#anyways hes green arrow always and forever to me <3< /div>
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themyscirah · 5 months ago
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"Hawke" is no more!
Edit from Green Arrow (2023) #13
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knighteclipsed · 2 months ago
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If you want to try talking to the brat, feel free to send an ask or something anytime before the board ends! (Just make it clear somehow you're interacting with the kid and not the adult lol) You can also. like. send me the word 'tooth' I guess and I'll answer with him interacting with your muse instead!! Probably something short without any biting involved (unless you want him to bite your muse? idk.) Don't mind the word choice, that's just the first thing that came to mind lmao
Full annotated design beneath the cut fdsnjfksdn
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Age: ~13 years old. (i basically shaved off a good couple decades of life experience) His worldview hasn't changed much, it just looks a bit different because he's tiny and puny and not strong!!
Other Notes:
His hair is still really long! It's only shoulder-length hair here because his parents make him cut it. Keep that shit out of your eyes, boy!
Uhhhh his eyes are only yellow! That was my default for him anyway because that's what you see in his FE8 official art and his in-game sprites, but Heroes blued them so I said "fuck it. why not both?" I marked the change to happen post-Jehanna though, so now they're just yellow (not beating the fake morph allegations /lh)
Old man face. Crow's feet. They were always there he's just like that idk what else to tell you :person_shrugging:
green is his favorite color :]
I could flip a coin to decide which parent sewed on the green trim onto his tunic, but it's not that serious fr. He'll tell me eventually (maybe) (probably), but it was a parent!
Belt for attaching useful things! When he's not carrying around hunting gear though, it just has his dagger. because he's small and would like to keep himself strapped at all times /lh
Bows are kinda da BOMB bro!! Draws with his right hand; he keeps his left forearm strapped so he can pick up a bow and arrow and fire at a moment's notice.
since he's still in his 'living with family' era his brother can show up in his recent memory again omg <3 (he's the little ipad kid in the drawing) (he's not an ipad kid) (he's only about 2 and a half years younger than valter)
Makes strong opinions on people WICKEDLY fast. Piss him off and he will hate you forever!!!!
okay bye thank you for coming to my TedTalk <3
edit: OH YEAH I WANTED TO INCLUDE HOW HIS HEIGHT COMPARED get clowned kid (affectionate)
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(he's now the same height as these two^^)
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slaapkat · 3 years ago
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so about ollie accidentally giving hal the brokeback mountain experience… care to elaborate on that lmao?
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I wanna preface by saying I have seen Brokeback Mountain and it was a beautifully tragic movie that made me cry and it deserves much more praise than it was ever given, and my comment is in no way meant to woobify everything that went on.
that being said, purely in the context of hal/ollie, I like to think at some point during the hard traveling heroes era roadtrip, hal and ollie hooked up once or twice or four or six times. maybe more. who knows.
ollie comes off to me as a man who'll say he's straight if asked but is actually a deeply deeply closeted bi man. it's a part of himself he's uncomfortable with and he largely ignores because by contrast he's EXTREMELY comfortable with the rest of himself. this comes from the 3-4 men he has such a weird emotionally tense relationships with over the course of the Grell run. he has a whole cruising outfit ready to go and everything in one arc. it's a pattern.
hal however is somewhat more at ease. sure he has a string of unsuccessful girlfriends that he can't seem to figure out why it won't ever work but it doesn't bother him TOO much other than feeling a little lost (that's canon at least!). if he's aware he's bi before the hard traveling days it's not an issue because growing up with two brothers he's more socially conditioned to not think about it/think more about women anyways.
THEN COMES THE FAMOUS ROAD TRIP.
ollie's unfaithful, we all know that, everyone in universe knows that, and his relationship with dinah doesn't even get serious until the end of it all anyways. at some point, it's easy enough for me to imagine ollie gets bored enough in between meetups with her that. well. hal's not too bad looking, is he.
long story short, ollie gives hal his bi awakening that irrevocably changes his life forever. writers during that era mention this longing hal has that makes him unable to hold down a job or stay in place for long, and maybe it's this longing that makes hal think ollie holds the answer to that.
so they sleep together a few times, and it always always means so much more to hal than it does ollie. even in canon it's pretty apparent hal holds their friendship in much higher regard than ollie ever does, such as in Action Comics Weekly #606 when hal asks for a place to stay and ollie very bluntly blows him off:
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But! it was only ever a casual fling for ollie. the road-trip ends, hal goes back to being effectively homeless, and ollie goes back to dinah. ollie gets a job. a steady, successful one even. hal's lost again, stuck in that moment. forever stuck in that era to the point that when he's well and truly lost it as Parallax, it's the first thing he goes back to as shown in Green Arrow #96 when he's so desperate for any stability that he clings to what's clearly that last time he was happy and comfortable:
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like, literally. to the point hal practically considers what he had with ollie on that road-trip home. clearly, whatever happened stuck with him, whereas ollie only ever did his best to forget.
so. ollie accidentally gave hal the brokeback mountain experience in giving him his bi awakening and then immediately pretending as though nothing ever happened. hal's stuck forever hoping for that closeness again and never gets it back. the hard traveling days are his brokeback mountain.
however, on their better moments, ollie does still call hal BABY like the good ol' days like in Cry for Justice #1 <3
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edit: for other choice hal ollie insanity moments, check here
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baecvlt · 4 years ago
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Stalker Nagito Komaeda x Milf!Reader
this was requested via my twitter:
“Hey! i’ve seen your works and I’m in love. Can I request smut where a stalker Nagito Komaeda becomes obsessed with a milf reader who moves into the neighborhood who’s like a dom in bed and ya know just large bust and taller than him. Thank youuu🤍”
a/n: ofc. but I have my own idea of a dom which i’ll use involving certain things (heed warnings)
warnings: he is so obviously a virgin in this, degradation, slight masochism, asphyxiation, spit, also Nagito calls the reader mommy (side note: nagito is in his early 20s in this, he lives alone. age of reader isn’t specified BUT I say she’s in her late 20s/early 30s)
• • •
It was a bright day...which Nagito despised. It was summer. He hated the sun, hated the mosquitoes, and the unnecessary humidity. It was days like these he wishes he was back at his university dorm. The A/C, the tall tree covering his window and blocking the sun...it was perfect. Hell, he didn’t even hate classes. Yet, he couldn’t live in the dorms forever. When it came time to buy a home, he stupidly did so in fall, moved in during the winter.
Well, no shit the home seemed perfect then. It wasn’t fucking summer. His A/C decided to break, his windows has a great view of the sun, and most of his friends were out of town (all except Hajime, but Hajime is fucking boring and a bummer). Nagito sat on his couch, watching reruns of old tv shows. He took a sip from his nearby glass (cold water), suddenly hearing sounds of what appeared to be a loading van. He looked outside his window.
A moving van?
Right, that one old man who lived there passed away. Freak accident, by the way. Oh well, may he rest in peace. Meanwhile, Nagito was being himself and trying to see who it was. Pretty much, the dude was being nosy. He saw another car pull up. That must’ve been the family’s car. Out jumped 3 kids, what appeared to be 2 girls and 1 boy. An adult stepped out. Nagito decided he’d get a better look at the situation. He put on his shirt, black jeans, and his green hood.
He was “going for a walk”.
Without being noticed, he made his way to the other side of the street. It was a woman, she was taking boxes out of the truck. The minute Nagito saw her it was if he was stricken by Cupid’s arrow. She was tall and beautiful. Her skin complimented her hair and her legs, he couldn’t take his eyes off them. Her breasts...he needed to stop—
“Hi!”
She was in front of him, a warm and inviting smile on her face. “H-Hi,” he muttered. She didn’t hear him well, so it helped that he waved. “I’m new in the neighborhood. We just moved in,” she added, putting the box down. She stuck her hand out, going for a handshake. He shook her hand, her warm hand against his cold ones. Why are his hands always cold? “I see,” he responded, getting his shit together,“I’m Nagito Komaeda. I live across the street”. She introduced herself and complimented his house.
“What a lovely home. I hope the neighborhood is just as lovely”
“It should be. It’s pretty quiet. There’s not many families here. Say, can I help you pack?”
“You’re too sweet! I’d really appreciate it”
He helped take all the boxes in her home, helping load a couch too, and help with other large objects. They finished in 9 hours, taking a majority of the day. “Thanks for helping out, Nagito”. She made a lemonade, handing him a glass.
“Don’t mention it! Also, thank you”
One of the kids ran in the living room where they sat on the couch. He gasped when he saw Nagito. “Mommy! That man looks dead!!!”. Nagito smiled, but his mom was not amused. “Michael! Apologize..”. The kid kept smiling and said,“Sorry!”. He ran to another room. “I’m so sorry,” she muttered. Nagito shook his head.
“Hey, I’m rather malnourished”
“Ha. On an unrelated topic, are you hungry? I could make us something”
“Oh, I shouldn’t linger any longer. I wouldn’t want to disturb your husband”
She laughed. “I know you mean no harm, but I’m not married,” she added. “Oh,” Nagito muttered,“I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean it in any way”. She shook her head and reassured him it was fine. “Sit, Nagito,” she pulled out a chair,“I’m not letting you refuse having dinner with us. Especially since you were such help”. She rubbed his back before heading back into the kitchen to begin cooking.
She made him a bowl of pasta, adding chicken on the side. Nagito was quite happy. He hadn’t eaten a good meal in so long. Her kids didn’t eat at the table, but on the counter. Meanwhile, she ate with Nagito. Just as Nagito thought he couldn’t grow fonder of her, he did just that. All she did was let him talk about himself.
“Jesus, I’m sorry about your parents? How are you keeping yourself afloat with university and expenses?”
“Academic scholarships”
“Wow, you’re such a smart boy”
The way she phrased it made him flustered. “Thank you for the meal, ma’am,” he muttered,“I haven’t eaten like this in who knows how long”. She smiled tenderly, picking up his empty plate. “Seconds?”. He shook his head.
“No, thank you. I’m already so full”
“I’m glad. You know, there’s always a meal for you in store if you can do me a favor”
“What’s that?”
“My oldest daughter has her final test this week. You think you can help her study? I’ll make you a nice, warm meal every time you come over”
Nagito thought about it. He would also have time around her. Plus, she wasn’t a bad cook. “Of course, I look forward to it,” he told her. “Lovely”. He got up and excused himself to go home. “It was nice having you over, Nagito,” she said softly. He could tell she was getting sleepy. When people are tired, Nagito has noticed that their tone is rather sheepish. She walked him to the door, ruffling his hair playfully and he blushed. “Goodnight, neighbor”.
“Goodnight, you”
Before he left, she stopped him and handed him a paper: (xxx) xxx-xxxx ♡
“Call me when you get home so I have your number saved. Then, I can call you when my daughter, Vanessa, needs help. Take care, okay?”
He nodded.
She closed the door, his thoughts racing on his way home. He picked up some things about her, things she didn’t even tell him. He went home and opened a notebook, writing all of it down. He called her and she answered, her voice as sweet as when he left (only sleepier). “Hello?”. His breath was heavy without realizing it as he spoke. “H-Hey, you told me to call you,” he breathed,“It’s Nagito...Komaeda”
“Oh, hey, angel! I’m not interrupting anything am I?”
“What? No, it’s all good— why’d you think so?”
“You sound like you need to catch your breath, but anyway, thanks for calling me. I’ve saved your number now”
“Oh, great! Well, if that’s all, I’ll let you go to bed now”
“It was. Goodnight, Nagito”
“G-Goodnight”
He hung up, flustered more than ever as he continued to jot down his thoughts on paper. The next day, he woke up at 6am to wait in his car. He knew what he was doing was wrong, but he couldn’t help it. At around 7:41am, his front neighbor and kids headed for their car. Nagito, who had taken a light nap in the driver’s seat, was awoken by the car starting. He waited for the car to drive away just slightly past his house to start his own car, slowly tailing behind her.
He dropped her kids off at the nearby elementary. She got off, kissed them on their forehead (all minus the eldest, who walked swiftly through the gates). Seeing how she cared for them made Nagito feel bad, but all he did was brush that feeling off. Next, he followed her through her daily. As he did, his notes from last night echoed through his mind, adding new detail.
“She works at an office not everyday She doesn’t have allergies but is sensitive to dust Red seems to be her favorite color but always in a darker shade Her daughter is around 10 years old She isn’t vegan but enjoys almond milk Maybe has an issues with abandonment but I can’t assume that either She buys many apples but not the same amount of bananas at the store so maybe she only eats the bananas—”
Just more to add to his notebook.
He got home before she did, writing down what he had learned. His phone rang about an hour later of him getting home. He picked it up,“Hello?”. “Nagito, hi!”. It was her. He started having a mini-panic attack, because why would she be calling him? “H-Hey, how are you?”
“I’m doing alright. I was wondering if you could come over and tutor Vanessa”
Oh, thank god.
“Yes, of course. I’ll be down there right now”
“Great. See you then!”
He was relieved, heading to her home happily. He knocked on the door. When she opened it, she did so with the same warm smile as yesterday. “Thank you for coming over,” she said,“She’s in her room”. Nagito nodded, freezing when she grabbed his hand and took him to the room. Her touch was so soft, noted. They got to the room, where a girl was reading a book on a desk. “Nessa?”. The girl turned around.
“Nagito is going to be here for a few hours to help you out with homework and studying. He’s really smart, so pay attention and be respectful”
“Okay, mom”
She nodded, squeezing Nagito’s shoulder before leaving. Nagito approached the girl, she took her things out. Before he could speak, she stopped him. “Please don’t call me ‘Nessa’,” she whispered,“It’s bad enough my mom does, but not you, Please”.
“Don’t worry. I wasn’t planning on referring to you at all”
“Bastard”
“Nessa”
“I guess I walked right into that one”
Nagito laughed, grabbing a chair and sitting next to her. Her work wasn’t what he expected. Is this what they’re teaching kids now? He could’ve sworn he hadn’t seen this type of stuff until he hit middle school. It wasn’t anything he couldn’t do, but damn. All in all, tutoring went well. Vanessa actually learned something today. “Good job!,” he said. “Thank you,” she smiled and hugged him,“I felt so stupid”.
“Hey, its okay not to understand things”
Her mom walked in. “Dinner’s ready”. Vanessa got up and went to the kitchen. “How’d it go?,” she asked Nagito. “Went well, she gets the math now,” he answered. She smiled, thanking him for his help and asking him to join them for dinner. He’d be foolish not to, so he accepted the invite.
Fish tacos were served tonight with rice and beans, another lemonade made. It was different than anything Nagito had ever had, but that doesn’t equate to bad. He actually enjoyed the meal. The kids sat at the main table today, much more respectful than yesterday. “Michael how was school?”. He put a thumbs up, getting back to eating. “And Adrianna?”. She looked up from her meal and shrugged. “What’s wrong?”.
“I’m tired, but class was okay”
“Oh, okay. When you’re done, just take a quick shower and get to bed”
“Thanks”
Nagito thought it was endearing. Seeing how understanding and loving she was, it was refreshing. The kids all eventually left, Nagito finishing his meal. “Did you like it?”. He looked at her, nodding. “Great! Seconds?”.
“Full again. I don’t usually eat, but your food is always so good”
“Oh, you’re just saying things...”
“No, really! Thank you”
He said his goodbyes to the family, walking back home. It was as if he was falling for this woman more and more everyday. He went to sleep, this time dreaming of her. He never dreams, but this time he dreamt she was on her knees for him. Then, nothing else. It was as if his dream teased him.
The next morning, he woke up to some knocking on the door. He looked at the time. 8:23am. He put on a pair of jeans and his shirt, walking to his door. He opened it and there she stood, wearing a black dress and red heels. He assumed she had work and needed a favor before going. “Good morning,” he said.
“Were you following me yesterday?”
Shit.
“I, uh...,” he didn’t know what to answer. He was indeed following her yesterday. He also liked her, so if he straight up said that he was to following her, it’d ruin things. His face was glowing a shade of pink to a slight red as he thought of the right answer. He was still stumbling over his words. “I think it’s kinda cute,” she added. The fuck? “Huh?”. She pushed him inside the house, closing and locking the door behind him. “When a boy follows someone around, it’s because he wants something,” she added, but her tone was so sultry,“Well, Nagito—”. She pushed him onto the couch, leaning in front of him with her hands on his chest.
“—What do you want?”
None of what was happening felt real. Nagito couldn’t find the words to express what exactly he wanted. This was the first time he’d ever been in a situation like this, it wasn’t a bad one either. He began to panic when she straddled him. “Could it be that you wanted me?,” she asked. He frantically nodded and she laughed as she locked her lips with his. He gasped against her lips, kissing back. She slowly trailed her kisses down to his neck, cupping his jaw while grinding on his lap. Nagito moaned, his shaky hands grabbing her ass. She grabbed his hands and put them away from her. “It’s cute that you’re getting this carried away”.
“I’m sorry”
“No time to apologize. Get on your knees for mommy”
Nagito was about to lose his mind when she said that, but he obeyed. Her presence was domineering as he stood on his knees against his carpeted floor. She spread her legs, noticing Nagito desperately trying to get a look. Her red heel stopped him, stepping on his head lightly. “Am I teasing you?,” she asked,“It’s okay to be honest”.
“Y-You are, but its okay. I want to be teased by you”
“You’re adorable,” she took her heel off his head,“Let’s go to your room”.
He practically ran to his bed. He sat and waited patiently. She entered the room, heading to his bed. She began to take off his shirt, admiring his frame. She then unbuckled his belt and unzipped his jeans. He kicked them off and sat down. She sat next to him. “Give me your hands”. She held them, frowning slightly. “Boo, they’re so cold,” she teased,“I’ll warm them up for you”. Carefully, she grabbed his left hand, putting his middle and ring finger in her mouth. She licked to his fingertips, leaving him tense and speechless. She stopped and smiled at him.
“This is your first time, isn’t it?”
He nodded shyly. “Don’t be shy,” she said,“I’m going to guide you, but I’m also going to have my fun”. He gulped, nodded. She stood up and removed her dress. She wore a lacy black bra and panties. She brought his hands to her breasts, allowing him to fondle them. They were huge in his hands. “You like them, baby?”. “Y-Yes,” he muttered,“Can you, uh, take....the bra off?”. He was ashamed when asking, he felt desperate. She smiled and nodded, unhooking it and allowing the bra to fall to the ground. He gasped at the sight of her tits, grabbing them. She straddled him.
“Do you know what to do with them?”
He nodded, rubbing one and sucking the other. She moaned sweetly, grinding on his lap. He popped his mouth off them. That was when she took the opportunity to knock him onto the bed. She began to make out with him, shoving his tongue down her throat. They lay sideways. Her hand was on his neck, slightly choking him. He couldn’t resist but try to grind on her lap. She laughed. “Look at you,” she mocked,“Humping my leg like a desperate little puppy”. She didn’t let him speak, sitting up and pushing him back down. “I’m going to give you what you want,” she whispered in his ear,“Take your cock out”.
He was nervous as he did, hands shaky. She blushed a bit at his size. “It’s so big,” she said, straddling him,“I’m going to have my way with it”. “Please, do what you want to me,” he begged,“Abuse me, please”. She didn’t speak, sinking down on it. Nagito gasped, she was extremely wet. She began to bring her hips up and land straight down on it, repeatedly. She put her hands around his throat, now being rougher. Nagito gasped for air, grabbing her hands.
That was a mistake.
“Hands down,” she ordered, striking him across the face. “Sorr-”. He was slapped once again. “Only speak when you’re spoken to”. He nodded as his stomach began to cave in. His cock twitched each time she slapped him, making her moan. She leaned forward, capturing his earlobe between her teeth. He winced, his hands tangling in the sheets. He felt as though his entire body was blushing.
“You’re so sensitive there”
She teased him, kissing the skin and nibbling. His hips involuntarily snapped upward, making her whine. “You’re so desperate, baby,” she laughed,“it’s so cute”. He could feel her warmth running along his cock. He bit into his hand, trying to stop himself from cumming inside her. It worked, but she didn’t like him doing that. She grabbed his hands and kissed them.
“Don’t hurt yourself, put them right here”
She placed them on her boobs. He watched them bounce up and down, grabbing them gently. His rather large hands seemed small on her tits. He was extremely flushed. He took them off her and placed them on her hips. “Open your mouth”. He lay back more and did as he was told. She leaned forward, grabbing his jaw again as she spit into it and kissed him. He moaned when she did, his urges getting the best to him and thrusting upward. He hit her cervix every time, causing her to produce the sweetest and sluttiest of moans. Her walls tightened around him and now he was whining. “Are you gonna cum, honeybun?,” she asked.
“Y-Yes..”
“Where do you wanna cum?”
“I wanna cum...everywhere. I want it. I want it so bad. I wanna cum inside and on your tits, on your ass, y-your face..mouth. Please let me cum, mommy”
She motivated him, riding him harder. “Come on, Nagito,” she whispered,“Cum for mommy. Cum all the way inside her”. He lost his mind after that, groaning as he shot his load(s) inside her. He was still inside her as he tried catching his breath. She rubbed his chest, shushing him. “Good boy, you did so well,” she cooed,“Such a good boy.” He was covering his face, embarrassed and still hard. “I wasn’t too rough, was I?,” she asked. He shook his head, thinking,“Not rough enough”. He whined when she got off, revealing he was still erect. She noticed.
“You wanna go again, baby? Kids don’t leave school till 2:30. We have time for an extra fuck”
“C-Can I?”
“Yes, dummy”
She let Nagito choose how to fuck her. He wanted missionary, mostly because he craved intimacy and she did not disappoint. She kissed and praised him, telling him he was good. She held onto him the whole time and cuddled him afterwards. Nagito felt so special, he felt loved. “I can come over when I don’t have work,” she said,“Would you like that?”.
“I’d love that actually”
“You make me happy, Nagito. I could stay here and cuddle all day”
“I feel so lucky”
He yawned, looking at the clock. “Its 10,” he told her. She nuzzled his chest, humming. “Mmmm, let’s take a small nap,” she whispered,“Okay?”. “Okay”. He kissed the top of her head and held her to him, slowly joining her in slumber.
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darylsgirl · 4 years ago
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The Farmers Daughter                       Daryl Dixon Smut 18+
Request: Hey i really love all your stories. Could you do one where, the reader is Hershel's daughter and she has just turned 21 and she has a massive crush on Daryl. She is tired of being babied by the entire family ( they won't let her out of prison gates cause she's young) so she asks to go on a run with Daryl as her 21st bday gift. On the run she kinda seduces him and smut ensues.
Also she has kinda tried to seduce him at the prison before too (just subtle hints)
Please please take my request 🥺🥺🥺
Hey guys! Here’s my first ever story written for a request! Hope you liked the way it turned out Anon! And i hope your all having a lovely day <3
Love Jen x
                                                    Masterlist 
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You had to admit it was a beautiful day. Looking out across the prison yard, If you ignored the walkers groaning at the fences and well... the whole end of the world thing it might have been a perfect day. Everyone was feeling safe and relaxed for the first time in a long time and enjoying the day as you would have before the end. 
Approaching your dad seeing the relaxed look on his face, You’d thought this would be the perfect opportunity to ask him to let you go out on a run, You were the middle green daughter and he didn’t let you forget it. It was so unfair! He always let Maggie and Beth do whatever they wanted but kept you close by at all times wanting to teach you all he could about medicine, Treating you like nothing more than a baby even though you had just turned 21. 
As always when you asked to go with Daryl his face turned to stone. “You know my feelings on this Y/N, Your much too young, Everyone has a job to do and yours is here” 
“Dad please! I’ve been training, I can take care of myself. You let Beth go! She’s younger than me! Stop treating me like a child” 
“Y/N that’s enough, I said no” 
Knowing you wouldn’t get anything further out of him you stormed off it probably didn’t help things that you were maybe acting like a bit of a child right now. But you couldn’t help it, you were so mad! He had to know you were no longer a child. Most middle children get ignored but not you, He was more strict when it came to you, Babied you constantly. Even before the end Maggie and Beth loved it of course it meant they got away with more because he was always so focused on you. 
