#based on comments i received from my boss and my immediate reaction to them

[happyk44]

Annabeth: I think it's pretty good but it could be better. Because right now you're making a lot of good points but they're just facts, just data. How can you make that data resonate more with the audience and actually get us to come out wanting to engage in more ancient traditions and festivals?

Jason, who cannot comprehend that people might not be interested in the facts of his presentation on ancient Greek festivals and practices for CHB to start engaging in like how New Rome handles Roman holidays:

Annabeth: I mean think about the purpose of this presentation.

Jason:

Jason, points at his title slide: To learn about ancient Greek festivals and traditions.

Annabeth: Right, but what's the end goal?

Jason:

Jason, points at his title slide again: Learning.

[yahoodarling]

I'm a bit shy to ask this... I love your work! It's always so interesting to read. Could you do something Dottore x Pantalone? Or maybe Dottore x reader x Pantalone? I think writing the harbingers leans into dark content more naturally :3

It's okay, getting requests or comments on my work is always welcome from my dear darlings. This didn't have as much dark content as my other stuff but I do enjoy the dynamic in this one.

Pantalone X GNReader X Dottore

Warnings: Suggestive, crude language, experimentation and dark content(just to cover my bases for this haha)

Reader is submissive/not in control, referred to as 'pet/dog' at times.

"Could you get me some tea?" Pantalone asked, eyes focused on receipts and records, shuffling papers with his black gloved hands. 

You nodded to your boss and went on to make him a brew of tea you decided would best please him. His main office had the small tea station and soon you mixed a fragrant blend and allowed its aroma to wharf in the air.

In a few minutes you returned and placed the small cup to the side of his desk on a small platter, standing back to the side and awaited his reaction.

He shifted his focus to the cup and lifted it to his lips, eyes closed and took in the golden liquid. Almost instantly you saw his shoulder relax, his lips fall into a fond smile. "Once again you read my needs so well. This is a fine brew, thank you." He nodded to you, his glasses chains dangled along with his head nod in satisfaction. 

Of course pride welled in your chest, you were glad to know you could be of service to him and to receive praise from such a high ranking person was a blessing.

"Of course my lord" you bowed and stood back at your station just behind him, a word away from fulfilling whatever request your boss required at any time. 

You made these boring times so pleasant for Pantalone. He chuckled and sipped on his tea, now in a good mood as he worked through the papers. Such a good mood sadly came to a halt as he read through a letter from his colleague, he knotted his eyebrows in frustration and had to physically rub away the headache the words caused. He couldn't enjoy one afternoon without interruption now could he?

"(Name), I will be going out later today to visit with Ill Dottore. This man just cant be satiated now can he?"

"Another request for funds?"

"Of course it is. He burns through mora faster than any one else. File the open papers and organize the ones I have yet to read through into personal and business. I'm going out for a walk."

The large doors opened and Pantalone walked back into his office, taking off his coat and handing it to you that awaited nearby almost immediately.

You nodded and stepped away to allow him past and got on to sorting out the papers and clutter on his desk. You reached out for the empty tea cup, just a few golden drops remained. You smiled like an idiot. You knew you were just his assistant but knowing he enjoyed your tea and appreciated your work left a light feeling in your chest.

"Today is pleasant. The scenery was most enjoyable in the indoor garden, i'm glad i took that walk." He reached his now organized desk and opened up a drawer to obtain his glasses case and wiped off the condensation. 

"Well then." He said, putting them back on. "Let's go meet the good doctor and see what he is whining about now."

"Shall I join you?"

"Of course. I need some support from the absolute nightmare that is to come from this."

Usually Pantalone wasn't as frustrated with Dottore as he came across as now, he usually treated him with respect or enjoyed complex conversations with him but you also knew he got irritated easily when disturbed, much like Dottores request had disturbed Pantalones wuiet afternoon.

"Let's get this done. Be sure to bring my personal finance book"

You had it already in hand and opened the door for him.

Pantelone chuckled and gave a quick head pat to your head as he walked past. 

You never usually joined in Pantalone and Dottores conversations, you would stand outside by the door and wait but this time Pantalone welcomed you in as well. Dottore was an interesting character, all your colleagues spoke hesitantly about him and every fatui assigned to him would send their will and farewells to their family as he tended to have assistants disappear a lot, you were lucky to work under Pantalone that treated you well . 

His office was unsettling, it linked to his personal lab and storage room to the side that you have never seen anyone enter or leave from. Your one wish in life would be to never have to go in there.

"Hello dears' ' he smiled at you and Pantalone, sharp teeth bear which  seemed more unsettling since you couldn't see his face behind his mask. 

"Greetings Doctor" Pantalone replied and sat on the chair adjacent to Dottores desk, clasped his fingers together and gave a greeting smile. You took your stand behind where he sat and waited to let the men talk.

"Brought your lap dog this time?" Dottore chimed and angled his face to you, you wouldn't respond unless told to by your boss. "It makes sense you have them as your little pet. That attractive face would be wasted on the battlefield, rather keep them safe and close by your side so you can enjoy it even more."

Pantalone wasn't having it and shut the conversation down. "I hear you want to extend your funds."

"That? Yes, I'm dealing with materials that are rather expensive. I'm sure if I beg enough you will help me."

"Im waiting"

"Alright... 'Oh rich man! Give me your money.' Done? Is that good enough?" Dottore swooned with clear sarcasm

Pantalone sighed and looked at you with an unimpressed look

"(Name), we won't be needing to file any extra records for Dottore. It was a waste coming here. I refuse your request, i will be leaving now."

And he stood up and turned his back on the doctor. Said doctor leaped out his seat, trying to keep the conversation going.

"Wait wait. Was I not convincing?"

Pantalone refused to even turn around to look at Dottore while he spoke.

"Your excuses have gotten repetitive and unoriginal, it's not worth my time. I only came here in person as it's the respectful thing to do but you make it very hard to want to come back."

Pantelone kept walking and waved his hand at you to follow to which you did.

‘So heavy’ you think holding multiple files and taking them to their respective posts. Working for a high ranking fatui member had its perks but also had its disadvantages, one of which being the large workload to fulfill and your work load required you to deliver all Pantelones files, messages and receipts to their proper place within the headquarters, it's not like he could do something like that after all, he's too important.

"Tsk, that was uneventful. Stupid banker and his stupid mutt" Dottore fumed silently and sulked at his desk as you two left.

“Little dog.” Came that gruff voice behind you shocking you out of your thought process making you nearly drop all the files. You turn around to see who was calling you such things. It was Doctor Dottore.

“So you respond to that?” he teased with a smile.

“Not necessarily sir, it's just the loud call caught my attention.”

“Hmmm” he grunted and walked closer to you confidently

“Mind helping me with a little something in my lab? I promise itll be eventful, something more entertaining than lugging around papers.”

“I apologize my lord, I must get back to work.” you turn to leave, being in any contact with Dottore alone is dangerous. You turn to leave but he instantly grasps your wrist in rebuttal.

“Now now, don't go running away. I don't think you have the right to refuse anyway. Just come.”

And he started to drag you off, firm grasp on you, the amount of strength he had on you was in such contrast to his leaner build.

“Sir- i really can't…” you harsh tugs made you drop all the files, that didn't stop him as you continued down the hallway under his lead.

This room smelled sickly, the room attached to his office somehow both clean and dirty at the same time, equipment and books shuffled all around and the disturbingly clear table with leather straps to it. Oh shit shit shit.

“Sir this is-! I'm not a part of this! Surely you have others!” you pleaded and tugged back with all your might as he continued to push you closer to the table.

“Oh hush, this isnt gonna hurt and it'll be quick.”

You were left dumbstruck as he easily lifted you up and ungracefully lobbed you onto its surface and quickly grasping your hands in the harnesses like it was a skilled practice of his. He left your legs and torso unbounded but that didn't calm your nerves as you fought against the leather straps.

“Haaaah. Haha, I do say I'm quite lucky today. Checking all my boxes with very little effort.” he chuckled as he walked away to get something.

“What? Wait, please, Pantalone wont allow for this!”

“Oh I know darling~” He turned and looked at you with a sickly pleased smile. “That's half of the point.”

He was doing this to get back at Pantelone for refusing his extension? He was gonna use you as a guinea pig to spite him just because he didn't get what he wanted?

He held your chin and shifted it side to side, inspecting your features. "Such a pretty face. I could think of no other reason to keep you but to stand and look pretty like a decoration, much like you do anyway."

He leaned back away from you and became serious in the face. “Have you heard of the current disease plaguing Sumeru? A terrible terrible thing called Eleazar. I've researched its symptoms and causes before long in the past but recently found some… forbidden knowledge as you may call it that may help narrow down its cause.” This conversation left you shellshocked, in no way looking forward to where he was going with this.

“I found a little thing that, if it is a catalyst for Eleazar perhaps it could link to a cure. You'd be doing myself and many others a favor if you'd comply.”

He was wanting to give you a disease?! One that has no cure, one that must be severe if it's needing such deep research into it. If you weren't pulling against the straps of the table you were now, bargaining with the doctor out the window as your brain focused on trying to get out.

“Oh come on.” he sighed dramatically while holding a needle with a black liquid in its cylinder. “Surely you can trust me here. It's not like i haven't dealt with Eleazar, you will probably be fine anyway.” He leaned over and shifted your wrist to have a clear view, your struggles not deterring him. “Ah, such clear, wide veins. You are making my job so much easier without even realizing it.” and with that he neared the metal needle into your skin, the slight sting it would have caused was ignored by the absolute panic you felt.

“DOTTORE YOU SHIT!” Your saving grace opened the door harshly, more angered than you had ever seen him before. His glasses were off and his coat slung lopsided before he threw it across the room and at Dottore. It was a thick coat, getting hit by it would be an impact and it was, Dottore was thrown off you.

“I swear, you can't just accept it when people refuse you. You are like a child.” pantelone huffs, pacing towards you and helping you out the straps.

"I know you are an attention whore for me but messing with my property is not the type of attention you'd want. You aren't doing all of this just because you are having a temper tantrum I didn't extend your funds now are you?"

"I wouldn't word it like that but in a sense, yes. I do enjoy getting to play with you." Dottores' silky voice echoed, he seemed delighted at the reaction he was getting. 

Pantelone left your side and got closer to Dottore, bending down and grasping his collar, yanking it up harshly. “Games are for play time, not business time” he mused, face inches away from the doctor's mask.

You sat on the table watching, fear nearly completely gone as a single thought consumed your mind, ‘What the fuck is up with this tension?’

Pantelone dropped Dottore suddenly, leaving him on the floor as he walked back to you, however, he spoke back directed at Dottore and not to you. “You claim my assistant is a dog yet i find you have a better resemblance to one. A filthy mutt pissing itself for attention from its master. Maybe if you would behave id give you want youd want.”

Pantalone sighed, out of exhaustion or simply at the situation, when he recovered we went back to looking at you, a more mellow look in his eyes.

“It seems you have been involved in work outside your contract, I must remunerate you for your inconveniences.” he got close, slightly leaned over, held your face closer to his, the familiar smell of your tea brews lingered on him. “I do hope this will be enough.” He closed what space was left and kissed you, softly but it had a firm hold to it. It was warm, comforting and left you feeling content so you reciprocated kissing back into him. After what felt like a few minutes you opened your eyes, not to find his on you but looking to the side where the doctor stood up from the floor and swept off dust from his attire.

“Please, keep trying to make me jealous.” he said, lifting himself to sit on the counter nearby and grins "i don't mind watching. That is my thing after all"

Pantalone just grunted and got back to working on you, giving you his attention, giving you his love.

 "I wasn't able to put the full dose in, I wonder if such a small amount will cause Eleazar to occur." Dottore suddenly piped in, shifting around what remained in the half empty needle.

 "What the fuck are you talking about?" Pantelone grunted, finally letting go of you.

"Haha, your little assistant  will probably be needing to spend some more time with me in the future. My little mistake, it was just a bit of fun after all."

The look of death fell on Pantelones face once again "i remind you not to mess with my stuff"

“Well it's rather simple then. Give me what i want, whether it be your attention or mora, and i'll make sure they live. We can make it into a deal. You can own them and I can too, you can look after them and I will as well.”

Dottore shifted from the counter to the table and pulled you into him, biting your shoulder harshly with razor-like teeth. "I guess they are mine now as well, equal property"

Suddenly the room started to get tight, black clouding your vision as a surge of pain well up in you. It became hard to stay conscious and your hearing became dull.

“Seems i will need to attend to them now. Can't have you dying on me and your seductive boss now.”

I like to add reasons to things. The reason Pantalone knew you were missing was he got suspicious you wernt back and sae the mess of papers. He just needed to ask a few bystanders to find out where you had gone

[amesstm]

Foodie

Pairing: Osamu Miya x Reader

WC: 3.4k

Summary: after leaving a bad review at Onigiri Miya, the owner tries to convince you otherwise

