you don't have to sit through a meal with us. You're more than welcome to... take your leave." Sara cocks a brow with crossed arms.

Your eyes narrow into slits, and you move to cross your arms as well, "I'll be perfectly fine, but thank you for your concern."

Sara touches her chest and turns to your father, "My, Daisuke, you have quite a daughter."

A pulse in your chest; it's been quite some time since you've heard anyone call your father by his first name, especially in this type of context.

"Thank you, Sara. She's lovely, indeed."

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Kyoya's eyes peel open slowly and disorientedly. He winces at the burn that comes shortly after, blinking rapidly with furrowed brows. He turns his head, noticing that he's lying on his side on his sofa. He glances out the window; darkness has fallen. He must've fallen asleep for quite some time. The sting behind his eyelids is painfully reminiscent of tears previously shed.

A quiet trill draws Kyoya's attention to something behind his legs. When he cranes his neck to peer over, Noel's head pops out of thin air, yawning and stretching her paws over his bent calf. He cracks a smile as she leaps over his leg now that he's awake and crawls to nuzzle against his chest.

"You took a nap, too, huh? When did you get here?" Kyoya muses to no one but Noel, smoothing a hand over her head and down her back as she purrs contently.

Noel isn't a particularly vocal creature, only purring loudly and letting out trills when she wants or needs something. She only truly makes noise in the morning when she has not been fed. So, in response, Noel leans up into Kyoya's hand as he strokes her. She falls to her side and shuts her eyes, legs splaying out and head tilting back with bliss as Kyoya scratches the specific spot on her chest that seems to be her favorite.

"You're being sweet right now, aren't you? No urge to bite or scratch me?" More often than not, when Noel lies on her back, if Kyoya strokes her stomach for too long, she'll wrap both paws around his wrist and kick at the palm of his hand, sinking her teeth into his skin. He never takes it to heart, gently prying her off and settling for petting her head instead.

Though Noel seems too tired to play right now, purring as Kyoya strokes along her stomach. When he stops, she wriggles and opens her eyes, silently imploring him to continue.

"Did you find me sleeping here? You know something's wrong, huh?" Kyoya chuckles, lips tugging in a sad sort of smile when Noel stretches tiredly. Shortly after you'd given him Noel, Kyoya did his fair share of research into the mind of female cats and also determined her breed- it seems as though she is a black Bombay kitten, Kyoya deducted from the criteria he was provided with. He also fell into the rabbit hole of research about how most pets know when something is wrong or when you are sick.

The notion of you erases the smile from his lips. He groans to himself, allowing his head to fall back onto the sofa with a thud. He slithers an arm around his face and lets out a trembling sigh, peeling his glasses from the bridge of his nose and tossing them haphazardly elsewhere.

Noel's purring rises in volume when she nudges his arm with her face, insisting that he make room for her. She happily takes the place of his arm, licking her paws and cleaning behind her ears.

"I think it's time for bed, my love. Come on." Kyoya hoists himself into a standing position, rubbing a hand over his eyes where his glasses should sit. He leaves them wherever they may be for now. He doesn't know the time; his body just knows that it would like to go to sleep now. Noel is quick to follow at his beckoning, nudging her body against his shin and nearly tripping him as he makes his way to his bathroom.

"You're gonna kill me one day, you know that?" Kyoya mumbles, reaching to open his medicine cabinet.

The first thing that catches his gaze is bright pink. The feminine products he stocked in the cabinet for you. And restocked.

And there's your spare toothbrush, sitting in the cup with his own, the bristles protected by a hygienic cover because you couldn't stand the thought of your toothbrush even grazing his own, despite the fact that his lips have done more than grazed yours on multiple occasions.

Instinctively, he opens a drawer near his hip: hair ties, a portable brush, and a travel-size vial of your signature scent.

Another drawer: cleanser, cotton pads, makeup wipes.

Gently, he shuts them both. Nothing inside is disturbed nor dwelt upon for too long. That is until he realizes he's failed to take down the polaroid of you taped to the bottom of his mirror. Without thinking, Kyoya plucks the picture off the mirror with ease, taking a closer, longing look at it.

It was taken after a particularly long night at one of his family's formal parties. Of course, just like any other event, you were on his arm the entire evening, charming the guests without giving it a second thought. Although this party seemed to carry on a bit too long for either of your liking, so you retired to Kyoya's room while the party was still in full swing.

In this particular photo, you're sitting on his sofa, one strap of your black, flattering dress hanging off your shoulder, and you're bent down to strip off a heel. You're looking at the camera with squinted eyes and a tired expression.

☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁

"No, no! Stop!" You pathetically whine, lunging for Kyoya as he lifts the drying polaroid out of your reach once again.

"Be careful; it's still developing." Kyoya teasingly warns, easily shoving you away. Gently, of course.

"Well, I don't want it to develop. Give it here!" You tiredly lunge once more, trying and failing miserably to gain possession of the photo.

You groan, "I'm too tired to fight you." Finally, you allow your body to lay on his sofa, fully outstretched, with a sigh.

"Good. It's going on my mirror." Kyoya tucks the photo in a secure spot. You wave him off lazily.

"Yeah, yeah." Your eyes slip shut, almost moaning at the relief you feel to rest your body on the cushion below you.

A shadow casts over your eyes. You peel one open tiredly, finding Kyoya hovering above you, arms caging you in with a cheeky grin spread across his lips. You crack one of your own.

"What're you doing?" You snort less than gracefully, nose scrunching at his proximity.

"Lying down on my couch." Kyoya lets his weight drop and buries his face beside you, his hair brushing your cheek as you gasp dramatically.

"You're crushing me!" You weakly shove at his limp body. Kyoya hums contently, "This is very comfortable; I could definitely sleep right here on this couch."

"This sofa will gobble you up if you don't get off it." You turn your head and nibble on Kyoya's earlobe for emphasis.

"Ow! That was uncalled for." Kyoya lifts his upper body and cradles his poor, abused ear.

A brief moment of silence.

"I should have never given you that polaroid camera."

"That is your bad."

"Mm, my bad." Your fingers rake through his neatly combed locks with an aura of comfort, mussing them up, but Kyoya couldn't care in the slightest as he rests his head near your collarbone, just on your chest. As he adjusts his position, his glasses slightly dig into your skin, and just as he's about to take them off-

"Oh, let me get those." You take the arm of his glasses and slide them from his temples and the bridge of his nose. A shiver runs down his spine as he glances up at his glasses that you set on the table. He lets his head rest without restraint and sighs heavily.

This is a type of comfort that Kyoya never realized he could find in another human being. He closes his eyes and breathes in through his nose and out through his mouth.

☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁

That comfort has been cruelly torn away from him by the hand of his own selfish actions.

A heavy sigh, a pang in his chest, Kyoya lets the picture gently fall into an open drawer with your belongings and shuts it tightly.

A dreamless sleep is what Kyoya wishes he fell into when his head hit his pillow. Not a night filled with images of you flitting to and fro across his eyelids.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

~School fair day 2 -- main fair~

After a dreadful night's sleep for each member of the Host Club, the central salon is buzzing with activity as the Club is open for business to the general public for the second day in a row, despite how they might feel.

As composed and neatly put together as ever, Kyoya sets down a teacup before Lady Éclair with a smile, "Welcome, Miss."

"I know you. You're one of the Ootori family's sons, aren't you? Unfortunately, you're the third son, so you can never be the family's successor." Éclair peers at Kyoya's stiff appearance through her theater binoculars. An outrightly unpleasant thing to say, but Kyoya expects nothing less from an unpleasant woman.

Deflecting her comment, "What can I do for you today, mademoiselle?"

A brief moment of silence passes before Éclair lowers her binoculars and tilts her head, "You can tell me how much Haruhi Fujioka is still in debt with the Host Club."

Not even Kyoya can hide the fact that the irrelevant and strange inquiry catches him off guard.

"Haruhi." At the beckon of her name, Haruhi turns Kyoya's way.

"Someone to see you." And as Kyoya strides away to busy himself elsewhere, Haruhi finds herself wondering what exactly is running through his mind. It's clear as day, well, to Haruhi, that something seems to be amiss, other than the devastating news that the entire club had received just yesterday evening.

Despite fighting with yourself, you've managed to show up to the last day of the Ouran Fair and make yourself useful. You had seriously considered not making an appearance and leaving Japan without a second thought. But, you thought it would be unfair to the rest of the Hosts, seeing as your job keeps their time free to busy themselves with guests rather than your work.

Of course, you thought about how your interactions with Kyoya would go today. You simply plan to avoid him altogether. As petty as that may sound, you genuinely believe that it is the best solution at the moment.

You mindlessly push your cart slotted with two trays of sweets and beverages for any guest who happens to stumble upon you and ask for either.

"I wonder what happened to Tama-chan." Honey whines dejectedly as the Hosts have gathered into a small huddle.

"I'm getting worried; something's up with him after what he said yesterday." Hikaru declares, hand propped on his hip with a scowl.

You stop so abruptly that you nearly lurch over the handle of your cart.

"As of today, Lady Éclair Tonnerre and I are officially engaged. Furthermore, the Host Club will be permanently dissolved after the Ouran Fair."

It seems that the unpleasant memory has resurfaced for each host at Hikaru's words.

Two claps and an encouraging voice, "Alright, gentlemen, no more idle chatter. Our guests are waiting for us."

"Senpai, it's like you don't even care," Kaoru whines adamantly.

Little do they know, Kyoya has become quite adept in using distractions to conceal underlying emotions- no matter how strong they may be. Years of training are to thank for that.

"It's our job to take care of our guests to the best of our abilities." Kyoya adjusts his glasses with his pointer finger, "Remember, they're looking to all of us to entertain them. Their happiness is of the utmost importance."

The twins grumble, refusing to meet Kyoya's eyes. Then, honey takes action of his own, "He's right, Kao-chan!" He lunges into Kaoru's back and effectively pushes him away from the huddle.

"Honey-Senpai, what're you doing?!"

Mori wraps a crushing arm around Hikaru and drags him in the same direction, "C'mon, Hikaru." He orders in a gruff voice.

"Let go, Mori-Senpai!" Hikaru strangles.

As Kyoya turns, he merely catches your back as you lean forward and use your weight to kick-start the wheels of your cart, trodding off in a different direction.

Kyoya feels the weight of the burden he bears. The weight of knowing such information that he is certain would devastate his friends if they knew. But none would feel the pain that he feels. None would feel the sense of longing and regret that his body contains. It wouldn't be possible, he believes. Yet, Kyoya knows something they don't, and it makes him feel as though he's hurting them all.

He wonders if they can tell. He wonders if they can sense your despair as strongly as he can as it hangs in the air like something tangible. He wonders if they can see easily through his facade and are sparing his feelings.

~This... Is our Ouran Fair~

As you slide a fresh teacup and saucer onto a guest's table, the sound of prominent footfalls catches your attention and you glance toward the offending noise.

With his back turned, Kyoya's father and a colleague pass him by. Kyoya's eyes slide to the right to catch as much visibility of his father as he can. However, while the colleague bows to Kyoya, his father does not imitate the gesture. Rather, he stops just short of passing his son.

"When they're young, many assume they have all the time in the world but really that is never the case. Don't waste your time with something that will ultimately have no value."

Shoving your cart out of your way, you huff angrily and audibly. Close enough to the pair to merely step across the aisle to reach them; you call out before your mind can catch up with your running mouth.

Just because you split with Kyoya doesn't mean that you're heartless.

"You don't get to decide what has value to someone else."

Yoshio stops once more in a similar fashion to moments earlier. He does not face you, but you know that he is listening.

"You may be powerful, but you don't control human beings. Not even your own son." Your voice is filled with frustration built up over the past several hours as your body nearly trembles with rage. Nonetheless, you keep yourself in check.

"And if entertaining others gives him and others fulfillment, what does that matter? Have you even thought of that? How could you possibly decide for someone you know next to nothing about?"

Craning his neck without turning his body, Kyoya's wide-set eyes land on your tense, indignant posture.

"It doesn't matter what you say; I think your son has the potential to bend anyone to his will. But he doesn't want to. That's what sets you and him apart. That's what makes him better."

As Yoshio and his colleague begin their path once more, Yoshio mutters, "I'm surprised that such insolence ever won Kyoya over."

Your gaze is trained on Yoshio's retreating back; every muscle strained not to meet Kyoya's eyes that are staring straight into your side profile.

At your side, Haruhi lets a few beats of stunned silence pass before she gently reaches toward you, "y/n-Senpai-"

And for the first time in all the length you've known her, you turn sharply from Haruhi without sparing her a glance or a word, resuming your duties as you whisk away from her side.

Your silence cements the notion in Haruhi's mind- something has transpired that she has no knowledge of. But clearly, something dreadful.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Sliding on a coat, you ensure that your cart is safely out of the way of guests passing by and that the refreshments are handed out entirely. You straighten the sleeves and sigh, dusting yourself off as you spin on your heel and stride over to the first host that you find.

Rather, the first host that finds you. Mori's towering figure stops you effectively in your tracks. Your head tilts back to meet his concerned gaze. He says nothing but has obviously taken note of your changed attire.

With a deep intake of air, "There are some things that I want to tell you, but I don't have the heart. I hope you'll forgive me." His intimidating gaze nearly pricks tears in your waterline.

Soundlessly, you know that Mori understands your intentions on a certain deep level. He hums, nods, and turns to reveal Honey standing directly behind him.

"y/n-chan? Are you okay?" His eyes are wide-set and glistening with furrowed brows, gripping Usa-chan with confusion washing over his parted lips.

You bend at the hips and place two hands over his shoulders, "Will you save me a seat next to you and Usa-chan for the parade?"

You don't exactly know why you've asked that of him. But your heart pulses when he nods excitedly.

"Of course! Usa-chan would love to sit with you! But... where are you going?" Honey innocently wonders why you won't be able to reserve your seat yourself.

"I just have to check on something, alright?" Then, with a maternal hand, you stroke over his cheek and stand to your feet.

You can't bear to look at his questioning eyes any longer. You turn more abruptly than you intend and pull your coat tight to you.

At the door, you're stopped by none other than two identical gingers. You wince.

"Senpai, where are you going?" Kaoru inquires casually, Hikaru arriving shortly at his side.

"I just have to step out for a moment." Your throat strains with a searing pain.

Hikaru shrugs, "Alright, but be back soon. We have your outfit prepared for you, and it'll take a while to get you into it." He simpers mischievously.

You turn to look at them through glassy eyes. Finally, you manage a fond smile at their antics, "Okay."

You're sure that you would have loved whatever strenuous pieces of clothing they have personally prepared for you. You hope they won't hold it against you.

As they saunter off, you take one last longing glance at the grand central salon before sliding through the door and shutting it gently behind you.

You expect your father has prepared you a ride to the airport as you scurry down the steps, holding your coat close to you for comfort. But when you lift your head, you're met with a red convertible. And standing just outside with an open door is Tamaki, dressed in a white suit.

You merely stand gawking at him a moment before he gently smiles.

"Where have you been?" You demand immediately.

Tamaki chuckles, "Our fathers spoke. Your father asked if we would give you a ride to the airport."

"You're going to the airport?" You lean slightly to the side and spot Éclair sitting on the far side of the vehicle, binoculars pressed to her eyes as she remains focused on her line of sight straight ahead. She spares you no acknowledgment.

"I could ask the same of you." Tamaki teases. Though his tone of voice is playful, his expression conveys a solemn despair that you feel you mirror yourself.

Your shoulders droop with a certain aura of anguish, "You're leaving too, aren't you?"

"To France. I... hear you're moving to London?"

Your resolve finally crumbles, leaping off the steps and into Tamaki's awaiting arms. You grip the back of his blazer, face buried in his chest with a heaving cry.

"My darling, we're going to be alright." He whispers gently, stroking over the back of your head in a comforting motion.

He pries you away by your shoulders at a close length, "I believe it's a sign that you and I are taking this journey together." He assures with a firm gaze.

"But we won't be together." You sniffle, watering eyes meeting his violet irises.

"You and me? We'll always be together, don't you worry." He jests, gently tapping under your chin affectionately.

"Will you visit me? We'll be so close, Tamaki; we're just a two-hour train ride apart. I-I'll come see you every weekend, and we-"

He quickly brings your head back to his chest with his hand, resulting in your muffled silence and arms around his torso. You hiccup.

Tamaki whispers quietly into your hair, away from Éclair's prying ears, "Do you trust me?"

You nod into his suit with a pathetic "Mhm."

"Then this isn't the last time that you and I will meet. I promise."

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

The King of the Host Club, which remains intact for only a few more hours, has failed to arrive for the Ouran Fair. A certain errand girl is missing as well.

Kyoya stands solemnly by the window, glasses creating a glare as he urgently presses his cell phone to his ear. He knows that no one on the other line is there to answer, but he persists.

"Kyoya-Senpai, what's with the outfit?" Haruhi grumbles from underneath layers upon layers of victorian-era women's clothing. Kyoya turns silently to her.

"We told you, it's a costume for the special parade." Hikaru scoffs as a reminder.

"You look so cute, Haru-chan!" Honey giggles excitedly.

"I don't understand. Why am I the only person dressed as a girl? Where's Senpai?"

"Aw, c'mon, it's cosplay, so it's okay for you to dress like a girl." Hikaru teases, leaning into Haruhi's space with a wagging finger and a grin.

"I am one, you know." She huffs. Hikaru chortles maliciously.

Kaoru's expression is less than amused, turning to Kyoya who's been trying Tamaki's cellphone for some time now.

"Well?"

"No luck. He's not there." Kyoya sighs, shutting his cell phone with a snap! and a frown. The rest of the Club tunes into the conversation.

"I can't believe... they didn't show." Haruhi hands her head dejectedly.

"I really thought Tamaki-Senpai was gonna make it despite what she said... but that doesn't explain why y/n-Senpai isn't here. Did she even leave?"

"She left to get something... she said she would be right back," Hikaru recalls, his tone filled with exasperation.

"I wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t show." Kyoya's voice rings out unexpectedly, even to himself.

"Senpai?" Haruhi echoes with utter confusion written across her features.

"What do you mean, Kyo-chan?" Honey pries insistently, urging him almost desperately to continue.

Without meeting a single one of their gazes, Kyoya shoves his cell phone into his pocket.

"y/n and I ended our relationship yesterday."

"What?!"

"Are you kidding?!"

"Senpai, how the hell did that happen?!"

"Why would you go and do that?!"

At the last of the varied exclamations, Kyoya scoffs, "It wasn't any choice of mine. She threatened to violate the terms of her debt and when I told her that it was unacceptable, she broke it off."