Part of you understood why. There had been a nasty incident a few years back with a boy from school which ended in your dad having to pull a shot gun at him to get him to stay away from you. Smiling you remembered the prick’s probably dead now, You’d definitely gotten the last laugh!
Ever since then Hershel had been extremely protective of you, He’d let you attend self defence classes and even taught you to shoot, Which is why it was so mind boggling that he wouldn’t let you do your part. You felt useless just sitting around all day reading old medical books and occasionally helping fix someone up. 
You wanted more than anything to be out there, Pulling your weight helping feed this family! You needed to be out there….With him.
When Daryl had appeared on your family’s farm that day on his motorbike, Your knees almost went weak. That was a man, He was sheer perfection. Unfortunately for you he was a bit of a standoffish man. 
You tried for weeks to get his attention shyly moving closer to him whenever he was around, Whenever he even looked at you he caused the blush to rise in your cheeks.
When he had fallen onto his arrow you were there mopping his brow as he slept. Sadly when he woke he only gave you a grunt of acknowledgement. But still it was more than he had before. 
Still you persisted, He had started warming up to you more since the trip to the prison. You were the one to make sure he ate and cleaned him up every time he managed to get another wound. It was slow going but before you knew it muttered thanks had turned into longer sentences from him. 
He still wasn’t much of a talker but at least he noticed you now. Not in the way you wanted him to but it was better than nothing.
You raised your hand in welcome to him as you saw him making his way across the yard to you.
“Hershel say no?” He asked when he came and took a seat with you on the grass. 
Nodding you sighed, pulling your knees to your ample chest.  Nudging you slightly “Ya don’t wanna be out there anyway, Get’s too dangerous” 
Rolling your eyes “Oh please not you too? How many times do i have to say i can handle myself! I just need a few hours out of here!”
An idea coming to your head you turned to him putting your hand on his shoulder, He froze slightly at this as he seemed to every time anyone touched him. Deciding to ignore it you turned his torso slightly to face yours. 
“You could convince him! You said yesterday there was a pharmacy not too far from here that looked untouched!” 
Shaking his head at you “No Y/N I ain’t goin against Hershel, He’s a good man” 
“Please Daryl, You could consider it a birthday gift to me? And i could be useful! I know what medicines to look out for” 
“Who said i was gonna get ya anything?” He grumbled. Moving closer to him and putting your hand on his chest. 
“Please Daryl, He’ll listen to you” You purred hoping it came across sultry. 
His eyes met yours very briefly, His eyes wide when he saw how close you were. Standing to his feet suddenly “Alright fine, If it’ll get ya to quit harpin on”
He turned leaving you on the grass before stalking off towards your dad. You waited there for what felt like forever watching the corner he had disappeared behind. 
When he finally reappeared you got to your feet meeting him halfway.
“Well?” He gave you a short nod of confirmation. Jumping up at him excitedly you wrapped your arms around his neck. “Thank you!!” He froze in place again before relaxing into your hug. 
Patting your shoulder once “Go on then, Get ya stuff we leave in 10” As you pulled away you saw a slight smile on his lips before running back to the Cells to grab a bag. Packing two bottles of water and some protein bars leaving the rest empty to carry anything you might find. Slinging it over your shoulder before strapping your pistol to one side of your belt and your knife on the other. 
Running back out you saw your dad waiting by the step. You almost knocked him off his crutches hugging him tightly
“Thank you Daddy”
He hugged you back “You be safe Y/N Listen to everything Daryl tells you!” Pulling away from him you nodded gratefully. 
“Ready to go?” Smiling you turned and started to walk away. Hearing your dad call “Take care of my little girl Dixon!” Daryl just raised an arm in response before leading you over to the bike. 
Swinging his leg over her motioned for you to do the same. Smiling happily you jumped on the back wrapping your arms firmly around his chest, Your fingers desperately wanting to touch all of him. 
“Ya don’t need to hold on so tight!” He grumbled at you. “Oh sorry!” You moved your hands slowly from his chest favouring every second until they were resting gently on his waist. As he pulled out of the main gate you put your chin on his shoulder grinning.
He hid the bike a few blocks away from the pharmacy before continuing on foot. On the way you only encountered one walker. Putting your hand on his arm as he raised his crossbow. 
“Let me do it” He nodded to you, letting you charge ahead with your knife drawn. Easily taking the walker down, Swiping the walkers feet from under it you plunged your knife into his head before turning back to Daryl “See i can take care of myself”
Handing you a rag from his belt you cleaned the blood off your knife before handing it back to him. 
“Never said you couldn’t Y/N” he said before continuing on to the pharmacy. As you reached the shutters Daryl Raised one slightly looking underneath before knocking on the shutter a few times making a racket.
“Daryl! What are you doing” You whispered urgently. 
He put his finger to his mouth while he listened for a moment before pulling the shutter fully open stepping behind it motioning for you to follow. Stepping in you noticed the door to the pharmacy was still closed and your bodies were pressed tightly together. 
Your breath was stuck in your chest, Your heart pounding as you felt his body on yours. He looked at you confused for a moment before moving his arms around you to the open shutter. Pulling it back down again, You felt as the muscles in his arms rolled down your entire body pulling the shutter. His head was at your crotch when you let in a sharp intake of breath as his head brushed you core. 
He darted upwards to you again “You ok Y/N? We can go back if ya scared”
His words snapping you out of it, You felt the blush rise in your face “m’not scared”
You were dying for him to kiss you, As you looked up you saw his lips were only inches from yours, Surely he had to feel this too? You closed your eyes inching closer till your lips were just about touching. You could feel his hot breath cascading over your lips. The world paused for a second while you waited to see if he would close the gap. 
Clearing his throat “Looks empty, Let’s go in” You opened your eyes as you heard the tinkle of the bell signalling the door had been opened. And just as quick as the moment had come it was gone. 
You stood frozen at the door for a moment trying to gather your thoughts. Could he really not see what just being in close proximity to him did to her? 
You walked after him further into the pharmacy jumping behind the desk “Jackpot! This place is completely untouched!” 
“Grab what we need, We’ll come back for the rest with more people” 
You filled your bag as Daryl went around the aisles picking up other essentials. 
You closed the pharmacy back up adding a lock to the shutter as you left, Hopefully no one else would stumble across it before you had a chance to come back. 
Daryl agreed when you asked to walk back through the woods. It was far too hot to go all that way in the sun. It was still hot under the trees but at least you were being protected from the sun, Daryl stopped and waited for you as you dropped your bag pulling off the loose over shirt your father always made you wear. 
You saw his eyes wander over you as it came over your head showing your curves to him for the first time in your tight white vest. 
His eyes were dark, You couldn’t tell if he was angry with you or if it was something else. 
Looking away from him now “Sorry, I just need some air….Wait what’s that?” He darted forward pushing his body in front of you looking for danger. 
Rolling your eyes you stepped around him picking up the bag and heading to the cabin you had seen. Stopping in the doorway you copied Daryl’s previous actions knocking on the doorway. 
All of a sudden his arms were around you lifting you from the ground pulling you inside the cabin, Closing the door behind you both his hand was over your mouth, His mouth to your ear “Shh, There’s a herd bout 50, Don’t think they saw us” 
As he put you gently back down you both made your way further into the cabin to check for threats, After searching the bedroom he pulled you inside before blocking the door with the set of drawers. 
He made his way to the bed before lying down “might as well make ourselves comfortable gonna be here awhile” You sat on the bed not facing him for a moment before taking a deep breath and lying down on the bed. 
You saw him looking at your chest before he sat back up “Almost forgot” He grabbed his bag. “Happy birthday 21 right?” 
Pulling out a bottle of whiskey and handing it to you. You looked at it nervously taking a deep breath and just going for it. You ripped the cork out taking a deep swig, Dropping the bottle back down you scrunched your nose a little in disgust
“What girl ya never had whiskey?” 
“Never had any alcohol, Dad never let us with him being in recovery and all” You shrugged taking another pull on the bottle. 
He snatched it from your hands then “Didn’ no it were your first. Ya can’t drink it like water, Gotta take it slow” 
You chuckled slightly at his words laying back down on the bed with him following you. 
“What’s so funny kid?” 
“Don’t call me that” You said as your eyes narrowed. 
He looked at you amused “It’s what ya are” 
Lurching forward you pressed your lips to his, feeling him freeze under you, You held your lips there urgently, Pulling your hands to his face and pulling it to yours. You pulled away slightly when he didn’t return the kiss.
“I aint a kid, I saw the way you looked at me earlier. I know you know that too” You said breathlessly. 
Looking down at your lips he replied “Ya still Hershel’s Kid he wouldn’ like this” He ran his hand through his hair.
Feeling angry again Your hands were still on his face “Does it look like i care what he thinks? Right now Daryl all I care about is this. Feeling you against me. I need it. I’ve needed it since the moment i saw you” 
His eyes darted up to yours seeing only the truth in your eyes. “Kiss me Dixon” 
His tongue licked his bottom lip slightly. Pushing your lips back to his you took his bottom lip in your mouth tugging on it slightly with your teeth. 
You heard the low growl coming from his chest as you tugged harder. 
“Fuck it” He muttered against your lips before flipping you onto your back kissing you back harshly. 
You let a moan escape your lips as he settled over you arching into his chest, He nudged your knees apart before putting one hand behind your thigh and lifting it around his hips. The other hand was on your waist. Both hands kneading your skin harshly. 
His hands felt like they were burning through your clothes. Your eyes rolled into the back of your head as he pushed his tongue into your mouth, Moaning again you ground your hips upwards desperate to feel his heat against yours. 
He pulled away panting resting his forehead against yours. 
“You sure Y/N” Grinning at him you pulled your hands to the neck of your shirt ripping it open slightly. 
“Never been so sure Daryl” His eyes watched growing darker, pulling his hands to the rip you had started already he ripped the shirt from you with ease, hands going to the front of your bra tearing that too. 
You could feel his breath on your chest as he ducked down taking one of your nipples into your mouth and biting down on it. You moaned louder now reaching down, you pushed the vest from his shoulder before turning your attention to his shirt groaning as you realised you couldn’t reach the hem to pull it up. 
He chuckled watching you sitting up over you he pulled the shirt off himself. Glaring down at you now with his dark hungry eyes. Moving from you he stood next to the bed. 
“Take em off...Now” His thick southern drawl made your already wet panties soak. 
Your hand slowly went to the button on your jeans not wanting to take your eyes off him, His glare grew darker.
“Ya aint fast enough” He lunged over you gripping the pants at your sides and tearing them down, You gasped now realising you were fully bare for him, His eyes met yours as you looked towards his pants, Your thighs rubbing together in delicious anticipation. 
He untied the cord of material holding his pants up letting them drop to the ground. 
Licking your lips you stared at his huge length. Walking over to you he pressed his cock to your lips gently.
“This what you want?” 
“Mmm yes please Daryl” You stuck your tongue out tasting the tip of him, God he tasted good. You opened your lips intending to wrap them around him, When you felt a hand in your hair pulling your head back. 
“Say ya want my cock Y/N in that dirty little mouth” Looking at his eyes now you could see he was serious. 
Pushing him back from the bed you climbed off sinking to your knees in front of him. 
“Mmmm let me have your cock in my dirty….little….Mouth…..Please?” You breathed
His fingers caressed your face for a moment He murmured “Better Y/N….Go on take what ya want girl” 
Reaching your hands up to his length you held it gleefully smiling as you brought it back to your mouth. Swirling your tongue around the tip you let your eyes fix on his again as you sunk him deep into your mouth, As it hit your throat you let it choke you slightly moaning around his length. 
“Shit Y/N” Daryl let his mouth drop open and his head hang backwards enjoying your lips around him, Putting his hands back in your hair he pushed you fully down his length until your lips met his pubic bone, You choked again, Breathing through your nose you held yourself on him getting used to the feeling of him stretching your throat. 
Moaning on him again he pushed and pulled you over his cock until you felt it throbbing, Pulling you fully off him he looked back down at you wildly. 
“Shit, Ya too good at that. I almost -” You cut him off pulling him back into your mouth with determination bobbing faster over him until he fell over the edge spilling his huge load into your mouth. You heard him cry out your name whilst he fucked your face harder letting the last of his orgasm roll out. 
Once he slowed you pulled him from your mouth swallowing before licking every inch of him clean drinking every drop like it was life or death. 
He wrapped one hand around your throat now pulling you back up to him. 
“Get back on the bed, Knees up legs wide. Now” He growled. 
Still catching your breath you did as you were told. He kneeled on the bed between your legs rubbing his still hard cock up and down your folds. Grinning at you mischievously he pulled completely away, Watching you squirm from the lack of contact. 
Leaning over your body he whispered in your ear 
“Ya aint ready for that...Not yet anyway” He roughly pushed your chin upwards pushing your head back into the pillow. 
Kissing his way down your neck he moved to your chest, Lifting your breast he sucked just underneath your nipple hard enough to leave his mark, Moving down your sternum he left three more identical marks from your breasts to your belly button. Marking you as his. As he reached your dripping heat you tried to grind up towards him.
Using his hand over your hips he held you down, 
“Ya gotta wait Y/N You’ll get it when im fucking ready” He growled again before sinking his teeth into the inside of your thigh, You let out a loud mewl trying to stem the noise biting down on your forearm. 
He bit harder now before letting go and glaring up at you, “Dont ya dare stop it, I wanna hear ya”
Panting for breath you looked down at him “But the …...Mmm shit...The walkers..will hear us!” 
“Let them fuckin hear, I’ll kill everyone of those dead bastards if they try to get between me and this sweet pussy” He ran one finger softly down your folds to accentuate his point. 
Moving your hand back down onto the bed you gripped the sheets with both hands as he sucked and bit the inside of both of your thighs leaving multiple love bites. 
“Please Daryl! I can...ntt take it anymore”
Seeing the need in your eyes he harshly took your clit in his mouth sucking and nibbling on it before moving his tongue down to your entrance, He lapped at the juices flowing out of you for a minute before replacing his tongue with his fingers, Pushing two inside he rocked them in and out of you bringing his lips back to your throbbing clit. 
“God Y/N you taste so fucking good” You could feel the pleasure building higher and your moans getting louder as you were rapidly reaching your high. You could feel your walls clenching on his fingers as he started moving quicker. 
“Ahhh, Shit Daryl” You screamed letting your high crash around you, You could feel him moaning into your clit as you screamed his name. Pushing another finger into you as you rode them blissfully feeling him stretch them inside you before pulling them out, Leaning back over you he pressed his fingers to your mouth. 
“Clean em” You sucked on them happily feeling the slickness in your pussy coming back as it did every time you saw him. 
Once he had deemed them clean enough he dropped his hand back to you.
“Mmm ready for me again so soon?” You bit your lip gazing up at him with your best innocent face. 
“So ready baby, Please...Please fuck me Daryl”
“Ya only needed to ask Y/N” He quickly pumped his cock a few times before pushing it slowly into you, Gasping a little in pain he stopped. “You ok?” 
“Yeah….Its just so fucking big” He grinned as he continued pushing into you until he reached his hilt grunting as he felt your walls moulding around him. Staying still for a moment he let you get used to his length. Pressing his lips back down to yours he tugged at your lower lip with his teeth parting your lips before diving back in with his tongue. 
Your tongues danced together fighting for dominance, He moaned into your mouth as he started moving again slowly at first building his speed until he was pounding mercilessly into you. 
Rolling back till he was sat back on his legs he pulled your legs over his shoulders gripping them tightly using them to drive himself even deeper and harder into you. Your hands wound your way into your own hair pulling at it gently letting the pleasure of his relentless pounding completely take control of your senses as you feel yourself letting go to him again. 
You back arched high as you felt your high building. 
Daryl let one hand fall to your aching clit rolling it with his fingers. 
“That’s it Y/N cum for me, Cum all over this cock” He growled loudly. You felt him pulsing inside you and it sent you straight over the edge. 
“Fuckkkkk Daryl!!” You screamed bucking your hips against him as you rode out your high. 
Daryl couldn’t take it anymore watching you buck wildly against him screaming his name, He exploded thrusting deeper into you letting his hot cum wash over your walls. 
He let go of your legs letting them crash to the sides of him, Your entire body was trembling now as he collapsed forward on top of you, Both gasping for air. 
When he rolled off you, You looked him straight in the eyes “Told you i could be useful” You giggled. 
“I think we may need to convince ya dad to let you on more of these runs Y/N. Very fucking useful” he said pushing his lips back to yours for a sweet kiss this time. 
Putting his arm around your shoulders he pulled you to him letting your head lay on his chest. You could definitely get used to this. 
You sighed before continuing in awe “Happy fucking birthday to me” 
He chuckled kissing your hair. You lay happily in his arms until the sun started to go down, Only breaking the happy stillness to let your lips meet lovingly.
Looking out the window he murmured “C’mon best be getting back. Dont need em sendin out a search party and findin us like this” 
Groaning you let him pull you up, Both getting dressed. Daryl picked up your ruined shirt and bra stuffing them into his own bag with a wink, Thank god you had worn two shirts today. Daryl then pulled the draws away from the door running through the cabin to check it was still secure. You followed him out of the cabin and back to the bike. 
Happily putting your arms around him and running your fingers across his chest, Enjoying the last moments of your freedom as he drove you back to the prison and through the gates.
You sisters came running to meet you as you returned checking you over before giving you hugs in turn, Maggie took a step back staring into your eyes for a moment before leaning back into you whispering so only you two could hear
“I see you got your birthday wish lil sis” Your eyes went wide in panic, Grinning at you she whispered again. “I know the scent of cum when I smell it. It’s all over your breath, That and you're definitely no longer wearing a bra” 
You flushed embarrassed hoping no one else would notice looking back at her with a panicked whisper “Don’t tell Daddy!” She nodded at you looking behind you to the guard tower “Looks like it's time for round two” She nodded towards Daryl who was standing there staring at you drinking you in with his eyes again. 
“Don’t worry ill cover for you, Just go” She winked. Running over to the tower you slipped in closing the door as you felt his hand at your throat again. 
“Ya all mine now Y/N”
“So you don’t think I’m a kid anymore” You asked playfully. 
“Nah, Your definitely all fucking woman” He growled back before pulling you back into a room and fucking you till you were mewling all over again for him.
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Note
3rd life Villain!Impulse perhaps? Reasoning because he's been so nice to all factions and appears very harmless...until he kills Tango in the firing squad scenario. Do with that as you will :3
honestly i think the villain 3rd Life AUs are some of my best writing. also i’m pretty sure i’m gonna end up writing everyone as a villain at some point lol (villains so far: Scar, Etho, Tango, Grian, Ren, Martyn, now Impulse. Joel too if you count that fic where he kills Jimmy)
A feeling of dread hangs over Impulse as he makes his way up to Tango’s base. Getting a private message from his best friend, simply saying “we need to talk”, has highly unsettled him. He has absolutely no idea what Tango could want to talk to him about.”
As he gets to the hill Tango calls home, he spots Tango himself standing at the top, arms folded, clearly watching him. A shiver running down his spine, Impulse slowly climbs up the hill. Tango watches him all the way.
Finally, he gets to the top. Keeping an eye on the sun, which must be about an hour away from setting, he gives his friend a wave. “Hi, Tango. What’s… What’s going on?”
Tango’s looking at him with a narrow-eyed expression of distrust. “I know your game, Impulse.”
“Huh?” Impulse blinks. That’s not what he was expecting. “What?”
“Your little game of pretending to be allies with everyone so nobody will ever turn against you. Etho, Dogwarts, the crastle folk. You’ve got them all wrapped round your little finger.”
Impulse frowns. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Tango rolls his eyes. “Uh huh, ‘course you don’t. You change the sheet music for everyone, don’t you? Everyone believes they’re the only one getting your support. Well, not me. I know what you’re up to and I’m gonna make sure you stop getting away with it, starting today.”
As Tango turns to start walking away, Impulse grabs his wrist, stopping him from leaving. “Please don’t, Tango,” he says calmly.
Tango scoffs. “Let go of me, Impulse. I’m gonna expose you whether you like it or not.”
Impulse hangs on to Tango’s wrist. “I’m giving you one last chance to back down. You’re red; if something happens to you, you won’t come back.”
“You’re not gonna stop me,” Tango retorts. “I know you. Your niceness has always been your biggest weakness, and in this case, it’s gonna be your downfall.”
“You’ve misjudged me.”
Impulse abruptly seizes Tango’s lapels and roughly swings him closer to the edge of the cliff, holding him dangerously close to the precipice. “I‘ll do anything to survive,” Impulse says coldly. “Anything.”
Tango’s eyes widen with shock. “Impulse-!”
But Impulse shoves him off the top of the cliff.
He waits for a few seconds, listening to Tango’s screams get quieter and quieter, until they’re abruptly cut off.
Tango fell from a high place
Taking a deep breath, Impulse takes off running. He doesn’t know if there’s anyone nearby but he can’t risk it. If anyone sees him here, he’s done for. Absolutely done for.
The chat is filling up with confused and concerned messages but it doesn’t matter now. Tango is gone forever. Nobody ever needs to know what happened.
Impulse dashes back towards the wool castle but as he passes Tango’s still-gushing lava minigame, he bumps into Etho, who’s running the other way.
“Impulse!” Etho breathes. “Gosh, you scared me. What happened?”
Despite internally panicking quite hard, Impulse manages to stammer, “I-I dunno, I was just going to Tango’s base to talk to him when I saw the message. I thought he might have been somewhere around here but I couldn’t find any dropped items or anything. He must’ve been somewhere else when he died.”
“Tango doesn’t just fall from a high place like that,” Etho says. “He’s careful. Impulse, I’m worried that someone might have murdered him.”
“What?!” Impulse gasps. “Who would do that?!”
“I don’t know for sure, but my prime suspect is the crastle alliance. Bdubs had it out for Tango for some reason so I’m sure he knows something.”
“Oh no…” Impulse stares at his friend with wide, innocent eyes. “Bdubs wouldn’t have taken TWO of Tango’s lives… would he?”
Etho slowly shakes his head. “I don’t know. I thought I knew our friends really well but lately, I…” He sighs quietly. “Let’s just say I wouldn’t put it past him. But it’s getting late; I’ll go talk to him tomorrow.”
He turns back towards the castle. “You coming?”
“I‘ll be there later. I’m just gonna go check on my villagers.”
“Gotcha. And Impulse…”
Impulse pauses as Etho glances back at him. “Thanks for being the only person on this server I can really trust.”
Impulse smiles back. “No problem.”
Under the cover of darkness, Impulse makes his way to the crastle. He can see Cleo up on the roof, aiming a crossbow at him, but thankfully, she lowers it when he gets close enough for her to see who he is.
Cleo and Bdubs let Impulse into the crastle. “What’s going on, Impulse?” Bdubs demands. “Nobody seems to know what happened to Tango!”
“Nobody’s owning up to knowing, anyway,” Cleo adds. “I don’t suppose you do?”
Impulse shakes his head. “I’ve no idea. But I’ve heard rumours going round the server and I thought I should come to you directly to let you know.”
“Let us know what?” Bdubs says.
“That Etho suspects you guys had something to do with Tango’s death.”
“What?!”
Bdubs and Cleo exchange a shocked look.
“Why would he think that?!” Bdubs snaps. “He has no evidence!”
“That’s why I thought I should come over and warn you,” says Impulse. “He’s gonna come over here tomorrow to confront you about it.”
“Oh gawsh…” Bdubs groans. “Thanks for telling us.”