Warnings: fluff and banter, cursing

A/N: honestly, I’ve always wondered what Osamu’s relationship would be like with a food critic. Plus I’m in food science so I was kind of having fun with the food in this one haha

~~~

The rice was too chewy for your liking. Just how much water did they put into the rice cooker? The onigiri was poorly held together as the rice was running away from its structure. It might as well have been the beginnings of rice pudding. Withholding a sigh of disappointment, you jotted this onto your notepad.

From the corner of your eye, the manager - undoubtedly, left by the owner to handle the stress of a reviewer - was biting their lip from behind the counter. A new employee, who occasionally popped their head from the kitchen, was curiously asking the other employees questions about who you were. All of the staff’s eyes would look towards you at one point or another. Yet, they wouldn’t be receiving a reaction from you. It would be unprofessional to express any emotion in front of them - especially disappointment.

Admittedly, you had done your research before coming here. You wanted to understand the story behind the owner. How much did they love food? Why did they open this restaurant? What did they have to go through to make it? From the store’s Twitter, Miya Osamu absolutely treasured food. Okay, you may have also done some personal research on this Miya Osamu. He even prioritized food when he could’ve joined his twin brother for a prominent career playing volleyball and making millions from one game of passing a ball back and forth across a net. Instead, Osamu holds holiday parties and gives any leftovers to the homeless in the local area. He cooks or bakes with his friends all of the time. It was clear that Osamu was surrounded by food and loved it. In fact, it was something to admire.

Unfortunately, you couldn’t taste his passion in this dish. At least, not when he was absent.

Based on every recommendation for you to visit the establishment, you thought that the food would live up to its reputation. You would’ve asked the owner about the lack of quality from today. Perhaps it was simply a mistake on the staff’s part, as if this was just the day they chose to mess up for their boss. Surely, the food wasn’t always this subpar.

After wiping your mouth with your napkin, you wrote up the review on your laptop immediately afterwards. The staff noticeably held their breath as they watched you tap away. After all, they would be able to see the review as you took your leave. Then, the inevitable comments from the owner would ensue, either leaving a wake of raises and bonuses or firing and scolding.

As you stood from your seat, you knew that scolding would surely begin once the owner returned. You nodded towards the staff, who pouted from the gesture. No doubt, with your reputation, they knew that the nod only meant one thing: do better next time.

~

“Who does this L/N Y/N think she is?!” Atsumu exclaimed with fearsome anger. He clutched onto Osamu’s phone with furrowed eyebrows and a glare to match. Whilst reading the article, he had been stomping around the store like a crazed wind-up toy gone rogue.

Osamu sighed dejectedly, “Stop holding onto my phone like that, ya idiot. You’ll break it.”

The older twin huffed as his protective mode flipped on, “I’m gonna give her a piece of my mind.”

“Please don’t-“ Osamu joked before he saw that Atsumu had pulled up your website and scrolled to the bottom to call the number. “Oi, get yer paws off of it.”

Atsumu ran around the store, cleverly avoiding the grasps of Osamu, who was desperately trying to prevent Atsumu from causing more damage. Osamu cursed his brother for getting even better at anticipating his opponent’s moves. Unfortunately for Osamu but luckily for Atsumu, along the tenth call, someone picked up the phone.

“H-hello?” A timid voice replied from the other side of the phone. This was the infamous L/N Y/N? Osamu didn’t imagine that you’d be so non-confrontational in real life. In your cooking live-streams, you always seemed so charismatic and easy-going. “I had to walk out of class because of this, so - so who are you? Is this for Y/N?”

“Yes!” Atsumu yelled. “I demand that she gives Onigiri Miya a chance again!”

“I’m sorry, but… but we have a rule of waiting for three months before the next review!”

“Okay, so? Give us another chance!”

The poor food critic must’ve been frightened out of her mind from his twin, because she stammered, “I’ll get you in contact later!”

She swiftly hung up, leaving Atsumu feeling proud about harassing a poor worker. Osamu frowned, “Good going. She probably thinks it was me and now thinks I’m an asshole.”

“Are you not?” Atsumu asked innocently. After receiving a slap on the side of his head, he whimpered, “Hey! I’m doing you a favor by having her come by again!”

Why? Why was this Osamu’s life? He kneaded his temples gently, hoping that he could get rid of his headache. Well, that headache has been attached to his hip ever since he was born. He leaned onto the counter and sighed, “If she replies, I’ll ask if she can come by when we’re closed on Monday.”

“See?”Atsumu smirked proudly, “You can thank me later.”

~

“Y/N, you went to Onigiri Miya last week, right?” Your friend and pseudo-manager, Yachi, asked as you two ate lunch together. Although you were off-duty, the shift manager of the crepe shop still anxiously watched you. Even if you were on duty, you would leave a good review - but the bread should be left with more air bubbles if he wasn’t aiming for such a dense bread.

You nodded as you placed your glass down, “Why do you ask?”

“The owner called me and asked to meet with you,” Yachi replied. Since she knew that your customary response to owners were to wait at least three months, this one must have been persistent. Otherwise, Yachi would simply sigh and tell you that someone wanted another review before dismissing it immediately. “I- I told him about your three-months-rule, but he didn’t care.”

You pursed your lips, not knowing how to react. First this Miya Osamu harasses your friend and then he disregards your rule? A soft chuckle left your mouth, “Give me his contact and I’ll talk to him myself.”

Yachi must’ve been surprised when you asked for his number, because she took a moment to process your request. She sent his contact you and then said, “I knew Miya Osamu. From high school, he was an opponent before.”

“Right, I forget that you were a manager for your high school’s volleyball team sometimes,” you said, prompting her to continue.

“He must be very serious about his restaurant to have called me that much,” she voiced with concern.

Was the three star review you gave him that offensive? Possibly, considering the fact that your word was considered gold in the food community. “He must’ve called at least ten times.”

“I’m sorry about that, Yachi,” you apologized with sincerity. Although you were paying her, she was still your friend. Her job entailed finding restaurants for you to review and setting up appointments in your schedule, not dealing with cranky owners on the phone. “I’ll take on some more calls from here on out.”

“Don’t push yourself, okay?” She replied. Her classic worried expression spread on her features as easily as warm butter spreads on bread. “You can still deny him your time.”

You smiled, “I know. Thank you, as always.”

~

Osamu figured that apologizing for interrupting your class must’ve been the proper way to initiate talking to you. After you greeted him, he immediately apologized for his brother’s behalf.

Y/N: Oh no, Yachi didn’t tell me that :(

Osamu: Oh, was it Yachi on the phone and not you?

The name sounded oddly familiar, but he decided to let it go.

Y/N: Mhm. So why did you look for me?

Osamu: it was actually my brother looking for ya

Osamu: he probably scared Yachi

Y/N: Haha, she’s not hard to scare

Y/N: So you want me to review your restaurant again?

Osamu: If it doesn’t trouble ya

Y/N: I usually give restaurants a three-month period before reviewing them again, so you’re special, okay?

Although Osamu couldn’t hear your tone or read your expression, your text sounded exhausted from just a few text messages sent back and forth. He knew he should’ve just not said anything. He felt bad already.

Osamu: Why me, though?

Y/N: Most of the time, the owner is there to oversee things. You weren’t.

That’s true. Osamu was selling onigiri at his brother’s volleyball tournament. It still felt like pity but Osamu wasn’t going to let this opportunity fly away from him.

Osamu: okay, then I’ll see you Monday night

~

With the gruesome week of midterms finally over, you and Yachi decided to have a small get together with close friends. Since her old friends from high school were also in town, it was a good opportunity for them to visit. It was also the perfect opportunity to release any stress by baking.

“The cupcakes are iced and ready for decorating,” you said to no one in particular, pleased with your neat handiwork. You wiped some stray hairs out of your vision with your forearm. Some left over butter cream frosting sitting in the bowl called your name and you just couldn’t help yourself.

Yep, your recipe was perfect.

One by one, each cupcake was beautifully decorated with a tiny cookie on top. You placed them on a cute platter and put them in the center of the food table. Preparing all of your food was your favorite part of being a hostess. The actual welcoming was delegated to Yachi. When you actually left the kitchen, Yachi was already letting in some guests.

“Hi, Tsukki and Yamaguchi!” You grinned from ear to ear. Tsukki was in your statistics class and you had met Yamaguchi at his part-time job at the campus’s Starbucks. It was purely coincidental that Yachi happened to know these two long before you ever did.

“Hi Y/N-Chan!” Yamaguchi said and pulled you into a warm hug. Tsukki only smiled at you, but didn’t initiate a hug.

A few light knocks sounded on the door. Yachi opened it and saw that two familiar faces had arrived: Kageyama and Hinata. Behind the dynamic duo, were a pair of twins that was probably Hinata’s guests. But from the looks of it, they all knew each other. In fact, the blond twin was giving Kageyama a hard time about a dump he tried to do for their practice.

The one that caught your eye the most was the one with the grey hair. In comparison, he was dressed comfortably in a nice light blue hoodie and jeans. The other three wore athletic clothes, having probably just come back from a light jog. Hopefully, Kageyama and Hinata knew that you would attack them with your Febreeze like last time if they came here stinky.

You were lost in your thoughts when you saw that the grey-haired twin was staring at you. In the dim lighting, you weren’t able to see what he really looked like. You smiled at him before welcoming them in.

“Hey Y/N-Chan! This is Miya Atsumu, from my volleyball team; and this is his twin, Miya Osamu.”

Frick. Frick. Frick! That’s why the grey-haired one kept on looking at you! A part of you wanted to grasp the innocent Hinata by his shoulders and beg of him to spare your soul of the awkwardness that would ensue. Another part of you wanted to cling to the food table before you eventually evaporated into thin air.

Before you could even say hi to the Miya twins, Atsumu already exclaimed, “Hold up, hold up. Yer L/N Y/N?!”

Welp. You were about to become the next volleyball the infamous Miya Atsumu smacked across the court. And you’ve seen him play before. You never even got the chance to cook for Gordon Ramsay. Now, it was time to start praying.

You gulped, “I’m really sorry-“

“No, no, it’s okay,” Osamu intervened. He was clearly used to his brother’s antics, holding him back by the wrist. “I’m sorry about his behavior.”

Thank goodness for Hinata because he cleared the tense air. “I have gifts for everyone since we survived midterms!”

“Hinata, you didn’t need to do that,” Yamaguchi chimed in.

Whilst everyone was swarmed by Hinata as he handed out gifts, you thanked him thoroughly before retreating to the food table. In the meanwhile, the group started to play “A Silent Voice” per Hinata and Yachi’s request. You watched them from the comfort of the food table, where you anxiously ate the choco bananas that you prepared.

“Did you make these yourself?” A voice said beside you, making you jump. “Oh, sorry! I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Ah, it was Osamu. He nibbled on some takoyaki that you cooked. “Uh, um, yes I did.”

You didn’t know what intimidated you more. The fact that his twin sat on your couch and had a small grudge against you. Or the fact that Osamu was right in front of you. He was definitely better looking in real life than in the pictures he posted of himself on his social media.

He’s definitely taller than you thought he would be. In fact, he still looked muscular underneath that hoodie of his. It was just another reminder of the fact that he could’ve joined Atsumu on the Japanese National Volleyball Team instead.

“It tastes delicious. I’m guessing you cooked everything here, then?” His grey eyes were kind, simply wanting to spark a conversation.

You shyly nodded. Osamu knew you as the amazing, funny cook he watched in your live-streams. Seeing how awkward you were in person and knowing that your food was delicious as he thought it was, made you seem so much more real to him. You may be confident in the kitchen, but it was truly something else to talk to you.

“Did Yachi not want to cook?”

“Ah, no,” you chuckle. “She can find her way in the kitchen with a recipe but I prefer to cook.”

“That’s the same way with my brother - okay, but he can’t even manage with a recipe.”

“You two may be identical, but not when it comes to cooking, huh?” You teased. It really was a wonder when Atsumu was causing a ruckus at the couch whereas Osamu was quietly speaking with you one-on-one.

“Sometimes I wonder how we’re related at all,” Osamu deadpanned.

You laughed and your eye-smile showcased itself to the world. Osamu blushed, relieved that you were lightening up and enjoying yourself. Soon, it’s like the night flew by. What were several hours felt like only a few minutes with Osamu. He had to leave but a part of you was already looking forward to Monday.

~

It was a Monday night and you were back at Onigiri Miya for the second time within three months. You pulled your hoodie closer to shield your face as you looked behind you. The people passing by didn’t pay you much mind, which you were grateful for. You knocked on the door. One. Two. Three.

The door quietly opened to reveal Osamu who let you into the store discreetly, as if you were another worker. He made sure that the closed sign still hung correctly on the door.

Since it was closed that night, the main dining area would’ve been dark except for the lights illuminating from the back and the kitchen. Even in the dim lighting, the restaurant was cleaned to perfection, with no hint of dust in any corner - even in the tallest of crannies - and a soft lemon scent to go with it. The chairs were placed onto the tables, except for a table in the very back.

“Here, have a seat,” Osamu said before turning to the kitchen. So, you made yourself comfortable.

Osamu tried to steady his breathing when he returned to the kitchen. It was just another day serving a customer, he told himself. But no - you weren’t a customer. Your opinion could change whether or not he would have as many customers as he’s had in the past - or even more in the future.

No, if I treat her any differently from the rest of my customers, I have no right being a chef.

After a few minutes, Osamu returned with a white apron tied around his waist and a wooden tray in his hands that boasted an array of food samplings. He gently placed the tray before you.

You gave a cursory glance across the tray and curiously glanced up at him. “Some of this isn’t on your menu.”

Osamu shrugged, “Some are new items that I’m thinking of adding.”

“You want me to review your restaurant… with items that aren’t even on the menu yet?” You gave a soft chuckle at the end.

“I thought about it and I don’t want you to review the restaurant, actually,” he stated. “It wouldn’t be right of me to ask you to break your three-month rule. So, all I ask is that you try some things that I made.”

The soft tension in your eyebrows drifted away. It was a simple request and you couldn’t bother walking back home on an empty stomach. With your hunger in mind - and the beautiful presentation before you -, you nodded and followed his lead “Okay, what do you want me to eat first?”

After several tries of his onigiri, a new seaweed soup, a specially fermented umeboshi dish, there was one more plate left: tamagoyaki. “You’re thinking of adding a breakfast item?”

He shook his head, “I think it should be an appetizer.”

You raised an eyebrow, wondering why it was the last one offered for the night. Osamu didn’t hesitate to alleviate your confusion with confidence. “I saved it for last because you love cooking with eggs. I followed your egg series so I wanted to see how you’d like mine.”

Oh, so he looked into you, too? An unwanted blush rose to your face. You brought a napkin to your face to wipe your mouth but discreetly control your burning cheeks. You chuckled, “I’ll give my most honest review.”

All it took was one bite.

Osamu didn’t miss the way that your eyes lit up and widened when the egg hit your taste buds. You quickly composed yourself when you noticed that his eyes were keenly observing any hint that you would drop. You swallowed lightly, took your napkin to wipe your mouth, and smiled. “It’s perfect.”

Osamu egged you on for more, like a golden retriever begging for more praise. You giggled. “What most people fail to realize is that the fluffiness of the egg can be determined by how they whisk it. Clearly, you used chopsticks and whisked it in such a way that the egg wouldn’t be dense when you cooked it. It’s fluffy. The butter isn’t traditional, but it’s still a good substitute for oil. The seaweed and dashi stock are perfect.”

“What’s the rating now? Unofficially, of course,” Osamu asked, winking at the end.

You made the effort to look contemplative and broke into a smile, “I suppose it could be a 4.5”

“Last time I remember, 4.5 rounded up to 5, so I’ll take it.” He leaned back with a satisfied smile gracing his features.

Then, you remembered something else unique about the tamagoyaki. “What else was in the tamagoyaki? It wasn’t traditional, either. I can’t put my finger on it.”

Osamu smirked and shrugged. “A chef never tells his secrets.”

“Oh, so you perform magic now?”

“Something like that.”

“Anything else you can do?”

“I can give you a great date.”

Your heart paused and mind malfunctioned. “Then I can’t really review your restaurant again.”

“That’s fine. I wouldn’t be able to wait three months to date you, anyway.”

©amesstm on tumblr // pls do not plagiarize, steal, or repost my content w/o permission!! BUT likes & reblogs are highly appreciated :)

[todorokibois]

Brat - Katsuki Bakugo X Reader {M}

Disclaimer: Katsuki is aged up to about 21, as are all characters in my fics.

Genre: Smut (Dom/Sub themes, slight humiliation, Mistress, Bakugo is a brat)

Pairing: Katsuki X Reader

Words: 3,966

A/n: Came up with this idea while I was rewatching some bnha the other day, and I thought to myself, I think it’s time for someone to put Bakugo in his place. Thus, this idea was born. I hope you enjoy, please let me know what you think!

Summary: The one in which you’ve had enough of Bakugo’s shit and decide to teach him some respect.

He’s been pushing your buttons all day. Every time you would suggest a plan to capture the criminals you’ve been chasing, he would counter your ideas, or go off and do his own thing. The worst was when he stormed into the building by himself, yelling at the villains to ‘stop being such little bitches’ and fight him head on. To say you’re frustrated would be an understatement.

Due to his attitude in the past, many other agencies refuse to work with him, leaving only a select few you can count on. You’re just lucky you have friends in those agencies, otherwise hero work might be a little bit more difficult to come by, especially when he goes off on his own like this, ignoring your direct orders.

It takes you all twice as long to capture the goons this time due to him nearly collapsing the building they were hiding in, completely ignoring the fact that you told him to wait for backup. Eventually, you managed to catch up to him and apprehend the villains you’ve been after, giving them to the authorities shortly after capture. 

However, not only are you beyond frustrated, but you’re also embarrassed by how Katsuki has been acting lately. Given that you’re one of the top heroes working at your agency, your team is supposed to listen to your orders and follow them, especially when it comes to tasks like this. Katsuki, on the other hand, directly refuses to even acknowledge how you run things, which only makes you believe he has no respect for the agency’s code of conduct, nor you, especially when the two of you are at work. 

You’re sick and tired of it, especially since the two of you are supposed to be partners, in more ways than one. You can’t count the amount of times you’ve overheard people commenting on your relationship because of this. Enough is enough, and you’ve decided you’re going to do something about this. It’s like he doesn’t have any respect for your authority.

This won’t be for long, though. Not if you have anything to say about it. Someone is going to have to put him in his place, and you know just the person to do it. You.

When the both of you get back to the agency building, your superior gave you both a massive scolding. Katsuki received a larger one than you, but you were still told to get him under control, lest the two of you want to be out of a job. The last thing the agency wants is their approval rating to go down in the eyes of the public, and Katsuki is already dangerously treading the edge.

“It’s your job to keep him under control, (Y/n),” your boss scolds you once the two of you are alone in their office.

“Yes, boss,” you reply, a sigh nearly escaping your lips for the umpteenth time that evening.

“Now go home and get some rest, tomorrow’s another day!” They say, sending you a tight smile as you nod politely and leave their office.

You say nothing as you pass Katsuki, expression remaining blank as your eyes blaze in anger. If anyone saw you, they’d think you look quite normal, but one look into your eyes and they’d know how pissed off you really are.

He huffs and rolls his eyes as you walk passed him, arms crossed as he follows you out to the car, “what? I got the job done, didn’t I?”

The only response he gets out of you is a glance at him out of the corner of your already narrowed eyes, only causing him to click his tongue in annoyance, “what?”

Sliding into the drivers side of the car, you remain silent. Turning the keys, you register him sliding in the passenger’s seat, teeth gritting against one another as he clenches his jaw. He tilts his head slightly upwards, his nose in the air as he looks over at you from the corner of his eyes.

“Are you really going to ignore me now, dumbass?” He scoffs as you remain silent. “Fine, I didn’t want to talk anyways.”

Usually, you’d be cussing him out by now, voices raised as you argue your whole drive back to your shared house about what has transpired this evening. To say your silence is slightly unnerving to him would not be an exaggeration. He has a feeling that you’ll probably lay into him as soon as you get home, and that anticipation alone is eating away at him. Believe it or not, he can’t stand you actually being upset at him, and he can tell you’re furious.

Your grip is tight on the steering wheel the whole ride home. Every so often, you can feel Katsuki’s gaze drift over to look at you, though he still defiantly holds his head high. Each time you let out a tense sigh, he tenses slightly, waiting for you to blow up at him like he knows you can. 

The longer this goes on, the more nervous he gets. Did he finally go overboard? Will you forgive him this time like you have all the other times he’s disobeyed your orders? It’s not like anyone got hurt this time, so he doesn’t understand why you’re so upset. In fact, you should be used to this by now.

Each second that goes by with this tense silence lingering in the air feels like an eternity to him, and by the time you’re pulling into the driveway he nearly breathes a sigh of relief. As you’re unlocking the front door, he figures he’ll attempt to talk to you again, wanting at least some sense of normalcy to come back to the two of you.

Stepping inside, he lets out an irritated huff, “look, if you’re saving the big lecture for when we get inside, you should just-“

His voice dies in his throat as you push him against the wall, the front door clicking shut beside you.

“You never know when to keep that big mouth of yours shut, huh, Katsuki?” You tut, shaking your head in disappointment. “You know, if you actually put it to good use, instead of spewing your typical bullshit…”

“The fuck are you talking about, (Y/n)?” He counters, brows furrowed.

“I’m talking about how this is the last time you’re going to disrespect me like that, you fucking brat,” you spit, pushing him harder into the wall with your arm across his chest.

“Oh, please,” he rolls his eyes, “if I hadn’t gone ahead-“

“Enough, Katsuki,” you cut him off, eyes hard as your gaze meets his. “This is the last time you pull something like this. I’ve put up with it for this long because I care about you, and it usually all works out in the end, but not anymore. It’s time you learned some respect.”

He scoffs, “and I suppose you’re going to teach me?”

“Damn right I am,” comes your immediate reply, and you can tell he isn’t expecting it. “It’s time someone knocked you down a few pegs, brat, and I’ll be happy to do it.”

A humourless puff of air escapes him, “I’d like to see you try.”

“Oh, baby,” you grin, “I’ve already started.”

At your words, his brow furrows further in confusion until he feels you arm shift slightly, allowing for your hand to rest at the base of his throat. His eyes go wide as he feels your fingers gently brushing over his skin, almost teasingly against his throat, your body now pushing into his fully.

“Like I said, you’ve always had such a loud mouth, Katsuki,” you stare into his eyes, and you know he’s watching you, waiting to see what your next move will be. “You’ve always needed someone to discipline you properly, to tell you ‘no’ and actually mean it. To bring you to your knees and make you beg-”

Before you can say another word, he cuts you off, “like hell I’d ever beg for anything.”

Your eyes flash, grip squeezing slightly at the base of his throat in warning as he gasps, “don’t interrupt me again.” 

You notice his eyebrow quirk slightly, his Adam’s apple bobbing against your hand as he swallows subtly, yet he nods once in understanding. 

“As I was saying,” you sigh, “you will beg by the time I’m done with you tonight. After I’m done teaching you some respect. Though, I don’t think I’ll need to try very hard.”

To emphasize your point, you bring your free hand to his crotch, cupping his semi-hard cock in your hands and squeezing. He inhales sharply, gritting his teeth as he feels you gently caressing his growing erection, both loving and hating how much this is actually turning him on at the moment. You smirk.

“After all, I’ve barely done anything to you, and you’re already this turned on,” your voice is low as you lean in to whisper into his ear. A shiver runs down his spine as he feels your breath ghost over his neck, “pathetic.”

A small moan escapes his lips, immediately causing his eyes to widen, face turning red as you chuckle at his reaction. He attempts to get words out, but all he can do is splutter as you release your hold on him with a quirked brow, nails trailing down his chest teasingly until all he’s left with is the faintest ghost of your touch over his skin.

“Seems to me like you’re already begging for me to have my way with you,” you say as you take a few steps backwards and away from him. 

He catches himself as he takes a small step towards you, gritting his teeth in frustration at what you’re doing to him. You watch as his fists clench at his sides, a fire igniting behind his irises. He’s putting up a front, and you can tell, one that’s close to cracking.

“Like hell I would,” he’s still, spine rigid as he watches you with defiance still shining in his eyes, along with something else. Something you’ve never seen before.

“Oh?” You quirk your brow once more, now taking small steps towards him as if you’re a cat stalking its prey, “you mean you don’t want to feel my hands all over your body, leaving marks for everyone to see? You don’t want to know what it’s like to be rewarded for being my good boy? You’d rather me not take care of that little situation you’ve got going on down there?” You trail your eyes over his body, gaze focusing on the tent now visible in his pants as he shifts slightly at the feeling of having your eyes on him like this. “Damn, Katsuki, I knew you were masochistic, but you shouldn’t let your pride get in the way all of the time.” You’re close enough to him now to trail a teasing finger across his chest. “Especially not at a time like this.”

He scowls, but you can see it doesn’t fully reach his eyes. He’s intrigued by your whole demeanour tonight, for he’s never really seen you act this way before. He always knew you could be demanding, a true leader that he honestly wouldn’t mind following anywhere you told him to, but he’s never had this directed towards him. Well, he’s never felt you mean it like this before.

Maybe he wanted this to happen. Maybe he wanted to see how far he could push you before you snapped and put him in his place. Maybe he’s been desperate for you to use him like he’s used you. The countless times throughout your relationship where he’s made you weak for him, made you beg him for more has made him want the same from you. Maybe, just maybe, there’s something more to it. Maybe he just wants to see how far you’re willing to go. Maybe, he just wants you to make him beg.

“I don’t let my pride get in the way,” he grumbles, as you take a step back to distance yourself from him once more. His gaze darts to the side as he crosses his arms in front of his chest, just waiting for you to do something to him.

“Sure you don’t,” you chuckle, now standing right in front of him. 

The two of you stare at one another for a few moments, the tension of anticipation lingering in the air between you. He can’t help but hold his breath as he watches your one hand come back up to cup his face, patting his cheek affectionately in the next moment.

“Once you’ve swallowed that pride of yours, brat, I’ll be waiting in the bedroom,” with a final smile that simply screams nothing but trouble for him, you’re turning around and heading up the stairs, leaving him standing there, stunned, in the front entranceway.

Letting out a frustrated growl, he shakes his head. No way in hell is he leaving things like this. There’s a part of him that wants to march right into your shared room and show you who you belong to. To put you in your place for teasing him like that. However, there’s another part of him that cannot help the way his heart races in excitement as he thinks of what you might have in store for him once he makes it upstairs.

The fire behind his eyes is still burning once he throws open the door, only for his steps to falter as he sees you casually changing your shirt. His gaze trails down your torso, swallowing slightly as he watches you turn around, you not wearing anything at all on your upper half.

“Took you long enough, brat,” you tut, shaking your head as you walk over to him, now frozen in the doorway. He’s seen you plenty of times without a shirt on, hell, even without a bra for that matter, but there’s something about your aura this time that makes whatever retort he’s about to say die in his throat. This time, you look serious, and he just knows he’s in for a long night. “What, no smart-ass remark?”

Your lips tugs upwards into a grin, arms crossing across your chest, only serving to emphasize the curve of your breasts. His mouth practically salivates at the thought of finally getting to touch you after what you did to him downstairs. He’s never gotten this worked up like this in such a short period of time before, and he wants to see what you’ll do to him next.

“Are you finally going to listen to me for once?” You ask, tilting your head slightly as you continue to stare at him expectantly.

“I always listen to you,” he responds grumpily.

“There’s that smart mouth of yours again,” you shake your head in mock disappointment. “Now, see, we wouldn’t be in this mess right now if that were the case. So, we’re going to start at lesson one: do exactly what I say, without question.”

He laughs in disbelief despite feeling the way his cock twitches in excitement in his pants at your words, “like hell I’ll do that.”

“Did I fucking stutter, Katsuki?” Your hands are on your hips now as you stare him down. “Now, I want you to get on your knees.”

“Excuse me?” He shoots you an incredulous look, not believing what you’ve just told him to do.

“I said,” you breathe, closing your eyes briefly as you walk towards him, grabbing him harshly by the back of his hair and pushing him down onto the floor beneath you, “on your fucking knees.”

A gasp escapes him as he feels his knees make contact with the floor, loving the way your hand feels harshly gripping his hair, forcing him to look up at you. Tugging at his hair causes a low groan to escape his lips, causing him to flush red in embarrassment once more.

“What did I say?” You hum, “you’re practically begging to be put in your place.”

“That’s not-“ he begins to protest, but a strangled moan escapes his throat as you tug on his hair once more.

“You were saying?” You smirk, only receiving another scowl in response. “Lesson two: right here, right now, you will address me as your Mistress. Do I make myself clear?”

“What? Like hell I’m calling you tha-“

“Do I make myself clear?” 

Another tug at his hair has him biting his lip before conceding, “yes, Mistress.”

“Good boy,” you release the hold your hand has on his hair in order to bring your hand down to cup his face gently. He stares up at you defiantly, but you can see the excitement growing in his eyes. He’s wanted this for a while now, and he can feel his cock straining against his jeans, practically begging for your touch. “Now, I think you should make it up to me, given the way you’ve acted today, don’t you?”

“Yeah, right-“

“What was that?” Your hand grips his chin, forcing him to stare directly into your eyes as a sadistic smile rests on your face.

He huffs slightly, eyes avoiding yours now as he grumbles out, “yes, Mistress.”

“Glad you agree,” you hum, releasing you grip on him in order to undo your pants. “We’re going to put that mouth of yours to good use, and maybe by then I’ll have thought of a suitable punishment for a brat such as yourself.”

At this, it’s his turn to quirk a brow at you, watching as you strip yourself of the rest of your clothes in front of him. He smirks, drinking in your figure before him and admiring every curve you have to offer. If this is his punishment, he’ll gladly take it. After all, he can’t wait to have you begging for him later tonight.

“Lesson three:” you begin to say, positioning yourself right in front of him, your hips in his line of sight. His mouth salivates at the thought of getting to taste you as your one leg comes to rest over his shoulder, hand now back in his hair. Just as he’s about to bring his hands up to help steady your figure more, your voice is halting his movements, “no touching me if you still want to come tonight.”

“Huh?” He recoils slightly, eyes wide as his cock throbs, reminding him of how painfully hard he’s become already, and once again he’s reminded how you have still yet to touch him.

“You heard me, baby,” you smirk down at him, fingers tightening their hold slightly in his hair. “Hands behind your back; no touching unless I say so. Now, put that mouth to good use.”

Without waiting for a response, you push his head down. Putting his hands behind his back, his eyes flick briefly to yours before he’s attaching his mouth to you, sucking your clit into your mouth before flicking it a few times with his tongue. 

One thing you can always count on Katsuki for is his need to be the best. No matter what he does, he’s always proving to everyone that he can do anything better than anyone else. No one compares to him, and even if he’d rather you be sucking his cock first right now, he’ll prove to you that he does in fact, deserve to come tonight. That, and he can listen. He wants to make you feel good, always, and seeing this side of you has sparked a new flame of desire for you in him. He’ll be your good boy, but he’s going to make you work for it.

Throwing your head back, you let out a moan, feeling him lick at your entrance with his tongue before moving it back up to flick at your clit. Your sounds are music to his ears, and he never grows tired of hearing his name fall from your lips, especially during these times. He only wishes he could touch you back, to tease you like you’ve been teasing him. However, he’ll do what he can for now, eating you out like a man starved, moving his tongue just how you like.

By now, your hand is gently stroking the top of his hair, brushing it out of his face so he can maintain eye contact with you as you grind your pussy on his mouth. You can feel the rumble of approval he lets out from his chest as you tug on his hair every now and then, only causing you to smirk.

“See, baby,” you comb your fingers through his hair for emphasis, “you do know how to properly use that mouth of yours.” His eyes flash and he renews his efforts tenfold. Again, he wants to prove to you that he can do it, to please you in a way that only he can. A low groan escapes your lips, “that’s it, baby boy, just like that.”

The nails of his right hand dig harshly into the skin of his left wrist, wanting nothing more than to grip your thighs and pull you into him so you cannot escape the pleasure he’s giving you. He can feel his chest swelling with pride with each jolt of your hips into his face, letting him know you’re enjoying this, too. Except, he can feel himself becoming greedy; he wants more.

“You gonna make me come?” A growl is all you get in response. “Come on, baby, make me come all over that pretty mouth of yours.”

His chest is heaving as a feral look takes over his eyes. Seeing you above him like this has awakened some part of him he never knew he had, and he loves the control you have over him right now. All he wants to do is please you, to make you feel good and be your good little boy until you can’t take it anymore. This is what he deserves, what you deserve.