Most of that is far from the truth and Kyoya knows it.

"Now I know that's not true. y/n-Senpai would never do something that shallow." Haruhi defiantly bores her gaze into Kyoya's.

In every sense, Haruhi is completely correct.

"Yeah, Senpai, what really happened?" Kaoru pries further, also not entirely convinced.

"Fine. You want to know what really happened?" Losing control of his tone steadily, "y/n informed me that she's moving to London by the end of the fair, and since that is in violation of our contract, I enforced her terms, and evidently she was unhappy with that result; therefore she ended our relationship."

Stunned gasps echo gently at his revelation.

"She said she was going to be right back! Are you kidding me?!" Hikaru's fists clench, eyes trained intently on the floor as he recalls his earlier conversation with you. You lied to them, straight to their faces.

"She said she was going away for a little bit..." Finally, realization sets in behind Honey's wide eyes.

"She told you?" Haruhi inquires urgently.

"She didn't tell me anything!" Honey cries. Mori steadies a hand on his shoulder.

Hikaru buries his face in his hands, "Not like this, y/n." He gently sighs. Kaoru slides an arm around his shoulder and steadies the other on his upper arm.

"So she's already gone? Why didn't she tell us, Kyoya-Senpai?" Haruhi glances to Kyoya for answers that he doesn't have.

“She could still be coming back. To tell us goodbye." Hikaru insists. He knows you would never leave them without a goodbye. Never in a million years.

In the beat of painful silence that passes, Kyoya wrenches his phone from his pocket and dials a number that he knows will get him an answer to the absence of his best friend. He worries that he might have taken the same path as you with each passing second. He turns to the window as the phone rings.

The telltale sound of the receiver being picked up causes him to be the first to speak, "Hello, Shima? Been a while, hasn't it? It's Kyoya."

"This is about Master Tamaki, isn't it? I'm sorry, Kyoya, but the Master will be departing for France soon."

Kyoya's eyes fly open, and he stumbles toward the window.

"I tried to talk him out of it, but he said the Suoh family had forgiven his beloved mother and that he was finally going to see her again. He also said that if he stayed at Ouran any longer, his capriciousness would only continue to make trouble for you and everyone else in the club. I believe he is also accompanied by your partner, Miss l/n. She mentioned that she wouldn't like to burden anyone else with her absence and decided to leave it at that."

You warned Kyoya about saying things like that to Tamaki. On some level, he knew then of his mistake.

"How could they be so stupid?!" Kyoya growls, gaining the attention of the hosts.

Pulling the phone from his ear, "Evidently, Tamaki is planning to return to France. y/n is joining him on his way."

Blow after blow to the hosts, they each cry out indignantly.

"They're both leaving us?!" Honey sharply inhales.

"We just can't let it end so suddenly!" Hikaru becomes enraged once more at the thought of everything falling apart.

"Hikaru." Kaoru consoles gently.

"Excuse me, sir." Shima quickly gains Kyoya's attention.

"Yes?"

"I was just thinking. If the Master's mother really is as remarkable a woman as he claims she is, then I can only imagine that she would be upset with the manner in which the Master has chosen to leave Ouran Academy. And... I can't imagine why you've chosen to let Miss l/n leave so easily like this."

"Do you know when they're leaving, Shima?" Kyoya presses imperatively, leaning even closer to the window.

"I'm afraid their flights are this evening."

"Why are they leaving so soon?" Kyoya gapes with a tone of desperation.

"Master Tamaki would have left sooner, but he said he had to wait until the Ouran Fair was ending."

Just as she speaks, a red convertible dashes by on the road below the very window that Kyoya stands at.

He gasps, "y/n!"

At his exclamation, the Hosts rush to the window and press themselves against it.

"Tama-chan!"

"y/n-Senpai!"

"No way!" Kaoru presses his hands on the window pane with a whimper.

"The Ouran Fair isn't even over yet!" Hikaru shouts.

Haruhi remains seated in her chair, hands poised elegantly in her lap as her eyes continue to bore into the table before her, seemingly shell-shocked.

"My family's car should be in the parking lot!"

"Haruhi, let's go!"

Only then does Haruhi raise her head.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

As the sun sets behind the clouds, the Host club sprints across the parking lot of the Academy, aiming for Kyoya's family car, where his driver sits, awaiting their arrival.

Kyoya bends to his window, "We're in a hurry. Can you drive us?"

"I'm sorry, sir, but..."

Both hands gripping the vehicle, Kyoya urges his driver to spit out whatever he's got to say, "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Well, you see, the thing is..."

As he speaks, the members of Kyoya's private police force filter in through the cars surrounding them, silent as they approach cautiously.

Feeling irked to no end, "You want to tell me your orders? Let me guess; you've been hired to protect Lady Éclair."

Through a protective mask, "I'm truly sorry it has come to this, but as you know, as members of the Ootori private police, we answer to your father."

Hikaru and Kaoru face the officers with caution, barring themselves around Haruhi without thinking twice.

Brow twitching and face contorting into a grimace, Kyoya's bottled fury releases with a sudden burst of strength. He brings his fist down onto the hood of his family's car and leaves a significant dent and a loud, echoing bang!

"Damn it!"

"I'm terribly sorry, sir, but we've been ordered not to allow any of you to leave, even if we have to stop you by force."

Conveniently, the two martial arts masters are missing.

But it isn't long before the Host Club can hear the sound of hoofbeats and rolling wheels, a carriage bursting through the tight ring of officers, carrying none other than Honey and Mori at the reins.

Honey leaps from within the carriage, and the police force wastes no time in recognizing who exactly they're dealing with.

"Hikaru, take the carriage. If you use the back hills bypass, you can cut them off." Mori directs in one breath, joining Honey's side, much to the horror of The Ootori Private Police Force.

"It's Haninozuka!"

"And Morinozuka!"

Hikaru and Kaoru are the first to mount the carriage. Kaoru reaches for Haruhi, "C'mon!"

Although hesitant, Kyoya grabs her tightly by the shoulders and gently nudges her forward.

"Haruhi, go get those idiots. Hurry."

Just as she leaves his grasp, Haruhi uses her last few remaining moments and grabs Kyoya by the lining of his jacket, pulling him along with her.

"Senpai- if we don't succeed, you may never see y/n-Senpai again. You need to fix this yourself; you have to stop hiding from the pain even if your efforts are in vain."

Gripping her shoulders with renewed vigor, Kyoya's fingers tremble. Then, with one last urge, Haruhi yanks him forward by his coat and he stumbles onto the carriage as Hikaru flicks the reins.

"Hah!"

With a talented driver behind the reins, the horses pick up their speed and dash straight through another group of police officers. They barely leap out of their way in time.

"Don't just stand there! Stop that carriage!" The officer giving orders is knocked to the ground as Honey uses his helmet to leap across the pavement and block the path left by the retreating carriage.

Kyoya steadies himself in the wagon, gripping the edges as Hikaru continues to urge the horses to their top speed.

He decides in that moment that if you're going to leave, he's not letting go without a fight.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

Sunlight filters through the rapidly passing trees as Kyoya, Haruhi, and the twins press on in their strangely chosen mode of transport.

The horses are approaching a dangerous speed, but Hikaru continues to urge them on.

"Hikaru! Don't you think we should slow down? Somebody could get hurt!" Kaoru exclaims as the carriage jostles them; both Kyoya and himself are prioritizing Haruhi's safety.

"We're not slowing down till we get y/n and the boss back!"

"But Hikaru-!"

"If it wasn't for y/n, then the two of us would still only be lost souls. We were able to become friends with Haruhi and the others because the Host Club brought us together. To think that all of it could end so suddenly like this..."

Hikaru grimaces, "... is something that I can't tolerate!!"

A crash is heard below them and suddenly the carriage is lifted into the air. The horses stumble mid-air, and both Kyoya and Kaoru leap to grip the sides of the carriage and hold the three of them steady, eyes squeezing shut.

With no one to steady him, Hikaru's body is hurled from the carriage and into a nearby pumpkin patch. He hits the ground with a pained yelp as the horses whinny in surprise and halt immediately at the sudden upheaval. The carriage hits the ground loudly and comes to a screeching halt.

"No, Hikaru! Hikaru! Hikaru!" Kaoru leaps from the carriage and rushes to his brother's aid, falling to his knees and heaving Hikaru's body into his lap with all the strength he can muster.

"Hikaru, are you okay? Is your arm hurting you?"

The sun continues to set behind the trees, and only the clock tower is visible over the horizon. Both Haruhi and Kyoya observe the twins as they come together.

"This can't be the end." Hikaru's voice comes out with a struggle, leaning into his brother.

"It's just not fair; the Host Club's the only thing that made us happy. Damn it..."

"Hikaru..."

☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁

"Where are you going?"

You turn at Kyoya's groggy voice, rubbing his eyes as he sits up and lets the blanket fall from his chest. He looks so adorably sleepy that you almost laugh.

"To the washroom. Is that alright?" You suppress a snicker with a teasing tone.

It's well into the early hours of the morning, and Kyoya is roused from his sleep by the sudden loss of warmth in his arms. You'd decided that you would spend the night with Kyoya after a particularly rough day.

"You can't just leave me so suddenly."

You snicker, "I'll always come back, you know." You peek at him from the doorframe now, slowly inching away.

"Well, next time, I'll just have to come chasing after you, won't I?"

"I would be worried if you didn't."

Kyoya cracks a smile at your own, listening to your laughter as you disappear into his bathroom.

☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁ ☁

Kyoya hasn't noticed that Haruhi's cosplay wig and overcoat have come off as she pulls him back into the carriage and out of his deep train of thought.

"Kyoya-Senpai..." He glances at her, "We have to go."

With a determined nod, Kyoya picks up the reins.

You were right- he never knew he'd need to know how to drive horses until this very moment. It's a damn good thing he picked up a thing or two in the past two days.

"Hah!" With a shout, the horses pick up their feet again and are speeding off with only two remaining passengers.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

"What's the matter, Tamaki? You haven't said a word since we left. You're a host, aren't you? C'mon, entertain me." Éclair urges with a sultry plea, her binoculars boring into Tamaki's solemn expression.

"I have a question. Are you sure about this? Will you even be happy married to me, or are you just... following orders?"

The hoofbeats against the ground are no match for the pounding of Kyoya's heart in his ears. The sound is deafening as they rapidly approach the bypass that overlooks the bridge they anticipate you and Tamaki to be driving on.

"Look!" Haruhi points to a moving figure between the trees. Surely enough, a red convertible drives along below them.

Desperate to match your speed, Kyoya flicks the reins with another shout, "Yah!"

Your chin is propped up on your fist as you stare over the side of the bridge, watching the water glisten with the last dwindling glints of daylight.

The bypass is slowly narrowing, and both Haruhi and Kyoya know that it's coming to an end soon. Kyoya demands the horses continue, resulting in the pair of steeds leaping into the air to avoid falling. Kyoya feels his stomach drop as the horses leap off the ledge and onto the paved road, surely giving the wheels a scare.

The sound can be heard for near miles and certainly doesn't go unnoticed by you all in the vehicle. Upon hearing the loudest crack! you think you've ever heard; you turn your head in curiosity to glance at the road behind you to see what the trouble is.

You honestly believe your mind is playing tricks on you when you spot a horse-drawn carriage catching up to your vehicle. When you spot the two passengers inside, you nudge Tamaki urgently.

"Kyoya! Haruhi!" You call out, twisting your entire body to face them in complete and utter bewilderment.

With windswept hair and furrowed brows, Kyoya's eyes meet yours briefly, and the only thought that enters your mind is how much he resembles a knight in shining armor, arriving to save his damsel in distress. Kyoya shouts again; the horses match your convertible's speed.

"What are you doing?! This is dangerous! Stop that carriage now!" Tamaki shouts as the carriage arrives alongside the car with miraculous strength.

"Guys! Please come back to Ouran!"

"Slow down!" You scream over the rushing wind and beating of your heart, leaning over the back of the convertible for the pair to hear your pleas.

"All of us would be completely lost without you guys." Haruhi urges, ignoring your commands.

Tamaki frowns, shrinking in on himself, "But they... they all said they were put out by the Host Club."

"You really are an idiot! What's wrong with you?!" Haruhi all but growls in response, completely fed up with Tamaki's obliviousness to his surroundings.

"After all this time we've been together... you still can't tell when we're joking and when we're serious?! Everyone loves being in the Host Club... we really do! Even me, Senpai! I love being part of the Host Club too!"

Tamaki's eyes become vacant as Haruhi reaches to him with an outstretched hand and fond smile.

In the moment of desperation when you catch the carriage's nature of instability, you lean over the car door, "Kyoya, stop the carriage! This isn't safe!"

"I'm not stopping until you do!" Kyoya grips the reins tightly, his voice rising in urgency and volume over the noise of the carriage and galloping horses.

"You're being ridiculous!"

"That's rich, coming from you!" He barks back in response.

"I thought I had a debt to repay; what happened to that?" You shout, tears brimming your waterline as you bang your fist onto the door of the convertible.

"No, you don't! I don't know why I threatened you with that stupid debt in the first place! I... I didn't know how else to keep you here, but I know it was selfish and wrong. I see that now... I don't ask for your forgiveness because I don't deserve it, but I ask you to stay!"

The passion and desperation in Kyoya's voice feel utterly foreign to you. You stumble over your thoughts to gather them as well as your words.

"I... I thought you didn't care." Your voice barely reaches Kyoya's ears, but when it does, he cries out indignantly, more so with agony rather than irritation.

"Are you so dense that you don't know how much I feel for you?! I've never felt this way toward someone, and you- you just got up and left!"

The visible confusion on your face ignites an inevitable distress within Kyoya that his point is completely missing its mark.

"I-... I'm in love with you!"

Your head lifts to meet his gaze, eyes open wide in disbelief, and you stand to full height in the car without a second thought. The speed at which you straighten jostles you, and you nearly fall back into your seat. Kyoya flinches, arm briefly reaching out for you in concern as he grips the reins in his remaining hand.

Just the mere sound of Kyoya's voice declaring those words feels like you've reached home. And all at once, your heart drops as you realize you've made the worst mistake of your life.

You lean forward as Tamaki reaches out toward Haruhi. Just as he does, a hand grabs his arm and tries to pull him back down. Tamaki glances down at Éclair for a moment. Her blindingly blue irises plead with him jealously.

If Kyoya could pinpoint his mistake, it would be letting go of one of the reins. The horses knock shoulders violently, jostling the carriage enough for Haruhi to fall into Kyoya's arms.

They each know what is inevitably coming as they glance at each other, Haruhi squeezing Kyoya's coat in her fingers for dear life. Kyoya acts too quickly for his mind to catch up as he sweeps his arm under Haruhi's legs and hoists her into his arms bridal style.

"Tamaki!" He exclaims, managing to gain Tamaki's attention for merely a split second before he prays to whatever god is listening and hurls Haruhi's lightweight body with all of his gathered strength toward her savior.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki screams, lurching over the side of the convertible and catching her easily, pulling her into the safety of the vehicle and cradling her head against his shoulder with a firm grasp.

The carriage scrapes along the parapet of the bridge with a deafening screech, and Kyoya is flung toward the edge, barely able to stand on his own feet.

"Oh my God, Kyoya!!" You shriek, watching as his balance is lost.

Eyes swimming with panic and terror, Kyoya's gaze meets yours as he's thrown from the carriage and over the side of the bridge, reaching for something, anything that might save him from his fate.

Risks be damned, you don't spare the couple behind you a glance before you hoist yourself onto the side of the vehicle, managing to steady yourself before lunging over to the now mostly steady, still moving carriage. Your foot barely meets the wagon's floor before you're lifting off again, using all of your strength to push yourself off and over the bridge.

And Kyoya watches you helplessly, reaching out for you subconsciously. Then, miraculously, Kyoya's arm stretches, and your hands meet. His reaction is immediate, gripping your hand tightly and pulling you firmly toward him.

"Are you crazy?!" He yells, eyes still carrying a significant amount of panic.

"About you? Yeah."

Two souls colliding together, two hearts beating as one.

The clock tower chimes in the distance, but the two of you are lost to the world. The chime should result in the carriage turning back into a pumpkin at the last stroke. But with a combined effort, the fairy godmother has decided otherwise. In the last glimmer of hope, you made the spell permanent, retrieved the glass slipper, and restored everything to its rightful place.

You secure your arms around Kyoya's neck, his hand pushing your forehead to bury in his chest for safety. The both of you close your eyes, bracing for impact and holding each other as tightly as possible.

Will you save me when I fall into the deep water below?

You know I will.

With a splash, your bodies are submerged into the cold water under the bridge. But neither of you have anything to fear. Not anymore.

The feeling is familiar- you resting in Kyoya's arms bridal style as he wades through the shallow waters and toward the shore.

"We have to stop meeting like this." You jest, glancing up at him with a smile.

Kyoya rolls his eyes, "Moron." He groans.

"Excuse me?" You gasp as Kyoya sets you down on your feet in less than ankle-deep water. You put a hand on your heart, feigning a hurt expression.

Kyoya reaches for you and you jerk away from him.

"You, sir, cannot touch me like that. I'm single, you know."

You cross your arms and turn away from him as a child would. Kyoya purses his lips, sighing in exasperation.

"Did you miss the whole 'I'm in love with you' part earlier?" He cocks a brow at your behavior, nearly cracking a smile himself.

Silence, save for the sound of water lapping at the shore.

"... you better take me off the market again before someone else does."

Kyoya decides he's had enough of you, lunging for you quickly, "Come here, you."

You squeal as he takes you in his arms and spins you around to face him, twirling you elegantly before dipping you with grace and sealing his lips against your own in a passionate kiss. Your hand cups the back of his neck, unable to kiss him properly because of the stupid smile spread across your lips.

Kyoya hauls you to your feet again and laughs, "Dance with me, my love." He arranges the pair of you in an embrace appropriate for dancing, and you snicker at his antics.

"But there's no music." You remind.

"My heart sings when I'm with you. That's music enough." Kyoya insists, moving along to the beat of his own heart.

You laugh long and loud, throwing your head back, and he continues to move with you beautifully.

"You're being weird." You snort as Kyoya twirls you and pulls you back into his arms for a gentle embrace. You allow him to sway with you as you bask in the utter bliss, entirely unafraid of drowning if you're in Kyoya's arms.

The mood between the two of you makes a noticeable shift, and you stretch onto your tiptoes to cling around his neck, "Please don't let me leave."

"They'd have to pry you from my cold, dead hands."

You giggle, pulling back only just to meet his eyes, pressing your forehead to his.