“Oh, but this is just to give you some warning to prepare. You can’t let Etho know I told you, okay? Otherwise he might not tell me other stuff that concerns you guys.”
“Don’t worry, we won’t,” Cleo says. “If we’re your secret girlfriend, does that mean Etho’s your… uh… spouse?”
“I don’t really have a singular “spouse”,” responds Impulse, making air quotes over the word “spouse”. “More like the rest of the server is my “spouse” and I can’t let them know that I favour you over them.”
“Riiiight, gotcha. Guess you’d better head home before your “spouse” misses you.”
Impulse nods. “Yeah, I gotta go back to Etho. See you guys later.”
As he leaves the crastle and starts to head for home, he spots a figure watching him from next to one of Bdubs’s tall spruce trees. When the figure comes forward, Impulse recognises the person as Joel.
“Hi,” he says, giving a friendly smile. Joel isn’t one of his official allies at the moment but that doesn’t mean he can’t be nice to him. “What’s up?”
“I heard Tango died,” Joel says, eyes sparking with interest. “Do you know what happened?”
“No, I don’t. I just saw it in chat.”
“I think you’re lying.”
Impulse blinks. “What?”
Joel grins as he senses he’s caught Impulse off guard. “I said I think you’re lying. I think you’re manipulating everyone into believing you’re their friend when in actuality, you don’t care about any of them. And I think you killed Tango when he confronted you about it. Am I wrong?”
Impulse stares at him, unable to say anything in his defence.
In the ensuing pause, Joel takes a sudden step towards Impulse, who backs up a few steps, his hand automatically flying to the hilt of his sword. But he pauses. He has to be extremely careful here; Bdubs and Cleo may be watching him. If they see him put a single foot wrong here, it’s over. He has to let Joel make the first move.
“Would you kill me?” says Joel challengingly. “Would you kill me as callously as you killed Tango?”
Impulse carefully turns his back to the crastle and narrows his eyes. “Come and find out. Or would you rather die stupidly and pointlessly because you forgot about FIRE DAMAGE?”
That does it. Impulse knew exactly how to rile Joel up and it works. Eyes flashing red, Joel growls and lashes out with his fist.
Impulse allows himself to be hit in the chin, narrowly avoiding biting his tongue. Joel’s second blow, this time to the stomach, winds him and causes him to drop to his knees, vulnerable. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Joel drawing his sword. This is it; this is the moment. Either his position on the server will elevate… or he will simply die.
He holds his breath and squeezes his eyes shut.
“GET AWAY FROM HIM!”
An arrow flies out of nowhere and buries itself in Joel’s chest, causing him to stagger back a step. A split second later, a second arrow hits Joel in the neck, and that’s all it takes.
SmallishBeans was shot by BdoubleO100
Impulse stares at the ground where Joel had landed, a second before he died. He can’t believe his plan worked so well.
“Impulse, are you okay?” Bdubs appears at Impulse’s side, discarding his crossbow. “What happened?”
“He… He was gonna kill me,” Impulse chokes out. This isn’t entirely an act; Joel’s unexpected hit to his stomach has completely snatched the wind from his sails.
“Why? Why did he wanna kill you?”
“Did he really need a reason?” Cleo says. “He was red and Impulse is green. Nuff said.”
“Wh-Whatever it was, you guys saved my life.” Impulse gives them a smile. “Thanks. If Etho or anyone else asks what happened, you guys spotted me getting attacked by Joel on my way back from checking on my villagers. Okay?”
“Ooh, good story,” Bdubs says approvingly. “But are you sure you’re okay? You’re not hurt, are you?”
“No, no, I’m fine. Thanks to you guys. I should probably head home, though.”
Bdubs pats him on the shoulder. “Yeah, go get some rest. Thanks again for… um… coming past and not visiting.”
Impulse nods, knowing exactly what Bdubs means. “No worries.”
“Joel just attacked you?” Etho frowns. “Why would he do that?”
“He doesn’t need a reason,” responds Impulse, recalling what Cleo said earlier. “He was red. I guess he just saw an easy target and couldn’t resist.”
“So he attacked you on your way back from the villagers, huh. And you’re okay, right? You’re not hurt.”
“No, I’m fine,” says Impulse. “A little shaken and tired from everything that’s happened, though.”
“Oh yeah, you should get some sleep.” Etho smiles at his friend. “See you tomorrow.”
“Night, Etho.”
As Impulse gets into bed in his room, he can’t help a small smile. He took a big risk today but it has really paid off. Getting rid of two red lifers in one day is enough of an accomplishment in of itself, but doing it without arousing suspicion on himself AND managing to turn Etho and Bdubs further against each other? That’s something he can be proud of.
All he needs to do now is make sure he’s in the right place at the right time for Etho’s confrontation with Bdubs tomorrow and perhaps he can be there for another red life death. Bdubs may be one of his strongest allies but if Impulse sees a chance to get another player out of the game, well…
He’s going to take it.
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thevelvetseries · 4 years ago
Text
Voice In My Head (Part 1)
Summary : This is the story about Ashley Ackles and how her life turned upside down.
Pairing : Jensen Ackles x Daughter Reader / Danneel Ackles x Daughter Reader
Warnings : Fluff, Angst, Eating Disorder, Self Inflicting Cuts, Self Hate, Attempted Suicide, Minor Drug Use.
Series Masterlist / Main Masterlist
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It’s hard to know where to begin telling you about this. I wonder if there’s any such thing as beginnings.
3 MONTHS AGO...
At this point in Ashley’s life everything had been normal. She was an A+ Grade student with a bright future ahead of her. She had her loving family surrounded around her and had good health. She had her 5 best friends Veronica, Selena, Bram (Abraham), Taylor and Matt (my boyfriend). She had been friends with Veronica and Selena since they were in kindergarten, she then met Bram in middle school then Taylor and Matt in High School and they six of them because the best of friends. They do everything together. They travel to school together every morning, go to the mall every Friday after school and talk about what friends usually talk about.
This is where our story starts. Ashley, Veronica and Selena were walking down the school hallway from just having gym class and was going to meet the boys for lunch. Once they get to the cafeteria they wait in line to get their food before going to find Matt, Taylor and Bram sitting at there normal table. I sit next to Matt and give him a quick kiss before starting my lunch. We were all eating and taking about the party that was happening on Saturday at Justin’s house. Justin is one of the school popular football players and always had parties whenever his parents went out of town for a weekend. Who knew this was going to be the downfall in Ashley’s life, the moment that changed her life forever.
“So who’s driving who Saturday?” Matt says while drinking some of his water.
“I don’t mind driving, it’s not like I’m gonna drink anyway.” I say while biting into my chicken salad sandwich.
“That makes sense too, you have 7 seats in your car.” Veronica said with a little laugh.
We spent the rest of lunch just talking and eating before finishing the rest of the day and heading home. Since tomorrow was the party we decided to skip the mall this week. Me and Matt went to my house today to do homework and watch TV. I pull my car into the driveway. Mums car wasn’t there meaning she was picking my younger siblings up from school and dad was away at work filming, he was coming home for the weekend though. We get out of the car and head inside get some snacks and head up to my bedroom. We were sitting on my bed with our work spread around us.
“Ok. What did you get for number 16?” Matt asked while fiddling with his pencil.
“Wait. There’s no number 16” I say while going through my papers.
“Hmmmm hmmmm” Matt started humming, in the cute annoying way he always does.
“STOP!” I say while pushing him a little.
“I’m just making sure your awake.” He said with a little smile forming on his lips.
“I’m awake, there’s just something about studying in a bed.” I reply. Since when we normally study together were on the floor with pillows.
“Well I guess I shouldn’t be complaining right. I’m in bed with a smoking hot, intelligent girl.” Matt started off saying before I interrupted him saying “women” which he corrects himself “women”. Then I continue saying “and your on the bed, not in it.” I say with a little smile.
“And I’m worried about math” Matt said.
We continued working for a little more, during that time mum had come home from picking up my younger siblings from school, and we had started working on the the subject we needed to get through, when I remembered something. I got off the bed Matt watching the walk across the room and going into my closet coming out with a black piece of fabric. I chucked them at him.
“You left your boxers here Monday”. I say with a smile.
“Oh no. I left them on purpose. You know to remind you of the wonderful night we had.” He said before grabbing my waist and kissing up my neck, which is when I begin to start giggling. Suddenly there was a knock on my bedroom door.
“Come in” I spoke loudly trying to stop giggling.
“Hello.” Mum said when she entered. “How’s the studying going” she asked.
“It’s going well. Nearly done” I reply,
“Good. Matt you joining us for dinner tonight?” She asked.
“No. Not tonight mum is making her famous spaghetti tonight.” He replied.
“Ok, also remember you father will be home tonight. So we are having his favourite” he should be home around 7.” Mum said before leaving the room.
Matt ends up leaving around 6pm to head home. I packed up all my work and put it away before heading downstairs for the night to spend time with my family. We were all in the living room when we heard the front door open and close. Dad was home. He had just finished filming season 14 of his show and was finally on hiatus. While dad was putting his luggage on the floor we all got up and welcomed him home before having dinner.
“So how was everyone’s day” dad asked. That’s when Zepp, Arrow and JJ start telling three different stories at once.
“Wow wow wow. Slooow down. One at a time. One at a time.” He interrupted. The one by one the all went through what happened to them. While this was happening I continued to eat my food, mums food is always delicious. Especially her spaghetti.
“Ashley, what about you?” Dad asked before taking another mouthful of his dinner.
“Not much really. Went to my lessons. Had gym. Had lunch, we didn’t go to the mall this week since there’s a party tomorrow night and then Matt came over after school so we could study together.” I said.
“What party?” He replied.
“Some guy called Justin. Don’t worry I won’t be drinking, I’m driving us all there and then home. So all I’m drinking is soda.”
“Well that’s ok. Just make sure you get home at a reasonable hour please. I don’t want to be up all night worrying because you’re not home.” Dad said while taking a forkful of his food.
“I promise I’ll be home before midnight.” I replied.
“That’s all I ask.” He replied.
For the rest of the night we spend together as a family. We all relaxed in the living room watching movies and snacking on popcorn and different snacks. It was nice. We don’t get to do this often since dad is away at work for too many months during the year. We all started to go to bed around 11pm, before I went to sleep I got my outfit ready for the party tomorrow night and went off to sleep.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP
I could hear the beeping of my alarm like it was in a tunnel getting louder and louder. Slowly I started to wake up, I reached out my arm and turned off my alarm and started to get out of bed. I put on my slippers and my dressing gown on and headed into the bathroom and started getting ready for the day ahead. Around 8am I was finished and made my way downstairs. While walking down the hallway of her house she could smell the sizzling delicious smell of bacon cooking coming from the kitchen. When the kitchen comes into view she see her dad and mum standing in the kitchen cooking breakfast together. I make my way over to the kitchen table and start to pour myself a glass of orange juice that was already on the table.
“Morning sweetie.” Mum said when she saw me walking across the room.
“Morning.” I say before drinking half of my glass.
“How did you sleep last night?” Mum asked
“I had a good night sleep.” I replied.
We went along with our morning. Around 8pm I was all ready for the party and texted everyone I was ready and was about to leave to pick everybody up. I made my way downstairs and picked up my car keys from the bowl and walked into the living room.
“I’m about to leave. I’ll try and get home before midnight ok. I’ll text you when we leave the party so you don’t have to worry ok.” I say from the doorway to my dad.
“That’s ok sweetie. We’re not going anywhere tonight so we’ll be home.” He replied.
I got in my car, I collected everyone from their houses and made it to Justin’s house. I parked my car on his street and we all made our way inside.
“Um.. 11:45 at the car.” I say so we all agree on a time to head home.
“Now let’s have some fun.” Matt said while he came closer to me to give me a kiss under my ear, which caused me to giggle.
We all spent our night dancing around the backyard drinking. I only have 1 drink and stayed drinking cola and water for the rest of the night. The party was in full swing and everyone was drinking and dancing and were having a good time. It currently 11:45pm when we got in the car and left the party.
We all got in the car still laughing and having fun from the night that had just happened. I drove for about 10 minutes to Veronica house where I was dropping her off and Selena since she was staying over at her house next was Bram, then it was just Tyler, Matt and me. I was currently sitting at a red light singing along to the radio and just being our normal selves. After about 2 minutes light changed to green and I slowly started to move. When I reached the middle of the intersection of the road, out of the corner of my eye I could suddenly see bright white lights coming straight to us and hitting the car from the passenger side. The place were Matt was sitting. At first I didn’t know what to do. Blood was coming down my head from where I hit it on my door window. Matt wasn’t moving or talking and sight was getting shorter and shorter. The last thing I remember before I passed out was that I could see flashing lights and hear sirens.
Voices In My Head Taglist
@scatchia @spngirl05 @myopiamystical @dracosassismine @maia-skye @vicmc624 @blqcklust @cassiwalkinatural @ray-l-00@superspackles @mamanoota5 @bea789 @pooks06 @m1s10@youngnickeleggseagle @overthinkingsoulcat @kettnerjanea@vildemc @izzy0731 @blogaboutmylife2 @101stshippersquad@spnfamily-j2 @hgs2018 @desiredposion @weightlessdevil@alliedimlerr @lifeofanerd164 @hettolini @spneditsdestiel@smoothdogsgirl @weirdoforeves @lovingbrock @dannyo000@supergirl000983 @jensenandjaredsgirl0516 @sarsmilesah@thisshallbegrand @thehalediaries @generallyclumsy​ @hoboal87​ @snowangle1994
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laurenhufflepuff2 · 3 years ago
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A list of fandoms I'm in (in no particular order, will probably be updated regularly. Some fandoms are more intense and some are more casual. Depending on the fandom, I could go on and on about fandom topics for HOURS. Let's get into it!)
Harry Potter, Disney, Marvel, DC comics, Miraculous Ladybug, Avatar: The Last Airbender/The Legend of Korra, Star Wars, Literature, Winx Club, Nintendo, Minecraft, Little Witch Academia, Voltron, Coraline
Details:
Harry Potter- I got into Harry Potter in 7th grade and now I am the resident expert in my family and in my friend group. I read all the books, watched all the movies (notably the British version), and I've seen the Fantastic Beasts films as well. I've also read Tales of Beedle the Bard (the Warlock's Hairy Heart was traumatizing) along with the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them textbook (plus an updated edition). I also read The Cursed Child script and while I mean no hate to anyone that liked it, I hated what it did to the canon. I am in Hufflepuff with some Ravenclaw tendencies (I took the Pottermore quiz 3 times, 2 out of 3 I got Hufflepuff, the other time was Ravenclaw). I had a pottermore account and I was so upset when it got converted to the Wizarding World page. I cosplayed Hermione in 7th grade complete with British accent and even monologued as her for a talent show (classmates and teachers would recognize me as the Hermione girl all the way through high school). I was obsessed and I still love it even if J.K. Rowling has gone off the deep end on Twitter... yeah... my favorite character is Hermione but I also relate to Luna
Disney- there's so much that goes into the Disney part of my fandom list. I'm excluding Marvel and Star Wars from this part as they were originally separate entities before Disney got the rights to them. I have seen almost every animated Disney film ever and often use random movie quotes in conversation. My favorite villain is Maleficent, my favorite princess is Ariel (followed by Belle, Rapunzel, and Anna). I relate to so many of the characters. I'm not sure who my favorite Pixar character is though (I love Violet, Sadness, Dory, and Piper (from the short)). My favorite Disney fairy is Fawn. My favorite characters overall are Ariel and Stitch. Disney is definitely on the list as one of my biggest obsessions. My favorite movies are Lilo and Stitch, the Little Mermaid, Inside Out, Alice in Wonderland (original), and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
Marvel- I mostly get my Marvel exposure through the MCU, other movies, and animated TV shows. I have difficulty reading graphic novels so most of my comic book knowledge comes from friends, posts, or wikis. My favorite characters are Spider-Man, Captain America, Peggy Carter, and Scarlet Witch. I also like Gwenpool, Deadpool, Spider-Gwen/ Ghost-Spider, Venom, Squirrel Girl, Daredevil, Mantis, Gamora, Black Widow, Iron Man, Thor, Loki, Bucky, Black Panther, and most MCU characters. Out of the X-men I really like Professor X, Wolverine, Mystique, Magneto, Nightcrawler, and Quicksilver (either version- MCU or Fox).
DC- this was the franchise I was more familiar with growing up but again, graphic novels aren't easy for me to read so most of my knowledge comes from information pages about the comics or from tv/movies. My earliest experience with DC came from the 60s Batman series, with Catwoman and Robin being my favorites. I also watched the Wonder Woman series from the 70s and a handful of CW shows, my favorite of which being the Flash and Arrow. I also managed to watch all 5 seasons of the Teen Titans Cartoon Network series from 2003. With that being said, my favorite characters are Wonder Woman, Catwoman, Flash, Batman, Nightwing/Robin (Dick Grayson), Green Arrow, Starfire, Raven, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and Alfred. I also like most of the bat family, and when it comes to CW I LOVE Caitlin Snow/Killer Frost and Cisco.
Miraculous- this is one of my guilty fandoms but since this is Tumblr I'm not too worried about it. I love Marinette and I relate to her on an astoundingly deep level (minus the stalking and obsession with potential lovers, that's creepy). If I had a miraculous, I'd probably want the Ladybug one, but the Cat miraculous, fox miraculous, and snake miraculous are good too. My favorite character is Marinette/Ladybug.
Atla/Tlok- I jumped on the avatar bandwagon just when it was starting to get popular, so I managed to get through the series before the memes took over everything. Same with Tlok, although i couldn't completely avoid the spoilers for that when i started it. I've been wanting to get into the comics because of the short story comics I've read, they seem easier to read than superhero comics. My favorite characters are Aang, Katara, Ty Lee, Iroh, Korra, Jinora, Asami, Suki, Appa, Momo, Naga, and Pabu. I also like Sokka, Mai, Zuko, Lin, Kuvira, Varrick, Zhu Lee, and Azula. I feel really sorry for her and while I understand that a redemption arc would undermine the importance of her corruption arc, I still wish she could have one. I would love to be a waterbender or an airbender... maybe a waterbender raised in the air nation? Obviously, being the avatar itself would be awesome. The show has taught me a lot of great lessons and put a lot of stuff into perspective for me.
Star Wars- oh boy, talking about this one is dangerous. I've seen firsthand the horrors of the Star Wars fandom but then again no one will probably see this anyway so... I've seen all the movies and I remember watching the clone wars series with my brother when I was younger but we fell wayyy behind and it's taking us forever to get back into it. I've also seen the Mandalorian and quite enjoyed it. I like the prequels unironically, in fact, the prequels are some of my favorite movies. I especially like how they switched from lightsabers being heavy weapons to light weapons that can be used for all kinds of tricks that make for epic battles like the ones we see in Revenge of the Sith. The sequels were fun to watch but when I would analyze them along side their predecessors, I came to the conclusion that, for me, they were good to watch but did not do anything good for the rest of the franchise. My favorite characters are prequels/clone wars Obi Wan and Anakin, Padme, Ashoka, Leia, R2D2, BB-8, R4-P17, the Mandalorian (Din Djarin), and Grogu. If I had a lightsaber I'd want it to be blue, but when I was little I got a purple one like Mace Windu because it was closer to pink and I was into pink at the time. I still have that lightsaber and none of my friends have a purple one so it's one of my flexes. I feel like I wouldn't make a good jedi because of attachments being forbidden, so I'd probably become a grey jedi.
Literature- this is a broad term I use to cover all the random books and stories I liked reading and have studied. So we have Shakespeare (Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Romeo and Juliet), The Great Gatsby (bored while reading, loved to analyze), Grendel (HATED reading, loved to analyze, Grendel really needed a hug and a friend), The Crucible, Fahrenheit 451, Dark Life (+ the sequel Riptide, both are by Kat Falls good reads, sci-fi and kind of dystopian), The Once and Future King
Winx Club- I think the show is trashy but I still love watching it. I haven't been able to get through season 6 though and I hated what they did with season 8 and Fate: the Winx Saga. My favorite character is Bloom along with Stella and Flora. I prefer rai to nick. My favorite transformations are magic winx, enchantix, and harmonix. My favorite member of the Trix is Icy followed by Darcy. My favorite Pixies are Chatta and Lockette.
Nintendo- mainly Pokémon above all else, followed by Animal Crossing. I have also played (mostly as player 2 or just never beat or watched my brother play) mario games, legend of zelda, pikmin, and kirby. Games I haven't played but I just liked the characters/the lore and probably learned about through Super Smash Bros. are Fire Emblem (Lucina mostly), Metroid (Samus and baby metroid), and Kid Icarus. Pokémon is where I'm most knowledgeable but you'll most likely beat me in battle. I am however great at MarioKart and I always destroy my friends at it. Terrible at fighting games though.
Minecraft- I like playing this casually. Sure, I'll play for hours and hours on end for months, but I prefer to stay exclusively in peaceful when playing Survival mode and I don't make anything too ambitious in Creative mode. I like to write, so sometimes I'll make a rough layout of the settings of my stories in different worlds. I prefer interior design and decorating when building, and when in survival mode I focus more on mining and gathering while my brother works on ambitious building projects. I just bring him the raw materials and furnish the interior when he finishes the outside.
Little Witch Academia- this takes up a smaller portion of my fandom list because there were only 2 seasons and a couple movies and I watched the whole series years ago, but I still enjoy it. At one point I wanted to cosplay Akko, and I loved the nod at Twilight through the Nightfall series. And I especially liked the twist that Shiny Chariot was Ursula, which I suspected for some time. The blend between magic and technology was fun to see, but I was so sad that the series ended RIGHT when Akko finally showed signs of magic proficiency. Also, Shiny Chariot being the reason Akko couldn't do magic was heartbreaking.
Voltron- this takes up a much smaller portion of my fandom list mainly because I haven't even finished it. I know hardly anything about Transformers aside from the Bumblebee movie so to me I just watch it for fun. It reminds me of power rangers, star wars, and star trek, and then there's just a transformer insert. But I don't know anything about Transformers so maybe the show is more rooted in canon than I think.
Coraline- I am in a love-hate relationship with Coraline. I have watched the movie several times, I've read the book, I've watched hours of theories and analyses on youtube, I've watched behind the scenes videos by Laika, and I even wrote a script for a fan film parody. I am amazed at how original the story is and how impressive the stop motion animation is but I also have recurring nightmares from it and it scares me/creeps me out to the max. If anyone asks what my scariness limit is, it's definitely Coraline.
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abbacchios-sunflower · 3 years ago
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Welcome Aboard Part 2
The second half of my collab with @dongiovannaswife ! Thank you so much again Lena for doing this with me, I had sm fun! <3<3 ^o^
*****
“Sooo, what’s he like anyways? Your boss? Giorno you said his name was?”
 “Hmm? Oh, yeah, Giorno’s a fair guy, really smart, kinda scary to most people who meet him for the first time, but he’s one of my best friends, great guy,” Mista leaned back in his seat, arms folded, knees crossed as he looked to Marissa. “To be honest I don’t know why he needs bodyguards, his stand is probably the scariest thing I’ve ever seen.”
 “Hmm, I see,” she looked out the window as they drove on what felt to be forever. “He’s kind of mad I got involved, huh? Is he even going to like me? I’d rather not get shot in the head for walking in on mafia business, you know?”
 Bruno closed his laptop, tucking it away as they were going to be arriving soon, “Just like Mista said, he’s a very fair guy, we’ve known him for a long time now; he’s just very protective over his famiglia and doesn’t like civilians getting tied up in our business, doesn’t think it’s right. I’m sure he’ll be very welcoming when meeting you.”
 “Yeah; exactly! It’s not like it’s your fault you almost got sliced up by that dickwad we were chasing!” Narancia interjected.