With a few more sucks of your clit into his mouth, you can feel yourself tipping over the edge. Your hands bury themselves in his hair, tugging harshly at the roots as you anchor yourself to him, his tongue continuing to work you through your orgasm as your eyes flutter closed. 

A breathless moan of his name slips passed your lips, and his whole body twitches, gut clenching in ecstasy. His eyes watch your every movement as you still above him, your head thrown back as you attempt to catch your breath.

“That’s my good boy,” you breathe, removing your leg from his shoulder as you steady yourself onto your own two feet. He smirks subtly as he watches you sway slightly, knowing that he’s the one who’s done that to you. “Now, on your feet, baby.”

As soon as he goes to move, the smirk is falling right off his face. His pants are no longer uncomfortably tight, but instead, he can feel stickiness pooling against his skin as the material rubs against his sensitive cock.

“What’s the matter, baby boy?” You tilt your head mockingly as your eyes glance down to see the dark wet patch on his jeans. A sadistic smile spreads itself across your lips, eyes glinting darkly. “How cute,” you hum, “was the thought of my wet cunt on your lips that tempting to make you come untouched?”

“Shut up,” he growls, cheeks flaring once more as he avoids you gaze.

“How sweet,” you purr, walking over to the bed and kneeling on it. You notice him starting to head towards the bathroom to clean himself up before your voice has him halting in his tracks, “where do you think you’re going? I’m not done with you yet.”

[beomglocks]

soob become human ; c.sb

pairing: android!soobin x police detective!y/n

plot: your job is fairly simple, find out the cause of the recent surges of deviancy in androids. the only problem is that you hate androids, but it’s ok because you have a newly appointed partner and- oh wait he’s an android. 

w/c: 6.3K (this took me longer than it should have)

warnings & other:  enemies(?) to lovers(?), enemies (?) to less hated enemies, based off detroit become human, lots of swearing, android!soobin, human!y/n, blood, dead people, a crime scene is described but not in too much detail, soobin is definetly not a deviant, y/n hates soobin and pretty much all androids, y/n is kinda an ass to soobin, semi slow burn, open ended

you were seething with rage though you somehow managed to contain it. you wanted to hold it in long enough to really explode when you walked into your boss's office. you tramp past the receptionist in the lobby and don't even smile at her. you never do since she's not even a human. you hate how she's programmed to sit idly with an eerie smile on her face and welcome guests.

"hey y/n!" you hear your friend, hueningkai, shout at you. you wonder how he can be so loud and full of energy after 5 hours of working at his desk but you keep marching on, not acknowledging his greeting.

you have your eyes set out on your boss's office and the fire in your eyes is set alight when you notice him sitting at his desk peacefully. thank god, for the see-through box offices cyberlife installed last year.

he notices your figure striding up angrily towards his office and you see him sigh. good, at least he knows what's he's in for! you march up the stairs with your head held high because you were really about to give him a piece of your mind right now.

you stop just at the edge of his desk and rummage through your crossbody bag for something. it takes you a while which is embarrassing since he just sits there looking at you expectantly. "ah," you pull out a crumpled up piece of paper, which you yourself crumbled up out of anger, and slam it harshly on his desk.

"excuse me but what the fuck is this?"

he glances down at the paper and back up at you with a bored expression. "that's a piece of paper y/n." you chuckle bitterly and place your hands on your hips. "i'm talking about the contents of the paper sir."

you watch him open up the paper gingerly and skim over the words printed. "oh yeah," he crumbles the paper again tossing it into the bin. he sighs heavily getting in his serious work position with his hands crossed in front of him. he's a big burly kind of guy so it always somewhat intimidates you when he does this.

"we're getting weekly reports of androids going haywire. everyday i've gotta deal with a new report. i'm not talking the usual malfunction and spilling coffee. this is homicides and assaults. just last night a woman was murdered in cold blood by her android. this isn't cyberlife's problem anymore, these are criminals now."

you stay quiet, taking in what he's saying. "regarding the contents of the paper, i want you to investigate them." you clench your fists and narrow your eyes at him. "why me?" you burst after a moment of letting your anger rise again. you realize you sound like a child whose just gotten told they have to dishes while their sibling goofs off but you don't care.

"i'm the least qualified person to handle these cases plus i've got other shit to worry about! i don't want to deal with those pieces of junk!"

the chief office stands up, eyeing you sternly. now you've done it. "y/n don't piss me off. you know you're the most qualified so don't start with that bullshit. i don't wanna hear any complaints out of you." he doesn't raise his voice and that kind of alarms you but you press on.

"no! you know that no one else in this goddamn precinct wants to deal with these androids so of course, you left me to pick up the dog shit!"

"watch your tone detective," he seethes. he sighs heavily trying to regain himself before he really bursts a vessel. he cozies back into his desk chair and rubs his temples. you, on the other hand, are breathing heavily and pacing back and forth. you can't believe he would put you on an android case of all things.

you were seriously being relieved of all other duties to investigate a bunch of ones and zeros. but that wasn't even the best part.

"i'm assigning you a partner to assist you in the investigation."

you stop in your tracks, eyes widening. "hell fucking no!" you rage. you march back up to his desk and lean over the edge. "chief i always ride solo. ever since i joined i've always been alone and have been doing just fine! i don't need help!"

"y/n i think i've had enough of your bitching and whining. i don't care that you're the best worker in this fucking precinct. if you don't like the circumstances you can hand in your badge right this instant. otherwise, shut your fucking mouth and get back to work," he says through gritted teeth.

you scoff in his face and as you walk out of his office you flip him off. "that's going on your track record detective!" he says matter of factly.

"shove it up yo-"

you sigh as you enter your office. "fuuuuuuuck," you groan. you look around and notice that there's a tiny replica of your desk on the other side of your office. you can only assume it's meant for your partner. the sudden urge to destroy it and throw everything across the room crosses your mind but you decide against it.

having a partner assigned to you was a jab at your pride. everyone knew you as the detective who never needed one, the lone wolf if you will. if anyone saw you being assisted they would immediately think that the position of "best officer" was up for grabs, when it wasn't.

you didn't wanna be that person but of course, you held that title over everyone's head.

you huff, throwing yourself onto your chair which causes it to spin around. you don't even know this supposed partner of yours. most likely for a good reason too. you can only imagine your reaction if the chief had presented your new partner right then and there. a firm knock on your door startles you, "come in," you mumble. you're really not in the mood to entertain any of your work friends so you hope this is quick.

you look at the figure standing idly by the frame of the door. he's tall with a three-piece suit on. he's oddly handsome with little to no flaws which is suspicious to you. his hair is dark with hints of blue peeking out and it's pushed back to show his forehead. the stark contrast of his dark hair and fair skin makes him look very pale and almost sick. he has some files in his hands and his face is stoic, almost emotionless but not stern. he looks boyish.

what you don't notice is the ring of light located on his temple since it blends in so well with his skin. "how many times do i have to tell people that complaints are sent next door to hueningkai, god i really need to get a sign or some shit," you groan rubbing your face in frustration. you lower your hands and the person is still there.

"hello, my name is choi soobin. i'm the android sent by cyberlife to assist you with your detective duties," he states monotonously as if he's reading from a script.

the gears in your head churn for a while but once the words process you groan once again and roll your eyes to the back of your head, "why am i not surprised that chief would fuck me over even more like this. of course my partner is a fucking andriod." soobin steps completely into your office shutting the door behind him. "are you y/n?" he asks politely.

"un-fucking-fortunately."

"nice to meet you!" he seemingly ignores your sarcastic comment and your wonder if he even knows what sarcasm is. "i hope we can be good partners. i have already received the files on our first case together, here they are," he places the files on your desk and you can only look up at him in disgust.

"well you're a well-trained dog arent you?" you mumble. "y/n with all due respect i am not a dog. im an android designed by cyberlife to merely assist with certain tasks and finish my mission. i'm one of the most advanced of my kind." you look at the tag on his suit: KR900. you sigh, nodding, "got it got it, now if you'll excuse me, it's time for my daily nap so scram."

you lean back in your chair and close your eyes. man, if soobin was gonna be your partner you'd have to extend nap time by at least 30 minutes. you wonder if you can get away with adding another hour to your naptime.

you hear someone clearing their throat beside you. you hope that if you keep your eyes closed they'll get the hint to leave you alone. after about a minute the person speaks up, "y/n we should probably start with the case as soon as possible." great, soobin.

you open your eyes to glare at him. "listen, soobin? was it? go fuck yourself ok?" you close your eyes again and fold your arms over your chest. god, soobin's already being a nuisance. you're not sure if whatever this is is going to work out.

he stays silent for a moment and you wonder if he can feel the feeling of frustration. you hope he can because he might be able to get a sense of how you felt towards this whole situation. you start to drift when you feel an odd warmth radiating on the side of your face.

"with all due respect detective. i've been assigned to this mission and i intend to carry it out and complete it to the very end. i'm not going to sit around and wait for you to simply 'feel like it'."

your eyes fly open and you stare at him bewilderedly. he's very close to your face and his expression is stony but of course, he still has that boyish look.

you stand up, frowning at him. "let's get one thing very straight, tin can." you shove your finger into his chest which strangely doesn't feel too much like hard metal. "i call the shots around here so i won't be taking orders from a walking computer. i don't give a damn if you're leagues smarter than me, piss me off one more time and i won't hesitate to deactivate you myself."

you step away from him and he doesn't seem affected. he simply brushes his suit off. you scoff, grabbing your keys from your desk. "by the way i already know where the crime scene is so try to catch up next time, puppy."

when you both arrive at the crime scene there's already a plethora of police with their hound dogs and the yellow barricade tape is being set up. this must've been a pretty brutal scene for there to be this many people dispatched to this location. you're not surprised that there's people here and there trying to get a sneak peek at what might've happened.

"y/n! y/n!" you hear someone frantically yelling out your name.

you look around and see yeonjun, another police detective who's not from your unit, running up to you. he engulfs you into a bear hug, letting his trenchcoat pick up from the wind. you smile for what feels like the first time today, "hey yeonjun." once upon a time you liked choi yeonjun, you still do in a way. he was always on top of his game which you admired and you two would always compete when it came to cases. he was unbelievably smart so he probably knew about your little crush on him. if he did, he never addressed it and still treated you like a close friend.

"it's weird seeing you at the scene so early, we're just finishing setting up the yellow tape," he smiles at you but you can see his confusion. you were known to be late to these scenes but somehow still did well and always cracked the case. you didn't like to be around all the other police and detectives when you were in the zone.

"chief assigned me a new partner who insisted i arrive accordingly," you roll your eyes playfully to mask the annoyance. you don't bother to introduce soobin, who had been standing behind you silently this whole time, because he introduces himself. "hello, my name is choi soobin. i'm the android sent by cyberlife to assist y/n with their detective duties," he says monotonously.

yeonjun stares at soobin with an impressed look, "woah, chief got you a robot? he must love you" he jokes. "love me? this is a shit way of showing it," you mumble.

"y/n ever the comedian," yeonjun laughs deeply. you smile shyly at him. "i guess..anyways what's the scene looking like?" yeonjun leans back on the barricade looking back at the house you have yet to enter.

"looks like another case of deviancy to me," he sucks his teeth in thought. "man these androids are really going haywire these days, killing their owners, assaulting them, or just simply running off. seems like some kind of uprising? the machines seem to be rebelling," he glances at soobin who is already looking at him.

yeonjun chuckles lowly and leans down towards your ear subtly. "be careful ok?" he leans back up and stretches his arms. "trust me i know," you mutter. you both smile at each other and he winks at you. "well i'm off to do my own sleuthing! let me know if you find anything, you always do after all."

you watch him jog off and sigh to yourself. you turn to soobin, "right, let's get on with it." before he can take another step forward you stop him in his tracks. "and don't get in my way." soobin nods but stays silent. "i'm gonna need a verbal answer," you really don't care if he answers you or not you just want to annoy him. "i will do what i need to, to complete my mission," he looks at you with a weird glint in his eye and you kinda hate him even more now.

you roll your eyes and walk through the door of the house you're meant to be investigating. the smell of booze and musk smacks you in the face and you have to physically hold back the bile rising up your throat. "

"man whoever lived here was a pig!" you gag. you look back at soobin who has a neutral but curious face. "right you can't actually smell things," you mumble. you grab the collar of your jacket and cover the bottom half of your face with it.

as you walk deeper into the house you start to really see what went down. glass covers pretty much the entirety of the floor from a window near the tv. the tv is busted and there's writings on the wall. you look around the living room and that's actually when you discover the body.

it seems to have been there for a couple of days now since there's maggots hovering over it. the man's face is beaten badly and blood runs down it onto his tattered shirt. he's slumped over and there's blood on the wall that states 'we are alive'.

"jesus christ," you mumble to no one in particular. you watch soobin hunch over the body and dip his finger into the blood on the wall near it. he's about to bring it near his mouth but you stop him. "god what the fuck are you doing!" you think the bile you were holding back is really about to come out and you're scared you'll ruin the crime scene.

he looks back at you with an unreadable expression. "im analyzing the blood." he turns his back to you again takes a lap of the blood. "you're fucking gross," you chastise.

"the blood is from the victim," he finalizes. "damn his android must've really wanted to make a statement here. 'we are alive'? what do you think that means?" you ask him.

soobin stands up straight again, looking around the flat, "deviancy of course. judging by the looks of it, this wasn't a very habitable place. the android must've gotten fed up and rebelled against its owner." he thinks to himself. "this shouldn't be happening, it must be some kind of virus because androids were only meant to serve, they shouldn't have to capability to harm much less kill."

you sigh, already hating where this case and the mission overall is going. "let's just look around for clues. i doubt the android could've gotten far, it must feel guilty or something."

soobin shakes his head, "androids don't feel y/n." you raise your brow at his statement, "one does not simply kill another being without feeling. an emotion or feeling of some sort is triggered which causes someone to act out in this way."

you walk away to the kitchen to look for clues there but soobin just stands there watching you. he frowns but joins you minutes later.

after about a half hour of looking for any clues, you've managed to gain a lot of evidence with soobin's help. there had been a struggle in the kitchen which led to the living room where the place of death was determined. soobin described the altercation as very brutal for both parties.

"so where's the android?" you ask after his explanation. "it's near," he mumbles. he surveys the room once again and spots something. you watch him do the same procedure he had done with the victim's blood. "there's nothing there," you say skeptically.

"it's android blood, or blue blood as you humans call it. not visible to the human eye but any android can spot it from a mile away."

when he's done he looks around once again and follows a sort of trail. he stops near the attic door and sighs. he pulls it open with caution and you can only wonder what he's up to.

he peeks in then hoists himself up into it. "wha-" "stay here," he demands. "hey what did i sa-"

before you can scold him he's already in the attic and slammed the door in your face. "didn't know androids had a prick feature," you mutter.

after 5 minutes you start to hear noises of struggling and things falling over. "soobin?" you shout. "what's going on up there?" you don't actually care if he's ok or not but one scratch on him and you'll be paying the damages.

he doesn't answer, instead, the struggling comes to a halt. you jump as he slams open the attic door. you give him a once over and it doesn't look like he has any scratches on him so you sigh to yourself gratefully. looking down you see an android wriggling in handcuffs, you assume it's the murderer. "i got him," soobin huffs.

"y/n? you in h- woah," yeonjun breathes out. he looks over the both of you then at the android on the ground near soobin. "damn." you nod, agreeing with his one-word statement. soobin folds his arms looking down at the android. the android is rightfully glaring back up at him. "he was hiding up there, probably thought no one would find him. well, no human would've at least."

"we should take it back to the station for questioning. the more info we get out of it, the closer we are to figuring out the cause of this 'deviancy'," yeonjun concludes. you nod, turning to soobin, "good job puppy." he makes a face but accepts your praise either way.

after finalizing your first deviant case, you decided to ask yeonjun out for burgers two days later as a celebratory measure. he had told you he was going to be busy filing some other cases so you opted for going alone. alone is not entirely true since soobin was required to be around you at pretty much all times.

"stay in the car," you ordered. "not happening. im required to assist you at all times," he states matter of factly. you lean your head on the steering wheel. "god you are so up my ass it's annoying."

"listen if i say do something you do it. you're an android so you follow my orders got that?" you narrow your eyes at him as if to challenge him. he simply looks back at you with that boyish curious look and says nothing.

you hate how he looks like a puppy who knows you're hiding a treat behind your back.

you sigh, getting out of the already parked car. you slam the door roughly in what you hope to be soobin's face to make a point but you hear a door close right after yours. you turn around to see soobin standing outside of the passenger's side where he was seated.

"oh fuck off!" you shout exasperatedly.

you stomp over to the burger cart and shove past someone who's already there. "hey watch it!" they shout. "shut up im a cop," you bite back. you don't even bother turning around to the person because you could care less but their voice comes back. "y/n?"

you perk up at your name and turn around, "oh shit frankie!" your smile grows and you hold your hand out for a handshake but frankie goes in for an uncomfortable hug that you weren't expecting. you laugh nervously as he hugs you for longer than intended. he reeks of red dust, a newly manufactured drug in town. the only recognize it is because, well, you've tried it.

"hahah ooook franks," you try to wriggle from his tight hold on you but he doesn't budge. "i slipped a little something for you sweet cheeks," he murmurs into your ear. you shiver from the sudden close proximity but nod nonetheless.

"is there a problem here?" soobin states. he easily towers over frankie since taking drugs for a long time has ruined frankie's growth spurt. he's by no means short however soobin is winning in height by a long shot.

frankie chuckles lowly, "we're fine robocop." he rolls his eyes at soobin and turns back to you, "so anyw-"

"y/n we should be on our way," soobin narrows his eyes at you and you don't take it as a question. you're not scared of soobin however he's pretty much unmatched when it comes down to it.

"right," you say slowly. you glance between frankie and soobin and they both seem to be in a bit of a staring contest. "come on puppy," you nudge him.

"have a nice day," soobin says firmly. "whatever, damn androids," you hear frankie mumble. you sigh as you both reach a stray table near the truck. you open the wrapper, uninterested in everything else at the moment until soobin clears his throat.

"drugs?"

"what about them?" you mumble through a mouthful of burger. "you just got drugs from that guy," soobin leans on the table staring at you directly in the eye. you sigh dramatically, throwing your hamburger back into the wrapper. "leave me alone ok? if you're gonna lecture me i can assure you, i don't want it."

you pick your burger up again hoping that soobin will just shut the fuck up for the rest of the day. he really has a way of putting you in a sour mood. you wonder for a moment how long you'll have to be working with him. if you can just figure out the cause of deviancy then this little arrangement will be over before you know it.

from that point on, soobin simply watches you eat. it's a bit uncomfortable, to say the least, but at least he's silent. you want to question him as to why he's watching you so intently but you also don't feel like chatting with him. "did you ever expect to be living among androids y/n?" soobin speaks up after a while. you smirk at his question, "you're living among us, ok? and no, i never saw it coming." you feel bitter about his question.

of course, you never expected it. you never thought you'd see the day where an android is running the hotdog stand down the street. you never expected a robot to be doing your job. "you fucking androids are a curse," you mumble. soobin says nothing at that.

the ringing of your phone cuts through your little moment. you sigh, rummaging through your pocket for it. groaning, you reluctantly answer the call. "what's up boss."

after a couple minutes of briefing, you hang up. soobin looks at you expectantly while you throw out your trash. "we got another one, pretty close to where we are. no one else is on duty near us so we'll be on our own for this one."

you brush past him, walking back to the car, "think you can handle it puppy?" you don't expect him to answer but you're surprised when he retorts with his own witty remark.

"i'm practically designed too."

you stifle a laugh, shaking your head, "alright alright let's go."

once you arrive at the apartment complex where the deviant is supposedly located, you stop soobin right at the door. you stare up at him with a stern look in your eye, "remember what i said, no getting in my way and no telling me what to do. remember that i'm also your superior."

a part of you feels like you don't necessarily have to tell him these things since he probably stored that information from the first case. however, you want to feel power over him. you don't care if soobin is an android, you'd be damned if he felt like he was superior to you just because you were a human and he was a robot.

"i will do what is needed for me to complete my mission," he states. you roll your eyes at the answer he opts for but nonetheless continue onward. "we gotta be careful here, we don't actually know if the deviant is armed."

"you got sent any info on the guy?" you ask. soobin sighs, "the only thing we know about him is that he's a deviant. the people living on the floor below claimed they were hearing strange noises but supposedly no one has lived here for years."

you chuckle to yourself, "yeah it sure looks like it." you look around, taking in the beat-up state of the hallway. it's dimly lit and the walls are tattered and torn. there are boarded-up doors and the floor almost looked like it would give in with anymore added weight. yeah, there definitely hadn't been anyone inhabiting this floor in a while.

you lean on the door frame as you watch soobin knock on the door as a normal would but no one answers. "is anyone in there?" he shouts. you both wait for a moment but again no one answers. you sigh, shaking your head. "move."

soobin steps out of your way hastily and moves to stand behind you. you swiftly take your gun from it's holster on your hip and shoot the door handle. the handle flies off and just like that the door creeks open. you'll admit there might've been a more suave way of doing it that didn't involve much noise, however you wanted to get this over with.

you motion for soobin to trail after you into the apartment. you both slowly inch into the flat and you peek your head in to check if anyone is inside. when you confirm there's no one in the apartment you both walk in cautiously. the place is completely torn apart. there are bird feathers all over the place and the walls have odd writings on them. you sigh walking up to one of the walls, "we are alive."

soobin shakes his head but says nothing. "let's check the other rooms in this place," you propose. you both split up to look for clues about the deviant which gives you time to think.

soobin goes to snoop around in the closet while you head to the bathroom of the apartment. the sink is riddled with bird feathers and bird shit. you hold your breath as you look around the small room. the place definitely hasn't been kept up by anyone in a long time. "ra9?" you mumble. you lean closer to the wall to inspect the odd writing. it's not just written once or twice, it's scattered all over the wall. "what the fuck does that even mean."

before you can even begin to infer, soobin walks into the bathroom. "i think i found something." you sigh looking up at him, "what is it."

he leads you back into the living room and points to a birdcage on the floor. "this must be what caused that noise that the people on the other floor sent complaints about." he paces around the room for a moment. "i should be able to reconstruct what may have happened, that way we can know where the deviant went."

you watch silently as he walks back to the birdcage. he stays still for a moment then proceeds to look around the room in all directions. "see anything?" you ask.

he doesn't answer, much like last time he simply stands up and walks towards an opening in the roof. soobin slowly reaches his hand up to it but someone jumps out at him.

soobin is effectively knocked to the ground and you stand there shocked. you were really not expecting anyone to be up there. you shout in alarm and the deviant is alerted instantly. before you can reach your gun, the deviant haphazardly pulls a gun of its own from is pocket.

it's clearly not skilled in holding a gun since androids aren't allowed to bear arms. you can tell it's not sure where to shoot and it's scared. you can feel the cold metal of your gun graze your fingers but you stay still as you hear a gunshot pierce the air.

your eyes widen as they follow the deviant run out of the apartment. "SOOBIN GO," you shout. you're not sure why you're telling him to chase after it when you can do it yourself but you feel like you can't move. you suddenly feel yourself collapse on the ground, letting out a strangled yell. "FUCK!"

"Y/N?" you hear soobin shout. for some reason everything is hazy and all you're hearing is white noise. you think you yell at soobin to chase after the deviant again but even in your hazy state, you can't quite tell. after a couple more seconds of struggling to comprehend what's going on, you finally pass out.

you shift around, looking for a comfortable position on the couch. you're not sure why you're on a couch but you're not complaining. it feels like forever since you've felt like you've had a chance to rest for a moment. you're starting to really get sick and tired of androids. before all of this, all you did was either sit on your ass all day or go around helping the elderly or bust your local neighborhood scum. you seriously couldn't believe how much your life could change in just the span of a couple of days.

speaking of change, soobin was going to have to go. he's a pretty capable partner however, you both clashed too much. granted you haven't given him much of a chance. you just hated the concept of having a partner, much less an android partner.

you suddenly feel something cold press onto your leg. you hiss out in pain but when you try to move your leg the pain gets worse. "you shouldn't move," you hear a voice say. you furrow your brows because you're sure you live alone.

you peel your eyes open and see what looks to be soobin standing over you. "soobin?" after the name registers in your head your eyes widen and you try to sit up but the pain in your leg keeps you in place, "what the fuck are you doing in my house?"

soobin calmly takes a seat on the seat opposite from you. you study his body language and face. if you didn't know any better you say he seems a bit distressed. you want to laugh at yourself for thinking that because there's no way an android can know what distress feels like. he seriously looks like he's racking his brain to figure out what to say first.

"you got shot," he opts for. your mouth falls open, looking down at your leg. almost as if on cue, you start to feel immense pain shoot through your body. "fuck fuck fuck!" you yell. soobin rushes up to press the ice pack down on the bandaged wound.

"don't fucking touch me!" you yell at him. he flinches back but you don't notice because you're too busy trying to dissolve the pain. you breathe in and out. you wouldn't say you've never gotten shot before but no bullet has ever successfully hit you. you've only been grazed here and there but it was rare since no one is allowed to really carry guns besides cops.

after doing your breathing exercise for a couple of minutes, you finally bite back the pain. "what happened to the android?" you grit out. you hope getting shot was worth it, you hope the bastard that shot you in rusting in his cell. soobin sighs, "we lost it. it's completely my fault. i should've chased after it."

"you didn't chase after it?" you're not sure if you sound surprised or angry but soobin looks up at you like a scolded puppy. the alarms in your brain are blaring right now. why did soobin ignore the mission? he was supposedly always supposed to complete his mission no matter what. surely he didn't ignore the mission simply because you collapsed from a leg shot. you think about the subtle warning yeonjun gave you back when you had your first deviant case.

"seems like some kind of uprising? the machines seem to be rebelling."

soobin isn't- he's not a deviant is he? you can't really remember if he's been defective this whole time or if he's the best actor you ever met. you look up at him suspiciously and he shifts his gaze subtly when you make eye contact.

"it's been 4 days since your injury. yeonjun came by a couple of times to check up on you," you see his fists tighten at that. something may have happened between them while you were out. you know yeonjun can be a bit overprotective over you at times, even when he knew the job was dangerous.

"the chief says its best to lay low for a couple of days until you get better so that's what we're doing," he continues. you stay quiet. you're not exactly sure what to say. you don't know if calling him out will anger him or something.

you both stay quiet for so long that you start to think soobin may have gone into hibernation mode or something but when you look up at him he's staring directly at you. you sigh, "what is it this time puppy."

he stares at you for a little while longer before answering, "why don't you like androids?" you should've known this question would come up but damn why'd he have to ask it right now. why do you hate androids? one just shot at you a couple of days ago and left you unable to work.

"it's' because you're all nuisances," you mumble. he looks down at his hands and you have to remind yourself that if you're right, he somehow has feelings now.

you groan, "you all are supposed to be perfect! better versions of us humans! i guess you just fail when we put too much trust in you." you sigh, you don't expect soobin to understand since you're being too vague.

he sits, waiting patiently for you to continue. "someone close to me passed away a long time ago. i don't really expect you to understand what grief is," you chuckle bitterly. you look around the room in silence. you don't really want to cry right now so you take a deep breath.

"the doctor was out, probably fucking around i don't know. they had an android do the job. they didn't make it because the android failed to do it's task." you shake your head. "yeonjun was there for me at the time, which im grateful for. i probably would've singlehandedly destroyed all androids myself if he wasn't there."

soobin looks at you with that same curious boyish look and it makes you want to hit him. he's so annoying even when he's not doing anything. "y/n im sorry," he says.

"yeah you should be. the deviant got away because of you," you mumble. you both sit in silence again until you decide to speak up again. something in you wants to thank him for not leaving you behind but you also don't want to break character.

this is too new to you. you've never really had a partner, only ever going out into the field with yeonjun. even then, whenever either of you got hurt it was never as awkward as this. you sigh, "at least you didn't leave me behind." is the best you can come up with.

soobin looks up at you again with a hopeful look in his eyes and it makes you hate how alive he looks. if he was really a deviant you'd have to tread lightly with him. you're not sure if he's plotting against you or what his goal is but you've gotta start being more careful around him.

"y/n i look forward to working with you more," he says lightly.

for now though, for now, this will have to do.

[iammultifandomaf]

Once a Leader, Always a Leader

FanFiction: Sweet Home

Chapter 2 - ESCAPE

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13825734/2/

She was fed up by the military. The only thing they did was boss her around. Just like he used to do.

Lee Eun-Yu immediately saddened at the thought of her brother.

I need to escape. I don't feel safe at all. I have no idea where Cha Hyun-Su is... where Eun-Hyeok is.

She knew that her chances to survive out there are low. She didn't know how to fight, let alone properly run because of her ankle. But she didn't want to survive alone. She wants to at least try.

Eun-Yu always encouraged others in a very mean way, especially Eun-Hyeok, to be active and not just sit around. However, she didn't feel that brave and despite her desire to leave, she didn't think that she'd be capable of leaving a military base. The bunch that was rescued from Green Home was kept together for some time now because they were cut off by monsters. So, they were basically stuck, hoping that the army would be able to fight them off or to get help from somewhere else.

One late evening, Eun-Yu was sitting on her bunkbed, watching Son Hye-In who was petting her dog nervously.

"What's with you?" Eun-Yu couldn't hold it for her anymore. Hye-In sent her an awful look and said angrily: "Don't you see him? He's all worked up. Something is wrong!"

"Nonsen-"

Eun-Yu was interrupted by a deafening sound of the alarm going off. It took only seconds before everything turned into chaos. Lee Joon-Woo suddenly appeared at their door with a horrified expresion on his face.

"The monsters got in! They are killing everyone, fuck. I saw one in the corridor! We gotta hide!" he hollared but the moment he finished his sentence, something grabbed him by his back and threw him on the other side of the hallway.

Hye-In's dog began to bark loudly at the threat.

"Shut him up! Jesus!" Eun-Yu snapped, "I am outta here!"

Eun-Yu rose to her feet and tried to sneak out of the room. "Wait for me!" Hye-In whispered loudly and followed the girl quickly, not wanting to be left behind.

Gun shots were echoing through the building as the two women crept throught the hallway, trying to be as silent as possible. They had to pass the now dead corpse of Lee Joon-Woo which made Hye-In give out a weak whimper.

Eun-Yu tried to look around the corner to see what's ahead but that was a grave mistake since a monster just looked that away and started charging into her direction.

Cold sweat was dripping down her forehead as she started backing away.

"What?! What's there?" Hye-In cried out as she saw Eun-Yu's frozen expression while she was walking backwards slowly.