"I'm in love with you, too, Kyoya." Your lips meet in another searing kiss, and this time it's Kyoya's whose lips are stretched into such a broad smile that he is unable to give you a proper kiss.

"Hey! Are you guys alright?"

You manage to pull away from Kyoya enough to crane your neck to the voice behind you. Tamaki and Haruhi are leaned over the bridge's parapet, seeing as the convertible has stopped to let them out.

"We're alright!" You assure with an enthusiastic wave, Kyoya mimicking you smally as Haruhi waves her arm.

"y/n-chan! Kyo-chan!" A screech of your names turns you the opposite way, finding Honey throwing himself from the inside of a car and clumsily stumbling toward the shore to greet you with enthusiasm.

"Senpai!" The twins follow him not too far behind. A quick glance back toward the bridge confirms that Tamaki has taken off to find a quick way to convene with the rest of his club. Haruhi must not be far behind.

Meanwhile, Honey lunges into your awaiting arms with a squealing giggle, and you swing him around once and set him back down.

Behind you, the red convertible waits for just a moment more before pulling away and peeling off down the road, continuing on as if nothing has changed.

"Boss!" Tamaki arrives as quickly as his legs can carry him, a worn-out, breathless Haruhi on his tail.

"Man, he's fast..." She bends over, hands placed on her knees as she heaves out short puffs of air.

"The both of you are morons..." Kyoya grumbles bitterly, drawing both your and Tamaki's gaze toward him with confused expressions.

"... leaving without saying goodbye? What were you thinking?" He scoffs. Tamaki's lips tug upward in a soft smile as Kyoya pulls you close to his body, seemingly unwilling to let you out of his arms for even a mere second after one of the most frightening experiences of his life- almost letting you walk away without even putting up a fight.

"I clearly missed playing dress-up. You all look so dashing in your victorian outfits." You tease, tugging at Kyoya's time period-accurate collar.

"Let's get you into your costume-"

"-before you run off and leave us again." The twins seem playfully bitter; arms crossed with teasing scowls upon their brows.

You let out a sound that can only be characterized as a laugh mixed together with a sob, leaping onto your tiptoes and tossing your arms around their necks, causing them to bend to your level with surprised grunts. You squeeze your eyes shut tightly, a grin splitting your cheeks in two.

"I hate you guys." You sniffle, an unsteady giggle forcing its way through your throat.

Hikaru clears his throat, "Yeah, well... you're the worst, so." He rolls his eyes.

Kaoru scoffs, maneuvering the three of you apart so that he can sweep you into a tight embrace of his own, claiming you to himself for just a brief moment, "Can't just leave us like that, Senpai." He whines pitifully. You coo tenderly, pressing a hand to the back of Kaoru's neck, threading your fingers through his ginger locks as his face presses into your shoulder.

"Couldn't ever leave you, Kaoru." The ever-present reminder that you know him sets Kaoru's heart alight with a comforting warmth, a smile spreading across his lips as a content expression settles over his features. You know him separately; you see him for who he is, an individual.

"Hey, I'm still here," Hikaru grumbles as Kaoru pulls his face from your neck to face his brother, you turning along with him with a smug smile and a knowing glance.

"Admit that you were going to miss me, and I'll hug you, too." You cross your arms playfully, a self-satisfied simper playing your lips.

"You know, he was pretty distraught when we-"

"Shut up! I... I was gonna miss you." Hikaru mumbles.

He isn't quite ready for you to pounce on him the way you do, practically hanging from his neck as his arms uncross themselves, unsure of how to react. Then, his miffed expression is completely erased and replaced with one of unexpected surprise.

"I would have missed you and your stubborn ass, too."

Hikaru's cheeks flood with heat, tinting them a dusty pink shade as he groans, "Yeah, yeah." His arms cautiously encircle your body, apprehensively sparing Kyoya a glance as he does so.

While expecting your partner to be glowering at the show of affection you're giving them. Instead Hikaru finds a fond smile spread from cheek to cheek, eyes soft and unaccusing.

Hikaru lets his eyes slip shut with a feeling of relief, huffing out a breath of air over your back. When you pull yourself from him, his prominent frown has softened, and he looks at you as though you've returned something precious to him.

A hand presses down onto your head, twisting gently through your hair as you crane your neck to meet the perpetrator's eyes. Mori's irises fall on yours with a tender expression.

"I forgive you." He manages.

You snort with laughter as he lets his hand trail from the top of your head to your cheek fondly, allowing you to lean into his callous palm before he's gently pulling away.

"Are you okay? I can't believe you guys fell off the bridge like that..." Haruhi approaches you cautiously, carefully avoiding the edge of the water.

You smile, embracing her tightly, to which she returns just as enthusiastically, "I should be asking you the same thing." You chuckle, pulling back far enough to meet her eyes.

"Oh yeah, that was probably one of the scariest experiences of my life." Haruhi threads her fingers through her short locks, tittering awkwardly.

"But even so... thanks, Kyoya-Senpai..." She turns to meet Kyoya's eyes.

Kyoya places a steady hand on her shoulder, "Don't thank me... I should be thanking you." He settles Haruhi's confused expression when you settle in close to him, allowing him to wrap his arms around you tightly.

"You guys made up?" Honey inquires with hopeful, glittering eyes.

"After that show? How could I not forgive him?" You tease. Kyoya rolls his eyes, gently shoving you in a playful manner as you stumble with a malicious giggle.

"What? You guys fought?" Tamaki gawks, a panicked expression overtaking his features.

"And broke up," Kyoya adds with devious intent, actively fighting a smug smirk.

"WHAT-?"

"Senpai, it's okay... they made up," Haruhi assures, intervening at the perfect time to ensure that Tamaki doesn't break into an outburst.

A shiver runs down your spine, causing your body to convulse briefly as you start to comprehend the consequences of plunging into a body of water in November. As you're pressed into Kyoya's body, his reaction is immediate.

"Let's get you into your costume." He takes you by the shoulders and leads you toward the vehicle.

"Yeah, it's cold out here." Hikaru agrees, rubbing his hands over his arms as the club crowds toward the car they'd arrived in.

You glance up at Kyoya as you walk, "You know, I'm gonna tell everyone we ever meet about this."

He groans, "Oh, God, please don't." He pleads futilely.

"Kyoya hijacked a horse-drawn carriage and fell off said moving carriage over a bridge, all to get me to stay in Japan." You recall with a sense of dramatic theatricalism.

"You fell off the bridge too, you know," Kyoya grumbles bitterly, wrenching open the door to the car before you get the chance to.

"Yeah, trying to save you!" You remind with a wide grin.

"Get in the car." Kyoya pleads with a knowing look, gesturing to the car's interior.

"Sure you don't wanna take the carriage-?"

"Enough."

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

You're more than ready to end your eventful evening with a waltz or two with your club... with your friends. You do your very best to slip and squeeze between swaying dance partners despite the rather generous skirt of your costume's gown. With the help of Haruhi, Hikaru, and Kaoru, your hair is dried to near perfection and styled according to the time period.

You pick up the light, baby pink skirt of your dress so as not to trip over it as you search for someone you know.

"y/n-chan!" Before you know it, someone takes you by the wrist and spins you around to face them. After realizing that the perpetrator is none other than Honey, he takes you by both of your hands and continues to spin the both of you in a series of tight circles.

Before you can get a word in, Honey's relinquished his grasp on you and sent you spinning without a partner. Although, it's not long before someone takes your outstretched arm and pulls you into a much calmer embrace, assuming the traditional waltz position. You're met with Mori in his navy blue tailcoat, severely concentrating on smoothly moving along with you.

Meanwhile, Yuzuru Suoh and Yoshio Ootori convene in Yuzuru's office with a convenient view of the clock tower.

"I'm sorry that we caused you concern. It looks as though Grand Tonnerre will not be purchasing my company after all." Yoshio's hands are folded in his lap as he occupies the sofa adjacent to Yuzuru's desk.

"An unexpected backer turned up. They bought the company before Tonnerre had a chance and the backer said that he was turning all the management rights over to me."

Your next dance partner is Kaoru, swaying along with you with a gentle smile across his lips.

"That was a bold move. Which funds manager was it?"

Kaoru twirls you under his arm expertly, drawing a giggle from you as you spiral right into his identical brother.

"A student investor called K.O."

"Oh, God, what happened to your arm?" You gasp, finding that Hikaru has shed his jacket and opted for a sling around his right arm hanging off his neck.

"Carriage accident, nothing too bad... you know it's kind of your fault." Hikaru smirks, trying his best to spin you around single-handedly.

"He cleverly left his name out of the deal, but it didn't me long to figure out who it was."

"Yeah, well- whoa!" Hikaru slings you along to your next partner. You seem to be progressing toward Kyoya, who is ready to welcome you with open arms when Tamaki slithers between the two of you.

With a sinister smile, Tamaki steals you away for a brief waltz, much to Kyoya's shock and dismay as he stands speechless.

You laugh at his reaction, placing your hands on Tamaki's shoulders and allowing him to dip you low to the ground, hoisting you back up with a goofy grin.

"You are something, you know?" You snicker, watching over Tamaki's shoulder as Kyoya's gaze bores into his back, rather impatiently awaiting your return.

"Have to tease him sometimes, you know?" Tamaki's eyes disappear as he grins, twirling you thrice under his arm.

"K.O. is Kyoya Ootori. The new backer was none other than my own son."

Tamaki turns you by your shoulder and thrusts you in Kyoya's direction.

"Well, aren't you a vision?" Kyoya's simper widens, sliding an arm to rest on your waist and the other to intertwine with your fingers.

"Yeah? Like it?" You beam confidently, absently reaching to touch the matching cherry blossom flowers in your hair. You allow your body to fall into a natural rhythm with his.

"Indeed." Kyoya nods, eyes remaining on your smiling features.

"You know, you say that a lot." Your brows furrow with the realization. Kyoya tilts his head.

"Say what?" He inquires.

"You say 'indeed' a lot. Why is that?" You tease, sucking your bottom lip between your teeth to suppress a giggle.

Kyoya shrugs, "Couldn't say." He fails to keep a smile off his face.

"Is that your thing now?" Kyoya twirls you, pulling you back to his body closely.

"If you want it to be." Kyoya nearly laughs at the way you're looking at him.

"At least we know we don't have to worry about the future. I thought I knew how brilliant Kyoya was, but it seems he's even smarter than I thought."

You hum in contentment, gasping in realization when your mind sifts through topics of conversation, "Oh, my God. What happened with Grand Tonnerre? Aren't they buying your father's company?" You glance up at him anxiously. But to your surprise, he doesn't mirror an ounce of your worry.

"I don't think we'll have anything to worry about."

"What? How could you not worry? I mean, I don't want to stress you out, but it's sort of a big deal." You scoff in a nonthreatening way; brows furrowed as you mindlessly let Kyoya lead you in a gentle sway.

"Maybe so, but I think your son is the one who's truly amazing."

"Don't get me wrong. I know it's a big deal." Weirdly enough, Kyoya cannot find it in himself to stop smiling.

"I am responsible for the entirety of Kyoya's education. I always knew he would surpass his older brothers someday."

"Then- why are you being so weird? Aren't you afraid of your father losing the company?" You shake your head in disbelief at his reaction.

"No, not really." Kyoya shrugs his shoulders, nibbling his bottom lip, containing his excitement for now.

"However, I must say I'm shocked. While I can imagine Kyoya taking over a company, I never dreamed he'd turn around and give it right back to its original owner."

"You-... You know something that I don't." Narrowing your eyes in an accusatory way, cracking Kyoya's resolve.

"I might."

"Are you going to keep being annoying, or are you going to tell me what the hell you know?"

"As Kyoya grew up, I was constantly dangling the Ootori family companies in front of his face, torturing him with something he could never have."

"Don't worry; I made sure that my father won't be losing the Ootori Group," Kyoya assures.

"Spit it out, Kyoya. You can't keep going like this-"

"I... bought it out from under him."

You blink, freezing on the spot. In turn, Kyoya's body halts along with you, both seemingly frozen in time in the traditional waltz position.

"You... bought your father's company?" Your eyes grow wide in awe, your fingers tightening around the fabric of Kyoya's jacket where it lays on his chest.

"Now, not only has he taken it out from under me by force, but he's basically told me he doesn't want it and has thrown it back in my face."

"That's unbelievable! Are you kidding?! I knew you were capable of something like that." You grab him by his collar, pulling him slightly down in your excitement. He chuckles.

"Well, I didn't keep it."

"Do you understand what that means?"

"What? Why the hell not? You could've... I don't know, taught your father and everyone else a lesson about underestimating you." You shake your head to yourself, eyes no longer focused on Kyoya's face with a creased brow.

Kyoya hums, sliding his hands over your forearms and up to your wrists, tenderly taking hold of each one with affectionate eyes.

"It means he's finally found it. He's found something that has an even greater value to him."

"Because I have much more important things to focus on... I wouldn't have time for all of that."

It's like a promise to spend your futures together. That owning a company at such a young age would hinder his attention on your relationship. Nearly letting you walk away has made Kyoya reconsider his priorities in a major sense. He's placed you at the top of the list.

Your eyes well up with appreciatory tears, lip trembling as you whimper. You spring upward and drape your arms around Kyoya's neck, your nose buried into the junction of his shoulder and neck. He reciprocates quickly, arms encircling your body as he helps you reach him by holding your weight against him.

"I love you." You whisper softly, eyes shut tightly and fingers just as tightly anchored to the fabric of Kyoya's jacket. It feels like a weight lifted off your shoulders just to say something so intimate to someone that you feel so strongly about.

Kyoya's grin could practically split his cheeks, "I love you, too." He blinks, feeling a terrible stinging behind his eyes that he is nearly unable to put a stop to.

Kyoya puts you at a distance enough to face each other, cupping your chin with his fingers and meeting you in the middle, and molding his lips to yours.

A terribly loud crack! echoes through the sky, and you part from Kyoya abruptly, a startled gasp forcing its way through your lips as you glance to the starry night sky and find that a firework show has begun.

"Oh wow... perfect timing, huh?" You exhale heavily, a hand over your chest, soothing your rapidly beating heart.

You gasp, covering your lips, "Oh, we're in public." While your lips are still tingling with a spark, you glance around at the guests and fair attendees who might be watching you.

"I'm aware." You squeal as Kyoya surges forward for another peck, flashing a smug smirk shortly afterward.

Your heart swells with warmth. You hum with a laugh, pressing a kiss to his cheek in appreciation.

Kyoya's pocket vibrates, his ringtone for an unknown caller blasting in the silence between you. You separate yourself enough so that Kyoya can slide his hand between the two of you and fish his cell phone from his blazer.

"I don't usually answer unknown numbers... but with everything going on with my father's company..." Kyoya sighs, glancing at you briefly.

"Oh, no, by all means. I'll find one of the twins to dance with in the meanwhile." You tease. Kyoya groans, "Keep them under control; I'll be only a second."

You pat him on the shoulder and spin on your heel to find either Hikaru or Kaoru, or the first host that manages to sweep you up; you don't particularly have a preference.

Kyoya presses the phone to his ear, "Kyoya Ootori." He answers, voice taking a quick turn from gentle in your ear to professional over the phone.

"I assume that my daughter is with you? Seeing as she's not at the airport with me by now." A grumble comes from the other line.

Kyoya blinks, a deadpan expression over his features as your father's gruff voice reaches his ears.

"She hasn't contacted me about anything, and I cannot reach her. I asked your father for your number, so here we are."

Kyoya nods, soon realizing that your father cannot see anything he does, "Yes, she's here at the fair."

A long sigh on the other end and a groan, "I somewhat expected this... in that case, I'll be leaving for London soon enough."

Another moment of silence, "I'm calling you... to say that I owe you an apology and a bout of gratitude."

That's probably the last thing Kyoya ever expected to come through the mouth of your father and through the phone to his ears.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean." Kyoya's brows furrow with a baffled expression.

"I've just caught word of the nameless backer that returned your father's company to him. The initials couldn't have been any less inconspicuous, you know."

Is... that a speck of sarcasm in your father's tone that he hears? One surprise after another.

"And you gave it up."

Kyoya exhales, "Yes, sir, I did."

"If I'm not mistaken, that's thanks to my daughter, is it not?"

At the mention of you, Kyoya swivels his head to find you in the crowd. You're being tossed between Hikaru and Kaoru, respectively. He can hear your indistinguishable shouts of alarm as you're switched to and fro.

"You guys!!"

If Kyoya weren't on the phone with your father, he would laugh. Instead, he shakes his head to himself, a fond simper tugging at the corners of his lips, "Indeed." Kyoya affirms.

"I also caught wind... that you know of a certain unfortunate incident that transpired under my company some years ago."

Kyoya's heart drops to his stomach. Your debt. He's talking about the safety error found in the l/n Model 7 that he kept for years above your head.

"And I wanted to thank you. You managed to keep that secret for God knows how long... I still wonder how you found out, but nonetheless, you didn't..." Your father pauses with a heavy exhale, forfeiting his next choice of words.

"And I know that it was for the sake of my daughter and her continued financial security, but in turn, you also saved me from a world of trouble."

Kyoya inhales deeply, "I care for your daughter more than you know, sir, and I want to ensure that she is always safe in every sense. Whatever that may mean."

The statement has a self-evident underlying meaning, and it certainly does not fly unnoticed over your father's head.

"I'm going to continue to London. I believe that my daughter would appreciate the space for the time being. I trust that she would be more than happy to have the house to herself. But I need someone to check up on her every now and then. I think you're the man for the job."

It's becoming increasingly clear to Kyoya that your father is a man that does, indeed, care deeply for you and your well-being. Despite his doubt, he realizes that you were able to look past all of his outer behaviors and many, many flaws and see his inner workings.

Your father trusts Kyoya to keep you safe. And although he may fight it, Kyoya's heart flutters gently at the notion, "No danger will come to her as long as there is breath in my body; you can be sure of that."

Sitting alone in his grounded private jet, your father nods to himself. "Good, good. I hope you mean that. And I trust you'll relay the message to y/n."

"I will." Shortly after his reply, the line goes dead. Kyoya brings his cell phone away from his cheek and shuts it promptly, stuffing it into his blazer pocket with a newfound sense of pride.

It isn't long before Kyoya finds you after he begins his search, squeezed tightly in Tamaki's arms as he shields you away from two griping ginger-haired brothers.

"You can't just toss my daughter around like a rag-doll! Have some respect!" Tamaki hollers. You, on the other hand, look like you're about to asphyxiate with Tamaki's constricting arms around your body.

"Alright, that's enough." Kyoya intervenes firmly.