 Fugo rolled his eyes, “Yes well, you didn’t have to be such a blabbermouth and tell her we were the mafia, Giorno has the biggest problem with you doing that if anything.” He looked across to Marissa as well, “he’ll probably ask questions about your stand, what your intentions are, you’ll be fine, try not to worry too much about it, all of us here got roped into the mafia at young ages and we did just fine,” the blond checked his phone.
 Well, yeah, of course it was easy to tell someone not too worry when this has been your norm for like, ten years. The newcomer folded her arms, stretching her legs out in the back seat of the car. “Alright I guess.” Maybe she was starting to regret the decision to come. When her parents had said to “branch out and meet new people'', but this probably wasn’t what they meant, oh well she was kind of stuck in the situation now, might as well see where this all goes. Worse case scenario she probably would just go back home.
 “Just be grateful you don’t have to do the lighter test to get your stand and we discontinued that kind of stuff; that was so nerve wracking, I thought I was a goner!!” Narancia rubbed his neck nervously.
 “Lighter test?”
 “It’s how things used to be done, though some of us already had our stands by the time we joined, you see,” Bruno had explained. “Mista and Abbacchio both had manifested their stands by the time I had found them, not everyone needs to pass the arrow’s test to get one. It’s a topic Giorno and his family are highly interested in actually.”
 “Oh?” Marissa looked to Abbacchio who was sitting in the front seat. In the few days she had known these five men; it was probably him that she knew least of. He was even more closed off and disgruntled than Fugo, barely speaking a word to her unless they were bickering about something.
 “Hey guys, maybe you shouldn’t be telling her everything about us, she’s still an outsider in case you forgot about that; I doubt Giorno would like you guys running your mouths more than you should, he’s already probably pissed,” the goth grumbled, looking back from the passenger’s seat.
 Bruno has a teasing smirk, leaning back, “And since when you were so interested in obeying what Giorno says? Hmm? I thought you liked being difficult with him.”
 “You’re just lucky he always trusts your judgment, Consigliere, or else he probably wouldn’t have even wanted to meet her,” Abbacchio sarcastically snapped back. Bruno had rolled his eyes.
 “You’re still just sore that I didn’t tell you about why I brought him into Passione in the first place all those years ago,” Bruno chuckled, “but that’s a story for another time, perhaps Giorno would like to tell you himself,” the leader pleasantly smiled. “Now, we’re almost there,” he regained Marissa’s attention. “I don’t care what you’ve heard from any of us, you’re going to refer to him just as Don Giovanna, okay?” she nodded stiffly. “I take it we can trust you to be respectful?”
 “Hmm? Oh yeah, of course!!” she straightened up in her seat; the anxiety was definitely setting in now. This was probably— definitely a mistake. How did she always get into weird and scary messes with people?
 *****
 The estate was huge, yeah; surely the Don of the mafia and his most trusted men stayed there. Mista was the one to open the door first and stroll on in, followed by the others. “We’re baaaaack!” He loudly announced. “Oh Trishy? Did ya miss us?!” He confidently smirked as footsteps approached.
 “I’ve been wondering when you would be back, I’m still bummed out I didn’t get to go…” a young woman with pink hair slowly came to a stop as she looked past the men, seeing the shorter woman with them. “Dio mio- when I said to bring me back a souvenir, I didn’t mean kidnap a local!” She folded her arms, narrowing her eyes at the gunslinger.
 “Relax, she just got caught up in our bullshit, she’s a stand user and Bucciarati was interested in her stand and thought Giogio would be too, said he wanted to meet her when we were on our way over!”
 “Speaking of that, I already finished the reports from this job, we burned down the warehouse, not a trace of the drugs left, same with Emiliano,” Fugo held up a small folder.
 The young woman’s face relaxed more as she exhaled, taking the file and extending a hand to the newcomer, “Trish Una, I know how it feels to get swept up into trouble by these assholes, they don’t bite though, I promise, well, maybe Abba will if you provoke him enough, but he’s a bit of a softy under the fangs,” she smirked when Abbacchio looked disgruntled by the use of the nickname and teasing in front of the other woman who was smirking back at him now.
 “Abba, huh?” she raised a dark eyebrow, smirking as well.
 “That’s just “Abbacchio” to you, brat,” he snapped back.
 Rolling her eyes, she ignored the threat and took Trish’s hand, “Marissa, but uh, you guys can just call me Mar, all my friends do, it’s easier in my opinion,” she tilted her head back and forth. “So are you, like, a stand user too?”
 “Got that right, most of us are,” Trish pulled her hand back, gesturing to follow her, “come on, they’re right this way! They’ve been expecting you!”
 “They?” Mar blinked.
 “Oh, of course, the Donna will be there too naturally, she’s a lovely lady, Giorno’s lucky to have her for sure. She’s very interested in you too; I’m sure you guys will be great friends if you’re to stay with us! Also, we better get you Italian lessons if that’s gonna happen, luckily a lot of us speak English pretty well too,” Trish stopped talking and turned to face a set of doors, knocking twice. “Don Giovanna, Bucciarati is back, Fugo already finished his reports.” She announced.
 “And is she with them?” A male voice came from behind the door.
 “Right next to me!” Trish replied.
 “Well, send her in then.”
 *****
 Trish Una turns to Mar, a smile that doesn’t quite reach her eyes directed on her way as she opens the door, holding it open for her. “Good luck.” She mouths right when Mar walks by her side, closing the door at her back.
 The office looks like a lawyer’s would; bookshelves around the room are filled with all kinds of books; from astrology to philosophy, biology, medicine, math. All the knowledge the human race had cultivated through centuries seemed to rest there, in a silent office where only the light of the window pooled in, illuminating it just in the right amount.
 “Please take a seat, would you like something to drink?” a feminine voice, soft and gentle, breaks the silence.
 Marissa’s head snaps towards the source of the sound.
 In the couch where the sunlight is gentler, a woman sits, a glass of liquor suspended between her fingers. Her short black dress hugs her figure in a comfortable way —and the dark purple cloak resting on her shoulders, huge and almost drowning her makes it clear the garment is not hers, both from its size and the cut.
 Her red lips curl upwards in a genuine kind smile when Marissa and her make eye contact.
Nodding her head, her curls move along her head, strangely giving her that aura of mysteriousness. “Don’t be shy.”
 “Sit down.” the male voice is there again, this time, coming from the desk. Just when Marissa looks on, a blond man stands up, all six foot six of him towering and blocking the sunlight from the window. As he moves on, his features and figure become clearer: short blond hair that reaches the nape of his neck, piercing green eyes and lips in a tight line, and a strong, imposing built. Hands inside the pockets of his burgundy suit —the black shirt underneath the suit jacket glistens with something underneath, a shape unknown to most —but to him, the rumble of the arrow lets him know this is a stand user standing before him.
 “We were told about the incident.” He starts, not expecting an answer from her until he rounds the couch, coming to sit down besides his wife and circling her shoulders with one arm as the other extends forward, signaling her. “And we wanted to talk about it.”
 Mar nods, quickly walking in and sitting down at the couch before the couple.
 Their glances feel like an ice cube and a flame at the same time but even then, she still finds the courage to look at them in the eyes before centering her attention in a spot above their heads, where her voice doesn’t quiver when she speaks.
 “I was the one who asked,” she starts, quickly correcting herself as her fingers fiddle with her clothes. “I wanted to know what it was —just a part, because the rest was obvious.”
 Giorno hums, “First things first, what’s your name?”
 Marissa gulps down, feeling the man’s gaze harden when her reply doesn’t come immediately; naturally, one would expect this question to be answered right there.
 “Marissa.”
 Giorno nods, curtly: all business. “Well then, nice to meet you. She’s my wife and the Donna of the famiglia —I suppose you already know who I am, don’t you?”
 Lena nods, raising her glass shortly —making the Don tone it down. “Please make yourself at home.”
 “Thank you, Don, Donna.”
 “Now,” Giorno doesn’t let silence settle in, “There is something we need to talk about first; we have a strong policy to not get civilians involved in our… Matters. You were a special case, and before we start, you’re totally free to choose and swear silence over this. If you do, you can go home right now, and you won’t talk about this —not the police, not your family, not your lover, no one at all. Is that what you want?”
 Marissa opens her mouth to reply when Lena raises a hand up, her palm open and exposed towards her —perhaps a blind body language sign.
 “Think about it. We won’t go anywhere.”
 And this time the rest is silence.
 As Marissa’s head spins with thoughts and questions, her eyes go back and forth between the couple and the literal library around them, the sound of birds chirping outside and the water in the fountain falling. The distant sound of male laughter and the following hush to it.
For fucks sake, she had come here without a purpose. It was all a mere impulse to go out and explore, find new things, meet people perhaps.
 But the Italian mafia was a whole other level of her mom’s phrase. It was crazy.
  “Listen,” she says, making the couple’s ears peek immediately as they look back from each other’s faces —their quiet conversation forgotten immediately. “If you’re trying to embed another question about my reason to be here I’m gonna be sincere with you, I don’t know what I want from this, but I’m not your enemy. Hell, I’m just a girl from a damn boring town.”
 Giorno nods, tilting his head to the side slightly. “That does answer one question, but not the other.”
Marissa sighs, “I want to stay.”
 “Why?” Lena shoots back, leaning forward to place her glass into the coffee table. The liquor left there is now ignored.
 “I don’t know.” Marissa repeats, trying to bite back her annoyance —she had already said it.
 Lena hums, a sweet smile making its way into her lips; the situation makes it feel like a venomous one. “Mar,” she stops for a second, giving her the time to correct her in case the nickname does not match her taste. “There is always a reason for everything; you want to stay, and there must be a reason for it. Everyone here has one.” She gestures around with one hand, recalling some of their most loyal men. “Loyalty, money, a lost cause, redemption, a golden heart. Everyone has a reason; and all of them are valid. As long as the interests match, then there is no way we won’t let you in.”
 Giorno’s gaze comes back from outside, a solution on the back of his mind. “Let’s do something; we will proceed with your test,” if he noticed Mar’s stiff shoulders at the word ‘test’ he played an excellent act when he didn’t react to her reaction. “And by the time we’re done, the last question will be your reason to be here.”
 “Sounds good,” Lena speaks up. “Shall we start, then?”
 Mar hums, gulping down.
 “What are your views on law and justice? Is it true or just another circus?” Giorno leans back, chest puffed out in pride.
 Mar huffs, almost rolling her eyes. Now that she has found her physical reactions don’t seem to have an effect on them, the will to be herself comes back slowly but surely. “Money. If you have the money, then there is no way you’ll put a foot in jail; no one will be able to find out about your actions, unless you want them to.”
 “And what if you don’t have the money and you are not the culprit but you find yourself in jail?”
 “Then… Someone who doesn’t want you out there got you there with their influences.”
 “I see,” Giorno nods, eyes falling into the window once again. Thoughtful. “What would you do to escape if you found yourself in that position?”
 “Let’s be real, any person who knows about this kind of business will be killed in no time: the news and the police will say they took their own lives. But we all know the government doesn’t want to be seen as a traitor to the people they swore justice and truth to. So they will kill them and make it seem like a suicide, they will pay and eliminate anyone who dares say otherwise,” Mar looks up, almost as if looking into the white celling will give her the answers. “The only way to escape is paying, as I said before, anyone will do whatever they can to grasp a few more bucks into their hands, even if that means letting go someone important under the lie of an escape.”
 Lena nods, a small smirk tugging at her lips. “But… Most people in the government are there because some of them have been put there by us.”
 Mar nods, humming along. “And that’s why you’ll probably never find yourselves there, because those men are working for you. They owe you one, that’s it.”
 Giorno turns to Mar, smirking slightly. “That’s right. Then, next question —Will you commit murder? Whatever your impulse is from these two; orders or will, never from liking —would you do it? And who would it be?”
 Mar’s lips end up pressed together for a moment —her eyes go around the room until her sight falls outside; the sun is gone, hidden by grey clouds. Even the birds have gone silent. The only sound is the water fountain still working.
 Looking on, Mar stares into Giorno’s eyes, then into Lena’s, replying in a firm, concise tone. “Well, as far as the rich and powerful that get away with horrific crimes? Anyone who takes advantage of the weak? I don’t care about what happens to them and I’d gladly set them on fire without thinking twice if given the opportunity.”
 The couple before her don’t reply, turning to look at each other —right there, Mar can see the deep connection between them, as the simple glance into each other’s eyes proves to be enough to communicate; only a small smile from Lena and her nod, and Giorno turn to her again.
“That does actually match with our interests —you’ve got one point there.”
 Lena nods, speaking up. “Next question, Mar, and this one is my favorite; are we born good or evil? Do we turn evil, or perhaps good, as time goes by?”
 Mar nods to herself, replying shortly after —eyes going between them in a simple conversational gesture, out of nervousness or insecurity. Despite the topic, it already seems like everyone there is comfortable with each other’s presence. “As far as that whole debate, well, everyone has some kind of baggage; people are just people. You have to make the conscious decision every single day of what kind of person you want to be. People who come from bad homes either choose to rise above it and be ‘good’ or they’ll choose to use it as an excuse to hurt others because they were hurting. Regardless, yeah, at the end of the day, there’s always a choice that has to be made.” She shrugs her shoulders a little.
 Giorno nods, humming low. The sound spark’s Mar’s attention.
 But his last question is not expected.
 “Usually, we ask more, but you’ve surprised us —last question; what is your will, if you ever form part of the famiglia?”
 After a moment of hesitation, considering all the previous answers she had given, she looks back up, finally thinking she had a solid, cohesive answer to give. “To be honest I’ve been kicked around all my life, I was never taken seriously, I hated being ignored, and in turn I hate seeing others face injustice. I even considered a job in criminology at one point; my dad always thought I should have been a lawyer or went to work for some behavioral analysis unit, ya’know, FBI stuff,” she licks her bottom lip as she starts off. “But like I said earlier, it’s all corrupt at some level, the law, all the red tape and bullshit rules, that’s why I stopped trying to pursue the idea of becoming a profiler, it frustrated me to see people manipulating the system.”
 Letting a few beats go, she continued on, “That said, one might say I have a moral flexibility problem and I don’t like playing by rules that are designed to protect the corrupt, my ideals of justice aren’t really what the government is interested in. Sadly, for me, that means I’ve never really fit in anywhere, never had much of a plan after I realized I couldn’t stick with a job I had thought I wanted.” She looked down at her feet again, “That’s why, when I ran into your guys pursuing that drug dealer this week, I guess I figured it was a sign that maybe there could be a place for me, after all, it doesn’t seem like any of you had much success being on the side of government or law enforcement.”
 Folding her arms, she looked back at the Don of Passione, “I guess that’s why I want in; if you guys could find a place and purpose being here, why not me too?”
 Giorno’s eyes bore into Marissa’s, cold and empty of anything but plain green pools accentuated with yellow bits.
 The Donna leans back as a single chain enveloped in red energy emerges from her palm. It flicks, filling the room with the sound of clicking metal.
 Rising a hand up just when one of the chain’s links rests there, surrounded by a brighter tone of red, turning orange briefly just when another hand, humanoid and clearly not hers, but her stand’s, touches the object, producing a creak that echoes and bounces around the walls.
 And as soon as it came it’s gone; the sound, the stand’s arm and its glow, everything’s gone and now, in the Donna’s palm rests an insignia. She leans forward now, with Giorno’s eyes on both women as he watches the moment through proud and calm eyes.
 “Welcome, Marissa. Wear this and serve loyally for our cause, which is just.”
Giorno speaks up just when Marissa leans forward to take the insignia, “You will be assigned to an area with a Caporegime, and will work for them, understood?”
 Marissa nods, taking the insignia from Lena’s palm. “Understood, boss.” She looks down at the golden object —it’s not that heavy, but it does have a certain weight, taking in consideration it’s apparently made of pure gold; the arrow that crosses the small button has what seems to be an insect, whose form is palpable.
 “Please, wait outside; we’ll send someone to lead you into an apartment soon. And Mar?”
 Mar stands up, freezing and turning back to the Donna. “Yes, boss?”
 “I can assure you you’re part of this now, you’re not an outsider anymore.” 
 Mar nods, sighing in something she can’t say —turning around, she doesn’t fail to notice the sun back again, the birds flying out the mansion’s garden and the fountain still there, functioning as if nothing happened. Where a world keeps going, her world seems to stop; or maybe time passes slower, she couldn’t know what was it, but everything felt different the moment she closed the door at her back.
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beauvilliers · 4 years ago
Note
first of all, love your blog i’m a super big fan! second, can you please tell me how you made your icon? i’ll love you forever!
thank you so much darling!! i’ve never done an icon tutorial before, but i’ll leave one below if anyone else is interested 🥰 beware, it’s gonna be pretty long and image-heavy. unfortunately i can’t show you how i made my exact icon, since the copy i have of it is on my unfortunately still broken hard drive, but the process i use is pretty much identical for all my icons!
I’ll be showing you how to make this icon:
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PART 1: FINDING IMAGES
I find pretty much all my pictures on gettyimages! You can just google them if you want, but I find that getty has the best image quality and also a wide variety of photos. (Also, if you’re making an icon of Tito, as I am for this tutorial, google images will just result in a lot of pics of Tito side by side to Anna Kendrick, which is not ideal for an icon). If the watermark is in the way then I just use this website to remove it. It decreases the quality slightly, but when you’re just making icons it’s not a big deal since they’re so small anyway.
I’ll be using this pic of Tito and I have already removed the watermark:
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It can be kind of hard to find good pics of hockey players since they tend to make ridiculous faces constantly, so unless you’re making a Tyler Seguin icon (he’s always camera ready) it might take a few mins to find a good pic. I chose this one bc 1) I love Tito and 2) this isn’t a super awkward pic, like it’s clearly between play so while he’s attentive he doesn’t look strange and he’s not making a weird face.
PART 2: CUTTING OUT
I cut Tito out using the quick selection tool. Make sure to get all the little bits bc this tool can sometimes forget to highlight dark parts on their helmets or parts of letters or whatever, so just be observant.
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I then right-click on my selection and click select and mask. This allows you to edit the selection and make the edges smoother and such. I pretty much just move the sliders around until I like the way the pic looks, there’s not a trick to it. These are my settings for that: 
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So apply your settings and then right click on the picture and select layer via copy. This will leave an original layer so if you mess up you still have the original picture. So now the pic will look like this:
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However, there are still some parts that I wanna touch up. To do this I just add a layer mask to the pic and I add a solid color layer beneath. The solid color layer just helps me see what I’m doing a bit better, and I always use some pink/red variant bc that’s just what’s easiest for me. You could also always use the eraser tool instead of a layer mask, but I prefer a layer mask bc it’s not permanent. 
So after adding the background layer, my pic looks like this:
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and my layers look like this:
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After making some small touch ups with the layer mask (mostly around the mouth & helmet strap), this is what it looks like:
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PART 3: COLORING
The first thing I do is uncheck the pink layer. I don’t remove it all together bc I’ll be using it as the background later, but I just don’t want it to be visible right now. Then I add a curves layer. For this first curves layer I just select auto and let it do what it will.
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Next I add a second curves layer. For this layer I use the white and black dropper tools to select the white-point and the black-point of the image. For the white point I select around his shoulder, and for the black-point I select the dark area of his hair. 
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Next I add a third curves layer. I know this seems excessive, but I use each of them for different things and I find them all helpful. For this curves layer I select the downward arrow that says RBG and I adjust the red, green, and blue curves. Just grab the middle of the curve and drag it in either direction. I tend to increase reds, decrease greens, and increase blues. 
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I know it looks like I did nothing but I promise I did! It also depends on the image, sometimes you don’t really need to use this last layer but I always do the same steps while making icons so I just add it anyway. 
Next I will add a levels layer. I just use the middle slider and increase it from somewhere between +1.05 and +1.15. 
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Next I add a selective color layer and go to the blacks, where I increase them somewhere between +5 and +15. This adds dimension where some of the other layers have taken it away.
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Then I add a gradient map, set it to soft light, and put the opacity somewhere between 10-15%. This also adds some more dimension.
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Now moving onto actually playing with the colors and not just brightening the image! First I add a selective color layer. I like to keep hockey players faces somewhat pinkish, bc they are exerting themselves so I think that looks most natural, but Tito’s face is a little too red for my liking here. I edit his face using the red, yellow, and magenta colors.
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Next I add another selective color layer and edit the blues/cyans. I like to keep the layer where I edit their faces and the layer where I edit their jerseys separate, but this is just a personal preference, you could do it all on the same layer if you wanted. 
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One of my favorite “tricks” when editing hockey jerseys, especially ones that have a lot of white, is to add a new layer, change the layer type to color, and use a white brush to color in areas that should have no color to them (ie. the white of the jersey, helmet, etc). I just think this makes the icon look more clean.
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There’s not too much of a difference, but you can tell that the bottom right corner of his jersey is not so pink anymore, and the helmet strap is white instead of yellow, and I also colored in the visor, which will be important later.
Now I’ll show you a few final coloring steps that I do to make the image really pop, in my opinion!
First I add another new layer and I use the eyedropper tool to select a skin color from Tito’s face. I ended up choosing #f6b9b0 here. Then I color over his face with this color and set the layer type to color.
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Now I know it looks weird, which is why I then change the opacity to somewhere between 10% and 20%. 
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This wasn’t super necessary for this pic because Tito’s skin looks pretty good here, but it helps to even out the skin tone and bc I do it on other icons I thought I would show it here.
Next I add blush! I add a new layer, and same as I used the eyedropper tool to select a skin color, I focus in on either a pink part of Tito’s face or his lips to find a good color. I ended up selecting #e6687e.
I then lower the hardness of the brush to zero, and click twice on Tito’s cheek.
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Obviously this looks weird, so I change the opacity of the layer to soft light to create a kind of glow.
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Next I move on to lips. Now for most players I do this bc their lips look pale or weird or whatever, but Tito has the most luscious lips in the league and so I wouldn’t normally do this for him specifically. However, since this is a tutorial I’ll show you anyway!
Exactly the same as the skin and the blush, I select a pink color from his lips. Here I used #df5c7c. Then I changed the layer to soft light and lowered the opacity to 50%.
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Finally I added a vibrance layer to finish off my coloring!
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(He looks a lot more red here than he does on photoshop, I promise.)
These are all my layers up to this point:
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STEP 4: MAKING IT INTO AN ICON
Now we have a lovely edited picture of Tito, but we need to turn it into an icon! First I select all the layers I’ve shown above, right click, and select merge layers. This conglomerates all the layers into one layer, which is a lot easier to edit than like 12 different coloring layers. 
Now I finally cut my icon into the shape I want it. I know a lot of people do this at the beginning, but I like to save it for the end since I like to see all my coloring on it first.
So I click on the cut tool and make sure that the ratio is a square, and I pretty much just move it around until I find a position that I think looks good.
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Next I will be adding the background! I once again use the eyedropper tool to find an orange from the letters on his jersey, and I ended up with #f8791c. I change the color layer that I had at the beginning to that color instead of that random pink one, so then it looks like this:
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This looks pretty flat, so I add a gradient fill layer (not a gradient map) over the background and set it to a black and white gradient. I then toggle the angle so that the light looks like it’s shinning onto his face.
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Then change the layer to soft light, so the background looks like this:
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One small touch that I think really helps to bring the icon and background together is to color the visor on the helmet. I use the eyedropper to select an orange right by that part of the helmet, color the visor, then change that layer to color. I also decreased the opacity slightly to make it blend in better.
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Honestly you could leave it like this, but I don’t really like square icons and so I’m going to turn it into a fun circle! Here are a bunch of icon templates that I really love!
Imma use this one:
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First I merge my layers together. I merge the top two layers into my icon and then the bottom two into my background. I’ll explain why later.