I have no weapon. My leg won't work. I am dead.

Hye-In wanted to follow Eun-Yu in her retreat but was stopped by a sudden appearance of a large figure. It didn't look like a monster nor a human, though. Hye-In wanted to shriek out but the moment, Eun-Yu bumped into it with her back, she stayed silent.

Eun-Yu's heartbeat rose, not only because she noticed the thing's claws on her shoulder, but also because the monster from before had caught up and was now standing in front of them.

Now did Hye-In give a proper scream out of her lungs, trying to run away pass the new creature that appeared but before she was able to escape, a firm grasp on her arm pulled her next to Eun-Yu. They both were let go, though, as the newcomer walked around them and fiercly attacked the monster that had multiple arms and very capable, strong legs. Overall, the monster seemed more likely to win. The other creature didn't seem fazed by the monster's dangerous looks, though, and the only thing he did was to give out a horrendously monstrous roar that made Eun-Yu and Hye-Im cover their ears while Bom, the dog, hid behind Hye-In.

Then it just stopped and with it, everything else went quiet. Even the shooting. And the multiarmed monster was lying on the ground, almost as if it was kneeling while shaking heavily.

With that, the tall human looking creature bend over to grab the monsters neck and smashed it against the wall, creating a huge crack in it.

Eun-Yu wasn't sure what the creature had done to it, but the monster seem to shrink slowly and then just fell apart. Hye-In found Eun-Yu's hand and tightly squeezed it.

The creature in front of them didn't turn back, as if it was hesitating.

"Who the hell are you?!" Eun-Yu's attitude made its way onto the surface yet again which made Hye-In squeeze her hand even tigher and gave her a panicked look. Eun-Yu shook her off, though, and walked closer to the tall 'creature'.

"What? Why did you save us? What's your deal?!" she cried out again angrily but was taken aback by a familiar chuckle.

"I am sorry I lied," he said sadly, still not turning around. Eun-Yu's eyes burned from the tears cummulating at once. No way.

"You bastard!" she cried out and started pounding into his back which made Hye-In yell out in surprise and also fear and run to tear Eun-Yu away.

Now, he turned around, looking down at Eun-Yu with compassion, trying to touch her shoulder again but Eun-Yu shook him and Hye-In off.

"Don't you touch me! Neither or you. Fuck," she screamed at them and wiped away her tears from the cheeks.

Hye-In finally looked up and after watching his face for a bit, she understood, too: "Lee Eun-Hyeok?"

He only nodded, keeping his well-known calm face which was now decorated by silver cold irises.

"How are you like this? You don't look like-" Hye-In began but her dog's unstoppable barking interrupted her, so she picked him up and continued: "You don't look like them..."

"Yeah, I know. What about we talk some more after we're somewhere else?"

"Leave the army?" Hye-In wondered.

"You can stay, if you want. But I can protect you better as it seems. And I also want to find Cha Hyun-Su in the meantime."

Eun-Yu raised her head at Cha Hyun-Su's mention and swallowed her tears. "You want to find him?"

His eyes landed on his sister as he nodded: "Of course, he always helped us out. He has to feel lonely now. I don't want that for him."

"Uhuh. The children are here somewhere...," Eun-Yu said, "Yoon Ji-Su probably, too..."

"What about Seo Yi-Kyung?" Eun-Hyeok asked as he was looking around.

"She stayed outside. She didn't come with us here," Hye-In informed him, receiving a small nod from him.

"Alright, let's go when the monsters are still tamed," he said and started walking away from them. The two women hurried to catch up.

"How did you do it? Tame them?" Hye-In wondered.

"Hm, it's just a thing I can do. Don't ask me why."

They walked along the hallway when suddenly Eun-Hyeok stopped.

"What?" Eun-Yu asked angrily as she almost bumped into him again.

"I think they are here somewhere," Eun-Hyeok said quietly and looked right to the damaged cabinet standing on the floor.

"Su-Yeong? Yeong-Su? Are you in there?" he bend himself down and almost wanted to open the cabinet, however the sight of his own fingers stopped him and turned back to his sister.

"Could you? I don't want to frighten them," he said quietly and stepped back.

Eun-Yu gave him a long look, finally taking in everything that was different. Somehow not wearing his glasses made him seem even more emotionally distanced than before. And I thought it's the glasses. His features in the face didn't change that much, not at least in comparison to his body which was just generally bigger and then of course, the clawed hands were something of an eyecatcher.

And when talking about an eye, his silvery eyes kept staring at her patiently which made her nervous a bit.

The cabinet door opened itself, though, and a small head popped out.

"Eun-Yu?" Su-Yeong said in a weak voice, holding onto her younger brother whose eyes were swollen up.

Eun-Yu sat down on her haunches and smiled at the children. "We're here to take you somewhere safe, okay? You remember my brother, right?" she gestured to her left.

"What happened to Oppa?" Su-Yeong asked carefully.

"Nothing much, just a change of style, come on out."

The children slowly got out of the cabinet and looked around.

"Where is Ji-Su? She told us to hide and then run away," Yeong-Su asked.

"We should look for her," Eun-Hyeok said and looked down at the kids.

"Hey," he said and lowered himself to be at the same height level as them, "I know I look a bit weird now but you'll forgive me that, right?"

The siblings looked at each other and the older sister nodded.

"Great, thank you. And just for moving faster, would you mind if I carried you so we can find Ji-Su as soon as possible?"

Yeong-Su replied with stretching out his arms towards Eun-Hyeok which made him smile.

"I am sorry, I got myself these ugly fingers, I hope it's alright," he said, his voice cracking a bit as he lifted the children, one locked in each arm.

Eun-Yun watched her brother how he carefully held the children so he wouldn't harm them with his claws and quickly looked to the side, trying to hide her glassy eyes. He went through such a change alone.

They walked around for a while, encountering a few monsters that have crouched away when Eun-Hyeok walked passed them. Both and Eun-Yun and Hye-In watched the monsters' reactions in awe.

"If he only turned earlier," Hye-In commented, remembering the lives they have lost. Eun-Hyeok stopped and turned around and looked straight at Hye-In, visibly sighing. He understood, him losing his humanity could've saved many lives. But it's too late to fix it.

Hye-In interpreted his reaction negatively and rose her hand in defense: "I didn't mean to off-"

"No, you are right, it's fine," he interrupted her and nodded to the metalic door in front of them, "I think she's in there."

"How do you know?" his sister asked suspiciously.

"Well, with those pretty eyes came also upgraded ears and my nose picks up specific smells, too. And I smell puss."

"Ew," Eun-Yu furrowed her brows at Eun-Hyeok who gave her an innocent smile in return.

"Kids, you stay here," he said and lowered himself so he could put them down.

"What are you going to do?" Su-Yeong asked anxiously.

"I'll go get her," he answered and smiled at them. His sister was faster, though, and was already trying to open the door.

"It's locked," she said angrily.

"Eun-Yu," her brother said calmly, "you shouldn't be this rash. She's not alone in there, the soldiers are with her. If you opened the door, they could've had killed you."

"Why would they shoot me, I am not a monster!" she said but immediately regreted her words. He is a monster now, too.

"Yeah, I know. But they are afriad. They won't probably act reasonably," he said and laid his hand on the door.

"We are here in peace, we just want to take Ji-Su. Are you there, Ji-Su? It's me, Eun-Hyeok," he said loudly and turned his ear to the door, waiting for a response.

"Why aren't they answering?" Hye-In asked nervously. Eun-Hyeok turned to her and shrugged. "They all seem to be tense."

"Alright, I'm going in, so please, save yourself the bullets," Eun-Hyeok informed them and looked at his sister, "you all go away from the door. They'll definitely be shooting."

"No, don't go! They'll kill you!" Yeong-Su ran to his calf and hugged it.

"Don't worry, I'll make it. And I'll bring Ji-Su, too."

Eun-Yu started at her brother who gently pushed the boy away from him and then continued to the metalic door. He slid his hand on it up and down, as if trying out the material and in a swift movement of his hand, he made its way through it. The shooting, of course, began as soon as he dug his sharp claws through it and the bullet shower continued as he ripped the door out of the frame, using it now as a shield against the bullets.

Eun-Hyeok didn't bother to say anything. He knew what the fear could do and he also knew how he had to look like to them. He focused only on the smell now - the heavy smell of puss.

How could've they leave it like that? She has to have it infected for days.

He located her promptly and looked to his right. They were holding her, covering her mouth so she couldn't have yelled out when he first tried to talk to her. With a few unnaturally fast and strong jumps, he was standing in front of the two soldiers who have been holding her down, not minding the wound they were opening with it.

"I'll be taking her off of your hands now," Eun-Hyeok said as politely as he could but still was hit by multiple bullets in his back. He couldn't help himself but to let out an animalistic grunt that made everyone feel more uneasy.

"Ji-Su," he said softly as she watched him with teary eyes, "God, look guys, I really-" a headshot stopped him from talking. He fell forward onto his door-shield, swearing: "Fuck," as he spit out the bullet that came into his head from behind.

Ji-Su started jerking around with her body, making it harder for the soliders to hold her down.

"Okay, okay," Eun-Hyeok rose to his feet again and grabbed each soilder by their arm, throwing them aside as if they were teddy-bears. Quickly, he pushed his hands beneath Ji-Su and lifted her up as she watched him in silence but her eyes were asking all the questions for her.

"Yeah, I know," he said and pulled her closer to his chest as he prepared to jump his way out of this storage room. A few bullets hit his back but otherwise nothing serious.

He met his sister's eyes who couldn't hide her worrisome look.

"We should probably head out," he said and balanced Ji-Su on his right arm as he dug his claws into a tall metalic cabinet, throwing it in front of the door frame.

"Could you carry the boy?" he turned to his sister who was still staring at the cabinet that he threw with ease at the door frame. She only nodded and automatically picked Yeong-Su.

They all headed to the garages where they found a big black van into which they all climbed in after Hye-In found the keys in a cupboard in a CCTV room.

Eun-Hyeok laid Ji-Su in the back and uncovered her wound. "Don't they have here some medicine? Or alcohol at least?" he asked.

"They told us that they have almost nothing left," Ji-Su said weakly.

"Yeah, we were supposed to be here only temporary. But the monsters were all around, we couldn't get out safely," Hye-Inn explained.

"Hm, I will have to get something for this later, then. Could you drive?" he asked the woman who was still holding tightly onto the dog.

"Me?" she said in shock, "why me?"

"Well, my sister is probably worse at driving than me, Ji-Su isn't feeling the best... and as you said before, there's a lot of monsters out there. I should be on the outside, taking care of them."

"Can't you just do the creepy scream?" Eun-Yu asked.

"That's what I am planning. But it won't reach that far. I'd have to scream all the way."

"Why don't you?"

"Try screaming for 5 minutes yourself, Eun-Yu," he said and stepped out of the car, about to close the door.

Eun-Yu quickly grabbed his wrist, looking up into his eyes. "Are you sure you can fight them alone?"

He smiled at her and put his other hand on hers. "I have to try, you guys can't fight them."

She looked away but didn't let go of his wrist.

"Please, don't leave like last time. Be creepy as you want. Just don't leave," she said quietly, surprising Eun-Hyeok with her honesty and nodded.

"I'll do everything to survive. As I did until now," he said, slipping out of her grip and closing the door. He opened the garage door. It was suspiciously quiet. He looked back at the car and sent them a smile, heading out first.

[vanegranbluefantasy]

absolutely 0 of my friends want me to write an essay about how paimon is just a worse version of vyrn, so i'm going to do it here

the essay is under the cut if you want to read it

1. intro

First and foremost, who is Paimon? And by extension, who is Vyrn? How are they similar, and why would I want to compare them?

Paimon is from the game Genshin Impact, a popular RPG game that has been going around in the eastern gaming community. It's quite fun to play, but I got bored of it fast, but that is off topic. Paimon is a character that is introduced to you at the very beginning of the game. She's a in-game tutorial character, and also shows up in the game's pause menu. Even outside the pause menu, you see her a LOT in the game. The main quest has her talking quite a lot, and in character side-quests she acts as the main character's companion.

Moving on, Vyrn is apart of my favorite game right now: Granblue Fantasy. If you don't know what Granblue Fantasy is, it's a mobile game that came out in 2014 and is still quite popular today. It is a more visual novel based with an focus on teambuilding over combat. Back to Vyrn, he's also introduced to you at the very beginning of the game, and also acts as the in-game tutorial (somewhat, there are other characters who also guide you through the beginning of the game, but he is the one the player starts off with). Similar to Paimon, Vyrn is with the main character wherever they go, and although not apart of the pause menu, he has dialogue in many, if not the majority, of quests.

Both act as the mascot of each game, which makes each a better sell. They are both cute characters that are supposed to draw people in, which is why they're introduced within the first few seconds of each game. However, they're similarities go beyond that. Although their dialogue is not too similar for me to say that they have the same personality, they most certainly are both strange beings that float/fly, and go with you EVERYWHERE.

Why am I comparing them? The purpose of the essay is to see why I love Vyrn, but hate Paimon. You see, when I started playing Genshin Impact, I have already put months of my time into Granblue Fantasy at that point, so when I saw Paimon in Genshin, I said to myself, "Oh, this girl is cute. She reminds me of Vyrn! How fun!" Now, after putting hours into Genshin Impact, I've found myself to just despise her dialogue. First impressions are everything, but Paimon became more of a thorn in my side as I played through the game. Therefore, I'm here to analyze why.

2. Vyrn and Paimon's relationship to the player

Vyrn and Paimon's relationship to player is extremely interesting to me, and could be the reason why I don't like Paimon as much as I do Vyrn.

Paimon is introduced to the player immediately in the game, which is not a bad thing. Generally, every game has a tutorial stage to help the player figure out what to do and how to play, but Paimon is not a typical tutorial character. In many games that I've played, most tutorial characters are mentor types, and Paimon is not that. Paimon also does not know what this world is and is effectively exploring it WITH you -- not guiding you. This is not inherently bad, since the introduction is not what ticked me off about Paimon in the first place, but later on, it might become clear why I find this a sticking point.

Vyrn, in another game, is introduced very differently. He is introduced as "your best friend" which on it's own is quite weird, considering he's a flying lizard, but you're apart of a new world, anything could happen. He's been alive for an amount of time, so he generally knows what is going on. Not exactly a mentor type, but he gives much more clarity of the world the player is in, at least in comparison to Paimon. In the introduction, he gives a very clear picture of what kind of person the main character is and their backstory. Honestly, I came to trust him very quickly, despite him being a weird little monster.

These introductions in comparison seem really similar, which is why my initial reaction to Paimon was "Oh, this is Vyrn but again."

Now, what I find interesting is the beginning of conflict in both of the games.

Vyrn is introduced almost immediately. There is a beginning cutscene of the main character reading a letter from their father, and then the player meets Vyrn, who comments about the main character reading the letter again. This gives a backstory with Vyrn almost immediately. He knows that the main character has the asperation to get to the land of the astrals, and he wants to help to get main character there. It is only after this scene does conflict start: the Este airship covering the sun.

Paimon does not have this backstory. The initial cutscene in Genshin Impact is vague, to say the least. However, it immediately tells the player the conflict: the main character is searching for their twin. Paimon is not apart of the conflict whatsoever. Making her an outside entity, the main character does not express their troubles to Paimon as they explore this new world.

This marks a key difference in their introductions. Since Granblue Fantasy started the conflict WITH Vyrn, it caused me to be more attached much more quickly. It was clear through Vyrn's actions that he would stand by the main character's side no matter what happened. However, Paimon does not have that same connection. Since Paimon is not apart of the conflict whatsoever, I found a lot of my friends (who haven't played Granblue Fantasy) distrust her very quickly. Some jumped to the conclusion that she is going to be someone evil at the end of the story, and I don't blame them. So far, the only person the player can trust is the twin.

By making Paimon an outside entity to the conflict, it makes her very quickly a potential danger. However, with Vyrn being apart of the conflict, makes him a trustworthy ally.

3. Dialogue

Since the main characters of both Genshin Impact and Granblue Fantasy are self-inserts, someone needs to be able to talk. In Genshin Impact, Paimon is the stand-in to talk for the player, and in Granblue Fantasy, Vyrn is in a similar position. However, their dialogue itself is very different.

Vyrn and Paimon both create nicknames for people, which is why it's very easy to compare the two of them. Vyrn likes to give all of the crewmates nicknames, and none of them seem to mind it. Paimon also gives nicknames to the people her and the main character meet, but it feels less like a joke and more as an insult, calling her nicknames "ugly" and feeling bad when she finds out the nicknames she gives are to important people.

Vyrn's nicknames are generally playful like "Lop Ear" and "Sir Burnsalot," but can get insulting like "Miss Batter-For-Brains" and "Clefty." However, none of the people with the nicknames seems to mind it, despite him saying it very loudly and to their face.

However, Paimon keeps her nicknames almost to herself, as if she's doing them in secret. "Tone-Deaf Bard" and "Guhua Geek" are two of a few of these nicknames. None of the people recieving the nicknames seem very happy about being called that.

Don't get me wrong, both Paimon and Vyrn are being really rude by giving out nicknames to random people, but it's the reactions from the one's receiving said nicknames that gives clarity of the nicknames' true intentions. With the Granblue Fantasy crew not necessarily minding it and Genshin Impact characters getting angry, it becomes clear why the nicknames are created.

Both Vyrn and Paimon talk a lot of both of their respective games, but how the react to the this new world around them that tips the scales of me disliking Paimon.

Vyrn explores the new islands with you with little to no knowledge of the next island the player will fly to, and his reactions to each island are generally pretty on par with the player's. For example, going to an island that covered in mist, he's generally pretty cautious, expressing it in his dialogue.

However, Paimon keeps commenting on the obvious. Her dialogue is almost annoying because it is so obvious. I defeated a boss and she said something along the lines of, "That's it? Where's the treasure?" when there is clear newly-opened door on the other side of the room. The dialogue during the story is not as bad, but I find myself angry at her whenever she speaks anyway. Her comments don't add to the tone or the gameplay. They just frustrate me.

All of her comments and general rudeness make me really angry. She doesn't fight, and she doesn't seem like the one who would fight with me! She's only there to tag along with you, for some unknown reason! Her vagueness makes her worthless to me as the player.

4. Conclusion

The fact that Paimon does not seem like the type to go through thick and thin with the main character makes her frustrating to be around. Her introduction decided her fate of the annoying character that everyone continues to call "Emergency Food" rather than her name.

She's just annoying once you get to a certain part of the story because the constant reminder of her being an outsider is at every corner. She has not once mentioned a THING about the main conflict (finding the main character's twin), and even if she goes through the entire story if the player, she seems like she would run away from the final boss, if she herself ISNT the final boss!

Vyrn at least is like "Oh shit! Time to fight!" and generally is concerned about the main character's health and well-being. He's not much help in a fight, but at the very least he'll express that you need to heal. Vyrn is as much in this conflict of finding the asterals as the main character. He's a trustworthy ally, despite being rude sometimes.

In conclusion, despite being very similar, Paimon was sentenced to me hating her since the beginning because of her placement in the game's main conflict. Vyrn's placement in Granblue Fantasy's main conflict made him a much more trustworthy ally as the game continues.

Sorry for the spacing issues. I'm on mobile. Thanks for reading tho.

Play Granblue Fantasy, it's a good semi-visual novel. Plus, the mascot character isn't as annoying as Paimon.

[hellsparadiseessays]

Aza Brothers Week - Day 5

I released that essay on r/Jigokuraku back in early July, about one month after the infamous chapter 56 got out. It wasn’t a fun topic to tackle, so as a result I’m leaving the warning I put at the start of the essay before the cut. Because chapter 56 was not ok. Though keep in mind that I’m not mad at UG for it - quite the contrary, his intent is clearly not to make the chapter sexy. However, I heavily suspected the fandom to not find it as obvious because well, we have our own cultural issues. And considering how this essay has been received, and the stuff I noticed even in the Japanese side of the fandom... Well, this essay is in my opinion much needed to explain why chapter 56 is more brutal that it seems. It’s also a good follow-up on yesterday’s post, which stopped at chapter 55. 

Warning : This thread will contain references to rape, so if the topic is sensitive to you, I suggest you avoid reading it. This thread will contain spoilers for the most recent chapters as well, so read it once you’re up to date with the manga to avoid being spoiled and know what I am talking about.

Chapter 56 - A commentary on power and powerlessness

I have been keeping it to myself (and occasionally kinda raged about it on Discord join us) ever since chapter 56 was released, back in April. I’ll be honest with you, despite me joking with everybody else on Discord, that chapter really hit a personal chord and I had a hard time working on this commentary because of that. Let’s just say I regularly had to stop and come back to it a few days later, once I got my head cool again and my brain fully functional – I didn’t want my emotions to get in the way of the analysis.

Here we are now, ready to tackle a difficult topic: the borderline rape of Chôbe by Rien. And I say “borderline”, only because it was Chôbe who successfully did his Chôbe thing. He remains in a dangerous position, one I certainly don’t envy, and one that he himself strongly dislikes.

This commentary will be divided into three parts: firstly, the use of rape as a comedic device in mainstream media and how it trivialises a situation that, in fact, has dramatic consequences. Then, we’ll study Rien has a character through his past and present actions, to establish the nature of his interactions and the way he perceives himself. Finally, we’ll address Chôbe’s reactions while facing danger, and how he deals with his emotions.

I. Rape as a comedic tool

One of the many reasons why this chapter makes me uncomfortable is my personal fear for jokes made about that sort of situation. Why, you may rightfully ask? Because it is very much present in mainstream media, be it in Japan or in Western countries. Considering Reddit is mostly Western-oriented, I chose to pick a reference that focuses on rape in Western media to build my argument around, and I strongly suggest you to watch the video before you continue with this commentary. “Sexual assault of men played for laughs”, by Jonathan McIntosh from the Youtube channel Pop Culture Detective, thoroughly explores the issue through the lens of North American media, which have an area of influence that goes way beyond North America itself – especially with the massive worldwide use of internet. While not all the items of this video fit with the commentary at hand, it nonetheless points out an especially interesting argument: the man who failed to be a man – the one perceived as in control of the situation -, is subjected to various mockeries because it’s fair after all, he wasn’t really being a man when it happened, so he failed as a person.

I think we could even see this issue as a double insult to both men and women with that issue: 1) women can’t be in control because it’s not their role, 2) men who aren’t in control are perceived as emasculated, and thus the jeering is entirely justified because how dare they consider themselves men, right? Basically, this sort of joke is based on a perception of power and who is supposed to hold it. And power is what sexual assault is about. It’s not about lust or provocation. Sexual assault is the act of abusing your power over someone else to the point of robbing them of even their intimacy. This is something that tends to break people, or at least seriously damage them. Yet, this loss of power is something that remains mocked or silenced. And while women are starting to speak up, it’s still rare to see men open up about it. In Jonathan McIntosh’s video, the example of Terry Crew in reaction to the Harvey Weinstein affair and the following #Metoo movement is telling: losing power (what is perceived as such), especially as a man, is still treated in a demeaning manner that should only be mocked or ignored, not as something serious that can affect the victim for years and have a negative effect on their life in general.

Sexual assault of men as comedy is destructive, yet still awfully present in the series and movies we watch – even kids’ shows. Yes, you read it well. Kids’ shows. It gives a certain inclination to joke about rape – especially when it happens to men -, by internalising the issue and not realising how demeaning it actually is. It’s even visible in the most mainstream manga and anime (Naruto’s 1000 years of pain, anyone?) and we’ll play a little game about that: in your comment, I invite you to point out sexual assault as a joke in a manga/anime you know (and maybe enjoy). Keep in mind that I’m not doing that to slam the creations or their authors, it’s just to point out how surprisingly common it can be. I also wish to point out that, in chapter 56 of Jigokuraku, UG didn’t go that way at all. On the contrary, he made it clear that Chôbe was in danger and painfully aware of it throughout the chapter, while Rien... Was being Rien, with his own perception of who he is and the power he holds.

II. Rien: the perception of power

Now that we’ve established the basis about the way sexual assault with men as victims is perceived (especially in the West, a point of view vastly predominant on Reddit), we can start digging on Rien’s case of A God I Am.

As soon as Rien gets his first appearance (chapter 26), his status is made clear: among the boss level characters we’ve seen so far (Ju Fa, Tao Fa, Zhu Jin), he is one cut above and presents himself as the uncontested leader, the patriarch of a family who rules and serves punishment when he deems it necessary. From his point of view, he’s the head of the Tensen family as well as (potentially, it depends on Jofuku being alive of not), the ruler of the island – or the head scientist of the giant laboratory that is Kotaku. It means that Rien isn’t just the most powerful being on the island (though the notion of power can be discussed there, considering the power system used by UG), he also perceives himself as such and demonstrates it with an iron hand: the way he treated Mei before she escaped is good enough as a proof.

Behind his position as the head scientist, he shows a ruthless cruelty and a readiness to not even consider other people as persons. Mei herself, suggested as being one of the first successful experiments by Jofuku – and thus being “family” to Rien -, gets banished, mutilated and used as a living experiment material for the very thing she dared openly call out (the massive use of humans for experimentations). Rien even openly states, in chapter 26, that he’s the only one with the right to punish family members when Ju Fa injures an already weakened Zhu Jin. It gives us an idea of what Rien may mean by “punishment”. Go against his will: die or become an experiment. Disobey him: get severely injured if you’re part of the Tensen family, I heavily suspect death may be the sentence when you don’t have that luxury – and so does Chôbe. Until now, Rien has thus been shown as having a general behaviour that could be qualified of sociopathic: being indifferent towards others to the point of not seeing them as people, dehumanising anybody, using the “we’re family” or “I’ll tell you everything” tactic to try and keep people on his side. Interestingly, between him and Mei, he’s the one who has spend the most time with the other Tensen, and it is visible in their behaviour as well: they show similar sociopathic traits (Mu Dan’s experiments he seemed to find most amusing, Ju Fa qualifying Chôbe of “it” and “livestock”...).

However, no matter how godly Rien thinks he is, he remains surprisingly human and this has been shown to us through the point of view of his latest victim, who managed to do what, I suspect, no other character in the story would have been able to pull off without seriously getting in trouble for it (meaning: die immediately): he momentarily reversed the power dynamic to save his skin for at least a moment.

III. Chôbe’s status as a victim and how he handles it

Since the start, I’ve been claiming left and right that Chôbe is probably too smart for his own good, but it’s not just that. It’s an accumulation of everything that happened to him and his brother. Chôbe is very intimate with the notion of powerlessness. He’s been living it repeatedly since he’s a kid, slowly losing his place in society until he became an outcast. As a consequence, the way he thinks isn’t based on honour or revenge: it’s about survival, first and foremost.

The first time we see him go full survival mode is when he and Toma momentarily run away from the Sôshin that are outnumbering them, to find a better position to fight. In that chapter (chapter 9), we witness another way to survive that is very much Chôbe’s own method – no other character has done it, not even Toma -: instead of resisting a power stronger than his own, he integrates himself into the equation by mirroring the person who’s displaying power over him. By doing so, he creates an impression of kinship he can exploit to his advantage. As a kid, he mutilated himself to the point of losing sight in his right eye and being seriously scarred to “pretty himself up” by looking more like the bandits who were planning to harm Toma and sell them both. Doing so created a strong impression in their captors’ mind, and Chôbe used that impression to claim a place among the bandits – a first step towards claiming his power as an individual capable of thoughts and choices back. By integrating himself like that, he managed to become the leader of the pack, the chief of an entire village of bandits, causing so much trouble it warranted death penalty for him.

This method of mirroring the person holding power over him is visible again during the entirety of chapter 56. This chapter starts with Chôbe being captive, literally tied to a bed and clearly uncomfortable for many reasons: he’s been beaten to the point of passing out after having been treated like a wonderful unicorn (not a person), wakes up in an unknown place, tied to a bed in a peculiar position. By that point, Rien already marked a lot of Creep Points, and Chôbe has a lot of reasons to find the situation disagreeable. But it’s not enough, and Chôbe ends up facing actual blackmail: cooperate or become Tan (which is pretty much like dying, but worse: your life force is sucked out of you while you’re in a fake wonderland. Chôbe had a taste of it and saw what it looked like while he was in the Tan pit, both him and Toma weren’t enthusiastic about the situation and quickly got out of the pit). During the entire chapter, Chôbe weighs his options and stalls time by asking questions and gather more information on his situation to pick the best option to stay alive. It’s a daring move, to do that while facing the local godly being, but Chôbe isn’t stupid and understands having the choice of cooperating means he has value somehow. And to squeeze all the information he needs from Rien, to better weight his option and understand what’s going on on this unnatural island (he realised it’s unnatural in chapter 54), he does what we’ve already seen him do in the aforementioned bandits’ village flashback: he mirrors the one having power over him to gain some agency back through deception.

That’s where something we’ve seen him do a lot happens: he smiles. Mind you, it’s not a genuine smile. Chôbe isn’t really a smiling person, we’ve seen that everytime we’ve got even the smallest hints regarding his true feelings. However, Chôbe uses his mask as a tool for deception and picked this habit as a kid: a grin to the bandits even though his face was heavily injured to convince them of keeping him and his brother, a grin when he steels himself while facing the Sôshin, a smile when he tries to deceive Gabimaru before suddenly attacking him. It’s the vicious, weaponised grin of someone who figured out what to do and where to go, while keeping others’ attention down. He even smiles while sweating when he is nervous, at the end of chapter 55, because he has no idea what’s going on but somehow he’s tied to a bed and someone one-sidedly decided to have sex with him (yes, in case you hadn’t noticed, Rien didn’t care about his consent, because Rien doesn’t see him as a person). However, during chapter 56, we slowly see him integrates himself in the equation again by imitating Rien’s moves to numb his wariness under the guise of complying with the cooperation request. His actions mismatch his thoughts exactly for that purpose: his first thought is about a way to escape, but he realises it may be too dangerous for him. So he renounces - for now - to by himself some time and repeats his mantra, to adapt and figure things out, and gives Rien what he wants because it’s the only viable option for survival.

Since then, qualifying his attitude towards the Tensen of “bad faith” could be an understatement. He may be willing to concede certain things under the threat of death, but he will still have the guts to stand his ground, even while facing a whole group of people who could kill him – and openly threaten to do so. It takes a certain kind of madness to do that sort of thing, and oh, it’s exactly what the bandits said about him when he purposefully injured himself just to prove a point. Chôbe is too smart for his own good, but he still manages to get his agency back when it’s stolen from him, and that’s what makes him incredibly dangerous, even for the Tensen. Even in real life, it takes a certain kind of character to pull that sort of thing off. Still, despite all of his wrong, what happened to Chôbe during his childhood as well as chapter 56 qualifies him as a victim, and UG handled it incredibly well, making it tragic (if not outright nerves wracking, at least in my case) instead of using it as a comedic tool. Thank you for that, UG.

This commentary took me about... At least 10 days just to be worked on, despite the very small amount of references needed for it.

Without giving away too much information, I empathise strongly with Chôbe’s predicament and generally find him very relatable, at a personal level. His tactics are easy to recognise not just because they’ve been made fairly clear by UG, but also because there’s a pattern I know all too well in them. So yeah, that commentary tackled some difficult topics for me, and I had trouble keeping a cool head while writing it. It was a difficult birth, chapter 56 still makes my skin crawl. However, I hope you found this write up informative or entertaining. Don’t hesitate to share your thoughts, answer my little challenge (an example of sexual assault played for laugh in a manga/anime you know), ask questions, scold me for yet another Chôbe rant...

[lilaclily00]

Sunsets and Stars

Valerie Gray meets her clone.

(DannyMay 2019 Day 5: Sunset)

This is somewhat a recap of "Kindred Spirits" in the D/V roleswap!AU. Dani's appearance is based off of this post. This is for you, @goinggoblin​ and @pigte​!

AO3 link

Being Phoenix was exhausting. Valerie felt like she could barely function as she trudged home after yet another ghost-troubles-related detention.