Tamaki is quick to relinquish his grasp on you, startled by Kyoya's appearance. You inhale with a gasp, clearing your throat with relief shortly after.

"I will dance with you later, Tamaki. Go find Haruhi." You pat Tamaki on the shoulder, ignoring the pink tint that spreads across the apples of his cheeks and the tip of his nose before turning to Kyoya eagerly.

"So? Who was it? You were talking to them for a while." You adjust his collar absently, peering up at him expectantly.

"We'll talk about it later. For now, I just want to dance with you." Kyoya pleads softly.

You sigh, "You already danced with me, darling." You tease.

"Then let's just sway here, alright?" Instead of assuming the traditional position for a waltz like your surrounding peers, Kyoya slides both hands to your waist and encourages you to sling both arms lazily over his shoulders. You do just as you're told.

"You're cute; I like you." You giggle once your mouth is within proximity to his ear, nudging his head with your own.

"Like me?" Kyoya raises a playful brow, not that you can see it, but you can practically hear it.

"Fine. Love you." It seems as though neither of you can get enough of hearing or saying the word.

"You're ridiculous." Kyoya scoffs.

"Mhm, but you love me." You sing with a playful tone.

"Indeed, I do."

If Kyoya could have written his own story in middle school, he knows it would have a different plot than it does now. But when he looks into your eyes in this moment, watching them sparkling at him with such adoration like the stars above, the reflection of the beautiful fireworks in your irises, he knows that he could rewrite his story time and time again, and it would always end in some shape or form with you by his side.

You know that you can count on your fearless confidant to pick you up when you fall and kneel with you when you're down. You know that in his arms, you are safe. Safe from the godforsaken world, safe from reality, safe from any hardship you might face.

Only those with excellent social standing and those from filthy rich families are lucky enough to spend their time here at the elite, private school Ouran Academy. The Ouran Host Club is where the school's handsomest boys entertain with too much time on their hands entertain young ladies who also have way too much time on their hands. Just think of it as Ouran Academy's elegant playground for the super rich and beautiful.

Remember, you're welcome to come and visit us in Music Room #3 whenever you'd like. The Ouran Host Club will be waiting for you.

And we wanna thank you, from the bottom of our hearts.

We hope you'll stay tuned, for our author has a lot more planned for our future.

We'll see you then!!

~FIN~

🎵I run and run a thousand miles, and I am barely breathing. Only the fuel of a passionate heart keeps this body strong and moving forward.

Could it be I found a place to rest? How far until I’m OK?

Trees of the town reveal the time has come once again to shift our shade and colors. 🎵

🎵The world always changes around us but weakness will always remain;

Through all the pain, believe in who we are right here and now! 🎵

🎵Raise one hand to the sky; raise them both lift them high!!

And you’ll cut through the darkness make it go!

The time to start is now! And I can show you how.

Start with me, and the world will be even bigger than ever before. 🎵

want to read more? here's my ouran masterlist 🌹

and here's my bts blog💜

want me to write something you want to see? request something💌

have any questions? talk to my characters!🙏🏻

Adieu~ 🌹🌹🌹

796 notes · View notes

thornybubbles · 1 year ago

Text

The Cat Came Back

NOTE: This is just a blurb based on an idea that’s been bouncing around in my head for a while. I was debating on whether or not to share this because I don’t really plan on expanding on it. It’s not a yandere story, but I could definitely put it in the “horror scenario” category.

---------

It didn’t take Josuke long to get to your house after you called him. You woke him up in the middle of an after school nap and told him to come over to your house. You didn’t explain anything and just said that it was urgent. He was already worried about you because you hadn’t been to school for two days, but hearing the dread in your voice had him panicking. Whatever was wrong with you was something serious and he could only hope that it was something that Crazy Diamond could fix. If not, then he would do whatever he needed to to help you. You were one of his dearest friends after all.

It was only a year ago since the incident with Kira and all the stuff that happened before that. He had never wanted you to be dragged into the madness of Stands and Stand users, but you got involved anyway when Kira targeted you specifically during that final battle. Josuke had no idea what you were doing there. You weren’t a Stand user and you would have no way to defend yourself when things inevitably got crazy. You were supposed to be at home and away from all that mess, but you said that you heard the explosions and got worried. Leave it to you to be the only one that would run towards the sound of explosions instead of away from them (you dummy!). Unfortunately, in your haste to check on what was happening to your friends, you ran right into Yoshikage Kira.

Kira recognized you instantly as one of Josuke’s friends and planned on using you as a hostage until he was able to flee the scene after the tides of battle had turned against him. There was no doubt that once he managed to escape them, he would kill you, a fact that he gleefully reminded Josuke of during the final showdown. If it hadn’t been for Jotaro and Star Platinum’s ability to stop time… well… it’s not something Josuke wanted to think about.

Josuke finally reached your front door and rang the bell. Mere seconds after, the door opened and you stood there looking up at him with a haggard, haunted expression. He was shocked at your appearance. It looked like you hadn’t slept in days. One look at you had him asking what seemed like a thousand questions at once.

“Oh my God! Are you okay? Are you sick? Is that why you weren’t at school? Why didn’t you call someone? You could’ve gotten Koichi or Yukako to take notes for you, you know? Where are your parents? Are you here by yourself? Who’s taking care of you?”

You only answered one of his questions.

“My folks are out of town visiting relatives.” you said, voice shaky with fatigue and anxiety. “Get in here. We gotta talk about something serious.”

Before he could say anything else, you grabbed him by the collar of his uniform jacket and dragged him inside. You had him sit on the sofa in the living room. He waited there, impatient and anxious, as you nervously paced the room in front of him. After another minute of watching you imitate a caged big cat, he couldn’t take it anymore.

“Come on, don’t leave me hanging like this!” he said, voice cracking as he tried to swallow down his building dread. “Just tell me what’s wrong!”

You looked at him, eyes both tired and manic at the same time.

“I’m going to!” you snapped, emotions flaring. “I just… I’m just not sure how to even begin to explain this…”

You sighed deeply, trying to calm yourself enough to say what you needed to.

“I-I’ll just start this off by saying that… well… I… I don’t even know how this is possible now, but…It happened after school on Monday. I got home and…”

You took another deep breath and massaged your temples. Your head was pounding and you hadn’t bothered to take anything for it yet.

“Look. I don’t really know how to soften the blow with this, so I’m just gonna come out and say it… I have a Stand now.” you said.

Josuke’s eyes widened and he sat looking at you in shock. There were so many thoughts going through his head at that moment. Having a Stand was a double edged sword. On one hand (depending on what kind of Stand you had) you would be able to defend yourself better as a Stand user than a normal person. On the other hand, it would mean that you would be forever destined to run into other Stand users, not all of which would be friendly. This revelation also filled Josuke’s head with even more questions. How had you obtained your Stand? Was there another arrow for them to worry about? Or did you get your Stand without an arrow? If so, why hadn’t you suffered with the near deadly fever that usually accompanied developing a Stand? Most people who were born Stand users either developed them at birth or at least at a very young age. That’s not to say that a user couldn’t develop their Stand at a later age, but….

Josuke opened his mouth, preparing to bombard you with all the questions swimming around in his head, but you held up a hand to silence him.

“Wait, before you say anything, let me just say that it isn’t what you think. My Stand, well, it isn’t… it isn’t actually mine…”

Josuke gave you a confused look.

“W-what? What do you mean by that? How can you have a Stand that isn’t yours?” he asked, unable to hold back his questions any longer.

You let out a cry of frustration. “I don’t know, Josuke!” you shouted. “I don’t have a damned clue, okay?!”

Josuke jumped and shied away from you at your harsh tone. Seeing his reaction you closed your eyes trying, once again, to get your emotions under control.

“Sorry.” you said with a shaky sigh. “Sorry I snapped. This is just… it makes no sense, okay? It really, really makes no sense and I just don’t know how to deal with what’s happening. I always was a little envious of you, Okuyasu, Koichi, and the others because I was the only one that didn’t have a Stand. I thought it would be cool to have one, you know? But… in this case I think I’d rather go back to not having one.”

A few minutes of silence passed between you. Josuke fidgeted on the couch in anticipation of whatever else you would have to say. He was torn between asking you things or waiting for you to start talking again.

“I guess the only way you’ll understand what I mean by the Stand not being mine is to show it to you.” you said finally.

Another moment or two of uncomfortable silence.

“Okay… Josuke, I’m going to show you my Stand now, but you have to remain calm, okay? Don’t freak out!”

You took a step back from him and stared at the floor for a moment. Josuke watched you both curious and anxious over what your Stand would be.

You didn’t summon your Stand in the usual way. You didn’t call it by name, so Josuke assumed you hadn’t given it a name yet. But once the Stand came into view Josuke understood why you didn’t call it by name. You were right when you said that the Stand wasn’t yours. It belonged to someone else… someone who was supposed to be dead. This Stand already had a name and it was a name you probably didn’t want to say aloud, not after what the user put you through.

Josuke knew the Stand because he’d actually fought the user, but you knew the Stand by accident. You’d bumped into Rohan while he was at the cafe one afternoon and spotted some of his sketches on the table. They were all sketches of Stands and you were fascinated. Though he pretended to be annoyed in the usual Rohan fashion, he’d been all too happy to show you the sketches and explain everything he knew about Stands and Stand users. You browsed the sketches he’d made of the various Stands and their corresponding users: Josuke’s Crazy Diamond, Okuyasu’s The Hand, Koichi’s Echoes, Jotaro’s Star Platinum, and so on. Being a non-Stand user, this was the only way that you would ever know what everyone’s Stands looked like.

There was one sketch, however, that Rohan seemed determined to keep you from seeing. He snatched the stack of sketches from you just as you got the final sketch, almost giving you a paper cut in the process. He mumbled something about needing to head home to get back to work, but it was already too late. As he was yanking the stack of sketches out of your hand, you got a glimpse of the final sketch. On the paper was the image of a figure you would never forget as long as you lived. Next to the user was the image of a Stand that would now also be burned into your memory along with its name that was scrawled on the space next to it:

Killer Queen.

This was the Stand that you summoned; a Stand that belonged to a dead serial killer.

It took every ounce of Josuke’s impulse control to keep him from jumping up from the couch, summoning Crazy Diamond, and pummeling Killer Queen back into non-existence. But he knew that if he did that, it would hurt you, too. He could tell by the way Killer Queen hovered behind you, staring at him intensely, that it was waiting for you to give it the mental order to attack. You didn’t though. You were nothing like its previous owner and Josuke was not your opponent. But he could tell by the way the Stand stared directly into his eyes in a challenging manner that the damned thing not only recognized him, but still viewed him as an enemy. You shifted uncomfortably where you stood and Killer Queen mimicked the motion, taking on a different battle pose that somewhat imitated your new position. Oh yes, it was obvious that Killer Queen was your Stand now and anything Crazy Diamond did to it would affect you, too. As if it could sense what Josuke was thinking, the corners of Killer Queen’s mouth turned up slightly. It was mocking him. The wicked thing was actually mocking him!

This couldn’t be possible. It shouldn’t be possible! Reimi told them that both Yoshikage Kira and his Stand had been torn apart by the ghostly mass of arms that haunted the hidden alley beside the grocery store. It made no logical sense for Killer Queen to still exist after both it and its user had been ripped to pieces. It made even less sense for it to be attached to you now. How could someone gain control of a dead person’s Stand? Just how was such a thing possible?

You felt your whole body quiver with disgust as the unwanted Stand pulled itself from your soul and manifested behind you. You stared at Josuke, watching his reaction. You pointedly refused to even glance at the Stand, afraid that you would retch if you so much as laid eyes on it. The shocked and horrified look on Josuke’s face did nothing to soothe you though. A single glance at the look on your friend’s face had your eyes filling with tears. You knew he wasn’t looking at you like that, but you still felt judged. Just having Kira’s Stand attached to you made you feel as if you had somehow become responsible for all the lives he’d taken. It was as if his sins had been passed on to you and it made you feel repulsed by your own existence.

Sensing your distress, Killer Queen pulled its attention from Josuke to glance down at you. Wanting to comfort its new user, it knelt down and nudged your face with its forehead in a sick parody of a housecat demanding attention. At the sensation of it touching you, you jumped away, staring up at the Stand in terror. Your stomach churned at the sight of it and you actively had to fight against your gag reflex. Killer Queen cocked its head to the side, confused by your rejection. It reached for you and you threw your hands up in front of you as if to place a barrier between you and your own Stand.

“Stop!” you shouted. “Don’t touch me!”

Killer Queen did as it was told but stared at you strangely as if you were behaving unreasonably.

“Go back!” you commanded.

Killer Queen tilted its head to the other side, ears going back slightly. It made no move to obey.

“Go back, Killer Queen!” you commanded again, hating how easily the Stand’s name rolled off your tongue.

This time the Stand obeyed, but not before turning back to Josuke and staring him down once more before vanishing.

Josuke glared right back at it until it was no longer in view.

You could feel it when Killer Queen’s presence rejoined your soul and the sensation caused your knees to buckle. You sank to the floor and started bawling, unable to hold your emotions back anymore. Josuke was by your side in seconds, wrapping his arms around you and doing his best to calm you. You pressed yourself into his hold, soaking his uniform with tears and shaking.

“Josuke!” you cried. “Please, please, please help me! I don’t know what to do! I don’t understand what’s happening to me! Please help me!”

You were in utter hysterics and Josuke didn’t know what else to do but hold you and rock you like an infant until your screaming and sobbing quieted. Eventually you tired yourself out enough that you could think somewhat rationally again.

“I-I don’t want the others to know about this,” you said with a sniff. “Not yet at least. I’m afraid of how they’ll react.”

“Okay, but I think it’s best that we get in touch with Jotaro.” he told you. “He’s got experience when it comes to Stands and stuff like that, so he may have seen something like this before. He’s got ties to the Speedwagon Foundation and whatever he can’t help us with, I’m sure they can.”

You went limp in his hold, finally feeling a tiny amount of relief after days of worry and dread. You allowed yourself to relax completely as he held you.

“Thank you, Josuke,” you said in an exhausted tone. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

He lifted your head to look you in your watery eyes.

“Hey, you know I’ve always got your back.” he said with a small smile. “You’re going to get through this, okay? You aren’t alone. I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

--------------

NOTE 2: Well that ended on an uplifting note which is unusual for me. I just want to take the time to explain where this crazy idea came from. So, I’ve been slowly “JoJo-fying” my Terraria game and I found a mod called “JoJo Stands” which allows you to have Stands in the game while also filling the world with various JoJo references (of course!). With the mod, there are two ways to get Stands. The most common way is to wait for Jotaro (part 4 version) to show up in your game and get a Stand arrow shard from him. You talk to him and choose the option “Stand Help” and he’ll say something about how you “Seem to be reliable” and give you an arrow shard. If you use the arrow shard your character will take a slight amount of damage but get a buff letting you know that you’re under the influence of the arrow. You then just have to wait a few in-game minutes and a random Stand will appear into your inventory. I do have to mention that when you use the arrow shard there is the rare chance that it won’t give you a Stand and instead kill you instantly with a message that the arrow “found you unworthy”, after which you’ll have to go back to Jotaro, get another shard, and start the process over.

The other way to get a Stand is to simply be “born” with one, meaning that a random Stand can be assigned to you from the moment your character spawns into the game world. It’s rare to get a Stand this way, however. On my first playthrough of the game after downloading the mod, I was lucky enough to be “born” with a Stand. I was really excited but when I checked my inventory to see which Stand I got, my excitement turned into a deep distress. The first Stand I ever got in the mod was, you guessed it, KILLER FREAKIN’ QUEEN! I didn’t know what Stand I would get, but I was not expecting him!

I got over my initial anxiety at having such a destructive Stand after I used him in the fight with the Desert Scourge (giant worm boss from the Calamity Mod) and Killer Queen blew it to pieces before it was able to do any damage to me at all. That’s not to say that the Stand was overpowered or anything, as later boss fights proved to be a bit more of a challenge, but having him in boss fights was certainly a boon.

In spite of how helpful he was as a Stand, I came to realize that I’m not a very responsible Stand user and frankly have no business having a Stand that dangerous. For example, there was the time that I went to pet my cat while I had Killer Queen active and I forgot to set him for Auto instead of Manual. So I ended up petting the cat with Killer Queen instead of my character. Anybody remember what happens when Killer Queen touches things while in attack mode? Yeah, I turned my damn cat into a bomb and detonated it seconds later. Fortunately, my cat didn’t die. It was injured but it fully healed after a few minutes. My sister joked that Killer Queen was jealous and wanted to be the only cat in the house. Very funny.

Then there was the time I nearly blew myself up. I had just upgraded Killer Queen to the level that I could summon Sheer Heart Attack. For some dumb reason, I thought it was an excellent idea to test SHA’s abilities while standing inside of my house instead of taking it outside somewhere. My stupidity resulted in me nearly destroying my whole room. The explosion took out the whole background wall, some of my furniture, and parts of the floor and ceiling. It also took out over half of my health. It left me with only two hearts and a giant mess to clean up. My sister heard the explosion and came running to see what happened. I explained what I’d done and she told me that I needed to have my Stand License revoked. Very funny.

At some point I started speculating on the idea of a person developing a Stand only to find out that the Stand not only used to belong to someone else, but it used to belong to a really evil villain. So that’s where the idea for this little blurb came from. Like I said before, I don’t really plan on adding anything more to this as I haven’t planned anything beyond this initial premise. So consider this a one shot. Keep an eye out for more stuff in the near future!

#jjba #jojo's bizarre adventure #jojo no kimyou na bouken #reader insert #jojos bizarre adventure #jjba kira #jjba part 4 #jojo #yoshikage kira #kira yoshikage #jojo part 4 #diamond is unbreakable #Josuke #josuke higashikata #josuke higashitaka #diu #part 4 #jojo stands #killer queen

105 notes · View notes

oceansssblue · 2 months ago

Note

I loved the platonic omegaverse fic you wrote for the Batch!

If it's not a bother, I'd love to see more of them :) maybe something about omega Wrecker, like him going in to heat at an unfortunate time, like during a mission?

If that's not something you'd enjoy writing, I'd just love to see more platonic stuff about the Batch in general :)

Thank you for writing these fics, I've really enjoyed what you've done so far! :)))

Ty! I'm glad you liked it :)

Not a bother at all, I plan to expand the sw omegaverse fanfics as much as I can.

I liked your idea for Wrecker so here you go! 🫡

Xx, Blue.