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Then I change the image size to 250x250px. I know this is big for an icon, but I like to be able to see what I’m doing. I also open the icon template above in photoshop and change it’s size to 250x250px. Add a layer mask to the background layer, and then copy the template over onto your icon.
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Click on the template layer and click command + A (Mac) or ctrl+A (Windows) to select all, and then once that layer is selected press command/ctrl+C to copy it. Click on the white square of the layer mask and press alt.
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Then press command/ctrl + V to paste the template in the layer mask.
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Once you’ve done that you can delete the extra template layer at the top. You should have something like this:
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Now the reason that I keep the Tito and the background separate is because I like to move the person around within the icon and position them where I think looks best. If I merged all the layers together I wouldn’t be able to do this, therefore I keep them separate. 
To actually put Tito in the bounds of the icon (if that makes sense), just add a clipping mask. Now I click command/ctrl + T to move him where I want him, and I also resize him a little along the way.
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This is just a little trick, but do you see that part of the circle under Tito’s shoulder that is orange but should be white? To fix that I just color in a little bit of white on the icon.
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Ta da! No more weird orange bit! The final step is to convert for smart filters and smart sharpen.
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And that’s it!!! I know a lot of my icons come in different colors, but that’s mostly just me playing around with a combination of selective color, hue/saturation, and layer masks to change the colors around and I don’t think it’s super hard so I’m not going to explain it here bc this is long enough!
You can find this icon and all my other icons here!
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needtherapy · 4 years ago
Text
to be human is a haunting, Part 1
A love story for Song Lan and Xiao Xingchen
In a modern world, in a modern city that still has need for cultivators, Song Lan 
(war hero, rogue cultivator, orphan)
goes for a run in the park, kills a dankang, makes a friend, and meets a beautiful man with a dog, all before he has to go to therapy. It's the best day he's had in ten years.
Read more Kristina Writes Tiny Stories
Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3
Read over on AO3 instead
Title from molly ofgeography’s song Runaway, Run
Rated E for Explicit sexy times, mild demon killing, and swearing.
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Part 1
Song Lan wakes to the sound of screaming
 familiar
 too familiar
and he knows it is his own voice seconds
 long seconds
before he can snap his mouth closed around the last trailing sob.
The thrum of the city leaks back in, pushing past the roaring in his ears, and reminds him to ground himself. The clean white walls of the stark room around him. The feel of the bed underneath him, the smell of lemon dryer sheets, the glow of the neon light across the street. All known. All safe. He skips the taste of morning breath.
If he could remember the nightmares, the exact details, maybe he’d tell his therapist. It would at least give them something to talk about instead of the silent hour he wastes twice a week now.
No. That’s a lie. He knows what’s in them. He still wouldn’t talk about it.
The clock by his bed claims it’s 5:04 am, a fairly reasonable time to be awake, so he gets up. May as well get his run over with.
— ⚔ —
“Do you run every day,” Dr. Wen asks.
Song Lan nods.
Dr. Wen writes something down.
“Do you enjoy running?” Dr. Wen asks.
Song Lan nods.
Dr. Wen writes something down.
“Why do you enjoy it?” Dr. Wen asks.
Song Lan shrugs.
Dr. Wen writes something down.
— ⚔ —
Song Lan doesn’t really enjoy running any more than he enjoys digesting food. But it’s too ingrained in him now, the rhythm of air and feet and arms. He couldn’t stop if he wanted to. It is the anchor of his day.
Ten miles covers a lot of the city, and as familiar as it is, as long as he’s lived and run here, it looks different every morning, like noticing a light freckle on the back of his wrist. When it’s cloudless before dawn like today, he runs down the lakeshore path to watch the sunrise at the halfway mark. On cue, with all the fanfare and flourish of a seasoned professional, at 6:17 am, the sun erupts in yellow and pink over the horizon and turns the water to diamonds. It looks like magic every time.
This he loves and doesn’t have to lie about.
Song Lan is two miles from his place, running through the park, when the skin on the back of his neck prickles, and he slows his pace. Is it a hundred yards away? Maybe closer? He opens his mind and sends out a questing wave of qi from his core. He doesn’t know if he needs to draw the sword strapped to his back yet. There’s no one else around. Maybe whatever it is will just...mind its own business.
He doesn’t hunt anymore, not actively, but he still runs with his sword. It’s just habit, probably. He would feel incomplete without Fuxue’s weight between his shoulder blades. And even if he doesn’t go looking for danger, danger is often waiting.
Without warning, an enormous dankang explodes from the bushes by the running path and careens toward him. The green pelt that had camouflaged it glows in the early morning light, and Song Lan is swinging Fuxue almost before the sword is even in his hand. The boar roars in a very un-pig-like way, and he idly wonders, as the blade cuts into the demon’s hide, what the taxonomic difference between dankang and pigs is. Are they different families? Orders? Or is there some divergence further back? It squeals in pain but doesn’t give up the attack, changing direction mid-stride and flashing wicked yellow tusks at him.
It takes six strikes to kill the monster. He always counts. The counting, like the running, is an integral part of him. One downward hack. One thrust to the shoulder. One spinning jab in the dankang’s ribs. Two upward slashes. One strike in the throat and the beast is dead.
Song Lan texts the Nie cleanup crew his coordinates and takes a thin cloth from his pocket to wipe the blood off of Fuxue, dropping it on to the body when he’s done. He’ll clean the sword properly when he gets back.
“Six strikes,” a voice says from behind him, and he whirls, surprised to be surprised. “Was it luck, or are you really that good?”
There’s a man in a long trench coat standing on the path with a dog sitting next to him. The dog is one of those scruffy brown mutts that would be completely ordinary in every way except it looks far too clever to be a dog. It cocks its head and one floppy ear flips inside out.
The man is backlit by a golden ray of sun
 not ordinary
 in no way ordinary
and Song Lan can’t see his features clearly enough, not from this distance
 a hundred and thirty-three feet
 wind from the east
but it looks like he might be carrying a sword.
— ⚔ —
Sometimes in therapy, Song Lan counts the holes in the acoustical ceiling tiles.
Sometimes he counts the colored pencils on Dr. Wen’s desk.
Sometimes he counts the number of times Dr. Wen spins his pen in his fingers, waiting for Song Lan to answer a question. Any question.
— ⚔ —
Song Lan counts to seven before he answers, the numbers slowing his heartbeat.
“It was one more than last time.”
The man laughs, a bright chime of bells that wrinkles his nose. The dog looks up at its master, and its mouth drops open in a doggy grin.
“Clearly a failure, then. I hope the next time I see you, you will have improved.”
Song Lan is distracted by his voice, deeper than he expects, more musical than he expects, and he’s acutely disappointed when the man turns and walks away, the dog at his heels. He’s almost overcome by the impulse to call the man back, just so he can see his face again, so he can decide if it’s real or not.
“I’m here every day at 7 am,” the man calls over his shoulder before he disappears around a corner. Or maybe he disappears into a beam of light. Song Lan can easily believe either.
He takes one step to follow, and then realizes what he’s doing. It’s ridiculous. He takes a second step anyway. But a woman is suddenly at his elbow, handing him a clipboard, asking for his ID and signature. He has no idea how the cleaners got there so fast.
“I haven’t seen a dankang in this park before, have you?” the woman asks.
Song Lan shakes his head.
“Yeah, they usually prefer the suburbs. More hedge rows,” she says, and Song Lan isn’t sure if this requires an answer, so he doesn’t.
She takes the clipboard when he’s finished and peers at it. “Oh, I should have known. You’re the silent rogue—not technically a hunter, but still has more kills than most of the competitive cultivators? Wild!”
Silent rogue, he wonders. As opposed to what?
The woman hands him a card as her team finishes loading the demon into a step van.
“Luo Qingyang. Call me directly next time. I have an office competition to win.” She winks at him and saunters away.
By the time Song Lan gets to the corner where the man disappeared, there’s only cars and pedestrians and noise, and it’s 7:30 am. He has somewhere to be at 9 am, and he doesn’t want to be asked why he’s late.
— ⚔ —
“Dankang?” Dr. Wen asks.
Song Lan’s eyes flinch, glancing up in confusion.
“Well, that was almost an answer,” Dr. Wen says cheerfully.
Song Lan frowns.
“If you want to know, you’re going to have to ask,” Dr. Wen says, eyebrows raised in what might almost be a challenge.
Song Lan doesn’t care. He really doesn’t.
“How did you know?” his voice says anyway, low and soft. Maybe no one heard the question, and Song Lan can pretend it didn’t happen.
To his credit, Dr. Wen doesn’t gloat, but he smiles. Song Lan suspects he’s not going to be able to stay silent forever after all.
— ⚔ —
Song Lan takes a shower after therapy, not only to wash the tattling green dankang fur out of his hair, but scalding enough to burn the words off his skin.
 I’m here every day at 7 am
Is he really going to feel like he is fluttering at the end of a rope for the next twenty hours
 twenty hours and seventeen minutes
until tomorrow’s 7 am?
Evidently, yes. The shower doesn’t shake the man’s voice loose from his thoughts. Neither does lunch, the library, an episode of a cooking show in a tent, weights, two more episodes of the show—whatever a kouign amann is, he wants one—and sixty pages of Dune. He doesn’t even bother trying to work.
Song Lan makes a salad for dinner, neatly arranging paper-thin slices of carrot, cucumber, jicama, apple, and red onion on a bed of dark green leaves and half a chicken breast. He likes salads that are more toppings than lettuce, so he throws almond slivers and cranberries in his bowl too. “Love yourself enough to make a salad,” is practically the only thing he’s learned in therapy. He’s not sure about loving himself, but he’s pretty fond of salad.
He takes his meds before bed, turns on the white noise, and for once, falls asleep before the world spins into a new day.
— ⚔ —
“Do you blame yourself?”
Song Lan keeps on the blank face he’s so familiar with and stares over Dr. Wen’s shoulder at the photograph of three black cats sitting in a window.
“If you don’t blame yourself, who do you blame?”
Song Lan does not narrow his eyes. Or maybe he does, because Dr. Wen tips his head and gives him a piercing look.
“Even if you’d gotten there sooner, Song Lan, what could you have done? Tell me one thing you could have done.” Dr. Wen almost sounds like he’s pleading.
What I should have done, he thinks. Die with them, he thinks.
— ⚔ —
The man is there at 7 am, sitting on a bench.
With the dog, who is also sitting on the bench.
And that face.
Oh, the face is worse, actually, because Song Lan can see it clearly now. The man smiles when he sees Song Lan, a curving, curling, invitation of a smile on a mouth that looks like a bow without an arrow. The angle of his cheekbones, the graceful lines that can’t fairly be called anything as mundane as dimples, make Song Lan wonder if the rumors of fae in this country are true. The man’s eyes tip up at the corners when he notes Song Lan’s inspection of him, and Song Lan stops moving, maybe stops breathing.
The dog sticks its wet nose in Song Lan’s hand, and he jerks back, staring down at the animal. He doesn’t like to be touched, even by animals, but he isn’t angry, just surprised. He’s just surprised. He can’t understand why he’s just surprised.
“She’s inviting you to sit,” the man says, laughter in his voice.
The dog snorts at Song Lan, a chuffing noise that sounds like she is laughing at him, too.
“Is she?” Song Lan asks, and the man grins
 an unfairly perfect expression of genes
and shakes his head.
“No. But I am. Will you join us?”
Song Lan sits on the bench on the other side of the dog.
“A-Qing, get on the ground like a normal dog,” the man scolds.
The dog harrumphs but stands, delicately sets her front feet on the ground one at a time and stretches her long body the rest of the way, as slowly as caninely possible. Song Lan feels the corner of his mouth twitch.
“I’m Xingchen,” the man says, his lips shifting to a different kind of smile, a tip of the hat friendly smile.
He is wearing a white sweater, a white scarf, baggy white pants, and his name is stardust. Of course it is. Song Lan wonders if it’s a real name or one he’s invented.
“No last name?” Song Lan asks, and the man laughs again. Song Lan can’t imagine what it must be like to have so much laughter bottled inside him. Even before the war, before the massacre that took everything from him, laughter was a precious commodity, not something anyone would squander in the park on a cloudy day with a man like him.
“If I tell you my last name, you’ll think I made it up,” Xingchen says, and it’s so close to Song Lan’s thoughts, he tips his head, realizing belatedly that he looks like the dog when he does it.
Xingchen’s face shifts to mischief, and Song Lan’s mouth feels dry, chasing a mirage in the desert, only to discover it’s real. “You tell me your first name, and I’ll tell you my last name,” Xingchen says.
“Zichen,” Song Lan says immediately, without thinking, without the capacity for thought. He backpedals. “No one calls me that anymore, though. I’m just Song Lan.”
He has not been anyone’s treasured child in three years. He only thinks of himself as the mist now. It’s easier to be insubstantial, just passing through, nothing to see here.
“Oh no, you must be Zichen. Precious child, treasured seed,” Xingchen says in a singsong voice like it’s a line from a song or a poem. “Song Zichen, I’m Xiao Xingchen. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Would you like to have breakfast? With us?”
Song Lan does think it’s a made up name now, but he could have said his name was Horsehead Nebula, and Song Lan would still say yes.
“Yes, thank you.”
Xingchen stands and a-Qing, who had been laying on her back in the grass, snaps to attention, dashing over to lean against his left leg, looking up at him with clear adoration.
It hadn’t been a sword.
It is a cane.
“Well?” Xingchen asks. “Are you coming? I’ll tell you about it on the way, if you like.”
Song Lan nods, and then answers out loud, in case the nod was stupid and thoughtless. “Yes.”
— ⚔ —
“Do you have friends?” Dr. Wen asks.
Song Lan frowns at the rude question, which inexplicably makes Dr. Wen grin.
“I’ll take that as a no,” he says. “How about this? Do you want friends, Song Lan?”
Song Lan doesn’t give an answer, but Dr. Wen seems to think he sees one anyway.
“Well. What are you planning to do about that?”
— ⚔ —
Xingchen says it’s not that interesting of a story. He is slowly going blind. There is nothing anyone can do, and everyone has tried. Surgery. Magic. Lasers. Everyone. Everything. He says a-Qing is helpful. He says he decided to learn to use the cane now, while he can still see a little. He says all of it like it doesn’t matter, and it is Song Lan who is numb with the pain of a loss that isn’t even his. That he didn’t even know about until five minutes ago.
Oh, and Xingchen says he does have a sword, actually, but it seemed like bad manners to bring it on a first date
 first date
 implying date
 implying subsequent dates
even if he hadn’t been entirely sure Song Lan would show up.
Breakfast is in a diner not much wider than a dead dankang, and they tuck into a booth in the back. A-Qing lays on Song Lan’s feet, and it still doesn’t bother him. She’s warm, and he thinks he likes the way it feels when she rolls on her side and sighs.
They order pancakes and a poached egg for a-Qing. He tells Song Lan that a-Qing came from a local shelter because there’s no requirement that service dogs be purebred, they just usually are. He says it’s just harder to pick mixed breed dogs who will be good service dogs, but he didn’t pick a-Qing, she picked him.
“She scaled an eight-foot chain link fence and sat at my heel as though she’d been in service her whole life,” he says with a laugh, reaching his foot to poke a-Qing on the belly and accidentally brushing Song Lan’s leg.
It is a very good thing, Song Lan thinks, that he is accustomed to hiding his reaction to being touched because the feel of Xiao Xingchen’s foot rubbing against his leg makes him suddenly, painfully, embarrassingly hard, and he can vividly recall what it was like to be a teenager in want of a very large notebook to hold in front of himself.
Song Lan rarely eats food he doesn’t make, even more rarely eats fluffy pancakes drenched in butter and syrup, and he has no idea why. They taste like heaven, and watching Xingchen eat is...an experience. He cuts his food precisely, examines every piece, and closes his eyes when he chews, as if each mouthful is a fine wine he plans to savor. He finishes in twenty bites.
“Is your name made up?” Song Lan finally can’t resist asking, and Xingchen shrugs.
“Aren’t all names?”
Song Lan snorts, almost a laugh. “Is it the name you were born with?”
“No one is born with a name, Zichen.” Xingchen sounds like he is very seriously and very patiently explaining why the sky is blue, and Song Lan wants to shake him.
But that makes Song Lan think about laying his fingers on Xingchen’s shoulders, caressing his skin, grazing his collarbone with his thumb, and he shudders, blinking for a heartbeat too long.
“It is my real name,” Xingchen says softly, touching the back of Song Lan’s hand tentatively, as though he understands it might not be welcome. It aches like a spark from an autumn campfire. “My mother is a bit of a hippie, and I was a beautiful baby.”
This time it is a laugh. A real laugh. He hasn’t laughed in so long, he forgot what it would sound like, how it would feel to vibrate through his chest, how it could turn to tears. He covers his eyes with his hand
 not the hand Xingchen is touching
and tries to turn back the choking gasp that catches in his throat and forces its way out.
Xingchen doesn’t ask, just holds Song Lan’s hand and waits.
“You are a beautiful adult,” Song Lan says, when he can swallow again, and Xingchen smiles.
“So are you. Although, I have no idea what you looked like as a baby. This could be a recent development. Maybe you were hideously ugly a year ago.”
Now he sounds like he’s teasing, and Song Lan looks at him. Xingchen’s head is propped on one hand, and his expression is both curious and evaluating.
“Would you like to come home with me?” Xingchen asks, threading his fingers through Song Lan’s as though it is completely natural, and somehow, it is. His fingers fit perfectly into the spaces between Song Lan’s. The flames that spill from his fingertips into Song Lan’s arm and flow through his blood whisper the answer.
It is the easiest thing in the world to give them voice and say yes.
Read Part 2 Here
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otomebois-bb · 5 years ago
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Kiro Month, Day 20: Soulmate AU
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Title: I Promise
Pairing: Kiro & MC (Emci)
Notes: The long-awaited (for me anyway) Soulmate AU day is finally upon us! Due to my current circumstances, I wrote this many days in advance. I feel bad for not being able to participate in my own event too much, but I told myself I'd definitely do this one no matter what, so I did!
Before you begin, a few things you need to know:
1. Despite the Soulmate AU title, this is a bit of an angst! Nothing too bad, but proceed with caution.
2. There are slight spoilers from Kiro's backstory with the MC (I think from chapter 10? I really don't remember tbh).
3. I mashed together 3 different Soulmate AUs into this! They are:
Your soulmate leaves colored footprints only visible to you (for this, I added a little twist where the color changes each day.)
Your soulmate's first name on your wrist.
Meter of how in danger your soulmate is, below their name on your arm.
With that said, I hope you enjoy!!
Tagging: @producer-miss-chips for the banner ^^
Kiro's POV:
I stared out the car window, lost in thought while Savin, who sat next to me, ratted off the day's schedule for the third time today. I sat up straighter when I caught sight of the neon pink footsteps on the sidewalk, leading up to a tall building.
So she works inside the LFG building, huh...
I rolled up my left sleeve and stared at the engraved name on my wrist: Emci. I slipped it up a little higher to reveal the semi-circle meter below it, going from green, to yellow, to red from left to right. Currently it was all the way in the green.
I learned the hard way a long time ago what that meter was for, and ever since then, I always prayed to never see it go that far into the red again...
"Kiro!"
Savin's yelling snapped me back to reality, and I quickly hid my arm underneath my sleeve once more. "Sorry, Savin. What did you say?"
He opened his mouth, only to shut it again. His expression conveyed annoyance through his furrowed eyebrows and the deep scowl etched onto his face. Finally, he spat, "You realize your monthly schedule right now is too busy to fit in chasing down your soulmate, right?"
My heart sank, and my shoulders sagged. "Yeah... I know." I had asked him about it not too long ago, and his simple response had been showing me this month's calendar and telling me to find some free time on it. Of course, there wasn't any, unless I was willing to sacrifice sleep for it — but with the way things were, I couldn't even afford to do that.
"Then let go of that fantasy. If you're that desperate, why don't you look her up on social media? Everyone has a Moments account."
I scoffed. "I only know her first name. Without her last name, it'll take forever to find her."
"Well, guess you'll have to wait until your schedule clears up," he said, typing something on his phone.
"Yeah, with you as my agent, that'll never happen," I muttered.
"Without me as your agent, you wouldn't be where you are today. Be thankful," he shot back.
I wanted to retort that I'd have been just as well off without his help, but seeing as it was difficult to go from nothing to something without a good agent, I bit my tongue instead.
I sighed, resuming my blank stare out the window as the car kept going, the LFG building long behind us.
~~~~~~~~
Four days after my argument with Savin, I managed to sneak out of an interview I really wasn't interested in, wearing a black hat and a dark gray hoodie for good measure.
As I mingled with the crowd, I caught a glimpse of a few seemingly painted footsteps on the sidewalk across the street. I smiled, and muttered to myself, "So, your footsteps are light blue today, huh?"
I headed for the crosswalk, fully intending on following her footsteps in hopes we'd be reunited today. As I began to cross the street, I decided, just out of curiosity, to check the meter on my arm; though I was sure it would still be in the green section.
I stopped dead in my tracks halfway across when I saw it, though.
The little arrow was in the yellow, slowly moving closer and closer to the red area.
My mind suddenly flashed back to several years ago: her screams echoing through the thin walls, while I was strapped to a cot, powerless to do anything while the meter stayed as far into the red as it could go — not to mention the countless experiments I was forced to endure as well...
When we were finally rescued from that hell hole, we were separated. "I promise I'll find you again! I'll protect you, I promise!" I cried as the police officers gently tugged me away.
No. I won't let that happen again.
I ran the rest of the way, shoving people out of my way once I was on the sidewalk, and they protested at my actions — but I couldn't care less if I was being rude. At that moment, the only thing that mattered to me was following those footsteps and fulfilling my promise.
The footsteps led me down an alleyway and through a rusty door. The room I stepped into was pitch-black, but the pale blue footsteps glowed, allowing me to continue following them without needing a light.
Heading down a set of stairs, I gasped when I reached the basement floor, which was dimly lit by a few spread out light bulbs. The footsteps on the floor here were splattered together, then drastically spaced — indicating a struggle had occurred before she was dragged off to the next room.
The meter on my arm now rested in the center of the red section.
I quickened my pace as much as I could without making too much noise. My hand reached out for the door knob in front of me, when...
"Nooooo!!"
A female's voice shrieked from a distance behind the door, and my blood ran cold. It took every ounce of will power to refrain from panicking and recklessly rushing in there, especially after glancing at my arm just in time to notice the arrow spike up as far into the red as it could go.
I managed to keep calm enough to enter the room, where the only light was coming from the far end of the room, behind a white curtain. I could see the shadows of two figures standing by what looked like a table, and another person writhing around wildly, seeming to be strapped to the table. Since the increased amount of panicked, struggling footsteps led all the way behind the curtain, my only guess could be that the person on the table was my one and only soulmate.
My hands balled into fists.
I won't let it happen again.
I quickly searched my surroundings for anything that could be used as a weapon or as a distraction, finding a hammer and a knife among a table of various tools and a fire hydrant behind a counter closer to the curtain. Clinging to the wall to stay shrouded in the dark, I slowly made my way to the fire hydrant.
"Please, stop," the girl begged, her weakened voice fueling me to move a little faster.
"Aww, doll, don't worry. It'll be a quick pinch, you won't even feel it!" A man cackled, and I could see one of the figures holding a syringe, moving it closer to the person on the table.
"No, please!"
Clank!
I finally reached the fire hydrant and tipped it over, causing it to lang loudly as it hit the stone floor and echoed.
The man with the syringe paused and pointed at his helper to investigate the sound as he continued what he was doing. I got into position as the other person, another man, emerged from behind the curtain. When he passed me, almost completely oblivious, I swiped my leg out and knocked him down just as the screaming began. Before the man could recover from his fall, I swung my hammer at his head, and he stopped moving. I couldn't care less whether I killed him or rendered him unconscious as I searched his motionless body and grabbed a gun.