“Ugh, I just wanna nap,” she muttered to herself as she came up the stairs and to her bedroom doorway. She dropped her backpack from her shoulders, flicked on the light--and was suddenly wide awake, instinctively crouching into a defensive stance. Someone was on her bed.

“Who are you?” she demanded, eyes narrowed and heart pounding. The figure pulled down the magazine away from her face and Valerie blinked at how... young it was. It was just some girl maybe a couple years younger than her, with big gray-blue eyes and freckles dancing across her bronze skin.

“I’m Danielle,” the girl stated with surprising confidence as she folded down the corner of the page to mark her place. “Do you have something I could eat?”

Valerie reasserted her stance; there wasn’t a real reason yet to let her guard down. “Not unless you tell me why you’re here and how you got into my room.”

Danielle placed the magazine beside her--it was a random copy of Vogue from Valerie’s collection in her closet--and folded her legs under herself. “I walked through the door.” She pulled a grin, which shrank when Valerie didn’t smile back. “I ran away from home, and... well, you’re the closest family I have. Distance-wise.” She sheepishly rubbed at her neck, beneath her black, wavy hair. “We’re, like, third cousins once-removed.”

Valerie inched closer. Third cousins once-removed? Strangely remote relationship and specific. “We don’t know each other. Why would you come to me instead of one of your friends?”

Danielle flinched, and Valerie sighed. Something about that reaction told her what she needed to know--no friends. She loosened her stance, standing up and watching the girl with crossed arms for a few seconds. Danielle watched back, fidgeting under the stare, but she held the gaze.

“Alright,” Valerie finally said, motioning to the door, “let’s go start making dinner.” Danielle’s eyes lit up as she ran back out the room, Valerie following. It would take receiving a few more answers before she could trust this strange girl, but so far, she didn’t seem so bad.

Valerie startled awake at a sound, which was immediately followed by whispered apologies. She fought her grogginess away to focus on Danielle’s face hovering by her blanket-bundled self. The girl was standing next to her, much closer than she anticipated. Valerie scooted back, then sat up. “Ugh, what time is it?”

“Time for you to--eh, that one’s overused.” The younger girl hunched her shoulders up. “Sorry again, didn’t mean to interrupt your nap. I was trying to get over you to look at the sunset.”

Valerie frowned, then turned her attention to the window hanging over her bed. Oranges, pinks, and purples painted the sky outside, tinting wisps of butts and a weaning moon already peeking out. She slowly relaxed into a small smile, even as Danielle messily climbed onto the bed beside her. The girl’s face glowed in the gentle light, her expression filled with childish awe.

“Sometimes I forget how pretty these can be,” Valerie mused aloud.

Danielle began to bob her head, then shook it to disagree instead, beanie nearly falling off. “I just don’t get tired of them. I can’t. It’s like the sky is on fire! But in a good way!”

“Hey, I’ve thought the same thing!” The girls looked back to each other, considering each other, twin grins on their faces.

Danielle was the first to turn back to the window. “Would you get mad at me if I stayed up to look at the stars too?”

Vlad’s ugly blue face leered at her with triumph. “Good afternoon, dear girl.”

Valerie snarled at him, then her gaze diverted to the computer screens behind him, playing clips of her transforming. Her glare renewed. “Why am I not surprised?”

“Because you are intelligent, just like myself.” Vlad swished his cape behind him as he turned to type commands into the computer.

Valerie wished so, so badly she was not trapped so thoroughly so she could sock him for that comment alone. “I am not like you, you psychopath!”

“Oh, I do believe we’re alike, not just with our shared powers.” He stood straight in the air, chest puffed out, as he watched the computer do some analyses on the video clips. “You also keep using that word, but I don’t believe it means what you think it means.” He floated back over to her. “You say it as if it is synonymous with ‘crazed villain’. I am neither a psychopath or a crazed villain. All I ever wanted was happiness.”

“At the expense of everyone else’s,” she spat, but he paid her no heed, instead merely pressing a button on the wall. A chamber to the side began to open, hissing with released pressure.

“Yet you and the Fentons refuse to let that happen. Maddie and Daniel will not become a family with me, and you have denied my offer to become my apprentice time and time again. You have all forced my hand to get what I want in a different way.”

Her jaw dropped as she watched the chamber reveal a replica of... herself, her ghostly half, limp and connected to tubes.

Vlad continued, “The good clone is the product of many months’ work, and is close to completion--it is almost ready to accept your DNA.”

Valerie’s brain hurt with how fast it was moving. This was far beyond espionage and sabotage and even outright obsession. He had been creating clones of her--presumably to have a half-ghost child and apprentice of his own. “So those ghosts--”

He apathetically watched one of those very ghosts from earlier that day drift to his side, long white hair and red boots dripping ectoplasm. “Yes, the bad clones, the failures.”

She thought back to Danielle--and her betrayal. Calling Vlad her father. A stone settled in her stomach. “Is Danielle one of them?”

Vlad narrowed his eyes at her for a second. “She’s actually my most successful yet. I had thought the problem was the instability of your DNA, and added another person’s DNA to help, which worked, but not quite enough.” Alarm bells rang in her head, but he didn’t give her a chance to think on that more. “Turns out what I really need is a mid-morph sample from you.”

“And you think I’ll just give that to you?!” Valerie screeched, struggling in her trap.

“I wish you would, but alas,” Vlad sighed, snapping his fingers, prompting one of the clones to action, “that is an unrealistic expectation.”

She heard nothing after that except for her own screams.

“I know you can’t beat me,” Danielle declared, squeezing her fists tight at her sides. Her white, curly ponytail floated and her eyes glowed green.

Valerie slowly worked at standing up, lightheaded and trembling. “You’re right, but I’m not going to fight you. It’ll hurt you more than me.”

“You heard him, I’m the most stable clone!” Danielle began forming an ecto-blast, then stopped as she realized her body wasn’t handling it anymore--ectoplasm bubbled off her feet. She bit her lip, then said, “If you don’t give him your morph DNA, then I’ll always be like this. He needs it to save me!”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think that’s true.” Valerie had successfully stood all the way up, keeping her distance, tired eyes set on the smaller girl. “He said you’re the best one yet, but he also said you’re not good enough. He’s using you, just like he’s using Danny and so many other people.”

She suddenly remembered why Danielle looked so different compared to the other clones. She had DNA from someone else, too, and it really wasn’t terribly hard to guess who on her name alone. Vlad’s ability to do messed-up things was truly unprecedented.

“You--you’re lying!” Danielle shot at her, horror setting into her eyes. Valerie had just barely managed to put up a feeble shield, yet she still got knocked back a foot. Determination settled back into the younger girl. “He cares about me too much.”

“He doesn’t care about anyone, not really. He doesn’t know what real love is!” Valerie’s chest ached, not just physically, and before she knew it, she was shouting. “Look at me--look at this situation! Look at what he’s done! I’m only fourteen!” She looked into Danielle’s acid green eyes, nothing like her own, yet strangely reminiscent of the girl’s namesake. “Danny’s only fourteen, too, and--and he claims to love Danny as a son, then goes and creates you out of him? What do you call that?”

Danielle stepped back, doubt making her every move difficult. Valerie regretted her words a little; she didn’t want to watch the girl go through so much pain. Finally, in a small voice, Danielle said, “It feels like he just bosses me around, and... he’s cruel to the other clones.”

Valerie hesitantly walked towards her. Her clone gave no indication that she intended to fight anymore. “I don’t want him to start being cruel to you, too. I know it’d be hard to leave, but anything’s better than staying with Vlad.”

“Where would I even go, though?” she whined, holding her head in her hands.

“I think our bigger priority right now is just getting out of this mansion, but... well, we are family,” Valerie began, amazed by the words coming out of her mouth. She’d become incredibly attached to the girl, even thought it’d only been one day. “We’ll figure it out.”

Danielle gaped at her, hope shining through, and Valerie just had to hug her. The girls melted into their embrace. The moment was brief, though, as they remembered where they were, and both looked down to the floor, as if gazing straight into the basement.

“We need to destroy the equipment, don’t we?” Danielle stated.

Valerie added, “And beat up Vlad.” She breathed into her nonexistent lungs, then back out. She already felt a little better than just a few minutes ago. Ghostly healing really was something else. “But just enough to do the job; I don’t think either of us have the strength for more than that.”

“Deal.” Danielle grinned at Valerie, and Valerie grinned back before both went intangible and flew down through the floor--together.

Danielle disappeared right after the fight, and Valerie agonized over whether to go looking for her or head home. She ultimately picked the latter, flying out before Vlad got to recover. Danielle had still been in... okay condition, at the last sighting, and she knew where Valerie lived, if she planned to go back there as well.

Valerie sat on the roof of her house that same night, watching the sky fade from orange to black, when Danielle made her appearance, popping into visibility right next to her. “Dang it, the sunset’s almost over.”

The elder girl didn’t even flinch. Instead, she gnawed on her lip, picking her words. “Were... you thinking of staying here?”

Danielle curled herself up into a ball. “No, I think I shouldn’t. I don’t want to make you or your dad take care of me.”

Valerie’s eyes widened. “You’d rather be out there all on your own?”

“Well, like you said, it’s better than being with my father--uh, Vlad, still.” The girl shrugged a little to herself, hugging her knees closer to herself. “And I know I’m not all alone. I still have a friend.”

Valerie scooched over to wrap her arm around Danielle. She could see her point--if she were in the same situation, she’d be sick of people pretending to be parents, too, even if their intentions were good. She wasn’t sure her house would be the best setting for Danielle, anyway, if both of them were going to be hiding so many secrets from her dad. She still didn’t like the idea, but maybe she could trust that her clone would be okay out there, and find someone she was comfortable living with when she was ready for that.

“So I take it you came to say bye?” Valerie asked, eyes focused on the fading sunlight.

“Yeah, but I wanted to watch the sky a little longer first.”

She smiled. “Okay.”

The stars slowly appeared, and Danielle vanished once again.

[raccoon-james]

Midnight guest

Pairing: Billy Bennet x Reader 

Words: 2522 

Universe: Deadly Class syfy 

Requested: Yes 

Summary: The reader has an unexpected guest in the middle of the night. 

Warnings: kinda bad writing I guess? 

A/N: As you can see, I’ve finally uploaded my work! It’s my first published fic, but I thought it’s good enough to show it to you guys. English is not my native language so I’m sorry for every grammar/language/spelling mistake I had made while writing it. Also, it’d be nice to receive some feedback, some pieces of advice – please leave a comment or sth. It’s very helpful and motivates me to write more.

                                                      ●○۞○●

Nights at King's Dominion contrasted with the school in the daylight. Relative calm seemed to return to school halls every time when sun comes down. No noises, no running or fighting - no whatever-made-pupils’-daily-rutine. With sun held up, high at the sky, the school was bustling with life, but with the moment of sun disappearing time seemed to slow down immediately.

Sitting in the room with the door closed, you could easily feel cut off from that little world you have lived for some time. It wasn't hard to feel lonely sometimes. All you had to do then was talk to your roommate, or sneak out to meet friends living in another room. If you wanted peace and silence it was enough to not speak to anyone, play music and take care of whatever had to be done - like homework or makeup.

You liked nights here. Somehow you managed to get a small single room, which was a godsent for you, someone who enjoys being on their own, and the lack of unexpected guests was a guarantee of a successful night. It gave you a feeling of control. You could choose when you wanted company or not; if you wanted some time by yourself, you just stayed in your bedroom. That kind of control was enough to make up for many things, that the legacy status had taken from you. People think if you have a high position in the walk of life then it's easier to live. Bullshit. Why is no one speaking about the expectations everyone suddenly has for you? That you have to be the best, never miss a bit in a fight, never hesitate to pull the trigger, to know all poisons at the back of your hand. And what if you simply cannot live up to the expectations? That's when the lynch starts. "She? I can't believe..." "You're so not what I expected" "The shame of our family"... People pick you clean, then go to work on the bones.

It was couple minutes before midnight and the only audible sounds were your breath, pen writing something down on a sheet of paper and the turning of pages of numerous books surrounding you. Tirelessly you've been repeating materials for the “fundamentals of psychopathy” class. It was interesting, specific but exceptionally enjoyable.

The conception of motive that you had focused on this night was far more addictive than you could imagine. For you it was like digging in someone else's brain. Coming to the conclusions about the killer’s personality based on his actions - adding the way of killing, some repeated patterns and you can compile information about their past, present...the top of the top in this field can speculate - based on tiny details found at the crime scene – about the traumas and habits of the criminal.

The cracking of the door interrupted your flow. While studying in a school for assassins, unannounced visits after midnight don't bode well. In any moment then you could find yourself stabbed or with broken arm, your position meant nothing. Everyone could become a target, from children of the heads of state, through mafia bosses, to the average street rats.

With daggers, the fight technique you have been training for several years, you almost never part with, always keeping them within reach. That was the main reason why you grabbed the weapon so quickly.

Ready to defend yourself, you turned towards the door, no longer sitting but standing. Feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, ready to fend off the attacker.

"Y/N, put the dagger down" said Billy closing the door, in the tone of someone who's welcomed by people ready to slit his throat at least three times every day.

"Uh, I don’t know, I like it... Brings out the color of my eyes, dontcha think?" you said relaxing a bit. You fliped the dagger that made a full rotation in the air and than came back to your hand, that fist on the handle again. Pretty easy trick but always impressing Billy - until one day you'd be very unlucky and loose a hand while catching the blade.

"So, what's the matter?" you asked putting down the dagger. You tossed it on opened notebook on your desk. It was obvious that the studying session is over for you, at least for that night.

"You better tell me, huh?" said the teenager seemingly upset, pointing out to a half-packed suitcase on the floor. Shit... You promised yourself to tell him about you leaving right before They come to take you, which would be about 7 am, definitely not midnight! For all intents and purposes you didn't even know who or where was supposed to take you by tomorrow morning. All you knew was that your parents admittedly, may have overplayed your hand a little. You were a kid after all, a student who'd rather stay up late studying killers’ minds than actually becoming one. Still, have you ever had any other options but learning how to live under direct orders of your family?

"I'm leaving...for some time" you mumbled averting your eyes.

"And what? You...you didn't want me to know? Just leave?" he started, and by that moment you realized what was going to happen. It was going to be a bloody long lecture about your incompetence as a very best friend, as a main theme.

You haven't completely got used to the relation between you and green-haired Billy Bennett. Since your connections with other people were built on viable alliances, and because your loyalty twords them was like loyalty of an average whore from the brothel, you haven’t had many friends. All that had to happen was an extremely unlucky incident, a broken nose and slippery wooden stairs, for you to make some changes in your social life. That was how you met Billy.

"Could you once in your life shut the hell up, maybe?" you stopped his speech before he got a chance to get started with it, slowly looking up at him. He shut his lips and tilted his head a little, raising his eyebrows, noticably surprised with your reaction. You sigh heavily, running your fingers through your hair, wondering what you actually wanted to say when you stopped him. Or was that only self-defense because you didn't want to hear him whine about how bad you really are.

"Y/N..."

"No" you cut him off again. Tiredness that studying drew away, now started to slowly overtake you. "I seriously wanted to tell you but..."

"But when I couldn't do shit about it, right?" he snarled looking little piqued.

"It's not always about you" you hummed staring at your white socks "I don't even know what they want me to do. I received a letter saying I have to pack up and be ready to go at 7 am in the morning. Nothing more. No greetings, how are you or a fuckin hello. It doesn't matter if I told you about this crappy trip today or tomorrow morning, you can't do shit about it.  I can't disobey direct orders" you managed to keep your tone serious. You glanced at the rat, still standing near the door. It could be harder for him without you at hand but come on! He could handle it before, so why the hell would anything change now?

Before you had the chance to think about anything else, Billy was standing next to you, embracing you all of the sudden. He wrapped an arm around your shoulders and pulled you close, gently rubbing your arm. Despite the heaviness in your stomach, it fluttered at the feeling of your body pressed against his. You sunk into the warmth of his side, appreciative of the simple gesture. His touch made the room warmer somehow, your future within its walls seeming a little less bleak. Still, you were confused after that sudden display of benevolence coming from Billy. Your body was tense, ready to attack. It took you a moment to edge off but when you did it, you returned the hug.

You liked Billy. He was like cat. Not a fluffy kitty, pretty as a picture but homeless, a bit scraggly and scrawny with unbelievably stunning eyes. These cats you want to take with you even if they aren't drawn to you. And honestly you'd never thought, till this moment, that leaving the cat would be so damn hard. Stupid Billy... Why on earth did he hug you? It was clear now why you had avoided profuse goodbyes all your life. It was so much easier to leave not realizing what's left behind you, because without "goodbye" it feels like you'd never really left. You spared yourself the heartbreaking pain and feeling of  loneliness, that goes hand in hand with every long-term goodbye.

"Do you have any plans for tonight?" you mumbled into Billy's t-shirt, hoping your voice wouldn't crack and reveal how devastated you started to feel with every passing second. You used to keep a stiff upper lip, but now it's harder, apparently.

He stepped back at the length of an extended arm and grinned as only he could, which warmed your heart.

"Sleep? I guess..." he answered slightly shrugging his shoulders.

You smirked wrinkling the bridge of your nose, waited for a moment just squinting at him and than turned on your heel so you can walk over to a nightstand and reach the alarm clock.

"I'm not sayin' now, right? But what else would I do at this hour, haha..." Billy muttered while staring at you, tracking all your movements when you were setting an alarm for 6;30 am. You mumbled something like "mhm" putting the device where it was before.

Bennett once again was like a torrent, an unbelievable flow of words which wasn't exactly what you needed right now. Soon it would be half past one, your mind has told you that six hours of sleep is definitely not enough for you to be full of energy by tomorrow morning. Billy was concerned with your actions but didn't ask any questions, hoping you'd tell him what was on your mind. What the hell were you trying to do? Well, you wanted to turn off the only light in the room which was the lamp on your desk buried in books and notes. And when you did it, complete darkness surrounded both of you.

Billy was ready to ask question about what the fuck you were doing. He raised his arm, opened his mouth but that instant you grabbed his raised wrist

"Come" you whispered, dragging him to bed.

"Wha...No! Y/N what the fuck?" he squealed, acting like he didn't want to go with you, yet somehow his body didn't fight back and let you sit him on the bed, so his behavior didn't match the words he was saying at all.

"God...I don't want to bang you man!" you rolled your eyes lying down on the mattress "I had already packed my emotional support teddy bear. How do you think I'm gonna fall asleep now, hm?" you were kinda joking, but kinda not - it was true you had packed your stuffed animals but it didn't really have any influence on your ability to sleep well. You just wanted Billy around, even though you haven't thought about it earlier. The boy widened his eyes on you or at least the darker spot on the bed that should be you. Pretty hard to see anything without any source of light.

"You're still sleeping with a teddy bear? What are you? Twelve?" he laughed. Not exactly laughed, more like attempt to laugh. He was cut off with a cold blade of the dagger near his throat, the best way to silence him in your opinion.

"Say a single word about it and you're gonna end up stuffed just like that teddy bear" you hissed not anymore laying on the bed

"Jesus, how many of them do you have here?" whined Bennett moving away the blade. You couldn't help admiring his ability to stay so chilled and cool with your threats. It was really impressive. Something (the dagger) landed on the floor as evidenced by the hollow metallic sound going with the sound of a laying back body.

"But waking up so early...I don't know..." boy was still whining around while taking his shoes off.

"I'll do my best to not wake you" you said calmly waiting for him to lay near you. To be honest you had never ever slept with him. Sure you had laid down together, sometimes even he managed to take a quick nap but you never lowered your guard.

Billy tried to lie down comfortably but it was hard since it was single bed, not exactly what two people need to sleep together. Your back was slightly touching the wall against the bed, sticking to the boys body, hoping it would compensate for the lack of the bedsheets. You were actually lying on one but it was pretty warm already so it wasn't necessary. With your arms around his neck and a leg over his belly you breathed softly into his hair. You know you should have found it adorable but after all you liked your space. Still you couldn't resist it since you haven't got any idea when you would meet him again. You weren't really much of a hugger when it comes to people,  but liked teddy bears as a kid and it you stuck with till now.

Time was passing and the feeling of tiredness disappeared, leaving you on standby mode exactly the same that you were on while being on a lookout. Just like someone if was about to burst into your room now and attack both of you. You haven't locked the door, it was haunting you now but you didn't want to move, scared it would wake Billy up. He was probably asleep by then. You could tell by the regular deep breaths and silence.

With your right hand, you reached for the boys head. For a couple of minutes, you were playing with his short green hair tangling them between your fingers until you would get tired again. That relaxing activity, it made it inevitable for unpleasant thoughts to come across your mind no matter if you were or were not prepared for them. Obviously, you weren't.

Was it possible for you to come back to school in one piece? Who would protect Billy from getting in trouble during your absence? Would you have a telephone wherever you were going, to call Billy here every evening or at least once a week?

It was mind-blowing for you since you have never, ever had problems like that! But also you never had a friend like Billy to make your life more complicated than it already is. Master Lin was right when he said that when you have someone who you would die for, sooner or later things were going to get messed up...

The red numbers on the screen of the clock showed five minutes after one a.m. when you finally dozed off.

[utopiannamjoon]

Ephemeral, Part 4

Words: 5,5k

Warning: There is a scene (very end of the story)of sexual nature that might be uncomfortable for some readers. It isn’t aggressive but I thought I’d point it out. Also swearing cuz im a foul mouth.

Genre: Fluff, angst, smut

Pairing: Jimin x reader, Namjoon x reader

A/n: I’m so sorry for the long wait. Tell me your thoughts by commenting or inboxing me, I will answer. Please like, and/or reblog. It helps me keep motivated to continue this series. I feel like I should add that this chapter doesn’t have smut in it since all of the previous ones did.

+please comment and give me your thoughts. Ya boi needs validation

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

Masterlist

“I love you.”

His words echoed in the room ricocheting from every surface. It took you a long second to register them in your mind. You already had mixed feelings about Jimin but this just shook the margarita of feelings up into a mess. “Wh- WHAT?!” You spluttered, pushing him off you, “You say that to your other lays too?!”

His mouth dropped and eyes squinted, looking at you confused. You took the blanket laying on the back of the couch and held it in front of your body, frantically searching for your underwear. He followed your lead and put a pillow on his lap, his face was full on question mark.

“My lays?” he raised his voice, “Is that what you think of me? That I fuck around?” His eyebrows furrowed, he was offended. He started looking for his boxers and pants.

“Yes. No - I don’t fucking know!” you shrieked. Jimin pulled on his pants and tightened his belt when it clicked in his head, “Is that why you acted so cold towards me when I ran into you with Jiwoo? You think you mean nothing to me?! You’re the first one I’ve had sex with in years!” his voice grew louder on every word, “I can count the times I had sex with my wife with my one hand, and those times weren’t that great.” You groaned out of frustration not knowing what to answer.

“I won’t lie to you Y/n. I have tried with other women but I couldn’t fuck them - but they were a year before I met you,” He rambled and stuttered, looking at his hands, “I only have sex when I’m in love.” Jimin fiddled his thumbs, avoiding eye contact with you. The poor man was embarrassed to tell you his secret.

“God, Jimin!” you yelled into your hands, “You can’t say that! I’m married, you’re married!” The infatuation you felt for him scared you more than anything. It couldn’t work, you can’t just divorce Namjoon. You wish it was that simple but there are a lot more to it.

“You think I don’t know that?!” he yelled, being as frustrated as you were. Jimin sighed and took a step closer to you, reaching his hands to cup your face. “I do love you and I’m not sorry for saying it. I know at some point I want to be married to you, not to Jiwoo. I know sometime in the future I want to have children, and you already know who with,” he confessed while stroking your cheek, “But judging from your reaction you don’t want the same.” He released your face and let out a heartbreaking exhale.

Jimin picked his shirt and gave you a final agonizing smile before walking towards the front door. You couldn’t move, you stared until his back disappeared from your line of sight and heard the front door open and close.

Namjoon reached Seokjin’s office, in the tallest skyscraper of the city. The elevator took him to the lavish top floor, or how Seokjin liked to call it: “... Seokjin’s department. Thank you Namjoon for coming in so soon,” the big boss welcomed him in his office with hand gestures, “Please have a seat.” Namjoon sat down across Seokjin and offering him the signed contract.

“Thank you, Namjoon, but the conditions of the contract has changed,” Seokjin eyed the paper in his hands.  “I spoke to Mr. Park and we’ve come to a different conclusion about this. The percentages have changed drastically,” the extravagantly dressed man said with a glint of money in his eyes.

Namjoon furrowed his eyebrows. He just talked to Jimin twenty minutes ago. How did his mind change so fast? Jimin was beyond excited to sign it. Namjoon would do anything to keep this deal, that’s how much weight it had for him.

“I don’t understand, Jimin just signed this contract,” he pointed at the precious paper in Seokjin’s hand, trying not to lose his cool. Namjoon’s hands formed into fists, nails nearly digging into his own skin.

“Oh you see,” Seokjin crossed his arms, “I spoke to the owner of Park Inc Mr. Yoonwoo Park about it.” Namjoon nodded. Yoonwoo Park? Jimin wasn’t the owner and founder? He was certain Jimin was the owner. Who was this other guy?

“Okay, so what’re the new percentages?” Namjoon pried further. His interest was lit up, this took a new turn. He needed to be on the top of everything.

“50% for me,” Seokjin explained, but Namjoon rolled his eyes. Of course Seokjin would get half. “35% for Park Inc. and 15% for you.”

“That is unacceptable! You can’t cut 10% from me without my consent after the contract is already signed,” Namjoon stood up furiously almost slamming his fist on Seokjin’s desk. That 10% meant millions of loss to Namjoon, and losing that was in the way of his progress. Seokjin calmly raised his finger ordering Namjoon to shut up, “That is unless,” Seokjin waited for Namjoon to sit back down which he did humbly after Seokjin stared at him sternly, “Park Inc. refuses the offer. In that case their share would become yours. Making you co- owners with that 50% with me. I’ve done calculations and we wouldn’t take any damage if they don’t sign. However you have to discuss this with Jimin since how I understand, he is the one responsible for the contract,” Seokjin walked over to Namjoon’s chair, “I’ll be waiting for both of your answers.” Namjoon shook his hand and something sinister set off in his eyes, the glint in them making anyone on his path uneasy.

Namjoon sped through red lights, taking sharp corners. Thankfully it was late and only few people were out. He parked his car next to a fire post and took long steps. Namjoon walked in the building, staff immediately bowing to him and making way.

He stood tall as he stepped through the waiting room, the secretary saying nothing but bowing as Namjoon opened the door to the blonde man’s office. The scary thing about Namjoon was that he was extremely well known in the business world and nobody played around with him, he had money and influence over everything. The only person above him was Seokjin.

“Oh Mr. Kim, what a nice surprise,” Jimin stood up to bow, “I didn’t know you are coming.” Namjoon didn’t bow back, he just nodded. Jimin brushed off his unrespectful manners. He was on a mission and being polite to the shorter man wouldn’t affect him in anyway.  “Mr. Park - Jimin, if I may,” Namjoon started, Jimin nodded approving to be in first name basis with the older man, “I don’t know if you’ve heard but the conditions of the contract have changed.” Namjoon sat down on the leather chair across Jimin and crossed his legs. “What? But it’s already been signed,” Jimin cocked his head puzzled. He leaned closer to Namjoon, “How did it change?”

“Actually the new deal is favorable for you,” Namjoon explained calmly, as if he didn’t have vested interest, “but I don’t think that’s important right now.” Jimin’s head still remained tilted, and with a hand movement he urged Namjoon to continue.  “A little birdie told me that you don’t own Park inc., but Mr. Park Yoonwoo does,” Namjoon smirked eerily as Jimin’s smile fell. “It took me a moment before it clicked, Park Yoonwoo is Jiwoo’s father. It was just a lucky coincidence that you shared a surname.”

“And why does that matter?” Jimin asked, not understanding what’s happening, whatever the other insinuated can’t be good based on the look on his face. Namjoon let out a chuckle, “I want you to drop the contract.”

Jimin just scoffed at Namjoon but his devious expression didn’t change. “That’s absolutely outrageous! You cannot be serious,” Jimin’s voice raised a little but he didn’t want to show his temper getting better of him. “Is it now Jimin?” Namjoon leaned closer and he breath out, “I know you’ve been fucking my wife.”

“How could you suggest such a thing?” Jimin kept his calm but his heart dropped to his stomach. How did he know? Jimin had nightmares of this happening but he thought in reality it wouldn’t. This was a situation he couldn’t have prepared for. Namjoon eyed the shorter man’s movements and expressions. Jimin’s chest heaved and his eyes moved more hastily from nervousness.

“You play me as a fool,” Namjoon chuckled deeply from his chest. Within a second his face got serious and he leaned even closer to the blonde man, “I live in a mansion that costs millions. You think I wouldn’t install security cameras? Besides her ass print was on my car from the fun you two had. At the gathering with Seokjin, you entered the bathroom with her and came out with your shirt improperly tucked back, and I know you wouldn’t come out like that unless you had something on your mind, you’re a clean guy. I’m convinced and you can’t tell me otherwise.” Namjoon’s tone was mocking, the tone alone was calling Jimin an idiot, “I’ve never seen her happier when receiving a message. So thanks to you she doesn’t mope around anymore.”

“Okay fine, let’s say that I have. Why do you care? You don’t love her. She is just a pawn to you, to use in your games.” Jimin’s patience was running a bit thin. He didn’t see a point in denying what Namjoon was accusing him of, and quite frankly he wasn’t ashamed or regretful of it. But being confronted by him, accusing him of something he wasn’t ready to share yet made him anxious.

“From what I remember that Park Yoonwoo is a bit of a hardass. Didn’t his forceful ways make you marry Jiwoo? So if you don’t get this deal he is probably going to fire you,” Namjoon tapped a finger on his chin, “Nay. There is two choices but either way you’re going to lose your current position, which will be morbid nonetheless. You’re going to be heavily demoted or he is going to fire you.”

“What does any of that have to do with the deal? Why do you want it so much? What’s it to you? I worked hard for this position, I’m not going to let you take it away, ” Jimin told him sternly, laying his fist on the desk. “I call bullshit on that Jimin. You courted Jiwoo and that’s how you got your job, you’re a real romantic and her father loves it. And I really do think it’s going to happen, you see,” Namjoon pressed his hands together, moving them in sync with his words, “If you don’t drop it, I’ll tell Park Yoonwoo about your affair with my wife. Him being a traditional man, not allowing you to embarrass his family, will have you divorced and consequently losing your job. As for Jiwoo, I know she doesn’t care. She sleeps around plenty,” Namjoon winked when he said the last sentence. Jimin quickly shook his mind off of his wife and Namjoon getting at it.

“You can’t do that. You’re forcing me out of my job and dragging Y/n with me! Her social status would plummet to the ground!” Jimin stood up slamming both of his hands on the desk. Namjoon smirked, that’s what he wanted to hear. Jimin mentioned you, he was deeply involved despite the heartache he went through, though Namjoon didn’t know that. He needed to be sure about his feelings, “Do you care about her?”

Jimin sighed. What’s the point of lying anymore even though his heart felt agonizing pain. Namjoon had him trapped, he didn’t know what to say, so he sticked with the truth which might hurt him later but he doesn’t care. Jimin just nodded, his face being sincere. He didn’t feel like he had to say anything. The reality took over him as your husband opposed him.

This took a surprising turn for Namjoon, he knew you fucked but didn’t know emotions were involved from Jimin’s part. However he was willing to do everything to get the deal, the contract would shoot his company to the top.

“You have few options here Jimmy boy. Break the contract and deal with the consequences from Yoonwoo. Whether you get demoted or fired, I don’t care. The company will get back on its feet in no time. Or let me do it for you by blabbing my mouth and telling on you and my wife. From my standpoint you have two choices. Choose wisely,” Namjoon adviced with a corrupt gaze, “Do you want have a job in the first place? You’re just going to get demoted. If you let me do it for you, you’re going to get divorced AND fired,” Namjoon stated smugly, enjoying Jimin’s battle inside his head.

“You would drag her down with me? Do you have no care for her at all?” Jimin spat, disgusted by the other’s attitude. Even in this situation you were on his mind. Surely he must’ve felt something for you, there’s a reason you are married. You were his wife, how could he treat you like this?