"PUSH THROUGH IT" – Platonic (o) Wrecker & tbb 💖💔

WARNINGS: A sprinkle of angst because Wrecker's heat decided to appear in a dangerous moment, so mentions of war, blood and some arguments related to that. But don't worry, this is still mostly fluff! The usual omegaverse shit minus smut cause this is completely platonic.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Dread. It was what Wrecker felt when the first rush of warmth pulsed through his veins. It couldn't be happening now. It just couldn't. He had been taking his supressants. They were in the middle of the battlefield. Why, then why, was he feeling like he usually did in the beginnings of his heat?

He tried to ignore it and best as he could; but soon the dizyness added to the warmth, and lastly, the pain. He fought the urge to curve in himself, bring his hands to his lower stomach. Right now, they were occupied with two heavy blasters, blasters that he should be using to shoot enemies instead of shaking paralised in place. From his privilaged position on top of the mountain, Crosshair took out a droid Wrecker hadn't even seen coming. His brother called out his lack of awareness inmediately.

"What the fuck are you doing just standing there?" The sniper hissed through the squads com line. "Wake up, Wrecker".

The omega shook himself out of it; clenching his jaw and trying to push the nausea down. He jumped back into battle; even if his movements were slower than usual, and he respeted to blasting everything out instead of turning into a more physical tackle mode. He pushed through the pain; concentraiting as hard as he could in just surviving, waiting, until he could return to the safety of the Marauder, where he could finally break down and breathe.

It was an hour of full torture. Blood dripped down one side of his face, a few minor scratches scattered across his body here and there. Sweat covered every inch of his skin. Slick dripped down his thighs as well. He felt disgusting; the need to clean himself almost overwhelming. With his jaw clenched, he jumped onto the ship and waited once more as Tech piloted the Marauder out of the planet's atmosphere.

He breathed through the quietness, finally, allowing himself to relax if just a bit. Crosshair didn't have the same plans, though; as he inmediately confronted him.

"What the hell was going on with your head to day?" He spat out agressively. "Emptier than usual?"

Crosshair tended to run his tongue whenever he was particularly angry; and Wrecker was aware he had put them all in danger with his distraction in the warzone. Still, he couldn't help but squirm in place; eyes cristalysing with his abrassive verbal attack.

"Sorry" he whispered, ashamed, eyes flying down towards the floor of the cockpit.

Wrecker knew the rest of the Batch agreed; but no one added a thing. They remained in silence while Tech jumped into hyperspace. Only then, they allowed themself to completely relax; slumping down on their seats and abandoning their weapons on the floor, taking off their helmets too. Hunter inhaled sharply instantly at that.

"You're in heat" he stated, dark brown eyes sharpening on Wrecker. "Has this started in the mittle of the mission?"

Tech, Echo, and Crosshair, turned to look at him in surprise –Hunter was the only alpha of the group, while Wrecker the only omega–; he nodded silently.

"When, exactly?" Hunter digged.

"An hour and something ago" Wrecker muttered.

Hunter sighed tiredly.

Crosshair's face switched to concern and understanding.

"I'm sorry, Wreck" he told him, drowning in guilt, and Wrecker shrugged carelessly, eyes still fixed on his feet.

"This is most unusual" Tech intervened. "I have been personally supervising your supresants and you have taked them accordingly. We will need to visit Medbay when we arrive Kamino. Perhaps an adjustment to a higher dose would be needed".

Ah, so that could be it. Wrecker squirmed uncomfortably again. He hated going to Medbay. Hated when the longlecks prodded at him.

"Go take a quick shower, vod" Hunter ordered gently. "We'll prepare a nest for you in the meantime".

Wrecker brightened; smiling in relief and nodding inmediately. He was dying to wash the blood and sweat off his body.

The visit to the sonic was a bit linger than usual; his muscles melting and his body finally allowed to crash down. When he re-appeared on the cockpit, his brothers had pushed all the matresses of their bunks into the floor, together; with the blankets and pillows on top of them. Someone had even placed Lula on the nest. Hunter opened his arms; and Wrecker sighed happily, inmediately jumping for the offer. He cuddled against the alpha's body; smiling at the rest of his beta brothers laying down around him.

"You did good, vod'ika" Hunter whispered soothingly. "Ignoring your heat in the middle of the battlefield. When I didn't think you cound be more strong..."

Wrecker's cheeks slightly redenned at the praise. He always reacted like that whenever his brothers congratulated him on something. For all he could be loud and social, he was shy on some aspects as well.

"Thank you" he mumbled against his shoulder.

Crosshair reached a hand to squeeze his forearm. When Wrecker snatched his hand in his, the sniper didn't try to make him release him.

Wrecker smiled. The pain and dizyness reduced drastically. He was with his pack now. Home. Safe.

THE END.

It came out supershort but I felt I conveined the idea alright with just that! Xx.

Omegaverse masterlist here:

14 notes · View notes

lawqual1ty · 1 year ago

Text

Deaths Favor (Law x Fem! Reader)

Hey! This is my first time posting a one shot so... I hope you like it!

TW!: Mention of death, reader in a bad state, blood, weapons, use of violence, mention of organs (more specifically the heart)

Since she has been aware she had always been fascinated by death... Not in dying or stuff along the line but rather the complexity and the search of an understanding of it...

She even began working at a morgue at 17 although she had barely graduated and believed it wasn't for her, but my was she wrong...

Her weird fascination did not stop there however as it also transferred to her luck... For some reason death could never get a grasp of her

She had found herself in quite unfortunate situations in her day to day life but every single time there had been someone or something that saved her or aided her... No matter what it always happened, to the point her friends started teasing her about it.

Although she would soon learn it wasn't exactly luck...

Ten months ago she was teleported to the world of One Piece, much to her so called luck and now she found herself in middle of quite a complicated battle...

She was in the middle of a forest surrounded by several bounty hunters, some where strong others were well... They aided through numbers.

However it was she found herself greatly injured after a long intense fight

"Maybe this is the time my luck abandons me..."

She thought as she looked at all of them, some of them where knocked unconscious but the majority stood straight in front of her...

"You've got nowhere else to run!"

A bounty hunter yelled out at her as he laughed at her deplorable state, she looked at him blankly her bloodied up face shaped into an angry frown.

He raised his arms acting like he was intimidated by her angry gaze, obviously mocking her

"Ohoho god~ That's scary guys!" He said jokingly making the rest of them laugh "She's gonna kill us with her stare~"

They all laughed at her... She didn't listen at all, all she was thinking was one thing and one thing only...

...

"Will it be worth the cost...?"

In another place, Law suddenly flinched as he felt a shiver go through his entire body...

Someone else was here...

"Captain?" Bepo called for him as he noticed he was distracted once more

Was it her?

...it couldn't be right?

But then... Why did he feel it so close by...?

He looked up at the sky while Bepo tried to call for him with clear concern...

"Bepo you're in charge..." Law finally spoke after a minute of silence shocking Bepo in the process.

"W-what?!"

Before Bepo could ask for more details Law vanished into thin air leaving a confused Bepo now in charge of the Polar Tang while he was gone.

...

He had a bad feeling...

She dropped to the floor kneeling down as she looked downwards, everyone ceased laughing for a moment before bursting into laughter once more.

One of them stepped closer to her and kicked her in the face, she grunted in pain as she fell on her back unable to defend herself...

"Look at that she can't even move now!"

They all burst out laughing, he stepped closer to her and laid his boot on her face with disgust, Her breath hitched in pain resulting in her biting her tongue.

"I don't know why the marines were searching for such a weak pirate..." The bounty hunter stated with clear anger and disgust, he swiftly raised his sword ready to decapitate her right then and there "But oh well, your bounty will be worth it..."

He lowered his sword getting close to her neck...

She burst her eyes open before yelling out

"DEATH JANGO!"

Before the sword touched her a large Shadow appeared and hit the bounty hunter throwing him away from her...

There was no way of regretting anything now...

Everyone stayed silent as they saw how she stood up once more heading to the guys throat pushing him onto the ground with great force...

She was now covered in a complete shadow making her look like she was undead, the large shadow from earlier connecting to her feet as if it was her own shadow. She landed softly next to the guy, much to the horror of the others. They tried to move but as she realized their presence she turned to look at them, making them freeze in horror... She smiled sadically at the sight

"Well would you look at that~"

She didn't intend on any of them leaving alive...

After what felt like an eternity, Law finally arrived where the fight had taken place

"She was here..." He said softly landing onto the ground...

What earlier was a forest now seemed like a morgue of some sorts... Most of the pirates were unconscious, laying on the ground, some of them in terrible conditions.

He walked around examining every single one of them as his eyes shone yellow with every single one he touched

"Hmm...?" He hummed clearly amazed...

None of them were on the verge of his realms... She had held back, no wonder she had caught his attention.

He kept walking around finally finding the one responsible for all of it, she was still covered in shadow....and blood.

"Guess you still don't have full control..."

As soon as he spoke she turned to look at him blankly, a blood thirst making her eyes shine red. She ran towards him heading straight for his head, he didn't budge...

In a swift movement he became mist and appeared behind her pinning her to the ground and revealing his true form...

The god of death

She tried setting free but she couldn't, it was like she had rigor mortis in some way

"You're closer to my realm than any of them..." He whispered softly as he held onto her, a glint of pain in his eyes. He raised his hand getting himself ready

"But don't worry..." He said softly "I won't let it happen just yet..."

His hand then pierced through her chest, she passed out shortly after... He took his hand out of her chest revealing her heart in a tiny box

"After all I can't let the one I've been keeping for so long die just like this can I?"

He spoke softly... The shadow on her body slowly fading away as her heart started beating normally in between Law's hand

#trafalgar law #one piece x reader #law x reader #x reader #trafalgar law x reader

57 notes · View notes

captainsophiestark · 1 year ago

Text

The Level-Headed One

Obi-Wan Kenobi x Reader

Masterlist - Join My Taglist!

Written for Fictober 2023!

Fandom: Star Wars

Day 8 Prompt: "Give that to me, before anything happens."

Summary: Obi-Wan and his partner (in life and on this mission) break into a smuggler's den in search of information the Republic needs, when things go a little sideways.

Word Count: 1,262

Category: Fluff

Requested by @ghostofskywalker! Hope you like it Tori!

Putting work into an AI program without permission is illegal. You do not have my permission. Do not do it.

"Missions like these are my favorite," I muttered, smiling up at my best friend and partner, Obi-Wan, as we ducked down a darkened bar hallway, his arm wrapped tightly around me and my arms around his neck. Obi-Wan hummed, leaning down and towards me until we disappeared from the sight of the rest of the bar, when he pulled back.

"They are more fun than rushing into battle on a dusty planet."

I smiled, leaning up to give him a brief peck on the cheek before we both returned our focus to the task at hand. We'd come here looking for information about smuggling routes the Separatists had been using to run supplies past our blockades, but with a cover as two people on a date in a seedy bar. Away from the Jedi Council, on missions in dives like this, were some of the only times Obi and I got to spend as a couple.

Unfortunately, they also often included people trying to kill us at some point or another. We'd just have to keep surviving long enough to get to the other side of the war and retire happily.

"Do you want to take care of the door, or should I?" asked Obi-Wan, both of us scanning our surroundings as we reached the locked door of the club owner's office. If we were right, all the information we could hope for and more would be in there.

I shrugged. "I'm probably going to kick it down, so if you have another way..."

"Hold on."

He closed his eyes, raising his hand ever so slightly as he concentrated and worked through the force. I turned to watch our backs, until I heard the telltale 'click' of a lock unlocking itself.

"You did that by moving the lock from the inside with the force?" I asked, turning to my boyfriend with a raised eyebrow. He shrugged.

"I've needed to develop that skill more than a few times in the course of the war."

"Still. Impressive."

With one last glance around the hallway, the two of us ducked quickly into the office, carefully shutting the door behind us. I relocked it before turning to take in the room with Obi.

We'd definitely found the right place. The office was a disaster zone, papers, boxes, and filing cabinets scattered everywhere. This was going to be a long, long night.

"I'll take the left half if you take the right half," Obi-Wan deadpanned. I sighed.

"We didn't do nearly enough dancing and drinking in the bar before hand to deal with all this."

Since neither of us knew when an enemy might next appear, we tried to work quickly while still doing a thorough job. I kept one eye on the time, all too aware that every minute that ticked by was another increasing the risk of our death.

I'd been getting jittery as we neared the half hour mark, but Obi-Wan and I had almost made it through the entire room. We'd started at the edges and gradually worked towards the middle and each other, and finally, we'd met at the desk.

I huffed a sigh and popped the top off yet another box and started digging through, until a large, familiar object made me pause.

"Oh boy," I muttered, reaching into the box and pulling out the flashbang grenade. I held it up to show Obi-Wan, turning it over in my hand. "Look at this. Who leaves something like this in a box on their desk?"

"Seedy smugglers who might need to throw one at someone coming in the door?" he suggested.

"Yeah, I guess so." I tossed the grenade lightly in my hand, testing its weight and getting a feel for it. "Interesting."

"Give me that, before anything happens," Obi-Wan said, holding out his hand with a sigh. I rolled my eyes, but dropped it in his hand anyway.

"I'm not going to blow us up, Obi-Wan. I might be best friends with Anakin, but I'm not completely stupid."

He snorted, which made a smile tug at the corner of my mouth. I nudged him with my shoulder as we both continued our search, the feeling of him in the force putting me at ease and bringing a smile to my face even in the middle of a mission like this. A few minutes later, I smiled for a different reason.

"I think I found what we're looking for."

Obi-Wan leaned over my shoulder as I fanned out a stack of documents, all detailing several shipping routes and smuggling runs designed to get around Republic blockades.

"Excellent work," he said, eyes still scanning the information. "Let's take that with us and get out of here, shall we?"

"Neither of you is going to be going anywhere, ever again."

Obi-Wan and I's heads snapped up to find the club owner standing in the doorway, flanked by two burly guards cracking their knuckles. I sighed.

"Two more minutes, and we would've been gone," I muttered.

"Nobody gets away with stealing from me, in my own club, with their lives."

Rather than returning fire with our new enemy, Obi-Wan leaned in to whisper in my ear.

"Can you gather those papers quickly if we were to run?" I nodded. "Good. Then close your eyes and cover your ears."

I turned to give him a questioning look, only to see him pick up the flashbang grenade I'd found and pull the pin, hurling it at the club owner without a second thought. I ducked and covered just in time as it went off before quickly springing into action, grabbing the papers off the desk and following Obi-Wan as we pushed past the stunned club owner and his guards.

We rushed back into the noise and confusion of the club, angry screams following from behind us. Obi-Wan reached back and took my hand as we wove through the crowd, finally making our way to an exit near the back and ducking out the door.

"You got all the papers?" he asked as we jumped into our speeder and he quickly guided it into the sky. I nodded.

"Yes, I did. And I'll absolutely never understand how you got your reputation as the level-headed one."

Obi-Wan chuckled. "It's easy. I got the reputation because I'm constantly surrounded by you and Anakin. And when he dives out a thousand-story window without a plan to catch himself and you run into an ambush with nothing but the force to get you out of it, a little flashbang grenade in a pinch becomes the most rational thing in the world."

I snorted, but he wasn't wrong. I caught him grinning out of the corner of my eye, so I turned to him more fully with a grin of my own.

"So... mission success, but I still think we got run out of that place a little early. Do you want to go somewhere for a little victory celebration before we go back to the Temple?"

"...What did you have in mind?"

"Padmé told me about a jazz club not too far from here."

Obi-Wan chuckled. "You certainly know me well." He glanced at the still-dark sky, then sighed. "I suppose we do have some time. Just tell me where to go."

We shared a smile, blending in amongst the lights of the city as two other people, no Jedi Order or war following us like it did everywhere else. And for tonight, we'd enjoy that escape for a little while, to help remind us exactly what we were out there fighting for.

96 notes · View notes

mask131 · 8 months ago

Text

Arthurian myth: Merlin (1)

Loosely translated from the article "Merlin" of the Dictionary of literary myths, under the direction of Pierre Brunet.

The literary fortune of Merlin was often dependent of the Arthurian literature. However, through its various resonances, the character gained its own seduction and its own popularity that allowed him to return outside of a medieval setting, gaining the status of an autonomous literary myth. He was at first the prophet of the Briton revenge, the one who had initiated the Round Table and who had inspired the errant-knighthood. Through his unique position between good and evil (he is born of a devil and a virgin), between life and death (his paradoxical survival within a “prison of air” or his vault), he embodies in modern times the enigma of History and of the future. Finally, he is the enchanter: causing or suffering many metamorphoses, he is a mythical builder and engineer, and sometimes a warlock/sorcerer. Merlin stays one of the prime heroes of the world of magic.

I/ Origins

The name and the character of Merlin appear for the first time within two Latin-written works of the second quarter of the 12th century, by the Welsh cleric Geoffroy of Monmouth: the “Historia Regum Britanniae” (1136) and the “Vita Merlini” (1148).

Nothing allows us to claim that a character named Merlin (Myrddin in Welsh) existed before these works. The very name of Merlin might have been an invention of Geoffroy, based on the name of the city of Kaermyrddin (today’s Carmarthen). It is also possible that Geoffroy used the phonetic similarity between the city and a “Merlin(us)” which belonged to the Armorican tradition (or more largely the continental one). However, Geoffroy of Monmouth did not start out of nothing. In the middle of the 12th century, Robert of Torigny, library of the abbey of Bec, claimed that two Merlin existed: a Merlin Ambroise/Ambrose (Ambrosius Merlinus) and a Merlin Sylvestre/Sylvester (Merlinus Silvester). This opinion was renewed thirty years later by Giraud of Cambria. Thes two names seem to correspond to two different traditions that Geoffroy joined:

1) “Merlin Ambrose” designates a character of the 6th century named Ambrosius. Gildas (in his “De Excidio et conquest Britanniae) made him the descendant of a Roman consulate family. Nennius( “Historia Britonum” presented him as a child born without a father, and whose mother had sex with an incubus – a tradition maintained by posterior authors. Nennius also provided the motif of the child revealing to the king Guorthigirn (Vortigern) the existence of two underground dragons preventing the building of his citadel. Discovered by the agents of the king at Kaermyrddin, the young Ambrosius interpreted the battle of the monsters as the omen of the long battles between the Briton and the Saxon. When Geoffroy retells this scene, he explicitly identifies Merln to this Ambrosius (“Merlinus, qui et Ambrosius dicebatur”).