I stood and aimed the gun carefully at the man's syringe hand, pulling the trigger when he removed the syringe and no longer had his hand near the girl, since I didn't want to risk accidentally hitting her. The man, startled and in pain, stumbled away from the table, clutching his bleeding hand. "W-who's there?!"
I pulled my hood up to hide my hair before stepping into view, aiming my gun at him. "That was a warning shot. If you value your life and know what's good for you, I suggest you leave before I decide to use you for target practice."
"Why you—!"
He lunged for me, and I didn't hesitate in pulling the trigger again, and he fell at my feet. "I warned you," I muttered bitterly.
I traded the gun for the knife in my pocket, discarding it on the floor and facing the table. The Emci I saw laying there, struggling to stay conscious, looked mostly the same as I'd remembered her — only more mature and grown up, and, if possible, more beautiful. Her sleeves had been rolled up, and she had a small dot of blood and what looked like a yellowish substance on one arm, and on her other arm — her left, like mine — I could see her meter going down from red to yellow, and above it, I could make out my name engraved in cursive on her wrist: Kiro.
Using the knife, I cut her bindings and lifted her limp body in my arms. Carrying her while I followed the exit signs, she softly mumbled, "You came back..."
"I promised I'd find you again, and I promise you, I will never leave your side ever again."
~~~~~~~~
The moment I rushed into the hospital, someone said, "Oh my God, is that Kiro?!"
"Yes, it's me, Kiro," I said, a bit irritated that that was the first thing they pointed out. "Now, can I please get some help over here?! My soulmate's life is on the line!"
Immediately, a few nurses hurried over, one calling for a doctor, and soon after, I was following as they led Emci to a room on an elevated stretcher. Before I could get through the door, a nurse stopped me, holding her hand up. "I understand she's your soulmate, but please wait in the lobby. The doctor can't be distracted while trying to treat her."
I sighed. "Fine, but what should I do in the meantime?"
"I'm sure your agent would like to know where you're at," she said before leaving to catch up with the others.
I dialed Savin's number, and he immediately picked up. "Kiro, where are you?!"
"I'm at the hospital," I said, walking outside.
"The hospital?!" Shuffling could be heard on the other end. "Are you okay?"
"Yes. I found my soulmate."
Savin paused before groaning, "Seriously, Kiro? This was an important interview, I can't believe you—!"
"If I had listened to you, Emci would've been more hurt than she is now, or worse!" I cut him off, and he fell silent. "Look, I'll see you later and apologize. Just wanted to update you. Goodbye."
Hanging up, I walked back into the hospital just in time for the nurse from before to spot me as she entered the lobby. "Good news, Kiro, she's going to be okay." I let out a breath of relief I didn't know I'd been holding as she continued, "The doctor just needs to flush the chemicals out of her system. He wants to hold her here overnight to monitor her for a bit, just in case, but you're very lucky you brought her here when you did." She smiled. "Anyway, I'll come back in an hour to give you another update. Hopefully I can bring you back to see her by then, too."
I nodded, taking a seat and anxiously waiting for an hour to pass.
~~~~~~~~
Two hours later, Emci finally woke up.
"Kiro?" she asked, her voice shaking me awake as I was about to doze off. "Is it really you?"
I gently reached out for her hand. "Yes, it's me. I'm really here." I squeezed her hand, and she smiled.
"I was beginning to wonder what was taking you so long," she admitted, giggling — the melodic sound like music to my ears. "If you weren't such a popular public figure, I would've lost hope."
I chuckled "I know. I'm sorry, I got busy."
"Don't apologize." Her thumb softly caressed the back of my hand. "I'm just glad you're here now."
"I have so much I want to tell you," I said.
"Me too," she agreed, "but now is a bad time."
"Can I at least say one thing?"
"Of course." Her smile was like a ray of sunshine, brightening my mood instantly.
I leaned over and kissed her cheek. "I love you, Emci."
She giggled. "I know." Upon seeing my dejected pout, she laughed and added, "I love you too, Kiro."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
END.
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takonei · 4 years ago
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Beta AU - Main story, Chapter 4, daily life (Part 2)
Note of the author: Ok uhhhhhh I didn’t expect that shit to be that long so the daily life parts (normally ‘1 part = 1 day’) are going to be '2 parts = 1 day’.
Chapter 4: Dance, dance, hanged puppets - Daily life
Day 14 since the beginning of the game.
7:30 AM.
Shuichi woke up earlier than expected.
Not because he gave up on sleeping. He simply didn't feel like going back to sleep.
He rubbed his eyes and glanced at the grey card on the table, in the middle of the room.
The ‘Sanzu key’ as Monokuma called it.
What was he even planning?
The violinist took a shower, trying to forget about those worries for a while.
But he couldn’t.
Monokuma’s motive always came the day after the new labs opened. This time they had a part of the motive, but the bear specified that the whole thing was not ready yet.
What did that even mean?
After his usual routine, he left his room. Surprisingly, Kirumi was leaning against a pillar, and Miu was laying on the ground, head resting on her arms, staring at the ceiling.
Ryoma was also there, fidgeting with his Sanzu key.
The others turned to Shuichi.
“G’morning. Breakfast canceled, we stay here.” the street artist said with a hint of sarcasm.
He blinked. “What’s... Happening?”
Kirumi shrugged. “No one knows. The dormitories’ door is locked, so we can’t go out. We’re locked here.”
... What? Was that the motive? Being quarantined in their rooms? That sounded like a bad joke.
“We tried calling Monokuma and even the monokubs and no one came.” Ryoma explained.
That sounded fishy. Extremely fishy.
They could only wait.
Rantaro, Kiyo, and Tsumugi came out of their rooms one by one. The situation had to be explained each time.
...
8:00 AM.
The morning announcement rang, but the message was different.
“All students are required to go out of their rooms, this is a direct order from the principal of the academy!”
Did Monokuma want them all at once? Usually, when an announcement was made they were all supposed to go to the gym. Why the dormitories this time?
Speaking of the devil, the bear and his cubs appeared before them.
“My, my! It’s as though almost everyone is here!” he cackled. “Only Mr. grumps and Mr. gloomy are missing!”
Shuichi flinched at the nicknames.
The two cubs started their shenanigans that Shuichi didn’t even bother listening to.
The only emotion he could feel when the monokubs appeared was a pure annoyance. Not even hatred. Pure annoyance.
He couldn’t even bother being mad at them. It just felt like each time they visited them, his only desire was to see them disappear forever.
Minutes felt like hours, Shuichi silently praying for Kaito and Kokichi to just come out from their room already so the green and red bears would shut up.
Kaito was the first to come out, surprisingly. his appearance was less messy than yesterday.
Shuichi noticed him glancing at Miu, the latter avoiding his gaze.
He muttered a quiet “Hey.” as he came down the stairs. The biker immediately separated himself from the group to lean against a pillar.
After another couple of minutes waiting for Kokichi, the boy opened his door, stumbling out of his room. He didn't seem to have slept well.
“Next time, do not come late to the principal’s announcement! I’ve waited way too long for you two to come out!” he raised his paws in the air, voice a bit too loud for the two who had woken up minutes ago.
“So, what do you want from us this time?” Rantaro was straight to the point.
“Sheesh, stop being so eager for the motive, I can’t even prepare the surprise!”
So it was the motive.
“Anyway, let me present you the next motive, starting from today to the moment someone dies...”
“... The Sanzu garden!”
That raised more questions than answered them.
“And what is the ‘Sanzu garden’?” Ryoma raised an eyebrow.
“To put it simply, this entire academy was renovated just for you guys!”
Something that involved the whole academy?
“Before explaining the motive, perhaps I should tell you a story passed through generations... Have any of you heard the legend of the Sanzu river?”
Tsumugi put a finger on her chin. “From what I’ve heard, the Sanzu River is a mythological river of the Buddhist religion. Souls joining the afterlife must pass the river by one of the three crossing points, depending on the actions they made in their life, also known as ‘karma’.”
Kokichi visibly flinched at the explanation.
“Great! I may also add that a cost is required to cross the river. Six mon to be specific.” the bear explained.
“In other words, this academy has been transformed into a great garden! And the cost of living for another day must be paid! However, the cost isn’t six mon like the legends told since we live in a modern society with better ways to pay your lovely headmaster!”
Kaito raised an eyebrow, arms crossed. “So what, someone must kill within 24 hours so the others can live?”
“Better! That’s where your Sanzu keys play their part! They serve as bank cards to pay your fee to live for the next 24 hours!”
“Wh- bank cards??” Miu exclaimed, taking out the card.
“There are two locks with your icons hidden in the academy, specific to each of you. You will have to activate the locks each day with your card keys to continue living. One lock must be activated between 8 AM and 3 PM, and the other between 3 PM and 10 PM. It doesn’t matter in which order you activate the locks.” the bear explained as everyone listened carefully.
“Also, do not even try to activate another person’s lock! This will not work in the slightest! And the locks’ placements will be different each day! They can be in the labs, common rooms, and even outside!”
Rantaro, who had sat down, joined his hands. “Let me get this straight. We have to use cards on locks two times a day and look around the academy to find them?”
“Where’s the catch.” Ryoma bluntly asked. “That’s way too easy. There’s a catch.”
The bear laughed. “Puhuhuhuhu... I’m glad you asked! The catch is also the reason why we are meeting in the dormitories after all!”
This did not reassure Shuichi in the slightest.
“Did you know? The Sanzu river takes its name directly from the Japanese ‘San’, meaning ‘three’ and ‘Zu’, meaning ‘way’ for our non-japanese audience!”
... What?
“This garden has a similar mechanic! There are only three choices offered to those entering it!”
“... To die, to kill or to suffer.”
... Huh?
“This academy is a garden of traps in every corner. Both outside and inside. From pitfalls to spears to arrows to spikes, everything is here to hurt you. But my favorite part is...”
“... Some rooms will lock themselves and whisper your worst fears to you.”
“Of course, none of the traps will actually kill you, that would be a shame if someone was accidentally killed!”
“But I meticulously put everything in place so you guys could enjoy this academy of nightmares!”
Monokuma raised his paws in the air with excitement.
... This could not be real.
An academy of nightmares??
“There is one zone that is free of danger, which is where we’re standing!”
“The dorms are safe?” Kirumi raised an eyebrow.
“Thaaaat’s right! The dormitories are the only place without any traps!”
Shuichi couldn't even say anything.
As if the academy wasn't already the place where they all had to kill each other, it just had to be trapped for the sole purpose of making them suffer?
What did whoever put them into the killing game even want from them?
If he even dared to ask Monokuma he would probably say "despair".
And at this point, is the truth even worth knowing?
Was there even an explanation of why they had to endure this?
"Of course it would take a loooong time to search through the whole academy for the locks, so I'm giving you one hint each day! They will be available on your monopads! How generous of me!"
Shuichi wanted to vomit.
This entire motive made no sense.
"That was all the explanations for the motive! Any questions?"
No one even dared to speak.
That was even worse than the last motive.
Even if he even managed to survive, what even would be the next motive?
"No? Then good luck! And don't forget..." the bear smiled.
"The garden will be shut down when a dead body gets discovered."
He left immediately after, the two remaining monokubs following behind.
Everyone stared at each other.
Rantaro slowly approached the door and opened it.
No traps were visible, but Shuichi knew the moment someone would set a foot outside a trap would activate.
"Give me a sec." Ryoma approached his dorm and entered the room.
About a minute later, he came out with a set of tennis balls, supposedly won at the monomono machine. He took a ball out and threw it outside.
... Nothing happened.
"Was Monokuma lying about the traps?" Shuichi raised an eyebrow.
"I think it just means that it's not a trap activated with a motion sensor. There's a possibility the trap is activated when you step foot on one of the path stones." Kirumi shook her head.
"Before we go head first and get us all killed how about we get organized? We know the dorms are the safe spot of the academy, so we'll likely spend most of our time here." Rantaro turned to the others.
"We'll still have to go outside to find the locks." Kiyo added. "We will have to think collectively or else we will not keep up for long."
Shuichi checked his monopad to see what the hints were.
Memories of lavender.
Senses and intuition ~ Follow your heart.
Of course it was going to be some kind of riddle that he didn't get.
"So? What's your plan, boss?" Ryoma asked Rantaro, hands in his pockets.
He pondered for a moment. "First off we should move as much food as we can to the dorms. It will be safer to eat here than in the dining hall."
Kirumi nodded. "Although for now, we should focus on searching at least one of our locks. We have a time limit for each of them."
"But... Do we separate or do we go in groups?" Miu asked.
Rantaro sat down to think. "There are nine of us. Since I think it's too dangerous to leave someone by themselves, I suggest we go by groups of 3 whenever we move from here."
"And our groups shouldn't change for the day so no one gets confused." Ryoma added.
... This clearly wasn't appreciated by some of them. Noticeably Kaito and Kokichi.
Tsumugi crossed her arms. "So? Who gets with who?"
"I suggest we separate Ryoma, you and I since we're probably the most qualified to detect the traps." Kirumi raised a hand. "One in each of the groups seems reasonable."
The prodigy nodded. "That is fair."
She took a few steps away, and so did Ryoma.
After some debating, the groups were made.
Rantaro, Ryoma, and Kaito were the first group.
Kirumi, Kokichi and Miu were the second.
And finally, Shuichi, Tsumugi, and Kiyo formed the last group.
"So now it's pretty much 'the first group finding all their morning locks gets the food'?" Tsumugi fiddled with her hair.
"For now, that is the plan. If we find each others' locks, we share the info however we can." Kiyo replied.
"Well, how do we even do that?" Miu tilted her head to the side. "If we're separated, we can't do anything."
Shuichi pondered. "The most we can do is yelling, I mean my hearing is pretty developed but there are limits to it..."
Ryoma fixed his beanie. "We'll only better our strategy if we face the danger at least once. Staying here won't do any good."
The others agreed.
The strategy was fixed.
The groups would go out one by one by intervals of five minutes to investigate where their lockers would be.
Kaito, Rantaro, and Ryoma left first. The others watched them go to see if everything was fine. They were walking slowly to make sure they didn't activate anything.
For now, everything seemed fine. But Shuichi preferred not to get his hopes up.
The two remaining groups talked about their riddles. They looked pretty strange.
"Hey, Kiyo... Do you have an idea of what my riddle could mean?" he asked the therapist.
"Let's see..." he took the violinist's monopad and read the two sentences. "I don't think your riddle is too far fetched. Does the color purple remind you of something nostalgic and positive?"
He pondered. "I... No, I don't think that's it."
Kiyo shook his head. "All theories could be right. Your riddle says to 'follow your heart'. Your answer could be right."
He looked at the tablet for a moment. "My... My cousin has lavender hair. And I do miss her."
Then it clicked. "Ah! My lab! That's where Miu made her portrait when we got the motive videos!"
Kiyo weakly smiled. "That sounds plausible. We will check your lab once we get to the main building."
Shuichi stared back at the tablet. "So was that the first or the second quote?"
The therapist shook his head. "I don't think one quote is for one lock. Both locks must be linked somehow."
"So the other lock is also hinted by the riddle?"
"I think so." Kiyo nodded. "Perhaps..."
He pointed at the second quote. "You found a potential solution with your intuition. So the second could be linked to your senses."
"My senses...? Something purple that could be linked to my senses?"
Hearing? No. His lab was already for one lock.
Taste? The only thing popping in his mind was that type of soda with a taste you could only describe as 'purple'. Which he didn't like in the slightest.
Touch? That would be unlikely...
Sight? Too vague...
Smell? That could be it since the riddle said 'lavender'. Perhaps...
"The wisterias from the courtyard? They're purple, right?" he raised an eyebrow.
"Does it remind you of something nostalgic?" Kiyo asked.
Shuichi weakly chuckled. "My cousin always had two long braids. Somehow it always reminded me of those flowers..."
Kiyo put a finger on his chin. "So both of your locks are related to one person. To me, we are on the right path."
Just as they stopped talking, Kirumi's group was prepared to go.
Well, Miu and Kirumi were prepared to go. Kokichi was barely keeping up.
The two girls made sure the smaller boy was following when they left, nervousness written all over their faces.
The three ones left in the dorms looked at each other.
"So, did you two find out where your locks could be?" the prodigy asked.
"I'm guessing one is in my lab, and the other should be at the pool." the therapist replied.
Tsumugi nodded. "Good, good. And you?" she turned to Shuichi.
"Oh, um... I think one is near the wisterias and the other should be in my lab as well..."
She frowned. "Three in a row."
"Huh?"
"All of us have a lock in our respective labs. I'm thinking Monokuma put them here as some sort of guide for the first day. The next days are probably going to get harder and harder."
... What did 'harder' mean?
"What about you, then?" Kiyo asked.
"One should be in my lab. The other in the library."
The therapist nodded. "I see. Do you have a strategy for which places we check?"
She started pacing around slowly. "We have both of them in the main building except Shuichi who has one in front of the dorms."
She stopped. "For now we are also requested to help to transport food to the dorms, but there's a possibility the other groups will be done with the locks before us. So I think we should go to the ones that are not in our labs." She narrowed her eyes. "Although for the next days we should find out the locks' locations before forming the groups."
They nodded.
Enough time had passed since the last group left, so they decided to go as well.
They reached the wisterias with no problem, and a black podium with an icon was indeed there.
Before they could go under the pergola, Tsumugi glanced at the structure. She took off her jacket and threw it on the table. Spikes suddenly rose from above, impaling the piece of cloth before it could reach the table.
"... We'll have to find ways to activate traps in advance. We won't use my jacket each time. The tennis balls were pretty effective." the prodigy picked up the jacket from the floor where it had fallen.
The three made their way to the podium, which had Shuichi's icon on it. A red LED was on, indicating that the violinist had not yet activated it.
After taking out the Sanzu key and approaching it to the icon, a small jingle rang, with the LED turning green.
At least the 'paying' process was easy.
"Next up is mine, at the pool." Kiyo turned to the two.
Surprisingly, their way to the main building was quite silent. 
Perhaps the paths outside were never trapped, and it was only the main structures?
Kiyo carefully opened the door.
A black podium was right beside the deckchairs.
He glanced around to see if there were any traps, and carefully approached the podium. After the small jingle rang, he joined the others so they could move on.
Two out of three.
Something didn't feel right for Shuichi. That motive looked way too simple.
Would it be like Tsumugi said, that this was going to get harder and harder with time?
They left the pool and approached the door to the main building.
When they opened it, Shuichi took a step and immediately stopped when an arrow was shot right in front of his face.
"Ah!-"
He took a step backwards and touched the bridge of his nose.
Pecks of blood tainted his fingers.
"Are you okay, Shuichi?" Kiyo asked, worried.
He turned to the therapist. "I'm- I'm fine, this just surprised me. Perhaps we should crouch to pass this door."
He rubbed his nose with his wrist. The wound was pretty light, but it still stung.
The three made their way to the central hall, luckily not activating any more traps.
"Now let's go to the basement. Once we're done with the library we'll be free for now." Tsumugi declared.
They slowly went to the corridor leading to the stairs, until...
*click*
They stopped and looked at their feet.
Kiyo had just stepped onto a pressure plate.
Shuichi's heart skipped a beat when a wall of concrete came down from the ceiling behind them, crushing the grass on the floor.
Then another. And another.
They ran as fast as they could to the stairs, walls menacing to crush them if they were not fast enough.
The trio tripped, fell down the stairs and crashed against the wall.
"Ouch..."
"At least we're alive."
"Even though Monokuma said those traps were not going to kill us we almost ended up crushed."
"Could you two move? I can't breathe..."
"Tsumugi is on top of me, I cannot move either."
The prodigy stood up, brushing dust off her skirt. "I thought you two would be physically stronger than that."
Shuichi could barely mutter under Kiyo's weight. "Well, I'm a violinist, not a biker nor a soldier..."
The therapist stood up and helped Shuichi get on his feet.
Just as the three recovered from their fall, Rantaro's group appeared.
The medic blinked a few times in confusion. "Are you three okay?"
Shuichi rubbed the bridge of his nose to wipe off the rest of the blood from earlier. "We're fine. It could be worse."
Ryoma appeared from behind. "Tsumugi, there's a lock for you in the library. We deactivated the trap here so don't worry about anything."
"I guessed it from my riddle, but thank you."
Kaito was also there but did not seem to want to contribute to the conversation.
"Anyway, our group is done with the morning locks. We'll be getting the food." Rantaro cracked his knuckles.
Kiyo pondered. "Our group only has one more morning lock to activate. We'll be able to join you shortly."
"In that case, we should go to your lab, Rantaro." Ryoma crossed his arms. "We'll need medical supplies in case someone gets injured."
The medic nodded. "Sounds good. So you three can bring the food in the meantime?" he turned to Kiyo.
"Count on us."
The two groups separated. The concrete walls were gone- they were made to make them hurry, not to lock them in the basement, fortunately.
Just as Ryoma said, the trap was deactivated in the library. It seemed to have made some of the bookshelves fall. Tsumugi's lock was right in front of a table.
The jingle rang as she approached her key.
They left the basement to get to the dining hall. No one seemed to have gone there yet.
Shuichi approached the pantry but suddenly...
The floor disappeared beneath his feet.
Kiyo thankfully caught his arm before he could fall.
Don't look down don't look down don't look down don't look down-
"T-Thanks a lot, Kiyo..." he mumbled.
The two others helped him up.
He sat on the ground for a minute, trying to calm down.
How deep was that hole?
"Tch. I knew something would happen." Tsumugi quietly spat.
"Then why didn't you say anything?" Kiyo narrowed his eyes at her.
"Excuse me if I don't express every single intuition I have."
"We're in a situation where we could die instantly. Every single intuition could save a life."
"It could also make us paranoid for nothing. You should know as a therapist that paranoia could also kill us."
"I prefer to be paranoid over careless."
Shuichi knew that is he didn't stop them they could argue for hours.
"Guys! Please..." he stood up despite his feet trembling. "I'm fine. Let's just... Get the food."
The two exchanged glances and stepped in the pantry, avoiding the giant hole in the ground.
"We don't have a refrigerator in the dorms, so we'll have to take durable food." Tsumugi noted.
"We have access to drinkable water in the dorms, I don't think drinks will be necessary." Shuichi added.
Tsumugi looked around. "We don't have any bags. And my jacket is too small to make a substitute.
Shuichi thought back at when Himiko and Kokichi here going to the dorms using their jackets as bags for objects they won at the monomono machine. But...
The astronomer wasn't here anymore. He had to accept it.
He shook his head. "That's better than nothing. I still have my own just in case."
"And mine." Kiyo added.
"Also, perhaps we should take cutlery. To eat and to serve as a decoy for the traps." Tsumugi suggested.
The three started taking food. Mostly canned food since it was the safest option.
Shuichi had suggested taking rice and other starchy foods, but since there was no way to cook them in the dorms, the idea was rejected.
Shortly after, Kirumi, Miu, and Kokichi joined them.
"It's nice to take food that doesn't expire soon, but we should take food that doesn't take much space." Kirumi explained. "We will not go in this building too much, so we'll have to take as much as we possibly can." 
Miu pondered for a second. "How about we use kitchen furniture to transport food? That's two in one!"
Tsumugi perked up. "I didn't think about that."
"However the kitchen furniture will be useless to us since we do not have anything to cook food." Kiyo advised.
"But that's still better than using our jackets to transport food... And perhaps we'll find a way to cook." Shuichi countered.
"Then the pots will be the best for both cooking and transport." Tsumugi declared.
The 6 of them took time to choose which food to take. Canned food, rice, noodles, dry food but also some fruits. They took enough cutlery for both the group and to use it as a trap decoy.
They left the dining hall with all the furniture.