“Listen here lover boy,” Namjoon stood up, leaning his hands on the desk, towering over Jimin, “I don’t give a shit. Hell I’ll even file a divorce over this if you’re so obsessed with her. I want this deal all for me, I need you to get out of it,” his voice got lower and more intimidating as he ordered the younger man what to do. The hellish undertones in Namjoon’s voice send shivers down the blonde man’s spine. Jimin stared in silence, eyes growing wider in disbelieve as the maniacal man in front of him spoke.

“Two weeks,” Namjoon said, opening the office door. He turned around to give a final look at Jimin’s frozen state, “You better have done your decision by then. I’m sure you’ll make the right call. Would be sad to harm that pretty little face of yours.”

Anytime a notification popped on your phone your heart jumped but quickly fell again, you checked it with a frown, it wasn’t him. Jimin hasn’t been answering your texts. You knew it’s because you let him leave without a word. You regretted that, it was a mistake. But you still needed to talk to him, to tell him you loved him too. Namjoon didn’t see you smile again, you held your head low and he saw your hopes slowly crashing down. He knew it was his doings and he didn’t regret it, but he didn’t enjoy your sadness since it brought the whole mood down. It wasn’t pleasant for him to live in a house of depression. It got in his way of work, he already got used to you being happy, even bringing him coffee, and pastries when he was trapped in his office for hours. More than anything he was just annoyed by your blue mood.

“Are you sure you really want to continue eating that? I think you’ve stuffed your face enough.”

Namjoon entered the room with a newspaper in his hand and a scotch in the other. You’ve been shoveling ice cream at an alarming rate for few evenings while watching tv-dramas. You looked at yourself, pajamas with ice scream stains and crumbs all over. Soda cans and empty ice cream packages on the coffee table in front of you. Saying nothing, you wiped your mouth with the back of your hand and set bowl of ice cream on the table. Namjoon sat on the lounge chair, crossing his legs he peeked over his glasses looking at you. He sighed and shook his head disapproving your habits of leaving trash everywhere. His comment made you self conscious about your eating but other than that you didn’t mind him, you didn’t care. You continued to watch your tv-shows while he read the newspaper near you. For a moment you felt like it was domestic, something that a couple, a family did. You felt warm inside. You didn’t even notice when the smallest of smiles took over your lips, but he saw. From the corner of his eye he watched as your face turned positive, something that he had missed. He didn’t want to go back to living like you two did for few years.

You snuggled the warm blanket, your eyes slowly closing, drifting you to sleep. Namjoon took the controller from your hand and turned the tv off. He gathered the junk you left on the coffee table and took them to the trash. He took his time to look at your sleeping state. He put his left arm under your legs and his right arm behind your shoulders and picked you up. Your head laid on his chest when he carried you to bed. With little to no effort Namjoon walked up the stairs with you in his arms. Your head came in contact with your soft pillow, and Namjoon pulled the blanket over you. He turned off the lights and closed the door, still looking at your peaceful slumber.

Bright sunlight attacked your eyes waking you up. Groaning, you stretched your arms and looked at your surroundings. You were quite confused because you fell asleep on the couch, not on your bed. A thought of Namjoon carrying you to bed instead of just leaving you in living room, made butterflies appear in your stomach, a feeling you’ve recently only felt with Jimin. It was a small act of kindness from Namjoon but it made you happy. He still cared though your marriage had been plummeting for many many months.

You threw on some sweatpants and a t-shirt before leaving the room. You walked towards the stairs but noticed his office door open. You peeked in to see him slumped on his desk, sleeping. It made you sad that he did this to himself. You’d rather have him sleeping in a bed next to you than on his chair leaning on his desk.

You got closer to him and sweeped hair off his face, though he was sleeping he looked tired. You fetched a quilt from your bedroom and came to wrap it around him. In his sleep he pulled the quilt closer to him, snuggling into it. You piled the folders that had been thrown on the flood and placed them on the desk. You took his coffee mug and went downstairs.

You made coffee and cooked bacon, and eggs. You shared the food on two plates and poured coffee in your mugs. You placed the dishes on the kitchen island. You stabbed the egg with your fork breaking the egg yolk, oozing on the plate and over the bacon.

Namjoon woke up with a sore neck, cursing at himself for falling asleep. He looked at the quilt on his shoulders before taking it off and laying it on the back of his chair. His nose took him to the kitchen where you were leaning your elbow on the counter and playing with your food. His attention got caught on the plate and the full coffee mug across you. His dimple deepened when he realized you made some for him too.

“Morning,” he said in a deep, raspy voice.

“Good morning,” you lowered the coffee mug from your lips, “I made breakfast.” You pointed at his plate and he smiled at you. You almost thought it was sincere, one of those smiles he used to share with you, and only you. It almost made you blush, it reminded you of just getting to know each other, and the huge crush you had on him. He was such a sweet guy, you wonder what happened to you two.

“Thank you but you shouldn’t have,” he said trying to be modest as he took a fork and dug in.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” you scoffed at him, “I wanted to make you some.” Which you did, as a thank you for being so kind to you. It was very rare of Namjoon so maybe it was a turning point in your relationship and you didn’t want to mess it up. He smiled with cheeks full of bacon at your words.

Namjoon took a gulp of his coffee, “Oh! I almost forgot to tell you. I was invited to a dinner by a potential customer and I hoped you would join me. It’s not a business meeting per se, but I was invited so… I have to go.” What surprised you most was his words. He wasn’t ordering you but asking you. Hoping that you’d go with him.

“Of course,” you said a little too excited for your own taste, “I’d be happy to accompany you.” You knew that the men who had dinners without their wives were frowned upon. Women were accessories in this business, that’s a fact you’ve known since you were still in diapers. But honestly if this helped you mend your relationship you’re all aboard. You didn’t want to live with a man who didn’t even like you so you wanted to take advantage of his mood.

“Fantastic,” he looked at you with big eyes and raised eyebrows. He was thanking the lord in his mind, he knew you hated joining him but he had to take the chance and ask you.

“When is it?”

“Today.”

“Today?!” you repeated his words. It’s not that you had any plans but you were thinking about how you’ve been shoving your mouth with garbage for a week now. Did you even fit your dresses? Not that you’ve gained that much weight but it sure must’ve bloated your stomach and face. You groaned to yourself already thinking about the inside of your closet and what you owned.

“Why are you so shocked?” he questioned you. It wasn’t the first time he has given you a short notice.

“I don’t think I can fit my dresses,” you whimpered and rested your face in your hands. He almost laughed at your cute reaction but held it together. He sighed understanding your pain, he could see your thought process and the insecurities.

“I know you’ve not followed your diet that much.. but you still look perfect. You haven’t gained weight,” he claimed with a soft voice.

You just sighed into your hands right before he grabbed your wrists and pulled them away from your face, “Listen I’ll take you shopping. Let’s get you a new dress so you don’t have to worry about your old ones. How about that?”

You coyly nodded at his suggestion, looking everywhere but his eyes. It took you by surprise how you felt shy in front of him after so long. He chuckled at your adorable expression, “C’mon we don’t have all day to waste.”

Dress shopping went better than you could’ve ever imagined. You actually had fun. Namjoon had all of his focus on you, something that was uncommon so you bathed in the attention as much as you could now that you finally had it. He made jokes and even cringy puns that made you laugh nevertheless. Namjoon lead you to an elegant store filled with expensive clothing, too expensive for your taste. You knew you didn’t have to worry about money but this was too much. He saw a blue dress on a mannequin, pointed at it and told you to try it. A staff member went to fetch you the dress. You tried it on, it was perfect. Your husband did have a good, but a pricey taste after all. The dress hugged your curves, and the hem soared in the air as you twirled around to show Namjoon. Dimples deeper than the ocean, eyes disappearing with his beautiful smile. He read your expression and said to the staff member that you’ll take it. You didn’t even change back from the dress but kept it on.

You just had enough time to go back home, fix your hair and make-up before leaving to the dinner party. Namjoon’s head bopped in sync with the music from the radio, and tapped his thumb on the steering wheel on the beat. Namjoon walked around the car to open the door for you and he offered his arm for you. You grabbed his bicep and he lead you towards the door. The house was less than half of the size of yours but still normal, everyday folk couldn’t afford it in their lifetime. The house looked cozy, warm, and inviting, the complete opposite of yours. Your house was gloomy, with dark walls, dark furniture, and dim lighting reflecting your husbands true personality. A friendly looking man, pushing 70’s came to the door. Namjoon introduced you two and the small talk started. You zoned out few times but were snapped back in whenever your name was mentioned, “My wife is in the kitchen if you want to get away from all this business talk,” the older man gave you a gentle smile, offering you a chance to escape the boringness. Namjoon unwrapped his arm from your waist and pressed his hand on your lower back giving you a slight push and a nod.

The delicious scent flying through the air lead you to the right place. “Oh goodness, you must be Y/n,” the woman grinned at you. She looked up and down at you, taking in your appearance. Her face was wrinkly, showing her laugh lines and life experience. She wasn’t one of those uptight wives you’ve grown to get used to. She was a sweet old lady, reminding you of Suzie’s grandmother. Humorous, down to earth, nurturing person. Someone who you aspired to be when you were old but unfortunately in this business she had to be one of a kind.

“You look beautiful. I remember when I was able to wear dresses like that,” she told you with a plaintive look. Before you could answer the pot started to boil over, making her gasp, “I guess the food is ready,” she laughed. You helped to set the table, setting the cutlery and the bowls on their spots. This must’ve been the weirdest business dinner you’ve been to by far. She brought the pot over and called everyone to dinner. The atmosphere felt domestic yet so unfamiliar to you. Something that you’ve only felt outside of your own family and husband, at the countryside with your best friend and her parents. This wasn’t one of those dinners where a wrong look could get you socially outcasted. It was so homely, you could be yourself. It was something you could only wish for.

Namjoon was still on his robotically polite behavior, something he grew up with, something he was accustomed to. It was him, he couldn’t change and it’s okay. You didn’t notice but the lady was watching you two, analyzing you to pieces.

After the dinner you took upon yourself to carry the dishes back to the kitchen, you laughed with the old lady as you helped her by her side. It was like you felt her gaze burning a hole in your temple. You turned around to face and you cocked your head. “You look like a lovely couple,” she simply pointed out. You nodded, “Thank y-” her hand movement cut you off.

“But you’re not meant to be together. I see it. You want someone else. Everytime you look at him you wish he’s replaced with that someone. You might act like you’re in love but you aren’t. The gazes you share are cold and deserted. I can’t tell you what to do but I can offer you my advice,” she let you know, “I was once in your place. My first marriage was stone cold, I thought I had to stay in it. But my now-husband swooped me off my feet and asked me to come along with him. I did and it was the best decision of my life. I don’t regret it for a second. I’d do it again and again if I had to,” she held onto your shoulder and looked deep in your eyes. She poured it all on you. You were speechless. She was absolutely right. She was once in your place and could see all of the signs. No one else could.

“Darling are you ready to go?” Namjoon called for you with a sugary tone. You looked at the older lady in confusion. Your mouth opened and closed few times but no words found their way out. Namjoon peeked his head in the kitchen, “Ready?” he asked you, holding his hand out for you to take it. Your heart felt empty but you took his hand, and thanked the sweet woman for everything.

The drive home was silent but not dense. Your eyes were set on the bright moon making its appearance in the dark blue sky while Namjoon talked about his conversation with the man. You gave him simple answers, not really listening what he said. As he pulled into the driveway you snapped back to reality, “He was pretty old why hasn’t he retired yet?”.

Turning off the car Namjoon looked at you and pondered for a minute, “I’m not sure. Maybe he likes it? He hasn’t overworked himself though. He has taken things slowly, putting his family first,” he nodded approving his answer, “But the wealth he has now, I had when I was 19,” he laughed. His last sentence stabbed you through the heart. You truly had different goals in life. Though you’ve always had money you didn’t find it important. You’d rather live modestly with people you loved and cared for, people who you would sacrifice everything for. But you live like money is the reason for life. Nothing else, nothing more.

Groaning, you kicked the painful high heels off your feet, and placed them in your walk in closet. Namjoon came in the room after you, unzipped your dress, and helped you take off, his eyes never leaving yours. You held his gaze, feeling your pulse getting faster and faster. You almost anticipated a kiss from him when his eyes travelled to your lips. Instead he just handed you the dress with a dimply smile. You thought nothing of it and set it on the rack before going to wash yourself up for bed.

Namjoon was already sleeping when you crashed next to him. You stretched your legs for a final time before closing your eyes. In slight sleep you felt an arm flung across your body, something that he sometimes did when he was sleeping, but this time was different. He pulled you closer, his other hand coming to grab your breast. Your eyes snapped open, and you froze. He brought the tent in his pants closer to your behind, beginning to rub himself on you. He brushed your hair behind your ear and whispered, “You like it don’t you?” He sounded so cocky and full off himself, it almost made you gag. “What the fuck Namjoon?!” You all but yelled at him. He had you in his grip but manage to you ripped yourself out of it, semi accidently kicking his leg while getting out of the bed. “The fuck do you think you’re doing?!” you threw your arms in the air, eyebrows almost meeting together from the frown you had. “You wanted to fuck didn’t you?” he said with a harsh tone, “You’ve been so nice to me, so obviously you wanted some.”

“WHAT!” you screeched, “You can’t be serious.” You shook your head in disbelief. “You were nice to me for the first time in YEARS. So obviously I’ll be kind to you too. I already hate living here so I tried to make my life less like hell! It’s bad enough to live with a man that doesn’t love me but to live with someone who is constantly rude to me is even worse!” Namjoon got out of the bed too, but he stood on the other side of the bed than you. He could’ve easily towered over you but decided to keep his distance this time. “I give you everything and you act like this? You’re such an ungrateful bitch!” He stood there for a minute before his realization, “It’s about love? How are you so naive?! Love has nothing to do with this, it never has.” he spat at you for no reason. You looked at him dumbfounded. What did he think? That wanting to fix the relationship between your husband was just a call for dicking down? “Unbelievable,” you stated. You had no words.

“You think he can give you want you want,” he mocked you in a deep voice, tone becoming more toxic as he spoke, “you’re the reason he is going to lose his job and money. You’re destroying his career and marriage, his future is going down the drain for you.” An ear-splitting sadistic grin found its place on his face. You’ve never seen your own husband this terrifying. Namjoon didn’t even have to say Jimin’s name, you immediately knew who he was talking about. Your face lost all color. What scared you the most wasn’t that he knew about your affair but that he took ruining Jimin’s life so lightly, he even smiled when just talking about his threats. “Who are you?” you whimpered, pulling on jeans and finding your phone. You hastily shoved your belongings in your pockets and ran downstairs You nearly slipped when he roared after you, “Go to your boy toy then, I don’t care! I gave him an ultimatum. He doesn’t love you, if he did he would’ve given me an answer already.”

With that you slammed the door shut, leaving the maniacs voice to echo alone.

A/n: Ideas, suggestions, requests, questions? Just inbox me!! Thank you so much for showing love to this series. It really motivates me to keep going

[journeysintowebcomics]

Worm Liveblog #77

UPDATE 77: Another Snare, I Guess

Last time Grue was captured by the Slaughterhouse Nine, and the Undersiders captured Shatterbird and Cherish. Now what? Rescue Grue? That won’t be easy. Let’s see what happens.

Ah, this chapter happens right immediately after last one ended. Cherish is still sitting there, talking with Skitter, right after she said Grue was captured by Slaughterhouse Nine. Now she’s making demands in exchange of information, I suppose in exchange of pinpoint information of where the Slaughterhouse Nine are keeping him. She must be able to feel the general direction they’re at, at the very least.

“No. Definitely not.  In exchange for the information about what the Imp is up to, you’re going to give me medical treatment, you’re going to keep me here, and you’re going to keep me safe.”

Right, that too. She wants to be rewarded for her comment about Imp. She’s going to be kept safe, not killed like Coil wanted. Will he comply? I know he’s a man of his word, but I don’t think anyone would be particularly upset if he took action and he knows it. Once they get what they want from Cherish, maybe he’ll take control and decide something else. Who’s going to say to their boss’ face that he shouldn’t have? Well, Skitter maybe would, if she decides to do this deal, but other than her nobody else would be remotely interested in doing so.

She even has the gall of asking for a billion...dollars, most likely...in exchange of telling them where Grue is. Okay, I know Coil is pretty rich and all that, but I really doubt he has that much money. I mean, one billion isn’t a small amount. That’d get noticeable, wouldn’t it? Besides, Trickster says Cherish is in no position to make such demands, because she’s going to die if they leave her to bleed to death.

Cherish shrugged.  “Bonesaw gave me the works.  Mesh sheaths for every major artery and organ, wire reinforcement for my skeleton. It’s not going to kill me anytime soon.”

It must have taken quite a while for Bonesaw to do this. This is major surgery, performed on many members including herself. I bet there’s also something to prevent exsanguination. Mesh and reinforcement sure answers why Bonesaw wasn’t gravely hurt by Imp’s dagger back then. It didn’t stop the pain at all, but she stayed alive.

That aside, I’m a bit surprised they bothered giving Cherish this. I don’t think she can have spent long with the Slaughterhouse Nine before they wisened up to her plans. Maybe Bonesaw inserted something into her that will be part of her incoming punishment.

Apparently not, because she comments she was awake during the procedure – of course she was. Yikes – and had the presence of mind to be aware of Bonesaw’s emotions. No hint of traps or dirty tricks. I guess the validity of such assessment depends on when this surgery was made. If it was before the neural connections Bonesaw made, then it’s accurate.

When Tattletale comments she suspects everything Bonesaw does is so routine she may not give any reaction if she did do something unusual, Cherish challenges her to ‘intellectual jousting’, something Tattletale points out is just a way for her to try to distract them. She has to stall them and put Grue in further danger that way. Undeterred by her plan being revealed, she continues, telling Tattletale she’s better at the manipulation game. Such taunt goes completely ignored by everyone.

It’s really hard to take Cherish’s ‘I can manipulate better than you!’ statement when everyone is ignoring what she’s saying. So much for being better than Tattletale. My guess is that she can’t manipulate so well when she can’t use her power over emotions. If she tries anything, she gets shot. Again. Most likely she won’t die, it’ll just be painful.

“It’s a bit of a crazy idea,” I said, ignoring her.  “But what if we didn’t stash her in this base?  Or any of the others?  We put her anywhere in the city, there’s the risk that some unwitting John, Dick or Harry will come by, and she’ll get them to help her somehow.  Can’t station guards on her, so… why not the water?”

Let me see if I got this straight: Skitter is suggesting they place Cherish somewhere else, where there can’t be guards with her, and by the sound of her idea of placing her on water, it’ll be isolated and away from everyone else. It’s a crazy idea indeed. Unless there’s remote surveillance of some sort, things may not go smoothly.

At least there’s something Cherish is useful for right now: give some backstory about a character.

“I could tell you a story,” Cherish said, “Little girl grows up with money.  Daddy pulls in six figures, maybe seven. Massive house, I expect.  Maybe horses, a mercedes, indoor and outdoor pools…”

Definitely not Heckpuppy’s, and not Skitter’s. I doubt she’s talking about herself so...Tattletale grew with money. While Skitter suggests handcuffing Cherish to a buoy – okay, that may work, I guess – Cherish continues. Tattletale ran away and was homeless, stealing and dealing for petty cash just so she could eat. Quite a change from the place she grew up in.

What would make someone leave home like that, Tattletale?

Something very bad. Perhaps her family died? Kicked her out? Lost all their fortune? Or could it be because of her powers? There are many possibilities, and I don’t recall anything that could indicate the right answer. Too bad Tattletale isn’t letting herself be baited, Cherish’s attempts to get under her skin are ineffective.

Looks like the plan is to leave Cherish out there in the sea, on a buoy. Certainly not the imprisonment I imagined Cherish would have, and I have concerns this doesn’t fit her standards of safety and protection she requested. Being in the sea just...there, floating around, won’t protect her if the Slaughterhouse Nine finds her location. The Siberian will make mincemeat out of her.

Indeed, she doesn’t seem to approve these arrangements, because her reaction is to taunt them by saying without her cooperation they won’t ever find Grue or Imp. Nobody reacts with worry; all Coil does is get Tattletale to do her job. You know, something I like is that nobody who isn’t on Tattletale’s side doesn’t know with certainty what her power is. In the little time it takes Cherish to realize she’s getting information, Tattletale managed to get the location and time of when she’s supposed to meet Imp. Not bad!

Same building as the rest of the Nine?  Now we just need to dig up where they are, and you’ve got no cards left.

I’m pretty sure that means Imp is captive too. What Cherish had said in the last update hinted Imp may not be able to tell the Undersiders about her deal with Cherish, and if she’s in the same building as the rest of the Nine...yeah, she may be captive. In that case, she may see Grue? Maybe? And try to free him?

To avoid further distractions, they arrange a dead man’s switch by according a soldier will be on guard, and every fifteen minutes he’ll receive a note. If he doesn’t get it, he tells the Slaughterhouse Nine where to find her. Oliver will do that. Say, what’s Oliver’s power? He must have some sort of power, right? And he’s down there with Noelle. Perhaps some sort of defensive power? Or one he can control from a distance, like Genesis?

Cherish decided to speak up.  “Who’s next? Who should I dish the dirt on?

You didn’t even dish out any dirt on Tattletale! That was so vague you could have said Tattletale makes collars with her discarded toenails and the reactions would have been no different! My goodness, she’s so smug and can’t back that up with sheer skill.

Feeling homesick, Trickster?  Scared little boy pretending to be a leader.  It’s your fault, you know.  She blames you.  Everyone does. They’re even starting to hate you.

I have a hard time believing they hate him. I have the impression they all stick together out of necessity instead of true camaraderie, so maybe they all do blame Trickster for something, but I don’t think they hate him. I can’t imagine the likes of Sundancer or Ballistic hating him.

They had enough of Cherish’s attempts to manipulate them. They all decide to move and continue talking where Cherish can’t talk to them. This may have irritated her, because she aims at Skitter.

“You failed, you know,” Cherish said, changing tacks.  “When someone has an obsession like you do, it’s like a giant neon sign to an empath like me.  All it takes is for me to peek into Coil’s head, peek into the hearts of everyone else in this base, and I know you’ll never get what you want.  You won’t save her.  You can’t.  Window of opportunity is long gone.”

I’m not sure what exactly is the window of opportunity Skitter missed. I can’t think of any moment where she could have gotten away with saving Dinah. That aside, it’s not surprising at all to hear Coil has no plans of giving Skitter what she wants. I think I have made my opinion about that pretty clear before – he’s not letting Dinah go.

This actually gets reactions! Skitter immediately jabs here on the open bullet hole, and kicks her in the teeth and head, twice! You know what? You know what I’m going to do? I’m going to have some fun. Just for kicks I’ll make a little something here.

A counter to keep track how good Cherish is at doing what she does. The number on the left is the number of times she has been successful, the number on the right is how many times she has failed. Let’s see...from the stuff I remember...she joined the Slaughterhouse Nine just like she wanted, she got Regent involved in the testing, she may have saved her own life by manipulating Ballistic, and she got Skitter upset. That’s four. In contrast, she failed in her plans to control the Slaughterhouse Nine, she almost died when talking to Regent, she tried to manipulate Jack into killing Tattletale back then, she was defeated like...thirty seconds after the ambush started, she got captured, and she failed to get reactions from Tattletale and Trickster. That’s seven. The ratio isn’t as bad as I thought it’d be, but it’s still pretty bad. I’m sure I don’t remember moments that ought to be included here, but eh, as I said, it’s the stuff I remember.

And here’s her meter.

Going down. I’m still decidedly unimpressed with her. She has shown she’s capable of bouts of competence, but other than that I find myself disliking her. She lacks the appeal the rest of the Slaughterhouse Nine has, and her personality is nothing to write home about. I’ll try not to reduce my opinion further down every time I get annoyed with her.

Cherish is dragged away, Coil isn’t worried at all about what she says, not even when Cherish warns everyone Coil is going to betray everyone and get rid of them once they outlive their usefulness. Trickster suggests Cherish is lying, and Tattletale agrees – mostly. Then again...does anyone working for him really believe he’s not planning to backstab them someday? I’m sure nobody is so naïve as to think he won’t.

Back to the point of this arc: defying the Slaughterhouse Nine, this time by rescuing someone they’re keeping captive right now. Tattletale will oversee the interrogation Cherish will undergo, so information isn’t going to be much of a problem. The problem is planning and having the strength to fight, I think. Nobody is roughed up from the fight, they have that advantage.

Worst case scenarios cross Skitter’s mind, featuring each one of the Slaughterhouse Nine, and at least two are fatal. Honestly I wouldn’t be surprised if one or more of these thoughts are correct. It’s not like the Slaughterhouse Nine have any reason to hold back. They can make Grue pay.

Plan time. Skitter decides they need help. That’s going to be difficult.

“Help?” Trickster turned my way.  “You’re forgetting that the rest of the factions in the city have made a pact against us.”

“Not everybody there agreed,” I said.  “There was one group at the meeting that didn’t agree to the pact.”

“Am I remembering wrong?”  Trickster asked.  “Coil, Merchants, Chosen, Faultline’s group…”

Hmmm...he’s not wrong, most of the factions agreed to not help the Undersiders and Travelers. I’m not sure if a group didn’t agree to the pact. Which one would it be? The Protectorate? Purity’s group? Those are the only two I can think that aren’t in that small list.

She already has some sort of plan, and asks for some of Tattletale’s surveillance gear. If it wasn’t for her being busy with Cherish’s interrogation, I’d think she wanted Tattletale to see and maybe give advice on what to say, but since she’s busy...hm. I should wait and see where things are going.

The scene changes, Trickster and Skitter are in some sort of empty apartment building. One paragraph later, her thoughts digress towards what Cherish had said – not about her or about Tattletale, she’s thinking about Trickster. Sundancer and Genesis’ behavior does indicate a source of tension in that group. It could be a dislike towards Trickster or his methods, or it may be something else entirely. My personal opinion is that Noelle’s situation may be what has everyone stressed. Is there something to blame Trickster for that’s related to Noelle? It could be they don’t agree about working for Coil.

Thankfully, she refrains from commenting or asking about that. It sounds like quite the delicate topic. They get to an apartment door, they’re locked. Once Trickster dismantles the doorknob and internal mechanism with his power, they enter, going straight for the windows.

They have a small camera and microphone, they tie those up and use bugs to carry them. Once they’re sure they can, she tests her swarm to try to see if she can communicate through them, using the buzzes and chirps they make to form words. It’s not perfect, but it’s not like they have better options.

The swarm is sent out, in direction of the Protectorate Headquarters. So they’re going to try to contact the heroes! That could work! The Protectorate can’t these killers doing whatever they want, right? Maybe they’ll help! It takes several minutes for the heroes to go outside and meet the figure the swarm makes. There’s some of the Wards, there’s Miss Militia and Battery, and there’s Legend, plus three unknown capes. A sizable team, with some luck some will cooperate.

Nobody’s in a hurry to listen to Skitter, which is expected, because the last time Skitter was there it was all a big problem for the heroes. They may suspect this is a plan to give themselves an advantage. Skitter’s first move is to immediately offer turning one over to them for custody. Cherish, to be more precise. No buoy plan, then? They ask for help, informing the Slaughterhouse Nine captured Grue, and that catching them off guard a second time will be enough to stop them for good. Oh, if only.

“You’re not only asking us to fight the Nine, but you want us to fight alongside notorious villains.”

That’s not a good sign. I can imagine the face of skepticism Miss Militia is making, even if the narration doesn’t mention it. Skitter presses on, again offering Cherish as reward for their help.

I could make out Miss Militia shaking her head.  “I’ll be blunt, Skitter.  I’m not Armsmaster.  I don’t have a stake in personal glory or renown.  I’m not going to pussyfoot around, either.  Put a bullet in her skull and be done with it.  There’s a kill order on them, nobody’s going to charge you for murder.”

That’s a no. Sorry, Grue, you’re doomed. Anyway, part of me approves what she’s saying, and part of me wishes she hadn’t said it was okay to kill Cherish. I’m not sure what they’ll think if Cherish escapes and causes a few more deaths in the city. They could think the Undersiders are compromised, or that they let Cherish free as a way to strike back at the city who didn’t help them. Am I being a bit too paranoid? Perhaps. It’s just that in Worm sometimes you have to think about the bad scenarios.

“I refused Hookwolf when he made the same offer, and I’m going to refuse you.  The capes on my teams are good people.  I won’t throw away their lives with a reckless attack.  We’re going to develop our own strategies, plan, and find a safe way to target them.”

Given this story isn’t about the Protectorate and their adventures, I’m fairly certain a few of the capes here will die once the heroes attack. I just hope to see how the attack goes, in an interlude or something.

Obviously, Skitter doesn’t like this answer. She retorts civilians are dying, Miss Militia replies even if they kill or capture some of these killers, they still will lose some of the heroes, and in the end it doesn’t change that much since they get new members anyway. Quite the grim response. Skitter argues, saying with the right approach they can win, especially if they can use their powers with a synergy they don’t expect. Makes sense to me, Miss Militia disagrees.

“Putting our lives in your hands,” Miss Militia replied.

Hmmmm...maybe that’s the main concern some here will have. They know Skitter wanted to be a hero, the problem is that they haven’t witnessed Skitter’s heroic side. Miss Militia may have gotten a glimpse from it, but even if she agrees to help, that doesn’t mean everyone else will. I mean, Legend is here. He outranks Miss Militia, doesn’t he?

Speaking of Legend, he takes the reins, asking Skitter who she is and to explain herself. His question is simple:

“So where do you stand, then?  Where do you see yourself in terms of the sliding scale of good and evil, heroes and villains?”

I doubt she’ll say she’s a hero, especially if it makes her be on the same level than Armsmaster or Shadow Stalker. She also doesn’t seem to me like she’d proudly call herself a villain. Perhaps she’s a neutral person? Leaning towards evil?

Her answer seems to hint she considers herself a villain, even if she doesn’t outright say that. She just says ‘Some of us wear the villain label with pride’. Maybe I’m reading too much into this and that’s meant to be a mere general statement, but yeah.

“There can be. You could do what’s right.”

I was getting an inkling of what Bitch referred to as ‘words’.  Prattle that meant so very little in the face of what was happening in the present.  Was this the kind of irritation, impatience and anger she felt with so many social interactions?

Empty platitudes, in other words. I can see why Heckpuppy would be so angry with people in general, if this is the kind of thing she heard all the time.

“Speak for yourself.  You want to hide here while my group and Hookwolf deal with the brunt of the Nine’s attention.  Just like you did with the ABB.“

Let’s have a minute of silence for the sudden death of any hope the Protectorate would help them. Such a short-lived hope...oh well. I doubt they’ll want to help them after Skitter accused them of being cowardly and leaving the villains to clean up other villains’ messes.

Thankfully, any fallout is forgotten when they admit they can’t even contact Armsmaster because he’s gone. Not dead, just gone. He escaped from his hospital room. Interesting...it could be he’s hiding or constantly on the move. I think it’s unlikely he left the city, he’s too injured for something like that. He may still be around. Skitter doesn’t like it at all, and for a moment wonders how bad of a thing that was.

For a brief moment, I contemplated having Trickster teleport me to ground level, so it was me talking to the local heroes, and not just my swarm.  I could tell them that I was putting my well-being in their hands, risking them arresting me, as a gesture of good faith.

Except I couldn’t help but see myself from their perspective.  Warlord of the Boardwalk.  I’d rotted off Lung’s manhood and carved out his eyes.  I’d played an undefined role in Armsmaster’s downward slide. I’d robbed a bank, terrorized hostages with poisonous spiders, attacked their headquarters and used insects dipped in capsaicin to cripple their junior heroes with incapacitating pain.  All the while, I’d acted with a seemingly ambiguous morality.  Was I a good guy doing all the wrong things?  Or did they see me as dangerous and unhinged?

She’s got a point there. All of her actions are villainous, no doubt. She forgot to add how the bank she robbed was a distraction for someone else to kidnap Dinah. That’s the one thing I’m sure can’t be ever mentioned in a positive light.

It’s way more likely they think she’s dangerous and unhinged. They can’t give the benefit of doubt to any villain. That’d be a big risk. Sorry, Skitter, you’re not going to get any help.

Giving up, Skitter plays nice and gives them one last tip about Bonesaw’s enhancements on the vulnerable members of the Slaughterhouse Nine, and the swarm leaves. This was a failure. Now what? Trickster shows some empathy and tries to point out what they have in their favor.