2) “Merlin Sylvester” appears mainly in the “Vita Merlini”, and he seems to be the heir of older Celtic traditions. These traditions, shared by both Scotland and Ireland, depict a prince who lost his sanity and ran away into the forest, living there a wild existence while gaining supernatural powers. In Scotland it is Lailoken, known through the “Life of saint Kentigern”: on the day of the battle of Arfderydd (located by the “Cambriae Annals” at 573), this character, companion of the king Rodarch, heard a celestial voice condemning him to only have interactions with wild beasts [Translator’s note: The expression in French here is unclear if it speaks of human interactions or having sex, and I unfortunately can’t check the original Life of saint Kentigern right now]. Several predictions were attributed to him, predictions that the “Vita Merlini” places within Merlin’s mouth. Another incarnation of the “Merlin Sylvester” can be find back as early as the 8th century: in Ireland, the legendary king Suibne, turned mad after the battle of Moira, lived in trees (from which he ended up flying away), and shared similar traits with Lailoken. Similarly, in the Armorique there was the prophet Guinglaff, known through a verse-work of the 15th century “Dialogue entre le Roi Arthur et Guinglaff”.

The link between Merlin and those “wild men” becomes even more apparent thanks to several Welsh poems bearing the name “Myrddin”. Three of them belong to the “Black book of Carmarthen” (Welsh manuscript of the end of the 12th century) : The Apple-Trees (Afallenau), the Songs of the Pigs (Hoianau) and the Dialogue between Merlin and Taliesin (Ymddiddan Myrddin a Thaliesin). If the prophetic passages of these texts cannot be older than the Normand invasion, several lines where the bard talks to the trees and animals of the Caledonian forest (especially his pet-boar), complaining about his loneliness and his sorrow, could be the remains of a poem between 850 and 1050, which could be the oldest record of the Merlin legend.

Despite these many obscure origins, it seems that even before the publication of the “Historia Regum Britanniae” Merlin had awakened a certain interest within Geoffroy’s entourage, since Geoffroy decides to publish in 1134, due to the demands of several people including the bishop of Lincoln, a fragment of an unfinished work of his: the “Prophetiae Merlini”. Inspired by the Books of the Sybil, by the Apocalypse and by the prophetic imagery of Celtic and Germanic tribes, these “Prophecies”, that Geoffroy claimed to have translated from the language of the Briton, is first a record of several events that happened in Great-Britain since the Saxon invasion until the reign of Henry the First. Then, they announce in an obscure fashion the revenge of the Briton, and a series of disasters prefacing the end of the world. This text was a huge success: until the end of the Middle-Ages, these “Prophecies” were commented and quoted as equals to the holy Christian books. Alain of Lille, the “Universal Doctor”, wrote a commentary of the Prophecies in seven books. Merlin, first the great prophet of Wales, then of Scotland, was adopted in the 14th century by the England, which completely forgot the anti-Saxon origins of the character, and took the habit of beginning almost every speech by quoting a Prophecy of Merlin.

The ”Historia Regum Britanniae”, after the story of the two underground dragons and the text of the Prophecies, attributes to Merlin the building of Stonehenge, in the memory of Briton princes treacherously killed. Finally, it tells of how the prophet gave to the king Uter Pendragon magical potions that gave him the appearance of the husband of the duchess Ingern. A trick that allow the birth of the future king Arthur. As early as this first work, Merlin appears at the same time as a prophet and a wizard: a character claims that no one can rival with him when it comes to predicting the future, or accomplish complex machinations (“sive in futuris dicendis, sive in operationibus machinandis).

The ”Vita Merlini”, told in verse, completes Merlin’s biography by telling adventures of a very different tonality. Seer and king in the south of Wales, Merlin became mad after a deadly battle, and lived in the woods like a wild beast. Only the music of a zither can appease him. Led to the court of king Rodarch, chained in order to be kept there, he proves his gift of second sight throughout several “guessing scenes”. Before returning to the woods, he agrees to letting his wife Guendoloena marry again. However, on the day of the wedding, he appears with a horde of wild beasts, riding a stag. Ripping one of the antlers of his ride, he uses it to break the head of Guendoloena’s new husband. The rest of the text depicts Merlin as being saved by his sister Ganieda: he performs a series of astronomical observations and makes prophecies about the future of Britain. His disciple Thelgesin (identified with the Welsh bard Taliesin), back from the Armorique, joins him and they talk lengthily about nature. Finally, Merlin regains his sanity thanks to the water of a stream that just appeared, but he refuses to rule again and stays faithful to the forest.

#merlin #arthuriana #merlin the enchanter #arthurian myth #arthurian literature #welsh mythology #myrddin

26 notes · View notes

ceescedasticity · 10 months ago

Text

Unforsaken, 11b

(All sections on tumblr)

(AO3, lagging behind but more polished)

As rattling as this development is, there isn't much they can do with it until the Geese condescend to approach them.

So: Wizard's Clay demonstration.

Celegorm has dug an impressively deep hole considering the limited time involved and his lack of proper tools.

Celeborn bites his tongue on a 'at the bottom of a hole, keeps digging' joke, only for Turgon to make the exact same joke. Celegorm throws a rock at him.

Gimli and Dyn direct the others in placing the Wizard's Clay carefully in the hole and laying fuses back up out of it. Legolas directs the others in stopping up their ears.

…The elves can get by with ósanwë, but they'll probably want to come up with some hand signals.

The ensuing explosion is loud and moderately impressive, but would be more impressive in rock.

Estimated sticks of Wizard's Clay left behind to threaten the peace of Middle-earth (counting the 25 left in Emyn Arnen): 5574

They repeat a few times, so everyone can get a chance handling the fuses, and Dyn demonstrates joining fuses for multiple emplacements.

"Although these are so close they'd set each other off anyway."

Estimated sticks of Wizard's Clay left behind to threaten the peace of Middle-earth (counting the 25 left in Emyn Arnen): 5560

Elrohir asks about the possibility of lighting a fuse from farther away with fire-arrows? Okay, good idea; more Wizard's Clay, more fuses — shorter this time, though they back up even farther.

The first attempt severs the fuse rather than lighting it. The second one lights the fuse, but also a small grassfire. (Fortunately the grass is green and the fire easily extinguished, even though they have to wait until after the explosion to rush forward and deal with it.) The experiment is tentatively declared a success.

Estimated sticks of Wizard's Clay left behind to threaten the peace of Middle-earth (counting the 25 left in Emyn Arnen): 5552

Gimli hopes they come across some exposed rock so he can run everyone through boring holes to place the explosives.

Risyind asks how concerned they should be about the warden coming out and attacking them as soon as they start boring holes in its house.

No one is sure. However, Glorfindel is of the opinion that if there's an umaia in there and it didn't make an appearance at any point in the Second or Third Ages when Sauron needed backup, there's probably a reason for that — maybe it can't leave without breaking something.

"Or it just didn't like Sauron," Elladan suggests.

Celeborn is of the opinion that per their palantír viewing the physical outside of the the Crucible has been weathered, so it can be weathered, so crude physical impacts short of explosives should hopefully pass as more weathering. At least assuming there aren't any windows.

The orcs agree there are definitely no windows.

****

The Geese continue to hang back.

"Do you think they're planning to fight as swans?" Elrohir asks, as they try to catch a glimpse of their great-uncles.

"…Maybe?"

Neither of them has been attacked by a swan — as with geese, it's about respecting them — but they have witnessed a few unfortunate incidents among the Dúnedain.

A large swan could probably inflict some moderate-to-serious bludgeoning damage? Which doesn't sound like the right thing to fight an umaia, but then, they've never heard anything about umaia in general being immune to blunt force, they're just… presumably durable.

"I mean, it's likely any battle with an umaia wouldn't be entirely physical, anyway…"

"Would they know how to do that instinctively?"

(Elladan and Elrohir definitely don't.)

*****

After being quieter than usual for most of a morning, Maglor guides his horse to walk beside the wagon Turgon is driving and says, grimly, "I need you to tell me more details."

"Meaning…?"

"If I'm supposed to sing to free orcs or fight an orc-warden, I need more to build on than what I know now. Tell me about Bellow, tell me about Squint — tell me about Goblin-town."

Turgon can see how that would make sense. "I can, but — when you say details—"

"None of the editing I'm sure you're doing for Glorfindel," Maglor says. "All the awful things you want to leave out to spare me."

"Maglor—"

"If I can't handle it from you, I won't be able to handle it from Celegorm, and I need to do that, so I will handle it."

Honestly Turgon would just as soon leave some things out to spare himself, but when Maglor puts it that way… "Fine. But we have to make sure Glorfindel and the kids don't hear it."

(By "kids" he means everyone born in the Third Age. Maglor considers pointing out that Elladan, Elrohir, Khitwê, and Risyind are all older than Turgon was when he died in Gondolin. Then he feels sick at the thought that Turgon and Celegorm and Curufin have all spent so much longer trapped as orcs than they got to live—)

The discussion takes up the entire rest of the day and into the night, and leaves them both rattled.

Everyone else courteously does not listen, but there is a lot of intense staring.

The next day Maglor talks to Sharlinnu.

*****

(An incomplete list of things Turgon has been editing out when speaking to Glorfindel:

Squint's suicides when he remembers the truth.

Bellow's suicides-by-orcs-or-whatever's-handy.

The cannibalism. Bellow discouraged it in Goblin-town and it was rarely anyone's first choice, but it was unavoidable in the armies — and orclings get fed dead orclings before they're old enough to make their own choices.

(The opinion that as long as you're scavenging a battlefield and they're all already dead anyway, Men are more nutritious than orcs, so.)

Knowing your body is not your own. Starting out in a shape like an elven child and growing those bone spurs and permanent bruises and painful scars.

Knowing your mind is not your own. The burn of the Shadow's influence in your mind, subtle until it isn't, calling you to serve, calling you to kill, calling you to hate, seeking to consume every other thought or feeling…

The ugly mockery of desire that summons orcs to multiplication duties. There's no pleasure. It's just an unpleasant itch. The horror of facing it with your memory intact — and how the horror fades away, because at least it doesn't make you feel anything.

That he's almost as sad about the fall of Goblin-town as he is for the fall of Gondolin. Possibly more so at this point, actually, because even if Gondolin hadn't fallen to Morgoth it would have fallen literally with the rest of Beleriand, and there have been and are many other perfectly acceptable large elven communities. Goblin-town was one-of-a-kind.

Just not caring anymore, sometimes.

Talking to Celegorm is going to be a challenge.)

#a tolkien tag #orc bank #orc bank unforsaken

24 notes · View notes

teegeewrites · 4 months ago

Text

The new fic is here! This was one of the most fun fics I've ever written, and I hope whoever reads it enjoys as well!

Scent of Revenge - AO3

Mario was no stranger when it came to hard battles, which included a muscular gorilla obsessed with his ex-girlfriend and toys of his likeness as well as a powerful turtle-dragon king who repeatedly kidnaps the Mushroom Kingdom’s benevolent ruler and desires to rule over said kingdom. Every time, the plumber emerged victorious against them. However, this trial, while not as arduous as squaring off against mighty beings, presented its own challenge.

Physically, the opponent in question posed no threat, so Mario didn’t have to worry about any bruises or any other external aches. However, it tested him in a different way, even if it lacked the sentience to realize it.

It not so innocently sat in the middle of the round table. It had the shape and size of a standard vinyl record. Ripe red Yoshi berries smothered in thick syrup of the same hue spread across the off-white primary section. A golden-brown layer of graham cracker crust lay beneath it to complete its tantalizing image.

Although Mario has seen and eaten his fair share of cheesecake in his life, none had him as transfixed as the one in his presence. Unfortunately, his sight wasn’t the only sense titillated by the dessert’s elegant presentation. The sweet aroma it emitted, especially the berries, pleasantly tickled his nostrils and caused him to involuntarily sniff quite a few times. This potent assault on his senses made his mouth drool and stomach grumble in anticipation. He was certain the accursed thing would’ve blown a raspberry at him if it had a tongue.

Mario chuckled to himself as he thought about how he was reacting. Princess Peach’s confectionary creations always had this effect on him, so he’d like to think he’d be used to them by now. Nonetheless, here he was in awe of yet another sugary concoction. When she invited him to the castle to sample her latest endeavor, he could’ve rivaled Sonic with how fast he arrived. Now, here he sat, exerting as much self-control as he could muster while awaiting her return. If he were Wario, the whole thing would already be sitting pretty in his stomach. However, he would never consider doing such a thing to Peach. No matter how tempted he was, he wouldn’t lay a finger on the cheesecake until she came back.

Fortunately, the wait wasn’t long as she appeared with some plates, utensils, and a large knife. He smiled as she cut two generous slices with the knife and placed them on their plates. He internally celebrated his victory against the strong temptation, for his tenuous patience was about to pay off. However, he would have to wait a little longer because of his self-imposed rule of waiting until the princess finished her first bite before even thinking about picking up his fork.

Peach smiled genteelly at him before cutting a piece of her slice with a fork and elegantly wrapping her peach-colored lips around it. She placed her free hand on her cheek after swallowing the piece and moaned softly as a blissful close-eyed smile formed on her face.

“I’ve never been one to toot my own horn, but I think this is delicious,” Peach opened her eyes and smiled softly towards Mario. “However, I am more interested in what you think of it, Mario.”

Not needing to be told twice, Mario nodded before cutting a large portion of his slice. He made sure to grab a berry because he wanted to taste everything. He smiled at Peach before placing his fork in his mouth. His eyes widened in awe as he swallowed the portion. He marveled at how creamy and dense the cheesecake was. It had the right amount of tartness he believed a cheesecake should have, and the sweetness of the berries and syrup provided a delicate yet effective balance. In other words, this cheesecake was divine.

“I must say, Princess, this has to be the best cheesecake I have ever tasted!” Mario grinned. “You may have outdone yourself with this one!”

Peach’s cheeks gradually took on the same hue as her dress as she unsuccessfully tried to prevent a smile from forming on her face. “Why, thank you, Mario. To be honest, this endeavor intimidated me. I heard how difficult making a cheesecake can be, so I was afraid it would be a disaster. The Toads who tasted my first attempt thought it was good; however, I know they would praise anything I made, even if it was a rock boiled in water. Hearing you laud my effort, however, means a lot to me.”

Mario’s cheeks gradually warmed at Peach’s comments as he briefly looked down at his lap. He lifted his head as soon as he felt his face return to normal and grinned. “Thank you for the kind words, Princess. You are the best baker I know outside of my nonna and mama, so I knew I was in for a treat when you invited me over to try your cheesecake. Trust me, I know how frustrating making one of these things is! I burned my first attempt and never tried to make another one again. I wasn’t exaggerating when I said this is the best cheesecake I’ve had the pleasure of eating. In fact, I'm already looking forward to seconds!”

He grabbed his fork and devoured the rest of his slice in record time, which elicited the bell-sounding tone of Peach’s laughter. After finishing their second slices and engaging in some conversation, Peach placed a hand over mouth as she poorly tried to contain a giggle.

“Is something funny, Princess?” Mario asked with confusion.

“You have some crumbs in your mustache,” Peach giggled.

“Oh, is that so?” Mario smiled playfully as he reached for a napkin. “I guess I better take care of that real quick!”

“Mario, wait! Allow me to wipe them off,” Peach volunteered as she rose from her seat with a napkin in hand. She approached Mario and meticulously wiped away the offending crumbs from his mustache. A rush of blood trickled towards Mario’s face during the cleaning, and he released a held breath after Peach was finished.

“There, crisis averted! The hero’s mustache is all clean!” Peach grinned cheekily.

Mario chuckled in response, which made Peach chuckle in return. Peach’s face, however, became more serious as she gazed into his eyes before grabbing his cheeks. Mario’s heartrate picked up its pace as he returned the gaze. Mario then thought he was hallucinating because it appeared that Peach’s eyes gradually shifted down towards his lips. The next thing he knew, her face inched towards his, causing a bunch of alarms to sound off in his head.

“Um, Princess,” Mario gulped, causing Peach to stop for the time being, “not that I’m being ungrateful or anything, but what are you doing?”

Peach grinned with seductive playfulness, making him gulp even louder. “Don’t worry, Mario. Your question wasn’t rude at all. To answer it, I believe my hero deserves a second treat. I guarantee this one will be just as sweet if not sweeter than the cheesecake.” She closed her eyes and puckered her lips before continuing to inch closer to his face.