Shuichi hoped they wouldn't have to run with that much in their hands.
Miu looked at the pot she was transporting, full of fruits. "We said we would take the pots but any idea on what to use to cook? We know there's no lighter or some kind of portable stove..."
Tsumugi pondered. "We have the candles on the fourth floor and wood in Angie's lab. But that will require maintenance."
"I believe there are tools to keep the fire alive in my lab since there is a fireplace. We should take a look this afternoon." Kiyo suggested.
"That sounds fair to m-" Tsumugi interrupted herself when she heard a click.
A series of needles was shot from the walls on the group, stabbing each of them in all places.
They ran as fast as they could to get out of the building. Shuichi is pretty sure some of the food fell on the floor, but now was not the time to retrieve it.
His cheeks hurt.
They pushed the door to get out of the building.
Shuichi heard a loud noise, of someone falling to the ground.
When he turned around, his eyes widened.
Miu was less covered than the majority of them. She only had a crop top and a short overall. The needles did much more damage on her than on the others.
She wasn't bleeding, but there were way too many of them, on her arms, legs, and even her face.
"Miu!!" he kneeled before her. "Are you feeling okay?"
"I-I'm fine. D-Don't worry about me." she stuttered.
Everyone took off the needles that stuck on their bodies, Shuichi helping Miu get hers off.
Kiyo helped her getting up. "Rantaro's group went on the third floor for medical supplies. He'll help you once they come back."
She weakly nodded.
Kirumi had taken Kiyo's pot so he could help Miu walk.
Fortunately, no more traps activated on their way to the dorms.
When they opened the door, they realized Rantaro's group was already there, organizing the medical supplies.
The medic rushed to the group. "Are you guys okay?"
"We activated a trap and Miu ended up getting more injured than us. She needs your help, Rantaro." Kiyo explained.
The group organized the food and cutlery, except for Miu and Rantaro, the latter disinfecting the former's wounds.
Kirumi prepared lunch with Ryoma since Miu was unable to do anything. Shuichi hadn't realized they took that long to activate a few locks and transport food. But at least they had enough for the day, and perhaps the day after if they managed to save enough.
For some reason, Rantaro, Ryoma, Kirumi, and Kokichi already seemed to be used to be light on food, considering how little they ate.
The group ate in silence on the floor of the dorms. Canned food was not the tastiest, especially considering what Kirumi and Miu could usually cook, but they didn't have a choice.
This motive was already starting to get the better of them. Would they even be able to continue like this for long? Long enough for Monokuma to perhaps get bored and stop the motive?
Since there wasn't much to do, everyone either stayed in their rooms or talked in the lobby.
Shuichi was already tired from the morning, so he laid on his bed for the time being.
They could only use the locks after 3 PM. Monokuma already knew they would be going to rush and unlock both if he didn't add the rule.
He thought about the situation. They were surprisingly organized.
Surprising...
Was it, though?
Their group had two soldiers, a mercenary, an intellectual genius, and a therapist to help them get organized.
They were teenagers more mature than any normal person their age.
A maturity that came from the harshness of their past.
The fact that they were able to get organized so well...
... That was definitely not surprising.
-
At around 2:50 PM, he left his room to join the others. (The others being: Kirumi and Rantaro).
He only noticed after that Ryoma was knocking on Tsumugi's door.
"Um... Is everything alright?" the violinist asked the two.
"Well, we're trying to think about how the traps work, and that's why we need Tsumugi." Kirumi explained.
Speaking of which, the prodigy joined them with Ryoma.
"We need your opinion on this, Tsumugi." Rantaro looked serious.
"I'm listening."
Kirumi crossed her arms. "We're saying that the more we are in a group, the higher are the chances of activating a trap, and possibly a huge one."
She pondered for a second. "From the traps we activated, I think that could be true. The needles were quite ferocious, even if they didn't look like it."
She perked up. "You're saying we should try to go individually and not by groups?"
Shuichi blinked. "Go individually? Isn't there a risk we could get injured without being able to be helped?"
Rantaro nervously bounced his leg. "I've inspected Miu's injuries earlier. This was not pretty to look at. I'm the only one who can treat serious wounds, so I have to admit going separately would be safer."
So the opposite strategy from earlier.
But if that was the best strategy, then it could be for the best.
...
Shuichi wished he could be as smart and strong as them.
-
At 3:00 PM, the others came out of their rooms.
After a short explanation, they decided to go by groups of two, even though they would separate at some point.
They also decided that those on the fourth floor would bring candles and wood, and Kiyo would get the tools for the fire.
Kirumi and Ryoma went first.
Then Rantaro and Kaito.
Tsumugi went alone.
Then it was Shuichi and Kiyo's turn. They wished Miu and Kokichi good luck and left.
"... I'm still nervous about this strategy." Shuichi admitted.
"For now it's for the best. This is the first day, we will decide which strategy is the best for tomorrow." Kiyo replied. "However we can go together with a distance between us so we do not activate unnecessary traps."
Shuichi smiled. "If it doesn't bother you of course."
"At the sole condition that you help me carry the tools from the fireplace."
He chuckled. "Alright. I accept."
They reached the building, and Shuichi crouched to enter the entrance hall. Perhaps the arrow trap wasn't there anymore, but he preferred not to take a risk.
The walk to the second floor was silent and surprisingly peaceful. They avoided a few traps in the corridors, going one after the other.
This strategy seemed to work.
The fewer people were together, the lower are the chances to activate a trap.
...
Monokuma wanted to separate them. Even Shuichi realized that.
The violinist entered his lab and activated the locker.
He sighed in relief. At least this was over for now.
Just as he stepped out of the lab, he joined back Kiyo, who was waiting for him near the stairs to the third floor.
"So, was your lock in your lab?" he asked.
"Yes, I managed to activate it." Shuichi nodded. "Thank you for helping me this morning."
The two made their way to the fifth floor.
...
This was too silent. Something was wrong.
"Are you coming, Shuichi?" Kiyo asked when he saw that Shuichi slowed down.
"Ah yes I'm..." he trailed off when he heard a faint noise. A voice?
He paused to focus.
"Shuichi?-"
"Shhh!" he raised a hand to ask him to be quiet.
There was a voice. It was definitely a voice.
Wait-
It was not a voice. It was several unfamiliar voices.
Kiyo raised an eyebrow.
...
Something wasn't right.
He walked down the upper set of stairs since the voices were definitely below them- on the fourth floor.
Kiyo followed him.
He could barely hear anything, but voices were coming from somewhere, he was sure of it.
"..."
"... -where... ... stops-"
"..."
"... Rats..."
"..."
"... Rats..."
"..."
"... Rats... Rats... Rats..."
Shuichi had a very bad feeling.
He stepped forward to go down the other set of stairs...
... But stopped when he heard a blood curling scream. Not a scream of pain. A scream of pure terror.
And by the pitch of the voice, it was...
"... Kokichi?" he instinctively muttered.
The violinist and the therapist exchanged quick glances.
Shuichi panicked.
He ran.
He didn't even care if a trap activated. He knew where the voices were from. Where the scream came from.
He ran through the fourth floor despite Kiyo telling him to stop.
The voices were louder and louder as he ran.
Some were talking and panicking. Some were repeating the same word over and over.
"Rats."
"They're everywhere- Someone just kill them!"
"Rats. Rats."
"Stay away from me!"
"Rats. Rats. Rats. Rats."
"God please have mercy on our souls- There's no God! We're going to die like rats!"
"Ratsratsratsratsratsratsratsrats"
"I- I think I'm infected too- STAY AWAY FROM ME!!"
"Ratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsrats"
"WHAT DID WE DO TO DESERVE THIS??"
"Ratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsratsrats-"
Suddenly the voices stopped all at once.
Shuichi entered the corridor leading to Kokichi's lab. A second door had shut down, eliminating every possibility of entering the lab.
"Kokichi!! Kokichi!!!!"
... Nothing.
Kiyo joined him, his monopad in hand. "Kokichi isn't the only one in here."
He looked at the therapist.
"Miu is here as well."
Shuichi kept slamming the door with his fist.
"Kokichi!! Miu!! Say something!!"
No one was answering. The second door was soundproofing the lab. Which was why the voices had 'stopped'.
They didn't stop, they were just contained in the lab.
Shuichi couldn't hear Miu and Kokichi, and neither of them could hear Shuichi banging at the door.
"Miu!! Kokichi!!!"
... This was hopeless.
He thought back at what Monokuma said earlier.
“... Some rooms will lock themselves to whisper your worst fears to you.”
That was what he meant.
He meant psychological torture.
Shuichi and Kiyo would only wait, powerless over the situation.
The violinist fell on his knees.
Just the thought made him want to puke.
Kokichi and Miu were stuck in a room made for psychological torture.
And they had no way of getting out.
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canid-slashclaw · 5 years ago
Text
The Outliers - A Guild Wars Love Story
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6, Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9,  Chapters 10 and 11, Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16 , Chapter 17, Chapter 18, Chapter 19
Chapter 20
One month had passed and Kaleb and Amalthia's passionate relationship continued unabated. Whenever either had the chance to steal away for a moment to see the other, they would do so. But on this night, the continuity in both of their lives would drastically change forever.
Under a moonlit pasture just outside of Claypool, Amalthia straddled atop her lover as the two began to work their bodies up to the moment of orgasmic ecstasy. Kaleb, meanwhile, held his essence for as long as he could until the moment was right.
"I can never get over just how not painful this is whenever we join as one," Amalthia said as she began riding him hard.
Kaleb breathed heavily while his member throbbed deeply inside his feline lover. "I just can't get over how warm and tight you are. In spite of our differences, our bodies match up so well. Proportionally, we are pretty close to being the same."
"True. I think this sort of thing would be a bit awkward if I were larger like most females of my kind. But even if we weren't, I would still be yours, Kaleb. You are my mate and my love," she said between intense yowls of ecstasy.
"The way you end your sentences in soft purring sounds just turns me on even more. I love you so much, Amalthia Steelblade!"
"And I love you too, Kaleb Grimwald. Ohh myyy..." Her body convulsed in sheer pleasure.
"Oh gods!!" Kaleb unloaded into her as the two of them groaned in orgasmic harmony.
After their intense lovemaking session was over, both got dressed then headed out to the waypoint that connected to Kessex Hills. Once there, Kaleb escorted Amalthia back to her loft above her father's butcher shop.
"When can I see you again?" Kaleb queried as he gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek.
Amalthia flicked her ears and replied; "tomorrow is going to be busy for me as my father wants me to cut up a large order for a business client. Perhaps the following day would be better since I'll pretty much have the whole day free."
"I would like that very much."
Once they arrived, she noticed that the downstairs lights were on. But she dismissed it as nothing unusual as her father would typically forget to turn them off.
As Amalthia walked up the staircase leading to her upstairs loft, Kaleb raised his hand to say goodbye. "See you in a couple of days and," saying in a much softer voice, "I love you!" before he began to turn around and depart.
She gave him a parting kiss in the wind before attempting to unlock the door. To her surprise, she found that the door would not open.
"Something's wrong with the damn lock. I can't get it to open," she growled as she shoved the key back into her coat pocket.
"Any possibility that your father's still up?" Kaleb asked just as he was about to leave.
"Doubtful. I've never seen him up this late at night. Anyway, this is starting to piss me off."
"Mind if I come in? I mean, none of the... you know... just figured I'd like to spend a little while longer with you, that is, if you don't mind."
"I would normally never say no, but we are going into the main house where my father resides. Remember, love, I haven't cleaned up yet and there is always a risk of our scents being picked up by him."
"But you said he's rarely up this late," Kaleb reminded her.
Amalthia relented. "Well, I suppose it will be okay. We just have to dash up to my room. No dilly dallying."
Kaleb nodded as she unlocked the main door to the butcher shop. Once they entered, she locked the door behind them as they started to head towards the spiral staircase. But as they did so, Amalthia caught wind of something that suddenly sent a chill to her very core.
"My. Oh my. What has my little cub and this mouse been doing together out so late?"
The lights from the butcher counter area flicked on revealing the form of Siri Blastfuse. Her snout immediately began to sniff the air as her face drew to a deep scowl.
"Mother?" Amalthia said in a shaky voice as their gazes met.
"What is that foul stench coming off you? It's also coming off of him as well. Nooo... this can't be?!"
Before she could react, her mother bounded towards her like a hungry cat about to pounce its prey. She briefly sniffed Kaleb's groin area as her murderous green eyes met his. Next, she shoved her snout into her daughter's crotch then withdrew and let out a horrific shriek.
"YOU FILTHY LITTLE SKRITT-FUCKING WHORE!!"
Siri brought her clawed right hand with full force against the left side of her daughter's upper neck causing four deep lacerations. She then turned her rage towards Kaleb who was too much in shock to react.
"You disgusting little squealer! I will rend parts off your body you don't even know you HAD!!" She lunged at him at full momentum, but was stopped short by Amalthia's quick reaction.
"Mother!! Don't you dare hurt him! I swear I'll kill you right here and now!" She bellowed as she reached for her sword.
Although much older and slower, Siri was still quick enough to blunt her daughter's attack. "Not if I kill you first, cub!"
Within moments, mother and daughter were in a deathwatch with claws and teeth flashing. Kaleb could only watch in horror as he saw the two charr tearing into each other like savage beasts.
Suddenly, and from out of nowhere, came a thunderous bellow that emanated from the hallway. When he heard it Kaleb snapped out of his state of shock.
"ENOUGH! NOT IN MY HOUSE!! Both of you - stand DOWN!" Ludrick roared as he lunged in on the melee using his good left foot.
Kaleb reached in to try and pull Amalthia off of her mother. But as he did, a massive clawed furred hand grabbed him by the throat then slammed him against the wall.
"You..."
For the first time in his life, Kaleb was terrified to his core as he looked to see the murderous eyes of none other than Ludrick himself. Gone, was the softhearted charr that he came to know and respect. What stood before him was the embodiment of hate itself.
"...aren't going ANYWHERE!"
Ludrick grasped hold of Siri's large cranial horn with his other paw then forced her onto the floor. "And you... I... am... not... through... with you... either, bitch!"
"SIRE! Please... don't hurt him!" Amalthia screamed as she tried to intervene.
Her father bellowed in rage. "Back off, cub! He has crossed the line. Both of you have."
"Ohh. They've done more than crossed it... they've..." Siri's words were cut short by a sharp twist of Lucrick's powerful arm.
"If I hear so much as a fart out of you, I'm going to snap your neck. You hear me?!"
For the first time in her life, Amalthia had never seen her father this angry. It was also the first time in her life that she was afraid - afraid of him.
"Please, sire. Father. I am the one who is to blame. Please, don't hurt Kaleb. He saved my life and... he is, your friend," she said as tears began streaming from her eyes.
Ludrick closed his eyes and bowed his head then eased his grip upon the young man. "Go to your room, Amalthia. Trust me for what I have to do."
Kaleb mustered enough nerve to speak. "I... it's okay, Ama. No matter what happens to me, just remember that nothing will ever change my feelings for you."
"Father. Promise me you won't kill him. If you do then you will lose a daughter as well. And I mean it too!" Amalthia snarled.
"Amalthia. Please trust me. Now go to your room. I will deal with this boy in the best way I see fit." He nodded to her with a much softer expression on his face.
"I love you, Kal. No matter what happens, you are my mate in body and heart," she said as she ran up the stairs crying.
Siri could no longer contain herself. "I might take you up on that offer of wanting to snap my neck in two, centurion. Otherwise I might just die from drowning in my own vomit."
Amalthia stepped down the stairs for a moment and commented; "make her wish come true, sire. You'll get no complaints from me."
"To your room and not another word, cub!" Her father bellowed as he turned toward Kaleb with a hateful glare.
"I trusted you. She trusted you. We both trusted you and this is how you repay us??? Did you think she was some exotic plaything that you could just manipulate for the purpose of satisfying your own lustful fantasies?"
Kaleb steeled his resolve then looked Ludrick in the eyes. "I would never have taken those arrows for a mere plaything, sir! I love your daughter more than life itself. A fact, I might add, that I've already demonstrated. So go ahead and kill me if you wish. But know this... Amalthia will never forgive you for being such a coward to face an obvious truth. And that truth is that love observes no boundaries regardless of kind."
Ludrick grimaced as he forced Kaleb towards the door while keeping him in a chokehold. "Do you delude yourself into believing that love alone will offer the happiness that either of you believes the other deserves? Listen to me, cub - no matter how much the two of you may love each other; the rest of the world will hate both of you because of that love. The oceans of blood spilt between our peoples for so many centuries can not so easily be forgotten."
"You fear change. Both you and Siri fear change. I honestly cannot believe that a relationship such as ours can be so unique. Surely, there has been a human and charr who have loved each other in such a manner, sometime in the past. Am I right?" Kaleb said as he suddenly felt noticeable quivering in Ludrick's hand.
The old charr flipped Siri on her backside by rapidly pulling her horn until she nearly fainted from the excruciating pain. He then pushed Kaleb out the door as he held him tightly by the throat.
"Such a thing cannot happen in our lifetime. Not without consequences. You have broken my trust by going back on your word. You crossed the line!"
"With all due respect, sir. You only imagine me agreeing to your terms. There was at no point that I ever agreed to 'not crossing the line' as you so aptly put it... sir."
In a fit of rage, Ludrick flung Kaleb hard against the ground nearly knocking the wind out of him. As the old charr stood over him, he stooped down and pointed his massive clawed finger just inches from his face and said in a gruff voice; "you are to never come near these premises again. If I so much as catch wind of your scent, I will tear your heart out myself. Now be gone and never return!"
Reeling from the shock, Kaleb staggered away from the shop, both his body and heart in tatters. From the distance, he could hear a long mournful yowl coming from Amalthia's loft.
Ludrick turned back towards the door all the while suppressing the immense pain that was bearing down on his already bleeding right foot. He saw Siri's lanky silhouette emerge from the shadows then bounded towards her, preventing her from leaving.
"This, this is complete madness. My own cub... doing that? And you... why didn't you just shred that disgusting piece of meat when you had the chance? But if you won't do it then perhaps the task must fall to me since you no longer seem to have the stomach for such things." Siri raged as she attempted to leave the shop.
"No! You stay! You stay until I'm finished telling you something, something I should have told you a long time ago," Ludrick said as he bowed his head.
"I'm in no mood to hear anymore of your rehashed war stories, you impotent old bag of piss. If I could get away with it, I would kill all of you if nothing more than to remove the blight that has already tarnished my reputation," Siri said in disgust.
"No one but those present even knows of this. So there's no need to worry about your precious reputation being defiled. But that human was right about one thing..."
"Oh. Do tell."
"It has happened before - intimate relationships between human and charr. And it's closer than you can imagine."
"I can imagine quite a bit. Try me!"
"I know the power that falling in love can have on someone... even if they are different species."
"You know nothing!" Siri spat.
"I do know because it once happened a long time ago... to me." Ludrick closed his eyes and remembered the face of a human woman he had loved so long ago. He clasped hold of a chain necklace that he had worn for many years and pulled out what appeared to be a pendant that was broken in half.
"Her name was Karla and she saved my life."
(All chapters have been posted to AO3. Chapter 20 is posted here.)
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buttsonthebeach · 5 years ago
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Lost Horizon, Pt. 2
@scharoux is the sweetest and most patient soul for waiting so long for part two of this story - thank you, dear friend, for trusting me with Rhaella and her epic tale!
This long fic picks up almost directly where The Last Game last left off - with Rhaella pregnant and alone in a world where Solas has removed the Veil, despite her attempts to stop him.
My Ko-Fi || My Commissions
Part One of Lost Horizon can be found here
Other pieces about Rhaella I have written include:
1. All Things Green and Growing
2. The Long Road Back
3. The Turning of the Year
3. The Same Kind of Scar (contains explicit content)
4. World Without End (contains explicit content)
5. The Last Game Pt. 1, the Last Game Pt. 2, and the Last Game Pt. 3 (contains explicit content), and the Last Game Pt. 4
Pairing: Rhaella Lavellan x Solas, post-Trespasser
Rating: Teen for violence, references to sex
Warning: Directly referenced character death for a character from DAI, general references to death and destruction
********************************
Merrill and Rhaella’s journey to Skyhold was slow. Isabela’s ship carried them swift and true - that part wasn’t the problem, even if the ship and all the crew seemed haunted, even if Rhaella could feel the absence of a woman she had never met as surely as she could feel the sea breeze - but once they were back on land, and traveling via horseback, her pregnancy proved a problem once more. She felt impossibly huge, her belly as big and round as the horse’s it seemed. Years of practice had made her a good rider, but the extra weight and the shift in her center of balance was even more pronounced now than it had been before, when she had ridden from Skyhold to Jader for her journey to Kirkwall.
The slow going meant she had plenty of time to take in how much had changed since that last journey, when she had been on her way to stop Solas. The burned out villages, and also the rapturous displays of light in the night sky - the dance of spirits thrilled to be free of the Veil. They rarely had to use a campfire for light, in fact. Wisps were drawn to them the way moths used to be. They frequently went to Rhaella’s belly after floating near her head and Merrill’s.
At least you’ll get beauty like this, little one.
Her magic surged towards each and every wisp when they came, but she tamped it down. Solas would know the feel of her magic, even across the distance, as surely as he would know the sound of her voice. They had not been pursued as far as they could tell, by people or by spirits, and she wanted to keep it that way. Merrill had known a draught to keep her from entering the Fade, which was their other means of concealment since they’d left.
“Poor Feynriel,” Merrill said the first time she brewed it. “I wonder what’s become of him in this world. If it makes more sense to him now, or less. Marethari made this for him while he was staying with the clan, and I learned it when we visited once. He was a Dreamer, so a draught like this didn’t always work for him, but it will be good enough for you and I. It feels like a different life to remember those times, when he was one of my biggest worries..”
“It does,” Rhaella said, even if she was only remembering a few weeks ago, when she’d been on this road going in the opposite direction, convinced she could stop the tide of Solas’s power from sweeping through and changing everything.
Sometimes on that long slow journey she lay there and was convinced the baby would never be born. She would be trapped like this forever, huge and waiting, adrift. She wondered how many other pregnant mothers lay awake in Thedas staring at the same moons and feeling the same way. They’d conceived their children in one world, and they would be born into an alien one.
Rhaella was grateful for Merrill’s training as a First, and her involvement in Kirkwall’s alienage since then. She still knew enough about pregnancy and babies to act as a midwife. She seemed less puzzled than the other midwife about the size of Rhaella’s belly, how it was bigger than they were expecting.
“Solas is not a small man,” she said with a shrug. “As long as you feel well, and you can still feel your little one wriggling about in there, I’m not worried.”
Solas is not a small man. The words sent a shiver of memory through Rhaella as she envisioned the days and nights that had led her to this moment. The size and weight of his body, how sheltered it made her feel, how whole. She pushed those thoughts away. She imagined, instead, a son that was as tall as him, who had only his kindness and not his narrowed vision, his pride. A son who reminded her of her own father.
I will love you no matter who you are, she promised anyway, feeling the child move.
The journey grew slower and more difficult as they climbed the mountain paths towards Skyhold. Rhaella struggled to lean far enough forward in the saddle to make her horse comfortable, so they had to walk the steepest parts of it. But, the feeling of being further from civilization, and the giddiness of having evaded Solas for nearly two weeks now, loosened their tongues a little, and Rhaella and Merrill were able to talk more freely. Merrill told stories of Hawke that she had not heard from Varric, and they shared their memories of growing up Dalish, compared notes on the Arlathvhens they had been to, speculated on whether or not they had ever met at one of them. It started to feel a little normal. Almost like Rhaella was back to being Inquisitor, and Merrill was one of her companions. 
(It was probably a testament to how upside down things were now that Rhaella could think back to that time with fondness.)