They have Shatterbird. From what I remember of how they controlled Shadow Stalker, that means they have quite the strength available to them. Shatterbird is a strong and powerful parahuman, they can do something with her. There’s also Imp, who may be working from the inside. It’s all good points, yet none of them make Skitter feel better. What Trickster says next kind of does.

“Would it reassure you to know that your conversation with the local heroes gave me an idea of my own?”

Oh, really? Well this is good! Trickster has a plan! This will be interesting. Time isn’t on their side, so this is actually a lot of help. The chapter ends here. I suppose what follows next is an interlude to finish it, so the next arc is Trickster’s plan, so I think I’ll go ahead and read the interlude in this update too.

I was wrong, Snare continues. Golly, how long is this arc? It’s already the eighth chapter, and there’s still Trickster’s plan ahead. That’s bound to take two or three chapters more, unless this chapter is only about informing everybody about the plan instead of doing it – which I find unlikely, since Skitter’s plan was done without an expository chapter to inform the reader about the plan. Let’s see...

Yep, as expected, they’re already on their way to doing this plan, whatever it is.

“I was a lot more comfortable with the risky plan when it was something I thought of,” I said.

“You said calculated recklessness, right?”  Trickster asked.

“Part of that ‘calculated’ bit is control.  Keeping the chaos to a minimum, so we can anticipate and plan.”

Trickster leaned against the door of the vehicle.  “That may be a bit of a problem.”

Sounds like it’ll be a rather chaotic plan. Skitter’s plan had nothing chaotic about it – true, it had tricks and disorientation, but it was all planned in advance, they had time to plan and consider variables. Right now they don’t. I guess chaos is what’s expected from a plan that didn’t go through a careful vetting process to make sure it won’t end in confusion. It’s not like they can think of better alternatives right now.

I don’t think they’re divided in groups this time, since Heckpuppy is along with her dogs in one truck, and I doubt they’d leave her to do whatever she wants. Trickster, Sundancer and Tattletale are in a truck with Skitte. Yep, Tattletale has left the safety of Coil’s underground hideout, and is going headfirst into danger. They need her nearby so she can be more effective with her tips and deduction skills. I just hope she’s not going to receive another grievous injury; she deserves a break.

Regent and Ballistic are in another truck. No mention of Shatterbird, so...I guess he wasn’t able to take over her in time for this. How unfortunate.

Everyone is rather nervous about having to go fight the Slaughterhouse Nine for a second time. In hindsight I can see how Skitter’s plan was an indirect attack, thanks to its results. Since this will be a rescue mission instead of an attempt to kill anyone, it should also count as an indirect attack and therefore not fit Dinah’s prediction about 50% chance of the Undersiders dying, right? I sure hope so. Skitter’s method of coping with stress is analyzing the situation, except this time it isn’t working, it’s filling her with doubts about her allies. What Cherish said about Trickster seems to have affected Skitter, somehow. I’m not sure if I’d be giving Cherish too much credit by saying she intended that, so...I won’t.

The last time we’d all been in a car with Trickster, he’d noted that there were two major problems that Coil was helping them with.  Noelle was obviously one.  A part of me could buy that there was something serious going on with her, something that necessitated the help of someone like Coil.  Another nagging part of me was thinking that there were still too many unanswered questions.  What was holding them together as a group?  How fragile was that tie?

Yeah, the vault and all that do indicate they have to work for Coil. For everyone’s sake. That said, Mr. Wildbow sure is saying over and over that the Travelers have problems and seem on the brink of not cooperating with each other anymore. Is it going to be important? Like, will this get so much focus it could count as another story arc? It’s starting to seem like it will, so I suppose it’ll be part of any attempt to defeat Coil. Most likely as the way to remove Coil’s power over the Travelers – I don’t think the Undersiders will be able to help Noelle with whatever’s wrong with her, so I’ll say they’ll convince the Travelers there’s another option than working for Coil. All this should come once the Slaughterhouse Nine problem is solved, though. One big arc at a time!

Since thinking of how she distrusts the Travelers is kind of counterproductive, she changes tracks and thinks about her powers.

I thought over my arsenal and the options I had with my power.  I’d developed enough techniques that I was starting to have trouble keeping track of them all.  Should I name them?  It seemed like something out of a kid’s show, shouting out the names of the abilities as I used them.  ‘Firebug attack, go!’  ‘Silkwrap Strike!’

Ah, really? Are you gonna strike a sentai hero pose and arrange a few controlled explosions to burst behind you too? Are the Slaughterhouse Nine going to be defeated in a shower of sparks and more explosions? It’s a fun thought, I admit!

Skitter is feeling tired and dazed, because since Mannequin attacked she didn’t have a moment to relax and let her guard down. Well, that’s just how things work in the Worm universe. There’s barely a moment to rest.

Once they arrive to where they’re supposed to it, it actually takes her a few seconds to move to get out. Nobody wants to go into this second encounter, but it’s not like they have another options. Only when someone in another truck steps onto the sidewalk, Skitter and the others get off too.

They’re in Dolltown. Hm, makes sense they would be near the place they fought, yeah. Everyone in there better have left while the first fight was happening right on the edge of the territory. Soon, Shatterbird lands near them – Regent did manage to gain control over her! – and Genesis makes a massive form. Everyone’s as ready as they’ll ever be.

Controlling Shatterbird isn’t easy, and Regent doesn’t know how to use her power effectively yet. She also is fighting as hard as she can, trying to regain control over herself.

“How much is it slipping?” I asked.  “Is there a chance you’ll lose control of her?”

“Always a chance.  But I think I’m okay, so long as she and I remain pretty close to each other.”

Cherish must have informed her teammates about how Regent’s power works. I bet they will try to separate Shatterbird from him as soon as possible.

The location of their enemies is pinpointed, and now they’ll wait. First Skitter has to investigate and find out if there are any civilians anywhere. Turns out there were. Damn it, they didn’t have time to run away, I guess.

Skitter’s suggestion is to do something to save all these innocent lives. Nobody agrees with her position, not even Sundancer, because it’d be risky and would put everyone’s lives in danger, including Grue’s. I have to agree with everyone here: a bunch of people running away from Dolltown would get a lot of attention, and I think a couple of the Slaughterhouse Nine would be delighted to pursue running prey. It’s unfortunate, but they may have to leave these civilians on the line of fire. Skitter was almost ready to do her own thing to save the civilians when things suddenly get more complicated.

Purity streaked across the sky, followed by Crusader and a floating rock carrying a whole contingent of their group.  The rest would be moving along the ground.

That makes it sound like Skitter knew they would be coming. Does that mean they asked for Purity’s group’s help?

Apparently not, because the first move is to send Shatterbird and Genesis after them – Genesis resembles Crawler, and has growths that look like Jack and Bonesaw. Oh my god, what’s going on now?

Coil had informed Hookwolf’s contingent about the general location of the Nine.  Sure enough, they’d gathered, girded themselves for battle and marched on, hoping to overwhelm through sheer firepower and force of numbers.

Alright, whose idea was this? Trickster’s? Because this guarantees this will be a chaotic mission. Way too much unpredictability, way too much risk of being caught in the crossfire, and it’s not like Purity will think of the Undersiders and Travelers as allies, especially if she finds out they’re distracting her right now. I’m really not sure how well this plan will work.

But, we were hoping, it would put the Nine in a position where they had to decide whether to hold their position or respond to the immediate proximity of this many enemies.

Or they could run away. That’s an option too. It’s not like they’d have they can’t do that, and they have that on their favor. Mannequin can be outrageously fast, Crawler won’t like running away but it’s not like he can be hurt while fleeing, the Siberian can protect Bonesaw and Jack, and Burnscar...well she can get away somehow. Fire teleportation should help with that. Part of the reason why they have survived is that they pick their fights. They have their own calculated recklessness.

Shatterbird and Genesis were tasked with distracting Hookwolf’s forces and preventing them from mounting a direct attack on the Nine’s real position.  We couldn’t save Grue if Purity leveled the building.

That depends on what their priority is. If their intention is to kill Jack, they may try to deter Shatterbird and pursue Genesis’ decoy, but the moment they realize it’s just a decoy they will level the building. It’s still pretty risky, honestly.

Deciding to take advantage of this distraction, Skitter goes ahead and tries to get the bystanders out. Nobody even said anything – pretty much a rebuke of her plans. Looks like you’re alone on this, Skitter. First she spreads her bugs to find bystanders. She quickly locates some people. There’s a group in the same room than Crawler, so...yeah, those aren’t getting out anytime soon. Her insects find the Slaughterhouse Nine themselves. They’re not making any effort to fight outside, they’re just watching. Not surprising – why to put themselves on danger if other people are the ones getting attacked?

Apparently they’ll have to wait for the Slaughterhouse Nine to be forced to act. They’ll have to wait quite the long time, then. I mean, it doesn’t seem like they’re getting ready or anything. Crawler is resting, the others are just watching. The only one who seems to be more or less doing something that could be interpreted as preparation is Mannequin.

Getting the civilians out of the surrounding buildings was rather easy. They follow Skitter’s instructions and get to safety. No way the Slaughterhouse Nine didn’t notice, especially if they’re watching. Jack will know Skitter did this. During her search, she also finds what could be one of Parian’s stuffed animals, and another group of people on the top floor. No Grue anywhere yet, despite checking the building extensively. Hm...if it wasn’t for Tattletale being adamant about he being trapped there, I’d think he wasn’t. Also, where’s Imp? In a bathroom, most likely. Would her bugs be able to feel Imp?

In an effort to get their enemies to move, Skitter asks Regent to get Purity to shoot towards the building. It was successful. Just like they expected, the Slaughterhouse Nine reacted – by letting Crawler’s hostages go. The hostages leave the building, running. That’s when one of the Slaughterhouse Nine’s many tricks is revealed.

Bonesaw’s talents apparently included crude plastic surgery.  If ‘crude’ was even the right word.  Every hostage wore the appearance of one of the Nine.  The group that headed towards us had three Jacks, a Siberian and a Bonesaw.  Their expressions were frozen, their eyes wide with terror.  None of them were perfect, one was too heavy in physique to be Jack, and the Bonesaw had apparently been a short-statured woman who’d had her shins and forearms sawed to a shorter length and reattached.  The resemblance was close enough that someone could mistake them for the wrong person at a glance, and that was all the Nine needed.

“Decoys,” the word was hollow as it left my lips.

Clever. Horrifying, but clever. In the middle of a fight not many will look twice before striking, especially if your opponent is a worldwide threat. I think these decoys would work. I wonder if they had this idea for quite some time, or if they thought about it after getting fooled by Grue and Skitter’s decoys not that long ago.

Taking advantage of the confusion, the real Slaughterhouse Nine come outside. Crawler immediately bolts towards the attackers – of course – and the rest seem to be run away. Maybe? Say, are there decoys of Mannequin? He’s included among those who are among the decoys. Bonesaw is still inside the building, maybe ready to prepare more decoys if necessary, or to guard Grue.

Since the Slaughterhouse Nine made their move, the Undersiders get into action. Thanks to Trickster’s power, they’re interchanged with a few hostages who were inside the building. That’s really going to disorientate those hostages, suddenly finding themselves outside, I mean. The inside of the building smells awful, and soon Skitter notices Heckpuppy isn’t with them.

He hadn’t brought Regent, because Regent was focused on Shatterbird.  That was part of the plan.  Leaving Bitch behind wasn’t.  I could understand it if it was because of a lack of mass to swap with, but my doubts about the Travelers and about Trickster specifically led me to ask, “You figure Bitch will cover our retreat?”

“And if one of the Nine is here,” Trickster said, his voice low, “We don’t need her dogs making noise.”

“Right.” Okay.  Made sense.

I just hope he told her. Otherwise I don’t think she’ll be pleased to suddenly be alone.

There are few places her bugs couldn’t get into, and one of them may have been turned into a makeshift cell to hold Grue in. Nothing to do but check every place – and hope Grue isn’t anywhere near Bonesaw, I’d say. They check the places, not finding him, until they arrive to the restaurant. There’s a fridge and a walk-in freezer. If Grue isn’t in any of those places...well, it’s going to be difficult to find him. Tattletale informs there’s no traps in the freezer, so Skitter opens it. What she finds inside horrifies her. No description yet, I suppose it’s coming...I better get ready and scroll down, see what exactly got Skitter upset.

Oh. Oh my goodness. Oh goodness, this is...wow. I was actually speechless for a moment, just reading the description over and over. Give me a moment, I have to let it dawn on me.

Alright, it has been like five minutes, I think I’m ready to continue. I’m surprised because it’s much worse than I expected and I had gone through some gruesome scenarios, and I’m wondering how much longer he’s going to stay alive, because I see no way he’s going to survive this. Grue is alive, yeah, and forcefully kept alive thanks to a collaboration between Bonesaw and Mannequin. Just as expected, he wasn’t left untouched. They pretty much eviscerated him. His organs are spread around the freezer, and he’s still conscious, if seemingly addled and most likely in tremendous pain. Removing Grue from the wall is going to be awful. I really can’t see how he’s going to survive, because I doubt he can even be taken out of this building. Not only that, he’s going to get one heck of an infection, because everything is exposed.

This is certainly not how I thought Grue would die. None of the Undersiders are going to take this well at all, especially not Skitter. Grue stayed behind following a plan she made. Skitter gets upset when strangers she’s protecting get hurt for reasons and circumstances she had nothing to do with, I’m sure it’ll be even worse when a guy she was attracted to died because a plan she masterminded. This is going to be nasty.

That aside, kudos to Mr. Wildbow for originality. Well done on that regard.

Of course Skitter tries to step ahead to go help Grue, and that somehow causes him to seize in what seems to be pain. Tattletale forces her to step back.

They looked like hairline cracks, spiderwebbing across everything from the walls to the shelving and even the ceramic cases that Mannequin had set up.  Except they were raised, over the surfaces.  “Veins?”

“Exposed nerves.  Artificially grown, connecting from him to the rest of the room.”

You know, excessive pain can make a person faint or go in shock. I sure hope that happens to Grue, if only so he doesn’t have to be conscious anymore. With some luck his last moments not be excruciating torture, yeah? Because, unless Panacea is stashed in that fridge over there, he’s not going to survive. Bonesaw is the only one I can imagine could revert this, and there’s no way she will.

They do say Panacea could fix him, but that she won’t, because by now she’s going to be far away from downtown – still in the city, but not downtown. Forcing Bonesaw to do it is the only option, and Skitter is willing to give it a try. Doing a mercy kill like Ballistic suggested isn’t something she wants.

Once again she’s the only one willing to do something. They all think killing Grue is for the better. Dang, this rescue mission is already a failure.

There’s a moment to sense through the insects what the Slaughterhouse Nine are doing outside. Of course, they’re all in middle of the fight. Mannequin is going all over the place, Burnscar is using her fire in smart ways, the Siberian and Crawler are doing what they do best, and Jack is very competent and experienced, going for quality over quantity with his slashing. I see how this man has survived in fights for so long.

Back to the building. Skitter strides towards Bonesaw, who is still standing in front of the window, surrounded by dead bodies. Skitter barely has time to send a swarm when Tattletale stops her. Bonesaw turns around, revealing she’s not Bonesaw. It’s another decoy. Well then! A trap has been sprung!

Behind Skitter, her allies fall one by one – Tattletale included. I bet she’s not happy to once again be in mortal danger. Sorry, Tattletale, it has been a while since you could get through a mission uninjured. I joke about Cricket because of her injuries by exaggerating how often she gets hurt, but at this rate I’ll have to change it to Tattletale being the one getting hurt all the time.

“Why won’t you go down!?”  The voice was petulant.

I followed the voice and saw one of the corpses move, rising to its feet.  Bonesaw unzipped the covering of dead flesh she’d covered herself in and shucked it off.

Okay, I never stop being surprised at the tactics they use. She literally used someone’s skin to make a costume for herself.

Skitter also got hit by paralyzing darts, but it didn’t affect her because her costume protected her. This is her cue to blame herself for not finishing at least one costume, instead of working on all of them at the same time. The guilt trip doesn’t last long, replaced with anger. She demands Bonesaw to give everyone an antidote for whatever paralyzing agent she used, and then fix Brian. Whooops. She slipped the name.

I’d let Brian’s name slip.  Dumb, dumb, dumb.  I wasn’t thinking straight.

How curious...Skitter kept doing stuff to enrage her opponents so they make mistakes, and here she’s the one who slips because of anger. Alright.

Bonesaw obviously refuses to fix what she did to Grue, so Skitter reacts by charging forward with her bugs and weapons. Her insects telegraph what Bonesaw is going to do, she dodges a cloud of some sort of dust. Instead, she dodges, goes to attack, and is tackled by one of Bonesaw’s spiders, it having come out of a corpse. You know, at this point I’m pretty sure all the dead bodies here have a nasty surprise inside. More and more spiders arrive, holding Skitter down, so Bonesaw approaches and blows more dust into her face.

Skitter tries to delay the inevitable by holding her breath. It doesn’t work, soon she’s paralyzed, maybe it’s the same one she injected into everyone else. By using her spiders, she drags everyone back to the dining hall. Clearly she’s planning to have all her projects in the same place. All the fainted bodies are piled onto each other, Skitter stares at one of the masks below her.

Imp. She’d got Imp.

Oh. Guess she was found wherever she was hiding.

The chapter ends with Bonesaw about to have fun. She already claimed she’s going to examine Skitter’s brain to determine how she uses her power. She may do the same to everyone else. Things look pretty bad, Grue is in a warm freezer suffering a lot, the fight outside...who knows how it’s going. The arc isn’t over yet, I’m sure.

I would continue with the next chapter now, but I think this update has gone for long already, so I’ll have to cut here. Unfortunately, the schedule says it’ll be quite a while before the next part! I feel so tempted to check the next chapter, just to know what happens! But I’ll have to be strong and hold back my curiosity.

Thank you for reading!

Next time: in seven updates

[liquidink21]

Half-Life 3

So I’m going to write my own version of the next installment of the Half-Life series, because Epistle 3 was a disappointment, Valve’s probably not going to do it, and I don’t have much faith in Project Borealis. Even this probably won’t include everything I had ever wanted it to, and is probably poorly written, but whatever. SUPER long post under the cut.

Gordon finds himself on the stalker car of the razor train he and Alyx escaped from the Citadel on. Alyx is murmuring cryptically to herself. The stalker pods burst open, revealing not stalkers but zombies. They quickly seize Alyx, who doesn’t even defend herself as she’s mauled to death. Two zombies restrain Freeman, as a third stands in front of him, and removes its headcrab to reveal Eli Vance.

It’s just a dream. Gordon wakes up in a tent. Wind is howling outside. Alyx, alive and well, it pleased to see Gordon awake. She tells him she’s repaired the gravity gun. The storm is dying down, and they exit the tent. Outside is the wreckage of the helicopter they flew in on. Gordon tests the gravity gun on the fragments (this serves as a tutorial for players who haven’t played HL2). They’re interrupted by a hunter-chopper sweeping the area. Alyx finds Gordon a gun. They are accosted by scanners, now equipped with laser weapons (like in that leaked test map). They eventually lose them.

Alyx informs Gordon that they have to find Doctor Mossman, who they were communicating with before their helicopter crashed. She has sealed herself in an old research station, and it’s only a matter of time before the Combine breaks in to seize her. Gordon and Alyx trek across the ice, keeping to a series of gullies in the ice to try and avoid the Combine patrols alerted to their presence. They is a large Combine structure off to the distance.

Alyx and Gordon discover the research station, the same one they witnessed in Mossman’s transmission. Indeed, they enter the base through the very same breach the Combine made during that transmission. The Combine have taken the base, and must be fought through. There is a vault in the centre of the base, that the Combine are trying to breach. Gordon kills them just as they penetrate the vault, where they discover Mossman and her surviving rebel fighters.

A brief scene occurs between Alyx and Judith. Judith receives word of Eli’s death for the first time, distressing her. Alyx is cautiously sympathetic, but quickly maneuvers the conversation towards wanting a explanation for Judith’s collaboration with Doctor Breen. Judith insists that Eli sent her as a double agent to spy on Breen. Her rebel associates vouch for her, claiming that Eli himself confirmed this to them. Alyx’s faith in Judith is restored, and they make plans to find the Borealis.

Alyx asks what terrible power the Borealis has that her father was so worried about. Judith comments that they’re a bit spoiled for choice: teleportation, time travel, dimensional transcendence... she explains that the Borealis became a test bed for Aperture Science’s most outlandish technologies, and inadvertantly became a space-time dreadnought. If the Combine, or any other nefarious organisation, seizes the Borealis, nothing could possibly stop them.

Mossman begins leading them back through the arctic wastes, to an entrance in the rocks. She explains that it leads underneath the Combine’s research installation. The ice encrusted caves turn out to be infested with headcrabs and zombies. The zombies are curiously outfitted in body-armour in reasonable condition. Alyx speculates that the Combine purposefully infested the caves with captured zombies to guard them without wasting troops. Alyx notices that they’re consistently moving downwards, though Mossman advises them to trust her.

Moving through the ice caves, the ice begins shattering, and several advisors burst into the cave. They rip through the rebels and begin sucking their brains out. One moves onto Gordon... It turns out to be a hallucination. Alyx and Mossman question Gordon’s mental health, but don’t linger on the topic.

The rebels reach the end of the caves, at the bottom of an enormous crevasse, from there, they begin scaling a series of Combine build ramps and elevators (this is where this scene comes from). Combine troops try and stop them, but are defeated. Advisors floating overhead begin to restrain the rebels with telekinesis, but Mossman manages to kill one with a laser weapon (the same one from the leaked test map). The other Advisors flee. Mossman explains that she took the weapon from the Citadel before she and Eli escaped.

They find their way up to the top of the crevasse, which is within the Combine fortress. They discover they are too late: the Combine has already seized the Borealis, tethered it to the installation, and are beginning to load it with Combine troops and supplies. The fact that the Borealis is bigger on the inside becomes apparent from the bulk of materiel being loaded. Alyx thinks they’re preparing to invade somewhere, Mossman thinks they’re just fortifiying it to prevent the Resistance from taking it.

In addition to the materiel being loaded aboard the Borealis, the Combine installation is heavily guarded. The incoming resistance back-up will be torn to shreds unless Gordon can soften them up. The team finds a control room in the installation, and after killing off the Combine stationed there, Alyx uses it to get a message to Barney, who leads the reinforcements, and warns him of the Combine fortifications.

Mossman wants to sneak aboard the Borealis and see if they can turn any defences against the Combine. Alyx contrarily wants Gordon to take out their weapons depot to take out the Combine Garrison. They split up to cover both options.

Gordon fights his way down to the weapon’s depot. On the way, he is assaulted by more hallucinations: Alyx and Judith shot on the Borealis, Barney’s helicopter shot down, and Kleiner and Magnusson executed back in sector 17. If it wasn’t already, it should be obvious by now that the Advisors are causing the hallucinations. One attacks Gordon, and it becomes a cat and mouse chase throughout the level. Alyx and Mossman keep in touch over the radio, informing him of their progress. On his way, Mossman asks Gordon to sabotage the Combine tethering system, preventing them from disengaging the Borealis.Gordon does so.

Gordon reaches the weapons depot and sets up explosives to cause a chain reaction with the Combine munitions. It becomes a puzzle boss with the Advisor, which is killed when the explosives are detonated. The explosion successfully takes out many Combine troops and synths. A shipment of headcrab shells survive the explosion, but are triggered by the shockwave, unleashing the crabs upon the Combine.

Gordon is hit by another hallucination. He is brought into a black void like those the G-Man drags him into, but it’s the Advisors who have brought him here. They communicate with him through a hallucinated figure (different each playthrough. Usually Breen, but potentially any named character in the HL series, excluding the G-Man but including Cave Johnson). They don’t understand why humanity fights the Combine. They believe the offer of Combine membership to be a beneficial deal all around, and they offer Gordon a position as Earth’s Administrator.

Gordon is snapped out of the hallucination by Barney, who has arrived with the resistance reinforcements. He informs Gordon that they wanted more reinforcements, but makes a foreshadowy remark that what’s left of civil protection is harassing the evacuated citizens back home, so they couldn’t spare many fighter for this mission.

What they have are now besieging the installation, and Barney tasks Gordon with leading the push to take the Borealis from the Combine. Hallucinations plague Gordon as he partakes in the three way battle between resistance, Combine, and zombies. Gordon sees glimpses of HECU and Xenian grunts massacring scientists. Eventually he makes his way to the Borealis and resistance troops are able to board it.

Barney and a few rebels, including Vortigaunts, are pinned down by Hunters, and Gordon has to rescue him. Barney unfortunately destroys the tethers holding the Borealis in place, mistaking their purpose as nefarious. Mossman warns that the Combine are preparing to teleport the Borealis out of the Arctic, and urges Gordon and Barney board immediately. The Borealis flickers in and out of reality. Alyx is on the deck awaiting for them. She has a Aperture Science portal gun slung over her shoulder which she uses throughout the rest of the game. She justifies not giving it to Gordon since he already has the gravity gun. The rebels are able to board with Alyx’s help, but in the shock of the Borealis making its jump, Gordon, Barney, Alyx, and the Vortigaunts are thrown off.

They land in Xen. Alyx is mystified by its beauty, but Barney remembers this place as a hellscape and wants to leave. Mossman is able to reach them by the radio. The Borealis is also in Xen. The Combine still control the ship and have used its self-altering interior to seal off the resistance fighters. She urges Gordon to return before the Combine manages to clean them out. The Vortigaunts claim they can track The Mossman and the Borealis with her.

Xen at first is a bit of a nostalgia trip. Houndeyes and bullsquid are present, along with headcrabs and antlions. Maybe some new alien wildlife too, like something the headcrabs can turn into zombies in the absence of humans, or something. After a brief trek through the Xen island, the team discover a Combine outpost, only very recently set up and manned by transhuman units. Off in the distance they can see dropships moving materials and troops across Xen. Mossman explains that if the Combine take control of the borderworld, not only will they make great leaps in their conspicuously poor teleporter technology, but their ability to conquer new universes will increase tenfold.

As if on cue, the far away Borealis fires an enormous beam of energy, big enough for the team to see, that tears a portal (conspicuously resembling one of the Portal portals) and an enormous Combine ship pulls through. Comments from Alyx and Barney confirm that this ship is the same kind of ship the Combine used in the Seven Hour War. If it attacks Earth, nothing could stop it, but fortunately it appears to be focusing its conquest on Xen. It remains visible in the sky for the rest of the Xen levels. Since this was once home to the Vortigaunts, Alyx asks them if they know of anything there that could help them.

The Vortigaunt suggest if they discover what’s left of the Nihilanth’s factories, there might be enough of its army left to launch an attack on the Combine. They split the team up; one Vort takes Barney and Alyx to find teleportation facilities, while the other takes Gordon to find the Mines.

Xen continues to feature fighting the malevolent wildlife, but there is an increasing density of Combine troops, including new varieties of synth. Gordon has to contend with their lair of a Gonarch (either a standard, fast, or poison, randomly chosen every playthrough). Antlions become more frequent, and the Vort provides Gordon with bugbait that stays with him throughout the Xen levels. This helps him in ammo starved levels. As the levels go on, Gordon witnesses the Combine purging the Xen wildlife and setting up devices over Xen crystals. Meanwhile, Alyx keep giving Gordon updates on their progress. She and Barney have about as much trouble as Gordon.

Hallucinations continue plaguing Gordon, including being teleported into the Nihilanth’s chamber and killed. He in fact visits the Nihilanth’s chamber, ruined and disused, and the passing is uneventful. Eventually they reach the Mines. They have fallen into significant disrepair in the last twenty years, literally rotting thanks to their organic nature, though the Vortigaunt remains hopeful that there’s enough left to revive an army.

They are attacked by an Advisor, and this quickly becomes a boss battle. The Vortigaunt cannot harm it, and rushes to summon assistance. Gordon is left with a “hold the line” bossfight. The Advisor is still invulnerable, sporting a psionic shield. Instead, Gordon has to contend with hallucinations resembling Black Mesa Security teams, while the Advisor continues to question Gordon’s resistance and extol the virtues of the Combine. Both Vortigaunts arrive, in their empowered purple state, and slay the Advisor. Also, Barney and Alyx arrive to witness this.

Still glowing with the Vortessence, the Vortigaunts send vortal energies through the Mines. The structure is not revived, but several abandoned barrels burst open to reveal Xenian grunts, and even some Gargantuas. For a moment it looks like they’re hostile, but turn out to obey the Vortigaunts.

The Vortigaunts lead the team and the newly awakened army to the teleportation facilities Alyx and Barney managed to secure. It’s an outdoor location, and in the sky they can see numerous revived manta rays heading towards the Combine carrier. Xenian grunts and gargantuas are teleported over as an advanced party (the manta rays supplying the other side of the portals) before Gordon, Alyx and Barney make the jump themselves. They finds themselves in a breach of the carrier’s hull in the wake of a massacre.

Mossman advises that Freeman try to find the carrier’s core and attempt to overload it. He and Alyx join the Xen forces in their battle against the increasingly alien Combine forces (there are barely any transhuman troops present) towards where Mossman guides him using a Combine terminal she’s seized. One of the Xen islands cashes into the carrier, and unleashes antlions for Freeman to command.

There are hallucinations here as well. When Gordon enters the reactor core, he instead sees himself in the test chamber, pushing the sample into the anti-mass spectrometer while Advisors cheer him on in their haunting alien language. The hallucination fades into the real control room. It’s design is significantly different from the Citadel reactor, because we want an entirely new experience here, don’t we? There is also a real Advisor and another bossfight with it. It has to be killed by punching dark energy spheres into it with the gravity gun. Freeman is able to overload the core with Alyx’s directions and set it for a meltdown. As the pair leave, Xenian grunts seal off the reactor chamber to prevent the Combine from fixing it.

Alyx has discovered a quick route for Gordon to return to the Borealis. The Combine carrier operates an internal tram system that brings him to the hangar that the Borealis is being kept in. The carrier begins rumbling and a few power systems begin exploding. Mossman tells Gordon that he needs to disengage the tethering system so the Borealis can escape. The Combine were going to do it themselves, but were killed.

Mossman warns she managed to activate the Borealis’ defences; a compliment of mobile turrests and lethal military androids. They’ve fought the Combine aboard the Borealis, and have also begun leaving the ship to fight the Combine on the carrier, and unfortunately have been programmed to kill everything. None of the resistance fighters have been harmed, but the Aperture androids cause Gordon and Alyx severe pain as they disengage the tethers.

This time Gordon and Alyx are able to board the Borealis properly, sealing themselves within the relatively normal looking bridge as it jumps. Barney is already inside. The Borealis teleports away just as the Combine carrier explodes. Gordon and Alyx enter the extended interior, which has an architecture similar to the Portal test chambers. They have to fight through a few Combine and lethal military androids until they meet back up with Mossman and the others.

They are unsure what the Combine is planning next, so they have make a straight up assault on the control room, which Mossman has located through the ship’s computers. Gordon, Alyx, and Barney lead the resistance fighters through the ever altering maze, through battling Combine and android forces, until they manage to take the control room. They discover they’re located above the City 17 train station. It’s implied the Combine wanted to kill Gordon the moment he stepped off the train, before he was armed or armoured.

Mossman tries to bring the Borealis back to the Arctic, using the time travel device to not only leave the train station, but never be there at all. She succeeds, and arrives back at the Combine installation mere seconds after it left. Outside the battle between Resistance and Combine rages on, and the Combine are gaining the upper hand. They attempt to make a push for the Borealis, prompting Barney and the resistance fighters to exit the Borealis to fight them off. Mossman, with control over the ship’s geometry, is able to create an immediate exit for them.

Now that Mossman has safely landed the Borealis in the Arctic, the inevitable argument begins. Alyx wants the ship destroyed, as her father wanted. Moss argues that the power of the Borealis is enough to ensure humanity’s survival against the Combine onslaught, and indeed could even be used to prevent the Combine invasion in the first place. Alyx argues that the power cannot be controlled, and its continued existence is a risk of the Combine taking control.

The conversation is interrupted by the Borealis making a sudden jump. They realise that the Combine is in the engine room and is trying to directly control it from there. Instead, they begin jumping randomly across space and time. From the viewscreens, they witness the Black Mesa desert, the Moon, Xen, the Combine Overworld, a Race X cameo, among many more alien worlds. Gordon is sent to deal with the Combine. Mossman gives him her super-laser gun.