Peach’s insinuation did not fly over Mario’s head, and that caused his heart to act like an unruly prisoner trying to break out of its cell. His face rapidly heated up, and beads of sweat danced on his forehead. He had conflicting feelings about the predicament he found himself in because while he sat frozen in his chair in nervous anticipation, this was also something he dreamed of happening ever since he met the princess. He eventually relaxed his shoulders and closed his eyes while awaiting his second dessert…

~~~

“OWWW!”

Mario woke up to something slapping his cheek hard. He massaged the tender spot and glared in the direction from which the sharp blow came. There sat Luigi, slumped on the couch snoring away with an arm flailing loosely. Mario shook his head in disbelief while chuckling to himself knowing who the culprit was, for this was far from the first time Luigi inadvertently struck him while asleep.

Speaking of sleep, Mario realized the interaction with Peach in the garden was merely a dream. He was annoyed and disappointed at first, but that quickly gave way to a lamentable smile forming on his lips.

“This always happens at the best part,” he murmured humorously to himself. “I can’t even get lucky in my dreams.”

After laughing about his poorly timed luck, he recognized the television was still on airing an infomercial. He smiled as he remembered that he and Luigi were watching a movie together and must have fallen asleep at some point. He rose from the couch and turned off the TV before reclaiming his spot next as the dream replayed in his mind.

“Hee-hee, cut it out, Daisy! That tickles!” Luigi’s groggy voice brought Mario back to reality. His brother was clearly dreaming about Princess Daisy and from the smile on his face, it was certainly a happy one.

“At least I’m not the only one dreaming about a princess,” Mario laughed quietly to himself as Luigi continued to talk about Daisy in his sleep.

As Mario continued to be amused by his dozing brother, he noticed something peculiar on Luigi’s face. He had an idea what it was at first but leaned closer to get a better look. There was no mistake about it: Luigi’s face was covered with orange kiss prints, with his nose having the most.

It took Mario a herculean effort not to laugh out loud as not to wake Luigi up from his slumber. He knew only one person who painted her lips orange and from that deduced who did this to his brother. He quickly placed a hand over his mouth to stifle another bit of incoming laughter that threatened to escape.

A quick glance at his hand upon removing it made him furrow his brow in confusion. A few pink spots were on his fingers, and a pink smudge sat in the middle of his palm since it was the same hand he rubbed his cheek with earlier. He had a notion what the pink marks were; however, he wanted to confirm them first. He raced to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. Sure enough, there were multiple pink kiss prints all over his face, including a few smudged ones from his earlier actions, causing him to smirk at his reflection. Unlike Luigi’s, however, the ones on his face were placed in a delicate heart pattern, excluding the one dead smack in the middle of his nose. He was disappointed at first that one wasn’t on his lips but smiled in relief since he wanted to be awake should that moment ever come. He chuckled heartily, knowing how meticulous and graceful the person responsible was, before leaving.

Luigi was still blissfully dozing away when Mario returned to the living room. As much as he regretted doing so, he roughly shook Luigi’s shoulder to wake him up. Luigi reacted by groaning then stretching and yawning before staring at Mario with his eyes halfway open.

“Mario, what’s going on?” Luigi moaned irritably. “I was getting to the best part of…”

Luigi’s voice trailed off as his sleepy eyes fully widened. Any traces of sleep vanished from his face, and his eyebrows almost disappeared under his tousled hair.

“Um, Mario. Pardon me for asking, but why do you have a bunch of kiss marks on your face?” Luigi chuckled as his lips stretched into a smug smirk. “Did the princess visit and the two of you make out while I was asleep?”

Mario flinched as his face burned at Luigi’s teasing inquiry. He certainly wouldn’t object to such a thing happening, but it wasn’t true. A quick look at the orange kiss marks on Luigi’s face helped him recover, and he returned the smug smirk.

“I wouldn’t be talking if I were you,” Mario teased. “You should worry about your own face before commenting on mine.”

Luigi cocked an eyebrow. “Mario, what are you talking about?”

“Go look in the mirror, and you’ll see!” Mario chuckled.

Luigi’s brow furrowed before he shrugged and made his way to the bathroom. An astonished shout echoed throughout the house a few seconds later, causing Mario to laugh so hard he nearly hit the floor as he plopped on the couch. Tears flew from his eyes as his laughter continued when Luigi returned.

“Go ahead, chuck it up!” Luigi stood with his hands on his hips before joining Mario on the couch. He sighed as he ran his hand through his hair.

Mario placed a hand on Luigi’s shoulder after his laughing fit ended. “Well, Luigi. It appears we had some visitors while we were asleep.”

“I didn’t know Daisy was in the Mushroom Kingdom,” Luigi shook his head.

“Did you forget that the princess told us Daisy was visiting for a week? She arrived yesterday.”

“It must have slipped my mind,” Luigi rubbed the back of his head. “I would’ve looked forward to seeing her again. Back to the topic at hand, I can’t believe they did this to us! They could’ve at least woken us up so we could enjoy it!”

“Yeah,” Mario nodded in agreement. “I bet you anything this was Daisy’s idea! I doubt the princess would come up with something like this on her own.”

“Well, she has kissed you a few times while you rested after rescuing her,” Luigi grinned, making Mario’s cheeks burn some. “But they were just once and out of gratitude. They were nothing like this! With that said, I completely agree this is something Daisy would come up with!”

“We’re not going to sit back and let this slide are we, little brother?”

“Definitely not, but how are we going to get them back?!”

“Good question,” Mario rubbed his chin. “One thing’s for sure: leaving kiss marks on their faces while they’re asleep is out of the question.” The brothers shared a laugh over that.

A few minutes later after flipping through some scenarios in his brain, Mario’s eyes lit up as a light bulb turned on in his head. He smiled widely as a clear picture of his idea formed in his mind.

“I take it you came up with something?” Luigi chuckled with a smile of his own.

“You know me too well, Luigi!” Mario returned the chuckle.

“So, spill the beans! I need to know what it is!”

Mario laughed at Luigi’s excited anticipation. “Don’t worry, little brother. I’ll tell you in due time. I even know when to put the plan into action.”

Luigi’s eyebrows popped. “When would that be?”

“I just remembered something,” Mario smiled. “The princess told me that she, Daisy, and Toadette will be spending all day in Bubblaine tomorrow for a girl’s getaway. That means they won’t be in the castle during that time. Surely, we can do something then, can’t we?”

“Now I’m even more interested!” Luigi rubbed his hands together with a mischievous smile. “At least give me a hint at what you have in mind.”

Mario placed a hand on Luigi’s shoulder. “First, we’re going to pay Minh T. a visit…”

~~~

After wiping the kiss prints from their faces, much to Luigi’s displeasure, Mario and Luigi left their house on their way to visit Minh T. During their trek, Mario filled Luigi in on his plan to avenge the princesses' prank, making Luigi’s eyes widen a few times.

“Mario,” Luigi began with concern in his voice, “not that I’m doubting you or anything, but are you sure we’ll be able to pull something like this off?”

“I want to say absolutely,” Mario answered truthfully. “However, we’ll get our answer after speaking to Minh T.”

Luigi looked at the sky with a furrowed brow. “Even if Minh T. says she could do what we’re going to ask her, you know Toadsworth won’t approve of such a thing.”

Mario skidded to a sudden stop at Toadsworth being mentioned. “Mamma mia, I forgot about him!”

Luigi was right that there was zero chance the royal advisor would allow what they had in mind. Not only would he admonish them for considering such a thing, but he would also reacquaint them with his cane a few times for good measure. Although Mario has been hit by harder and more powerful attacks, he has unpleasant memories about that cane striking him, and it was something he didn’t want to experience again if he could help it.

Mario rubbed his chin as he mulled over how they would execute their plan without Toadsworth being the wiser of it. It was something he overlooked while thinking up this plot. He breathed in relief as a smile gradually stretched his lips, for he recalled something about what Toadsworth would be doing tomorrow. His relaxing posture did not go undetected by Luigi.

“So,” Luigi began with a curious gaze, “you have an idea on how we’re going to sneak this past Toadsworth?”

Mario’s smile grew wider as he addressed his brother. “Luigi, we won’t have to worry about Toadsworth after all!”

“Why not?”

“Because he won’t be at the castle, either! He’ll be visiting Little Fungitown assisting the Toads who live there with something.”

“Whew, that’s a relief!” Luigi rubbed his forehead. He then frowned. “Still, the council Toads will certainly object.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much about them,” Mario assured Luigi. “They hold us in high reverence and know we would never do anything that would deliberately harm the princess.”

“If you say so,” Luigi sighed. “I guess our main concern is Minh T.”

“Yeah,” Mario nodded his head in agreement. “Let’s find out if she’ll be able to help us.”

The brothers resumed their trek towards the little garden area across the street from the post office where Minh T. usually hangs out. Fortunately, she was there, watering the flowers surrounding the Flower Fields gateway while cheerfully humming to herself.

“Hey there, Minh T.!” Mario waved as he and Luigi approached her.

Minh T. flinched before turning her head and seeing the Mario brothers approaching. A bright cheery smile lit up her face as she rose to greet them. “Hey there, Mario and Luigi! How are you two doing?!”

“Splendid!” Mario matched her energetic spirit.

Minh T. nodded in acknowledgement. “So, what brings you two here?”

“Well,” Mario began, “Luigi and I want to know if you can help us with something.”

“Mario, you know I’ll try to help any way I can! After all, you’re the one responsible for making my dream of having these beautiful flowers bloom here a reality! So, what do you need from me?”

“Well,” Mario rubbed the back of his head as he felt his cheeks get warm from Minh T.’s compliment, “it’s a huge request, so I understand if you’re unable to do it.”

“Tell me what you need, and I’ll see what I can do,” Minh T. encouraged Mario with a small smile.

Mario sighed as he told her what he needed from her and asked if it was possible. The Toad furrowed her brow as if she were in deep thought, clearly taking in everything he told her. He gulped nervously, wondering if his request was too much. A minute passed before she addressed the Mario brothers.

“I’m going to be honest with you, Mario. What you ask of me is not something that will be easy to do, especially in such a short time frame.”

Mario nodded in somber understanding. Maybe it was presumptuous for him to think he could pull something like this off in one day. Luigi placed a hand on his shoulder with an understanding smile, which he returned. It was worth a shot, but he saw his plan to pay the princesses back evaporating faster than the steam from Princess Peach’s teapots. He would have to think of another idea, one more feasible. He was about to thank Minh T. and return home when a huge smile formed on the Toad’s face.

“However, it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible! This will certainly need assistance from Wise Wisterwood and the other flowers in Flower Fields. I’ll ask them if they can help us. Wait right here; I’ll be right back!” She then entered the gateway to Flower Fields, the door closing immediately afterwards.

“Hey, Mario,” Luigi nervously rubbed his hands together, “do you think Minh T. can convince Wise Wisterwood and the others to help us out? This is a rather ambitious request.”

“We’ll just have to wait and see,” Mario replied with cautious optimism as he placed a hand on Luigi’s back.

A few agonizing minutes later, Minh T. emerged from the gateway with a neutral expression on her face. His fists clenched in nervous anticipation, Mario wasn’t sure if it meant she returned with good news or not. He didn’t want to jump to gun so to speak, so he waited to hear what the Toad had to say. His nerves began to ease when her lips stretched into an assuring smile.

“Great news, guys!” Minh T. beamed. “They’ll be able to help you! Wise Wisterwood immediately accepted when I told him it was a favor for you! He said it was the least he could do after you defeated Huff N. Puff and helped restore peace to Flower Fields.”

“Woo-hoo!” Mario jumped with enthusiasm, making Luigi and Minh T. chuckle. “Thank you so much, Minh T.! We owe you big time for this!”

Minh T. rubbed the back of her head as her cheeks turned a light pink. “Aww, it’s nothing, guys. As I said earlier, you helped me bring this garden to life, so consider us even. He told me he and the flowers will have everything ready by tomorrow morning. Come around by then, and everything should be prepared.”

Mario nodded before bending down and giving Minh T. a grateful hug, causing her entire face to match the color of Peach’s dress. “We’ll be here by then! Once again, thank you so much!”

“Again, you’re welcome, Mario!” Minh T. returned the hug.

“Well, Luigi,” Mario addressed his brother after he and Minh T. broke their hug. “It looks like everything worked out, after all!”

“I guess it did,” Luigi nodded. His tummy then started growling, which made Mario and Minh T. snicker. Luigi chuckled in embarrassment when Mario’s abdomen made loud rumbling sounds of its own. “It appears I’m not the only one hungry here,” he teased his older brother.

“Yeah, yeah,” Mario feigned irritation as he rubbed his midsection while trying to fight off a chuckle. “So, what are we eating? I want to try out that burger joint that recently opened at Toad Town Mall.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Luigi smiled. He turned his attention to Minh T. “Do you want us to bring you back anything, Minh T.?”

“No, I’m fine,” Minh T. replied. “I made my own lunch today. Thank you for offering, though.”

Mario placed a hand on Luigi’s shoulder, which Luigi imitated. “In that case, I guess we’re off. See you tomorrow morning, Minh T.!”

“Sure thing!” Minh T. smiled brightly.

The Mario brothers waved goodbye to Minh T. as they made their way towards Toad Town Mall, with the Toad returning the wave. Mario couldn’t keep the huge grin from his face during the trek, even when Luigi constantly teased him about it. He was looking forward to tomorrow.

~~~

Mario sat up in his bed with a jolt in the wee hours of the following morning thanks to a text notification from his phone. He rubbed his heavy eyelids before grabbing the phone and reading the message. It was from Peach letting him know that she, Daisy, and Toadette were on their way to Bubblaine. He texted her back wishing her safe travels and hoped they enjoyed themselves. She instantly replied with a thank you as well as a pink heart and a winking kiss face emoji, which made his cheeks warm as he put the phone down back on his nightstand.

Since he found it difficult to go back to sleep, he hopped out of bed and gently opened the blinds to peek outside. He grumbled to himself as the sun was nowhere in sight. Despite his copious energy, Mario was never much of an early riser, so he fought off the irritation threatening to explode from his body. He figured a cup of coffee, and a quick bite would improve his mood; hence, he traveled to the kitchen to prepare his light breakfast. He thought about waking Luigi up but although his brother was definitely the morning person between them, he decided to let him sleep for a little longer.

A couple of hours later while watching TV, he received another text message. He opened his phone and saw that this one was from Minh T., informing him that his packages were ready for pick up. His lips curled into a huge smile as replied to the text, telling her he and Luigi would be there shortly. As soon as he sent the message, he hopped off the couch and raced upstairs to Luigi’s bed.

“Luigi, get up!” Mario heavily shook Luigi’s shoulders. “Our packages are ready! We have to go get ‘em!”

Luigi groaned as he opened his eyes. “Ugh, give me a moment, Mario.” He slowly sat up as he blinked himself awake. “I’ll be dressed in a few minutes.”

Mario nodded before returning downstairs. Since Luigi was slower than him when it came to getting ready, he figured it would be at least a half hour before they left. That would give him enough time to watch at least one more show, so he sat in his previous spot on the couch and returned his attention to the TV. As soon as the show concluded, Luigi dashed downstairs and grabbed a piece of toast Mario had made earlier from the kitchen table.

“OK, Mario. I’m ready!” Luigi uttered in between bites of toast.

Mario smiled as he turned off the TV and rose from the couch. He and Luigi grabbed their hats from the rack next to the door and left to meet up with Minh T.

The image of Minh T. standing in front of two boxes that rivaled the size of the average Toad house with a jubilant smile on her face greeted the brothers upon arrival. She waved them over, which caused them to put more pep in their steps.

“Hey guys!” she welcomed them. “So, what do you think?!”

“Minh T., this is absolutely perfect!” Mario beamed with a huge smile. “You’re the best!”

“Aww, shucks!” Minh T. blushed. “I’m happy I could be of help.”

Mario placed a hand on her head in appreciation, making her blush deeper. He immediately removed it upon noticing her reaction, and his cheeks warmed. He chuckled as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Heh-heh, sorry about that! I guess that’s a habit I got from the princess.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Minh T. assured him. “Speaking of the princess, I’m sure she and Princess Daisy will be thrilled with their gifts!”

Mario and Luigi chuckled from guilt, for they knew they didn’t tell her the whole truth about what the items inside the boxes are for. “Yeah, they’ll be surprised, that’s for sure!” Mario said. “Well, we’ll be taking these out of your hands now. Give our thanks to Wise Wisterwood and the others!”

After equipping the Shrink Badge, Mario gently leapt on the two boxes so as not to crush them, shrinking them down to a manageable size. He and Luigi picked them up and waved goodbye to Minh T. before carrying them towards the castle.

Upon reaching the castle’s main door, they let the guards know they were delivering a surprise present for the princesses. The guards acknowledge the reason for their visit before opening the doors for them. They checked the boxes in the main lobby to make sure they had the right ones before heading towards the princesses’ rooms.

Mario was fortunate to run into a maid who was about to lock Peach’s room. He stopped her and let her know he was dropping off something for the princess. The maid was apprehensive at first since she had strict orders not to let anyone in the room without permission from either Toadsworth or Peach herself. Mario, however, convinced her to grant him this privilege this one time. Since he was the Mushroom Kingdom hero and a close friend of the princess, the maid acquiesced and allowed him to do what he needed to do.

Minutes later, Luigi met Mario at the center of the lobby and grinned mischievously while giving Mario a thumbs up.

“Well, mission accomplished!” Mario laughed. “I would love to be a fly on the wall when they come back tomorrow!”

“Hopefully, they won’t treat us like bugs and try to squash us!” Luigi echoed the laughter. “So, what you want to do now?”

Mario thought for a moment before an idea sprang to mind. “Remember Tayce T. asked us to replace her kitchen faucet when we bumped into her at Toad Town Mall yesterday?”

“Now that I think about it, I sure do,” Luigi affirmed.

“Great, that’s settled!” Mario smiled. “We better head home and get our tools first.”

The brothers nodded at each other before leaving the castle. Mario didn’t know what awaited him when the girls came back from their outing, but he was proud to return the favor for what they did to him and Luigi twenty-four hours earlier.

---

“Man, that was a lot of fun!” Peach exclaimed happily as she, Daisy, and Toadette entered the castle lobby. “It’s been a long time since I remember feeling this refreshed!”

“Tell me about it, sister!” Daisy beamed. “Those spas in Bubblaine are elite! Heck, they give the ones in Sarasaland a run for their money! Our skin and hair have never looked or felt better!”

“Let’s not forget about the food!” Toadette chipped in. “I heard great things about the Luncheon Kingdom, but the dishes in Bubblaine have a great reputation for a reason, especially their seafood!”

“No kidding!” Daisy agreed while rubbing her stomach, making Peach and Toadette laugh. “I think I put on at least fifteen pounds alone from this trip!”

“Considering that you ate more than Toadette and me combined, it wouldn’t be surprising at all,” Peach smirked.

Daisy fake pouted before crossing her arms and turning her head. “Gee, thanks for the words of encouragement, Peach!” However, her pout quickly gave way to laughter, which made Peach and Toadette join her.

“As fun as this outing was, I’m exhausted!” Toadette yawned. “I think I’ll head home and try to get some rest. Thanks for inviting me, Peach and Daisy!”

Peach kneeled down and hugged the pink Toad. “Anytime, sweetie! Thank you for coming with us.”

“No problem, Peach! I’ll see y’all later!” Toadette received a crushing hug from Daisy after Peach finished hers. She quickly re-orientated herself before leaving the castle, causing Peach to smirk teasingly at Daisy.

“Don’t say a word,” Daisy returned the smirk. The princesses then giggled together before Peach unsuccessfully tried to smother a yawn with her hand.

“Toadette had the right idea,” she said. “I think I’ll get some rest too. The trip back takes a lot out of you.”

“I’m right there with you,” Daisy agreed. “As much as I want to give Mario and Luigi their souvenirs, I’m ready to catch some Z’s. Besides, it is late, so we can give them their gifts tomorrow.”

Peach nodded her head. “Well, I guess this is goodnight then. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Same here. Goodnight, Peach,” Daisy yawned. The princesses hugged each other before retreating to their rooms.

Despite the signs of sleep becoming more prominent in her body, Peach was still in an upbeat mood. As much as she loves running the Mushroom Kingdom and adores her people, she was glad to get away from her duties for at least one day. Spending quality time with two of her best friends only made everything better. She frowned a little knowing she would have to return to her responsibilities tomorrow, but she wouldn’t change anything for the world.

A tired smile formed on her face as she finally reached her bedroom. After absentmindedly running a hand through her purse, she grabbed her keys and unlocked the doors. What she witnessed made her eyes and mouth widen vastly and place a hand over her thumping heart.

Atop her four-poster bed stood a mountain of carnation pink roses stacked to the upper panel. Not a single inch went uncovered, and there appeared to be no threat of a single flower falling out of place. Despite the inconvenient sight, Peach was impressed by the creativity and structure, and a smile crept on her face in spite of her attempts to resist it.

“PEEEAAACH!” a loud familiar voice shrieked from the hall, snapping her back to reality. She turned around to see Daisy leaning at her door, huffing as if she ran the Yoshi Island marathon. Somehow, Peach held the laughter that threatened to escape from her lips in check.

“You won’t believe what’s…” Daisy began but stopped at noticing Peach’s bed. A smirk formed on her lips. “It looks like you were victimized as well.”

“Wait, you mean…” Peach started.

“Yep,” Daisy cut her off while chuckling. “I have a huge mountain of flowers on my bed as well, except mine are yellow daises.”

The laughter that Peach originally imprisoned broke from captivity and incredulously filled her room. Daisy placed a hand on her shoulder and added her laughter to the mix.

“Wanna guess who’s responsible?” Peach offered between laughs.

“Girl, we already know who did this!” Daisy hacked before regaining her composure. “Besides, I found this next to a vase of daisies on my desk. This clearly gives them away.”

She handed Peach an orange card with some writing inside. Peach read the card aloud:

Violets are blue, roses are red

Enjoy the daisies on your bed

My headstrong flower, best take heed

‘Fore on my face you plant your seed

- Luigi <3

Peach chuckled after returning the card to Daisy. “Well, at least it flowed nicely.”

“That’s my Weegee for ya!” Daisy said with some pride as she hugged the card. “With that said, let’s see if Mario left you something as well.”

Peach nodded as she turned her attention to her desk. Sitting right in the center was a pink vase filled with a few roses and a pink card leaning on the front. She immediately picked the card up and opened it. As with Daisy’s, she orated the writing, which was much sloppier than Luigi’s:

Ah princess, the sweetest fruit

I admit your prank was cute

But I return from the brink

To stack your bed with roses of pink

- Mario <3

“Did Luigi help him write that?” Daisy chuckled wryly.

“I wouldn’t put it past him,” Peach returned the chuckle. “Well, this was obviously payback for what we did to them yesterday.”

Daisy crossed her arms and huffed. “You’d think they appreciate it more. Most guys would repeatedly have Thwomps cave their heads in to receive what we gave those ungrateful jerks!”

“Now, now, Daisy,” Peach placed a hand on Daisy’s shoulder. “You have to admit we deserved this. Besides, I think it’s kind of sweet.”

“Oh Peach, I’m only kidding!” Daisy laughed. “We absolutely had this coming. I agree with you that it’s very sweet, all things considered. At least it was our favorite flowers.”

“True,” Peach agreed.

“However,” Daisy grinned impishly, “that doesn’t mean they will get away with this.”

Peach shook her head. “Oh, Daisy. We got them, they got us. We’re even now. Let’s leave it at that.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right,” Daisy conceded with a sigh. “With that said, we can still have some fun with them.”

Peach cocked an eyebrow. “What do you mean by that?”

Daisy shared her idea with Peach, and Peach found herself agreeing with it. The princesses giggled among themselves after Daisy finished.

“It should be fun!” Peach said before returning her attention to her bed. Her brow furrowed at the roses. “Well, it looks like we won’t be sleeping in our beds tonight at least.”

“Hmm,” Daisy nodded. “So, what are we going to do?”

Peach pondered about their conundrum for a moment before a solution formed in her mind. “You know the furniture in entertainment center have pop-out beds, right? We can sleep there tonight and have the flowers removed tomorrow.”

“Great idea, Peach!” Daisy beamed. “That settles it! We can even watch a movie and pop some popcorn while we’re down there! I’m going back to my room and grab my sleepwear. I’ll meet you there!” She rushed out of the room with as much gusto as she entered.

Peach shook her head in amusement at her friend before going to her wardrobe to grab her nightgown. As she grabbed the soft pink fabric, she remembered something that gave her pause. Her fellow princess makes Bowser sound like a cat purring contently while visiting Slumberland. Her mind flashed back to when she thought an illegal kart drag race was occurring outside of her castle the last time she and Daisy slept in the same room. Chuckling to herself, she grabbed a couple boxes of earplugs before heading to the entertainment center.

---

Two days later…

“Luigi, you ready?!” Mario called upstairs.

“Almost, Mario! I need to grab one more thing!”

Mario sighed as he shook his head. Yesterday afternoon, Peach invited him and Luigi to a picnic with her and Daisy via letter. The brothers accepted the invitation, of course, but one thing that troubled him was there was no mention of the flowers he and Luigi left in their rooms. He wasn’t sure if the princesses were trying to get them back for it, so he planned to be on full alert in case they had anything plotted.

A minute later, Luigi emerged from their room and met Mario downstairs. Instead of his usual green shirt and cap and blue overalls, he wore a green short-sleeved buttoned shirt with white Bloopers spread across it over a white T-shirt, a pair of khaki shorts, a green visor with a green ‘L’ encased in a white circle, white high socks, and a pair of green sneakers. In his hand were a pair of green sunglasses.

“Looking good, little brother!” Mario pointed finger guns at him with a grin.

“The same can be said for you, big bro!” Luigi returned the gesture.

Mario looked down to check his attire, which was similar to Luigi’s except his colors were red instead of green, and his shirt had white mushroom power-ups instead of Bloopers. His sunglasses were perched atop his visor, which had a red ‘M’ in the middle.

“Hey Mario,” Luigi began, “where are we going to meet the princesses? Do they want us to pick them up from the castle?”

Mario shook his head. “The princess texted me a few minutes ago and asked us to meet them at the park. They reserved a section for us ahead of time.”

Luigi nodded, “OK, that means we can head straight there. Let me grab the macaroni salad and drinks real quick!”