Then they arrived at Skyhold, and all that warmth, all that strength she’d built, drained away.
It was not so much that the building was different. Its ancient stone was largely unchanged. It had weathered the creation of the Veil, after all. It was not even the scorch marks all over the courtyard, or the charred ruins of the stables.
It was the sound of the empty hospital tents flapping in the breeze. Of wooden shutters banging listlessly against stone walls.
It was the total, absolute emptiness of the place that had become her home.
The castle stood, but the people were gone, and the emptiness of that threatened to swallow her whole.
She should have been wise enough to expect this, to know that things would not be as she left them, that she would not return home to rally the people she’d left behind to some sort of unlikely victory. She had not heard from any of her forces in the weeks she’d been in Kirkwall. She’d hoped that was because Solas was intercepting their messages, that against all odds, there was still a home to come back to, a chance to set things right. Still, the blow of the silence struck her as true as any kick or punch ever had.
Then there was a high, hollow sound - a call, almost like that of a bird’s - but bigger, and then louder, like a trumpet, coming from the lower courtyard, and the sudden movement of a big brown blur -
“Thistle!” Rhaella called, and her hart galloped to her, drawing up short when he reached her, and then snuffling her with his warm, soft nose, whining again in his throat. She rested her forehead against his, breathed in the warm, woodsy smell of his hide. She scratched the place behind his ears that always made him stamp his feet with delight.
“Hello, friend,” Merrill said, approaching. “You’re a delight! I haven’t seen a hart like this in a long time.”
“He has been my constant companion for years now. I can’t even tell you how good it feels to see that he is okay.” Rhaella leaned her head against Thistle’s again and took another calming breath. She did not need to jump straight to despair. She had not even gone inside the keep yet. Who knew who else she would find, or what signs would be left behind - maybe everyone had moved somewhere else, or gone out into the world to help make a difference -
She wasn’t sure whether to feel reassured or afraid when the first arrow flew and landed at her feet.
Merrill’s hand flung out instantly, as if to shield her, and Rhaella’s magic crackled beneath her skin, longing to cast a barrier. She had to actively work not to cast the barrier without the Veil in the way, and it made her grind her teeth. Her son kicked wildly in her stomach at the sensation of the caged magic.
“It’s okay,” Rhaella called out when the urge to cast her spell passed. She looked in the direction the arrow had come from - the old tavern. She started in that direction, brushing off Merrill’s arm. “It’s me, it’s Rhaella.”
Another arrow flew, this one passing over her shoulder, so close that Rhaella could hear the pitch-perfect whine as it cleaved the air by her ear. Thistle snorted and stamped behind her, spooked, and Merrill took her staff off her back. The third arrow struck the barrier that Merrill cast, splintering into a shower of wooden shards, but Rhaella had seen where it was headed. Straight for her head.
Then Rhaella saw her, in the upper window of the tavern, leaning out now, bow in hand. Sera.
“Sera!” She called, waving her arms, walking closer. Surely it was an accident. Surely Sera had not actually meant to aim for a killing blow. “Sera, it’s just me.”
“Yes,” Sera said, nocking another arrow, half-drawing back the string. She stepped out onto the roof of the tavern. Her skin was even paler than usual, but her eyes were rimmed as red as the plaidweave armor she wore. “Who the fuck do you think I have been waiting for?”
Rhaella’s heart sank.
“Sera -”
“They’re all dead!” Sera shouted, the tears coming now. “All of them! Every person that mattered to me is gone now. Every person who trusted you to lead us. They all paid the price, and for what? So you could get a good shag with a man who never really loved you? And you didn’t even have to see it, did you, oh high and mighty Inquisitor? No, you got to be somewhere far away when it all came crashing down, all the fire and magic and shite, all the screaming and the dying. But I didn’t get that. I had to be here. I had to see it happen. I had to watch and even when I shut my eyes I had to listen. D’you know what it sounded like when your precious Commander died?”
Cullen.
No, not Cullen.
He was many things - not all of them good - but Rhaella prayed in that moment to the gods she didn’t believe in that Sera was lying.
“D’you know what it was like for him when all that bloody magic came rushing back, after all those years he’d worked to stop taking that Maker forsaken lyrium? I bet you didn’t even think about it when you went rushing back to your arse-wiping Dread Wolf. About how he would fucking scream -”
“Stop!”
Rhaella was aware that Merrill had shouted the word, that Sera was still talking, but the sounds were distant, covered up by a roaring as real as the sound of an ocean storm, of an earthquake. She couldn’t breathe. She couldn’t even think beyond the roaring sound. It was only the kicking and rolling of her child within her womb that brought her back to the surface.
“You don’t understand,” Merrill was saying. “Rhaella went to Kirkwall to stop him. She tried her best. She never stopped trying. She fought him until the very last moment, but there was nothing anyone could do. He was too strong for anyone but another of his own kind. And Rhaella didn’t stop there. She has been aiding the wounded ever since then, and once she had her first opportunity to flee from Solas, she did. How do you think she ended up here?”
“It doesn’t make a difference,” Sera said, and there was a sudden wave of magical heat rolling off of her, sparks at her fingertips. “Shite!” 
She threw down her bow and Rhaella could see the trembling in her fingers. Sera had never wanted this, and now she was cursed with it. Magic.
Rhaella opened her mouth but no words came out. Her chest felt like it was caving in. Like all of Sera’s words had lodged there, true as arrows, true as morning sun.
“Please, believe us,” Merrill was pleading. “Neither of us wanted this. We’re trying to make our way in this world, the same as you.”
Sera shook her head once, viciously, and picked up her bow. She nocked the arrow again and started to draw it back. Rhaella realized that her hands were over her belly, feeling it warm and tight as a drum, but her magic was not seething inside her this time. She was making no real move to defend herself. Merrill grounded herself, started gathering the energy for a barrier. Then Sera lowered her bow.
“Get whatever supplies you need to get somewhere else. And then get gone.” Her eyes bored into Rhaella’s. “If I ever see you again, I will kill you.”
Then she disappeared back into the shadows of the tavern.
Rhaella felt rooted to the ground where she stood. Like she might never move from this spot again.
It was one thing to see the devastation of Kirkwall - a city that was not a part of her, another vein through which her own heart’s blood flowed - it was another to stand here in Skyhold and witness the magnitude of her failure. To hear those words of accusation dropped not from the mouth of a stranger but from a friend.
Cullen.
“Rhaella. Rhaella. Come on, love. I don’t think we want to stay here long.”
Merrill was using the same voice that Rhaella herself used to gentle Thistle when he was spooked. Her hands were on Rhaella’s shoulders, guiding. Their steps towards the keep were slow. Thistle whined, high and loud and mournful. Rhaella wondered what stories he would share of the day the Veil fell, if he could speak.
She tried not to study Skyhold as they walked through it. Tried not to see the blood or the winding patterns of lighting etched into wood and stone, the overturned tables, the shattered glasses. The kitchen was ripped apart but there was still food enough in the storeroom beyond it, and she and Merrill filled their packs with as much of it as they could reasonably carry. Rhaella felt the burden of her pregnancy all over again, how she would need more food than she ever had before on the road.
“Is there anything else you want to get?” Merrill asked when they were done there.
Rhaella nodded, and went wordlessly towards the long staircase that led to her chambers. Merrill did not follow. She was grateful for that.
Her chambers were exactly as she had left them. That was the most eerie part of all. She was not the same woman she was the last time she slept here. Her bedroom should have reflected that. But everything was in its place - each pillow on the bed, each paper on her desk. She picked up her field journal, which she’d left behind in her haste to get to Kirkwall. Then she saw the one thing that was out of place. A letter in an envelope, right in the center of her desk.
Rhaella
It was Cullen’s handwriting.
D’you know what it sounded like when your precious Commander died?
Rhaella tucked the letter quickly into her bag. She couldn’t read it. Not now. Maybe not ever.
Merrill had distributed everything they gathered between Thistle and their other two horses by the time Rhaella returned. After a brief discussion, they agreed that they would keep both horses, using one for supplies and if one of their other mounts got tired.
“So where do we go now?” Merrill asked, her eyes shifting towards the tavern and then back to Rhaella.
“The Emerald Graves,” Rhaella said. “It has plenty of resources, plenty of places to hide, and it isn’t terribly far from here.”
“I have always wanted to see them,” Merrill said. “All those tombs of the elves who came before us, who fought for our people.”
Rhaella half wondered if the tombs had broken open when the Veil fell - if those elves had stepped out to a brave new world where their people had both won and lost. 
She cast one glance back at Skyhold as they rode through its gate. The towers and battlements she’d come to know as home. It was lost to her now, like so many things were. Another ghost of her own, standing stark and sad against the blue mountain sky.
She took a deep breath and rode on.
*
They rode until nightfall, back down the same road they’d taken up the mountain, until Rhaella’s lower back ached so badly that they could not continue. She warmed damp cloths on a stone over the fire that Merrill built and then had Merill place them where it ached. She’d never wished so desperately for a bed in her life as she did in that moment, lying there on her side on the nest of blankets they’d arranged, unable to curl up into a ball or lie on her stomach, anything to relieve the pain.
“Warn me if it gets more intense,” Merrill said. “Sometimes that’s how it goes for women - the start of labor, that is.”
Rhaella felt a surge of panic and joy alike. Would tonight be the night she met her son, the person that made all of this worth it? The reason she continued putting one foot in front of the other on this road that had no real destination yet. At least not one she could see or count on. But the pain in her back did subside eventually. There was a new chill in the air by that point, a wind coming down off the mountains that made them both shiver. Rhaella looked to the saddlebags they’d removed from their pack horse, hoping for another blanket - and spied something familiar sticking out of one of the ones Merrill had packed. Red and fur-lined.
Cullen’s cloak.
She rose, went to it, pulled it out, half-hoping she was wrong. She wasn’t. She’d have known it anywhere, and of course Merrill would not have. She’d just seen something warm that might help them on their journey, and not another dagger aimed directly at Rhaella’s heart.
Merrill was a few paces away, standing watch since they didn’t want to risk setting wards. Rhaella went to her bag and pulled out the letter she’d found on her desk, the tears already rising in her throat, the guilt already swimming in her stomach. She found a tree that she could sit against, looking away from Merrill, and eased herself to the ground, cloak and letter clutched in one hand.
She read.
Rhaella,
I am never going to see you again.
That's the worst part of this. It isn't the pain or the screaming or the uncertainty. It's knowing I will never see your face or hear your voice again.
My hand is shaking. I hope you can read this if you find it. When you find it. I refuse to believe that you did not survive this. You and the baby - you have to survive. I have to believe this was all worth something, and if the two of you are still out there, it was.
You are the most incredible woman I have ever known, Rhaella. Your quiet strength - I know it will see you through. I have watched you move mountains and I know you will move them again and again.
(I hope this all makes sense. I was never good at words, and my hand is shaking, and everything hurts -)
I wish I could be there to see you move those mountains. To see your baby. The baby I thought of as ours no matter what. I understand that what we had was never going to be real. I am at peace with that. I would have given you everything nonetheless, Rhaella. You and the baby deserved that and I would have been whatever you needed me to be. If - if this isn't the end - if I can withstand this - if we are both alive - I will still give you everything. Not because I want you to wake up one day and love me. But because you deserve that as my friend.
Whatever happens - when you find this - I want you to know that I believe in you. I wish I had words good enough to express it. I don't. I believe in you the same way I believe in the Maker and his Bride. Maybe that is the closest I can come to explaining it. I believe in you, and if anyone can stop Solas, it is you. 
If I die today, I die with nothing but faith and devotion in my heart. It was how I always wanted to go, Rhaella. It's okay. I am at peace.
Yours always,
Cullen
She was crying before she finished the third paragraph, of course. Deep, wracking sobs that hollowed out her chest, carved up her ribs, scratched up her throat. They were animal sounds. She wasn't sure how long they went on. It seemed there was no beginning or end to her grief as she thought of everything Sera said, how she'd sacrificed everything for a man who never really loved or deserved her. Were they both right? Was that really the source of her weakness? Had there been some final part of her strength locked behind a door with Solas's name written on it, where she hid all the memories that were good? Had that been the strength she would have needed that day in Kirkwall?
Rhaella cried into the folds of Cullen's cloak, her mind a maze of questions with no answers, and grieved.
*
Solas generally prided himself on being the master of his emotions. Controlling them, subduing them, and, when all else failed, simply hiding them away.
He did not bother hiding his frustration when he returned from his fight with the Evanuris.
He came into his Kirkwall base of operations and threw down the helm he'd been wearing, reveling in the loud sound of metal striking wood as it hit the table. Maybe if he did that over and over again he could drown out the sound of his failure - of half of the Evanuris's forces escaping into eluvians and shattering them as they left. He'd wanted to pull them out, root and stem, to be done with all of this, to focus on what came next - rebuilding, helping those that remained find peace and meaning in the new world he'd made. Helping himself find peace with what he'd done. Finding time to mourn the friends he had lost (sacrificed).
Mending things with Rhaella.
"We have not been able to trace them yet," Abelas said, calm and even, but with a hesitance that Solas noted at once.
"What else?" He barked. He'd tried not to be the kind of Commander who yelled unless it was truly what the situation warranted. Then again, he'd tried a lot of things. And yet here he was again, with nothing but ash and loneliness to show for it.
"Rhaella and Merrill are gone."
Abelas said it swiftly and calmly, with the precision of a surgeon making his first cut.
Solas felt the air leave the room.
He felt his power leach into the vacuum it left behind.
Raw mana, undirected, uncontained, filling up every object and person around him, lighting up the room with a blue glow, filling it with a subtle roar. He felt his advisors shield themselves in barriers, as if he would attack them. Perhaps he would. (He would not.)
Solas took a breath and drew his mana back in.
“When?”
“Not long after you did as far as we can tell,” Abelas said. Another surgeon’s cut.
“Together.”
“Presumably, yes.”
“Where?”
“Unknown. We have not been able to track them via traditional or arcane means, though perhaps you will have greater success with the latter. You know Rhaella better than any of us, after all.”
For a moment, Solas considered letting her go. It would be kinder in the long run. He’d told her that once, when he was a stronger man. But he still had dried blood under his fingernails, the screams of the dying in his ears. He still had unfinished business, and people who would seek to hurt Rhaella and his child. 
(The child, the child, the child, he could hardly bring himself to think the word at first but now it was ringing through his mind like a struck bell, an endless echo. He might not get to meet his child if he could not find her, and perhaps that was what he deserved -)
He had to find her to protect her. To tell her one last time that he was sorry. If she went her own way then - if they went their own way then - he would just have to find a way to endure.
Var lath vir suledin, she had said to him the day he took the Anchor and her arm. Perhaps that was when she was a stronger woman. Perhaps he had broken them both.
“We leave for Skyhold at dawn,” he said. He turned on his heel and left. He had enough control, enough composure, not to spill his tears before them. He waited until he was in Rhaella’s room, surrounded by the smell of her, to do that. 
He would endure, he told himself over and over again. He would endure. He simply wasn’t sure what it would cost.
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disneylanddirectioner123 · 5 years ago
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Heart-In-A-Box
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I could get used to this, instead of saying hello, i just AHOY here and AHOY there. ANYWAYS. This is for  everyone who didn’t get a Valentines Day gift or don’t have a Valentine AT ALL. Don’t worry though, I have some Spidey Spice Doritios and a small thing of Ben & Jerrys if you wanna share with me. I KNOW, I WAS ALONE ON VALENTINES DAY. (Don’t rub it in, I’m emotional :( I’ll change my mind.)
However, I did get a nice smelling bottle of Sea Scrub peel off mask. Now I’ll smell like Ariel!!! :D
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I also got a red Birds Of Prey shirt and some small cookie biscuits. BUT. 
I just wanted to make this imagine for everyone who didn’t get the Valentines Day that they wanted, and of course because of the title: IT’S A DADDY PATRICK IMAGINE!!! Brace yourselves! This may get a little bit spoopy!!!
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IMAGINE #2
Title: Heart-In-A-Box
Pairing: Patrick Hockstetter x Reader
Word Count: 
Theme: Valentine’s Day.
For: Anyone who had a sucky Valentine’s Day, but for this imagine, I’ll put my name: Jae. (You don’t have to put up with my name :) Do what you want! You do you honey!!)
Warnings(?): Anatomy (guts, body parts, blood, etc.) A butchery, Just blood. IMAGINE WILL PROBABLY BE THE CRINGIEST YOU’VE EVER READ IN YOUR LIFE.
Scene: Reader is having a terrible Valentine’s Day. Nobody has given them a Valentine so they’re feeling left out, resulting in them to focus on schoolwork. On a field trip to the local museum for a science class, Reader slowly starts receiving Valentine’s gifts from a green eyed admirer. 
PLAYLIST: 
1. Love Hurts by Nazareth
2. Every Breath You Take by The Police
3. Black Hole Sun by Soundgarden
The sound of other students in the hallways of Derry High annoyed Jae.
It was the dreaded day; Valentine's Day.
Pink, white and red littered the entire school and it made her sick. What a way to rub in the pain that she was gonna be YET AGAIN alone on Valentine's Day.
Students, mostly pathetic little middle schoolers wore dumb pink and red outfits as they scurried around, giving each other bouquets of flowers, boxes of chocolates, and cringeworthy love letters.It seemed that someone, probably someone from the student body or arts committee wanted to make Valentine's Day this year special, hence why everyone was wearing either pink or red. Some idiots even came dressed as angels, pretending to shoot people with arrows.
It was disgusting.
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Jae was probably the only girl wearing a different colour. As she walked over to her locker, students stared at her and snickered.
"Looks like she has no Valentine." "She'll be a loner forever!" "Happy Valentine's Day Jae!" "What a LOSER." "Don't you mean LOVER?"
She barged through the laughing students, shoving a making out couple off her locker. After opening her locker and scrunching up some hurtful Valentine's Day cards from some neanderthal jocks and prissy skanks, Jae grabbed what she needed for the field trip to the museum. Her anatomy class was going to the museum as a part of an assignment on individual parts of the body.
Jae couldn't wait to get to the museum. As well as getting away from all these morons, it was no secret that Jae took a close interest into anatomy class. Her father was a butcher and her mother was a nurse so it wasn't her first time seeing blood and guts, whether it was a bonus help that she learnt about the nifty things that went on inside the human body, much to the other students' horror and disgust.
"So," An obnoxious voice rang in her ear followed by a loud POP!, "who ripped your heart out?" Greta smirked as she leaned against Jae's locker. Jae rolled her eyes, out of all the days that she didn't want to be tormented, today took the angel cake.
Enough was enough. Jae turned to Greta with a fake sad expression.
"You. When I saw you making out with Sally Mueller in the bathroom," she fake sobbed, "it broke my heart in two. How could you Greta?!"
Gasps erupted throughout the hallway followed by mean and taunting chants of "Greta likes girls." With an angry huff, Greta stormed off with all the attention now focused on her.
Jae's anatomy classmate, Beverly Marsh approached her locker in the direction of where Greta charged from. "Jeez, didn't know you and Greta were-"
"I'm not. I just got sick of her. Thought I might do some rumour spreading of my own. Anyways," Jae changed the subject onto the exciting excursion ahead, "what's your project about?"
"Feet and legs and what makes them work."
Jae nodded, not wanting to continue the discussion, due to her bored and slightly irritated tone. "You?"
"The heart." Jae responds, rolling her eyes at the ironic theme. Beverly gave a small smile before looking behind her. Her face dropped, scurrying off with a quick; "See you on the bus."
Instead of the cliche turn around, Jae shrugged before following Bev out to the bus where her anatomy class were waiting.
If only she did turn would she have met her green eyed admirer that would soon spoil her silly in the weirdest of ways.
---
After the lame presentation which was both interesting yet extremely irrelevant to Jae, the anatomy teacher granted the class permission to do individual exploring, where the students could either get something to eat or explore other parts of the exhibit.
Jae had her eye on the heart exhibit; it was a maze where there were info cards, hanging and touchable props and video diagrams on all walls. It looked like fun.
So, being a lone ranger, Jae headed directly to the heart maze. But she wasn't the only one.
It seemed that a certain someone had his green predatory eyes for Jae. Patrick Hockstetter was fascinated by her. He followed her around town and the idea that she was working on the anatomy of the heart made him fall for her. He loved that she liked what people would call macabre, he loved that she had an IDGAF attitude yet how devoted she was to her anatomy class. He loved that she was an all out badass.
And don't get him started on her beauty. She was SO MUCH prettier than the other girls of Derry. Her hair was so shiny and when he sometimes stepped behind her at the cafeteria and managed to smell her hair, her hair smelt like strawberries and cream and her skin smelt like the seaside.
He always thought of himself as a smooth operator, yet when it came to Jae, he couldn't muster up the balls to ask her out.
Patrick Hockstetter the chicken.
He didn't like the idea of that going around especially in front of his crush.
So since Valentine's Day was today, it was his chance.
He stood a decent feet away and got out the crumpled love note he was gonna pass to her on the bus. In his neatest writing, which was still messy, he wrote;
"WILL YOU BE THE FIRE TO MY LOINS? LOVE P.H"
As disgusting and cringy as it sounded, Patrick tried to be poetic and literate as he had caught Jae reading the novel "Lolita" on regular basis when the teacher forced him to go into the library instead of loitering with the other members of the Bowers Gang behind the gym. Wrapped in the paper was a small animal heart; in particular a chicken heart.
He clenched the paper, trying not to rip it or squish the heart. Patrick wasn't gonna chicken out now.
He scrunched it up and flung it at her. It hit her, the heart fell out of the paper and splatted on the floor and as she turned around, he disappeared into the other entry of the maze.
---
When she got to the heart of the maze, her eyes bulged as she saw a giant squishy heart in the centre that could be touched. She loved the idea of an interactive model. She pulled out her polaroid camera and took a photo of the model as she had been doing so through the maze.
When she checked the picture she noticed a tall figure in the background but it was blurry so she couldn't determine who it was. Right next to the model was an info card, basically explaining the model was a photo opportunity and that it instructed kids to not climb on the model. There were two small plates; one with another heart; this time a dog heart and the other plate with a small heart cake, there was a note attached that said; "Dissect me? P.H"
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This was the second note that she had received from 'P.H'. It was probably some stupid jock playing a prank on her. She knelt down at the little block with the info card nailed to it, grabbing her pocket knife and visciously stabbed it, noticing jam bleeding out of it. There was no way she wasn't ruining the dog heart.
"What is it with people today?" She yells, "Why me of all people to prank on Valentine's Day?! I bet you this is how you're gonna get me! You're gonna jump out and say; 'Ha Ha! Just kidding ya!' Well i'm not as dumb as you think, so knock it off!!!"
Patrick was watching the whole sight, obviously amused and a little hurt that she thought he was messing her over. Patrick crouched down next to her, coughing to get her attention. As soon as she looked at him, she pieced everything together;
PH=Patrick Hockstetter. The hearts= Rumors of him kidnapping and killing animals.
When she turned to him, he sat down beside her and pulled out a small heart shaped box. He really wanted to give her this gift but wasn't sure how she'd react to seeing the gift. "I got this," He rasped as he held out the box, "for you."
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Cautiously, she took the red box and lifted the lid. Inside was a heart. She picked it up to check if it was real. It was. It was bigger than the dog heart. His next two words made her slightly shudder.
"It's Human."
"Patrick, How'd you get it?" Jae asked, raising an eyebrow. On the inside she felt weak.
Instead of answering her, he lunged at her, planting his lips on hers. His lips were a bit slimy and chapped and although he did have a bit of bad breath but it didn't matter. Jae may or may not have had an attraction to him due to his mystery. She really liked him but everyone always kept her away from him. This was a dream come true.
"Pat," She asked when they departed from their soft kiss,
"Where'd the human heart come from?”
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