Despite control of the internal geometry, Mossman can’t give Gordon a short route to the engine room. The Borealis is melting into alternative versions of itself, which is causes significant changes to the internal layout. Mossman and Alyx somehow remain safe from ending up in a timeline where the Combine still control the control room. Gordon has to navigate the trippiest maze yet, backed by a squad of his own alternative selves, against a suddenly multiplied Combine force and a few evil Gordons. Hallucinations still abound: enemy forces occasionally transform into cowering scientists begging Gordon for mercy, before turning back into Combine trying to kill him.

When Gordon enters the engine room, the dimensional bleeding ceases. The Combine army is reduced, but he loses his fellow selves, and goes up alone against three Combine Advisors. He is armed with the laser gun, which can kill them, but they now have their psionic shields to be broken through. The ensuring boss fighting involves a lot of weaponised hallucinations that get worse every time an Advisor is killed. Eventually he cleans the engine room out. There are no more Combine on board. He returns to the control room, which is now just a short walk.

Alyx and Mossman have agreed to destroy the Borealis, as per Eli’s wishes. However, they disagree again on how to destroy it. Mossman sets the Borealis down back int eh Arctic so it may be dismantled. Alyx however, immediately contacts Doctor Magnusson, and asks for the contact code for the Combine Overworld she gave him back in HL2Ep2. Before Mossman or Gordon understand what is happening, Alyx lifts the Borealis into space, in a collision course for the Combine Overworld, which she believes will destroy it. Mossman argues that this is insanity, and Alyx pulls a gun her somehow thinking this disproves anything. She makes Mossman have Borealis shift about in and out of a reality and around in time again, to make sure the Combine doesn’t catch it. The engine is set on overload so it explodes when it impacts.

All of a sudden, the G-Man makes his presence known to them all. Alyx doesn’t recognise him. Mossman recognises him from Eli’s descriptions, and tries to berate him. He freezes Mossman in time. Ignoring Freeman, the G-Man congradulates Alyx on her dedication to her mission and for her ingenuity in accomplishing it. He offers her a job with her employers, and gives her the alternative of dying in the Borealis’ impact. She refuses to go with him, until he offers to take Gordon with them. As she enters his doorway, he slams it shut. Alone with Freeman, the G-Man apologises for deception, informs him that Gordon’s contract is at an end, and suggests that he considers Gordon too passive in the resistance’s decision making, before making a snide insinuation that Gordon was just Alyx’s dumb muscle. He leaves, leaving Gordon and Mossman to their fate.

Mossman, no longer frozen, informs Gordon that Aperture Science has an escape pod aboard, designed for a single jump piggybacking on the Borealis’s drive back to Earth. The pair race across the Borealis to find it. On the exterior of the ship, the overloading of the core has caused the Borealis’ larger interior to start bursting from its smaller exterior. The ship rips itself apart as they flee. Mossman reaches the escape pod and board it. Gordon almost does, but the rupturing of the ship and distortion of gravity knocks it loose. Mossman takes Gordon’s hand and tries to pull him aboard. Gordon realises he’s too heavy in will only pull Mossman back without escape, so he lets go. With no way to get back to him, Mossman saves herself.

Gordon has nowhere to go, and just wandered through what seems to be a path in the Borealis’s bursting structure (classic Half-Life railroaded environments!). He reaches the front of the ship, and witnesses the Combine Overworld. An enormous dyson sphere, which he is getting ever closer to.

The Vortigaunts, which were noticeably absent since they were last seen on Xen, return at that instance and rescue Freeman.

The End.

At the start of the game there is a gas-mask in the helicopter wreckage. If the player carries it throughout the game and throws it into the G-Man’s doorway, they get an after credits scene where Alyx gets dumped into the same Osprey as Adrian Shephard.

[inyri]

ROADMAP ROADMAP ROADMAP

Find it here: Clicky clicky

Highlights:

-server merges! Everything’s paring down to 5 servers (2 NA and 3 Europe based on language) to help optimize queuing and the overall PvE/PvP experience

-next flashpoint NOVEMBER 28th: we’re following Theron to Chiss territory, and Raina Temple return

-next ops boss, Nahut, also on Nov 28th

-gearing and conquest overhaul

Full text:

Hi everyone! This edition of my Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ Roadmap offers a first look at the upcoming direction for the game, provides a brief review of our last few months, and offers insight into what you can expect for the remainder of this year. I look forward to hearing your feedback and reading your comments about our Roadmap.

As the Lead Producer, I feel like it bears repeating our team’s priority is to continue providing great story-driven gameplay along with multiplayer Star Wars™ content. Most importantly, we want to ensure everyone, including those who prefer solo activities, has an enjoyable experience every time you play our game. To help make this happen, we believe it’s the right time for our galaxy to come together.

UNITED FORCES CAMPAIGN Starting on October 10th and through a series of updates through November 28th, we’re making improvements to the way players come together in multiplayer experiences that make everything more accessible, convenient, and rewarding. We’ve outlined United Forces in the announcement blog where we describe the changes that help you find other like-minded players to join in group gameplay at almost any time, reinvigorating the fun of playing multiplayer. As part of this rollout, we have made a substantial investment in hardware, software, and network infrastructure to dramatically improve our service and make your experience awesome. I’m very excited about these improvements, so be sure to check out the blog and FAQs to find out more and get ready to come together in the United Forces Campaign.

Here’s the upcoming rollout schedule: October 10, 2017 – Game Update 5.5 – United Forces Foundation – in addition to a variety of Quality of Life (QoL) improvements, this update includes the underlying foundational structural changes needed to support United Forces.

October 24, 2017 – United Forces Formation – on this day, the game will be unavailable for an extended time as we’ll be setting up the formation of the campaign, replacing existing hardware and software with all the new Game Servers and supporting components. It will also include additional changes needed to support the deployment of the United Forces update.

November 8, 2017 – United Forces Update is rolled out and everyone moves to five new servers with new names as follows: Two servers in North America and three servers in Europe – one each of English, French, and German. You can expect extended downtime as we make the final improvements to the Server environments. Check the blog and FAQs to discover our new Server names.

November 28, 2017 – Game Update 5.6 – A Traitor Among the Chiss becomes available and includes something new for everyone!

GAMEPLAY DIRECTION

Over the past several months, we delivered the first two Boss Encounters of a new Operation, ‘Gods from the Machine,’ brought back Companions, made huge changes to improve the balance across our Classes, deployed two new Galactic Strongholds, revived the Nar Shaddaa Nightlife event, made the Galactic Starfighter (GSF) space combat experience even more rewarding, and most recently, revealed a traitor in your Alliance through a new Flashpoint. We’ve also made quite a few Quality of Life improvements, adding new character and legacy perks, increasing the ease of gaining Influence with your Companions, and enabling the ability to summon your Companion while moving. Based on the feedback we’ve seen on our forums, fan sites and social channels, we still have lots more to deliver. On November 28th, following the United Forces update, we are going to release our biggest multiplayer update of the year. We’ve got something for everyone! If you like story-driven Star Wars-style battles, you can jump into a new Flashpoint, ‘A Traitor Among the Chiss.’ If you like blasters-blazing big boss battles, get ready to face Nahut, the 3rd Boss encounter in the ‘Gods from the Machine’ Operation. For those of you looking for dogfighting in space, we are releasing a new Galactic Starfighter map that places you around the orbit of Iokath. For those who want to face off in PvP, we’ve got a new location for you, too. Plus, the update will include a multitude of additional features. My favorites include an enhanced Group Finder that makes grouping up quick and easy, Legacy bank improvements, a means of boosting a character to Level 70, and some cool United Forces rewards. We are also hard at work on features planned for early 2018, including overhauling the Conquest system with a stronger focus on Daily Activities and giving all guilds and players access to some great rewards. As you can see, we want all our players to benefit from the variety of new gameplay that’s coming. It’s going to take us a couple months to bring it all to you, but it’s also going to be fun discussing the updates, answering your questions, addressing your concerns, and watching your reactions. We will make our 6th year very memorable!

Story and Companions In our most recent Crisis on Umbara update (Game Update 5.4), players faced a deadly decision for your Alliance as you were forced to track down a traitor in your midst! There’s been lots of speculation about why this has happened, why anyone would betray the Alliance, and how we could allow such a horrible situation to occur. We know how impactful this has been on you, so perhaps knowing the story transitions to the Chiss on the planet Copero will give you a bit of insight as to what may happen on November 28 in A Traitor Among the Chiss (Game Update 5.6)! Although I won’t reveal where things are going after that, I can confirm that the thrilling conclusion to this chapter of the story is coming early next year… on a planet you probably wouldn’t expect to return to.

We know Companions make this game feel totally different while pulling on your emotions and making conversations exciting, frustrating, and extremely entertaining. We’ve given you the ability to customize many of them including Theron, Lana, Shae, Koth, and Senya, while at the same time changed how some interact with you. We continue to discuss ways of reintroducing you to your original Companions and will be returning several of them over the coming months. As we did with Crew Skill Missions, we’ll look to improve how you gain Influence with your Companions to increase their overall effectiveness.

Galactic Command

Since its introduction back with Knight of the Eternal Throne (Game Update 5.0 – KOTET), ranking through Galactic Command and upgrading your gear has remained controversial. We’ve made substantial improvements such as adding Gear Tokens in Operations, increasing Command XP (CXP) throughout the game, improved the drop rate for higher level gear, eliminated green drops for Tier 4, added set bonus stats to Prototype Tier 4 (Blue) gear, allowed you to purchase a full Tier 1 bonus set with command tokens, and enabled the ability to directly upgrade your gear with Unassembled Components. Based on your most recent feedback we are going to make additional changes which include the following: -Galactic Crate content improvements – we’re adding another slot in each crate that, no matter what Tier you’re in, grants a small chance to receive a higher tier Mod/Enhancement, Grand Chance Cube, CXP Buff, or CXP consumable. -Legacy Perk – For each character that reaches Command Rank 300, we will automatically add an additional 25% bonus CXP to your entire Legacy up to a maximum of 100%. You do need to purchase the initial 25% perk, but the additional 75% will be free. And, YES, this Perk is retroactive, so you will immediately benefit once we deliver United Forces Foundation. CXP for all areas of the game is in review – as some players experienced with the Planetary Daily Areas, increased CXP makes us happier, so that’s our plan for all areas throughout the game and will coincide with A Traitor Among the Chiss update.

Also with A Traitor Among the Chiss, we’re changing how Disintegrate works – instead of receiving more CXP, we will provide you with Unassembled Components for armor and weapons. In addition, you can send those components to any character in your Legacy as we’re changing these to be Legacy-bound consumables. Please note we will not introduce a new set of Tier gear for Galactic Command this year! Instead, we will be offering a special set of Augments to enhance your existing gear. These will drop in the Copero Flashpoint or can be purchased from a Copero vendor. In addition, we’ll offer an even better version of augments you can craft from materials gained through both PvP and PvE activities.

Operations We will continue to use our Public Test Server to get your feedback on each Boss encounter. We are in the process of finalizing Nahut, The Son of Shadow, who has new mechanics that will make the fight very entertaining for everyone yet very challenging for our most veteran of players. Next month, we’ll begin testing our 4th Boss encounter, Scyva, who will also deliver new mechanics to give progression groups a major challenge while getting them ready for the final Boss encounter with Izax. You can expect Izax will not go down easily and will be the most exciting encounter for ‘Gods from the Machine.’ Both Scyva and Izax will be made available in early 2018 and for those of you who enjoy the ultimate level of challenge. Our plan is to follow up with Master Modes of each boss fight, too. Beginning with United Forces Foundation, we’ll begin to include Unassembled Components as rewards on Master Mode Operation Boss encounters. This will allow players who gather enough components to directly upgrade their Tier gear pieces.

Class Balancing and Gameplay Experiences Some of the most impactful and controversial changes we made recently were those related to Class Balancing. Over the past few months we also determined many areas of the game were also imbalanced. Over the coming months, we’ll continue to refine Advanced Classes and adjust various World Bosses, plus Boss encounters in Flashpoints and Operations to ensure you can play whatever character desired.

Player versus Player (PvP) Starting with United Forces Foundation, we are increasing Bolster to 242 for non-ranked Warzones and Arenas which doesn’t remove the gear chase, but gives everyone a fighting chance. It still gives those who have made the effort to get Tier 4 gear to benefit from their time investment. Since many of us like to PvP on a variety of characters, with A Traitor Among the Chiss update (Game Update 5.6), your Unassembled Components will become legacy-bound. Now you can focus your entire Legacy on gearing up one or more characters a lot faster. In addition, we will release a new PvP map along with a new Galactic Starfighter map located in orbit above Iokath. In United Forces Foundation (Game Update 5.5), we will introduce extensive ship and component balance changes to Galactic Starfighter. Additionally, we will be adding some quality of life improvements to GSF.

Quality of Life As a reminder, Quality of Life (QoL) is a term we use to reference improvements we make to enhance your gameplay experience. QoL improvements include changes to existing game systems, improvements to the User Interface, simplifying ways to do things in-game, increasing the speed of mounts, adding Legacy Perks, and more. A cool change we are delivering with A Traitor Among the Chiss is the ability to add Credits to your Legacy Bank. You will retain the ability to have credits on your character, so this will work very similarly to how you use your Guild Bank, but it’s for all your Legacy characters. After reviewing your feedback, we decided to limit currency changes to Credits and Unassembled Components as those provide the most positive and impactful change.

SCHEDULE Here’s the plan for the remainder of this calendar year:

New York CANTINA - October 6, 2017

-Cantina on October 6, 2017 at Stitch Bar and Lounge, located at 247 W 37th St, New York (7-11pm ET) We have a special guest attending who will provide insight about Game Update 5.6 – A Traitor Among the Chiss! Members from the SWTOR Dev Team including myself will be there. We can’t wait to meet you! Lots of free swag, food, and drinks to share with friends and guildmates

United Forces Foundation - Game Update 5.5 – October 10, 2017 -Unassembled Components now drop off all Master Mode bosses -Improvements to Galactic Starfighter -PvP Bolster increased to 242 -The Dark vs Light pop-up will now display less frequently and once a side has won, they will remain in a victory state much longer. This allows more time to work to defeat the world bosses and to reap the benefits! -Substantial improvements to the Iokath Daily Area – we’ve dramatically reduced the Iokath currency requirements for a variety of the daily quests -New Galactic Command Rank Legacy Perk that will give up to a 100% CXP bonus under Command Rank 300! -New Companion Customization Vendor available in the Fleet Bazaar. The vendors will sell older Companion Customizations for “opposite-faction” Companions. Ex: A Republic player could now get an older Vette customization. -Additional Class Balance changes Introduction of taxi points into the Yavin and Tatooine Strongholds for faster navigation Cartel Market Store changes -United Forces structural changes (improvements not visible)

United Forces Formation – October 24, 2017 As we prepare for the United Forces update, we are planning an extended downtime on this day as we need to rollout all the new hardware and vital infrastructure changes.

United Forces Goes Live - Game Update 5.5.1 – November 8, 2017 Today, we forge our new United Forces galaxy from a broader set of server communities into a set of larger, but fewer Servers. An extended downtime is planned for this effort. For a full week, we’re bringing back Double Rewards (XP, Command XP, Valor, Requisition) Simply log in to play and qualify for the new Mini Mogul NM-1 mini-pet, inspired by one of our classic Operation bosses, Karagga the Unyielding! Unlock new achievements when you complete multiplayer activities using Group Finder and earn the merciless Darth Hexid Companion!

A Traitor Among the Chiss - Game Update 5.6 – November 28, 2017 NAHUT - The 3rd Boss Encounter for Gods from the Machine Operation -New Flashpoint on Copero – Find out what Theron’s been up to with the Chiss -New PvP map -New GSF Map set in the Orbit above Iokath Group Finder Revamp – Significant upgrades to how you queue for multiplayer and solo activities – huge bonuses for all Random play choices, but also allows for easy selection of individual activities such as Daily Areas, Flashpoints, and Operations. -Class Balance changes and a variety of utility adjustments -Launch of Legacy-wide currencies for Credits and Unassembled Components Galactic Command upgraded disintegrate system – this QoL improvement changes how disintegrate works and instead of CXP gives you legacy-bound Unassembled Components -Ensign Raina Temple returns! -Distribution of Special United Forces Rewards

Quality of Life changes -Star Wars: The Old Republic Six Year Anniversary Celebration! -Wookiee Life Day Celebration begins

A Look Ahead to Early 2018 And, just a few tidbits about what’s right around the corner: -The conclusion to this chapter of the story is coming where the Traitor reveals his true plan once and for all via a new Flashpoint -The final bosses and details about Master Mode for Gods from the Machine Operation -An upgraded Conquest system and new Daily Activity system with great rewards -More multiplayer gameplay experiences for both PvP and PvE

PLAYER COMMUNICATION Over the past few months we have worked to increase communication and transparency. The amount of feedback and input I have received from you as part of this process is overwhelming and humbling. I feel proud to be at the helm of a game that has such dedicated fans. We make games because we love to watch the fun and competition they bring to gamers like us. Thank you for listening, reading and responding and please continue to share your feedback with us on the forums, on Reddit, on social media and on other fan sites. We value your comments and we are listening! The next Roadmap update will arrive in the early part of 2018 and will highlight the changes we plan through subsequent months. I’ll leave you with this quote as it sounds like me: “I’m not one to dismiss an idea just because it sounds a little crazy.’ —Sith Inquisitor, in a conversation with Talos Drellik.

Respectfully, —Keith Lead Game Producer Star Wars: The Old Republic

[tea-and-cardigans]

Meeting Time

Hey everyone, here is a quick little AU oneshot that I did for the Bughead AU project.

It is based on the following prompt:

person A who sits in the back of every staff meeting and makes snarky comments under their breath about everyone the whole time and person B who arrived late and sat next to them and can barely hold in their laughter.

Betty and Jughead are social workers who are stuck in the dreaded weekly team meeting, Jughead can’t help himself but snark and Betty tries to contain her laughter. Also a little flirting.

I will preface this one shot by saying that my day job is as a social worker and I have been in many a team meeting wish you just wish would end so you can get out there and work with your clients, so this fiction is based a little on this. I hope you enjoy.

Where was she. Here he was stuck in yet another snoozefest, about cases, and numbers, and assessments and she was out traipsing around the town, getting to do some actual work. He considered for a moment that maybe she had overslept or called in sick but that wasn’t the Betty Cooper he knew. She was so dedicated to the job it made him worry for her.

He looked at the sheet of paper in front of him, he took the same one to every meeting. It had two columns, ‘Archie Says Something Stupid’ was at the top of one of them and the other had ‘Departmental Bullshit’. Under the first column were 15 little marks. He had attended three team meetings so far this year. This year was turning out to be Archie’s best year yet, he was almost proud of him. Or he would be if it didn’t mean that every stupid question that came out of his mouth resulted in additional time being added to what was already an overlong, unnecessary waste of time in his mind.

“Forsythe.” He looked up immediately at the sound of his name, well not the name he preferred to be called, but he had given up trying to tell Weatherby this. He was pretty sure Weatherby was just using it now because he knew he hated it. “Where’s Cooper?”

“Do I look like her babysitter?” He snarked back.

“She sits next to you.” He had been a little hesitant at first having the new graduate sat next to his desk. A personal experience of the foster system and the constant disappointment of his career had made him somewhat cynical, okay a lot cynical. But that was how you survived in this job. The desk next to him had become almost a tunstile of rotating social workers. Burn out levels were high with the increased pressure to achieve results and if you didn’t learn to get a sense of humour quick you were done for.  When she had bounced in all bright eyes and blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail that made her look younger than her years he had commented that she wouldn't last the week. But she had, then she lasted the month and soon the year. Sure the job had taken its toll, it always did but she refused to let it drag her down. And she laughed at his jokes that always went a long way with him. She knew how to handle herself and the stress that came along inevitably with the job.

“Don’t remind me.” He said in mock frustration. He was sure that Weatherby had put the eager young graduate next to him on purpose, hoping that she would be the thing that finally drove him to the edge and handing in his resignation. Weatherby’s plan soon backfired as he liked to think that he had converted Betty to the dark side.

“This is the third time, tell her there will be consequences the next time I see her.”

“Will do boss.” Jughead gave a mock salute, before returning to his doodles in the corner of his piece of paper. He knew Weatherby was full of empty threats, Betty was too good at her job for him to fire. She would probably get another warning, or she would batt those pretty eyelashes at him and get a reprieve. Either way he wasn’t worried for her.

At that moment Betty entered the small meeting room, she tried to sneak past unnoticed before she knocked into one of the chairs, swearing under her breath on her way to the seat that was empty next to Jughead.

“Cooper, nice of you to join us.” Weatherby addressed her and she turned to face him while continuing to navigate the narrow space between the chairs and the wall.

“Sorry, I got caught up with the Smiths.” Boom,  there was the eyelash batting, and he had to stifle a laugh at her predictability.

“I’ll see you after.” Weatherby gave a loud cough as she smiled that thousand watt smile at him and he looked like he was about to choke. He wished he could give a smile to get what he wanted from Weatherby. He was never going to be in his good books. “Right, well now that everyone is finally here. Let’s talk numbers.”

“Did I miss much?” She whispered to Jughead as Weatherby droned on in the background pointing to a series of numbers on the large presentation screen in front of them.

“Just the usual, behind on paperwork, spending too much time in the home, and numbers are down.” He replied quietly while maintaining his best impersonation of Weatherby, which Betty couldn’t help but giggle at.

“What numbers exactly?” She raised her eyebrow in question highly doubting that Jughead had actually taken on much of what had been discussed.

“All the numbers, Betts, every single one of them,” he said as he leaned in closer his face serious and without humour as he lowered his tone. She rolled her eyes at him as she got her notebook out of her bag, placing it open with her pen at the ready to take notes she knew she would never actually look at again.

“So we need to start looking at ways we can maximise efficiencies.” Weatherby continued, with most of the team, beginning to scan the room for anything else of interest.

“We could just stop seeing people all together, you know that would make my job way more efficient.” Jughead chimed in, an eager smile on his face his hands clasped in front of him like an attentive student.

Weatherby gave a loud sigh that echoed through the small room.

“I’m looking for serious suggestions Mr Jones.”

“I am serious. Betty, does this face look serious to you.” He turned to Betty and narrowed his eyes slightly and pursed his lips in his attempt to look serious. Betty tried to hide her smile but could feel it breaking through when he gave a waggle of his eyebrows. For all his joking around Jughead Jones was good at his job. Betty knew that he cared for each one of the families that he was looking after, not that he would ever admit it. Although he would hide it with a joke or sarcastic comment Betty knew it hurt him just as much as any of his colleagues when things didn’t quite work out.

The first time she had put her hand on his shoulder when he slammed his phone down on the receiver after a call, he had looked at her stunned for a moment, before he relented and allowed her to rub shoulder gently through his jacket, sympathy written all over her face. Just as much as he was helping her survive in this job with his humour, she helped him survive with her kindness.

“Anyone else?” Jughead noticed Archie raise his hand, instead of just speaking like they were still at elementary school or something battling each other for approval from the teacher.

Betty turned to Jughead again who already had his pen poised in the Archie column ready to make another mark.

“He’s not doing too bad this year,” she whispered to him as she counted up the marks within the column. It had been Jughead’s way of coping with these meetings, instead of letting out the loud obnoxious groan whenever the redhead raised his arm above his head.

Jughead was half paying attention to her but also to Archie as he made another mark in the column as Archie finished his long winded but unhelpful suggestion. “Well he wasn’t doing too bad.” Betty corrected herself.

The meeting continued in much the same way for the next 20 minutes, Weatherby droning, Jughead making a snarky comment, Betty trying not to snort as she listened and Archie looking over at them confused while mouthing ‘What?’ as he seemed to be missing out on their little private moment within the crowded space.

“Right, that’s all for this week.” Weatherby finished as a collective sigh filled the room and he seemed a little put out at the team’s reaction. Jughead neatly folded his piece of paper and placed it in his jacket pocket ready for when it would be needed next meeting. He got up and waited for Betty to pack up her notebook, with it’s neatly written prose, before giving her space to move past him towards the exit.

“Ladies first,” he said with a flourish of his arm and Betty shook her head as she passed him.

“Betty we need to have a chat.” Betty gave a heavy sigh, closing her eyes, before straightening her posture and moving back towards the centre of the room as Jughead made his way to the exit. He gave a wave as Weatherby closed the door behind him.

 “So Ms Cooper, will I be seeing you in the storage cupboard in say 10 mins.” He finished with a slow wink, which Betty responded to by biting her bottom lip as if she was tempted before she gave him a playful slap on the arm. They had fallen into this pattern of flirtation, she played it off as light fun. It was a way to sometimes distract from the work, to earn a little reprieve.

“I told you already Jughead I don’t date co-workers.” He had begging her for a coffee for a months now. When their playful flirting had developed into something more for him and he wanted desperately for her to feel the same way.

“I’m not talking about dating. I’m talking maybe about reliving a certain moment that we had at our staff Christmas party.” Hooking up with Jughead Jones at her first work Christmas party had not been a proud moment for Betty, but she had had maybe a little bit too much to drink and he was there with his dress shirt, the top buttons undone and his ties loose around his neck. She had been wondering what it would feel like to run her hands through his hair, and as he sauntered up to her it had been waving back and forth in front of his eyes. He said something to her in that low tone of his, before roughly pushing his hair back from his face and she was grabbing a hold of his tie and practically dragging him to the first cupboard away from prying eyes that she could find. He had given her a knowing smile the next Monday at work and she had blushed furiously.

“Sorry Juggie,” She had sworn that it was going to be strictly professional from that moment and she had told him so. But soon enough she found herself falling back into old patterns and throwing coy looks his way in response to his gentle flirting. “I have a client visit, guess you are going to have to relive that moment all on your own.” She said before turning on her heel and heading towards the lift.

“A raincheck then?” he shouted across the room as she continued towards the exit. She threw up her hand waving to him, as he made his way back to his desk. Yes, he was definitely falling for one Betty Cooper.

[hollywoodjuliorivas]

The Opinion Pages | OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR James Comey and the Predator in Chief By NICOLE SERRATOREJUNE 8, 2017 Continue reading the main storyShare This Page Share Tweet Email More Save 442 Photo James Comey with President Trump at the White House in January. Credit Pool photo by Andrew Harrer As I listened to James B. Comey, the former F.B.I. director, tell the Senate Intelligence Committee about his personal meetings and phone calls with President Trump, I was reminded of something: the experience of a woman being harassed by her powerful, predatory boss. There was precisely that sinister air of coercion, of an employee helpless to avoid unsavory contact with an employer who is trying to grab what he wants. After reading Mr. Comey’s earlier statement, I tweeted about this Wednesday night, and immediately heard from other women who had seen that narrative emerge. How recognizable it was that Mr. Comey was “stunned” to find himself in these potentially compromising positions. His incredulity, mixed with President Trump’s circling attempts to get his way, were poignant. For a woman who has spent a lifetime wrestling with situations where men have power they can abuse, this was disturbingly familiar. On Jan. 27, Mr. Comey received a last-minute dinner invitation from the president, and then learned it would be “just the two of us.” On Thursday, Mr. Comey revealed that he had had to break a date with his wife in order to dine with Mr. Trump. Already, something about this “setup” made him “uneasy.” The central business of this intimate dinner was Mr. Trump’s insistence: “I need loyalty, I expect loyalty.” Mr. Comey immediately recognized that this was a press for something he did not want to give. He froze: “I didn’t move, speak, or change my facial expression in any way during the awkward silence that followed.” Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT Continue reading the main story That reaction — the choice of stillness, responses calculated to neither encourage nor offend that characterized so many of his dealings with Mr. Trump — is so relatable for any woman. During his testimony, Mr. Comey was asked why he had not responded more robustly, why he had not told Mr. Trump that he, the president, was acting inappropriately or reported his behavior immediately to others in authority. Mr. Comey expressed regret that he had not been “stronger” about it, but explained that it was all he could do to focus on not saying the wrong thing. In other words, he wanted to avoid granting any favor while avoiding the risk of direct confrontation — a problem so deeply resonant for women. During that interminable, awkward dinner, Mr. Comey struggled to convince Mr. Trump of the danger of “blurring” boundaries. But Mr. Trump was not deterred and returned to the subject of the loyalty he must have. There you hear the eternal voice of the predatory seducer: the man who knows how hard he can make it for a woman to refuse his needs. Mr. Comey tried to wriggle out of the trap being set for him. He offered his “honesty,” hoping this would appease his insatiable host. Mr. Trump countered with a demand for “honest loyalty.” Mr. Comey acquiesced. Yet as he documented this “very awkward conversation,” his concession of this phrase troubled him. He hoped he had not been misunderstood by the president. Newsletter Sign UpContinue reading the main story Sign Up for the Opinion Today Newsletter Every weekday, get thought-provoking commentary from Op-Ed columnists, the Times editorial board and contributing writers from around the world. Sign Up Receive occasional updates and special offers for The New York Times's products and services. SEE SAMPLE MANAGE EMAIL PREFERENCES PRIVACY POLICY OPT OUT OR CONTACT US ANYTIME The victim of sexual harassment is constantly haunted by the idea that she said or did something that gave her persecutor encouragement. Serial harassers, of course, have an intuitive sense of this, and are skilled at manipulating and exploiting it. Mr. Comey, you are not alone. How many of us have played over and over in our minds an encounter that suddenly took a creepy, coercive turn? What did I say? Were my signals clear? Did I do something ambiguous? Did I say something compromising? At a White House ceremony on Jan. 22, Mr. Comey reportedly tried to blend in with the curtains, so that he would not be noticed by the president. Mr. Trump called to him and pulled him, unwilling, into a hug. What woman has not tried to remain invisible from an unwelcome pursuer’s attentions? To this series of bizarre interactions, in which he faced escalating pressure, Mr. Comey reacted with rising anxiety and distress. Time after time, Mr. Trump reverted to his questionable agenda, and Mr. Comey, at each pass, tried to parry the president’s unwanted advances. This dynamic with the president became so disturbing to Mr. Comey that, after an Oval Office meeting in February, he implored the attorney general, Jeff Sessions, “to prevent any future direct communication between the president and me.” Mr. Comey did not want to be left alone with his boss again. We’ve been there, Jim. ADVERTISEMENT Continue reading the main story In their final exchange, on April 11, Mr. Trump told the F.B.I. director, “I have been very loyal to you, very loyal; we had that thing you know.” On May 9, having rebuffed the president, Mr. Comey was fired. “We had that thing.” Once more, the seducer asserts a shared intimacy that was not really there, attempting to ensnare his victim with an imputed complicity. 442 COMMENTS In the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape, Mr. Trump said of any woman he wanted: “I just start kissing them. It’s like a magnet. Just kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.” And he added: “Grab ’em by the pussy. You can do anything.” With the power of the presidency at his disposal, Mr. Trump thought that he could use the psychology of coercive seduction on the nation’s chief law enforcement officer. Victims of sexual harassment often face skepticism, doubts and accusations when they tell their story. That’s part of the predator’s power. But I’m here to tell James Comey, and all the women and men who have suffered at the hands of predators, I believe you. Nicole Serratore (@MildlyBitter) is a New York-based theater critic and travel writer. Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook and Twitter (@NYTopinion), and sign up for the Opinion Today newsletter. A version of this op-ed appears in print on June 9, 2017, on Page A27 of the New York edition with the headline: James Comey and the Predator in Chief. Today's Paper|Subscribe Continue reading the main story