~~~

Mario and Luigi kept their eyes peeled for the princesses upon entering the park. Mario smiled at the Toads and friendly Goombas and Koopa Troopas enjoying themselves. There were even three Toad families celebrating birthdays with some festivities. He was happy the weather was ideal for any outdoor activity.

“Mario! Luigi! We’re over here!”

A familiar voice broke Mario out of his appreciative gaze as he looked in the direction from which it came. Princess Peach was waving at him from a picnic area. Mario tapped Luigi on the shoulder and pointed where Peach and Daisy were. The brothers shared a quick nod before racing towards the table. Luigi had to be more cautious since he was carrying the bowl with the macaroni salad. They stopped a few feet short of the area, and Mario’s jaw dropped in appreciation of what awaited him.

Peach was wearing a soft pink sleeveless mini dress with a low neckline. The dress also showcased her long slender legs and hugged her body as if were an additional layer of skin. It was similar to her tennis outfit but more revealing; it appeared one can slightly see-through the fabric, which was some of a shock since Rosalina was the only woman who was more modest than Peach regarding their clothing. That didn’t mean Peach was afraid to show any skin, however. Completing the ensemble was a white sunhat with a pink ribbon around it over her ponytailed hair, gold dangling bracelets from her wrists, and a pair of pink wedge heel platform sandals.

After he returned to normal, Mario quickly checked on Luigi, only to see he was just as mesmerized as him, except his focus was mostly on Daisy. The Sarasaland princess wore an orange sleeveless crisscross blouse that displayed a healthy portion of her flat toned abs, a pair of white shorts that stopped at just above mid-thigh, an orange ribbon around her hair, and a pair of orange wedge heel platform sandals. Mario thought he saw drool form on the corner of Luigi’s lips, and he couldn’t blame him. Daisy was certainly showing more skin than Peach, which was nothing out of the norm for the girls.

“Hey boys!” Daisy approached and greeted them with a hug. Mario returned the hug with little issue. The same couldn’t be said for Luigi, however. It took him a few seconds before he returned Daisy’s hug.

His brain must have short-circuited seeing Daisy’s outfit, Mario snickered to himself. He shook his head from hypocritically thinking that because he had nearly the same reaction when he laid eyes on Peach.

Speaking of whom, she also approached and hugged him and Luigi. Mario was enthralled by her hair's strawberry aroma and the floral scent of her perfume. He complained inwardly when they broke the hug, for he wanted to get lost in her pleasant scents for a little while longer.

“Nice to see the two of you make it!” Peach flashed a huge bright smile, the one that never failed to make Mario weak in the knees. “You guys look great!”

“T-Thanks,” Mario stammered. “So you do two!” He mentally kicked himself for acting like a shy schoolboy talking to his crush for the first time. Luigi was the one who usually behaved in such a manner. Speaking of his brother, his snickers did not escape Mario’s ears, which made Mario chuckle to himself. He would get his revenge on him some time in the near future.

“Glad you seem to think so!” Daisy winked as she struck a flirty pose, causing her blouse to rise some. From the corner of his eye, Mario could’ve sworn he saw a trickle of blood threatening to drop from Luigi’s nose. The poor guy would be gushing a red geyser if Daisy kept this up all day.

“Oh, is that for the picnic?” Peach asked Luigi upon seeing the bowl he was holding. Luigi could only nod weakly in response before stretching his arms towards her. Peach took the bowl with an appreciative close-eyed smile and placed it on the table before returning. She did the same with the drinks Mario forgot he was holding.

“Again, I’m happy you two accepted my invitation to join Daisy and me on this picnic,” Peach addressed the brothers. Her smile then became perter. “We’ll start eating soon but before we do that, however, you know Daisy, Toadette, and I visited Bubblaine two days ago, right?”

Mario gulped heavily, for he figured this was the part where the princesses exact their revenge for the floral surprise that he and Luigi left them. Unable to speak at the moment because of his throat rapidly going dry, he only nodded his head in response.

“Well,” Peach continued, the smile never leaving her face, “during our time there we came across something that we thought both of you would enjoy, so Daisy and I purchased them and wish to give them to you now.”

Mario was caught off-guard since he thought Peach would mention their prank. However, fought off a smile when she told them she and Daisy got them something.

“Oh, you didn’t have to, you know,” Mario nervously rubbed the back of his head.

“You’re right, we didn’t have to,” Daisy interjected, making Mario frown. She then flashed a comforting smile towards the brothers. “But we did anyway because you two are very special to us. As much as Peach and I would love to bless you with them, you two have to shut your eyes first.”

“Wait, do we have to?” Luigi asked in a nearly whiny matter.

“No,” Daisy answered with a small smile. “but Peach and I want to surprise you.” Peach nodded in agreement. “So, unless there are any more questions, could you both please close your eyes for us?”

Mario blinked at the request and was about to raise an objection. When Peach and Daisy flirtatiously batted their eyelashes towards him and Luigi, however, he knew he didn’t stand a chance. Luigi already had his eyes closed, so Mario followed suit, chuckling along the way.

No sooner than he did, he felt something being placed around his neck. The next thing he knew, his visor was removed from his head and replaced with what felt like a round thing that perfectly fit his head shape. This item rubbed gently against his forehead, and a familiar fragrance entered his senses.

“OK, you can open your eyes now!” Peach’s voice sang perkily.

Mario didn’t need to be told twice as his eyes reacquainted themselves with the surrounding sights. He glanced down to see a wide oval-shape necklace made of large pebbles whose polished surfaces glinted prettily under the sun. He turned to face Luigi, who had a similar necklace around his collar, except his pebbles were green. However, something else made his eyes expand curiously. A well-crafted crown of daisies adorned his brother’s head in lieu of his green visor. Seeing Luigi wearing such a thing gave Mario a good notion of what was on his own head, and the thought made him grin despite himself.

“So,” Peach addressed the brothers, “what do you think?”

“Princess, these necklaces are wonderful!” Mario answered happily, with Luigi nodding in agreement. “It’s easy to tell a lot of care was placed in crafting these.”

Peach nodded in confirmation. “We discovered these beautiful multi-colored pebbles at the beach. A friendly Bubblainian noticed and offered to make jewelry from them. We were skeptical at first, but to gain our trust he created this gorgeous pendant from one of the pebbles right in front of us! That was enough for us to want to have some jewelry made. Daisy, Toadette, and I each had pendants made for ourselves, then we decided to have something created for you two.”

“Well, we certainly appreciate you keeping us in mind during your getaway,” Mario smiled. “By the way, I have a feeling I already know the answer, but how was it?”

“It was one of the best trips I’ve ever taken!” Daisy gushed as she leaped in the air. “This was my first time visiting the Seaside Kingdom, and I’ve read a lot of rave reviews about the place. Let me tell you, those reviews did not do it justice! There was so much to do, and the residents there were some of the nicest people you could ever come across. In fact, I’m ready to go back again. Say, why don’t the four of us schedule a future date to visit?”

“That sounds like a great idea!” Peach jumped in. “Mario, Luigi, what do you think?”

Mario shared a nod and grin with Luigi before returning his attention to Peach. “You know we’re down to go anywhere with you two, except Isle Delfino!” Everyone chuckled at Mario’s comments.

“Great!” Peach exclaimed happily. “I’ll have to check the calendar and see which date works the best for us!”

“Sounds good, Princess,” Luigi smiled. “I’m happy you two had a great time. Both of you deserve to get away once in a while.”

“Thanks, Weegee!” Daisy grinned cheerfully. However, her grin became gradually more impish. “Speaking of deserving, did you two notice the other thing we gave you?”

Sweat began to decorate Mario’s forehead because he knew this was where the hammer was about to come down. There was zero chance he and Luigi could deny their deed since they left enough evidence for the princesses to ascertain who was responsible.

“Y-Yeah,” Mario blurted out unconfidently.

“Peach and I have to admit your prank was clever,” Daisy stared, the grin never leaving her face. “To do it while we were away even more ingenious. Did you know how long it took us to clean everything up?” Mario and Luigi could only shake their heads.

“I’ll tell you,” Daisy continued, “it took us quite a while. Oh yeah, I should tell you Toadsworth was not too fond of your prank. It took all of Star Haven to stop him from marching to your home and greeting you with his cane upside your heads!”

“Hehe, thanks,” Mario chuckled nervously. “We appreciate that.”

Peach nodded before chiming in, “it wasn’t a total waste, however. We didn’t want to throw those beautiful flowers away, so we came up with ways to preserve them. Some were planted in the castle garden. Others were given away to the people. Also, we helped Minh T. plant a lot of them around the kingdom. We kept some for ourselves. Lastly, we created those crowns for you with the few remaining.”

“T-That’s nice to hear,” Luigi stammered.

“Although we couldn’t sleep in our beds that night thanks to you two, despite us admittedly earning it for what we did to you,” Daisy said, the last part of the sentence spoken quietly, “we like you so much we gave you two gifts instead of the one. Thank your lucky stars Peach and I aren’t completely vindictive!”

Mario and Luigi did nothing but nod. Daisy grinned again with a mischievous glint in her eye as she sauntered towards Luigi, making the younger Mario brother gulp. Her grin spread wider before honking his nose.

“Hey, what…”

A peck on the tip of his nose, leaving an orange kiss mark in the process, instantly silenced what was sure to be a protest from Luigi’s lips. Luigi’s face rapidly became crimson as a droopy-eyed grin spread across his face.

“You’re lucky you’re cute!” Daisy grinned huskily, to which Luigi could only weakly nod.

Mario shook his head while chuckling as Daisy gave Luigi a small hug. He continued to watch them when a pair of hands firmly placed on his shoulders turned him around. Before he could properly react to what was happening, those same hands gently cuffed his cheeks, followed immediately by the softest lips he’s ever felt quickly pressing themselves on the edge of his nose. His face felt like a volcano on the verge of erupting as his eyelids traveled halfway over his eyes.

“Although it was revenge for our actions, it was still a sweet gesture,” Peach spoke softly as her long silky soft fingers tenderly stroked Mario’s cheeks. A bright mirthful grin then flashed on her face. “It looks like we’re even now.”

Mario, like Luigi, only nodded feebly as he remained in a blissful state. If there was one weakness he and Luigi had, it was having their noses kissed, no matter how big or small the pecks. Both princesses knew this, and they weren’t above taking advantage of it when they felt like it. Nonetheless, Mario never complained, for he would never reject nor grow weary of such a thing. Besides, he knew the princesses loved them as well.

“Time for a group selfie!” Daisy’s energetic voice rang in the air as she disrupted the intimacy between Mario and Peach by grabbing their hands. The two of them shared a laugh as they along with Daisy and Luigi posed in front of Daisy’s phone being held by a selfie stick.

“Everyone, give me your brightest smiles! I don’t want to see anyone frowning!” Daisy jokingly admonished. “Ready?! Three…two…one!” A quick light flashed from the phone, indicating the picture being taken.

“OK, one more!” Daisy exclaimed cheerfully. She counted from three again before snapping another picture. This time around, a loud gasp filled the air during the flash.

“I’m sending everyone the pictures now!” Daisy informed everyone.

As soon as she pressed the send button, the familiar chime of the original Super Mario Brothers theme sounded on Mario’s phone. He took it out and opened the attachments from Daisy. The first picture had everyone smiling widely, and Mario chuckled when he saw he had a kiss print in the middle of his nose as well, except his was pink of course. A glance at the second picture had him trying his best not to sound like a hyena. What had him reacting this way was Daisy smooching a red-faced Luigi on the cheek and Luigi leaping with his eyes and mouth open as wide as humanly possible. He knew where the gasp came from at least.

“Did everyone get the pictures?” Daisy asked. The other three confirmed they did with a nod. “Good, because I’m starving! Let’s eat!” She then wrapped an arm around Luigi’s shoulder, making him blush again.

“Come on, sweetie! I hear you make a mean macaroni salad. I want to try it out!”

“Hold on, Daisy! No need to be so eager!” Luigi cried out as Daisy dragged him by the hand towards the picnic table, his heels skidding in the grass.

“That's one battle Luigi will never win!” Mario laughed to himself. A familiar pair of soft hands intimately grabbed his arm, causing him to almost get lost in Peach’s baby blue eyes.

“I’m feeling a little hungry myself,” Peach batted her eyes. “Will you care to accompany me to the table?”

Mario good-naturedly rubbed his chin. “Let me think about it for a second. You know I will, Princess!”

A soft mellifluous laugh flowed from Peach’s lips before she flashed Mario another bright smile that he thought could stand toe-to-toe with the sun. “Well then, let’s-a go before Daisy really gets going!”

“No need to tell me twice, Princess!” Mario laughed as he and Peach walked towards the table holding hands.

Mario reflected on the past few days up to the picnic. While there was a mini prank war between the battle of the sexes, it was all in good nature as neither side went out of their way to deliberately hurt each other. In fact, both pranks showed the respect and admiration each side had for one another. In the end, it could be argued that he and Luigi strengthened their bonds with the princesses when it’s all said and done.

He didn’t know what the future held, but he was going to live in the present and enjoy this moment with his brother and the princesses.

#new fic #sequel to “Leaving Their Marks Behind”#posted on ao3 #Mario #Luigi #Princess Peach #Princess Daisy #Minh T.#Toadette #Mareach #Luaisy #mario fanfiction #tee's writing

8 notes · View notes